Chapter 1 A Different World

The world outside Xichuan Town was vastly different from what Zhang Ji had imagined; it was an entirely different, mysterious, and ancient continent.

All he could see was:

A lone purple moon hung in the sky. Under its violet light, the earth stretched out, desolate and uninhabited. Endless, towering mountain ranges rose and fell, with countless deep forests and vast swamps. There was no sign of human existence.

No cities, no skyscrapers, no dazzling neon lights, no bustling traffic—only a vast, primeval landscape of mountains and rivers.

"Where is this?!"

"I remember Xichuan Town being near Xihong City, and the prosperous Ocean Capital... Where have they gone?!"

"Is this even Earth anymore?"

Zhang Ji was lost and confused.

He had seen this purple moon before when he broke through the shackles of his flesh to advance to Ancient Beast, and sensed something was wrong. Now, riding the wind and soaring through the nine-thousand-mile sky, he saw the truth, but it only plunged him into greater bewilderment.

The familiar world was gone, as if he had arrived on a primeval and mysterious continent.

Had the entire Xichuan Town transmigrated to another world?

Or had time regressed to Earth's ancient past?

"Ji—!"

Under the purple moon, a giant iron-winged eagle suddenly took flight. Its form was several thousand meters long, its wings like clouds hanging from the sky, casting a huge shadow. Blood-red eyes, like vast lakes, were terrifying, and curved talons gleamed with metallic light under the purple moon.

It saw Zhang Ji and swooped down to attack.

Zhang Ji saw it too, recognizing the ferocious bird he had encountered when he broke through to Ancient Beast. Immediately, his scarlet vertical pupils flashed with greedy and fierce light, and he prepared to strike back.

But suddenly,

"Boom~"

Under the firmament, strange mist surged, colliding with the giant eagle. It cried out in agony, plummeting into the distance. It spun around in mid-air, casting a resentful glance at Zhang Ji before flying away.

Zhang Ji tried to fly outwards, but the strange mist blocked him.

It was a spatial barrier formed by the strange mist.

He attacked it with his claws, but it felt like hitting a ball of cotton. His strength was weirdly nullified, making it very uncomfortable. After many attempts, he had no choice but to give up.

The entire Xichuan Town was sealed off by the power of the strange mist barrier; creatures outside couldn't get in, and creatures inside couldn't get out.

Zhang Ji flew around the sky barrier, observing the outside world, hoping to see a human, but his efforts were in vain.

The earth was vast and ancient, like a primeval world. Besides the giant, thousands-of-meters-long ferocious bird from earlier, there seemed to be behemoths moving among the mountains. Collisions caused mountain peaks to collapse with a deafening roar. In the dark, bottomless swamps, huge, mountain-like shadows stirred and swam, swallowing a thousand-meter-tall deer in one gulp...

Zhang Ji's eyes burned with fervor, filled with battle intent and a greedy ferocity.

"That is the most natural and primitive hunting ground!"

Zhang Ji's forked tongue flicked, but he couldn't fly out. The power of the strange mist barrier sealed off Xichuan Town.

He continued to practice his flying skills in the void. Flying through the sky had always been a human dream, which led to the creation of airplanes, but that relied on technology, not one's own innate talent.

Now, Zhang Ji possessed the gift of soaring through the nine heavens, flapping his wings and flying in the firmament.

His movements became increasingly smooth.

Sometimes he would ascend vertically, hiding in the sea of clouds; sometimes he would turn sharply, his huge body rolling continuously in the void; suddenly, he would leap vertically, soaring eight thousand meters in one bound, the misty sea churning behind his serpentine tail.

"Roar—"

Zhang Ji raised his three heads and roared, his voice as thunderous, sonorous, and majestic, filled with power, shaking the void for thousands of miles, echoing throughout Xichuan Town.

In an instant,

Everyone in Xichuan Town heard the beast's roar in the void. They looked up at the sky in fear and bewilderment.

But the thick fog obscured everything.

The crowd discussed curiously and uneasily.

"What's that in the sky? It sounds like a terrifying creature flying."

"The roar is like thunder; it's too terrifying. It must be an unimaginable ferocious beast."

"Does anyone else think that voice sounds familiar, like the roar of the King Cobra?"

Someone suddenly asked, and the crowd collectively froze.

Immediately, someone shook his head and laughed, "Are you stupid? The King Cobra is a snake; how can it fly?"

"That's right. The thing in the sky must be a ferocious bird, only birds have wings and can fly."

"That's not necessarily true. Snakes don't have claws, but didn't the King Cobra grow claws? If it can grow claws, why can't it grow wings?"

As soon as those words fell, everyone fell silent.

Indeed, the King Cobra could not be judged by common sense. Its evolution seemed different from everyone else's. So far, none of the other snakes in Xichuan Town had evolved snake claws or extra heads.

On the street,

Hu San led his white husky for a walk, and heard the thunderous roar in the void. He felt a surge of panic, wondering if another foreign beast had invaded Xichuan Town.

Beside him, the white husky he was leading on a leash curled up in fear.

"What's going on? This ancient ruin is barren and small, just a tiny speck compared to my home planet Tabi, yet ferocious creatures keep appearing one after another."

"First there was the King Cobra, and now there's a flying thing?"

The white husky's eyes were full of gloom and fear as it gnawed on its paws in distress.

"When will I, the Lone Lynx Tiger, ever stand up?!"

It stared at the fog-shrouded void, its eyes lost and bewildered. The mist was confusing, and so was it.

Just then,

An Eight-tailed Guhu Chicken flew through the fog, carrying a book under its wing.

From afar, it greeted Hu San, "Hi, Hall Master Hu, long time no see! I'm here to return 'Me and My Sister-in-Law's Summer' to you. It was a really good read."

It was Cao Xin Yin.

He had a calm smile on his face, and didn't seem as frightened as others when they saw Hu San, unable to even speak properly.

Hu San noticed Cao Xin Yin and quickly walked up to greet him with a smile, "So it's Mr. Cao, I'm so sorry for not welcoming you properly!"

He sounded delighted.

Because this Cao Xin Yin gave him a very mysterious feeling. What he said might sound absurd, but his predictions about Snake-baba had all come true. As a result, Hu San valued Cao Xin Yin very much, addressing him as Mr. Cao in his words.

Cao Xin Yin shook his head modestly and smiled, "I'm not worthy of being called 'Mr.', I just know a little about physiognomy and fortune-telling."

Hu San was shocked, "So Mr. really knows how to tell fortunes?!"

He was delighted, but also somewhat doubtful, pointing to the misty sky and saying, "There's a mysterious and huge beast flying in the sky. Mr. Cao, can you tell me, what is it?"

Cao Xin Yin smiled mysteriously, "Nothing more than Snake-baba!"

Everything that seems unbelievable to outsiders is normal for the protagonist blessed by destiny.

The dog authors didn't deceive me; isn't that how it's written in novels?

What's more, Snake-baba is not just any protagonist blessed by destiny.

He's clearly the kind of protagonist who's a great villain, destined to destroy heaven and earth, even creating a new era by launching a dark upheaval in the future is not impossible!