"Brother Xing, it seems like whatever is inside doesnât really welcome us. Do we still want to go in?" Shen Yun asked.
Han Xing nodded, "Yes, of course we do. This is the first city of the Human Race weâve encountered, we definitely have to explore it."
"However, Iâll go in alone first."
"Because I can see that there arenât many living beings inside. If itâs just a leader, I can also take the opportunity to complete the job-changing task."
"If I encounter any danger, Iâll call you guys."
Everyone nodded after listening.
Then, Han Xing piloted the Sky Island to the edge of this Suspended City.
Once the two large Sky Islands connected, Han Xing jumped directly onto the city wall.
Everyone watched Han Xing anxiously.
Han Xing waved and said, "Iâm going down."
With that, he jumped directly onto the cityâs street.
As soon as he landed, Han Xing prepared for combat.
A system alert appeared.
[You have entered Lamino City. The owner here was once a figure of noble status in the Human Race Empire. Your actions have already displeased them. Please leave their territory quickly.]
Han Xing ignored the warning and continued to explore this small city.
This was his first time seeing a human city in this world, and his heart was filled with curiosity.
Han Xing randomly approached a house, and the system indicated that the door was closed and couldnât be entered.
"Wonât let me in?"
Han Xing stroked his chin, looked at the door with a defense value of 50, drew the bowstring, and shot two arrows quickly.
Swish! Swish!
The doorâs defense value instantly dropped to zero.
Han Xing put away his longbow, clapped his hands, and said, "Isnât this doable?"
Bang!
Han Xing kicked the door open and walked in.
Inside, it appeared to be an ordinary family residence, with two floors, like a small western-style villa, with an exterior design full of artistic flair.
The entrance was a hall, with a bedroom on each side.
Inside the hall was a wooden staircase that seemed to connect to the villaâs second floor.
After rummaging around, Han Xing couldnât find anything valuable and left, uninspired.
After kicking down several doors, Han Xing lost interest.
Then, Han Xing continued to wander the streets, stopping when he saw an interesting building.
Along the way, he saw many buildings like taverns, shops, and trading posts.
More importantly, Han Xing discovered a special building among them, a smelting workshop.
Han Xingâs eyes lit up, "A smelting workshop? Does this mean I can exploit the mines on my territory?"
Though it was just a small city, the facilities were quite complete.
As Han Xing gradually approached the city center, two tall buildings appeared before him.
Thereâs a massive castle taking up four to five thousand square meters sitting in the cityâs center, and beside it, thereâs a pyramid occupying more than 200 square meters and nearly forty meters high.
"This should be the cityâs main building, similar to my Basic Castle. The one next to it should be an Intermediate Spiritual Shield Pyramid."
Han Xing approached the massive castle, intending to continue his exploration.
Then, a system alert appeared again.
[Lamino City Lordâs Mansion]: Intermediate territory building.
[State]: Closed
[Remaining Defense Value]: 10,000
"Looks like the guy inside really doesnât want me to enter, even closed the City Lordâs Mansion doors." Han Xing was quite speechless.
"With a defense value of 10,000, if I have to grind it down myself, who knows how long itâd take."
With that thought, Han Xing opened the territory interface and started remotely controlling the siege crossbow arrow launcher platform.
The next moment, more than 700 attacking crossbow towers began adjusting their angles.
Crunch! Crunch!
Even from hundreds of meters away, Han Xing could hear the hair-raising sound of the siege crossbow arrow launcher platform.
Han Xing was confident that with the power of the siege crossbow arrows, a round of focused fire would surely blow up even an intermediate city lordâs mansion like this.
However, just as more than 700 crossbow arrows were about to fire, the city lordâs mansionâs gate slowly opened by itself.
Han Xing immediately stepped back, tightened his grip on the longbow, and prepared for combat.
Once the gate opened, Han Xing saw a humanoid creature in silver armor, with a sword at its waist, walking out.
From inside, came a voice that was both ancient and helpless.
"Why... must you disturb my peace?"
At this moment, Han Xing got a clear look at the creatureâs appearance.
Its attire was much like the knights Han Xing had seen in the Knight Judgment Arena.
However, this knight appeared very old, lacking the grace of the knights of old.
Han Xing asked confusedly, "Um, old man?"
The elderly knight was momentarily taken aback upon seeing Han Xing.
"Are you... of the Human Race?"
Han Xing looked at himself, then nodded, "Do I not look like it?"
The shock in the elderly knightâs eyes gradually dissipated, then he shook his head, "No, itâs just that I havenât seen a human in hundreds of years, so Iâm a bit surprised."
He looked curiously at Han Xing.
This was also the first time Han Xing had encountered a monster that could communicate.
The two exchanged glances for a moment.
At this time, the elderly knightâs attitude seemed to have softened considerably, and he said, "Would you like to come in and sit for a while?"
Han Xing pondered for a moment and accepted his invitation.
Under the guidance of the elderly knight, the two walked together down the corridor.
Inside the castle, the decor was extremely luxurious, surrounded by various ornaments, including some abstract-style paintings, with different patterns carved on each stone pillar.
After passing through the corridor, they arrived at an opulent guest hall.
The hall was furnished with many tables.
The two sat facing each other.
At this moment, the other party spoke first, "My name is Lamino, as you can see, I am the City Lord of this small town."
Upon hearing the introduction, Han Xing gave him a peculiar look.
The elderly knight, seeing Han Xingâs expression, asked puzzledly, "Whatâs the matter, is there anything wrong?"
Han Xing shook his head, saying, "Nothing, please continue."
Lamino nodded, "Young man, how did you find this place?"
His meaning was probably to ask how Han Xing had found the Sky Island.
Han Xing was momentarily taken aback, "I just wandered around nearby for a few rounds, then found this place."
Upon hearing Han Xingâs response, the elderly knight seemed a bit stunned, then laughed and shook his head.
"Alright, no need to force yourself if you donât want to say."
"Young man, since youâve found this place, itâs fate that brings us together. As weâre both Human Race, how about I give you a welcome gift?"
Upon hearing that there was a gift to be received, Han Xingâs eyes instantly brightened, and he hastily nodded, "Yes, yes!"
The other party, seeing Han Xingâs unabashed attitude, also laughed.
Then, right in front of Han Xing, the elderly knight took out a scroll from his pocket.
[Knight Rune Blueprint]: Moderately increases Defense and Magic Resistance.
Seeing the information on it, Han Xingâs eyes lit up.
Itâs yet another Rune Blueprint, and itâs a rare double attribute blueprint that increases both Physical and Magical Defense!
Just as the name of this blueprint suggests, the crafted rune is very suitable for the knight profession, known for being a tank.
Of course, other professions can also use it. After enchanting all equipment, Defense will greatly increase.
The elderly knight handed the Rune Blueprint to Han Xing.
Han Xing received it, his face full of joy.
At this moment, the other party inadvertently caught sight of the âKingdom Ringâ in Han Xingâs hand. His pupils instantly shrank, and he couldnât help but tremble slightly.
But he quickly concealed this emotion.
Han Xing seemed not to have noticed. Gleefully, he stored the Rune Blueprint in his backpack, a smile appearing on his face.
The elderly knight exhaled softly and asked, "Young man, I would like to ask you a few questions. I wonder if youâre willing to answer."
Upon hearing this, Han Xing quickly responded, "Of course, go ahead and ask."
After all, having accepted such a precious blueprint right off the bat, answering a few questions seemed a small matter.
The elderly knight asked, "I want to know whatâs been happening outside recently, any news about the Knight King?"
Han Xing shook his head, "Knight King? No, nothing."
The elderly knight looked somewhat surprised, paused, then continued, "Do you know of Knight King Grotar?"
"Yes, I do." Han Xing replied truthfully.
The elderly knight breathed a sigh of relief, murmuring softly, "Thatâs good, it seems I havenât fallen out of step with the times..."
Then the elderly knight sighed, "Young man, whatâs the state of the wars outside?"
Han Xing looked puzzled, "Which particular war do you refer to?"
The elderly knight paused for a moment, then replied, "The war between the Human Kingdom and the Undead Knight Order. Back then, Lymes initiated the Undead Calamity, summoning back the souls of many who had passed away, launching their attack on the Human Empire."
"Back then, it was a grave disaster for the entire Land of the Abandoned Gods..."
Han Xingâs eyes showed a contemplative expression.
It seems the scenes seen at the Knight Judgment Arena were already fragments from hundreds of years ago.
When Lymes did not get suppressed by the God of Lightâs divine power, but instead escaped from the Judgment Arena, subsequently unleashing an Undead Calamity on the entire Human Kingdom.
As for what happened later, itâs all unknown.
Han Xing said, "The wars initiated by the Undead Knight Order were many years ago. I am unaware of the details, only that now, throughout the Land of the Abandoned Gods, no other Human Race is visible."
"No other Human Race visible?" The elderly knight was greatly shocked upon hearing this.
"How is it possible... Back then, the Human Kingdomâs domain covered the entirety of the Land of the Abandoned Gods, encompassing more than seventy thousand cities of varying sizes, with the population once reaching ten billion!"
"Could it be that the war back then was lost?"
The elderly knight furrowed his brow.
Meanwhile, Han Xing caught a key piece of information from his words.
That key information was how the Human Race had once flourished tremendously in the Land of the Abandoned Gods, with a population surpassing even that of Blue Star.
Yet strangely, upon entering this world, Han Xing encountered no other humans, except for this old knight.
The elderly knight asked again, "Then, where did you come from?"
...