The Dawn of the New World

When Hao Xuan opened his eyes again he was standing in a forest with his hand gripping a dainty neck. He looked at the person's face and recognized it immediately.

"You...I know you. You were with Princess Inara and Helena, Uri, right?"

The young demihuman boy tried to nod but could barely move his body. He was being lifted off the ground by his neck.

"C-Could you let me down please, I can't breathe too good," he muttered in a raspy voice which quickly made Hao Xuan aware of what he was doing.

He put him back on the ground and released his grip. There was a bright purple mark on the boy's neck in the shape of Hao Xuan's hand.

"Sorry I...don't know what happened. Where is this?"

Hao Xuan looked around but couldn't find anything particularly out of place. It just looked like an ordinary forest but when he looked up into the sky he could see traces of sunlight cascading through the dark rain clouds.

"Sun...the sky?! I'm on the surface?"

The last thing he remembered was standing across from Tian Zheng, Xue Meng and-

"SALOME! Where is he?! Where am...ugh!"

The world started spinning to the point that he almost fell over but another figure appeared out of the shadows behind him to lend a helping hand.

"You shouldn't move around too much. Give yourself time to adjust to it first," an unknown voice said.

Rubbing his head Hao Xuan looked up to thank him but the words got stuck in his throat upon seeing another familiar face.

"Thank- you...?"

It was a middle-aged man with countless tattoos all over his face. Or at least they looked like tattoos but upon closer inspection they could be seen slowly moving around as if they were alive.

Hao Xuan had never met him before but that face, Gavril had shown him when they last met. (Gavril is the Orc that got his powers from the Old Orc King, his powers are mostly related to the dream world)

This was the leader of the resistance that had popped up when they first came to the planet. And because of that they would probably still be considered as enemies, at least from his side.

The man could feel the reluctance in Hao Xuan's gaze and read his face like an open book.

"I am not your enemy. I was summoned here to help you, although it appears I was a little too late," he said apologetically while glancing in Uri's direction.

Uri nodded, "It has been settled already, no thanks to you," and walked in the opposite direction.

"My name is Gi-An, I am sure you have heard of me," the man introduced himself in a low voice before pointing in the same direction.

"Just a little further away."

Suffice to say Hao Xuan was more than a little taken aback by what he was seeing. One of them was a mortal demihuman boy from the world blow and the other was the most wanted man on the planet.

After a quick check-up, he realized that his energy reserves were now less than 10% so it was in his best interest to avoid the fight if at all possible.

So Hao Xuan kept his mouth shut and allowed Gi-An to help him walk to wherever they were going.

It only took them a couple of minutes before they arrived at the intended destination. It was an old village hidden in the misty forest. It looked like it had been abandoned a long time ago and nature had begun to reclaim its land.

All sorts of plants and vines grew on the wooden structures.

Uri was standing next to an old barn that was just outside the main cluster of buildings. He let out a deep sigh and shook his head upon seeing the condition of the barn.

"In here," he motioned to Gi-An but Hao Xuan pulled away.

"I can walk from here."

Gi-An nodded wordlessly and took a step back, waiting for Hao Xuan to go in first.

'Looks like they won't let me leave that easily,' Hao Xuan thought before entering the barn.

The inside was actually in much better condition than he expected. There were hay bales lining the sides which provided protection against the elements. There was a piece of rolled-up leather at the back, and a small metal stove in the middle with a wooden spoon and bowl next to it.

Uri extended his hand over the stove and a fire ignited above the old coals.

Hao Xuan frowned lightly. That wasn't a spell or any technique requiring spiritual energy. It just looked like a flame was birthed naturally out of nowhere.

Uri quickly sat down next to it just as the raindrops started battering the exterior. Hao Xuan craned his neck from a nearby window and three raindrops fell on his face.

'Deja vu...huh?'

Uri rubbed his hands over the fire while muttering in annoyance.

"I always forget how fragile humans are. A small change in temperature and you're dead. Do you remember any of this?"