The Dawn of the New World

Hao Xuan recalled his mask and took in a deep breath of the fresh mountain air when the sound of footsteps came from behind him.

"Woah woah, you have to stay close okay? No wandering off!" Hao Xuan pulled Salome back just as he was about to go chasing after a small animal.

"But I want to play with the 'tiho'," he pouted while pointing towards the animal.

It had long ears, wide eyes, and a furry tail. From a first glance, it looked very much like a squirrel but its fur was different colors of the rainbow and it was much smaller, almost the same size as a mouse. Hao Xuan didn't even have to inspect it to know it was highly poisonous.

"No! No touching of any animal alright? I'll buy you something delicious when we get to the city," Hao Xuan shook his head sternly.

He reached out over his head and pulled off Fortis, "Stay with him. Protect him until I can find a place for him," Hao Xuan said in a low voice but Fortis crossed his tentacles and looked away, not even wanting to meet his gaze.

*Sigh*

"Ok I promise this time, I'll buy you whatever you want if you listen to me. Or do you want me to ask Zhurong to do it? You know he will do it for half the food~" Hao Xuan said in a teasing tone which quickly got Fortis's attention.

"NO! Fortis protect! No call Zhurong!" he suddenly shouted, making Hao Xuan smile inwardly.

But he kept a neutral expression and shook one of Fortis's tentacles, "Deal."

Fortis jumped on Salome's head and became invisible as usual.

"Stay close," Hao Xuan reminded them and continued towards the city.

The Heran had stopped a few kilometers away from the city behind a nearby mountain so as not to startle the natives.

Before leaving Hao Xuan traded a pouch full of the local currency of the planet for a few spirit stones from one of the four guards that had been here since the beginning.

His name was Hanul and he seemed to be from a relatively normal background seeing as he looked quite shabby as compared to the other guards. He was of course more than happy to make the trade.

A few minutes of walking later, Hao Xuan and company came out of the forest and into a wide-open area.

"Woah..." Hao Xuan couldn't help but mumble because it looked like he had stepped back in time.

There were different types of crops growing in wide-open fields in front of him, surrounding a castle-like structure in the distance.

Three wide roads lead towards the castle from different directions. Hao Xuan could see numerous people hurrying along the roads to and from the castle.

Huge wooden carts filled with different materials were being pulled by different beasts. The most common beast was one that looked like an elk with a hump like a camel's. It was 2-3 meters tall and just as long.

"Guess this is the place eh?" Hao Xuan mumbled while grabbing hold of Salome's collar just as he was about to walk in the opposite direction.

He flicked Salome on the forehead as lightly as he could but it still left a red mark and his eyes started watering.

"What did I say about wandering off? Stay close!" Hao Xuan ignored his puppy-dog eyes and scolded him like an elder.

"Let's go!"

They cut through a few fields and walked up to the nearest dirt road and started following it with all the natives.

Children poked their heads out of their carts and pointed at Hao Xuan while talking amongst themselves. Their parents quickly reprimanded them, telling them not to look at him but even they couldn't help but steal a few glances towards their invaders.

Hao Xuan initially wanted to keep a low profile but the average height here was less 6 feet and he was already crossing 7 so he stuck out like a sore thumb. Not to mention his aura which could not be hidden normally and his relatively pale white skin.

The natives here had a much darker skin tone and most looked like they had a bad tan on. The intense heat was probably the cause of it.

Following the crowd, they reached the castle gates within a few minutes where more than a dozen soldiers stood guard. They were dressed in leather armor mostly, made from some kind of local beast.

They looked quite rugged and manly standing there with their many battle scars and unsheathed weapons, but when Hao Xuan appeared in front of them, several of them were visibly startled.

"Oi, tell the captain, another one of the aliens is here!" one of them with a short beard yelled at another, much younger soldier in their native language which Hao Xuan now understood easily.

"Y-Yes," the youngster with the braided hair stuttered and ran like his life depended on it.

The bearded soldier looked towards Hao Xuan while approaching him slowly.

"Friend! We, friends. No trouble!" he pointed towards himself and the anxious soldiers behind him while spoking in the native language of the beast world.

Hao Xuan was genuinely surprised. These guys had already started learning the language of the beast world.

He was about to respond when a fat bearded man stumbled over, pushing away the small crowd of people that had gathered around them.

He fixed his metal armor that barely fit him and smiled ear to ear while rubbing his hand.

"Hello inva- Uh guest. How can you help me?" he spoke fluently but obviously incorrectly.

Beads of sweat were pouring down his forehead but he didn't dare wipe them and simply stared towards Hao Xuan while maintaining his smile.

Hao Xuan took one step and closed the distance of more than 5 meters, appearing beside the 'captain'.

"You can relax, I'm just here to sightsee. Also its "how I can help you", you made a small mistake," he spoke in their native tongue, clear and concise and even corrected him.

Everyone around them was taken aback upon hearing Hao Xuan speak their language. The first soldier that called Hao Xuan an "alien" just seconds ago silently backed up a few steps and hid behind the other soldiers.

"Where are the people that came before me?" Hao Xuan spoke again, waking the fat captain from his stupor.

"O-Oh, they are at the city lord's mansion," he pointed towards the city center blankly.

"Thanks," Hao Xuan grinned and grabbed Salome by the shoulder.. He pushed against the ground lightly and flew several meters into the air, vanishing behind the thicket of buildings.