The door was gently pushed open, and in walked an elderly woman in her fifties. Her face was full of kindness as she said, “You’re awake. Young people really don’t know their limits—running around outside even on a rainy day.”

Ethan Brooks couldn’t understand the language of the continent now, but he could tell the old woman meant well, so he hurriedly got out of bed and bowed to her.

It was only then that he realized he was already wearing a set of clean, dry clothes.

“Ma’am, thank you!”

The old woman was taken aback; she clearly didn’t understand what Ethan Brooks said. But she didn’t think much of it, since there were so many races on the continent, it was only natural that some people wouldn’t speak the common language.

Ethan Brooks followed the old woman into the outer room, just as a young man entered. The young man looked about eighteen or nineteen, and was quite sturdy. After placing the food from his tray onto the table, he gave Ethan Brooks a friendly smile.

Ethan Brooks returned the smile.

After dinner, he expressed his gratitude to the old woman, then returned to his room and fell into a deep sleep.

In his dreams, a beautiful figure walked toward him from a sea of flowers, then disappeared amidst a rain of petals, leaving behind only a faint, lingering voice: “I’ll wait for you… until we meet again…”

After that, in his dream, Ethan Brooks saw his father, Charles Brooks. Charles Brooks’s eyes were wise and profound, as if he could see through all the illusions of the world. He said calmly, “He who climbs high must begin from low; he who travels far must start from near. In this world, what matters is not where you stand, but which direction you are moving in!”

Charles Brooks’s figure gradually faded, and then the image and voice of Ethan Brooks’s mother appeared.

“When all the vanity has settled, simplicity returns to truth…”

One familiar figure after another approached Ethan Brooks, then slowly faded away.

At dawn, Ethan Brooks got up early and stepped outside. The rain had long since stopped, and a rainbow arched high across the sky, adding a beautiful scene to the world.

“It’s been ten thousand years—what could I possibly still be holding on to? I’m going to start over!” Ethan Brooks shouted loudly.

He decided to face reality and begin a new life.

Time flew by like an arrow, the days and months passing swiftly, and in the blink of an eye, half a year had gone by.

Relying on his martial skills, Ethan Brooks became the most outstanding hunter in the small town. Every day, he brought back several times more game than anyone else. With his earnings from hunting, he bought a small courtyard house. Besides hunting and training his martial arts, he mainly spent his time learning the current language of the continent from the town’s residents. Although he still couldn’t converse fluently, he could already understand what people around him were saying.

In addition, Ethan Brooks constantly adjusted his mindset and accepted reality. He was no longer lost or confused, and had gradually integrated into this society.

Once he could understand the language of the continent, Ethan Brooks finally realized that the world had undergone earth-shaking changes over the past ten thousand years.

The Xianhuan Continent and the Mohuan Continent, once separated only by a strait, had been joined together by a massive earthquake.

The eastern Xianhuan Continent and the western Mohuan Continent each had their own brilliant civilizations. After the two continents were connected, their different cultures and beliefs led to frequent friction between the races. As the conflicts escalated, ethnic tensions arose, and eventually, war broke out between the two great races.

It was a catastrophic war. The battlefield was littered with corpses and rivers of blood. Countless able-bodied men were conscripted, never to return. Millions of civilians died tragically, tens of millions were displaced, and the continent was shrouded in sorrow and misery.

The war grew ever more brutal. In the end, the Western Church sent out magicians and temple knights. Just as the balance of war was about to tip, martial arts masters from the East and reclusive cultivators joined the fight in an organized fashion. A great confrontation between Eastern and Western practitioners began: true qi against battle qi, flying swords and magical treasures against magic. On the battlefield, sword energy and battle qi clashed, magical treasures and spells dazzled and dominated.

The final result was mutual destruction. After the great war, the battlefield was piled high with bones, and the continent was filled with wailing and desolation.

The wise on both sides realized the immense harm of war, and in the end, a comprehensive ceasefire agreement was signed.

Time can heal all wounds. After thousands of years of reconciliation, ethnic tensions finally disappeared, and the initial integration of races was achieved. There was no longer talk of the Xianhuan or Mohuan Continents; the merged land was named Tianyuan.

“So that’s how it is. No wonder there are so many races in town—this is the border between the Xianhuan and Mohuan Continents. No wonder I ran into a fire-breathing wolf while hunting—it was a western magical beast.”

After learning all this, Ethan Brooks was deeply shocked, but at the same time, many things suddenly became clear.

Another half year passed. Ethan Brooks finally mastered the current common language of the continent, and gained a deeper understanding of the Tianyuan Continent. He had fully integrated into this society.

Of course, some things still remained a mystery to him. He could never understand what had happened among the gods, or why so many powerful deities had perished.

He asked everyone in town, but no one could answer him.

Finally, an old man in the town said to him, “Child, you’re not the only one who wants to know the answer to that question. Many people on the continent want to know, but it remains an unsolved mystery.”