The area was filled with long, dense queues. Without exception, the men, women, and children in line were all dressed in rags, with pale and thin faces, high cheekbones, sunken eyes, rough and cracked skin, and covered in marks left by the wind and sand.
Everyone showed expressions of exhaustion that almost reached the point of numbness, their eyes blank, like walking corpses, holding broken clay pots or iron bowls in their hands, silently waiting for the food to be distributed from the front.
Sometimes, when a child let out a soft cry, adults would immediately cover their mouths, for fear of bringing disaster upon them.
David noticed that these people had no spiritual energy fluctuations and no cultivation base in their bloodlines; they are all ordinary people.
However, their clothing, appearance, and hairstyle were completely different from those in the secular world.
Men in the secular world have fields to till and markets to visit. Although they were not as free as the peasants, they were not as poor and destitute as them, and their eyes did not contain such deep despair and numbness.
On both sides of the line, a heavily armed soldier stood every ten steps.
The soldiers wore standard dark green military uniforms, helmets and boots, with standard short knives around their waists and black long guns that David had never seen before.
The weapon has a unique design, made of metal and wood, with a slim tube on the front and a trigger and grip on the back.
The soldiers’ thumbs were always on the trigger, their posture erect, their eyes alert, clearly ready to fire their weapons at any time, emitting a terrifying aura.
David narrowed his eyes slightly, his divine sense focused on those weapons, carefully sensing the power within them.
He didn’t recognize these weapons, but they resembled firearms, though simpler, like homemade weapons made by ancient farmers.
Is this really a secular world?
However, where did such apocalyptic scenes come from in the secular world?
How could there be such huge metal towers and industrial systems?
David’s doubts deepened, but he did not show it, remaining calmly standing on the dirt slope, observing the movements below him.
While he was deep in thought, an old man who was leaning on a wooden stick at the edge of the group suddenly looked up and stared at the slope of the land.
The old man’s gaze met David’s gaze in the misty air.
The old man was startled at first, a hint of confusion appearing in his misty eyes, which then turned into utter shock.
He saw a young man standing on a slope, wearing a gray robe, his clothes spotless, with a handsome face and extraordinary bearing.
His demeanor and appearance were very different from the messy refugees around him; she was like a pearl amidst the mud, enchanting and amazing.
The old man opened his mouth, his hand holding the wooden stick trembling slightly, as if he wanted to say something but ultimately did not dare to make a sound. Only a single tear pooled in her misty eyes, as if she had seen a glimmer of hope.
David’s purple eyes and the old man’s glazed gaze met in silence for a moment in the misty air.
He could read so many things in those old eyes—fear, numbness, exhaustion, and a glimmer of hope that flickered like a candle in the wind.
Without hesitation, David waved his hand lightly, and the old man’s figure instantly disappeared, then reappeared in front of him.
The soldiers and refugees around them didn’t even notice that the old man had disappeared.
The old man’s body trembled violently, and he was completely stunned. He didn’t know how he suddenly appeared there.
His misty eyes shook violently, and the rough wooden stick in his hand almost slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground.
Instinctively he tried to kneel, his thin knees bent slightly, his lips trembling: “God is God’s messenger”
David gently supported the old man’s arm with a gentle but firm touch, stabilizing his body as he was about to kneel: “No need to kneel. I just want to ask a few questions.”
The old man’s body was stiff, but the arm supporting him felt warm and strong, like a piece of charcoal that was suddenly touched in the cold of winter, which made his numb and cold body warm up a little.
He swallowed hard, his dry lips twitched a few times, and finally he nodded shakily: “My lord please ask. What I know, I will certainly not hide it.”
David withdrew his hand, his gaze fell on the old man’s wrinkled and thin face. His voice was calm and clear: “Where is this place? I just fell here from a storm and don’t know anything about this world.”
FAQ Novel
Q: What is the setting of this chapter?
A: The chapter depicts a barren, industrial-like world with towering metal structures and a smog-filled sky.
Q: What is the protagonist’s initial reaction to the new environment?
A: The protagonist finds the environment to be dry, lacking natural elements, and filled with industrial-like smells, questioning its nature.
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