Fang Tianci had been spending his years together with Yang Xiao and Yang Xue, and he was well-versed in the laws of space. Having originated from Yang Kai's Minor World and possessing Eighth-rank cultivation, the Human Race General Command naturally paid considerable attention to such talent.
Mi Jinglun had long heard of this person. When he drafted Yang Xiao's squad for the Retreat Ink Platform, he hadn't expected Fang Tianci to proactively reach out to him with a few words.
Now, after verifying with Yang Kai, he learned that Fang Tianci was someone Yang Kai had arranged, and his heart was put at ease. Gazing down at the six thousand soldiers and sixty Sacred Spirits below, he sighed inwardly. This journey's path ahead was uncertain. If everything went smoothly, that would be one thing, but if developments didn't go as hoped, who knew how many of these people would survive.
Beside him, Yang Kai was lost in deep thought.
Fang Tianci had actually approached Mi Jinglun on his own to say he shouldn't be drafted. Was the memory he had sealed within him all those years ago slowly awakening? Or was it an instinctive premonition that he couldn't leave the Three Thousand Worlds?
In the future, he would eventually need to use the Three Parts Into One Technique to attempt advancing to Ninth-rank. If Fang Tianci were truly drafted to that place, how could he perform the technique? So whether it was Fang Tianci or that Thunder Shadow Great Emperor, both had to remain within the Three Thousand Worlds, ready for any eventuality.
He looked up and scanned the crowd—fortunately, Thunder Shadow hadn't been drafted here.
Below, countless pairs of eyes gazed up at him. Yang Kai raised his voice and declared: "Several thousand years ago, within the Ink Battlefield, the great passes of the Human Race launched a joint expedition, mustering three million soldiers under the command of over a hundred Ninth-rank Ancestors. We marched toward the Ink Clan's Mother Hive, intent on slaying the Ink and purging evil. At that time, our Human Race was a mighty army of wolves and tigers—how powerful and ambitious we were!"
"But outside the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction, an Ink-Colored Giant Spirit attacked from behind our ranks, causing our defensive lines to collapse with devastating losses. The great army shattered, scattering into remnant forces that fled from the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction. Strongholds were breached, Ninth-rank Ancestors fell in battle, entire armies were annihilated. In that battle, the Human Race suffered beyond count."
"The scattered remnants returned to Return Pass to hold it alongside the Sacred Spirits, but the overwhelming disparity in forces ultimately allowed the Ink Clan to pour through and capture Return Pass. The Human Race's armies suffered another devastating blow—stronghold after stronghold was abandoned within Return Pass, and even the Sacred Spirits suffered casualties."
"Retreating to Void Domain, with the aid of the Giant Spirit A-er, the Human Race finally managed to stabilize its footing. But the Ink's desire to exterminate us never waned. Through countless schemes, they ultimately forced open a passage from Void Domain to Windstorm Domain. That day, the fate of the Human Race was all but sealed. The Ninth-rank Ancestors, together with the Dragon Emperor and Phoenix Empress, sacrificed themselves—slaying numerous Ink Clan Lords and gravely wounding the Ink-Colored Giant Spirit, allowing the various Human Race armies to retreat safely."
"Afterward, the Ink Clan seized dominion over the myriad worlds, and the Human Race retreated to over a dozen great battlefield domains including Xuanming Domain, guarding the last of our territory—Lingxiao Domain. It has now been over three thousand years. This is the shame of our Human Race! Since ancient times, our people have always been the favored children of the Heavens, yet now the Ink Clan has driven us to such destitution and desperation—we have squandered the Heavens' favor upon our kind!"
The six thousand soldiers and the Sacred Spirits present had mostly never experienced those grand battles. Now, hearing Yang Kai's words, visions of those brutal conflicts seemed to appear before their eyes, and an endless sense of frustration and fury surged within their hearts.
"The Ink Clan is powerful, and the Human Race is declining—this is undeniable. In one battle after another, the Ink Clan could break our arms, break our legs, but they could never break our spine! The Human Race will never yield to the Ink Clan, will never surrender these Heavens to them. The Human Race never admits defeat!"
Below, Yang Xiao's dragon blood immediately boiled, and he couldn't help but release a soaring dragon roar, bellowing: "The Human Race never admits defeat!"
The several dozen Sacred Spirits standing nearby couldn't help but turn to look at him with peculiar expressions. A pure-blooded dragon shouting such words—it felt somewhat inexplicably strange.
Truth be told, while they were willing to fight alongside the Human Race to drive out the Ink Clan and secure a place to live in the future, they would never shout such words themselves. It didn't befit their station.
But the six thousand soldiers, whose fighting spirit had already been stirring, were completely ignited by Yang Xiao's cry. One by one, their shouts rose and merged into a torrent that shook the very Heavens.
"The Human Race never admits defeat!"
Battle intent raged like wildfire, killing intent pierced the sky, as if it could penetrate all the worlds and sweep clean the Ink Tide across heaven and earth.
Several thousand years ago, in the final battle of Void Domain, when the Ancestors had sacrificed themselves to their deaths, there had been the same thunderous shouts that shook the Heavens.
Yang Kai nodded slightly. When the shouts finally subsided, he spoke again: "You must all be curious why you were drafted here. You are all heroes of the Human Race, each with outstanding merit and countless enemies slain—the very elite of your respective armies. And because you are the elite, you must carry out extraordinary tasks."
"The place you stand upon is called the Retreat Ink Platform—an Artifact that the Human Race spent a thousand years and countless resources to forge, specifically designed to stand against the powerful of the Ink Clan. The purpose of drafting you here is for you to garrison this Retreat Ink Platform, harnessing its power to defend against potential crises."
"Several thousand years ago, the Human Race alliance was routed outside the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction. Within the Mother Hive, the Ink's true form fell into slumber, but no one knows when it will awaken. There are some arrangements on that side, but they are far from secure. Therefore, you must now go to the Primordial Heaven Great Restriction and assist in the defense!"
The moment these words left his mouth, everyone erupted in uproar—even the Sacred Spirits were wide-eyed and slack-jawed.