I became a god by treasure hunting after arriving 500 years early-Chapter 697 - 517: How Profound is Humanity’s Heritage?

“We naturally understand. Quickly serve us the best food!”

The Strangers grew increasingly excited, each one acting like they were having a seizure.

Damned creatures, after spending countless years stranded in the wild outskirts, finally catching hold of a civilization to enjoy—this exhilaration was understandable.

Even the rear Think Tank had been left bewildered by these mad antics.

“Can this really be [Demons]? I’m the first to disbelieve… are there [Demons] this ridiculous?”

“Stay cautious, perhaps the [Demons] are disguising themselves.”

The group boarded the spaceship, countless surveillance cameras rigidly monitoring them.

The Pandora Anti-gravity System activated, and the ship swiftly lifted off, heading toward Green Grass City.

The sun gradually leaned west, and the terrifying nightfall was once again approaching.

Yet within the spaceship, the atmosphere was lively.

Honestly, Lu Yuan felt quite satisfied with their harvest this time: they had found some useful trash and even dug out six Strangers harboring great secrets…

In just one short day, accomplishing all this had exceeded expectations. There was hope for escaping calamities!

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The spaceship moved like lightning, spraying blue sparks into the air.

“It’s really… flying!” The Strangers, who hadn’t touched technological products for thousands, perhaps even tens of thousands, of years, were beyond excited, shouting and yelling non-stop in the cabin.

They resembled children, poking and fiddling with everything.

Even the three Crystal Men began jumping around frantically in an attempt to see if their sheer weight could potentially collapse the spaceship—Lu Yuan immediately put a stop to the antics, saying, “No jokes with your weight, over ten tons could genuinely wreck the vessel!”

They had once relied on a powerful mother civilization.

Their technological standards and combat capabilities far exceeded what humans could even fathom.

But now, those memories had long grown foggy.

Their minds were muddled, their personalities akin to mischievous children.

Awake for only brief periods, with their mother civilization’s fate unknown.

Their reason for lingering here seemed to have gradually withered into a vague and insignificant symbol…

Indeed, this carried a sadness of its own.

To be fair, if Lu Yuan were to abandon everything for some crappy mission, he’d probably fail to comply.

So, in honesty, he felt a slight admiration for them.

Thus, he refrained from resorting to any coercive measures.

…

The spaceship sped along its journey, reaching the skies above Green City before sunset.

After a busy day, the small grotto’s development work had been completed.

The Opium Poppy Trees and Green Mountain had been hurriedly packed into the small grotto.

However, the rescue efforts for the eight million Lanpeng people were still ongoing.

The core sanctuary of the Lanpeng people had been affected by [Ghosts], with multiple cave-ins. Re-excavating it would conservatively take half a month.

This matter couldn’t be rushed. After all, patience brings results.

The Little Mirage Dragon, after a day of resting, miraculously woke up.

It wagged its head and tail, sizing up the six Strangers who had disembarked the spaceship, and let out a “rawr” to greet them.

The Old Dengs squinted their eyes and examined the dragon, uttering strange noises from their mouths.

The Little Mirage Dragon stood about ten meters long, its figure agile and powerful. Golden scales shimmered under the twilight, radiating a brilliant hue.

Lu Yuan explained, “This is our foundation—a [Essence·Mirage Cloud Dragon]. It possesses space abilities and protected us through last night.”

For some reason, Lu Yuan felt like it had matured a little, bearing a trace of the Great Mirage Dragon’s demeanor.

Could a sense of responsibility and duty truly mature a dragon?

“…What a truly rare anomaly! No wonder…”

“The space abilities of [Ghost·Spirit Shrine’s Eye] really couldn’t infiltrate.”

The Old Snake Man stretched out his withered hand to touch its scales. “Looks like it has great potential; even in a Level Four civilization, or a Level 5 civilization, it would be considered remarkable foundation material!”

“Roar!” The Little Mirage Dragon let out a low growl, warning them to behave.

I, Little Mirage Dragon, may not have killed anyone yet, but I’ve eaten meat!

The Old Snake Man laughed instead. “Impressive. This [Essence] has already formed a strong bond with your civilization… This involves Qi Fortune issues.”

He pointed to the desolate city, “Human fortune can aid its growth.”

“As humans grow stronger, so can it.”

Lu Yuan smiled. The Little Mirage Dragon merely needed to absorb a small bit of “space-time tidal energy” to rapidly mature, but unfortunately, it seemed unable to do so thus far.

“Could it be that after yesterday’s ordeal, it’s already learned to devour fortune?!”

“This is instinct. It’ll awaken sooner or later; don’t rush it.”

The Stranger visiting team took a brief look at the human city, quietly assessing humanity’s potential.

Outside, Green Grass City was a vast emptiness.

In terms of scale, it was merely a small city of a few million.

“This population size is unimpressive… How did they become a Level Three civilization?”

Most were in hibernation chambers, the few awake ones huddled in the small grotto.

However, their quality wasn’t bad, and the ratio of 12 Godhood Points was satisfactory.

Orbital trains ran back and forth, busily at work. Deep within the caves, insect-like creatures were hauling and processing winter chambers sent in transit.

But humanity’s fortune seemed promising; they could spot that at a glance.

This infinitely potential-filled Little Mirage Dragon was surely decent foundation material.

Then there was the small grotto—a space item!

It would take at least a Level 5 civilization to develop space items.

These alone symbolized strong Qi Fortune!

Old Cat led the Strangers in briefly touring the small grotto.

These creatures pointed here and there, radiating an insufferable air of superiority. Even their steps were lively, their desire to flaunt fully gratified.

“Could it be you’re pursuing an elite-path civilization?”

“I’ve heard legends of civilizations striving for everyone to achieve 12 Godhood Points as their goal—since with 12 points, one could learn engravings.”

“Such civilizations are truly rare.”

Old Cat listened to their chatter and sighed internally.

It was clear returning to a civilized world brought the Strangers great joy.

As for humanity’s outward expressions, they were within expectations—Level Three civilizations were considered passable for such displays.

“But how did they defeat [Demon·Controlling Ruins]?”

This was a major question.

These fellows even started secretly betting among themselves, turning it into a game to see who could uncover the mystery first.

…

Meanwhile, Lu Yuan called the Little Mirage Dragon over and privately asked, “Nightfall is fast approaching. Should you use Mirage Space, or should I use Different Space?”

The Little Mirage Dragon wagged its tail.

With a series of “rawr rawr” Dragon-speak, it expressed full confidence in handling the grotto’s protection task!

Spiritual power, like water in a sponge—when squeezed, there’s always a little left.

It felt itself growing stronger… maybe it was an ultimate inheritance from its previous life.

The Little Mirage Dragon reminisced about past events, turning its head away with shimmering tear drops in its eyes.

Lu Yuan chuckled, “You spend more on your daily meds than I do in Spirit Essence—perhaps letting me do it would be better…”

He glanced at the medication list sent by the zoologists; a significant quantity had been consumed today to recover spiritual power.

Still, as these Strangers were spending the night here, Lu Yuan didn’t entirely trust them. Since the Little Mirage Dragon had already been exposed, letting it handle this seemed sensible.

“The Greedy Demon God” holding back its hand slightly wouldn’t be a bad idea.

…

A little while later, the Rat Artisans came over to lend their support!

It was indeed unprecedented—six ancient Strangers had come to visit.

The lead Ratman removed his hat: “I am Mouse Master Shu Gongye of the Shu Mi Dam Civilization… Greetings, Stranger friends! Welcome here.”

For reasons unknown, the Ratman seemed subtly afraid when seeing the Old Snake Man. Could they have been natural enemies in the past? An ancient battle even?

“Greetings, Master.” The Strangers reciprocated warmly.

The title of Craftsman Master garners respect in civilizations of any level.

The Old Snake Man flicked his forked tongue, an unexpected glint of appetite surfacing: “Mouse Master is also considered a Stranger… How many of your people are still alive?”

“Haha, we’ve been relatively lucky; still have tens of thousands of our people scattered outside. Perhaps we even crossed paths in the previous Epoch.”

The Old Snake Man sighed enviously, “Ah, lucky indeed—having kin to huddle together for warmth… As for us… we’ve even forgotten our names. Master, what keeps you here?”

The Ratman replied, “Humanity’s blessed fortune has let us temporarily reside here. Otherwise, this place would be dead and desolate, causing an absolute lack of creative inspiration.”

“True… Sigh, such a pity. This world is far too cruel; happy times are always fleeting…”

“Check out my armor!” exclaimed an armored Stranger, proudly showing off.

“Whoa, Epic-level!!”

“It might have been a higher level once, but prolonged neglect has caused it to downgrade.”

Strangers seemed to share a common language—in hardly any time, they were chatting away, cracking jokes, bantering with loud laughs and merry clamor.

With foreign guests visiting, humanity naturally couldn’t appear cheap—they offered a feast filled with exotic delicacies: items like insect race specialties, mutant animal meat, fruit wine, and more were generously laid out.

Among them, the Snake-man, Old Bat, and Armored Warrior all ate with hearty relish—some even shedding happy tears.

Seeing this, Lu Yuan found himself slightly confused. Memories of his own past surfaced: living alone with his dog in the Meida Ruins…