As Xu Xin looked down at the area surrounding the Dragon's palace from the sky, he saw the ground filled with ant-like burrows.
In the burrows lived beast-like beings walking on two legs, but upon closer inspection, he could see that they weren't beast-like beings walking on two legs, but humans wearing animal hides.
"Lady Eve. Could we go down there for a moment?"
"Huh? Down there? Why suddenly?"
"Xu Xin. I'll go down with you."
In response to Xu Xin's unexpected request, as Eve was asking for a reason, Lethe took him and immediately descended.
Having come down among the ant-like burrows with Lethe, Xu Xin looked around.
Seeing them up close, he could confirm it more clearly. Those wearing animal hides were definitely humans as he remembered them.
But Xu Xin could hardly consider their appearance to be that of humans.
The humans in the burrows had shaggy hair and beards, and their teeth and nails had turned black.
Moreover, they wore poorly tanned animal hides, and naturally wore no shoes or undergarments.
Even the barbarians said to live in the northern regions of the Central Plains would seem rather civilized compared to these people.
Xu Xin, who was looking around at the humans in the burrows with rounded eyes, turned to look at the Dragon's palace.
The Dragon's palace was built by piling up stones, bricks, and various precious metals. Although the architectural style was different from that of the Central Plains, it had its own charm and solidity.
Furthermore, its scale and grandeur rivaled Eve's Platinum Tree Palace, and in terms of the imposing feeling given by the texture of its materials, it even surpassed it in some ways.
In short, it was a highly advanced building. To the extent that it would not lag behind even when compared with the Central Plains.
'Isn't this a world that can build such advanced architecture? Then why are there so many burrows right outside this palace?'
Xu Xin was puzzled by the humans' appearance, which was not just backward but even primitive.
Just then, Lethe asked.
"Xu Xin. What's wrong? Are you fascinated by the slaves?"
"Slaves...?"
"Yes. These are all slaves. Slaves created in the image of Giant Kings and Titans. I heard that Dragons often trade with Titans to use them because they have good craftsmanship and work well."
After hearing Lethe's explanation, Xu Xin looked around at the humans again with a puzzled expression. The humans wearing animal hides were looking at him fearfully as he had suddenly descended from the sky.
'Slaves born to serve, created in the image of beings called Titans... They definitely look like humans. Then, are they the humans I know?'
Suddenly, Xu Xin thought that he might be trapped in the concepts of his past life.
In the world where he lived in his past life, other beasts besides humans were mere creatures. Only humans built magnificent palaces, wore elegant clothes, and ruled the world as kings and emperors.
But this new world was vastly different from the world of his past life. There were long-eared immortals who didn't age, and winged dragons. There was magic.
'Although I've been born in this world and lived for a hundred and some decades, I might still be fixed in the concepts that Xu Xin from my past life had.'
Xu Xin faced the human-like beings around him with a calm and indifferent gaze, unlike before.
But when he took his eyes off their human-like appearance, something else caught his attention.
Among the slave humans, there were some who seemed to be returning from some hard labor at the Dragon's palace. And in their hands were various tools like hammers, pickaxes, and shovels.
Xu Xin could see that these tools were made not of bronze, copper, or cast iron, but of steel.
'It's particularly good steel. And the craftsmanship of the tools is excellent too.'
These steel tools didn't match the primitive appearance of the slave humans. While looking at these tools, which were clearly the work of master craftsmen, Xu Xin suddenly turned his head elsewhere.
His keen ears as a martial arts master had detected the sound of metal being hammered.
Looking toward the source of the sound, he saw a building that was relatively well-structured compared to the burrows in the area.
Xu Xin approached that building using his Cloud Ladder Lightness Skill. Lethe followed, riding the wind.
From inside the building, the sound of incessantly hammering metal and the hot heat of a forge were emanating.
As it seemed to be a blacksmith's forge, Xu Xin peeked inside and witnessed children working as blacksmiths.
'Why are there only children and no adults? And why do these children have so much facial hair?'
Lethe, who was peeking into the forge alongside Xu Xin, said.
"Those are dwarves."
"Dwarves?"
"They're created for a similar purpose as slaves. But they say they're much more skilled than slaves."
Watching the dwarves work in the forge, Xu Xin realized that the steel tools of the slave humans were the product of their craftsmanship.
'It strikes me anew, but this world is so different from the world of my past life. Mysterious and strange.'
He sighed and shook his head.
"Xu Xin. Want to look around more?"
"No... This is enough."
Lethe took Xu Xin and flew back up high into the sky.