"That's Dyna."
Yu Zhou walked forward and greeted the man from thirty million years ago — the ultra-ancient human named Eri.
"It's you?" Eri turned at the sound of Yu Zhou's voice, instantly recognizing him as the new-era Earthling he had met before.
"You said his name is Dyna?" Eri asked, puzzled as he looked at Yu Zhou. "Why have I never heard of such a giant of light?"
"And another thing — weren't Camearra and the other Dark Giants sealed away in R'lyeh by Tiga? How can their statues suddenly appear here on Dais?"
He couldn't understand it. Even if the seal were broken, the Dark Giants were evil by nature. There was no reason they would help protect this world. Yet the statues here in the central square were clearly meant to honour righteous giants of light.
"Even darkness can be turned into light," Yu Zhou said calmly.
From the look on Eri's face, it seemed he had never seen Camearra in her human form before. Otherwise, he would have instantly recognized the three figures standing behind Yu Zhou.
"Darkness turning into light…?" Eri echoed the words, eyes widening in shock. "You mean Camearra and the other two Dark Giants… they've transformed, just like Tiga, and become giants of light?!"
"That's right." Yu Zhou nodded. Then he asked, "Weren't you searching for something to replace the essence of Gijera? Did you manage to find anything?"
"No." Eri let out a weary sigh. "I've travelled across countless stars, but not one could provide a substitute for Gijera's life essence."
"Then why did you return to Dais?"
Yu Zhou frowned. If Eri had been searching across different worlds, there should have been no reason for him to come back here once he'd confirmed nothing was to be found. Time, after all, was life.
"Because among all the worlds I searched, Dais is the one most like Earth," Eri explained. "I thought, if Gijera had been wiped out on Earth, perhaps a similar lifeform might exist on a planet with the same conditions."
"So, I came back here, hoping to take a closer look."
"I see…"
Yu Zhou nodded thoughtfully. Dais might resemble Earth, but in its long history there had never been any trace of Gijera. It seemed Eri's hopes were bound to be disappointed.
"By the way," Yu Zhou added suddenly, "can you tell me where your people live now? I'm curious about what kind of 'new land' the ultra-ancient humans have found."
"There's no harm in telling you," Eri said. "Our new home isn't much different from Earth. After all, only a planet similar to Earth can sustain us."
"However, in recent years, our constant expeditions have drawn the attention of certain alien forces. We've been invaded multiple times."
"Your ultra-ancient technology should be formidable, right? Surely you can handle some alien invaders?"
Yu Zhou was not overly worried. If these people could craft time capsules thirty million years ago, their current technology must be far beyond that.
"Indeed," Eri nodded. "We survived the wars of the ultra-ancient era. Fending off outsiders is within our power."
Since Eri would remain on Dais for some time before returning to this "new land," Yu Zhou struck a deal with him: when the time came, Eri would take him along.
Bored with routine adventures, Yu Zhou found himself genuinely intrigued by the ultra-ancient humans' new world.
Eri readily agreed. For the ultra-ancient people, the presence of alien visitors had become common, just as it had on Dais. And if the visitor was a fellow human from Earth's new age, there was even less reason to refuse.
Yu Zhou spent a few more days on Dais with Asuka and the others before asking Dark to escort them back.
Dark confirmed that Dais' diplomatic mission to Earth had gone smoothly, without incident.
And when he heard Yu Zhou wanted to follow the ultra-ancient humans to their world, Dark didn't refuse. After all, he had once promised to serve as Yu Zhou's navigator across the stars.
The day of departure came quickly. Boarding a Daisian spaceship, Yu Zhou and Dark followed Eri's craft into the depths beyond the Buzz Nebula.
"Dark, make sure you remember the route. If we get lost, we won't be able to find our way back."
Out in the void, Yu Zhou's greatest fear was losing direction. Dark might be a navigator, but Yu Zhou knew he wasn't always the most reliable — so he gave the warning anyway.
"Relax," Dark replied, tapping on the console. "The ship records the course automatically."
"That's good to hear."
Through wormholes and nebulae, they flew, until at last a new star system emerged before them.
It resembled the solar system, with a radiant central sun and several planets revolving around it.
Yu Zhou understood instantly: of course, the ultra-ancient humans would have searched for a world that mirrored Earth's. Who knew how many centuries they had wandered before finding it?
Eri's ship led them down to a natural satellite orbiting the "new land."
The moon-like satellite had been transformed into a massive spaceport, its surface crowded with countless vessels.
Disembarking, Yu Zhou and Dark followed Eri to a ticket counter.
"What's this?" Yu Zhou asked, examining the slip of paper he was handed.
"It's a return ticket to the Earth-like planet," Eri explained.
The ultra-ancient humans had named their world simply Terra-like Star.
Yu Zhou couldn't help but chuckle at the unimaginative name. "Terra-like…? That's a bit on the nose, isn't it?"
Like boarding a train on Earth, they now had to wait in a vast terminal for the next ship to depart.
The waiting hall was immense, filled with all manner of beings. Some looked indistinguishable from Earth humans — the ultra-ancient survivors — while others were strange alien species, though many had altered themselves to appear more humanlike.
Yu Zhou wasn't surprised. After all, Dais had been no different.
"Come on," Eri said as the announcement chimed. Together, they filed into the boarding line.
Soon, Yu Zhou found himself standing before a colossal spacecraft.
"This… this is enormous!"
Even Dark was dumbstruck. Daisian technology couldn't produce a ship on this scale. It was proof enough of how far the ultra-ancient humans had advanced.
Yu Zhou, however, wasn't shocked.
Thirty million years was more than enough time for civilizations to rise and fall. For the ultra-ancients to master such feats was only natural.
He stroked his chin and muttered with a faint grin, "I wonder why they never built something like the Plasma Spark Tower, like the people of the Land of Light did…"
With that idle thought, Yu Zhou, Dark, and Eri entered the ship and found their assigned seats.