According to the database, Mu Qing had already risen to the top of the Ten Great Gods of War.
Her Dawn Army was even hailed as the strongest battle regiment in history.
The records included many photos of Mu Qing. Through those, Feng Qi could clearly see her growth over the years.
In the first photo of her stepping onto the Winterfront, Mu Qing still looked like a rookie, carrying a massive backpack full of food.
That photo had been taken in the main hall of the Winterfront battle regiment, while she was getting her frontline warrior credentials. She looked innocent and wide-eyed in front of the camera.
That was the moment her legend began.
Starting as a grunt doing chores in a battle regiment, it only took Mu Qing a few years to form her own Dawn Army.
Over the following years, she led them to the top, turning the Dawn Army into an icon admired and pursued by countless others.
Her accomplishments alone could fill a glorious history book.
"Boss, who's this? Your next God Ascension Challenge target?"
Xiao You popped up with a lollipop in her mouth, leaning in close to the computer screen and curiously staring at Mu Qing's photo.
"No, she's a friend. Not someone I'll be challenging."
Feng Qi rubbed Xiao You's head with a smile and explained.
"Wow, is she the latest recruit for the Blade Demon Team? Are we getting a new little buddy?"
Xiao You rested her chin on her hand, pretending to be in deep thought, but her expression quickly turned serious as she said in an exaggeratedly mature tone:
"Adding a new member is no small thing. Let me think about what kind of Blade Demon Robe I should make for her. It's going to be tough on me."
She then started making hand gestures toward the screen, clearly imagining how to design a perfect Blade Demon Robe for Mu Qing.
Feng Qi helplessly shook his head and explained:
"She's our friend, but she's not joining the Blade Demon Team."
"Huh? Not joining?" Xiao You looked confused.
"Nope. Go play for now. There are snacks in the cabinet. Help yourself. I've got stuff to do."
Hearing his firm answer, Xiao You deflated like a balloon:
"Okay, got it, Boss."
After Xiao You left, Feng Qi refocused on the screen.
The classified files on Mu Qing were extremely detailed.
Just as history was supposed to unfold, Mu Qing had indeed founded the Dawn Army.
That alone was a huge milestone for humanity.
She had united all the scavengers, turning that scattered force into one united front.
The scavengers now saw Mu Qing as their leader and made the Winterfront Supply Zone their base. There, they became the strongest fighting force on the Winterfront—bar none.
Her achievements were enough to go down in history.
From then on, scavengers finally had a home. No longer were they wanderers whom the Five Great Cities had no way to properly settle.
With resource support from the frontlines, they no longer needed to worry about food and supplies.
If this momentum continued, Mu Qing could even build a sixth human city based on the scavenger population at the Winterfront Supply Zone and become its city lord.
In theory, her efforts deserved praise.
Early on, public opinion was unanimously in her favor. Whether it was official or grassroots rankings of the Gods of War, Mu Qing always held the top spot.
But now, the tides of public opinion were shifting. Mu Qing was under immense pressure.
News outlets kept hounding her, and many articles were even accusing her of pledging allegiance to domain forces and helping them wipe out human civilization.
And the source of this smear campaign was none other than Winter City.
The standoff between the Dawn Army and Jian Ji had already reached a boiling point.
Feng Qi wasn't surprised by this.
In the last sacrifice timeline, he had already seen history unfold.
From the moment Mu Yan approached Mu Qing, it was inevitable that Mu Qing would learn about the crisis in Winter City and form an alliance with Mu Yan to establish the Dawn Army and oppose the Sword Clan.
Jian Ji obviously understood this too.
The media smear campaign was just the beginning. He had no intention of personally killing Mu Qing or crushing the Dawn Army.
Jian Ji was cunning. He wanted to crucify Mu Qing on a pillar of shame through public opinion, then form a joint army with other cities' forces to eliminate her at the lowest cost possible.
This was exactly how things played out in the original timeline.
The next stage would be a war between the Dawn Army and a united human coalition.
But this raised a question.
In the last sacrifice timeline, Feng Qi never saw the formation of the Dawn Army, so he could never understand why the other cities would choose to side with Jian Ji against Mu Qing.
It didn't seem like those domain-controlled cities stood to gain anything from it.
Take Black Shadow, who ruled over Future City—he sent forces to join the coalition against Mu Qing but gained nothing tangible in return.
It was like he was just helping Jian Ji stabilize his surrounding situation.
Feng Qi had assumed they simply wanted to crush the rising Mu Qing before she could lead humanity to a powerful resurgence and become a threat.
But that reasoning felt a little thin.
Even though the domain forces sent only human troops and the casualties were all human, so technically the domain rulers didn't lose anything...
But after all, these were cities under their control, and the human warriors they controlled were, in their eyes, still part of their own forces. Not interfering should have been the path of maximum benefit.
Now flipping through the intel, Feng Qi found a brand-new answer.
Mu Qing's establishment of the Dawn Army actually damaged the interests of the major cities.
The Dawn Army and the previous Dawn Combat Squad operated under entirely different models.
Back when it was still the Dawn Combat Squad, Mu Qing served as the squad leader, and every member was a warrior. Resources earned from the front lines were pooled and handed over to the squad's headquarters, which then redistributed them to the five major cities.
This allowed all five cities to benefit from the resources provided by Mu Qing.
But the Dawn Army's model was completely different.
In addition to scavenger warriors, the Dawn Army also supported a large number of their family members—many of whom were elderly, weak, sick, or disabled and unable to contribute to combat.
This model inherently made it impossible for the Dawn Army to contribute large quantities of domain resources.
And that's exactly why the Dawn Army could afford to support all scavengers.
On top of that, the development of the Rune Enhancement Project also consumed vast amounts of spiritual resources.
The Winterfell Supply Zone was the richest in terms of resource output among all front-line regions. To the five major cities, and especially to Winterfell City, it was the core engine for development.
While Winterfell City could solve its food supply through transport from other cities, most of its developmental spiritual resources still came from the Winterfell Supply Zone.
Even though the other cities weren't as heavily impacted as Winterfell City, they also suffered actual losses.
From the perspective of domain forces, the better the Dawn Army developed, and the larger its population grew, the fewer resources from the Winterfell front made it to the other cities.
And facts proved it.
At present, the Winterfell front almost no longer transferred resources to the other cities.
Mu Qing may have had a valid reason—she needed to support the scavengers.
But to the domain powers, that reason was the wrong one.
That's why when Jian Ji incited public opinion, they readily jumped aboard and supported the idea of forming a coalition army to eliminate the Dawn Army.
This realization clicked.
The information opened Feng Qi's eyes.
Everything made perfect sense now.
Preventing humanity's rise was only one reason—the real issue lay in how benefits were being distributed.
Of course, not everyone involved fully understood the situation.
Many were simply angry at Mu Qing's "betrayal," unwittingly being used as tools by the cunning domain infiltrators.
However, this timeline hadn't followed the predetermined course of history.
Just like the previous sacrificial timeline, Star City had once again stepped forward and helped Mu Qing share the pressure.
Public opinion in Star City overwhelmingly supported the Dawn Army.
Currently, the domain forces were still observing. They hadn't agreed to Winterfell City's call to form a coalition army—but they hadn't refused either.
Star City's involvement had made the situation even more complex.
These sly domain powers clearly wouldn't pick a side without seeing how things played out first.
This was also the reason why the coalition army still hadn't formed.
But that didn't mean the conflict had stopped. Right now, Winterfell City had entered a state of full military preparation. War was inevitable.
There was no need to guess.
In this timeline, without help from the coalition army, Jian Ji was bound to act.
The situation would unfold like the previous sacrificial timeline, where Jian Ji would eventually face off against Mu Qing and Mu Yan.
The only difference now was the addition of a wildcard—him.
And also the destined enemy of Jian Ji: the Demon Blade.
Sensing his shift in emotion, the Demon Blade floating at his side let out a hum. The faded inscriptions on its body lit up one by one.
"Blade bro, don't rush. Almost time."
Feng Qi reached out and brushed his fingers over the blade, smiling as he spoke.
"I'm not in a hurry. If you die in battle, I'll just find another wielder. As long as Jian Ji can't kill me, I'll never lose."
"Trying to piss me off?"
"But I hope you win. Your resolve isn't weaker than mine. Among all the wielders I've had, your will is the strongest. I admire that."
The Demon Blade suddenly changed its tone.
"Smack me then feed me candy?" Feng Qi raised his middle finger at the Demon Blade.
After the brief exchange, Feng Qi turned back to the screen and resumed reviewing the current intel on the Dawn Army and Winterfell City.
As time passed, a few hours later, he closed the intel page.
He took a deep breath. He knew his time in Star City wouldn't be long.
The tension between the Dawn Army and Winterfell City was like a taut string—ready to snap at any moment, igniting war.
Winterfell City was preparing for war, and so was the Dawn Army.
If Mu Qing had another hundred years to grow, he was confident she could absolutely crush Jian Ji.
With similar miracle items, Mu Qing's growth potential definitely outmatched Jian Ji's.
But Mu Qing's development was always hindered by her environment.
Her path wasn't like the Elf King or Jian Ji's lone warrior model.
Early on, she used only a tiny fraction of the resources she received. The vast majority was sent off to support other cities.
Now, in the era of the Dawn Army, most of the resources were used to support her warriors, their families, and investments in the Rune Enhancement Project.
That's why Mu Qing had never truly been able to fully grow.
With Mu Qing's unrivaled potential among all humanity, if she really chose the lone-growth model, Jian Ji wouldn't even be a worthy opponent. She could completely surpass him in no time.
The greatest regret of the Elf King in the Central Region was that his growth was limited by talent. Even following the lone-growth path, he could still clearly see the ceiling of his potential.
But that problem didn't exist for Mu Qing.
Mu Qing possessed the very talent and growth potential the Elf King yearned for.
Using Old Mist as a benchmark to compare with Mu Qing—
Back in the antagonist timeline, Old Mist once tried to catch up to Mu Qing, pushing himself hard to surpass her. But the outcome left him in despair.
That unreasonable rate of growth even terrified Old Mist.
Even though he'd joke that he would turn things around in the late game and crush Mu Qing, deep down, he had definitely been shaken.
And that was still Mu Qing not on the lone-growth path.
If Mu Qing followed Jian Ji's example and chose the lone-growth model, she would become a true final boss. Jian Ji wouldn't even deserve to be mentioned in the same breath.
But reality didn't allow for "ifs."
Whether considering the big picture of humanity's future, or based on Mu Qing's own personality, she could never choose to sacrifice all of humanity's development just to grow on her own.
That part of her was a lot like him.
What they wanted was to stand together with the human race beneath the stars of the future—to greet the golden age together.
Not to stand alone beneath the starry sky, left with nothing but memories of the past.
In the previous future dreamline, Zhang Daowen's loneliness had resonated deeply with Feng Qi.
When humanity's growth couldn't keep pace, every step forward would feel like struggling against the current.
To carry an entire race forward in the harsh, competitive New World, all on one person's shoulders, meant always being on edge—because even a small slip could mean the destruction of the weak people sheltering beneath.
The only one with a "perfect" answer to the lone-growth model was the Elf King.
The Elf King's growth could drive his entire race's advancement. The only flaw was that allies were expendable—meant to be replaced. Their progress always came at the cost of someone else being left behind.
That so-called "perfect" was only perfect for the Elf Race.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Feng Qi didn't dwell further. He closed the intel page with a wave of his hand.
Next, he started reviewing Star City's development history.
Clearly, the Star City leadership had predicted that after his return, he would want to study Star City's growth in detail. So they had prepared a comprehensive chronological document.
When he opened the document, everything was laid out clearly in table format. Each year's major events were listed, along with the specific timing and problems encountered in development. All important information was clearly marked.
Scrolling down revealed attached images for the key moments.
For example, when the hero statue of Feng Qi was erected in Central Park—clicking on the event opened a detailed written description, on-site photos, and even live video footage.
Or when Star City Military launched the Blood Refinement Grand Formation to ambush the Silver Moon Clan—moments like these were all recorded.
With a clear timeline of events, Feng Qi saved a ton of time otherwise spent digging through documents.
Time passed. It wasn't until dinner that Feng Qi finally finished reviewing half of Star City's historical records.
He didn't skim. He read every line carefully.
Any problem that appeared in Star City's development needed to be corrected in the next timeline, not repeated.
That was the advantage granted to him by time.
From the information, he could see that Star City had always followed the development route he planned.
Having learned from the mistakes of the previous timeline, this timeline's Star City had developed rapidly.
What had once been a merely planned plot of land for Breaking Dawn Academy had now become a fully built institution. Its overall strength was no weaker than Star City Academy.
For the next few days, Feng Qi didn't stop.
He stayed busy recording videos in his room and reviewing Star City's development data.
Until three days later—when the highest-level meeting in Star City was held.
That day, Feng Qi left the Tiger Soul Research Institute with Xiao You and the others, riding a dedicated Tiger Soul vehicle to the meeting site.
As soon as the car stopped by the roadside and Feng Qi stepped out, he saw a Crimson Institute vehicle parked right ahead.
The car door opened, and a familiar figure appeared before him.
She wore a Crimson Institute uniform that had faded to white. The skin exposed to the sunlight was fair as snow. Time hadn't left a single mark on her. Her face was exactly as he remembered—unchanged in the slightest.
At that moment, she also looked up toward Feng Qi.
As their gazes met, a charming smile bloomed on her face.
"Well, well, isn't this the legendary hero Feng Qi? A pleasure, a pleasure. I'm your fan."
With that, the woman reached out her right hand.
"Wei-jie, long time no see."
Feng Qi smiled brightly as he reached out to shake Wei Wei's hand.
"Huh? And this is…?"
Wei Wei's eyes shifted to the drowsy little Xiao You floating beside Feng Qi.
Judging by Wei Wei's expression, though she already knew of Feng Qi's return, she clearly didn't yet know anything about Xiao You and the others.
Just as Feng Qi was about to answer, Xiao You piped up cheerfully, moving forward and nodding.
"I'm the boss's wild child from outside. I'm Xiao You. Sister, shake hands!"
She reached out her right hand with great enthusiasm, trying to imitate the handshake she had just seen.
Veins bulged on Feng Qi's forehead as he immediately pulled the overly friendly Xiao You back to his side.