After transporting all the scientists to the planet’s surface, Xiao Yu launched a comprehensive survey of the planet. To support his massive construction plans, Xiao Yu needed to locate at least a thousand major mineral veins. These veins also had to meet certain conditions, such as geological stability and ease of extraction.

Over the years of interstellar travel, Xiao Yu had visited many planets, but in terms of geological complexity and similarity to Earth’s environment, this planet stood out above all the rest.

Wind and water were the most powerful forces shaping terrain. Under these two finely honed scissors, the surface environment of this planet had been sculpted into an astonishingly complex world.

On its surface were deep caves, majestic mountains, surging rivers, vast lakes, and even oceans.

There was only one major regret: so far, Xiao Yu had not discovered any lifeforms on this planet. Not even the simplest, most primitive organisms. However, Xiao Yu did not dare assert that the planet was completely devoid of life. In places he hadn’t explored, in the depths of those dark caves, or at the bottom of the ocean, life might still exist.

Because of differences in atmospheric composition, the sky here was not blue, but a faint shade of purple. Suspended in the center of the purple sky was the half-missing star, emitting boundless light and heat.

Due to the misalignment between the star’s equatorial plane and the planet’s orbital plane, there was an angle between the two. As a result, the appearance of the star seen from the planet would regularly change with the planet’s revolution and the star’s rotation. This change followed a certain pattern, similar to how the moon waxes and wanes.

At this moment, it was a bright and sunny day. In the purple sky, the star with a small missing portion hung quietly, illuminating this world that was full of vitality yet eerily lifeless.

This was a turbulent sea. Originally a blue ocean, under the purple-tinted sky it had taken on a magnificent coat of color. The planet’s atmosphere was very dense, and the airflow created wind. As a result, the sea surface was far from calm. Waves surged and crashed against the coastal rocks, producing a splashing sound just like on Earth.

Hovering above the sea was a streamlined spaceship. Having glimpsed the technology of a Level 5 Civilization, Xiao Yu was now capable of building primitive antigravity engines. This Town-Class spaceship was equipped with such an engine.

In truth, antigravity engines weren’t as magical as humans of the Earth era had imagined. The reason was simple: antigravity merely neutralized gravity. For instance, this Town-Class spaceship equipped with an antigravity engine could offset the gravitational pull of the planet and not fall, but negating gravity did not equate to free movement. For regular flight, Xiao Yu still needed other propulsion systems to move the ship.

Furthermore, antigravity technology was only useful during acceleration phases or when operating very close to massive celestial bodies within a star system. Overall, antigravity could only be considered a secondary technology. Unlike the Grand Unified Theory or antimatter technology, it would not significantly impact Xiao Yu’s overall strength.

To counteract the effects of wind, weak flames continuously spouted from various parts of the Town-Class spaceship’s hull, using reaction force to maintain its stability.

Beneath the ship, the hatch had already been opened. A strange device resembling a fat-headed fish was being slowly lowered by high-tensile cables.

This was a specialized underwater probe that Xiao Yu had built. It would roam the vast ocean floor of this planet, helping Xiao Yu map the underwater terrain in detail and conduct comprehensive scans of the seabed’s mineral distribution.

There was another goal to this mission: searching for signs of life. Xiao Yu hoped to find native lifeforms on the ocean floor of this planet, something that was very important to him. By analyzing these naturally born organisms still in the early stages of evolution, Xiao Yu might be able to solve the mystery of how humanity itself first emerged.

“There are just too many layers of fog hidden behind humanity. All I know is that several million years ago, a Taihao Civilization performed genetic modifications on Earth’s lifeforms and left behind the name ‘Fuxi.’ So, before the Taihao, had Earth’s organisms already been tampered with? Traces of the ancient era still linger in human genes. If I can truly find native life on this planet, and compare and analyze them, perhaps I can find the answer…”

Xiao Yu pondered as he slowly guided the instrument to continue its descent.

Scenes like this were occurring simultaneously in tens of thousands of locations across the planet. Xiao Yu had manufactured tens of thousands of these devices. He believed that if life truly existed on this planet, he would surely uncover it.

As the high-tensile cables continued to extend, the submarine finally reached the surface of the ocean. Its entire body became submerged in seawater. At that moment, under the operation of internal instruments, the cable connecting it to the Town-Class spaceship was severed, and it gained complete freedom.

Driven by its engine, it darted forward like a nimble, energetic fish, beginning its voyage through this alien ocean where no lifeform had ever arrived before.

Just then, the previously clear and cloudless purple sky suddenly changed. Within a mere five minutes, dense black clouds gathered over this section of the ocean, completely obscuring the star.

The clouds carried different charges, and as they collided, violent discharges occurred between them.

Boom! Accompanying a bolt of lightning like a silver serpent came a thunderclap that resounded across the heavens. Then came a torrential downpour, raindrops as large as beans pouring down in sheets.

The storm brought fierce winds. The sea roiled and churned, with waves several meters, dozens of meters, high crashing and roaring.

“It’s raining,” Xiao Yu murmured as he watched the familiar scene, a trace of emotion rising in his heart. “This looks so much like Earth. But here, there are no brave sailors battling wind and waves, no resilient seagulls soaring through the storm.”

This was, after all, a world of deathly silence. Majestic mountains were not covered in green vegetation, and no beastly roars echoed through the valleys. No birds flew through the sky, and no fish swam in the ocean.

“My home, Earth, must have looked like this several billion years ago,” Xiao Yu silently reflected. “Life was first born in the cradle of the ocean. Under the ocean’s protection, it slowly developed and grew strong, eventually leaving the sea to step onto land, evolving into countless diverse organisms, into intelligent beings like humanity. Along this path, countless ages flew by in the blink of an eye. How incredibly difficult the birth of life was.”

“But now, all of that is gone. With the explosion of the planet, everything vanished. No one will ever know what magnificent, soul-stirring stories took place on that tiny blue planet.”

“But I will remember. I will remember forever. That is my eternal homeland.”

In the midst of the storm, the Town-Class spaceship maintained perfect stability. Lightning could not destroy it, wind could not move it, waves could not reach it. Xiao Yu, through the ship’s optical instruments, quietly observed this world, thinking of his home, that place called Earth.

A melancholy welled up in Xiao Yu’s heart. In this moment, he felt a profound sense of loneliness.

His gaze returned to the still-sleeping girl. Her face remained rosy, her skin still elastic. Under the most advanced preservation techniques Xiao Yu currently possessed, her body remained intact, just as if she had only just fallen asleep. If one looked closely, they could even see a faint smile lingering at the corner of her lips.

“What kind of sweet dream are you having?” Xiao Yu muttered to himself. “Where is your soul now?”

“I’ve already established the Central Research Academy of Science. Under it is the Biotechnology Research Center. Zhang… Shengya, wait for me. I will bring you back to life.”

During this time, Xiao Yu had performed the most thorough examination of her body. The results showed that her body was extremely healthy, without any damage whatsoever.

In fact, even now, Xiao Yu still did not fully understand what exactly the soul was, even though he himself existed in a soul state. From the girl’s diary, Xiao Yu had learned that her soul had apparently been extracted and stored inside the escape pod of the 90s Model Spaceship. Xiao Yu didn’t know if her soul could ever return to her body, or whether it even still existed.

But Xiao Yu had made up his mind. He was determined to revive her. Because this girl had gone through experiences similar to his own. She was from roughly the same era. Most importantly, she also knew many of the secrets of the Taihao Civilization. Her level of knowledge might even surpass his.

Bringing her back, and relying on her scientific expertise, might even bring about another technological leap for him.

And beyond all that, the most important reason was… Zhang Shengya…she was from Earth! She was one of his kin!

On a planet in a remote corner of the Milky Way, thousands of light-years from the Solar System, amid howling winds, pouring rain, and crashing waves, Xiao Yu’s thoughts churned like the sea.

Below, the underwater probe had already begun its journey. And what now appeared before Xiao Yu’s eyes was a wondrous sight.