Given their understanding of Fu Deqing, the other three knew that if he said something like that, he would certainly follow through if necessary.
But in truth, the same thought lingered in the hearts of all three— the human race had endured oppression for far too long.
Though they had strong reproductive abilities and a large population, why did they only slightly outnumber the other three races? The reason was simple: they died.
The human race's strength and cultivation levels were terribly mismatched. When they went out to hunt soul beasts or fight against the Black Horn tribe, the humans always suffered the highest casualties.
Because of their inadequate strength, the humans were often used as cannon fodder in battles, sacrificing their lives in a desperate attempt to elevate their status.
The four elders had long been tired of seeing the human race suffer like this, paying a price that seemed both senseless and endless.
At this moment, they were willing to do whatever it took to change the fate of their people. No matter the cost, they were prepared to pay it.
After careful deliberation, the four elders decided to leave the Central Clan Gathering Place and personally seek out Lin Qian.
If they were to change the fate of the human race, they would need to rely on Lin Qian. They knew they had to approach him with humility, without the arrogance of age.
This matter concerning the human race in the ancient forest world was too critical to risk anything going wrong. Since they were seeking help, they had to adopt the proper attitude—nothing could be left to chance.
"Let's set out immediately!" Wang Qiongxing made the final decision and was the first to rise.
Not long after, four figures could be seen flying through the sky from the largest gathering place in the ancient forest world, heading towards Lin Qian's location.
If Lin Qian had been there to witness the four elders flying, he likely would have laughed out loud—it was simply too slow.
In the gathering place where Lin Qian was staying, the four races had already grown accustomed to the floating house above and no longer looked up in awe.
Inside his house, Lin Qian was surrounded by strong currents of energy, his internal soul force still pounding against his martial soul in an attempt to break through to the Awakening Realm.
Boom! The energy currents shattered, sending shockwaves throughout the room. Just as the force was about to tear the objects in the room apart, a formation of light tightly shielded everything.
"Failed again. It really is difficult!" Lin Qian sighed as he opened his eyes after the failed breakthrough attempt.
Hearing Lin Qian's complaint, Wang Gang, who was inside the room, was left utterly dumbfounded.
Breaking through to the Awakening Realm required a single, powerful push—internal soul force had to be used to fully awaken the martial soul. Once failed, it would cause severe damage to one's meridians and dantian. Typically, it took three to four months of rest to recover before attempting another breakthrough.
In severe cases, recovery could take a year or two.
But Wang Gang clearly remembered that every time he came to see Lin Qian over the past few days, Lin Qian had been attempting to break through to the Awakening Realm.
Each time he failed, and each time he appeared completely unaffected! As soon as he failed, Lin Qian would spring back to life, full of energy, and walk over to Wang Gang as if nothing had happened.
"Why are you staring at me like that?" Lin Qian asked with some confusion when he noticed Wang Gang's astonished expression.
Wang Gang looked at Lin Qian as if he were a monster. "Your Majesty, don't you suffer any effects from failing a breakthrough?"
"Effects? Of course, there are effects. How could there be none?" Lin Qian nodded and said to Wang Gang, "My soul force is drained by at least eighty percent."
"Your soul force is drained by eighty percent?" Wang Gang was completely stunned by Lin Qian's response.
Others who failed a breakthrough would be bedridden for who knows how long, and it could even hinder their future cultivation. Yet for Lin Qian, the consequence of failure was merely a significant depletion of soul force.
Wang Gang couldn't help but admire Lin Qian even more—he couldn't fathom just how strong Lin Qian truly was.
Seeing Wang Gang standing there in a daze, Lin Qian chuckled. "So, why did you come to see me this time? Haven't the humans in this gathering place already taken the refining potion and solved their problem?"
"Your Majesty, the four elders of our human race are already on their way here. They should be arriving soon," Wang Gang reported, bowing.
After hearing Wang Gang's words, Lin Qian nodded in satisfaction.
It seemed that these four elders were indeed wise people, not the kind to flaunt their seniority.
Lin Qian was willing to help the human race in the ancient forest world, but he certainly wasn't interested in helping a bunch of ungrateful individuals.
"In that case, let's wait for them to arrive," Lin Qian said, nodding to Wang Gang.
After acknowledging Lin Qian, Wang Gang turned and left the floating house.
Hovering above the gathering place, Wang Gang looked down at the scene below, a contented smile on his face.
Since Lin Qian had provided the refining potion, the strength of the humans in this gathering place had been fully restored, now matching their cultivation levels.
With the human race's strength restored, the other three races found things much easier.
In the past, when hunting soul beasts or fighting against the invading Black Horn tribe, the brunt of the combat had always fallen on the other three races.
While the humans were numerous, their combat power was so weak that they were of little help.
But things were different now. Lin Qian's arrival had restored the strength of the humans, making it much easier to hunt soul beasts and fend off the Black Horn tribe—by at least half.
Moreover, the restored strength of the human race had caught the invading Black Horn tribe off guard, resulting in heavy casualties.
They never expected that the humans, who once fell with a single blow, would suddenly be able to withstand their attacks and even inflict injuries.
With fewer human casualties and more food available, the entire gathering place benefited greatly.
If just one gathering place could see such positive effects, what would the entire ancient forest world be like once all the humans had regained their true strength? The mere thought of it made Wang Gang tremble with excitement.
"However, it's still strange that His Majesty insists on having pieces of metal attached to their bodies when they take the refining potion," Wang Gang mused, shaking his head at the oddity.
What he didn't know was that Lin Qian wasn't simply being generous—he wasn't about to give away the refining potion for free.
In reality, every human who took the refining potion in the gathering place had their physical reactions recorded and sent to the Engineering Department for analysis, all in preparation for the empire-wide evolution project.
The empire-wide evolution project was currently one of Lin Qian's top priorities. It needed to be initiated before he left the Southern Region for the Central Region to find his parents.
Three days later, the four elders of the ancient forest world finally arrived at the gathering place, where Wang Gang welcomed them and guided them to the floating house.
Standing before the suspended courtyard, the four elders carefully adjusted their robes before standing at the entrance and speaking in unison.
"We, the four pioneers of the human race..."
"Wang Qiongxing!"
"He Baili!"
"Xu Wuwei!"
"Fu Deqing!"
"...request an audience with His Majesty Lin Qian!"
After speaking, the four elders bowed deeply toward the courtyard, their voices filled with respect.
The four elders would never have imagined that lowering their pride today would lead to an incredibly glorious future.