The morning they left, the sky was painfully clear.
It felt almost wrong.
After months of preparation, excavation, cultivation, trading, arguing, and quiet resolve, the day had finally arrived. The Gu family—seventy strong—stood outside the mansion that had sheltered them since the beginning of the Apocalypse.
No one spoke.
Even the children, who were usually restless, were solemn.
Gu Mian stepped forward.
Her expression was calm, but beads of sweat already dotted her forehead. She had spent the entire night expanding and reorganizing her space. Mountains shifted. Forests parted. Rivers rerouted. She had carved out a massive clearing large enough to house the mansion and its foundations.
Gu Yunchen gave her a nod. "Ready?"
She inhaled slowly.
"Ready."
She extended her spiritual sense and wrapped it around the mansion.
For one breath, nothing happened.
Then the ground trembled violently.
The mansion shook as if caught in an earthquake. Dust burst upward. Windows rattled. Several younger children yelped.
"Hold steady!" Gu Ruisheng barked.
The vibration intensified—so fierce that cracks spidered across the earth where the foundation had been.
Then—
Silence.
The mansion vanished.
Just like that.
In its place was an enormous, hollow crater, cleanly carved out of the mountain.
Gu Mian swayed.
The pressure hit her like a hammer smashing into her skull. Her vision blurred, and she staggered back two steps.
Before she could fall, a strong arm caught her.
Gu Ruisheng pulled her into his chest. "Steady."
She pressed her forehead briefly against him and muttered, "That… was the biggest thing I've ever moved."
"You moved an entire fortified mountain estate," Gu Shao said dryly. "I think that qualifies."
The tension broke.
The family erupted into cheers.
Even Gu Yunchen laughed, relief flooding his face. "Well done!"
Gu Mian waved them off weakly. "Next time, someone else carry the house."
"You're the only one with a world in your pocket," Gu Taner replied.
After resting briefly and ensuring Gu Mian was stable, the Gu family turned westward.
Ahead of them lay months of travel.
And somewhere beyond that—
Y Province.
Two days into their journey, they reached the horse ranch they had scouted on their map.
The gates were broken. The wooden fencing was splintered. Grass grew wild.
But beyond the ranch, inside a tree-dense stretch of forest—
They heard thunder.
Not of storms.
Hooves.
When they approached, the sight froze everyone in place.
More than one hundred horses stood in the clearing.
Mutated.
Magnificent.
The older ones towered nearly five meters tall, muscles rippling like sculpted stone. Their manes shimmered in unnatural hues—coal black streaked with ember red, deep silver threaded with blue.
One massive black stallion stood at the front.
Flames flickered faintly around his hooves.
Gu Shao blinked. "That thing could step over a two-story house."
Gu Taner whispered, "It looks like it eats dragons."
Gu Mian squinted thoughtfully. "Or humans."
The horses noticed them.
And stared.
For a long moment, neither side moved.
Then Gu Mian snapped her fingers. "Plan."
Gu Taner and Mu Xia used earth ability to dig a long shallow trench several meters away from the herd.
Gu Mian poured purified spring water into it.
Then she took out a crate of mutated apples, infused with plant essence. She handed several to Gu Yan.
"Enhance them."
Gu Yan pressed her palms over the fruit, channeling plant vitality into them until they shimmered faintly green.
Gu Ruisheng crossed his arms. "We are bribing five-meter-tall war horses."
"Yes," Gu Mian said. "With snacks."
The family retreated several meters and waited.
The herd leader—the enormous black stallion—stepped forward.
His hooves crackled faintly.
He lowered his head, sniffed.
Paused.
Then took one cautious sip.
His ears twitched.
He drank again.
Then suddenly—
He plunged his entire muzzle into the trench and drank enthusiastically.
Gu Shao coughed. "I think he approves."
The stallion lifted his head and gave a thunderous neigh.
The herd surged forward.
Within seconds, one hundred mutated horses were crowding the trench, slurping loudly.
Gu Taner blinked. "They sound like oversized teapots."
One silver mare shoved another aside.
A smaller stallion tried to sneak two apples at once and got nipped sharply by a neighbor.
Gu Yan stared. "They argue exactly like us."
The black leader finished first.
He stepped aside and stood guard, watching the Gu family with intelligent eyes.
Gu Ruisheng stepped forward alone.
"Brother!" Gu Mian hissed.
He ignored her.
Stopping a few meters away from the stallion, he released a controlled flare of his fire ability.
Flames danced across his palm, bright and steady.
The stallion's ears perked.
Gu Ruisheng spoke calmly.
"We are traveling west. If you and your herd come with us, you will drink that every day."
He gestured to the trench.
"And more."
The stallion tilted his massive head.
Gu Shao muttered under his breath, "He's thinking."
Gu Taner whispered, "He's calculating."
The stallion snorted once.
A small spark burst from his hoof.
He lowered himself.
And knelt.
The clearing went silent.
Gu Ruisheng turned slightly and raised an eyebrow at his family.
Gu Mian clapped slowly. "Well. Apparently you've been adopted."
He mounted the stallion carefully.
The horse rose effortlessly.
From atop the beast, Gu Ruisheng looked almost small.
He stroked the stallion's neck. "Tell your herd to choose."
The stallion let out a commanding neigh.
Chaos erupted.
The herd surged toward the Gu family.
Children shrieked—not in fear, but in surprise.
A white mare with blue-streaked mane lowered her head in front of Gu Yan and gently nudged her shoulder.
Gu Yan blinked. "She's polite."
A gray stallion approached Gu Shao and stared intensely.
Gu Shao stared back.
They both crossed their arms.
They both waited.
Finally, the horse turned around and walked away.
Gu Taner burst out laughing. "Rejected."
"Excuse me? He lacked vision."
Meanwhile, one golden-coated horse walked straight to Gu Yunchen and simply sat.
Like a dog.
The entire family froze.
The horse looked proud.
Gu Yunchen slowly cleared his throat. "I… accept?"
The younger children were surrounded by gentler mares, who lowered themselves carefully.
Even the most stoic siblings began smiling.
Then—
A fiery red stallion approached Gu Mian.
His coat shimmered like molten copper. His eyes glowed faintly silver.
He stopped inches from her.
And sniffed.
Then sniffed again.
Then—
He pressed his forehead against her shoulder.
Gu Mian blinked.
Gu Ruisheng narrowed his eyes from atop the black leader. "What is that."
Gu Mian closed her eyes briefly.
"He has space ability."
Everyone froze.
"He smells my space," she added.
Gu Shao coughed. "You've attracted a multidimensional horse."
The red stallion knelt.
Gu Mian mounted carefully.
He rose smoothly, power humming beneath her.
One by one, the remaining herd was stored into her space after repeated demonstrations that they would be safe.
At first, the leader protested loudly when she tried.
Gu Mian had to bring them in and out three times.
Inside her space, the horses ran wild with joy.
Some galloped through the colorful bamboo forest.
Some explored the fruit groves.
Several trampled through the ranch area before settling in the peach forest.
The leader finally relaxed.
Satisfied.
Three days into travel, something strange happened.
After clearing a small forest of mutated boars, the family roasted several over an open flame.
The scent was glorious.
The horses stood nearby.
Watching.
Intently.
Gu Taner noticed first. "Why are they staring like that?"
The red stallion beside Gu Mian took a slow step forward.
Sniffed.
Then—
Snatched an entire roasted leg from a cooling rack.
Silence.
He bit down.
Chewed.
And neighed in delight.
The clearing erupted.
"HE STOLE DINNER!"
Another horse grabbed half a boar carcass and began chewing happily.
The black leader delicately picked up a slab of meat and ate with surprising dignity.
Gu Shao stared in disbelief. "They're herbivores!"
"Not anymore," Gu Yan said weakly.
Within minutes, half the herd was eating roasted meat.
One mare even waited impatiently near the grill.
Gu Taner placed a smaller cooked piece before her experimentally.
The mare nodded approvingly.
Gu Ruisheng covered his face. "We have carnivorous war horses."
Gu Mian laughed so hard she nearly slid off her saddle.
"Well," Gu Yunchen said philosophically, "protein is protein."
From that day onward, cooking became a joint family-and-horse event.
The horses would wait eagerly during hunts.
One young stallion tried to steal raw meat once.
He was immediately scolded by the black leader and forced to wait.
The Gu family had never expected to bond with their mounts over barbecue.
But the Apocalypse had redefined many things
By the time they reached L City, two months had passed.
They rode in tight formation, children protected at the center.
Their spiritual Qi had reached level four.
Their coordination was seamless.
But as they approached the outskirts, something felt… wrong.
There were signs of human activity.
Smoke trails.
Cleared roads.
Recently scavenged buildings.
Gu Mian narrowed her eyes.
"This shouldn't exist."
Gu Yunchen's expression darkened.
In their past life, L Base had fallen after winter. Zombies had overrun it. The military had purged the area months later.
Gu Ruisheng had participated in that mission.
But now—
The base stood intact.
Fortified.
Alive.
Gu Yunchen spoke quietly. "Someone changed the timeline."
Gu Mian's voice was calm.
"Someone else was reborn."
Silence settled over them.
The horses shifted uneasily.
Gu Ruisheng exhaled slowly. "Then we're not the only variables."
Gu Yunchen nodded. "We enter carefully."
Their entrance caused immediate sensation.
Seventy people.
Mutated war horses.
Perfect formation.
Disciplined aura.
They were assigned a temporary compound within hours.
Within days, they were famous.
Their zombie-clearing efficiency shocked the base.
Their horses became legends.
Children followed them everywhere.
The base leader attempted several polite inquiries.
Gu Yunchen answered with calm diplomacy and very little information.
They stayed for one month.
Observing.
Gathering.
Watching.
The timeline had shifted.
And someone else was playing the game.
When July arrived, the Gu family prepared to leave.
They had not come to stay.
Y Province awaited.
And beyond it—
Ten years of isolation.
Ten years of preparation.
Ten years to rise.
But before that.
They learnt something new.
Fate can hardly be changed, unless you have enough strength.