In an era of great contention, figures of every stripe would step onto the stage one after another.
This was what made this era so legendary. Lu Yuan knew very well that, barring the unexpected, the chosen prodigies of many major clans had already begun to descend.
Their potential and innate talent shone dazzlingly across the entire starry sky, like brilliant stars.
Within their respective clans, they were true protagonists, their brilliance unmatchable by anyone. Yet what Lu Yuan intended to do was suppress every prodigy across the stars and reach the pinnacle of supremacy.
Only then could the path of evolution be truly magnificent.
"First, break through into the Demi-Saint Realm." Clearing his mind of stray thoughts, he dwelled on them no longer. Calming his spirit, he channeled the power within his body.
Only the final step remained before another breakthrough. For Lu Yuan, it was merely a matter of spending a little more time.
Meanwhile, as he remained in seclusion, Jiang Haokong ascended Mount Tai under the guidance of the Peacock King and the Spirit Monkey.
He carefully sensed the unique aura of this sacred Fengshan site, growing more astonished the deeper he felt it. Its ancient history and inscrutable foundation were even more unfathomable than the Jiang clan's Desolate Flame Star Domain.
Upon reaching Jade Emperor Peak and catching sight of the ruins of the collapsed Heavenly Palace, he could not help but blurt out, "Could this be the legendary ancient Heavenly Court?"
"We are not entirely sure, but King Lu and our forces have already begun to re-establish the Heavenly Court," the Peacock King replied from the side with a smile.
He and the Spirit Monkey were serving as guides. With the Heavenly Court growing ever stronger and being a member of it himself, it came naturally to mention it.
"That Lu Yuan wants to re-establish the Heavenly Court?" Hearing this, Jiang Haokong, who had been curiously looking around, froze.
He had certainly heard of the ancient Heavenly Court. After all, the ancestor of the Jiang clan had once been a Human Sovereign, revered as the Heavenly Emperor and the master of the Heavenly Court.
It was just that so much time had passed that some records had become blurred. Across the entire starry sky, however, no one denied this fact.
Now, hearing that Lu Yuan intended to rebuild the Heavenly Court naturally took him by surprise.
"My sister's evaluation of him was that he has an iron will, peerless talent, and a meticulous mind—praising him to the skies. But rebuilding the Heavenly Court..." Reflecting on what he knew, Jiang Haokong felt conflicted.
Though they had met only once, he still believed that Lu Yuan would undoubtedly hold a place across the starry sky in the future.
Yet rebuilding the Heavenly Court seemed almost impossible; its significance was simply too extraordinary. Of course, that had little to do with him.
Afterward, Jiang Haokong continued observing Mount Tai for a while. Seeing no further discoveries, he headed back down with the Peacock King and the others.
He then rendezvoused with his sister to attend to serious business. This time, he had descended ahead of his clan, and naturally, he had not come empty-handed.
One of his tasks was to deliver certain gifts to the authorities—namely, the current Heavenly Court. Previously, Jiang Ningxian had allied with Lu Yuan on behalf of their clan. When Lu Yuan shattered the Ranked Immortals' plan, the Jiang clan had also been deeply supportive, unwilling to see Earth suffer excessive devastation.
During this time, they had also sent down resources through special channels. However, because the distance separating them was vast, strong as the Jiang clan was, they could not provide full-scale material backing across such a distance. Thus, Jiang Haokong was entrusted with delivering the rest.
This time, he brought numerous spirit fruits, rare herbs, and various breathing and visualization methods to the Heavenly Court. These had all been promised by Jiang Ningxian as commitments the Jiang clan would fulfill.
Now they had truly arrived. Although none were exceedingly rare treasures, their quantity was immense. In particular, the two cultivation arts had been carefully selected.
On the Heavenly Court's side, Elder Ji and Elder Yun continued to oversee the broader direction. When they originally agreed to cooperate, they had merely sought to learn about the starry sky while enlisting more allies, without dwelling too much on the promised items.
Who could have guessed that a massive supply would actually arrive, more than enough for the Heavenly Court to cultivate more and stronger Awakened?
Everyone was pleasantly surprised and expressed their gratitude to Jiang Ningxian and her brother.
To this, Jiang Ningxian said it was nothing. It had been agreed upon earlier, and they were merely fulfilling their promise. She also told them that although the Jiang clan had ventured out into the cosmos, this was still their ancestral home after all. The entire Jiang lineage cared deeply about it and did not want to see it battered and scarred when the grand era arrived.
In truth, had other extraterrestrial beings said such words, Elder Ji and Elder Yun would never have believed them.
However, they were already quite familiar with Jiang Ningxian, and she had indeed helped them a great deal. Thus, everyone expressed their thanks once more.
There was no helping it; Earth had essentially become a whirlpool of conflict. With beings descending from every star domain, who knew if an outbreak of major war would engulf the inhabitants here?
The leadership had constantly worried about this and sought to prevent it, yet they knew it was unavoidable. Under such circumstances, the only recourse was to keep expanding their strength.
What the Jiang clan had done was undoubtedly timely help in an hour of need.
They quickly accepted the items and distributed them, identifying key candidates to receive greater resource investment.
Only by nurturing more powerful experts could they ensure safety in the future.
Take King Lu, for instance—a single person capable of resolving countless crises. If a few more Saint Realm experts could be produced now, they could shoulder some of King Lu's burdens and turn the tides.
Naturally, Lu Yuan, deep in seclusion, knew nothing of this.
At that moment, he sat cross-legged in his cultivation chamber. The Yongzhou Cauldron, one of the Nine Cauldrons, suppressed his body and aura.
Even so, a terrifying, intensely potent aura surged within him. Golden vitality churned unceasingly, resonating with the Great Sun Smelting Furnace to create a wondrous phenomenon.
Fortunately, this manifestation had been suppressed; otherwise, the power erupting from it would have been horrifying.
Rumble...
After an unknown passage of time, waves of aura welled up inside Lu Yuan, surging like endless ocean breakers.
His strength became even more profound than before, accompanied by a richer, denser Saint Realm aura. Before long, as time ticked away, the Great Sun Smelting Furnace faded. Next, the golden vitality began to pull back. All that power was contained deep within his body, hidden and unreleased.
Finally, Lu Yuan snapped his eyes open.
A divine gleam flared from his gaze. His skin gleamed like burnished gold, and every pore across his body breathed the power of heaven and earth, radiating rays of light that resembled a pair of golden wings. At the same time, a mysterious domain formed within three feet of his body.
Within this space, he could manipulate space and all forms of power at will. Lu Yuan seemed like the true supreme sovereign of this realm.
"The Demi-Saint Realm... I've finally reached it," he murmured to himself, a smile touching his eyes.
After such prolonged seclusion and all his accumulation, he had taken another step forward after all. Every aspect of his power had experienced a massive leap; he was no longer merely a novice to the Saint Realm.
As for the three-foot radius around him under his complete control, that was the so-called Saint Domain.
Chapter 247