"In a single battle, he directly struck down three divine sons."
"As for this Lu Yuan, is he completely mad, or does he simply possess boundless audacity?"
"I, for one, believe he is demonstrating absolute strength, making a statement for everyone in the cosmos to see."
Such were the assessments among the extraterrestrial powerhouses, all utterly shaken by Lu Yuan's might.
At the same time, they found the slaying of the two divine sons scarcely believable. The reason was exceedingly simple: those two hailed from the Ji clan and the Eternal Clan.
Both were terrifying factions ranked among the top ten in the starry sky. No matter what kind of existence faced them, none would dare act rashly under such circumstances.
Yet Lu Yuan had not only struck, but he had also slain them outright—and had included the Present Buddhist Son of the Bliss Star Sector as well.
One could say he had formed an irreconcilable blood feud with all three great factions. If they refused to swallow this insult, they might well mobilize everything they had and launch an all-out assault.
When that time came, the Jiang clan alone would no longer be able to protect Lu Yuan and this world. Their boundless fury would shake the entire universe.
Yet even though Lu Yuan was well aware of all this, he had still done it. That was why some called him mad. Most, however, considered it true courage.
One had to remember that during ancient times, the Milky Way Star Sector had been unimaginably glorious. Even the Bliss Star Sector and Heavenly Dragon Star Sector had been unable to vie with it.
Many thus believed Lu Yuan was seeking to restore that ancient glory. Above all, no one considered him to be overestimating himself anymore.
Through this battle, Lu Yuan had proven far too much, especially his own personal strength. Hardly anyone doubted that he would grow into a cosmic titan capable of swaying the broader state of the universe.
Consequently, following that battle, the various factions on Earth ceased looking down upon the Heavenly Court and began treating them with genuine courtesy.
After all, in the eyes of such figures, only the strong were worthy of being considered peers. As for the weak, they were never taken seriously in the first place.
The Heavenly Court had long anticipated this development. Under the leadership of Zhu Qingyu and the others, they did not grow arrogant over it, knowing full well who had brought about this state of affairs.
The sole reason the Heavenly Court had caught the eye of those extraterrestrial beings was the combat prowess Lu Yuan had displayed.
Under these circumstances, all they needed to do was maintain what they had. Throughout this period, the Heavenly Court remained as low-profile as before, showing little outward change.
As for Lu Yuan, he had gone straight into seclusion after the battle. Channeling the power of providence to envelop his body had taken an immense toll on his energy and stamina.
His innate spirit in particular had been affected; even with the support of the Ancient Bodhi Tree, the strain could not be fully alleviated.
Ultimately, it boiled down to his cultivation being insufficient. An Undying Immortal certainly seemed extraordinary in the eyes of outsiders.
Yet to endure such tremendous power of providence, it was plainly not enough.
"In the end, my strength is still lacking. If I can reach the Grotto-Heaven Immortal stage, or even the Creation Immortal stage, not only will I be able to channel far more providence, but crucially, I won't be left utterly depleted like this." Sensing his current condition, Lu Yuan felt deeply helpless. The power of providence was indeed far from easy to wield.
This had been only a single instance, drawing on merely a fraction of it, yet it had already brought him to such a state. Of course, the experience had also helped him realize a few things.
Namely, if he could ever mobilize the entirety of that providence, the sheer scale of power would reach a truly terrifying level.
Naturally, the crux of the matter did not lie solely in his cultivation. Another critical factor was that he had yet to collect all of the Ancient Heavenly Emperor Tokens.
Even when his cultivation met the requirements, he would still be unable to mobilize the full measure of that providence without them.
"The Ancient Heavenly Emperor Tokens... the Ancient Heavenly Emperor Tokens..."
He knew very well that in his current condition, reaching the Grotto-Heaven Immortal stage within a short period shouldn't pose much difficulty.
Yet what about the Creation Immortal stage after that? What about the final two minor stages of the Immortal Realm? How much time would they take? There was no telling, and his enemies would not stay quiet forever.
If the two great factions, joined by the Bliss Star Sector, attacked again, they would likely deploy their true foundations. Both sides were already like fire and water.
Especially after this battle, his potential had effectively been laid bare before the entire cosmos. Under such circumstances, neither the Eternal Clan nor the Ji clan would sit idly by and watch him continue to grow.
Then there was an even more critical matter: the extraterrestrial heavenly demons. That true crisis could arrive at any moment.
Lu Yuan could not help but sigh. The stronger one grew, the more difficult the crises one encountered became. Yet he knew the fundamental root of the problem: he simply wasn't strong enough.
Putting further speculation aside, Lu Yuan closed his eyes and continued his recovery. It was a prolonged process; by his initial estimate, it would require at least a month.
He intended to spend most of his time in seclusion, occasionally stepping outside for a walk. This was partly to remind the Heavenly Court members not to slacken, urging them to keep bolstering their foundations and individual strength.
Another purpose was to deter the extraterrestrial beings. If he vanished into seclusion immediately after an earth-shattering battle, it would inevitably invite rampant speculation from the outside world. He had merely lost the immediate ability to draw on the power of providence; he wasn't genuinely injured.
Thus, Lu Yuan needed to solidify the fruits of this victory. At the same time, he directed Zhu Qingyu and the others to continue competing for opportunities and fortunes.
The great era providence was the fundamental reason the extraterrestrial beings had descended in the first place. Why shouldn't that providence fall into the hands of their own people?
As for the Jiang clan, they continued sending people down during this time. Everyone understood that the two enemy factions would not let matters rest.
Naturally, another massive battle would not erupt easily in the immediate future; all eyes were now turning toward the great era providence.
No one knew precisely how to obtain it, but one thing was certain: continuously cultivating in this world, steadily growing stronger, and acquiring various inheritances and fortunes could never be the wrong path.
Time slipped by bit by bit. A month later, Lu Yuan finally made a full recovery.
Not only had his soul and physical body returned to their peak, but more importantly, following that intense battle, he discovered that he seemed to have taken another step toward the Grotto-Heaven Immortal stage. With the Ancient Heavenly Emperor Token and the power of providence, breaking through would be swift.
It was an astonishing pace. Lu Yuan did not hide the truth from Jiang Ningxian and the others. When they heard the news, every one of them was left utterly dumbfounded.
After all, they had watched with their own eyes as he rose. In such a short span of time, he had not only attained the Immortal Realm, but far more terrifyingly, he was already on the verge of breaking through once again.
Jiang Haokong felt struck by defeat yet again. He contemplated going into seclusion to catch up, but in the end, he chose to give up. He had thoroughly conceded defeat; no matter how hard he tried, it would produce no different result. Lu Yuan would always walk far ahead of him. Jiang Haokong thus figured there was no shame in falling short.
After all, two divine sons and the Present Buddhist Son had all met their demise at Lu Yuan's hands!
Chapter 395