A formidable power surged through the void. Before long, that massive rift began to stabilize completely, taking shape as a passageway. The members of the Heavenly Court looked on in shock and curiosity.
Zhu Qingyu and the others could naturally sense that once they stepped through this passage, they would arrive at their destination in short order—which was where Mount Emei stood. This meant that King Lu, through his own methods, had forged a path for them.
There was no need to fly through the air, nor was there any need to traverse boundless distances. It was as if he had directly linked the two spaces together.
This was already a mythical feat, and the members of the Heavenly Court present were understandably shaken. After all, with a mere gesture, he had bridged two distant realms of space.
Yet to Jiang Ningxian and her brother, it was nothing out of the ordinary. The reason was simple: they knew that a Grotto-Heaven Immortal held a unique mastery over spatial power. Never mind opening a passageway in this realm—if Lu Yuan wished to, creating a direct path to the Moon would be trivial.
Of course, the passageway would not last long. Space possessed a potent self-healing ability, unless one was terrifyingly powerful enough to shatter space entirely. But that level of power belonged solely to Domain Lords—an equivalent to the true destruction of space itself.
Meanwhile, after finishing his work, Lu Yuan looked as calm as ever, as though it were a trifling matter.
Turning around, he spoke, "This will be our Heavenly Court's first expedition, and also the moment we fully display our own strength before the extraterrestrial beings, standing truly shoulder to shoulder with the starry skies' major powers."
Previously, others had acknowledged the Heavenly Court's strength, but that acknowledgment rested squarely on Lu Yuan.
Now, things were entirely different. Through this impending chaos, the Heavenly Court had to demonstrate its true backbone so that no one would dare look down on them.
Upon hearing his words, all the members of the Heavenly Court nodded.
They understood what needed to be done this time and how they were to do it.
"Depart!"
Lu Yuan wasted no more breath. At that moment, the gathered members filed into the newly forged passageway one by one.
The Ancient Heavenly Emperor Token had already drawn the attention of countless extraterrestrial beings, all rushing toward Mount Emei to contest for it.
Everyone knew that if a great battle broke out, it would be fraught with danger. Yet none of them hesitated. They knew this was their time to prove themselves. If they relied on King Lu for everything, there would have been no point in establishing the Heavenly Court in the first place. Their gazes burned with absolute resolve.
"Where is Senior Jiang Huanyun?" Lu Yuan asked at that moment.
"He will appear when the time is right," Jiang Ningxian answered. "He and several clansmen will be backing us up from the flanks." With so many extraterrestrial beings converging, top-tier combat power was indispensable as a deterrent. The Heavenly Court lacked this at present, which was precisely what the Jiang clan was meant to provide—otherwise, why form an alliance?
"I hear a few worthy opponents have arrived. My hands are itching for a fight this time," Jiang Haokong chimed in, visibly eager. The opponents he referred to were naturally the sequence prodigies of the various races, and even figures at the level of Divine Sons and Saintesses. He figured that while he was no match for Lu Yuan, dealing with the others would hardly be an issue.
"Sounds like it will be quite lively," Lu Yuan remarked with a faint smile.
Naturally, in his own mind, he gave little thought to those so-called sequence prodigies, Divine Sons, or Saintesses. What he needed to consider was how many experts the various races would dispatch, and whether any Creation Immortals would be among them.
If there were none, securing the Ancient Heavenly Emperor Token would be considerably easier. It could be said that Lu Yuan's current strength was sufficient to rank him among the cosmic elite. It was simply that most people did not yet realize he had broken through to become a Grotto-Heaven Immortal.
Still, that worked in his favor. It gave him far more room to maneuver.
"Let's go."
Without further chatter, the three set out. Shortly afterward, the Heavenly Court's forces, along with the Golden-Winged Great Peng, the Peacock King, and the other Beast Kings, all stepped into the passageway.
In truth, they understood very well that the ultimate ownership of the Ancient Heavenly Emperor Token would be decided among the true heavyweights. There was very little they themselves could do. But clashes were inevitable along the way, and once chaos erupted, it would be their time to strike.
This battle would also mark the first clash between the Heavenly Court's core strength and the extraterrestrial beings.
"Old Ji, we finally don't have to live in constant worry anymore," Elder Yun remarked from behind, watching the departing forces, a dazed look on his face.
All of them were in the Saint Realm. This was something they had never dared imagine in the past.
"Indeed. When the world first transformed, endless crises cropped up. Back then, you and I constantly felt our future was bleak," Elder Ji nodded, his heart swelling with emotion.
As the first batch of people who had begun cultivating and evolving—and who bore immense responsibilities—they were different from ordinary people. They had to weigh countless concerns and do everything in their power to protect the common populace. Even with considerable resources at their disposal, the situation had shifted constantly. Compounded by internal strife and foreign threats, there were times when they could barely look after themselves.
Now, however, the Heavenly Court was not only formed, but fully grown. There were many in the Saint Realm, and perhaps the Immortal Realm would follow in the future. Their foundations across all areas were growing stronger. They no longer had to worry themselves sick over every looming crisis. Under these circumstances, feelings ran deep.
More importantly, the present Heavenly Court could now stand directly alongside the extraterrestrial races.
And why had all of this happened? What was the cause?
It was because of King Lu.
The two elders sighed in admiration, knowing that their original choice had been entirely correct. Through it, in the midst of this monumental upheaval, this realm had been preserved, and Huaxia's legacy kept safe.
Without another word, once the passageway faded completely, they turned and departed.
Meanwhile, on the other side, at Mount Emei.
The Mount Emei of today was entirely different from before. Range after range of mountains stood between heaven and earth, stretching for tens of thousands of li. It resembled a primordial wilderness, inhabited by all manner of mutated beasts.
Yet, as if sensing the impending crisis, the formidable beasts had already fled, and those left behind were hardly worth paying attention to.
Soon, towering auras began to draw near.
The void trembled as countless silhouettes appeared. Extraterrestrial factions had arrived en masse at Mount Emei.
Looking upon these endless mountains and sensing the unusual auras within, looks of astonishment surfaced on their faces. It wasn't as though no one had visited Mount Emei before, but right now, it gave off a distinct feeling—as if something profound, or some great fortune, lay hidden within!
As time slipped by, more and more beings began to appear. The winds and clouds were truly converging!
Chapter 402