Lu Yuan recognized the presence immediately. He at once reined in his aura, stepped out of the room, and met his visitor.
It was Jiang Ningxian. Their eyes met, both bearing traces of a smile.
"It looks like you've made another great breakthrough," Jiang Ningxian spoke first. Looking at Lu Yuan before her, the smile on her face deepened. She could not explain why, but every time she saw him, a faint, uncontrollable joy welled up from the bottom of her heart. As for the reason, she did not understand it at all.
"It can hardly be called a great breakthrough. I merely fused the seventh Ancient Heavenly Emperor Token," Lu Yuan replied. By now, the two of them were completely open with each other. Moreover, she already knew how many Ancient Heavenly Emperor Tokens were in his possession, so there was no harm in speaking of it.
"It's not as if I'm ignorant of what happens every time you undergo seclusion," Jiang Ningxian teased with a soft laugh. Ever since she had descended to this world, as long as he entered closed-door cultivation in earnest, he would make enormous leaps whether in terms of strength or other facets. She was all too aware of this, which was why she had made her remark.
Lu Yuan did not dwell on the matter and went straight to the point: "By the way, you must have an important reason for coming to find me, right?" He knew that under ordinary circumstances, she would not disturb him lightly, especially while he was in seclusion. There had to be something of great import for her to visit.
"Indeed." Jiang Ningxian knew it was time to address official business. Steadying her mind, she said, "We have discovered traces of the extraterrestrial heavenly demons. My father's intention is for Haokong and me to lead a contingent away from Earth and join the battle. And my father also said that if you are willing, you could come along as well. In the matter of the extraterrestrial heavenly demons, we need your aid."
She conveyed all the intelligence sent from beyond the domain, including Jiang Taiyu's wish for Lu Yuan to accompany them. As before, dealing with extraterrestrial heavenly demons was something that no single person or clan could achieve alone. In the eyes of all, Lu Yuan was now an extraordinary powerhouse, and Jiang Taiyu held him in the highest regard. Jiang Taiyu believed that having Lu Yuan take part would make their campaign against the extraterrestrial heavenly demons far smoother—even if Lu Yuan's current cultivation was still only at the Creation Immortal level.
Upon hearing these words, Lu Yuan was startled. Just like the experts of the Jiang clan, he was taken aback by the development concerning the extraterrestrial heavenly demons. He had harbored a premonition that those entities would descend before long, yet he had not expected it to happen so swiftly and without any warning. Still, upon careful consideration, it seemed only natural. The two rival factions had planned toward this day for a long time, and he had concluded months ago that their schemes were already underway. Now that several months had passed, the timing coincided precisely.
"My father said the decision to go or not is entirely yours to make," Jiang Ningxian said when Lu Yuan fell silent, assuming he was hesitating.
Earth was his homeland, after all; how could he choose to leave so lightly? Moreover, in this era, the safety and survival of all living beings on Earth rested upon Lu Yuan's shoulders alone. That was why she added those words, wanting to spare him undue anguish.
"Go? Why wouldn't I?" But Lu Yuan spoke without hesitation. "Since there is an opportunity to face the extraterrestrial heavenly demons directly, I naturally must seize it."
While in seclusion just moments ago, he had been pondering how he could engage in ferocious battles to take that next step and reach the higher Heavenly Position Immortal realm. After all, he no longer had any opponents here. But the extraterrestrial heavenly demons were different. Lu Yuan had always viewed them as formidable archenemies, the harbingers of future calamity. They were bound to possess immense power that could satisfy all the conditions he required. Battling such entities would inevitably be a matter of life and death.
Furthermore, Lu Yuan was well aware of another truth: if he did not take this chance to understand the extraterrestrial heavenly demons, dealing with them later would prove extraordinarily difficult. In his view, their current appearance was merely the opening act. In the future, they would launch an all-out invasion, plunging the entire universe into ruin. It would not remain a matter of simply being discovered, as it was now.
After all, the extraterrestrial heavenly demons had the means to allow beings like Domain Lords to advance further. Without a doubt, there had to be entities among them that surpassed the Supreme Immortal Realm. If they had not shown themselves yet, they were likely constrained by some hidden factor. Once that constraint fell away, they would descend in full force, just as the extraterrestrial beings had arrived in the Milky Way Star Sector and fallen upon Earth.
Under such circumstances, Lu Yuan needed to thoroughly comprehend these so-called extraterrestrial heavenly demons and discover their capabilities before the situation spiraled completely out of control. As the saying went, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win a hundred battles out of a hundred. If one did not even know what the enemy was like, what chance of victory could there be in the climactic war to come?
Naturally, Lu Yuan would not let this opportunity slip by.
As for the safety of Earth, it was not that he had failed to consider it. But as things stood, the most dangerous enemies—the Ji clan and the Eternal Clan—had essentially withdrawn. The remaining extraterrestrial beings were kept in check by the Heavenly Court and could stir up no great waves. Consequently, he had little cause for worry.
Furthermore, Zhu Qingyu and the others had already grown into capable figures. In the days ahead, they would be the pillars of the Heavenly Court. Lu Yuan had to ensure that each of them possessed the confidence and means to hold their own ground. The problem was that as long as he sat in the Heavenly Court day after day, they would never have that opportunity. It was time for him to leave and allow the younger generation, like Zhu Qingyu, to shoulder the responsibility of protecting this realm.
From the beginning, Lu Yuan had been planning for the Heavenly Court's youth to mature so that he could depart. Now was the ideal moment. Weighing all these factors, he resolved to leave Earth.
There was another point as well: Lu Yuan had cultivated and evolved for years, reaching the Immortal Realm, yet he had never once stepped outside the Solar System. To anyone else, such a thing was virtually unimaginable. After all, what earth-shattering figure in the universe had never traversed the cosmos?
"You're going?" Hearing his reply, Jiang Ningxian was momentarily taken aback before a smile broke across her face. Naturally, she hoped Lu Yuan would accompany her, but she had assumed he was burdened by too many concerns. Now, hearing that he would journey into the starry sky with her, she felt overjoyed. Yet, out of a stubborn pride, she did not show it openly.
Unaware of her inner thoughts, Lu Yuan pondered for a moment and added, "However, I must inform the members of the Heavenly Court and let them know that this time, I am truly leaving."
Chapter 459