Chapter 125: The Three Thousand Star Domains of Deep Space, An Era of Great Contention, Finally Descends

Extraterrestrial beings have descended.

Their purpose is the fortune waiting to be claimed following the world's resurgence. As time passes, the rate of evolution among these beings will only accelerate, which is what truly defines a Great Era. Yet, because of this, disputes and even full-scale wars have become inevitable.

In particular, the star systems in deep space are not like Earth, which was previously unable to sustain cultivation. Those civilizations have undergone hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years of evolution. It is no exaggeration to say that they produce powerhouses in abundance; it is not strange for a being to appear capable of destroying a star with a single blow.

Lu Yuan has now broken through the Shackles Realm and reached the fourth stage, the Golden Body Realm. Looking at the current world, he can be considered unrivaled. The only ones who could potentially be his opponents are these extraterrestrial beings. Consequently, beyond a sense of gravity, he feels a surge of excitement. After all, since the dawn of the New Era and the acquisition of extraordinary powers, Lu Yuan has rarely had to exert his full strength; he has been crushing everyone he encounters.

To become a true powerhouse, one must experience various great battles, and these extraterrestrial beings fit that requirement perfectly. For him, this is not necessarily a bad thing—constant warfare and continuous evolution until he reaches the summit. Moreover, with his current strength, he has the ability to prevent and curb the disasters he witnessed in his past life. After all, the great clans of the various star systems are hardly benevolent.

Of course, this does not mean Lu Yuan can rival everyone. He is certainly no match for those who have traveled far along the path of evolution, or even those who illuminate the heavens; the gap is vast. However, Earth is currently protected by a mysterious force—the enigmatic runes mentioned earlier. He did not know what they were before, but through his conversation with Jiang Ningxian, Lu Yuan understood: they were the "severing of heaven and earth" measures employed by the sages of the ancient era. While this power caused the world to change and rendered it unsuitable for evolutionary cultivation, it also protected all living beings on Earth in various ways. From this, one can infer that the catastrophe foreseen by the ancients was perhaps even more terrifying than imagined.

"The further I go and the more I come into contact with, the more the path ahead seems shrouded in mist," Lu Yuan sighed. He did not dwell on these thoughts for long and stepped out of the house.

Soon, Elder Ji, Elder Yun, other high-level officials, and several elite students approached him, their faces etched with anxiety. Clearly, the changes occurring outside the Earth had left them feeling helpless. They wanted to hear Lu Yuan’s opinion to determine their future plans. He understood this well and immediately called for Jiang Ningxian, who was staying nearby. Since she was from beyond this world, she knew more about the situation.

Before long, a meeting to address the extraterrestrial beings was held. Led by Lu Yuan, with Elder Ji and six others in attendance, Jiang Ningxian participated as a partner, offering her insights. Dealing with those entities was clearly impossible for now; the only viable course of action was to conserve strength and accumulate resources, as the gap between the two sides was too great. The strategy was simple: strengthen the five super-cities and use all available resources to cultivate more Awakened ones to replace conventional military units. At this point, thermal weapons were effectively obsolete and no longer served as a deterrent.

This was not too difficult, as the authorities had absorbed the resources of the Three Immortal Islands, where tens of thousands of Awakened ones resided, many of whom possessed significant power. However, to prevent rebellion, binding contracts were required. Furthermore, the Elders hoped to allocate resources to Lu Yuan to help him grow stronger, as he was currently their number one fighter. Lu Yuan chose not to accept, knowing he had too much to manage and that, at his current level, ordinary resources were of little use.

Additionally, based on Jiang Ningxian’s advice, they determined the names for subsequent evolutionary realms: the fifth stage is the Sovereign King Realm, while the sixth, seventh, and eighth are the three realms of the Saint Domain. There is a unified standard beyond the stars, and they simply adopted it.

Finally, Lu Yuan reiterated: avoid conflict with the extraterrestrial beings whenever possible. Of course, if they were to provoke them, there was no need to fear, for Earth's protective measures would ensure that even if entities descended, they would not be overly powerful. In short, the strategy was to lie low and bide their time. Lu Yuan knew he could not handle everything at once.

"After the extraterrestrial beings descend, they may seize the famous mountains and great rivers," Lu Yuan instructed the high-level officials. "This will happen both at home and abroad. Beyond what we control, do not intervene for now." He had his own long-term plans. The Elders, having no other choice, agreed.

The meeting adjourned, and Lu Yuan walked side-by-side with Jiang Ningxian.

"Based on your detection, two major star system clans have appeared. One of them is from the Thunderous Star System's Celestial Clan—the mother clan of that being, Yi," Jiang Ningxian revealed. She knew that after killing Yi, Lu Yuan had incurred a debt with the Celestial Clan, and they would surely seek revenge.

Lu Yuan seemed unconcerned and asked, "Are there many star systems in deep space?" He had some knowledge of this, but it was limited, and he took the opportunity to learn more.

"Many. There are three thousand star systems in the deep universe," Jiang Ningxian smiled, explaining, "Each system is controlled by a major clan, with many smaller clans attached. Of course, many systems are too far away to reach easily, but there is no doubt that the top hundred can do it. The Thunderous Star System is one of the top hundred."

Lu Yuan nodded. He understood that "three thousand" was a general term rather than an exact number. In Taoist texts, there are records of three thousand great worlds, indicating that the universe contains countless worlds like grains of sand. The "top hundred star systems" were, as the name implied, the most powerful among them.

Lu Yuan smiled, "Then the home star of Miss Jiang, the Desolate Flame Star System, must be in the top ten of those hundred?"

"Naturally," Jiang Ningxian nodded without further comment, adding, "In short, the changes in this world are being watched by every star system in the universe. It is a Great Era, but also a time of great contention." With a faint smile and a slight bow, she returned to her room.

Lu Yuan could sense a powerful force dormant within her. It had been suppressed all along, but now, there were signs it might be unsealed. "If it were to fully erupt, she would be at a higher realm than me," he thought. He realized Jiang Ningxian was far from simple; her true strength was likely unfathomable. However, because this world was affected by the "severing of heaven and earth," her power remained suppressed. It was not his concern for now.

Lu Yuan returned to his room, intending to adapt to the power of the Golden Body Realm and digest his recent gains. He did not choose to enter a closed-door cultivation, ignoring the outside world, for he knew that the extraterrestrial beings could descend at any moment. He had to remain vigilant and ready to act.

In the following period, the authorities continued to consolidate their power and resources, while keeping a close watch on the space beyond the Earth. Since the failure of those dozens of star-ships, they had gone silent, neither advancing nor leaving. But as days passed, more things emerged from the passage, drawing closer. These beings lingered outside the Earth, seemingly observing. Detectors revealed that they belonged to different clans and factions, and there were signs of them confronting one another—even coming to the brink of battle, with warships charging their weapons. Yet, the great war never broke out.

It seemed they had reached a silent consensus, focusing their attention on Earth. A few days later, they drew closer again. Beings appeared in the starry sky: men with white hair and wings, resembling the Celestial god Yi; women clad in battle armor; and massive, beast-like creatures. Some landed on meteorites, and using some unknown method, caused the rocks to plummet toward Earth.

On that day, the world was shaken. The authorities used their detectors to broadcast the scene live. In outer space, thousands of meteorites, carrying hundreds of beings, were heading toward Earth. The scene was terrifying; the beings were diverse—some human-like, others bizarre and gargantuan. As they neared the atmosphere, countless people turned pale.

"Extraterrestrial descent! Those beings are like gods and demons. Is Earth entering an era of gods and demons?"
"What can we do? How will humanity survive once they land?"
"Perhaps this is the end, as even extraordinary powers cannot cope."

People were horrified and in an uproar, the world filled with discussion.

As the tens of thousands of meteorites and hundreds of beings entered the atmosphere, a layer of runes suddenly surged from the void. Most of the meteorites that touched the runes disintegrated, turning into dust and vanishing. But not all of them. Some broke through the runes, passed through the atmosphere, and entered the stratosphere. These meteorites burned due to friction with the air, emitting intense heat, while the extraterrestrial beings lay dormant upon them.

Despite the destruction of most, and the obliteration of some beings, many successfully reached Earth. The mysterious force did not stop them entirely; over a hundred beings had truly arrived. Countless people watched, wondering where they would land, but the authorities' equipment could not track them all as they vanished into the troposphere. Eventually, Awakened ones used modern instruments to observe from a distance.

Rumbles echoed across the globe as massive earthquakes and raging wildfires stained the clouds red. These were the results of the hundreds of meteorite impacts, which were terrifying in their power. If not for the world’s expansion and mutation, the disaster would have affected far more people.

In a basin in China, a massive crater had formed. Surrounded by surging flames, a white-haired man with wings stood proudly, looking much like a human. He frowned as he felt his surging power being suppressed by the world, but soon, his brow smoothed, and he spoke in the human tongue: "My power is less than one-tenth of its peak. I will need to adapt and lie low for a while, but that is fine."

"This land is full of opportunities and fortune. I have arrived, and I will rise here to suppress everyone."

Having said this, the white-haired man looked toward a certain direction, beat his wings, and surged with the power of wind and thunder. In an instant, he turned into a streak of light and vanished into the sky.

He was from the Celestial Clan.

At that very moment, similar scenes were playing out all over the world.