Chapter 166. A New Era, Evolution, Golden Body Realm

Elder Ji, Elder Yun, and the others were shocked at the sight. The members of the younger generation had become stronger and more confident due to the changes to the world, but they fared no better than their elders.

They stared in horror at what unfolded in space, and disbelief marred their faces.

Setting aside the technological implications, the simple fact that something had emerged from deep space was enough to shake even the most hardened veterans. The scene before them was no theory; it was real, and it had to be taken seriously.

And then there were the starships themselves. Each one stretched at least ten thousand meters across, and their hulls gleamed against the backdrop of the cosmos.

The sight was truly beyond imagination.

Yesterday, the scene unfolding before everyone could only be seen in movies, but today, they were staring at starships hanging in the black expanse above Earth.

Elder Ji finally understood why Lu Yuan had told them to consolidate their forces before entering seclusion. The beings from the Outer Cosmos possessed power too formidable for them to face head-on.

They had to monitor the situation and see what would come next.

Several more days slipped by, and dozens of starships crept closer to Earth.

Their approach slowed, and then they stopped entirely. They hung there in the void, neither advancing nor retreating. Comets orbited them, and it remained unknown whether it was intentional or not.

Meanwhile, something else emerged from the distant tunnel.

At first glance, it looked like a planet, but its surface gleamed with a metallic sheen, and it was definitely more than ten thousand meters in diameter. It was too small to be an actual planet, but it was too large to be anything ordinary.

Perhaps it was a starship as well, just a bigger one.

The sight terrified everyone.

After talking about it at length, the top echelons concluded that secrecy was no longer an option. Sooner or later, the world would have to face this. It was better to let people adjust to it now than let them panic when the truth inevitably surfaced.

At least this way, the Awakened and civilians could steel themselves.

Of course, they knew what would follow—chaos.

└Aliens have appeared in outer space! Look it up!

└There's already a livestream. The officials launched it themselves. They're recording everything with the probes.

└Heavens, there's actually life out there? Where did they come from? Why are they here?

The world came to a standstill when the livestream went public. Shock rippled across the world, and everyone could hardly believe it. They found it too outrageous to be true, as it was far beyond anything they had imagined.

However, the evidence was undeniable. It was stupefying, sure, but it had to be accepted as the reality.

Fortunately, the New Era had already baptized humanity in fire. They had survived the Global Awakening, waves of mutated beast tides, and the emergence of the Awakened.

In the end, they accepted the new reality.

The entire world watched closely, and perhaps they understood that a new chapter of the New Era was about to unfold.

Today, the probes noticed something amiss. The frozen starships suddenly erupted with light converging on their cannon ports. The same weapons that had pulverized a comet hummed with power, which intensified with each passing second.

Instead of a comet, however, they aimed at Earth.

「A-are they going to attack us?!」

「They're hostile! They're definitely hostile! H-how are we going to survive that?!」

「Attack them with nukes? No, that won't work. It's already too late, and it probably won't do anything to them.」

「Then what do we do? Just sit here and wait to die?!」

「Once they fire, we're all going to die! The world is going to be destroyed!」

Shock gave way to fury, and then fear. The starships gathered monstrous amounts of energy, and to make matters worse, there were dozens of them moving at once.

It was simply impossible to know what would happen to Earth in the aftermath of such an attack.

Elder Ji and Elder Yun stared blankly with despair blanketing their faces. Before humanity could even determine whether those beings from the Outer Cosmos were friends or foes, they were already about to launch an attack on Earth.

Panic spread like wildfire, and it felt like the end of the world was nigh.

Jiang Ningxian emerged from her residence and sought out the officials, telling them not to worry. She explained that while the world had changed, it was still under protection. There wouldn't be any great crisis for the time being.

Dozens of starships fired beams of light at Earth, but as if to prove Jiang Ningxian's words, massive runes suddenly materialized around Earth.

The runes looked soft and intangible, yet they blocked every single beam of light, protecting Earth. The beams made of terrifying energy never reached Earth, as it was being protected by something.

Since there was a live broadcast, everyone saw it with their own eyes, and they breathed sighs of relief at the sight.

They had no idea what had protected Earth, but they knew a world-ending catastrophe had been averted. Before anyone could relax, they were shaken once more.

They discovered figures appearing on those starships, along with some massive beasts. The distance was too great to see clearly what they were, but the point was that they ventured out in the vacuum of space without any protection whatsoever.

Elder Ji, Elder Yun, and the others revealed solemn faces at the sight. They acknowledged the formidable power of those entities.

According to the standardized path of evolution, even a Golden Body Realm Awakened couldn't survive the vacuum of space. One would need to reach the fifth stage of evolution, but they had yet to coin a term for that stage.

The shocking sight told them that those beings up above were at the fifth stage of evolution at the very least. Even worse, they were clearly about to descend.

"They're too strong. Once they descend, the world's balance of power will shift once again."

Within a conference room at Mount Tai Trials Academy, everyone's expressions were grave and tinged with deep worry. They realized that they had a troublesome future ahead.

The officials were no longer strong enough to control everything. Even nukes were useless. Once those beings from the Outer Cosmos descended, there would be no way to stop them.

If they were hostile, a great war would surely erupt.

"We must talk to King Lu about this," someone said.

"We should hear King Lu's opinion."

"We can listen to his opinion, but ultimately, we must rely on ourselves," Elder Ji said. He believed that they couldn't depend on King Lu for everything. Of course, he also believed that they had to talk to King Lu about this.

"That's what I mean, but King Lu is still in seclusion. For now, we should continue observing them."

"Fortunately, a mysterious power is still protecting Earth, giving us some breathing room," Elder Yun said, agreeing with Elder Ji. However, he didn't want to disturb Lu Yuan for now.

Fortunately, those beings from the Outer Cosmos couldn't descend just yet. For now, they could continue whatever they were doing to better face the upcoming crisis.

"Agreed."

The others agreed. It was a good thing Jiang Ningxian from the Desolate Flame Starfield was on their side. If any situation proved unsolvable, they could talk to her about it. Their decision to collaborate with her was indeed a correct one.

***

As always, Lu Yuan sat cross-legged inside his training chamber at Mount Tai Trials Academy. He was busy circulating the Primordial Dragon Breathing Technique, but this seclusion was markedly different from the last.

His goal wasn't to break genetic shackles anymore, as he had already shattered everything. Now, his goal was to go all out and reach the next realm—the Golden Body Realm.

Buzz!

His golden vital qi appeared restrained, but it surged fiercely within him. The boundless aura emanating from him made the very air tremble. Arcs of electricity crackled around him as well, making him appear terrifying.

Rumble!

The shattered genetic shackles unleashed boundless energy akin to a volcanic eruption.

Thump, thump, thump!

His heart pounded wildly against his chest, and his organs radiated light. The boundless energy coursing through him transformed his cells, flesh, and blood.

This process had been going on for quite some time now, but it was finally reaching its end. Thanks to the weakening of the mysterious power constraining Earth, everything proceeded smoothly.

After an unknown amount of time, the genetic shackles and the boundless energy within Lu Yuan were unleashed, flooding every corner of his body.

Rumble!

A deafening roar accompanied the change as Lu Yuan was engulfed in a blazing, golden light. A sun manifested behind him, accompanied by fifteen grotto-heavens.

He was no longer at the Unfettered Realm, and the brand-new energy surging throughout him forced him to evolve once more.

Streams of golden light suffused his skin while his pores inhaled and exhaled vital qi. His physique was strengthened as well; his limbs and torso—no, his entire being exuded a more terrifying aura.

The breakthrough to the Golden Body Realm was a success!

The combined energy unleashed from 108 genetic shackles propelled Lu Yuan to the peak of the Golden Body Realm as soon as he made his breakthrough.

It was only natural, as his foundation was simply too deep due to his thorough preparations. Had it not been for his thorough preparations and meticulousness, he wouldn't have lingered at the Unfettered Realm for so long.

Lu Yuan opened his eyes, and a fierce light flashed in them.

"My physique has undergone a qualitative change, my divine arts have become more powerful, and most importantly, my Martial Dao Heavenly Eyes have become markedly different from before. This is awesome." Lu Yuan looked satisfied.

His strength had increased by at least tenfold. Furthermore, he was now capable of flight and manifesting a Dharma Avatar.

Of course, Lu Yuan had no plans of testing them right away. Having just broken through, he needed to adapt to his newfound power before doing anything. Understanding oneself was essential to unleashing one's true potential, after all.

He knew he couldn't afford to be complacent, which was why he had always been meticulous in just about anything.

I should stop here for now. I don't even know how long I've been in seclusion.

Lu Yuan decided to emerge from seclusion. According to his memories, there would be many major events during the second Global Awakening.

He walked out of his room and took out the communicator that Elder Ji and the others had specifically provided to him. He opened it to check the news on the Internet, and he instantly found what he needed to know.

In fact, the world discussed the same topic.

Beings From Outer Space Are About to Descend. Does This Spell Fortune or Calamity for Earth?

Lu Yuan saw an eye-catching title with a link to a livestream attached to it.

Lu Yuan clicked it, and he soon knew what had happened after reading the comments.

Lu Yuan's face was solemn as he put down the communicator in his hand.

"So they're finally here..." he muttered, smiling faintly.