Chapter 2231: The New World

From the 48th year of the Essence Luxuriant Calendar to the end of the 49th, for more than a full year, Shang Xia had sustained the massive vortex within the Heaven Observation Star Region, channeling purified and refined origin qi into the eight distant edges of the void.

During the process, the new origin qi that had accumulated, initially refined to about 70 to 80 percent, was pushed beyond the 90 percent threshold under Shang Xia’s further refinement.

When it dispersed into the other regions, it not only replenished the thinner energy there but, more importantly, acted as both seed and catalyst, prompting the metamorphosis of the old origin qi throughout the realm.

Then, in a single instant, the transformation was suddenly complete.

Only a moment before, Shang Xia had sensed that the refining and catalysis of the origin essence still required steady progression, that the ascension was far from done. Yet the next moment, the progression to the Grand Star Field leapt forward in a sudden shift.

Shang Xia halted the inflow of origin qi and quickly recalled his Crimson Soul Tablet. Partly because he sensed the completion of the transformation, and partly because the new Grand Star Field had triggered a chain reaction.

The void itself had become stronger, and the eight spatial channels automatically sealed, ending the energy transfer.

The colossal vortex of origin qi, having grown beyond his control, collapsed completely and was soon erased by the restoration of the void, leaving no trace behind.

At that precise instant, a new name rang in the mind of every Sage.

Ninefold Star Field!

That was the title of their new Grand Star Field!

With that name came an instinctive resonance with the souls of everyone present. The long-standing barrier at the peak of the Seventh Heaven was shattered, and the path to the Eighth Order was opened.

For those already standing at the peak of the Martial Emptiness Realm, that primal impulse to break through was especially fierce.

In that moment, the ancient powerhouses from all nine Star Fields, those who had reached the limit of their realm, as well as the long-wandering Star River Stowaways drifting through the Star River, almost simultaneously began their breakthrough.

Shang Xia was among them, but his pace was faster than all others.

For in a very real sense, the new Ninefold Star Field had been forged by his hands.

There was no doubt about it. He could grasp the pulse of its final transformation the instant it occurred. He was half a step ahead of everyone else.

That half step became his decisive edge, the advantage of origin resonance during the ascension process.

Within his dantian, the Big Dipper Star Origin, which he had repeatedly simulated his breakthrough, began guiding the synthesis of his Eight Trigrams Immortal Golden Pill with perfect rhythm.

The seven auxiliary stars within his dantian began drifting inward toward the Big Dipper Star Origin. Then came the origin qi from the eight Star Fields, the Starlight Curtain, followed by the Eternity Essences drawn from the Star River. Finally... The Crimson Soul Tablet that existed in his sea of consciousness began to tremble.

The main medicine required for his rank eight advancement medicine was an Eternity Artifact, but the Crimson Soul Tablet in Shang Xia’s possession was clearly no ordinary Eternity Artifact. Rather, it was a far more advanced Eternity Weapon.

He had always assumed that once the ascension began, the tablet would be drawn into the process and assimilated into the advancement medicine, destroying or consuming it in the process.

It had accompanied him from the very beginning, and it was his greatest secret and most trusted companion. Now... he was prepared to lose it.

Yet, as the advancement began, and as each star merged into the Big Dipper Star Origin, a vortex of origin qi formed in his dantian.

From that vortex emanated a mysterious, subtle pull. The Crimson Soul Tablet, lodged in his sea of consciousness, seemed to respond to the call.

𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Wisps of formless energy separated from it, streaming toward the vortex like strands of conscious light.

"This is..."

Through his divine soul, Shang Xia could clearly perceive the essence peeling away from the tablet.

His expression grew complex. "This is... The power of space and time born within the Star River itself, or more precisely, within the cores of the stars of the Star River. So the so-called Eternal Artifact... Or even Eternal Weapons required for ascension... What they truly contain is Eternity Energy!"

The realization struck him sharply. He immediately turned his focus back toward the main body of the Crimson Soul Tablet.

The originally red tablet faded into ashen gray, its once-dense surface appeared porous and weathered as the Eternity Energy within rapidly drained away.

However, the damage he feared, where the tablet cracked or shattered, did not occur. That surprised him, but it was also greatly reassuring.

As for preserving the extracted Eternity Energy, that was not difficult. Now that he could clearly sense its form, he knew how to control it.

The difference between Eternity Energy drawn from an Eternity Artifact versus that from an Eternity Treasures, like a Star Core or treasures like that, he reasoned, lay in quantity and purity.

The former contained far more of it, and at a far higher quality.

As for the latter, he had rarely encountered any, but from his research on Eternity Golden Boats, he had gathered enough clues to infer the difference.

At that point, Shang Xia’s consciousness was devoted to the fusion of the Eight Trigram Immortal Golden Pill within his dantian. The passage of time outside had lost all meaning to him.

In truth, the 50th year of the Essence Luxuriant Calendar had already arrived when the vortex within his dantian finally completed its drawing of Eternity Energy. Immediately afterward, the seven strands of Eternity Essences from the Star River plunged into it and vanished, followed by eight streams of origin qi from the eight Star Fields.

As each component merged, the vortex began to contract, growing smaller and brighter. From its center leaked a thread of golden light. It was faint at first, then it grew increasingly radiant, until it seemed capable of illuminating everything in his dantian.

At that moment, the Starlight Curtain, which had always floated above the Big Dipper Star Origin and his seven auxiliary stars that had been nurtured by his inner qi, started to fall. Shimmering between reality and illusion, it wrapped the shrinking vortex within its luminous veil.