The golden hue of the Divine Soul, that was a legend in itself. As for the Divine Soul transforming into a chaotic color, that was a legend of the Civilization Realm, something not even worth mentioning. Legend held that once a Divine Soul reached its most solid state beneath the Civilization Realm—a state incapable of further condensation—it would turn golden.

Gold. The color of the Supreme Divine Soul. Even condensing a mere inch of Divine Soul into gold was the lifelong aspiration of countless individuals.

Yet now, the Son of Desolation had transformed all seventy-two monstrous beasts manifested from his Divine Souls into the color of gold, boosting his combat power by five times their original strength. While the original seventy-two monstrous souls were terrifying enough, these seventy-two golden spectral beasts were terrifying to the absolute extreme. Even a few ancient powerhouses who had survived for hundreds of thousands of years, who had previously harbored disrespect for the Son of Desolation, dared not show defiance upon witnessing this display; the strength the Son of Desolation currently exhibited was utterly terrifying!

The Son of Desolation let out a cold snort: “Lu Yuan, if I decree your death, you shall die. I am Heaven, I am Earth. I control life and death, I look down upon everything.

You are merely an ant to be crushed beneath my heel.” The seventy-two golden spectral beasts descended simultaneously. Their Divine Soul power was capable of forcing gods to bow, demons to kneel, Buddhas to sit down, and immortals to fall to the dust. This was a soul power that demanded subjugation from gods, buddhas, immortals, demons, and evil spirits alike; it had already surpassed the Divine King and Buddha tiers, leaning toward the Civilization tier.

Boom! That gentle ball of white light seemed poised to extinguish at any moment, yet it stubbornly refused to be snuffed out, fiercely guarding Lu Yuan’s Divine Soul. It hadn't broken!

The Son of Desolation’s attack, launched when his fervor was at its peak, had actually failed to shatter Lu Yuan’s white-light soul defense. This! This!

This! Why could such a terrifying attack not break through! The Son of Desolation roared, and in the void above his head, a miniature figure resembling himself appeared, holding the Primordial Divine Halberd: “Break for me!” And Lu Yuan also roared back: “Defend!” The extreme opposing forces of ‘Break’ and ‘Defend’ clashed in the void.

The more than ten thousand onlookers were utterly dumbstruck. The Son of Desolation possessed such formidable soul power, which was beyond everyone’s expectation. Yet Lu Yuan, who appeared far less imposing, possessed a Divine Soul defense so strong that it could withstand the Son of Desolation’s halberd, a reality that truly chilled them.

Lu Yuan looked toward the Son of Desolation: “Son of Desolation, in terms of Divine Soul, you cannot defeat me.” The Son of Desolation’s face turned slightly ashen. He had always been invincible, the Son of the Epoch, superior to all rivals in every aspect. Now, facing the fact that he could do nothing to Lu Yuan’s Divine Soul was an astounding matter.

The Son of Desolation, usually overflowing with dominance, now harbored an intensely powerful killing intent toward Lu Yuan. The ten thousand spectators beside them didn't know what to say. Incredibly!

Incredibly! In terms of Divine Soul, the Son of Desolation, this Son of the Epoch, truly could not overcome Lu Yuan. A new miracle had indeed appeared!

Those who had been loudly proclaiming Lu Yuan was nothing more than a stray dog scared by the Son of Desolation moments before were now silent. Lu Yuan had not only appeared but was now engaging in a soul contest with the Son of Desolation, barely falling behind, rendering the Son of Desolation helpless in the realm of the Divine Soul. If this was a stray dog, then the definition was far too skewed.

Fasheng Emperor’s Disciple murmured inwardly, “Good. Lu Yuan’s dormancy of over two years seems not to have been in vain. While I cannot speak for other areas, he has made substantial progress in Divine Soul, enough to withstand the Son of Desolation.” The Son of the Sword also felt bitter hatred.

He hated it! Despite being the Sixth Son of Destiny, he knew he could not compare to the Son of Desolation in any regard and dared not contend with him. Yet, here was Lu Yuan contending with the Son of Desolation.

Even if it was only a single aspect—the Divine Soul—where he wasn't losing ground, it was still a massive boost to his reputation. The Son of the Sword secretly resented the thought: Could it be that I am truly inferior to Lu Yuan? The Son of the Sword’s cultivation had reached an incredibly profound level; he possessed the power of the ninth heaven of the World Realm.

Kong Ni looked at Lu Yuan, feeling a strange sense of familiarity emanating from him, though he could not place its origin. The Son of Desolation retracted his Divine Soul, drawing it back into his mind: “Very well, Lu Yuan, your Divine Soul is adequate, but your techniques and vital energy are too weak. In the Sacred Land of Civilization, I hope you do not encounter me, otherwise, I would be happy to dispatch you in two or three moves.” Lu Yuan also retracted his white guardian soul.

The soul contest with the Son of Desolation had left his own Divine Soul extremely fatigued; in truth, the Son of Desolation’s soul was superior to his own, but he possessed the Primordial Script ‘Zheng’—this formidable enemy was no ordinary foe: “Son of Desolation, you wish to kill me in two or three moves? Laughable.” “Son of Desolation, let me be frank: within ten years, I will catch up to you. Within a hundred years, I will take your head,” Lu Yuan declared with a long shout.

The area instantly fell silent upon his words. It was a silence so profound it bordered on death! Everyone looked at Lu Yuan in disbelief.

What! What kind of arrogant claim was this? This was the most extravagant boast imaginable!

The Son of Desolation was the Son of the Epoch, advancing rapidly, possessing strength nearing that of the top fifty on the Heaven Ranking, and was the most likely candidate to successfully breach the Civilization Realm. No one, absolutely no one, could compare to the Son of Desolation. The other Sons of Destiny were far behind the Son of Desolation.

While Lu Yuan was a genius, compared to the Son of Desolation, he was still far too weak. And yet, Lu Yuan was now claiming he would catch up to the Son of Desolation within ten years and take his head within a hundred. This was super-bluster!

The most audacious arrogance conceivable! No one present believed this wild claim! The Son of Desolation was first taken aback, then he reached up to rub his ear: “What did you say?

You said you would catch up to me in ten years and kill me in a hundred? Haha, hahaha, hahahaha! Too ridiculous, truly the most ridiculous thing.

Rest assured, you won't have to wait ten years, or even a hundred. In the Sacred Land of Civilization, you will die by my hand.” He lightly stamped his Primordial Divine Halberd: “I severed your sword once; I can sever it twice. And while severing your sword a second time, I can sever your life as well.” The confrontation between the Son of Desolation and Lu Yuan, and the ensuing commotion caused by Lu Yuan’s earth-shattering boast, took a long time to subside.

Of course, many people continued to watch Lu Yuan; his Divine Soul power was indeed formidable, but his arrogance was unparalleled. Among the fifteen thousand people present, Lu Yuan was undoubtedly the most arrogant individual. However, they did not believe Lu Yuan's true capabilities were that high.

Lu Yuan’s greatest recorded feat from over two years ago was defeating an opponent at the seventh heaven of the World Realm while possessing only the power of the sixth level of the World Realm. Having been silent for over two years with no new achievements reported, Lu Yuan could not have grown that much stronger. He was no match for the assembled half-step Civilization Realm masters, the tenth heaven of the World Realm, and the ninth heaven of the World Realm experts here.

. . .

. . .

“Impressive.” Fasheng Emperor’s Disciple stood beside Lu Yuan and offered his praise. “It’s nothing. The road ahead of me is still very long,” Lu Yuan replied with a shrug.

Lu Yuan then turned his attention to the gate of the Sacred Land of Civilization. Although they had arrived at the Sacred Land of Civilization some time ago, he had immediately locked horns with the Son of Desolation upon arrival, so he hadn't yet examined the gate. Looking at it now, Lu Yuan noticed something strange: the gate of the Sacred Land of Civilization did not resemble a typical entrance.

The gate was densely arrayed in a triangular pattern, not just one triangle, but multiple triangles, each immensely vast, interlocked with the others. There must have been several thousand such triangles composing one massive gate. This structure was truly bizarre.

Undeniably, the gate exuded an aura of civilization. “The shape of this gate is quite peculiar. It looks like teeth, doesn’t it?” Fasheng Emperor’s Disciple commented, “Like huge molars.” “Indeed.” It was only after Fasheng Emperor’s Disciple pointed it out that Lu Yuan recalled it did indeed resemble massive teeth, thousands lined up together.

“This is teeth,” Fasheng Emperor’s Disciple said, hands clasped behind his back. “The gate of the Sacred Land of Civilization is teeth?” Lu Yuan was startled, completely failing to grasp it. “Yes, teeth.” Fasheng Emperor’s Disciple nodded.

“You might not fully understand what the so-called Sacred Land of Civilization is. It is, in fact, the remains of the Chaotic Beast of Civilization.” “Eons ago, a Chaotic Beast emerged. This beast possessed innate chaotic aura, innate chaotic vital energy, and innate chaotic Divine Soul.

It was inherently powerful, dominating since birth. This Chaotic Beast cultivated a peculiar technique called the Immortal Eternity Art, attempting to use it to break through to eternity, immortality, and endless existence across countless epochs. His Immortal Eternity Art did indeed have merit.

Unfortunately, shattering the barrier of endless epochs is never easy. In the end, this Chaotic Beast died within the Civilization Realm, failing to achieve eternal indestructibility.” “However, his Immortal Eternity Art truly possessed divine principles; it preserved his remains. The remains of even a mere Civilization Lord are fiercely sought after; obtaining even a piece, like an eye or a heart, yields phenomenal power.

Many figures on the Heaven Ranking owe their strength to such remnants.” “But, because he practiced the Immortal Eternity Art, no one could extract anything from his corpse, not even other Civilization Lords. The Chaotic Beast of Civilization thus persisted eternally in its dead state, surviving countless epochs. By chance, someone discovered that entering its body could yield benefits.

Therefore, at irregular intervals, the deceased Chaotic Beast opens its mouth, and we seize the opportunity to enter.” “Thus, the so-called Sacred Land of Civilization is the corpse of the Chaotic Beast of Civilization, a massive structure spanning billions of kilometers, impossible to measure in its sheer size.” “And the gate of the Sacred Land of Civilization is the teeth of the Chaotic Beast of Civilization.” “The spatial passage we used to arrive here was actually the Chaos Tentacle of the Chaotic Beast of Civilization.” “This is the secret of the Sacred Land of Civilization.”