A long, long time ago, the Chaotic Civilization Beast, the Lord of Civilization, achieved the Eternal Undying Art, hoping to use it to break through to true eternity.

At that time, the Chaotic Civilization Beast was essentially unrivaled among the Lords of Civilization. While the Lords of Civilization were beings of immense divine power, the Chaotic Civilization Beast, with its immortal body, was incredibly frustrating to fight. No matter how they attacked, even if the Chaotic Civilization Beast was wounded, it would never die, while its opponents would eventually be worn down to death.

There was simply no way to win against it.

It could be said that the Chaotic Civilization Beast was one of the Lords of Civilization closest to achieving eternity.

In the history of eternity, the Chaotic Civilization Beast—the Lord of Civilization representing the true essence of the beast—could also have its name etched forever, much like the Ancestral Dragon of old.

Back then, the Chaotic Civilization Beast discovered that its body could not be damaged and believed it had fully achieved eternal immortality. However, during one process, it encountered a strange supreme treasure of heaven and earth capable of harming it. So, the Beast forcefully seized that treasure and utterly destroyed it.

That supreme treasure of heaven and earth was named the Blade of Myriad Weapons.

The Blade of Myriad Weapons might not have been especially powerful in other aspects, but it had one unique characteristic: it could restrain the Chaotic Civilization Beast. It seemed as if heaven and earth naturally created one thing to counter another. Being subject to such a natural counter indicated that the Chaotic Civilization Beast had not escaped the cycle of epochs and was unable to transcend into the Eternal Lord.

Upon obtaining this weapon, the Chaotic Civilization Beast immediately destroyed it, but it also mused internally that studying such a weapon might allow it to overcome its final weakness and transcend to the level of the Eternal Lord.

However, after repeated, intensive research, he never managed to decipher its secrets.

Therefore, he left the last minute residue of this weapon beside its own gall bladder, setting up a powerful restriction seal.

After immense ages passed, the Chaotic Civilization Beast ultimately failed; it never became the Eternal Lord.

From ancient times to the present, across countless epochs, the mightiest being of the Beast Path perished just like that.

Yet, its body remained undestroyed, persisting to this day.

Thus, it led to the present moment, where Lu Yuan obtained this mighty treasure.

Lu Yuan, unaware of the weapon's origins, didn't care. Since he could obtain the Chaos Crystal, it was a great thing. Lu Yuan immediately raised the strange weapon in his hand and struck down, creating another minute crack. Though extremely faint, it was visible. He struck again, and again, and kept striking.

After three thousand and five hundred blows, he finally chipped off a tiny piece from the core of the Gall Bladder Mountain.

But this tiny piece was enough. Once obtained, Lu Yuan could project his divine sense into it.

The Chaos Gall Crystal was finally in hand.

Projecting his divine sense into it, Lu Yuan found this piece of Chaos Gall Crystal surprisingly flawless.

How perfect it was—Lu Yuan was almost intoxicated by it.

Now that he had the Chaos Gall Crystal, and having already acquired the Chaos Stomach Crystal, Chaos Tongue Crystal, and Chaos Brain Crystal, he still needed the Chaos Liver Crystal, Chaos Foot Crystal, Chaos Intestine Crystal, Chaos Spleen Crystal, Chaos Kidney Crystal, and Chaos Lung Crystal—six more. If obtaining those six Chaos Crystals previously seemed complicated, troublesome, and perhaps impossible, now, with this strange weapon in hand, he felt confident he could manage it. After all, this peculiar weapon could forcefully chip away at the core of the gall bladder, allowing him to secure the Chaos Gall Crystal; it should work just as well for chipping away at other parts.

The Son of the Sword had truly delivered him a marvelous gift, enabling him to assault the tenth heaven of the World Realm. With this, his confidence in breaking through to the tenth heaven of the World Realm soared.

After securing the Chaos Gall Crystal, Lu Yuan leaped out, returning to the summit of Gall Bladder Mountain.

Having basically extracted all the benefits from Gall Bladder Mountain, it was time to depart.

Wait!

Just as Lu Yuan was about to leave Gall Bladder Mountain, an overwhelming aura descended from the heavens.

How overwhelming that aura was—it surpassed even that of the Son of the Sword and the Son of the Demon.

Lu Yuan’s hand rested on his sword hilt.

A gigantic man descended from the sky. He was incredibly rugged, exceptionally tall, his entire body rippling with explosive muscle and raw power. He had stubble, looked rough and sturdy, and carried an impossibly massive box on his shoulder. When he landed on the ground of Gall Bladder Mountain, the earth seemed to tremble slightly.

Using a box as a weapon? That was rare. Wait, there was one civilization that used boxes as weapons—the Ancient Martial Civilization, with its Ten Supreme Martial Arts. This man's box could instantly transform into various weapons, forming the Ten Supreme Martial Arts—that was the specialty of the Ancient Martial Civilization. His imposing aura suggested he was a major figure from that civilization.

The Holy Land of Civilization truly was stimulating. Setting aside supreme experts like the Desolate Saint Imperial Scion, just considering the Seven Children of Destiny: first clashing with the Son of the Demon, and now encountering what was likely the Son of Martial Arts.

The super-muscular man carrying the giant box first glanced around the area: "Where is the Son of the Demon? I heard he appeared here. If that bizarre, strange person shows up, I intend to challenge him. Oh, excuse me, have you seen the Son of the Demon?"

"The Son of the Demon was driven back by Li Taishi," Lu Yuan explained.

At that moment, some other cultivators busy digging for the essence of the gall bladder were nearby. One interjected, "Mighty Li Taishi is truly incredible, possessing the Initial Script's word 'Zheng,' he fought the Son of the Demon head-on and won."

"The Son of the Demon was defeated?" The rough man looked somewhat crestfallen. "Is that Li Taishi around? I really want to challenge the strongest people."

"Li Taishi left long ago," another person nearby added.

"I see. Wait a moment." This rough man turned his gaze to Lu Yuan. "You use a sword? Anyone who can get here using a sword—I've seen the Son of the Sword, and you are not him. You are Lu Yuan?"

"Yes," Lu Yuan nodded.

"Excellent," the rough man laughed heartily. With a swipe, a sword materialized from his giant box—an immensely heavy greatsword. One path within the Ten Supreme Martial Arts was the Way of the Sword. The rough man swung the sword straight at Lu Yuan: "Remember, my name is the Son of Martial Arts. Take this."

An explosive sword qi arrived, accompanied by a sound of the most intense rupture of wind. Lu Yuan unhesitatingly drew his own sword to parry.

Clang!

Their sword lights clashed in the void. The Son of Martial Arts immediately retreated one step, while Lu Yuan staggered back five steps. Clearly, in this direct confrontation, Lu Yuan was at a disadvantage. Lu Yuan quickly assessed that the Son of Martial Arts’ current strength was likely at the Great Perfection stage of the World Realm Tenth Heaven; his magical power was distinctly superior to Lu Yuan's.

The Son of Martial Arts also let out a slight sound of surprise: "Oh, magical power of the Ninth Heaven of the World Realm. Everyone said the Eighth Child of Destiny, Lu Yuan, had his courage chilled by the Son of Desolation. It seems that was wrong. With this strength, we can have a satisfying fight!" The Son of Martial Arts laughed loudly and attacked again.

Lu Yuan met the assault with his sword as well.

Lu Yuan rarely encountered such a thrilling sword duel. The swordsmanship of the Son of Martial Arts was slightly inferior to that of the Son of the Sword, but considering the Son of Martial Arts cultivated all ten martial paths—the Ten Supreme Martial Arts—it was normal for his skill in a single discipline to be slightly less developed. Furthermore, the Son of Martial Arts fought with a certain fierce spirit; it was quite magnificent.

This Son of Martial Arts was formidable.

The Son of Martial Arts was also secretly astonished. His fighting style was bold and ferocious, whereas Lu Yuan's was unexpectedly exquisite and subtle.

Both the Son of Martial Arts and Lu Yuan admired the other in silence.

"Alright, no more fighting. Let’s drink," the Son of Martial Arts declared after an exhilarating exchange. He retracted his broadsword back into the box and tossed a bottle of wine over. Lu Yuan realized during this battle that the Son of Martial Arts was remarkably sincere. He developed considerable goodwill toward him and distinctly felt that this man would not harm him—a highly acute, instinctual perception. Trusting this feeling, Lu Yuan accepted the wine and drank heartily.

The Son of Martial Arts sat cross-legged on the ground: "A friend of mine spoke about you, saying you are a highly spirited person worth befriending."

"Who was that?" Lu Yuan asked while drinking.

"Xiao Fengxiong," the Son of Martial Arts replied.

"So it was him." Lu Yuan laughed heartily. Although his time spent with Xiao Fengxiong was short, he already considered him a true friend. "How is his strength now?"

"He’s at the Fourth Heaven of the World Realm now, and likely nearing the Fifth Heaven of the World Realm soon," the Son of Martial Arts said. "A talent like him, as long as he doesn't die, is destined to rise."

Quite fast. Already at the Fourth Heaven of the World Realm. He truly deserves to be called the foremost among that initial cohort, while Lu Yuan ranked twentieth among them back then.

"Right, the Ancient Martial Civilization supposedly supports the Son of the Sword. Why are you drinking so happily with me?" Lu Yuan asked curiously.

"Only some in the Ancient Martial Civilization support the Son of the Sword. Just like in the Ancient Dharma Civilization, the Desolate Saint Imperial Scion supports you, but the Martial Emperor Imperial Scion does not. In the Ancient Martial Civilization, the Martial Saint Imperial Scion does not support the Son of the Sword and intends to talk with you. The Martial Emperor Imperial Scion supports the Son of the Sword. I essentially stand alongside the Martial Saint Imperial Scion," the Son of Martial Arts explained, clarifying things for Lu Yuan.

"Actually, it's not just the Ancient Martial Civilization split into two factions; the grand trend of the world has also divided. For instance, in the previous epoch, the Ancient Martial Civilization and the Ancient Dharma Civilization maintained good relations, as did the Ancient Buddhist Civilization and the Ancient Immortal Civilization. Now, with the addition of the Ancient Desolate Civilization, the alliance of the three—Immortal, Dharma, and Desolate—has grown even stronger, while the power of the alliance leaning towards the two ancient civilizations of Dharma and Martial Arts is smaller," the Son of Martial Arts elaborated.

Lu Yuan drank while listening to the Son of Martial Arts discuss the world's major trends. He now understood that the Ancient Martial Civilization was a friend, not an enemy. Furthermore, the Holy Land of Civilization was also divided into two camps—a situation pitting two ancient civilizations against three.

The drinking session didn't last long. The Son of Martial Arts needed to search for other fragments of the Chaotic Civilization, and Lu Yuan still had the Chaos Crystals to find.

After agreeing to drink together again if the opportunity arose, they parted ways.

(Second update delivered. Two updates today.)