On that tablet, a name suddenly vanished, and another name filled its place.
The names had changed again.
Ark started violently!
The Fifty Heavenly Rankings hadn't seen a shift in countless years. Recently, they had changed twice: first, the Son of Desolation had surged to twenty-sixth place, and then the newly emerged Li Taishi had killed Wang Xueze and Zhu Tianren, ranking forty-sixth. Ark had been startled then, but now he was genuinely shocked—the rankings had shifted once more.
The name ranked forty-eighth dimmed, completely disappearing from the Heavenly Tablet. The previous forty-eighth, Thousand-Handed God Butcher Gao Jin, was dead.
And the name newly inscribed was Lu Yuan!
Lu Yuan!
Was this the Eighth Son of Fortune?
The strength of this Lu Yuan had jumped incredibly fast to now enter the Fifty Heavenly Rankings.
Suddenly, three new faces appeared among the Fifty Heavenly Rankings. No one knew what kind of storm these three newcomers would brew among the established ranks.
Furthermore, using his Guilie Yishu technique to divine the situation, Ark discovered something.
The Body of Civilization had appeared!
The Body of Civilization had appeared! In Ark’s lifetime, he had never experienced the emergence of the Body of Civilization. At most, only one Body of Civilization would appear per epoch, meaning Ark had never witnessed such an event. However, looking at the records from previous epochs, it was clear that once the Body of Civilization emerged, it heralded bloody winds and torrential rains.
Yes, destined for a storm of blood and iron.
The Fifty Heavenly Rankings were destined to clash fiercely over the Body of Civilization.
Ark was unsure how to proceed, but his own heart stirred. The Body of Civilization held an overwhelming, off-the-charts attraction for every powerhouse on the Fifty Heavenly Rankings, including the foremost giant, Gu Shi. Ark knew his peaceful days were numbered; it was time to act, lest the Body of Civilization be seized by someone else.
...
Yanggan Star.
This was a central planet.
Because of the numerous monstrous beasts nearby, Yanggan Star was perpetually bustling. Many experts at the World Realm hunted various monsters around Yanggan Star to acquire their resources. Yanggan Star hosted the Heavenly Tier Spirit Stone Trading Center, a market for buying and selling all manner of beast resources—dead or alive.
And now, everyone on Yanggan Star was anticipating, expecting the arrival of a certain figure.
“The thirty-ninth ranked Heavenly Tablet giant, the Blood Hunter Fang Tu, will arrive today.”
“Blood Hunter Fang Tu—tsk, tsk, a ruthless character. Many people have died at his hands while hunting beasts.”
“Why do you care how many died at his hands while hunting beasts? Anyway, he kills so many people; he has a mountain of cheap magic treasures and cultivation methods. If we buy something from him, we can immediately leave Yanggan Star.”
“Right. We just need to keep our distance from Blood Hunter Fang Tu. That’s the thirty-ninth ranked Blood Hunter Fang Tu, a man who has slain countless people.”
With a sudden clamor, the Heavenly Tablet giant, the thirty-ninth ranked Blood Hunter Fang Tu, finally appeared.
This was Blood Hunter Fang Tu. He was exceptionally tall, with a gloomy face, thin lips, and sharp brows. He carried an unusually long hunting blade on his back, and the aura radiating from him silenced the previously chattering crowd, as speaking under his pressure felt impossibly difficult.
Blood Hunter Fang Tu swept a faint glance over the people. In truth, Fang Tu enjoyed killing, but he never killed in public. If he killed discreetly, others wouldn't know it was him, thus preventing any chance of seeking revenge.
Blood Hunter Fang Tu had indeed slain many people this time, bringing many valuable items, and he began to sell them. Those wishing to buy quickly approached him. Just then, someone descended: “I received news that the forty-eighth ranked Thousand-Handed God Butcher Gao Jin seems to have died at the hands of the Eighth Son of Fortune, Lu Yuan, who has now squeezed into the forty-eighth spot on the Heavenly Tablet.”
“Tsk tsk, this Eighth Son of Fortune, Lu Yuan, is truly extraordinary. Figures like the Son of Law, the Son of Martial Arts, and the Son of Immortals still have a significant gap to the Heavenly Tablet, yet Lu Yuan forcefully entered the list at forty-eighth. Impressive,” someone praised.
“Is this news false?” Some remained skeptical. To believe Lu Yuan could slay someone ranked forty-eighth on the Heavenly Tablet was hard to accept. That was Thousand-Handed God Butcher Gao Jin, ranked forty-eighth! The prestige of the Heavenly Tablet was deeply ingrained, hence the disbelief.
“How could it be false? This news is essentially confirmed.” Blood Hunter Fang Tu paused slightly upon hearing this. Has this junior, Lu Yuan, become so formidable? Fang Tu knew Gao Jin; he had even defeated him before, yet Gao Jin’s peerless technique of a thousand hands and a thousand skills was quite potent. He hadn't expected Gao Jin to perish here.
As the crowd discussed and Fang Tu listened, a piece of news suddenly exploded outward.
It manifested as a string of large characters that detonated directly in the void above Yanggan Star.
“The Body of Civilization has appeared! Lu Yuan possesses the Body of Civilization! Gao Jin died during the struggle with Lu Yuan over the Body of Civilization!” This message was Gao Jin’s contingency plan—since he was about to die, he sent this news everywhere to ensure Lu Yuan would not have an easy time. Hearing this, the entire Yanggan Star boiled over.
Blood Hunter Fang Tu stopped selling his goods. What was the point of selling now? It was time to contest the Body of Civilization!
Fang Tu transformed into a streak of bloody light, piercing through the air like lightning, instantly chasing after Lu Yuan.
...
Ghostly Star!
The Ghostly Alliance!
The Ghostly Alliance was an exceptionally bizarre sect in the cosmos. This sect stood far above numerous Supreme Great Sects, yet it refused the title of a sect. Its Alliance Master was unwilling to be just a sect leader; this Master sought to create a civilization, and this Master was Situ Guimi, the Ghostly Limitless.
Situ Guimi was an utterly cryptic figure whose origins were unknown, as was his cultivation method. Everyone who fought him died by his hand.
He ranked thirty-third on the Fifty Heavenly Rankings.
And Ghostly Star was heavily fortified with thirty-three halls—a bold ambition, aiming to emulate the Lord of Civilization with thirty-three heavens.
Now, a message flew out from the First Hall, and upon its release, the other halls dared not delay, passing the message rapidly down to the Thirty-Third Hall.
Within the Thirtieth Disciple Hall sat an old man.
He was an elder with hair as silver as frost. The elder’s features—eyes, nose, mouth—were all normal, yet for some inexplicable reason, when assembled, they appeared uniquely bizarre. His silver eyebrows drooped strangely. This was the figure who struck awe across the heavens, Situ Guimi, ranked thirty-third.
“What? The Body of Civilization has appeared!” Situ Guimi was profoundly shaken. He truly hadn't expected the Body of Civilization to manifest: “Lu Yuan slew the forty-eighth ranked Gao Jin and seized the Body of Civilization? It seems this Lu Yuan does have some skill, but once this Ghostly one makes a move, he won't escape my net.” “The Body of Civilization, I must have it.”
...
Heavenly Soul Star. This was a planet no one dared approach.
For this planet was the residence of the Heavenly Soul Sorcerer.
The Heavenly Soul Sorcerer was ranked twenty-seventh on the Fifty Heavenly Rankings. The previous twenty-sixth, Long Saber Heavenly King Luo Sen, was defeated by the Son of Desolation, and then once more recently by the Heavenly Soul Sorcerer, settling the Sorcerer at the twenty-seventh position.
The Heavenly Soul Sorcerer’s greatest mastery lay in soul magic—simply put, spells that manipulated the souls of the deceased. He used these spirits to weave all manner of eerie enchantments, a unique skill even among the Fifty Heavenly Rankings.
The entire Heavenly Soul Star held no living beings save the Heavenly Soul Sorcerer himself; it was filled with the souls of the dead everywhere. Any normal person arriving on Heavenly Soul Star would likely be scared to death by the sheer number of spirits, if not startled to death first.
However, all these souls remained obediently under the Heavenly Soul Sorcerer’s control.
The Heavenly Soul Sorcerer’s true form was shrouded in black smoke: “Oh, the Body of Civilization has emerged, and it's in Lu Yuan’s hands? It seems I must pursue Lu Yuan.”
...
“Oh, Lu Yuan obtained the Body of Civilization? The Body of Civilization is something I must obtain.” said Fei Wei, who carried a great bow on his back. Fei Wei was currently the pinnacle of archery. True archery masters were rare, and Fei Wei ranked nineteenth on the Fifty Heavenly Rankings. Countless Half-Step Civilization Realm experts had died by his arrows.
To rank nineteenth, his power had already reached a staggering degree.
“Departing,” Fei Wei tightened the strap on the bow across his back. His bow was named the Ten Suns Dust Bow.
If this bow was meant to strike something large, it could obliterate ten suns in a single shot.
If it was meant to strike something small, it could hit a single speck of dust without disturbing any other particle.
This was the origin of the Ten Suns Dust Bow’s name.
“Departing! Chasing Lu Yuan!” Fei Wei declared loudly.
At this moment, the news of Lu Yuan acquiring the Body of Civilization spread everywhere. Within hundreds of millions of miles in this entire region, the legend of Lu Yuan obtaining the Body of Civilization was heard. The Body of Civilization held too much temptation for those striving to break into the Civilization Realm. All Heavenly Tablet giants within this area mobilized, even those farther away had to rush over—such as the thirty-ninth ranked Blood Hunter Fang Tu, the thirty-third ranked Situ Guimi, the twenty-seventh ranked Heavenly Soul Sorcerer, and the nineteenth ranked Fei Wei. Beyond them, various other Half-Step Civilization Realm experts set off. Since Lu Yuan could slay the Thousand-Handed God Butcher Gao Jin, these individuals naturally didn't believe they could overpower Lu Yuan. However, this was a massive storm about to arrive, a huge vortex where perhaps one could pick up a scrap prize—the Body of Civilization. Though the possibility was infinitesimally small, the allure was immense; greed drowned out reason.
Lu Yuan and Shi Feixian, both wearing straw hats, walked up the tiered path of a certain planet.
On this planet, the entire populace discussed how Lu Yuan had obtained the Body of Civilization and how he was being pursued by various factions.
It seemed many people were coming to hunt him. Lu Yuan hoped more Heavenly Tablet experts would come, so he could complete the Civilization Plate sooner.
Lu Yuan’s blood boiled with excitement, utterly focused on battle.