Lu Yuan’s declaration, "I shall achieve Civilization," seemed to echo across the myriad heavens and the boundless expanse of time and space.

It was a phrase delivered with supreme solemnity and gravity, imbued with infinite majesty.

But!

How could such a statement ever come to pass!

The Vice-Lord of the Barren Hawk Civilization roared with laughter. "Nine hundred and ninety-nine Chains of the Lord—even one is a frightful entanglement. Caught by all nine hundred and ninety-nine, I certainly wouldn't escape. You haven't achieved Civilization; you’re destined only to be crushed and trapped by them." He stressed the word 'absolutely' because, unequivocally, it was the truth.

The Vice-Lord of the Barren Hawk Civilization summoned his Eagle-Slaying Divine Feathers. These feathers multiplied into forty-nine, stabbing toward Lu Yuan. His feathers could combine or scatter at will, rendering him unstoppable. "Lu Yuan, die! Let this teach you that opposing the Primordial Path leads only to the grave. For all eternity, the Way of the Sword must bow beneath the Great Dao of the Ancients." The Vice-Lord of the Barren Hawk Civilization had chased Lu Yuan for so long without success, and now, at last, his wish was within reach.

The Vice-Lord of the Octagonal Civilization struck instantly with two of his eight long maces—he was called the Vice-Lord of the Octagonal Civilization precisely because he wielded eight such weapons. "Lu Yuan, perish! I will kill you and extinguish the last hope of the Sword Dao. This world will no longer require swords; it will only require maces." He poured all the fury of mace against sword into this strike, unleashing a killing intent so sharp it could cleave the heavens.

And Zhou Qingxuan moved in the same instant, launching his Long Sigh Divine Sword. However, his sword was easily blocked by the Vice-Lord of the Divine Strength Civilization. Raising his Heaven-Coiling Divine Axe, the Vice-Lord of the Divine Strength Civilization batted Zhou Qingxuan back with a single blow. "Vice-Lord of the Bitter Sword Civilization, your current strength is far too weak. Stepping forward now is useless."

Time seemed to freeze at that precise moment.

If nothing intervened, Lu Yuan was about to be struck down by the Vice-Lord of the Octagonal Civilization. Immediately afterward, the Vice-Lord of the Divine Strength Civilization and his three companions would dispatch Zhou Qingxuan, and finally, slay the Vice-Lord of the Martial Swallow Civilization. The four of them would claim ultimate victory, seizing every resource and secret manual from Lu Yuan, Zhou Qingxuan, and the Vice-Lord of the Martial Swallow Civilization—leaving not a speck behind.

This scene appeared set in eternity.

Boom!

Hadn't Lu Yuan just unleashed a sword strike? Everyone had assumed that strike was futile, never dreaming it might succeed.

In that instant, the sword strike resonated with the character 'Yuan' (Circle), vibrating in concert with countless surrounding stars.

Resonances of the Circle continued without cease.

The onlookers seemed to witness infinite circles blooming across the sky. These circles morphed into strange, erratic shapes, appearing to struggle free from the entrapment of the Lord's Chains. How laughable, attempting to escape the Lord's Chains! Utterly ridiculous. Yet, as the onlookers viewed this with extreme amusement, the countless circles began to merge into one colossal circle.

This circle was supremely round.

This circle was the perfect circle.

This circle encompassed all things.

This circle was boundless and unrestricted.

This circle was Heaven and Earth itself!

As this circle manifested, the observers realized Lu Yuan was no longer held within the Lord's Chains. He had appeared in another section of the void. In that exact same instant, the nine hundred and ninety-nine Lord's Chains slammed into each other. The Lord's Chains embodied the will of the Civilization Lords, but like the Lord's Prison, they were single-use items; once deployed, they could never be used again, dissolving into ash. Upon binding Lu Yuan, the nine hundred and ninety-nine chains shattered, segment by segment.

Countless links rained down beside the figure of the young man in green.

And Lu Yuan’s entire aura was undergoing a cataclysmic transformation.

Having endured the most perilous trial of the Lord's Chains, Lu Yuan had successfully passed the Celestial Tribulation of Civilization. And what achieving the Celestial Tribulation of Civilization signified was quite clear.

Around Lu Yuan, rapid changes seemed to occur. The surrounding space was violently repelled, and time itself was flung away. Centered on Lu Yuan formed a black hole of time and a black hole of space. Once one becomes a Civilization, one no longer belongs solely to the spatial dominion of Heaven and Earth; Heaven and Earth may perish, but the Civilization endures; time may pass, but the Civilization does not fade. Normal temporal flow could not affect a being at the Civilization Realm; only existences of Great Time, measured in epochs, could pose a threat.

Simultaneously, behind Lu Yuan, a New Sword World materialized.

The New Sword World was revealed transparently to everyone present for the very first time.

The New Sword World expanded rapidly, and more than mere expansion occurred. Within the original scroll-like portion of the world, boundless heavenly treasures erupted into being. Within the New Sword World, the poetry of the sword, the epic of the sword, and the philosophy of the sword rang out. All of this—this was the Civilization of the Sword.

Whenever a being reached the Civilization Realm, a corresponding Civilization would emerge.

The Civilization of the Sword had appeared!

Lu Yuan stepped forward.

"I represent the myriad heavens."

"I master the Way of the Sword."

"I create Civilization."

"I unmake the myriad worlds."

"Existence and extinction, both lie within my grasp."

"I am, across countless eons... the Vice-Lord of the Sword Civilization." An aura of supremacy over all things radiated from Lu Yuan—this was the scent of the Civilization Realm. Lu Yuan’s eyes were simultaneously open and closed, as if asleep and awake, but when they snapped open, they released infinite divine light. Within that boundless radiance, countless sword energies rose and sank.

A single glance brought forth legions of sword lights; a single footfall stirred countless sword auras; the slightest ripple of his robes sent countless sword energies flying. This was the Vice-Lord of the Civilization of the Sword, the Vice-Lord of the Sword Civilization.

A wave of profound emotion washed over Lu Yuan. Indeed, starting as an ordinary youth, entering Mount Hua, practicing the sword lazily there, fighting various demon lords through the Mount Hua incidents, then entering the Central Celestial Dynasty, cultivating in the Sword Gate, and finally leaving the Sword Gate to battle the titans and grandmasters of the Central Celestial Dynasty.

After experiencing so much, he had finally achieved the Civilization Realm, becoming a Vice-Lord of Civilization between Heaven and Earth. Countless celestial flowers rained down from the sky, each blossom exquisitely beautiful and wonderfully fragrant. At the same time, it seemed as if horns were being sounded—the universe itself was celebrating the arrival of another soul at the Civilization Realm.

The Vice-Lord of the Bitter Sword Civilization, the Vice-Lord of the Martial Swallow Civilization, the Vice-Lord of the Barren Hawk Civilization, the Son of Immortals, the Vice-Lord of the Octagonal Civilization, and the Vice-Lord of the Divine Strength Civilization—all of them were struck by inexplicable shock and awe. The first shock was naturally that Lu Yuan had broken through the nine hundred and ninety-nine Lord's Chains. What divine power was required for that? Even they could not guarantee they could achieve it. The Lord's Chains were designed specifically to counter Vice-Lords of Civilization, although the Vice-Lord of the Divine Strength Civilization had realized the chains’ power had been somewhat reduced. Nevertheless, they remained terrifying.

But this first shock paled in comparison to the second.

The second shock was that Lu Yuan had reached the Civilization Realm.

However, the first and second shocks combined were far less significant than the third. The third shock was the greatest: the name of Lu Yuan's Civilization. Every individual possessed their own Civilization Name—for example, Zhou Qingxuan was the Vice-Lord of the Bitter Sword Civilization, and others were the Vice-Lord of the Martial Swallow Civilization, and so on.

And what was Lu Yuan’s Civilization Name? The Vice-Lord of the Sword Civilization!

Every other person’s Civilization Name contained a modifying second term, such as 'Bitter Sword,' 'Martial Swallow,' or 'Barren Hawk,' but Lu Yuan had none.

This sort of Civilization Name was reserved only for those possessing Great Wisdom, Great Divine Power, and Great Ability. Once such a name was taken, that particular Dao would be entirely mastered by that individual, acknowledged by Heaven and Earth. For instance, the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization mastered the Confucian Dao, and the Lord of the Ancient Law Civilization mastered the Legalist Dao.

Lu Yuan had gained the acknowledgment of Heaven and Earth; he was not merely an ordinary Vice-Lord of Civilization, but one capable of wielding an entire Dao without any modification—a Vice-Lord of supreme ability.

The true inheritor, the one who revived the Way of the Sword, had finally appeared!

The Vice-Lord of the Bitter Sword Civilization let out a long sigh. With such a figure emerging, the Sword Dao would truly fall into Lu Yuan’s hands in the future; he could finally rest easy. The Vice-Lord of the Octagonal Civilization felt an intense, piercing hatred in his heart. The Way of the Mace and the Way of the Sword were mortal enemies. The Mace had a master, but the Sword had none—and now, the Sword actually had a true master! He absolutely had to extinguish Lu Yuan at this juncture.

......

Lu Yuan stood above the Tomb of the Ancient Swordsman, his gaze infinitely deep.

"Gate of the Sword Dao, emerge for me!" Lu Yuan roared. A portal appeared in his hand—the very same one he used to defeat the Son of the Sword long ago. Lu Yuan shouted, "Grow!" Only now did Lu Yuan realize how absurd it had been when he previously thought he had mastered the Gate of the Sword Dao. The original Gate was not the true Gate of the Sword Dao at all, but merely a miniature version.

Now, Lu Yuan infused the Gate of the Sword Dao with the power of his Civilization. The gate grew stronger and more glorious, finally soaring to heights of ten thousand zhang and widths of a thousand zhang, illuminating the boundless earth.

"Return to your proper place!" Lu Yuan commanded. The fully enlarged version of the Sword Dao Portal shot directly toward the highest heavens, flying toward a distant stretch of time and space. Lu Yuan knew this was aimed for the Platform of Gates. The Platform of Gates was the designated location for all portals. In truth, the portals for every single Dao were affixed to this Platform. The Platform of Gates was infinitely vast; even the Eternal Gate resided upon it.

Once the portal was on the Platform of Gates, its original master could use it normally, and it could absorb the limitless faith dedicated to that Dao, growing ever stronger.

For instance, once the Sword Dao Portal settled onto the Platform of Gates, it could absorb the faith of the Sword Dao and remain perfectly usable—far superior to its previous state. Furthermore, as long as the portal grew strong enough, it could approach the Eternal Gate and perhaps gain the chance to grasp the legendary Eternal Dao, receiving boundless fortune.

The stronger that portal became, the closer it drew to the Eternal Gate. The Eternal Gate could emanate the Great Dao, allowing beings to comprehend profound principles.

And the Three Ultimate Poles of Heaven and Earth were: the first pole, the Eternal Gate; the second pole, the Character of the Dao; and the third pole, the Iron Rule of Destiny.

The first pole was the strongest, followed by the second, and then the third.

(Finally, the Civilization Realm! Cheers!) (To be continued)