The Lord of the Fagu Civilization was seated in the foremost seat, and beside him sat the Vice Lord of the Martial Saint Civilization. The Vice Lord himself was exceptionally powerful, already halfway to the realm of a Civilization Lord. Furthermore, he represented the Martial Ancient Civilization, granting him immense status.

The Vice Lord of the Martial Saint Civilization held a cup filled with a faintly jade-green liquid—the Ten Thousand Year Drunkenness, rumored to induce a millennium of intoxication with a single sip. "Five betrothal gifts, essentially all at the Civilization level. Quite something."

"Lu Yuan's betrothal gifts this time are truly dreamlike. Generally, the more precious the gifts from the groom's side, the more valuable the dowry offered by the bride's side must be," the Vice Lord of the Martial Saint Civilization smiled faintly, saying no more.

The Lord of the Fagu Civilization had already considered this. He had prepared a dowry for Lu Yuan, but now it seemed that offering was entirely insufficient; a much weightier dowry would be required. He had married off three daughters before; this was the fourth, and he had assumed the dowry for the fourth would be the most substantial. Now, it seemed he needed to offer even more. It looked like he would have to bleed heavily this time.

The Lord of the Fagu Civilization thought this with a touch of helplessness, though he wasn't entirely reluctant; after all, he ranked absolutely within the top ten, perhaps even the top five figures between heaven and earth, possessing boundless wealth.

Of course, the final dowry would ultimately depend on the caliber of the betrothal gifts Lu Yuan presented in the end. The heavier the gifts, the heavier the dowry.

。。。。。。

The fifth item had just been announced. The official presiding over the gifts let out a long cry, his announcement rising and falling rhythmically: "The sixth item: One cultivation manual and secret text." The first five items were all Dharma Treasures, so the sixth being a cultivation technique was quite startling. But what technique could it be? Surely not some common, widely circulated technique?

The official paused, then immediately declared, "The sixth item: Cloud Without Form!"

Cloud Without Form!

What!

Cloud Without Form? Did I mishear?

It must be a mistake.

After the Galaxy Map—the second betrothal gift—three more gifts followed: a set of Civilization Silver, the Myriad Treasure Glazed Fall, and the Wings of Freedom. While these caused shock, none matched the upheaval caused by the Galaxy Map. And now, what was Lu Yuan presenting? Cloud Without Form!?

As everyone knew, Cloud Without Form was the Eleventh Marvelous Technique of the Immortal Ancient Civilization. To rank eleventh among the Marvelous Techniques in a place like the Immortal Ancient Civilization spoke volumes about its rarity and power. It could be said that the value of this marvelous technique was certainly not less than a mid-grade Innate Spirit Treasure, perhaps even surpassing it.

The value of Cloud Without Form lay in its ability to conceal the user within mist, rendering virtually all attacks incapable of hitting them. Furthermore, the practitioner could use this technique to launch counterattacks. This was why Cloud Without Form was so famous—an Eleventh Marvelous Technique of an ancient civilization could never be simple.

In this realm of the Central Celestial Dynasty, countless people wished to deal with those from the Immortal Ancient Civilization, but they were often thwarted by Cloud Without Form, making it difficult to slay them. And now, Lu Yuan was presenting Cloud Without Form? Was this some kind of joke?

The truth was rather straightforward: Lu Yuan had obtained a fragmented piece of Cloud Without Form after slaying the Son of Immortality. Since Lu Yuan's innate attribute was 'Cloud,' he managed to reconstruct the complete text of Cloud Without Form from the fragment, making it almost identical to the original. This was why Lu Yuan could present it. If others had killed Immortal Ancient Civilization cultivators, they wouldn't have the same innate Cloud attribute as Lu Yuan, rendering any fragments they found useless.

Acquiring Cloud Without Form was no small matter. Several Civilization Realm experts from the Fagu Civilization immediately went to verify this copy of Cloud Without Form, hoping to glean some of its mysteries so they wouldn't be completely helpless against Immortal Ancient Civilization members employing it in the future. The result of their verification was conclusive: this was undeniably the true Cloud Without Form.

It truly was!

And those romantic maidens were all praising Lu Yuan. Cloud Without Form, the Eleventh Marvelous Technique of the Immortal Ancient Civilization. They also noted that Yun Xiuxue’s surname was Yun, making Cloud Without Form a perfect complement to her—it had a certain flavor of a gift from a beau to his lady. Lu Yuan was truly too romantic. If the first three gifts had somewhat dampened the atmosphere, the mood now surged vibrantly. The sixth gift, Cloud Without Form, had completely revitalized the energy. Before the official announced this item, absolutely no one could have anticipated it. For a moment, countless people were discussing two main points: first, where Lu Yuan obtained the Eleventh Ranked Marvelous Technique of the Immortal Ancient era; and second, the immense benefits that possessing Cloud Without Form would bring to the Fagu-Martial Alliance.

However, the Lord of the Fagu Civilization could only offer a wry smile. Lu Yuan's betrothal gifts grew increasingly magnificent, meaning his dowry could not lag behind.

The official paused: "The seventh item: The White Fur Fox Cloak."

The White Fur Fox Cloak!

This was no ordinary item either. This cloak was also widely famous throughout the Central Celestial Dynasty. It was reputedly a sacred relic of the Fox Civilization. Long ago, a Vice Lord of the Fox Civilization was captured by an enemy who refined her into this White Fur Fox Cloak. Later, the Fox Civilization defeated the enemy and reclaimed the cloak. Normally, a cloak refined from the pelt of a Fox Civilization Vice Lord should have been destroyed. But later on, the Fox Civilization could not bear to destroy it because the cloak possessed several functions. One of them was: One, it granted immunity to nearly all Illusions. The Fox Civilization was famous for its illusion arts, yet this cloak resisted almost all of them—truly astonishing. Two, it could repel Inner Demons. Inner Demons were terrifyingly potent in the Central Celestial Dynasty, though Lu Yuan, practicing the Righteous Qi path, never feared them. Others had to contend with these inner struggles.

These two immense functions combined gave the White Fur Fox Cloak extraordinary value. Moreover, the cloak was exceptionally beautiful, rumored to be one of the two most beautiful garments in existence. It was also said to enhance the beauty of any woman wearing it, making it something yearned for by both young maidens and noble matrons across the land. Yet, yearning was one thing; acquiring it was another. It was widely known that the cloak resided with the White Fox Vice Lord of the Fox Civilization, a powerful being with six epochs of magic power—a true titan among the powerful figures of heaven and earth. Who would dare provoke the White Fox Vice Lord?

How then did this White Fur Fox Cloak end up in Lu Yuan’s hands, presented as a betrothal gift?

The explanation was simple enough. On his journey to the Fagu Civilization, Lu Yuan encountered the White Fox Vice Lord. Upon seeing Lu Yuan, the Vice Lord intended to kill him to earn merit. Who would have thought Lu Yuan’s strength surpassed hers? In desperation, the White Fox Vice Lord employed the technique of transforming into the White Fur Fox Cloak as a diversion and escaped. Unable to catch her, Lu Yuan took the cloak and designated it as a betrothal gift.

Incidentally, having chased the White Fox Vice Lord for a long time, Lu Yuan found himself near the territory of the Flower Civilization. He heard that the strongest expert there, the Vice Lord of the Flower Civilization, was absent. Since the Flower Civilization was part of the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance, and Lu Yuan heard rumors of incredibly precious flowers within their domain, he entered the Flower Civilization and forcefully took a Flower of Morning and Evening before departing.

The Flower of Morning and Evening was also considered a wondrous flower of heaven and earth, originally named the Flower of the Great Dao of Morning and Evening. This flower was said to possess exquisite beauty, blooming at dawn and fading by dusk, repeating this cycle daily. Within the fleeting moments of its birth and death, infinite principles resided, allowing one to grasp many truths by observing its ephemeral cycle. Hence its name, the Flower of the Great Dao of Morning and Evening.

The supreme flower of the Flower Civilization was the Flower of Epochs, rumored to be the foremost flower across numerous epochs—the absolute pinnacle. Below that were three other significant blossoms, one of which was the Flower of the Great Dao of Morning and Evening. Lu Yuan's intrusion into the Flower Civilization was startling but ultimately without real peril, given his current strength. With the Vice Lord absent, the others in the Flower Civilization could do nothing to stop him. This was partly because the Flower Civilization’s Grand Flower Array had not been activated; Lu Yuan moved too quickly for them to react, allowing him to enter and exit smoothly. Had they mobilized and set up the Grand Array, Lu Yuan’s passage would not have been so easy.

There was another reason: the Flower Civilization, like many others, specialized in illusion arts, precisely the magic Lu Yuan feared the least, making his passage through their domain relatively simple.

In essence, Lu Yuan demonstrated what it meant to "Tread the Moon and Leave Fragrance," accomplishing the legend of plucking the Flower of the Great Dao of Morning and Evening amidst a sea of a thousand blossoms.

Thus, the eighth betrothal gift was naturally the Flower of the Great Dao of Morning and Evening.

The announcement of the eighth gift, the Flower of the Great Dao of Morning and Evening, also drew gasps of astonishment. It was a supreme treasure of the Flower Civilization, yet it was in Lu Yuan's possession. Many present had heard the legends of Lu Yuan traversing the Flower Civilization's myriad blossoms under the moonlight. As this tale spread, Lu Yuan's popularity soared even higher.

The first eight betrothal gifts had now been announced. All eyes turned to the ninth item!

With gifts as phenomenal as the previous eight, what could the ninth, often the centerpiece, possibly be? Lu Yuan had already offered Cloud Without Form and the Galaxy Map—gifts that shook the foundations—along with the White Fur Fox Cloak, the Flower of the Great Dao of Morning and Evening, the Myriad Treasure Glazed Fall, and the Wings of Freedom; none of them were trivial. What grand item could possibly surpass Cloud Without Form and the Galaxy Map? The difficulty seemed immense.

Silence descended upon the hall.

(First update delivered.)