The river of stars of wisdom summoned by the Vice-Hierarch of the Mielun Civilization contained infinite profound mysteries. The Second Era's magical power struck the Vice-Lord of the Qijie Civilization's River of Qi, the impact piercing like lightning, utterly blasting the Qijie Vice-Lord away. The Qijie Vice-Lord slammed heavily against the world wall of the Minor Confucian World. The Minor Confucian World, already weakened significantly without the blessing of the Confucian Civilization's Vice-Lord, immediately suffered a tremor in its world wall upon impact. This tremor radiated outward, agitating the entire Minor World, causing the whole Minor Confucian World to shake as if in an earthquake; some unstable structures collapsed, and countless books tumbled down.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch smiled faintly, a sinister curve to his lips: "Qijie Vice-Lord, I will utterly destroy your Confucian Civilization."

The Qijie Vice-Lord spat out a mouthful of blood. He attempted to mobilize all his magic for another assault, but found himself instantly lacking the strength to attack; the wounds were too severe.

Kong Mingde, Kong Ni, Meng Wei, Su Yuemian, and over ten others still intended to attack, but the Mielun Vice-Hierarch merely stood there, and the terrifying might he exuded rendered them almost completely immobile. This was the aura of the Second Era—so fearsome! So terrifying! A casual stance was enough to overturn heaven and earth. In truth, much of it was psychological shadow and pressure; after all, the opponent was a figure of the Second Era, a truly overwhelming presence for them.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch slightly raised a hand, and a towering surge of magical power erupted with a thunderous roar. With a casual sweep of his hand, Kong Mingde and the others were instantly sent reeling backward, all of them spitting blood continuously. What did the peak of the World Realm matter compared to the Mielun Vice-Hierarch? It was laughable.

"Oh." The Mielun Vice-Hierarch let out a soft, surprised sound because he noticed one person had not been knocked down by his casual sweep, but was stubbornly standing firm. The Mielun Vice-Hierarch looked over and saw it was Kong Ni. Kong Ni’s cultivation strength had advanced significantly in recent days, putting him basically on par with Hua Fasheng. Reaching the realm of Hua Fasheng meant one could withstand a single strike from a Civilization Vice-Lord of the First Era without falling, an absolute honor for those in the World Realm.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch exhaled dismissively. This puff of air shot out like a colossal Azure Dragon. This Azure Dragon of white breath struck Kong Ni heavily, and Kong Ni could not withstand it either, immediately coughing up blood and being severely wounded. By this point, virtually all combat-capable figures of the Confucian Civilization were eliminated.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch roared, "Annihilation for all, Confucian Civilization." He was fully prepared to wipe out the Confucian Civilization entirely, hating it intensely—this civilization that had always suppressed the Heavenly Principle Civilization: "People of the Confucian Civilization, you shall be refined into my Vast Righteous Banner. Then I will possess both inherently evil righteousness and true righteousness—one vast, one evil—two opposing poles, one Yin, one Yang, which will massively advance my power."

"Who says the Confucian Civilization is finished?" A clear, pleasing voice sounded.

Eh, whose voice was that?

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch was momentarily stunned. The level of Civilization Realm implied omniscience; everything around him was already within the sweep of the Mielun Vice-Hierarch’s divine sense. How could someone suddenly appear and speak from behind him? This was supposed to be impossible. Could the newcomer be a master?

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch couldn't help but slightly turn his head and saw the speaker. The person wore immaculate white robes, was incomparably handsome, smooth and refined like jade, and wore a tassel hat—a truly elegant young man. The Mielun Vice-Hierarch did recall this person; he was the one who had slain Wang Xueze and Zhu Tianren, both ranked in the forties on the Heaven Ranking, in the great battle years ago. It was none other than Li Taishi.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch still had a clear impression of Li Taishi. Li Taishi’s last known achievement should have been defeating Murong Honglei, who ranked eighth on the Heaven Ranking. As for his current strength? It should be around the level of the first rank on the Heaven Ranking. However, reaching the Civilization Realm was impossible; the First Heavenly Threshold of the cosmos was not a matter for jest.

Throughout the world, countless dazzling geniuses and peerless talents were blocked at this barrier, unable to advance further. Li Taishi's possibility of breaking through this barrier was essentially zero.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch finally figured it out. The reason he hadn't noticed Li Taishi’s presence earlier was likely due to his own excitement. Yes, the long-held ambition to destroy the Confucian Civilization—how exhilarating! Thus, in his heightened state, a slight oversight occurred.

Li Taishi had emerged!

The heavily wounded Qijie Vice-Lord, Kong Ni, Kong Mingde, Su Yuemian, Meng Wei, and the others all saw the beautiful, white-robed man, Li Taishi.

Li Taishi was here!

Li Taishi’s strongest known record was defeating Murong Honglei; his current strength should be close to the Heaven Ranking’s number one.

But even at the top of the Heaven Ranking, he was absolutely no match for the Mielun Vice-Hierarch; the gap between them was simply too vast, too immense.

The difference was unimaginably large.

The Qijie Vice-Lord spat out more blood. Damn it, why did Li Taishi have to show up? The Qijie Vice-Lord could face death calmly before because he knew Li Taishi was alive, and Li Taishi’s future was limitless. Now, even if the Confucian Civilization was destroyed, as long as Li Taishi lived, the Confucian Civilization could be rebuilt. This was why he had Li Taishi’s contact information but had never thought of reaching out. Who knew that Li Taishi would actually receive the message and appear now? If Li Taishi died alongside them, then the Confucian Civilization would have no hope of rebuilding.

The Qijie Vice-Lord was the first to react. Kong Ni, Kong Mingde, Su Yuemian, Meng Wei, and the others immediately understood as well. They were all simultaneously exasperated by Li Taishi’s appearance; Li Taishi should not have shown up.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch also reacted: "Very well, Li Taishi. The last seed of the Confucian Civilization is about to be destroyed by my hand."

Lu Yuan smiled faintly: "You can beat me?" This statement was absurd, supremely absurd, at least in the opinion of everyone present, including the Mielun Vice-Hierarch, the Qijie Vice-Lord, and Kong Ni and the others, because the gap between them was too immense, too great to be measured by reason.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch, the majestic Civilization Realm figure wielding Second Era magic.

Li Taishi, who surpassed the eighth rank on the Heaven Ranking, currently perhaps nearing the first.

A slight comparison made the disparity in strength obvious.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch heard Lu Yuan’s voice and couldn't help but laugh dumbly: "Li Taishi, oh Li Taishi, it seems you still don't know what the First Heavenly Threshold means. Even if you were the number one on the Heaven Ranking now, you would still be nothing more than an ant before me." The Mielun Vice-Hierarch was never one for empty boasts; he was a man of absolute action. He shifted his hand, and that very river of stars of wisdom shot directly toward Li Taishi.

Even a lion attacking a rabbit must use its full strength.

The Mielun Vice-Hierarch was that lion; he used his utmost power to slay Li Taishi, who was weaker than a rabbit. The moment he struck, he unleashed his ultimate technique, the River of Stars of Wisdom, absolutely giving Li Taishi not the slightest sliver of opportunity. It was this same River of Stars of Wisdom that had defeated the Qijie Vice-Lord earlier. Now, its aggression was fierce; how many blows could Li Taishi block?

One move, no problem; five moves, perhaps manageable. It should be around twenty to thirty moves before it reached its limit. And after twenty to thirty moves, Li Taishi's fate would likely be death under the Mielun Vice-Hierarch’s hand, completely ending the last hope for the Confucian Civilization's revival.

Wait, he could still escape! The Mielun Vice-Hierarch had not yet set up the Civilization Heavenly Tracks; once those were laid, escape would become utterly impossible. The Qijie Vice-Lord was just about to transmit a warning to Li Taishi, but at that moment, the Mielun Vice-Hierarch raised his hand and unleashed the Civilization Heavenly Tracks: "Li Taishi, die completely for me."

The River of Stars of Wisdom charged toward Li Taishi. The onlookers saw Li Taishi summon a book—it was none other than the Transmitting Truth Immortal Scripture.

The Transmitting Truth Immortal Scripture met the attack and instantly blocked the River of Stars of Wisdom.

The River of Stars of Wisdom and the Transmitting Truth Immortal Scripture collided heavily with a loud crack. A fissure appeared on the Transmitting Truth Immortal Scripture, but Lu Yuan barely retreated. In this exchange—a clash of magical power, a collision of techniques between Li Taishi and the Mielun Vice-Hierarch—Li Taishi showed virtually no disadvantage.

In an instant, the minds of the Qijie Vice-Lord, Kong Ni, Kong Mingde, Meng Wei, and Su Yuemian simultaneously froze. Almost every mouth hung wide open. In their minds, the same thought repeated over and over: if Li Taishi could directly block one attack from the Mielun Vice-Hierarch, it meant only one thing—Li Taishi was no longer Heaven Ranking level, but Civilization level.

Li Taishi... he... he... he had actually broken through the First Heavenly Threshold of the cosmos, the Civilization Realm threshold?

If this were true, it was cause for immense celebration. Another figure of the Civilization Realm had emerged for the Confucian Civilization.

On the territory of the Central Heavenly Dynasty, the appearance of a Civilization Realm expert was undoubtedly a matter for overwhelming joy, deserving of great congratulations and even a feast inviting all friendly civilizations to celebrate. Such was the gravity of the event. And now, Li Taishi had reached the Civilization Realm—this was overwhelmingly stimulating for them all.

What should the Confucian Civilization Vice-Lord name Li Taishi? Kong Ni and the others found their minds turning to this question. Li Taishi seemed to have no particular expertise in written works, but his righteousness was strong, and he had inherited the 'Zheng' (Truth/Righteousness) character from the Confucian Civilization Vice-Lord; perhaps he could be called the Vice-Lord of the Zhengzi Civilization. Kong Ni mused internally. Su Yuemian thought internally that Junior Brother Li Taishi was both handsome and refined, possessing a gentle, jade-like demeanor; he should be named the Vice-Lord of the Wenyu (Gentle Jade) Civilization. Such an elegant young man would surely enchant countless young women and married ladies in the Central Heavenly Dynasty in the future. Meng Wei was now completely awed by this Junior Brother Li; the speed of his power increase was unimaginable, simply astonishingly fast.

(First update delivered.)