This was an army of such unbelievable, colossal magnitude. This host was organized into three Grand Brigades and fourteen Squadrons. The three Grand Brigades were the Fagu Civilization Brigade, the Wugu Civilization Brigade, and the Dougu Civilization Brigade, while the fourteen Squadrons were the Axe Civilization Squadron, the Wind Civilization Squadron, the Confucian Civilization Squadron, the Medicine Civilization Squadron, the Celestial Mother Civilization Squadron, the Holy Light Civilization Squadron, the Umbrella Civilization Squadron, the Dragon Civilization Squadron, the Diagram Civilization Squadron, the Ice Civilization Squadron, the Magic Tool Civilization Squadron, the Night Civilization Squadron, the Bird Civilization Squadron, and the Zither Civilization Squadron.

The absolute apex figures leading each of these seventeen units were all Civilization Realm experts holding the rear, while the backbone consisted entirely of World Realm figures. Virtually no Primal Chaos Realm individuals were seeing combat; those in the Primal Chaos Realm were far, far too weak for this era, generally retained to defend their home civilizations, with only specially cultivated Primal Chaos Realm disciples brought along to witness such an immense spectacle. This was truly a grand spectacle.

War banners were like clouds, generals like rain. Civilizations manifested, worlds countless. Those Civilization Realm experts scattered verses of civilization, bolstering the morale of the troops.

The World Realm practitioners refined their Minor Thousand Worlds, making the space here seem overlaid with myriad Minor Thousand Worlds. The scale of this scene was unimaginably vast. At this moment, the Son of Struggle from the Dougu Civilization murmured, "Such a scene is magnificent; it turns out everything from our Dougu Civilization was mere child's play." The Son of Law also murmured, "The scale is too immense." Though the Son of Law was a native of the Central Heavenly Dynasty, he too had never witnessed a scene of this magnitude.

Lu Yuan was equally stunned. Lu Yuan had witnessed many momentous occasions, participating in wars that brought about the ruin of civilizations—such as the war involving the Magic Tool Civilization, or the war between the Confucian Civilization and the Heavenly Principles Civilization. Yet, faced with this current panorama, he could only kneel in reverence.

Compared to this, what were the wars of the Confucian Civilization, the Heavenly Principles Civilization, or the Magic Tool Civilization? The disparity was vast, utterly incomparable. This was, after all, an Epochal War.

Typically, an epoch saw at most one or two such conflicts. The sheer scale of an Epochal War defied imagination; only the most ancient, seasoned veterans and veteran civilizations had witnessed them frequently. Yet, even these old veterans and ancestral civilizations dared not display the slightest complacency.

In such decisive battles, the slightest misstep meant death; countless Civilization Realm figures had perished in previous grand confrontations. And in this epochal clash, many familiar faces were engaged. For instance, Gu Qiushui, Guo Kan, Murong Huangfu, Wang Shititou, Yin Wuji, Jing Wuqiu, and so on.

These were all figures who had participated in the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment in years past—geniuses rarely seen in their time, who had carved a path through crushing opposition. That cohort had been one where talents converged, most reaching the fifth or sixth layer of the World Realm, some even attaining the Heavenly Venerate Realm. Murong Huangfu, having gained some fortuitous encounters, had now ascended to the Heavenly Venerate Realm, the seventh heaven of the World Realm.

Now a Heavenly Venerate, Murong Huangfu radiated an aura befitting royalty. However, Murong Huangfu gazed into the depths of the massive formation. Amidst the countless figures, he could see nothing clearly, yet Murong Huangfu knew his target lay ahead: Lu Yuan, his rival from the past, who was now overwhelmingly powerful—his strength far exceeded Murong Huangfu's wildest imaginings.

Murong Huangfu sighed faintly, but quickly rallied. His current duty was to fight well in this decisive battle. The perilous nature of such a confrontation had been drilled into them countless times; Murong Huangfu was acutely aware of the stakes.

Also present in the ranks was Fu Ying, gripping a long saber. He too had reached the Heavenly Venerate Realm, and he laughed heartily, anticipating a truly satisfying final battle. Fu Ying also looked toward the distant depths.

Back in that Hundred Kingdoms Assessment, everyone aspired to be the strongest. Now, it seemed the truly strongest had emerged: after immeasurable time, Lu Yuan was the one who had developed boundlessly, despite ranking only twentieth in that ancient contest. Wang Shititou casually toyed with a stone in his hand, softly murmuring the name, "Lu Yuan." Old acquaintances from the past watched the figure ahead, recalling the drive to catch up.

Though the distance felt immense, their fighting spirit remained undimmed. Of course, within this assembly, there were myriad personal grievances and debts, but the dominant theme was singular. The Decisive Battle!

The grand confrontation was imminent! At that moment, a message arrived. Lu Yuan viewed the communication—it was from the Lord of the Martial God Civilization, summoning him to the Wugu Civilization Grand Brigade.

Lu Yuan immediately flew toward that brigade, quickly descending before its vanguard. There stood a divine figure. A true Deity of the Martial Way!

Representing the ultimate path and supreme glory of martial endeavor. In comparison, the Vice-Lords of the Martial Saint Civilization and the Wu Bo Civilization seemed distant and insignificant. This individual was the Lord of the Martial God Civilization, a peak existence at the Civilization Lord Realm.

This was a senior figure. Lu Yuan raised his hand slightly: "Greetings, Senior." The Lord of the Martial God Civilization regarded Lu Yuan: "I have heard of your achievements in the Supreme Operations Room. That sly, troublesome, and cunning entity, the Lord of the Transformation Civilization, called you invincible in the Era of Techniques.

For the Lord of the Transformation Civilization to offer such praise is rare indeed. Your techniques must be extraordinary. Alas, this is not the time; otherwise, I would surely seek a duel with you to test our skills." The Lord of the Martial God Civilization was once known as a Martial Obsessive; his nature was to be overjoyed upon encountering a worthy opponent.

However, now was truly not the opportune moment; this was the time for the grand battle. What could Lu Yuan say now? He could only meet the gaze with silence.

The Lord of the Martial God Civilization then stated, "It is time for your five Intermediate Divine Artifacts as well." From the void, he manifested five Intermediate Divine Artifacts, each radiating an intensely potent aura of divinity. These were the rewards Lu Yuan was slated to receive under Plan Twenty-One, and they had finally arrived. Lu Yuan accepted them without ceremony with a massive palm of mana.

Upon receiving them, he swiftly confirmed they possessed the aura of true Divine Artifacts. Without even clearly discerning their form, he immediately swallowed all five Intermediate Divine Artifacts. Wait—what was happening this time?

After swallowing the five divine artifacts, there was not the slightest reaction. Lu Yuan felt a flicker of surprise, a growing suspicion in his heart. The Lord of the Martial God Civilization touched his forehead: "Ah, one of these five Intermediate Divine Artifacts is a Delaying Divine Stone.

The Delaying Divine Stone is itself a divine artifact, but it can cause the effect of a divine artifact to manifest only one or two days after consumption. I intended to warn you just now, but you swallowed them so quickly." The Lord of the Martial God Civilization explained. Lu Yuan silently cycled his Karma.

His Karma Iron Laws were now cultivated to profound depths; very few could deceive him. Everything indeed aligned with what the Lord of the Martial God Civilization had said. A miserable outcome—one of the five artifacts was a Delaying Divine Stone, and he hadn't noticed at the time.

However, it wouldn't cause any major disruption; the delay was just a day or two, perhaps a day at most. Once he reached the Ninth Epoch, he would still crush any god or slaughter any Buddha who stood in his way. After bidding farewell to the Lord of the Martial God Civilization, Lu Yuan returned to his position within the Fagu Civilization Brigade.

He had been seated there initially. The Lord of the Transformation Civilization remarked, "Hmm? You haven't reached the mana level of the Ninth Epoch yet?" Lu Yuan explained the matter of the Delaying Divine Stone.

The Lord of the Transformation Civilization frowned irritably, "That old scatterbrain, the Martial God—truly an old scatterbrain, not even warning you about something like that. But it's not a major impediment; at most, it will take one or two days to ascend to the Ninth Epoch, and with your strength, few below the Civilization Lord Realm could likely kill you." The Lord of the Transformation Civilization spoke with utmost composure: "Li Taishi has not returned to the ranks." What truly annoyed the Lord of the Transformation Civilization was Li Taishi's absence. He had summoned such a capable expert to join the ranks, only for Li Taishi not to appear.

Li Taishi was strong enough to kill the Vice-Lord of the Heavenly Principles Civilization and would have been useful in such a decisive battle. But never mind; if Li Taishi wasn't coming, he wasn't coming. The Lord of the Transformation Civilization had countless plans to orchestrate: where the opponents should be positioned, how to array their defenses, how to manage unforeseen events, and so on.

Leading the Supreme Operations Room was no easy task. Surrounded by countless halos of light, the Lord of the Fagu Civilization also sat enthroned deep within the brigade; how could he not attend such a grand decisive battle? Lu Yuan did not mind waiting an extra day or two.

Within the formation, Lu Yuan specifically looked toward the Confucian Civilization Squadron. Among the various squadrons present, the Confucian Civilization Squadron was probably the weakest? No, there was also the Magic Tool Civilization; its strongest expert only possessed the mana of the Fifth Epoch.

These two squadrons were too fragile and would likely be the enemy's primary focus of attack. If the fighting truly erupted, Lu Yuan resolved to provide support to these two civilizations, he mused internally. After this silent contemplation, Lu Yuan summoned a cloud, sat upon it cross-legged, and began meditating to regulate his spirit, preparing himself in the best possible state for the impending grand battle.

However, after regulating his breath for a while, he realized something was wrong; he wasn't reaching the optimal state. He had truly been mistaken. Lu Yuan reached into the void and pulled out a wineskin, drinking deeply with gulps and gurgles.

Yes, only when he had wine was he in his true, optimal state. What was the point of being in a 'normal' optimal state without wine? Lu Yuan drank with great relish, half-slumped on the cloud, drinking with immense ease and absolute freedom.

Among the seventeen units advancing with extreme tension, Lu Yuan was estimated to be one of the most relaxed and carefree figures. ...... Meanwhile, not far away, another colossal, unquantifiable army was also preparing—this was naturally the massive force belonging to the Desolate Immortal Buddha faction, banners like rain, civilizations like clouds.

The distance separating the two massive armies was no longer great. And the greatest decisive battle since the beginning of this epoch would commence shortly. (Chapter One Delivered.)