The Son of the Desolation, wielding the Heaven's Mandate Divine Halberd, bore down upon Lu Yuan like destiny itself.

Lu Yuan hastily summoned his Yangwu Divine Sword.

The Heaven's Mandate Divine Halberd and the Yangwu Divine Sword clashed in the void, unleashing waves a thousand layers deep and snows ten thousand layers thick, freezing the emptiness and solidifying the stellar domains.

Boom!

The Heaven's Mandate Divine Halberd pierced Lu Yuan’s right shoulder. Blood immediately gushed out. This time, it was no mere avatar of the Earth Ancestor. A sneer touched the corner of the Son of the Desolation’s lips, but he instantly stiffened, sensing that what he had just stabbed was merely an illusion. This time, it clearly wasn't the Earth Ancestor's avatar.

Not far away, another Lu Yuan appeared, completely unharmed.

The Son of the Desolation fixed his gaze on Lu Yuan and demanded in a deep voice, “This must be your Ephemeral Dream, ah. It seems much stronger than the record suggests. Has it evolved into a Civilization-level ultimate move?”

“Yes.” Lu Yuan let out a long breath, looking rather disheveled. The Son of the Desolation was too fierce, too ruthless, pushing him to the brink of disorder.

The Son of the Desolation nodded. “A formidable Ephemeral Dream indeed. But even if it is Heaven, I will tear it for you; even if it is Earth, I will split it for you. How long can a mere Ephemeral Dream hold me back?” The Son of the Desolation’s Heaven’s Mandate Divine Halberd unfolded into another attack, each thrust heavier than the last.

As he attacked, he was simultaneously perceiving the nature of the Ephemeral Dream.

Another flurry of assaults followed. Lu Yuan parried the Son of the Desolation’s relentless offensive, but due to the overwhelmingly superior magic power of his adversary, the Son of the Desolation struck Lu Yuan three times during this continuous assault. Yet, all three strikes were deflected by the Ephemeral Dream.

After three attacks, the Son of the Desolation let out a cold laugh. “Ephemeral Dream. I grasp the principle behind this move now. Though I cannot master your Ephemeral Dream, give me the time it takes an incense stick to burn, and I will shatter this Ephemeral Dream for you to see.” This Ephemeral Dream was truly extraordinary, one of Lu Yuan’s greatest skills, yet here was the Son of the Desolation, claiming he could break it in the time it took an incense stick to burn.

Of course, Lu Yuan knew the Son of the Desolation was not boasting; he genuinely possessed that ability.

At least up to this point, he remained the foremost son of fortune in this epoch.

The vast currents of luck leaking from the Battle of Heavens were largely poured into him.

Lu Yuan also knew that the five intermediate divine artifacts he had swallowed had not yet activated; they still required time.

Damn it, the situation was extremely disadvantageous for Lu Yuan now.

Boom!

The time it took an incense stick to burn elapsed.

Lu Yuan reacted instantly: his Ephemeral Dream was broken!

Damn it, it was broken.

Lu Yuan forgot how many times he had muttered ‘damn it’ that day. The pressure exerted by the Son of the Desolation was immense, overwhelmingly so. This man truly deserved to be his destined nemesis—a foe unlike any he had encountered since the days of Mount Hua. At this moment, Lu Yuan felt the loosening speed of the Latent Divine Stone within him accelerating rapidly. Give him another stick of incense—no, half a stick—and he would break through.

“Sleek Night Rain,” a stream of sword light, lingering and soft, suddenly appeared. This beam of light carried an unmistakable note of desolate sorrow. Lu Yuan instantly recognized it as Zhou Qingxuan. This grand decisive battle was too important; forces from all sides had arrived. Zhou Qingxuan had reached the vicinity long ago and, seeing Lu Yuan in peril, struck out decisively.

Zhou Qingxuan’s current strength was far from weak, but the Son of the Desolation was even stronger. The Son of the Desolation sneered, “Suffering from the sword, are you? A defeated opponent.” Zhou Qingxuan had indeed lost to the Son of the Desolation once before, back when he was merely at the World Realm.

A single Zhou Qingxuan could absolutely not withstand the Son of the Desolation.

Just then, Cold Wind appeared.

If Zhou Qingxuan was the Night Rain, this arrival was the Wind of Cold Night.

Under the cold night, the scenery of wind and moon grew misty; Night Rain emerged.

The Nine Heavens Profound Maiden!

Logically, the Phoenix Ancient Civilization should not have appeared on this battlefield; they maintained a neutral stance. How could the Nine Heavens Profound Maiden be here? The Son of the Desolation roared in response, “The Nine Heavens Profound Maiden? You dare appear here, inviting disaster for the Phoenix Ancient Civilization? If your civilization is destroyed by my hand in the future, it will be because of your actions today.” How utterly arrogant the Son of the Desolation was!

The intervention of Zhou Qingxuan and the Nine Heavens Profound Maiden—a pair whose relationship was more than casual—combined to achieve a synergy far greater than the sum of their parts, yet they were still at a disadvantage against the Son of the Desolation.

The current fearsome might of the Son of the Desolation was radiating to its absolute extreme.

Slaying the Vice-Lord of the Dark Night Civilization, severely wounding the Vice-Lord of the Axe Civilization, injuring the Vice-Lord of the Zither Civilization—in the blink of an eye, he had shattered many of Lu Yuan’s ultimate moves, forcing Lu Yuan to flee in disarray, clearly outmatched. Now, fighting two opponents single-handedly, pressing Zhou Qingxuan and the Nine Heavens Profound Maiden, he seemed like an invincible God of War!

Lu Yuan, watching from the sidelines, naturally perceived this and felt extreme anxiety. Five intermediate divine artifacts, please manifest your effects! With a roar, the five intermediate divine artifacts finally began to exert their power. Tremendous, earth-shattering changes were occurring within Lu Yuan’s body. His magic power began surging towards the Eighth Epoch.

Lu Yuan was already a figure of the Seventh Epoch, and when his power began to rise, it was like the surging of a sea of stars, perceptible to everyone nearby. Even the Son of the Desolation saw it. Blocked by Zhou Qingxuan and the Nine Heavens Profound Maiden, the Son of the Desolation knew he couldn't break through their attacks to harm Lu Yuan immediately. However, a cold smile played on his lips. These two would eventually fall to him. Lu Yuan breaking through mid-battle was commendable, but what of it? Lu Yuan was only at the Seventh Epoch; even if he broke through immediately, he would only reach the Eighth Epoch, nowhere near the level of the Son of the Desolation. Moreover, the Son of the Desolation possessed a hidden trump card in his own magic power: half a trace of Eternal Essence laced within it.

The quality of magic power at the Epoch level far surpassed that of the World Realm—this was why the Civilization Realm was vastly superior to the World Realm.

There existed another type of power: Eternal Magic Power. This substance was more common among the Masters of Civilization. Infusing one’s magic power with a shade of Eternal Essence caused a massive leap in quality. When the Son of the Desolation ascended to the Ninth Epoch, owing to his deep foundation, profound fortune, and overwhelming luck, his own magic power acquired half a trace of Eternal Essence. The Son of the Desolation’s ability to slaughter his way through without resistance was also due to this trace of Eternal Essence.

Because of this half-trace of Eternal Essence, the Son of the Desolation believed he had no equal below the Masters of Civilization. What did it matter if Lu Yuan advanced a single stage?

Rumble, rumble, rumble—like the sky collapsing, like the earth tearing apart, accompanied by the explosion of seemingly countless thunderclaps.

Lu Yuan’s magic power had advanced one level!

At this critical juncture, he had advanced one Epoch of magic power! It was an achievement, yes, but so what? Just as the Son of the Desolation watched calmly, believing he could deliver the killing blow, he saw a change occurring in Lu Yuan’s magic power. A trace of color, surpassing the color of Chaos, appeared above it. It was a color that defied description, formed by the fusion of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, and the eight colors of Chaos combined. That color seemed immortal through tribulations, unchanging for eternity, and unworn by the passage of ages.

Those at the World Realm, and less experienced figures in the Civilization Realm, upon seeing the eight-colored radiance emanating from Lu Yuan’s head, felt a profound dread rising from their very core—no, not just dread, but reverence. It was a color noble and eternal. Those experienced Civilization Realm experts who saw it all changed expression drastically. It was… it was that.

Even the Son of the Desolation, currently overpowering Zhou Qingxuan and the Nine Heavens Profound Maiden, gasped sharply. It was that.

How could the Son of the Desolation fail to recognize it?

This substance was called Eternal Essence.

The Son of the Desolation himself possessed half a trace of Eternal Essence upon ascending to the Ninth Epoch, making him supremely proud of his standing in the world—it was the greatest reason for his confidence that he was invincible beneath the Masters of Civilization. Now, however, he saw that Lu Yuan’s entire body was radiating this same color—this too was Eternal Essence, half a trace of it.

Damn it! He only acquired half a trace of Eternal Essence when ascending to the Ninth Epoch, yet Lu Yuan possessed the same amount upon reaching the Eighth Epoch! Damn it!

Now it was the Son of the Desolation’s turn to curse ‘damn it.’ He hardened his resolve, determined to kill Lu Yuan right here. Fortunately, Lu Yuan was only at the Eighth Epoch; even with half a trace of Eternal Essence like himself, he was doomed to die by his hand. The Son of the Desolation also felt an indistinct premonition: in this final grand battle, only one of them—himself or Lu Yuan—would survive. This wasn't a baseless feeling; he had divined it through Karma and Destiny. His Destiny was nebulous, yet it was tied to fate itself. Knowing fate demanded it, he thought, Lu Yuan, perish by my hand!

Indeed, Lu Yuan faintly sensed at the moment he reached the Eighth Epoch that this was the final battle of life and death between him and the Son of the Desolation.

Then, let the advancement continue.

Lu Yuan consumed a full three hundred and eighty Celestial-Grade Spiritual Veins. Aided by these veins, Lu Yuan’s magic power surged upward—whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—finally reaching the peak of the Eighth Epoch. Everyone nearby assumed the ascent would stop there. However, Lu Yuan’s magic power continued to surge upward with great momentum.

That’s right. Before Lu Yuan could even savor the exhilaration of reaching the peak of the Eighth Epoch, the magic power within him continued to surge—whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. The intermediate divine artifacts were exerting their tremendous effect within his body. Lu Yuan seemed to have broken through a colossal barrier between heaven and earth, glimpsing another, incomparably vast barrier beyond.

That was!

The Celestial Barrier of the Master of Civilization! Advancing from the Ninth Epoch to the Tenth Epoch was tremendously, impossibly difficult. Hadn't the Vice-Lord of the Medicine Civilization, the Vice-Lord of the Ice Civilization, the Vice-Lord of the Heavenly Mother Civilization, and the legendary Vice-Lord of the Arrow Civilization—and so many others—all been trapped at this threshold, unable to progress further?

However, Lu Yuan had no time to worry about this Celestial Barrier now, as he felt his magic power breach another limit, elevating him to the Ninth Epoch.

The Ninth Epoch—the pinnacle for a Civilization Vice-Lord!

Unknowingly, he too had reached the Ninth Epoch, halfway along the path to becoming an Eternal Lord.

All the magic power within Lu Yuan’s body shifted, vast and imposing like a galaxy.

And at this moment, something utterly momentous began to change within Lu Yuan’s entire magical being—a change that caused even the Son of the Desolation to be momentarily stunned.

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