The temple lay deserted, strewn with shattered floor tiles and toppled stone pillars. Traces of violent destruction were everywhere. Andre carefully skirted a hole, barely two meters in diameter, which slanted steeply into an unknown depth below—what kind of monstrous attack could have left such a mark?

Exiting the rear door of the temple's main hall, they faced a pristine meadow. The lush green grass cradled countless white flowers, hazy and dreamlike, like wisps of smoke. Each palm-sized bloom possessed six symmetrical, slender petals, their delicate stems swaying gently in the breeze. The stamen constantly expelled a misty vapor, and crystalline droplets rolled across the petals and leaves, refracting the sunlight into a spectrum of colors.

This grassland spanned over fifty kilometers in length and width. Rows upon rows of crosses, cast in silver metal and adorned with trailing silver vines, stood upright upon it. Behind every cross was a small mound covered in fresh flowers and grass. Flowing, elegant runes were carved into the crosses, though Andre could not decipher their meaning.

The old angel leading the way stared blankly at the cross-covered landscape, his voice dry and raspy. "These are the remains of every kinsman I could gather after the final battle of our race. Heh heh, four million, eight hundred fifty-nine thousand, four hundred and fifty-three souls. It took me two thousand and ten cycles of sunrises and sunsets to bury them all here."

Andre gasped, sucking in a sharp breath, staring in horror at the crosses before them.

The old angel forced a few dry chuckles, then erupted into a violent fit of coughing. After a long while, he managed to draw a slow breath. He suddenly spun around, pointing both index fingers toward the sun in the sky, and boomed with laughter, "Pious believers, welcome to Heaven! These thirteen interconnected planets—this is Eden, this is Paradise, this is the Heaven you have yearned for!"

Fernand thudded onto the ground, gazing at the old angel with sheer terror, then suddenly burst into loud, racking sobs.

This was Heaven? How could Heaven be like this? The entire expanse of "Heaven" was left with only this single, ancient angel, too frail to walk easily?

Heaven was supposed to be perfect, not a shattered graveyard!

The old angel smiled. He crouched down, gently patting Fernand’s head with his hand. "Poor child, I understand your sorrow, but this is Heaven. Or perhaps, this was Heaven. Come with me; I will let you understand the history of our race, so you may know how truly great the species you worship once was."

They walked slowly past cross after cross. The old angel casually pointed things out, introducing the figures buried beneath. From the Archangels that Andre and the others knew well, all the way back to the very first generation of angels—all those figures who once stood supreme and shaped history—lay silently in these humble mounds of earth.

As the old angel spoke, the history of the Angelic race unfolded before the three of them like a vast scroll.

Within this stellar system, the thirteen planets held no particular distinction; however, the star they orbited possessed an incomparably potent energy. All Angelic power derived from it, and their first progenitors were also born from it. The First Generation of Angels numbered over two thousand. They had no idea why they came into existence; only that a massive 'solar flare' erupted from the star, and they suddenly materialized from a solar prominence.

The First Generation settled on the planet closest to the star. They observed the novel natural world, learned to hunt, learned to fish, learned to cultivate crops, learned to multiply and thrive. They invented their own language, their own script, and finally, they comprehended the potent innate energy within them, learning to absorb sunlight to cultivate their power. Because they were born from that super-star and strengthened themselves by absorbing its energy, they called the star the 'Mother Star.'

The Angelic population gradually expanded. The offspring of the First Generation naturally became the Second Generation. The power of the Second Generation was significantly weaker than their predecessors; they were not qualified to dwell on the planet nearest the Mother Star, so they migrated to the second planet.

Thus, the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Generations of Angels were continuously born. After reaching maturity, new generations of Angels would always leave their birthplace to reside on the outer planets.

Eventually, after eons of procreation, the Fourteenth Generation was born. But there were only thirteen planets orbiting the Mother Star! Over their long period of proliferation, the Angelic race had developed its own unique religion and strict commandments. The Fourteenth Generation was deemed insufficiently worthy to inhabit those thirteen worlds; they were required to seek new dwellings!

Countless Angels departed their established homes, wandering endlessly through space, searching for a new place of residence for their descendants.

Finally, after years of searching, they discovered a new world orbiting the Mother Star—the planet now known as Heaven.

Planet Heaven possessed richer mineral deposits, more abundant yields, and denser spiritual energy than the thirteen planets surrounding the Mother Star. Furthermore, the sun of Planet Heaven possessed an energy far surpassing that of the Angelic Mother Star. Three days of cultivation on Planet Heaven yielded the equivalent of six months of cultivation back in their homeland!

The Angelic race surged towards Planet Heaven in a frenzy. They intended to seize this magnificent world, viewing it as a sacred place granted by the Mother Star for their future generations. Even the most conservative and obstinate First Generation progenitors had made a decision: Angels from the Fourteenth Generation onward could reside on Planet Heaven, free to multiply and prosper there!

And so, the war began!

The vast numbers of the Angelic race plundered the resources of Planet Heaven, depleting its spiritual energy concentration. This directly provoked the dissatisfaction of the righteous and wicked cultivators already residing there. An earth-shattering massacre erupted as neither the cultivators nor the Angels were willing to surrender Planet Heaven, plunging them into a ferocious conflict.

Immense bursts of energy tore open the space near Planet Heaven, creating a new wormhole jump-point. From this opening poured forth masses of bizarre creatures that joined the fray—such as werewolves that could transform into great wolves under the full moon, and vampires who could shift into bats. The conflict quickly escalated into a chaotic three-way melee, resulting in catastrophic casualties on all sides.

Through countless years of proliferation, the Angelic race amassed enormous numbers, recalling those kinsmen who had been traveling in space seeking new planets, pouring them ceaselessly into the Heaven battlefield.

The number of strange creatures emerging from the new wormhole jump-points was even greater. No one knew where that portal led, but thousands of monsters streamed out daily to join the fighting.

That's the end of the month, comrades, work hard smashing those votes... Enough talk, updates are what matter!

For more novels, visit storyread.net.