The voice of Duan Donghe seemed to faintly echo within the control hall, amplifying the silence therein.

The Lord of Deer Insect, the Lord of Liu Jiu, the Lord of Ying Ai, the Lord of Wu Mei, the Lord of Li Hai, and Luo Feng—their eyes betrayed struggle and madness.

"Go or not go! I hail from the Holy Land Universe, eternal existence, never perishing. If I go, there's danger of demise! But if I don't, this opportunity I couldn't even beg for will be missed." The Lord of Deer Insect struggled.

"How powerful was that ancient civilization?" The Lord of Ying Ai narrowed his eyes, the single-eyed phantom behind him flickering, clearly indicating intense inner turmoil. "To create the Universe Ark! Vast items like the Black-Veined Stone Pillars are merely things inside the Ark. This inheritance that Duan Donghe speaks of, even within the ancient civilization, is unique! What a noble inheritance—but the difficulty can be imagined..."

"Opportunity, the only opportunity, the only opportunity!" The eyes of the Lord of Li Hai were filled with frenzy. "Grant me this chance!"

"This time..." The perfect countenance of the Lord of Liu Jiu held hesitation.

Everyone present wrestled with the decision.

Luo Feng, too, was struggling. Involuntarily, his divine power surged, causing ripples in the surroundings. He had assumed this was a contest for the Tomb Ship, but unexpectedly, the Tomb Ship was just an accessory; the critical factor was the profound inheritance within, one that was formidable even in the ancient civilization.

Inheritance stirs the heart! Yet, it equally carried the danger of demise!

Luo Feng understood that although he possessed clones, with the methods of the ancient civilization, since the warning stated, "Those who covet my lineage's inheritance shall surely die," then any punishment would surely not be a simple matter dealing with a single clone.

"Do I go or not?"

"I, Luo Feng, have only cultivated for a mere dozen epochs! Even without this opportunity, I believe with my strength..." becoming a Universe Master would be easy. After that, having hope to become the strongest in the universe was also possible!" Luo Feng mused internally. "But once I go to accept this inheritance, it will be a true adventure!"

"Adventure or no adventure?"

Luo Feng hesitated.

"I only have confidence in becoming a Universe Master. As for becoming the strongest in the universe, I have no clue! Even if I become the strongest in the universe in the future, what then? I would only live for three reincarnation eras at most," Luo Feng thought secretly. "To achieve true eternity, one must succeed in breaking through the reincarnation cycle."

"It’s a pity, looking across the entire sea of the universe... after countless epochs of striving, who has succeeded? Only those two Holy Land Universes." Luo Feng recalled the messages left by successive Space Masters on the smooth cliff face in the isolated space of the black token chamber.

The 1st Master... the 2nd Master... the 3rd Master...

Passed down one by one from the Nine Faint Master, until the Five Chaos Master, and Luo Feng! There were a full 20,295 Masters of Space! As for how many Space Masters existed before the Nine Faint Master, no one knew.

This alone showed the vast number of reincarnation eras that had passed.

"Across endless reincarnation eras, how many heaven-defying talents were there? Yet only two Holy Land Universes."

"In every reincarnation era, there are dozens of universe masters at the peak. Across ten thousand reincarnation eras or longer, how many universe masters at the peak existed? Who can attain eternity?"

Luo Feng looked up, staring at the throne above the hall, his gaze burning with fervor: "This time is the opportunity, an extremely powerful inheritance from that incomparably mighty ancient civilization! Based on judgment, Duan Donghe's status within the Universe Ark was at the very top; this chance would be precious even in that ancient civilization."

"With this inheritance!"

"I can see a path further, a path higher than the strongest in the universe. With the guidance of the inheritance..."

"I shall climb higher."

Just as everyone within the hall was wrestling with their thoughts.

Suddenly, an aura materialized abruptly.

"Lord of Jin Fang, since you insist on coming out, I shall let you out. The choice is yours," the Lord of Wu Mei said coldly. Beside him stepped out a golden-armored man of the Divine Eye race—the Lord of Jin Fang, who had been hiding within the palace treasure. Though he hadn't emerged, he had witnessed and heard everything happening outside with perfect clarity and could no longer restrain himself.

Boom!

Another figure emerged nearby—a tall, sinister figure entirely crimson, as if condensed from blood-colored bones. It was the powerhouse of the Skeleton race.

"Chi Ying, this is a choice concerning life and death; I will not stop you," the Lord of Li Hai stated directly.

"Mm." The Lord of Chi Ying nodded.

"It seems each faction has an ally," the Lord of Liu Jiu waved a delicate hand, and beside her appeared a burly giant with eight arms, his entire body resembling rock, emitting a low, rumbling sound: "Liu Jiu, if you say go, I go. If you don't, I won't."

"Lord of Yan Ju? It truly is where the Lord of Liu Jiu is, there is the Lord of Yan Ju," the Lord of Wu Mei sneered.

"Lord of Deer Insect, do you have an ally?"

"Silver River, do you have an ally?"

The Divine Eye race, the Skeleton race, and the First Ancestor God Sect all surprisingly had allies, but they had only hidden one each. In truth, it was normal; deep within the inner domain, unless one was extremely self-confident like the Lord of Deer Insect, they usually acted in pairs. For example, the Lord of Chi Ying and the Lord of Li Hai acted together, the Lord of Ying Ai and the Lord of Wu Liang acted together, and the Lord of Liu Jiu and the Lord of Yan Ju acted together.

And the Lord of Jin Fang had just happened upon this event.

"I have roamed the sea of the universe. I have always acted alone..." the Lord of Deer Insect stated directly. "I have no ally either," Luo Feng shook his head.

"Hahaha! Three from the Divine Eye race, two from the Skeleton race, two from the First Ancestor God Sect, plus myself and Silver River, totaling nine of us!" The Lord of Deer Insect laughed heartily. "This decision might not be easy, but an opportunity like this comes once in an eon. Even my Purple Moon Holy Land has never heard of such a mysterious inheritance. The ordinary inheritances, I suspect, are merely leftovers from some ordinary powerhouses inside the Universe Ark back then, but clearly, they cannot compare to this Duan Donghe. Furthermore, should those ordinary powerhouses perish, the dangers left behind wouldn't threaten me."

"But Duan Donghe—since he dared to say those words, even the means he left behind after his death could deal with the strongest in the universe," the Lord of Deer Insect swept his gaze across them. "Everyone, you must think this through carefully."

Just as the various factions struggled internally.

Above the hall, energy converged on the throne, reforming into the green-haired figure—it was Duan Donghe.

"Have you thought it through?" Duan Donghe rose and slowly walked down, looking at the nine figures below.

Luo Feng, the Lord of Deer Insect, and the others understood that this was likely merely some form of intelligence left behind by Duan Donghe, controlled by it; the real Duan Donghe had long since perished.

"Rise!" Duan Donghe lightly commanded, pointing toward the hall floor.

Rumble!

The hall immediately began to rise. A massive circular stone slab suspended itself, revealing a deep, dark abyss. Looking into the abyss, one could vaguely see a crimson expanse, with occasional red thermal waves twisting within...

"If you are willing to accept the inheritance, go down," Duan Donghe stated directly. "I will select you according to the method my lineage uses to choose successors. As you pass through the many trials, you will gradually come into contact with the inheritance... the moment you touch the inheritance, it is a life-or-death crisis. Accept all of it and live! Fail to accept it completely, even accepting a sliver, and you die!"

"If you are afraid now, you can leave immediately."

"The gate, once opened, will not close."

"You can even invite your clansmen and friends to try. The more who try, the better! That way, there is a greater chance of birthing a new Duan Donghe!" Duan Donghe's gaze swept over the nine figures. "Choose." Following this, his figure vibrated like dust and dissipated, vanishing into nothingness.

The circular stone slab floated high above.

Revealing the endless crimson passage below—to enter or not to enter?

"My limit is approaching, yet I obtain such an opportunity," the Lord of Chi Ying murmured darkly. "With the methods of the ancient civilization... though I am from the first reincarnation era, I still have a chance to become the strongest in the universe, or even to break through the reincarnation cycle! Even the ancient civilization couldn't break the restrictions, so if I obtain the inheritance, I can guide the strongest of my Skeleton race in the universe. As long as one of them succeeds, the third Holy Land Universe will be born! Hahahaha..."

Whoosh!

A streak of crimson light flashed and vanished, cutting an arc as it flew directly into the deep passage, disappearing without a trace.

"The only opportunity before my limit expires, how could I miss it?" The Lord of Liu Jiu smiled and also transformed into a streak of light, flying in.

"Liu Jiu!" A deep, resonant voice sounded. "If you go there, I go there."

The Lord of Yan Ju followed without hesitation, immediately transforming into a streak of light and flying in as well.

"Ying Ai."

"Wu Liang."

The couple exchanged glances and smiled.

"Go!"

"Go!"

One directly entered.

"Hahahaha!" The Lord of Jin Fang laughed loudly. "If I die, it's just dying a moment sooner." He followed them in.

In a moment, all the powerhouses from the first universe era had entered. Only the Lord of Deer Insect and Luo Feng remained outside.

"Are you going?" The Lord of Deer Insect looked at Luo Feng.

"And you?" Luo Feng countered.

The Lord of Deer Insect’s gaze drifted vaguely, and he whispered, "What is eternal time? My desire for life lies in adventure. My clan will be fine without me. The Holy Land Universe is eternal. This inheritance, rare in countless epochs, if missed, I will regret it. This adventure might be my biggest one, but I'll go. Dying in adventure would be worth it."

"Hahaha... I'll go first."

The Lord of Deer Insect transformed into a streak of light and flew directly in.

Luo Feng was the only one left in the entire hall.

"If I perish, since I am a Universe Venerable, I still have a chance to resurrect. The cost to resurrect me might be high, but I can afford it," Luo Feng looked toward the crimson abyss. "I had intended to have the Golden Horned Beast clone take the Star Tower and leave, but if I truly perish, the Star Tower will also become masterless, drifting within the Universe Ark, potentially swept into dangerous areas, or even seized by other forces."

"Then I will take the Star Tower with me and venture in. With the Star Tower, I will have greater confidence in handling the various dangers."

"I'll stake everything on this one gamble!"

Swish!

Luo Feng transformed into a streak of light and plunged directly into the crimson abyss.

Seeing the glowing red in the review section, Fanqie is deeply moved, thank you, brothers, for your support. With your support, I have endless strength!"