Lin Yuan’s internal universe.
Even though it carried countless citizens of human civilization and numerous alien life forms, there was still a vast expanse of empty space.
Lin Yuan’s internal universe was founded upon the Rank Thirteen inheritance “Infinite Void,” giving it unfathomable depth. As long as there was enough space, it could basically contain everything.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!!
Several dozen Rank Twelve aliens appeared in a certain corner, their faces alight with joy.
“Milky Way Strongest one is actually willing to shelter me?”
“Hahahaha, Milky Way Strongest one is merciful, so there’s finally hope for me to survive this round of the Great Calamity of Annihilation.”
“As long as I get to live, what’s the harm in complete submission to Milky Way Strongest one?”
At first, all the Rank Twelve aliens, on realizing they’d been brought inside Lin Yuan’s internal universe, were overjoyed.
They had briefly confronted the Great Calamity and knew how terrifying it was. They felt certain that on their own, there was absolutely no way to survive.
Under such conditions, death had almost been guaranteed.
If you failed to endure the Great Calamity, you’d be forced to remain in the universe, ultimately perishing along with its destruction.
That’s the fate of all Rank Twelve powerhouses who can’t get through the Great Calamity.
But now, Milky Way Strongest one was willing to take them into his internal universe.
With his protection, the hope of surviving the Great Calamity was infinitely greater.
However, once the many Rank Twelve aliens looked around, they were startled.
“You came in, too?”
“Milky Way Strongest one is also willing to shelter you?”
“Did everyone come in?”
All the Rank Twelve aliens were a bit dumbfounded. They suddenly realized that every Rank Twelve powerhouse in the universe—apart from the human civilization—had been taken into Milky Way Strongest one’s internal universe.
Faced with that fact, many Rank Twelve aliens could no longer laugh.
They made a quick calculation: it seemed that in Lin Yuan’s internal universe right now, there were nearly eighty Rank Twelve beings, plus countless citizens of human civilization and a huge number of aliens who had completely sold themselves to the humans…
Furthermore, each Rank Twelve powerhouse’s own internal universe contained numerous life forms.
Taken as a whole, Milky Way Strongest one had singlehandedly carried all the lives in this universe, including every Rank Twelve being, then headed off to endure the Great Calamity.
The Rank Twelve aliens felt a bit dazed. Carrying so many lives through the Great Calamity—what horrifying tribulation would that involve?
They couldn’t begin to imagine it, nor dared they.
In a normal universal annihilation, all life would be destroyed together and become the driving force for the next cosmic epoch.
Rank Twelve powerhouses were exceptions, with a slim chance of making it out if they survived the Great Calamity.
But even that chance was relative. The more lives a Rank Twelve powerhouse took with them, the dimmer that chance became.
And now, Milky Way Strongest one had simply taken all the life in the entire universe. How could the source consciousness of the universe tolerate that?
Without countless lives to serve as the driving force, once the universe was destroyed, reopening the next epoch would take an unimaginably long time.
“Can Milky Way Strongest one really get through this Great Calamity?”
“No idea. Carrying so many lives means facing the full might of the entire universe’s suppression and backlash.”
“Milky Way Strongest one… is he really that confident?”
All the Rank Twelve aliens were tense. They were tied to him now. If Milky Way Strongest one failed to clear the Great Calamity, they too would die for certain, with no chance at survival.
“You, Tianyu Clan—after so many years of fighting against the humans, harboring such deep hatred—yet you have the nerve to beg Milky Way Strongest one for protection?”
A Rank Twelve alien cast a glance at the Tianyu Clan’s Ultimates, his tone slightly reproachful.
If the Tianyu Clan’s Ultimates hadn’t come in, maybe Milky Way Strongest one would have had a bit less pressure facing the Great Calamity, thus a better chance at success.
“And the Insect Race, didn’t you vow endless enmity with humans? Why are you here, too? Where’s your backbone?”
One after another, the Rank Twelve aliens were eyeing each other with some displeasure, because this directly concerned whether they could survive.
“All right.”
“Quit bickering.”
At that moment, a Starry Sky Alliance Ultimate spoke. He swept a glance over the Rank Twelve aliens.
“Do you really think Milky Way Strongest one cares about the Great Calamity?”
Hearing that, the Rank Twelve aliens blinked in confusion.
The Starry Sky Alliance Ultimate’s meaning was that Milky Way Strongest one did not care about the Great Calamity?
Among those present, none of the Rank Twelve aliens had the same resources as the two Calamity Race Ultimates, who had known in advance that Lin Yuan’s strength was already close to, or able to rival, a Chaos Venerable.
Their knowledge of Milky Way Strongest one was still stuck at the fact that he couldn’t handle a peak Path-Clearing defensive treasure.
Which meant, at best, he was at Dominance rank. And a Dominance rank, under the universe’s all-out suppression, wasn’t necessarily much stronger than Path-Clearing.
“You think I’m wrong?”
The Starry Sky Alliance Ultimate smiled and went on, “Have you not noticed any difference between Milky Way Strongest one’s internal universe and ours?”
“Difference?”
Some of the Rank Twelve aliens snapped to attention. In fact, several had sensed something amiss when they first arrived—Milky Way Strongest one’s internal universe was unnaturally stable.
But they’d been distracted by the other Rank Twelve aliens, so they hadn’t given it thought.
Now, reminded by the Starry Sky Alliance Ultimate, they turned to carefully observe the surrounding spacetime.
As soon as they took a closer look, many Rank Twelve aliens began to tremble inwardly.
A Rank Twelve being’s internal universe runs on a variety of rules, all dependent on its owner.
Put simply, a Rank Twelve life-form can only apply in its internal universe the rules that it has personally understood.
But now, as far as the Rank Twelve aliens could see, the surrounding spacetime was powered by a near-limitless number of rules, each so deep that not even a Rank Twelve alien could hope to comprehend it.
Especially the two “pillar” rules, time and space, which stood like colossal sky pillars supporting the universe. Even these Rank Twelve aliens looked like ants beneath those two “pillars.”
“Milky Way Strongest one’s internal universe?”
All the Rank Twelve aliens got goosebumps. They had never seen an internal universe with such a complexity of operating rules. How many did he actually grasp?
Besides the infinite array of rules holding it up, the Rank Twelve aliens could also faintly sense that the foundational essence of this internal universe was abnormally profound.
Even they found it difficult to perform long-range void travel here. In the main universe, a Rank Twelve could tear open a permanent spatial rift with a casual strike.
But in here?
Forget a permanent rift; even opening a regular one would cost the Rank Twelve aliens considerable effort.
“Milky Way Strongest one’s internal universe…”
Several Rank Twelve aliens felt their throats go dry. They had a vague impression that this internal universe was more vast and immense than the main universe itself.
Outside the home universe, Xue You and Snake Demon stood there dumbfounded, staring at the distant universe—in reality, at the towering giant who kept striding toward them through countless tribulations, unimpeded.
“What is that?” Xue You trembled all over. The scene before him was unbelievable. Wasn’t it said that life forms inside a universe could only reach peak Path-Clearing at most?
What on earth was that giant, who towered to the heavens?
He couldn’t tell what realm the colossal figure occupied, but he was certain he was no match at all, not by a long shot.
“What do we do now, Master?”
“What do we do?”
Dozens of subordinates surrounded Xue You. Originally, they’d been stationed in designated areas, preparing to stop and capture any Rank Twelve escaping the universe.
They had done this many times, encountering practically no problems. Even if they were exceptionally unlucky and ran into that once-in-many-thousands-of-eras peak Path-Clearing powerhouse, they had more than enough ways to handle it.
They were all Path-Clearing at the pinnacle, and moreover, they had countless battles of experience in the Chaos Void. They could definitely outfight any Path-Clearing native to a sheltered universe.
But now?
Were they supposed to attack that towering giant?
The dozens of pinnacle Path-Clearing subordinates trembled. They couldn’t even raise the thought of attacking, let alone actually do it.
The sheer shock that giant brought was too overwhelming. If not for Xue You’s normally imposing reputation, they might have scattered already.
“What do we do?”
Xue You forced himself to calm down and immediately sent out a telepathic order.
“Come back. All of you, return.”
At this point, all he wanted was to get away from here, to get far away from that towering figure.
“Yes.”
His subordinates felt as though they’d been spared, gathering to him at once.
On the other side, Snake Demon gave the same order, then urged his floating island to flee at high speed.
“The Great Calamity of Annihilation is divided into Fire Tribulation, Thunder Tribulation, Wind Tribulation, and Water Tribulation. These four do not represent basic rules, but the core powers of the universe.”
Lin Yuan strode casually toward the outside of the universe.
“All the same, they’re nothing special.”
During those past three hundred years, Lin Yuan had used the continuous flow of resources from Guming Chaos Continent to cultivate the Mysterious Emperor Body up to Rank Twelve Dominance.
In terms of fleshly-body strength, Lin Yuan was now incredibly close to a Chaos Venerable. Coupled with an internal universe on par with a Chaos Venerable’s, plus myriad other innate abilities and techniques…
Even if the source consciousness was controlling the power in a somewhat rigid way, it would be hard for a real Chaos Venerable to stop Lin Yuan from leaving the universe.
If they fought all-out, Lin Yuan might not beat a Chaos Venerable, but the other side couldn’t keep him, either.
Should Lin Yuan break through to Dominance, giving his life essence another metamorphosis, he might be able to subdue an ordinary Chaos Venerable.
And if he then mastered the second layer of “Infinite Void,” his overall strength might approach a Chaos Great Saint.
Rustle…
Lin Yuan took his final step, fully leaving the range of the universe’s source consciousness.
“Freedom at last.”
A feeling of release stirred within him. Inside the universe, though he was protected by it and free to send avatars out into the Chaos Void, a certain binding sense remained.
Now that he had fully broken away, he felt a surge of freedom.
“Hmm?”
Lin Yuan turned to glance at the not-so-distant universe.
He had timed his departure so as to gain the maximum duration for absorbing Boundary-Breaking Source Power, so now that he stood in the Chaos Void, the universe had almost finished its total annihilation. Much of the starry sky lay in ruins.
“This universe will probably take longer to start its next epoch,” Lin Yuan surmised, sensing the weakness of its source.
Without countless life forms and powerhouses to serve as the driving force, after the annihilation, the universe’s source consciousness would have to sleep a much longer time to recoup its losses and open a new cosmic era.
Yet that posed no harm to the universe itself. A universe was nurtured by the Chaos Void and protected by its laws. Even a peerless Great Saint could not truly damage it; they could only force it into early annihilation.
Universal annihilation was a disaster, the end, for the living creatures inside.
But for the universe itself, it amounted to “taking a nap.”
In this case, thanks to Lin Yuan, that “nap” would last a bit longer.
Deep within the collapsing universe, amid infinite destructive force, a seemingly ordinary wooden house floated.
Any single thread of destructive energy here was enough to wipe out a Dominance rank, and the combined energy layering over everything reached Chaos rank in total might.
But each destructive force, upon contact with that simple wooden house, was silently dissolved and absorbed.
“Milky Way Strongest one left?”
“He was so powerful—how could anyone cultivate such a colossal true form?”
“Could it be that Milky Way Strongest one was, in his previous life, a peerless Great Saint specializing in physical refinement?”
Within the wooden house, two voices echoed faintly. They were the Calamity Race’s two Ultimates.
“Even the most terrifying destructive tribulations couldn’t hinder him in the slightest, not even slow him down. I’m starting to suspect that, with Milky Way Strongest one’s power, if he’d forced himself to stay, he could’ve endured all the way to the next cosmic epoch.”
They spoke in tones thick with disbelief.
Defending against boundless destructive tribulations by physical body alone—what did that imply?
“The universe is about to be destroyed. We should go into hibernation.”
After a while, the two Ultimates sensed the space around them shrinking.
“Indeed, time to sleep.”
The other Ultimate agreed. They had been through more than one annihilation and were well aware of what came next.
“I wonder when we’ll see Milky Way Strongest one again?”
The one who spoke first sighed.
“I have a feeling that the next time we hear his name, he might be Great Saint Milky Way, renowned throughout the Chaos Void.”
“Renowned in the Chaos Void?”
The other Ultimate agreed. Ordinary Chaos Venerables or even Chaos Great Saints could not achieve that. Only a peerless Great Saint could truly rock the entire Chaos Void.
At the very deepest point of the soon-to-be-destroyed universe, in the Mysterious Emperor Secret Realm, a Lin Yuan avatar sat cross-legged.
As the universe collapsed, the secret realm shrank swiftly, ultimately maintaining an area of just a few hundred meters.
Before total annihilation arrived, Lin Yuan specifically left an avatar here in the Mysterious Emperor Secret Realm as a fallback.
The Mysterious Emperor Secret Realm was sealed off from karma and time, so that even if his real body perished in the Chaos Void, the secret realm’s avatar could employ its safety measures to revive him.
Furthermore, he kept many of his most sensitive treasures there, including that drop of “Time Blood” and so forth.
So far, Lin Yuan had found no place safer than the Mysterious Emperor Secret Realm.
As for the Source World? It was safe from the perspective of Chaos Void powerhouses, but there were dangers within it, like various fiefs and titles, or the eternal blazing sun suspended high above the sky.
If he stored such a priceless treasure as the “Time Blood” in the Source World, Chaos Void experts indeed couldn’t seize it, not even a Rank Thirteen time life-form, but the mighty individuals inside the Source World itself would not be restricted.
Even in the Source World, that “Time Blood” refined from a wondrous creature killed by the Devil Jade Tower’s master, a peerless Great Saint, would be so precious that many Feudal Venerables would fight and kill for it.
It was safer to keep “Time Blood” in the Mysterious Emperor Secret Realm. And when Lin Yuan wished to retrieve it, it was simple.
He only had to control some life form in the universe to throw the Time Blood into the permanent spatial rift.
Time Blood wasn’t a living creature, so it had no restrictions on leaving the universe.
“After today, I no longer have a ‘home universe.’”
Standing beyond the universe, Lin Yuan’s real body silently watched as his home universe took its final steps.
“Boundary-Breaking Source Power.”
He took a moment to gauge the Boundary-Breaking Source Power he had gained during the annihilation, and he broke into a grin.
1,436,812 wisps of Boundary-Breaking Source Power.
That was his total harvest from the start of the universe’s annihilation up to his exit into the Chaos Void.
“That many…”
Lin Yuan was in high spirits. Possessing such a huge store of Boundary-Breaking Source Power gave him confidence. At least, in using it from now on, he wouldn’t have to be so stingy and overcautious.
When he first transmigrated to the Source World, Lin Yuan had to think hard about whether saving the original Yu Yan was worth the hundred wisps of Boundary-Breaking Source Power.
Now, such a concern would be moot.
“It seems that being outside the universe really does prevent collecting any further Boundary-Breaking Source Power from the collapsing universe.” Lin Yuan mused.
Up until the moment he left, the rate of accumulation had stayed high. But the instant he truly stepped into the Chaos Void, the accumulation halted.
Bear in mind, the universe was not fully destroyed yet. Theoretically, it should still be releasing some Boundary-Breaking Source Power, albeit at a reduced volume. It didn’t vanish overnight.
“What a pity.”
Lin Yuan shook his head. If you needed to be inside the universe to do that, replicating the earlier scenario wouldn’t be easy.
“Mm?”
Scanning around, he spread out his perception and discovered two presences several million light years away, cautiously hurrying off.
“Two tiny specks?”
He eyed the two timid presences, a black warship and a floating island, each about a million or more li in size.
But compared to Lin Yuan in his current state, they certainly were just tiny specks.
...
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