The Lesser Sage Realm?

When Elder Ji and Elder Yun heard those words, expressions of shock instantly appeared on their faces. They found it utterly unbelievable.

They had witnessed Lu Yuan's cultivation and evolution with their own eyes.

They knew exactly how he had advanced step by step, from the Golden Body Realm to the Venerable King Realm, and then into the Sage Realm. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

From beginning to end, it had only taken two to three years.

One had to know that even now, the vast majority of people were still struggling in the second and third stages.

Those somewhat stronger, with exceptional Talent and resources, were only at the fourth stage.

And most importantly, they knew very well, it hadn't been long since he entered the Void Sage Realm.

Yet, he was about to break through again.

He was already about to step into the seventh stage of evolution.

After a brief moment of shock, the two immediately spoke, "Congratulations, King Lu."

They understood that although more and more beings from the Outer Cosmos were descending now, and the future situation would only grow increasingly dire, so long as King Lu was strong enough, and so long as the power accumulated by this world ran deep enough, then whatever unforeseen changes might come in the future could still be dealt with.

In the New Era, strength was everything.

They understood that this was also why Lu Yuan told them this news. He was trying to set their hearts at ease.

"Continue to handle the situation the same way as before. As long as those outer-cosmic beings do not take the initiative to cause trouble, there is no need for us to concern ourselves with them." Lu Yuan added one more instruction, because from here on, he needed to enter seclusion and formally make his push into the Lesser Sage Realm.

His accumulations were already more or less complete, and with all the foundations he had gathered, he was highly confident in the breakthrough.

And if he could take another step forward, his combat strength would once more increase dramatically.

Truth be told, Lu Yuan could have continued accumulating further. But he understood very clearly that the beings from the Outer Cosmos descending now were each more troublesome than those that came prior.

He needed even greater combat strength.

"Yes, King Lu. We know what to do." Elder Ji and Elder Yun both nodded.

Then, without hesitation, they turned and left the courtyard.

Though Lu Yuan was the master of the Celestial Court, he had never been willing to personally manage those administrative affairs. They were simply too troublesome.

"The full-scale descent is already about to begin. Whether the power of the Separation of Heaven and Earth remains or not no longer makes that much difference," he muttered with a faint sigh. Many of those who had now arrived on Earth were core figures of their respective races, and all of them were very powerful.

At present, the Separation of Heaven and Earth could only still block the truly powerful ones, the Greater Sages, and those Immortals and beyond.

But even so, with the strength of those hailing from the Outer Cosmos, harming Earth was by no means difficult.

Next goal, the Lesser Sage Realm.

Lu Yuan rose to his feet, unwilling to waste any more time. He turned and headed straight for the cultivation chamber.

Unlike before, this time when he went into seclusion, he did not choose to completely shut off his six senses. Instead, he released a portion of his awareness.

That way, if anything changed in the outside world, he would be able to learn of it at the first possible moment.

Lu Yuan sat down cross-legged.

As usual, he directly began activating both his visualization method and breathing technique.

These two methods were the very finest in the world today.

There was no need to mention the complete Dao De Jing, which allowed one to visualize the vastness of the cosmos.

The Primordial Dragon Breathing Technique alone opened one hundred and eight thousand grotto-heavens, granting a one-hundred-and-eight-thousandfold increase in combat strength. Lu Yuan knew that even if this technique were placed among the great clans of the Outer Cosmos, it would be enough to drive them mad with greed.

Now, the number of grotto-heavens Lu Yuan had opened had reached sixty-nine. It did not sound like much, but it was already terrifying.

Especially since the higher his realm, the easier it became to open new grotto-heavens, while the combat strength amplification they granted remained unchanged.

Yet, among those capable of forcing Lu Yuan to use the Primordial Dragon Breathing Technique, aside from the Three Sages, including Lei You, from before, there had been no others.

As his thoughts settled, Lu Yuan began visualizing the vastness of the cosmos, while streams of dragon-shaped qi continuously flowed in and out of his nose and mouth.

Golden vital qi appeared around him once more.

The Great Sun's Furnace radiated an overwhelmingly powerful might.

The Yongzhou Cauldron, one of the Nine Cauldrons, emerged and suppressed the power pouring out of his body.

Otherwise, everything in his vicinity would have been affected.

As Lu Yuan began cultivating, the aura around him became even richer and more majestic than before.

After all, whether in terms of his physique or his soul, his accumulations had already reached a rather terrifying level.

All he needed now was a breakthrough.

However, compared to advancing from the Venerable King Realm into the Void Sage Realm, this time was relatively easier.

It would simply require some time.

Just after Lu Yuan began his seclusion, the movements of the outside world continued to be monitored closely by the Celestial Court.

More and more Outer Cosmos factions were descending.

They had begun occupying certain famed mountains and rivers before establishing forces of their own.

Yet strangely enough, they had not gone to myth-laden sacred mountains such as Mount Kunlun or Mount Hulong.

Instead, the places they chose were all relatively obscure.

Among them, Changbai Mountains, occupied by the Celestials, was already the most famous location.

Elder Ji and the others had no idea what exactly these people were planning.

Of course, the upper echelons still followed Lu Yuan's instructions.

As long as the other side did not take the initiative to provoke them, they would pay no mind to it.

One day, within yet another mountain region, space trembled, and ripples began spreading outward in layers.

Very soon, a passageway appeared.

However, there were no Outer Cosmos beings around to receive whoever was coming.

This place could be said to be utterly devoid of human traces.

After a while longer, a figure slowly emerged from the passageway.

It was a youth dressed in green garb of an ancient era.

His features were exceptionally refined, his figure tall and slender, and his eyes bright.

His face was full of curiosity as he steadily stepped out of the passageway, until at last he set foot upon the lands of Earth.

"The influence of the Separation of Heaven and Earth is still here. No wonder those old fellows insisted I suppress my cultivation. Otherwise, I really wouldn't have been able to descend."

Seeing the world around him, a smile could not help appearing on the youth's face.

He had long yearned for this place. For its sake, he had crossed starfields at great cost, and now he had finally succeeded.

So at this moment, he was in exceptionally good spirits as he observed every blade of grass and every tree nearby.

"Forget it. No point thinking about all that first. I should go find that Lu Yuan."

The youth looked toward a certain direction, confirmed it, and continued, "I wonder whether this person really is as the rumors say."

As soon as the words fell, he took a step forward.

In the next instant, his entire figure turned indistinct, then vanished on the spot.

The youth's destination was precisely Mount Tai.

He moved very quickly but Earth in its current state was vast enough that it still took him several days to arrive.

Standing upon the ground and looking at Mount Tai, the youth could not help but stop in his tracks, his eyes growing even brighter.

Records in the ancient texts at home that Mount Tai rises so high it seems beyond reach. And it is indeed so. Majestic and grand. Though it may not compare to our Ancestral Planet, this mysterious aura of it surpasses even that. So this is the world after the Great Age has begun."

He sighed in admiration again and again, continuing to observe as he approached for a closer look, directly entering the boundaries of Mount Tai.

"This is Mount Tai, territory of the Celestial Court. Intruder, halt!"

Just at that moment, a squad of people appeared.

Every one of them was in the Golden Body Realm, their strength formidable.

They were members of the Celestial Court's Four Divisions, responsible for guarding Mount Tai.

Now, seeing a stranger descend and trespass into this region, they came up at once.

However, that youth in green seemed not to hear those words at all, and simply continued onward toward Mount Tai.

Seeing this, the others exchanged glances.

Then they said nothing further.

One by one, they began circulating the power within their bodies, preparing to make a move.