"One. Day. Left!"
Within the Boundless Martial Sect's Boundless, the gargantuan Voidship the size of a literal planet, renowned as the largest vehicle of the Dark Void throughout the entire Grand Cyclic Stellar Region, was a group of five individuals who were within one of the ninety-nine secret realms.
This secret realm wasn't restricted, housing the Inner Disciples of the sect, including the various prospective Chosen that the sect hadn't officially selected. Surrounding this group of five huddled together, each sporting the outfit of an inner disciple, there were thousands of different buildings and palaces. The secret realm was spacious, extending hundreds of miles in every direction.
The environment was rich in astral essence, extremely thick, pure, and pre-refined for easy absorption and refinement. It was suitable for all mortal cultivators, especially those at the Astral Core Realm. There were mountains, forests, and lakes, giving it a real-world feel resembling a flat continental earth.
Amongst this group was a handsome youth with a bright, carefree smile. His short black hair with natural platinum highlights stood out, accentuating his youthful baby face with some defined edges, suggesting his experiences were not low despite his age. In his early twenties, his aura was sturdy, and his eyes were suffused with intelligence and wisdom.
The handsome youth was the one who shouted excitedly, declaring that only one day remained. After today, the Saint Cyclic Renewal Summit will officially begin! They were all hypercharged with exuberant energy and rising anticipation. As Inner Disciples, they were unlikely to participate in the event, but since they were here, they'll definitely be able to witness some significant events.
Moreover, this was an opportunity the Boundless Martial Sect was using to elevate their geniuses by utilizing the full strength of Boundless and its ninety-nine secret realms. Just this secret realm, while one of the lowest in terms of quality and purpose, was unfathomably beneficial to their cultivation.
"Junior Brother Yi, do you think we'll get a chance to participate in the summit?" A baby-faced girl, with long blue hair and large, limpid eyes asked. The opportunity to participate in the summit meant being in the running for Chosen. It was currently the greatest honor.
A tall, slender man with a scholarly outfit and square lens glasses gave a faint wry smile, "Junior Sister Wen, don't you think it's a little of an exaggeration for us to be able to participate?" They were all young cultivators, beneath the age of a hundred, so it was difficult for them to participate in the summit.
However, the young girl internally rolled her eyes as she gave an expectant look to the handsome youth. Seeing himself be ignored, the scholar's heart slowly filled with anger.
The handsome youth could only chuckle awkwardly, scratching his jaw as he responded: "We'll have to see." Despite the young man's words and his demeanor, there was a lit flame in the depths of his eyes that betrayed his own desires. He didn't want to just participate!
A chubby youth was beside them, eating meat jerky heartily. "We should be able to if Junior Sister Ai can connect with her 'boyfriend'." The chubby youth seemed to have casually spoken but elicited various responses from the others. The scholar revealed a wisp of mockery as he turned his eyes to a bronze-skinned girl.
She was an elf!
An extremely rare sight.
She, too, wore the uniform representing the inner disciples of the Boundless Martial Sect, and her long black hair with light-grey highlights tied into a boho ponytail accentuated her looks, giving her a natural feeling. When she heard the chubby youth's words, she vaguely smiled in response.
"Senior Brother Shu!" The baby-faced Junior Sister Wen pouted as she gave the chubby youth a look. The chubby youth referred to as Senior Brother Shu took it in stride, eating his meaty jerky without a care in the world.
The mockery in the depths of the scholar's eyes deepened. "No, he's right; if Junior Sister Ai can contact her 'boyfriend', forget just participating, we'll be treated as gracious guests, respected by even our elders." While the scholar seemed to be hyping her up, his contemptuous tone revealed his true thoughts.
"Senior Brother He, you're right. We'll be treated as gracious guests," the one called Junior Sister Ai brightly smiled, elevating her already stunning looks to the next level. The two men, chubby and scholar, were taken aback and stunned for a moment. Elves were a rare sight, almost isolated in the Everlore Domain.
It wasn't just rare to see one; it was even rarer to see one in a World Sect. If it wasn't for their Junior Brother here, they might never associate with an elf due to the stigma surrounding them. While it wasn't a freely expressed belief, almost everyone in the stellar region considered the Elven Race as 'inferior' beings, their talent limited, and their future potential gated.
The young elven woman was unbothered by their comments, nodding in agreement. Only she knew the truth. She gave the handsome youth a look who gave her a smile that said: 'I believe you.' Her heart felt warm and touched.
She could only touch the spatial ring that her big sister had given her, belonging to none other than him. This brought indescribable levels of comfort to her heart, telling her that she hadn't dreamed of the dashing and powerful Evil Prince escaping captivity, kidnapping the ordinary girl, and falling for her without any ill intentions. It showed she was within his thoughts.
Despite the years, she pined for his touch again. "I can't wait," she softly muttered in her heart.
"His Majesty contacted you, Commander?!" A bald man exclaimed with genuine surprise. He sported tribal markings on his cheekbones, jaw, and neck, and his pale skin and red eyes gave him a demonic feeling. And he was a demon!
"Always the hawking donkey! She said he did, so he did." A human male with a silver hoop constructed from interconnected spatial rings numbering in the thousands levitating a few inches behind him, slowly spinning, shouted exasperatedly.
"Hawking this! Donkey that! You say that, but you sure have a mouth on you. I'm just asking for confirmation!" The bald demon man replied with fire in his eyes.
"Confirmation? She said it, so it happened! What confirmation?!" The human male argued. The two went back and forth, intensifying with insults and pointing fingers up each other's noses. They seemed close to starting an all-out brawl.
Watching the shouting match while imitating popcorn gestures was a female elf, looking somewhat reserved with a deeply conservative outfit that hid all semblance of her curves. She quietly said to the valiant woman beside her, "Why is their flirting always so intense?"
"Ugh," the valiant woman heaved a grunt of frustration. "Enough!" She angrily chided, promptly ending the shouting match. The two became quiet and obedient like scolded dogs, an almost practiced behavioral trait at this point.
"Zu Zun! Bei Yunhan!" The valiant woman snagged their complete attention, pointing at the planet in the distance. It was Ever-Sky, the capital planet of the Everlore Domain. They were but one of many, many ships in the Dark Void. And while tiny-sized, they were fully crewed by different races, from elves to humans to demons and beastmen.
They numbered in the hundreds, all exceptional. At this moment, they were all gathered together and watched their First Commander with anticipation as she had just called for this meeting. And it concerned their unfathomable leader!
"Our assignment given to us by his Majesty is to find the other scattered Ascendants before his arrival. This is a vital task of utmost importance." The valiant woman who smelled of fragrant flowers was none other than Hong Chunhua, the First Commander of the Ascendants!
The others became extremely serious, especially the demons and elves. Many of them were retrieved from the Elven Sanctuary and Abyssal Dawn, the specially crafted demonic planet by the Golden Life Pavilion. Their lives were quite chaotic, bleak, and seemingly without a future.
Fortunately, their First Commander arrived and swept them away, dealing with all sorts of issues they had landed themselves in. She gathered them all together, even those Ascendants belonging to other units, and gave them resources and a purpose.
They already knew of this task.
Hong Chunhua continued, "His Majesty contacted me a month ago. This summit is our opportunity. We must seize it well!" It was clear that regrouping wasn't her only order or theirs, and the Ascendants knew that. There were numerous talents here—an opportunity for recruitment that would never come again.
She proceeded to explain the plan step-by-step, and the crew revealed amazed and enthused expressions.
"But Commander, how will we find those suitable?" Zu Zun asked.
Hong Chunhua faintly smiled. A dark, shadow-like ship slowly rose beside them, coming into focus and bringing everyone a heart-shaking surprise.
"His Majesty has that covered."
The last vestiges of time remaining in the day were ticking down, ushering in the Saint Cyclic Renewal Summit. An unstoppable, era-defining, world-changing event.
Many undercurrents were happening due to this event, with many schemes being made, executed, and entering their final phase. The gathering of elites, experts, unexcavated talents, and nation-toppling beauties was bound to be unforgettable.
On the surface of Ever-Sky, atop the tallest tower, a figure with long, white hair like a cascading waterfall of heavenly water stood tall, observing the endless lights beyond the Sky Layers of the planet. They were breathtakingly beautiful, a sight that this figure hadn't witnessed in two lifetimes.
Dressed in black robes, her radiantly crimson eyes were as gorgeous as treasured rubies, and her slender figure of symmetrical perfection was extremely picturesque. If there was a woman that could truly instigate a war with just her looks, this woman was unquestionably it.
"Everything's changed so much," San Yongli wistfully whispered. Its barely been a decade since her return, and yet the entire Grand Cyclic Stellar Region had undergone all sorts of changes. The most important ones were the fall of the Parasitic Clans, the Ravenous Edge Starfield's fall, and Sheng Jizi losing his seat as Pavilion Master.
So many things had changed.
Had she triggered so many butterfly effects with just her presence? It was a scary reality of messing with the flow of time, a consequence of temporal reincarnation. Despite her best efforts to minimize changes, there was now a Stellar Region-wide event that was instigated by a pill that never existed in her previous life.
The Grand Knight of Neo-Dawn, Wu Yu, emerged as an Alchemic Knight. While Wu Yu was alive in her time, it was decades later, and he only reached Earthly Saints a decade or so after his return. Moreover, he wasn't an Alchemic Knight.
Many of these changes all began with a single individual: Wei Wuyin. A ghost of an existence. A formerly insignificant figure in the grand scheme of things, one who vanished in her past life, had wildly changed so many things in this one. She couldn't fathom what she did to bring about this development.
To respond to such rapidly accelerating changing circumstances, she had to deploy some knowledge of the future that she normally wouldn't have used to seize an advantage in this growing world. The Grand Cyclic Renewal Summit was happening far too fast, and the Neo-Dawn Eclipse Pill and Ever-Domain Pill will certainly elevate the talents of the stellar region to an insane level before the next Chosen King Competition.
Pressured, San Yongli refused to be left behind.
She turned her head to the side, noticing a gaze. A figure was approaching through the air. He was middle-aged, yet his bright eyes were full of vitality, with a ponytail that was noticeably longer than before and his signature trimmed stubble. It was San Luoyang!
San Luoyang flew beside San Yongli, his eyes suffused with tremendous warmth and doting care.
San Yongli gave a slight smile.
San Luoyang felt happy that San Yongli was smiling more often recently. "Are you ready for the Summit?"
San Yongli's smile lowered, and her eyes revealed a strong feeling of resolve. She looked back to the myriad of lights beyond the sky, her heart roiling with emotions. She thought to herself, 'Will I see you there?' To San Luoyang, she silently nodded.
San Luoyang smiled brightly.
"Are you?" San Yongli asked as she looked at him with intensity. San Luoyang had suffered a mental blow after meeting Wu Yu, but that mental affliction seemed to have entirely vanished over the last half a year. And she fully knew why.
San Luoyang's smile brightened even more. He, too, looked to the skies with a wisp of swirling anticipation. As he did, his body leaked out an aura of unfathomableness that was far beyond mortals. Within both of his pupils, seven stars emerged.
"I am," he answered. But in his heart, he asked: "I hope you come."
