Meanwhile.
Outer space above Blue Star, geosynchronous orbit.
Absolute vacuum and silence formed the eternal backdrop of this region of space.
A pale moon-white ship suddenly appeared in the void, like a lustrous pearl set against black velvet.
Its lines were elegant and flowing, as if woven from naturally growing vines and frozen Star Radiance. Countless tiny emerald runes pulsed slowly across its hull, exuding an ancient, profound aura that stood in strange contrast to the lifeless void around it.
Aurelia Xina stood quietly before the observation window at the bow.
Her long dress seemed woven from pure starlight and hazy mist. Her skin was as white as jade, her features exquisite and ethereal, and a diamond-shaped crystal on her forehead glimmered with subdued light, reflecting the azure planet below.
Her expression was calm and serene, yet deep in her eyes, as vast as a sea of stars, turmoil surged.
Her five-thousand-year term as Guardian was nearing its end. She only had to wait for the Civilization Advancement Assessment to conclude before she could lay down her burden, yet Aurelia felt more nervous than ever.
That was because, by Human Race custom, a being of Eternal Divine level would descend to oversee the Civilization Advancement Assessment!
But the Human Race, being a powerful race, did not have many Civilization Guardian positions to offer the Spirit Race.
To begin with, serving as a Civilization Guardian offered the chance to observe the rise and fall of an intelligent civilization, greatly aiding one's understanding of the laws of the universe on reaching Star Vortex level. More importantly, for those at Star Vortex level, a mere hint of guidance or favor from an Eternal Divinity could change the course of their lives!
As a result, competition for the Human Race's Civilization Guardian positions was fierce within the Spirit Race.
Aurelia's slender fingers unconsciously rubbed against the edge of the observation window.
A thousand years ago, her family had suffered a devastating blow when her grandfather, a ninth-stage Star Domain expert, died unexpectedly. Of the family's three Star Domain elders, two were injured and one was killed. Their strength badly depleted, the family was then suppressed on all fronts by a rival family and quickly fell into decline.
In their moment of despair, her grandmother had overruled all opposition and spent most of the family's resources to secure her this position as a "Human Race Civilization Guardian"—a chance to come into contact with an Eternal Divinity.
After countless setbacks, this was the only solution the family could think of.
An Eternal Divine-level being had connections that extended beyond the boundaries of any single race. Even an Eternal Divinity of the Human Race could exert influence within the Spirit Race.
Even for the faintest chance, her family had nearly emptied its reserves.
As the family's direct descendant and its most talented Star Vortex expert, Aurelia knew the weight of her responsibility. For five thousand years, she had worked diligently, never daring to slack off in the slightest. At last, this moment had come.
The assessment began. The gods descended!
She prayed silently, hoping only that the coming divinity would at least be friendly toward the Spirit Race or belong to a neutral faction.
Time passed in tense anticipation.
Aurelia took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.
"According to the time given in the Virtual Network's advance notice, it should be almost time..."
A trace of taut resolve flashed through her eyes.
In the next instant, Aurelia's figure transformed into a cool streak of light. She passed through the ship's airlock and its multiple shields, appearing in the cold void outside the "Jade Whisper Starship."
She dimmed the crystal on her forehead and composed herself into the most respectful posture possible, then hovered there in silence as she waited.
A moment later, as if to confirm her premonition—
BOOM!
Without warning, a terrifying pressure originating from the universe's very source descended!
The pressure struck directly at the fundamental rules of space. The space around the geosynchronous orbit seemed to be twisted and torn by an invisible giant hand.
Aurelia's heart clenched.
Hiss...
The void not far away split open soundlessly, and a streamlined shuttle-shaped ship slowly emerged, as if sliding out from the shadow of a higher dimension.
It was matte black from end to end, barely a hundred meters long, and smooth as a mirror, without a single unnecessary ornament. It looked utterly ordinary, yet emanated an absolute, suffocating pressure, like the purest, coldest stone condensed from the universe itself. Beside it, the magnificent Jade Whisper Starship made a striking contrast.
The airlock slid open silently, like quicksilver.
A figure stepped out.
He was not made of flesh and blood, but of pure light and shadow, along with countless minute, profound runes that constantly appeared and vanished.
His very presence seemed like a distorted node in the Space Rule, radiating the rhythmic pulse of laws that made the soul tremble on instinct.
Almost at the same time, a silvery-white Intelligent Light Sphere appeared beside the figure of light and shadow, streams of pale gold data flowing across its surface.
"Master, target planet designation TC-YHLHXB-ZJ-G-7392113. Arrival confirmed with precision."
The Light Sphere's synthesized voice was calm and uninflected.
Aurelia merely glanced at him, yet felt her Soul Origin shudder violently.
She knew this was absolute suppression on the level of life itself.
Daring not to look directly at the rune-formed face, she hurriedly lowered her head, took a few steps in the air, and performed the Spirit Race's most ancient and revered rite of audience.
"Aurelia Xina, thirty-seventh Guardian of Blue Star Civilization, welcomes Your Majesty Xuchen. May your will guide the course of the stars."
The light-and-shadow face of the Divine Spirit Avatar remained expressionless. As his gaze passed over the Spirit Race mark on Aurelia's forehead, the flowing torrent of runes seemed to pause for the briefest instant.
"Spirit Race..."
His cold voice rang through the void.
Aurelia's heart contracted sharply, but she dared not move. She simply maintained her respectful bow.
Then came a stretch of unbearable, despair-inducing silence.
Only when sweat had begun to bead on her forehead did Aurelia hear a calm voice.
"Very well... Let her handle the trivial matters."
"As you command, Master."
The Intelligent Light Sphere's glow pulsed steadily.
Aurelia was momentarily stunned, then abruptly raised her head. Realizing at once that she had made a mistake, she quickly lowered it again.
She suppressed her excitement and spoke in an even gentler, more humble voice, her gratitude carefully measured.
"Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty! You must be weary from your journey. Would you care to come aboard the Jade Whisper Starship and rest awhile? We have prepared the Spirit Race specialty, Clear Radiance Dew."
The Divine Spirit Avatar's gaze did not shift in the slightest. He made no response to Aurelia's words, as if she were no more than an insignificant mote of dust in the starry sky.
He simply gave a calm command.
"Begin the assessment."
"As you command, Master."
The Intelligent Light Sphere pulsed for a moment.
"Comprehensive development index assessment for Blue Star Civilization: 0.73. Energy environment assessment: extremely barren. Potential model projection for intelligent species: low. Estimated potential rating: Level 2.
"Recommend executing the standard low-energy assessment procedure. Resource level to be allocated: Level 2."
The face of light, shadow, and runes belonging to the Divine Spirit Avatar showed no change.
He did not even look down at the beautiful planet wrapped in blue oceans and green continents, as if it were merely an insignificant speck of cosmic dust.
He gave an almost imperceptible "nod" of his head, formed from pure laws and source energy.
"Proceed."
A calm voice rang directly through the void.
The Intelligent Light Sphere's glow pulsed once, in a steady rhythm.
"Command confirmed: executing standard Level 2 advancement assessment procedure."
The next instant!
A boundless, immeasurably vast force of law erupted with a thunderous roar, centered on the Divine Spirit Avatar!
This force was not a physical shock wave. It acted directly upon the underlying structure of space.
The region containing Blue Star rippled like a superfluid into which a giant boulder had been thrown, its unseen distortions of the rules impossible to detect even with precision instruments.
A colossal, translucent "membrane of light," seemingly formed from countless flowing illusory runes, expanded in an instant, silently enveloping Blue Star and the entirety of its near space.
Across Blue Star's surface, every high-precision timekeeping device in operation, from atomic clocks to quartz clocks, developed an extremely slight, almost imperceptible synchronization error in that instant.
Deep-space exploration signals were instantly blocked worldwide, while the images transmitted to the ground by satellites in near orbit flickered with a brief burst of static.
The Illusory Law Divine Kingdom Projection—the Abyssal Realm—had descended!
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