Central Hub Divine Hall

Bai Xiaowen was dual Level 19, with Spirit attributes nearing 500 points and True Yuan Power exceeding 8,000.

His raw strength alone was no weaker than that of any top-tier God-Born, let alone with the powerful amplification of the Silver Throne.

Every lightning serpent split from the Heavenly Origin Thunder possessed the power of Origin Thunder!

Under the control of War Deduction and the Spirit Power Mastery specialization, not a trace of Lightning Force was wasted. After breaking through the Scorpion Monsters' Protective Energy, it burrowed directly into their bodies, unleashing berserk electrical energy that destroyed their blood vessels, meridians, muscles, and skeletal tissue.

The Divine Bloodline Grade Scorpion Mother was targeted by multiple lightning serpents—a number Bai Xiaowen had calculated precisely. Neither too many nor too few, just enough to extinguish all her life force.

One Scorpion Monster after another flipped over and collapsed, their piercing shrieks ringing out in succession.

Once the lingering might of the Heavenly Origin Thunder faded, the Scorpion Monster horde had been almost completely wiped out.

Bai Xiaowen then released a group of Undead Minions to clean up the battlefield, focusing on collecting the "Divinity Cores" from the Scorpion Monsters as an energy source for the Planet Teleportation Gate.

Qiao Liqun watched the scene, his mouth hanging open for a long while.

Only when Bai Xiaowen looked over did he come back to his senses. Shaking his head, he laughed. "You've become far too terrifying. If I ever faced you, I'd have to use mental interference immediately. If that failed, I'd have to Spatial Shuttle away at once."

During their two months of traveling together, Qiao Liqun had only felt Bai Xiaowen's aura growing increasingly terrifying. He had never gained an accurate grasp of his true strength.

This time, seeing a single area-of-effect spell instantly kill a massive group of High-Tier creatures, including God-Born, he finally understood that Bai Xiaowen had grown to a point where even he could not confront him head-on.

This level of strength... was already close to godhood, wasn't it?

Bai Xiaowen merely smiled faintly.

At this point, Bai Xiaowen could also see through Qiao Liqun's strength.

Back then, Qiao Liqun had given Qiao Rui a King Rank tome and possessed the ability to hide his territory within the Spirit Realm Plane. He had projected an extremely lofty and unfathomable air.

Now, however, it seemed that Qiao Liqun's personal strength had not surpassed the Evolutionist level. He simply knew a great many things and had the guidance of the God of Truth behind him, which gave him enough of an imposing air.

Bai Xiaowen guessed that Qiao Liqun might have cultivated a King Rank tome to its peak.

Of course, it was also possible that Qiao Liqun had a Dual Class, though his starting class was probably no higher than Lord Grade.

The most reasonable estimate was that Qiao Liqun was a High-Tier Evolutionist with both a Lord Grade and King Rank tome. However, Bai Xiaowen's Grand Duke's Art of War was among the finest Lord Grade tomes, while the Classic of Supreme Emptiness was among the finest King Rank tomes.

In both respects, he surpassed Qiao Liqun.

Moreover, Bai Xiaowen had already collected all of the Death God Bones. Even without becoming a god, the Death God's Power he possessed was still a level of power not to be underestimated.

Taking into account the special nature of the Classic of Supreme Emptiness as an immortal cultivation tome, it was only natural that Qiao Liqun was so moved.

"Senior Qiao, stop spacing out. There are no more obstacles ahead. We should hurry to the Central Hub." Bai Xiaowen took a step forward and found the Planet Teleportation Gate amid the Scorpion Monsters' corpses.

Qiao Liqun gave a faintly bitter smile and followed.

Land of Origin, Core Star Region.

It was also the star region where the Central Hub was located.

There were no other planets within this Core Star Region. At its very center stood an incomparably grand and magnificent Cosmic Divine Hall.

This Cosmic Divine Hall was hundreds or even thousands of times larger than the Prophecy Temple, equivalent in size to hundreds or thousands of Earths combined.

The temple's outer walls, Pillars, Door Pillars, and other structures were adorned with glowing small celestial bodies, like decorative light bulbs.

They were called small light bulbs, but each was actually a heavenly body more than a hundred kilometers in diameter. No one knew what material they were made of, yet they emitted soft starlight on their own.

From afar, the Cosmic Divine Hall resembled an enormous Cocoon of Light.

This was the core of the Land of Origin—the Central Hub Divine Hall!

After seeing the Central Hub Divine Hall, Bai Xiaowen and Qiao Liqun flew for a long time without feeling as though they had gotten any closer. The Central Hub Divine Hall was simply too vast. It looked close at hand, but was actually still far away from them.

To put it exaggeratedly, they were like birds flying toward the moon. They could clearly see it, yet after flapping their wings for ages and striving for a long time, they would look up again only to find it still impossibly distant.

Still, both men were patient. Besides, their speed through the Starry Sky was far beyond what any bird could achieve, nearly comparable to a spacecraft.

After a long flight, they finally arrived at the Central Hub Divine Hall's main entrance.

The Central Hub Divine Hall was like a boundless wall, completely blocking out the Starry Sky behind it and filling their entire field of vision.

Only up close could they truly appreciate its magnificence, which had already surpassed mortal imagination.

"Does this temple have only this one entrance?"

Bai Xiaowen pointed at the platform before the temple gates. The platform seemed boundless, as though it could hold the entire Earth.

Matching it were the temple's Door Pillars, extending upward into the depths of the Starry Sky, their ends equally impossible to see.

Qiao Liqun knew more and nodded. "Although the Central Hub Divine Hall is far grander, its layout is similar to the temples of other Deities. There is only one main entrance. There can't be any other way in, or it would ruin the aesthetic beauty of the entire structure."

"Hmm, it looks like we're the first group to arrive." Bai Xiaowen had not sensed anyone else's presence along the way.

Qiao Liqun took credit for himself. "Of course. I used my Spatial Shuttle ability to take you through most of the journey before we entered the Core Star Region. We definitely pulled ahead of everyone else... There's no time to waste. Let's hurry inside. The sooner we enter, the sooner we can find the Central Hub."

Bai Xiaowen suddenly said, "Getting there early doesn't necessarily mean you'll get it. There's a saying: better to arrive at the right time than early."

If it were simply first come, first served, Bai Yuantang would not have needed Bai Xiaowen to detour to the Star of Death Omen to find the Death God Bones. He could have just traveled in a straight line to the Central Hub Divine Hall.

The struggle for the Central Hub still depended on strength and luck. It was not a game of lining up to share fruit.

Qiao Liqun nodded. "Getting in early still gives us some initiative."

Bai Xiaowen shook his head. "No, I still need to wait for someone."

Qiao Liqun was a little frantic. "Wait for someone at a time like this? Isn't that too wasteful? I painstakingly used Spatial Shuttle to bring you all this way, so what was it all for..."

Bai Xiaowen said, "Don't worry. While we wait here, we can also block the entrance and keep the other Chosen out."

"Block the entrance?" Qiao Liqun said in astonishment. "Is that appropriate... I mean, wouldn't that make you enemies with all the Chosen?"

"First, the person I'm waiting for is a Chosen of a God from a Deity on our side, so the ones I'm blocking are Chosen from hostile or neutral factions. Second, whether I block the entrance or not, the Chosen of hostile and neutral factions will not change their attitude. At most, it just brings the conflicts that were bound to come forward."

Bai Xiaowen glanced at Qiao Liqun. "Lastly, if Senior Qiao doesn't want to wait, you can go in first."