Coming-of-Age Ceremony

Deep in the Zhulong Star Sector of the Ganwu Universe Kingdom floated Manlong Planet, a world steeped in mystery.

The people here still lived in a primitive manner, wearing animal skins and dwelling in wooden huts.

In the void, a burly man clad in animal skins stood suspended in midair.

His wild hair whipped in the wind, and faint waves of Origin Energy swirled around him.

His deep voice, infused with Origin Energy, rang clearly in the ears of the young people standing solemnly below. "You youngsters! Today is the day you come of age. By the rules of the Mangu Tribe, you must undergo the Coming-of-Age Ceremony. Are you ready?"

"We're ready!" Hundreds of youths shouted in unison, their voices shaking the heavens.

The burly man surveyed the crowd and said gravely, "I'm sure your elders have already told you what the Coming-of-Age Ceremony entails, so I won't say more. Set out, and remember—come back alive!"

With that, he swept his great hand through the air, and a spaceship suddenly appeared, utterly at odds with the style of the planet around it.

Its hatch opened, and the youths of Manlong Planet filed inside.

Perhaps the primitive way of life on Manlong Planet might lead some to mistake it for an undeveloped world.

But in truth, its people had a remarkable history.

The people of Manlong Planet were a branch of the Zhulong Empire's imperial clan, and the Zhulong Empire had a longer history than the High-level Universe Country that ruled it, the Ganwu Universe Kingdom.

The Zhulong Empire had already existed for countless ages before the Ganwu Kingdom Lord was forbidden from venturing out to establish a Universe Country after dying three times in succession.

The Zhulong clan had deep roots. Not only did it have the Zhulong Ancestor, a King-level Immortal who had risen during the arduous early days of humanity's ascent, but it also had several clan elders who were Marquis Immortals. It was considered the strongest mid-level Universe Country within the Ganwu Universe Kingdom.

As direct descendants of clan elders with Marquis-level strength, the people of Manlong Planet were born with a sixth-level bloodline in the universe and could reach Planetary Level strength upon adulthood.

Their Coming-of-Age Ceremony, meanwhile, came from an ancient tradition dating back to the dawn of humanity's rise.

Legend had it that the Zhulong Ancestor himself had come from that era, and his descendants had carried on this ancient custom to the present day.

According to the rules, every newly adult person from Manlong Planet had to slay a demonic beast two levels stronger than themselves in a trial secret realm.

In other words, someone at the first stage of the Planetary Level had to defeat a demonic beast at the third stage to complete the trial.

The entire process took place under the strict surveillance of the Virtual Universe, ensuring absolute fairness and eliminating any possibility of cheating.

Inside the spaceship, the metal cabin walls gleamed coldly.

The youths of the Mangu Tribe wore simple animal-skin tunics and sat casually in ordinary seats.

Some rested their hands behind their heads, imagining what the trial would be like; others huddled together, quietly discussing their strategies, their conversations blending into a steady hum.

In one corner of the cabin, Ling Xuan sat quietly, curled up in his seat.

He wore a brand-new animal-skin tunic. Compared with the sturdy young people around him, his face still looked young and unseasoned. Only his amber eyes occasionally flashed with melancholy.

Ling Xuan was filled with helplessness and apprehension.

As a transmigrator, he had thought he could use his knowledge of the future to steadily advance along the path of cultivation, slowly building up his strength. Even with only average talent and no cheat, he could still become an Immortal and cling to City Lord Luo's coattails someday.

But fate had played a joke on him.

The Coming-of-Age Ceremony trial on Manlong Planet followed a strict schedule and was held once a year.

And as luck would have it, the trial arrived not long after he had "accidentally" broken through to the Planetary Level.

The Mangu Tribe had always revered bloody combat and regarded cowardice as the greatest shame.

An ancient admonition had been passed down through the tribe: "Those who fear battle do not deserve the bloodline of Zhulong."

With a tradition like that, even though Ling Xuan felt unprepared and hadn't even mastered a Planetary Level secret technique, there was no option to "put off the trial because he was afraid to fight."

If he chose to back down, not only would his people scorn him, but he would also bring shame on his family.

He had wanted to break through early and show his talent, earning better support from the tribe. He'd kept his head down and trained hard, planning to surprise everyone by suddenly reaching the Planetary Level and casually calling it a "lucky breakthrough" while his two older sisters gaped in astonishment. He hadn't expected that "lucky" breakthrough to coincide with the Coming-of-Age Ceremony trial.

But the trial itself wasn't very dangerous, and there was no risk of death, so he had no choice but to take it one step at a time and accept.

Still, if he failed, it would be pretty embarrassing.

On either side of Ling Xuan, his twin older sisters, Ling Yue and Ling Xue, were arguing so heatedly that their faces had flushed red.

The animal-skin armor on his second sister, Ling Xue, rose and fell with her quick breaths. The bone ornaments in her hair rattled as she moved, and her phoenix-shaped eyes widened. "Xiao Xuan, you and Big Sis stick close to me later. With the three of us working together, the trial will be a piece of cake!"

"Second Sis, what nonsense are you talking about?" His eldest sister, Ling Yue, smacked her sister's hand away from Ling Xuan's shoulder, her voice brimming with pride. "You're the ones who should stick close to me. With your big sister here, I'll make sure you complete the trial in style!"

Ling Xuan peeked out with a wry smile, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the edge of his seat. "You two, I just broke through to the Planetary Level, and I haven't even mastered a secret technique yet. This trial..."

Before he could finish, they cut him off.

"Don't say such discouraging things, you little brat!" Ling Xue reached over and pinched her younger brother's cheek, the tips of her hair brushing his nose. "So what if you just broke through? Your big sister's here. We'll take you with us, and everything will be fine!"

Ling Yue shook her fist, her knuckles cracking. Her eyes were full of affection. "Don't be scared, Third Brother. How hard can this stupid trial be? Even if we run into trouble, your two sisters will protect you, one on each side!"

Warmth welled up in Ling Xuan's heart.

Unfortunately, the trial required them to stay connected to the Virtual Universe network the whole time. That meant the elders in charge of looking after them could provide timely support, but it also completely ruled out anyone else helping them.

The spaceship was incredibly fast, capable of reaching four times the speed of light.

The moment its speed climbed to the speed of light, it seemed as if a mysterious and powerful force had yanked the ship into an entirely different dimension.

Ling Xuan watched the scene before him change in an utterly bizarre fashion. The stars, which had looked like jewels embedded in the night sky, stretched in an instant into long, twisted streaks of light. Their colors were dazzling, yet they seemed unreal.

The spaceship was like an incomparably sharp blade, effortlessly tearing through space's seemingly indestructible barrier and plunging into the mysterious Dark Universe.

A few days later, the spaceship's engines quieted, and it finally reached its destination.

As the view pierced the vast starry mist, a secret realm beyond imagination suddenly filled his sight. The Zhulong Secret Realm floated in the void like a slumbering behemoth deep within the universe.

A halo of blue energy flowed slowly around the secret realm like a river of liquid stars. At times it gathered into swirling vortices; at others, it broke apart into countless specks of light that drifted away. Every pulse sent ripples through space.

Beneath the halo, the outline of the secret realm's continent appeared and vanished: floating islands, inverted mountain ranges, and rivers flowing with golden light. Every feature upended his understanding of geography.

Ling Xuan's Adam's apple bobbed. His heart pounded violently in his chest, and he unconsciously held his breath.

"It really is a breathtaking sight," Ling Xuan murmured, his voice trembling with an excitement he didn't even notice.

He had seen these sights countless times in the Virtual Universe.

But now, with the real Zhulong Secret Realm looming before him, its ancient pressure was palpable. Every ripple of energy and every detail of the terrain was so vivid that it left him awestruck.

A sudden burst of energy from a floating island in the distance lit up the entire Void Domain. Energy particles drifting from the secret realm brushed against the spaceship's protective shield, producing a faint hum—real traces the Virtual Universe could hardly capture.

"This is one of the things that makes Swallowed Star so fascinating," Ling Xuan said, the shifting light of the secret realm reflected in his pupils as his thoughts drifted toward a faraway expanse of time and space. "Exploring the unknown universe, seeing the vast and boundless cosmic starry sky..."