Cangwu Star

At this moment, he was still seated inside the ship, with the endless starry sky beyond the porthole.

After leaving the Initial Universe, he had directly piloted his ship toward the nearest Icefield Transport Station—Cangwu Star.

Cangwu Star was one of the Eight Logistics Bases within Human Territory and also a fixed transport point for the Cosmic Army.

Vast numbers of Cosmic Army soldiers were continuously sent from here to the Outer Domain Battlefield. Its importance was self-evident.

After two months of travel, Qian Yu finally arrived at Cangwu Star.

"We're here. Is this Cangwu Star?"

Inside the F9-Class Cosmic Ship, Qian Yu gazed at the enormous planet in the distance.

Cangwu Star was an artificially created planet, an Aerial Fortress in itself.

With a diameter exceeding a million kilometers, its technology was incredibly advanced. Even a Universe Venerable would find it far from easy to forcibly breach it.

Qian Yu's ship swiftly flew into Cangwu Star and, under guidance, landed on a ship parking platform.

The hatch opened, and he stepped out, casually storing the ship in his World Ring.

Not far away, a man in standard battle armor saw this and could not help letting out a low cry.

"That's an F9-Class Cosmic Ship! A ship like that is worth at least several million Hunyuan Units!"

The man hurried forward, his attitude becoming much more respectful.

"Hello, I'm a staff member here."

Qian Yu nodded.

The staff member looked at Qian Yu, inwardly startled.

There was a Law Mark between his brows. He was a Realm Lord who had gained Law Recognition.

A Realm Lord piloting an F9-Class Cosmic Ship likely had quite an extraordinary background.

Qian Yu was no longer as sharp and imposing as he had been a thousand years ago. His aura had long since been restrained, making him appear to be an ordinary Realm Lord.

"I'm here to apply to enter the Outer Domain Battlefield."

Qian Yu spoke calmly.

"Yes, sir."

The staff member hurriedly pointed in a direction.

"The Cosmic Army arrives in groups, while solo travelers gather by following this passage. Look, there's a glass passageway here. Just walk to the end, and you'll arrive."

"Thank you."

Qian Yu looked in that direction. With a flash of his figure, he crossed several hundred kilometers in an instant.

In just two breaths, he reached the end of the passage.

At the end of the passage stood a massive plaza, over a hundred kilometers in diameter.

At this moment, more than ten thousand people had already gathered there. Yet despite their numbers, they still appeared sparse across such a vast area.

A seductive female receptionist with a fluffy tail approached, smiling.

"Hello, please rest here for a moment."

Qian Yu asked,

"When can we head to the Outer Domain Battlefield?"

"Hello, sir."

The receptionist explained,

"Because travel to the Outer Domain Battlefield is through Divine Kingdom Teleportation, we generally need to wait until a certain number of people have gathered. But you're quite lucky. You should be able to depart soon."

Qian Yu nodded, then went to a bar counter, ordered a drink, and slowly sipped it.

Time passed second by second.

One day.

Two days.

Three days.

Three days later, a full hundred Realm Lords preparing to depart had finally gathered.

Whoosh—

The gate at the end of the passage slowly opened, and a resounding voice echoed over the entire plaza.

"All Cosmic Levels, gather here! Domain Lords, gather here! All Realm Lord warriors, come over here!"

The ten thousand-plus solo soldiers were quickly sorted into groups and gathered in their respective areas. Qian Yu set down his glass, rose to his feet, and walked toward the Realm Lord area.

The hundred Realm Lords quickly assembled. They came in all shapes and forms, with varying strengths of aura. Qian Yu stood among them, looking calm.

Just then, a chilling killing aura approached from afar.

An Immortal God clad in blood-red armor strode over. A thick bloody aura lingered around him, a murderous presence accumulated through countless life-and-death battles. He stopped before the group, swept his gaze across the hundred Realm Lords, and slowly spoke.

"Realm Lord warriors, you are about to head to the most glorious, and also the most brutal, Outer Domain Battlefield."

His voice was low, yet every person heard it clearly.

"However, you must understand that the army has its rules. You cannot be as free as you were before. Before departure, you must undergo the traditional Authority Granting Ceremony."

As soon as he finished speaking, hushed discussions rose from the crowd.

One Realm Lord warrior heading to the Outer Domain Battlefield for the first time could not help asking,

"What is the Authority Granting Ceremony? What does it do?"

Qian Yu understood.

He had read the original work, so he naturally knew that this was a procedure for evaluating strength. The Virtual Universe would assign each Realm Lord a rating based on his performance within the Virtual Universe. That rating would determine his status in the army.

The Immortal God continued explaining, "The Authority Granting Ceremony determines your exact status within the army. The army is a place with clear ranks. Subordinates must obey their superiors, so your status and authority within the army must be clearly established. And how is that determined? Through your strength."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the group.

"Every one of you Realm Lords has surely trained time and time again in the Virtual Universe. The Virtual Universe network will assign your strength a rating based on your performance."

"The ratings are divided into three levels—first, Ordinary Realm Lord Warrior; second, Elite Realm Lord Warrior; third, Realm Lord War General."

"Most Realm Lords are Ordinary Realm Lord Warriors. Those who have gained recognition from the Origin Laws can barely be considered Elite Realm Lord Warriors. And among more than a hundred Elite Realm Lord Warriors, there is generally only one Realm Lord War General."

He gave them one final reminder.

"If you are worried that you have never displayed your full strength in the Virtual Universe, I will give you time to enter the Virtual Universe now. The Authority Granting Ceremony will begin shortly."

Among the crowd, several people immediately closed their eyes, their consciousness entering the Virtual Universe.

About half a minute later.

The Immortal God spoke.

"There shouldn't be any issues now, right? Come forward one by one and receive your authority grants."

He raised an arm, and a faint blue glow shone from the screen on his bracer.

The first Realm Lord stepped forward.

Blue light enveloped him. A moment later, a mechanical voice rang out.

"Elite Realm Lord Warrior."

The second.

"Ordinary Realm Lord Warrior."

The third.

"Ordinary Realm Lord Warrior."

The fourth.

"Ordinary Realm Lord Warrior."

The fifth.

"Elite Realm Lord Warrior."

One announcement after another rang out. Elite Realm Lord Warriors made up roughly one-third of them, while the rest were Ordinary Realm Lord Warriors.

Soon, it was Qian Yu's turn.

He slowly stepped forward and stood before the Immortal God.

Blue light descended around him.

A moment later, the mechanical voice sounded—

"Realm Lord War General."

The entire plaza erupted.

Everyone's gaze instantly converged on Qian Yu. There was surprise, envy, and disbelief.

"Realm Lord War General!"

"A Realm Lord War General actually emerged from this batch!"

"Pretty lucky."

The Immortal God also gave Qian Yu an extra look, a trace of approval flashing through his eyes.

"Not bad."

He spoke indifferently, then gestured for the next person to continue.

The Authority Granting Ceremony continued.

The people behind him stepped forward one after another, but no new Realm Lord War General appeared.

Among the hundred Realm Lords, Qian Yu alone was a Realm Lord War General.