The third layer of the Sea of Enlightenment was far more vast than anyone had imagined.
Endless dark-golden sap flowed slowly beneath their feet, like a sea of solidified amber.
At the very center of this ocean stood a towering tree that nearly pierced the dome—the Enlightenment Tree's avatar, an extension of the Tree of Primordial Beginning's bloodline.
Its trunk was as thick as a mountain, and its bark was densely etched with the marks of time. Faint golden light flowed through every crevice.
Its branches spread in every direction, like a giant canopy vast enough to cover the entire sea. Threads of light, formed from pure power of enlightenment, hung from among the leaves and drifted gently through the dim seabed, as ethereal as a dream.
Its roots coiled like dragons, exposed above the sap and forming a series of platforms at varying heights.
At that moment, nearly a hundred figures had gathered in this central area.
They came from civilizations and factions across the universe, and each was an outstanding talent at the peak of the Apprentice Ninth Rank.
Their ages varied. Some looked barely over twenty, the sharpness of youth still lingering in their eyes; others were nearing a hundred, their expressions composed and their auras restrained.
But in the vast universe, age had never been the measure. Cultivation and potential were what mattered.
Indeed, the younger one was, the greater their room to grow—and the more they appealed to the top factions.
Among the nearly hundred people present, the strongest were undoubtedly the two attendees with Void Star Sign constitutions: Yu Qingmeng and Russell.
One of them had previously been unknown, while the other had a reputation for being so belligerent that he was disliked by everyone. He was practically isolated within Canglan Academy and had