Tian Shi's Shock

"At first, I thought this requirement would be difficult to fulfill. I'd have to spend many years slowly nurturing the citizens, improving their qualities generation by generation before I could complete it..."

"But with Little Tian Shi, this is in the bag!"

"That little requirement for a Third-Class Elite is naturally effortless for Little Tian Shi!"

"And if it's completed early at the Planetary-level, the system recognizes it as exceeding the requirements and gives additional rewards."

"Hong and Thunder God both comprehended domains at the Planetary-level. If my first disciple really is Tian Shi Palace Master, he should be able to do it too, right?"

Comprehending a domain at the Planetary-level was definitely no easy task.

Don't be fooled by how Hong and Thunder God later failed to keep up with Luo Feng and faded into obscurity.

That was because Luo Feng was simply too monstrous.

Without receiving the inheritance of cosmic civilization or guidance from an expert, they had still possessed domains at the Planetary-level. It had been enough to leave even Babata, who had followed Hu Yan Bo, a barely Marquis-level expert, dumbfounded!

Later, when they reached the Black Dragon Mountain Empire, the three of them received recruitment offers from a branch of the Virtual Universe Company.

Luo Feng, at First-Order Stellar Level with more than thirty times Mind Force Amplitude, and Thunder God, at First-Order Stellar Level with a domain, had both been rated as Third-Class Elites.

Hong, however, was still at Ninth-Order Planetary Level at the time, yet he had been rated as a first-class elite on account of his Third-Stage Domain.

Judging from their later accomplishments, after Luo Feng passed the Duan Dong River Inheritance on to Humanity, Hong became a True God and Thunder God became a Universe Master. This showed that the two of them had possessed extraordinary potential. Even before obtaining the Duan Dong River Inheritance, they could at least have become Universe Venerables.

If Little Tian Shi truly was Tian Shi Palace Master, he might not be stronger than Hong, but he should be no weaker than Thunder God. He might even be somewhat stronger.

But he was definitely above Bolan.

During Luo Feng's Genius Battle, Bolan had stood head and shoulders above everyone else, holding an overwhelming lead over the other contestants and becoming the champion of that Genius Battle without suspense.

Yet that seemingly peerless talent...

Was actually only regarded as having a high probability of becoming a King-level Immortal, with merely a slight chance of becoming a Universe Venerable.

Tian Shi Palace Master should logically have been far above Bolan. However, like Luo Feng, he might not have been the most outstanding among his peers in the early stages, only catching up from behind through one opportunity after another.

"Since there are additional rewards, it's worth trying. Let Little Tian Shi temper himself a little longer at the Planetary-level before breaking through to the Star-level."

"Besides, with the system's help, I have plenty of confidence."

Wang Yu's gaze turned toward the Lord Mall.

[Preaching Ground]

[Type: Lord Special Building]

[Effect: When preaching within this building, the effect is enhanced tenfold. (Maximum audience: 100)]

[Price: 1 billion]

The Lord Mall did not only contain various treasures. It also had "Lord Special Buildings."

These were miraculous treasures that did not exist in reality at all, created through the power of the system and possessing all sorts of heaven-defying effects!

Take this Preaching Ground, for example. Its effect was simple and brutal: it directly enhanced the effects of preaching tenfold!

"One billion per building is pretty expensive, but I started with ten billion. I've only spent around ten million so far, which is practically nothing..."

"All in!"

The corners of Wang Yu's lips lifted slightly.

There was nowhere in particular that required money for the time being. Of the ten billion in starting funds, he would leave a little over nine hundred million and use all the rest to purchase Preaching Grounds!

All in!

Having made his decision, Wang Yu flew out of the palace and casually found a large patch of open ground some distance away.

With a thought, he bought nine Preaching Grounds from the mall.

He arranged eight here. Later, he would arrange another inside the palace, specifically for his own preaching.

Eight exquisite white jade plazas appeared out of thin air on the open ground!

Each plaza was a square one hundred meters long and wide. Their floors were smooth and warm like white jade, while in the center of each stood a square stone platform roughly two meters tall.

They looked quite elegant, but that was all. There were no energy fluctuations or special qualities of any kind.

Yet that was exactly to Wang Yu's liking. They merely looked like ordinary places for preaching, so no one would notice anything special or grow covetous.

It was enough that he alone knew of the system's effects.

"With this lord's wise decisions, plus the system's tiny and insignificant bit of assistance, nurturing the citizens will definitely go smoothly!" Wang Yu said with a satisfied smile.

The next day.

Tian Shi, who had successfully broken through to the Planetary-level, came to pay Wang Yu a visit.

Having become Wang Yu's first disciple, Tian Shi had risen to the heavens in a single step. He was no longer dressed in beast hide, instead wearing a silver-white training uniform made from high-quality material.

But even though his clothes had changed, a person's inner nature could not change so quickly.

Tian Shi walked nervously to the center of the main hall and immediately tried to kneel.

Seeing this, Wang Yu waved his hand. "No need."

"This..." Tian Shi was briefly at a loss.

"You only need to kneel when paying respects to your teacher on important occasions. In daily life, there's no need to kneel at every turn. A simple bow will do," Wang Yu said casually.

"Yes! Disciple Tian Shi greets Teacher!" Tian Shi hurriedly called out.

At that moment, he was extremely nervous.

Yesterday, the chief administrator had passed down a secret technique to him: nine strange consecutive movements. Following the method to cultivate and perform them, he had easily broken through to the Planetary-level in one go.

That was the realm of the Heavenly Ones!

If something so simple could let him break through, just how high was his teacher's level?

This breakthrough only made Tian Shi revere Wang Yu even more!

"Mm." Wang Yu nodded lightly as he looked at his newly accepted disciple.

"You were born on a native planet, so your knowledge and perspective are lacking. You do not even understand the proper etiquette for paying respects. Later, I will arrange for someone to teach you these things."

"But in the universe, strength is supreme. Etiquette is a trivial matter. Only strength truly matters, so you need only understand the basics of other matters. Do not waste your time and neglect what is important for what is trivial."

"Yes, Teacher!" Tian Shi answered respectfully.

"I have never taken a disciple before. You are the first, so you are my first disciple," Wang Yu continued.

"As my disciple, every word and action of yours represents my dignity. When acting outside, you must be cautious in speech and conduct. You must not damage my reputation. You must also cultivate diligently and never slack off. Do you understand?"

"This disciple understands! This disciple will cultivate diligently without cease and never disappoint Teacher's expectations!" Tian Shi quickly replied, his expression incomparably serious.

"Mm, good that you understand." Wang Yu nodded.

"You should know little about cosmic civilization. Do you know... what are the differences between Apprentice Grade, Planetary-level, and Star-level? What does each of them represent?"

"This disciple isn't very clear..." Tian Shi was stunned by the question. A trace of confusion appeared on his face as he scratched his head and spoke somewhat embarrassedly.

"This disciple has only heard that the Heavenly Ones in our tribal legends seem to be Planetary-level..."

"Heavenly Ones?" Wang Yu could not help but laugh and shake his head.

"The universe is vast, with countless life planets. On native planets like yours, the strongest individuals are usually Planetary-level. Because you are isolated from the outside world, there are all sorts of chaotic titles: Heavenly Ones, saints, gods and demons..."

"However, in true cosmic civilization, everything has a unified standard."

"Apprentice Grade, Planetary-level, Star-level, Universe-level... these are the universally recognized strength levels of the universe."

"The path of cultivation is fundamentally a process of pushing one's life level through repeated leaps and evolution."

"The stage you were at before was Apprentice Grade. Now that you have successfully broken through, your life level has leaped forward, and you have entered the Planetary-level."

"Planetary-level..." Tian Shi muttered the term to himself.

He subconsciously clenched his fist, sensing the immense power within his body, at least ten times stronger than before his breakthrough.

So the Heavenly Ones... were Planetary-level...

"Teacher, then... are Planetary-level beings considered experts in the universe?" Tian Shi could not help asking, his eyes filled with curiosity and anticipation.

"Planetary-level? Of course not." Wang Yu smiled and shook his head.

"In true cosmic civilization, the Planetary-level is only the most basic starting point."

"Only upon reaching the Planetary-level can one become a lawful citizen of a cosmic nation and receive certain basic civil rights and protection. Apprentice Grade cultivators do not even qualify to become official citizens."

"But even so, Planetary-level beings are merely the most ordinary citizens in cosmic nations. To put it bluntly, they are at the bottom, barely able to make a living."

"Planetary-level... can only barely make a living!?" Tian Shi's eyes suddenly widened.

Wang Yu's words struck him far too hard!

Heavenly Ones were super experts capable of flying through the skies, burrowing through the earth, and shattering mountains with a single punch!

Yet Planetary-level beings, equivalent to Heavenly Ones, were actually at the bottom in cosmic nations and could only barely make a living!?

How could that be!?

This was completely different from what he had imagined!

"Do you find it hard to believe?" Wang Yu could not help laughing when he saw Tian Shi's shocked expression.

"There's no need to say more now. Once you gain more experience in the future, you will naturally understand."

"The Planetary-level is at the bottom. Above it is the Star-level. For example, Venina, the chief administrator who brought you here, is Star-level."

"Only at the Star-level does it get slightly better. You have a certain level of strength and can undertake high-risk activities such as secret realm explorations, with a chance of encountering opportunities."

"However, Star-level is still only an ordinary level in the universe. Such people are everywhere and are nothing rare."

"Above the Star-level is my realm, known as the Universe-level."

"Universe-level..." Tian Shi was completely engrossed.

Universe-level... Just hearing the name made it sound immensely powerful!

Wang Yu remained composed as he continued, "Starting from the Universe-level, one is qualified to truly be called an expert in the vast universe. Any Universe-level cultivator willing to join can easily receive dozens of life planets as territory from a cosmic nation."

"I joined the cosmic nation known as the Blue Silver Empire, and the empire granted me territory, making me the lord of your planet."

"Of course, not just your planet. I currently possess one hundred planets as territory, with a total population of more than three hundred billion."

"Gasp! One hundred planets as territory? More than three hundred billion people?" Tian Shi drew in a sharp breath, utterly shocked!