Chapter 580 - 534: Ron: The Time of Harvest Has Come
"That Ron... he’s also come to the First Civilization Cosmic Country. His subordinate, Zhen Sheng Wang, even accidentally blew his cover inside the Lost Kingdom."
Shi Ming smiled.
Dealing with those pseudo-gods might be difficult.
Killing Huang Ji alone had forced Shi Ming to use most of his trump cards and the sealed Iridescent Power—everything short of the Apocalypse Divine Artifact. In the end, he had to rely on corruption to make her fall.
Shi Ming wasn’t sure he could replicate such a victory.
’But if I can’t take care of pseudo-gods, surely I can handle a single Pillar Stone like you?’
’That Ron... he once anchored a destiny to me. With that destiny unfulfilled for so long, he must be wondering what’s going on. It’s time to set fate back on its proper course...’
Shi Ming closed his eyes.
He communed with the nascent will of the Cosmic Country on the Primordial Star. Aided by its power, he searched for traces of the Ten Thousand Forms Sanctuary scattered across the First Civilization Cosmic Country. With the Ten Thousand Forms Sanctuary as a tangible anchor point, and with the help of the nascent will, it didn’t take long to sense Ron’s current location.
’Hm?’
’Found him.’
’He’s currently on Sanlin Star, in the central region of the Cosmic Country. Based on his past trajectory, his destination is likely one of several hub stars: Glacier Star, Shaoshu Star, or Twilight Hunter Star.’
Shi Ming stood up.
Traveling from his current location on the Primordial Star, and using his authority as the Heir of the Gods, he could arrive in just a day and a half.
He had more than enough time.
Meanwhile, it would take Bertutan and his group at least seven days to reach the Primordial Star. This wasn’t because they were slow; it was because traversing more than half the Cosmic Country required a colossal amount of Civilization Stones. With Shi Ming now strictly controlling the acquisition channels, even pseudo-gods couldn’t make bricks without straw.
This would be an excellent warm-up match.
Moreover, the roles of hunter and hunted had been completely reversed.
...
...
...
’I’ve reached Sanlin Star.’
Ron emerged from a Teleportation Vortex, his six-armed body radiating a brilliant might. He gazed at the monotonous, desolate scenery before him, checked his star chart, and confirmed his current coordinates.
’The First Civilization Cosmic Country is vast, but it’s dead everywhere. It’s nothing like my Thirty-Seventh Cosmic Country. If you were the Sovereign or an heir here, you’d likely be a general without an army for a long, long time.’
Ron didn’t care about territory, though.
What he cared about were the opportunities, the divine legacies, and the boons from the Cosmic Country that had lain scattered and dormant for so many years! This place might be dead everywhere, but that meant treasure was everywhere too!
’Glacier Star, the one Candela mentioned, is still eighteen vortex hubs away. I’m running low on Civilization Stones. Even with the Pioneer of All Life title equipped, it’ll take at least two more days to reach the destination.’
’I hope Candela isn’t getting too impatient.’
Worrying about it was useless, though.
On the surface, Ron was extremely respectful toward Candela, addressing him as "Senior" or "Your Excellency." In his heart of hearts, however, he sometimes felt the man was nothing more than a favorite of fate.
In other words, he was just lucky.
As the only Time Giant in the Star Sea, he was born standing at the pinnacle of billions of races. He possessed strength that other beings could never hope to achieve in their entire lifetimes, even without having to put in any effort.
The Six-Armed Race, however, was the complete opposite. They had risen from obscurity, blazing a trail through hardship. They had to seize every opportunity just to gain a foothold in the Star Sea, before clawing their way, step by step, to their current position.
He had put in a thousand, even ten thousand times more effort than Candela, yet his accomplishments paled in comparison.
That was fate.
Fortunately, his own gift from fate would soon arrive. His "Destiny" had been resonating lately. This meant the fate he had forced upon Shi Ming was about to come full circle. After such long toil, it was finally time to reap the rewards.
Ron rested for a night.
At the dawn of the second cosmic day, he redeemed 1,000 new Civilization Stones from the Divine Treasure Vault and once again traveled through a Teleportation Vortex toward his next destination.
Planet after planet blurred by as he traveled.
Maireer Star,
Star of the Sleep God,
Ironsteel Star...
Ron traversed one silent planet after another. He soon used up all 1,000 Civilization Stones, forcing him to stop on the tenth planet of his journey.
The Azure Giant Star.
This place was home to one of the Ten Wonders of the former Civilization Cosmic Country, the Eternal Well.
Legend had it that this blue supergiant star had been frozen by a god’s spatio-temporal field at the very moment it was about to go supernova. Now, unlike the deathly silence of the other planets, it resembled a blue crystal embedded in the Star Sea. Its interior was fractured with cotton-like patterns, and at its center was an azure tunnel. This was a specially developed sightseeing path known as the "Eternal Well."
With time to kill while waiting for his Civilization Stone exchange to come off cooldown, Ron floated into the unsupervised but still stunning Eternal Well, descending to admire the magnificent view of this lost light from above.
This was a divine miracle.
By entering the Eternal Well, a person could immersively experience the "potential energy" of a supergiant’s explosion. If one’s own attributes were compatible, they might even achieve enlightenment from it and create powerful, unique skills.
Ron, however, only felt the capriciousness of fate.
A blue supergiant star, destined to explode, had been restrained. In the face of overwhelming power, fate might leave a sliver of hope, but what were the actual chances of escape? It was like a lamb meeting a star-eater beast—death was likely its only destination.
Soon, he passed through the Eternal Well and reached the very core of the blue crystal.
He thought he saw a blurry human figure.
The figure had an incredibly relaxed air about them, strolling leisurely at the bottom of the Eternal Well, seemingly quite content. Their back was to Ron as they earnestly admired the stunning landscape.
Shi Ming?
Shi Ming!
Ron was stunned, and then, a wave of ecstasy washed over him!
’So *I’m* the true favorite of fate! To run right into the prey I’ve been hunting for so long, just a day before I was due to meet Candela! This time, I’m fully prepared. I’m absolutely certain that my Destiny will finally be fulfilled!’
’I, Ron, will replace Shi Ming and become the one and only Heir of the Gods!’
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...
Even having reached the Nirvana realm, one had to admit that fate was a curious thing.
That was what Shi Ming was thinking right now.
He was too far from the Primordial Star to constantly check in with the Cosmic Country’s will for Ron’s exact location and travel plans, so he had to rely on luck. At the last hub, he had originally planned to travel to a different planet, but then he suddenly noticed that one of the Cosmic Country’s Ten Wonders, the Eternal Well, was nearby. Following the "might as well since I’m here" line of thought, Shi Ming had decided to take a tour.
’Who would’ve thought the enemy would deliver himself right to my doorstep?’