“Time is precious, don’t waste it,” said the black-robed messenger. Without hesitation, he leapt directly from the rooftop, landing on the ground below. Immediately afterward, a thousand other geniuses followed suit, jumping down like a swarm of locusts, covering the wide street in front of the villa complex.
“Follow me to the City Lord’s Mansion,” the messenger continued. “That is where the City Lord resides, and it is the heart of Chaos City.”
“City Lord?”
Luo Feng was secretly astonished. As the only city within the Primeval Universe, Chaos City’s history predates many of the universe’s great nations. The status of its City Lord could be imagined—someone who held such a position must possess strength rivalling even the rulers of the cosmos.
“Rumble~~” In the distance ahead, a beast emerged. Towering over thirty meters tall, it bore crimson scales across its entire body. It had a single horn and nearly filled the street. Upon its back stood a young man with short purple hair. Clad in deep-blue battle armor and boots, he carried a massive purple warblade on his back and gazed up at the sky.
The black-robed messenger respectfully bowed in greeting, while the thousand youths watched the beast disappear into the distance.
“Tamed beast?”
“Can we bring tamed beasts into Chaos City?”
The youths couldn’t help but whisper among themselves. The black-robed messenger smiled and replied, “The one you just saw is a permanent immortal resident of Chaos City. As a permanent resident, one has the privilege of bringing tamed beasts into the city.”
“Permanent?”
“I heard that even for immortal experts, obtaining a single slot to enter the Primeval Universe for cultivation is extremely costly.”
The youths were stunned. Luo Feng couldn’t help but ask, “How is that possible?”
Even his teacher, a powerful immortal expert in the cosmos, couldn’t afford a slot to enter the Primeval Universe for cultivation. Yet that seemingly young man was a permanent resident?
“There’s nothing impossible about it,” the messenger replied with a smile. “If one makes great contributions or possesses extraordinary strength, and earns recognition from the Alliance, one can become a permanent resident.”
Luo Feng’s heart stirred. The Alliance? Right, Chaos City was jointly managed by the five great powers. The so-called Alliance must refer to the League of the Five Great Powers.
“May I ask, how does one become a permanent resident?” Prince Wuka of the Banka Star called out from the crowd.
“The conditions are extremely strict,” the messenger replied with a smile. “When you become immortals yourselves, you’ll learn what those conditions are. There’s no use asking now.”
…
The black-robed messenger led the bustling crowd of young people from various human races down the street, and it was indeed a sight to behold.
Yet Luo Feng noticed that the cultivators meditating on the rooftops of the villas along the street only rarely opened their eyes to glance at them. Most remained immersed in their cultivation. Many had long, untrimmed beards and hair, as if untouched for centuries or even millennia.
“We’re approaching the City Lord’s Mansion,” the messenger pointed ahead.
Luo Feng looked up.
It was a magnificent and imposing structure over three hundred meters tall. Even from afar, the three most dazzling words in the universal language were visible on the mansion — “City Lord’s Mansion.” As he gazed at the characters, he felt as if they were drawing his spirit into their depths, as though each character contained a universe of its own. His consciousness was irresistibly pulled inward, and he quickly looked away in alarm.
“Just take a quick look at the words ‘City Lord’s Mansion,’ and don’t stare at them for long,” the messenger chuckled. “They can cause mental disorientation. Even immortal existences usually dare not stare at them for too long.”
“Oh?”
“So powerful?”
Many of the young geniuses who hadn’t noticed the words earlier curiously looked up — and immediately fell under their spell.
“Haha…” The messenger couldn’t help but laugh heartily at the sight.
Normally, when receiving great beings, he might have to be more reserved. But dealing with these younglings was much more relaxed.
…
Though it seemed close, it took time to reach.
Even at a brisk pace, it took several minutes to arrive at the gates of the City Lord’s Mansion. They could see many black-robed messengers coming and going, and occasionally, immortal existences and Monarchs entering and exiting the mansion.
“Chaos City is the only city in the Primeval Universe,” the messenger smiled. “Within Chaos City, there are three treasures.”
Luo Feng’s eyes lit up, and he listened attentively.
“The first treasure, you can already see with your own eyes — the Law of Cosmic Operation,” the messenger smiled. “As for the second treasure, it is located within the city, right here in the City Lord’s Mansion. The third treasure lies outside the city walls of Chaos City.”
“What kind of treasures are they?”
The youths couldn’t help but ask eagerly.
The messenger pointed around them. “On the rooftops of the cultivation residences surrounding us, over the course of billions of years, countless experts have resided here. While cultivating, they often had sudden flashes of inspiration and would immediately carve their insights into the ground before them. If they made progress, they would also casually record it.”
Luo Feng nodded in understanding. Indeed, the perception of the Source Laws was somewhat like having a sudden flash of insight — a vague realization that one would hastily sketch out. Graphics were more expressive than words.
Just like some people who scribble a line on a piece of paper — even years later, seeing that line can bring back the thoughts they had at the time. But if it were typed on a computer and read years later, it might not evoke the same memory.
Hand-carved graphics were excellent carriers of insights.
“Over countless years, Chaos City has developed this tradition,” the messenger said with a sigh. “Because these carvings were spontaneous and lacked structure, most were merely fragments, offering only limited reference value.”
“But!”
“Among the countless moments of sudden enlightenment recorded over billions of years, some carvings possess profound and systematic cultivation value,” the messenger said solemnly. “In our Chaos City, there are fifty-two most precious Chaos Steles. Each stele records numerous mysterious patterns — fifty-two different cultivation paths, each leading directly to the pinnacle of existence! If one comprehends a single Chaos Stele, one will become a true cosmic overlord, capable of easily creating an entire universe.”
Luo Feng held his breath. Around him, warriors like Ronjun and youths from Banka Star and others were equally excited.
Fifty-two Chaos Steles, containing paths to the peak — comprehending one could allow one to create a universe?
“These fifty-two Chaos Steles are the second treasure of Chaos City,” the messenger smiled. “As for the third treasure… it lies outside the city walls. There is a detailed description on the stone tablet at the city gate — you can go see it for yourselves.”
The crowd was filled with anticipation.
The first and second treasures were already of immense benefit — the third treasure must be equally extraordinary.
“Fifty-two Chaos Steles,” the messenger continued. “Every cultivator who enters the Primeval Universe gets one chance to cultivate from them. Each has seven days for cultivation!”
“Seven days?”
The crowd’s eyes widened.
So short?
“The Chaos Steles are the most treasured artifacts of humanity. They convey the path to the ultimate peak more clearly than any secret technique. Seven days of cultivation will be more than enough for you,” the messenger said, then walked toward the main gate of the City Lord’s Mansion. “Now, come inside. It’s time to choose which Chaos Stele to observe.”
…
The City Lord’s Mansion was vast indeed. If even the average rooftop cultivation space was a hundred meters in length and width, then the mansion’s scale was beyond imagination.
“Each of you may only choose one Chaos Stele for observation and cultivation,” the messenger said, leading Luo Feng and the others quickly toward a dreamlike corridor.
On both sides of the corridor walls hung dozens of massive paintings.
Luo Feng quickly scanned them — there were exactly fifty-two paintings.
“Hanging on the corridor walls are fifty-two copied images, each corresponding to one Chaos Stele,” the messenger explained. “You will first view these paintings. Although the paintings cannot convey the aura of the actual steles, they can give you a faint sense of their essence. Study these fifty-two paintings carefully… and then decide which Chaos Stele you will choose.”
The young crowd stared in awe at the paintings lining the corridor walls.
Each painting was exactly ten meters long and ten meters wide, with a name inscribed beside it.
“You have half an hour,” the messenger announced, standing at the far end of the corridor.
Luo Feng and the rest had no choice but to begin observing.
…
Luo Feng randomly chose a painting to start with. The first one depicted an ancient, towering tree with yellowed leaves. Countless leaves were falling. Floating in midair, Luo Feng instantly calculated that there were definitely over ten thousand leaves.
On the painting, leaf after leaf drifted down.
Some still clung to the branches, while the ground was covered in fallen leaves.
As he gazed at the drifting yellow leaves, they seemed to transform into soldiers forming countless battle arrays. Each complex formation of a hundred leaves could shift into something even more intricate with the addition of just one more leaf.
“One minute is up!” Babata’s voice echoed in Luo Feng’s mind. “Luo Feng, you only have half an hour to view all the paintings. No more than one minute per painting.”
“Understood.” Luo Feng snapped back to focus, glancing at the name of the painting — “Mother Chaos Stele.”
Luo Feng frowned slightly. “Mother? Does it have anything to do with the Mother Planet?”
He dared not dwell further — with fifty-two paintings to view, he quickly moved on to the next one, determined to find the most suitable Chaos Stele within half an hour. Only the one most compatible with him would allow for efficient cultivation. As for the “Mother Chaos Stele,” even looking at it gave him a headache.
One hundred and one leaves could create a hundred times more formations than one hundred leaves.
What would tens of thousands of leaves evolve into? It was unimaginable.
…
One painting after another, the corridor was silent.
The thousand geniuses were like famished wolves, eyes gleaming as they stared at the paintings. Initially, they had been reluctant to choose a stele based on mere paintings, but now they were all deeply immersed. Fortunately, everyone had an intelligent light-brain to remind them, or else they might have spent the entire half-hour on just one painting.
“Hmm?” Luo Feng was staring at a large painting before him.
The canvas was etched with innumerable sword scars, each exuding a distinct aura. Precisely 10,801 blade marks adorned the artwork, mirroring the ancient monument known as the “Scarred Heart Monolith of Entropy.”
“Alright, half an hour is up. Tell me which Chaos Stele you’ve chosen, and I’ll record it,” the messenger called out.
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