Black Sea, unknown region.

A massive humanoid figure floated in mid-air, resembling a giant floating island, surrounded by a multitude of black specks like flying insects.

If someone could get close enough to examine them, they would discover that each of those black specks was actually a gigantic Dead Angle that should have been immensely large.

Countless black Dead Angles swirled around the giant's mouth and nose like dust, rising and falling with its breath.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a giant black bird with three heads materialized above the giant, gazing down.

The giant bird was far larger than a single Dead Angle, but compared to the giant, it was no bigger than a hand.

"Primal Dark, His Majesty is about to awaken. One of the Hundred Flowers Generals has disappeared without a trace. You need to investigate," the three-headed bird commanded.

"Don't use His Majesty's name to pressure me. I hate that tone of yours." The enormous giant slowly opened its mouth, and a massive gust of air dispersed countless Dead Angles, creating terrifying shockwaves.

"You can refuse," the three-headed bird said coldly. "In this generation, the Evil Source is about to be purified once more, and the Royal City will return, heralding an era where we rule everything. When His Majesty inspects..."

"Are you threatening me?!" The giant raised its hand, grabbing towards the three-headed bird.

At this scale, its movements seemed slow, but the distance covered each second far exceeded the speed of light. A large number of Dead Angles were annihilated by its colliding hand.

Although only small Dead Angles were being annihilated, it still demonstrated its terrifying size and power.

Poof!

The three-headed bird was easily crushed, exploding into countless purple shadows.

But quickly, a new three-headed bird appeared on the other side of the giant.

"Good luck to you." The giant bird turned around and, before the giant's hand could reach it again, dissipated on its own, transforming into countless purple shadows that flew away.

*

*

*

Earth-Moon.

Everything returned to normal, and time began to flow again.

Li Cheng颐 floated in mid-air, feeling the terrifying stagnation that had confined his entire body completely disappear.

His tense heart finally returned to normal as well. Just now, when he could barely move, he had been watching the situation closely, almost unable to resist putting on the Flower God Armor and fighting back.

He hadn't expected the Tianju Pavilion to be so domineering. The senior Daoist who had sent the message had simply obliterated the mysterious black shadow without asking any questions.

His emotions had surged and plummeted, but the moment everything returned to normal, his vision blurred, and the old Daoist's figure immediately vanished.

Clearly, the other party had no intention of letting him know what had happened. They had left without a word.

This unique style of "don't ask where you're from, don't care who you are, no BS, kill first, then talk" gave Li Cheng颐 a profound understanding of the arrogance of the Tianju Pavilion headquarters for the first time.

He floated in mid-air, speechless for a moment. He used to hate such unreasonable forces the most, but now that he had become one of them, he couldn't help but feel two words from the bottom of his heart.

So good!

'The key is, who exactly was that black shadow?! The Primal Earth Royal City... Could it be the previous generation of Flower Emperor?! Trying to make a comeback?' After his excitement, Li Cheng颐 quickly began to think about the identity and origin of the black shadow.

He had been attacked for no reason, and the attacker was actually from the source of the Evil Flower, the Primal Earth Royal City.

Recalling the primitive version option that had appeared out of nowhere when he summoned the Royal City buildings,

Li Cheng颐's eyes immediately turned grim.

The difference between the primitive version and the other versions was that there was a risk warning, which meant that if he didn't pass the qualification test and couldn't open the primitive version, he wouldn't even know if there was a risk.

Clearly, the first or second generation had probably dug a considerable pit for their descendants.

Looking at it that way, the first and second Flower Emperors may have had some pre-arranged plans.

If the Daoist from the Tianju Pavilion hadn't intervened just now, he would probably have put on the Flower God Armor and fought to the death.

The Flower God Armor's amplification was strong, but the other party was clearly a Saint-level powerhouse, freezing space-time with a single move, the advantage was too great.

If they really fought, it would be difficult to determine who would win.

According to the Yin Canon records, Saints could also easily destroy ordinary Dead Angles.

And he, wearing the Flower God Armor, could only barely do that.

Thinking of this, Li Cheng颐 couldn't help but feel a deep sense of gratitude towards the Daoist.

In any case, if he had fought that black shadow, win or lose, Earth-Moon would likely have been severely damaged.

Immediately, he cupped his fist in salute to the surroundings.

"Thank you for your help, senior."

His consciousness rapidly spread out, extending in all directions.

No matter what, the other party had done him a great favor, so he would thank them first, and if he had the opportunity in the future, he would definitely repay the favor.

After thanking them, Li Cheng颐 looked down at the subordinates who had come out of the base and sent a message for them to return.

He then returned to the front of the Wisdom Tower, gazing at this seemingly simple white tower.

'Although I don't know why that guy suddenly attacked me, it's probably related to the Evil Flower. At my level, my strength is far inferior to theirs. The only thing that could make them take notice is this...'

He unconsciously stroked the mark on the back of his hand.

"White Deer." Just then, the familiar voice of the illusory Daoist from before sounded in his ear.

"You have passed the preliminary screening. A guide Daoist from Silent Extinction City will arrive soon. Prepare to go."

"Senior, can you return after going to Silent Extinction City?" Li Cheng颐 asked quickly.

"Silent Extinction City is located inside the True Division, a small world under its jurisdiction. It's a special place where only the most outstanding preliminary testers from all over the Tianju Pavilion can join. Returning is more troublesome, and you need to apply in advance. It's mostly in a state of lockdown."

After a pause, the Daoist continued.

"Of course, if you really want to come back and are afraid of delaying things, you can apply to slow down the space-time of your world, or you can directly return to the next second node after you left. But both methods require a lot of Merit Points."

"Thank you, senior. May I ask your name?" Li Cheng颐 quickly asked.

"Xuan Yunzi."

"Junior will remember." Li Cheng颐 answered seriously.

"Remember to settle your mortal affairs. After all, there's no need to waste Merit Points on these things," Xuan Yunzi reminded.

"Yes."

The surroundings returned to silence, and Li Cheng颐 straightened up, letting out a long sigh.

'I'm about to leave. It's time to quickly determine the Flower God Generals.'

After the twelve Flower God Generals' spots were assigned, it would further stabilize the power and territory under his command. At the same time, the Flower God Generals' strength would increase in direct proportion to his own.

The stronger he became, the stronger the Flower God Generals would become, which meant that it would greatly increase Rainbow Candy and the others' chances of survival.

'And architectural summons.' At first, Li Cheng颐 had thought about completing the summons as soon as possible, establishing a new base, and restoring the Royal City.

But now it seemed that summoning them too early, without sufficient strength to protect them, was not a good idea.

It would be better to wait until later to summon them.

Having made a decision, he immediately took action.

He first went to the Star Spirit Garden, found Rainbow Candy, and confirmed her as the Second Flower God General, followed by Big Bear, Little Brown, the injured Dragon Gate Crane, and Senior Brother Huo Qingkong and Chen Jiah函.

He went to Suiyang City to find Cindy Era and Payne, who were in charge of supervising the construction, and confirmed their qualifications.

A total of nine qualifications were given out, leaving three. Unlike the Flower Language Beads, there were only twelve qualifications, in fixed positions.

Li Cheng颐 decided to keep the last three in his hand and bestow them on those he deemed worthy of trust.

Before leaving, he went to see his parents and sister again.

Li Zhao and Feng Yu Rong were basking in the sun in the courtyard, holding their grandson, a harmonious scene.

His sister, Li Cheng Jiu, was heavily pregnant and chatting with her husband in the study.

She had completely retired and no longer held the position of Flying Instrument Master.

The once powerful Flying Instrument Master was now no different from an ordinary person in Li Cheng颐's eyes.

He stood outside the door, not entering, but hiding in the shadows, watching them without a sound.

"I wonder when Little 颐 will be back. It's been so long since we last saw him."

Suddenly, Feng Yu Rong, holding her grandson, sighed.

"He's a big shot now. The safety of many people's livelihoods depends on him. He must be extremely busy every day. Don't think too much about it." Li Zhao comforted his wife with understanding.

"Oh, what's so good about being a big shot... He can't even come home all day. The more capable this child is, the farther he flies, and then we can't even see him. I feel like it's better if he wasn't capable, so he would have to rely on us and live in front of us all the time, safe and sound..."

"What do you know! If it weren't for Little 颐, could we have this peace and stability?" Li Zhao had experienced the Earth-Moon Cataclysm and was afraid, knowing that the current peace and stability did not come easily.

"I'm just saying." Feng Yu Rong pinched her grandson's little face. "And Little 颐 doesn't know who he'll be with in the future. I think that Zhou Xing Tong is pretty good. She's his secretary, and the two of them are close. Maybe they can make it. That girl is honest, down-to-earth, and smart..."

"Stop talking nonsense. Little 颐 is much more capable than us and definitely has his own ideas." Li Zhao was now clearly a fan of his son, helping him no matter what he said.

Watching the two of them carry the child back into the house, Li Cheng颐 didn't stay any longer. He sighed in his heart, and with a flash of black light, disappeared from the spot.

Leaving home.

He strolled along the streets of the rebuilt city.

Although most of the people passing by were dressed in rags, their faces and eyes were no longer numb but full of hope.

Flying vehicles constantly flew back and forth in the sky, and single-person combat vehicles in charge of patrols were like flying motorcycles, shuttling back and forth at high speed.

Everything seemed vibrant.

But what Li Cheng颐 felt was extreme fragility.

This seemingly prosperous and upward scene, the maintenance of everything, was the individual strength of himself and the Mingyuan Group.

"Oops." Suddenly, a colorful children's ball rolled and bumped into his boots.

A toddler, only two or three years old, staggered closer.

"My ball!"

He couldn't even stand steadily, but he ran over to hug the ball.

Li Cheng颐 touched it with one hand, and the ball was lifted up as if it were stuck to his finger.

"Here."

He handed the ball over, watching the toddler's face become dazed.

"Thank you." The toddler's mother walked closer from behind, thanking him quickly.

"No problem." Li Cheng颐 looked at the other party's brand new white-collar suit and couldn't help but ask.

"Did you just move to Suiyang?" He heard the accent and realized they were from elsewhere.

"Yes, we used to be from another province. Later, weren't there more and more monsters? The biochemical leaks became more and more serious. We escaped to several refuge bases, but they were all breached. Finally, we transferred here."

The child's mother sighed helplessly as she tidied her hair.

"Is it okay here?" Li Cheng颐 asked.

"Well, it's much better than other places. The surrounding government troops are also much stronger. It's said that some surviving members of the Imperial Family of Yi are also heading here. Many other areas can't be defended anymore. The defense force jointly established by the Mingyuan Group and the government is much stronger. I hope it can continue to be stable."

"It definitely will." Li Cheng颐 nodded.

"Hopefully, sorry, I have something to do, I'll go first." The child's mother sighed and smiled at Li Cheng颐.

"Okay." Li Cheng颐 nodded, not saying anything more.

Watching the mother and child leave, he turned around and continued forward.

But he had inexplicable feelings in his heart.

(End of chapter)