In a forest thick with vegetation and shrouded by mist, a cluster of buildings could be seen layered against the scenery, creating a picturesque sight. The buildings seed to have been built with ancient architectural styles in mind, and they looked like an ancient garden with a bird's-eye view.
The Zhou Family Head, Zhou Xingquan, stood in a room sowhere inside one of those ancient-style buildings. He stared at a black, square cauldron before him.
Zhou Yunqiong's soul hovered above it. Yes, it was her soul, as she still lacked a physical body.
"Daughter, we've confird it. The news of Lu Yuan's injuries is real. They denied it, but they can't fool . The great clans and races of the Outer Cosmos have begun moving as well. The Nether Bull Clan has even sent people to our Zhou Family, inviting us to join forces and kill Lu Yuan once and for all.
"Rest easy. This ti, everyone is in it together. Perhaps even Sages might descend. You will surely be able to avenge yourself."
Zhou Xingquan's agitated face was suffused with thick killing intent. His words also revealed sothing important—the great clans and races of the Outer Cosmos had decided to create a ticulous plan just to kill Lu Yuan.
Even Sages were going to descend, just for the sake of a guaranteed success.
"Father, you must be careful. Lu Yuan is ticulous, and he's terrifyingly powerful. He also has many formidable divine artifacts. Even if he's gravely wounded, killing him will still be difficult."
Zhou Yunqiong's voice echoed from her nearly translucent soul. Her soul remained nearly transparent, even though she had already recovered from that harrowing ordeal.
The death-exemption talisman bestowed upon her by the Ji Clan had saved her life, but she had technically died, so she could only exist in this state. Her hatred for Lu Yuan was boundless, yet even so, she remained composed.
"I'm not going to go there personally, but I'm sending a few family elders along with the treasures that the Ji Clan bestowed upon us. With the help of the other clans and races, there won't be any problems at all. Lu Yuan had the audacity to attack you, the pride of my Zhou Family, and he will pay for it in blood!" Zhou Xingquan snarled.
When the Global Awakening started, he had staked virtually everything the family had on his one daughter. He had not batted an eye when his other daughter died, as Zhou Yunqiong was the Zhou Family's true hope.
After all, she had an extraordinary talent and bloodline terrifying enough to rival the Ji Clan's Rankers.
If everything had gone according to plan, his daughter would have led the Zhou Family to glory. Perhaps she could have made them the strongest family in the Milky Way Starfield.
Thanks to the Ji Clan's backing, becoming one of the top one hundred clans would have been well within reach.
However, Lu Yuan had nearly destroyed everything. Without their contingency plan, the Zhou Family would have been finished. How could Zhou Xingquan not nurse any hatred against him?
"That's good. So things should not be done personally," Zhou Yunqiong said, feeling sowhat reassured.
"There's sothing else, daughter," Zhou Xingquan said, recalling sothing. "That esteed personage has sent word. He said that he's preparing to help you reconstruct a physical body. Before long, we'll need to secretly send your soul into outer space. There will be people waiting to receive you there."
The Ji Clan's esteed personage highly valued Zhou Yunqiong. Sharing the sa bloodline was just one reason, while the other reason was her excellent talent, which that esteed personage wanted to cultivate.
In fact, Zhou Yunqiong's talent was the main source of the Zhou Family's confidence.
"It's a pity I won't be able to hear the news of Lu Yuan's death with my own ears," Zhou Yunqiong said, sounding genuinely regretful. She knew she would be leaving soon.
By then, Lu Yuan would most likely be dead, and she also felt deeply disappointed that she couldn't see him die. There was a blood feud between them, so the fact that she couldn't witness her enemy's demise left her feeling dissatisfied.
"Daughter, don't concern yourself with such small matters. Once your body is reconstructed, you'll advance even further than him, especially when you'll have the Ji Clan's support. Lu Yuan is not worthy of being your opponent. He'll die sowhere along the path of evolution; he'll never reach the end of it.
"Your goal isn't even the Sage Realm. It's becoming an Immortal!"
Zhou Xingquan dismissed the concern entirely. He acknowledged Lu Yuan's strength but believed the man had overestimated himself by challenging those powerful Immortals. He had driven himself into a dead end. Soone as arrogant as him was not worthy of attention.
Zhou Yunqiong agreed. "You're right, Father. In the end, we're not the sa kind of people."
The path to the apex was not about who was strongest at any given mont. It was about who could walk to the very end and reach the apex. In the grand sche of things, Lu Yuan was nothing more than a minor setback.
The father and daughter spoke a while longer before Zhou Yunqiong sank back into slumber to nurture her soul. Afterward, the Zhou Family Head walked out and headed for the front hall.
Five elderly n had already gathered there, and all of them were the Zhou Family's most important family elders. Every single one had reached the peak of the Golden Body Realm, and powerful treasures were in their hands, such as swords, bronze mirrors, and more artifacts bestowed upon them by the Ji Clan.
Naturally, they were all Sage Weapons.
Their mission was straightforward. Join forces with the great clans and races of the Outer Cosmos and kill Lu Yuan to avenge Zhou Yunqiong. Everyone of them believed the task would be simple and that success was guaranteed. After all, the number of people who wanted Lu Yuan dead was staggering.
He simply had no way out of this.
After receiving the Zhou Family Head's final instructions, the five grand elders departed imdiately, leaving the Zhou Family's hidden base behind.
Unbeknownst to them, the mont they erged from the forest, a squad of Awakened instantly noticed them.
The squad captain's eyes lit up the instant he spotted the five grand elders. "Tell them that we've confird the approximate location of the Zhou Family's hidden base."
"Understood, Captain!" a squad mber responded at once. They did not act rashly. Instead, they chose to withdraw and wait for orders from above.
They were mbers of the elite squad that the officials had dispatched to track down the Zhou Family. After all this ti, they were elated to know that they had finally found their target.
The Zhou Family's five grand elders rendezvoused with the Nether Bulls. From there, they joined forces with the Three-Headed Ghosts, the Prival Daemons, the Yin Sparrows, and others.
All of them had received orders from their clan elders to kill Lu Yuan, and by now, every preparation was complete. The number of races and clans that shared their objective exceeded several dozen, forming a powerful coalition.
Still, none of them chose to act recklessly, and they decided to make a final check. The Nether Bull Clan, the Three-Headed Ghost Race, and the Prival Daemon Race stepped forward as the vanguard. All three had blood feuds with Lu Yuan. Their clansn and even their Lesser Sage elders had died at his hands.
As a final check, they issued a challenge to the governnt officials of Huaxia. They claid that when they descended on Earth, they had no ill will, but the natives of this world had killed them without any justification.
They demanded an explanation from the officials on Lu Yuan's behalf. Their announcent spread like wildfire the mont it was released, and everyone instantly knew what was about to happen.
The beings from the Outer Cosmos had finally lost their patience and were stepping into the open. The so-called blood feud was nothing more than a pretext, as they only wanted to confirm Lu Yuan's condition.
If he were uninjured, he would never tolerate this announcent, given his temperant. He would erge and perhaps strike them down himself.
However, if the rumors were true, then he would not appear.
Just like that, the Awakened and ordinary citizens across the globe, as well as the beings from the Outer Cosmos, waited patiently for Huaxia's response. They were all desperate to know whether the strongest person on Earth was still alive.
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