Chapter 989: Freezing Time Civilization

Indeed, this vast and spectacular scene was incredibly breathtaking to anyone who witnessed it. Even the two ninth-level Dao Achievers, who had resided here for a long time and were relatively weaker, felt the same; every time they saw this Abyss Blue Divine Realm, they were filled with immense pride and self-satisfaction.

Such was the grandeur of the power of time!

In fact, even for beings of this caliber, moving a planet, let alone a sun, was an unimaginably long endeavor. After all, celestial bodies are vast and enormous, and nature itself is immense. It was even more difficult than the legendary Yugong moving mountains. This situation could be compared to an adult trying to level Mount Everest with a shovel and a pickaxe.

However, their lifespans were so incredibly long that moving even a small amount each day, over tens of thousands of years, was enough to create such magnificent relics. Moreover, these beings often cultivated while moving planets; multitasking was perfectly normal for those of their level.

Whoosh.

They landed on the nearest planet. Around them, various creatures were bustling, queuing, or engaging in other activities, gathered on a sacred plaza with deep blue, gem-like flooring.

Stepping into the city, the deep blue being explained:

“This is Nadal City, a hub for trade at the entrance. Many powerful beings gather here to take on missions, explore various ruins, and conduct assessments of new life-bearing planets. There are also many external life forms like yourself who temporarily reside here for about fifty to three hundred years.”

“Temporary residence, like me?” Viola asked, surprised, looking around. Indeed, some very weak creatures were scurrying about curiously, jumping, and touching everything. Surprisingly, some powerful deities were exceptionally cordial and friendly towards these extremely weak beings, patiently instructing them.

“These deities undertake ‘secondary assessment’ missions for planets. I conduct the primary assessment, which involves exploring a planet and then bringing back some creatures. Their secondary assessment then takes over. They allow the creatures from the planet to reside here and teach them cultivation to a certain level, which helps in evaluating the potential of their bloodline. If they qualify, they can join our Abyss Blue Divine Realm… If not, that civilization is disregarded and they are sent back.”

Viola was dumbfounded. “So I have to stay here for fifty or sixty years like them? I still have school! You clearly told me it would only take one afternoon.”

“Don’t worry, we have comprehensive measures for external civilizations. Even for ordinary beings, we try our best not to disrupt their lives. In advanced civilizations, the flow of time is different. Although it doesn’t cover the entire subspace, our more than a hundred ninth-level Dao Achievers still cover most of the region…” The deep blue being said with a look of longing, “One afternoon here for you is equivalent to several decades passing for us. In the evening, we will send you back to sleep, and you’ll go to school as usual the next day. In fact, many civilizations have similar legends, like being abducted by aliens and feeling as if decades have passed, only to return and find that only a few hours have gone by.”

A few hours?!

Viola was astonished once again. What a magnificent and vast spectacle this was! Traveling through the cosmos, wandering among countless worlds and planets, and exploring ancient ruins—it was like a free cosmic eagle soaring through the galaxy!

“So, I’ll be received by them to cultivate?” Viola asked.

“No, you’ll be directly handled by the two of us,” the deep blue being said with a smile. “Your situation is very special, and these weaker eighth-level deities cannot afford to make a mistake.” How could they let such a profitable opportunity fall into someone else’s hands? Each time they received and identified a powerful transcendent bloodline species, it meant unimaginable rewards and even recognition from higher-level powerhouses.

“You possess over a hundred complete ninth-level Dao Achievers?” At this moment, Bikhu couldn’t help but ask.

The players, hearing this number, thought it was rather ordinary. After all, it was a vast alliance of civilizations spanning 570,000 years, not a single civilization. Thousands of civilizations had gathered together, meaning on average, only one complete ninth-level Dao Achiever emerged from every thirty to forty civilizations. Frankly speaking, it was nothing special. After all, the average player’s lofty expectations were quite real.

“You actually know about ninth-level Dao Achievers? It seems your civilization indeed has a profound foundation.” However, the deep blue being was somewhat surprised and pleased by this, as it implied that this civilization had indeed been powerful in the past. It then proudly declared: “Yes, our core committee consists of 107 ninth-level beings, known as the Perpetual Time-Movers. And even above them are the Three Heavenly Venerates.”

The deep blue being was still quite curious about this magical pet and, without concealment—as this information was public—replied with a smile: “We possess eternal life. There has never been a succession by death; for 570,000 years, not a single ninth-level being has fallen. We have continually accumulated them, so having over a hundred is perfectly normal.”

The players heard this and thought, “You have eternal life too? That makes it even worse.”

However, their next words left the players completely dumbfounded.

“Indeed, over a hundred. In fact, over 570,000 years, under normal circumstances, there would be far more than just a hundred. Accumulating thousands would be possible… It’s just that our requirements are quite high.”

“Quite high?” Bikhu began to feel something was off.

“Our ninth-level Dao Achievers all possess perfect Dao Foundations with four genes. All hundred-plus of them have been refined to perfection before breaking through… That’s why we only have just over a hundred after 570,000 years. Each one is a terrifying, legendary, forbidden existence, capable of striking fear and despair into countless civilizations. Some lower civilizations still circulate terrifying legends about them. In reality, immortality also comes with a drawback: an extremely slow cultivation speed… These hundred-plus beings have an average lifespan of around 200,000 to 300,000 years.”

The players were completely stunned.

Holy moly?

Ninth-level Dao Achievers with perfect Dao Foundations, similar to Emperor Qi and Caroline in their level—they have over a hundred of them? Since everyone cultivates the four major bloodline systems, they are on the same foundation, and what matters is which four genes are stronger! They naturally believed that Caroline and Emperor Qi’s genetic bloodlines were incredibly powerful, possessing two or three ultimate systems. However, since the opponents also had four genes—even if they might be slightly weaker, perhaps related to wind, fire, thunder, and lightning—the difference probably wouldn’t be too great. At the very least, they should have one or two impressive ones, right?

Suddenly, the entire player base erupted.

“That’s intense!”

“This civilization is as hardcore as us, determined to cultivate perfect Dao Foundations at all costs?”

“This civilization is extremely prosperous; perhaps it’s nearing the glorious era of the ancient gods… Even if they are slightly weaker, the difference might not be significant.”

“It’s a pity the civilization of the ancient gods was destroyed; it’s currently being rebuilt.”

All the players were analyzing the information received through the small screen. It was truly terrifying; this was an unimaginably powerful super-civilization alliance.

It takes 200,000 to 300,000 years of life just to break through from an eighth-level deity to a ninth-level Dao Achiever?

Seeing this, Caroline showed a peculiar expression. Both she and Emperor Qi had broken through in less than 10,000 years, also with perfect Dao Foundations. This was the normal progression, as eighth-level deities only had a lifespan of 8,000 years and would die of old age if they couldn’t break through. Yet, their path was so incredibly long.

“Is it a side effect of immortality?”

Caroline took a deep breath. After all, immortality came with side effects. The ancient gods’ immortality involved sleeping half the time, which effectively halved their cultivation speed. However, the current opponents’ immortality seemed to have the side effect of “slower cultivation speed,” estimated to be fifty to sixty times slower!

“Their immortality talent has far greater drawbacks than that of the ancient gods…” Caroline took a deep breath. “But one thing is clear: their immortality doesn’t require them to enter a dormant state; they remain conscious at all times. This is a significant advantage!” The ancient gods’ crisis arose because they had to enter a dormant state. No matter how powerful they were, being dormant left them vulnerable to slaughter… The opponents, however, had no such concerns. Because the opponents had once said: these 107 ninth-level beings constantly covered a high-dimensional space-time, maintaining order, which meant they didn’t need to enter dormancy at all.

Caroline’s expression became utterly serious. “Is it time? I seem to understand the principle of their immortality… Could it be that they freeze the flow of time within their own bodies, halting metabolism and regeneration, as if putting themselves in stasis to achieve immortality? But such immortality, by freezing the body’s time, would mean their cultivation speed becomes extremely, extremely slow.”

How incredibly intelligent she was! As a super magic-core computer, she instantly deduced the principle and efficacy of the opponent’s core bloodline from the slightest clues.