976 Fulfilled a Long-Cherished Wish

"We're finally out!" When he thought about the power that the demon sword had released at the last moment, Simba's small heart was still trembling wildly. "We really ran out of ammunition back there."

Wang Zhong's entire body was fatigued. He raised his head and fell to the ground. The entire process of the situation, the words that Solomon had said at the very end, as well as some bits of information he had understood, allowed Wang Zhong to faintly guess the general situation. This had surpassed his imagination. Humans were too insignificant. They were like the toys of a three-year-old child…

Others would feel that their world view had been overturned, but Wang Zhong was not an ordinary person. At this moment, he even felt a sense of release. Pursuing an eternal life and following in the footsteps of a more powerful civilization seemed extremely dazzling to a young man. However, this did not pique his interest. After the battle of life and death that involved two great civilizations, what appeared in Wang Zhong's mind was the insignificant but peaceful city in Tianjing. Of course, he could not do without the company of his lover and his family members… If he returned to Tianjing to settle down, he was not sure whether Uncle Wang and Aunt Shea would visit him.

He heaved a long sigh and lay down, extremely relaxed. He had no way of escaping this place. He could only wait for the six God-leveled experts to deal with the demon sword and come out.

"Lao Wang, Lao Wang!" Beside him, Simba was still excited. It was because of his presence that they secured the victory. Lord Simba was still a great being who was indispensable. "What did you judge just now? We won in such a satisfying manner!"

He curiously chattered. He was only the user of the Fate Roulette and was not the planner or the policymaker. Wang Zhong was the one who had made the judgment. Just now, the situation was urgent, and Lao Wang did not reveal the outcome. As a result, Simba felt an itch in his heart that he could not scratch. Flames of curiosity were burning in his soul.

Wang Zhong laughed cheerily. "Guess."

"Did you judge that the Devouring Domain would become weaker? Or did you judge that our Ruler's Domain would become stronger?" Simba scratched his head. Even the great, wise Simba had been stumped. "If that was the case, that wouldn't make sense. Their power is greater than your body's strength. As long as they are involved, the chance of success should be very low. However, at that moment, I felt that the rate of success was 100%…"

"Why do you think Solomon eventually simply threw the demon sword away and gave up fighting?" Wang Zhong smiled and asked him.

"Ah?"

Simba was stunned. Based on his and Wang Zhong's understanding of Solomon, he was not someone who would easily choose to give up.

"Uh…" Simba was stunned for a long time. He had never, ever thought that Lao Wang would make this judgment. Furthermore, with the power that the Fate Roulette had accumulated, judging a Heavenly Soul who was nowhere as powerful as Wang Zhong would have a very high success rate.

Simba was shocked for a long time before finally recovering. "Damn… Lao Wang, you bastard!"

He could not help but swallow his saliva. He said with a face full of disgust, "Solomon is so shameless. He simply used an external force to strengthen himself. You… How lowly! It's such a pity that he was your enemy!"

"That was not his own power." Wang Zhong rolled his eyes. "He was never my opponent."

"…You loser!"

…They waited outside at the phoenix remains for three days.

The six God-leveled experts were very strong, but Wang Zhong sensed that the power that the demon sword released at the very last moment was even stronger than any of the six God-leveled experts. Thus, Wang Zhong was uneasy as he waited.

Finally, after three full days, the six God-leveled experts finally reappeared beside the transmission array.

Compared to how they had entered the space in high spirits, the six Gods now seemed extremely pitiful. Extreme fatigue could be seen on their faces, and their bodies were filled with injuries. Sacred Teacher Timo even needed Uncle Zhang's support to continue standing, while one of the Octopus Sword Gods was carried by Dhomuta. He looked like he was on the verge of death.

But even though they were pitiful and fatigued, this did not conceal the happiness and excitement on their faces. Ceremonial God Dhomiguer had a golden, rectangular box filled with runes in his hand. It seemed like it had sealed up something. Wang Zhong could sense a pure, rich, and powerful aura that did not seem to belong to this world. It was unlike the brutal and vicious aura that the demon sword possessed. This powerful aura was full of hope and connected to an unknown future.

"My respected friends!" Ceremonial God Dhomiguer laughed out loud. "Please follow me to the Mizobudapi Imperial City. The injuries on our friend Timo's body need to be healed. With the greater healing standards in the Mizobudapi World, I believe that we will be able to heal him as quickly as possible!"

"Thank you for your trouble." Uncle Zhang and Sacred Teacher Timo did not decline. They had achieved a great feat, but this did not mean that it was the end. As the representatives from the Patriarch Society, both sides still had to discuss many follow-up details. Offering to heal Sacred Teacher Timo was simply a good-sounding excuse.

"Wang Zhong." Sword Faction Suzerain Dhomuta smiled and looked at Wang Zhong, who had waited for three days. "I will give you the Nebula Sword. To cancel out our previous grievances, the Sword Faction will welcome you at any time."

Others might feel that this was normal, but only people who knew Sword Faction Suzerain Dhomuta would know how difficult it was for a stubborn Sword God to let all his resentment go. This was not just because Wang Zhong had done a great service for them. This was also the greatest affirmation and acknowledgment of Wang Zhong's performance.

Dhomiguer smiled. He was worried that his old friend who followed the rule of "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" would seek revenge with the humans later on. However, from the look of things now, he had been overly anxious.

"Let's go."

At that moment, he held the golden rune box in his left hand and stretched out his right hand into the air. Wang Zhong did not sense any signs of fluctuations in the space, but a transmission gate appeared in front of his eyes.

Wang Zhong was slightly stunned. It was difficult to overcome the distance between different realms. As expected of the Ceremonial God who was deemed as the most powerful among the Octopus people. His control of the rules was completely natural. Light did not fill the air, but it was as natural as breathing. This was true mastery.

The other side of the transmission gate was the Imperial City of the Octopus people.

The moment Wang Zhong successfully defeated Solomon and the six God-leveled experts entered the space to crush the demon sword, news about what had happened during the civilization test had already reached the Imperial City thanks to Dhomiguer. Thus, the Imperial City had already made preparations for a celebration. At that moment, the entire city was decorated with lanterns and colored streamers. There was a sea of people everywhere. Countless members of the royal family, who were wearing golden phoenix clothes, had formed a massive guard-of-honor contingent and were anxiously waiting beside the transmission array.

When they saw Dhomiguer walking out with the golden rune box in his hand, even though they were already mentally prepared for this, all the members of the imperial family were so touched that they could not control themselves. For some of them, tears even started to stream down their cheeks as they wailed loudly. An Octopus person who wore a crown on his head knelt in front of Dhomiguer. He received the rune box from him, full of excitement. Then, he stood up and raised the box high above his head.

In that instant, the extremely silent city started to seethe with excitement. A strange drumbeat started to sound from the guard-of-honor formation, and they celebrated joyously. Sounds of wailing and excitement were mixed with the celebratory drumbeat. The crowd was in a frenzy of excitement.

Wang Zhong and Uncle Zhang stood beside Dhomiguer. When they saw the city filled with celebration, they could not help but be influenced by this atmosphere. Even Wang Zhong, who did not understand this situation well enough, could sense how grave the circumstances behind this celebration were. However, to the humans and the Octopus people, cooperation was definitely a good thing. They were about to face a whole new, terrifying group. Taking revenge would be extremely foolish.

At that moment, many members of the Octopus imperial family, who had wanted to kill Wang Zhong, had even come up to shake hands with him. They used shoddy human language to invite him to attend their grand party and various celebratory activities that night. The atmosphere was very good, but suddenly, an anxious voice shrieked from among the crowd. "I am an outstanding figure! I am an outstanding figure! I want to speak to Master!"

The voice seemed somewhat familiar. Wang Zhong looked back in surprise and saw several Octopus people guards in charge of maintaining order in the streets blocking a Polyleg. It was Tatamu. It only had four legs left, and there were still bandages where its legs had been amputated. It was desperately struggling and claimed that it was an outstanding figure. These guards would definitely not believe it. Naturally, they would capture it if it was about to cause trouble.

Tatamu finally saw that Wang Zhong had noticed it and was extremely touched. Tears wildly flowed from its eyes like water flowing from a tap. It wailed loudly. "Master Wang Zhong! It's me, your most loyal servant. I am finally able to see you again. Please bring me away!"

Wang Zhong smiled. It looked like ever since they had separated at the phoenix remains, it had not lived a good life.

They stayed in the Octopus people Imperial City for three days. Although their service was of high standards, frankly speaking, the food of the Octopus people was unappetizing. Furthermore, their maid culture made Lao Wang shout that he could not stand it. They were too enthusiastic. They served him for all kinds of matters, big and small. He had to go through great pains to decline them and even made the Octopus maids teary-eyed. It seemed as if Lao Wang had done something that had let them down.

During that period, Uncle Zhang and Wang Zhong spoke once. Uncle Zhang also fulfilled his promise and told Wang Zhong about the truth.

Several dozen peak civilizations made up the center of the Fifth Dimension. This was also the place that was closest to the hyperdimension. All of the powerful civilizations in the entire Fifth Dimension were included and worked together in order to set foot into the hyperdimension. The alliance between these civilizations was called the Dimensional Star Alliance.

Based on their civilization level, civilizations that joined the Star Alliance had the right to share knowledge with other civilizations of the same level and circulate resources with one another. This was extremely attractive to all civilizations. This was the most important and the fastest way to rapidly improve themselves. However, it was evident that there was a minimum threshold to join the Star Alliance. According to the Star Alliance calculations, only civilizations that were level-4 and above could join. Furthermore, once a civilization had achieved level-4, as long as they were guided and introduced to a current civilization in the Star Alliance and passed the test from the Alliance, they could join the Alliance.

Several hundred years ago, the Octopus people obtained the opportunity to participate in this test. Back then, the Octopus people were much more powerful than they were now. However, at the crucial moment when the test was just about to begin, a human had visited them. The human was the Holy Saint Teacher, who had unintentionally traveled there. At first, the powerful Holy Saint Teacher was very friendly with the Octopus people. He had even visited the Octopus Imperial City as a guest. He understood the civilization leap that the entire Mizobudapi World was talking excitedly about.

However, the difficulty of the test had exceeded their imagination. The Octopus people, who were full of confidence, thought that they were going to fail. The Holy Saint Teacher desperately tried to save the situation. However, although they had passed the test, due to the interference from an external civilization, they eventually failed. The Star Alliance gave them a chance for a make-up test, but the "vile interests" of the Star Alliance made them speechless. Only a war would cause the Angel of Misfortune to descend. Thus, they had started this Holy Battle. They were at the mercy of the Star Alliance. Both sides could only reduce their losses as far as possible. Luckily, both sides could still withstand the war.

"From what we understand of the situation, there are many criteria for a level-4 civilization test from the Star Alliance. If they are testing for combat power, the main criterion is the combat level of Saint-leveled experts. Thus, the test mainly assesses the potential of Saint-leveled experts in a civilization. Therefore, we God-leveled experts cannot interfere in the test. We also never expected that the power of the demon sword could reach that level. We did not know that the Star Alliance was deliberately making things difficult for us. Our understanding towards Saint-leveled experts is very different from the advanced civilizations in the Star Alliance." Uncle Zhang sighed.

"Luckily, we have you. If not— No matter what, we have passed the test. The Ceremonial God has obtained the key to the Star Alliance. Yesterday, he interacted with the person-in-charge from the Star Alliance. The Mizobudapi civilization and the human civilization will join the Star Alliance as level-4 civilizations. The human civilization will also be issued a transmission key. We are preparing to build the transmission point at the Holy City.

"Joining the Star Alliance will bring about many benefits. We humans will have the right to share knowledge with the level-4 civilizations in the Star Alliance, no matter whether it is in terms of technology or cultivation. We can also conduct trades with other level-4 civilizations. At the same time, we will receive a certain level of protection from the Star Alliance. At least, we do not have to worry that any advanced civilization will eliminate us humans for no rhyme or reason. Although we have to provide sufficient resources to the Star Alliance as membership fees, which will be a massive burden, the pros still outweigh the cons. The human civilization will experience great progress from now on.

"Furthermore, as a level-4 civilization in the alliance, several hundred humans will have the right to enter the divine territory every year. That is the center of the Fifth Dimension and where the top civilizations in the Star Alliance gather. It is said that the cultivation conditions there are better. It will give the elites from each race the opportunity to pursue eternal life."

Wang Zhong simply smiled and did not express his opinion. Compared to the distant Star Alliance, there was only one figure who was waiting for him at the base in his mind.

The war was over.

To the ordinary soldiers who did not know what was happening, the end of the Holy Battle was as sudden as how it had started. The day before, they were still killing as blood and flesh flew in all directions. The next day, the humans and the Mizobudapi signed a peace treaty.

In the Holy Battle of the humans and the war of the Octopus people, there were no victors or losers. No matter whether it was the humans or the Octopus people, they had all obtained what they had needed. The Dimensional Star Alliance had finally sent their noble Will to the Holy Land and the Mizobudapi World. The civilization level of both the humans and the Mizobudapi were assessed. In the end, the human civilization was determined to be a level-4 civilization by the Dimensional Star Alliance. To the humans, this was a historic leap.

Naturally, the Holy Land was satisfied with this result. Once they had received this certification from the Star Alliance, the war and all their sacrifices were truly of value. Furthermore, to the humans, becoming a level-4 civilization was a massive leap. The minimum threshold to join the Star Alliance was level-4, and everything about the Star Alliance was mysterious to humans. Most importantly, the human world was no longer a "slaughter ground" that advanced civilizations wanted. Ordinary people, and even many people in the Holy Land, did not know about this. This was a secret in the Patriarch Society that the Holy Saint Teacher had left behind.

The various beliefs among humans were a result of influence from other civilizations. Simply put, those advanced civilizations had treated the human civilization as a playground or a pigsty. They collected the belief of humans without restraint. How they converted belief into power might represent a level of power that was beyond the Heavenly Soul Stage. All of this came from the Star Alliance. How to join the Star Alliance and control their fate, as well as to receive the protection of rules, became the only mission of the Patriarch Society for the past several hundred years.

"Ladies and gentlemen, after three hundred years of preparation and planning, we have finally fulfilled our long-cherished wish!"

"Cheers!"

In the Patriarch Society at the Holy Land, the Patriarchs put away their typical solemn demeanor. They were as happy as a child who obtained the toy they had wanted after trying every possible method.

"To our Sacred Teacher."

"As well as those who have been sacrificed in this fight."

"History will not forget them."

"Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

Although becoming a level-4 civilization was the minimum criterion for joining the Star Alliance, since they had received protection from the Star Alliance rules, this also meant that the members of the Star Alliance could not casually invade them. At the same time, up to 100 people could enter the Star Alliance for cultivation every year. The people from the Patriarch Society badly wanted to go, but it was a pity that they did not have the chance to do so. To the Star Alliance, they were inflexible old folks who had been stagnant for many years. Thus, the Star Alliance had strict requirements for the 100 people!

"They must be in the Foundational Stage and have not lived on Earth for more than 40 years!"

In human terms, this meant that they needed 100 Heavenly Souls who did not exceed the age of 40!

The Foundational Stage was one of the most basic conditions for surviving in the Star Alliance. There was no room for negotiation.

This was definitely a harsh condition. There were not many Heavenly Soul Stage humans, and Heavenly Souls who had not reached the age of 40 were even harder to find. Typically, it seemed like there were many geniuses in the Heavenly Soul Stage, but when they actually looked for these geniuses, the actual number… It was simply enough to drive the Patriarchs insane. They told the soldiers in the Holy Land not to suppress their realm and rapidly advance in order to gain this opportunity. Furthermore, they opened up this chance to the entire Earth, — including the Federation, the Empire, and every inch of land that had humans living there — and chose candidates through voting. The Patriarchs were helpless. The conditions were harsh, and they took in everyone they could find. As for whether they were suitable, whether they had a sense of belonging to the Holy Land, and whether they were loyal to the human race, they did not care about these. After all, this concerned the life and death of the human civilization. The Dimensional Star Alliance was definitely a place where only the fittest survived, more so than in the Holy Land.

Joining the Star Alliance was only the beginning. The Patriarch Society believed that the law of the jungle would be followed everywhere. They could not allow themselves to be trampled upon.