476: Chapter 411: Mission Completed, Core of the Damaged Divine Kingdom Obtained

The purification of the Chaos Beast King caused quite a stir in the Seventh War Zone.

The Order Guardian Beast "Iron Wall" was entrenched on the outskirts of the fortress, like a silent mountain range. Its body had shifted from greyish-white to dark gold, and the marks left by the Fire of Civilization burning away the Chaos runes on its surface had turned into golden patterns. It no longer spewed Chaos Breath; in its place was the Order Breath—a cyan-gold beam of light capable of purifying Chaos energy.

[Order Guardian Beast · Iron Wall · Status]

- Rank: LV800 (Growable)

- Size: Approx. 200 km long

- Skill 1: Order Breath (Damage to Chaos faction +500%)

- Skill 2: Steel Body (Physical immunity 80%, Energy immunity 60%)

- Skill 3: Guardian Roar (Ally defense within range +50%)

- Current Mission: Guard the Northwest Frontline of the Seventh War Zone

But the greatest harvest from the purification was not Iron Wall itself, but a core within its body.

When Lin Zhou washed the Chaos Beast King's core with the river of civilization, that hundred-meter diameter greyish-white crystal shattered, revealing what had been sealed inside—not Chaos, not the Ruins of Return, but a broken Divine Kingdom Core.

[Damaged Divine Kingdom Core · Data]

- Origin: Relic of a Mid-Tier Divine Power deity from the Old Universe era

- Status: Severely damaged (approx. 35% complete)

- Original Owner Rank: LV800

- Residual Rules: Power, Guardianship, Sacrifice

- Purification Level: 100% (Fire of Civilization stripped away the Chaos pollution)

- Value: Can be fused into one's own Divine Kingdom to increase rule-bearing capacity

"This is..." General Rex looked at the golden crystal floating in the Void Realm, surprise flashing in his eyes. "A Divine Kingdom Core. In the Old Universe era, some powerful deities would condense their lifelong cultivation into a core before falling, leaving it for their descendants. This core is at least at the Peak of Mid-Tier Divine Power."

"The Chaos Beast King swallowed it but hadn't had time to digest it." Lin Zhou held up the crystal, feeling the residual rule fragments within—Power, Guardianship, Sacrifice. That was the original owner's divine duty, a deity who took guardianship as their own responsibility.

[Divine Kingdom Core · Residual Divine Duties]

- Power: Physical attack +30%

- Guardianship: Defense +50%

- Sacrifice: When near death, can burn the core to exchange for one full-power burst

"Captain, what can this core do?" Wang Meng leaned in.

"Fusing it into my Divine Kingdom can increase rule-bearing capacity by 15%." Lin Zhou put the crystal away. "Besides, the original owner's insights into the rules might help me break through my Bottleneck."

"Then just fuse it." Wang Meng grinned.

Lin Zhou didn't answer immediately. He looked at Lei Zhan—Lei Zhan was sitting in a wheelchair, his divinity integrity was only 30%, his Divine Kingdom was broken, and his Rank had fallen from LV630 to LV580. His face still bore burn scars, but his eyes remained firm.

"Lei's injuries need a large amount of Materials to repair." Lin Zhou said. "The military merit reward should be substantial. My share will be split for him."

"Captain, no need..." Lei Zhan shook his head.

"This is an Order."

General Rex handed a document to Lin Zhou: "This mission, clearing the Chaos Beast King and purifying the core, is a large-scale campaign-level mission. The Expeditionary Army headquarters has specially approved military merit—50,000 points."

[Military Merit · Fourth Settlement]

- Mission: Clear Chaos Beast King, Purify Core

- Reward: 50,000 points

- Lin Zhou's Current Military Merit: 38,500 + 50,000 = 88,500 points

- Lei Zhan's Current Military Merit: 3,500 points

Lin Zhou deducted 30,000 points from his own military merit and transferred them to Lei Zhan.

[Military Merit · Transfer]

- Transferred: Lin Zhou (30,000 points)

- Received: Lei Zhan

- Lei Zhan's Current Military Merit: 3,500 + 30,000 = 33,500 points

- Lin Zhou's Remaining Military Merit: 88,500 - 30,000 = 58,500 points

"Captain, this is too much..." Lei Zhan was anxious.

"Your Divine Kingdom needs repairs, your Rank needs to be restored. 30,000 points isn't enough." Lin Zhou deducted another 10,000 points. "Take another 10,000. 40,000 points should be enough to exchange for a batch of repair Materials."

[Lin Zhou's Remaining Military Merit: 48,500 points]

Lei Zhan's eyes turned red.

"Captain, I..."

"Between brothers, no need to say thanks."

Lin Zhou turned and looked at General Rex.

"General, I need to go into seclusion for a few days to fuse the Divine Kingdom Core."

"Approved."

Lin Zhou returned to his barracks, sat cross-legged, and held the golden crystal in his palm. The crystal glowed slightly, resonating with his Temple of Civilization. The original owner's lingering will slept within the crystal, a blurry fragment of memory—a middle-aged male deity in golden armor, holding the line alone amidst a Chaos Beast tide, covering his comrades' retreat. His Divine Kingdom collapsed under the siege of Chaos Beasts, his divinity was torn apart, but his gaze remained steadfast.

"Guardianship..." Lin Zhou murmured.

He pressed the crystal against his chest, fusing it into his Divine Kingdom.

[Temple of Civilization · Fusing Divine Kingdom Core]

- Fusion Target: Damaged Divine Kingdom Core (Peak Mid-Tier Divine Power)

- Fusion Progress: 1%... 2%... 3%...

- Rule-bearing capacity: +15%

- Divine Kingdom Area: 500 sq km → 575 sq km

- Obtained Divine Duty Fragments: Power, Guardianship, Sacrifice

- river of civilization water level: 5020% → 5030%

- Heavenly Pillar height: 11.6 million km → 11.8 million km

The Fusion lasted for three days.

On the evening of the third day, Lin Zhou opened his eyes. In his eyes reflected the light of the golden crystal; the original owner's spirit of sacrifice had blended into his Way of Civilization.

"Guardianship is not one person's affair."

He stood up and walked out of the barracks.

Lei Zhan was leaning on a crutch, walking slowly on the training ground. His Divine Kingdom repair Materials had already been exchanged with military merit, and the walls of the steel castle were slowly being rebuilt. Iron Rock Giants were moving stones in the ruins, each stone carved with defensive runes.

[Lei Zhan · Status (After Three Days of Repair)]

- Divinity integrity: 30% → 45%

- Divine Kingdom integrity: 40% → 60%

- Rank: LV580 → LV590

- Estimated full recovery: approx. 60 days

"Lei, you're recovering well." Lin Zhou walked over.

"Captain!" Lei Zhan grinned. "Did your Divine Kingdom fuse with that core?"

"Fused. Rule-bearing capacity increased by 15%. The Divine Kingdom area also expanded."

"Good!" Lei Zhan slapped his thigh. "Captain, when your Divine Kingdom gets bigger, my heavy armored legion will move straight in."

Lin Zhou was stunned for a moment, then laughed.

"Sure."

He turned and looked towards the direction of the Chaos Star Domain.

"Captain, where to next?" Lei Zhan asked.

Lin Zhou thought for a moment.

"The reconnaissance mission for the Seventh War Zone is basically finished. There are no major threats nearby. I want to return to the New Universe for a trip to see how the civilization furnace is operating."

"I'm going too!" Lei Zhan leaned on his crutch. "Lying in the fortress for three days, I'm bored to death."

"Your injuries..."

"It doesn't matter." Lei Zhan patted his chest. "My Iron Rock Giants are tough-skinned."

Lin Zhou nodded.

The two passed through the teleportation array and returned to the New Universe.

The towns of the New Universe were much larger than they were a few months ago. Many shops had appeared on both sides of the street, some selling weapons, some selling armor, some selling medicinal Materials. Among the crowd were soldiers back from the frontline on leave, civilians who had evacuated from the Old Universe, and children born in the New Universe.

The civilization furnace burned in the center of the square, the fire at the top of the furnace illuminating the entire town. The furnace's daily output had reached 10 million Divine Power, enough to support the consumption of the entire Seventh War Zone.

[Super civilization furnace · Operating Data]

- Daily output: 10 million Divine Power

- Fuel: Ruins of Return energy, Chaos energy, Abyss Devilish Qi

- Storage: 50 million Divine Power (Full)

- Status: Stable

Lin Zhou walked to the furnace and reached out to touch the furnace wall. The wall was warm, and the Fire of Civilization danced in his palm. He could feel that the furnace's "furnace spirit" had been born—that was the will of the Fire of Civilization, a consciousness condensed from countless purified Order essences.

[civilization furnace · Furnace Spirit]

- Status: Newborn (Ignorant)

- Rank: LV300

- Ability: Can automatically adjust fuel ratio, optimize conversion efficiency

- Growth: Increases with the furnace's operating time

"Captain, this furnace has gained a spirit?" Lei Zhan leaned over curiously.

"Mm." Lin Zhou withdrew his hand. "In another hundred years, perhaps it can evolve into a true life form."

He turned and walked towards the mountain behind the town.

On the back mountain, Su Yueyao's wooden house was still there. She was sitting in front of the house, holding an ancient book in her hands—that was the "Moonlight True Scripture" brought back from the Old Universe, which recorded the cultivation method of the Moon God Bloodline. Her moonlight flowed around her, and the silver-white light illuminated half of the hillside.

"Yue Yao." Lin Zhou walked over.

"Captain." Su Yueyao put down the book. "You're back."

"Mm. Fused the Divine Kingdom Core, came back to take a look."

The two sat side by side on the edge of the cliff, looking at the plain in the distance. On the plain, the residents of the New Universe were farming, building, and living. There was no Chaos, no Ruins of Return, only peace.

"Captain, do you think we can always guard this place?" Su Yueyao asked softly.

Lin Zhou was silent for a moment.

"We can."

"Why?"

"Because we are not alone."

He held Su Yueyao's hand.

"You are here, Lei is here, Qin Qing, Wang Meng, Li Mo, Chen Xuan are all here. And there are millions and millions of people willing to fight for this land."

"The Way of Civilization is not one person's path. It is everyone's path."

Su Yueyao leaned on his shoulder.

"Captain, I believe in you."

Lin Zhou looked at the plain in the distance, the Fire of Civilization burning in his pupils.

(The Civilization Guardian Legion will continue to guard this land. No matter how many dangers lie ahead, they will not retreat.)