4: I am about to ascend to heaven!

“Warning! Warning! host detected, danger index +10%!”

“Warning! Warning! Civilization has begun constructing Formations targeting the host, danger index +10%!”

According to the danger index reference table:

[░░░░░░░░░░] 0-30% Safe Zone (Green)

[██▓▓░░░░░░] 30-50% Observation Period (Yellow)

[████▓▓░░░░] 50-70% High-Risk Zone (Orange)

[██████▓▓▓▓] >70% Immediate Annihilation (Red)

Lu Chen stretched, yawning, “I just slept a little longer, and the fifth generation has already developed to the point of trying to deal with me? That’s outrageous!”

He quickly opened the Small World to observe.

Unexpectedly, the fifth civilization had evolved into a unified Cultivation nation—the Great Qin Empire.

This was the first time such a civilization form had appeared.

Here, he also saw the names of many old acquaintances, such as Bai Qi, Wang Jian, Master Craftsman Ban, and so on.

Lu Chen couldn't help but sigh, “History truly is an amazing coincidence, or perhaps not a coincidence, but influenced by my will, since this world was created by me.”

After some observation, Lu Chen found that although the Cultivators of the Great Qin Empire were more numerous than all the previous civilizations combined, in terms of overall strength, they were not as strong as the primordial desolation civilization of the first generation.

Most people here Cultivated the “Nine-Year Compulsory Profound Art” promulgated by Emperor Qin. Even a Genius with extraordinary talent found it difficult to unleash their full potential under the restrictions of such a rigid Cultivation Technique.

Currently, there were only two Cultivators in the entire Great Qin Empire who had reached the Ascension Realm. Even the strongest, Emperor Qin, was still far from true Ascension.

In the heavenly dao system template, there were tens of thousands of Realm settings, but the mainstream ones were Qi Refining Realm, Foundation Establishment Realm, Golden Core Realm, Nascent Soul Realm, Spirit Transformation Realm, Mahayana, Tribulation Crossing Realm, and Ascension Realm!!

The Ascension Realm was further divided into 990 Heaven Ranks, with each Heaven Rank being a Bottleneck.

Only by completing all 999 Heaven Ranks could one Ascend.

Emperor Qin had only Cultivated to the hundredth Heaven Rank.

Lu Chen overlooked the Great Qin Heavenly Palace, observing their secret meeting.

Lu Chen was not afraid of being detected by their Divine Sense; with their strength, they couldn't detect him at all.

Moreover, Lu Chen had set up eighty-one “firewalls” around the Small World.

These firewalls contained illusions, distortions, the Great Void, Chaos, and various buffs stacked to the maximum.

Firstly, they prevented any Cultivators from peeking into the true reality of the outside Earth.

Secondly, even if an Ascender miraculously broke through the Small World's barrier, he would still have to face 81 firewalls, each hundred times more difficult than the last. It was absolutely impossible for any Ascender to break through all 81 firewalls and reach reality.

If someone truly broke through, Lu Chen could only give him a thumbs up, because this was already the strongest defense of the current Level 1 heavenly dao system.

At this moment, ten years had passed since viewing the ancient text on the stone tablet.

For these ten years, Emperor Qin had nightmares every day, and no matter how much preparation he made, he still felt uneasy.

“Summon the ministers!” Emperor Qin's voice echoed in the empty hall, carrying an undeniable hoarseness.

As the heavy palace doors slowly opened, the Empire's top figures filed in:

Bai Qi, Wang Jian, Meng Tian, Li Xin, and other ten great generals, clad in heavy profound iron armor, each at the Peak Spirit Transformation;

There was also the creator of the floating boats, Master Craftsman Ban, the chief Artifact Refiner of the Mohist School;

Li Bing, who had just completed the Dujiangyan with his “fish-mouth weir” technique;

Zou Yan of the Yin and Yang School, who created the theory of the Universe; Shi Shen, the astrology supervisor who observed eight hundred stars with his Divine Sense...

“Gentlemen,” Emperor Qin suddenly stood up, “the Tribulation of Annihilation hangs over our heads. I cannot eat or sleep in peace! From today onwards, on this day every year, a strategic meeting to deal with the Annihilation will be held! To discuss what needs to be done in the coming year.”

Bai Qi's eyes were filled with killing intent, “Your Majesty, I suggest we emulate the Kunlun Sect and establish a Heavenly Dao Alliance. Since we already know that Ascension will trigger the Heavenly Tribulation, then as long as we restrict the Cultivators of the world and control their Cultivation, we can avoid disaster.”

“A good suggestion. I am about to Ascend. Are you also going to kill me?” Emperor Qin stared at Bai Qi with piercing eyes.

Bai Qi quickly knelt, trembling with fear, “Your Majesty, please forgive me, your subject has no such intention. However, it seems to be the best method currently. The Kunlun Sect is the longest-surviving civilization precisely because they controlled Ascension; if the Great Qin Empire can develop for ten thousand years, it will surely find a way to deal with the Heavenly Dao! Please, Your Majesty, prioritize the Great Qin's eternal foundation!”

Wang Jian also knelt, “Bai Qi is absolutely right. Ascension, though it grants eternal life, is like drinking poison to quench thirst. Your subject is willing to lead the tiger and wolf army to guard this eternal Empire for Your Majesty!”

The ministers in the hall echoed their agreement.

Emperor Qin's Dragon robe fluttered, “Not Ascending? Do you not know that my Lifespan only has two hundred years left!” The imperial pressure, tangible as it was, forced everyone to prostrate themselves, “If I don't Ascend, how can I contend with the Heavenly Dao?!”

Emperor Qin had already lived for 300 years. According to the Lifespan of the Ascension Realm, he could live for a maximum of 500 years. He did not want to die; he wanted eternal life.

Bai Qi gritted his teeth and moved forward three steps on his knees, “Your Majesty! In the past, the Kunlun Sect Head forcibly Ascended, triggering the Heavenly Tribulation, and their ten-thousand-year foundation was destroyed in an instant! Your subject boldly requests Your Majesty to temporarily abandon the thought of eternal life. Once Great Qin accumulates enough power, it will surely be able to shatter the Heavenly Dao shackles!” His voice was tearful, yet every word was firm.

Emperor Qin recalled the tragic demise of those civilizations on the stone tablet and pondered for a long time.

Weighing the pros and cons.

More than death, he feared the demise of the Great Qin Empire.

He wanted the Great Qin Empire to be passed down, for the second, third, and ten thousandth generation.

If he insisted on Ascension, it would only accelerate its demise.

Moreover, even if he didn't Ascend, he could still find the legendary elixir of immortality.

After a moment of dead silence, Emperor Qin suddenly burst into laughter:

“Good! Good! Bai Qi, you will lead the establishment of the Heavenly Dao Alliance! Any Cultivator who reaches the Ascension Realm, in my name, can be invited to Mount Li Immortal Palace, and then refined with the power of the nine tripods, using their spirits to nourish the nine tripods!”

Ascension Realm powerhouses were difficult to deal with; the only way was to refine them with the nine tripods!

Bai Qi prostrated himself and shouted, “Your Majesty is wise! This is a blessing for Great Qin!”

Emperor Qin then looked at Master Craftsman Ban, “Master Craftsman Ban, you will establish the God Slaying Pavilion, gather talented individuals, and research weapons capable of slaying gods! I will grant you access to the ling shu core, and you can utilize its computational power to create more powerful weapons.”

Master Craftsman Ban's eyes lit up; he finally had the opportunity to access this legendary treasure of the Great Qin Empire.

Legend has it that Ling Shu was formed from the broken stones left by Nuwa's mending of the heavens, falling deep into Kunlun.

After ten thousand years of nourishment from the earth's veins, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon and the trajectories of the stars, it developed intelligence.

During Yu the Great's flood control efforts, he used this stone to deduce the flow of rivers;

Before King Tang of Shang attacked Jie, he also used it to divine the fate of the nation.

Master Craftsman Ban had seen fragments of information in ancient Mohist texts: “The remnant stone of Empress Wa, capable of peering into heavenly secrets and calculating all things.”

Unfortunately, Emperor Qin had tried several times to ask the ling shu core how to deal with the Annihilation. Each time he asked, Ling Shu would immediately fall into Chaos and enter a long slumber.