Swallowed Star
chapter-1024

Densely surrounding the gigantic, round table, the numerous thrones were divided into five different classes: six feet wide, 30 feet wide, 160 feet wide, 650 feet wide, and 3,200 feet wide. All the great beings had thrones that fit their godly bodies perfectly. Among them, some universe overlords, like the Heaven Erosion Palace Lord, Jiu Feng Knight, and Undying Knight, were seated on the 650-foot-wide thrones.

And at the top… on towering thrones way high up, many universe masters were seated at the highest tier where they looked down at all the other human great beings. They were super beings from the five forces of the human race.

All of the towering, 3,200-foot-wide thrones were made of dazzling gold except the two towering ones right in the middle, which were black and emanated an air of power. One of the two black thrones had a faint sculpture of a huge axe. Seated on this throne was a giant with thick fingers and messy, long hair that made him look like a barbarian. The black throne next to him was empty. No one occupied that seat. The other golden thrones were filled by towering figures.

“Primal Chaos City Leader,” the barbaric giant said, looking to the golden throne on his left where Primal Chaos City Leader sat. He said with a smile, “You are very biased towards Luo Feng. This appears to have brought about much discontent from many universe knights. They are discontented, and I am not surprised. A soul type true treasure! Primal Chaos City Leader, your disciple, Gui Yi… he also has power that matches a universe overlord, and he always stays by your side, yet he does not seem to own a soul type true treasure. He hasn’t gotten one, and Luo Feng received one way back when he was merely a sector lord… I’m afraid Gui Yi Knight would somehow find it unfair.”

“Discontented my foot!” someone shouted.

All at once, voices could be heard from the dozens of thrones that were enshrouded by a foggy mist.

A soul-piercing cold permeated the air. “To bestow them with valuables is showing them kindness! Not giving them any valuable is just a matter of due course. Want a true treasure? They can fight with each other! Primal Chaos City Leader can choose to bestow a soul type true treasure to whomever he decides. No one else has the right to say anything more.”

“If you ask me, I think we should mete out punishment to one as a deterrent to the rest. The one who rejoices the most ought to be put behind bars in the prison of the primal universe.”

“That is too much. We should never subject ourselves to the discussions of the knights down there. They did not rob nor kill. They have done nothing to deserve being sent to prison.”

“Everyone!” said Primal Chaos City Leader. Seated on his golden throne, he flashed a smile. “I may be extremely fond of this disciple, but the way I work is clear to everyone. I would never bestow upon Luo Feng a soul type true treasure when he was a mere sector lord.”

The other universe masters, including the giant on the black throne, looked over.

It was true. Primal Chaos City Leader was known for being a most impartial and authoritative leader. After all, to attain such a great existence as that of a universe master truly required one to have the patience to manage all matters and to plan and make arrangements for unexpected events of the race.

There were many universe masters who simply could not be bothered with such matters. However, Primal Chaos City Leader had the patience! And he had always been much respected.

“When Luo Feng was a sector lord, he had three true treasures,” said Primal Chaos City Leader. “Only the Shi Wu Wings were bestowed by me. The other two… came from my disciple’s miraculous encounters in which Lady Luck smiled upon him.”

“Ah?”

“He got the true treasures by himself?”

“Those true treasures are not common; they are not easily obtainable, even if one meets with miracles. They are usually left behind by super beings on purpose, for their successors.”

“We should not be bothered about which super beings… Anyway, it is a good thing when these true treasures fall into the hands of us humans.”

“Hahaha! Correct! Regardless of who left the treasures behind for their successors, they belong to Luo Feng… No matter what, priority should always be given to the human. Thereafter, we can look into the roots of these true treasures.”

“No wonder… I was not convinced when I heard that Primal Chaos City Leader bestowed three true treasures on Luo Feng. Primal Chaos City Leader is not one of such a character. Now I see why this situation made no sense to me.”

The words echoed from the dozens of thrones, everyone trying to be heard at once.

“The other knights are waiting, so let us commence the meeting,” said the barbaric giant sitting on the black throne with a faint sculpture of an axe. He looked to his left and said to Primal Chaos City Leader, “Primal Chaos City Leader, you should chair the meeting.”

Primal Chaos City Leader nodded.

******

On the thousands of thrones crowded together, Luo Feng conversed with the other universe knights next to him and soon discovered some basic information.

The thrones in the Pantheon Sanctuary were divided into five classes. One would only be able to see the great beings who were a class higher than oneself. As for conversing… one could initiate a conversation with someone from the same class or someone from a lower class. Therefore, Luo Feng could only converse with four-starred great beings (elementary universe knights) and five-starred universe knights (secondary universe knights). As for elementary universe knights from the lower class, they were only able to converse with other elementary universe knights.

“Everyone!” a kind and powerful voice announced.

Pantheon Sanctuary fell into silence within an instant. The moment Luo Feng heard the voice, he knew it was his teacher, Primal Chaos City Leader.

“A supreme council meeting is convened every time a vital matter major enough to affect the entire race occurs,” Primal Chaos City Leader’s powerful voice resounded throughout Pantheon Sanctuary. No one dared interrupt. “This time, the supreme council meeting is convened because… the Original Star is about to open.”

Almost all the universe knights registered shocked expressions.

“The Original Star is about to open?” a few of them murmured.

“The Original Star is the center of our vast universe—the territory that billions of races fight for,” continued Primal Chaos City Leader. “This opening will not be an exception. If you want to obtain a true treasure, if you want to make a big contribution to your race, your opportunity is here! Here’s some detailed information. Let’s all take a look first.”

Directly in front of the densely populated thrones where many great beings were seated, a screen showed up. A set of detailed descriptions appeared on the screen.

Luo Feng fixed his attention on the screen before him. The very center of the entire universe was none other than the Land of Origin, yet for countless years—except for the conscious mind’s occasional arrival in the Land of Origin—no other great being was able to reach the Land of Origin in person. It was as though the place was imaginary, yet the Original Star truly existed.

Altogether, there were 10,081 of them! According to the information handed out since the birth of the universe, these 10,081 original stars revolved around the Land of Origin. It was said to be located closest place to the Land of Origin in the entire universe.

These 10,081 original stars were full of valuables but also fraught with danger. There were 10,081 paths leading to the original stars, yet those thousands of paths were usually closed. But, after a long period of time, the way would open once. Every time, the way to the Original Star would be kept open for 1,000 eras. After 1,000 eras, the star would shut… All great beings who had entered needed to make their way out before it shut, or else they would be killed! Utilizing a clone or another body was not good enough—many of these survival techniques had proven futile. If one did not leave the Original Star when the path was shut, death was inevitable. No exceptions whatsoever!

This was the most mysterious place in the universe. No other place could compare to it.

Not only were there treasures to be found in those 10,081 stars, but true treasures also appeared frequently. Super-beings of the billions of races on the universe had engaged in epic battles for such treasures. Each race fought to claim these valuables as their own! Every time a star opened, it meant there would be universe masters being killed from within.

It was all very bloody and cruel, yet the potential for these treasures drove countless great beings crazy for the opportunity! Such was the nature of the Original Star—the place that was closest to the Land of Origin of the universe.

“Contribution, eh?” muttered Luo Feng as he looked to the bottom for another set of descriptions.

The valuables obtained from the original stars, if obtained alone, could be kept as one’s own. If you had no need for the valuable you obtained, you could offer it to the race in exchange for a “Contribution.”

The way races grew more powerful was dependent on the Contributions offered by numerous great beings. In this case, a Contribution could be used to exchange for other valuables.

Luo Feng looked through the sets of information. One was related to information on the Original Star, the other was related to the detailed elaboration of Contributions. It was obvious that only newcomers like Luo Feng and True Yan Knight, who were attending the supreme council for the first time, would receive this second set of information containing detailed elaboration on “Contributions.” This description read:

“Within the race, there are two kinds of humans. The first kind consists of those who enjoy the resources. The second kind is made up of those who contribute these resources. Ordinary humans and undying spirits are the ones who enjoy the resources. For instance, ordinary humans can enjoy peace and stability, while undying spirits who showed outstanding performance can receive the guidance and advice of supreme beings—or even have valuables bestowed upon them. They are the ones who enjoy the resources! Once one crosses over to become a universe great being, they are admitted to the supreme council. That would mean… you have become a core member of the human race.”

“The human race requires the contribution of true great beings like yourself. Only through your contributions can there be billions of humans, generations of geniuses and immeasurable amounts of resources to use.”

“All of you risk your lives to fight for valuable resources to offer your race. All of these will be officially recorded as ‘Contributions.’ You can make use of these Contributions in exchange for all the valuable resources you need.”

“Blade River Emperor Luo Feng, when you joined the supreme council, you abandoned your previous status as a ‘talent’ and will now be entitled to a generous quota of resources. From this moment on, you are one of the supreme beings among us humans. You are perfectly capable enough to contribute greatly to our human race, and can make use of your Contributions to exchange for the resources and valuables you need.”

******

“Contributions?” Luo Feng said softly.

Of course, he thought. In everyone in a race of beings wanted only to receive benefits—if everyone expected the race to bestow resources to them—then who would be contributing?

Luo Feng understood now. It was the equivalent of a tribal community. The men were expected to head out and hunt for food while the women would plant crops for harvesting, and the children would enjoy the fruits of the adults’ labor. Within a race, the supreme beings contributed so that the talents, the weaker ones, and the ordinary humans, could enjoy the resources.

Only after you cross over to become one of the universe great beings can you start to contribute to the race! realized Luo Feng.

“Very well,” Luo Feng said softly. “This is quite good, actually, as it is meaningless to always be taking advantage… The Original Star?” His eyes were sparkling. “The universe is simply amazing. Prior to this, I was unaware of such a place. 10,081 original stars. The mysterious place that is closest to the Land of Origin of the universe.”

While all the supreme beings of the human race at the supreme council were still in shock, Primal Chaos City Leader finally spoke again.

“The opening of the Original Star is still a whole ten years away,” he said. “In the coming decade, everyone should start preparing. For instance, you could form small teams with a few other great beings, where your skills complement one another. Or you could borrow valuables from great beings who are unwilling to enter the Original Star… All preparations must be done within the decade. Ten years from now, we humans shall enter the Original Star.”