Chapter 1290: The Heavenly Emperor's Good Days Are Over

Before each departure, their Nine Heavens Fleet had a hidden mission to find spirit stones, in addition to conquering new territories and proclaiming the greatness of the Heavenly Emperor.

The Zhutian Civilization rose to prominence through spirit stone lodes. By using the spiritual energy within these stones to strengthen organic matter, they created incredibly powerful warships and unrivaled Zhutian warriors.

After the Heavenly Emperor ascended to power over the Zhutian Civilization, he elevated their utilization of spirit stones to a new level.

Spirit stones are crucial, both for the Heavenly Emperor and for the Zhutian Civilization.

Although every warship was equipped with spirit stone detection radar and they had searched for a long time, they had found nothing except for the Heavenly Emperor's place of origin.

Now, they had finally found spirit stones.

And they were top-grade spirit stones, of the highest quality!

If they were fortunate enough to find a top-grade spirit stone lode, the Heavenly Emperor would surely reward them, and their Azure Heaven Legion would undoubtedly become the foremost among the Nine Heavens.

Shi Wumian's original plan was to meet with the Council President and demand their surrender, but with top-grade spirit stones right before him, everything else had to wait!

After disembarking, following the direction indicated by the radar, he rushed towards the Academy of Sciences research lab. His personal guards couldn't keep up with his pace.

Several scientists were using various instruments to test the energy contained within the top-grade spirit stones, completely unaware of what was happening outside. They jumped in fright as Shi Wumian kicked open the several-ton alloy door.

Shi Wumian had no time to spare for the scientists' reactions. His gaze was fixed intently on the several top-grade spirit stones in the glass enclosure, and his breathing became heavier.

There was no mistake. These were top-grade spirit stones!

He shattered the glass enclosure with one punch and took the top-grade spirit stones.

"Lord Shi."

Shi Wumian's personal guards arrived belatedly, exhausted and breathless from trying to keep up with him, just managing to catch up at that moment.

"I have a task for you," Shi Wumian said. "Immediately investigate the origin of these top-grade spirit stones."

"Yes, sir!"

With that said, Shi Wumian returned to the command ship with the spirit stones to await news from his guards.

His personal guards were Zhutian warriors, one in a thousand, with outstanding combat prowess and meticulous, reliable work ethics.

"Lord Shi, here is the list of high-ranking Star Alliance officials who have surrendered. Please review it."

"Just put it over there."

"Sir, this is the territorial scope of the Star Alliance."

"Put that over there too."

"Commander, this is the Star Alliance's technological development report. I believe the most important things for us to pay attention to are Aether computers and quantum communication technology. We don't possess either of these technologies. Quantum communication technology, in particular, can achieve real-time communication regardless of distance..."

"Just put it over there."

The Azure Heaven Legion had conquered numerous planets. The command staff each had their own duties and tasks, and by regulation, they were required to submit all gathered intelligence to Shi Wumian to facilitate his planning for the next phase.

The Star Alliance was the most advanced civilization the Azure Heaven Legion had encountered. In the past, Shi Wumian would have eagerly reviewed such intelligence.

But now, Shi Wumian only felt impatient. The Star Alliance wasn't going anywhere, and these details were unimportant. The most important thing was the origin of these top-grade spirit stones.

Finally, his personal guards returned with crucial intelligence.

"Sir, we've found out," a guard reported. "These top-grade spirit stones do not belong to the Star Alliance. They come from a place called the Immortal Cultivation World."

"Immortal Cultivation World?" Shi Wumian frowned; he had never heard of this place.

"Elaborate."

"It began when an immortal cultivator named Lu Yang accidentally appeared on a television program..."

Shi Wumian clasped his hands over his mouth upon hearing this, frowning in deep thought.

"Are you saying the Immortal Cultivation World has a vast quantity of top-grade spirit stones, yet it's extremely backward, just barely able to enter space, and even requires humanitarian aid from the Star Alliance?"

Shi Wumian's eyes gleamed as he heard this. The phrase "the Immortal Cultivation World has a vast quantity of top-grade spirit stones" echoed repeatedly in his mind.

A backward civilization with advanced energy sources is no different from a child carrying gold through a bustling market. They are just waiting to be robbed!

The guard nodded: "Yes, it's very strange. It seems they just entered space and can already traverse wormholes to reach the Star Alliance."

Shi Wumian waved his hand: "Read more books. It's just a technological explosion; it's quite normal. Before the Heavenly Emperor emerged, our Zhutian Civilization constantly suppressed and dominated the civilizations we discovered to maintain our rule. We were precisely worried about other civilizations experiencing technological explosions and shaking our position."

"Presumably, this Immortal Cultivation World has found a way to utilize spirit stones, allowing their civilization to develop rapidly."

"But no matter how fast they develop, can they match the speed of our fleet?"

The guard was startled: "You mean... go to the Immortal Cultivation World now?"

"Naturally," Shi Wumian replied. "Compared to the Immortal Cultivation World, what is this Star Alliance? Have you found out the location of the Immortal Cultivation World?"

"This is the star chart from the Star Alliance to the Immortal Cultivation World that Lu Yang left behind. Please examine it, sir." The guard presented the map with both hands.

Shi Wumian burst into laughter at the sight. "Excellent, excellent, excellent!" he exclaimed. "This Lu Yang really does good deeds. He leaves behind exactly what I need!"

"But that Lu Yang seems very powerful," the guard said in a low voice, lacking confidence. "He can make sword formations cover an entire planet, eliminating all fierce beasts, and can also stop bullets and make them return to their magazines."

"What's that? Just some flashy tricks," Shi Wumian scoffed. "It's just killing all animals in an instant. Any one of our warships' artillery auto-aiming systems can do that."

"And we have fifteen hundred such warships."

"As for trivial skills like stopping bullets, I'd like to see what his little skills can do against the fully assembled Azure Heaven Legion!"

"That Lu Yang claims he's one of the strongest people in the Immortal Cultivation World, right? Then this Immortal Cultivation World isn't much to speak of!"

"Send word to prepare for the conquest of the Immortal Cultivation World!"

"Oh, and remember to regularly report on our progress to the Heavenly Emperor. Go write down everything that happened today and send someone to deliver the letter."

"Yes, sir."

Zhutian Civilization.

The Heavenly Emperor resided atop a nine-story tower.

He was once Wu Yao, the first Emperor Yu. Now, he was the Heavenly Emperor, ruling over the universe. His two reigns had made his aura even more profound and unfathomable. Rather than saying he was the leader of the Zhutian Civilization, it was more fitting to say he was its deity.

"Your Majesty, a letter from the Azure Heaven Legion," a beautiful maid said as she approached cautiously, holding a letter.

Although she had served the Heavenly Emperor for several months, she still felt his imperial might was as deep and unfathomable as an abyss. Every movement she made was cautious, fearing she might commit a taboo.

"A letter from Shi Wumian?" The Heavenly Emperor opened his eyes, the myriad stars of the heavens reflected in his pupils.

He took the letter. Seeing the maid still so cautious, he couldn't help but chuckle softly: "Cui'er, I've told you, there's no need to be so cautious around me."

The maid, Cui'er, dared not defy the Heavenly Emperor. She could only whisper, "Yes."

The Heavenly Emperor shook his head helplessly. He opened the envelope and quickly read the contents.

"Oh, Shi Wumian has discovered a cosmic-level power called the Star Alliance, and found clues to top-grade spirit stones."

The Heavenly Emperor smiled. This was truly excellent news.

After so many years, they had finally found a second planet with spirit stones.

"Shi Wumian has already led the Azure Heaven Legion there. The destination is called... Immortal Cultivation World?!"

The Heavenly Emperor abruptly stood up. He stared intently at the words "Immortal Cultivation World," his eyes bloodshot, his lips trembling.

Shi Wumian, you're not my subordinate, you're my father!!!