Chapter 232

"I..."

I really stumbled upon something extraordinary...

After steadying himself slightly, Li Ang looked at the Taurus Director before him and asked, incredulous:

"I just found out that humanity... escaped from the Old Land?"

You just reached out and touched it, and you uncovered a secret like this?

Upon hearing Li Ang's words, the Taurus Director was greatly surprised, then nodded:

"That's right. Our human ancestors did not live in this world—they were a branch that fled the Old Land. The original form of the Star Palace was the vessel chosen by our ancestors for their migration. They intended to continue traveling further, but the Star Palace was shattered, so they were forced to remain in this world."

Well, I'll be damned—it really is like that!

After blinking in confusion and clicking his tongue, Li Ang continued:

"Speaking of shattering... in the information I uncovered, the one who shattered the Star Palace was one of the Four Supreme Pillars—what happened to them now...?"

"They've all been killed."

"Huh?"

"The Four Supreme Pillars who came chasing from the Old Land were the Old King, the Celestial Cicada of All Things, the Crimson Sovereign, and Asur's Slumber."

"They were mortal enemies of humanity. Since we're still here and haven't been wiped out, they must be gone. Though their divinity and authority have mostly been inherited by other True Gods, they're no longer the same as those original Four Pillars."

After a brief pause to recall, the Taurus Director shrugged:

"That was countless years ago. Those Four Supreme Pillars were, at their core, just four gods who mastered powerful laws. In your Li Ang Value terms, they probably hovered around seventy points—maybe a bit stronger than Olivia, but not by much."

After generations of comfort under the Watch Palace's protection, the overall strength of the Cleanup Bureau has declined. But there are still seven or eight individuals with strength comparable to Olivia, and roughly thirty others who have firmly crossed the sixty-point threshold of True Godhood.

There are also some branch directors below sixty points who, when paired with anomalies, can still repel True Gods, plus a few elite Level One Cleanup Officers. Altogether, about a hundred people have the means to harm a True God—and that's after so many generations of peace.

"The predecessors who grew up rapidly under the protection of the Watch Palace were far stronger than today's. The Four Pillars were eliminated within a few centuries. The demon god's brain now soaking in the 【Illusory Jar】? That's the brain of Asur's Slumber, one of the Four Pillars."

"..."

My ancestors were badass...

Li Ang had originally thought the Cleanup Bureau was constantly under threat from four terrifying Muhouheishou, poised to strike and obliterate the world at any moment—until he accidentally uncovered the truth, and was about to embark on a new heroic epic.

But it turned out those Muhouheishou had been wiped out eight hundred years ago—even their ashes were recycled, used to mix rice and feed the dog. What he'd seen was merely the glorious history of humanity's ancestors, and what he'd obtained was the post-heroic era script where peace was guaranteed—the most dangerous enemies had long been chopped down by the big shots.

Hmm... come to think of it, this world is so rich, with so many True Gods, Demonic Gods, Outer Gods, and Demon Gods all desperate to squeeze in and have their fun. If the Cleanup Bureau's predecessors hadn't been incredibly powerful, how could they have held onto it for so long?

Even if the Cleanup Bureau's strength wasn't enough to repel every True God in alliance, they still had to be the undisputed strongest among all factions—capable of holding off an entire crowd by themselves. Otherwise, they would have been driven out and forced to wander again centuries ago.

"Our ancestors were truly remarkable..."

After sincerely marveling at the ferocity of the Cleanup Bureau's predecessors, Li Ang asked, puzzled:

"Director Taurus, if you know all this, why didn't you contradict me when I said the Bureau seemed unaware of the Star Palace?"

"Because what you mentioned is history—not the current state of the Star Palace. As for the Star Palace's actual condition, the Bureau still doesn't know much."

The Taurus Director sighed:

"I told you before—the Star Palace's true size is enormous. Retrieving them from near the Sun once was already incredibly troublesome; a round trip could take over a decade and consume countless precious materials."

"Since the first Virgo Director made one trip to deliver the eighty-eight Star Palaces, the Bureau has never brought them back for inspection. No one knows whether they've been properly nourished."

"Besides, even if we leave them near the Sun without retrieval, it doesn't hinder our continued use of their abilities. And since no existential crisis has forced us to flee, the Star Palaces still respond when summoned—so no one's bothered to retrieve them..."

"By the way, how's the Star Palace's condition? Has it been fully nourished?"

"..."

Indeed... given human nature, something like an ark for the end times is never rushed until the last possible moment. And the Cleanup Bureau's leadership is notoriously lazy—if they were diligent enough to inspect every three or five years, that'd be the real oddity.

As for the Star Palace's condition...

Recalling the evaluations calling it "one of the Bureau's most vital trump cards" and "humanity's final hope," Li Ang stated firmly:

"Though it hasn't fully recovered and still bears massive scars on its back, the Star Palace is no longer just 'shards.' It should be considered nourished."

"That's excellent."

The Taurus Director beamed:

"Even if we never end up using it, having it is better than not having it... By the way, Li Ang, have you found a way to learn the secret arts without using the Star Palace?"

"Well... I'm not sure if I've truly found it... Wait! Besides those historical details, I discovered something else crucial!"

At this point, Li Ang suddenly remembered something, frowning sharply:

"Director Taurus, my ability tells me that anyone holding the Star Palace continuously loses their divinity!"

"No problem—that's intentional."

"Huh?"

"I mean, when the first Taurus Director forged the Star Palace, he deliberately designed this condition."

The Taurus Director chuckled as he explained:

"The Star Palace is too precious, and too far out near the Sun. We can't respond quickly if another True God tries to seize it. So we made it so that anyone who touches it continuously loses divinity—no True God would want to steal it."

"But what about Cleanup Officers who've been tainted and crossed the sixty-point threshold into True Godhood? Won't they lose divinity too?"

"Let them lose it!"

The Taurus Director shrugged:

"It would take three or four hundred years—or longer—to drain even the lowest-grade divinity. But humans don't have eternal life—we live at most a hundred and fifty years. Why worry about something so far ahead?"

"..."