Chapter 165: Earth Seven Thousand Years Later

At the Virtual Universe Company headquarters, an antiquated sword‑shaped spacecraft of uniform jet‑black hue slowly materialized.

"Wow~"

The spacecraft's hatch opened.

"Thank you all."

Zhou Yang, clad in black‑gold battle armor, gave a light nod to the crew who had escorted him, then flew straight out of the cabin.

"Farewell, Your Highness."

"It is our honor to serve Your Highness!"

Coincidentally, the vessel Zhou Yang boarded this time was the same one that had taken him to the Initial Universe before, and the crew remained the original team.

At this moment, each crew member—including Captain Wang Gaodeng—bowed respectfully and called out.

Only after they saw Zhou Yang's figure vanish into the teleportation palace did they quietly begin to discuss.

"Prince Zhou Yang looks quite amiable, with no trace of a strongman's air at all."

"Exactly, Prince Zhou Yang truly embodies a strongman's bearing! Unlike some people who, after a simple ennoblement, act as if they're soaring to the heavens—*cough*—Captain, I'm not talking about you."

"Enough, stop the side chatter and attend to your own duties!"

It's been just over a month, with the same people and the same setting, yet their attitudes have undergone a seismic shift.

The cause is that Zhou Yang breached Level 21 of the Tongtian Bridge, displaying a shocking talent and strength!

In the Universe, power is the very foundation of one's standing!

Zhou Yang zipped through the teleportation palace at the Virtual Universe Company headquarters, his figure splitting into two.

One half, the Zhou Yang in black‑gold armor, flew straight toward the Virtual Universe Company base, into a massive palace shrouded within the Chaos City Lord's Qianbao River Domain.

The other, clad in misty crystal battle armor, entered the teleportation route leading to Earth.

Although he told the Chaos City Lord that he does not fear assassinations from the Demon Race, Insect Race, or Mechanical Race, he has yet to break through Immortal, so he must still act cautiously.

When operating outside, he merely uses his doppelganger.

His primary body stays in the safest part of the Virtual Universe Company base, quietly cultivating until his internal world expands to its limit, then he will instantly break Immortal.

In the Solar System, a towering temple stands suspended in the void, guarding Earth, and the temple dwarfs the planet itself.

The temple's first floor houses permanent teleportation routes linking the Virtual Universe Company base with the Axe Arena, Universe First Bank, Universe Galaxy Bank, and the Universe Mercenary Alliance headquarters.

"Wow~~~" One of the teleportation routes shimmered with a hazy glow.

"Someone's arrived."

"Someone from the Virtual Universe Company has arrived."

Dozens of Realm Lords stationed beside the route stood respectfully.

Only those of extraordinary strength or lofty status can pass this way, and the Realm Lords watched curiously…

A black‑armor youth emerged alone.

"Th‑that's Prince Zhou Yang, Prince Zhou Yang has returned to Earth!"

The dozens of Realm Lords instantly recognized him; the temple's Earth guard holds half its authority in Zhou Yang's hands, how could they not know him?

Moreover, just over a month ago, Prince Zhou Yang had consecutively breached the World Master Level Primordial Tongtian Mountain and Level 21 of the Tongtian Bridge, his fame spreading across the entire Human Race!

Now, throughout the Human Race Territory, except for isolated worlds cut off from news, who could not know Zhou Yang's name! "Your Highness."

"Prince Zhou Yang!"

The Realm Lords bowed respectfully, their gazes toward Zhou Yang filled with boundless admiration and respect! "Hmm."

Zhou Yang nodded, glanced at the Realm Lords, "Guarding the Solar System for ten thousand years—any special matters?" "None, everything is as usual; please rest assured, Your Highness!"

The leading Realm Lord replied respectfully.

"Hmm, thank you for your hard work."

Zhou Yang gave a slight nod, then activated Teleportation, vanishing into thin air.

"Teleportation!"

"Wow, Teleportation! Prince Zhou Yang is truly amazing."

"What's that? Prince Zhou Yang has already breached Level 21 of the Tongtian Bridge, a feat comparable to a Universe Venerable; using Teleportation is no small matter!"

"Universe Venerable! Our entire Shenwu Clan has only two Universe Venerables, both ancestors who have cultivated for billions of epochs; for Prince Zhou Yang to attain Universe Venerable combat power in such a short cultivation period is astounding!"

"But Prince Zhou Yang is so amiable, even saying we've worked hard."

Each Realm Lord guard excitedly communicated via telepathy.

To them, a Universe Venerable is a lofty figure; given their status, they rarely encounter such a tier of strongman, and even if fortunate enough to see one, it would never draw the Venerable's attention.

Now, they have not only seen a 'living' Universe Venerable but also spoken with him, and he even told them 'thank you for your hard work'; this is truly unbelievable to them.

…

Outer space beyond Earth.

"Hoo!"

Zhou Yang materialized instantly, then plunged straight into the atmosphere.

World Force spread rapidly, completely enveloping the entire Earth.

"What a massive change."

At this moment, the 'Ocean Monsters' and 'Land Monsters' that once roamed Earth have long been cleared, and the planet is fully back under human control.

The only shortcoming is that above the once‑cradle of Earth civilization—the vast oceans—numerous floating cities now crowd the sky.

Within those floating cities reside many special humans whose appearances differ greatly from Earthlings; they are powerful branches of the Cosmic Human Race, such as the Ape Race, Snake Race, Winged Race, and so on.

Because of the multitude of floating cities and the diverse special peoples, the Earth before us feels vastly disconnected from the beautiful planet of memory.

"Soon—once I break Immortal and complete the Divine Power conversion, leveraging a further‑advanced Qiankun World, I should already possess a fraction of the Universe Master's 'control over space‑time' might; then perhaps I can discuss with the teacher about reclaiming Earth."

Zhou Yang's World Force continued to sweep over the land.

Over these years, with his large capital injection, the Xingkong Martial Arts Hall and Huaxia Starlight Universe Company that he founded also developed rapidly and have become a powerful force with considerable influence within the Qianwu Universe Nation.

Under the guidance of the Xingkong Martial Arts Hall and Huaxia Starlight Universe Company, Earth's humanity also quickly awakened and grew strong.

Besides cultivating large numbers of Universe Level and Domain Lord Level experts, there are also quite a few Realm Lords! Interestingly, many of those who were the first to break through to Realm Lord are actually veteran Earth powerhouses who survived from the Great Nirvana era all the way to now.

Among them are his hot-tempered teacher named Dong Dao who doesn't understand swords, the venerable elder Jia Yi who devoted half his life to the Huaxia military, and some veteran War Gods from the original Huaxia military.

Also, being able to survive in such a harsh environment and, through self-exploration, cultivate to the level of War God or even beyond, itself indicates they are individuals with relatively outstanding talent.

Moreover, under Zhou Yang's influence, the Xingkong Martial Arts Hall and Huaxia Starlight Universe Company also give special care to those who have made major contributions to Earth's humanity.

Therefore, it is understandable that they are able to stay ahead of all Earth people.

"My parents are still used to living in Mingyue Community."

"Heh, Liu Shu has really put on weight; it seems these days are treating him well."

His gaze swept over, and he quickly noticed many familiar figures.

Besides his parents, Liu Shu and other close ones, there was also Wu Tong, Uncle Wu, who had long been an instructor at the Xingkong Martial Arts Hall, his first angel investor Zhuge Tao, and his high school classmate Wei Wen. Suddenly, his gaze paused, and he discovered an extremely unexpected figure.

(End of chapter)