Void Year 7999.
The star world of Lingxiao Cave Heaven, ranked first among the Thirty-Six Cave Heavens, had lifted its entry restrictions. Countless warriors who had been waiting outside the star world surged in, spreading out across every corner.
The number of warriors who had gathered from every direction was enormous. Though the crowd was a motley mix of all sorts, none dared cause trouble. Once inside the star world, regardless of their temperament, everyone became meek and well-behaved.
This was not only because the star world was the territory of the Number One Cave Heaven — it was also because every other major Cave Heaven and Blessed Ground maintained a dojo here.
The entire star world could be described as a place where Seventh-Order cultivators walked the streets in droves, Eighth-Order cultivators were as common as dogs, and only the legendary Ninth-Order powerhouses — those who rarely showed themselves — had any right to strut around.
Anyone bold enough to cause trouble here would be fortunate to see tomorrow's sunrise, let alone tonight's moon.
The reason the star world had become so lively was primarily because the Void Grand Ceremony, held once every thousand years, was about to take place here. Many of the younger generation had no clear understanding of this ceremony's origins — they only knew that since the beginning of the Void calendar, seven such ceremonies had already been held. Including the one about to commence, this would be the eighth.
Legend had it that eight thousand years ago, the human race had lived in extraordinarily dire conditions. During that era, a race known as the Mo Race existed across the myriad worlds, and they had nearly driven humanity to extinction, seizing dominion over all creation. At humanity's most desperate hour, the race teetered on the very brink of annihilation.
However, through the tireless efforts and tenacious resistance of humanity's ancient sages, the human race gradually stabilized its footing. In the end, they marshaled the full strength of their entire race and launched an expedition that eradicated the Mo Race completely. From that point on, humanity became the true masters of the myriad worlds.
The Void Grand Ceremony was held to honor those human sages who had fallen in the battle against the Mo Race, and it could be called the single greatest gathering of the entire human race.
The ceremony lasted for one full year. During that year, anyone was free to enter the star world. It had to be remembered that as the territory of the Number One Cave Heaven, the star world was ordinarily off-limits to all unauthorized persons.
This was not because Lingxiao Cave Heaven was tyrannical — it was simply a necessary measure.
After the great war ended eight thousand years ago, the human race had quelled the Mo Plague that had persisted for millions of years, but at a staggering cost.
Countless human sages had perished in battle, to say nothing of the fact that the Three Thousand Worlds had already been ravaged beyond recognition by the Mo Race. At present, the only environments suitable for human survival and reproduction were the star worlds of the Lingxiao Domain, the Demon Domain, and a handful of other realms within the Myriad Demon Domain.
Living conditions and survival resources were severely constrained. Cultivation materials, while not exactly scarce, were far from abundant.
Under such circumstances, if too many warriors were born, it would inevitably lead to chaos. That was why cultivation could no longer be pursued as freely as it had been eight thousand years ago — it had to be planned and regulated.
As early as eight thousand years ago, the numerous Ninth-Order human cultivators had jointly devised and implemented a policy: anyone with cultivation potential who wished to cultivate had to register with the nearest Cave Heaven or Blessed Ground, which would then arrange their cultivation affairs.
This policy was strictly enforced through the collective effort of all human factions, which meant that every human cultivator alive today — regardless of background or level of cultivation — had a recorded file.
This policy made the already special star world even more special.
The star world possessed a Sub-tree of the World Tree — the first cradle of the Opening Heaven Realm!
The second cradle was the Myriad Demon World.
During the years of humanity's struggle against the Mo Race, the star world and the Myriad Demon World had produced a vast number of high-order warriors for the human race. It could be said that these two cradles of the Opening Heaven Realm had contributed enormously to humanity's victory in the final battle.
But after the war ended, the severely restricted living conditions meant the human race could no longer afford too many new generations of warriors. The existence of the star world and the Myriad Demon World became deeply awkward.
And so, after the expedition's return, when the higher echelons of the human race realized this problem, they made another resolution: apart from the personnel who were essential to remain behind, everyone was to evacuate the star world and the Myriad Demon World — especially the vast numbers of ordinary people.
These ordinary folk truly could not cultivate, but their numbers were enormous, and their descendants would inevitably produce some with cultivation potential. Without restraint, within a few short years there would be even more new warriors, which would certainly spark unnecessary turmoil.
Even those personnel who remained stationed in the star world and the Myriad Demon World were forbidden from bearing children. If anyone insisted on having offspring, they would have to leave these two cradles.
Of course, the higher echelons of the human race knew that such a thing could never be entirely prevented, and so they left a sliver of hope.
That hope lay in the Void Grand Ceremony, held once every thousand years.
During the year the ceremony lasted, everyone was free to enter and leave the star world. If someone managed to be admitted into one of the dojos established by the various Cave Heavens and Blessed Grounds, they naturally earned the right to remain in the star world permanently.
However, over the course of eight thousand years, while the number of people entering the star world at each ceremony was incalculably large, the number who actually succeeded in being admitted into the major dojos was not particularly great.
This had given rise to a peculiar phenomenon: many expectant young couples or pregnant women would enter the star world at this time. The pregnant women, often accompanied by their families, would seek out a place blessed with spiritual energy and rich natural vitality, settling down peacefully to nurture their unborn children so that the infants in their wombs could benefit from the Sub-tree's nourishing influence.
As for the young couples… they arrived as two, but by the time they left, the wife's belly was often swollen.
Yushan Market — a thoroughly unremarkable market town within the star world.
Because of the policy enacted all those years ago, a great number of humans had been evacuated from the star world, leaving it vast and sparsely populated. A place like Yushan Market was ordinarily devoid of any human presence.
It was only recently, with the Grand Ceremony approaching and countless people flooding into the star world, that the market had come to life again.