Douluo Unrivaled: The Beginning Materializes the Black Abyss and White Flowers

The buildings in the distance are no longer cold piles of steel and concrete.

They resemble giant, living, breathing crystals, their surfaces shimmering with a soft glow, their forms and structures completely overturning traditional architectural principles.

Huo Yuhao saw a virtual waterfall cascading down the exterior wall of a building hundreds of meters high. Several lifelike holographic koi fish were swimming upstream in the water, eventually leaping out of the water and turning into specks of light that merged into the air.

Even though he is now the top level 10 Soul Master in Douluo Continent, capable of personally crafting city-destroying weapons like fixed-position Soul Guidance Cannons, he still feels like an apprentice from a barbaric era when walking through this city.

The soul-guided technology contained here is too vast and too profound.

He can understand the energy core of those maglev trains and comprehend the basic principles of those ecological cycle systems.

But he couldn't understand how the city, as a whole, could withstand the fierce winds and low temperatures at 10,000 meters above sea level.

He also couldn't explain how the energy laws behind the dome-shaped canopy, which were capable of distorting reality, operated.

Not to mention the anti-gravity core that keeps the entire city suspended, hidden beneath the foundation and supposedly directly connected to the planet's core energy source; its technology is completely beyond his comprehension.

Over the years, although he has spent most of his time in seclusion cultivating and trying to break through to the realm of gods, he has never stopped observing this world.

He witnessed the end of the war, the birth of the Star Alliance, and the earth-shaking changes that took place in the world in just a few short years.

He had to admit that the Star Sea Alliance, or rather, Lu Jingming, had done an excellent job.

It was so good that it was almost perfect and awe-inspiring.

The wounds of war were completely healed in just a few years thanks to the Alliance's almost limitless resources and efficient administrative capabilities.

Displaced refugees were resettled in a brand-new, fully-equipped Union community.

Cities destroyed by war are reborn through more advanced planning.

For those who disobey, the alliance's methods are ruthless and efficient.

Absolute power suppressed all dissent.

Those reclusive sects that were high and mighty in the old era, disregarding imperial power and influencing the decisions of a country at will, such as the Haotian Sect, were all brought out of the deep mountains and forests by the law enforcement team of the Fools.

After witnessing the space-based kinetic energy weapon that could easily wipe their entire sect and mountain off the map, these ancient sects, which have been passed down for thousands of years, wisely chose to register with the Alliance and become "non-governmental organizations protected and regulated by the Alliance's laws."

Although the old aristocratic system was nominally retained to appease the people, some aspects of it were still preserved.

But it has long since changed beyond recognition.

All hereditary territories, private armies, and most importantly, legal privileges were forcibly reclaimed by the Alliance with an unquestionable stance.

Those nobles who once had the power to decide the life and death of commoners are now no different from ordinary wealthy citizens, except for a nice-sounding title and a one-time compensation from the alliance that is enough to ensure their livelihood for generations.

Would they dare to resist?

dare not.

Because the first to jump out and try to unite the old nobles and launch a rebellion, the Duke of the Sun and Moon Empire, just three hours after he had gathered a private guard of less than five thousand men, had his castle smashed into the ground three hundred meters deep by a huge, cold nail falling from the sky, along with himself and all his will to resist, and physically vanished from the face of the earth.

Since then, no one has dared to challenge the authority of the league.

Lu Jingming's methods were like a precise surgical scalpel, accurately removing all the rotten flesh and tumors from this society, while carefully preserving the still-viable tissues and providing them with sufficient nutrients so that they could smoothly transition into the new ecosystem.

The Alliance's policies towards civilians are unprecedentedly favorable.

Every child, once they reach the age of six, will have a professional awakener from the Alliance's Civil Affairs and Awakening Department come to their home to awaken their martial spirit.

This service is completely free and covers every corner of the planet, leaving no one out, not even the most remote villages.

Children who awaken their soul power will be uniformly sent to the primary soul master academy established by the alliance to receive six years of completely free basic education.

Here, they can learn not only how to meditate and how to acquire spirit rings, but also the laws of the Alliance and various basic scientific and cultural knowledge.

The Star Alliance, which has integrated the resources of the entire planet, has become incredibly wealthy.

Supporting such a massive, globally-covering, free education system for all is hardly a burden for it.

Huo Yuhao walked through a huge park and saw a group of children playing and frolicking on the lawn.

Not far away, their parents sat on a bench, watching the scene with smiles and chatting easily.

"What a Star Sea Alliance... what a Lu Jingming... to govern a world that is a dog-eat-dog world, chaotic and disorderly, to such an extent is nothing short of a miracle. I admire him."

An aged yet wise voice echoed gently in Huo Yuhao's spiritual sea.

That's Electrolux.

This former necromantic scourge, the Holy Law of the Dead, spoke with heartfelt admiration and praise.

"Yes, yes, it's incredible! I can actually see a day when humans and us soul beasts can live together peacefully."

Another voice, full of amazement and energy, rang out loudly; it was Tianmeng Ice Silkworm.

A subtle smile appeared on Huo Yuhao's lips.

It is impossible to completely resolve the deep-seated hatred and blood feud between humans and spirit beasts that has lasted for hundreds of thousands of years in just a few years.

Privately, frictions and conflicts arising from various historical issues still occur from time to time.

There are still humans whose family members died tragically at the hands of soul beasts, and they harbor a deep-seated hatred for them.

There are still those soul beasts whose races were slaughtered by human soul masters, who are full of distrust and vigilance towards humans.

However, no one dared to openly display this hatred.

Because the laws of the Star Alliance are the sharpest guillotine hanging over everyone's head.

The one who wields this guillotine is the life-long Grand Justice of the Supreme Court of the Alliance, a member of the Pantheon, and the successor to the position of the God of Asura—Cerydra.

This iron-fisted Caesar was truly impartial and incorruptible.

In her eyes, there are no humans, no spirit beasts, only law-abiding citizens and lawbreakers.

Her judgments never showed any leniency. Under such harsh laws that were unreasonable and indiscriminate in their application of race, no one dared to cause trouble, no matter how much resentment or hatred they harbored.

Moreover, everyone knows that the current ruler of the Soul Beast race, the Silver Dragon King Gu Yuena, and the supreme ruler of the Alliance, the Emperor of the Star Sea Empire, Lu Jingming, are a well-known couple.

Now, who on the entire continent dares to provoke the leader of this alliance?
What about those truly unruly and rebellious troublemakers?
They were all packaged up and thrown by the Alliance, on charges of endangering public safety, into a place they loved most—an extraterritorial battlefield.

There, they could have a no-holds-barred, all-out battle royale with the antimatter legions that only knew destruction and slaughter.

Huo Yuhao raised his head and looked up at the huge holographic projection screen in the sky above the city.

On the screen, a stirring recruitment video from the front lines is playing.

"Warning! Warning! The antimatter legion from the Abyss is gathering and attempting to break through the 7th defense line. Warriors of the Star Sea, take up your weapons! Join us to protect our homeland and for the glory of the Alliance, and crush those scum from the Abyss!"

The scene depicts an antimatter army that blots out the sky, composed of all sorts of hideous and twisted monsters.

Behind them stood two enormous figures, exuding an aura of overwhelming destruction, like gods and demons—the Great Lords of Annihilation, Xingxiao and Huanlong.

Meanwhile, the Alliance soldiers, piloting sleek mechs and wielding powerful soul-guided weapons, engaged in a fierce battle against these monsters on the battlefield amidst the raging flames of war.

The entire promotional video, accompanied by rousing music and the announcer's stirring narration, made countless young Soul Masters who passed by feel their blood boil, wishing they could immediately sign up for the army and go to the foreign battlefield where they could shed blood and make a name for themselves.

Huo Yuhao watched quietly, but a hint of something only he himself understood flashed in his eyes.

The Star Sea Alliance unified the Douluo Continent, but it is not without its challenges.

In the propaganda, the two culprits who once bewitched the former Sun Moon Empire Emperor Xu Tianran and brought war to the world, Xingxiao and Huanlong, were not completely eliminated.

They led the remaining antimatter legion to a vast plane called the Abyss Plane, and forcibly connected it to the crystal wall of Douluo Continent.

From then on, a buffer zone called the Extraterritorial Battlefield was created outside the Douluo Continent.

Monsters from the abyss are coming in droves, attempting to invade the Douluo Continent.

Meanwhile, the Alliance has established countless interstellar fortresses and stationed a large number of troops in the outer battlefields, firmly keeping the flames of war outside their own borders.

Although, due to the suppression of the plane's will, the members of those antimatter legions would have their strength greatly weakened once they arrived on the Douluo Continent, and would not pose a real threat at all.

But as long as the Abyss Plane and the Antimatter Legion exist, the threat to the entire Alliance will always exist.

This is a fact that all people firmly believe.

It is also the most important external pressure that the alliance uses to maintain internal unity and keep the whole society in a state of sufficient crisis.

But Huo Yuhao knew that it was all fake.

The so-called invasion of the antimatter legion, the so-called threat from the abyss plane, the so-called revenge of the Annihilation Lord...

It was all just a grand drama, orchestrated by Lu Jingming himself, large enough to deceive the entire world...

Xingxiao and Huanlong do exist, but their relationship with Lu Jingming is one of tacit mutual exploitation.

Lu Jingming deliberately left behind such a clear enemy; his purpose is obvious.

First, it facilitates internal integration.

When there is a common, evil external enemy, all internal conflicts can be temporarily suppressed and put aside.

Hatred between humans and spirit beasts? Conflict between nobles and commoners?
Compared to the greater cause of defending our homeland and resisting foreign enemies, all of these seem insignificant.

Second, keep the alliance in a constant state of crisis.

Comfort can lead to decadence and stagnation of civilization.

Only a constant threat looming overhead can compel the entire alliance to continuously develop technology, cultivate powerful individuals, and maintain a vigorous and fighting spirit.

Third, it provides an outlet for those forces that have nowhere to go.

Those naturally belligerent soul masters, those heinous criminals, those ambitious individuals dissatisfied with reality... rather than letting them cause trouble from within, it's better to throw them all into the giant meat grinder of the extraterritorial battlefield.

If you survive, you're a hero of the league; if you die, you've made a final contribution to the league.

After all, even though they died, their power could still give back to the world, making Douluo Star stronger.

Killing the creations of the Abyss Plane also allows Douluo Star to absorb more energy from the Abyss Plane, making it stronger.

What a brilliant scheme! Using the world as a chessboard and all living beings as pawns.

Once again, Huo Yuhao felt a deep sense of respect and fear for that man.

The reason he knows this truth, which is enough to overturn the entire world's understanding, is because of his current identity.

He is the eighth throne of "World Serpent," the most mysterious and powerful organization under Lu Jingming.

At the same time, he is also a member of the Pantheon, the true highest authority in the Alliance.

For ordinary people, the name "Pantheon" is still just a legendary, ethereal place.

But for someone of Huo Yuhao's level, he knew very well that it was a real, divine realm that Lu Jingming had personally created, a realm unique to the Douluo Continent.

It is a special demiplane that lies between the material world and higher-dimensional space.

This is the abode of all the gods of the alliance, and also the true decision-making center that determines the future direction of the entire alliance and even the entire planet.

But the threshold for entering the Pantheon is so high it's almost despairing.

—It must be a level 100 true god.

Even now, due to the fusion of the world and the upgrading of the planet, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in the Douluo Continent is more than ten times richer than in the old era, and all kinds of rare and precious materials are emerging one after another, making the cultivation environment far superior to the past.

However, breaking through the limits of mortals, igniting the divine fire, condensing a divine position, and becoming a true god remains extremely difficult.

Most of the gods in the Pantheon were former members of the City of the Abyss. (End of Chapter)