I picked up attributes in Swallowing Star.

Of course, no one knows what will happen before it occurs, so we cannot think about the worst-case scenario, because that will lead to meaningless anxiety. All situations can only be truly achieved by being based on the existing situation.

Therefore, although Luo Yuan was prepared and had some countermeasures, he still focused his time and energy on the present, because only by solving the immediate problems could he continuously gain more opportunities in the future. Thus, Luo Yuan began to move closer to the core area on his own.

When Luo Yuan finally arrived at the core area, he discovered that a city had been built there as well. However, the size of this city was incomparable to the city he had seen before. This was mainly because the number of powerful individuals living in the core area was not large to begin with.

Moreover, most of them are powerful individuals who have reached the star level or above, so they don't need to set up corresponding facilities. After reaching this level, if they want to improve their strength, they can only rely on more precious resources. They will also spend as much time as possible on closed-door cultivation.

They won't come out unless absolutely necessary, but that doesn't mean there's no one defending the area. After all, these people need to be ready at any time, so they regularly rotate the strong defenders to ensure that nothing happens to the core area and the planet.

Moreover, if a very troublesome situation arises, all the experts who are in seclusion can be brought out to face it together. Therefore, when Luo Yuan arrived at the core area, two people who were specifically assigned to guard the area immediately appeared. They were quite surprised to see Luo Yuan because of the identity he had changed into.

He had just finished receiving his mission and went out to carry it out not long ago, but he had already returned. Moreover, he was alone from beginning to end, and the other person who accompanied him was nowhere to be seen. Luo Yuan faced the situation according to the previous plan, so he did not encounter any obstacles.

Even though he had to undergo an examination in the core area, including a check on his soul and spiritual aura, he met all the requirements and there were no problems in the end. However, Xu Changsheng gave an explanation for the disappearance of another companion, saying that a very powerful being had appeared in the city.

Then they collected all the resources but did not send them to the core area, which is why these resources were not transported on schedule. In fact, this time when the two of them went out to fight, they lost a powerful warrior before they were able to eliminate the enemy. However, Luo Yuan did not bring back the resources that were consumed.

Luo Yuan explained that these resources had already been used by that powerful figure. Although this explanation seemed somewhat far-fetched, the powerful figure who was specifically stationed in the core area did not punish Luo Yuan in any way, since there were not many powerful figures in the core area.

Moreover, each of them can be considered a future comrade-in-arms, and they have been cultivated by that lord at great cost. Therefore, it is impossible for them to have conflicts over such a small amount of resources. This is mainly because after they reach the corresponding level, if they want to improve further, they can only rely on that lord to bring more precious resources from the universe.

At this point, they also realized that even if all the resources on the planet were concentrated in one place, it wouldn't be of much help to their own cultivation. If it weren't for ensuring the normal operation of the entire planet, they wouldn't have requested that the resources be transported over regularly.

The purpose of doing this is actually to better control the entire planet. If all these resources are used by the powerful under their command, they will lose their sense of awe and may eventually have other ideas after they become stronger.

Therefore, even if these resources are not of much use to these powerful individuals, they still have to collect them according to the rules. Since a situation has arisen this time, there is no need to specifically target a powerful individual for this matter. After all, when everyone enters the universe to fight, they can provide each other with great assistance.

Moreover, Luo Yuan's performance was outstanding, without any problems, so these powerful figures had no reason to doubt him. However, the fact that a powerful figure from the core area could perish in the outside world meant that the various forces and families in that city also had other ideas.

In other words, the powerful figures of those forces and families might want to gather more resources to become stronger and thus have the power to rebel against the powerful figures in the core area, since the powerful figures in the core area are the true management of the entire planet.

However, these managers do not give any benefits to those who contribute resources. On the contrary, they will not hesitate to eliminate them if problems arise. So, over time, the conflict between the two will only grow larger, since there are only so many resources.

If most of them are transported to the core, it will slow down the growth rate of most of the powerful beings on the planet, affecting their future. Many people want to become stronger, gain a higher status, and become members of the core.

However, the problem is that these powerful individuals in the core area also have their own affairs to attend to. They do not want more powerful individuals to emerge and vie for their positions, because according to the information they have received, the lord has set a limit on the number of talented individuals he is cultivating.

If the number of qualified individuals exceeds the limit, then these powerful individuals will be forced to fight among themselves until the number is reduced to the required level. For the planetary lord, this is merely a test and selection process, as he needs to choose the most outstanding and powerful warriors to fight for him.

Only in this way can one gain a foothold in the universe. After all, it is very difficult for a powerful person with no background to continuously explore the universe and obtain more resources. Therefore, any resource he obtains must be used in the most important places.

It's impossible to use all the powerful beings on the planet, so he can only cultivate a certain number of powerful beings for his own use based on the amount of resources he has. In order to reduce competition and ensure his own safety, these powerful beings will choose to use these resources.

By restricting the development of other powerful beings on the planet in some way, it is possible to address the fact that these powerful beings have lived on the planet for so long and often have a certain force behind them. If something happens to them, it means that the force that relies on them will also be affected.

Among these forces are people that these powerful individuals value, such as their descendants or relatives and friends. In any case, these powerful individuals all think from the same perspective, considering what is most valuable and beneficial to them.

So even though the lord was dissatisfied with their behavior, he did not directly order them to change their original practices. This was because the lord also knew what these powerful people were worried about. If they had no one behind them to protect, it was actually quite dangerous to some extent.

Because those who need protection become the weaknesses of these powerful people, and it is precisely because of these weaknesses that the nation can better control them, making them fight for them and gain more resources and territory.

If, under such circumstances, someone is still able to rise to prominence and eventually become a member of the core territory, it means that their excellence has met the corresponding requirements, and then the lord will promote them.

However, a fixed class has now formed, and it is precisely because of this class distinction that different forces fight each other to compete for more benefits. Don't be fooled by the fact that different forces and families on this planet seem to control a lot of resources or have corresponding status; there are also many conflicts between them.

However, it is precisely this contradiction that motivates the powerful beings on this planet to compete with each other, and they will constantly strive to become stronger. All the monsters in the wilderness, including the resources for cultivation, are arranged and deployed by that lord himself.

This is essentially providing a channel for those talented individuals without a background to grow rapidly. However, judging from the current situation, the number of talented individuals from ordinary backgrounds who can eventually reach that lord is actually very small.

However, there was nothing that could be done. The lord could not afford to offend these powerful individuals whom he had painstakingly cultivated for the sake of so-called geniuses. No matter how outstanding a genius is, it is of little significance if they cannot ultimately grow into a powerful being, because even the highest potential does not truly make them strong immediately.

On the contrary, these already grown strong individuals are the combat power that can be used directly. The lord was very clear about this principle, so he did not interfere in the various disputes among the different strong individuals on this planet, because he only cared about the outcome.

As long as these powerful individuals meet his requirements and ultimately do not affect his future development, that is enough. Luo Yuan doesn't know if it's the same on other planets, but at least on this planet, powerful individuals from ordinary backgrounds often have little future.

That's because they can't get more cultivation resources and inheritances. Even if they have excellent talent, it is still very difficult for them to truly grow up. However, Luo Yuan is here with the mindset of completing a mission, so he has no interest in the internal struggles between the different forces on this planet.

Even if he knew the situation between these powerful figures, there was nothing he needed to interfere with, because he knew very well that as long as he controlled enough power, any conflict would ultimately be meaningless. Even if they strengthened their own side through continuous cooperation, as long as their lord returned, it would be enough to suppress all beings.

Luo Yuan is now safely in the core area, and without arousing the suspicion of these powerful figures, he can proceed with his next move. As far as you know, there are a total of eight elders in this core area, who are the eight most powerful among these hundreds of star-level experts.

They can directly decide everything in the core area and on the planet. In other words, when the lord is not around, these eight people are essentially the highest leaders of the planet. However, they do not usually appear in public but spend their time cultivating. They do not need to spend time guarding the core area.

If Luo Yuan wants to control this planet, the best way is to control all eight elders. However, given his current status, he has no chance to come into contact with such beings unless his strength can be rapidly increased and he becomes qualified to challenge the eight elders. In that case, the eight elders will have no choice but to come out and accept Luo Yuan's challenge.

According to the rules set by the lord, the seats held by these eight elders are obtained through continuous challenges, and only the eight strongest individuals can ultimately claim them. Therefore, they are not fixed. Anyone who believes they have the right to challenge can make a request to the elders, and these elders have no right to refuse.

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Chapter 874 Challenge

Chapter 874 Challenge

Since Luo Yuan couldn't directly contact these eight elders through other means, he decided to improve his strength and then meet them in the most direct way. Moreover, according to the rules, he could start by challenging the weakest elder.

If Luo Yuan can defeat him, he can take his place. This will not only allow him to obtain more resources, but also make him a true high-ranking member of this core area. Then, it will be much easier for Luo Yuan to contact other elders.

Luo Yuan did not want the other elders to know his true strength during the operation, so he preferred to defeat them one by one to achieve his goal. After all, these elders were quite powerful, and their combined strength would be enough to put Luo Yuan under some pressure.

After all, his current strength comes from starting cultivation anew, and he has only just broken through to the fifth level of the Stellar Realm. However, according to his understanding, those who can become Elder-level experts must have a cultivation level of at least the seventh level of the Stellar Realm.

Luo Yuan possesses a wide variety of combat techniques and has extensive combat experience, so he could potentially defeat a single elder if he were to challenge one now. However, if he were to fight all the elders, the final outcome would be unpredictable.

For Luo Yuan, he would not make a move unless there was a very high chance of success. Only by acting in a steady manner could he control the overall situation and ultimately achieve victory. For Luo Yuan, he only had one life, and all the strong people who participated in the genius assessment were all here in their true forms.

Even if some preparations have been made beforehand, there is no guarantee that the original body can be resurrected through those methods after its fall. After all, no one knows whether those methods will be recognized by the rules of the universe and whether they will ultimately achieve the desired effect.

Similarly, no genius or powerful individual would attempt such a thing, as it would put them in a very dangerous situation. Therefore, to ensure their safety, they would never use their prepared backup measures unless absolutely necessary, and thus they would need to be extremely careful in ordinary times.

Although Luo Yuan's current combat strength qualified him to directly challenge the elder with the lowest status and strength, namely the eighth-ranked elder, he would not do so because he knew that these powerful figures were under the control of that lord.

They brought back more powerful inheritance methods from the universe, or some cultivation resources to help them improve their strength. Therefore, Luo Yuan did not know the true extent of their combat power. He could not assume that these strong people were weaker than him based on his usual judgment.

The main reason is that Luo Yuan doesn't understand the specific situation of the entire universe, so he doesn't know the level of development of the most advanced civilization in this universe. This is why Luo Yuan decided to first take control of the entire planet, and then learn some information about the universe after taking control of that lord before setting off.

Therefore, Luo Yuan continued with his normal lifestyle. Apart from the fixed times when he needed to guard and defend, he spent the rest of his time cultivating. As one of the lowest-level defensive forces in this core area, Luo Yuan...

Therefore, they would definitely receive the fewest cultivation resources, and they would not be able to access anything that the lord brought back, because only those elders were qualified to use those things directly. Of course, powerful individuals who made significant contributions to the entire planet would also have the opportunity to obtain the cultivation resources prepared by the lord.

However, that would waste a lot of time, so Luo Yuan could only rely on his own talent and understanding of some rules in the universe to continuously improve his combat power. Therefore, his cultivation speed was slower than before, but this was not important to him.

That's because he knew that the powerful beings on the planet were actually developing at a slower pace than him. Even the powerful beings in the core area needed more high-level resources to break through after their cultivation reached a certain level.

However, that lord was wandering outside the universe and could not bring them more resources in a short period of time, so their cultivation levels were basically stagnant and it was difficult for them to improve quickly. Luo Yuan's cultivation speed was definitely faster than all the strong people in the core area.

Therefore, he decided to raise his cultivation to the eighth level of the Stellar level before implementing the next plan. According to his understanding, the first elder in this core area must have the strength of the ninth level of the Stellar level, so the eighth-ranked elder's cultivation level is likely only the seventh level of the Stellar level.

As long as Luo Yuan's strength is one minor realm higher than the eighth elder, coupled with his various powerful methods and rich combat experience, defeating the opponent is practically a sure thing. So Luo Yuan began his closed-door cultivation process.

Moreover, nothing unexpected happened on the entire planet; it continued to operate as usual, as if Luo Yuan's arrival had not had much of an impact on the planet, even on the powerful figures in the city that Luo Yuan had previously controlled.

They were unaware that Luo Yuan had already left. Following Luo Yuan's instructions, they sent most of the cultivation resources to the core area as usual, leaving only some resources containing primordial power, waiting for Luo Yuan to return and take them away. The cultivation process of a strong person usually takes a long time.

After all, their lifespan is much longer than that of ordinary people, so they often cultivate in seclusion and basically don't care too much about the passage of time. That's why Luo Yuan cultivated for twenty years before he realized that his strength had already increased to the eighth level of the Stellar level that he had originally expected.

Moreover, Luo Yuan did not use any cultivation resources during this period because he was well aware of his new identity and that it was impossible for him to obtain more cultivation resources here. In addition, the hierarchy in this core area was very clear.

Although only a hundred or so powerful individuals have been guarding this place, in order to ensure that their own status is not affected, they will, to some extent, limit the growth rate of those who are weaker than them. This situation is basically the same everywhere.

After all, as long as they have their own thoughts, they will use their own interests as the standard when thinking about problems. Moreover, the ultimate goal of these powerful people is to gain better benefits for themselves. Even if they are to help that lord seize resources and expand territory, it is only because of their strength.

They are weaker than that lord, so for now they can only rely on the resources given by that lord to be trained. Eventually, when they are strong enough, they will become the sharpest blade in their lord's hands. However, this does not mean that they will always obey that lord's orders.

They also hope that once they become stronger, they can control their own destiny and even become even more powerful. Those who have reached the current level of strength actually have their own judgment and will not be easily swayed by any ideology.

Luo Yuan reached a level that most of the powerful people here could only dream of achieving in just twenty years. This was mainly because Luo Yuan's original cultivation level was already very high, so when he started cultivating again, he was able to discover all the problems he encountered and solve them quickly.

So his cultivation speed must be very fast. If it weren't for the limited cultivation resources, he would have broken through to his current level in an even shorter time. But none of that matters, because he has already achieved his goal. Now he can directly challenge the weakest elder.

However, he needed to find a reason to explain why he was able to improve his cultivation level in such a short time. It was absolutely impossible for him to say that he had a strong talent for cultivation and thus reached his current level, because all the disciples here actually knew each other quite well.

After all, there are only a few of them, and they have been living in this environment for a long time. They will all have some understanding of each other's strength and talent. If they are not deliberately hiding their strength, it is very easy to tell.

When Luo Yuan first returned, his cultivation level was just like the other guards, only at the fifth level of the Stellar level. So no matter how he explained it, it was difficult to explain why his cultivation level had improved so quickly. After thinking it over, Luo Yuan decided that the best way was to directly tell the others that he had been hiding his strength.

While this reason might be hard for others to truly believe, they cannot deny it either. After all, everyone has their own secrets, and some powerful individuals do so in order to grow faster and also to guard against threats from other powerful individuals.

It is very common to deliberately hide one's strength. After all, living in this core area, who can guarantee that the strength that everyone shows is their true combat power? Moreover, it is difficult to accurately judge a person's cultivation talent. One can only judge it by their usual cultivation speed.

Therefore, if he deliberately concealed his strength and talent, no one else would know. For Luo Yuan, he only needed to find a reason, so he simply proposed to the eighth elder that he wanted to challenge him.

As soon as Luo Yuan made this request, he knew that the information had spread throughout the core area. It was clear that apart from the few elders who had been in seclusion, all the remaining powerhouses knew that Luo Yuan wanted to directly challenge the eighth elder.

At the same time, they also knew that Luo Yuan's cultivation had actually reached the seventh level of the Stellar stage. Of course, this was only the strength that Luo Yuan had shown. His true cultivation had actually reached the eighth level of the Stellar stage. If he did not show it, then other powerful people would not know, because Luo Yuan's method of concealment was to be used by all the powerful people on the planet.

Even the lord couldn't possibly discover it. And the request that Luo Yuan is making is something that most of the powerful people in the core area of ​​the planet want to do. The reason why they spend so much time cultivating is that they want to have the opportunity to challenge those elders who have the highest status.

Many people have been waiting for this day for a long time, but because their cultivation level has not reached the standard, they will not easily make such a choice. Now that Luo Yuan has reached the realm they have been dreaming of ahead of time, and is going to directly challenge that elder.

That means Luo Yuan's strength has surpassed theirs. Luo Yuan's usual combat talent and various abilities are no different from those of the other guards, which has shocked the other guards. Therefore, they attach great importance to this challenge, since it has been a long time since a guard-level being has challenged an elder.

In fact, the eighth elder was the target that all the guards wanted to challenge, but they didn't really know the extent of that elder's current strength. If Luo Yuan could make that elder show all his combat abilities through this challenge, it would be a good thing.

At least it can allow those powerful individuals who are aiming to advance to the seventh level of the Stellar Realm to prepare in advance. Moreover, regardless of whether Luo Yuan succeeds in the end, it is still unacceptable for these powerful individuals, because in that case, the strength of either the elder or Luo Yuan will be displayed in front of them. Only by knowing these targets to challenge can they truly understand the combat power.

Only then can they know which direction to cultivate in, and ultimately replace it after victory. What these powerful individuals truly value is whether they can become beings with a higher status, because only in this way can they have more cultivation resources.

Moreover, these powerful individuals all understand that once their strength reaches the required level, they will be sent by that lord and given corresponding benefits. Therefore, obtaining more resources and status is what they are truly concerned about now, even though Luo Yuan is a force that exists in the same way as them.

It was quite strange that he could reach a level that even they found difficult to achieve in such a short time. However, after hearing Luo Yuan's explanation, they didn't completely disbelieve him, considering that it would take twenty years.

Reaching this level with so few resources seems impossible, yet Luo Yuan accomplished it. This suggests that Luo Yuan's hidden strength and cultivation are likely very high. Now, all they need to do is patiently wait and watch the battle between Luo Yuan and that elder. Moreover, this is a grand event for everyone in the core area.

Because these people cultivate here for a long time and have basically no other activities, they are quite bored. Now that it's not uncommon for strong individuals to challenge each other, they can take this opportunity to relieve their boredom.

Moreover, if one cultivates alone, there will often be many problems that are difficult to solve. During the cultivation process, they will definitely find that it is difficult to improve in certain aspects. Therefore, they need to observe the various abilities displayed by other strong people in battle, and use this as a reference to further improve themselves.

It is obvious that those elders are absolute powerhouses in the entire core area, and those who dare to challenge elders must also be very powerful among other powerhouses, otherwise they would not have made such a choice.

Because failing a challenge means losing the right to obtain resources for a considerable period of time, and without the necessary resources, it will be much slower to continue improving one's strength. Therefore, all the strong individuals who submit challenge applications must make thorough preparations.

Furthermore, they must push their strength to its current limit and only apply after they believe they possess the potential of those elders. Therefore, the strength possessed by Luo Yuan or that elder will certainly benefit all the children present. They hope to gain inspiration during the battle so that they can advance further.

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(End of this chapter)

Chapter 875. Taking its place.

When the news that Luo Yuan was going to challenge the eighth elder was officially conveyed to the elders who were in seclusion, they were very surprised, because it had been a long time since anyone had dared to challenge them.

However, apart from the eighth elder who was somewhat surprised, the other elders did not take such a matter to heart, because they still needed to spend their time on cultivation.

For them, as long as they are strong enough, they can face any problem. Even if someone dares to challenge them, they have nothing to worry about.