As the Invictus aligned its massive hull to point directly at the spiritual node where the Exodus was taking place, the heavens themselves seemed to scream in protest. The violet sky turned a bruised, pitch-black, and hundreds of thousands of lightning bolts—each as thick as a skyscraper—began to rain down in a chaotic barrage.

The bolts weren’t hitting the ground; they were hunting. The smaller escort ships were struck repeatedly, their runic shields flickering and popping like bubbles. Inside the main bridge, Elder Xuan Ni stumbled, his knees buckling as he felt his cultivation base suppressed by an invisible, crushing weight.

"Open Sky!" Xuan Ni roared, clutching the armrest of his throne. "What is happening? My spiritual sea is freezing!"

The Venerable Open Sky was frantic, his fingers bleeding as he tried to stabilize his formation plates. "The World Matrix! It hasn’t just repaired itself—it has evolved! It’s drawing on the planet’s final life essence to repel us! It’s stronger than I ever calculated!"

"Pull them back!" Xuan Ni ordered. "All ships, return to the Invictus immediately!"

But his command was a heartbeat too late. From the swirling clouds, the lightning took the shape of celestial dragons, diving like eagles upon their prey. One by one, the five-hundred-meter ships were seized by the electrical talons and torn asunder, their debris falling like meteors onto the scorched earth below.

On the ground, the millions left behind watched the sky with tearful eyes. They cheered, falling to their knees and shouting Ethan’s name. They believed Royal had unleashed a secret weapon—that their King was saving them from the invaders. They had no idea that Ethan was just as terrified as they were, watching the same sky while trying to save his own skin.

[[ Master, the lightning has bought us a window, ]] Crul’s voice pulsed through Ethan’s mind. [[ Departure protocol initiated. Probe deployment in 3... 2... 1... Probe away. ]]

A small, silver sphere shot into the center of the Great Matrix, vanishing into a pinprick of white light. It was the first "Ave Maria"—a scout sent into the void to see if there was a destination on the other side, or only death.

The 100,000 Chosen stood in absolute, suffocating silence. No one breathed. No one moved. They were the last cargo of a sinking ship, waiting to see if the lifeboat would hold.

High above, Elder Xuan Ni ignored the lightning striking the Invictus’s hull. His eyes, sharp and predatory, locked onto the massive energy pulse coming from the Royal Citadel.

"Open Sky," he hissed, pointing at the glowing node. "That energy... that’s a long-distance teleportation pulse, isn’t it?"

"Yes, Elder," Open Sky replied, his voice trembling. "They aren’t fighting us. They are fleeing the world."

"Fleeing?" A cruel, jagged smile spread across Xuan Ni’s face. "No one kills a member of the Crimson Sect and simply walks away. Charge the main cannon! Forget the cities! Destroy that portal!"

The Invictus groaned as it redirected all its remaining power. The massive crimson maw at the prow of the ship began to glow with a blinding, terrifying heat.

Ethan, hovering between his people and the heavens, felt the hair on his neck stand up. It was the feeling of having a loaded gun pressed against his forehead with no way to dodge the bullet.

The King of the Void looked at the glowing cannon, and then at the 100,000 souls behind him.

"Crul," Ethan whispered, his voice cracking. "Tell me that probe found something."

The silence was agonizing, a vacuum that seemed to suck the air from the lungs of every survivor. Then, a sharp, melodic chime echoed through the neural links of every Royal officer.

[Landing site located. Calculating spatial drift... Coordinates locked. Initiate the Leap!]

Jason, standing at the front of the first wave alongside Lord Falcon and the elite Royal Guard, drew his blade. "Royal! For the King! MOVE!"

The first 10,000 soldiers surged forward. As they crossed the threshold of the shimmering portal, the laws of physics buckled. Jason felt as if his soul were being stretched across light-years. When he emerged on the other side, the world was a blur of strange colors and heavy air.

He collapsed to his knees, his vision spinning, nausea threatening to overwhelm his senses. But the years of brutal training kicked in. He didn’t vomit; he didn’t faint. He clawed at the dirt, dragging his body away from the landing platform. He knew the protocol: clear the zone or be crushed by the next wave.

"Clear! Clear the platform!" Jason wheezed, waving his arm frantically.

Lord Falcon, already recovering thanks to his Spiritual Gathering cultivation, began grabbing soldiers by their collars and hurling them toward the perimeter.

Seconds later, the portal flared again. Ryan and the second wave burst through. They hit the ground with wet thuds, reeling from the spatial sickness. Ryan felt like his brain was being scraped with a wire brush, but as he saw Jason and the Falcon guards dragging men out of the way, he forced himself to stand, his hand gripping his sword hilt until his knuckles turned white.

Meanwhile, in the sky above the dying world, a sensor officer on the Invictus screamed in panic.

"Elder! Multiple high-energy signatures are vanishing! They aren’t just hiding—they are gone! They’re escaping the sector!"

"Use the cannon!" Xuan Ni shrieked, his face twisting into a demonic mask of rage. "I don’t care if you vaporize the entire continent! Destroy that portal! Burn it all to the ground!"

The main cannon of the Invictus reached its peak, the crimson glow turning the surrounding clouds into steam. But as the trigger was depressed, the Venerable Open Sky let out a blood-curdling scream.

"NOOOOO! STOP! THE FEEDBACK—"

The World Matrix, sensing the catastrophic build-up of energy, launched its final, desperate counter-attack. Thousands of colossal, violet lightning bolts descended simultaneously, striking the Invictus with the weight of a falling moon. The ship’s shields shattered like glass, and the lightning surged into the charging cannon, turning the weapon’s own power back into its throat.

The sky turned white.

--------------------

From this moment forward, to avoid confusion regarding cultivation ranks, I will include this footer with the current established levels.

Note: These are only the ranks mentioned so far to avoid spoilers.

Body Refinement Realm

Skin Refinement / Bone Refinement / Organ Refinement

Spiritual Gathering Realm

Spiritual Perception / Spiritual Mist / Spiritual Condensation

Spiritual Core Realm 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Core Solidification / Core Awakening / Spiritual Collapse (Half-step Spiritual Core)

Spiritual Soul Realm

Spiritual Soul Awakening / Soul Nourishing / Soul-Core Fusion

Golden Core Realm

Prime Fusion / Core Perfection / Core Destruction

Spiritual Sea Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Dao Manifestation Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Spiritual Transcendence

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??