The Academy remained strictly closed for one week, during which Master Aldo implemented a new set of absolute regulations and ordered every member of the staff to memorize them within the seven days. While the academy buzzed with the frantic effort of memorization, Aldo sat alone in his chambers, drifting deep into a sea of contemplation. "If he placed a Heavenly Restriction on every student capable of reaching the Dao State Realm, then the implications are terrifying; I sensed the aura of Buddha the most strongly, and his cultivation has already reached Step 12, yet like the others, he can only display the power of Step 7 at most." He tapped his finger against the armrest, his pitch-black eyes narrowing. "This applies to the Seven Old Astral Lords as well, but amidst all this, I briefly sensed the distinct aura of Heaven Itself. What are these fools truly chasing? Heaven Itself once mentioned something about this place; he said that to fill the Dao Gap, one requires 50 Heavenly Restrictions, and to fill the World Gap, one needs 100 Heavenly Restrictions, which would then lead to the new level known as the Void Gap. Based on this logic, my level has indeed reached the Void Gap. However, Heaven Itself also stated at the end that the Void Gap is not the final step, but rather a starting point. He used a phrase like 'End of the World' and mentioned that after the Void Gap, there is one final level called the Ancient Gap. He claimed that anyone who reaches this level will be freed from all restrictions and will ascend to the True God Realm. Generally speaking, every step consists of Early, Middle, Late, and the Bridge to Heaven stages, and only those who cross the Bridge to Heaven can ascend to the next phase. But why did I simply jump over them and arrive immediately at the Void Gap?" He tortured himself with these questions, simultaneously unraveling various secrets of the universe as he connected the dots. "From Step 8 onwards, the hierarchy is Holy Angel Realm, False Deity Realm, Fake Deity Realm, Yin Deity Realm, Yang Deity Realm, Perfect Fusion Realm, Yin-Yang Harmony Realm, Half-Deity State Realm, Dao State Realm, Heaven State Realm, Fake Divine Realm, and finally, the True Deity Realm... This means I am currently at the Fake Divine Realm. If I increase my restrictions to 100, there might be a chance to reach the True Deity Realm. Heaven Itself mentioned that his own master was at the True Deity level, but he possessed the foolish notion that after the Great War, his master simply disappeared or left this world for another dimension." Aldo began to laugh to himself as he whispered these words, and suddenly, the true meaning behind the chaos became crystal clear. "It seems he also wants to reach that level and leave this world; in the Inner Space, the highest limit is the Heaven State Realm, and there is nothing above it... ha, that old fox... he intends to sit in his home and achieve this new level from there. The purpose of placing a Heavenly Restriction on every trial participant is exactly this. However, he cannot change the Dimensional Laws that way. Hmm, I understand now, that is why I sensed his aura... He is personally here as well. I must find a way to reach the True Deity Realm as quickly as possible." Occupied by these heavy thoughts, he let the week pass in a blur. Following the grand ceremony announcing the restoration of the academy, he vanished without a trace, seen by no one.
He abandoned the planet surface and surged along the northern celestial path toward the faint aura of Heaven Itself. A sudden, chilling realization struck him as he tried to sense his other selves. "I had seven avatars, but I have lost all connection with every single one of them." They were all at least in the Dao State Realm, yet they had vanished instantly. "Something terrible has happened to the Inner Space... I cannot feel the Inner Space anymore." It was simply gone. "I think this old fox tried to change the laws, but he only succeeded in bringing down Heaven's Calamity upon the world." If that was true, then the Inner Space no longer existed. Heaven's Calamity leaves behind a dead world similar to the one he was born in, but no one survives the wreckage of such a disaster. "I will ask the rest from him directly." He immediately formed a complex twelve-layer mixed restriction in his hand and utilized the Soul Teleportation Restriction to embed it directly into the reincarnated soul of Heaven Itself. Through this connection, he forcibly performed a soul search and completely assimilated every fragment of the target's memories. "You may deserve to live, but you certainly do not deserve to be Heaven Itself; it is better if I seal your memories and place a restriction on you." He spoke these words into the void and remotely installed the twelve mixed restrictions onto the soul while simultaneously sealing the physical body. He crafted the seal by linking a Memory Restriction with a deadly Annihilation Restriction. If anyone dared to break or fracture the Memory Restriction, the Annihilation Restriction would instantly trigger and completely erase the intruder's memories. Once the task was finished, he rushed back to the Astro Hildo Academy with blinding speed. "Inner Space is no more," he whispered in a tone heavy with infinite grief and sorrow, and a single tear traced a path down his cheek. A few seconds later, he arrived at the gates of Astro Hildo Academy and walked silently into the Head Master's office.
Although he had chosen not to kill his former master, he certainly had no intention of allowing the old man to interfere with his future plans. The total destruction of the Inner World and the subsequent reincarnation of every single living being into Outer Space was a bizarre phenomenon that filled Aldo with a mixture of shock and creeping dread. It was statistically impossible because the Inner World had contained approximately one hundred and twenty-two Dimension 3 worlds, and although his home dimension was technically a Dimension 3 world, it had possessed a density of power far superior to the others. He sat silently in the dim light of the chamber, sifting through the stolen memories of Heaven Itself to calculate the exact world level required to reach the True God Realm. "Hmm, world levels range from zero to five, and the absolute highest level is five, but one requires at least a Dimension 4 world to ascend to the level of a deity." He gritted his teeth in frustration, realizing the sheer stupidity of the situation. "Hah, that stupid old man does not realize that Outer Space is a Dimension 0 world, a lawless void of absolute chaos. To become a God, one must be in a distinct world separate from this void, but how can one possibly build a stable world in this place?" He clutched his head, questioning his own past judgment. "Why was I so foolish before I came to this place?" He shook off the hesitation and immediately issued a strict command to the academy staff that he was not to be disturbed under any circumstances, entering a state of deep seclusion. He began to work tirelessly on his cultivation. His primary goal was to increase the number of Mixed Restrictions within his body to the absolute limit. As he closed his eyes and sank into the profound depths of his cultivation, a shift occurred far away in the Dragon Emperor Realm. The Heaven Itself, despite being sealed, had managed to shatter the restrictions Aldo had placed upon his soul. Even though he had been reborn in the Dragon Emperor Realm, he was, after all, still the Heaven Itself.
"I will be the King of Worlds, Heaven Itself!" The voice, intended to shake the heavens, came out only as the shrill, unintelligible cry of a newborn. He had been reborn into a family of ordinary dragons, possessing only the Space Dragon bloodline; while it was not the worst lineage, it was humiliatingly average compared to his former glory. His parents stood over him, exchanging bewildered glances until his father finally spoke, "What is he? Hey wife, look at this child, he was born crazy." The infant ignored them, retreating into his thoughts with a burning vengeance. "Whoever placed this restriction on me, I will find them and kill them myself; for now, I must quietly increase my strength, enter the Ancient Order Valley, and become a God." Although he plotted his ascent, the specific memories of his defeat were locked away, and while he believed he was being secretive, Aldo was already aware of his existence and had simply chosen to ignore him for the moment. As time flowed on, the world settled into a fragile, deceptive peace. In the Di Qi Realm, Buddha had successfully overcome the lawlessness of the world, surpassing the Peak of Step 15 and stepping into the Initial Stage of the World Gap. The Astral Lords and all their disciples had reached the Peak of Step 15, standing just one desperate step away from the World Gap. Heaven Itself, utilizing ancient artifacts salvaged from the Inner World, had managed to reach the Peak of Step 14. Among the other reincarnators, over five hundred individuals knowledgeable about ascension had risen to levels between Step 10 and Step 12. Only ten years had passed, yet the Astro Hildo Academy had transformed into the most powerful and dominant institution on the planet. It was undeniable that the world was facing a new era of change, yet a heavy mystery hung over the lands. No one knew the location or the cultivation level of Aldo. According to the academy records, he had emerged from his seclusion seven years ago for an important mission and had not been seen or heard from since.
In the Di Qi Realm, within the sacred silence of the Buddha Palace, Buddha sat reciting his ancient sutras, his voice weaving through the fabric of reality. After stabilizing the immense growth from his recent cultivation, he finally decided it was time to act and slowly opened his eyes, revealing pupils that held the golden light of wisdom. "My senior brother, it is time to meet with you!" he declared, his voice filled with determination as he rose from his lotus throne. In a flicker of light, he vanished from the sanctum and instantly materialized at the desolate westernmost point of the planet. Although he exerted his will to suppress the encroaching lawlessness of the void, the harsh truth remained that only a powerhouse who had reached the Void Gap could navigate the chaotic tides of Outer Space without peril. Ignoring the danger, he gathered his divine energy to forcefully breach the boundary separating the three realms, intending to cross into the Dragon Realm. "Divine Spell—Buddha Arrived!" he roared, unleashing a wave of golden energy against the dimensional wall. However, the lawless void crushed his attempt with indifferent cruelty, sending a violent backlash through his meridians. Instead of opening a path, he staggered back and coughed up a mouthful of golden blood. "I do not believe I cannot do it... I will not give up," he whispered, wiping the blood from his lips with a serene smile. "If I cannot leave this small world just yet, then I will content myself with observing the neighboring planets; perhaps I will hear news from others." With his resolve unshaken, he turned away from the impassable void and, instead of returning to his palace, set his course directly for the Xuan Planet, the home of the Xuan Family.
His journey to the Xuan family was driven by a singular, burning purpose: to uncover the secret of traversing the realms. While meditating within the gilded walls of the Buddha Palace, he had caught wind of a rumor that only the Xuan family possessed the capability to send their kin down to the lower Mortal Realms. He arrived at Lindu City, the sprawling, vibrant heart of the Xuan Planet where the main branch of the family resided. The streets were a suffocating sea of people, bustling with the noise of commerce and cultivation. Unfortunately, despite his divine title, his true nature was plagued by a terrible temper and a complete lack of patience; he often acted on impulse before his mind could catch up. Almost immediately upon setting foot in the city, he found himself locked in a heated confrontation with the arrogant eldest son of the Xuan family. "Who do you think you are, daring to raise a hand against a member of the Xuan family?" the noble roared, his face twisted in rage. "Seize him immediately!" BOOM! A sudden, deafening explosion silenced the chaotic street instantly, creating a vacuum of shock. "Hmmm, no matter who you are, we will catch you eventually, and I will show you the price of opposing the Xuan family." Although Buddha managed to vanish into the ether with a subtle movement, his face and unique appearance had been burned into the memories of every witness present. He reappeared in a quiet alleyway, brushing dust off his robes and sighing with frustration. "What a troublesome situation; do I really have to start a war with the Xuan family the moment I arrive?" He looked up at the sky, his thoughts drifting to the one person he actually respected. "I wonder what Senior Brother is doing right now?"
Ancient Order Valley lay silent yet chaotic, a realm where reality itself seemed to be in a constant state of flux. He lay there, his body bathed in crimson blood, watching as the environment shifted wildly from lush, emerald forests to frozen, crystalline tundras in the span of a single heartbeat. It was a wonderland of terrifying beauty, a place where the laws of nature were rewritten every second, making it impossible to truly understand the nature of this domain. "Hmm, there is a single door that leads to the next level," he whispered, wiping the blood from his eyes as he began to inspect the shifting terrain with a critical gaze. He moved with sudden resolve, sprinting forward and vanishing into the ether as if he had crossed an invisible threshold into another dimension. "After all this time... The Divine Bridge... After surviving nine levels of hell, I am finally one step away from my goal." The Divine Bridge stretched out before him, a colossus of pure celestial gold that shimmered with an eternal light, its end hidden far beyond the horizon of the void. As he approached the base of this majestic structure, a voice that sounded like the universe itself echoed through his mind. "Challenger, what kind of divine being do you want to be?" "What? I did not understand," Aldo replied, his brow furrowing in confusion. "If you do not know, I can tell you," the voice offered with ancient patience. "Hmm." "Then listen well; a divine being has seven statuses: Sage, Saint, God, Lord, King, Emperor, and Sovereign." Aldo paused for a moment before answering with absolute conviction. "I want to be a Deity." "Hmmm, I forgot that one," the voice mused, sounding slightly amused. "Of course, the Deity status is the highest among them, but it does not fit into this standard hierarchy because this status metaphorically means the King of all divine beings." "Then I want to be exactly that, a Deity," Aldo confirmed, his eyes burning with ambition. "Challenger, then listen closely, for this staircase is endless," the voice warned gravely. "You must walk 1,000 steps to reach Sage, 1,500 steps for Saint, 3,000 steps for God, 5,000 steps for Lord, 10,000 steps for King, 50,000 steps for Emperor, and 500,000 steps for Sovereign." "What about Deity?" "Hmmmm, for Deity you must walk one million steps; I will not stop you from here, the rest depends on your effort." Without hesitation, he placed his foot on the first step of the Divine Bridge. "Hmmm, such strong pressure, I see, so the voice was talking about this?! But it is unknown who will win." He began to walk slowly, each movement a battle against the crushing weight of the heavens. 10... 20... 30... 50... 100 steps. "Hhhh," he exhaled sharply, breathing deeply but refusing to stop even for a moment. 150... 300... 500... 999... "And 1,000." The moment he took that step, a pressure so immense descended upon him that his bones creaked, and he was forced back five steps by the invisible wall. He tried again and again, failing to take the 1,000th step five times in a row. "I do not believe that I cannot take this step... Restrictions..." The countless restrictions embedded in his soul ignited, surging with power to counteract the pressure. With a roar of effort, he finally planted his foot on the 1,000th step. The voice returned instantly. "Do you want to be a Sage?" "No," he spat out. He continued and took the 1,001st step, and the tempting voice vanished into the silence. 1,100... 1,200... 1,400... 1,499... When he reached the 1,500th step, he faced an even more terrifying pressure, but this time he channeled his raw power to jump two steps at once, defying the weight of the world. As he ascended higher into the golden mist, the external pressure increased, but strangely, the restrictions binding his body began to dissolve, consumed by the bridge as fuel. He finally stopped when he reached the 2,999th step, deciding to rest his trembling legs for a brief moment. Meanwhile, far away in the Dragon City of the Dragon Realm, a very different struggle was unfolding. "My Dundun...." one of the old dragons called out affectionately to a sullen teenage dragon. "I am not your Dundun, you old man!" the young dragon snapped, his eyes flashing with the frustration of a fallen god. "Because of you, I now have to work as a lowly guard at the royal palace." He looked down at his hands, trembling with suppressed rage. "Due to the one remaining mixed restriction in my body, I cannot reach Step 15; even though my power is at Step 14, I can barely execute Step 3. Damn it!!!" His father, oblivious to the divine soul within his son, had simply brought him a basket of food. It was a humiliation beyond words; Heaven Itself was now merely a guard of the Flower Palace. "What bad luck... If only I could execute my power at Step 4, I would not have stayed on this planet." Just as he cursed his fate, the sky above the palace split open. A figure descended from the heavens, bathed in a radiant, blinding light that outshone the sun. It was beautiful, shining, and divine. It was Buddha. He landed softly before the stunned dragon and bowed with deep reverence. "Master, I have come to save you!"