Swallowing the Stars, Hu Yanbo's Pre-Godhood

Time flew by as Hu Yanbo immersed himself in his cultivation, and seven hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.

He remained seated cross-legged on the rooftop, and the energy vortex surrounding him not only did not weaken, but instead grew increasingly powerful due to the increasing capacity of his divine body to absorb energy.

On this day, Chaos City once again welcomed a new group of cultivators. The group was led by a black-robed envoy, and all the members were young, with cultivation levels ranging from the Hengxing level to the Universe level.

They looked around the legendary holy city with curiosity, listening to the black-robed messenger explain the rules.

"...Remember, fighting is strictly prohibited within Chaos City, and you must not disturb others' cultivation. If you violate this rule, you will be immediately teleported out of the Initial Universe, ending your opportunity for enlightenment," the black-robed envoy solemnly warned.

Just then, a cosmic-level genius was drawn to the enormous energy vortex in the distance, which had persisted for hundreds of years. He couldn't help but point in that direction, his voice filled with surprise and wonder:

"My lord, you said that disturbing others' cultivation will result in expulsion."

"But that powerful figure... the energy fluctuations he caused were so intense and so widespread, wouldn't they affect others? Why wasn't he driven away by the rules?"

The black-robed messenger didn't even need to turn around to know what the young man was referring to. His serious expression instantly transformed into respect, and his voice rose several decibels:

"Him?" the envoy chuckled. "He is the goal you will look up to and strive to achieve on your future cultivation path! Lord Huyan Bo has only been in Chaos City for a thousand years, yet his strength has already increased thousands of times!"

"Once he successfully completes this seclusion, he will be eligible to obtain 'permanent residency' from Chaos City, becoming a true immortal resident of this holy city!"

These words struck like a thunderbolt among the young geniuses.

"What?! Spending a thousand years in Chaos City... and your strength increases thousands of times?!"

A star-level girl gasped in surprise, her eyes filled with disbelief.

She couldn't imagine how terrifying the rate of improvement was.

Chaos City has such enormous benefits.

Another young man, from a powerful clan and with broader experience, gasped in astonishment: "Permanent residency in Chaos City?! It's said to be an honor that countless immortal gods dream of but cannot attain, representing the recognition of their race!"

Their gazes toward the center of the energy vortex instantly shifted from curiosity to utter awe and longing.

The black-robed envoy took in their reactions and said in a deep voice, "Now you should understand why no one will disturb him, right? It is our honor to witness the birth of a future permanent resident."

Above the sky, the gazes of those who had been granted the title of King occasionally swept over the group of energetic young faces below, and they exchanged casual conversations with each other.

"Speaking of which, ever since the 'Seven Swords' emerged from the Giant Axe Arena a few years ago, it seems that the youngsters that Chaos City has welcomed have been hard to find again, none of them quite as impressive as those who can truly impress us," commented a powerful King-level expert surrounded by an icy aura.

"That's true." The burly man next to him nodded in agreement. "The recent batches of geniuses, while they can be considered excellent, always seem to lack the sharpness to truly stir up the winds and clouds."

Just then, a powerful king-level warrior clad in armor bearing the insignia of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance, exuding a sharp aura, suddenly chuckled and interjected with an undisguised smugness, "Gentlemen, your words are rather arbitrary. Hasn't our Cosmic Mercenary Alliance just unearthed a talent who can be considered the 'second Dream King'?"

The moment the words "Dream King" were uttered, the previously relaxed atmosphere suddenly froze.

The other powerful figures who had been granted the title of King fell into a brief silence almost simultaneously, their gazes meeting subtly for a moment.

They naturally knew who the other party was referring to—who else could it be but Hu Yanbo, who had stirred up energy tides for hundreds of years and was about to obtain permanent residency?

Comparing Hu Yanbo to "Dream King," a late bloomer in the history of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance, is a high compliment, and his ambition is certainly considerable.

But they found it difficult to refute these words.

After all, the potential that Huyanbo has shown is indeed somewhat beyond the realm of common sense.

Among the geniuses who have come down here, perhaps none of them will be able to rival Huyanbo in the future.

After a moment of silence, only a few cryptic chuckles rang out as a response.

No one spoke out in rebuttal, but no one genuinely agreed either.

Upon seeing this, the king of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance smiled even more broadly and stopped talking about the topic. Instead, he turned his gaze back to the direction where Hu Yanbo was, with undisguised anticipation.

Above the sky, only the faint exclamations of the young geniuses below and the tacit silence between the several kings remained.

...

In the years that followed, the powerful energy tide surrounding Hu Yanbo finally began to slowly weaken and dissipate.

As the last wisp of energy was completely absorbed into his body, Hu Yanbo suddenly opened his tightly closed eyes. Countless spatial rifts seemed to appear and disappear within his eyes, and an aura far more refined and vast than before naturally spread out.

He slowly stood up, feeling the powerful divine power flowing within his body, containing the profound mysteries of spatial laws at the King level, and his heart was at peace.

At the initial stage of being granted the title of King, the divine body has already been formed!

He, Huyan Bo, officially enters the realm of being crowned a king today, becoming a true 'strong' being in this vast universe!

Almost at the same moment he stood up, from the sky above, a gentle tide of congratulatory voices, filled with smiles and goodwill, surged forth:

"Huyan Bo, congratulations on reaching the realm of a king!"

"Our human race has gained another king!"

Hu Yanbo looked up, his gaze seemingly able to penetrate space, clearly seeing those figures standing in mid-air, their aura vast and boundless.

Once upon a time, when he first arrived in Chaos City and looked up at these beings, he felt as if they were ancient tyrannical dragons, their power overwhelming, while he himself was as insignificant as a mouse, needing to muster courage even to look them in the eye.

Now, although he can still clearly sense the power of these beings, and their aura remains unfathomable, the sense of oppression they bring him is completely different.

It's no longer the despair and suffocation of a mouse facing a Tyrannosaurus Rex, but more like... a lion cub meeting a lion.

Although they knew that the other party was still strong and they were no match for them, they were still on equal footing and had the confidence and qualifications to have an equal dialogue!

This is the fundamental transformation brought about by stepping into the realm of immortal kingship!

Hu Yanbo smiled slightly, and calmly returned the greeting with a cupped-hand salute towards the sky: "Thank you, seniors!"

His gaze swept over Chaos City below and he happened to see a group of young cosmic-level geniuses flying back from outside the city. Many of them had expressions of excitement and exhaustion on their faces, obviously hunting Chaos True Spirits and honing their skills outside the city.

Looking at these energetic yet remarkably youthful figures, Hu Yanbo couldn't help but smile even more broadly.

"There was a time when I was just like them."

"No, I've never received that kind of treatment from them!"

"But now..." He felt the king-level divine power surging within him, enough to easily annihilate a star, and a strange realization arose in his heart.

"To those celestial and cosmic-level little guys who are still struggling for a bit of chaotic true spirit, I am probably already a 'great being' that they need to look up to, or even cannot understand."