Replace me as the top scholar? Go talk to my Marshal Grandpa!

Wang Xian pushed open the door and went inside.

The space inside was larger than he had imagined.

The hall is over ten meters high, and rows of bookshelves that reach the ceiling are densely packed with books.

In the center of the hall is a circular service counter, around which several glowing spheres are suspended and slowly rotating.

The entire library gives people a strange feeling of being both ancient and advanced.

Wang Xian walked to the service desk.

Above the service counter, a gentle electronic voice sounded:

"Welcome to the Tsinghua and Peking University Library. Please show your student ID."

Wang Xian took out her student card and swiped it at the sensor area on the service counter.

"Identity verified. Newcomer Wang Xian, Level 1 access. How can I help you?"

Wang Xian said, "I need textbooks for five required courses: 'History of Human Civilization on Blue Star,' 'History of Great Xia Civilization,' 'Introduction to the Laws of the Multiverse,' 'The Essence of Spiritual Power,' and 'Stargate Security and Ethics.'"

"Searching..."

A few seconds later, the electronic voice sounded again:

"Search complete. All five textbooks are in the library's collection. Their locations are as follows—"

Above the service counter, a light screen unfolds, displaying the shelf numbers and specific locations of five books.

"Also, would you like a reading room?"

Wang Xian thought for a moment and nodded: "Yes, we need a reading room for two people."

"Okay. Reading room number 3 has been reserved for you. A navigation cursor will now be generated for you. Please follow the cursor to retrieve your book."

The voice just fell.

A faint blue light appeared beneath Wang Xian's feet, extending forward and pointing towards the bookshelf.

Wang Xian raised an eyebrow and remarked, "It's quite intelligent."

He led Qin Chong, following the cursor forward.

The cursor guided them through rows of bookshelves, and they soon found the first book—"A History of Human Civilization on Earth."

Wang Xian took the book down and continued walking forward.

The second book, the third book, the fourth book, and the fifth book.

In less than ten minutes, all five books were in my hands.

The cursor continued forward, leading them to the reading room area.

The door to Reading Room No. 3 is an automatic sensor; it slowly opened as soon as Wang Xian approached.

It was a small room, but it was furnished very comfortably.

There is a long table, several chairs, and a large screen on the wall that connects to the university's database.

In one corner of the room, there was even a small rest area with a sofa and a coffee table.

Wang Xian placed the book on the table and said to Qin Chong:

"Da Chongzi, you can continue your cultivation over here. I'll read a book."

Qin Chong nodded, obediently walked to the corner, sat down cross-legged, and began to cultivate the "Overlord Thunder Emperor Scripture".

Wang Xian sat down at the table and picked up the first book—"A History of Human Civilization on Earth".

He only had fragmented knowledge of the history of this world.

While in Xingquan City, he didn't have the opportunity to systematically study history. Later, after returning to the Wang family, although he learned a lot of martial arts techniques, his understanding of history remained very limited.

Now, I finally have the opportunity to truly understand this world.

The book was very thick, much thicker than he had imagined.

The cover is a dark blue hardcover with the title printed in gold, giving it a dignified and serious appearance.

He took a deep breath and began to read.

……

Eight hundred years ago.

The old era, year 228.

That was an era later known as the "revival of spiritual energy."

Before that era, Earth was much the same as in the previous world. Technology was developing, society was progressing, and humanity was the sole master of this planet.

Then, the spiritual energy arrived.

No one knows where spiritual energy comes from.

Some say it's the planet's own awakening, some say it's the permeation of cosmic energy, and some say it's a seed sown by a higher-dimensional being.

But regardless of its source, spiritual energy did indeed arrive.

It changed everything.

Ordinary plants and animals began to mutate; some became stronger, while others became more dangerous.

Ordinary humans began to awaken; some gained extraordinary powers, while others acquired special abilities.

A spiritual practitioner has appeared.

But order collapsed as a result.

More than two hundred years of chaos.

That was one of the darkest periods in human civilization.

The old order has been destroyed, and a new order has not yet been established. The strong rule and the weak are bandits. Cities have become ruins and villages have become wastelands.

It wasn't until more than two hundred years later that order was slowly restored.

The new era began in 132.

Just when humanity thought it could finally catch its breath—

The Star Gate has appeared.

Wang Xian frowned slightly.

He had heard the term "Star Gate" before.

Dean Xia Yulong mentioned it in his speech, but he didn't know that the Star Gate appeared so early.

The book says that there were only a few star gates in the first batch.

However, they can be found all over the world.

On the other side of the stargate lies another world.

Some worlds are barren and devoid of anything. Other worlds are vibrant with life and abundant in resources. And still others…

It is civilized.

There are intelligent beings.

Those civilizations also discovered the existence of the stargate.

Then came chaos, invasion, and war.

Wang Xian's gaze paused for a moment.

The book mentions a concept—the will of the world.

As the stargate descended, so-called "world wills" appeared in various worlds.

This is a very instinctive, rule-like existence. It instinctively demands the essence of the world.

This instinct will spread to the subconscious of every life born in that world.

Therefore, when civilizations from different worlds meet, conflict is almost inevitable.

Because their subconscious tells them to plunder the other's essence to make their own world stronger.

This is not a moral issue; it's an instinct issue.

Wang Xian paused for a few seconds, then continued reading.

The earliest stargates mostly connected to smaller worlds.

Those worlds have scarce spiritual energy, backward civilizations, and low combat power.

After more than two hundred years of spiritual revival, Earth now has a large number of cultivators whose strength and quality far surpass those of the smaller world civilizations.

Therefore, the forces on Earth united and resisted the invasion.

Not only did they withstand the attack, they also turned around and invaded the enemy, plundering the enemy's world origin.

The new era began in 269.

After decades of plundering, Earth, with its vast reserves of world origin, successfully ascended to become a large-scale plane.

With the concentration of spiritual energy greatly increased, the upper limit of the power of life on Earth also increased accordingly.

That was a golden age.

But a crisis followed.

As time goes by, the worlds connected by the stargate become increasingly higher in quality.

A top-tier mid-sized plane has emerged.

Large-scale planes have also begun to appear.

The situation for Earth's forces is becoming increasingly difficult.

Even worse—the Earth's interior cannot be unified.

Each major power acted independently, refusing to submit to the others, and was unable to form a united force when faced with foreign invasion.

The result was a series of defeats.

Two-thirds of the Earth has been occupied.

Humanity was forced to cower in defense, barely surviving.

That was the most dangerous moment for human civilization.

Wang Xian's breathing became somewhat heavy.

He continued scrolling down.

The new era began in 298.

Ten special people appeared...