"Eighth-stage Initial Realm? This is..."

Lu Yuan was shocked, filled with disbelief.

In his past life, how much time and cost had he spent, how much suffering had he endured, just to become an Awakened.

Even right before his death, he only reached the ninth stage, unable to take the next step.

It was a whole ten years of hardship.

Yet despite that.

He remained just a minor character.

But now, just by merging with the Ancient Bodhi Tree, he had equaled nearly ten years of effort back then...

Moreover, reaching this step in his previous life had exhausted all his potential.

Yet now he was just beginning.

After merging with the ancient tree.

His physical body broke through its shackles, and the treasures of the human body were fully unlocked, equivalent to building an unprecedentedly solid foundation before constructing a skyscraper, a foundation that probably surpassed everyone else in the world.

"Given my current condition, I suppose it won't be long before I enter the next realm, the Awakening Realm!"

Lu Yuan murmured to himself, a glint of confidence and strength in his eyes.

And the so-called Awakening Realm.

As the name suggests, it means truly becoming an Awakened.

In this realm, people fully adapt to the post-global mutation environment and embark on the path of evolution.

At the same time, they awaken the deeper layers of their mythical genes, manifesting various incredible powerful forces.

If the Initial Realm only enhanced strength and physique, then after reaching the Awakening Realm, it was completely different; some gained the Flame Power, others the Ice Power, and some the Power of Thunder, differing from person to person.

In any case, it was all extraordinary, and depending on the Awakened's physique, their abilities varied greatly.

And so, this is the second realm of evolution for the Awakened.

But unlike the nine-stage division of the Initial Realm.

The Awakening Realm has only one stage.

If one reaches the extreme in this realm, they might breakthrough to the third realm, the Shackles Realm.

Living beings' bodies are shackled by the world, with many constraints inside limiting the transcendence to higher levels of life.

Therefore, this realm is about breaking these shackles, continually unlocking bodily potential to elevate life and break free from the confines of humanity.

It's rumored.

That the Shackles Realm is extremely powerful, with only a very few reaching it.

It can unleash deeper potential, capable of destroying a mountain with a single strike.

"It's said there are 108 shackles in the human body, and an average Awakened only needs to break twelve, but the higher the potential, the more shackles one can break. I wonder how far I can go with my current foundation."

Lu Yuan muttered to himself but quickly shook his head, realizing he was still far from that realm.

Considering so much now would be a bit excessive.

He then calmed his thoughts.

Just as he was about to check the next Divine Artifact, he suddenly noticed it was daylight.

Could it be that merging the Ancient Bodhi Tree took the whole night?

He immediately picked up his phone.

The displayed date was September 10th.

Not just one night, but ten whole days?

Lu Yuan was stunned but soon felt relieved, considering the Ancient Bodhi Tree was a supreme Divine Artifact of unparalleled power, not something that could be merged in just a day or two.

Thinking about it, he started checking what happened in the past ten days, and was astonished to find the whole world seemed to be in chaos, with bizarre phenomena appearing everywhere, including a large river appearing in front of someone's door and seawater flooding into rivers.

The news was mainly about people.

Some suddenly gained immense strength overnight, with bodies as solid as iron.

Others, after consuming an Exotic Fruit, grew horns on their heads and reached a height of three meters.

Like the Bull Demon King from mythological legends.

Some even grew wings after touching an extremely colorful flower, allowing them to fly high in the sky at will.

In such a situation, some wealthy people began to spend large amounts of money online purchasing Exotic Fruit or food, hoping to gain Extraordinary Power, offering sky-high prices but facing ridicule.

Because soon after the mutation, currency devalued rapidly, and in some remote areas, a hundred thousand couldn't even buy a steamed bun.

[Global Mutation: Humanity will embark on the path of life evolution, take the lead now, and you might become a god later!]

A topic appeared on a certain forum, with its author unknown.

It sparked speculation.

Many believed it to be true.

So those who hadn't acquired Extraordinary Power also posted, hoping to find companions.

To venture into deep mountains and forests to find those Exotic Fruits.

Hoping to change their fate.

And ultimately become what the post described as gods.

Forum users termed the days after September 1st the New Era.

Meanwhile, Lu Yuan also saw his classmates' chat group, where Li Hansheng and the others were hotly discussing this, with the bolder Wang Zibo suggesting that someone join him in searching for those Exotic Fruits.

Yet they were hesitant, as certain places outside were quite dangerous and ordinary people struggled to survive.

"Just like in my past life, the world changes drastically, a New Era arrives, and after a brief panic, everyone starts to pursue Extraordinary Power."

Lu Yuan shook his head, recalling how he was once one of them but reacted too slowly, falling behind step by step.

However, now he was ahead of everyone else because he had planned in advance.

Regarding the post-mutation.

The Exotic Flowers and Fruits enabling evolution were merely mediums.

But they were mostly the lowest tier, offering little benefit even when merged, not even reaching the Initial Realm.

The truly top-tier mediums were either undiscovered or controlled by certain mysterious forces, like the Wu Zhou Group, though there was one out in the open, overlooked by everyone.

The nature of mediums is unique, it doesn't depend on being ancient or rare, it requires verification.

But Lu Yuan was different, he had numerous memories of such things in his mind.

It was his greatest advantage in taking the lead in this life.

Without dwelling on it, he moved on.

Lu Yuan cleared his thoughts and turned around.

In the courtyard, where the Ancient Bodhi Tree had been fully merged and disappeared.

Yet before him were ten other Divine Artifacts, each radiating different lights, each appearing extraordinary.

"With the New Era's arrival, there would be a period of chaos lasting several months before settling down, allowing me to familiarize and research these things thoroughly during that time."

Lu Yuan clearly understood that the items he had collected over three months were now the best available.

Any one of them would cause a huge sensation and be contested by those mysterious forces.

Yet now, they were all in his possession.

Providing peace of mind for exploration.

So now he didn't need to worry about what was happening outside, just stick to the plan and grow stronger silently.

At this moment, Lu Yuan focused on the ten Divine Artifacts ahead and, after a brief consideration.

He directed all his attention to the ancient book on the far right.

It was... the complete version of the Tao Te Ching!

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