"Did you see the news? The Goddess of Su just awakened her planet—thirty-three kilometers in diameter! A new record for Tianhe City!"
"No shit, seriously?"
"That powerful? Figures. She's the number one genius in Tianhe City, after all."
"A planet over thirty kilometers... converting that into high-grade energy would be a cakewalk."
"Forget high-grade. She could probably manifest spirit energy with that."
"Spirit energy? You mean a full-on cultivation planet!"
"Forget cultivation planets. At this point, I'd just be happy to manage a world of martial artists."
Eighth Middle School of Tianhe City.
Outside the Genesis Chamber, a group of students murmured amongst themselves.
Today was the day of the Genesis.
Every few minutes, another piece of shocking news rippled through the crowd.
The students’ faces were a tapestry of emotions: excitement, envy, anxiety, and in some, a carefully maintained calm.
Standing apart from the crowd, Lu Chen watched it all unfold with a steady gaze.
He had been in this world for over half a year now.
He had grown accustomed to its strangeness.
Here, upon turning eighteen, every person had one chance to awaken a planet, a personal world they could shape with origin energy.
From there, they could build entire Transcendent civilizations on their new world.
Some shaped their origin energy to forge a card civilization, where every inhabitant was a master card user.
Others had given rise to soul civilizations, populated entirely by soul cultivators.
And some had even managed to create the coveted cultivation civilizations, where every citizen was a powerful cultivator.
A successful Genesis meant gaining a personal territory, becoming a lord of your own domain.
If the awakening failed, you would remain a commoner for the rest of your life.
You would be destined to work for another planet lord, with no chance of ever rising higher.
It was a single step that could lead to godhood or condemn you to a mundane existence.
For every one of them, this was the most important day of their lives.
The door to the Genesis Chamber slid open.
The first batch of students shuffled out.
Their faces told the whole story.
Those who had succeeded were flushed with excitement, their eyes bright with triumph.
Those who had failed walked with slumped shoulders and hollow eyes.
A few of the girls were already crying softly.
"Second batch, prepare to enter," the teacher at the door called out, his eyes sweeping over the anxious line of students.
The waiting students straightened their backs, their nervous chatter dying down.
Lu Chen was in the second batch.
He followed the stream of his classmates into the Genesis Chamber.
Inside, everyone took their place.
The air was thick with a shared, palpable nervousness.
Before each student rested a perfectly round, transparent crystal ball.
"This is a specialized crystal for the Genesis," the supervising teacher announced. "It contains a measure of pure origin energy."
"In a moment, you will place your hands upon it. The origin energy will then begin to flow into your body."
"This process will allow you to awaken a planet within your consciousness."
"If the origin energy is depleted before a planet can form, the Genesis ends. That is a failure."
"Now, prepare yourselves." The Genesis Proctor's gaze passed over each of them.
One by one, the students placed their hands on the crystal balls.
Lu Chen was no exception.
He took a deep, steadying breath.
His right hand moved forward slowly.
It came to rest gently on the cool, smooth surface of the crystal.
Lu Chen's heart hammered against his ribs.
This was his only chance.
The size of the awakened planet determined everything; it was the measure of one's potential.
The larger the initial planet, the easier it was to convert origin energy into its higher forms.
High-level energies, such as magic power, star power, or origin energy.
An exceptionally large planet even held the possibility of creating spirit energy.
A small planet, however, could only generate low-level energy.
Things like true energy, astral energy, or perception.
If I want any chance at high-level energy, I need a diameter of at least fifteen kilometers, Lu Chen thought.
Anything less than that...
and I'll be stuck with low-level energies, good for little more than creating a civilization of common fighters or card users.
Just as the teacher's voice faded, a peculiar energy began to flow from the crystal ball.
It seeped through Lu Chen's palm, merging slowly with his body.
A moment later, Lu Chen's awareness shifted, plunging inward into the depths of his own mind.
A blurry, indistinct space materialized around him.
It was a realm of pure chaos, devoid of objects or orientation. Top, bottom, left, and right were meaningless concepts in the pervasive emptiness.
It felt like the dawn of the universe itself.
So this is the awakening space, Lu Chen realized.
Soon, a planet was supposed to be born right here, in this void.
He took a moment to observe the swirling chaos.
Confirming that all was as it should be, he steadied himself.
Lu Chen calmed his racing thoughts and focused his will.
He had to concentrate on awakening his planet.
The window of time was only a few minutes long.