"Grandma, look at the sky! That's the ranking of the heavens and the myriad worlds that suddenly appeared today."
"Dage and the others investigated the personnel and tried to analyze the structure of the list, but they found nothing."
Shen Shaojie spoke hurriedly, introducing the situation.
Shen Shaojie, a current outstanding figure of the younger generation of the Shen family, was a direct descendant and widely regarded as the predetermined future leader of the family.
"That kind of transcendent power again..."
Shen Qingqing fell silent.
For some reason, when she looked at the ranking of the heavens and the myriad worlds, a figure surfaced in her mind—one she could never forget.
Though a hundred years had passed and many memories had become faded and yellowed with time, that lone figure remained vivid in her mind.
"Grandma, even though I don't fully understand what this ranking of the heavens and myriad worlds means, with the strength of our Earth, we should definitely rank number one!"
Shen Shaojie said with excitement, his tone brimming with confidence.
As the child of a new golden age, he had never lived through Earth's past weaknesses or its catastrophes. He was born into an era where Earth was celebrated as powerful, the Dragon Kingdom as mighty, and the Shen family as influential.
Throughout the starry sky, no other force could rival Earth.
This truth had nurtured an unshakable confidence deep within him.
"Jie'er, there are always people beyond people, heavens beyond heavens. You must never become arrogant."
Shen Qingqing smiled softly as she reached out and rubbed his head.
She had once possessed an unruly spirit, the kind that drove supercars down crowded streets and ignited wild nightlife.
Now, after decades of life's trials and transformations, she had become kind and composed.
Time had weathered her face and mellowed her soul.
Much like Shen Man.
"Grandma, the Milky Way is about to be conquered by our Earth. Do you really think there could be a force stronger than ours?"
Shen Shaojie's tone revealed his disbelief.
Shen Qingqing offered only a gentle smile and no response. She raised her gaze to the sky, narrowed her eyes slightly, and said slowly:
"Do you remember your great-grandfather?"
"Great-grandfather?"
Shen Shaojie paused, then recalled a childhood legend.
According to family lore, the Shen family had once been a mere wealthy household. It was thanks to their great-grandfather that they rose to prominence within a century, becoming a dominant force on Earth.
He was described as a divine being who descended from the heavens—an immortal with powers that defied the natural order.
It was said he could make peach blossoms bloom across a hundred thousand miles with a thought.
He had allegedly granted great-grandmother an extended life of sixty more years, bestowed the Shen family with an additional century of fortune, and raised every member to dragon-like greatness.
The legends were grand and mysterious, becoming more fantastical with every retelling.
"But isn't that all just legend?" Shen Shaojie asked, puzzled.
Truthfully, he never truly believed in his great-grandfather's miracles.
As a child, he believed somewhat. But the older and more rational he became, the less he accepted such tales.
In his world, everything must be explainable by science.
What great-grandfather did, as described by great-grandmother, lacked any scientific foundation.
He had also asked many others about it, but no one had ever witnessed the events firsthand—only heard about them.
That only reinforced his doubts.
"It was probably just rumor. Science wasn't developed at the time, so people exaggerated and imagined he was some kind of immortal."
Shen Shaojie muttered.
This kind of thing often changed from mouth to mouth. Maybe someone said Zhang San died from a sheep illness, but by the time the tale reached the end of the village, it turned into Zhang San's mother dying.
Without seeing it personally, how could it be believed?
"You young people really don't understand reverence."
"I'm too old now. Otherwise, I'd definitely give you a lesson."
Shen Qingqing tapped lightly on Shen Shaojie's forehead and shook her head with helpless amusement.
Those who had lived back then were now long gone. She was the only one still alive who had witnessed Shen Lian's abilities with her own eyes.
She feared that once she passed, no one else would remember the shock of that day.
She turned her gaze back to the ranking suspended in the void.
The All Heavens and Myriad Worlds Ranking List...
A faint glimmer of hope flickered in her heart.
"Grandpa... will I see you again?"
Boom!
A thunderclap split the sky.
Then, on the golden list that transcended time, a line of shimmering golden characters emerged.
The 100th Place in the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds Ranking – Earth
At that instant, countless scenes from Earth's history flashed across the void like a rapid montage.
In the ancient era, human ancestors sparked fire from wood, used flame and stone tools to fight nature, walked out of forests and plains, and became the primates of all living things.
From that moment, Earth had a master.
In the feudal age, wars raged unendingly as great dynasties vied for dominance.
In the Republican era, firearms and modern warfare emerged. The industrial revolution unfolded, and Earth entered a new chapter.
In modern times, skyscrapers rose from the ground. The Shenzhou 7 rocket pierced the heavens and achieved a successful moon landing. Yang Liwei stood on the moon's surface, smiling as he raised his hand to give a hard-earned thumbs up.
From that moment, Earth had truly stepped into the age of space exploration.
Airplanes, high-speed rails, maglev trains, superhighways—one after another, these steel beasts traversed mountains and rivers, spanning stars and moons, connecting the entire world.
A hundred years ago.
The rise of the Shen family and the resurgence of the Dragon Kingdom had once again reshaped Earth's history.
Scientific and technological explosions drove life on Earth to change at breakneck speed.
Space rescue stations began to appear in orbit.
Nuclear fusion reactors, annihilation beam cannons, photonic particle weapons, and genetic missiles were gradually developed to maturity.
With the successful creation of manned interstellar spacecraft, humanity finally achieved true intergalactic flight and reached major galaxies.
Earth had truly entered the great cosmic era.