When Ming Qi stepped out of the spatial tunnel and reappeared in the void, his time perception immediately told him how much time had passed. What he didn't expect was that leaving Qujing had taken only fifty years, not a hundred.
"Fifty years is quite a long time."
Shaking his head, Ming Qi suddenly realized that the once mere trace of Eternal Demon Aura within him had now grown considerably stronger. Furthermore, as the Eternal Demon Aura grew stronger, his strength level quietly increased again, reaching the sixth level of the Martial God Realm!
"What's going on?"
Ming Qi was initially surprised, but soon understood. He had refined the Eternal Demon Seed, a magical power that could be continuously absorbed and strengthened. As long as the Eternal Demon Seed existed, his strength would automatically increase, even if he didn't absorb spiritual energy for cultivation!
After understanding the reason, Ming Qi didn't linger any longer. He was determined to immediately find the whereabouts of the Galaxy Power!
He considered returning to see what had become of Tianhuang, and also returning to the Mingyue World to see the others. It had been nearly two hundred years since he'd seen them, and it was inevitable that he missed them.
But in the end, Ming Qi didn't turn back, instead following the indescribable trail of the Eternal Demon Seed into the void.
Because the distance was so vast, Ming Qi couldn't estimate how far it was, nor how long it would take to find it. He could only press on. He was already more than halfway through his quest for the Galaxy Power, and he had to finish it!
Occasionally, he'd come across lost ancient ruins, where he'd rest for a while, and would enter the Divine Map space to check on Meng Ling. To his dismay, despite the passage of time and the familiarity they'd developed, she still looked like a little girl, and he was deeply concerned. He couldn't understand why.
Ming Qi's lonely journey through the void left him feeling deeply depressed. Whenever this happened, he would go talk to Meng Ling. Even though Meng Ling had no recollection of the past, it didn't matter. Her awakening had finally eased a source of worry for Ming Qi.
Time stretched on, and as Ming Qi realized decades had slipped by without him noticing, the void began to brighten, and the surrounding power grew more mysterious. He knew he was near the legendary Milky Way Power.
At this point, Ming Qi had steadily increased his strength to the seventh level of the Martial God Realm through the Eternal Demon Seed, without any deliberate training.
At the seventh level of the Martial God Realm, he could easily condense a divine seal, create a divine city, and become a powerful deity of any realm. Any deity not from a high-level world within the Order of Order would be no match for him.
During this time, Ming Qi's greatest achievement was fully comprehending the power of Nirvana on the second page of the Book of Life and Death, and he had also largely grasped the power of Return to the Abyss on the third page. With the Book of Life and Death as his current greatest weapon, and possessing the three powers of Samsara, Nirvana, and Return to the Abyss, he was no longer afraid of anything.
After several more months of travel, Ming Qi was completely certain that the Galaxy Power was not far away. Fortunately, the Galaxy Power was not moving, but rather stationary somewhere in the void.
As he approached the Galaxy Power, Ming Qi became increasingly cautious.
As he advanced, meteorite mountains of varying sizes began to appear around him. These mountains moved at high speed, their surfaces ablaze with intense flames.
Meteorite mountains, as near-god-level forging materials, have long been the dream of all weapon refiners. Most of these mountains contain god-level forging materials at their cores, but Ming Qi didn't have time to pursue these matters. He simply carefully avoided the massive, flaming, speeding mountains as he zigzagged his way towards the Galaxy Power.
They drew closer and closer. Finally, one day, while traveling through the Meteorite Mountains, Ming Qi was struck by the appearance of strange creatures, shrouded in radiant armor.
These creatures were small, somewhat human-like in appearance, but they were definitely not human. They lacked human features, and their heads were very indistinct. Their bodies were perfectly streamlined, their armor shimmering with light. Ming Qi couldn't discern the material.
As Ming Qi drew closer, the strange creatures began to leave the Meteorite Mountains and swarmed towards him.
"This is a forbidden zone. This is where the gods rule. Ignorant, lowly creatures, leave!"
As these strange creatures charged, Ming Qi heard a voice as cold as ice.
Hearing these strange creatures speak, Ming Qi became even more certain that this was the region where the power of the Galaxy resided. But having found it, how could he return empty-handed? Despite the dangers ahead, he risked his life to make the journey. These strange creatures were clearly guardians of the galactic force, and judging from their tone, they seemed to belong to a higher order. Ming Qi had never fought against a higher order, so upon seeing a dozen guardians charging towards him, he was immediately on full alert.
As his Star Attraction and Guardian Shield activated, Ming Qi flipped open the first page of the Book of Life and Death, and the black and white sword, representing the power of reincarnation, whistled out.
He didn't believe the black and white swords could defeat these guardians; his current actions were merely a test of their strength.
Due to the unprecedented streamlined form of the guardians, their speed was exceptionally fast. Even with Ming Qi's current strength approaching the eighth level of the Martial God Realm, he wouldn't be much ahead of them.
However, Ming Qi didn't have too many concerns. While the guardians were fast, they still had a considerable gap between him and him. Even if they were a higher order, they were not impossible to defeat.
A single strike of the black and white sword struck the foremost guardian accurately, the impact slowing him rapidly. Seeing this, Ming Qi calmed down. These guardians weren't particularly powerful, only slightly stronger than ordinary gods.
After assessing his opponent's strength, Ming Qi unleashed his annihilation strike without hesitation.
The annihilation strike had an infinite tracking effect, so he didn't have to worry about his target escaping. Unleashing several annihilation strikes in quick succession, Ming Qi soared and dashed forward. The power of the annihilation strikes was several times greater than that of the black and white swords, easily enough to repel these guardians.
Ming Qi had no intention of killing them; he simply sought the power of the galaxy.
After a brief moment of evasive maneuvering, the annihilation strikes struck the guardians' flowing armor one after another. The burst of energy ripped the armor apart, but they didn't seem to bleed; instead, a star-like color continuously flowed from the wounds.