Three suns of golden, green, and purple hues shone beautifully in the sky, arranged in a perfect triangular formation.
The planet was incredibly lively. In every major city, people moved about busily — talking, interacting, helping one another, transacting, and bargaining.
There were eleven planets in the Auralis Solar System, and the thirty royal families had been granted their own territories across these planets.
Lumenia had nine major cities. The first eight cities belonged to the eight strongest royal families, each established by the first eight Meditation Masters.
Nine legendary Meditation Masters had founded and elevated Lumenia to its current glory. Logically, there should have been ten major cities, but because the ninth and sixth Meditation Masters belonged to the same pathway, and the ninth lacked any ambition to establish his own family, only nine major cities existed.
The planet Lumenia itself was as large as Jupiter in Earth's solar system, while the capital city of Lumenia was more than ten times the entire surface area of Earth.
A colossal circular wall enveloped the entire city. These walls were so massive that they could be seen even from the center of Lumenia. On the surface, they appeared to be simple fortifications, but in truth, they formed a gigantic super aura formation maintained and controlled by rotating teams of aura users.
These walls had been initiated and completed by the third Meditation Master. They had protected Lumenia through countless terrifying attacks during the Dystopian War and remained one of its greatest prides and symbols.
Lumenia had stood for more than three million years. It possessed a deep foundation and countless hidden secrets. Every generation had always produced at least one True Supernova to hold the fort.
This was the place with the largest concentration of aura users in the entire Aura Region. Nearly ten billion people lived here, and out of those, 7 to 8 million were aura users.
A high number and variety of species from across the region resided in Lumenia. The city had never discriminated against others based on appearance and had always welcomed them, even though it was originally established by humans. Because of this openness, aura users of all species came here to settle. Over time, many creatures had mingled with humans, leading to deep relationships and even common interracial marriages. As a result, seeing hybrids in Lumenia had become an everyday sight.
Not only that, an immense number of resources and relics were gathered here. Even ordinary people with no aura could live here equally, without fear of oppression or exploitation.
All of this was made possible by the many laws created and implemented by the fourth Meditation Master during his lifetime. It was he who had earned people's trust and encouraged them to join Lumenia, causing the population to grow to its current size.
Leaving other details aside for now…
Currently, Lumenia was even more bustling and splendid than usual. Every corner of the city was decorated with charming lanterns. Golden banners bearing the intertwined crests of the Blackbell family fluttered from every spire and bridge. Crystal lanterns floated in neat rows along the main boulevards, casting soft white and rose-gold light that made the marble streets shimmer. Flowers native to a dozen different planets — snow lilies, star orchids, and crimson moonblossoms — had been imported in staggering quantities, turning balconies, rooftops, and public squares into living gardens.
However, all of this paled in comparison to what floated in the sky.
A single, enormous white veil had been spread over the entire city.
It was not a traditional fabric. It was a colossal working of Light and Dimension Pathway auras combined — a semi-transparent canopy so vast that it covered Lumenia from the outermost ring all the way to the edges of the colossal walls. The veil drifted gently, almost breathing, its edges shimmering with faint golden threads that caught the sunlight and scattered it like falling stardust. From below, it looked like an endless bridal veil floating above the city — delicate yet impossibly grand.
Every single family had contributed something to the decorations, whether willingly or under political pressure. The Romani Family had sent master illusionists to create floating illusions of white doves and blooming sakura petals that never fell. The Heisenberg Family had provided energy crystals that kept the veil stable and glowing. Even the usually reserved Symmetra Family had offered mirror constructs that reflected the city in perfect symmetry, making the streets appear twice as wide and majestic.
The reason for all this grandeur was simple — Sasaki Blackbell Alberich's wedding.
Sasaki had long been known as the greatest talent Lumenia had seen in a million years. This was no exaggeration.
He was a blood-related descendant of the fourth Meditation Master. His mother, Sapphire, had been a Supernova of the Alberich family, but she had fallen in love with a man from Earth. She left the family and settled on Earth. When she was only days away from the end of her lifespan, she brought the young Sasaki back to Lumenia, entrusted him to her friends, and passed away. Sasaki had been three years old at the time.
When he turned four, he awakened as an aura user and was discovered by the Blackbell family. Seeing his immense talent, they adopted him on the spot and gave him the Blackbell middle name.
With the endless resources of the Blackbell family supporting him, Sasaki became a Supernova at the incredibly young age of fifteen. The news had shocked all of Lumenia.
Over the next two years, he focused on increasing his aura control rate while traveling around and challenging other Supernovas. He won many battles, tied in others, and lost several times — even surrendering on occasion. But he always learned from those experiences and returned stronger, eventually defeating those he had once lost to.
He had even challenged the current 107th Meditation Master of Lumenia.
The result was as expected.
He lost miserably in just three moves. He stood no chance against a True Supernova. Yet no one mocked him. In fact, his reputation soared even higher.
Because the Meditation Master had personally praised him, saying that Sasaki possessed the battle strength to fight True Supernovas and had the talent to become one himself.
This statement carried enormous weight. In the Auralis Solar System, due to the arrangements made by the second Meditation Master, only aura users from Lumenia could become True Supernovas. Becoming a True Supernova meant becoming the next Meditation Master of Lumenia — gaining the highest battle strength, immense political power, and unlimited access to resources.
Any person capable of becoming a True Supernova was an unparalleled talent. Greed was beneath them.
What the other royal families feared was not Sasaki becoming a True Supernova, but his deep connection to the Blackbell family.
The Blackbell family was the first royal family established after Lumenia's founding. It consisted of the descendants of the first Meditation Master and had numerous branch families. It had always been one of the strongest royal families. In recent generations, even the current Meditation Master was a blood-related member of the Blackbell family.
Now that the 107th Meditation Master was nearing the end of his lifespan, Sasaki had the highest chance of becoming the next True Supernova and inheriting the legacy of Lumenia.
If that happened, the Blackbell family would grow even more powerful, and their dominance as the strongest royal family would likely last for centuries more.
This was something the other royal families refused to accept. They had their own ambitions — more power, influence, territory, resources, and relics. They were tired of living under the Blackbell family's suppression.
In the northern part of Lumenia stood a huge mansion made of white marble. Many people of various species had gathered there, dressed in all kinds of attire.
On the top floor, a young man sat in front of a mirror.
He wore a pristine white suit with black underclothes. His skin was as white as snow, and his appearance was strikingly handsome. His originally Egyptian blue eyes were currently black, and his hair was a dark shade of blue. He had a slim yet muscular build. His eyes were half-closed, lost in thought.
His attention was suddenly pulled away when a slim woman wearing a dark purple suit approached. She had a beautiful face and wore only a simple purple peacock feather earring on her left ear, with no makeup.
She grabbed his right cheek with her left hand and squeezed it, speaking in a rude and displeased tone.
"Hey, bastard. Stop daydreaming and go down to meet the guests. Have you forgotten about the traditions and etiquette?"
Sasaki punched her lightly in the abdomen, making her release his cheek. He grunted, "I know, I know, Alia. I was just preparing myself mentally. There's a lot to do, you know."
Alia sighed as she looked at his face in the mirror. A small smile appeared on her lips. She hugged his head and pressed it gently into her bosom, caressing his hair.
His body was ice-cold due to his 'Living Corpse' form, but she didn't seem to mind at all.
"I wonder what Alisa would think when she hears that her papa is nervous at his own wedding. Haha."
"She's still just a baby. She won't remember anything. Besides, she's at home right now."
"Haha, who knows? She has good genes. You can never fully trust kids with great talent. Alright, I'll go down and tell Sylvana and Chris to get ready. It's quite a pity that Edward couldn't come because of the Paris operation."
Sasaki nodded with a regretful expression. "Indeed. But the first, second, and third ones are in Paris. We don't have to worry about losing 'it'. Once the operation ends, those three will be sent here and properly nurtured. I'm quite eager to see their talent."
"Haha, with some nurturing, they might even catch up to you. As the seventh one, I'm already able to give you tough challenges day and night," Alia laughed. She waved her hand and teleported out of the room using her Meditation Aura.
Sasaki was now left alone.
His eyes slowly changed from black back to Egyptian blue as he looked out the window toward the vast white veil in the sky. He activated his Abyssal Eyes. A blue aura with floating black particles glowed in his pupils as four black scythes formed, pointing toward the north, south, east, and west.
Through these eyes, he could see beyond the veil and into the clear blue sky.
He took a deep breath and whispered softly to himself.
"It is time to meet the important guests."