The Edict of Ascending Boundaries
> "Let not the rivers of power pool in one place. Flow, age, and time must be allowed to renew the soil of each realm. Those who have seen ten thousand moons have no right to block the sun for those still growing beneath it."
—Zaxton, upon ratifying the Codex's Fourth Intelligence Decree
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I. The Codex Evolves
The Stellar Codex, first born from Zaxton's hand, was originally a master tome of lore, training regimens, celestial beasts, and ancient cultivation methods. But through the influence of starbeast blood, fifth realm forbidden scripts, and Zaxton's own stellar will, the Codex had changed.
It now whispered to him.
It did not speak like a person—but like an intelligent constellation—observing all the four realms, digesting patterns of power, recording abuse, and forecasting potential imbalance.
Eventually, it formulated a law on its own. A law it presented to Zaxton through a dream of silver script, glowing on a planetless sky.
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II. The Edict: Temporal Boundaries
Approved and sanctified by Zaxton, this law became known as the Edict of Ascending Boundaries.
It created chronological elevation requirements, designed to limit stagnation, prevent political oppression, and nurture renewal within the four realms.
Age Limits by Realm:
First Realm: 1,000 Years Max
Once a cultivator reaches 1,001 years, they are required to ascend to the Second Realm or higher.
Reason: The First Realm is for early growth, low-level exploration, and the seeding of new generations. Let no ancient tyrant hover here.
Second Realm: 5,000 Years Max
Elder clans and aged beasts may reside here—but only until their 5,001st year.
Reason: The Second Realm is for breakthroughs and refining one's core identity. The old must not smother the emerging.
Third Realm: 10,000 Years Max
Beyond this age, no cultivator may remain, no matter their title.
Reason: This realm serves as the foundation for transcendent cultivation. It must not be fossilized by those who no longer evolve.
Fourth Realm: Open, but Regulated
Only cultivators 10,000+ years are permitted to reside permanently here.
However, they are also subject to Codex Rotation Protocols:
Every 3,000 years, their influence zones are reviewed. If found impeding others' growth, they are relocated or demoted.
Lone Stars and Gas Giants are excepted, so long as their regions remain balanced and peaceful.
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III. Enforcement Mechanism: Codex Sentience & Star Wardens
To enforce this law, Zaxton and the Codex formed a new class of watchers called the Star Wardens.
Manifested Constructs, birthed from the Codex's essence.
Each Warden has limited sentience, divine judgment, and a fragment of Zaxton's own will.
They can phase through dimensions, cross terrain without disturbing matter, and carry out peaceful extractions—or violent expulsions—if met with resistance.
> "You may defy men. You may bribe sects. But you cannot lie to the stars."
The Codex constantly scans all known registries of power and cultivation, updating each being's chronological tag. Once they near the age limit of their current realm, they receive a Celestial Summons. If ignored for 10 years, a Warden descends.
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IV. Reactions from the Realms
1. The Young and Free
Joy spread across the lower realms. Ancient suppressors who had ruled like shadow gods were now forced to depart, leaving space for new sects, clans, and rogue cultivators to rise.
Young sects began to bloom.
New alliances formed unshaped by the old grudges.
Cultural arts and forgotten techniques were reborn.
2. The Ancient and Bitter
There was fury too.
The Silver Bone Sect, whose Patriarch was 12,000 years old, resisted—until a Warden consumed his soul-core, reducing him to a drifting mist.
The Thousand Claw Beast Sovereign, infamous for hoarding the entire Crystal Ravine of the First Realm for 4,000 years, was dragged out screaming, vanishing into the void.
3. The Political Sects
In the Fourth Realm, powerful entities grew cautious. Their time was finite, and now measured. Alliances were restructured. Legacy transfer programs emerged, where old cultivators voluntarily split their cores into new vessels, reducing their age and extending their term.
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V. Zaxton's Reflections
Zaxton did not expect peace.
But he knew that stagnation was the great silent killer of worlds. Letting the old linger in places meant for the new would slowly poison the cosmos.
> "Power, without limit, becomes rot. Seniority is not sovereignty. Let the suns rise and fall in their season, not all at once forever."