Chapter 1939: Master of a Myriad Daos (II)
“I also think this is a great idea!” said Fog Mountain. “Having built his own dao domain, Fellow Daoist Yuan Shuo stands a very big chance of outright advancing to seventh rank from third! Li Hao, you also need to perfect your minor worlds.
“You don’t seem to have focused on them after improving them in Dragon Region. This is a good chance to spend some quality time with your worlds! As for Silver Moon, it’s best if it can ascend naturally by itself!”
He rarely interfered with Li Hao’s arrangements, but this time, he also felt that forcing an ascension for the world wouldn’t mean much. It was better to facilitate Yuan Shuo’s rise and strengthen Li Hao himself. The young man was very strong at present, but also not that powerful when thrown into a batch of eighth ranks.
When Li Hao conversed with the New Martial Human King, he’d faced eighth ranks in the form of the Human King and Supreme Zhang. Li Hao was very young and their junior, but in Fog Mountain’s eyes, he was the core figure of the Silver Moon contingent.
And yet, his strength was noticeably weaker than the core figures of other factions. That wouldn’t do!
Even footing in conversations was predicated on the basis of sufficient strength. The current levels of strength were imbalanced.
Li Hao blinked from the conversation that arose after his suggestion. He was used to calling the shots for Silver Moon. While he asked for everyone’s opinions in the early days, the young man became accustomed to unilaterally making arrangements later on.
The main thing was, no one ever objected to his plans. It was the status quo that he’d been used to for a very long time.
But today, Hong Yitang led the charge in rare opposition. Even someone as biddable as Gan Wuliang felt that Hong Yitang made sense. That made Li Hao sink into deep thought.
“You guys make sense...” He nodded with a smile after a while. “I should consider some of your opinions. We gather together to find strength in numbers, to be safer and more carefree. If this is what all of you think, then perhaps I’m the one thinking too much.”
Gan Wuliang started to get cold feet about his audacity and coughed dryly. “It’s not that we oppose the marquis, we also want to grow stronger. It’s just that...”
“I get it!” Li Hao laughed. “You’ve been consolidating your strength for one hundred years, there’s no need to be this careful when you talk and do things. It will be extraordinary if you make it to seventh rank through your own strength alone.”
Gan Wuliang scratched his head awkwardly and didn’t say anything else.
Li Hao thought for a while and looked at his teacher. Yuan Shuo nodded without any embarrassment. “I think we can help me reach seventh rank first. Don’t worry, I’ll think of this as borrowing energy from Silver Moon. I’ll return it sooner or later!”
“...you’re really just going to accept it, just like this huh!” Li Hao rolled his eyes.
“I almost died to one palm strike and was sent hurtling halfway through the battlefield.” Yuan Shuo likewise rolled his eyes. “Why should I not just accept the offer?”
What was there to stand on ceremony for?
I’ll owe Silver Moon first and return it later when I collect more energy. Not to mention, I think I stand the biggest chance of breaking through to seventh rank out of everyone present at the moment. There’s no need to refuse out of politeness.
I’ll return the resources as soon as I can. If I can’t... then you can return them for me!
Indeed, one had kids in order to be taken care of in one’s old age. The same went for disciples. Although his disciple was quite a personage now and very strong, hadn’t he taken a disciple to ensure he had support when he was elderly?
Although the kid didn’t depend on him all that much, he and Li Hao never stood on ceremony with each other.
“Then let’s do it this way!” Li Hao nodded with a laugh. “I don’t care what New Martial plans. I’ll help them if they need it, and I don’t mind how everyone decides either. I won’t stop you if you’re interested in helping them.
“I’m going to spend most of my energy on creating the mirage realm of a myriad daos. If the alliance of mid worlds is unwilling to partner with us, then this is a good time for us to do it by ourselves!
“In addition, Reincarnation has run off. The overlords in the other three regions will soon learn of what’s happened in the east. Long Zhan is prowling to our rear, which means that the eastern region isn't as well off as it appears to be.
“There will be a period of temporary peace...” Li Hao looked out at the crowd. “We know almost nothing of the three regions. I have some thoughts now that might require some people to move out independently and collect some information on the other factions.
“In addition, they will need to take some of the false worlds with them to craft a path for the river of time. Of course, this will simply be for location purposes. There are powerhouses out there who can sense the presence of time!
“Hence, I will activate the river of time only when needed. This will ensure that we can build the fastest and most convenient communication system in the chaos. It’s good to be prepared! I think that the other three regions might treat us as the enemy!”
Li Hao had certain thoughts in mind of how he’d like to proceed. Everything had been derived from the sudden battle that they’d just fought.
No one had known beforehand that Reincarnation had thrown in his lot with Chaos Sky and would suddenly appear with a large sum of eighth ranks. It’d caught everyone off guard and taken even the New Martial supreme by surprise.
The other side clearly had made some plans of their own. In contrast, Li Hao’s group had been taking things one step at a time. They were almost wholly unprepared.
Things might have turned out very poorly if they had been the ones targeted!
Everyone exchanged glances with each other and sank into deep thought.
“If those who set forth are from Silver Moon, then they need to secede from the dao universe and walk alone!” continued Li Hao. “Otherwise, your identity will easily be exposed. Additionally, there is no guarantee of personal safety for the low to mid ranks if they are the ones to set out in the chaos.
"Traveling with a false world will easily reveal your true identities. Granted, it would take encountering a premier powerhouse to result in that outcome...”
The young man scanned the crowd. Someone volunteered at this time, and an unexpected candidate at that.
Li Hao had thought that mature types such as the redwood tree would be the first to step forward, but it was the rebellious Southern Fist He Yong who did so. He was still a peak third rank, but looked to be close to fourth rank. At least, that was what Li Hao saw when he took a close look at the man.
“Let’s go together!” Southern Fist said. “There’s no point in staying at Silver Moon or Great Li. We’re all exalted emperors now, but hole up here from day to night. We fought an eighth rank together, but couldn’t stop him for even a second.
“We’re useless! All of us should go out and take a look at the universe outside! We should add to our knowledge. We did so once at Skyward, but only for a short period of time. It’s a great pity that we didn’t encounter that many powerhouses on the trip!
“Since Silver Moon won’t be entering seventh rank in the short term, there’s not much use in us staying behind!” He Yong boldly laid out the facts. “Scatter all of us out there, just as how we left Silver Moon province back in the day. We’ll be able to have some effect at critical moments. If we stay where we are, we won’t even be useful against an eighth rank.
“Let’s leave the exalted emperor spots to the young’uns!”
Verifying one’s dao as an exalted emperor meant occupying a space in the dao universe. There were plenty of fellow daoist cultivators among the younger generation these days. Sadly, no further exalted emperors could be created after the spots were full.
The status quo would not change until Silver Moon made it to seventh rank. If the world did not, then this was all the exalted emperors that the world could ever support.
“Some of the exalted emperors in my world have also undergone testing of their hearts,” the Thunder Emperor suddenly volunteered. “Fellow Daoist Li Hao saw it last time as well. Those with irresolute wills have departed from Thunder World. Those who remain are trustworthy brothers.
“Since they have nothing else better to do, why not send a portion of my brothers out into the chaos universe? Our dao universe is gone, at any rate!”
“The same goes for my Orchid Forest,” said the Orchid Forest master. “Granted, I don’t have many that I trust, so I will be sure to choose from those that I do. I’ll send out a portion of exalted emperors that can be relied upon!”
They all looked at Li Hao. Since the current course of action was to send people out into the chaos, then their people would do as well. Keeping them behind was a waste. Their people also felt uncomfortable and hemmed in. They had to hide whenever danger was upon them.
In that case, they might as well be sent out to experience the universe!
The outer regions were massive and there were plenty of wandering cultivators. One batch more spread out in various places would not raise any attention.
No one who’d made it this far in their journey was an idiot.
Li Hao’s thoughts wandered to New Martial. Many of New Martial’s exalted emperors are absent. Perhaps they’d gone out as well. Maybe the supreme was putting his plans into action, and not just him. The Dragon master had also scattered quite a few weak exalted emperors into the chaos.
Of course, chaos beasts were more visible to the eye, so Long Zhan mostly sent out the human exalted emperors that he’d recruited.
Chaos Sky had also installed a large number of people in the east. Although Li Hao didn’t wish to vie for supremacy, he had to admit that if he didn’t make any of his own preparations, it would only be a matter of time before he was devoured by others!
This accidental encounter had left Li Hao with a few hints of alarm. A tiger might not have intentions of harming humans, but humans might seek to harm it. At this stage in the game, one would not have peace just because they wished for it.
“We’ll head to the alliance city of the mid worlds first and engage in discussions again.” Li Hao inclined his head. “Let’s make further arrangements after we finish that transaction and fully digest all of our gains!”
With that, the group flew toward the Ninth City.
......
The Ninth City of the alliance cities.
City Lord Wan Qiu struggled with a complicated mix of feelings. She was both frantic and afraid.
What was she afraid of?
Afraid of Reincarnation learning of a certain situation.
She’d been the one to relay the message to Li Hao that the Human King was being attacked. The Silver Moon faction hadn’t known about the conflict before that. Little did Wan Qiu know then that the outcome of these skirmishes would be the deaths of four eighth ranks and a multitude of seventh ranks.
Would the Reincarnation master spare her if he learned of this detail??
It wouldn’t be just her, but the entire alliance of mid worlds that would suffer from his wrath!
If it hadn’t been for her warning, the Human King might have perished. Wan Qiu hadn’t thought that the consequences of her actions would be so severe!
Neither did she think that Li Hao’s group would truly kill so many eighth ranks, or that Reincarnation had sworn fealty to Chaos Sky and collected eight eighth ranks. If her deeds were known, then even Chaos Sky major world would want to destroy the alliance of mid worlds, not just Reincarnation.
Wan Qiu could only pray that word didn’t get out. Li Hao discovered it for themselves, I’m not the one who told them.
If not, she was done for. She wouldn’t be able to withstand the ensuing pressure even if she was an eighth rank, much less sixth rank.
She was panicked and anxious!
The state of mind continued even after the fighting was over. All of the core alliance members were equally terrified, because they knew... that they might have been the ones to share this information.
They’d been the ones to share the reports through the alliance, then Exalted Emperor Wan Qiu quickly sent a missive to the senior council. She sought the Exalted Myriad Changes Emperor as the Silver Moon king wished to discuss a partnership.
Not long after that, the Silver Moon king ran off to seek out the Reincarnation master. No one would believe that Wan Qiu hadn’t shared what she’d received!
And the key was, the trouble wouldn’t be over if the alliance just outed Wan Qiu.
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