Chapter 1268: You Haven't Lost Out
Mei'er consumed the Zhou Ying restorative in a single gulp. As natural energy and vitality suffused her, the scar on her face healed instantly without a trace.
The two elders were overjoyed. "As expected of the medicine provided by the strongest hunter of the realm!"
"Would I be able to get closer to you if I ignored my appearance?" Mei'er ignored the elders. All her attention was to Zhang Lie, who was now on stage.
As Zhang Lie walked up to stage, Li Qianlin joked, "So that's the type that interests you, is it?"
"It was a passing gesture," Zhang Lie replied. "Your beauty is truly devastating. I hear you've ruined another generation of newcomers, that many aspiring youths have chosen a life of asceticism after witnessing your beauty."
Li Qianlin sighed. "It's hardly as though I want them to. Only on occasions like these do I end up being reminded that I'm a beauty."
Zhang Lie shrugged. "You've always been beautiful."
Li Qianlin tried very hard not to show her pleasure, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl up.
"Don't think that I'll be happy just because of your random praise, you hear? I'm not that easy to deal with."
Zhang Lie pointed below him. "I'm only mentioning the truth. Look at those young men and women—they're all going crazy."
"And you?" Li Qianlin asked with anticipation.
As she glanced at the crowd below, Zhang Lie glimpsed Mei'er from the corner of his eye.
Mei'er, enraptured, was looking at him; he smiled and waved.
"A little crazy, I suppose."
Li Qianlin saw his gestures and frowned. "I'm right by your side, but you have the time to wave at other women? Those whom I don't like are falling over themselves like puppets, while the one I do is like a block of wood!"
Li Zongming began his speech. "Thank you, one and all, for attending the founding ceremony of the Zongming kingdom. Our world has suffered trial and tribulation—a schism that separated the worlds of east and west, that divided our former strength, before our subsequent reunification into the superior Zongming world."
As Li Zongming began a retelling of events, the crowd quieted down as everyone gathered by the stage.
"With the unification of the three thousand worlds, we can no longer remain a separate, independent world. All the worlds of the third realm have transformed into kingdoms, and we have to change to adapt with the times.
"In order to welcome a new era, we shall become the Zongming kingdom. All that has changed is our name and the times; we, the citizens of the Zongming kingdom, shall remain the same as we always have been, and I the Zongming king. As long as we work together, our kingdom will only become more prosperous than before."
The crowd cheered and clapped.
The image of a five-colored dragon appeared in the air and let out a howl that shook the heavens. The firebird croaked out a call, then flapped its wings and soared into the sky.
Scarlet flames and violet lightning combined in a multicolored explosion, as though a disaster had struck the skies. A radiant, glowing moon appeared, as beautiful as a jewel, shining in five colors like an aurora. Golden light streamed from it like a flaming sun.
Upon witnessing the fantastic sights, the guests who had once attended the merger of the worlds of east and west couldn't help but be reminded of the ceremony then.
The special effects had been conjured by Li Zongming and Li Zongming alone.
The dragon and firebird soared through the skies. The shining sun and glowing moon released scarlet flames and violet lightning through the sky. A radiant outpouring of light illuminated the heavens with a golden glow.
Li Zongming himself began to glow. His body flared with light, and a thick pillar of it shot into the skies and enveloped himself.
The guests cried out in shock, thinking that Li Zongming was receiving heaven's own blessing.
Zhang Lie couldn't help but smile. "Your father really loves his theatrics."
He had to admit that this was a marvelous strategy.
Everyone present would think that Li Zongming's right to rule had been conferred by the heavens themselves, that he had received a blessing from the new ruler of the realm—but none suspected that this was all artifice of Li Zongming's own making.
With his current strength that surpassed that of a superior king, conjuring these illusions was a trivial task.
Zhang Lie would have been able to make the illusions even more majestic, so much so that they could be seen throughout the unified world, but he preferred not to rely on such theatrics.
With this stellar performance, all the guests seemed even more riveted than before.
Li Zongming slowly ascended to the throne. Li Qianlin and Zhang Lie sat on either side of him.
Zhang Lie gave him a discreet thumbs up.
Li Zongming smiled awkwardly. He might have been able to fool everyone else, but he knew he wouldn't be able to do so to Zhang Lie. The gap in their strength was simply too immense.
Zhang Lie said, "Before your speech, a group of young people left the venue proclaiming that they were going to head to the mountains and leave the secular world behind. Some women even jumped off the mountaintop."
Li Zongming couldn't help but smile. "Does even the strongest hunter of the third realm enjoy gossiping? Would you like to hear my opinion on the matter? Aren't you going to ask me how it feels for the Zongming world to become the Zongming kingdom first?"
Zhang Lie rolled his eyes. "What's there to feel? It's not as though you're losing out."
The Zongming kingdom had grown in size, and many nearby kingdoms had chosen to fold themselves into the Zongming kingdom.
Li Zongming shrugged. "Haven't I lost my independence as a superior world?"
Zhang Lie rolled his eyes. "What kind of independence do you need? It's hardly as though anyone will restrict your freedom. Don't avoid my previous question, please."
Li Zongming shrugged, emulating Zhang Lie's tone.
"What else is there to say? I'm a handsome man, and my daughter's far too beautiful. It's my fault."
"You're shameless! Who's asking you how you feel? I want to know where you ended up getting people like these!"
Li Zongming rolled his eyes. "Don't you know?"
"From the subordinate kingdoms nearby?"
Li Zongming sighed in exasperation. "That's right. Every world has different customs and views. At the very least, we all speak a common language, or things would have been much harder for me.
After all, the three thousand worlds were all originally one entity. Later, as a result of some unknown occurrence, it split up into three thousand worlds. Now, millennia later, we're simply reverting things to how they were before."
Because the three thousand worlds had originally been one entity, the worlds shared a common language and writing system for the most part.
Li Zongming suddenly asked, "How are you?"
"What?"
"Shall I take advantage of the occasion to announce your wedding with Qianlin and settle matters once and for all?"
Li Qianlin suddenly blushed bright red, like a ripe apple.
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