Cultivation, Promotion, Parting

Cultivation—endless cultivation. Mysterious energy, elemental energy, divine energy stones... Li Hao had not the slightest intention or thought of scrimping. He adhered to a simple philosophy: use what should be used; if you don't use it today and die tomorrow, someone else will use it for you. He wanted vengeance, and vengeance required strength. At this moment, grand ambitions and magnificent undertakings meant nothing to him; all he cared about was revenge. Only on the day his hatred was wiped clean might he truly step outward. His heart was locked away, and who could enter it now? Hong Yitang, Hou Xiaochen, the Battle Heaven Army—many people were trying to change him. Li Hao was no fool. He understood. He understood the meaning behind their every word, their every sentence. But... they did not understand that hatred could cause a person to lose their way. In this era, Li Hao had passed the exams to enter the Ancient Academy and caught Yuan Shuo's eye. He was no idiot; on the contrary, he was exceptionally smart. Yet the smarter a person was, the easier it was to dig into a dead end and the harder to walk out. Intelligent people simply could not live so carefree and unfeeling. Just as he had lain low in the Inspectorate for a year, quiet and unassuming, so that no one sensed anything amiss, only to deliver a thunderous blow to Red Moon at the critical moment, shattering all their plans in an instant. Before that, Ying Hongyue likely never imagined that the one who would ultimately ruin his plans would be Li Hao. He might have considered many people, but probably never Li Hao. Dense elemental energy permeated the entire hall. Li Hao did not absorb much of it; the others were doing most of the absorbing. He was trying to construct the bridge of the five organs. The more he tried, the more alarmed he grew. The bridge of the five organs was not merely a conduit of energy, nor was it just a way to strengthen the five organs together. As he experimented, Li Hao faintly discovered that the five organs held a profound mystery. The five organs housed spirits... housed five forces! Five forces merged together, five energies merged together. When he attempted to use the supernatural locks to build this bridge, the five bridges seemed to graze against one another. The instant they touched, a brilliant power burst forth—a power similar to inner force, yet not entirely identical. "Five organs, five forces, five elements, five energies..." "A pity I haven't gathered the wood force yet!" At this moment, Li Hao felt some regret. If he had gathered the wood force, he might have experienced something different. Right now, he vaguely felt that he understood what his teacher meant by the Spirit Integration realm. And after Spirit Integration came Spirit Shattering... he had a vague notion of that as well. A line of numbers appeared before Li Hao, brought by his silver armor. This time, he withdrew three books, all ancient texts he urgently needed. Now, he opened the first one. *Martial Science University Basic Curriculum*. Yes, it was merely a basic course. It elaborated in detail on how to strengthen the physical body and the limbs, temper the bones, and proceed until tempering the five organs, finally entering the so-called Grandmaster realm, where mental energy manifested into reality—what was now known as the manifestation of spiritual intent. According to what was written, people like Li Hao had already become Grandmaster realm experts as early as when they stepped into the Thousand-Battler realm. Or even beyond that! According to the book, Grandmasters could not reach the level Li Hao and his peers had attained—manifesting spiritual intent into physical form and killing with the spirit—at least not with such ease and casualness, nor could their physical bodies support such formidable spiritual intent. The present and the past were indeed different. The ancients' physical bodies seemed to have been frailer, and frailer bodies seemed easier to strengthen. Their weaker five organs could be strengthened and tempered at a very early stage without having to worry about spiritual intent becoming too powerful and bursting the organs. The book also stated that in the early period of ancient civilization, the human body was actually in a semi-sealed state. In ancient times, there were the so-called Gates of the Triple Burner, which shunted large amounts of energy into a special zone. Modern humans were different. Today's physical bodies were powerful, with no outlet to vent energy, leaving it to be stored within the body... Supernatural locks! At this moment, Li Hao thought of the supernatural locks. The supernatural locks locked energy, locked the five organs, locked the limbs... gathering supreme power within oneself. Therefore, the supernatural lock was not a chain, but a self-defense mechanism. Now, supers unlocking their supernatural locks meant releasing their potential while also abandoning self-protection, which was why supers had so many drawbacks. Li Hao quickly flipped through the second book: the differences between the path of energy and the path of qi and blood. After reading for a while, he fell into deep thought. The ancients' path of energy corresponded to today's supernatural path, yet... it was not entirely the same. The ancients' path of energy actually converted the entire body into energy, especially the fragile five organs, which were completely energified! No wonder! That way, there was no need to fear energy invading the five organs, because they had already been assimilated—I am energy, and energy is me. "Today's supers, however, possess mortal flesh and blood, yet they break their supernatural locks and abandon their bodies' own protection. Naturally, they are far more fragile... Compared to the path of energy, supers suffer even greater drawbacks. In the end, they probably cannot escape death!" Reading these ancient records and comparing them to modern people gave Li Hao many insights. There was a disparity between the two systems. The key lay in their constitutions, which were completely different. The ancients transferred energy outward through the Gates of the Triple Burner, but modern people gathered all energy entirely within themselves, lacking any Gates of the Triple Burner. The Gates of the Triple Burner were a weakening, but also a form of protection. Supernatural locks served a similar purpose, but supernatural locks would ultimately erupt inside one's own body... which caused modern people to suffer far greater backlash and pay a heavier price. "Why did this happen?" Li Hao wondered why the Gates of the Triple Burner had disappeared. If they still existed, progressing step by step might have been much simpler. Following the ancient texts step by step might allow one to cultivate smoothly and become very strong. But he did not understand why the Gates of the Triple Burner described in the book had vanished in modern times. Although supernatural locks had a similar effect, they constantly accumulated power within the body, which meant martial masters... actually had big trouble too! The stronger the supernatural lock, the harder it was to snap in the end. Unsealing oneself led to the exact situation modern martial masters faced: because the power contained within the supernatural lock was too great, the physical body and five organs could not endure it. The ancient people's five organs might not have been as strong as those of modern martial masters; what they called tempering felt to Li Hao like... just casual cultivation. It might not match Yuan Shuo's decades of nurturing, yet even Yuan Shuo could not endure the power of storing spirits within the five organs. Thoughts flashed continuously through his mind. Ancient texts Yuan Shuo had taught him in the past surfaced in his thoughts. He thought again of the black-armored soldiers. Even after dying, their souls and obsessions remained imperishable for millions of years... They were not the ancients' so-called beginners; they had to be Grandmaster realm martial masters whose mental energy had manifested. Countless Grandmaster martial artists! That was an army composed entirely of Grandmasters. Otherwise, mortal flesh and blood would have perished long ago, leaving behind no obsessions. Li Hao continued reading as waves of energy surged into his body, continuing to strengthen his physical body and five organs. "In the ancient method of building the five bridges, they only needed to open the qi and blood pathways to establish an energy circulation system... But nowadays, if we try the same thing, fragile qi and blood pathways cannot possibly support the formidable power of the five organs. Especially for people like us, whose supernatural locks and forces are both powerful, it's impossible to link the circulatory system across the five organs." At this point, Li Hao thought back and forth and realized that the only thing capable of supporting it was probably still the supernatural locks. Yet could supernatural locks allow energy, qi, and blood to flow? Supernatural locks absorbed energy. Once qi and blood flowed through, they might be directly absorbed by the lock, making it stronger and stronger—unless it reached a limit and stopped absorbing. Did supernatural locks have a limit? Li Hao frowned. He did not know. Nor had he heard of one. Perhaps others were experimenting, but Li Hao had never experienced the sensation of a supernatural lock ceasing to absorb power. At this moment, he thought of someone. "Calling Company Commander Southern Fist!" "..." After a long pause, Southern Fist's signal came through the silver armor beside him: "What is it?" "Martial Uncle Southern Fist, are you still nearby?" "Leaving in a few days. Why?" "I have a question, Martial Uncle Southern Fist. Do supernatural locks have a limit? As in, they stop absorbing energy and maintain a constant, unchanging state..." "Yo, not bad, kid! You've already reached this stage of research? Of course there's a limit. I told you before, those who can snap their chains and unseal their power have all walked a single path to the extreme... and that extreme actually has a telltale sign: the supernatural lock stops absorbing energy!" Southern Fist had not expected Li Hao to begin investigating this system so quickly. He soon continued, "Excluding the head, the supernatural locks currently discovered in the human body are generally counted as nine. Leaving supers aside, among martial masters like us, the supernatural locks in our four limbs have all stopped absorbing energy. That is our current realm. Once the limb locks are saturated, we generally step into a combat strength equivalent to Rising Light! "At that point, we move on to strengthen the supernatural locks of the five organs... That is the hardest step. Strengthening the locks means you cannot strengthen the organs, leaving the five organs very weak. Right now, not a single one of my organ locks is saturated... People like Hong Yitang have probably managed to saturate one organ lock, which is why under normal circumstances they can erupt with peak Rising Light combat strength, whereas I can only reach mid Rising Light!" Southern Fist explained in detail, then added, "This is actually still a bit far off for you. I don't think the locks in your four limbs are saturated yet... That's why Old Hong and I didn't say anything earlier. Who would've thought that in the blink of an eye, you'd start looking into this?" Li Hao's eyes flickered. So that was it! At this moment, he completely understood what a martial master's unsealing entailed. Supernatural locks! "Then why not unseal the locks in the four limbs instead of insisting on unsealing the five organs?" Li Hao still had an unanswered question. Southern Fist replied again, "I don't know about others; not everyone takes the same path. As for me, I tried, but there was no other way. Even though the locks in my four limbs were saturated, I found that the organ locks loosen more easily... Meanwhile, the limb locks have somewhat solidified and can't be snapped, meaning you can't unseal your combat strength. If you strain for half a day only to squeeze out a fart... that'd be hilarious!" Li Hao chuckled. Many thoughts formed in his mind, and he continued, "So all of you saturated the limb locks first, and are now undergoing the process of saturating the five organ locks?" "Not necessarily all of us. Some might strengthen the organ locks first... it depends on personal choice. Or maybe... some strengthen the lock in the head? Tyrant Saber might be like that. His spiritual intent is tremendously powerful, so it's possible he strengthened his head first..." Li Hao understood. "So what my teacher is doing right now might be strengthening the five organ locks first?" "Right!" Southern Fist added, "The five organs are the hardest, or rather, on par with the head. The four limbs should be the easiest route, which is why most martial masters today do it this way. I did, and Old Hong probably did too... In the end, all roads lead to the same destination; it just depends on how each person travels in between." He supplemented, "Another difficulty with the five organs is that they possess five locks that aren't entirely independent, each having one of five distinct abilities. And those five abilities... actually conflict with each other! That conflict is the biggest trouble; it can easily cause the five organs to shatter. That's why we've struggled to find a suitable method to step into this level. "Your teacher's Five Animals Breathing Art... might solve this drawback, which is why we're all waiting, all hoping... *Sigh!*" A heavy sigh followed; evidently, he had suffered quite a bit from this dilemma. Strengthening the five organs was a very difficult road. "Even if your teacher succeeds, he has mastered five forces, whereas we only have one. That's another difference... Tell me, even if he succeeds, do we have any hope?" He sounded rather pessimistic. Li Hao's eyes flickered slightly. "Don't forget the Five Bridges Method... My teacher's Five Animals Breathing Art might still face obstacles in the end, but what if the five organs were cultivated as a single organ?" Southern Fist was stirred as well. "You're already reading the Five Bridges Method? Have you gained anything from it?" "I have, but there are still difficulties... I might need some of my teacher's theories to support it..." The difficulty was that his teacher's five organs likely had not reached saturation. How, then, was his teacher tempering his five organs without leaving them perpetually weak while the supernatural locks grew increasingly strong? There had to be... a crucial point his teacher had not mentioned. Perhaps he had only discovered it after leaving, and Li Hao did not know whether he had solved it. Yet if these problems could not be resolved, Li Hao would have to strengthen all five supernatural locks to their limits before he could smoothly build the five bridges. If that was the case... Southern Fist and Hong Yitang should just give up! Reaching that stage would take who knew how long. The knowledge Li Hao currently possessed was not enough to make alterations. As for the Five Animals Breathing Art... perhaps only his teacher could adapt the plan to balance the energy and bypass the supernatural locks' absorption. The next moment, Li Hao cut off the connection. Since he could not find his teacher right now, it didn't matter. If all else failed, he would first try continuing to strengthen his five organs and their supernatural locks. In any case, he possessed sword energy, making the strengthening process far simpler for him than for others. Otherwise... a single supernatural lock might take him years to strengthen to completion. With sword energy, however, it became much easier. With his plan set and preparations made, Li Hao began absorbing elemental energy, streams of it rapidly fusing into his body. Meanwhile, outside, the martial masters were also strengthening their five organs. Countless waves of energy radiated outward for them to absorb. A black dog also opened its mouth from time to time to take a few gulps, visibly plumper than when it had first emerged, eating until it grew drowsy. This place truly was comfortable! At this moment, apart from Liu Long, almost all of the other forty-nine martial masters had stepped into the late Hundred-Breaker realm. The two or three who had not were only a matter of time. Several squad leaders had long begun pondering spiritual intent. Among the group was an exception: Wang Ming. Wang Ming differed from these martial masters. While they needed to comprehend spiritual intent, he did not. He absorbed massive amounts of elemental energy, scouring his supernatural locks and drawing it into his five organs; his metal-affinity energy grew noticeably stronger. In the blink of an eye, he reached late Solar Flare and even began advancing toward peak Solar Flare. Superpowers had both advantages and drawbacks. The advantage was that at this stage, they faced no major bottlenecks. As long as they located their supernatural locks and ground them down bit by bit, they could sooner or later achieve immense strength. Their progress was rapid! However, Wang Ming was in no hurry to sever his next supernatural lock. For now, he could only see five locks, which in theory was enough to support his cultivation up to Rising Light. But he also remembered Yuan Shuo once saying that strengthening the supernatural locks granted greater potential! Back then, when he snapped one supernatural lock, he had fused the chain fragments into his other locks, strengthening them once. Now, he began absorbing elemental energy to strengthen his locks rather than merely grinding them away. If he could not become a martial master, he would become a formidable super! With so much elemental energy freely available for him to absorb, had he followed the conventional, orderly path, he might already be breaking into Three Suns by now. Yet after much deliberation, Wang Ming decided to slow down. At the same realm, even if he couldn't match a powerful martial master, he would still be invincible among supers! Further away, Liu Long was also strengthening his five organs. This time, Li Hao had reaped enormous gains, and everyone had profited alongside him, all cultivating like mad. Time slipped by day after day. Li Hao's divine energy stones and mysterious energy were also rapidly consumed. Possessing over two thousand divine energy stones, Li Hao had previously inserted thirty stones into the ancient city mechanism to exchange for Spring of Life water, which was equivalent to consuming three hundred divine energy stones. A single divine energy stone could convert into 250 to 280 cubic meters of mysterious energy. Over these few short days, because so many people were absorbing energy, Li Hao directly consumed nearly three hundred divine energy stones, converting them into close to 70,000 cubic meters of mysterious energy. Among them, Black Panther stole a significant share, Liu Long absorbed plenty, Wang Ming did as well, while the martial masters absorbed somewhat less. The lion's share had been absorbed by Li Hao. Yet Li Hao's physical body and five organs had not strengthened by much. This time, he had primarily been testing how much energy was required to saturate a supernatural lock. The experiment, however, showed him that he had probably oversimplified things. Of the 70,000 cubic meters of mysterious energy, he had absorbed roughly half, over 30,000 cubic meters. Yet the supernatural lock was like a bottomless pit! His five organs and physical body had absorbed some mysterious energy in the ancient city earlier, reaching the level of 6,000 cubic meters. Over these past few days, despite his mad absorption, his improvement was modest; right now, he was only at a level equivalent to roughly 7,000 cubic meters. Less than 10,000 cubic meters of mysterious energy had been absorbed by his body and organs. The remaining 20,000 cubic meters had nearly all been devoured by a supernatural lock. And not across multiple locks—just one, the one in his heart, as Li Hao had intentionally focused on a single lock this time. In the end, a full 20,000 cubic meters had been absorbed without saturating it, leaving Li Hao dumbfounded! This was impossible! He didn't believe people like Southern Fist required so much energy to saturate a single lock. After all, he could only do this because of sword energy; without it, making a supernatural lock absorb 20,000 cubic meters of mysterious energy would take until his next life! Even Yuan Shuo could not have done it. Yuan Shuo had begun nurturing spirit once his heart reached 1,000 cubic meters. Even if Southern Fist and the others hadn't wasted time and had saturated multiple locks over twenty years, could it be that each of their locks held more than 20,000 cubic meters of energy? "That's impossible... There must be something amiss." Three days slipped away in the blink of an eye. Li Hao felt that something was wrong here. Not a single supernatural lock had reached saturation; this made no sense. "Unless... it's a matter of potential!" Li Hao frowned. Perhaps it was related to his bloodline. A bloodline passed down from antiquity meant he possessed abilities others lacked, and his physical foundation might be stronger than an ordinary person's. Thus, he could absorb far more mysterious energy. "Still... if this goes on like a bottomless pit, who knows when it'll ever saturate?" The crux was that absorbing energy into the supernatural lock brought barely any noticeable increase in strength! In fact, there was almost no change at all. It simply wasn't worth it! Granted, it enhanced his foundation, but the consumption was enormous without yielding any immediate boost to combat strength. What use was an extraordinarily deep foundation if it didn't translate into power? With a sigh, Li Hao decided to give up for now. This wouldn't do! It seemed he had to find his teacher to discuss a plan. Otherwise, he couldn't build his bridge of the five organs either; he had to find a way around this obstacle. The more he thought, the worse his headache grew. Furthermore, the strengthening of the supernatural lock led to another issue... The five forces merged into the five organs. Right now, his heart had grown exceedingly robust, while the force remained as it was before. This introduced a new drawback: the force was locked down too tightly. If this continued, his five forces would be completely locked dead! When that happened, if the five forces couldn't emerge, he would become a laughingstock. Strengthening the five organs only to end up locking the five forces so securely that they could neither break through nor emerge... what would be the point? "Ten thousand cubic meters at most..." Li Hao estimated that he could strengthen his five organs and physical body to the level of 10,000 cubic meters at most. Any stronger, and his forces might become trapped and unable to emerge. That would truly be a nightmare! He had exchanged for some Spirit Nurturing Fruits this time; he wondered if they would help nurture his forces. Just as Li Hao was pondering this, a voice came from outside the door: "Li Hao, are you in?" Li Hao's eyes flickered, and with a flash, he vanished from where he stood. ... Outside the cultivation room. The sky was not yet fully bright. Mu Lin was waiting at the door. Seeing Li Hao emerge, his eyes flickered, and a smile quickly broke across his face. "Cultivating the whole time these past few days?" "Yeah, Brother Ermu." Mu Lin smiled, unbothered. "You were cultivating, so I didn't want to disturb you, but today... is the day we depart. The transfer order came down from above, summoning Director Hou to Heaven Star City! As Director Hou's direct force, our Martial Guard Army will accompany him to the capital... I thought it over and decided to let you know, because from now on... your Demon Hunt Corps might be the only ones left here." Today? Li Hao paused, quickly recalling their previous conversation—departing in three days. That meant it was already the fourth. How fast! Then again, he had absorbed a full 30,000 cubic meters of mysterious energy, so several days had indeed passed. In the distance, soldiers of the Martial Guard Army were packing their gear and even falling into formation; the entire base was buzzing with activity. Li Hao frowned slightly. "Is everyone willing to go along?" These men were all natives of Silver Moon. Leaving their homeland behind—were they truly all willing to follow Hou Xiaochen? Mu Lin laughed. "Of course! In an era when martial masters were declining, Director Hou valued us and raised us up step by step. Now that he's heading to the capital, his future is uncertain... Naturally, the Martial Guard Army must accompany him! Heaven Star City might be full of intrigue and scheming... but with us guarding him, Director Hou can have an easier time." Li Hao felt a stir. The Martial Guard Army's loyalty to Hou Xiaochen was truly not to be underestimated. To leave their homeland and travel ten thousand li away, yet these men were willing to follow. "Where are Director Hou and the others?" "At the Night Patrollers' station. We'll head over soon to meet them. First, we'll take vehicles near the Yun River, cross it, and enter Linjiang Province. From there, we'll take dedicated transports to Beihai Province and finally cross the North Sea... Once we enter the Central Region, we can ride vehicles all the way to Heaven Star City." This journey spanned ten thousand li. If they marched on foot, even sprinting several hundred li a day, reaching Heaven Star City would take months. Heaven Star City was too far—they said ten thousand li, but on a map, it was actually closer to twenty thousand li away. In the Central Region, road transportation was fairly convenient. Traveling by vehicle twenty-four hours a day, one could cover around three thousand li daily, arriving in about a week. Of course, if one had enough money, one could take the airplanes unique to the Central Region. That was much faster, but the Martial Guard Army had too many men and would have to be split up. Hou Xiaochen was unlikely to choose that option, so vehicles were the way to go. They should arrive in Heaven Star City after roughly a week. Li Hao, who had read many ancient texts, knew that during the ancient civilization, there had been express trains capable of speeds exceeding five hundred li an hour, covering ten thousand li in a single day. However, modern technology was far from that level. Although some recovered ancient technologies had been put to use, they still fell far short of antiquity, and vehicle speeds were more than a notch slower. And that was only after the rise of superpowers, when supernatural methods were employed; earlier still, people could only rely on horse carriages. Li Hao exhaled. "Let's go together. I'll see you off... and say goodbye to Director Hou." Mu Lin beamed. "I came looking for you with that in mind as well. After all, you lead the only hundred-man corps remaining from the Martial Guard Army, and your numbers are so few. Many big figures will probably come to see Director Hou off today... You can show your face so they recognize you, making it easier for them to look out for you later." Saying that, he added with a touch of regret, "A pity... we only worked together for a few days, and now we have to leave." Originally, he had hoped they could explore ruins together. Thinking of this, he added, "Right, the boss seemed to be looking for you too. He failed to explore a ruin earlier and originally wanted to ask you to explore it with him, but you ran off so fast, and now this happened, so there's probably no time left. The boss might hand the ruin's location over to you... You can explore it on your own later, but be careful. Even the boss failed... Then again, your strength is truly terrifying, so you might be just fine." He had entered the ruins and naturally witnessed Li Hao's might in slaying Rising Lights. Golden Spear had failed to explore it, but Li Hao was a different story. Li Hao said nothing, simply walking out alongside Mu Lin. At this time, someone caught up from behind. Liu Long had followed them. "I'll go as well to see Director Hou off. Even though I didn't make a name for myself in the Night Patrollers years ago, it was only because Director Hou gave the nod that I could return to Silver City, continue serving as captain of the Inspectorate's law enforcement team, and form the Demon Hunt Squad..." With Hou Xiaochen leaving, he felt he ought to see him off. Li Hao said nothing. A moment later, they accompanied Mu Lin into one of the vehicles outside. Outside, trucks were lined up. For the Martial Guard Army of over a thousand men, twenty large trucks had been mobilized just to carry the personnel. Several storage rings were also used to hold armor and supplies. Just then, a figure approached—Golden Spear's disciple and Kong Jie's daughter, the young woman named Kong Youyun. Li Hao was not well acquainted with her; they had only met a handful of times. Kong Youyun walked up and said, "Centurion Li, the chiliarch is looking for you!" Ahead, a small car was parked. Li Hao thought for a moment, nodded, and walked over with her. Golden Spear was seated inside. In just a few days, he seemed to have aged considerably. Before, he had looked in his forties or fifties, but now he carried an air of senescence. Li Hao had his suspicions. Perhaps... it was related to the explosive displays of Hong Yitang and the others. ... "Get in!" Golden Spear's voice was calm. Li Hao said nothing, quickly getting into the car and sitting beside him. In front, Kong Youyun got in and started the engine. Golden Spear sat ramrod straight, like a javelin. His tone remained as placid as before. "After I leave, only your group will remain here. There are still some items left behind in the storehouse—some divine energy stones and mysterious energy. Additionally, there are a few enlightenment ancient weapons... They weren't placed in the storehouse; they're in this storage ring!" With that, he tossed a storage ring directly to Li Hao. "Originally, it wouldn't have been your turn to take charge of these, but since you aren't leaving, they're left to you. "It's not much; we've taken most of it with us. But we couldn't leave you with nothing." Li Hao accepted the storage ring without a word. He had not expected the Martial Guard Army to leave behind supplies for him before departing. Next, Golden Spear handed Li Hao a booklet. "This is compiled information on ruins we've explored over the years. Look through it yourself. Mu Lin probably mentioned it to you: a few days ago, I discovered a ruin, but hadn't had time to explore it. There's some danger inside, so use your own judgment. Detailed records of that ruin are also in the storage ring." "Thank you, Chiliarch." "No need." Golden Spear's tone was flat. "My failure to explore it was due to my lack of strength. Perhaps you can. There's no need for thanks." Having said that, he considered for a moment and added, "Also, beware of the Moon Sea pirates. We've compiled some information on them as well. You must be careful. The weak among them are nothing, but I fear that once the pirates of the North Sea learn we have departed and that the director is gone, they will enter the Moon Sea to plunder. Be on your guard! Some North Sea pirates are exceedingly powerful, with peak Rising Light experts among them, and some even keep demonic great beasts as pets... Stay vigilant!" Li Hao nodded again. Golden Spear hesitated, then added another sentence: "Don't let yourself remain trapped beneath your master's shadow. Don't rely on him to move forward your entire life. The Five Animals Art is formidable, but I hope you can forge your own path. I have no right to preach, yet I know... once there is a mountain over your head, moving it is far too difficult!" In that moment, an air of desolation surrounded him. Golden Spear's eyes held weariness, tinged with an indescribable mixture of regret and helplessness. The leader of the Three Spears of Silver Moon was not even a match for the Bright Light Sword among the Seven Swords. The journey into the ruins had completely shattered his pride, leaving him with an unspeakable ache. Now, unable to see the path ahead and powerless to advance, Golden Spear had spent the last few days in profound dejection. Seeing him like this, Li Hao said nothing. These things were something Golden Spear had to break through on his own. Comfort from anyone would be useless, and he had no need for it. Afterward, Golden Spear remained silent, closing his eyes to rest, and Li Hao could only sit quietly in the car as they rode toward the Night Patrollers' station. ... At the Night Patrollers' station. Today, no one had gone out on patrol. A large crowd of supers was gathered here. Hou Xiaochen was leaving. From the very day the Silver Moon Night Patrollers were established, he had been their leader. Nearly twenty years had passed, and now, this entrenched tiger was departing. Hao Lianchuan's face was filled with sorrow. Once Hou Xiaochen left... the Silver Moon Night Patrollers' standing would plummet. The Martial Guard Army was leaving too. In this vast Night Patrollers organization, he, a mid Three Suns, was the only one left to hold up the ceiling. As for other Three Suns, there were some: over the past two days, two deputy directors had successfully advanced to Three Suns. Director Zhou of the metal affinity and Director He of the water affinity had both stepped into the Three Suns level, aided by the large quantity of divine energy stones they had acquired. Three Three Suns—that was now the core pillar of the Night Patrollers. Yet was such strength... truly strong? Perhaps they had thought so in the past, but now, it was barely worth mentioning. Hao Lianchuan looked thoroughly reluctant. "Director, how about letting Chief Secretary Yu stay behind?" "..." Chief Steward Yu glanced at him with a murderous gaze, but Hao Lianchuan didn't care, wailing mournfully, "Otherwise, I won't be able to hold down the fort!" How miserable! "If all else fails, find someone else to take the director's position. Having me serve as acting director... I'm terrified I can't shoulder it..." Indeed, his appointment as acting director had come as a surprise! Yet the Central Region had not arranged a successor this time. For what reason, who knew—perhaps... they were afraid of dying? So no one was willing to come. Under such circumstances, Hao Lianchuan could only temporarily take over the post of director. There was no joy of promotion, only dread and helplessness. *I really can't handle this, especially when the previous director was the incomparably terrifying Hou Xiaochen.* Hou Xiaochen smiled. "Set your mind at ease. Once I'm gone, there won't be much going on here. The Three Great Organizations have been mostly cleared out, and after I leave, they won't send any strong experts either..." *How could that be!* Hao Lianchuan was speechless. *I'm not an idiot. Your departure is precisely the golden opportunity for outsiders to slip spies and trouble into Silver Moon. Besides, Li Hao of the Eight Great Families is still here, and you're telling me the Three Great Organizations won't send anyone? Don't kid me! My head is perfectly clear.* Hou Xiaochen chuckled. "Don't be afraid. If worst comes to worst, find someone to help you." "Who?" Hou Xiaochen looked outside and smiled. "Aren't they here already?" Hao Lianchuan also looked outside and happened to see Golden Spear and Li Hao stepping out of the car. He froze slightly, looking back at Hou Xiaochen. Hou Xiaochen chuckled softly. "Doesn't he love being an official? Let's grant his wish! "Since he isn't leaving... he might as well shoulder some responsibility. Still, he is blinded by hatred and might not truly care about these duties. You'll have to play it by ear. You don't have many virtues, but you treat people candidly enough. Li Hao will surely look out for you to some degree..." With those words, Hou Xiaochen's voice rang out in all directions: "Li Hao of the Martial Guard Army, effective immediately, is promoted to Senior City Inspecting Commissioner and appointed as Deputy Director of the Silver Moon Inspection Committee, assisting Acting Director Hao Lianchuan in co-managing the Silver Moon Inspection Committee!" Having just stepped out of the car, Li Hao froze. What was going on? Senior City Inspecting Commissioner—he had been asking for this rank all along, but it had never been granted until now. Today, he was promoted at last, but... why had he also been made a deputy director, co-governing the Night Patrollers alongside Hao Lianchuan? In the distance, several cars slowly came to a halt. The faces peering out were all slightly surprised, yet none said a word. Hou Xiaochen's voice rang out once more: "Furthermore, the establishment of the Martial Guard Army shall not be abolished. Li Hao shall serve as Acting Chiliarch of the Silver Moon Martial Guard Army, defending the Moon Sea line to guard against pirate incursions! Safeguard the peace of Silver Moon, and permit no pirate to set foot upon Silver Moon soil!" Below, Li Hao frowned slightly. He might not stay in Silver Moon for long. Now he was both a deputy director and an acting chiliarch... What was Hou Xiaochen doing? Not long ago, Hou Xiaochen had urged him to leave together. Now that he had refused, Hou Xiaochen showered him with all these positions... What was the point? The Demon Hunt Corps only had a handful of people! "The Night Patrollers and the Martial Guard Army must both ensure the safety of this region. Only then can we do justice to the people's hard-earned wealth. Pay and provisions alike come from the people of Silver Moon. Li Hao, you must remember this!" Below, before Li Hao could reply, Hou Xiaochen stepped forward, looked down at him, and said in a cool tone, "Li Hao, will you not accept the order?" "..." A look of doubt crossed Li Hao's face. He struggled inwardly for a moment, then snapped his heels together with an audible thud and shouted loudly, "Understood!" Hou Xiaochen smiled and gave a slight nod. Without another word, he casually tossed a storage ring across. "I leave the records and rosters regarding the Night Patrollers to you. Support Hao Lianchuan well, and together ensure Silver Moon remains peaceful and prosperous!" With that, he turned and walked forward. He climbed into his vehicle in one fluid motion. "Depart! Gentlemen, we shall meet again another day!" "Depart!" With a low shout from Golden Spear, dozens of large vehicles roared to life in the next instant. In the distance, Director Zhao, Huang Yu, Kong Jie... These leaders of various factions stepped out of their cars one by one. After a long silence, someone sighed softly. "Wishing you a smooth journey. The dragon submerges in the deep abyss; it is time for Silver Moon... to step outward!" Hou Xiaochen, carefree and untamed, exchanged no words with them as he led his convoy away. And where he stood, Li Hao's mind drifted. Just like that... he had gone? At this moment, a strange sensation suddenly arose. His teacher had left, having instructed Hou Xiaochen to shield him before departing. Although Li Hao harbored many suspicions, as long as Hou Xiaochen was here, he had always felt he possessed a backing. The same went for Hong Yitang and Southern Fist... Now, Hou Xiaochen had departed, Southern Fist would leave today as well, and Hong Yitang had sealed off Sword Gate completely, receiving no guests... Looking at his surroundings, Li Hao suddenly felt a chill run down his spine! At this moment, Li Hao suddenly felt as though he stood in a den of wolves and tigers. It was cold. In the span of an instant, all the backings behind him seemed to have vanished. It felt like returning to one year ago. Back then, his friend had told him to run... but where could he run? Darkness seemed to engulf Li Hao. It turned out that sinister fellow, simply by being here even without doing anything, had provided a sense of security after all. What a ridiculous feeling! In this moment, Li Hao was utterly silent. Beside him, Hao Lianchuan looked even more stricken with grief, his face twisted in misery. Hou Xiaochen was truly gone.