Li Hao paid no heed to what was happening in the outside world.
He simply waited patiently.
The next day, Li Hao assembled everyone in the North City Compound.
Over fifty members of the Demon Hunt Corps, nearly a thousand from the Martial Guard Army, and over a thousand from the Silver Moon Army—just over two thousand men in total.
Almost all of them were martial masters; supernaturals were few and far between.
Hou Xiaochen arrived, accompanied by Chief Steward Yu and several others.
By then, Deputy Director Zhou, Hong Yitang, Bright Light Sword, and the rest had gathered as well.
A moment later, even Yao Si stepped out of a car and walked into the compound.
More than two thousand people filled the grounds to capacity.
Clad in black armor, they stood in palpable tension.
Among them, the strongest had reached Spirit Accumulation or Three Suns, while the weakest were mere Ten-Slayer realm fighters—utterly insignificant in Heavenly Star City.
Two thousand men like these could hardly stir up any waves in the capital.
Yet just yesterday, these very soldiers had arrested the offspring of prominent figures. Of course, that had been done by riding on the momentum of greater powers, not because they themselves were truly formidable enough to make the Nine Departments wary.
Li Hao remained silent, continuing to wait.
After a short while, Yang Shan and his wife arrived. They leaned in close to Li Hao and whispered a few words.
Li Hao gave a slight nod.
Moments later, Southern Fist appeared in a flash, clad in bronze armor.
Taking in the courtyard packed with people, he sucked in a sharp breath.
Li Hao wanted to play on such a grand scale?
Still... Southern Fist really wanted to tell him that this was thoroughly inappropriate.
Even if one had resources, they shouldn't be squandered like this.
Truth be told, having the weak gang up against the strong through human wave tactics simply did not work anymore. Against Three Suns combatants, it might pass; against Rising Light, it grew exceedingly difficult; and once it came to the Divine Power Realm, it was nearly impossible!
Two thousand Hundred-Breaker martial masters going up against a Divine Power combatant... a single slap from that person, a single outburst of divine ability, could wipe out hundreds of men. In the blink of an eye, the entire force would be slaughtered.
More crucially, the resources consumed by two thousand men would far exceed what it took to cultivate a single Divine Power combatant.
What on earth was Li Hao doing?
Southern Fist was somewhat bewildered.
Once a martial master reached late Hundred-Breaker, advancing any further was brutally difficult.
Even if they crossed over into the supernatural path to become Solar Flares, the resource consumption would be immense. What was more... there was no guarantee all these people could become supernaturals anyway.
It was not just Southern Fist who failed to understand; practically no one present could comprehend it.
Money was not meant to be burned like this.
Advancing as a supernatural was supposed to be slightly simpler, was it not?
Yet how many factions had ever burned through fortunes for large batches of regular troops?
Wouldn't taking those resources to forge one or two Divine Power experts be far more cost-effective than wasting them on these people?
In the eyes of many, burning money to produce even a single Rising Light combatant was far better than having a thousand Hundred-Breakers.
Hence, plenty of people were perplexed by Li Hao's choice.
***
Li Hao himself, however, paid it no mind.
In his view, the stronger one was, the less one required this kind of assistance; on the contrary, it was the weak who needed it most at this stage.
Furthermore, once the Demon Hunt Army truly took shape, whether they became supernaturals or remained martial masters, Li Hao saw them all as the next batch of prospective practitioners to be transitioned into divine ability characters.
Naturally, that required force.
Whether they could make the transition without force was something he had yet to determine. Regardless, these people would prove useful in the future.
Besides, who said an army of ants couldn't bite an elephant to death?
They definitely could!
If they couldn't, why would the ancients have bothered maintaining such massive armies? Had they really been that bored?
Did the million-strong Battle Heaven Army, which had consumed boundless resources, exist just for fun?
If that were true, cultivating a few elite powerhouses with those resources would have been enough; why maintain armies at all?
Quite the contrary: when martial practitioners gathered in large numbers and their vitality connected as one, the power they could unleash was beyond imagination. Barring the absolute pinnacle figures who stood atop heaven and earth, anyone could be ground to death by sheer numbers.
In this new era, anyone claiming an army was useless merely lacked foresight.
The era had only just begun, and supernatural powers had only just revived. Deciding that numbers were useless at this early stage... did they think they were ancient Human Kings?
Spending the resources needed to nurture a Divine Power combatant to train two thousand people meant that if even a single one broke out from the pack, it was a net gain. Even if no one broke out, Li Hao would eventually prove that two thousand Hundred-Breaker martial masters were not necessarily inferior to a single Divine Power expert.
Moreover, they possessed far greater plasticity.
If luck was on their side and a few individuals rose above the rest... what would a mere Divine Power combatant count for?
Only by screening through a large pool of candidates could one hope to produce even greater experts. Talent, after all, was built on top of sheer numbers.
Though these thoughts ran through Li Hao's mind, he did not voice them.
He looked down at the crowd, whose faces showed a mix of anticipation and unease.
He knew they all understood what he intended to do, and he knew they felt apprehensive, worrying they were squandering precious resources.
Li Hao spoke in a calm voice that resonated in everyone's hearts.
"My master once said: when one person is strong, they are a reclusive master; when a group is strong, it is the martial world; when all people are strong, it is the evolution of life!
"This era is unfair, and it is chaotic!
"The strong remaining strong while the weak remain weak is not wrong in itself... but when the leap in life is too drastic, the strong take it for granted. Sooner or later, these powerhouses will become detached from the era, like duckweed without roots, gradually losing their direction and the road forward!
"When no one behind can keep up, and no one ahead is left to pursue, you walk alone in the dark. Even if you achieve eternal life, what of it?
"Perhaps we have not yet reached that point today... but if things continue to develop like this, that scene will inevitably unfold. When the gap in realms grows too vast, the pioneers will slowly lose their way. With no one chasing them and no one keeping up, you will sink into darkness!"
The crowd listened in silence. Li Hao was merely speaking from the heart; some of the words were his own, while others had been gleaned from books.
"From this day forth, there shall be no distinction between Martial Guard Army, Silver Moon Army, or Demon Hunt Corps! You shall have only one name... the Demon Hunt Army!"
Li Hao's voice echoed through the compound. "An army must have faith! It must have conviction! An army without faith, conviction, or purpose... is nothing more than a mindless puppet!
"Perhaps you are still lost—lost in this era, lost in this world...
"From this day forth, I hope you will be lost no longer.
"Why make yourselves strong? Not for some so-called transcendence, but to give yourselves a better life, to give your family and friends a better life, to make your homeland a better place, and to make your world a better place!
"Perhaps you might feel that this is a faith I am imposing upon you... not one of your own! But let me tell you: until the moment you discover your own purpose in life... this is your faith!
"Whether you believe it or not, once you have joined the Demon Hunt Army, engrave all of this into your minds!
"Someone once said: 'Defend justice, and hunt demons for the sake of justice.' Back then, I thought it was a joke, a form of self-consolation. Today, however, I believe that is not the case. In this era, someone must uphold a heart of justice after all and adhere to a soldier's conviction. Is defending justice truly so laughable?"
Li Hao bellowed loudly, "Is it laughable? Perhaps you think that I, Li Hao, am merely a wanderer of the martial world, that even I do not know what justice is... Then let me tell you: I truly do not know. I only know that as a human being, one must have a conscience! Whenever an injustice, a crime, or an unfairness occurs, it must be dealt with! Anyone who takes pleasure in slaughter and pillages life and wealth must be brought to justice! Anyone who disregards and tramples upon human life must die!
"That is the justice in my heart! Perhaps it is not yours... but now, it is yours as well!"
Everyone listened quietly.
Perhaps they could not accept Li Hao's philosophy; perhaps they did not care. To Li Hao, none of that mattered. From the moment they joined the Demon Hunt Army, these were the tenets they were to believe in and revere.
"What is an army? In my eyes, it is not merely a war machine! Aligning with the hearts of the people, shining light through the darkness, bringing hope, and stepping forward in times of peril—that is what makes a true soldier!
"I have never served in an army of this era. I do not know what you were taught before or what doctrines were instilled in you... I speak only from what I have felt. I have seen an army that, tens of thousands of years after its death, still stood lonely vigil over an ancient city, still protected the wealth of the common people, still remained faithful to its duties, and still remembered the elders and kin behind them... Yes, the Battle Heaven Army! And right now, what you wear upon your bodies is their armor!
"I hope... you will not tarnish their martial soul!"
At that moment, the entire assembly stood solemn and silent.
The Battle Heaven Army!
"Once you don this armor, you shoulder that responsibility, that heavy burden! This time, I will consume a vast amount of resources to elevate your realms and make you strong. These resources did not come easily!
"Having donned the armor, absorbed the energy, and received these benefits... you must remember one thing: who gave them to you? Was it me? No... it was this era that bestowed them upon you! It hopes you can rise, protect your corner of the world, and become true soldiers!"
Li Hao looked at them, spoke for a moment longer, and finally roared, "For justice... hunt demons!"
"Hunt demons!"
The roar tore through the heavens!
Over two thousand men shouted at the top of their lungs, venting all the emotions swelling within their chests.
Justice?
Perhaps!
Perhaps, just as Li Hao had felt the first time, they found the word laughable—what justice was there to speak of in this era? Yet... hunting demons could indeed be a conviction!
We are justice; all who oppose us are demons!
A few individuals grew quite fanatical. The veteran members of the Demon Hunt Corps shouted even louder. To them, hunting demons was simple: anyone who opposed Li Hao was a demon!
Demon Sword Li Hao... they believed that title only existed because demons feared him; he ought to be called Divine Sword Li Hao instead.
Those others were the true demons!
"Hunt demons!"
Their voices carried far and wide, the roar echoing across all directions.
The Demon Hunt Army had made its first official appearance.
In the next instant, a barrier of light manifested as mirror shards blanketed the surroundings, cutting off all foreign probes.
A moment later, several experts drew near the perimeter, their brows furrowing slightly.
The Demon Hunt Army?
Li Hao had gathered more than two thousand martial masters to establish this so-called Demon Hunt Army just to hunt demons?
Who were the demons?
With two thousand weaklings, whom did he plan to hunt?
He had too much time on his hands!
With these resources and this time, he should have been thinking about how to improve himself, rather than squandering resources to forcibly elevate these weaklings with no talent whatsoever.
***
Inside the barrier of light.
Nearly a million divine energy stones appeared, shattering in the next moment. Wave upon wave of intensely concentrated mysterious energy surged forth, instantly transforming into sword energy. Boundless five-element elements, as well as light and dark elements, manifested all at once. In the blink of an eye, the grounds transformed into a sacred cultivation ground.
Droplet after droplet of the Spring of Life appeared before everyone's eyes. Then, the Spring of Life shattered, turning into a misty rain that drizzled down upon the crowd!
Southern Fist and the others trembled slightly at the sight.
What a tremendous undertaking!
A truly astonishing display!
Expending nearly a million divine energy stones on two thousand ordinary people, bolstering it with sword energy, and even utilizing dozens of drops of the Spring of Life... If this wasn't madness, what was?
Li Hao's voice remained calm. "Out there, a single drop of the Spring of Life is worth a hundred thousand divine energy stones... I hope you remember this. Not so that you remember how many resources you cost, but so that you remember that every single cent you receive must be repaid by you in the future... Only through giving can one reap a harvest. Right now, this is merely an advance given to you ahead of time. Therefore, you need not feel grateful to anyone; what you must do is repay this debt in the days to come. Repay it not to me, but to the justice in your hearts!"
No one spoke. Massive amounts of energy surged into their bodies as sword energy and life energy protected them. At that moment, soldier after soldier broke through rapidly. The members of the former Silver Moon Army, in particular, advanced at a frenzied pace.
They had originally been weak, so to them, this was nothing short of an elixir of miracles.
Meanwhile, several late Hundred-Breaker martial masters were also absorbing the energy to strengthen themselves. However, their improvement was limited; advancing any further was exceedingly difficult for them.
Unless they comprehended force!
Li Hao paid them no heed for now. At this stage, he would not allow them to cross into the supernatural path just yet. He had not yet obtained armor suitable for supernaturals; converting them now would cause the Battle Heaven Armor to lose its intended function.
Within the crowd, the experts also sat cross-legged and began absorbing the energy.
Black Panther tried to absorb some as well, only to be kicked aside by Li Hao.
You've had enough!
Black Panther had already absorbed an enormous amount, eating all day without doing any work. Now that everyone else was absorbing, if this fellow joined in, thirty percent of the energy present would probably end up as its meal.
Leaving the others to their cultivation, Li Hao turned his gaze to Hong Yitang. Seeing Li Hao look his way, Hong Yitang caught his drift and followed him toward the rear courtyard.
***
The rear courtyard.
It was very quiet here, free of disturbance.
Hong Yitang looked at Li Hao, and Li Hao looked back at him. "Martial Uncle Hong, how many supernatural locks did you sever back then?"
"Six."
Hong Yitang smiled. "You severed six, and so did I. Yours were the dual wind and lightning attributes, while mine were lightning and fire."
In other words, Hong Yitang had severed one of the supernatural locks associated with the five internal organs.
Li Hao nodded. The dual lightning and fire attributes meant Hong Yitang had severed the lock along his spine. It seemed he had saturated that lock long ago, granting him robust bones.
"So, Martial Uncle Hong, you had only saturated ten supernatural locks before?"
"'Only'?"
Hong Yitang chuckled. "Is that weak? Actually, I only had nine at the very beginning. One of the locks in my five organs hadn't been saturated yet. It was only when I completed the five-organs cycle back in Dongbin Province that I finally saturated the last one."
With ten saturated supernatural locks, his combat prowess had been remarkably formidable. Nine locks allowed one to fight Divine Power; ten made him even stronger than an ordinary Divine Power combatant, stabilizing him at that level.
Yet during that previous battle, merely stabilizing at Divine Power had not been enough.
Thus, he had chosen to sever six supernatural locks. Coupled with his already formidable foundation, that had allowed him to slay the Plain King with a single sword strike that day.
"Did you not saturate the vitality meridian in the Purple Palace?"
"No, fell a little short."
Hong Yitang did not mind in the slightest. "Vigorous vitality was never my main focus to begin with."
Li Hao nodded.
After pondering for a moment, he said, "Martial Uncle Hong, the day before yesterday, I succeeded in releasing both water and fire divine abilities. You saw some of it that day..."
Hong Yitang raised an eyebrow and nodded. He had indeed seen the fire divine ability.
Yet it had vanished in the end!
Moreover, those flames had been quite peculiar.
Li Hao said no more. In the next instant, two divine ability characters surfaced. Hong Yitang's eyes flickered. "Zhenxing City's supreme arts?"
"Similar!"
In an instant, the character for "Fire" flew toward him and erupted with a boom. Hong Yitang shuddered slightly as lightning flared from his body, only to be instantly suppressed...
A strange look flashed through Hong Yitang's eyes.
Li Hao retracted the character.
Hong Yitang remained silent for a while before taking a deep breath. "Now I understand why Yao Si agreed."
He understood completely!
Li Hao looked at him. "I can't say for sure about the others for now, but as for you, Martial Uncle Hong, since you chose to advance as a supernatural... Although you differ from me somewhat, you told me back then that the force of the world resides in the heart... Force is born from the heart. Even though you are not a martial master of five forces, it doesn't matter... A single sword will suffice!"
He looked at Hong Yitang and added, "Martial Uncle... are you willing to give it a try? Merge your supernatural locks and divine abilities into a single character, turning it into a unique divine ability character. Truth be told, I also want to see whether a single-character divine ability can achieve such fusion..."
Hong Yitang chuckled. "Using me as a guinea pig?"
"I do have that in mind."
Li Hao smiled as well. "I was thinking: with sword momentum as the core, can we achieve the fusion of spirit and body... Perhaps this is the spirit fusion I truly seek!"
His teacher's concept of spirit fusion ultimately centered on fusing forces into one.
If so, wasn't fusing them into a divine ability character a form of spirit fusion as well?
Seeking out Hong Yitang was indeed partly an experiment.
Because Hong Yitang possessed only a single force.
If a single force could successfully form a character and integrate multiple divine abilities, then Li Hao's concern about having too few forces would cease to be an issue.
Hong Yitang, however, laughed. "You still haven't understood what I meant back then by 'force is born from the heart'!"
Li Hao was taken aback.
Hong Yitang chuckled softly. "Who said sword momentum has to be singular? If I say my sword momentum is fire, then it is fire; if I say it is earth, then it is earth! Never mind, you still haven't grasped this... Just give me a brief run-down of how to do it. If it works in a moment, I'll show you."
Somewhat surprised, Li Hao nodded and swiftly recounted everything he had done previously.
Hong Yitang muttered, "So that's how it is... In essence, it's the same concept: the ancient martial Gates of the Triple Burner and the Great Dao of the Origin, today's supernatural locks and force, and now these divine ability characters..."
He pondered for a moment. "Ancient martial texts record that in the end, the Great Dao of the Origin was discarded in favor of cultivating the perfection of one's own inner world! In summary, everything ultimately merges into one... the Dao of Perfected Unity!" The methods might differ, but he vaguely felt the end result was identical.
Li Hao nodded in agreement. "Yes, all paths ultimately converge. Whether supernatural or martial master, everything is converted for one's own use!"
"This is... the convergence of myriad Daos!"
Enlightenment dawned upon Hong Yitang. In the next moment, his vitality surged, blood flowing and transforming into blood qi that instantly smelted together. A strand of sword intent diffused outward, and lightning element surfaced within his body.
After a moment of contemplation, a character slowly manifested.
Sword!
Li Hao was not surprised; it was only natural for the Earth-Overturning Sword to condense a sword character. But in the next instant, his heart stirred as the character for "Sword" suddenly shifted into the likeness of lightning, rumbling with thunder!
The lightning attribute within Hong Yitang's body instantly merged into it.
Li Hao was astonished!
Sword... and lightning...
Hong Yitang said nothing. He merely channeled energy silently, continuing to delineate the character, while Li Hao swiftly produced several drops of the Spring of Life, shattering them into vital energy.
Hong Yitang paid no heed to this, continuing to drive the character and absorb the energy.
Only this time, no baptism of heavenly lightning occurred.
Unbothered, he continued the smelting process.
After a while, a "Sword" divine ability character, flickering in the air like lively lightning, stabilized. Hong Yitang exhaled, looking slightly drained, and said softly, "The lightning attribute has been integrated..."
With that, he suddenly smiled. "Li Hao, let me show you what it truly means for force to be born from the heart!"
In an instant, the "Sword" character that had just looked like lightning suddenly transformed into a blaze of fire!
Li Hao gasped in shock!
Hong Yitang murmured, "Way back when we first entered Battle Heaven City, I told you that force has no fixed attribute. So-called attributes are merely what you and I envision! If I want it to be fire... it is fire! You are still a bit too green!"
As the words left his mouth, the fire power within his body instantly merged into it. Within the "Sword" character, lightning surged on all sides before flames erupted with a roar!
And the "Sword" character was actually changing color!
"Your master's Five Animals Breathing Art incorporated five kinds of force... Stacking five forces makes them stronger, but in truth, he simply comprehended a single force five times over. That is why your master is a genius... Meanwhile, ordinary folks like us can only rely on a single force to grow steadily stronger. But that doesn't mean... a single force can only possess one attribute! Li Hao, the reason you couldn't integrate your wind and lightning attributes... is simply because you have too many preconceived notions! Of course, our paths differ, and our thoughts differ as well!"
Li Hao was thoroughly astounded.
During their first visit to Battle Heaven City, Hong Yitang had indeed given him guidance, telling him that force possessed no inherent attribute and was entirely dependent on what one envisioned. He had kept that in mind ever since.
Yet... yet... it could actually be converted at will!
How was that possible?
He stared at Hong Yitang blankly. He knew the theory, which was why his comprehension of other forces had stemmed from mental concepts manifesting as forces of different attributes. But he had no idea that once solidified, it could still be converted like this!
The Earth-Overturning Sword... was naturally renowned for the force of the earth!
Yet right now, what was this?
"Stop staring. Looking won't do you any good. You've already formed your own fixed ideas and concepts, so just proceed according to your own thoughts. You don't necessarily have to learn from me... and learning from me might not even be useful. My single force is indeed not as strong as stacking multiple forces! That is also a fact... It merely has a few more variations. In your master's words, that's just flashy and impractical!"
He chuckled.
Yuan Shuo's words were not entirely wrong.
Hong Yitang's force was ever-changing and certainly looked impressive, but in truth, a single force remained a single force. Yuan Shuo had effectively comprehended it five times and stacked it five times; the two were fundamentally different.
The same held true for Li Hao.
Yet in Li Hao's eyes... this was simply incredible!
A single force transforming into myriad forms—didn't that damn well mean one character could integrate everything?
Then... wouldn't Hong Yitang be completely free of limitations, able to fuse whatever he wanted directly?
His mouth fell open. This was unfair!
He had not even completed smelting his wind and lightning attributes yet, and was still pondering how to comprehend the forces of wind and lightning, while this man could smelt everything with a single character. Then... how was he supposed to compete?
"Don't overthink it... What I'm doing is merely taking a shortcut. In the end, it will likely prove inferior to yours!"
Seeming to perceive Li Hao's thoughts, Hong Yitang offered a smiling word of comfort.
Li Hao, however, was somewhat dazed. "Then... your method is different from everyone else's. An isolated, pure single force is different from yours... This isn't universally applicable!"
Other people couldn't transform their force at will like him, could they?
Hong Yitang continued integrating the fire attribute. Still appearing to have strength to spare, he said unhurriedly, "With a pure single force, why must one fixate on attributes?"
"What?"
"An attribute-less state can accommodate everything!"
Hong Yitang explained, "It's just slightly more difficult, that's all. Take yourself, for example... Don't you possess an independent sword momentum? Treat that independent sword momentum as a catch-all storage cabinet. Everything that cannot temporarily be fused into individual character divine abilities on its own—throw it all in... and make a grand blend! That way, while it might not be pure, it won't be weaker than an ordinary supernatural divine ability either, and that is enough... Li Hao, you must understand that not everyone needs to be exceptional. Only a tiny fraction of people are truly exceptional; that is what makes them geniuses, what makes them unique... For everyone else, being ordinary is plenty!"
He felt that Li Hao's understanding had gone astray; Li Hao seemed to believe that everyone ought to be a genius and walk this exact path.
However... who decreed that only geniuses could cultivate?
Hong Yitang actually wanted to add: I'm no ordinary person either, I'm a genius too... Yet in Li Hao's eyes, because Hong Yitang could transform his force while others could not, that meant it lacked universal applicability!
Nonsense!
I'm a genius, what's wrong with being a little special?
Hong Yitang grumbled inwardly. I can transform it because I'm a genius, yet this grandson Li Hao insists that if others can't do it, they shouldn't cultivate at all.
So what, are you the only genius in the entire world?
At this point, who among those who had reached this stage wasn't a genius?
Could you demand that everyone be like that?
Li Hao was momentarily lost in thought, then asked, "Then without force... how can one ensure the character remains stable and does not collapse?"
Without force, the character would fall apart.
It would lack spirituality!
For instance, several top-tier supernaturals possessed no force at all.
Hong Yitang smiled. "If they haven't comprehended force, then solidify it with powerful mental energy!"
"And what if they don't have powerful mental energy either?"
"..."
Hong Yitang felt utterly exhausted. "Then they haven't reached that stage yet, so what's the rush? Do you expect supernaturals to reach this step while still in the Solar Flare or Three Suns stages? Ascending to the heavens in a single step? Isn't the road ahead of them already laid out? It's only later on that the issue of the five organs stumps many people... Having you pioneer a new path wasn't meant to make you discard everything that already exists. Only when people can smoothly cultivate to the Transmutation stage does it become worthwhile for them to step onto this path..."
He looked at Li Hao. "What on earth are you pondering?"
Li Hao was stunned.
"Martial masters have a path ahead of them as well; all the way to spirit fusion, there is currently a clear road to tread... Once they reach spirit fusion, does that require your worry?
"The same goes for supernaturals. At this stage, only the Divine Power realm has run into a few issues... but up to the Transmutation stage, there are no problems whatsoever... Why must you insist on discarding all of that?"
He felt that Li Hao's thinking had suffered a divergence.
Li Hao frowned. "But doing so... still leaves the vulnerability of the five internal organs unresolved! My thought was to do this from the very beginning, merging all supernatural locks into divine characters to strengthen the characters, thereby bypassing the issue of the five organs..."
"The five organs aren't fragile at the beginning!"
Hong Yitang rolled his eyes hard. "Did you feel your five organs were fragile when you were a Thousand-Battler? Do you think a Rising Light combatant feels their five organs are fragile?"
That was true!
Li Hao thought about it and nodded.
After a pause, he spoke again: "True... but... when someone reaches our level and makes the transition, they still need the Spring of Life to stabilize the five organs. Isn't that... also a flaw?"
It still required external power for stabilization!
Although it consumed fewer resources than directly strengthening the five organs alone, Li Hao felt something was still lacking.
This time, Hong Yitang nodded earnestly.
Li Hao's remark had hit the nail on the head.
After a moment's thought, he said, "You're right about that; that's the core issue... Now that you mention it, an idea came to mind... Your divine ability characters can feed energy back into yourself, right?"
"Yes!"
"Then try creating a character that can directly strengthen the physical body and five organs right from the weak stages..."
Li Hao laughed. "How could that be possible!"
"Why couldn't it be?"
Hong Yitang said solemnly, "There are countless Great Daos; the Dao is not singular. If you want to perfect this system, you must naturally pay a tremendous price in effort and sacrifice. You don't understand the human body thoroughly yet, nor have you reached absolute omniscience regarding martial arts! Since you discovered that supernatural locks can be absorbed, merged, and fed back into oneself... then tell me, could there be a supernatural lock, or something else within the human body, that can strengthen the entire physical body rather than a single location?"
Li Hao's heart stirred.
"Since there is a Dao of Fire, a Dao of Wood... Daos of all sorts of attributes, could there not be a Dao of the Physical Body?"
Hong Yitang chuckled. "Of course, this is merely an idea of mine. Right now, I'm just trying and doing as you said; I don't possess the ability to unearth such a thing. But since you have already taken this step... you can try and unearth it! In the end, perhaps such a character really does exist, one capable of strengthening the entire physical body... perfecting the weakness of your system."
Li Hao was deeply moved.
Did such a Dao exist?
A standalone Dao of the Physical Body... and then integrating that Dao of the Physical Body into this character system as well. From then on, one would only need to cultivate a single system without ever having to worry about anything else...
Seeing Li Hao lost in thought, Hong Yitang said nothing more and swiftly solidified his fire attribute!
After testing it, he too felt deeply moved.
It wasn't actually that difficult!
Yet if no one ever tried it or pointed it out, perhaps no one would have walked this path in their entire lifetime.
This kid Li Hao truly dared to think and dared to act.
Meanwhile, Li Hao remained in a daze.
"The five elements have their Daos, wind and lightning have their Daos, light and darkness have their Daos... The physical body and five organs are related to all of these, yet they can also be separated... Does an independent Dao of the Physical Body truly exist?
"Strengthening only the physical body! All else becomes divine abilities! Cultivating the physical body internally, cultivating divine abilities externally—dual cultivation of the internal and external..."
Li Hao was in a trance, feeling as though he had caught a glimpse of an idea, yet still lacking any clear lead.
Nevertheless, he had taken some of Hong Yitang's words to heart.
The wind and lightning attributes could perhaps be treated as a hodgepodge and crammed into his sword momentum.
That way, he could use his sword momentum to form a character that accommodated all the supernatural locks that had not yet formed forces. Later on, he could slowly sort them out, distinguish them, and then proceed with fusing them...
Just as he was thinking this, a thunderous roar jolted him awake.
He stared blankly at Hong Yitang, who had shattered the lock on his spleen in an instant. Earth energy poured forth as Hong Yitang grabbed Black Panther with a grin. "Swallow up the dissipating earth energy... I'm going to try fusing three divine abilities into one!"
Not the least bit angry, Black Panther opened its maw and swallowed the dissipating energy in a single gulp. In the next moment, it opened its jaws wide and inhaled toward Hong Yitang... forcibly sucking out power that had not even escaped Hong Yitang's body yet!
Black lines covered Hong Yitang's face!
Li Hao was equally speechless. "Black Panther!"
He had only told it to absorb the dissipating energy, not to try and eat Hong Yitang alive. Was it appropriate for this fellow to forcibly absorb energy before it had even leaked out?
Black Panther looked at Li Hao with an innocent expression: He said it, he asked for it!
I didn't do it on purpose!
He said the energy dissipating out, so I figured energy dissipating from inside his body counted too.
Hong Yitang was rendered speechless as well and couldn't be bothered to say more. Having severed the lock cleanly this time, his "Sword" character took on an earthy-yellow hue, and the process seemed extraordinarily smooth!
Because he was already renowned for his earth sword momentum, the earthy-yellow "Sword" character seemed to suppress the violent lightning and fire divine abilities within with absolute ease.
Li Hao watched with envious eyes.
That worked too?
A single-character divine ability seemed so much simpler. If he could change colors at will like Hong Yitang... switching whenever he pleased, how comfortable would that be!
Hong Yitang seemed to notice his envy and jealousy. Feeling a bit of a headache, he said, "Stop staring. Your ultimate fusion will definitely be stronger than mine! You reap what you sow; I'm merely taking a shortcut..."
"I want to take a shortcut too!"
"..."
Hong Yitang was struck speechless. I already put it that way, and you still say that?
Having no other choice, he said, "Let's put it this way: if you want to follow my path, you can. First, cripple your five forces and concentrate solely on cultivating sword momentum. Then, it's possible you might become like me, turning a single force into myriad forces!"
All right. Li Hao instantly dismissed the thought. That wouldn't do!
Hong Yitang said no more. See? You're unwilling to do it, yet you still want a shortcut—how could that work?
"Martial Uncle, you intend to fuse three disciplines of divine abilities? Can your physical body withstand it?"
"I have ten saturated supernatural locks, so of course I can... Do you think my body is that much weaker than yours? You can endure four divine abilities, so enduring three is no great issue for me. If I saturate the Purple Palace's supernatural lock, I should be able to accommodate four or even five divine abilities..."
At the current stage, the strongest martial masters should have eleven saturated supernatural locks; no one had yet attempted the one in the skull.
As far as Li Hao knew, only Yao Si had achieved this.
As for Hou Xiaochen and the others, Li Hao wasn't certain. Perhaps they hadn't reached eleven locks, or perhaps they had; since they didn't speak of it, it was hard for him to judge.
According to Hong Yitang, he could continue to endure more.
Li Hao said nothing further, shattering several more drops of the Spring of Life. Energy flooded into Hong Yitang's body. Fusing three disciplines of divine abilities required even more resources, and Hong Yitang's consumption was substantial.
It felt as though he could consume even more than Li Hao!
For those Divine Power powerhouses, advancing from two disciplines to three might require a hundred drops of the Spring of Life. Hong Yitang required less, yet as Li Hao continuously shattered drops of the Spring of Life, the count reached roughly twenty drops in the blink of an eye.
Even that might not be enough.
A moment later, Hong Yitang's aura waned completely, while the "Sword" character grew ever more dazzling.
Li Hao had shattered a full thirty drops of the Spring of Life.
Adding what had been consumed earlier, Hong Yitang had used nearly fifty drops of the Spring of Life just to condense this tri-elemental "Sword" character.
That was no small amount!
A fair amount had already been shattered outside earlier as well.
Checking his storage ring, Li Hao saw that only about three hundred drops of the Spring of Life remained. What an appetite!
Of course, since he traded ten thousand divine energy stones for a single drop... looking at the true math, the cost wasn't excessively exorbitant.
Without a word, Hong Yitang swallowed the character into his abdomen in a single gulp!
In the next instant, his spirit and vigor recovered somewhat, though his aura grew increasingly restrained.
However, he furrowed his brows slightly. "Truth be told... without creating a divine ability character to strengthen the physical body, this is genuinely uncomfortable... This thing drains vitality and mental energy far too severely; even a great deal of life force was absorbed... Without the Spring of Life to replenish it, one would most likely suffer premature aging."
With that, a gleam flashed through his eyes. "However, taking this character into the body does have a nourishing effect on oneself. I must say, Li Hao, you truly have ingenious ideas!"
Li Hao grinned. "What's even more ingenious... is that divine ability characters can circulate a breathing technique, allowing the character to cultivate on its own!"
Hong Yitang paused, startled. Li Hao hadn't mentioned this earlier.
He quickly tested it!
A moment later, he was deeply shaken. "This... you brat, you really outdid yourself this time! I didn't even realize that was possible. This... it's entirely equivalent to two people cultivating at once! The divine ability character can cultivate by itself... This can dramatically accelerate cultivation and save an immense amount of time!"
Li Hao grinned again. "Your ability to turn one character into myriad forms is great, Martial Uncle, but I got to thinking... Each of my characters uses a breathing technique, equivalent to one person cultivating. When I truly condense countless characters, it will be like the combined cultivation of countless people. No matter how much you transform yours... you can still only cultivate one breathing technique at a time, equivalent to two people cultivating... Mm, I think my setup is actually pretty great!"
Hong Yitang was stunned at first, then burst into laughter.
Indeed!
Truth be told, that was an immense advantage.
"Then... you don't plan on telling your master?"
"I'll tell him next time we meet... Mainly because my master isn't ready yet, nor are Minister Yao and the others. Minister Yao saw the changes in me, yet he didn't choose to sever his supernatural locks... which means he still has reservations and hesitations... Since that's the case, I can't force it. Besides, I'm not certain how far this path can go."
He pondered for a moment, then frowned. "Once all the supernatural locks in the human body are integrated, how does one continue to grow stronger?"
By that point, variations like three, four, or five disciplines of divine abilities would no longer exist.
How would one proceed from there?
Hong Yitang gave a slight nod; that was true enough.
"Then one can only proceed from the characters themselves... Of course, that is a matter for the future. Keep your eyes on the present; as for the future... no one can say for sure!"
Li Hao nodded in agreement.
It was still early days anyway!
Hong Yitang considered the matter and said, "Fusing three divine abilities might not be foolproof... Over the next two days, I'll attempt to saturate the eleventh supernatural lock. If I succeed, I'll try fusing a fourth divine ability!"
"Mm, I'll also try using sword momentum to fuse wind and lightning divine abilities!"
Li Hao nodded. Four disciplines might be safer; and if they wanted even greater certainty, five disciplines, six disciplines... that would be safer still.
Back then, Director Wang had said that the Peak might possess the strength of a supernatural who had broken seven, eight, or nine supernatural locks... It was worth a try. Of course, one might just explode directly, so taking it step by step was best!
Three divine abilities merely amounted to severing seven supernatural locks. Those seven locks, however, were probably different from what Director Wang had spoken of—could Director Wang have meant seven locks excluding the limbs?
If so... then the Peak truly was formidable. It meant one would have to sever all eleven supernatural locks of the strongest martial masters to date just to barely meet that threshold.
Who could achieve such a feat?
***
At this moment, Li Hao, Hong Yitang, and the others were all engrossed in cultivation.
Meanwhile, the outside world was already displaying signs of an impending storm.
The Nine Departments made no move whatsoever.
At this juncture, they were pondering, plotting, and wondering: would any Silver Moon martial masters still accompany Li Hao in his madness this time?
Once wasn't enough; twice, thrice...
Were those Silver Moon martial masters truly unafraid of death?
***
The vast Heavenly Star City had fallen completely silent as well.
Nobles and supernaturals alike maintained an astonishingly low profile over these past few days. No longer did any supernaturals strut about with arrogant bravado, terrified that Li Hao, having gone completely mad, might haul them away and chop off their heads on the spot.
Chapter 241