Take It Down!

At Yuanping Martial Arts University. Puppets poked their heads out, looking on with immense curiosity. Like a bunch of inquisitive babes, they stared intently at the group gathered outside the university gates. Near the gate. Everyone stopped cultivating one after another. Some frowned, some focused in thought, and others appeared thoroughly disgruntled. Southern Fist, for one. At this moment, Southern Fist wore a look of utter annoyance and dissatisfaction, his brow tightly furrowed. Li Hao's path of divine characters seemed far from complete—at least for him, it posed a huge problem. For instance, a single force could only solidify a single divine character. As a result, almost all of them formed only a single divine character. Yet none of them could achieve the myriad transformations that Hong Yitang could muster. Lacking such versatility, Southern Fist had condensed a single "Fist" character and merged three supernatural abilities into it. Namely fire, metal, and earth. Merging three supernatural abilities into a single divine character was certainly powerful. Southern Fist believed it wouldn't be any weaker than standard three-element supernatural abilities, but... he simply couldn't produce Hong Yitang's myriad variations. Now, when he threw a punch, it was a blended mix of all three elements, rather than like Hong Yitang, who could separate out individual fire or metal abilities at will. Set up like this, it was actually... not much different from being an ordinary martial master. The only difference was that his inner force had been replaced by fused supernatural power. Truth be told, that was already quite good. Yet seeing Li Hao condense them one by one, and seeing Hong Yitang wield his myriad transformations while he himself was stuck mixing them together, Southern Fist naturally felt disgruntled. Furthermore, having merged only three supernatural abilities displeased him. He felt he had made enormous progress recently. He wasn't necessarily inferior to anyone. Characters like Hou Xiaochen or Yao Si weren't necessarily stronger than him. Yet reality slapped him in the face: he had only managed to merge three abilities inside. To the side, Bright Sword... well, she was decent too, having merged three abilities. Southern Fist couldn't be bothered to compare himself to her, though. Bright Sword was somewhat unusual; right now, she had actually condensed light and darkness abilities, along with a wood-element ability. This meant that among the supernatural abilities of her five viscera, only one had manifested, implying that her room for advancement might be far greater than his. At the very least, he hadn't even found where the light and dark supernatural locks were located. So even if she appeared to have only three elements, she might become a four-element or five-element powerhouse before long. Hou Xiaochen kept silent, but Southern Fist could tell that the character he had refined contained at least four supernatural abilities. Moreover... Hou Xiaochen hadn't condensed the character for "Spear" at all. The fellow had outlined an actual spear! Yes, not a written character. Simply a miniature spear! What kind of ghost trick was that?! In fact, at that moment, Li Hao and the others were all looking at Hou Xiaochen. Hovering in front of Hou Xiaochen was a spear resembling a miniature weapon composed of text. Noticing everyone staring at him, Hou Xiaochen chuckled. "Just a spontaneous idea. Characters aren't uniform. Ancient characters differ from today's writing, so characters aren't fixed. I thought... in more distant eras, when humans didn't know how to write, they used simple symbols in place of words... In that case, isn't what I made also a character?" The script itself was not the point. The key was that the intent resided within it! Was a character shaped like a long spear not a character as well? The crucial factor remained fusing the intent into it. Li Hao nodded continuously, moved and inspired. Sure enough, all these geniuses had their own unique insights. Hou Xiaochen was right. Of course, the written form was merely the outward shell; the true test was whether the power changed. Hou Xiaochen said nothing more and thrust the spear outward! He didn't use the Fire Phoenix Spear, merely gripping the textual divine spear as he struck. In that instant, everyone felt as though their spirits were being torn apart. An indescribable pressure weighed down, causing several of the slightly weaker fighters to pale. Hou Xiaochen withdrew the weapon, and the divine textual spear vanished. Li Hao drew a light breath. "This... your spirit-splitting intent seems even stronger. Director Hou, could you have merged the supernatural lock in your head that governs spirit?" It was said that the supernatural lock within the skull governed the strength of divine intent—what the ancients referred to as mental strength. Hou Xiaochen's spirit-splitting spear intent had always been formidable. Had he really incorporated that supernatural lock this time? Hou Xiaochen smiled and shook his head. "Too perilous. I haven't planned on merging it yet. It's just that as the spear intent stabilized alongside divine energy and was restrained within the character, it put far less pressure on my body. That simply made the spear intent easier to unleash." Looking thoughtful, he continued, "Condensing supernatural characters actually offers another enormous benefit..." He turned to Li Hao and mused for a moment. "You wish to tread the path of multiple forces. With multiple forces, the greatest taboo is interference between them... Once you fuse your force into a character and restrain it entirely... after the five forces within your five viscera are all restrained, you can try comprehending other forces with great ease." For a genius like Li Hao, comprehending a single force was not difficult at all! Truly not difficult. Not long after first coming into contact with the martial path, Li Hao had grasped the earth force. How long had he been practicing back then? The real challenge was that after comprehending multiple forces, interference arose among them. Yet what if that interference vanished? Not just Li Hao, but Hou Xiaochen added, "The same applies to all of us!" He looked toward the others. "Once the force is merged into a character and thoroughly restrained, if we set our minds to it... we can easily grasp the next force, merge it into another character, and repeat the process... Without the interference of existing forces, comprehending another one becomes quite simple for us." At these words, everyone's hearts stirred. Southern Fist arched his brows repeatedly. Sky Sword, however, remarked indifferently, "Not everyone is suited for the path of multiple forces. A single force suffices! My force is the sword; my sword force is singular! Purity and complexity sometimes arrive at the same destination in the end!" Hong Yitang also nodded slightly. "It depends on individual choice. Director Hou makes a valid point. Right now is indeed the best time to comprehend force. Restraining force within divine characters eliminates interference from others, making comprehension somewhat simpler. Take Li Hao, for instance—if he cultivates certain secret arts, he might very quickly comprehend another force." Pausing, he added, "However... I wouldn't advise the rest of you to pursue multiple forces. Bright Sword, on the other hand..." He looked toward Bright Sword. "You could try comprehending one more: the dark force!" He offered his counsel: "Your original foundation is the light force. Light and dark cycle together. For the rest of us present, trying to harmonize other forces won't help much. But for you... I believe it would yield remarkable results." Bright Sword looked thoughtful, then turned her gaze upon him. "Do you think I've grown more beautiful lately, so you've developed some other designs on me?" "..." The scene fell instantly silent. The group tilted their heads back to look at the sky, none of them uttering a word. Bright Sword... had become awfully confident recently! To the side, seeing them chatting so enthusiastically, Yao Si chuckled. He had dealt with these Silver Moon martial masters before; on the surface, they all seemed fiery and aloof, but in private, they were somewhat... goofy! At this moment, Yao Si also chimed in: "Actually, none of this is the key. Don't you feel that at this stage, the most crucial thing is... the supernatural locks?" Everyone turned to look at him. "Currently, the number of supernatural locks determines the number of supernatural abilities you can merge later on." "Whether for martial masters or supers, at the current stage: the four limbs have no elemental attributes, the five viscera possess the five elements, the spine possesses the thunder attribute, the purple palace holds the wind attribute, light and darkness lie in unknown locations, and the skull contains a spiritual attribute... Currently, there are only fourteen supernatural locks." "Among them, the four locks in the limbs are merely foundational, serving to consolidate the base. In truth... whether for us, supers, or martial masters... the highest power one can reach in the end is only ten elemental supernatural abilities, correct?" He looked around at the group. "It might seem far off, but it isn't necessarily that distant. Therefore... at this stage, I think what matters most is discovering more supernatural locks and sharing notes with one another. For example, I haven't even found the light and darkness supernatural locks yet." He felt that because everyone had different cultivation focuses, they might be able to discover more supernatural locks by exchanging insights. Southern Fist couldn't help but ask, "You're in such a rush... could it be that you've already cultivated all the ones you discovered?" Yao Si laughed. "Not quite that exaggerated. I previously saturated eleven meridians. Excluding the limbs, seven remained. For now, I've only finished gathering the supernatural abilities of the five viscera. I haven't considered wind and thunder yet. Merging the five viscera abilities into a five-element supernatural power is far more reliable." Everyone looked at him with some astonishment. He had completed the cycle of the five viscera? This old fellow... was truly formidable. The five viscera were more fragile than the physical flesh and bones. The reason some of the others chose different attributes first was primarily because the five viscera struggled to endure five bursts of power; the pressure was simply too great. Although divine characters restrained the energy, you still had to unleash it in battle. Could you guarantee your five viscera wouldn't suffer a backlash when you fought? This man, it seemed, wasn't afraid. Yao Si smiled. "Don't look at me like that. When it comes to cultivating the five viscera, I started many years ahead of you all. I'm the oldest among you, ten years older than Yuan Shuo, making me part of the previous generation of martial masters." He was considerably older than these people. Li Hao realized that if he was ten years older than Yuan Shuo, he was over eighty—truly quite senior. "Gathering the five-element supernatural abilities across the five viscera... Does Director Yao sense any special transformation?" Yao Si pondered for a moment and nodded. "There is some! But... it still lacks something." He looked at Li Hao. "If you could persuade your teacher to make the Five Animals Breathing Art public, we could see if the five viscera abilities can be thoroughly fused. If they can fuse completely... I believe a much greater transformation would occur." Having said that, he smiled. "What about you? Haven't you completed the fusion of your five viscera abilities yet?" Li Hao shook his head. "If I had known, I wouldn't have broken the wind and thunder supernatural locks first. Not only are they weaker, but I also lack corresponding forces to pair with them, which only increased my burden. This time, I only managed to merge the earth supernatural lock..." He felt a touch of regret. In truth, he had also wanted to try breaking the supernatural lock chains of the five viscera. However, wind and thunder already imposed a heavy burden on him. When he attempted to sever the wood-element supernatural lock, he immediately felt an overwhelming pressure that nearly crushed him! After a moment of thought, Li Hao added, "We cannot rush blindly into the seven-element realm!" He addressed the group: "According to ancient martial divisions, seven elements roughly equate to the Pinnacle, capable of tearing space. Right now, not only is space in the outside world unstable, but I also believe... neither our physical bodies nor our five viscera are sufficient to support us in advancing swiftly to seven elements!" Sky Sword was surprised. "Even you cannot manage it?" Li Hao had endless sword energy to aid him, as well as the Spring of Life. Even he couldn't do it? Li Hao considered for a moment. "The crux still lies in the path of the physical body!" He stated gravely, "Only by resolving this issue will the rest cease to be a problem. After everyone returns, give it some proper thought. Two heads are better than one." He wasn't a god. He had simply read a few more ancient texts and secret arts than the others, but that didn't mean his wits were vastly superior. He certainly wanted to condense a seventh supernatural ability... but Li Hao had sensed numerous complications. It was somewhat frustrating! Still... there were other ways to strengthen himself next: comprehending the force of wind and thunder! Although the wood force was not yet completely restrained, it had merged into the supernatural lock and fallen into dormancy, which was practically the same thing. Now that the mysterious energy in his body was completely restrained, it was indeed an ideal opportunity to comprehend force. He could comprehend the force of wind and thunder, then outline the divine characters for "Wind" and "Thunder." Finally, with the character "Extinction" formed from his sword force commanding all the supernatural characters and combining them, could he unleash tremendous power—achieving the feat of slaying a seven-element powerhouse with only six elements? Perhaps... there was hope! As for the wind and thunder force, Li Hao recalled something. "Among the Seven Swordsmen of the past, there was a Wind-Thunder Swordsman! It seems Wind-Thunder Sword, Luosheng Sword, and Shadowless Sword were all killed by my teacher. Is the secret art of the Wind-Thunder Sword still in this world?" To comprehend a force at this stage, the simplest method was to practice a secret art that led straight to it. With a bit of talent, one could easily grasp it. Wind-Thunder Sword... was said to specialize precisely in the force of wind and thunder! It was an absolute match! Both sword and wind-thunder—it was undeniably the optimal choice. Yet his teacher had not passed it down to him, which likely meant his teacher didn't possess the secret art of the Wind-Thunder Sword. Sky Sword remained silent for a while before speaking: "Wind-Thunder Sword... left behind a disciple, who is currently at my Heavenly Sword Villa! However... your master killed his master back then. He might not be willing to pass down the Wind-Thunder Sword Technique to you." Everyone fell silent. That old man Yuan Shuo had killed too many people in the past, and now the retribution was falling on his disciple. Sky Sword added, "I'll go back and see what I can do... You're right. If you can cultivate the Wind-Thunder Sword Technique and form the force of wind and thunder... even if you can't break through the wood force in the short term, uniting six forces and six spirits would make it difficult for any ordinary seven-element combatant to be your match!" "Then I must trouble Senior Sky Sword!" Li Hao smiled. "There's no need to force it, either. There are plenty of secret arts involving wind and thunder. It's just that the Wind-Thunder Sword might combine both forces in a single secret art, making it simpler and more convenient." He didn't strictly need that particular art. However, even with Li Hao's extraordinary talent, cultivating a single secret art to the point of comprehending its force would take at least a month, and two arts would take two to three months... He couldn't say this aloud; it would infuriate people to death. Yet practicing the Wind-Thunder Sword could save him a month or two, which was critical. At this stage, a month or two could bring massive upheavals. At this moment, Bright Sword spoke up: "You know the Shadowless Sword. I will teach you the Bright Sword... to prepare you for unlocking the light and darkness attributes in the future. A single force is enough for us..." Li Hao smiled. "Let's make an exchange. Senior Bright Sword knows the Bright Sword, and I know the Shadowless Sword... As it happens, you currently need a matching dark-element secret art as well!" Bright Sword said nothing more; she truly did need it. An exchange suited both fine. With both of them present, the transaction was swift. Soon, Li Hao received a secret art manual. As for the breathing technique, Bright Sword transmitted it to him secretly via sound transmission. This was a lingering habit of the older generation of martial masters, who remained reluctant to openly share their breathing methods. Quite normal! Rules established over hundreds of years weren't so easily changed. Having acquired the Bright Sword Manual while already possessing the Shadowless Sword, Li Hao resolved the problem of light and dark forces. Although he didn't yet know how to unlock light and darkness, it would be useful in the future. Moreover, he could cultivate and comprehend the force beforehand; there was no need to wait until after breaking the locks. This time, everyone had gained considerably. Li Hao looked around the circle. Bright Sword and Southern Fist had both stepped into the three-element supernatural realm. Sky Sword and Hou Xiaochen had likely reached four elements. Hong Yitang... frankly, Li Hao couldn't tell. His technique of turning one sword into myriad forces was utterly bewildering, making it hard to deduce anything from his divine characters, but he was at least at four elements. Yao Si went without saying. True to his foundation as a veteran martial master, he had directly gathered five supernatural abilities. Chief Steward Yu, meanwhile, had remained quiet throughout. Li Hao looked at her closely... and felt a bit of regret. It seemed... two-element supernatural power? How could that be? Li Hao's brow furrowed slightly. Chief Steward Yu's strength was by no means weak; previously, she had been on par with Southern Fist. Why had Southern Fist reached three elements while Chief Steward Yu possessed only two-element supernatural strength? That was merely the most basic level of the Divine Power Realm. A single element... was merely comparable to Rising Light. Noticing Li Hao's gaze, Chief Steward Yu remained quite calm, offering a faint smile. "I walked the supernatural path for many years and only returned to being a martial master recently. My force was not strong, yet I swiftly converted it into supernatural power. Other aspects are fine, but the weakness of my force restricted me from reaching three elements... My force lies in slaughter!" At this, Li Hao had a realization. In recent years, following Hou Xiaochen, she had engaged in far less slaughter. Though she still fought occasionally, she spent most of her time assisting Hou Xiaochen with trivial administrative matters. This caused her force to grow much weaker than before, and her killing intent was no longer as potent. Now... because her force lacked strength, it couldn't consolidate a powerful supernatural character, allowing her to unlock only two elements of power. Hou Xiaochen didn't mind in the least and laughed. "It doesn't matter. Yours is the path of slaughter; just kill more people... The stronger the people you kill, the faster you will progress. There will be plenty of opportunities ahead. With a certain someone around, are you afraid of lacking opportunities?" Chief Steward Yu said nothing. That "certain someone" obviously referred to Li Hao. Hou Xiaochen was right. As long as there were many major battles and much killing ahead, she would naturally advance at lightning speed—just as in the past, when she had left home to seek vengeance, slaughtering her way forward and progressing rapidly. At this point, Southern Fist finally felt some solace and grinned. "Two elements isn't bad either. At least you can thrash those martial masters who haven't broken their supernatural locks... It's decent!" Finally, there was someone weaker than him; his mood brightened considerably. Every member of the group had made progress. Compared to before they entered, the strength of this gathering was worlds apart. However, the consumption had been truly immense. Over the past few days, Little Tree had condensed more than three hundred drops of the Spring of Life, all of which had been completely exhausted. Too many people had drawn upon it, after all. Furthermore, Li Hao had provided a great deal of sword energy. Li Hao hadn't been stingy either; for those three hundred-plus drops of the Spring of Life, he gave Little Tree over three million divine energy stones. Factoring in the one million-plus stones consumed for sword energy, he still had sixty million divine energy stones left. With so many divine energy stones, if he sent them back to Battle Heaven City, even if they couldn't fully awaken General Huai, Li Hao felt the deficit wouldn't be large. Yet right now, he had no intention of sending them there. At this stage, whether for himself or the others, these resources were urgently needed to bolster their own strength. If he sent them away, what would they use to advance? Using money to generate more money was the proper way. "Everyone, restrain your supernatural characters. Those who were originally martial masters don't need to deliberately release anything, but Senior Sky Sword, Martial Uncle Hong, Director Hou—you should release a bit of mysterious energy for everyone to see... so they know you've advanced to the Divine Power Realm." Otherwise, if none of them leaked any mysterious energy, it might arouse suspicion and worry. They didn't need Li Hao's reminder to know what to do. "Let's head out, then!" It had been over a day since they entered. Outside, dusk was likely falling. Tomorrow would be the official opening of the Governor-General's Manor. Although the primary obstacles had been dealt with, they still had to be wary of unexpected turns tomorrow. Li Hao stood up and looked behind him. Something felt slightly unusual. Near the university gate, a considerable number of puppets had gathered, currently patrolling. The strange thing was... why were so many puppets patrolling over here? Did they suspect the group had damaged the buildings and come to levy a fine? He looked down at the ground; there was no damage. Deciding not to dwell on it, he called out clearly, "Senior, we take our leave for now. When time permits, I shall come visit Senior again!" Of course, as for when time would permit... who knew when that might be. The black armor offered no pleasantries, replying indifferently, "As you wish!" Then, in an equally detached tone, it added, "Heaven and earth are shifting. Too many in this generation are cultivating supernatural characters, which helps stabilize space. Your so-called secondary revival also has the effect of stabilizing space... Under stabilized space, Pinnacles or seven-element combatants might emerge ahead of time!" Li Hao's heart gave a jolt! Hong Yitang couldn't hold back either, asking gravely, "Senior means..." "Demon plants, demon beasts, or others... all can sense these shifts. Your upper limit also dictates the ceiling of power that certain beings can unleash... For instance, if Li Hao reaches six elements, then a demon plant severing its origin will also be able to exert six-element power in the outside world!" At these words, Li Hao froze. "Does it relate to my divine characters?" "Perhaps!" Li Hao understood. He frowned slightly, but soon relaxed and smiled. "Then it is of little consequence." The black armor meant that his upper limit determined the ceiling of power others could unleash... Since everything remained within his control, what did he have to fear? The black armor spoke no further. The next instant, the group felt the world spin again, and they vanished from Yuanping Martial Arts University. At that moment, the puppets scurried over to the black armor. One puppet asked curiously, "Teacher, is this person the pathbreaker of this generation?" "He does not qualify yet." The black armor said indifferently, "His so-called path is merely an initial step. Only the Pinnacle marks the beginning of the Dao! If he can continue forward and keep perfecting it, only then does he stand a chance of forging a true Grand Dao. Otherwise... it is merely child's play." Pathbreaking... To Li Hao and the others, perhaps they were already doing it. Yet to the black armor, only upon reaching seven elements did the true path even begin. In the ancient civilization, only upon reaching that stage could one truly comprehend the power of the Grand Dao. If one couldn't even reach that realm, speaking of pathbreaking was pointless. The puppets paid it little mind; their teacher's standards were exceedingly high, but they found the matter quite fascinating. ... Night fell. When Li Hao and his group emerged from the ruins, they still drew the attention of all the powerhouses. After being inside for over a day, what had these people been doing? There didn't seem to be any dramatic change. Had they gone in... just to fool around? No one could figure it out. Yet everyone surmised that some transformation must have occurred; otherwise, why would they enter a second time? Li Hao ignored the scouts. Upon returning, everyone went their separate ways rather than lingering together. Hou Xiaochen took Chief Steward Yu and Yao Si directly back to the Night Patrol. Sky Sword, having obtained what he wanted, wasted no time and plunged straight into the Heavenly Star Sea, heading back to Heavenly Sword Villa. As for tomorrow's opening of the manor... he wasn't worried in the slightest. Anyone who dared cause trouble for Li Hao tomorrow wouldn't even know how they died. Still, he mentioned that if Li Hao planned to strike against the ruins, he could notify him. Returning home, he would also see if he could secure the Wind-Thunder Sword for Li Hao. Southern Fist, meanwhile, intended to return to the imperial palace, which took Li Hao somewhat by surprise. Returning at a time like this... wasn't he afraid of death? The imperial family was likely terrified of them right now, yet he still wanted to go back? "I'll be fine!" Southern Fist didn't care much, transmitting his voice: "I'm going to look through their archives. The palace holds abundant records and intelligence. I want to see if I can get my hands on information regarding Heavenly Star Town. Don't forget, we took a mission back in Battle Heaven City... Perhaps we can complete it!" Investigating why Heavenly Star Town had cut off supplies—Li Hao naturally remembered this mission. But since he hadn't yet visited the true ruins of Heavenly Star Town, he could only set it aside for now. Hearing that Southern Fist intended to investigate... Li Hao thought it over, nodded, and said nothing more. The mission stated that as long as the cause was determined and contact between Heavenly Star Town and Battle Heaven City was restored, the reward would be 10,000 points of military merit. Ten thousand military merits didn't amount to much if exchanged for divine energy stones—merely 10,000 cultivation energy stones, or 100,000 divine energy stones. Exchanging it for that was the worst possible choice; Li Hao saw that clearly now. With 10,000 military merits, wouldn't it be far better to exchange for a genuine division commander rank? Wouldn't it be far better to exchange for powerful ancient martial secret arts to study? Why swap for energy stones? That was obviously an option for ordinary soldiers who couldn't attain high merits; he had clearly made a loss before. If he could restore connections among the eight cities, with a reward of 100,000 military merits, Li Hao suspected he could claim the position of army commander, directly commanding an army of 100,000. The entire reserve guard might end up under his command. In the future, even that division commander of the Ninth Division would have to address him as "Superior Officer" upon meeting him! Indulging in pleasant thoughts, Li Hao nodded. "Be careful!" Southern Fist said no more and quickly headed straight for the imperial palace, attracting considerable attention. Certain members of the imperial family cursed inwardly... When it was time to put in effort, you were a Silver Moon man; when the trouble passed, you remembered you were still the imperial family's martial instructor. Were you treating the imperial palace like an inn? In the blink of an eye, only Bright Sword and Earth-Overturning Sword remained by Li Hao's side. Soon, the three of them returned to the Department of Criminal Law. ... Upon returning, Earth-Overturning Sword and Bright Sword went off to attend to their own affairs. Li Hao walked forward, heading deep toward the far end of the rear courtyard. Over there, a building styled like a miniature palace had been erected. Evidently, this was the entrance to the ruins controlled by the Hu family. Following his own senses, Li Hao proceeded all the way to the end until he saw a doorway. It had been constructed in later times, but this door clearly led into the ruins. Li Hao didn't enter, merely standing outside. After a long while, a faint ripple emanated from behind the door. "Are you... Li Hao?" "The successor of the Sword Venerable?" Li Hao smiled faintly. "I thought you wouldn't pay any attention to me." Although the demon plant couldn't emerge, releasing a sliver of mental strength to survey the surroundings was well within its capability. Even Little Tree could do that; back when Li Hao and the others entered Cathead Mountain, Little Tree had detected them in advance. "Are Hu Xiao and Hu Mingfa both dead?" "Yes." "My clone was also destroyed... Did you kill it?" Li Hao laughed. "It had nothing to do with me. How could I have such ability? It was killed by a powerhouse within Yuanping Martial Arts University. You were truly audacious, daring to cause trouble in Yuanping Martial Arts University. Did you genuinely not know the danger, or were you simply ignorant?" Inside the ruins, the demon plant fell silent for a moment before transmitting its thoughts: "That martial arts university... is very mysterious! But back then, everyone seemed to have long departed. It appears... some powerhouse remained behind after all." Li Hao smiled. "Of course, and a terrifying one at that! When your clones were pulverized in an instant, one of the demon plants even cried out... Great Saint!" Behind the door, a massive tree trembled slightly. A Great Saint! Yuanping Martial Arts University actually had a Saint stationed within! Inconceivable! "It seems... Hu Mingfa and the others' plot... went disastrously wrong. Those energy stones gave that being a chance to awaken... What an act of self-destruction!" The great tree sighed with emotion; they had walked straight into their own doom. They hadn't anticipated it previously, truly believing no one was left. No demon plants resided in Yuanping Martial Arts University. Logically, even if someone remained, they should have been reduced entirely to lingering remnants or spiritual energy. There shouldn't have been much to fear; Director Wang's condition, after all, illustrated many things. Humans... over the endless passage of time, simply did not live as long as other demon races. Yet the strength preserved by a Saint was more than enough to obliterate their clones in an instant. The gulf was too vast! Besides, their clones were actually quite weak, possessing only five or six elements of power, not even reaching seven elements. How could they match a revived Saint? In the Neo-Martial era, the Celestial Emperor era, the Early Martial era... counting back three eras, Saints were top-tier beings. Meanwhile, Li Hao made swift assessments. The true form of the demon plant behind this door couldn't possibly be a Great Saint-level entity. Li Hao smiled. "Now that the Hu family is wiped out, is Senior Demon Plant interested in cooperating with me?" "You?" Li Hao chuckled. "Why not? As a descendant of the Sword Venerable, I qualify anywhere! Even that Great Saint, though he didn't grant me many boons, dared not touch me. At most, you are merely a so-called Immortal... and you haven't even fully revived yet. Can you exert Pinnacle strength? In the ancient civilization, you wouldn't even have been worthy of cooperating with someone of the Li family!" "..." The demon plant hadn't expected this person to be so arrogant. Yet his words were not wrong. That was indeed how it was. Back in the old days, it had merely been a guardian demon plant; it truly had no qualification to discuss cooperation with the Li family. "As you said, that was back then. Back then, the Sword Venerable still existed. What about now?" Li Hao laughed. "Now, I've destroyed the Hu family! You were willing to cooperate even with the Hu family. What, am I inferior to them?" The demon plant fell silent for a moment. "It is not entirely out of the question. As long as you can fulfill the tasks the Hu family handled, cooperation... is no issue." "Speak plainly: what can I gain, and what must I pay?" The demon plant didn't mince words: "I require vast quantities of energy stones. As for what you gain, the Spring of Life is what you desire most. Beyond that, so long as you can pay the price, just as with the Hu family before, I can sever my origin to eliminate formidable enemies for you!" "What is the exchange rate?" "Previously, I charged the Hu family sixty thousand stones per drop. You are a descendant of the Sword Venerable, whose name is known to all under heaven. Fifty thousand will suffice!" "..." Li Hao smiled, cursing furiously in his heart! You swindling scoundrel! You make it sound as if you're doing me a massive favor. Of course, talk of cooperation was pure nonsense. He was merely probing the situation. "May I ask boldly: between you and General Huai of Battle Heaven City, who is stronger?" "..." The great tree fell speechless. One was a guardian general of the eight main cities, while the other was a guardian stationed in a corner of Heavenly Star Town. Who do you think is stronger? Li Hao smiled. "Don't blame me for asking. I need to judge your strength to see whether you are worth my investment. After all, I have many choices, including numerous Silver Moon powerhouses who are worthy of my investment..." The great tree cursed inwardly as well. Others couldn't say such things, but this man certainly could. Pondering for a moment, it replied, "I may be inferior to certain beings in Silver Moon, but they have all fallen into deep slumber. Awakening them is exceedingly difficult; the price you would pay is beyond imagination, while the returns would be negligible! I am different. Here in Heavenly Star, the fact that the Nine Departments and the imperial family chose us proves we are the strongest. Furthermore, we have already revived substantially, far beyond the initial stages... Do you understand what I mean?" Li Hao nodded. "Understood! In other words, you can exert combat strength at any time right now, whereas even if I pour one hundred million divine energy stones into General Huai of Battle Heaven City, he might only barely awaken, remaining exceedingly weak and still inferior to you—is that correct?" "Naturally!" "Then among the Nine Departments and the imperial family, where does your strength rank?" The great tree fell silent for a moment before transmitting its thoughts again: "The one with the imperial family was the guardian demon plant of Heavenly Star Town's main city back then. We... are slightly weaker than it. The others are on par with me." "Are you Immortal or Pinnacle?" Li Hao pressed further: "You shouldn't be at the Saint level, right?" "Correct." The great tree didn't deny it. If one truly dug through ancient texts, they could probably discover this anyway. It continued, "You know a great deal, but knowing so much, you should understand all the more how powerful we are..." "Naturally!" Li Hao smiled. "By the way, could the one with the imperial family be Saint-level?" "Just a hair breadth away!" Li Hao understood—peak Immortal? That was indeed formidable! "So you are also an Immortal?" "Yes." Li Hao smiled. "Then right now... I mean, hypothetically, if I lured a Pinnacle combatant here, could you kill him?" "A Pinnacle? No Pinnacle exists today... nor is it possible for such a being to appear..." Li Hao laughed. "That's hard to say. I see that Qi Pingjiang of the Bureau of Military Law has already reached the peak of six elements, just one step away." "That step is the difference between heaven and earth!" This time, the great tree sounded supremely confident: "If he dares come, I can naturally slay him with ease!" Understood! This fellow possessed at least Pinnacle-level strength—terrifying indeed. He wondered whether Little Tree's clone, employing the projection of the Imperial Palace, could contend with it. Most likely... it would fall short. These demon plants had revived considerably. Previously, Little Tree had only dealt with clones that had been severed who-knew-how-many times. "I understand!" Li Hao nodded. "Wait a few days, and I will discuss this with you face-to-face! Tomorrow I still have matters to attend to; I must clear away some remnants outside first. I also hope you understand that cooperating with me brings you only benefits and no harm." "I naturally understand; otherwise, I wouldn't have appeared to speak with you." To the great tree, cooperating with anyone was the same. The crucial point was whether this person could provide enough divine energy stones for its recovery. As for whether it was the Hu family or Li Hao... was there any difference? None! It also wanted Li Hao to understand that reviving it was far more cost-effective than reviving the one in Battle Heaven City. Even if you poured one hundred million divine energy stones into that one, what of it? How much benefit could it offer you? I, on the other hand, am different! Li Hao turned and walked away, estimating in his heart that this great tree's true body was at least at the Pinnacle level, not something a six-element fighter could compare to. Extremely powerful! If his side joined forces alongside Little Tree's clone, could they truly handle it? He was at six elements, Yao Si at five, and Little Tree probably had strength leaning above six elements but shy of seven. Yet if they could kill it... the benefits would be unimaginable. Also, had Little Tree made progress? Having devoured so much origin power earlier, it couldn't have gained nothing, right? "If we take down this tree... Little Tree can devour some origin power, Director Zhou can devour some, and we seize a ruins site... The benefits are endless!" Ultimately, Li Hao made up his mind. Take it down! If you had offered five thousand divine energy stones for a drop of the Spring of Life, I might have spared you. Fifty thousand... If I don't take you down, what use is keeping you around!