Their Names Etched for Eternity

A fall into the pit, a gain in your wit. Now, Li Hao was no longer as ostentatious as before, nor would he immediately make a public announcement the moment he discovered something. *After all, I have not reached the level of invincibility.* *In this world, even now, there are still people capable of suppressing me.* Even without the Queen, that Prophet God, by throwing caution to the wind, had managed to pin down a Saint. Even if the Saint hadn't used his full strength, it was still a terrifying feat. The gods were reviving. They enjoyed the favor of heaven and earth. Moreover, Li Hao knew that his discovery of the Bright Star Great Dao had inadvertently benefited these gods. Martial arts for all had granted them reciprocal feedback. It had to be said that these gods had effectively plucked some of the peaches that rightfully belonged to Li Hao. Yet there was nothing to be done about it. Who told these gods to be born representing aspects of the Great Dao? That the God Nation possessed such might today was largely due to Li Hao's contributions. The rapid revival of those gods was inseparable from Li Hao's promotion of martial arts for all. Unfortunately, those gods knew no gratitude. Li Hao was furious! Yet he also knew that anger was useless. The best solution was to strengthen himself. …… By the time Li Hao emerged from the Bright Star Realm once more, a full day and night had passed. Inside the treasure pool, everyone was cultivating, racing against every second. The immense pool had become rather empty by now. Even so, some martial masters lingered reluctantly, even shoving the sediment and medicinal dregs from the bottom of the pool into their mouths. Li Hao laughed in spite of himself. "Stop eating that. That stuff… is essentially the sludge left behind after everyone took a bath. You're actually eating that?" Southern Fist swallowed a huge clump of mud in one gulp, saying nonchalantly, "The energy contained inside is incredibly dense, far stronger than divine energy stones or the Spring of Life! It's only because we're sitting on a massive mine right now. Back in the day, people would have beaten each other half to death just for a mouthful!" There was truth in that. However, even though everyone inwardly agreed, their mouths retorted, "You're the only one disgusting enough!" "Not as disgusting as you! If you hate it, don't eat it!" "Like I would eat that?" "The grandson's sneaking bites on the side!" "Oh? Want to have a fight?" "……" The Silver Moon martial masters, who had been half-dead only yesterday, had all returned to normal today. Each wore a hearty grin as if nothing had happened yesterday. Having a large, resilient heart was indeed a virtue of Silver Moon martial masters. Curses were traded, but no one actually fought. Wouldn't it be better to save that energy to beat up some gods? Southern Fist paid no heed to Thunderbolt Leg's provocation, saying excitedly, "Our strength has grown today. If you still have the confidence to take on that Queen… let's go beat her again!" *A day later, we come back!* *To beat you! Don't tell me you didn't see that speed coming?* Li Hao chuckled. "How much progress did everyone make?" "At least nine meridians, ninth tier of Mountain Sea!" At this moment, Tyrant Saber said in an icy tone, "If Southern Fist and a few others hadn't dragged us down…" Southern Fist flared up instantly. "I'm at the first tier of Sun Moon! I opened ten meridians and stepped into Sun Moon! Tyrant Saber, you never used to pick on me before. Why are you doing it now? Why don't you say Jade Light Sword and the others dragged us down?" His recent progress had genuinely not been slow. With ten meridians and numerous acupoints opened, many of his Dao meridians were already halfway unsealed. He was not about to take Tyrant Saber's disdain lying down. Tyrant Saber raised an eyebrow and said nothing. Comparing himself with women was beneath him. Among the men, Tyrant Saber felt Southern Fist had a thick skin, so deriding him wouldn't hurt. Those with fragile egos, like Golden Spear and his lot, might be pushed too far. What if they ran away in anger? So upon further thought… Southern Fist was the ideal target. Li Hao chuckled. "Alright, quiet down, everyone." With that, he looked over the crowd and asked, "Currently, who has opened the most meridians?" He no longer probed everyone directly as he had in the past. That had been the rashness of youth; he was slightly more tactful now. The crowd exchanged glances. In the end, it was Yuan Shuo who spoke first. "I don't know about the others, but I've opened five divine power meridians… wait, including the physical body Dao meridian, six. I've opened 210 acupoints, making a total of twelve meridians." Twelve meridians was the peak of the first tier of the Sun Moon Realm. It wasn't excessively shocking. Of course, Yuan Shuo should be able to advance swiftly to the second tier of Sun Moon next. As soon as Yuan Shuo spoke, Hong Yitang gave a light cough. "I've opened seven divine power Dao meridians, one physical body Dao meridian, and 199 acupoints, totaling eleven meridians." In truth, he was only a single acupoint away from twelve Dao meridians. Li Hao suspected he had deliberately held back to yield to Yuan Shuo. Otherwise, how could he conveniently stop at exactly 199 acupoints? Was it truly impossible to open just one more? With Yuan Shuo and Hong Yitang opening only eleven to twelve meridians, the others hadn't opened much more than Southern Fist. Even so, Li Hao looked toward several other figures. Seeing Li Hao look over, Lin Hongyu was about to speak when Li Hao said, "There is no need to hide anything. I want to get an accurate grasp of everyone's true strength." This woman was exceedingly talented. Moreover, her combat prowess was formidable. Long before this, she had possessed combat strength close to seven elements. Among those present, very few were actually stronger than her. Even Hong Yitang and the others might not have been truly stronger than her in the past. She had even slain an origin clone on her own. Lin Hongyu showed a touch of embarrassment, yet she still said, "I've opened seven divine power meridians, one physical body Dao meridian, and 203 acupoints…" Yuan Shuo paused and glanced at her. This woman opened acupoints that fast? He considered himself exceptionally swift, even abandoning opening further divine power meridians to concentrate purely on acupoints, yet he only had seven more acupoints than her. More importantly, this woman had been busy managing the entire dynasty's affairs all this time. Yuan Shuo was somewhat puzzled. Although both had twelve Dao meridians, strictly speaking, she had opened three more acupoints than him. Lin Hongyu offered a small, seemingly shy smile… Of course, everyone knew it was an act; this woman was a master of disguise. Lin Hongyu said apologetically, "Lord Redwood secretly… supported me with quite a bit of Spring of Life. As you all know, I had been cooperating with Senior Redwood previously, so…" Whether true or false, no one pressed further. Yet everyone wore strange expressions. Twelve Dao meridians, and three more acupoints than Yuan Shuo… While the raw count was slightly lower, everyone calculated by meridian completeness—a complete Dao meridian counted for ten acupoints. Li Hao gave a slight nod, not particularly surprised. Next, he looked toward several others. One was Yao Si, a veteran top-tier martial master. Another was Director Zhao, who always kept a low profile, making it hard to tell how strong he really was. The third was Chen Zhongtian, a genuine top martial master who was perhaps even stronger than Yao Si. This fellow always maintained a half-dead appearance, and Li Hao strongly suspected these people were hiding their true depth. They were terrified of stealing the Silver Moon martial masters' thunder. Indeed! These people had originally been stronger than the Silver Moon martial masters. If everyone opened acupoints together, cultivated together, and shared the same resources, could they really be weaker than the Silver Moon martial masters? Li Hao didn't believe it! These crafty old foxes were most likely concealing their combat strength all along. Seeing Li Hao look his way, Director Zhao coughed. "Looking at me is useless. I learned about it late and started opening acupoints late. Right now, I've only opened 170 acupoints, and not a single complete Dao meridian has been successfully opened… I've only opened seven divine power Dao meridians and one physical body Dao meridian… I'm weaker than all of them, only at the eighth tier of Mountain Sea." "……" Everyone stared at him. Even Huang Yu couldn't hold back anymore. "Opening acupoints isn't that difficult for us. With sufficient resources, 180 acupoints are easy to open, and you've only opened 170?" The first 180 acupoints were only opening half-meridians! It wasn't fully unlocking Dao meridians! Saying you were at the eighth tier of Mountain Sea made it sound like everyone had grossly overestimated you. Long before opening acupoints, this man had scared off Ying Hongyue and suppressed clones of ancient experts single-handedly. Did he take everyone for fools by claiming he was only at the eighth tier of Mountain Sea? Director Zhao coughed again. "Truly, I learned of it far too late, and Silver Moon soon plunged into war…" Li Hao merely watched him in silence. Only after a long pause did Li Hao speak: "I'm not deliberately prying into everyone's strength just for the sake of it. The crucial point is, if I don't know your true power, it's easy for me to assign the wrong opponents." "Take this battle, for instance…" Li Hao frowned slightly. "The reason we failed to achieve full success this time was related to everyone's mismatched strength against their opponents! My teacher should not have been sent against the Five Elements Gods, and the demon plant clones shouldn't have been matched against the God of Life…" Seeing Li Hao speak so solemnly, Director Zhao felt a bit helpless. He coughed once more and said, "It really is modest… but I seem to have forgotten to count… the four limb meridians I opened in the past. Those four meridians are also among the thirty-six Dao meridians. So if you include those forty, I've opened 210 acupoints, in addition to the other eight Dao meridians." Forty more all at once! Everyone silently cursed! *You bastard!* The four limb meridians had long been integrated into the system; how could anyone forget them? So his true status was six non-attribute Dao meridians and eight other Dao meridians—a total of fourteen meridians! All of a sudden, he had two more meridians than Yuan Shuo and the others, making him the first expert at the second tier of the Sun Moon Realm aside from Li Hao! Even Yuan Shuo couldn't help rolling his eyes! Yet no one was overly surprised. Zhao Shuguang oversaw Silver Moon and possessed terrifying strength; fourteen meridians wasn't entirely unexpected. They simply looked down on how shameless this fellow was—even now, he might not have told the whole truth. Utterly shameless! Li Hao, on the other hand, was somewhat surprised. Fourteen Dao meridians was genuinely impressive. As for himself, he had merely seized the initiative early on. Director Zhao had indeed learned about it quite late, yet opening 210 acupoints so swiftly was unbelievable. His speed was terrifying. It could only be said that he had already been exceedingly strong, allowing for rapid conversion. Li Hao nodded. At last, there was a genuine expert at the second tier of Sun Moon. Seeing Li Hao look over, Chen Zhongtian said plainly, "I don't have as many as him. I've opened twelve meridians as well." Li Hao frowned, and Chen Zhongtian said helplessly, "Truly, I'm not lying." *Fine, I'll believe you this once.* When Li Hao turned to Yao Si, the man shook his head slightly. "I've opened fewer, only eleven, though twelve isn't far off." He wore an expression of mild regret that didn't appear feigned. Li Hao could only ask again, "Aside from Director Zhao, has no one else stepped into the second tier of Sun Moon?" Ten to twelve meridians constituted the first tier of Sun Moon. Was there not a single person at the second tier? No, just one? Although Lin Hongyu seemed close, she still required a bit of time. Everyone's progress didn't seem overly startling. Of course, it was far better than before. Just as Li Hao thought no one else had reached this level, Director Wang suddenly coughed from the side. "Well… do I count? I opened 260 acupoints, but… I only opened one physical body Dao meridian and one lightning meridian." Li Hao paused. He stared at Director Wang for a long moment before saying, "Where did your physical body Dao meridian come from?" *I didn't forge one for you!* Director Wang chuckled. "When you went into the Bright Star Realm, I went out and asked Old Qi to help forge one… That… isn't a problem, is it?" "……" Li Hao was stunned, then laughed. Forged by Director Qi? Fair enough! Opening 260 acupoints meant sixteen complete meridians, which together with the lightning and physical body meridians made eighteen meridians in total. At this stage, apart from the few favored by Heaven's will like Li Hao, this was practically the limit allowed by heaven and earth. Eighteen meridians was the peak of the third tier of Sun Moon. Aside from Li Hao, the Queen, and the King of Dali, this was likely the absolute limit of power anyone could wield—the limit where heaven and earth would not sever them. The Prophet God had used special means at tremendous personal cost, which couldn't be counted. Jiang Li had required the First Martial divine bones to reach such a level. Yet for Director Wang, it made sense. He had originally been an Immortal Realm expert! The physical body he forged now was relatively simple, and he had even used his origin path to prop open the Bright Star Realm. Aside from a slight lack of stability, everything else was solid. Li Hao smiled. "Not bad. As expected of a top expert converting over—opening eighteen meridians straightaway. Impressive!" Director Wang smiled as well, maintaining a reserved air. Just so-so! In the past, this was merely mid-stage Peak Realm strength, wasn't it? Of course, nowadays, it was comparatively formidable. If he entered an ancient ruin, he could even fight an ordinary early-stage Immortal Realm expert who hadn't fully revived. Li Hao was in a fairly good mood. Although Director Wang wasn't a modern Silver Moon native, his body now belonged to this era, and he had thoroughly joined this system as part of the core faction. Possessing the power of eighteen meridians was quite remarkable. Except for one or two outliers, the gods were no stronger than Director Wang. Among the deities, the God of War and the God of Life were relatively powerful, but if they clashed with Director Wang now, they wouldn't necessarily win—it would likely be an even match. Li Hao smiled. Not bad at all! As for the others, none were weak either. They were vastly stronger than before, having made enormous leaps in a single day. They would never be suppressed into helplessness by the gods again as they had been previously. At this moment, Li Hao looked toward another person, Director Zhou, and said with some regret, "Aside from the origin power gathered previously, we haven't collected much recently. On Director Zhou's side…" It was quite a pity! Director Zhou smiled. "It's fine. As the world's capacity expands, my strength improves as well! As long as energy is plentiful, it's quite good… In addition, I have an audacious request…" "What is it?" Director Zhou gave a light cough. "Well… didn't Director Wang switch bodies earlier? The body he restored using immortal wood is still intact, and… it cost quite a bit at the time. My thought was, why let it go to waste? How about… I… do that to it?" "……" Everyone was dumbfounded. Director Wang's face turned green. "You want to eat me?!" "No, no, that's not it," Director Zhou consoled. "Your physical body was originally forged from immortal wood. In truth… it's the body of a demon plant. Now that you don't need it and have switched to the Bright Star Dao, we shouldn't waste it. The Governor-General is unwilling to slaughter demon plants on a massive scale now… What do you say?" Director Wang still couldn't stomach it. "That won't do! That's my physical body, identical to me! You'd even eat a person—are you even human?" "That's not what I meant…" Director Wang refused regardless! That body looked identical to him, completely identical. Having someone devour it was far too uncomfortable. Though he knew that once he embarked on this path, there was little turning back. Still… he couldn't cross that mental hurdle. Of course, forging that body had indeed required a massive cost, and letting it go to waste was a shame. After a moment of thought, he said, "Don't get any ideas about it. Have Governor-General Li find origin power and indestructible substance for you… As for my body… it won't go to waste either!" With that, he looked at Li Hao. "I want to give it to Old Ninth. What does the Governor-General think?" "Old Ninth?" "Li Daozong!" Director Wang chuckled. "That fellow is reluctant to forge a new body and doesn't want to walk the new martial arts path. He lost some origin power this time as well. My thought is… give my old body to him. That way, the Governor-General can save some trouble and keep that fellow from mocking you." It was a good idea. Director Wang refused to be eaten by Director Zhou, but if the Ninth Division Commander consumed it, he wouldn't mind as much—he could just pretend he hadn't seen it. Li Hao smiled. "That works too!" Director Wang breathed a sigh of relief. Li Hao added, "As for Director Zhou… I will see what can be done later." Having said that, he looked at the others. Among them, Liu Long was someone he cared about deeply. Seeing Li Hao look over, Liu Long said in a low voice, "190 acupoints, three divine power Dao meridians, and one physical body Dao meridian." A total of six meridians. Sixth tier of the Mountain Sea Realm! This strength could only be called modest. Although it was comparable to the former six-element divine power stage and represented swift progress, he had been left behind by the others. Li Hao didn't mind. He chuckled. "Opening the physical body Dao meridian is what matters. An army relies primarily on collective might. As long as you can endure greater power, you can unleash terrifying combat strength using the soldiers' blood energy!" Liu Long now commanded the Demon Hunt Army, which had grown considerably stronger as well. Once they formed a collective entity again… as long as Liu Long could bear the load, his battle strength would never be weak, provided his body was sufficiently durable! Even Liu Long had reached the sixth tier of Mountain Sea, so the others wouldn't be much weaker than him. At the very least, all had stepped into the Mountain Sea Realm. Li Hao grew more pleased! The first tier of Mountain Sea was comparable to the former Divine Power Realm. None of those present were weaker than Mountain Sea, which was commendable. Not long ago, Li Hao had claimed to have ten thousand Mountain Sea experts… which had been pure nonsense. Even now, it was an exaggeration. Mountain Sea experts were not truly numerous. The hundred or so people gathered here had all stepped into Mountain Sea, with several reaching Sun Moon. There were other figures at the divine power level elsewhere, but they weren't considered core members. His true core forces were limited to the people here. He then looked toward the Battle Heaven Army regiment commanders with a smile. "Regiment Commanders… are you interested in using new-human bodies, or neo-martial bodies? The choice is yours… But at the current stage, there is a clear path forward with a new-human body. Neo-martial bodies, however, are troublesome. Just like Director Zhou, you will need origin power and massive amounts of indestructible substance, making advancement difficult!" Li Hao urged them, "If you choose a new-human body like Director Wang, you can catch up quickly. You were all Peak Realm experts in the past… or close to it. Now, you could swiftly step into Sun Moon!" The regiment commanders looked at one another. In the end, the Seventh Regiment Commander spoke: "This… we need to ask our Division Commander's opinion." "Why make it so complicated?" Li Hao laughed. "The Division Commander already said it's entirely up to you. If that doesn't suffice, you can ask General Locust and the Turtle Guardian for their opinions; their clones are still here." This time, the two mighty experts' clones had held back two powerful gods. It was just that General Locust had been maintaining the spatial lockdown the entire time, without revealing much of his strength. Still, they were only clones; even if they had gone all out from start to finish, they couldn't have altered the outcome much. The regiment commanders hesitated slightly. Their hesitation… stemmed entirely from whether they should choose a new-human body. If they wanted a neo-martial body, there was no need to hesitate. They had been invited to this meeting for the first time, effectively entering Li Hao's inner circle. Yet abandoning their neo-martial bodies still felt somewhat awkward; their skin wasn't as thick as Director Wang's. After a long silence, the Seventh Regiment Commander said gruffly, "If the Division Commander has no objections… then… we will leave it to the Eleventh Division Commander to decide!" "……" Li Hao smiled. What did he mean by leaving it to him to decide? The underlying message was obvious. They wanted new-human bodies. After all, neo-martial bodies had far too many limitations in this era. To improve, one had to kill people, kill demon plants, kill ancient experts. Slaying them was the only way to find opportunities, which was exceedingly troublesome. "Alright, understood. This time, I will have the nine regiment commanders, the Inspectorate Division Chief, and several students from Yuanping Martial Arts University restore their bodies together. It will only be a dozen or so people, not too many… The rest will have to wait for later!" None of the regiment commanders objected. It was taken as tacit agreement. Li Hao glanced at Di Wei, feeling a slight headache, but said nothing. Di Wei… had better remain a tree for now. When it came to demon plants, he truly lacked an effective solution. Just like Black Panther, Li Hao had no methods for demon beasts either. Black Panther had been slumbering deep within the mineral vein lately; whether it could open beast Dao meridians on its own depended entirely on its luck. By this point, experts at the Sun Moon level had multiplied. Compared to before, Li Hao had far more confidence. At this moment, Director Zhao spoke up: "In this clash with the God Nation, the gods suffered injuries. Both the Prophet God and the Moon God were not lightly wounded. They probably won't dare advance further in the short term… unless they truly see our physical bodies collapse." "However… the three nations of Dali, the Great Desolation, and Water Cloud might not give up!" Director Zhao said solemnly, "Although we displayed our combat power in the battle against the God Nation, failing to crush them in a single battle will make those three nations think we are merely this capable!" They might know both sides were formidable, but since Li Hao hadn't managed to conquer the God Nation, their previous wariness would fade. They might assume Li Hao feared the God Nation and would not dare dispatch troops against them rashly. At this, Southern Fist snorted coldly. "Who cares about them? Let them come! If those people hadn't suddenly betrayed us this time, how could we have suffered a setback? Li Hao had already suppressed the Queen of the God Nation. It was the betrayal of those bastards that caused the situation to reverse!" He still couldn't let go of what had happened. It grated on him! If the populace hadn't suddenly grown terrified of the gods, lacking sufficient trust in Li Hao to continue bolstering him, Li Hao would have subdued the Queen. Yet it had fallen short at the final stretch! He remained full of resentment! Director Zhao sighed. "You cannot look at it that way! The Heavenly Star Governor-General's Office… has been established for too short a time. Although we publicized the martial arts cultivation method, expecting everyone to trust you unconditionally in such a brief period is impossible! Trust must be built step by step…" This matter gave him a headache as well. He knew that after this incident, some of the people present harbored grudges in their hearts even if they didn't speak of them, believing the lack of success was entirely due to the populace's failure to support them. Yet as a leader who had overseen a region for decades, he understood all too well that expecting the people to stand entirely with Li Hao at this stage was practically impossible. How many days had it been? Just because you announced a martial arts path and gave out a few small favors, you expected everyone to regard you as a god? It was simply impossible! Lin Hongyu nodded as well. "Director Zhao is correct. Things must be done step by step. It is perfectly normal for the other three continents to know nothing about the Governor-General! Even in the Central Region… it will only be possible to establish basic trust once the academies open and literacy campaigns are completed!" "This is a massive undertaking. Even if we accelerate it, it cannot be completed in less than a year or two!" She added, "Fortunately, we still have sky screens. We need to speed up their deployment, ideally ensuring every household has one, and then… educate the populace on everything. Only then can the Governor-General truly win over their hearts!" Southern Fist grumbled, "That's far too troublesome! In a few years, the war will already be over!" Lin Hongyu remained silent, while Director Zhao smiled. "There is no need to rush for immediate results. Even if we cannot receive their empowerment… it does not matter! The Governor-General can still grow strong on his own; there is no absolute need to rely on empowerment similar to the Human Sovereign path! However, this policy benefits the people, so it must still be carried out. Only by doing so will everyone develop… and only then can they achieve self-salvation without relying on the Governor-General's Office." Hong Yitang nodded in agreement. "That is the truth. The empowerment of the people's strength was an extra boon to begin with. If one aimed for it from the very start, the foundation itself would be flawed… I believe none of us pursued this with that goal in mind. The Governor-General merely discovered it by chance. Having it is better, but lacking it is nothing to lament." He, Lin Hongyu, and Director Zhao were all subtly advising Li Hao. They hoped Li Hao would not think everything done previously had been a mistake. That would be detrimental. At this moment, even Qian Wuliang, who maintained a low profile, spoke up cautiously: "If I may boldly offer a suggestion… the reason things turned out this way might be because the Governor-General hasn't widely promoted himself! I think it would be best to publish a book like *The Governor-General's Quotations* or something similar, turning it into fundamental teaching material—even a literacy textbook!" "Human nature follows the herd. If they constantly study the Governor-General, they will likely accept his leadership from the depths of their hearts very quickly…" At these words, some sneered, while others found the idea decent. It was true! If you didn't promote yourself or spread your own name, how could the populace come to know you, trust you, or even revere you? Li Hao considered it for a moment, then shook his head. "Forget it. Just as the Moon God and the others said, if you don't believe in gods yourself and wish to shatter the gods in people's hearts, why create a god for them?" "Making the people trust me and treat me as a god… is a fallacy in itself!" It was contradictory! Yet Li Hao smiled. "Gods were never manufactured! We can live without gods, though we can possess spiritual faith… For instance, I used to love a book called the *Silver Moon Roster of Heroes*! Since ancient times, such figures were what people pursued and admired, venerating them as heroes rather than treating them as deities… That is what we truly need." A tremor ran through everyone's hearts. Li Hao continued, "If we defeat the four nations, I might recompile the Roster of Heroes and broadcast it to the world. That is true renown and glory!" Li Hao laughed. "From then on, legends of us will spread across the world: In the era of the Star Yuan Calendar, the heroes of Silver Moon defeated the enemies and liberated the entire realm! The Thirty-Six Heroes, the Seventy-Two Paragons of back then… things like that are the fame we Jianghu folk should pursue!" He laughed, while the crowd paused, glancing around at one another. For a moment, they were spellbound. There were just over a hundred people present. Thirty-Six Heroes, Seventy-Two Paragons? Was he talking about them? Li Hao smiled again. "Even after ten thousand eras, our names might still be preserved. For example, once my Divine Character Dao reaches great accomplishment, I will forge a Divine Character Great Dao Book just like Senior Zhang, recording everyone's names and placing it within the Bright Star Realm. That way… it will be truly perfect!" Li Hao chuckled at the thought. "Countless years from now, if someone discovers the Bright Star Realm and walks the Bright Star Great Dao, our names and titles will remain in the Great Dao universe for them to uncover… Perhaps our fame will surpass even that of the Neo-Martial Human King!" "The Neo-Martial Human King never left behind any legends in the origin universe… but we can!" Listening to this, yearning bloomed within everyone's hearts! Southern Fist murmured, "Is that really possible? He Yong, Southern Fist, second among the Thirty-Six Heroes… passing down through eternity?" "……" The crowd was speechless. How had he suddenly become second? Did he have no shame? At this moment, even some of the young people who had kept silent, such as the shameless Hu Qingfeng, couldn't help whispering, "Governor-General, do we… do we have hope as well?" Previously, Li Hao had been tending to the veterans, and these juniors hadn't dared breathe too loudly. Now, they could hardly contain themselves. He beamed obsequiously. "Governor-General, if your esteemed self compiles the Roster of Heroes… could we leave behind a tiny mark? Even… even a casual mention would suffice!" Li Hao smiled. "Of course there's a chance. This era has only just begun! Mighty enemies still remain, and opportunities to earn merit are countless! Years from now, perhaps your name, Hu Qingfeng, will be recorded as well—for instance, 'Bronze Skin and Iron Bones' Hu Qingfeng!" *Bronze Skin and Iron Bones?* Hu Qingfeng paused. "Governor-General, I… can have a title?" What did "Bronze Skin and Iron Bones" mean, though? Li Hao chuckled. "Your skin is thick enough, so Bronze Skin and Iron Bones suits you well!" "……" Hu Qingfeng was at a loss for words, but quickly beamed again. "Thank you for the bestowed title, Governor-General! From now on, I am 'Bronze Skin and Iron Bones' Hu Qingfeng!" "……" Everyone was utterly speechless. This fellow was truly shameless! Yet longing surged within all of them. Didn't martial artists pursue fame and fortune? Or rather, wasn't this what a person pursued in their lifetime? Back then, how many people had died in Silver Moon just to fight for a spot among the Thirty-Six Heroes? And that had only been within the boundaries of Silver Moon! Now, this was leaving their names etched for all eternity! To anyone, fame and glory were impossible to resist. Even the aloof Sky Sword couldn't help asking, "Will I still be called Sky Sword in the future? I was ranked second on the previous Roster of Heroes…" Everyone rolled their eyes. Another one claiming second place? Of course, his claim to second was far more credible than Southern Fist's. He was a legitimate figure who hovered between second and fifth, unlike the shameless Southern Fist. *He* was the one who deserved the title of Bronze Skin and Iron Bones! Li Hao had merely spoken offhand, never expecting even Sky Sword to be swayed. He paused slightly and looked around. At this moment, not only Sky Sword, but even his teacher, Yuan Shuo, stroked his nonexistent beard and said with deep meaning, "'Five Animal Old Demon' doesn't really suit me. I have always been a man of immortal deportment and transcendent grace. If there's an opportunity to leave my name for eternity, I think… I should change my title to Five Animal Immortal, or perhaps Five Elements Immortal…" The crowd sneered in contempt! Everyone seemed excited now. Even Huang Yu, who rarely spoke, said in a deep voice, "I don't want to be called Cannibal Demon; it sounds hideous! My spear path is quite decent, so calling me Spear Saint will do…" "That belongs to Minister Hou!" Chief Manager Yu spoke up suddenly, sounding rather displeased! To the side, Golden Spear had his head lowered, originally intending to stay quiet. Now, he couldn't hold back any longer and muttered gruffly, "Golden Spear never fades!" *The Spear God is me!* Li Hao was utterly flabbergasted! He felt that if this continued, they would come to blows. Truly! He had merely mentioned it casually, yet… they were all so moved? Every single one of them wanted to change their titles! It was as if they had already envisioned the future. At this moment, setbacks, orthodoxies, and opened meridians were completely forgotten. Were those things even important? As if discerning Li Hao's thoughts, Hong Yitang sent a mental transmission: "Since ancient times, having one's name inscribed in historical annals has been everyone's desire! Especially for us martial masters, leaving our names for eternity is simply… Of course, they are far too vulgar!" At that point, he shook his head and transmitted again: "The title of Sky Sword can be given to me. Earth-Overturning Sword always sounds slightly inferior to Sky Sword. Can Sky Sword really compare to me?" "……" Li Hao was stunned. The next instant, he burst into uproarious laughter. He looked at them, pointed at them, and bent over laughing. "A bunch of vulgar people! Utterly vulgar!" A gathering of worldly folk! Everyone looked displeased, but Li Hao roared with laughter: "Then I… won't be called Demon Sword! I'll be called Dao Lord, Master of All Daos! You all can append the title of Dao Lord as well—Sword Dao Lord, Spear Dao Lord, Saber Lord… Hahaha… amusing, truly amusing!" At this moment, everyone exchanged looks and began to laugh. A bunch of worldly folk! They had just suffered a setback, hadn't yet unified the realm, the four nations still stood, the Three Great Organizations remained unvanquished, and the ancient ruins had not even opened, yet here they were, discussing leaving their names for eternity. They had even thought up their titles. Even Li Hao had crowned himself Dao Lord. The next moment, everyone laughed uproariously, their mirth drowning out everything else. …… Outside, the people heard the laughter and stood dazed. Jiang Li looked at the neo-martial experts with confusion. What… was going on? Healing their wounds had made them laugh like this? Had they… forgotten they had just lost the battle? With such loud laughter, were they consoling themselves? Or did these people truly have such massive hearts that suffering a setback against the God Nation genuinely didn't bother them? Had Li Hao's physical body recovered? He thought to himself: if Dali had set out full of confidence, only to suffer a setback like the King of Dali facing the ancient city experts' clones, the million-strong army of Dali wouldn't have dared make a sound. For days, the atmosphere would have been suffocatingly oppressive. Yet these people… had bounced back already? At this moment, Zhang An also looked inside, sighing with emotion. He glanced at the nearby puppet students, his gaze complex. After a long silence, he transmitted a message to several of the powerful students: "New Martial has passed—at least, it no longer exists in this world! Even if it does… it is no longer the New Martial with the Human King! You are all descendants of Sovereigns, and you should understand this… A new era brings a new atmosphere. I am old and unwilling to change, but fellow students… being mercenaries is not a permanent path. You are all clever people; when it's time to choose… make your choice, while this is still the first true large-scale conflict!" Zhang An didn't care what the students thought as he transmitted further: "The new martial arts path is actually very intriguing and possesses immense potential! Li Hao isn't that powerful; even now, he is only comparable to the Peak Realm back then, perhaps not even as strong as your true bodies… He suffered a setback against the God Nation this time, yet… he has a resilient heart. At least for now, he has adjusted very quickly. Those who do not collapse completely when their momentum of invincibility is shattered possess undeniable merit!" Li Hao had been invincible all the way, yet had suffered a setback this time. The moment that aura of invincibility broke was usually the heaviest blow. Yet Li Hao and the Silver Moon martial masters had adjusted their mindsets and restarted in such a short span of time. Zhang An felt it was time for the students to make a decision. "Teacher… we…" "No need to worry too much. Li Hao isn't the type to reject you over a single setback; he is not that sort of person! This time, we were merely onlookers. If you are willing to integrate into the Silver Moon group… you will no longer be onlookers! Even if you join this era, do not forget the neo-martial spirit! Fight for this era, fight for yourselves. As long as you are willing… you can still integrate! Let go of the past and stop thinking that we do not belong to this era!" "The choice is yours. Li Hao has promised to forge bodies for everyone. If you are willing, choose new-human bodies; if not, choose neo-martial bodies! If you choose neo-martial bodies… fight for New Martial. If you choose bodies of this era… integrate into their era, alright?" None of the puppets spoke; all fell into deep thought. Zhang An said no more, nor did he ask what they were thinking. The day their bodies were forged would be the moment of their decision. If they didn't wish to integrate into this era… there was no need to forge bodies of this era. If they forged bodies of the new era, they should embrace it and fight for it. As for himself… it was time to make a decision as well. Zhang An took a deep breath and looked toward the depths of the mineral vein. Laughter drifted into his ears. A single war had brought many things to light. Perhaps for Li Hao, this was a tremendous opportunity. Everyone had to make a choice. Their own people, neo-martial neutrals, or enemies. *Li Hao, surely you understand all of this as well, don't you?* Zhang An thought silently, then looked toward the sky and suddenly laughed. At this moment, no one knew what he was laughing about. Nearby, Jiang Li only found it completely baffling! A bunch of bizarre eccentrics!