Returning to the God Nation

Inside the mineral vein. After laughter, joy, and banter, the matter of the God Nation was completely put aside. At this moment, Li Hao spoke up again: "Earlier, we suffered a minor setback. I've given it some thought, and the main reason was that our objectives were too scattered!" "The four nations' simultaneous offensive disrupted our plans." Li Hao looked at the crowd, fell silent for a moment, and suddenly said, "I want to negotiate peace with them!" "..." Everyone froze. They were just celebrating, riding high on their surging strength—what was he saying? Negotiate peace? In an instant, everyone felt a shock. To an overlord, to a powerhouse aspiring to become a Dao Lord, this was practically... a disgrace! At this moment, even Sky Sword could not hold back: "Among the four nations, aside from the God Nation, we could wipe out the other three at any time. Why sue for peace?" Li Hao said softly, "First, I don't want a full-scale war right now; it exhausts the people and drains our treasury. Second, even if we destroy one or two nations, it won't solve anything. If they win, they invade the Central Plains, but if we win, are we going to occupy deserts and swamps?" "Third, we are currently in a transition period, a state where everything needs to be rebuilt... Therefore, I want to endure for a while." Li Hao added softly, "I hope to complete our internal unification before dealing with the four nations." Li Hao said with some emotion, "Previously, I refused to admit defeat or back down because I thought I was omnipotent! But in reality... that isn't true. So... I want to seek peace!" Everyone found this hard to accept. Naturally, some thought it was acceptable. Lin Hongyu stayed silent for a moment, then spoke up: "Governor-General... if we sue for peace, the four nations might not withdraw easily..." Li Hao nodded. "Hence, we must pay a price!" Li Hao smiled. "Divine energy stones, Spring of Life—these things are far more precious to them than anything else!" "But..." At this point, Yuan Shuo couldn't hold back either. "We're not necessarily afraid of the four nations, yet we're compromising and swallowing our pride, even paying tribute to them? What about your reputation?" Li Hao actually wanted to sue for peace with the four nations; no one had anticipated this. Rather break than bend! Rather be shattered jade than an intact tile! That was the overlord they imagined, the Li Hao they knew, the Demon Sword of their minds. The crowd, so thrilled moments ago, now felt choked with an agonizing indignation. Li Hao chuckled. "I need time. I just need a little time... In life, only those who can endure the bitterest hardships can rise to the top. It's just a single setback; admitting defeat is nothing. I, Li Hao... am capable of bowing my head!" He smiled. "As long as the four nations give me time, whatever they take today, they will pay back twofold tomorrow. Why are they fighting back and forth? At this stage, isn't it all for resources?" "Then I will give it to them!" "Of course, we will also demonstrate our strength along the way. First, we fight... and once we fight to a certain point, I will personally go and sue for peace." Li Hao smiled. "I have too much to do: promoting education, cultivating grain, spreading martial arts, standardizing the army, gathering talent, clearing ancient ruins, containing the Three Great Organizations, suppressing regional warlords..." Li Hao sighed. "I am not a god; I am just Li Hao. And all of you are just jianghu martial masters, not omnipotent! In such a short time, achieving all of this is far, far too difficult!" "Right now, we have fought both Dali and the God Nation; they know our strength!" "As long as we deter the Great Desolate and Water Cloud, they won't want to fight to the death with us either—unless all four reach an agreement to act together as a four-nation alliance, for only then can they rival us!" "Giving them vast amounts of resources will take them time to digest as well... When that time comes, we'll see who digests faster and who grows faster." "Victory is not determined by a single moment." Even though Li Hao's words made sense, everyone still found it hard to stomach. Southern Fist exploded in anger: "We fought from the north to the Central Region, swept across every direction from the center, and never once bowed our heads to the Neo-Martial people! Now you want us to bow to the barbarians on all sides?" "What about Heavenly Star's morale?" Li Hao said softly, "I know this is hard to swallow, but pulling back a fist is the only way to strike out harder! As for morale..." Li Hao smiled. "As long as our morale remains intact, the people's morale... can be cultivated over time. A single victory will win it back! Previously, I overestimated myself, overestimated morale, and overestimated the Heavenly Star Dynasty's strength, which led to this setback." Suing for peace! The crowd remained silent. Li Hao continued, "I have read many history books. In their early stages, many great sovereigns suffered setbacks. Some sued for peace, some arranged political marriages, some endured hardship to plot revenge, and some ceded territory and paid indemnities... Of course, some were wiped out completely, but others rose again, fiercer than ever before!" "As long as our group does not grow decadent and instead works quietly to improve ourselves... none of this will be an issue." Li Hao counted on his fingers. "We have so much to handle! Reviving the Battle Heaven Army, awakening the students of Yuanping Martial Arts University, clearing the Central Region's ruins, establishing academies, and soon it will be spring plowing... If turmoil breaks out now and leaves the homeland hollowed out, the four nations might not care, but we must care." Though Li Hao made sense, everyone remained quiet. Finally, Director Zhao spoke up: "I actually think it's a good idea. Of course, this peace negotiation... needs proper measure. We cannot harm our foundation, we cannot let the enemy reap too much, and we certainly cannot sue for peace without fighting a single battle... Whether we win or lose, we must at least let Water Cloud and the Great Desolate know we are not to be trifled with! Only if they fear us will they be satisfied with minor benefits; otherwise, their appetites will be boundless!" At this point, he added, "Another matter is the God Nation... We can sue for peace with the other three, but the God Nation is the strongest, so we must deter them instead!" Li Hao nodded with a smile. "Precisely! Furthermore, regarding Dali, we can let them remain stationed at the foot of Mount Cang... Aside from food, which we won't supply, I can continue providing everything else they need... Of course, seeking peace is one thing, but small-scale skirmishes must continue unabated!" "For one, it ties them down; for another, it trains new military forces!" "We fight on the borders, and build at home!" "Does anyone have other thoughts?" Since things had been explained to this extent, what else could be said? Feeling smothered, Southern Fist muttered gloomily, "Then I want to oversee the south. I want to fight Water Cloud—I'm still the Southern Governor-General, after all!" Li Hao smiled and nodded. "Very well. I will dispatch people to oversee all four quarters! If you want to go south, by all means. In the north, Director Zhao and the others can hold the line. The west, however, is a bit troublesome... Once the western God Nation recovers its strength, they won't let things rest. Even if we sue for peace, they might not pay it any heed." With that, Li Hao said, "Let's head out first! While everyone is gathered here and Jiang Li is present, let's resolve the Dali issue first." Everyone exchanged glances, saying nothing more. Li Hao's sudden choice to pull back caught them off guard. Yet if... suing for peace was the reality, it might not be a bad thing. At this point, they could only console themselves with that thought. The Silver Moon martial masters found it hard to accept. Yet to people like Lin Hongyu, it felt like a sound decision. Waging war against four nations had been too rushed; too much remained unfinished domestically, and Li Hao's foundation was unstable. If they fought tooth and nail only to let others reap the benefits in the end, it would be pointless. As of now, among the ninety-nine provinces, very few governors genuinely leaned toward Li Hao. Yet Li Hao had no time to make arrangements or replace them. There were plenty of military commanders, but civil officials were sorely lacking. If this war dragged on, the nation might dissolve into a tangled mess that couldn't be unraveled for a very long time. ... Outside the mineral vein. When Jiang Li saw Li Hao's group emerge, his expression changed. It had only been a day and change. Had these people's injuries actually healed? Regardless of what Jiang Li thought, Li Hao smiled. "Seniors... how about making another trip to the western God Nation?" Even Zhang An was startled. Go again? This... Jiang Li was equally flabbergasted and blurted, "Governor-General Li still wants to go?" "It's not like we suffered a loss," Li Hao said with a smile. "I've recovered, but they might not have. What's there to fear in going back?" Jiang Li still couldn't hold back. "But..." "There are no buts!" Li Hao said coolly. "If Chief Priest Jiang doesn't want to go, it doesn't matter! We will go!" Speaking of this, Li Hao sneered, "The person who can make Li Hao suffer a loss hasn't been born yet! This time, the western God Nation nearly killed my master and destroyed the Ninth Division Commander's clone... With their prophet injured, I want to see what other tricks they have up their sleeve!" At this point, even Zhang An couldn't help but advise, "In the western God Nation, there may still be gods who haven't revived. Forcing their revival is a loss for them, but for you... you don't possess the strength to crush them right now..." He felt a truce was more suitable at the moment. Li Hao chuckled. "We don't necessarily have to fight... Just go take a look." "This..." "Senior, please make another trip with me," Li Hao said with a laugh. "I still have a breath of fury stuck in my chest." Helpless, Zhang An still nodded. It made sense. Youthful and impetuous, having suffered a loss... In truth, Li Hao hadn't suffered much, but everyone believed he had taken a heavy blow, so his unwillingness to let it rest was only human nature. Jiang Li was also speechless, thinking to himself that this man truly held grudges over the smallest slight! It was fortunate Li Hao hadn't suffered at Dali's hands; otherwise, with how quickly he recovered, wouldn't he seek battle every single day? "We won't bring ordinary soldiers this time..." At this point, Li Hao suddenly smiled. "Let's do this: bring a thousand Battle Heaven Army soldiers to act as artillerymen! Open the sky screen for me—I want the whole world to see that Heavenly Star's artillery is first-rate too!" "This..." Zhang An couldn't help saying, "That's rather wasteful. There are too many powerhouses over there; even an artillery barrage won't accomplish much." "Even if it's wasteful... I'm still going to bombard them once!" "..." There was nothing left to say. Zhang An fell completely silent. Perhaps the young man simply refused to accept the outcome? Whatever. If he wanted to, let him be. ... Among the group, some were resigned, while others understood tacitly, and no one spoke another word. Following Li Hao, they boarded a warship once more and flew west. Li Hao had actually charged back. This surprised everyone. At this point, even Yuan Shuo and the others couldn't tell whether Li Hao was putting on a deterrent show or truly meant to strike the God Nation again. True and false, feigned and real—sometimes, even those closest to him couldn't decipher his thoughts. ... The western God Nation. A day had passed, and the city remained in some disarray. The Prophet God was heavily injured, and the Goddess of Life was treating him, while the other gods healed their own wounds. The million soldiers in the city had suffered substantial losses earlier, with tens of thousands fallen. Fortunately, there were no ordinary civilians in the colossal city, and after some repairs, the army had barely restored its former majesty. While Li Hao's side felt they had taken a loss, the Queen and her side in the God Nation felt the exact same way. This time, gods had revived in large numbers. Their advance into the Central Plains had been envisioned as an unhindered march with none to stand in their way; their target was the powerhouses of ancient ruins, not Li Hao and his men. Who would have thought that before seeing more than a couple of ancients, they would suffer a massive defeat at Li Hao's hands? At this moment, within the divine temple. The Queen looked down at the black-robed powerhouse below and said coldly, "During the battle, you said you needed to return to the ancient city to report. You certainly left quickly—gone the moment the fighting started! Yet once it ended, you returned. I suspect you might be Li Hao's spy!" Her aura carried natural majesty, an overwhelming pressure! The black-robed powerhouse felt thoroughly helpless. How could I have known Li Hao would attack the moment I left? The crux of the matter was that the God Nation was undeniably formidable, yet they hadn't gained the slightest advantage against Li Hao. One could only say that Li Hao's combat strength was also beyond imagination. He hurriedly replied, "Your Majesty, I returned to the city to explain the situation to my superior, hoping to mobilize more experts to destroy Li Hao in one stroke..." Accusing them of colluding with Li Hao was truly wrongful. It could only be said that the timing of his departure had been too coincidental. The Queen naturally didn't believe they were working with Li Hao; otherwise, the God Nation would have been in immense danger. If they had truly allied, they wouldn't have incited four nations to attack simultaneously. Even so, she was displeased. "And where are the reinforcements you brought?" she asked coldly. "About that..." The black-robed powerhouse replied somewhat helplessly, "I was unaware of the situation before. Only upon returning did I learn that a major battle took place in northern Silver Moon—the one against the King of Dali. Over sixty origin clones of experts from our city were completely wiped out by Li Hao's faction... Our losses were severe..." "Useless trash!" The Queen showed no mercy. "The neo-martial artists back then were never this fragile! Nowadays, you neo-martial artists are growing increasingly pathetic. It seems that without the Human King and his circle, you are nothing!" The black-robed man felt a surge of irritation. He muttered in a low voice, "That is only because the second resurgence has yet to begin!" Otherwise, since when would you have room to act so arrogant? He cursed inwardly! Act all haughty, and you still got raided by Li Hao, with gods killed in the process. Serves you right! As he was cursing inwardly, the Queen's expression abruptly shifted. Not just hers—at that very moment, the gods who had gone to rest and heal appeared one after another, each consumed by fury. Someone roared, "Insolence!" "Damn them!" "How did they return so quickly?" "To battle!" "..." Chaos erupted instantly. Her expression hardening, the Queen vanished from the temple in a flash. The black-robed man's face shifted as well, and he scrambled out after her. ... Meanwhile. The sky was bright. A warship hovered about a thousand meters outside the colossal city. Li Hao and his company revealed themselves. The Queen instantly ascended into the air, looking across at them with shock. "You've recovered?" How was that possible! She had personally battled Li Hao; how could she not know the extent of his injuries? His physical body had been on the verge of complete collapse! Not just him—nearly all the Silver Moon martial masters had been in the same state. Yet now... they had all recovered. It was utterly inconceivable. Li Hao offered a slight smile. "As I said, a mere scratch!" Having said that, he glanced at the black-robed man and chuckled. "I should actually thank them. Thanks to the pool of precious liquid they left behind in the ruins of Heavenly Star Town to restore physical bodies, what does a bit of flesh-and-blood injury amount to?" At those words, the black-robed man's expression changed slightly, and he said in a low voice, "You really did kill that lord!" Li Hao smiled. "Are you surprised?" The black-robed expert said coldly, "You will pay the price!" The moment he finished, a voice spoke icily: "Betraying Neo-Martial, all of you will pay the price!" Zhang An hovered in midair! The black-robed man hadn't noticed him at first. When he caught sight of Zhang An, his aura trembled, and his illusory face seemed to stiffen. After a long moment, as if grinding his teeth, he said in a low voice, "Director Zhang does not know the hardships of the common folk, nor our struggles... You have a Supreme grandfather, a father who was a meritorious hero of the human race, an older brother presiding over a region, a younger sister who was Principal Fang's confidante, and you yourself shared life and death with the Sword Venerable and the others... Director Zhang lived in luxury; how could you understand our suffering?" Zhang An's tone was indifferent: "Did anyone starve you to death?" "Director, you jest... But we lacked resources for cultivation and could only be banished to a small world..." Zhang An said coldly, "Who said coming to a small world was banishment? Furthermore, coming to the small world back then was clearly voluntary—when was there ever talk of exile? How many more reasons and excuses do you intend to fabricate?" The black-robed man remained silent, devoid of any reply. The Queen disregarded their exchange, merely staring coldly at Li Hao. "Now that you've restored your body, do you wish to fight again?" With that, her aura surged violently. Not only that, an illusory silhouette seemed to emerge in the sky. At this moment, another bright moon appeared between heaven and earth, and countless human voices echoed from the western domains once more. In this instant, across the lands of Heavenly Star, countless people witnessed this scene. For Li Hao had opened the sky screen. A god! In that moment, innumerable people prostrated themselves in terror. They already knew this was the entity they had previously feared, faintly recognizing that this was a legendary god. Those prayers and chants seemed to resonate inside everyone's minds. Countless hearts trembled! They also felt uneasy at Governor-General Li's audacity—he was actually... confronting a god! Yet Li Hao merely beamed. "Who are you trying to intimidate? I felt every inch of your body earlier, and you only had a few extra ounces of flesh to boast of. Moon God, as the strongest god between heaven and earth, is this all you have?" "Li Hao!" The Queen was incandescent with rage, her expression freezing over. "You are profaning a god!" Li Hao smiled playfully. "Indeed, I am profaning a god. By the way, can the Fire God I cleaved apart with a sword be revived? Bring him out so I can see. Oh right, that God of Misfortune or whatever was also killed by us—can he be revived? Are gods... only this much?" The Queen's aura spiked again as a scepter materialized in her hand. Li Hao said in faux surprise, "Hey, wasn't this thing cleaved apart by me? To think it can recover. How nice—why not give it to me to use as a backscratcher?" "You are courting death. Do not think that having recovered means you can do whatever..." Li Hao burst into laughter. "You're getting flustered, aren't you?" He turned toward everyone and laughed heartily. "Look, everyone, the Moon God is flustered! Yet she dares not come out. Their prophet is gravely wounded and near death, and their Goddess of Life is busy tending his wounds..." With that, he chuckled, "Don't be afraid—you are the Moon God, an invincible divinity. I just came to check on you and retrieve my belongings. The corpse of the God of Earth that I claimed earlier—return it to me... and throw in a few treasures as a gift, and I will leave and spare your life!" "Bastard!" The Moon God was beside herself with fury! At this moment, across the lands of Heavenly Star, countless people were trembling. Li Hao... what immense audacity! Yet they were also bewildered: Had they fought a major battle earlier? Perhaps they had! There had been disturbances yesterday, but they hadn't known the details. Only today did they learn that two gods had died, and even this Moon God... Many people knew of the Moon God, especially on the Western Continent. She was the legendary deity said to have created the world. Was this her? And Li Hao... was profaning her! He... had supposedly felt every inch of her body. Some people felt burning rage, wishing to slay Li Hao, yet that quickly dissolved into helplessness and sorrow. In this moment, their faith wavered. Was this Li Hao... truly so powerful? He could even profane a god! Right at this moment, Li Hao's voice boomed through the sky screen again: "Soldiers, this Moon God refuses to hand over my spoils of war... Then... blast the motherfucker with cannon fire!" In an instant, countless artillery shells surged forth. The projection focused on the colossal city of the God Nation. In an instant, rumble! Countless shells rained down. God after god struck out, and under the shocked gazes of countless onlookers, those city-destroying bombs—capable of laying waste to entire cities—were smashed apart by fists. Yet there were simply too many! In an instant, thousands of shells plummeted! Rumble! Heaven and earth seemed to shatter! At this moment, the entire world fell silent and bewildered. They watched as gods were blasted flying, bloodied and battered by the explosions. They also saw the God Nation's colossal city violently shaking, teetering in midair! And they saw the Moon God, consumed by rage, yet never initiating an attack on Li Hao and his company, instead swatting down artillery shells over and over. Then Li Hao's voice echoed again: "Those who won't listen must be beaten! Moon God, hand over my things, or else... if seven or eight gods don't die today, this war will continue until the God Nation is utterly destroyed!" "Ignorant and arrogant!" With a sharp outcry, the Queen could endure it no longer. Li Hao did not strike, and Zhang An remained silent as well. With the Dao character still within him, an illusory broadsword cleaved downward! The sky split apart, and the moon shattered. Right at that moment, within the divine temple, a blazing sun rose as yet another god revived. The firmament fractured, heaven and earth cracked, and continuous slicing forces lashed out, accompanied by a muffled groan. A god resembling the sun emerged between heaven and earth, instantly battered and disheveled by the slicing forces. Gritting his teeth, he threw a punch! Boom! The broadsword and the fist shadow shattered simultaneously. Zhang An said coldly, "The Sun God? Forcing your revival means you'll be keeping the Prophet God company, it seems. Heaven and earth restrict the appearance of Saints. Handing over the bodies of the fallen gods would prevent slaughter; must you suffer torment just to save face?" The Sun God's voice shook heaven and earth: "How long can you hold out?" "I imagine... long enough to grind all of you to death!" Zhang An chuckled softly. The next moment, the Great Dao Book materialized. "If you don't believe me, feel free to test it. This is merely a portion of my mental power; even if it is completely destroyed, I will not die. But you... forcing revivals one after another—how many of you can do so? Aside from you and the Prophet God, how many possess Saint-level combat strength? Every forced revival comes at a tremendous price, doesn't it?" The Sun God fell silent. At this moment, the spatial slicing grew increasingly severe. Even as native gods, once their revived combat power became too formidable, they were subjected to restrictions. Furthermore, massive amounts of energy were being drained from the surrounding void, rendering their combat strength unsustainable. Of course, Zhang An was in much the same boat. Li Hao's "Dao" divine character had its limits as well. If the fight dragged on and the divine character shattered, he would be finished. Moreover, without origin power between heaven and earth, once the energy within him was exhausted, he would have no way to continue fighting. Li Hao's laughter rang out as before. "My demands aren't high. You refuse? Keep bombarding them!" Rumble! Hundreds upon thousands of shells rained down once more. The gods in the city struck out to block them. Meanwhile, Li Hao smiled brightly, seemingly casually slashing a single sword strike—yet in that moment, this single strike detonated the moon in the void! The Queen stumbled back a step, looking at Li Hao in shock. "You..." Li Hao was stronger than before! Li Hao chuckled softly. "Yesterday, I came merely to say hello and give you the chance to withdraw on your own, yet you insisted on hurting my master. Today, unless you revive every single god... I will annihilate your God Nation!" "Raving mad! Do you have the ability?" The Queen was thoroughly enraged! At this moment, a mouthful of faint, starlight-colored blood spilled from her lips as an even more powerful energy erupted, instantly reaching the peak of her previous battle against Li Hao! Such strength was something the current Li Hao might not be able to match. Yet Li Hao had no intention of clashing head-on with her. He just needed to look commanding! True slaughter... was not the objective of this trip anyway. Seeing that the Queen was completely enraged and had unsealed her current maximum combat power, Li Hao chuckled. "Since you refuse to see reason... don't blame me for being ruthless!" His voice turned cold: "Where is the Battle Heaven Army?" "Here!" "Show the might you had in the Neo-Martial era... go self-detonate and blow them to pieces!" Everyone froze. Even the Queen was stunned. The next moment, several regiment commanders materialized, clad in silver armor, charging straight toward the God Nation! Before the God Nation's defenses broke and while the gods were still blocking falling shells, five regiment commanders abruptly closed in on a god, and with a thunderous boom— Five suits of armor blew apart! The devastating blast tore that god into pieces! Everyone was dumbfounded! The black-robed expert couldn't help shrieking, "Didn't you betray Neo-Martial too? Why would your Battle Heaven City willingly self-detonate to kill enemies for an outsider..." This had been the key to Neo-Martial's invincibility! No fear of death! Every single one fought like demons; even ordinary soldiers would choose to self-detonate if outmatched. Yet today... that shouldn't have been the case. The one leading them was not a Neo-Martial powerhouse, but Li Hao. Things hadn't even reached that extreme. Li Hao chuckled and reached out, scooping back several strands of mental energy, and remarked wistfully, "Just a joke, really. But... I have plenty of loyal warriors like this! Moon God, care to test it? If you want, how about I bring a few Immortals, or even Saints, to self-detonate and play with you?" The Queen's face changed drastically, and she ground her teeth. "Impossible! Yesterday, these Neo-Martial people had no heart for a fight to the death! Li Hao, you must have used some method of control..." At this moment, Zhang An suddenly chimed in, "Do you take me for a corpse? Why would control be needed? If they are willing to fight for the Heavenly Star Governor-General's Office, what of self-detonation?" The Queen's expression shifted! The Sun God's face also changed slightly. Once Neo-Martial fighters truly cast everything aside without fear, even gods feared them! How could they not? Back then, these gods had almost all been slaughtered by Neo-Martial powerhouses. If Li Hao had truly mastered the Battle Heaven Army and the experts of Battle Heaven City were genuinely willing to die for him... then the lost Neo-Martial would return once more. The unimaginably terrifying Neo-Martial! Li Hao's voice was calm: "Three divine corpses... that is the starting price. If you persist, I will demand more! In the end, it might cost the lives of every god here!" The Queen wanted to say something more, but the Sun God suddenly spoke in a low voice: "If we give them to you, will you withdraw?" Li Hao smiled. "A wise man knows better than to fight against the odds! The Sun God truly is an outstanding figure among gods; a woman like the Moon God is a bit too rigid. Right now, most of our experts have yet to revive, and I don't truly wish to fight you to the bitter end either. Even if we wipe you out, our losses would be substantial... It's not worth it! In my eyes, any member of the Heavenly Star Governor-General's Office is more important than all of you gods!" "Unfortunately... you mistook my restraint for weakness. Yesterday, I came to persuade you to withdraw, yet you launched a surprise attack on me. Detestable and vile!" Li Hao snorted coldly. "Now, three divine corpses. If you refuse, I'll add one more every minute!" With that, he looked at Zhang An and asked in a low voice, "Senior... if a Saint self-detonates... will the God Nation be wiped out?" At this point, Zhang An didn't even know if Li Hao was bluffing or being serious, and felt somewhat exasperated. Yet... since things had been pushed this far, he smiled faintly. "If I self-detonate, a few here might survive, but they would all be crippled." "Then Senior, why don't you give it a try!" "..." Fuck! As unflappable as Zhang An was, at this moment, he almost wanted to curse out loud. Are you serious? Is this... is this really wise? Yet having been hoisted onto the pedestal like this, what else could he say? Of course, he believed Li Hao's goal wasn't to get him killed. Since that was the case... and remembering what he had told the students earlier, a wave of resolve surged through his heart. The next moment, an unimaginably terrifying aura surged forth. In the void, an origin path manifested. In the blink of an eye, it flew straight toward the God Nation. Its aura grew stronger and stronger! At this moment, the Sun God hurriedly sent a voice transmission to the Queen: "Give it to him!" "He's only bluffing!" The Queen transmitted back in fury, "He dares not, nor would he do so! Zhang An won't truly self-detonate either—his grandfather was a Neo-Martial Supreme, so why would he seek death so readily?" She was certain Li Hao was merely trying to intimidate them! Yet at this moment, Zhang An's aura grew increasingly potent. And increasingly unstable! Not only did the Sun God step forward, but the heavily wounded Prophet God also materialized in an instant, looking ancient and sounding weak: "Zhang An, there is no need to intimidate us..." Zhang An flared with anger as well. What did that mean? His disposition was mild, but he was still someone who had lived through the great Neo-Martial wars; back then, his enemies had been the likes of the Heavenly Emperor, and he hadn't feared them even then. It was merely that by comparison, his personality was softer. Did these gods truly take him for a weak, useless pushover? He thought of something—he thought of the new Dao... The next moment, Zhang An coldly snorted. Suddenly, a colossal mental force surged as a Great Dao Book materialized, and in an instant, it detonated with an earth-shattering boom! Heaven fell and earth cracked! At this moment, the sky truly fractured and the ground shattered. Around them, several gods abruptly screamed, instantly turning to ash! The Sun God and the Prophet God both roared in fury, stepping forward to block a massive amount of the book's self-destruction energy. Yet they still staggered backward continuously, coughing up blood, their physical bodies tearing and enduring continuous spatial slicing... The two Saint-tier gods felt on the verge of collapsing. The Queen roared as well, her aura flaring wildly to stop the book's explosive energy from annihilating the God Nation. Li Hao had originally only said those words to intimidate them. At this moment, even he was stunned. This! He really self-detonated! It wasn't his entirety, just the Great Dao Book, but... for Zhang An, without the origin path in the world today, once the Great Dao Book was destroyed, it was nearly impossible to restore. And Zhang An's voice rang out icily: "Nothing more than this! It seems that if I self-detonate my origin path... not a single one of you will survive! Since you refuse to appreciate my leniency, I will send you all to the afterlife!" With that, his origin path in the void violently trembled! At this point, even the Queen—who had been unwilling to compromise and had refused to believe he would self-detonate—couldn't help roaring frantically, "I'll give it to you! Stop! Li Hao, Zhang An, what meaning is there in mutual destruction right now? The Neo-Martial people in the ancient cities are still alive, and those who betrayed Neo-Martial are still alive... Are you going to let others reap the benefits of your sacrifices?" In the distance, Li Hao smiled. "Is that so? From yesterday's battle, it seemed you thought you had us figured out, thinking you were all that just because we didn't go all out. What bullshit gods! Yesterday, I cared for the well-being of the Neo-Martial seniors and didn't want them to take risks, yet you took that to mean there was a rift between us?" "General Locust, Turtle Guardian... both of your clones, self-detonate as well!" Li Hao laughed. "For each clone that self-detonates, you compensate me with three divine corpses... Otherwise, today will be the day your God Nation falls!" In the void. The two guardian clones didn't know whether Li Hao was bluffing or being serious either. But they were just clones... If they did self-detonate, knowing Li Hao's character, he would probably compensate them, right? The next moment, a giant turtle and a massive tree charged straight toward the God Nation. In yesterday's battle, the Neo-Martial powerhouses hadn't exerted much effort. Today, things seemed distinctly different. At this moment, the Queen also felt... she had miscalculated earlier. She shrieked, "Are you trying to force me to fully release my power and shatter the moon within the world barrier? Sealed there is an even more powerful existence! Li Hao, must you push things to this point?" Li Hao's heart stirred slightly. As expected! A smile spread across his face. "How could that be? Having felt every inch of the Moon God's body yesterday... I can't bear to let you self-detonate. Now, five divine corpses... If the two guardians self-detonate, that will be ten..." "You bastard!" The Queen raged, "Where would my God Nation get that many divine corpses..." Li Hao smiled, gesturing at the scene. "Two were just blasted to death, two were killed by us earlier, plus the corpse of my God of Earth... Now, I'll count to three. If you don't hand them over, do as you please. Break whatever you want. If you die, I might not. At worst, the second resurgence begins and let the powerhouses fight it out among themselves—my men are already preparing to blow up the Heavenly Star Great Mine!" "You..." "One!" "Li Hao..." "Three!" "I'll give them!" Enraged to the core, the Queen agreed swiftly, grinding her teeth and glaring murderously at Li Hao. Li Hao chuckled. "Good girl! Woman, go home and have babies! Moon God? Nothing special! I can't even be bothered to take advantage of your weakness to wipe you out right now... Senior Zhang An, guardians, come on back! As fellow people of Silver Moon, I merely don't want to destroy you only for others to reap the rewards. Otherwise... what do five mere divine corpses count for?" Li Hao laughed wildly! The Queen's face turned icy cold. Li Hao added, "Hurry it up. Otherwise, I worry the Sun God and the Prophet God won't be able to endure the spatial slicing much longer—they're almost sliced to death. Or would you like to revive a few more Saint-tier powerhouses?" "..." The Queen's face was livid; she was on the verge of a mental breakdown. How did this happen? Yesterday, these Neo-Martial people clearly had no resolve for a fight to the death. Why today... were they completely different? Why? She couldn't comprehend it! She truly couldn't! Yet at this point, if the Neo-Martial powerhouses genuinely chose to self-detonate... she knew it would inflict an unfathomable loss on the God Nation. She remained silent. Beside her, the Prophet God sighed. Reaching out, he caught several divine corpses drifting in the void, and retrieved several more from within the divine temple, including the earth-element divine corpse Li Hao had left behind previously. At this moment, he sent a voice transmission to the Queen: "Gods can forge new bodies... they are merely shells. Today... Zhang An and the others have the wrong attitude. Perhaps something occurred yesterday; Zhang An even detonated his Great Dao Book. If we truly push him to self-detonate... even if we survive, we won't be able to fend off Li Hao's follow-up strikes!" The Queen bit her lip and said nothing. She still didn't believe Zhang An and the others would self-detonate for Li Hao. Clones were one thing, but Zhang An wasn't a clone. Yet what good was disbelief? The man had already blown up his Great Dao Book! If pushed further, what if he actually detonated his origin path? That was mental power at the Saint level! If his origin path exploded on top of that... it would be an absolute catastrophe! "Governor-General Li, these corpses are yours... You won't go back on your word, will you?" Several divine corpses flew across. Li Hao caught them with one hand and inspected them, shaking his head slightly. "Not even a mental imprint left... Looks like they can still be revived. What a pity. Oh well, so be it! I can't bear to trade Senior Zhang An for your destruction anyway... Are you lot... even worthy?" Li Hao laughed heartily. Compared to yesterday, today's Li Hao was arrogant and domineering to the absolute extreme. It was as though he were an entirely different person. And in this moment, the entire world witnessed this scene through the sky screen, every soul long since struck dumb. The God Nation, the gods, had traded five divine corpses in exchange for Li Hao's retreat! How... how could this be? Were gods also terrified of death? Could gods not rival Governor-General Li either? From beginning to end, Li Hao seemed to have only struck a single blow with his sword! Why had it turned out like this? Previously, rumors had circulated across the Western Continent that Li Hao's raid had failed, and the God Nation had also been spreading such claims. Yet looking at it today... was this a loser? The God Nation was the one swallowing its pride and begging for mercy! Li Hao's laughter resonated far and wide: "Very well, withdraw! The God Nation will stay right here—don't you dare leave! From now on, the God Nation's million-strong army will serve as sparring partners for my Western Continent's troops! The same applies to all four nations... Isn't that your sole purpose? Otherwise... what use is there in keeping you around? Effective today, the western provinces will garrison troops here! Any superpowered individuals may enlist at their own discretion to fight for the homeland! In the Western Continent, all shall obey the orders of Western Governor-General Yang Shan!" With those words, the warship vanished, leaving behind only the incandescent powerhouses of the God Nation. Why... was today so completely different? ... Aboard the warship, Li Hao cast a strange look at Zhang An... Had this man not self-detonated his Great Dao Book, Li Hao had only planned to scare them and let them know his side had recovered. Yet this time... what an incredible flex! Had this fellow taken drugs last night? Had water gotten into his brain? He had actually detonated his Great Dao Book! What was going on? Even Li Hao was baffled! If not for that, with all the trump cards the God Nation held, how could they have backed down so easily? The Queen was about to shatter the moon and fight to the death! Zhang An's face was slightly pale, but he spoke not a word. By showing a bit of spine today, all the friction from yesterday had probably dissipated. This was also his humble contribution toward helping some of the students choose the new era in the near future. As for Li Hao's confusion, why should he bother explaining anything to Li Hao? Are you even worthy? Zhang An thought to himself: I have seen countless peerless figures in my time. You, Li Hao... go play in the corner!