Within Mount Huoxing.
Following Kongji's departure, Li Hao fell into deep contemplation. Gradually, power manifested out of the void.
The River of Life and Death emerged.
At that moment, the Great Dao powers within the river were clearly demarcated.
Separating and uniting—such was the normal state of the Great Dao.
Colossal stars circled a Star of Life and Death. The power of time flickered faintly, seemingly on the verge of vanishing at any moment. Deep within the river, a minute, barely visible star was enveloped and swallowed by a cat.
Er Mao!
This time, when coming to the Tianfang Great World, no one else had followed. Only this cat had tagged along because of the Time Star. However, it rarely ever showed itself, hiding instead in the depths of the river and toying with the Time Star.
Right now, Li Hao had no mind to pay attention to it.
Stars emerged once more, transforming the River of Life and Death into what resembled a starry sky.
Wisps of the power of life and death began to coalesce, forming bridges.
One, two...
All the energy from the Sovereigns slain earlier began to gather.
Like threads weaving across a loom, bridges of life and death crisscrossed through the stars of life and death. Li Hao quietly experienced and comprehended the process.
With the emergence of each bridge, the connections among the Great Daos grew ever tighter.
Like a spiderweb, they began to spread densely across the River of Life and Death.
Ten, twenty... all the way to fifty bridges, linking the illusory and corporeal Daos across fifty full stars. At that point, the power of life and death was exhausted, producing no more.
Li Hao's aura underwent some subtle changes as well.
Even so, he had yet to reach the second rank.
For a Sovereign, advancing in rank was arduous indeed.
*If I can construct three hundred and sixty bridges, I will definitely reach the third rank of the Sovereign realm! Perhaps even the peak of the third rank... And if I want to step into the second rank, I will need to complete at least a hundred and twenty bridges.*
Li Hao pondered this silently. Yet having exhausted all his surplus energy, he had only managed to construct fifty bridges.
Among them, all kinds of Dao powers, both illusory and corporeal, intersected before ultimately converging upon the Star of Life and Death.
The Sky Sword was currently drifting through the river as well.
At this moment, Li Hao looked toward the ends of the river, and several thoughts surfaced in his mind. Presently, both ends of the river were wide open. Consequently, whenever he mobilized any surplus power, it would summon a chaos lightning tribulation.
That tribulation was the crucial factor exposing his presence.
What if he blocked both ends?
Could he completely shield against the chaos lightning tribulation?
"The Star Gate!"
Li Hao's heart stirred. If the Star Gate were used as a barrier at one end to temporarily seal the river, what about the other end?
"Er Mao?"
Another thought struck him. Could this cat serve as the object blocking the other end of the river?
If both ends could be thoroughly sealed... perhaps he would no longer trigger the chaos lightning tribulation. At the very least, small-scale concentrations of time power would not draw its notice.
Perhaps... it was feasible!
With that thought in mind, Li Hao didn't waste any words. The disassembled Star Gate instantly transformed into an immense gateway, drifting downstream along the river.
Soon, in the lower reaches of the river at the boundary of life and death, a gateway manifested, towering within the waters and sealing off one end.
This Star Gate was extraordinarily powerful.
In the past, it had even been able to withstand Sovereign incursions and seal Sovereigns away. It had been forged through the joint efforts of the Neo-Martial Human King, the Cast-God Sovereign, and several other supreme experts. The Cast-God Sovereign, said to be Neo-Martial's foremost smithing expert, had likely been a fifth- or sixth-rank Sovereign.
To the present Li Hao, the Star Gate was still exceptionally formidable and more than capable of meeting his needs.
The Star Gate sealed one end.
Li Hao spoke: "Senior Er Mao, could you expand your body and block the other end?"
Er Mao grumbled impatiently. What a troublesome person!
"Why seal it? If you're going to seal it, why didn't you just seal it from the start?"
Li Hao chuckled. "How could that work? Sealing it is merely an expedient measure. If I had sealed it from the beginning, wouldn't that have restricted the river's development? Blocking it for a time now is to prepare for me to gather time once more."
Er Mao grumbled and muttered a few complaints, then expanded its body, swelling endlessly.
Soon, the upstream end of the river was also completely barricaded!
The Star Gate stood at one end, and Er Mao at the other.
The river was now thoroughly sealed!
Sealing it had both advantages and disadvantages.
The benefit was that the power of time might no longer leak out.
Yet there was also a drawback: the river could no longer freely absorb chaotic energy. Previously, both ends could draw in power at will.
With the river sealed, Li Hao tested it by gathering the power of time once again.
This time... there was no sense of impending crisis.
There was no sign of a lightning tribulation preparing to descend.
Li Hao exhaled. A good thing.
For now, keeping it sealed was preferable.
Of course, this was not a long-term solution.
"There's still not enough power of life and death!"
Li Hao felt helpless. He had killed several Sovereigns, but the chaos beast had gone to empower Black Panther. As for that third-rank cultivator from Red Moon, Li Hao's rebirth had consumed a substantial portion, and another part had dispersed into the world, leaving very little energy behind.
And the Sovereign he had slain earlier... after purification, hadn't yielded much energy either.
As a result, despite slaying multiple Sovereigns, he had only managed to form a mere fifty bridges of life and death.
Far too few!
Advancing to the second rank would require at least a hundred and twenty, wouldn't it?
He was still short by at least seventy bridges.
"I need to kill a third-rank Sovereign!"
Li Hao sank into deep thought.
Killing a Sovereign was not to inquire about the Dao, but to obtain the energy needed to advance, construct his bridges of life and death, and ultimately transform them into Stars of Life and Death.
A second-rank... probably wouldn't suffice.
A third-rank should be about enough, right?
Yet a third-rank was difficult to kill!
Of course, if the target merely hailed from a medium world, they wouldn't be particularly remarkable. Lacking a Great Dao Universe, they would inevitably cultivate a chaotic, disjointed Dao. If they had truly possessed extraordinary talent... they wouldn't have been disregarded by all the major factions.
Once the thought took root, murderous intent flared!
There was nothing to hesitate over.
Neo-Martial's enemies were currently his enemies. Besides, he had already slain one Sovereign... If he didn't pull up the weeds by their roots, troubles would only multiply.
"Senior Er Mao... are you interested in helping me kill a Sovereign?"
"Meow, cats don't fight, and cats don't kill!"
Er Mao grumbled, refusing to fight or kill, refusing to learn from Big Cat.
It wanted to be a good cat!
Li Hao chuckled and nodded. "Fair enough! No fighting and no killing, then. But if I use the power of time, it might trigger some trouble—for instance... a chaos lightning tribulation!"
At the far end of the river, the cat suddenly rolled onto its back with its belly to the sky!
It looked utterly hopeless!
So annoying!
Why was this guy the only one who possessed the power of time?
Why did he insist on killing people all the time?
Big Cat followed that murderous demon and spent every day killing people, and now this fellow was doing the exact same thing. How pitiful.
*I don't want to become a bad cat like Big Cat!*
*I want to be a good cat!*
"Chaos lightning tribulation again?"
Er Mao sounded completely drained of the will to live. "If I eat too much, even this cat won't be able to take it..."
Li Hao offered a sheepish smile. "Just this once... Once this is over, you won't need to absorb chaos lightning tribulation again, Senior. It shouldn't be too strong this time!"
"..."
Bullshit!
You're already a Sovereign; whatever you provoke now will definitely be even stronger.
What a nuisance!
Er Mao remained silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Why do you kill?"
"Not enough energy."
"Then cultivate on your own!"
"There's no time."
Li Hao sighed. "Honestly, delaying things for a bit longer wouldn't matter to me. But over on Neo-Martial's side, that Human King stirs up trouble far too fast, and I owe a tremendous favor... Sure, I could renege on the debt. At worst, I could walk in the opposite direction and never cross paths with Neo-Martial again; that wouldn't be a problem.
"However... one lives a lifetime to live with integrity, don't they?"
To live—some things had to be honored, even if one was reborn.
This wasn't even about karmic cause and effect.
It was... a debt of gratitude!
Such debts were the most troublesome. Any expert who cared about their dignity feared them. A debt of gratitude was something one had to repay even at the cost of one's life!
Otherwise, what kind of Jianghu martial master would I be?
The Jianghu martial master was his foundation!
To repay Neo-Martial's favor...
Er Mao gained some understanding and grumbled, "Big Cat and the others again... Last time, the scholar only took action for their sake!"
Indeed, it had been the same last time.
And now... this fellow was doing it again.
Neo-Martial, the Human King, Fang Ping, Big Cat...
Those people were true troublemakers.
Big Cat even wanted to give it dried fish... It didn't want any anymore.
Yet this matter concerned Big Cat and the rest. As for whether Li Hao could become an aid to them, Er Mao pondered for a long time... There should... be hope, right?
Deep down, this man was somewhat like the scholar.
And the scholar had been exceptionally strong. It was just that he had ultimately chosen to end his own life, which remained a painful wound in Er Mao's heart.
To such people, when nothing in the world was left to cherish, they might walk toward extremes.
*Since I fear neither life nor death, why would I fear dying?*
*Everything interesting in this world, I have already experienced. What need is there to linger?*
With such thoughts surfacing, Er Mao gave its answer: "Just this once! Next time... don't come looking for this cat!"
Li Hao smiled. "All right, just this once!"
"We have a deal. No going back on it!"
"Absolutely!"
Li Hao nodded. Er Mao had actually helped him considerably. Even though it had to do with time, the cat had shielded him from tribulations several times. Otherwise, handling them would not have been nearly so simple.
Now that a decision was made, Li Hao emerged from his meditation. It had only been a brief session of cultivation, yet five days had already passed since Kongji's departure.
Indeed, cultivation at the Sovereign realm truly lost all track of time.
Just building fifty bridges had taken five full days.
And those were five days in the chaos universe. If this had been back in Silver Moon before the Star Gate opened, decades would have elapsed.
Of course, time couldn't be calculated that way.
"Once I kill this person and advance to the second rank, I should return to Silver Moon!"
He didn't know how things were going on Black Panther's side.
There shouldn't be any major trouble. Lin Hongyu's Star of Life and Death was still with him; if something truly happened, he would be able to sense it.
Right now, many people were likely searching for them.
The crux was that when Silver Moon vanished, enemies might have deduced it was due to a chaos beast. Thus, chaos beasts would become a focal point of attention. Black Panther was enormous; while that was nothing in the chaos, once discovered... there wouldn't be many chances to escape.
A second-rank Sovereign wasn't all that remarkable in the broader scheme of things.
Black Panther was not Li Hao, after all.
Though, it was still equivalent to a world master.
Various thoughts flitted through his mind.
Li Hao stepped out of Mount Huoxing. At the mountain's entrance, Ju Ao hurriedly rose to his feet. He hadn't dared to stay completely immersed in cultivation. Even so, over the course of five days, Ju Ao's aura seemed to have undergone subtle changes.
Li Hao hadn't bestowed any benefits upon him, yet Ju Ao felt his gains had been monumental, potentially even impacting whether he could achieve the Sovereign realm.
At this moment, his posture was all the more respectful. "My Lord, orders have already been handed down from the temple. You are now the seventeenth Sovereign of our Huilong Temple! Aside from you, Huilong Temple currently has sixteen Sovereigns: the Temple Master at the sixth rank, Sovereign Qinglong at the fifth rank, Sovereign Kongji and Sovereign Wuhuan at the fourth rank, and the remaining twelve include three third-rank Sovereigns, six second-rank Sovereigns, and three first-rank Sovereigns..."
Sixteen Sovereigns!
Such a faction was certainly not weak.
It was vastly stronger than an ordinary medium world.
Of course, it was naturally inferior to a great world.
A great world, under normal circumstances, could accommodate up to a hundred Sovereigns at its limit—and that was just an ordinary great world; stronger ones might hold even more.
Yet having four middle-rank Sovereigns was already quite formidable.
Some medium worlds might only have one or two.
Weaker ones might have a world master who had only just stepped into the third rank... Normally, such medium worlds had only recently advanced and would quickly reach the fourth rank.
Silver Moon was an anomaly—far too weak!
Li Hao nodded. Seeing this, Ju Ao continued, "Sovereign Kongji vouchsafed for you, My Lord. Within this one year, you have no assignments and need not perform any duties. However, if you remain in Huilong Temple after one year, you will need to undertake missions for the temple... Naturally, without doing missions, you will not have the qualification to enter the Dao resonance lands under Huilong Temple's control, unless you are willing to execute a mission!"
Li Hao nodded again. That was fair and reasonable.
If you did no work, you naturally received no benefits.
If you worked, regardless of what you did, you at least demonstrated goodwill, and they would naturally grant you some perks.
"Seventeen Sovereigns... In the Southern Region, there are nine other minor domains. Even if they are weaker, they are generally overseen by a fourth rank and have several Sovereigns. Counting five per faction, wouldn't the Southern Region alone have over sixty Sovereigns?
"Across the four regions of the entire Tianfang Great World, there are over two hundred Sovereigns? Adding chaotic rogue cultivators and the like, are there at least three hundred Sovereigns in the Tianfang World?"
Li Hao drew a light breath. So many.
Previously, he hadn't possessed a very clear understanding.
Now, he finally realized just how many Sovereigns gathered in this place.
Where had so many Sovereigns come from?
Ju Ao didn't conceal anything. In fact, he proactively whispered, "My Lord, there are definitely more Sovereigns than that, but in truth... some of these Sovereigns overlap!"
"Overlap?"
Ju Ao nodded and said softly, "For example, renowned Sovereigns from certain great worlds... might be right here, but under a different name! Some masters of medium worlds might... also be here under an alias!"
Li Hao understood.
Many people were actually experts from great or medium worlds who simply adopted false identities here. A Sovereign of Huilong Temple could very well be a Sovereign of another faction outside.
Hence the overlap; in reality, there weren't as many distinct individuals as the numbers suggested.
Li Hao smiled. "It seems everyone harbors designs on Tianfang!"
"That is certain!"
Ju Ao was much more relaxed this time. "After all, this is a great world, and an ownerless one at that. More importantly, it is a great world where a ninth-rank Sovereign once resided! No one can truly remain indifferent!"
Take Kongji, for example—was he truly named Kongji?
He had said himself that he chose the name simply because it matched his Dao, which didn't mean he lacked another identity or that his original name was Kongji.
"Do you have intelligence on that third-rank Sovereign from Yunyang?"
"Yes, provided by Lord Kongji!"
Ju Ao was filled with admiration. Sovereign Kongji regarded this man with notable esteem; on the second day of Li Hao's seclusion, all the information regarding that figure had already been transmitted over.
"After the destruction of the Yunyang World, only two Sovereigns survived. One was the one who... perished earlier! The other is named Sovereign Shenghong! His strength is at the third-rank Sovereign level, and he primarily cultivates rainbow light divine arts. He doesn't have many other distinctive traits, but according to Sovereign Kongji, there is one key point: he is extremely fast!
"He possesses a technique of transforming into a rainbow. Back then, when the Sword Venerable killed the Lord of Yunyang, this man fled as a rainbow. The Sword Venerable didn't bother pursuing him, which gave him the chance to escape.
"If you wish to slay this man, the key lies in speed, or simply giving him no opportunity to flee!"
Even knowing that the figure before him was only a first-rank Sovereign, Ju Ao inexplicably felt that the target was as good as dead!
It was utterly... bizarre.
"This person is currently biding his time to sell himself to the highest bidder and hasn't chosen a faction to join. But a Sovereign from a medium world, even at the third rank... isn't actually as sought-after as one might think, especially now that Sovereigns have fled from the Absolute Darkness Great World and the Bliss Great World. Those are Sovereigns from great worlds.
"The primary attention of all factions is focused on those two sides, making Sovereign Shenghong of Yunyang seem far less important.
"He is currently in the Tianhe Domain of the Southern Region. The Domain Master of Tianhe is a fourth-rank Sovereign who is presently in contact with him. Because the four major factions are busy courting those two fifth-rank Sovereigns, this man has been interacting mostly with masters of minor domains lately!"
Li Hao nodded repeatedly.
The intelligence was quite thorough.
For a Sovereign, providing such detailed intelligence—even pinpointing his signature ability—was already immensely helpful.
Seeing that Li Hao was fairly satisfied, Ju Ao smiled and added, "Additionally, regarding that Sovereign who went missing earlier... Sovereign Kongji mentioned that if you use that as a pretext, there is a chance of luring him out!"
"Thank you!"
Li Hao remarked with feeling, "Please thank Sovereign Kongji on my behalf!"
Indeed, when venturing abroad, one truly needed friends.
Though he couldn't strictly be considered friends with that man, neither Li Hao nor Kongji took Sovereign Shenghong of Yunyang very seriously.
It was also advantageous for Kongji to take the opportunity to do Li Hao a favor.
Ju Ao said hurriedly, "I will pass along your words... Furthermore, if you wish to go to the Tianhe Domain, My Lord, I can accompany you. As a Sovereign of the Huilong Domain, you have the qualification to travel there! It's just... the news will be difficult to conceal!"
If Li Hao went, the news would be hard to keep quiet.
Moreover, if a third-rank Sovereign truly died... Li Hao would fall under suspicion. The earlier death had been covered by Kongji, but if another Sovereign perished...
That would cause no small stir!
Li Hao sank into contemplation.
Kongji wouldn't be there every single time.
Of course... if he kept the commotion small, it wouldn't be a major issue.
He asked, "Does the Tianhe Domain have any Dao resonance lands?"
"Yes!" Ju Ao answered immediately. "The location where Sovereign Tianhe resides is a Dao resonance land. It is said to have been the cultivation grounds of a sixth-rank Sovereign in the past, but the Dao resonance there is very rich—even richer than the Dragon Coiling Well and Mount Huoxing that we visited earlier!"
"What kind of person is Sovereign Tianhe, this fourth-rank Sovereign? A good person? A bad person? A bandit? A robber?"
Ju Ao's heart jolted slightly, and he transmitted mentally, "My Lord... to put it bluntly, almost none of the Sovereigns roaming the Tianfang World or even the chaos universe are good people..."
Saying this seemed to include Li Hao as well.
He quickly added, "Of course, not all of them are like that! However, this Sovereign Tianhe truly cannot be considered a good person."
"How so?"
At this moment, Li Hao seemed somewhat pedantic and hypocritical.
If you want to kill, just kill.
If you can't, then don't.
Yet he insisted on asking for details, seeking comfort and an excuse for himself.
Ju Ao didn't dare entertain such thoughts, however, and quickly replied, "Years ago, this person devoured a small world—the very small world he originated from. The hundreds of millions of living beings within that world were entirely devoured by him... Can such a person be considered good?"
Li Hao shook his head. Certainly not.
For a fourth-rank Sovereign to emerge from a small world was no easy feat.
Of course, wicked as he was, it had nothing to do with Li Hao.
It was equivalent to slaughtering his own family; Li Hao had no interest in seeking justice on their behalf. If the man didn't provoke him, so be it. If he did... perhaps Li Hao wouldn't even need to leave the Tianhe Domain and could resolve him right there!
The thought flashed across his mind and vanished.
Soon, Li Hao spoke: "You don't need to come along. I'll go myself! Just sketch his likeness for me!"
"Yes!"
Ju Ao dared not say more and swiftly transmitted a portrait to Li Hao, which depicted Sovereign Shenghong.
Shortly after, he transmitted another portrait showing a somewhat sinister-looking face—Sovereign Tianhe.
"My Lord, this is Sovereign Tianhe!"
Li Hao nodded once more.
Looking at Ju Ao, he considered for a moment before saying, "Your true form is not human, but a demon beast. It should be... a crustacean demon?"
"Yes!"
Ju Ao nodded eagerly. "My true form is a Giant Star Crab. Our clan mutated from chaos beasts. Legend has it that true Giant Star Crabs can even crush worlds with their pincers!"
Li Hao nodded. "I don't know much about the path of the demon clan, but... you could try integrating the Dao of weapons. Giant crab, giant claws, massive pincers..."
Those could be considered weapons of a sort.
Of course, if integrating weapons were that simple, Li Hao wouldn't have needed to mention it.
Anyone could think of that.
Li Hao continued, "Use your claws as vessels to carry the Dao of weapons! Since you cannot traverse a Great Dao Universe, you can only tread the myriad Daos of chaos. You can try absorbing the power of the myriad chaos Daos, gathering all other powers throughout your entire body, while focusing solely the Dao of weapons and the Dao of splitting into your pincers..."
Ju Ao paused, then said cautiously, "My Lord, cultivating this way would make my path too chaotic. For someone like me, I'm only... only a Heavenly King! Cultivating a single Dao is already difficult; if I cultivate myriad Daos in a jumble, wouldn't I... have no hope of ever reaching the Sovereign realm in this lifetime?"
Li Hao nodded. "Under normal circumstances, definitely! Even if your pair of pincers became immensely powerful, you would still find it hard to become a Sovereign! However, explaining the finer complexities would be lost on you right now. When you truly reach that stage and find yourself unable to enter the Sovereign realm because your path is too chaotic... if I am still here, or if you can locate me, you may come find me. I will help you once by dispelling the cluttered Daos in your body, thereby purifying your path! Otherwise, if you specialize in a single Dao simply by discarding chaotic Daos, you will never ascend to the Sovereign realm in your lifetime either!"
At these words, Ju Ao was ecstatic!
Really?
For a Heavenly King... if becoming a Sovereign were easy, would it ever have been his turn?
Which Sovereign hadn't attained their realm through countless trials and tribulations?
Yet... if this lord promised to help him once—even though he was currently only a first-rank Sovereign—who cared?
Ju Ao knew this man was far from ordinary.
Dispelling chaotic Daos!
Ninety percent of Sovereigns under heaven couldn't achieve that single feat.
As for how Li Hao would do it, or whether he could truly pull it off—who cared about that now?
The next instant, overcome with wild joy, Ju Ao didn't even mind decorum and dropped straight to the ground, prostrating himself. "Thank you for your benevolence, My Lord! If this humble one ever has the chance to glimpse the Sovereign realm, no matter where you are, My Lord, I... will travel to your side to seek this glimmer of opportunity!"
This was a true opportunity!
No matter how many years passed, no matter the circumstances, as long as Li Hao remained alive and this promise stood, finding him meant becoming a Sovereign!
The prerequisite was that he didn't die along the way.
Yet what did a little danger matter for the sake of becoming a Sovereign?
At the very least, he had hope and something to look forward to.
He wouldn't be left entirely without hope. What people feared most was hopelessness; on the path of cultivation, if even hope was lost, that was true despair!
"There will be an opportunity!"
Li Hao smiled and glanced across the four directions of heaven and earth. "In which direction is the Tianhe Domain?"
"Thirty chaos chi to the south! You can arrive within a day, My Lord!"
"Good!"
Li Hao didn't delay and vanished on the spot.
After Li Hao left, Ju Ao felt invigorated.
*Do I... have hope of becoming a Sovereign?*
A promise from a first-rank Sovereign had excited him to this extent. It seemed almost incomprehensible; the man had only just become a Sovereign himself, and normally, such words could be dismissed as hot air.
Yet at this moment, he genuinely believed his hopes were tremendous!
***
Meanwhile.
Huilong Temple.
Halls stood in rows, each housing a Sovereign.
Among them, one hall was exceedingly quiet, as if all things within had plunged into silent extinction.
Right then, a figure suddenly flickered inside the hall. In the center of the hall, Kongji, who had been meditating with closed eyes, abruptly opened them and looked at the newcomer. The arrival was an expert of formidable strength as well.
At this moment, the newcomer said softly, "He has already headed for the Tianhe Domain."
"Confident enough!"
Kongji smiled. "Truly bold! A first rank actively seeking out a third rank, and doing so in the territory of a fourth-rank Sovereign—a territory where several Sovereigns reside, no less... How audacious!"
At this point, Kongji smiled again. "Go take a look... From a distance, of course. Also, if you're discovered, there's no need to hide anything. Just say that I wanted to see how he could manage to slay a third rank as a first rank, and whether he can truly borrow strength... No need to conceal anything!"
The newcomer frowned slightly. "This..."
"No matter!"
Kongji smiled. "There is nothing that cannot be spoken openly! It's no big deal. To him, and to me, it's just curiosity; he shouldn't care too much either. As for you, don't try probing him. Otherwise... if you get killed while testing him, I won't intervene!"
The newcomer froze, then chuckled. "Your Highness, I am a fifth rank!"
What a joke!
With strength like his, while he might not dare claim to walk Tianfang unchecked, a fifth-rank Sovereign was considered a top-tier figure anywhere.
Even the Temple Master of Huilong Temple... was formidable, yes, but to speak of fear would be an overstatement.
*I am a Sovereign of a great world!*
*I wield the Great Dao power of a great world!*
Though inferior to a sixth rank, in a true battle, he wouldn't necessarily lose.
"You!"
Kongji chuckled softly. "Suit yourself! If you're not afraid, then go ahead and try."
"I wouldn't dare!"
The newcomer added, "Since Your Highness values him, how could I dare cause trouble recklessly!"
"Do as you please!"
Kongji let out a soft laugh, seeming somewhat indifferent. "Also, you don't need to keep addressing me like that. Calling me Kongji is fine, or Jimie, or Kong, or whatever you like..."
The newcomer chuckled. "I wouldn't dare. Whatever the case, I cannot address Your Highness directly by name. If you truly mind, calling you 'Fellow Daoist' would also count as speaking as peers..."
Yet Kongji's expression turned indifferent. "Forget 'Fellow Daoist.'"
"..."
The Sovereign paused and looked at Kongji with an odd expression. After a long moment, he said, "Then I shall continue to address you as Your Highness!"
"Suit yourself!"
"Your Highness, I shall take my leave first!"
He said no more. Seeing Kongji nod, he swiftly departed.
Only after leaving the hall did he frown slightly.
*What was wrong with 'Fellow Daoist'?*
*What was wrong with that?*
*Addressing you directly by name is fine, and I merely mentioned it casually. In the chaos universe, that's considered speaking as equals, even carrying some respect. Why... are you so cold?*
Thoughts swirled in his mind, but he didn't dwell on them.
This person's temperament had always been eccentric.
After coming to Tianfang, he had become even more eccentric than before. He pushed the thought aside, only to think again of that weak Sovereign known as Sovereign Haoyue—a first-rank Sovereign... Why was His Highness so interested in him?
He had even seemed to be warning him.
***
Inside the hall.
Kongji paid it no further mind. Whether that person listened or not, the warning had been given. If he insisted on testing Li Hao and got killed, Kongji wouldn't step in.
A fifth-rank Sovereign?
He was strong, indeed!
That much could not be denied.
Yet earlier, that man had spoken of borrowing strength... Whose strength would he borrow?
He had revealed a portion of his secrets to Huilong Temple earlier. What if the one who went hadn't been me, but Sovereign Huilong?
That was a sixth-rank Sovereign!
Did he have a way to handle that?
A first-rank Sovereign stood a world apart from a sixth rank. Yet why was he so confident?
Mount Huoxing had once been the cultivation grounds of Daoist Huoyan, a seventh-rank Sovereign.
That figure had supposedly possessed immense combat prowess back in the day.
The fire element was inherently a Dao of explosive power.
When he had visited, Li Hao had seemed to be comprehending something.
Deep down, he had some vague guesses, but he still couldn't deduce how Li Hao could borrow strength from Daoist Huoyan.
Furthermore, the Tianfang Great World had countless Sovereigns and numerous ancient powerhouses.
Could he borrow strength from all of them?
Would he employ such means this time?
Such a heaven-defying act—for a first-rank Sovereign to slay a fourth rank—would inevitably require heaven-defying methods. When that happened, a chaos lightning tribulation would surely descend, and such a tribulation would not be weak, nor would the commotion be small.
How would he deal with it then?
Even if he dealt with the tribulation, powerful Sovereigns would inevitably arrive afterward... From the Southern Region, at least one formidable Sovereign would show up. How would he handle such a situation?
Thought after thought surfaced in his mind.
He couldn't help but think of the Neo-Martial World, the Yin-Yang World.
Their Human King, Supreme, Sun God... All of them, without exception, were formidable figures and peerless heroes. Yet right now, all factions were plotting against Neo-Martial. Most looked unfavorably upon Neo-Martial and favored the Red Moon Great World instead.
After all, that was a powerful world overseen by an eighth-rank Sovereign!
Yet... could they truly win?
That group of mad cultivators from Neo-Martial might not have made any major moves for a thousand years, but they were definitely not people to be pushed around!
Many in the Tianfang Region were already preparing to carve up Neo-Martial.
Weren't they getting ahead of themselves?
Why was no one willing to negotiate with Neo-Martial?
Was there no opportunity, or did they simply feel... there was no need?
At that moment, Kongji suddenly smiled. What did it have to do with him?
He cultivated his own Dao!
As for the great world he belonged to, if it chose to ally with Red Moon...
Thoughts flitted through his mind. After a long time, he shook his head. He had no power to change anything. He had once said that Neo-Martial had a chance of victory, but if they didn't believe him, what could he do?
"Desolate Nothingness, revival!"
He murmured softly and looked toward the sky.
Who could revive the Great Dao Universe of this world?
When the time of revival came, would it be his opportunity?
Could he fathom the key within? The fifth and sixth ranks were not what he sought; what he wanted... was the seventh rank!
Did the Dao of Desolate Nothingness hold hope for the seventh rank?
He had already withdrawn from his great world and from its Great Dao Universe. Could the Dao of Silent Extinction revive vital energy?
Li Hao cultivated life and death. Could he grasp some crucial insight from that, combining life and death to perfect the Dao of Desolate Nothingness?
As for the Tianhe Domain, he no longer cared.
Now that Li Hao had gone... a Sovereign might die over there. Perhaps two, perhaps... even more.
What did it have to do with him?
***
At the same time.
The Tianhe Domain.
Inside a treasured hall.
Several Sovereigns were conversing.
The figure seated at the head laughed loudly, his gaze slightly chilling, yet currently bearing a smile. "Fellow Daoist Shenghong, you may stay in the Tianhe Domain for as long as you wish! No matter how bold that Neo-Martial Sword Venerable is, he wouldn't dare run wild in our Tianfang Great World!
"Even if he truly comes, there would be no need for us to act. The sixth-rank experts wouldn't sit idly by and let him act brazenly here! Moreover, cultivators of the Yin-Yang World are despised by all; he wouldn't dare show himself here!"
Below, Sovereign Shenghong appeared somewhat aged. He nodded slightly, not paying too much mind to the flattery, and said in a heavy voice, "I already sent a message to Yuncang, yet he has delayed coming. As far as I know, a Sovereign seems to have fallen near the South Boundary Gate recently..."
Sovereign Tianhe smiled. "That was likely an outsider. Fellow Daoist Yuncang has always stayed in the Huilong Domain!"
"That's hard to say..."
Shenghong looked somewhat worried. "Fellow Daoist Tianhe, could you check the registry of Sovereigns passing through the South Boundary Gate...?"
"This..."
Sovereign Tianhe looked conflicted. That was the exclusive privilege of Huilong Temple.
Overstepping his bounds could easily incur their displeasure.
Of course... merely checking a registry wasn't an enormous deal as long as it didn't touch upon crucial matters. Thinking it over, in order to win over this third-rank Sovereign, he ultimately smiled and said, "Fine, I will have Huilong Temple provide me with a roster as soon as possible! Fellow Daoist Shenghong, you may wait at ease... Fellow Daoist Yuncang might have been delayed by some matter, or... perhaps he encountered a Dao resonance and is currently meditating!"
He laughed heartily. "When opportunity knocks, nothing can hold it back!"
"I hope so!"
Shenghong nodded slightly and said no more.
A Sovereign had suddenly vanished and couldn't be contacted; he couldn't help but feel uneasy.
Coupled with the recent death of a Sovereign... ever since the Yunyang World was destroyed, he had grown skittish and anxious. Time and again, he would recall the brilliance of that strike.
A single sword strike!
The world master fell, and the world shattered. How terrifying that was.
The Sword Venerable!
He had practically become his nightmare!
Originally, he had also wanted to join several major factions. If he went to a great world, he would have no standing, but joining factions like Huilong Temple would have been decent. They had been in talks when... the Absolute Darkness Great World and the Bliss Great World were destroyed!
It was truly exasperating!
Two fifth-rank Sovereigns had become hot commodities, and his status as a third rank had instantly plummeted.
Although those factions were still trying to recruit him... they were all busy making offers to the two fifth-rank Sovereigns, drastically reducing their attention toward him and presenting terms he found unacceptable.
Tianhe was only a fourth-rank Sovereign, but the compensation he offered was genuinely generous.
In the Tianhe Domain, Tianhe was the sole middle-rank Sovereign.
There was a vacuum of third-rank Sovereigns.
Under him, there was only one second-rank and two first-rank Sovereigns; third ranks rarely threw in their lot with a fourth-rank Sovereign.
If he joined, he would be the second-in-command of the Tianhe Domain.
Together with Yuncang, two Sovereigns would constitute a respectable force capable of securing a firm foothold in the Tianhe Domain.
And with his addition, while the Tianhe Domain wouldn't rival Huilong Temple, it would be noticeably stronger than the other minor domains.
Furthermore, the other party had promised that he could freely access the Dao resonance land... which represented his chance to advance.
The fourth rank was difficult... but that didn't mean there was no chance at all.
As the Sovereigns conversed, Sovereign Tianhe suddenly glanced in a certain direction, his brow furrowing slightly. Did a Sovereign just cross into the domain?
A wandering Sovereign?
The Tianhe Domain wasn't like the Huilong Domain and had no way of regulating all Sovereigns. He sensed the area briefly, then paid it no further heed. As long as the newcomer didn't cause trouble, he couldn't be bothered to intervene—nor could he control them anyway.
Unless the newcomer approached the area of the Domain Master's Manor, they could simply stay out of each other's way.
The domain held no precious treasures or secret realms; all it had was this place, the sole Dao resonance land.
He merely assumed it was a passing Sovereign. Under ordinary circumstances, he might have gone over to take a look and exchange greetings.
Yet today, with Shenghong present, he had no interest.
Even if the arrival was another third-rank Sovereign, he couldn't afford the price for a second one.
***
Meanwhile.
Li Hao crossed the Huilong Domain. At that moment, he seemed to pass through a barrier—not an overly strong one, posing no hindrance to a Sovereign—and entered another minor domain.
"Is this the Tianhe Domain?"
Li Hao murmured softly, glancing in a direction as his brow furrowed slightly.
It seemed... he was truly near the Domain Master's Manor.
That wasn't good news.
It meant the two sides had already made contact. Moreover, Shenghong hadn't left, perhaps harboring intentions of joining them. For Li Hao, this meant he might not be facing just a single third-rank Sovereign anymore!
"The outcome I least wanted to see!"
Li Hao let out a breath. This was not what he had hoped for.
Yet now, for the sake of cultivation, to resolve troubles, and to eliminate future consequences... perhaps he should kill them all!
He hoped he would succeed!
And he hoped... that the chaos lightning tribulation wouldn't be too terrifying, and that sealing both ends would provide some measure of concealment. Otherwise, he was afraid it would strike Er Mao dead!
If that happened, he would have failed the Blood Sovereign!
Big Cat, that Cang Emperor, might turn him into dried fish!
Now, Li Hao finally understood what dried fish meant—and it certainly wasn't anything good.
Chapter 437