Outside Senlan.
Inside the final burrow.
The cavern gradually began to stabilize. This time, rather than the Sword Venerable taking the lead, Li Hao and Kongji were the primary builders, joining forces to shape it.
Off to the side, the Sword Venerable was only too happy to take it easy.
Sure enough, just as he had expected, these two were deft hands at manual labor.
Good work!
After only about a month of digging holes, they were already capable of doing it on their own. While their technique was not yet fully perfected, the Sword Venerable had finally been liberated from the toil.
At this moment, he felt a slight pang of regret that he hadn't brought any tobacco.
Otherwise, taking a drag with a small leather crop in hand would really have given him the aura of an overseer.
Inside the burrow, Li Hao let out a soft breath, his energy substantially depleted.
Beside him, Kongji, being stronger, felt reasonably fine and considered the gains well worth the effort.
Li Hao, however, halted his movements and exhaled once more.
Glancing at the burrow that was still none too stable, Li Hao observed his river of the Great Dao. As always, the river was a tangled mixture; he had actually combed through it many times before.
Each time, he came away with slightly different ideas.
Over the past month, what was called digging burrows was in truth combing through the Great Dao and weaving it—learning from the Xinwu senior to gain a fresh understanding and reconstruction of the Great Dao.
During this month, Kongji had also shared much of his comprehension regarding the Dao of Extinction and Revival.
After a whole month, Li Hao could be said to have systematically studied the comprehension of the Dao.
The Sword Venerable hailed from Xinwu, where seventh-rank Sovereigns existed, and he himself was infinitely close to the seventh rank.
Kongji was a sixth-rank Sovereign, possessed an eighth-rank father, and had even cultivated anew once.
It was safe to say that the two before him belonged to the very pinnacle among sixth-rank cultivators, possessing top-tier breadth of vision and understanding of the Dao.
Li Hao, on the other hand, had risen too quickly.
Silver Moon itself severely lacked such foundations. Even Silver Moon's Great Dao Universe had originated from the Sword Venerable—and from the Sword Venerable of more than fifty years ago at that. In other words, the Daos contained within that Great Dao Universe might not even match the Sword Venerable's current self.
Because of this, compared to them, Li Hao lacked a systematic cultivation method and a defined path of cultivation.
After reaching the fourth rank, Li Hao increasingly felt that comprehending the Dao was growing ever more difficult.
The path ahead appeared somewhat hazy.
Today, however, he had gained a measure of clarity and developed some ideas of his own.
*The river... heaven and earth... worlds...*
He looked again at the stars; every one of them was a vessel for a Dao.
His utilization of the river was still far too rudimentary.
The river was a fusion of Daos, yet its level of development was insufficient. Right now, Li Hao had conceived some new thoughts: his efficiency in employing the river was too low, and it should not be so.
His river of the Great Dao was very formidable, rich with the power of the Great Dao.
Yet in every battle, the extent of his application of the river came down mostly to... gathering time!
That was wrong!
*Chaos, the weaving of Daos, the rudiments of worlds...*
*Emulating chaos, myriad worlds coexisting!*
Glancing at the burrow he had just stabilized, Li Hao looked at the Sword Venerable and Kongji, saying, "If the two of you aren't in a great hurry, I'd like to rest for a bit and refine some Dao arts. What do you think?"
The Sword Venerable laughed. "Cultivating? Sure... but with the three of us all here, our target is still too conspicuous. Someone needs to run an outpost anyway. Why don't you cultivate here while we head over first?"
Even when it came to dealing with Senlan, Senlan might be easy to handle, but Red Moon was troublesome.
Without thoroughly investigating the situation, they couldn't act rashly. He wasn't the Human King, who could just slaughter whoever he pleased and dash off; they had to guard against Red Moon tracking them.
It was perfectly normal for Li Hao to want to cultivate and meditate for a while.
The lad had just entered the fourth rank and surely had accumulated plenty of insights lately. The Sword Venerable merely cautioned, "Just don't go provoking a chaos lightning tribulation here. Otherwise, the commotion will be immense, and this tiny burrow might not be able to conceal it!"
Li Hao nodded.
"Then please go on ahead, you two!"
Kongji asked, somewhat puzzled, "Are you about to break through to the fifth rank?"
"..."
Li Hao gave a bitter smile. *You really think too highly of me; I only just stepped into the fourth rank.*
How could it be that fast?
Besides, his path to the fifth rank might require some alterations, so how could he possibly break through so quickly?
This was Li Hao's strength, but also his flaw.
He lacked any high-rank cultivation methods. Reaching this point, he had always taken one step and cultivated one step at a time. Only upon reaching the fourth rank would he consider the path to the fifth rank. He wasn't like Kongji, who could close his eyes and tread a direct path to the seventh rank—provided, ideally, that it was the Dao of Light.
Others could simply forge ahead without looking back!
Li Hao, however, had to probe step by step, crossing the river by feeling the stones. If he took a wrong turn, he might even have to cultivate all over again—even though he had just sorted through everything on the day he broke through to the fourth rank.
Yet after meeting the Sword Venerable, he realized he had conceived new ideas, meaning he would have to comb through and pave a correct path once more.
Not merely for himself, but perhaps... also to lay a foundation for the future cultivation of the people of Silver Moon.
Seeing that Li Hao wasn't aiming to enter the fifth rank, Kongji chuckled. "I thought you were about to reach the fifth rank already. If you were... I'd begin doubting my very life."
He now knew how old Li Hao was.
He was the son of an eighth-rank powerhouse, after all; if Li Hao broke into the fifth rank right away, it would deal a serious blow to his pride.
"Then Senior Sword Venerable and I will head over to Senlan to take a look first..."
Senlan's Great Dao Universe had previously suffered turbulence, its Dao Lord had perished, and the Great Dao was likely in a state of semi-extinction. Right now, the World Lord of Senlan was working to stabilize and revive Senlan's Great Dao.
For Kongji, this was an opportunity.
The extinction and revival of a Great Dao Universe was the perfect sight for him to observe.
Before departing, Kongji added, "Brother Haoyue, we'll try our best to wait for you. But if you don't show up for too long... we might make a move on our own, so don't miss out."
Li Hao laughed. "Hopefully I won't!"
Seeing how reluctant the two seemed to part, the Sword Venerable chuckled softly. *What a pity these two are both men, or I'd have to play matchmaker.*
Of course, the bizarre notion vanished in a flash. *Well, man and man might work too...*
The next instant, he gave a sly grin, said no more, and vanished into the boundless chaos alongside Kongji under the cover of the latter's realm of extinction.
...
Once they had left, Li Hao brought forth his long river. Looking upon the sky full of stars and the churning waves of the river, he fell into deep contemplation.
While the Sword Venerable had been present, Second Cat had kept completely quiet and hadn't shown itself.
Earlier, when it had been grabbed by the clone of the Supreme, it had been infuriated to the point of exploding, and it seemed to have stayed angry ever since.
By now, it appeared to have calmed down.
Seeing the Sword Venerable depart, it grumbled in dissatisfaction, "Don't spend all your time around those people. They're all bad, and they'll lead you astray! Big Cat was ruined by them. Now Big Cat is either killing people or catching fish; it doesn't even comprehend the Dao anymore, just eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating..."
*Aren't you doing the exact same thing?*
Li Hao couldn't help but smile.
As if reading Li Hao's thoughts, Second Cat added, "I'm different... After all... I'm not a real living being..."
Li Hao spoke up, "Who says you aren't?"
Second Cat fell silent.
It inherently wasn't.
Its insistence that Li Hao avoid excessive contact with the people of Xinwu actually stemmed from complicated feelings. The people of Xinwu were formidable; associating with them offered greater rewards, and they could shield Li Hao.
However... if Li Hao truly stayed alongside them constantly, the people of Xinwu possessed an immense power to assimilate others!
As time passed, the lone traveler of the past, that seeker of the Dao, might eventually become nothing more than an ordinary Sovereign living parasitically under Xinwu.
And Second Cat did not want Li Hao to be ordinary.
Nor should he be ordinary!
In the Silver Moon World, there were countless living beings, including two Dao Lords, yet... only Li Hao had carried away the seed of time.
The seed of time... who had left it behind?
Li Hao had guessed it was Zhan, and Second Cat naturally thought the same.
If that was the case, then Li Hao was Zhan's successor. Even if Li Hao had inherited only a tiny seed of time, that still counted. Second Cat truly did not want Zhan's successor to become like that band of bandits from Xinwu.
Even though they were undeniably powerful, formidable, and full of charisma, Zhan was not that sort of person.
Zhan's style was entirely different from theirs.
The people of Xinwu had carved out their own style.
Xinwu no longer held Zhan's legacy; even the Human King, the Blood Sovereign, and the others had all forged styles unique to themselves. Second Cat knew its thinking was somewhat selfish, but it still hoped Li Hao would walk in Zhan's style.
Of course, Li Hao could never truly be Zhan. No one could replace Zhan.
While Second Cat was lost in thought, Li Hao smiled. "My interactions with Xinwu are merely normal dealings. The Sword Venerable and the others are a group of very interesting elders! I'm quite fond of them... Seeing the Sword Venerable reminds me of Southern Fist and the rest... even if the gulf in our cultivation levels is vast!"
Li Hao sighed with emotion. "The Sword Venerable is actually somewhat like my master! It's just that my master isn't even a Sovereign right now... Perhaps Silver Moon was influenced too deeply by Xinwu, but around them, I sense a touch of the Silver Moon jianghu."
Or rather, the jianghu flavor of Silver Moon originated from Xinwu in the first place.
Therefore, being around the Sword Venerable was genuinely comfortable and free-spirited, unburdened by heavy ties.
Only...
After a moment, Li Hao murmured, "However, Xinwu and I are destined never to merge completely. The Supreme is deeply calculating, and the Human King is brilliant in battle; both possess overwhelming personal charisma! The Human King is autocratic, while the Supreme..."
He paused for a beat. "He is completely selfless. Though I admire that, I do not like it."
*He doesn't like it?*
Second Cat was startled. *He doesn't like the Supreme?*
*Why?*
Li Hao remained silent.
Why?
Tianji and King Huai had served as bait, and Zhang An was the Supreme's biological grandson. The Supreme must have known that Zhang An would come to rendezvous with them—two Sovereigns, one of whom was his own grandson. He knew full well that a seventh-rank Sovereign from Red Moon would descend, and that an eighth-rank might even arrive at any moment.
Yet... the Supreme had dispatched only the Sword Venerable to come to the rescue.
Since he had laid an ambush, why let it peter out so lamely?
He inevitably had other plans, far greater plans. Thus, for the sake of the overall situation, the Supreme had chosen to abandon this front, doing only what was humanly possible and leaving the rest to fate. If a single Sword Venerable proved unable to hold out, then sacrificing a few people in exchange for far greater interests for Xinwu was a price he was willing to pay.
Was the Supreme a good person?
For Xinwu, absolutely. He was an indispensable strategist for Xinwu. Having a Human King who was bold and valiant was enough; had the Supreme shared the Human King's personality, Xinwu would not have lasted long.
Yet to Li Hao... someone like the Supreme, who for the sake of the greater picture could sacrifice himself, sacrifice the world, and sacrifice all of his own kin... was not someone he liked.
Li Hao felt that compared to the Supreme, although he considered himself heartless and cold-blooded... he was also a bit more selfish.
A figure like the Supreme was indispensable, but perhaps not the kind of person Li Hao wished to live alongside.
In truth, the people Li Hao knew, valued, and had been shaped by—be it Yuan Shuo, Hou Xiaochen, or Southern Fist—all shared common traits with Li Hao. They considered the overall situation, but the overall situation... was never more important than their own people.
Try telling Yuan Shuo to sacrifice his disciple for the sake of Silver Moon, and see what happens.
He'd spray a mouthful of curses right in your face!
Hearing this, Second Cat pondered for a while and said nothing.
Then Li Hao continued, "The people of Silver Moon should still rise through their own strength. Still, Xinwu is the source of Silver Moon's birth after all, so Senior Second Cat doesn't need to reject Xinwu."
"This cat isn't rejecting them!"
Second Cat muttered. It wasn't rejection; it didn't care what became of the people of Silver Moon.
Nor did it care what became of the people of Xinwu.
The only one it cared about was Li Hao.
Even if all the people of Silver Moon and Xinwu turned into bandits together, Second Cat wouldn't bat an eye; it simply didn't want Li Hao to turn out that way.
It was that simple!
Big Cat had been such a good cat, yet it had been completely led astray by Xinwu. What a pity.
Second Cat refrained from bringing up the subject again. It seemed Li Hao had his own plans; it wasn't as though meeting up with Xinwu's Sword Venerable meant he intended to throw in his lot with Xinwu. In that case, there was no need to say more.
"Then do you plan to cultivate now? You don't need to advance in rank... What are you cultivating?"
It lived within the long river and had sensed no signs of Li Hao breaking through.
Why not just go along with the Sword Venerable and Kongji?
"To reform the long river!"
Li Hao replied, "I've gained some insights. Breaking through isn't the key; what matters is clarifying my future path!"
Li Hao offered an explanation, then added, "I want to comb through the long river anew. I want to bind the stars, the stars of the Great Dao, more closely to the river! And bind them more closely to myself."
Li Hao spoke softly, "I will open the stars into domains, into the rudiments of worlds! Connecting them to the river! I will turn the Daos into tributaries of the river, and I will weave a sturdy riverbank..."
Second Cat felt a daze wash over it.
This was no small undertaking. Li Hao frequently combed through his Great Dao, but after becoming a Sovereign, it had generally been on a minor scale. According to what Li Hao was describing, this would likely be a massive overhaul.
It might even overturn some of his previous concepts.
Li Hao continued, "Furthermore, I want to transform the stars into divine characters, the divine characters into domains, the domains into worlds, and the worlds will connect to the long river... After that, return to how it was before: one divine character, one world, one domain, one star, one river, one technique..."
Second Cat understood. It was no foolish cat.
Li Hao had used this method before: the divine character breathing technique, one character per technique.
"You mean turning the divine characters into worlds, having the worlds breathe on their own, drawing in chaotic power, and stabilizing the worlds?"
"Correct!"
Li Hao nodded. Communicating with Second Cat was effortless; even though Second Cat was only of the second rank, it understood his meaning. Had it been someone else, they would likely be staring at him in bewilderment.
Li Hao looked up at the dark hollow above. "Senior Sword Venerable said the keys to opening a burrow lie in, first, the foundation of the Dao, and second, the source of energy! So I thought: my foundation in the Dao is actually decent. As for the source of energy... ultimately, it has to rely on the chaos... But I don't have the time to extract it bit by bit. Why not return to the past, letting the divine characters cultivate and strengthen themselves... one Dao per character, one character per technique, drawing upon chaotic power!"
"Is that so?"
Second Cat pondered for a moment, then asked, "In truth... you're imitating the chaos, right?"
Li Hao nodded!
He continued, "The chaos is boundless, endless, unimaginably powerful, unique in space, and unique in dimension! Earlier, I wondered whether the Great Dao Universe and worlds existed in the same dimension. Now I know: they do! Both exist within the chaos!"
"So what I want to do now is merge the Great Dao Universe into the worlds themselves. The Dao shall reside within the world!"
Second Cat listened intently. When Li Hao spoke of such matters, it genuinely enjoyed listening.
It always brought back a sensation of returning to the days of old.
"Do you need my help?"
Second Cat rarely offered its help unprompted.
Yet right now, it offered proactively, because it wholeheartedly supported Li Hao in doing this.
Li Hao smiled. "Senior, just help me stabilize the long river!"
"A small matter!"
This time Second Cat did not refuse; it wasn't a major burden.
Li Hao added, "Others weave worlds with ten thousand Daos; I shall weave a world with ten thousand worlds—one world, one Dao... This is laying the foundation. Once my Great Dao is perfected, I will gradually refine the Daos of each world!"
Other people's worlds contained ten thousand Daos within a single world.
What Li Hao intended to do now was one world per Dao.
Using one world per Dao to weave the long river.
Once his strength grew sufficient, he would weave the ten thousand Daos of each world. Doing so would be equivalent to superimposing infinite small worlds. One had to have dreams; in the end, he would obtain a scaled-down chaotic universe!
This would also facilitate his experimenting with different weaving methods. After all, even if one collapsed, it would only be a single star and a single world.
Naturally, the expenditure involved would be unimaginably vast.
Li Hao had previously received over a hundred million Great Dao crystals in his share... By rights, so many would have easily sufficed for him to cultivate to the sixth rank. Yet if used to comb through Daos and domains, they might not be enough.
And his strength might not even increase visibly.
Was it a waste?
Not in the slightest!
Since the idea had struck him, he would carry it out. He could not refrain simply because of the risk of failure. In a sense, he was launching an enterprise, and enterprises carried risk; he would bear the risk himself without needing anyone else to shoulder it.
Li Hao could have walked other paths, but cultivating the Dao was not purely about growing stronger.
Sometimes, the process—the process of exploration—was a joy in its own right.
To conceive an idea yet shy away out of fear of failure or waste—that, to Li Hao, would be the true, colossal regret. Why leave behind so many regrets along the path of cultivation?
Li Hao spoke no more and stepped directly into the long river.
Stars hovered all around him. After a moment of contemplation, Li Hao set the stars spiraling, scattering them in all directions.
Ultimately, these stars settled on both sides of the long river.
Alternating between illusory and real, one on each flank.
With the long river as the center!
He separated the illusory and real stars once again.
The next instant, the stars began transforming into divine characters. A portion of the stars, owing to his shallower comprehension, could not yet be fully converted. The process of forming divine characters consumed tremendous amounts of energy and vitality.
In the past, forging divine characters had required depleting Li Hao's vitality; fusing the force of life was the very foundation of a divine character.
This time, Li Hao chose once more to fuse divine characters.
Divine characters had previously become dispensable, but ever since entering Dark Demon Ridge and discovering the importance of domains, paired with his recent comprehension of worlds, Li Hao had conceived a new idea: his divine characters were remarkably suited to being converted into domains.
Along his entire journey, he had learned as he went. Some things he had set aside, but whenever they proved useful again, he would pick them right back up.
The first star to transform into a divine character was neither Life and Death nor Extinction and Revival, but Fire!
Li Hao's comprehension of the power of Fire was exceptionally profound.
His Five Animals Art included Fire; Fire was the tiger of the heart; he had even borrowed seventh-rank power of Fire before. One could say that Life and Death, or Extinction and Revival, were perhaps merely requirements for advancing in rank.
Fire, however, had been etched into his very bones from the start.
A fierce tiger roared within the long river.
A tiger unleashed from its cage!
It shifted back into a mass of flame, roaring willfully within the long river. Great Dao crystals were absorbed in an instant as a mighty divine character began taking shape.
Li Hao intended to reforge his former divine characters.
The old ones had been too weak; now that he was a fourth-rank Sovereign, his previous divine characters were obviously no longer powerful enough.
Moments later, a "Fire" divine character resembling a roaring tiger emerged.
The roar echoed through the long river.
This divine character marked the beginning of Li Hao's experiment.
Upon the character, an illusory figure gradually manifested—Li Hao himself. It was not a clone, merely an intent. This intent also began cultivating, even breathing, drawing in the chaos and exhaling the power of the long river.
"Ten Thousand Daos Breathing Technique!"
This was the name Li Hao gave to his redefined breathing technique, originating from the Five Animals Secret Art. Only now, it was no longer limited to the five animals and five elements; he intended to cultivate ten thousand Daos. Although the breathing technique was not yet fully perfected, he had resolved that all Daos would practice this same method.
A unified breath, a unified frequency.
Breathing in unison, Li Hao harbored the audacious thought that one day, he might even swallow the chaos itself!
Naturally, that was nothing more than a pipe dream for now.
The "Fire" divine character began breathing, inhaling and exhaling the power of the long river.
Golden light shot from Li Hao's eyes. Gradually, ten thousand Daos manifested within the long river, flowing like streams toward both flanks.
At this point, what Li Hao needed to do was link the divine character and the long river together completely.
A small tail grew upon the "Fire" divine character.
That small tail probed through the mixed currents of the long river, searching for the Dao of Fire integrated within.
Two powers of identical origin met within the long river. With a thunderous boom, the river shuddered, and a small tail seemed to sprout from one of the streams, hanging suspended from the river's flank.
The "Fire" character was linked to the long river.
At that moment, the "Fire" divine character began swelling frantically, absorbing the power of the long river and bloating wildly as if turning into a giant fat man. This, too, was the outcome Li Hao desired.
He wanted to turn this divine character into a world—or even if not a world, at least a domain!
Ultimately, these domains would interconnect, piecing together to form the banks of the long river.
In truth, they were like cells.
Beyond these domains, he would construct a genuine world barrier to shut out the chaos. Such were Li Hao's current conceptions.
*A human!*
As he thought this, Li Hao's heart stirred slightly.
The long river served as blood and blood vessels, the divine-character worlds served as cells, and finally a barrier was forged. In a way, this was remarkably akin to creating a human. Of course, it wasn't that complicated yet.
It was merely a straightforward river.
Yet it carried a distinct feeling of creating a human.
He had crafted physical bodies for many people and understood the mortal form intimately. Thinking about it this way, what difference was there between the long river and a human body?
Setting these thoughts aside, he promptly began constructing.
The "Fire" divine character continued to expand, transforming into a domain of Fire that pressed outward from the side of the long river. After a long while, as if a dam had burst, a thunderous crash erupted, and a small breach appeared along the straight course of the river.
The power of ten thousand Daos surged rapidly toward the breach.
Among them, the power of Fire was the densest, while the other Daos also flowed into the domain formed by the "Fire" character. Li Hao swiftly slipped inside, carrying out a rudimentary weaving of the incoming powers.
Fire was primary, but the river's power was a blend, and what it would breathe in the future was chaotic power. Thus, he needed to add a program to this domain of Fire—a simple process: the basic weaving of ten thousand Daos.
With Fire as the master, all others were auxiliary.
This was an arduous, time-consuming process. Fortunately, Li Hao had entered the Dao Chessboard, studied the art of burrowing under the Sword Venerable for a month, wielded Silver Moon's Great Dao Universe, and combed through the long river time and time again... Experimenting now, the process proceeded fairly smoothly.
After an unknown amount of time, within the domain of Fire, the chaotic powers of the ten thousand Daos roared like a great net blanketing the void, though a portion remained unintegrated.
His comprehension of the ten thousand Daos was still somewhat lacking.
Right now, it was merely a simplified net of ten thousand Daos.
"Not bad!"
Li Hao was reasonably satisfied with his handiwork, and a smile surfaced on his face. This could be considered laying the foundation. As for the remaining chaotic energies, he would need deeper comprehension and more Dao arts before gradually weaving them in later.
The current domain of Fire was by no means the final version.
It was merely the initial prototype!
Even so, it was enough to please Li Hao greatly.
This small domain wasn't particularly large; looking across it, it spanned merely a thousand meters, but that was plenty.
For the first attempt, size didn't matter. Proving his idea was feasible was enough.
Li Hao poured in a massive quantity of Great Dao crystals. At present, the long river wasn't strong enough; relying on it to swallow the chaos was unreliable, as chaotic energy was far too turbulent and Li Hao had yet to master the ability to thoroughly refine it.
The first small world, crude though it was, was essentially complete.
This brought Li Hao no small joy. Within the small domain, the power of Fire was dominant. If this place could truly grow into a great world in the future, it would be a World of Fire. If it could nurture living beings... that would be even more extraordinary, transforming it into a genuine world.
At this moment, Li Hao became somewhat lost in his reverie.
*If every one of my Daos can become a world...*
*Then... I myself will be the chaos!*
*The long river I command will become a chaotic universe.*
Suddenly, he felt a slight shock in his heart.
*Could the chaos... be like this as well?*
He dared not dwell on it; he could not dwell on it!
Li Hao shook his head, pushing the thought away, and looked back at the first small world he had forged, a joyful smile returning to his face. What did it matter if it was still crude and unpolished?
With his first success, Li Hao continued his attempts.
Star after star was transformed into a divine character, and character after character into a small world. The small worlds linked to the long river, furiously consuming the surging power of the Great Dao within it.
The Great Dao crystals Li Hao had gathered earlier were depleted at an alarming rate.
Each small world clung to the long river like a tumor. Because they were still incomplete, they looked somewhat unsightly. Second Cat had been watching the entire time, feeling increasingly unsettled.
*So ugly!*
What had originally been a straight, sleek river now looked horribly bloated, covered all over in pus-filled boils.
Not only was Second Cat watching, but the three sword spirits were looking on as well.
Though they didn't fully understand what was happening, it seemed deeply formidable nonetheless. They watched with utmost seriousness, and none of them disturbed Li Hao.
Those domains varied in size.
The largest spanned only a thousand meters across.
The smallest... could barely fit three to five people, not even larger than a latrine pit.
The size of a domain reflected the depth of Li Hao's comprehension of that particular Dao. A larger domain meant deeper comprehension, while a smaller one signified that his grasp was shallow.
Second Cat gradually began to see the logic behind it.
Its massive eyes held a touch of lament and marvel.
If Li Hao truly walked this path, his journey would be exceedingly difficult. He would have to earnestly comprehend ten thousand Daos and transform them into ten thousand worlds; he could no longer afford to be vague or focus primarily on just a few Daos.
Otherwise, the disparity among his myriad worlds would end up colossal.
Some might not even manage to form domains at all.
He already possessed Life and Death, Extinction and Revival, and Time, yet he still insisted on treading such a path... Second Cat didn't know whether Li Hao simply wanted to grow stronger or whether he was enjoying the process of growing stronger. Going about it this way, even if he reached the sixth rank, advancing to the seventh rank would likely be arduous beyond measure.
Reaching the seventh rank might truly require all ten thousand worlds to assemble.
This time, Li Hao continued opening worlds without pause, striving to bring forth one small world after another, heedless of the cost. His strength did not increase, but his consumption of resources was staggering.
The tens of millions of Great Dao crystals he had previously received were soon completely exhausted.
He still had Dao charm crystals left.
However, Dao charm crystals did not contain much raw energy; their value lay predominantly in comprehension.
After this round of modifications, to say nothing of the long river's unsightly appearance...
Its flanks—or rather, all sides—were covered in lumps of various sizes, flickering with all manner of energies.
And the long river itself was no longer flowing as smoothly as before.
Here it was cut off, there it was diverted, with a portion of the ten thousand Daos' power draining into the small worlds.
The long river even gave off the impression of stagnating and running dry.
Seeing Li Hao halt his movements, Second Cat floated before him and looked down at the river below, feeling rather helpless. "Never mind how ugly it looks after your tinkering; the river is broken and patchy now. Each small world absorbs energy differently and draws upon different Dao powers. The river is practically drying up!"
Li Hao nodded.
It was indeed on the verge of drying up, primarily because he was still too weak to draw boundless chaotic power into the river to satisfy the demands of every small world.
If he were stronger, this issue would be trivial to resolve.
With a vastly broad river where the power of ten thousand Daos was dense to the extreme, why would he ever need to worry about these domains draining energy?
There would be no need for concern whatsoever!
Li Hao said, "Right now, it's only because the Daos of the small worlds are incomplete. Once I perfect them, each small world will be able to directly draw in chaotic power and convert and align it independently, solving the problem entirely! At present, because each small world has its own emphasis, the energy they absorb varies, which is why this phenomenon occurred."
Over three hundred stars had all been turned into small worlds.
They merely differed in size.
Second Cat looked upward at the single star that still remained—the star born from the fusion of Life and Death with Extinction and Revival, which Li Hao had not converted into a domain.
"Are you turning this one into a world too?"
"No... this one must be cultivated as the prime world, integrated directly into the long river. If I can cultivate Time in the future, this star will become the Star of Time, fusing straight into the river to command it all!"
"Did your power increase?"
"No."
Li Hao shook his head, leaving Second Cat clicking its tongue in dismay.
The consumption had been enormous.
Tens of millions of Great Dao crystals were gone—the equivalent of the energy of several small worlds, swallowed in a single gulp by Li Hao, yet the fellow hadn't advanced an inch... Even a rich second-generation heir like Kongji couldn't afford to squander resources like this!
Li Hao, however, smiled. "Raw power is secondary. The crucial point is that by doing this, I've gained a much clearer conception of my path! Spending some resources to perfect my own path—that is the true gain!"
With that, a smile touched Li Hao's face. The next moment, the Sky Sword, which had been nurtured within the long river all along, floated into view.
Li Hao looked toward the Sky Sword. "I will draw the long river into the Sky Sword. Henceforth, I will no longer display the river before others, lest anyone peer through its depths! Sky Sword, are you willing to carry my river of the Great Dao?"
The Sky Sword trembled faintly, radiating a glimmer of spiritual light.
It was willing, of course, but though the Sky Sword was a Sovereign weapon, strictly speaking, it was currently only at the level of a second-rank Sovereign weapon. Li Hao's river, on the other hand, was the Great Dao river of a fourth-rank Sovereign.
It likely lacked the capacity to contain and carry it.
Li Hao exhaled softly. "It's difficult for you to hold it, I know... Right now, I only have some Dao charm crystals primarily infused with the power of Red Moon. If you absorb these Dao charm crystals, you should be able to improve substantially and barely manage to bear it... Only..."
He hesitated slightly.
Doing this might introduce complications.
What was the power of Red Moon?
The power of desire!
If the Sky Sword absorbed too much Red Moon Dao charm, it might... sprout unsavory thoughts. The desires of mortals were terrifying, and if a sword developed desire, it would be equally frightening.
It might even devour its master!
Yet right now, he truly possessed nothing better. Moreover, if the Sky Sword absorbed a massive amount of Red Moon power, it might prove advantageous for integrating into the entire Red Moon Universe later on.
It might even allow him to smuggle himself into the Red Moon World using the sword.
After weighing the matter, Li Hao said, "Then I shall let you absorb the Red Moon Dao charm crystals! These crystals contain vast amounts of the power of desire... Of course, humans and living beings all possess desires! For your spirituality, this will actually be of great help in advancing it!"
The seven emotions and six desires were essential to living beings.
The Sky Sword had not yet formally become a sapient Sovereign weapon like the Dao Chessboard, so absorbing some power of desire would aid the growth of its spirituality.
As for the possibility of being consumed by desire in the future... Li Hao considered it and decided to leave future matters to the future.
Handled properly, it would not be a major problem.
Besides, a sword was merely a sword; the master was what mattered. So long as he himself was not consumed by desire, all would be well.
The next instant, the vast store of Red Moon Dao charm crystals obtained earlier was swallowed whole by the Sky Sword. Such an expenditure was a grand display.
Dao charm crystals from a seventh-rank Sovereign were priceless treasures in the outside world.
Here, Li Hao possessed few resources to begin with.
Yet he had fed them all to a sword.
A second-rank Sovereign weapon... offered little help to Li Hao.
What he needed was not a second-rank Sovereign weapon.
If the Sky Sword could advance to become a third-rank Sovereign weapon and then bear the long river, it would rival a fourth-rank Sovereign weapon. In that case, Li Hao would become a fourth-rank Sovereign equipped with his own Sovereign weapon.
That made a tremendous difference.
Almost none of the Sovereigns he had encountered had Sovereign weapons at their disposal.
At this moment, as the Sky Sword absorbed the Dao charm crystals, its blade grew visibly stronger, and its spirituality became increasingly pronounced. Though it could not yet manifest an avatar like the spirit of the Dao Chessboard, its communion with Li Hao grew far more intimate.
The power of desire held both benefits and hazards.
So long as it could resist the erosion of desire, this was an immense opportunity for the Sky Sword!
After an unknown stretch of time, the Sky Sword suddenly erupted with brilliant radiance!
A wisp of Red Moon power wafted outward.
Li Hao's eyes flickered. The next instant, the Sky Sword abruptly merged into Li Hao's river of the Great Dao, growing and expanding furiously until it gradually drew the entire river into the blade!
The sword and the river of the Dao began to fuse!
Within the long river, the Sword Seal, Sword Tree, and Sword Stone all felt somewhat dejected. The river they bore had grown difficult for them to support, which was why Li Hao had chosen the Sky Sword to carry it instead.
Otherwise, had they been strong enough, there would have been no need for the Sky Sword to take over.
After another interval, the Sky Sword trembled violently.
From its original massive form, it instantly compressed.
Soon, an ordinary-sized longsword rested in Li Hao's hand, and in that moment, Li Hao felt a profound unity of man and sword.
Endowed with greater spirituality, the Sky Sword seemed far more attuned to him than before.
Meanwhile, the aura of the Great Dao previously emanating from Li Hao dissipated completely.
At this moment, he seemed to have turned into an ordinary mortal.
Clutching the longsword with the river merged inside, the power of ten thousand Daos flowed into Li Hao's body through the hilt. Now, the dispersion of his power was drastically reduced, becoming far more concentrated.
With a gentle flick of the blade... the modest burrow suddenly shook violently, nearly destroyed by Li Hao's casual motion!
Li Hao hastily sheathed his power, delight gleaming in his eyes.
His cultivation rank had not risen.
His raw strength was not much different from before.
Yet his power was far more concentrated—that was the first benefit. Second, the Sky Sword had grown powerful, granting him vastly greater explosive force than before. Moreover, paired with the art of Stealing the Sky and Switching the Sun, his concealment capabilities were greatly enhanced.
This round of sorting had achieved his objectives.
Though the expenditure was enormous... in a place like this, where treasures were strewn everywhere, why fret over that?
"Next, I will construct more small worlds and refine the weaving of more Dao arts... That way, perhaps I can reach the peak of the sixth rank very soon. Once I've comprehended Life and Death, Extinction and Revival, reaching the sixth rank shouldn't be too difficult!"
Li Hao exhaled, having finally achieved a preliminary integration of his power. The road ahead might still be long, but he would see it through to the end.
He chuckled softly and stepped out of the burrow in an instant.
Masking a portion of his aura, he flew toward the Senlan Great World.
This simple round of sorting and opening worlds had actually cost him over a month. Out here in the chaos, Li Hao realized that time was extraordinarily cheap.
Nearly two years had passed since he had opened the Star Gate.
And after two whole years, he had merely advanced from a first-rank Sovereign to a fourth-rank Sovereign.
Chapter 472