This was a revelry!
A revelry of cultivation.
Never had any Sovereign squandered such immense resources for a group of non-Sovereigns—over forty worlds, including many medium worlds, solely to let a bunch of the weak advance to Sovereign!
Nor had a cultivator of the Time Dao ever constantly reversed time and revisited the past just so the weak could observe the Dao and face the Dao net directly.
None of this had ever occurred before.
Was it worth it?
To many, it wasn't. Giving so many medium and minor worlds to rank three Sovereigns might recruit dozens of Sovereigns to serve him in a single day.
Raising a cohort of Heavenly Kings into Sovereigns only made them rank one! Enlisting rank three Sovereigns, however, offered a real chance of stepping into rank four. By then, they would be a force of middle-tier Sovereigns. A single rank four Sovereign could contend with two or three rank threes, or five or six rank twos, and it might take ten rank ones just to barely hold off one rank four—such was the might of a middle-tier Sovereign!
Yet to Li Hao... why nurture outsiders?
If he had resources to spare, he was happy to squander them.
When you're rich, you can splurge however you want!
All together, it was merely ten billion Great Dao crystals. Was that a lot?
Immensely so!
Yet he... was happy to do it!
He loved seeing the Silver Moon people smile, rejoice, and tremble with awe and excitement. What good was nurturing outside Sovereigns even if they reached rank four?
One Sovereign after another emerged.
The Ninth Division Commander attained the Dao, closely followed by Heavenly Sword.
After Heavenly Sword's success, the next was surprisingly Director Zhao. This powerhouse who had remained behind was actually a step ahead of the others, carving out a tributary in the Great Dao River and directly achieving the Dao.
Next, a colossal fist intent soared into the heavens. Li Hao thought it was Southern Fist...
Turning his head, he grinned.
Yao Si!
The Night Patrollers' veteran minister had silently and unobtrusively attained the Dao just like that. Beside him, Southern Fist was so infuriated that he roared, "Fuck!"
The title of foremost expert of the Fist Dao was gone!
Just one step short!
He had been keeping an eye on Northern Fist the entire time and hadn't paid much attention to Yao Si, figuring the old man wasn't much and would probably be slower. Good grief, the man had ambushed him!
*You old fossil, you're infuriating me to death!*
Southern Fist was fuming!
Just as his fury peaked, a grand and majestic fist of the Great Dao materialized between heaven and earth on the other side. With a vulgar grin, the little old man Northern Fist chuckled and shot him a glance. *Little punk! Who do you think you're messing with?*
Southern Fist was enraged! "Northern Fist!"
"Why are you calling your older brother?" Northern Fist beamed. "Little He, got an issue with that?"
"..."
Southern Fist choked with frustration. *I'm not a Sovereign yet. I have no issue.*
Li Hao was also surprised and couldn't help smiling. He had observed for a moment earlier: Southern Fist's momentum had appeared the fiercest, seemingly poised to claim the mantle of the foremost in the Fist Dao... yet it vanished. Just like that, he had been shoved aside!
While Southern Fist was still moping, Overbearing Saber wore a cold expression as a massive blade swept across the sky, slicing a tributary directly into the river—not into the real Dao river, but into the illusory Dao river!
Qian Wuliang was slightly surprised, but soon felt relieved. Most of these Silver Moon Sovereigns attained the Dao through the real Dao river, yet Overbearing Saber had taken the illusory Dao, becoming a Sovereign of the illusory Dao.
Just as Qian Wuliang was pondering this, a long spear blazed across heaven and earth the next second!
The scholarly-looking Hou Xiaochen thrust out his spear, stabbing open a branch in the illusory Dao river like God Splitter—the legacy intent of Xinwu's God-Splitting Sovereign.
Another expert had attained the Dao!
Hou Xiaochen smiled, glancing toward Yuan Shuo. Seeing him still keeping his eyes closed, Hou Xiaochen chuckled. *Old Demon Yuan is always a step behind everyone else. A step behind in Dao Integration, a step behind in becoming a Sovereign. What a waste of the Old Demon title!*
By now, the Ninth Division Commander, Heavenly Sword, Overbearing Saber, Northern Fist, Yao Si, Director Zhao, and Hou Xiaochen had all successfully attained the Dao.
The others grew slightly anxious.
Right then, a bovine bellow reverberated through heaven and earth. A blue ox shattered the firmament, its massive frame anchoring the river as its horns gouged a tributary straight into the water!
Li Fuhai roared, its vital energy soaring into the heavens!
The Shui Li clan's third Sovereign had emerged!
Its father Li Wuqi and ancestor Shui Li were both Sovereigns; today, by treading the Silver Moon Dao, it had entered the Sovereign ranks as well.
Li Fuhai was ecstatic!
Even Sword Venerable couldn't help taking an extra look, sighing as he stood beside Li Hao. "The Shui Li clan..."
Words failed him!
A bona fide opportunist clan, yet... every single time, their choices were spot on. One had to admit they had a real knack for it; even this ox had actually advanced to Sovereign! The Shui Li clan wasn't overwhelmingly strong. Sword Venerable knew its ancestor Shui Li was currently only a rank three Sovereign, while its father Li Wuqi held the title of Sea-Quelling Envoy and had forged ahead, having already crossed into rank four. Now, Li Fuhai had advanced to Sovereign too. While none of them were exceptionally formidable, having three Sovereigns in one lineage was already remarkably rare!
He recognized Li Fuhai and the other Xinwu figures.
At this moment, he scanned the surroundings: the Ninth Division Commander, Li Fuhai, and Zhang An had all become Sovereigns. Zhang An's Sovereign status was somewhat special since he hadn't merged into the Silver Moon cosmos, but he was still a Sovereign.
Three of them!
There were quite a few Xinwu powerhouses who had previously walked ahead of the Silver Moon people, yet Silver Moon had produced multiple Sovereigns while Xinwu had far fewer.
He looked around...
Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at several Xinwu experts, then looked at Li Hao. Feeling his gaze, Sword Venerable raised an eyebrow. Li Hao chuckled and gave a nod.
Sword Venerable smiled as well.
The next moment, Turtle Guardian, still struggling painfully, suddenly felt a sword light manifest. It paled in fright—that familiar sword radiance was truly terrifying!
Just as that thought flickered, with a sharp crack, its shell fractured slightly, and in the next second, something seemed to meld into it.
Before it could react, a vast, majestic power welled up.
In an instant, its Great Dao surged straight toward the river!
A branch appeared in a flash.
Sword Venerable's voice sounded by its ear: "Though it has not been long for me, I heard you guarded Battle Heaven City in Silver Moon for a hundred thousand years! Today, I shall help you shed your weapon form and reforge your divine soul! Black Tortoise, from this day forth, you are free. In those years past, you opposed Xinwu and were slain by me to forge a weapon with your divine soul... Today, I repay your hundred thousand years of merit!"
Memories of the past faintly surfaced.
Turtle Guardian had not originally been an artifact spirit. During the Xinwu era, slaying demon beasts to forge divine weapons was something many in Xinwu did; who knew how many the Human King had slaughtered back then. Turtle Guardian had also been a great demon of the Xinwu era. Slain by Sword Venerable and forged into a divine weapon, it had later come into the possession of the Wang clan. After Xinwu faded into dormancy, Turtle Guardian guarded Battle Heaven City for a hundred thousand years. Today, seeing it trapped in its physical shell and bound by its divine weapon form, unable to break free and attain the Dao, Sword Venerable used his sword intent to help it break free and recast a new Dao.
For Sword Venerable, helping someone attain the Dao... was simple. Truly simple. Perhaps even simpler than for the two Dao Lords. For no other reason than this Great Dao cosmos was intimately tied to him.
However, he was, after all, the previous generation's Silver Moon King, not the current one. That was why he had looked at Li Hao first; only when Li Hao agreed did he intervene, and he didn't help anyone else, only the artifact spirit Turtle Guardian.
Here, seeing Turtle Guardian successfully attain the Dao seemed to spur on Director Wang, Wang Ye—the first Xinwu powerhouse to assimilate into the Silver Moon Dao. He roared furiously as the Great Dao River emerged, stepping straight into the heavens and directly entering the Sovereign realm.
Overjoyed, Director Wang laughed heartily and looked toward the Ninth Division Commander, brimming with excitement! He had succeeded too!
Among the Xinwu people, the very first ones Li Hao had come into contact with were these few: Ninth Division Commander, Director Wang, and Turtle Guardian. Now, every one of them had advanced.
An instant later, Little Tree, Di Wei—a cultivator considered half of the Xinwu era—manifested the Cat Palace atop its canopy. Even Sword Venerable was slightly surprised. He glanced at Little Tree and smiled. In an instant, Little Tree's branches swelled dramatically, sprawling between heaven and earth with immense life force. In the blink of an eye, Little Tree grew by a massive margin as the aura of a Sovereign emerged.
Meanwhile, backed by Lin Hongyu and having long cooperated with her, Redwood surpassed the veteran Saint General Locust at this moment. Redwood's aura appeared wildly chaotic, faintly carrying traces of chaos energy. Above the river, it carved out a unique Chaos Dao of its own. Back then, to curry favor, it had yielded the Life Dao to Little Tree Di Wei and chosen the Chaos Dao for itself. Only after truly entering the chaos did it realize that the so-called Chaos Dao was utterly disordered and tumultuous. Becoming a Sovereign through the Chaos Dao was exceedingly difficult! Ultimately, by focusing on the chaos and disorder within it, it achieved the Dao of disorder at this very moment!
Turtle Guardian, Director Wang, Little Tree, and Redwood—these cultivators of the Xinwu era had attained the Dao in rapid succession. Immediately, the Silver Moon martial masters grew frantic; these guys were taking up precious slots!
At this stage, others were still launching frantic assaults!
In the distance, an aura of light and darkness emerged from someone. Kongji was slightly surprised. He glanced over and remarked, "Alternating light and dark... rather interesting. However, her dark affinity is slightly weak and cannot balance, failing to form polar duality, but it's still quite decent..."
*Boom!*
That auntie seemed on the verge of losing control. Kongji glanced at Li Hao, who nodded. With a wave of Kongji's hand, a surge of dark aura flooded into Auntie Bright's body, instantly bringing light and dark into a brief balance.
Auntie Bright shouted sharply, and in an instant, light and dark manifested as a Great Dao was carved out.
She turned to look at Kongji, then at Li Hao, smiled, and cast a slightly coy glance at Kongji without speaking...
Li Hao was taken aback. Kongji looked puzzled, and after a moment, asked Li Hao, "What does that mean?"
"She's taken a liking to you!"
"..."
Kongji opened his mouth, then gave an awkward smile. "Stop joking!"
This little sister... Yes, in Li Hao's eyes she was an auntie, but in Kongji's eyes, Auntie Bright was actually quite young... Nor was she particularly good-looking; he had only seen how difficult it was for her to cultivate light and dark and lent a casual hand. Why was she looking at him like that? Don't be ridiculous! *My heart is dedicated to the Dao; I have no such inclinations.*
Li Hao stifled his laughter so hard his internal organs nearly burst. After a long moment, he sent a voice transmission: "Once her light and dark balance out, she'll become beautiful... Cultivators shouldn't obsess over surface appearances!"
"..."
Kongji was speechless, too lazy to indulge this shameless tease.
At this moment, Li Hao looked around. A large number of cultivators were attaining the Sovereign rank, and the remaining slots were dwindling. Yet... two crucial figures had not attained the Dao.
One was Yuan Shuo, and the other was Liu Long.
To Li Hao, these two carried unique significance: one was his teacher, the other was his boss. Yet... neither had attained the Dao.
In Liu Long's case, he felt it was normal. Although Liu Long was at the ninth tier of Dao Integration, his cultivation of the Nine Forging Power had plenty of explosive force but lacked comprehension. If he had possessed enough talent, Liu Long wouldn't have remained a captain in Silver City back then; he would have become a supernatural long before. Moreover, he had never managed to comprehend force. Strictly speaking, that Liu Long had reached this day was largely due to Li Hao's favoritism.
He glanced at Liu Long, but before he could speak, Black Panther suddenly opened its mouth. This time, without asking Li Hao, it directly spat out countless strands of Great Dao power surging toward Liu Long, even mixed with a potent strand of Heaven's Will.
Supported by Heaven's Will!
As if aided by divine providence, Liu Long's mind cleared completely in an instant, grasping all the bottlenecks in a flash. Amidst a daze of surging waves, the Nine Forging Power erupted in the blink of an eye. With a deafening rumble, he blasted open a branch in the Great Dao River.
He looked at Black Panther with mixed feelings. *I... advanced by relying on a dog!*
Black Panther wagged its tail, happy and excited. It had practiced the Nine Forging Power for a long time, mastering it to a profound depth. Strictly speaking, Liu Long was half a teacher to it. Seeing everyone else attaining the Dao while Liu Long made no headway, it had grown anxious too. That was why it ignored protocol, not even pausing to ask Li Hao before hastily intervening.
Now, it turned its head toward Li Hao, looking slightly guilty.
Li Hao smiled without saying a word. Even if Black Panther hadn't acted, he would have. Closeness made a difference; relationships mattered in the end. For someone else, he would just watch. But for Liu Long... achieving the Dao was for the best.
Liu Long felt somewhat dejected. Advancing with a dog's help... was rather embarrassing. The main issue was, never mind the others, his son was watching from the side, which made him... lose face. If it were all old acquaintances, he wouldn't care, but...
Looking at his son's curious, astonished expression, he felt helpless and could only send a transmission: "What are you looking at?!"
"Father... is... is that the legendary Dog of the World?"
"Got a problem with that?"
"No... Father, I'm just curious, why did it help you?"
"None of your damn business!"
"No... I saw the way it looked at you, Father... it seemed a bit unusual..."
Liu Long was speechless! *None of your damn business!*
Seeing this, Liu Yin's mother—the curvaceous woman who had been Li Hao's former squad teammate, Liu Yan—suddenly sent a transmission: "Yin'er, Black Panther is the Realm Lord. In the early years, it walked out of Silver City together with me, the Marquis of Silver Moon, and your father. The best thing your father ever did... was teaching the Marquis of Silver Moon the Nine Forging Power. Black Panther learned it along the way, and your father used to boast that it was half his disciple... So in a sense, it's your eldest senior brother!"
"..."
Liu Yin was stunned. Liu Yan quickly followed up: "Just remember it, don't spread it around. It's a Realm Lord now! It has already stepped into rank four, and it's on the verge of reaching rank five Sovereign! The old bonds still remain. Don't speak of it on normal days so you don't invite jealousy. At a critical juncture... if you seek to advance to Sovereign one day and slots are tight... you might be able to ask Black Panther for help."
Liu Yin was surprised; his father had never mentioned this. So that meant his Liu family was practically royalty among the locals!
His father had only mentioned walking out of Silver City alongside the Marquis of Silver Moon, without going into much detail. Now, things looked rather different. He had noticed long ago that Director Zhao, the leader of the Silver Moon caretakers, always gave his father immense face, and all the Silver Moon veterans showed him respect. Now that his mother said this, he had an epiphany: perhaps... the Liu family's relationship with the Marquis of Silver Moon really was extraordinary!
He hadn't known this before. He had only known they were veterans left behind by the Marquis. Had he known earlier... might he have been even more arrogant?
"Mother, why aren't you advancing to Sovereign? If you speak up now..."
"No need. My aptitude is lacking, advancing would just be a waste!"
Liu Yan cut off her son. Three Sovereigns in one household? Did he think he was the Marquis of Silver Moon's son? She knew her husband Liu Long's advancement was virtually assured, but although she was at the ninth tier of Dao Integration, she was still far off, lacking sufficient comprehension. Her son, on the other hand, had decent aptitude, though he had made mistakes earlier. She could actually advance to Sovereign if she asked; given their past bond, Li Hao would not refuse if she spoke up!
There were only a few members in the Demon Hunting Squad back then: herself, Liu Long, Wu Chao, Chen Jian, Yun Yao, and Li Hao. But if she spoke up now... claiming that favor might mean losing a spot for her son later. With limited slots, giving three to one family might not bother Li Hao, but others would likely resent it. That would invite trouble!
That was why she chose not to speak. Glancing at the other old teammates from back then, none of them spoke up either. Their aptitudes were slightly lacking, after all, unable to compare to the Thirty-Six Heroes of Silver Moon of old. Those heroes were the true prodigies who had dominated regions purely through their natural talent before supernaturals ever emerged. Since slots were limited, let that group advance first.
No one spoke of these private calculations, but everyone understood them clearly. Even the once-carefree Liu Yan had learned to think this way today; after staying in Silver Moon for five hundred years, she was no longer the Liu Yan of the past.
With Liu Long advancing with Black Panther's aid, Li Hao glanced at Qian Wuliang, then at Hong Yitang, transmitting: "The two of you may each select one person to attain the Dao according to your needs... If you lack anything, just let me know!"
They were the true Dao Lords; Li Hao had somewhat overstepped his bounds, but since the resources came from Li Hao and he was the Silver Moon King in everyone's eyes, the two Dao Lords hadn't raised any objections.
Hearing Li Hao say this, Qian Wuliang felt pleased, while Hong Yitang felt conflicted. He looked at his daughter in the crowd... He really wanted to help her. His daughter was one of the five commanders of the Demon Hunting Martial Guard Army, and her progress over the years hadn't been slow. Hong Qing had always followed him on the path of the sword and had studied swordsmanship with Li Hao, possessing formidable sword attainments. But... the Sovereign slots were indeed limited right now, and many had yet to attain the Dao. Even early followers like Wang Ming hadn't advanced, not to mention Chief Secretary Yu, Golden Spear, Southern Fist, Hao Lianchuan... a huge crowd was waiting.
"I..."
Li Hao cut in directly: "Don't worry. As they attain the Dao, you two are also digesting Great Dao power, and the world is upgrading... It's only at rank four right now, but rank six isn't far. Slots won't be lacking!"
This was merely the beginning! Mentioning limited slots earlier had just been to spur everyone on; how could they truly be in short supply? Rank seven was too difficult, but rank six was just an accumulation of energy. They hadn't digested much yet and needed some time. Wouldn't there be more slots later? It was just a step later, that was all!
Hearing Li Hao say this, Hong Yitang felt much more at ease. *That's true, I was overthinking it. In that case... if slots won't be lacking later... but later will depend on true ability, without necessarily having Li Hao here to help like today.* His heart stirred. "I... in that case... I'd like Hongxiu to attain the Dao."
"..."
Li Hao was speechless. *You old pervert. Forgetting your daughter the moment your wife comes up. Hongxiu... I thought you'd say Hong Qing. Or... following your usual habits, your disciple Hong Hao would have made sense. Turns out it's your wife. Truly shameless.*
Li Hao didn't know much about Hongxiu, but he knew she was a kind soul. Early on, she had adopted a group of orphans alongside Hong Yitang. Later, when catastrophe struck the West, Hongxiu led disciples of the Earth-Overturning Sword Sect there and took in a multitude of refugees, at one point even being revered as the incarnation of the Moon Goddess. She had remained behind in Silver Moon and kept a low profile. At this moment, she had barely stepped into the ninth tier of Dao Integration, but couldn't be counted as a half-step Sovereign. During this enlightenment, others had made major strides, whereas Hongxiu's progress didn't seem particularly large.
Li Hao glanced at Hong Yitang, who looked uncharacteristically embarrassed. He had only thought of picking Hongxiu because Li Hao was here and had just offered to help... Reflecting on it now, Hongxiu was still far from Sovereign. Just as he was about to say never mind, Li Hao looked at someone: "Uncle Li, could you lend a hand and connect that person's Dao to the Great Dao cosmos..."
Sword Venerable followed his gaze and looked toward a figure, raising an eyebrow slightly. "This is... Compassion?"
He hesitated slightly. "This Dao... leans toward the illusory Dao. A compassionate heart carries something of the Red Moon Dao of Desire, though among desire Daos, it belongs to the benevolent kind... It also has some connection to enlightenment and reform..."
Having said that, he ultimately looked at Li Hao: "It can be done, but it must connect to the illusory Dao. This is Hong Yitang's wife, right? Connecting to the illusory Dao... is that appropriate?"
The illusory Dao was controlled by Qian Wuliang.
Li Hao nodded: "It's fine, let's do it!"
Sword Venerable nodded and said no more. His understanding of the dual Dao cosmoses was perhaps even deeper than that of the two Dao Lords. With him helping, it wasn't difficult.
At this moment, Qian Wuliang also sent a voice transmission: "My Lord Marquis, I want... I'd like Chen Zhongtian to attain the Dao!"
"Hmm?"
Li Hao paused, glancing at the father and son from the Chen family in the distance. Chen Zhongtian and Chen Yao, the former and current ministers of the Inspectorate. The Chen family was among the powers who had pledged allegiance to Li Hao early on, having headed one of the Nine Departments. However, father and son had always been tactful, knowing they couldn't compare to the Silver Moon martial masters who had followed Li Hao from the start. In the early years, Chen Zhongtian had been stronger than everyone else. Yet he had kept an extremely low profile.
To think Qian Wuliang had his eye on him.
Li Hao smiled and nodded. Chen Zhongtian had the qualifications to advance; it was just unclear whether he was intentionally hiding his prowess to wait for next time, or simply lacked the momentum to attain the Dao right now.
"Handle it yourself. You are the Dao Lord... If you want to do a favor, do it yourself!"
Qian Wuliang felt slightly awkward and said nothing. He chose Chen Zhongtian because their situations were somewhat similar; Chen Zhongtian was a smart man, and as a Dao Lord, Qian Wuliang was rather lonely and wouldn't mind an ally.
Soon, Chen Zhongtian felt the gaze of the Great Dao. He looked at Qian Wuliang, then at Li Hao, and seeing no objection from Li Hao, his eyes lit up with delight. *To think I could still snag a slot—splendid!*
……
One Sovereign after another emerged, both Xinwu people and Silver Moon people.
Li Hao didn't meddle further, keeping his focus primarily on his teacher... But his teacher showed no sign of movement for a long time, leaving Li Hao somewhat disappointed. *Does Teacher want to walk the Five Elements Dao? But... fusing the five elements into one is extremely difficult right now. If he walked a single Dao, he might already have advanced. Walking five Daos is too hard!*
Yet Yuan Shuo remained utterly calm. Suddenly, he ceased cultivating, opened his eyes to look at Li Hao, and transmitted: "Stop staring! You're stressing me out! I've always been one to strike after the opponent moves and unleash power from deep accumulation... It's not the first time. Back then, all the Silver Moon heroes entered the Thousand-Fighter realm before me, and what happened? I'm doing the same thing as always—this time, it's still fusing the Five Birds into one! I want to establish a Dao domain first before attaining the Dao..."
Li Hao was speechless. A Dao domain was the exclusive domain of rank seven Sovereigns! He had established a Dao domain very early on, which was indeed related to force fields, and Kongji had established a Dao domain early as well, but Kongji was at least a middle-tier Sovereign. His teacher... was at the ninth tier of Dao Integration! You want to build a Dao domain before attaining the Dao? This was truly exasperating.
"Teacher, a Dao domain is hard to build. Advance to Sovereign first, then build your Dao domain..."
"No!" Yuan Shuo refused. "I don't want to live at their beck and call... Do me a favor later: find me a world with a relatively balanced five elements. I want to use a world as a foundation to establish a Dao domain. I want to... become a rogue cultivator! A rogue cultivator like Sword Venerable and the others..."
"Teacher!"
"What? Looking down on me?"
"No..." Li Hao sighed helplessly. "Fine! I'll find you five minor worlds balanced in the five elements to serve as the foundation of five domains and fuse five Daos. How does that sound?"
"That works! As expected of my disciple—you truly care for your master!"
"..."
Li Hao gave a bitter smile. Honestly! The old man's competitive streak was as fierce as ever.
Since Yuan Shuo was unwilling... Li Hao thought about it. The slot originally reserved for his teacher... why not give it to the woman who was not yet his master's wife?
Jade Light Sword!
Sometimes, Li Hao played favorites too.
Thus, Li Hao didn't hide it; for the first time, he took the initiative to channel a vast amount of Great Dao power along with sword Dao insights to her. Jade Light Sword's expression shifted slightly. She glanced at Yuan Shuo, and seeing that he had stopped cultivating, she furrowed her brows slightly without speaking, quietly beginning her cultivation. *Is Yuan Shuo unable to attain the Dao? Then... let me attain it first! Once I become a Sovereign, at least I can give Old Demon Yuan some pointers.*
"..."
Li Hao caught a glimpse of this thought and felt helpless, but said nothing. *Teacher... how embarrassing.*
……
The breakthroughs to Sovereign caused quite a stir. Others made progress as well, but amid the wave of Sovereign breakthroughs, it went largely unnoticed. This grand spectacle lasted a full half month. After half a month, the crowd finally stabilized.
At this point, Li Hao spoke: "The slots are full. For now, we cannot support any more breakthroughs to Sovereign. After some time, once the gains are digested, the next batch of Sovereigns can emerge!"
Those who had failed to attain the Dao felt somewhat disappointed, but said nothing.
Looking around, Li Hao silently observed the cultivators who had attained the Dao:
Silver Moon's Hong Yitang, Qian Wuliang, Hou Xiaochen, Director Zhao, Heavenly Sword, Jade Light Sword, Hongxiu, Chen Zhongtian, Northern Fist, Overbearing Saber, Yao Si, Southern Fist, Bright Sword, Liu Long, Huang Yu, Director Zhou, Kong Jie, Lin Hongyu, and Black Panther were all Sovereigns.
Xinwu's Zhang An, Ninth Division Commander, Director Wang, Redwood, Turtle Guardian, Li Fuhai, General Locust, Tianji, and Locust King had all attained Sovereign status as well.
The outsiders Mo, Xun Ruo, and Chan Xiu had also achieved Sovereign status.
The demon plant considered half of Xinwu, Di Wei Little Tree, had likewise become a Sovereign.
Thirty-two Sovereigns! Aside from Zhang An and Lin Hongyu, who were not Great Dao cosmos Sovereigns—and though Black Panther was a Realm Lord, it was closely tied to the Great Dao cosmos—the dual cosmoses had accommodated exactly thirty Sovereigns!
Several old acquaintances had not advanced. Wang Ming, Hao Lianchuan, Liu Yan, as well as Jade Rakshasa, Golden Spear, and veterans like Mountain-Splitting Axe and Thunderbolt Leg had not advanced. Some of them Li Hao felt could have made it, but by the end, seeing that the Great Dao cosmos could hold no more and was trembling slightly, some stopped cultivating, including younger members like Hong Qing.
"Counting myself... thirty-three Sovereigns!"
Li Hao sighed with emotion. Thirty-three! This did not include Sword Venerable and his group, nor did it include Ju Ao, who was ecstatic off to the side but didn't belong to the Silver Moon system. That fellow had rather good luck; becoming a Sovereign as a rogue cultivator was exceedingly difficult. Unlike Yuan Shuo, however, he hadn't taken the path of a Dao domain, simply strengthening a single Dao to its utmost, ultimately seizing the opportunity to attain Sovereign status.
With this, the first major wave of advancement formally concluded.
Meanwhile, Hong Yitang, Qian Wuliang, Black Panther, Locust King, and Tianji had all entered the middle tier. Though this strength was somewhat weaker than that of a typically powerful medium world, it was genuinely comparable to medium world power, perhaps boasting even more Sovereigns.
"Congratulations to you all!" Li Hao's voice boomed. "This is only the first major leap. Once the two Dao Lords reach rank five, new Sovereigns can continue to be born. Once they reach rank six, our Silver Moon can even accommodate a hundred Sovereigns!"
Even if not a hundred, fifty or sixty would be effortless.
Li Hao chuckled. "So there is no need to worry on Silver Moon's side. Focus on cultivating and accumulating; becoming a Sovereign is only a matter of time!"
The crowd responded with a resounding shout: "Our thanks to the Lord Marquis!"
At this moment, nothing more needed to be said. This time, squandering so many resources had yielded a large number of Sovereigns, but they were all rank one. For Li Hao, the gains hardly balanced the loss, which placed immense pressure on the Silver Moon powerhouses. They hadn't managed to leap over the Sovereign threshold on their own and had relied entirely on Li Hao. This was truly a case of when one man attains the Dao, his dogs and chickens ascend to heaven.
Many looked toward Yuan Shuo with conflicted expressions. Yuan Shuo... actually hadn't advanced. It was truly surprising!
Li Hao didn't elaborate, merely smiling. This time could be seen as settling some debts. For instance, figures like Li Fuhai who had pledged loyalty to him back then had done so with the hope of becoming Sovereigns in the future. There were also the promises made to Ju Ao earlier... Today, he had fulfilled them all.
Director Wang and the others—the first batch of veterans he had met in Battle Heaven City—had also advanced to Sovereign. Xinwu actually had several other Saints from other major cities, but none of them had advanced this time. On one hand, it was hard to compete with the Silver Moon people; on the other hand, it was improper to fight over slots. Being tactful and bowing out voluntarily was the wiser choice. There was still hope for the second batch. If they had fought over the first batch, not only was success uncertain, but even if they succeeded, they might have provoked resentment from the Silver Moon faction.
At this moment, had Li Hao not provoked rank seven and eight Great Worlds, his forces could be considered formidable! But at the thought that everyone he had offended was a rank seven or eight Sovereign... forget it. These thirty-odd Sovereigns, mostly rank ones, were vastly outmatched by Great Worlds.
At this point, Li Hao could hold on no longer. Looking at everyone, he chuckled, "Now that this is done, it's time for my own cultivation..."
The long river manifested!
The Life and Death Star appeared.
Looking upon it, some were confused while others understood, their hearts heavy with complex emotions.
He was walking the path of life and death!
Li Hao couldn't hold on anymore.
But before that, Li Hao smiled: "Before that, I need to undergo a lightning tribulation... to capture some chaos lightning tribulation and see if I can forge a World of Destruction!" With that, he turned to Li Zhu: "Senior Li Zhu, if I cannot withstand it, or if the tribulation strikes the river, I ask that Senior continue to conceal it for me and preserve the river's power... This time, I cannot afford to lose too much power from the river; otherwise, I won't be able to sustain myself."
"Agreed!"
Li Zhu said nothing more. Li Hao completely dropped the concealment of his aura. Instantly, dark clouds gathered and transformed into a lightning tribulation.
The lightning tribulation directly manifested into giants!
The two sides were practically old acquaintances. This time, the tribulation appeared swiftly and congealed rapidly, even materializing nine giants all at once, each incomparably formidable, completely disregarding past conventions. It was as if it had been thoroughly infuriated by Li Hao!
The nine lightning giants grew progressively stronger, ranging from the weakest at rank six to the strongest at rank seven...
They attacked right away!
Li Hao raised his sword and charged into battle! Ten thousand Daos manifested as the Dao net turned into a domain, clashing violently with the lightning giants. In the blink of an eye, with a thunderous blast, his physical body began to shatter. Ignoring everything else, Li Hao seized the moment, roared furiously, and slashed his sword toward a rank six giant!
Under the grave gazes of the onlookers, a single sword strike slew a rank six lightning giant on the spot!
Li Hao swiftly darted into it, comprehending rapidly, and in the blink of an eye captured some lightning power and destruction power. In an instant, a faint minor world emerged within the river. Li Hao captured a portion of the lightning power... but before he could send it back, with a colossal detonation, a rank seven giant exploded directly, blowing Li Hao to pieces in an instant, causing him to vanish completely!
This time, though Li Hao had disappeared, the remaining lightning giants charged straight for the river, as if sensing that Li Hao's aura still lingered there.
Seeing this, Li Zhu quickly exerted his Dao domain to conceal the river! Yet they were still charging toward it!
Li Zhu's expression shifted slightly. *Can't stop them?*
Just as he wondered, Er Mao suddenly appeared. Opening its colossal mouth, it swallowed heaven and earth in a single gulp, directly devouring the remaining giants! At this moment, the dark clouds seemed about to reconvene, but this time the Sky-Stealing Sun-Swapping technique took effect, instantly concealing everything!
The dark clouds seemed to hesitate before finally dispersing.
Li Zhu's expression changed slightly, while Sword Venerable and the others frowned. Kongji felt even more uneasy: "Haoyue has provoked lightning too many times. This time, even after he fell and his aura was annihilated, the lightning didn't disperse; instead, it pursued him to the bitter end... If this continues, next time, it might not just be rank seven lightning sent to kill him!"
In the past, once Li Hao died, the lightning dispersed. A new beginning, no grudges held from the past!
But this time... it hadn't.
Everyone looked solemn, saying nothing. Kongji glanced at Er Mao with curiosity; quite a few lightning tribulation giants had remained just now, yet this cat had swallowed them in a single bite!
Just what level of strength did this cat possess?
Li Zhu and the others were also solemn, glancing at Er Mao without a word. Was this entity about to descend fully into reality? In that case... would it replicate the Cang Emperor? Becoming peak rank seven? Or slightly weaker, replicating Xinwu's peak limit from back then at peak rank six? It was hard to say! But at this moment, the cat's strength was likely already at rank six! More importantly, it could eat anything—a truly terrifying trait.
Ignoring them all, Er Mao slipped back into the river after finishing off the lightning.
Meanwhile, Li Hao was well-versed in the process; this time, he was even more proficient than before. Soon, he emerged from the river as energy began to deplete endlessly, shattering the remaining Great Dao crystals. Not only that, the Great Dao power left behind by the two rank seven Sovereigns slain previously served as his fuel this time to replenish his losses.
Dying once nearly emptied him of energy entirely, demanding immense resources. Li Hao had little inventory left, so he could only use this rank seven Great Dao power as revival resources. It was extremely wasteful, but he didn't care much. When you have wealth, spend it! On this point, he thoroughly agreed with the Xinwu Human King's approach.
This time, his revival didn't turn him into an infant, nor did he lose his memories. In a single instant, a youth materialized, looking at least eleven or twelve years old. His memories were almost completely intact.
Yet Li Hao couldn't bring himself to be happy about it; this indicated that on his fourth journey through the Dao of Life and Death, the physical body's latent potential might not be as strong as before. Of course, potential was potential; in the grand scheme of the future, it was both important and not that important.
Vast amounts of Great Dao power burned away as minor worlds swiftly emerged, relinking with Li Hao. Soon, an elegant youth stepped out of the river.
The onlookers watched him. Sword Venerable and a few others seemed to discern something. Sword Venerable furrowed his brows slightly and sent a voice transmission: "The Dao of Life and Death is remarkably potent, but... possessing the Dao of Life and Death does not mean you are immune to death!"
Li Hao nodded, saying nothing. He knew where he stood. A normal rank five Sovereign had a lifespan of roughly 800,000 years; he now had roughly half of that. Four hundred thousand years was plenty long. There was nothing to regret. Others might find it a pity, but Li Hao didn't think it was a big deal. It was enough!
"Brother Kongji, stop looking at me. The migration is nearly complete... It's time for us to silence some of Tianfang's worlds while the others are still discussing how to deal with us... If you can step into rank seven, that's ideal. Even if you can't, as long as you gain insights and there is sufficient energy to advance directly, this trip won't be in vain!"
Kongji pressed no further. Eager to try, he let out a laugh: "All right!"
Silencing a rank nine world was bound to be thrilling!
And deep within the cosmos, the projection of the Dao Chessboard manifested. The phantom had been observing the whole time, and upon hearing their conversation, it silently prayed: *You two had better not summon some horrifying abomination...*
Chapter 504