Wariness

In the distance, the Golden Cores from the Immortal Alliance, Wuji Astral Palace, Myriad Beasts Sect, and Nine Cauldrons Sect had naturally followed along as well. Yet, held back by Li Hanqiu, they had halted nearly a hundred million li from the battlefield, forbidden from approaching any closer. The figures from the Immortal Alliance, Wuji Astral Palace, and Myriad Beasts Sect were content with this arrangement. The Immortal Alliance and Wuji Astral Palace worried that Li Hanqiu might intervene to save him at a critical moment. As for the Myriad Beasts Sect... Naturally, they were just enjoying the spectacle and never minded things escalating. Under these circumstances, they had a crystal-clear view of the clash taking place on Planet 6713. For Golden Cores whose states were unstable, battles between them were easily decided unless an actual fight to the death was involved. In a brief engagement, a victor would emerge cleanly; but if one failed to win quickly and dragged the fight out too long, even the eventual victor faced the risk of their Golden Core collapsing into death due to its unsustainable state. Therefore, when such a situation arose, both sides would generally choose to make peace and let matters rest. Precisely for this reason, after their initial probing, Miller and Zhan Ke had not hesitated to unleash two top-tier spirit treasures: the Sky Cleaving Plate and the Heaven Disrupting Ruler. When these two spirit treasures were deployed, the four cultivators including Lu Xi and Qiao An were visibly tense beneath their excitement. Excitement... because they believed the coordination of these two top-tier spirit treasures would inevitably seal Yaoguang's absolute doom. As for their tension... they feared Li Hanqiu would descend into madness once Yaoguang died. At this moment, they were all on high alert. Yet the outcome... proved to be a disappointment. Though the attacks of the Heaven Disrupting Ruler and Sky Cleaving Plate had posed some danger to Yaoguang, they clearly failed to inflict any real harm on him. Relying on the superiority of his divine mind, he practically treated the Heaven Disrupting Ruler as nothing. This sight naturally caused the expressions of Feng Ao, Lin Deng, Luofu, and the others to turn unimaginably solemn. To withstand the assault of a top-tier spirit treasure like the Heaven Disrupting Ruler meant that Yaoguang's divine mind strength had truly, just as Feng Ao said, reached the pinnacle of the Dharma Idol realm! Such a terrifying existence was virtually insurmountable in today's Cangwu Great World. Even if the three Dharma Idol cultivators of the Immortal Alliance and Wuji Astral Palace joined forces, they might not be able to rival Yaoguang. It was no exaggeration to say that he was now qualified to proclaim himself the foremost figure of the Dharma Idol realm. "Damn it!" Feng Ao cursed inwardly. Right at that moment, Yaoguang shifted his tactics. Swiftly closing the distance to the two Golden Cores, Miller and Zhan Ke, he continuously dissolved their attacks with the Origin Disintegration Art. Though the distant Golden Cores could not fully identify the technique, they could tell that this secret art was aimed squarely at the structural stability of a Golden Core. For a moment, not only did the Golden Cores of the Wuji Astral Palace and Immortal Alliance stiffen, but even Ye Lin and Fu Long of the Myriad Beasts Sect turned graver. If Yaoguang could threaten Miller and Zhan Ke with such tactics, he could naturally threaten the Myriad Beasts Sect just as easily. Shortly after Yaoguang deployed this approach, the situation took a precipitous downturn. When Miller's Golden Core structure began to fracture, Lu Xi could no longer sit still. "Enough! Yaoguang has already proven his strength. We acknowledge that the Nine Cauldrons Sect possesses two Golden Cores and may reclaim its treatment as a top immortal sect. Tell him to stop!" Li Hanqiu completely ignored Lu Xi, his eyes fixed intently on the battlefield a hundred million li away. In his gaze... there was palpable delight. Clearly, the power Yaoguang displayed had far exceeded his expectations. ... "Yaoguang!" Across the region surrounding Planet 6713, Miller's divine sense pierced the starry sky, hastily transmitting a message: "Halt! What happened ten years ago at Dengxian Tower can be written off completely—bygones will be bygones..." Yaoguang paid him no heed, merely pointing forward with another Origin Disintegration Art. Beside him, Zhan Ke could bear it no longer. "Yaoguang, what are you doing?! The only real purpose of fighting you was to test your strength! Now that we have recognized your power, do you really intend to slaughter us to the last?!" "Why shouldn't I?" Yaoguang's divine mind replied indifferently. "Nineteen years ago, the sky-patrol warships of the Wuji Astral Palace invaded Nine Cauldrons Sect territory, and the battle's shockwaves caused tens of thousands of deaths. Shouldn't that debt be settled now?" "You..." Zhan Ke's expression changed. Then he said in a heavy voice, "It's true that your secret art can destabilize our Golden Core structure. But if we disregard our Golden Cores and fight you to the bitter end, when a Radiant Sun Golden Core unleashes its full might without reservation, the final outcome remains far from certain!" "Is that so? I'm waiting!" With a leap across space, Yaoguang struck Miller with yet another Origin Disintegration Art. Though Miller tried with all his might to dodge, his target profile was far too massive right now. Furthermore, with Yaoguang's divine mind holding an absolute advantage in guiding the art, evasion was entirely impossible. Under the strike of this fresh Origin Disintegration Art, his Golden Core's condition deteriorated to the absolute extreme. Innumerable substances reacted furiously within it, spewing forth terrifying bursts of energy, causing the might and searing heat radiating from his body to soar to unprecedented heights. The brilliance illuminating the starry sky crossed over a billion li of void, reaching even the Cangwu Great World. When the beings of the Cangwu Great World looked up after some time, they would surely see what appeared to be a new star born in the firmament, its radiance clearly visible even in broad daylight. "Yaoguang, what in the world do you want?! Do you really want to slaughter us to the last?! Doing this means all-out war with our Immortal Alliance! Once war begins, the entire Cangwu Great World will be destroyed! When that happens, your relatives, your friends, your clan, every living soul you know will be buried alongside the Cangwu Great World as your funeral sacrifices!" Miller cried out in shock and fury. This threat and demeanor... was rather reminiscent of Li Hanqiu's negotiations with the Immortal Alliance ten years ago. Back then, facing the mighty Immortal Alliance, Li Hanqiu's sole leverage was holding the Cangwu Great World hostage. Now, Yaoguang had somewhat vented that grievance on Li Hanqiu's behalf. Even so, he knew that neither Miller nor Zhan Ke could be killed just yet. Otherwise, the threat of an all-out war between the three great factions destroying the entire Cangwu Great World was by no means an empty one, and no one could bear such consequences. "Hand over all the spirit treasures on your person!" Yaoguang said. "You want my spirit treasures? Impossible! If I hand them over and you go back on your word..." "If I kill you, your spirit treasures will still be mine," Yaoguang cut him off coldly. Looking at this Immortal Alliance Golden Core, he said, "If your skills fall short, you must bear the consequences. You have only one chance." As he spoke, he raised his hand, ripples of the Origin Disintegration Art coalescing once more. "Or would you care to gamble on whether the death of just one Golden Core would push the Immortal Alliance into an all-out war with our Nine Cauldrons Sect?" With those words, all of Miller's resentment was choked back. Death?! In his current Golden Core condition, if he took another hit from that Origin Disintegration Art, he could not guarantee any hope of pulling his collapsing Golden Core back from the brink. As for an all-out war... Unless truly pushed to having no other choice, who would actually flip the table? So long as Yaoguang gave them a way out, they would never genuinely choose mutual destruction. Miller knew this very well. The higher one's cultivation, the more clearly one understood the nature of this world. His chest rose and fell in rapid breaths. Seeing Yaoguang's Origin Disintegration Art condensing anew, he made up his mind without hesitation: "I'll give them to you!" In another ten to twenty years, the experts on Beihai Star would return. In other words, so long as they endured for just another decade or two, the tides would turn; why gamble his life over momentary spite? Immediately, he detached the spirit treasures from his body one after another. "I hope you keep your word. Otherwise, I will detonate my Golden Core. At such close range, if a Radiant Sun Golden Core completely detonates... you won't fare well either." "As long as the Immortal Alliance speaks to our Nine Cauldrons Sect based on strength and standing from now on, our Nine Cauldrons Sect won't push things out of hand." Yaoguang stepped forward, sweeping away all six spirit treasures from his person in one breath. Five of these six were ordinary spirit treasures, offering meager boosts to a Golden Core's combat power. The only one of genuine value was the Sky Cleaving Plate. Even so, five additional spirit treasures for free were a tremendous gain, enough to push his progress in [Immortal Path: Void Piercing] a bit further. "You may go," Yaoguang said. In silence, Miller struggled to stabilize his Golden Core as he rapidly retreated into the distance. Yaoguang then turned his gaze toward Zhan Ke, who was fleeing in panic. With his Star God-level physique, his Crimson Golden Core could accommodate even greater bursts of power. After a brief pursuit, Zhan Ke quickly realized that unless he disregarded his Golden Core's state and drove it with everything he had, there was no way he could outrun Yaoguang before regrouping with Qiao An and the others. And once his Golden Core spiraled out of control, who knew how long it would take to stabilize again? "Damn it!" Zhan Ke cursed internally. Turning back to Yaoguang, he said in a low voice, "Master Yaoguang, we acknowledge your strength. Let today's battle end here. Does your Nine Cauldrons Sect truly want to completely tear off all face with our Wuji Astral Palace?" "It's not that I want to tear off all face, but that you are too tactless. Leave all your spirit treasures behind, and I will let you go. Otherwise..." Yaoguang glanced toward the distance, where Qiao An and the others wanted to reinforce him but were blocked by Li Hanqiu, Ye Lin, Fu Long, and their companions. "I wouldn't mind slaughtering a Golden Core to whet my appetite." "You..." Anger flared in Zhan Ke's eyes. Yet the rationality of an apex expert compelled him to suppress the malice in his heart, lest a reckless burst of pride escalate matters beyond control. Taking a deep breath, he swallowed all his indignation and resentment, saying heavily, "A loss is a loss! As you said, I am willing to hand over these spirit treasures as compensation. From this day forth, Master Yaoguang is the thirty-fifth top Golden Core in the world." As he spoke, he swiftly divested himself of one spirit treasure after another, including the top-tier spirit treasure, the Heaven Disrupting Ruler. Yaoguang collected the treasures one by one. He understood that with every Golden Core holding the power to flip the table and destroy the Cangwu Great World, this was indeed the best outcome. As Yaoguang stowed the spirit treasures away, Zhan Ke and Miller departed rapidly, reuniting half a day later with the other Golden Cores of the Immortal Alliance and Wuji Astral Palace. Yaoguang also left that region of space and met up with Li Hanqiu once more. Seeing Yaoguang return practically unscathed after achieving a glorious victory against two opponents at once, Li Hanqiu—despite having prepared himself mentally—could not help nodding vigorously: "Good! Splendidly done!" Yaoguang smiled slightly, devoid of arrogance. However, as the Golden Cores from the three great factions—the Immortal Alliance, the Wuji Astral Palace, and even the Myriad Beasts Sect—regrouped and exchanged words... The gaze every single person cast toward Yaoguang took on a tinge of wariness. In the end, Qiao An of the Wuji Astral Palace stepped forward and said in a grave voice, "Li Hanqiu, Yaoguang, I believe the pact prohibiting Golden Cores from meddling in the affairs of the Cangwu Great World must be renegotiated. Otherwise, if every Golden Core threatens to destroy the Cangwu Great World at the drop of a hat, the situation will eventually spiral out of control, and we will all burn in the fire we play with."