Coordinates

"Damn it! I knew Huijin's arrogant, overbearing nature would inevitably offend people! We never should have put him in charge of negotiating with Daoist Po Suo. But the Alliance Leader insisted that our Star Slayer Alliance had to display some strength to win Dao Sovereign Po Suo's respect and begin cooperating with him!" Dao Lord Yunmiao cursed relentlessly in his heart. They had gone to immense trouble to invite Dao Sovereign Po Suo over, only for those fools to push this Dao Sovereign onto opposing ground in just a few exchanges! Idiots! Dao Sovereign Po Suo had been completely right in his assessment—they were a pack of fools not even worthy of being called an undisciplined mob! As for whether this person named Yaoguang was truly Po Suo or not... It no longer mattered. Judging by how effortlessly he had annihilated two of the Star Slayer Alliance's trump cards, including the Destruction Dao Lord, even if he was not a Dao Sovereign, he was an invincible powerhouse infinitely close to one. Either way, he was a figure they could never afford to offend, someone they should have tried by every means to win over. "I must find a way to mend relations with this Dao Lord," Dao Lord Yunmiao thought, gritting his teeth. *Whoosh!* Just as he was fleeing at full throttle in panic and dread, ripples spread across the void ahead. Immediately afterward, Yaoguang's figure appeared directly in front of him, blocking his path. To slaughter a pinnacle Dao Lord and a renowned Dao Lord, yet still easily overtake him... The gap between them was simply too vast. So vast that merely seeing Yaoguang appear before him filled Dao Lord Yunmiao with an indescribable sense of despair. "Yao... Dao Sovereign Yaoguang... this is a misunderstanding... I am willing to offer compensation..." "Oh?" Yaoguang replied. A Void Dao Sovereign... Given that Yaoguang could not refine any more of the Void's share at present, killing him just like this would be somewhat of a waste. Besides, he still needed to gather more intelligence from this Dao Lord. "I have a few questions for you." "Please ask whatever you wish, Dao Sovereign! I will tell you everything I know, holding nothing back," Dao Lord Yunmiao hurried to say. At the same time, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief. His life was temporarily spared. Whether he could turn "temporary" into permanent would depend entirely on how he conducted himself from here on. "What is your organization called? How many members do you have? What is your overall strength? Introduce it all to me," Yaoguang inquired. "Yes." Dao Lord Yunmiao dared not conceal anything and answered swiftly, "Our Star Slayer Alliance has twenty-three core members, founded under the leadership of the illustrious Dao Lord Jiugong. Dao Lord Jiugong once broke through a joint encirclement of nine Xingri Sect Dao Lords, which made his name resound far and wide... The nine Dao Lords hunting him were led by the pinnacle Dao Lord Qianjie—a lineup of extraordinary strength by any standard. Yet he managed to forcefully fight his way out from the encirclement led by Qianjie, earning him immense prestige in this starry expanse over the past ten thousand years." "Led by a pinnacle Dao Lord..." Hearing this, Yaoguang understood. Although Jiugong had merely escaped an encirclement rather than fighting the nine Dao Lords head-on, the fact that a pinnacle Dao Lord was among them indicated that even if Dao Lord Jiugong did not possess invincible Dao Lord-level combat power, he was likely not far from it. He was probably on par with Dao Lord Penglai, who already possessed a semi-immortal artifact. "The Xingri Sect acts tyrannical and overbearing, and far too many Dao Lords in this starry sky cannot stand them. In just a few millennia since its founding, the Star Slayer Alliance has doubled in size. We took the opportunity to openly rally under the banner of opposing the Xingri Sect. To this day, one hundred and four Dao Lords have joined our alliance, and dozens more remain in contact with us, observing before deciding whether to join..." Dao Lord Yunmiao explained hurriedly. "Is there any Dao Lord of the path of Time?" Yaoguang asked suddenly. "A Time Dao Lord?" Dao Lord Yunmiao was slightly startled. "Destiny, Karma, Time, and Void are the four supreme Grand Daos. The Grand Dao of the Void is the foundation of all existence and the easiest to access, but Time, Karma, and Destiny are all exceptionally arcane without exception. Even though the Star Slayer Alliance has over a hundred Dao Lords, I've never heard of anyone who has mastered the Grand Dao of Time..." Just then, something seemed to occur to him. "However, the Xingri Sect does have Dao Lords of the Grand Dao of Time." "Oh?" Yaoguang's spirits lifted. "Tell me more." "Aside from the Grand Dao of Flowing Light, the Grand Dao of Stars, and the most accessible Grand Dao of the Void, the Xingri Sect has always maintained the inheritances of the Grand Dao of Time and the Grand Dao of Samsara! It is said that within the sect, they have dedicated sanctuaries: the Void Sanctuary, the Time Sanctuary, and the Samsara Sanctuary." Dao Lord Yunmiao stated with certainty, "Furthermore, an ancestral decree within the Xingri Sect dictates that no matter the circumstances, the inheritances of these Three Great Sanctuaries must never be severed. Thus, if they ever lack Dao Lords of these three Grand Daos, the Xingri Sect will expend the entire sect's resources to nurture new Dao Lords in them." "Void, Time, Samsara?" Yaoguang was also somewhat surprised upon hearing this. Void and Time were supreme Grand Daos. The Grand Dao of Samsara was also a core Grand Dao. For the Xingri Sect to constantly maintain the inheritances of these three Grand Daos at all times... What was their purpose? "Could it be that Dao Sovereign is interested in the Xingri Sect's Three Great Sanctuaries? The Gate of the Immortal Realm has now reached the final stages of its opening. In as little as a few decades, or at most a century, our Star Slayer Alliance is bound to launch an assault against the Xingri Sect. If Dao Sovereign is willing to take action alongside us, the Three Great Sanctuaries and all their inheritances can belong entirely to you; the Star Slayer Alliance will not meddle in the slightest." As Dao Lord Yunmiao spoke, he seemed to feel this offer was not weighty enough and quickly added, "We can forgo the rest of the Xingri Sect's treasures as well—just let us copy their Dao art inheritances. Afterward, we will enter the Gate of the Immortal Realm, leaving all other resources entirely at Dao Sovereign's disposal." "Just answer my questions," Yaoguang said calmly. "Where is the headquarters of the Star Slayer Alliance?" Dao Lord Yunmiao seemed to see hope in persuading Yaoguang to join the Star Slayer Alliance, or perhaps he simply dared not conceal anything for fear of displeasing him, so he quickly replied, "The Star Slayer Alliance's headquarters is a battleship traveling at high speeds through the starry sky. It changes its position regularly. As for its exact location, I must contact the alliance, and only after they verify my safety will they send the coordinates." "Then what are you waiting for?" Yaoguang said. Dao Lord Yunmiao dared not delay and quickly made contact. After only a moment, Yaoguang seemed to sense something. "Hurry up." "They need a little time to verify my status..." Dao Lord Yunmiao said. Soon, he let out a sigh of relief. "They sent it. Here are the coordinates." Yaoguang swept his divine mind over it. With a flicker, he took Dao Lord Yunmiao and vanished from this starry sky. Not long after Yaoguang departed, a battleship at the pinnacle Dao artifact rank tore through the void at astonishing speed and barged into the battlefield. A clash between Dao Lords was an event that shook the sea of stars in any region; nearby Dao Lords could sense it even across tens of thousands of light-years. And when such a battle involved the fall of Dao Lords... The ripples would spread across millions or even tens of millions of light-years. As one of the Xingri Sect's vital gateways, Yunji Starport possessed numerous teleportation arrays, Star Gates, and nodal passages, with Dao Lords personally garrisoned in the affiliated star domain. Having sensed the fall of two Dao Lords in this region, the Xingri Sect Dao Lord guarding the area naturally gathered subordinates and rushed over. Upon the battleship's arrival, three Dao Lords immediately soared into the air from its deck, respectively executing the Grand Dao of Deduction, the Grand Dao of Prophecy, and the Grand Dao of Knowledge to gather information from the battlefield. Before long, these Dao Lords returned to the battleship's deck. There, a fully armed Dao Lord clad in battle armor was waiting for their report. "Commander Qianjie, it's good news," the man cultivating the Grand Dao of Deduction said with a smile. "Those who fell were neither any Dao Lord from our Xingri Sect nor fence-sitting marginal Dao Lords, but rather core members of the Star Slayer Alliance who specifically oppose us—Dao Lord Huijin, who cultivated the Grand Dao of Destruction." "Huijin?" Dao Lord Qianjie looked slightly moved. Among the Star Slayer Alliance, there were only a handful of illustrious pinnacle Dao Lords, and Huijin was one of them. Yet... He had actually fallen here? "Not only Huijin, but Quanzhen has also fallen," the Dao Lord cultivating the Grand Dao of Knowledge said in a low voice. "In addition, I sensed the lingering aura of Dao Lord Yunmiao's power." "Yunmiao aside, Huijin and Quanzhen were both illustrious figures. With those two Dao Lords joining forces, plus a Void cultivator adept at escaping, who could have killed them?" Dao Lord Qianjie was somewhat surprised. "As far as I know, though the sect has been preparing to wipe out the Star Slayer Alliance—which threatens to become a thorn in our side—we have lacked accurate intelligence and have not known where they gather. Thus, we haven't acted up until now, only able to passively wait for the final battle when the Gate of the Immortal Realm opens." "It was likely some powerful Dao Lord seeking to curry favor with us," the Dao Lord cultivating the path of Prophecy suddenly chimed in. "I caught faint glimpses of future fragments: before long, we will discover the Star Slayer Alliance's location, and a battle will erupt that crushes them." "Discover the Star Slayer Alliance's location?" Dao Lord Qianjie's heart stirred. Sweeping his gaze across the battlefield, relying on a Void Dao Lord's keen sensitivity to the surrounding space, he quickly detected something. He closed his hand in the empty air, and a patch of void was swiftly gathered and compressed until a pattern of light and shadow emerged. As the patterns converged, they formed none other than a set of coordinates. "Are these coordinates left behind by that Dao Lord?" "Where do they point? Could it be a trap?" The Dao Lords adept at deduction and information gathering grew curious. Qianjie pondered for a moment before saying, "Since the person slew Huijin and Quanzhen of the Star Slayer Alliance, they are likely not an enemy. These coordinates... are perhaps one of the Star Slayer Alliance's strongholds, or even the location of one of their major figures..." The Xingri Sect was the overlord of this star domain and held control over the Gate of the Immortal Realm, which allowed one to ascend and become an immortal. Dao Lords sought to curry favor with them in all manner of ways. Over the years, there had been no shortage of Dao Lords who deliberately joined the Star Slayer Alliance only to report on it in hopes of earning entry into the Xingri Sect. They were already accustomed to such things. Thereupon, this commander-rank figure said, "I intend to go investigate. Naturally, for safety's sake, I will gather our forces before heading over." "Caution is indeed the best course," the other Dao Lords agreed. None of them seriously believed this could be a trap set by the Star Slayer Alliance. If it were a trap... The price paid would have been far too steep. Were word of it to spread, it would immediately cause the Star Slayer Alliance, which already lacked cohesive unity, to collapse completely. "If the coordinates provided by this Dao Lord truly prove useful and allow us to deal a heavy blow to the Star Slayer Alliance, I wouldn't mind recommending him to join our Xingri Sect in the future so he may serve us well," Dao Lord Qianjie said, a faint smile appearing on his face. "Even if he isn't a Dao Lord of our Xingri Sect's direct lineage, as long as he works diligently for the sect and accumulates sufficient merit, we can mercifully grant him a spot to enter the Gate of the Immortal Realm, allowing him to ascend to the Immortal Realm."