Su Yu's Plan

The Human Realm. Su Yu flew back in an instant. After waiting for a moment, King Dazhou finally returned. His speed was a bit slower than Su Yu's. Panting slightly, King Dazhou looked toward Su Yu. Su Yu turned his head and asked, "Two Dao Merge experts descended?" "Yes. One is the Abyss Marquis of the Tianyuan race, and the other is the Heavenly Dragon Marquis of the dragon race. Both are ancient marquises!" Su Yu nodded, looked at him again, and frowned. "Why are you panting? King Dazhou, stop putting on an act in front of me all the time. I don't like it." To put it simply, he didn't like someone acting more pretentious than himself. The hell with you! You can teleport dozens of Invincibles straight to the Tianyuan Realm in the blink of an eye, yet for such a short journey alone, you're teleporting and panting? Who are you kidding? King Dazhou froze and instantly ceased his heavy breathing. After a long pause, he coughed softly and said, "Force of habit." There was nothing to say to that. It truly was a habit. In King Dazhou's mind, after teleporting such a long distance, the normal response was to gasp for breath a few times. But upon further reflection, that wasn't appropriate anymore. He had been an Eternal before, but now he was at the Dao Merge stage! A peak Dao Merge expert, at that! He had kept up the facade for so long that he forgot he was at the peak of the Dao Merge realm. Su Yu was utterly speechless as well! Having essentially figured out King Dazhou's background by now, and with his own Dao fusion complete, Su Yu was no longer as wary or rejecting of him as before. He was merely unaccustomed to someone who could put on an act even better than he could. After giving that reminder, Su Yu quickly asked, "One of them seems to be in the Destiny Realm?" "The Abyss Marquis is there. He faces no suppression in that realm. With no one left in the Tianyuan Realm now, he certainly won't go back. He's also likely seeing if he can win over the Destiny Emperor..." Su Yu nodded. The Destiny Emperor. That old fellow's strength was not weak at all! In fact, it was definitely formidable! Su Yu vaguely sensed he was another peak combat power. Even though he had yet to see the other's Dao, the Destiny race was exceedingly mysterious. "The Destiny Emperor..." muttered Su Yu, saying nothing more. Just as he was about to step into the Human Realm passage, his brows twitched slightly. Reaching toward the void, his giant hand expanded across hundreds of li. A moment later, the hand closed, grabbed a person, and brought him back instantly! Soon, King Dazhou saw whom Su Yu had caught. Zhou Hao! At that moment, Zhou Hao's clothes were tattered and torn. He looked at Su Yu with a dazed expression before mumbling sullenly, "Why did Emperor Yu drag me over here?" "..." Su Yu studied him for a moment and chuckled. "I almost forgot about you! You've finished opening three hundred and sixty origin apertures? That was fast—it's only been two months. Why didn't you come looking for me?" Last time, he had told Zhou Hao to find him after opening all three hundred and sixty origin apertures. Moreover, Su Yu had deliberately withheld one aperture: the Sky-Connecting Aperture! How many times had this guy blown himself up? Su Yu was genuinely curious! Of course, since Zhou Hao had already opened all three hundred and sixty apertures, it was hard to tell how many times he had exploded, so Su Yu didn't ask. Zhou Hao said in a deep voice, "I haven't killed a formidable genius on the Heaven Hunting Ranking yet. Lately, it's been difficult to find any of those geniuses on the All-Heavens Battlefield. I haven't made it onto the Earth Ranking either..." Su Yu smiled. "Forget it. All the races have gone into hiding recently, so it's normal that you couldn't find any geniuses to kill." He remembered now. Su Yu had told him to kill some geniuses because he didn't want him reaping rewards without labor, and this fellow had actually stayed out there waiting to hunt them down. From the looks of it, though, he hadn't crossed paths with any. Su Yu scrutinized Zhou Hao. He wasn't doing poorly at all. With three hundred and sixty origin apertures opened, his physical body was at around thirty castings. When Su Yu had last seen him two months ago, Zhou Hao had been at around twenty-five castings. In just two months, he had completed five more? That was remarkably fast! Of course, Su Yu didn't compare Zhou Hao to himself. His own rapid body casting had come at a tremendous cost in resources. For Zhou Hao to obtain resources now couldn't be nearly as simple. After all, finding experts of the myriad races to kill was difficult right now, as they had all retreated into their respective realms. A descendant of King Wu... Su Yu observed him closely, wondering whether a descendant of King Wu possessed an innate connection to King Wu's Great Dao. As he inspected Zhou Hao, sure enough, a faint, exceedingly thin thread hovered above the young man's head. It was exceptionally fine, something Su Yu could never have perceived before opening his Heavenly Gate. Now, however, he could catch a glimpse of its trace. Was Zhou Hao connected to King Wu's Great Dao? Or did the descendants of powerful experts all exhibit this phenomenon to some extent? Take King Daming, for instance. Su Yu hadn't checked closely before—could he be connected to King Ming's Great Dao? Was King Daxia connected to King Zhan's Great Dao? No, that wasn't entirely it. There had to be certain prerequisites, such as high bloodline purity or strong affinity with the Dao. Only then could one innately inherit a trace of the other's Dao. Had this Zhou Hao fellow undergone an ancestral regression? With that thought, Su Yu abruptly looked toward King Dazhou, who was observing from the side. "King Dazhou, Zhou Hao used to live in the Great Zhou Prefecture. Did you know about him?" King Dazhou nodded slightly. "I did." Now it was Zhou Hao's turn to be astonished. He looked toward King Dazhou and bowed slightly, feeling rather bewildered. King Dazhou knew about me? King Dazhou explained, "His lineage... appears to have some ancient origins, but it goes back very far! I ran across him once by chance. His grandfather was likely a Sun and Moon expert who fell during the prefecture-founding era. His father and mother continually tempered themselves in the wilderness of the Human Realm, so I didn't pay much attention after that. Sometime later, both of his parents died in the wild... "I returned once and saw him. I originally planned to take him away, but seeing him fighting wild beasts all on his own in the wilderness, I changed my mind. Perhaps he was more suited to the wilds. So I merely left behind a wisp of willpower to deter powerful beasts from approaching and didn't interfere any further." Su Yu was surprised. You ran into him back then? You left behind a wisp of willpower, but didn't take him in? Did Zhou Hao miss out on an opportunity because of that? Seeing Su Yu looking his way, King Dazhou coughed lightly and hid nothing. "I have seen many promising seeds over the years! Some are simply not suited for centralized nurturing; free-range growth suits them better, and there's no rush in their early stages. If Zhou Hao could temper himself and step into the Shanhai or Sun and Moon realm, I would naturally have gone to see him again... "A Fire Spreader does not keep every good seed by his side. That would not do." King Dazhou added, "Good seeds must be scattered across all quarters. In their early stages, they must fight and kill on their own! They must carve out their own future!" Hearing this, Su Yu thought of something and suddenly asked, "You've been in the Human Realm for so many years, evaluating every generation. Who among the younger generation have you assessed?" King Dazhou smiled. "Quite a few. Zhou Hao was one of them. Then there's Wan Tiansheng's grandnephew, Wan Mingze. Xia Longwu's son, Xia Huyou. Even Liu Hong and Bai Feng of the Great Xia Prefecture were on my evaluation list. "As for the Great Qin Prefecture, there were a few seeds, though I wasn't overly optimistic about them. "Over in the Great Ming Prefecture, there weren't many outstanding talents among the younger generation, though there were several in the previous generation..." King Dazhou held nothing back now. He indeed had evaluated many geniuses, though he had never brought them to the Great Zhou Prefecture. There was no need for that. Keeping an eye on them was enough! Su Yu had a sudden realization. "Wan Mingze... I always felt there was an Eternal backing him. Did you give him benefits?" "Not at all," King Dazhou explained. "I merely offered a slight bit of guidance, letting him discover a few cultivation methods on his own. I never proactively grant benefits to others. That is improper and far too conspicuous! Once they grow strong later on, it would be too easy to trace the clues back to me! For a Fire Spreader, keeping one's identity a secret comes first! I merely guide some geniuses onto the path they are meant to walk!" He wasn't responsible for handing out benefits. Even if he did, it was strictly tailored to local conditions—if there were resources near the target, he would guide them toward them, rather than gifting good items directly. Stingy! Su Yu thought to himself. The man was simply stingy, yet he managed to describe it in such an elegant, refreshing manner. Since he had run into Zhou Hao on the way back, Su Yu paid no further mind to King Dazhou. Zhou Hao... King Wu... that was rather interesting. Had King Wu left behind any backup plans? Perhaps... he really hadn't! In any case, Su Yu knew that King Wen had left behind a few things, the ancient Human Sovereign had left some, and the descendants of the Prison King were immensely formidable. Only King Wu and King Ming, two immensely powerful beings, seemed to have left nothing behind at all. And King Wu had been renowned on equal footing with King Wen! "Supposedly, King Wu disappeared early rather than in the later era. He might have truly found King Wen and the others, fighting alongside them." Su Yu looked back at Zhou Hao and tapped a finger against the youth's forehead, transmitting the method of the three hundred and sixty origin apertures into his sea of consciousness. As for opening the Heavenly Gate, Su Yu felt Zhou Hao lacked the talent for it. However, in physical martial arts and combat techniques, Zhou Hao was exceptionally gifted. Although he had not finished casting his physical body, that was nothing. If Zhou Hao could quickly complete seventy-two castings, the nine transformations of the Lingyun Realm would be simple; Su Yu didn't lack treasures. Merging the apertures in the Shanhai Realm would also be straightforward, since they would naturally fuse. Perhaps a mighty figure could be forged in no time. "I've imparted the Zhou Celestial Origin Aperture Method to you!" As Su Yu spoke, Zhou Hao quickly examined the technique. After a moment, he said in a rather dry voice, "Why... does this circulation method only include three hundred and fifty-eight apertures..." Last time, he had been given the locations of three hundred and fifty-nine apertures. This time, another was missing, leaving him with the circulation method for only three hundred and fifty-eight. Su Yu replied placidly, "The Dao cannot be imparted lightly. I've already given you as much as permissible; giving you even one more would make it practically complete! Just test it twice on your own. At most, you'll burst a single aperture. What's wrong with that?" The rules did not permit perfection! Su Yu wasn't lying. Furthermore, Zhou Hao was bound to blow up once because the rules would guide him to make the wrong choice. It seemed like a fifty-fifty chance, but in truth, the first attempt was guaranteed to fail. That was Su Yu's personal experience! Zhou Hao nodded without another word and immediately began circulating the technique, lighting up aperture after aperture. Ignoring him, Su Yu wrapped him in origin qi and carried him along as they flew toward the Human Realm. King Dazhou quickly followed. Passing through the all-heavens passage, Zhou Hao lit up three hundred and fifty-eight apertures. Faced with the final choice between two, he picked one—and with a loud bang, a puff of black smoke billowed from his backside! King Dazhou gave Su Yu a peculiar look. Was this some kind of twisted sense of humor? Without looking back, Su Yu said, "It's the consequence of the rules. What are you looking at me for?" King Dazhou could only nod. Nonsense! Su Yu was immensely powerful now. While he claimed it was the fault of the rules, if he had truly imparted the full technique, the rules wouldn't have penalized him over such a trivial matter, would they? Even if there were a penalty, Su Yu could swat it away with a single palm! This fellow had done it deliberately! Meanwhile, Su Yu tossed some white lotus root to Zhou Hao. "Eat this, heal your injuries, and finish circulating the technique! You seem to be a descendant of King Wu. I believe seventy-two castings should be well within your reach. Your ancestor was a warrior of peerless physical might, so you should be able to do it too!" At these words, before Zhou Hao could process them, King Dazhou was taken aback. "He... a descendant of King Wu?" That was impossible, wasn't it? Su Yu said without turning his head, "Is there a problem? What's strange about a descendant of King Wu? He married plenty of Dao companions; is it so odd that a few descendants survived?" "No..." King Dazhou hastily explained, "I mean, when the first tide ended, almost all of King Wu's descendants were wiped out. I assumed his lineage had gone completely extinct. I never expected a branch to have survived. None of the subsequent tides ever showed any sign of them." Logically speaking, King Wu's lineage was incredibly strong, so why had there been no word of them from the second to the ninth tide? Even King Ming's line had left some traces; otherwise, who would have known that King Daming was King Ming's descendant? As for King Zhan's line, the Xia family had remained powerful all the way to the present day. King Dazhou had truly believed King Wu's lineage was completely dead. After all, King Gong's line still had the renowned He Tu. Su Yu smiled. "Were there no descendants of King Wu in the previous tides?" "None." "Then they were probably wiped out before they could grow." Su Yu glanced back at the nonchalant Zhou Hao. "If this guy had fought me back then and been killed, that would have been the end of it. If a slightly stronger Qianjun Realm cultivator died, would King Dazhou keep wondering whether he was King Wu's descendant?" King Dazhou nodded slightly. That was true! If one died while weak, no matter how monstrous their talent, no one would care. As they flew, Su Yu continued, "Let's leave that aside. Whether one is a descendant of King Wu or King Ming, it only provides a slightly higher starting point. The rest depends on oneself! "Zhou Hao, finish your body casting as soon as possible. If you lack resources, ask King Dazhou for them!" King Dazhou was speechless. Why ask me? I'm not in charge of managing those resources. Su Yu went on, "Furthermore, King Dazhou, there is no news about three of the human race's Invincibles. Where did those three go?" He had calculated it. The human race was missing three Invincibles. There shouldn't be just forty-three; there should be forty-six. Of course, Zhu Tiandao and Marquis Xia were about to attain the Dao, but Su Yu hadn't guided them yet, waiting until their weapons were forged. Where had the other three gone? No one else had paid much attention to this. Missing three Invincibles was no small matter, but over the years, rumors had circulated that some Invincibles had died in other realms, even accompanied by celestial omens, so everyone assumed they were dead. Su Yu, however, suspected they might still be alive. Sure enough, upon hearing Su Yu's question, King Dazhou pondered for a moment before saying, "Those three all attained the Dao in the later years. Some years back, I made a few arrangements for them to fake their deaths in battle, leaving behind some confusing clues. It led everyone to think they weren't dead, but if disaster struck the human race and enemies investigated closely, they would conclude they were truly dead, serving only as a bluff against the myriad races." In short, he had made it thoroughly bewildering so no one could tell whether they were dead or alive. Speechless, Su Yu asked, "Where are they now?" King Dazhou coughed lightly. "In a small realm. There are some humans there, not the multiple-character cultivators that everyone secretly cultivated—that was merely a diversion!" "Which small realm?" "The Fire Pig Realm!" King Dazhou explained, "That realm is the weakest and the stupidest! It's even hostile toward the human race! The major races look down on it, and humans treat them like pigs to butcher! Passersby don't even spare them a second glance! If a great war breaks out, none of the major races would summon them to fight. Their strongest experts are merely at the Shanhai Realm; you can hardly find a single Sun and Moon cultivator among them... a completely dispensable existence in the myriad realms!" The crucial point was that they weren't aligned with the human race. If they were, they would be purged should the human race lose. Because they weren't on the human side, even if the myriad races won, they wouldn't bother paying attention to them, dispatching a Sun and Moon cultivator at most to manage and intimidate them. "All three are there?" "All of them." King Dazhou explained, "Separating them wouldn't have been wise. Keeping them together allows them to monitor one another, making betrayal less likely! If the human race is defeated, their strength is weak, and none of them attained the Dao in the Human Realm, so the destruction of the Human Realm wouldn't affect them much. They would still have a chance of survival. If we lose the tenth tide, there might still be an eleventh..." Su Yu thought it over and nodded. "That makes sense! Then let them stay there. Three weak Eternals won't make a difference if they show up anyway. Better to preserve some sparks of hope! If the human race truly loses, there might still be a chance." King Dazhou murmured, "I actually think we have a chance to win in this tide!" "Do we?" Su Yu sneered. "The Dao Merge experts of the myriad races in the Upper Realm number at least sixty or seventy. If more have emerged over the years, they might exceed a hundred! How many do we have? Isn't this all thanks to what the human race did in the previous tide?" King Dazhou had no reply. Su Yu added, "The Hundred Battles King most likely isn't dead. He was either sealed away or turned traitor. How likely do you think betrayal is?" "Unlikely." King Dazhou still believed the Hundred Battles King hadn't betrayed them, saying quickly, "He isn't that kind of person. If he were, the ancient figures of the previous tide weren't total idiots. If the Hundred Battles King didn't die... he was probably suppressed!" Su Yu nodded. "To suppress him... the waters of the myriad races run deep indeed. Even if he was ambushed, he had combat power close to a Lord of Rules! Or does the Prison King's lineage possess such an expert?" It was entirely possible, considering how strong Consort Xi was. After chatting for a while, Su Yu arrived at the Emperor Yu Mansion. The new sacred ground had been successfully constructed. At the site of the former Double Sacred Mansion, a colossal palace now stood tall. There were quite a few guards stationed there, creating an appearance of tight security, but it was purely for show and held little practical value. If a true expert attacked, a single slap would wipe them out! Meanwhile, King Tianzhu was leading countless human armamentsmiths in forging weapons here! The work was proceeding in full swing! The moment Su Yu arrived, two figures flashed into view. Zhu Tiandao beamed. "Emperor Yu has returned! The sacred ground is now officially open!" "Prefect Zhu is too polite!" Su Yu smiled. "We're all old acquaintances, so there's no need for such formalities. Being so formal makes me feel uncomfortable. It's only natural to be formal with unfamiliar people—right, King Dazhou?" King Dazhou kept his mouth shut. You're poking at me again! Haven't I been polite enough to you? This kid Su Yu insisted on keeping him on his toes all day long. Ignoring him, Su Yu asked, "How is the weapon forging going?" "Very smoothly!" Zhu Tiandao said cheerfully, "Not bad at all. The weapons for the fourteen replacement guards have all been forged!" Su Yu nodded. "Tell King Tianzhu to work overtime. We still need some weapons tailored to the Five Elements attributes. The Five Elements race will provide eight Eternals. Additionally, prepare some for the Iron-Eater and Hou races as well. Finish them as soon as possible!" "Understood!" Zhu Tiandao replied swiftly. Beside him, Marquis Xia was in no rush. Waiting until Zhu Tiandao finished speaking, he spoke up, "Emperor Yu, Bai Feng mentioned that you have a large quantity of Heavenly River Sand. Last time, my father gifted the Sea of Will Mystic Realm to Emperor Yu... My thought is to open the Sea of Will Mystic Realm to strengthen some Civilization Masters, but we currently lack the primary materials. Emperor Yu, what do you think...?" Su Yu smiled. "I almost forgot about that. Sure, go ahead and open it! I have plenty of Heavenly River Sand here and have no use for it anymore, but it should be quite effective for ordinary Civilization Masters!" Marquis Xia nodded with a smile and glanced at Zhu Tiandao. Try competing with me! This is called seeking benefits for Civilization Masters. Furthermore, look at who I just mentioned: Bai Feng, Su Yu's teacher, who belongs to our Great Xia Prefecture! Su Yu soon added, "The two of you should also prepare yourselves to attain the Dao early!" He continued, "The Sun and Moon realm is completely insufficient now! While the rules of the all-heavens are still present, killing more experts across the realms will grant you rule rewards, allowing you to improve rapidly! Otherwise, once the great war ends and we fight the Upper Realm experts, you will hardly have any chance to kill enemies!" "Understood!" The two exchanged glances and nodded. Indeed, personal strength was paramount. Their current strength was simply inadequate! Without strength, how could one serve as the chief steward of the Emperor Yu Mansion? If they wanted to become the next King Wen, they needed to remember that King Wen possessed terrifying combat power; combat strength was the foundation. As he spoke, Su Yu walked with them toward the new sacred ground. The massive palace hovered in midair, exuding a certain majestic aura. Without lingering, Su Yu stepped directly into the grand hall. The vast space was remarkably cavernous, and at its center sat an enormous golden throne! "Vulgar!" Su Yu grumbled inwardly. Did gold really look that good? Not at all! Marquis Xia and Zhu Tiandao probably liked it, but Su Yu didn't care much for it, finding gold somewhat gaudy. Still, he wouldn't make an issue of it; he might not even visit this place often anyway. "Take a seat!" Su Yu sat in his seat, and King Dazhou and the others sat down one after another. Zhou Hao tactfully walked out on his own, sitting cross-legged outside the hall to cultivate. Ignoring Zhou Hao, Su Yu looked at the three men and said, "My successful Dao fusion is known to all the myriad races now. They probably won't just sit by and watch me succeed in attaining the Dao! In their eyes, with their considerable number of Dao Merge experts, they don't necessarily fear us; they simply don't want a fight to the death where both sides perish!" "Once the Upper Realm opens, their losses will be smaller, and they might even eliminate the human race without suffering casualties!" "However, they won't let us grow unchecked. Maintaining balance is essential for them!" Su Yu smiled. "King Dazhou, if you were Tiangu and the others, what would you do next?" King Dazhou pondered for a moment and said, "First, cause the Upper Realm to open ahead of schedule. That is crucial! "Second, contact the dead spirit realm again and find a way to eliminate Hongmeng! "Third, find an opportunity to slay one or two of our Dao Merge experts to weaken our strength, which would also intimidate the few Dao Merge experts who haven't joined the fight. "Fourth, do everything possible to win over those uncommitted experts." Su Yu nodded. "Correct! The myriad races certainly have these intentions. The previous upheaval in the dead spirit realm was actually linked to them—they contacted the Eastern and Western Heavenly Kings, but we resolved that in advance, which they likely don't know yet. "Tiangu and the others want to weaken our strength, but I want to weaken theirs first! Those major experts have deep foundations and numerous Eternals. Even if an individual is no match for a Dao Merge expert, in large numbers, they can still resist one!" Su Yu said rapidly, "The Phoenix, Dragon, Ape, and Nether races are weaker than the three major races and lack their deep foundations! Tiangu wants to find a chance to kill our people, but I want to find a chance to eliminate these races first! "And it must be done quietly!" Su Yu smiled. "Therefore, my primary objective next, once the guard replacements are finished, is to head to the dead spirit realm. The Human Realm will be entrusted to King Dazhou!" King Dazhou furrowed his brows. "What does Emperor Yu mean?" "Locate the corresponding positions and open dead spirit passageways within their realms!" Su Yu said darkly, "So, I have a task for King Dazhou, and I hope you can accomplish it!" "Emperor Yu, please command!" "Each of the thirty-six prefectures possesses a Great Prefecture Seal. I need King Dazhou to find a way to bury these thirty-six seals within those major realms. I will use the Human Master Seal to pinpoint their locations! "We will suddenly open passageways, charge out, and launch surprise attacks on the realms!" King Dazhou sucked in a breath. "Are there specific requirements for where they are buried?" "Naturally. Preferably right beneath the buttocks of those Dao Merge experts!" "..." King Dazhou felt a sharp ache in his teeth. Stop joking around—do you think Dao Merge experts are dead? Looking at the three of them, Su Yu smiled. "In my view, you three are the cleverest minds in the human race. You figure it out! If we succeed, we can open dead spirit passageways within their realms in one fell swoop. I will lead several experts who face no realm suppression to charge out... and taking them down inside their own realms will cause far less trouble and far fewer casualties." Su Yu stated bluntly, "I do not want a single Dao Merge expert on our side to die—not a single one! Because we still have to fight the Upper Realm. With so many Dao Merge experts up there, if we lose seven or eight of our own just to kill the ones here, sure, we win, but will we still have the strength to battle the Upper Realm? "Thus, we must do everything possible to minimize losses! Capturing a few Dao Merge experts without a sound would be best! Imagine when Tiangu and the others issue a rallying cry, only for no one inside those realms to respond... now that will be entertaining!" As Su Yu spoke, he chuckled. Zhu Tiandao gave a faint smile. "Emperor Yu is right. Not only that, but it would be best to find strong experts to impersonate them inside their realms. Tiangu wouldn't believe it even if his head were cracked open—that our people had replaced them and become the masters of those small realms! Impersonating the Phoenix Emperor, impersonating the Nether Emperor... Once the grand battle breaks out and everyone gathers... at a single command, they'll all be our people!" At these words, Marquis Xia and the others grew excited. That sounded brilliant! King Dazhou, however, felt a massive headache coming on. "Gentlemen, what we are discussing now is how to locate them and open dead spirit passageways right beside Dao Merge experts!" That was the crux of the matter! Otherwise, if the opening wasn't right next to them, a Dao Merge expert might flee at the first sign of trouble! Once a massive disturbance was created, the ambush plan would fail! Su Yu smiled. "King Dazhou, you will oversee this matter. No problem, right?" There was a problem! A huge problem! King Dazhou wanted to curse. Burying things right beside Dao Merge experts—and human Great Prefecture Seals at that—did you think this was child's play? Su Yu said softly, "King Dazhou, I place great trust in you!" King Dazhou smiled bitterly. "Emperor Yu, this is truly difficult! However... I have an idea. First, summon Lan Tian back!" Su Yu's eyes lit up instantly! He looked sharply at King Dazhou. King Dazhou nodded. "Yes, Lan Tian is the most suitable candidate! He possesses myriad incarnations. Frankly speaking, not even I know how many incarnations he has. He might already have arrangements in several realms! Aside from being a bit... a bit perverted, I actually hold a very high opinion of him." When uttering the word "perverted," the usually composed King Dazhou seemed to wince. Su Yu looked at him strangely. Had you fallen into his trap before? Catching Su Yu's gaze, King Dazhou seemed to understand his thoughts. He coughed lightly and said with a strange look, "I naturally did not fall victim, but as far as I know, no fewer than five Eternals of the human race have been tricked by him." Su Yu drew in a sharp breath. Five! More than five! For a moment, he wanted to pry into the gossip, but thinking better of it, he dropped the subject. There was no time for that now. He quickly said, "King Dazhou is right; Lan Tian is indeed suitable! He might already have established identities in various realms!" At this juncture, Lan Tian became exceedingly important! If Su Yu wanted to conquer the myriad races at minimal cost, striking out from the dead spirit realm to annihilate them within their own territories was the best approach. If all went smoothly and they simply suppressed them without killing them—just like Consort Xi—without causing any disturbance in the myriad realms, that would be even better! They could continue ambushing them one after another! Right until the moment they were discovered! Therefore, Su Yu's next step was to enter the dead spirit realm, quell the rebellion of the Northern King, and take control of the dead spirit realm. Only then could he lead the Southern King and the others out. Otherwise, the human race had few Dao Merge experts, and relying on Su Yu alone would make it difficult to bring down a Dao Merge expert quickly. Watching the contemplative Su Yu, King Dazhou grew increasingly awed. Su Yu truly was extraordinary! King Dazhou had never even considered striking out from the dead spirit realm. None of the nine generations of Human Masters had ever entertained such an idea. Of course, they hadn't been half-dead-spirits and couldn't open dead spirit passageways anyway. Su Yu was one! Furthermore, there was another crucial factor: Su Yu was the Human Master, capable of using the Human Master Seal to pinpoint locations. Otherwise, opening passages blindly, who knew where they would end up? Under normal circumstances, not even Heavenly King-level experts knew what realm corresponded to the void above the dead spirit realm. Nor could they open passages anyway! "Emperor Yu, do you need me to accompany you to the dead spirit realm?" "No!" Su Yu shook his head. "You must oversee the human race. If I vanish, it's fine; if you vanish, it will arouse suspicion! It also gives you a chance to see if anyone tries to enter the dead spirit realm to communicate with them, and you can kill them if possible. Earlier, I received information that the Talisman King actually went to the dead spirit realm once. What a pity—if we had eliminated him back then, it would have been even better!" Having said this, Su Yu promptly instructed, "King Dazhou, go find Lan Tian and tell him I want to see him! "Prefect Zhu, Marquis Xia, the two of you supervise King Tianzhu. Speed up the process at all costs! Finish forging the weapons for the guards first; I need them urgently!" The two voiced their assent. Just as King Dazhou was about to leave, Su Yu added, "King Dazhou, the capable shoulder more burdens. With your great abilities, find an opportunity to set up sealing formations outside the major realms, with King Daming assisting you! Once I launch surprise attacks on the realms, you two must promptly activate the heaven-veiling formation..." King Dazhou's head felt ready to explode! Holy crap! You might as well just tell me to die! Just because I hid a few things, do you really have to target me like this? First you want me to bury Great Prefecture Seals, and now you want me to set up sealing formations right outside other major realms? I'm going to die! I'm not a Lord of Rules, I'm just at the Dao Merge stage—aren't you overestimating me a bit too much? King Dazhou truly wanted to spit blood! Yet Su Yu smiled and said, "There's no other choice. If you tell King Daqin and King Daxia to kill people, no problem! But if you ask them to handle this... forget it, I hold zero hope for them!" "If we had someone else do it, King Dazhou, would you feel at ease? If I ask the Primordial Space Beast race to set up the formations now, would you trust them? The human race... still has to rely somewhat on its own strength! And in the entire Human Realm, aside from me, who else can accomplish such a mission?" Su Yu smiled. "King Dazhou, don't think I'm targeting you. If I were targeting you, would I share such a critical plan with you? I do this precisely because I trust you, King Dazhou, and believe in you! If this is mishandled, the human race's greatest plan will collapse! When that time comes, even if we win, we will suffer severe losses!" King Dazhou raised an eyebrow slightly. Those words certainly sounded pleasant. Then again, it was indeed immense trust. He had even found it strange that Su Yu revealed the entire plan to him. Now, having him bury the seals and erect the grand formations were both exceedingly crucial tasks. Su Yu was right: the slightest misstep would spell disaster. Ordinary people simply couldn't handle this! In the world today, few people possessed the ability to accomplish such a feat! After considering it, King Dazhou said, "The difficulty is enormous! Even with King Daming assisting me, it won't be enough! Setting up a grand formation outside a major realm guarded by Dao Merge experts... unless King Daming advances to the Dao Merge stage! Not only that, I will need others to cooperate with me..." He continued, "It would be best to trigger a small-scale battle to draw the Dao Merge experts out of their realms..." Su Yu smiled. "Simple!" "Later on, we can gather seven or eight Dao Merge experts to besiege a realm. Those fellows will certainly come to reinforce it. As soon as they come out to reinforce, we will entangle them for a while, giving you time..." King Dazhou said gravely, "Then my absence from the battle would easily draw attention and suspicion!" Su Yu thought for a moment and nodded. "True! That will depend on King Dazhou's acting skills. Create a fake body to confront an expert without engaging in battle. King Dazhou can think this over himself. If we need to instigate such a small-scale skirmish, I can arrange it!" With things stated to this point, King Dazhou had no choice. He had to accept the mission whether he wanted to or not! Su Yu simply loved giving him difficult problems. Then again, I truly am quite indispensable! For such an arduous mission, Su Yu could only trust me in the entire Human Realm. Who else could he ask—King Daqin and King Daxia? A joke! Those two were fine for swinging blades, but when it came to using their heads... the plan would be exposed in no time! King Dazhou left, carrying a mix of reluctance and self-satisfaction. Once he stepped outside, he suddenly cursed inwardly! Damn it! That bastard Su Yu had used a divine character to influence him—the 'Holy' character, no less! No wonder he had suddenly felt that Su Yu trusted him implicitly. The kid was simply inhuman! Yet King Dazhou was also deeply shocked. Previously, when Su Yu used this divine character, King Dazhou wasn't affected at all. But this time, after Su Yu's successful Dao attainment, his comprehension of the Dao of rules had deepened so vastly that he could now interfere with a peak Dao Merge expert like himself! If this continued, before long, Su Yu might actually be able to trick Dao Merge experts into kneeling and calling him grandfather. Walking away, King Dazhou looked back at the grand hall, sensing Su Yu watching him in silence. A complex feeling welled up within him. This young man indeed seemed far more intelligent than the Hundred Battles King. Wielding both favor and authority, giving and taking with effortless ease. One moment, you felt Su Yu was targeting you, and the next, you felt he trusted you completely. It gave off the feeling that whether thunder or dew, all was sovereign grace. Perhaps... that was what an emperor truly was. Could an emperor who was easily seen through still be called an emperor? Could an emperor whom you understood completely and could manipulate in the palm of your hand still be called an emperor? "Indeed, he is a youth who rose step-by-step from the marketplace after all. Compared to the smooth sailing of the Hundred Battles King, he has endured far more hardships!" If Su Yu's plan succeeded, they really could conquer the myriad realms without paying a heavy price! Thinking back to the Hundred Battles King... at this moment, even King Dazhou, who had always thought well of him, suddenly felt a pang of disdain. The Hundred Battles King had indeed been rather foolish. Come to think of it, back then everyone thought there was no problem—could it be that everyone was just as foolish? King Dazhou sighed inwardly. Perhaps the Hundred Battles King had simply catered to their desires: human supremacy above all else. Those old fellows loved that sort of thing! Some were still steeped in the ancient glory! Supreme above the myriad races! The human race had been immensely powerful, and the ancient races aiding them were merely accompaniments; whether they were present or not hardly mattered to the human race. Thus, it was only natural that things had unfolded as they did. Su Yu, on the other hand, had started from scratch with nothing to his name, so he naturally harbored no notions of human supremacy. "The Hundred Battles King squandered the human race's entire foundation, and Su Yu's resurgence has freed him from those constraints!" King Dazhou pondered silently. It was actually a good thing, at least for now. Otherwise, if eight or ten Dao Merge experts had guarded Su Yu from the start, he likely wouldn't have become who he was today. ... Inside the grand hall. Su Yu watched King Dazhou depart and soon smiled. The old fellow's composure was slipping, wasn't it? Constantly suppressing him, knocking him down, and targeting him, only to hand him a little sweetness now—and he walked right into the trap! Still, having King Dazhou handle things was indeed reassuring. Relying on others might not yield results. "The Northern King..." Su Yu muttered to himself. The dead spirit realm had to be resolved; otherwise, with the Northern King around, it would be difficult to carry out his plans. "I need to meet with the Southern King as well. An expert like her, after the deaths of the Western and Eastern Kings, might be even stronger than before—stronger even than Consort Xi... Strictly speaking, she might be the strongest combat power under my command!" Whether the little white dog could kill the current Southern King was hard to say. This trip to the dead spirit realm required extra preparation to avoid being ambushed and killed. However, he couldn't bring too many living beings, lest they agitate the Dead Spirit Heavenly River. Su Yu himself had no such problem, as he could transform into a half-dead-spirit. "Lanshan's strength isn't sufficient. In the dead spirit realm, it would be best to have an expert who can keep the Southern King in check..." One thought after another surfaced as Su Yu closed his eyes to comprehend the Great Dao. All that remained was to wait until all the weapons for the guards were forged! As for someone to keep the Southern King in check... subjugating the Northern King? That was difficult, and Su Yu had no desire to do so! "Liu Hong!" "The Ink Dao!" Su Yu murmured inwardly. That bastard had run off to the dead spirit realm. Who knew if he had inherited the Ink Dao? If he had, his strength must have grown by leaps and bounds. Though Su Yu had always targeted that fellow and King Dazhou, when it came to using them, these cunning schemers of the human race actually gave him far greater peace of mind. "Now I understand why emperors throughout history always favored crafty ministers... Despite their flaws, when it comes to getting work done, they are far more reliable than forthright ministers like King Daxia!" Naturally, he kept this thought to himself and would never speak it aloud.