Though that giant eagle had been slain and no other formidable beings had arrived for the moment, Su Yu still dared not lower his guard. Did the depths of chaos truly contain no ancient beasts at the Rule Master level?
It was hard to say!
Perhaps none had arrived yet, or perhaps they were slumbering, but he had to prepare for that possibility.
*Rumble!*
The thunder grew fiercer and fiercer!
From every direction, currents of chaotic power swept in, attempting to tear apart the new world Su Yu was forging.
From Su Yu's civilization chronicle, page after page flew forth.
He continued weaving the Great Daos without pause. The powerhouses who had finished battling turned their gazes toward him one after another, taking this opportunity to gain enlightenment. Opening a Dao from nothingness into being was a profoundly sacred undertaking.
Yet at this moment, Su Yu was frowning slightly...
Weaving the Daos was becoming increasingly difficult.
Even though he had divided the entire weaving process into three stages, the Daos of the myriad races in this second stage were proving difficult to integrate. In particular, the Daos of mighty races like the gods, immortals, and demons were so overwhelming after merging that they clashed with the weaker Dao powers.
The power of the Great Daos had fallen slightly out of balance.
A single imbalance spelled massive trouble.
Just as the others finished slaying those ancient beasts, an explosion suddenly rang out. Before Su Yu, a Great Dao detonated, and Su Yu coughed up blood, staggering back several steps. In front of him, the rest of the Great Daos violently convulsed.
"Your Majesty!"
King Dazhou and the others were all shocked!
In truth, they had anticipated this. It was impossible for Su Yu to make no mistakes at all. Yet when an error actually occurred, anxiety consumed everyone.
What could be done about this?
Su Yu closed his eyes, keeping silent as he swiftly stabilized the other Daos. An error had occurred in the sequence—the Dao he had just fused was not the right one.
It was not caused by power imbalance, but by an ordering mistake: this Dao was incompatible with the one fused just before it.
Yet this was not the true difficulty or the greatest trouble.
The greatest trouble was that the shattering of this Dao meant the subsequent Daos could no longer be linked in. The entire sequence had been thrown off.
Out of roughly three thousand pages, Su Yu had only merged about a thousand—just one-third.
This meant the remaining two-thirds of the Daos might be impossible to connect.
In the Place of Returning to the Ruins...
The others had not yet grasped the situation, assuming that the detonation of the Dao was the worst of it. Seeing Su Yu stabilize the remaining Daos, they all let out a sigh of relief.
Yet at that moment, several people's faces drained of color.
Those disciples of King Wen, Bai Feng, Hetu...
All of their expressions shifted drastically.
Trouble!
The deduction had still run into issues; there simply hadn't been enough time. Now Su Yu had broken a Dao. Losing one or two Daos was trivial; the critical issue was how the subsequent ones could be linked back up.
Everyone had considered this problem beforehand.
Contingency plans had been prepared, but none could resolve these problems seamlessly.
Beside Hetu, the female dead spirit shouted loudly, "Do not attempt to fuse the next Dao rashly! With one broken, the entire sequence must change!"
As she spoke, she rushed directly toward him, calling out, "Wait for us to reorganize it! We prepared contingency plans before. Give us three days, and we will help you filter out the next best Dao power..."
All the remaining Daos had to be re-evaluated to select the most compatible Dao power.
***
Su Yu looked at the Daos before him, his brow furrowing slightly.
Three days?
Who knew what might emerge from the chaos after three days? Besides, he might not even be able to sustain and stabilize these Daos for that long.
"Forget it," Su Yu replied flatly. "If it truly won't work, I'll close the loop with these thousand Daos. It will be weaker than expected, but still acceptable!"
Reconnecting the chain was extraordinarily difficult.
Su Yu had made his own estimates: if the chain truly broke and could not be continued, he would simply close and fuse the world with the current number of Daos.
That way, the Dao he opened would be somewhat weaker.
His heaven-opening had not been overly formidable to begin with.
Now, if he could only complete one-third of the Daos, then as a heaven-opener, he might... might struggle to even reach Heavenly King. A top-tier Dao Harmonizer, perhaps?
That was somewhat hard to accept, though Su Yu felt reaching Heavenly King shouldn't be too big a problem.
Hopefully, it would succeed!
Just at that moment, Lan Tian sped back from ahead, chuckling. "Where did it break?"
Su Yu looked up. Lan Tian wore a radiant smile.
Right now, Lan Tian maintained the appearance of Zhao Ming from when Su Yu had first met him. His smile remained as untamed and roguish as back then as he laughed and said, "Speak up, where did it snap? Don't waste time—are you waiting for powerful chaotic beings to attack?"
King Wen's disciple stirred slightly, looked at Su Yu, and said in a heavy voice, "I think... you could let him try!"
Su Yu looked at Lan Tian, who chuckled. "It's not like I'll die. As long as my clones exist, it's hard for me to die! Since when did you become so indecisive?"
He remembered the debt from when Su Yu had burned his own lifespan for him back then.
Dao companions were few; one had to cherish them.
Su Yu closed his eyes. In the distance, a flicker of inner turmoil crossed Wan Tiansheng's eyes, and he soon shouted, "Don't waste time! Let Lan Tian try first. Tell him where it broke!"
Su Yu opened his eyes, his gaze clear. Looking at Lan Tian, he smiled. "It broke at the Dao of Invisibility. The Dao of Invisibility was supposed to connect to the Dao of Shadow, but the Dao of Shadow broke..."
Lan Tian smiled. "The error occurred there? Strange. We considered potential breaking points before, but never thought it would break there. Aren't those two Daos very similar?"
He couldn't figure it out, but if he couldn't, there was no need to dwell on it.
The next instant, dozens of clones materialized around him, every single Lan Tian wearing a smile. "The Dao of Invisibility... If it broke from Shadow, which Dao do you think would be more suitable?"
Su Yu remained silent.
He didn't know, and it was hard to judge.
Lan Tian smiled. "Never mind, I'll figure it out myself..."
He assessed the options. Soon, one clone appeared, followed by another. One bore the Dao of Invisibility, while the other bore his chosen Dao. "Invisibility is quite a potent Dao, concealing one's traces. Let me try connecting it to the Dao of Concealment..."
He swiftly merged the two clones. The brilliance of the Great Dao instantly erupted from both figures, and the next moment, they violently detonated!
Lan Tian quickly shielded the Invisibility clone, while the other clone shattered. Undeterred, he continued, "Still wrong. If neither Shadow nor Concealment works, there might be an inherent issue with the Dao of Invisibility itself... Otherwise, their compatibility should be quite high!"
He too was somewhat puzzled. The female dead spirit who had rushed over was frowning deeply. Soon, she said in a solemn voice, "Invisibility... Although it's called invisibility, it might just be an optical illusion caused by light. Try the Dao of Light..."
"Alright!"
Lan Tian quickly made the attempt. However, the result was another explosion.
Still wrong!
Lan Tian frowned deeply. Over the next moments, he tried five or six more clones, yet each detonated in turn; none were correct.
Now Lan Tian grew anxious as well.
Why were none of them right?
Meanwhile, Su Yu gradually calmed down. If none of them worked, it meant finding a matching Dao for this Dao of Invisibility was indeed exceptionally difficult. Where had the problem arisen?
If Lan Tian hadn't tested it seven or eight times and Su Yu had tried making the choices himself, the Great Dao might have collapsed by now.
Right at this moment, Doubao called out from the distance, "Invisibility... Is invisibility an illusion? Just like me—when I think about turning invisible, everyone thinks I'm invisible... An interference of consciousness? Rather than the body truly disappearing?"
At these words, Su Yu's eyes flickered.
Sometimes, people got trapped in narrow thinking.
Doubao might not be exceptionally clever, but it remembered what Su Yu had told it before: its Time Dao was merely an interference of will. Could this Dao of Invisibility be the same?
If so, attempting to match it with physical invisibility concepts would naturally lead to failure.
Perhaps their naming of this Dao as the Dao of Invisibility was where the error had begun.
Lan Tian's eyes lit up as well. "Come to think of it, that's truly possible! If it's an interference of consciousness... then our fusion and classification were mistaken from the start!"
The next instant, he smiled. "Why not try a Dao power related to mental interference!"
Without waiting for Su Yu's response, he had another clone attempt the fusion.
This time, no explosion occurred. Delight flashed through Lan Tian's eyes. "Try connecting to the Dao of Illusion!"
Su Yu waited a moment, then swiftly began the connection.
Sure enough, when this newly manifested Great Dao was merged, no repulsion occurred.
However, the trouble that followed remained considerable.
The subsequent Daos might all need their sequences altered.
Seeing this, the female dead spirit quickly urged, "Lan Tian, keep going! Follow the previous sequence, starting right after the Dao of Illusion, and continue merging according to the original order... We'll see how those broken Daos in between can be rearranged!"
Lan Tian wasted no words. He and the others were familiar with Su Yu's Dao sequence, having drafted it personally.
At this moment, he said briskly, "Follow my lead. If a problem crops up with my fusion, don't try it yourself!"
Su Yu nodded silently.
Lan Tian swiftly merged clone after clone according to his sequence. He moved exceptionally fast, merely laying down a template for Su Yu rather than attempting to merge myriad Daos himself.
What followed went very smoothly.
After the Dao of Illusion, he fused five to six hundred clones in succession before a resounding boom echoed out, and another clone detonated. The fusion had hit another error.
Of course, this did not hinder Su Yu; he had not yet opened that far.
Lan Tian frowned. The other dead spirits, along with Bai Feng, Wan Tiansheng, and King Dazhou, all hurried over.
"Your Majesty, continue merging your Daos!" King Dazhou barked, and several figures quickly gathered around Lan Tian to devise a new connection strategy.
***
Su Yu silently continued opening his Dao.
Since Lan Tian had tested it once, there shouldn't be major problems. As for the detonation midway, by the time he reached that point, they would likely have solved it.
Lan Tian had offered to test it for Su Yu at the very start, but Su Yu had refused.
Now, he had no choice but to let Lan Tian conduct the trials on his behalf.
While Su Yu opened the Dao, the group beside him rapidly deliberated. Soon, Lan Tian began testing again. This time, another explosion occurred—the Daos repelled each other just as before.
Lan Tian attempted seven or eight times in succession, failing every time.
All told, nearly twenty of his clones had blown apart.
These clones were different from those destroyed in ordinary combat. Normally when a clone died, the Dao could be shifted without expending Dao power; this time, every clone that detonated inflicted a wound upon his Great Dao.
Because actual Dao power had to be deployed!
Lan Tian's Dao of Sentient Beings had clearly sustained damage!
A Dao injury!
Yet Lan Tian didn't care. Opening this Dao in the first place had been an accident, made possible only by Su Yu; otherwise, he would have died long ago when attempting it. Now, it was merely a Dao injury.
At least he wouldn't die so easily.
The group of powerhouses swiftly conferred. Princess Consort Qi joined in as well, and no one pushed her away; at this juncture, everyone needed to pool their strength.
Su Yu hadn't hidden his heaven-opening from anyone to begin with.
***
In the Place of Returning to the Ruins...
The Southern King watched in silence. After a long while, she sighed softly with emotion. "Lanshan, tell me... is cultivating the Dao better done alone, or together with everyone?"
"Together?" Marquis Lanshan was puzzled. "Cultivating the Dao... isn't that always done on one's own?"
The Southern King looked toward Su Yu and murmured, "Is it? Then what about now? Do you still think he is cultivating the Dao alone?"
Marquis Lanshan looked over as well, momentarily at a loss for words.
Could this still be considered Su Yu opening the heavens alone?
Perhaps not!
Someone was acting as his vanguard, a true pioneer clearing the path for their king by testing the fusions first. The others were rapidly deliberating, pooling their wisdom to make Su Yu's Dao fusion go more smoothly.
If it had been Su Yu alone, he might have failed after just a few attempts.
In cultivating the Dao, what was one truly cultivating?
At this moment, Marquis Lanshan felt the topic was far too profound!
Not quite understanding, she couldn't help asking, "Back then, King Wu and the others relied on themselves to cultivate the Dao. Southern King, which way do you think is better?"
The Southern King shook her head; she couldn't say for sure either.
Yet... after a long pause, the Southern King smiled. "I don't know which is better... but don't you feel that as he opens his Dao, it's as if everyone is opening it together, carrying a stronger sense of... participation?"
A sense of participation?
What the Southern King truly meant was a greater sense of belonging.
Look at our Sovereign—even opening a Dao requires all of us to help. He really is still just a young man.
Marquis Lanshan laughed as well. "Indeed! Watching His Majesty open his Dao, I feel... as if I'm opening it too! Still, we haven't taken part. I really envy Lan Tian and the others, being able to directly decide how His Majesty opens his Dao."
At this moment, that sentiment was unmistakable.
Seeing her envy, the Southern King smiled and sent a voice transmission: "Do you want to participate?"
"Of course!" Marquis Lanshan nodded, turning to look at her. "Can you analyze Great Daos, Southern King?"
Neither of them was cut out for that kind of scholarship.
The Southern King didn't seem to possess deep theoretical comprehension of the Daos either.
The Southern King remained silent for a moment before transmitting, "If you want to take part, there is still an opportunity! He hasn't opened the Daos of Life and Death yet. He likely lacks deep comprehension of life and death, or lacks the confidence to complete their opening..."
"Especially the Great Dao of Death—that Dao might be the hardest of all to open!"
Marquis Lanshan seemed to understand something and transmitted, "What do you mean, Southern King? How can we help him?"
The Southern King hesitated briefly before replying, "Going from life to death isn't hard; the difficulty lies in going from death to life! Hetu will likely demonstrate the process of transforming life into death... but how does one revive?"
"Back then, King Wen tried to resurrect someone, failing again and again. Once dead, one is dead—how could coming back to life be so simple?"
"If he opened myriad Daos without interweaving life and death, it might not be this difficult... But since he wants to open a distinct Great Dao that encompasses life and death, it becomes extraordinarily hard. Yet without opening life and death... his Dao will remain incomplete!"
Su Yu would have preferred not to open life and death either, but without them, how could his Great Dao attain perfection?
He wouldn't even be able to establish a core pivot, and the heaven-opening would inevitably fail!
Even if the Southern King didn't understand all the intricacies, she knew Su Yu had been forced into this choice by circumstance.
"From death to life..." Marquis Lanshan murmured. Indeed, how could one step out of death into life?
That was truly difficult!
Wan Tiansheng seemed to have attempted it once, but he had relied on the power of the River of Time. Su Yu had no such aid; he hadn't even connected to the River of Time.
"Do you have a way, Southern King?"
The Southern King had lived for an extraordinarily long time. Furthermore, during her time in the dead spirit realm, she had interacted with King Wen for a period—specifically when King Wen had sought to revive Xingyue.
During that era, King Wen had also contemplated how to revive dead spirits.
After pondering for a while, the Southern King transmitted again, "After all, he isn't truly dead; he is merely opening a Dao of Death. Even if he opens a Dead Spirit Dao, it won't be excessively powerful. You and I are both experts of the Dead Spirit Dao... If his opening of the Dao of Death fails... he might not perish, but this heaven-opening attempt will be completely ruined!"
Marquis Lanshan asked anxiously, "Do you have a solution or not?"
Why babble on about all this?
If Su Yu failed, the chances of him dying were slim, but all his preparations would be wasted.
There might never be another chance!
Of course, if he truly failed, could Su Yu perhaps go inherit the Dao of the Brush?
Peacefully becoming a second-generation master of the brush?
Thinking this, Marquis Lanshan felt an urge to chuckle. It was true—even if Su Yu failed, he wouldn't be entirely ruined, so there was no need to panic.
Still... she wanted him to succeed.
If he failed now, Su Yu might never have a second opportunity in this lifetime. Time was too short, and opportunities didn't last forever. His future accomplishments would be capped.
Becoming a Rule Master might be their ultimate dream, but it was clearly not the limit of Su Yu's ambitions.
The Southern King soon transmitted, "If he truly fails, you and I will extract the Dao rule power from the Dead Spirit Dao!"
Marquis Lanshan listened quietly, waiting for her explanation.
The Southern King continued swiftly, "I know of a place they call the intersection of life and death, right at the end of the Dead Spirit Dao! That is where the two Daos of Life and Death converge... We find Liu Hong, use his Dao of Ink to extract the power of the Dead Spirit Dao, and channel the power of life and death from that intersection into his Great Dao..."
Surprised, Marquis Lanshan transmitted, "Can that be done? Then... then why hasn't His Majesty done so?"
The Southern King felt a headache coming on. "Nonsense! How could he? He is currently opening his Dao in the midst of chaos, while the end of the Dead Spirit Dao lies in the dead spirit realm. These two locations are fundamentally at odds; he can't manage both simultaneously!"
Not that the Southern King looked down on Marquis Lanshan's wits, but sometimes she truly was slow on the uptake!
If Su Yu could manage both, would they even need to bring it up?
It was precisely because he couldn't that he had no choice.
The Southern King continued, "The dead spirit Dao power in both of us is exceptionally strong. When the time comes, I will lead you into the intersection of life and death. The two of us will join forces, expending our strength to forge an aerial conduit through the Dead Spirit Dao... a channel to divert the flow! We will guide the power of life and death into his Great Dao!"
"Can this... really be done?"
"It can, but it requires assistance. We need Liu Hong's help, utilizing his Dao of Ink..."
The Southern King glanced around. Liu Hong seemed to have come along this time, but that fellow kept an absurdly low profile; who knew where he had scurried off to?
She scanned the area and finally spotted Liu Hong hiding behind Xia Chen, busy scribbling and calculating something.
Without wasting words, the Southern King strode forward and grabbed Liu Hong from behind Xia Chen.
Liu Hong looked utterly bewildered. What was happening?
He had been immersed in his calculations and had no idea what was going on.
The Southern King seized his collar, giving him no chance to speak, and hauled him off to the side. Marquis Lanshan quickly followed.
Liu Hong said with a face full of confusion, "Seniors, what's wrong? I haven't provoked either of you!"
Why grab me out of nowhere?
How bizarre!
The Southern King cut straight to the chase, transmitting, "Can you control your Dao of Ink?"
"This..."
"Cut the chatter. Let me ask you: if we use the Dao of Ink to pierce through the intersection of life and death and open a power conduit, can we divert the power of life and death into the chaos?"
Liu Hong froze. "Were you two peeking at my work?"
"What?"
"I was just calculating that!"
Liu Hong said hurriedly, "I'm running the numbers to see if there's any hope of success, but looking at it now, the chances are slim! The domain of life and death is still quite a distance from my Dao of Ink. To divert the flow, we must first suppress the willpower territories of the mighty experts residing in that river! Then, we have to open a separate conduit... channel the power into my Dao of Ink, and only then find a way to direct it into the chaos..."
It had to pass through several stages.
The Southern King transmitted, "What if Lanshan and I take action?"
"You two?"
Liu Hong pondered for a moment. "Not enough. We're still short one person—ideally another powerhouse of the Dao of Life. But if we do this, all of you will be in grave danger! Put it this way: to channel the power of life and death, you dead spirits will be corroded by the power of life, while the living will be corroded by death qi!"
"My Dao of Ink will be fine because I'm a half-dead spirit... But this requires top-tier powerhouses, and top-tier powerhouses cannot simply convert into half-dead spirits... Even if the two of you agree, we still need a powerhouse wielding the power of life!"
"The power of life?"
The Southern King frowned. "None of us cultivate the power of life!"
She quickly asked, "Is it impossible without a powerhouse of life?"
"Impossible!"
"Even if you're willing to risk it... your death qi is too heavy, which will easily cause an imbalance between life and death. This isn't a problem that can be solved simply by throwing your lives away."
Controlling the Dao of Ink, Liu Hong understood these matters thoroughly.
After some thought, he looked around and transmitted, "Actually... there isn't a total lack of suitable candidates, but I don't know if he'd be willing."
"Who?"
"Since no one cultivates the Dao of Life, we need a top-tier powerhouse brimming with immense vitality! Ideally a human, too—sharing the human bloodline ensures the forces of life and death won't deviate..."
Liu Hong quickly explained, "If the Southern King and Marquis Lanshan have no objections, my suggestion is this: the Southern King handles suppressing the wills of the powerhouses within the Great Dao; Marquis Lanshan opens the conduit, unlocking the death path to channel the power of death; and another person channels the power of life, with strength comparable to Marquis Lanshan."
The Southern King said impatiently, "Just tell us directly—who fits the bill?"
"King Dazhou!"
The Southern King was taken aback. Liu Hong explained, "Director Wan and Lan Tian aren't quite suitable—they haven't lived long enough. Simply put, this power of life is like a massive tree: the longer it lives, the richer its vitality! Yet they can't be too old, either. Take Marquis Dingjun and the others—their life force feels nearly exhausted, and the same goes for Princess Consort Qi. King Dazhou, on the other hand... he's truly youthful for his age!"
What kind of phrasing was that?
Both the Southern King and Marquis Lanshan were speechless; the words sounded utterly bizarre.
Liu Hong explained again, "Seriously! King Dazhou may look old, but his vitality is extraordinarily dense. I suspect he consumed some supreme treasure that endowed him with staggering life force!"
That was actually true.
As the Southern King pondered what to say, Marquis Lanshan chimed in, "Could it be a Longevity Pill? I remember back then, King Wen slew a supreme powerhouse of the immortal race and refined three Longevity Pills, presenting them to the ancient Human Sovereign. Afterward, there was no further news of them... This old fellow was His Majesty the Human Sovereign's scribe; could the Human Sovereign have bestowed one upon him?"
Liu Hong shrugged. That, he didn't know.
He only knew that King Dazhou could outlive practically anyone, perhaps not falling short of a Rule Master.
Even if everyone else died, he might still be alive.
At this moment, Marquis Lanshan and the Southern King exchanged a glance, both wearing solemn expressions.
King Dazhou... was truly a complicated figure.
To call King Dazhou one of Su Yu's direct confidants wouldn't be accurate; his sole duty was passing down the spark of the Human Sovereign. Yet by coincidence, he was the only one suitable—the others were either too weak or lacked sufficient vitality.
Marquis Lanshan thought for a moment. "Shall we ask him? If he refuses, so be it..."
Channelling the power of life and death was also preparation for Su Yu's upcoming steps.
Right now, Su Yu was merging Daos at high speed.
With Lan Tian's help eliminating obstacles, Su Yu's fusion speed was far faster than before.
The Southern King added, "We must prepare in advance. Even if he succeeds on his own... it's best to be ready! Otherwise, when the moment arrives, it will be too late. While he is still fusing Daos, we'll open the path first so that at the critical juncture, we can channel the power of life and death over through the Great Dao at any second!"
Marquis Lanshan nodded. Glancing at King Dazhou in the distance, she suddenly transmitted, "Hey, you who embezzled my rations and pay, get over here for a moment!"
In the distance, King Dazhou was discussing subsequent plans with the others. Hearing this, he was slightly taken aback, caught between laughter and tears.
Who embezzled your rations and pay?
This woman—she's held that grudge even after dying!
Helpless, he had no choice but to fly over swiftly.
Marquis Lanshan felt a bit embarrassed, but still asked, "Are you afraid of death?"
"..."
"Did you take a Longevity Pill?"
"Yes!" King Dazhou nodded without denying it, smiling. "Does Marquis Lanshan want to eat one too? But only the living can consume such things. Besides, all three Longevity Pills have already been used."
"All of them?"
Marquis Lanshan didn't bother asking who had used the other two. She quickly said, "His Majesty will likely run into trouble opening the Daos of Life and Death! The Southern King and I discussed it, and we want to channel the power of life and death over. We need a powerhouse of life to assist... Will you do it? If not, forget it!"
King Dazhou drifted off in thought for a brief moment before replying, "You two... If he succeeds in opening them on his own, he won't need the assistance of external life and death forces!"
"And what if he fails?"
Though Marquis Lanshan felt saying this damaged morale, she pressed on, "Cut the chatter! If you won't do it, just say so! We'll find someone else..."
King Dazhou smiled and said softly, "Have you thought this through? In fact, I've considered this matter, and not just me—do you think the others haven't realized it? If no one else, Wan Tiansheng and Lan Tian must have considered it! However, the difficulty is immense, and the danger is extraordinary! It's manageable for living beings, but for dead spirits... if you die, you are truly gone!"
"If Emperor Yu fails, at worst his Dao snaps. If dead spirits fail, it is absolute annihilation!"
"Furthermore, this requires top-tier powerhouses! In the entire dead spirit realm, when it comes to suitable candidates... there truly are only the two of you!"
King Dazhou sighed softly. "Even Emperor Yu himself is aware of this, yet he never spoke of it or made such a request! In fact, we understand his thinking: at worst, he simply fails. If he fails... he can go inherit the Dao of the Brush! He might not inherit the Human Sovereign's Dao, but he would still be willing to inherit the Dao of the Brush... Thus, he has a retreat path if he fails, whereas if your channeling fails, you will likely perish completely!"
Marquis Lanshan blinked in surprise. "His Majesty knows as well?"
"Of course!" King Dazhou chuckled. "You don't think Emperor Yu is foolish, do you? It's not as if he hasn't been to the intersection of life and death. The only reason you two know about it is because he told you! Could he be ignorant of something even you two thought of?"
He simply hadn't mentioned it!
Marquis Lanshan glanced toward Su Yu. Right now, Su Yu had almost opened two thousand Daos. His chronicle held roughly three thousand pages, so at this rate, he would soon need to open the Daos of Life and Death.
She asked, "You said we die if the channeling fails, but what counts as failure?"
"If something goes wrong midway, it naturally fails..." King Dazhou sighed. "The Dead Spirit Dao is no weak path. Forging a sealed conduit within it requires two powerhouses of life and death working in complete unison to maintain the balance of life and death, guiding it all the way out..."
He looked at Liu Hong. "You likely intend to route it through Liu Hong's Dao of Ink, correct?"
"Doing so does increase safety. With Liu Hong as a node stationed in the Place of Returning to the Ruins, delivering it to Emperor Yu is indeed far simpler!"
At this point, King Dazhou added, "However, not the slightest mistake can be tolerated throughout the process. If the Southern King chooses to suppress the wills of the powerhouses within the Dead Spirit Dao, she will inevitably clash with some mighty beings... That is also perilous beyond measure!"
Marquis Lanshan frowned. "I'm not afraid! I've already died once anyway! Southern King... Southern King, are you afraid?"
The Southern King chuckled softly. "Don't forget, I was the one who reminded you!"
Fair enough!
Marquis Lanshan turned back to King Dazhou. "You talk too much. Just tell me whether you'll do it or not. Rambling on like this—are you scared? If so, never mind, we'll ask someone else..."
King Dazhou smiled. "Marquis Lanshan still has that fiery temper! I never refused. Besides, aside from me, no one else is suitable!"
"You agree?"
Marquis Lanshan was surprised. This old fellow King Dazhou was actually agreeing?
King Dazhou smiled. "As I said, for me, the danger isn't that great! However, I have one condition... whatever I say goes, and you must do exactly as I instruct. Otherwise... I have no desire to throw my life away with fools!"
Who was he calling a fool?
Marquis Lanshan looked at Liu Hong, who wore a radiant, innocent smile.
Then she looked at the Southern King, who remained aloof and expressionless.
Finally, she looked back at King Dazhou, her face darkening considerably. "Are you talking about me?"
You're talking about me, aren't you?
King Dazhou chuckled and transmitted, "No, don't misunderstand, I was talking about Liu Hong. Right, Liu Hong?"
He looked at Liu Hong, who nodded with a beaming smile.
I'll take the blame!
As long as we all understand each other implicitly!
King Dazhou didn't bother to say more. Glancing at Lan Tian and the others in the distance, he quickly transmitted, "If you agree to obey me completely, we stand a good chance of success without major issues. But if you don't listen... we might die!"
"I'll listen to you!" Marquis Lanshan muttered. "Don't worry! I know you cunning fellows have endless tricks up your sleeves. Back when I campaigned with Lord King Wu, we always followed your instructions completely!"
"Whenever the Lord went out to wipe out a realm, he had to take out a silk pouch to read the plans you'd prepared. I understand how this works!"
Just following orders—she was used to it!
Obeying commands? No problem at all!
Back in the day, strong as King Wu was, whenever he went to fight a war, he still read the silk pouches every day—either provided by King Wen or by the others, planning everything out for him. King Wu had been too lazy to think; using his brain was too tiring.
Life was short, better to enjoy it—why exhaust oneself?
King Dazhou was caught between laughter and tears. Well, this was going smoother than expected.
Without further ado, he quickly transmitted, "Very well. In that case, I will go borrow the Star Universe Seal, and then we will head to the intersection of life and death to prepare. You're right—being prepared is better than being caught off guard!"
"Borrowing it... won't His Majesty find out?"
"Of course!" King Dazhou sighed. "We have to tell him. Otherwise... what if he gives up halfway on his own? He is extraordinarily decisive; if he feels something is amiss, he might just abandon the attempt. Without proper communication, that would cause disaster!"
With that, he let out a chuckle. "It's fine. At this point, we've put him on the spot! A person like him needs a push from us to shoulder a bit more pressure, to let him know that his failure is not his alone!"
Marquis Lanshan nodded slightly.
Soon, King Dazhou rushed toward the chaotic domain.
***
A moment later, Su Yu's expression was somewhat grim as he continued opening his Daos. By now, he had opened over two thousand.
He wasn't far from the final few hundred.
At that point, he would have to connect life and death.
"Did you coerce Lanshan and the others?" Su Yu looked toward King Dazhou. King Dazhou felt helpless at the phrasing.
"No, they coerced me!"
Su Yu sneered. Did he expect him to believe that?
"Lanshan and the others wouldn't have thought of this on their own. Did you deliberately guide them?"
In any case, he suspected King Dazhou had secretly instigated it.
This time, King Dazhou felt profoundly wronged. By the heavens, it wasn't him!
Marquis Lanshan had approached him of her own accord!
Where was he supposed to seek justice?
This was simply too unfair!
"Your Majesty, I am innocent!" King Dazhou smiled bitterly. "It really wasn't me... Fine, consider it my doing if you wish!"
"Your Majesty, whether you lend the Star Universe Seal or not, we've already decided to go and try... Without the seal, the danger will only be greater!"
Su Yu took a deep breath. "If I fail, I can simply put my mind at ease and stop worrying about opening the heavens. Nothing terrible will happen to me—I'll just inherit the Dao of the Brush. Even though the Dao of the Brush is trash, I'll still have hope! There's no need for people to die just for one heaven-opening attempt, do you understand?"
The Dao of the Brush was a bit trash, but... he could make do with it!
It wasn't as though Su Yu absolutely had to succeed in opening his own Dao. At most, succeeding would allow him to reach Celestial Venerable or even Rule Master much faster.
It was a good thing King Wen wasn't here to hear this, or who knew what he would think.
So in Su Yu's eyes, inheriting the Dao of the Brush was considered trash?
King Dazhou smiled and said, "Your Majesty, it's not the same! At the very least, we want you to succeed. Only if you succeed do we have hope of ultimate victory! Otherwise, even if you become a Rule Master through the Dao of the Brush, you might not hold any advantage in the upheavals to come!"
"Sacrificing now is to sacrifice less in the future!"
"If the heaven-opening fails now, we may pay an even greater price down the road!"
Su Yu fell silent for a moment before a great seal flew forth.
"Go! Be careful!"
After saying this, Su Yu added in a deep voice, "If things become impossible, retreat! And... if I truly fail... and there's no hope in the Dao of the Brush... then I... then I'll inherit the Human Sovereign's Dao!"
King Dazhou's heart jolted slightly. Su Yu said heavily, "It's no big deal, but you are not allowed to intentionally make me fail, or... I won't let you off! Remember: if anything goes wrong and lives might be lost, abandon it immediately!"
King Dazhou took a deep breath. "Understood! Rest assured, Your Majesty. I hope... you can become the second sovereign, not the Human Sovereign the second!"
Soon, King Dazhou departed with the group.
At this moment, Su Yu felt a swirl of complex emotions.
Lan Tian, King Dazhou, the Southern King...
All of these people were shouldering responsibility for his heaven-opening.
If he failed this time, he would truly let them all down.
*I will succeed!*
*Definitely!*
*Even if I must reverse life and death, I will succeed!*
Never had his conviction burned stronger than right now.
"The Dao of the Brush... I don't want it, it's trash!"
"As for the Dao of the Human Sovereign—when the Human Sovereign returns, let him cultivate it himself. I can't be bothered to fix it for him!"
"If I cultivate a Dao, I will cultivate my own!"
Su Yu roared in his heart. At this moment, vast numbers of Great Daos were opened and woven by him. The overall power of the Great Daos grew stronger and stronger, and Su Yu's aura surged rapidly along with it!
Faintly, it had already touched the Heavenly King tier!
And the Daos weren't even fully opened yet.
If this heaven-opening succeeded, he would unquestionably attain at least the Heavenly Venerable rank!
Chapter 781