Li Hao shook as he was still caught in the throes of what heâd just witnessed. âAre exalted emperors... very strong?â he couldnât help but ask.
â......â The others looked at him like they were gazing upon a fool.
âThey are... very strong,â the old turtle said softly. âStronger than us, in any case... After Saint comes Empyrean King. There are many levels to Empyrean King. After that comes the emperor levels, which the weakest of exalted emperors reach. We do not understand much more beyond that. They can more or less kill you with one exhale!â
âWill it require an exalted emperorâs breath to kill him?â the Ninth Division commander said coolly. âEven a Saint can accomplish that!â
â......â Li Hao smiled ruefully. Seriously?
âDid you see an exalted emperor?â asked a curious General Pagoda.
âI did, and not just one, but many!â Li Hao nodded, prompting shifts in the groupâs expressions.
âYou saw an exalted emperor, and multiple ones at that?â repeated a mystified old turtle. âThatâs... very strange!â
âI heard them discuss a campaign to attack someplace,â Li Hao recalled. âWas this before Battle Heaven was established?â
The old turtle shook its head, it wasnât too clear on this matter.
âIâve heard of this occurrence,â said the commander. âSilver Moon was a training ground for the army. There were already small skirmishes at the front lines when we started training the troops. Details beyond that were not for the likes of low level officers like us.â
Low level officers!
âHow big is the universe?â Li Hao asked after momentary silence.
âI donât know.â The commander shook his head. âIt is unbounded and incomparably vast! No one knows the specifics, not even the Human King. One step in chaos means the passage of one thousand years and mulberry fields changing into the seas. No one would leave their local universe unless they were forced to.
âTime is the most terrifying of all in the world. The reversal of time and disappearance of New Martial may have something to do with this. Thousands upon thousands of years can flash by if one takes one step out of their part of the universe...â
Li Hao blinked, uncomprehending of the scale. âIs Silver Moon... that important?â
The group didnât respondâpossibly out of ignorance, and possibly out of a lack of desire to explain.
Li Hao took a deep breath and closed his eyes. A faint blade intent appeared on his body moments later. The others blinked. What... was this?
The young man replayed that blade stroke in his mind, the one that had fractured heaven and earth when it swung down. That was a true powerhouse! He himself was much too weak and insignificant compared to the august personages heâd seen. To Li Hao, the world was so enormous that he could barely cover it in flight. But to these people, it was but a speck of dust. They carved up continents with one stroke and divided it into eight!
He had the general idea of what they wished to accomplish. Combined with previous conversation with the little tree, Li Hao knew that Silver Moon Territory was a new world born from strength that drifted off of the New Martial main world. The Human King set the Li clan here in order to give the world to the Li ancestor, the Sword Sovereign, to supplement a few deficiencies.
The Li ancestor hadnât been willing to utilize the new world in such a manner. The Exalted Blood Emperor had tried to convince him otherwise, but the Sword Sovereign was still unwilling because making the new world his might weaken the main world.
It was all too complicated and far above his understanding, but Li Hao remembered one thing. The ancient Human King had gifted the world to the Lis. What belonged to the Lis belonged to him. So... this world is mine?
The young man had finally made sense of everything. So this entire world belonged to his family! So Iâve been the king of the world all along! No wonder I feel so close to Silver Moon, no wonder I feel bad when I see people suffering. This is my territory!
He didnât want to think about anything else. It was too complicated! That was the business of the powerhouses. Now that his ancestor had disappeared and Silver Moon Territory plunged into disorder, he needed to put things back into order!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
This incident strengthened Li Haoâs faith and confidence. Of course, none of this was key. The key was that heâd strengthened some of his supernatural locks. A portion of his locks seemed to have been stimulated and strengthened by a great deal. Not only that, but a lock had materialized in his head. It came with a certain sharpness.
Li Hao hadnât absorbed any Water of Life, but the illusory realm had stimulated some of his locks into becoming mightier.
After another indeterminate pause.
The group was still there when Li Hao opened his eyes again. âSilver Moon Territory belongs to the Lis!â he took a deep breath.
â......â Various faces stared at him.
âTherefore, Iâm going to take back what is my familyâs!â he declared.
â......â The rest kept staring. What was going on now?
The Ninth Division leader was very calm. âIt is confidence if the strong voice these words. It is arrogance if you do! Donât think too much of yourself.â
âI know.â Li Hao nodded. âBut we need to have such dreams in life. What is the difference between us and lowly creatures if we donât have a single goal? These two characters are very interesting. The exalted emperor seems to have bestowed it with certain emotion. New revelations can be discovered every time. Their stature is too great, however, making them a bit too far removed from me.â
âNaturally,â nodded the old turtle. âThis august personage ranked among the top of the exalted emperors.â
âDid my familyâs ancestor rank in the top five of the ancient civilization?â Li Hao was curious.
â......â The group looked at each other instead of responding. Did he? Who knew? But... probably... not? The sword of the Lis was indeed strong, but there were too many heavyweights in that era.
Li Hao suppressed an eye roll at the sight and understood their reaction. So his ancestor likely hadnât. These people wouldnât be responding with this attitude if he had. Was his ancestor so poorly off that he couldnât even rank in the top five?
âWhat about the top ten?â
No one made a sound. Who knew? But... perhaps... still not.
Li Hao rolled his eyes this time. That bad??
âIs there a point to wondering about this?â intoned the Ninth Division commander. âYouâve been here for three days and were here three days on your last trip. Thatâs six days total. Arenât you a busy person?â
Six days!
Li Hao blinked. âIâve cultivated here for three days?â
No shit!
âOf course!â
Li Hao started with dismay. Six days was a long time! âThen I must leave immediately. General Pagoda, my Water of Life...â
The general handed over a large vat without further word. Li Hao scanned it with his consciousness upon receiving it. There were more than ten thousand drops inside. This was the most Water of Life heâd seen at any given time. Thereâd only been five thousand when they killed the coconut tree.
âMy thanks, general!â Li Hao rose. âThen I must take my leave, seniors. There is much that awaits me in the outside world.â
The commander was displeased to see the young man prepare to storm off. âYou must be calmer in your manner and still your mind when great happenings are upon you! There is no need to care about what youâve seen, it has nothing to do with you. The world of the strong is far away from you. Also, take heed not to give up the sword aura. Remember that in this world, the sword is the master of all!â
The sword is the master of all? As in, master of everything in this world?
âThank you, Ninth Division leader!â Li Hao vanished.
Ninth Division leader? The Gold Armor paused. Calling him by his title imparted a very different meaning. This kid was talking to him as a peer! Li Hao was the Eleventh Division leader and he was Ninth Division leader. The brat was basically saying that weâre of the same level, so letâs be nicer to each other in the future.
The commander could say nothing in response. He snorted after a long moment and asked after the young man left, âWhy is it that he can see something in the exalted emperorâs words?â
That was odd!
âPerhaps the august majesty purposefully let him see it?â smiled the old turtle. âNo one can see a thing if he so decides. They can if he wishes it. This world has never given birth to its own consciousness ever since the Sword Sovereign took up residence. But it has been so many years since his departure... no one can say. Li Hao has improved so rapidlyâhas he done so with some aura of heaven and earth? Have you seen his new abilities?â
The commander blinked and took a moment to gather his thoughts. âI have, I see! The Sword Sovereign has been gone too long and the formation is broken. A new dao is about to be born in this world, isnât it?â
âPerhaps!â
âNo wonder!â laughed the commander. âThis is good timing. A powerhouse is about to rise from the humanity of the new age. Out with the old and in with the new. Losing the inhibition of New Martial means that more changes are about to take place in this world.â
âMmhmm, but itâs fine. It has nothing to do with us.â The rest didnât say anything as it was truly irrelevant to them. They were not of this age. Li Hao could glean something from the characters possibly because of his new abilities. But, judging from the young manâs words, he had already seen something before.
Had this fellow been blessed by the mandate of heaven long ago?
âThere are countless heirs in the Li clan and heâs not of the direct line. Has this kid forgotten about that?â The Ninth Division commander was a bit jealous. The old turtle and pagoda tree didnât respond.
âIâm going to absorb energy from the surroundings and see if I can revitalize more of Battle Heaven. Donât disturb me for a bit!â The tree vanished, as did the old turtle. Only the Gold Armor was left. He looked into the distance for a long moment and sighed softly.
Donât be too confident, Li Hao. Youâre far from adequate. Perhaps your greatest danger will arrive only when the Star Gate opens.
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