“My disciple... this old man... saw things wrongly!” Yuan Shuo grimaced apologetically, then threw his back with a roar of laughter. “My eye for judgment when taking in disciples is so unique that none can measure up to it!”
“The marquis is unrivaled!” This was the only shout in all of existence. It was like they were fully venting their fury and rage.
Li Hao was back!
This is Demon Sword Li Hao. He was like a demon, yet not a demon. He killed in order to save more.
Fang Ping breathed out with a smile and grumbled beneath his breath, “What a pity that my New Martial denizens have become part of me. Otherwise, they’d be able to scream that the Human King is unrivaled and give you a run for your money!”
Emperor Yu finally smiled with ease. The Master of Time... was... mmhmm, not bad.
If the Li Hao that Number Two formed really was Li Hao, then I would be quite disappointed. Is this all there is to you after you created Myriad Realms?
So you are still you in the end. Mmhmm, very good!
As for Li Hao’s emergence ahead of time ruining the young man’s plans, what plans were there in the end? One would rather die on their feet than crawl for survival. The profit of a moment was not worth that tradeoff!
“Time, we should have a drink together when we get a chance!” Emperor Yu laughed. “We quest for much on our paths of cultivation, yet it is rare to encounter someone who we get along with. I hail you as my senior today. It is an honor to meet you, Senior Time!”
“Let’s have our drink after we kill them all!” Li Hao laughed easily. “Kill!”
The world shook from his command. It was answered in kind by countless voices that bubbled out of the worlds.
“Kill!!”
Skies collapsed, grounds fissured. Everyone was in soaring spirits and blazed with passion. Exalted emperors in many worlds looked into the distance. Some suddenly set foot on their avenues of great dao and sped for Allheaven Hall.
“I’ll walk my own path and decide my own future!”
“I’m going to fight for this sliver of light. I’m going to be in control of this battle!”
“Wait for my return, but don’t despair if I fall in battle!”
“......” Exalted emperors assimilated their minds with their great dao and kept nothing back. They poured forth from their homes and brought their full strength to bear!
All of the eastern region exalted emperors surged forward without hesitations. Ten thousand exalted emperors charged out!
We’ll be the ones to decide these heavens!
We’ll determine the future.
Skyward looked at Li Hao in the distance and smiled before giving a long sigh. “I thought... I would be able to meet the strongest version of you, the you who’d absorbed all of the darkness. Who would’ve thought that I’d only welcome the demented version of you! You are such a disappointment, Li Hao.”
“Don’t measure others by yourself,” Li Hao laughed heartily. “If you are not a fish, you do not know a fish’s happiness. This is the talk of a fool!”
The denouncement blasted through the void like a clap of thunder. It detonated the darkness and gave way to light.
Sword intent surfaced and white-robed Li Hao appeared with a longsword. He was a peerless swordsman of the age!
......
A white-robed Li Hao had walked out with a black longsword. Sword intent enveloped the chaos. He’d emerged from the new chaos, no longer hiding himself, biding his time, or waiting for the right moment.
So what of the missed opportunities? Wasn’t this how the martial world was?
I know that I might be able to win against you if I stayed in closed door cultivation for another ten, twenty, or thirty years. I might be able to outlast you then.
Why am I not willing to do so?
Because the martial world is all about that momentary flare of brilliance!
Since we can’t wait for it or are unwilling to wait for it, then we will wait no longer!
Calamity frowned deeply at Li Hao, the look in his eyes shifting. The young man’s sword intent was incredibly dense. It was the sword of despair!
Skyward remained coolly removed from beginning to end. Perhaps he really was a bit disappointed. Judging from his words, he’d known from the very beginning that Li Hao had been fake.
And that was indeed the case.
“War once conversed with me and said that the chaos is like a home or a house,” Skyward suddenly said with emotion. “It needs to be cleansed at regular times. He and I once theorized certain things. Some long-term filth needs to be purged. Do you understand that, Li Hao?”
“Do you mean the Ash Emperor?” Li Hao smiled.
“Not bad.” Skyward smiled as well. “This cat is New Martial’s cleaning tool, but it’s not the cleaning machine of the entire chaos. Therefore, I quite agreed with your earlier actions of absorbing some darkness.”
The man’s smile deepened as he spoke of more mysteries unknown to others before this.
His meeting with War back in the day hadn’t been as simple as it appeared on the surface. The appearance of Big Cat was connected to War, and not the Skyward master as everyone assumed.
That was all in the past now.
No matter its origins, Ash Cat had cleansed New Martial, but could not cleanse the entire chaos universe. Li Hao’s devouring of darkness was a good thing in his eyes. It was just a pity that the young man hadn’t persevered to the very last.
Skyward found that much less desirable. He didn’t seem to be concerned about Li Hao in the slightest.
Li Hao didn’t say a word. He simply smiled and looked around him. The sounds of fighting rose in the void as the Human King and Emperor Yu had made their moves!
Fang Ping suddenly snorted viciously. Yin and yang combined! A dark presence rose from his body, one with a bit of crazed arrogance.
“All of you guys think of yourself as the ultimate creator!” he snarled. “Do you really think that everything is within your grasp?”
Skyward’s words pissed him off!
His long blade flashed through space, dashing for the two ninth ranks. He wanted to execute them on the spot!
Neither Calamity nor Skyward reacted. Li Hao, however, did.
He unsheathed his sword and pointed it not at Skyward, but at Calamity.
The man’s expression changed drastically and he snarled, “Li Hao! Are you crazy?! You know that he’s stronger...”
This madman!
They might stand a chance if the two of them teamed up, but the lunatic was going against him instead!
Damn it!
Damn it all to hell!
What was Li Hao thinking?!
“Skyward, will you wait until after I kill Calamity?” Li Hao smiled after he thrust his sword.
Skyward answered in kind and disappeared, like he really was unafraid of anything. “I’ll wait for you! You’re more interesting than Calamity. He’s the source of all disaster, so I don’t mind if you kill him.”
Calamity scowled. Skyward!
“You are too cocky, Skyward!” He couldn’t help but curse, despite Li Hao attacking him. “You’re giving them an opportunity to kill you, you idiot!”
Skyward was completely unmoved. An opportunity to kill me? So what?
The man watched with a small smile on his face. Kill me?
That was nothing in the end as well.
He raised his head to look upward, as if returning to the age of a million years ago, when he discussed dao with that one. Skyward took a quick walk down memory lane.
Li Hao, Fang Ping, Su Yu...
These are the people you were waiting for, right?
Who will be the final one in the end?
......
The sword of despair loomed over the worlds!
Li Hao struck with unchallenged might and invincible will. The power of calamity started crumbling as what kind of disaster could overwhelm despair?
Would one care about catastrophes when they were stuck in the pits of despair?
Countless beings in the worlds drowned in despair. When it came to natural or manmade disasters, what could shatter despair?
Perhaps only hope could expel it!
......
At the same time.
Spring Autumn’s replicas had completely shattered, but they now recovered one by one. Her primary body was encircled by the long river and Allheaven Hall.
Spirits from exalted emperors hovered within the void. Her replicas accepted the spirits, one to each replica. They rapidly grew in presence and strength around her as the incredibly feeble replicas hosted imperial strength.
Spring Autumn immediately felt something different about herself.
Indeed, something different.
It wasn’t the simple fact of replicas being suffused with energy, but... the spirit!
Only now did she truly sense what the dao spirit was.
She looked at Li Hao, then at Su you, and finally at the Human King.
So the spirit that I sensed before... wasn’t alive enough. The true spirit lies in people.
No, actually, it’s a type of intelligence.
The cicada sank into deep thought.
Intelligence.
My race lacks sufficient spirit, so our lifespans aren’t long. Only I have survived to present day. Despite still having a short lifespan, I can continue to be reborn. Is it because... I have some intelligence?
Is that the case?
So my people do not lack lifespan, but intelligence!
Spirit doesn’t necessarily come from the outside, but from our own intelligence.
“I see...” Spring Autumn murmured. Perhaps her path had been wrong all along.
I should not seek to strengthen my people’s bodies and think that will bestow longevity. I should seek to... educate them instead!
She’d always focused on wanting to seize spirit and origin to fashion the bodies of her people, thus ensuring that they would have abundant life force. Surely that would result in unlimited lifespan and ample spirit.
But that treated only the symptoms, not the cause.
The cause was intelligence!
She should not have doggedly pursued her previous goals, but focused on intelligence instead. That gave blossom to spirit.
Spring Autumn sank into deep thought. Her replicas were still growing stronger, so she could clearly sense the spirit within. She looked at Li Hao in the distance.
He had the spirit of ten thousand exalted emperors become part of my bodies. So he... understood this logic from the very beginning!
Increasing spirit will break the fetters of a race, and the source of that is intelligence!