Chapter 1133: Arrangements (I)

“As for the other ancient cities,” Li Hao’s tone turned frosty again. “The Lius and Zhous can be set aside. Regardless of whether or not the other cities also mutinied or have turncoats among their number, we can send them word that I will restrict their movements from now on. They are free to listen to me or not!

“I do not bear hopes that they will partner with me, but they are not allowed to set a single foot outside the city without my approval. That includes their replicas!”

Hong Yitang’s expression shifted slightly and he glanced sharply at the young man. Li Hao’s attitude had changed once more. It was no longer one of peaceful coexistence, but one that squeezed New Martial into ever dwindling spaces for survival.

“Then Barren Dynasty...” Hong Yitang asked after nodding.

“Since Red Dust’s side will not be able to utilize mass slaughter to kill people, he might eradicate Barren Dynasty to stabilize the world. He might also make use of energy from the Forbidden Sea.”

There were still options available to the enemy, but Li Hao held an ancient city within his grasp now. He could further delay the second awakening. The Forbidden Sea may not be enough by itself and Barren Dynasty had converted a large amount of territory into chaos. Exterminating Barren Dynasty... might be an option, but there are many Saints among the desolate beasts.

“Let’s sit back and watch the show!” Li Hao suddenly smiled. “But we need to keep our eyes on Barren Dynasty. While there’s no need to lead offensives against them, we will not permit them to take a step out of their territory. They can have fun with Red Dust. Since the Barren king has dared invade Skystar... he should be ready for the backlash from his actions.”

“There’s another very important point we need to consider right now,” Hong Yitang quickly raised. “The seal over Silver City might have loosened after Stellaris’ detonation!

“You mentioned before that the seal is connected to Ying Hongyue. Will he grow stronger from this, or weaker because the seal is looser?”

“It’s hard to say.” A flinty look entered Li Hao’s eyes when he shook his head. “The Great Li king will bring his full force against Ying Hongyue after this retreat. It may not be a safe return for the king once he makes it home. We need to send over the spoils of battle as soon as possible so that Great Li can grow stronger.

“They will be able to curtail Ying Hongyue once they are stronger. Great Li can hunt down the three great organizations and force Ying Hongyue to face the world alone!”

Great Li may have retreated, but Li Hao was sending them vast amounts of resources. His goal was clear—strengthen Great Li. The nation may not be able to suppress the three great organizations with just the Great Li king and Jiang Li.

“Then the divine spirits that got away...”

“They should first worry about being hunted down by those of Red Moon universe!” Li Hao snorted. “Spread the word that all of the Saint level divine spirits in Divine Nation have fallen. Only a dozen divine spirits have made it out, including the Moon God! They might be en route back to Divine Nation. The Red Moon exalted emperor has contaminated countless people. They may have more preparations ready in the dark. Let them kill the divine spirits!”

The traitors wanted to march against Barren Dynasty and revitalize the world.

The Red Moon exalted emperor wanted to eliminate the Moon God and weaken the seal. That he hadn’t done so yet was out of a desire to decrease losses while holding back both sides. Great Li could target the three great organizations. In this way, there would be no further obstacles to world peace for the immediate duration.

Li Hao would be able to make use of the lull to strengthen Skystar, everyone, and himself!

“I represent the limits of battle for the world—or rather, Silver Moon world denizens. I will now focus my efforts on opening dao meridians until I reach thirty-six. That means if the world is unstable, it will only be for New Martial and Red Moon. Any instability will not apply to us!

“Everyone, please increase your cultivation as quickly as possible! We have gained a great deal in this battle, including the corpses of some Saints. We also have vast quantities of Immortal level strength and Water of Life. The corpses of the divine spirits are also the key to our fortification!”

Hong Yitang nodded continuously; others had joined the conversation as they chatted. Many had died during this battle, but their core strength wasn’t much affected.

Lin Hongyu, Gan Wuliang, Director General Zhao, Deputy Zhou, Huang Yu, Chen Zhongtian, and others that possessed both martial brawn and strategic brains were fully accounted for.

Perhaps... it was their lack of undaunted valor that led to their survival in conflict. Or perhaps the group had felt that these must be the survivors, because they were needed to run the world. Those who’d fallen could not take up that mantle, but these people could.

Li Hao was momentarily lost in thought when he saw who was left. There was Huang Yu, commander of the armies. Lin Hongyu and Director General Zhao for administration, Hong Yitang for education, Chen Zhongtian to oversee the world’s inspectors, and Gan Wuliang who could read people’s hearts.

Had his people reached some sort of secret agreement to ensure that they would be the ones remaining?

Li Hao was no fool. He assessed those alive and thought back to his teacher and the rest. Had they come to an agreement early on regarding who should self-detonate at a critical time and who should stay?

Those who’d fallen in battle were those such as He Yong and Golden Spear—martial brutes with more brawn than brains. What a coincidence.

Hou Xiaochen had been an accident. He might not have had to die.

Various thoughts crossed Li Hao’s mind as he looked at the group again. Sky Sword was a martial brute solely focused on pursuing dao. He was fine!

It wasn’t that Li Hao didn’t want Sky Sword to be alive, but that the man possessed a resolute and steadfast character. The young man had once considered who might be a casualty in battle, if any were to occur. Sky Sword had been among the list of likely candidates.

So why was he standing here?

Li Hao cast a look at Gan Wuliang out of the corner of his eyes; the latter seemed to have his attention on Li Hao all this time. His heart jolted when the young man looked over.

It was like Li Hao had the ability to see through someone, not him. A shudder ran through him.

“Martial Uncle Sky Sword, I’m extremely grateful that you were able to survive this battle. You are a faithful and determined person, I was worried that you might fall into eternal slumber as well...”

“It was just luck,” Sky Sword rumbled. “And thanks to General Gan for giving me a hand at a critical moment...”

Sweat dripped down Gan Wuliang’s face. It wasn’t a bad thing to save people in battle. Yao Si had sacrificed himself to save Northern Fist—no one would speak ill of him for it.

Li Hao inclined his head and turned to Tyrant Blade. “Martial Uncle Tyrant Blade, who saved you?”

Tyrant Blade blinked and took a moment to say, “General Gan...”

The fear in Gan Wuliang’s eyes was impossible to suppress!

Li Hao didn’t say a word and nodded faintly. Tyrant Blade and Sky Sword were honest and frank martial masters who were very strong. But in terms of closeness with Li Hao... Sky Sword was a little closer, Tyrant Blade was not close at all. Those truly close to Li Hao such as Yuan Shuo, Liu Long, Hou Xiaochen, and the rest had all died in this battle.

There weren’t many Silver Moon martial masters adept at strategy. Those skilled at battle counted Sky Sword and Tyrant Blade among their ranks. Martial masters who were close to Li Hao and experienced at fighting had mostly died.

Hong Yitang was one of those with both brawn and brains, but his heart was not in politics or the military. He wished to follow the footsteps of the ancient supreme and disseminate martial dao and education throughout the world.

Various notions flitted through Li Hao’s mind. Meanwhile, Lin Hongyu and Director General Zhao’s expressions were shifting. The others didn’t think much about the young man’s questions; they simply felt that Gan Wuliang was loyal to the end. He’d saved Sky Sword and Tyrant Blade at a critical moment! If not for him, there might be fewer Silver Moon martial masters on the scene.

Gan Wuliang ducked his head, not daring to look at the commander.

Li Hao regarded him for a long while before saying, “General Gan, I have a very important mission to give to you. Will you accept it?”

“Wuliang will do my utmost to fulfill the commander’s instructions!”

“You will be in charge of escorting resources to Great Li!” Li Hao nodded slightly. “Tell the Great Li king that I’m sending you to stay in Great Li for a while. You can help him strategize while he exterminates the three great organizations. Although the Great Li king is valiant and Jiang Li calculating enough, they don’t know enough about the three great organizations.

“They are my biggest lingering issues at present, especially Ying Hongyue. He’s my enemy!” Li Hao declared coolly. “I want you to force him into desperate circumstances with no way out! There are tens of thousands of members among the three great organizations and Yonder Mountain. I want to see their corpses and their heads!”

Gan Wuliang’s eyes widened. To move against the three great organizations...

This...

“You are conscientious and Ying Hongyue is not a kind person,” Li Hao continued. “He’s cunning and deceitful, so you must be careful of him! If you succeed in this campaign, I will record a great merit under your name even if you don’t return with Ying Hongyue’s head!

“And if you do take down Ying Hongyue...” the young man paused. “Then you can choose any position you would like in the dynasty apart from being the Skystar king!”

“Wuliang would never dare!” Gan Wuliang’s eyes shot wide with horror. “Wuliang will do everything I can...”

“No, you

will

fulfill your mission! Even if you don’t kill Ying Hongyue, I want to see at least one of the heads from Yama, the Flying Sword Immortal, or the lord of Yonder Mountain. If I don’t see a single one...” Li Hao looked quietly at the man and said no more.

Gan Wuliang’s expression shifted rapidly. These four were certain to not stray too far from each other. How... incredibly difficult would it be to kill one of them right under Ying Hongyue’s nose!

Was Ying Hongyue difficult to handle?

Were Saints difficult to handle?

Gan Wuliang knew that it would be very difficult to kill Ying Hongyue, it would be even harder than killing Saints. Otherwise, with Li Hao’s personality, he would’ve long taken revenge. Why would he have waited till present day?

The young man hadn’t gone to the three great organizations even after conquering the ancient city. Plainly, he knew that Ying Hongyue was a thorny issue as well.

Gan Wuliang also knew that he had to accept this mission no matter what. Trouble had reared its head when Li Hao asked Sky Sword and Tyrant Blade how they’d survived!

Thankfully, the commander hadn’t continued his line of questioning.

“This subordinate understands,” Gan Wuliang quickly said when his thoughts traveled here. “Wuliang will return with my own head in hand if I do not take theirs!”

“There’s no need for that,” Li Hao said softly. “It’s fine if you don’t complete your mission either. You must be careful, especially when it comes to Ying Hongyue. He might be able to utilize Red Moon power, but you won’t be that affected. That’s also why I’m sending you. I’m afraid the others will be affected if I send them...”

“This subordinate understands!” Gan Wuliang quickly responded.

“Do you need helpers?” asked Li Hao.

“No!” Gan Wuliang immediately replied. “This subordinate alone is enough. So long as the Great Li king and Head Priest Jiang cooperate, there will be no need for anyone else with Great Li’s help!”

“That’s good, you can go take inventory of your resources later and bring them to the Great Li king. If he doesn’t listen, tell him that one Ying Hongyue is more troublesome than three ancient cities!”

“This subordinate understands!”

Li Hao nodded while Gan Wuliang heaved a sigh of relief. The young man had remained very calm from beginning to end and didn’t offer a single word of criticism. He even praised Gan Wuliang for being competent and worthy of important missions. He’d handed his most important enemy to Gan Wuliang...

This level of trust made the hairs on Gan Wuliang’s body stand up. He was terrified. Thankfully, Li Hao didn’t speak further. Otherwise, Gan Wuliang was concerned that he would not be making it out alive today.