Chapter 1323: Sword of the Firmament, the Mental Sea (I)

Lin Hongyu stopped the chase, paused in thought, and suddenly said, “Withdraw! Give Ying Hongyue time to recover so he can use the bloodlines of the eight families to deplete Red Moon power. The exalted emperor is going to turn him into a replica soon if he doesn’t get a breather!”

The group blinked.

What is this, a joke? We’ve chased after him for all this time, and now we’re withdrawing?

But since Lin Hongyu had given her orders, they followed without question. Up ahead, Ying Hongyue could also sense that his pursuers had stopped.

“Li Hao!” He grit his teeth and sat down cross-legged. The eight bloodlines over his head trembled, smashing through the strands of Red Moon power.

Damn it, Li Hao, what do you think of me as?

Your tool?! Do you think you and Li Daoheng are the only chess players in the world?

Damn it!!

......

In the depths of the cosmos.

Li Hao was seated cross-legged in space. He looked at the three apprehensive Saints. Their daily routine had turned into fighting exalted emperors and half step emperors on a regular basis ever since Li Hao came into their lives. How exciting!

𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

If including Li Hao, their strength consisted of a quartet of Saints. And yet, their opponents were exalted emperors and half step emperors!

The young man ignored their emotional state and said softly, “Li Daoheng’s immaterial universe is similar to the corporeal universe. There isn’t a large gap between the immaterial and corporeal to begin with. He is probably plotting after my corporeal universe while he resides in the immaterial!

“I don’t know what schemes he has cooking, but it’s high time that I cooked up a few of my own!”

Li Hao had learned certain things after Li Daoheng appeared to stop him. He didn’t need to enter the immaterial dao universe, he just needed to stick to its surface.

“I will now attempt to create the sea of mental strength.” The young man looked at the three Saints. “I may not succeed and will need the seniors to help me in this endeavor!”

“Please speak of your requests!” the sword tree said solemnly. “We’ll do anything it takes to exterminate the filth that is Li Daoheng!”

As the guardians of the Li family, the historical massacre was an internal demon that overwhelmed their minds. They would pay any price necessary to kill Li Daoheng!

“I need the three seniors to suppress the sea for me!” Li Hao said softly. “The stone will be the foundation of the sea, the tree its ramparts, and the seal as the dome. Only the three seniors can create a base that can contain a myriad of daos and a myriad of swords!”

“There are many powerhouses among the cultivators of the world,” he addressed the trio seriously. “Humans are useless and monster spirits are hard pressed to rise to the occasion. Few are those who can hold the Eternal Sword intent. The three seniors are the perfect candidates to, and as such, the most ideal help I can have for establishing my mental sea!

“Each one of you is vital!

“Senior Stone will be the firm foundation of the sea! Senior Sword Tree will take root in the barrier around the immaterial dao universe and connect my mental sea to that universe! The senior can withstand Eternal Sword intent as well as my Hao Moon Sword intent! Senior Sword Seal was the anchor stone of the city to begin with and blessed by the Sword Sovereign and supreme. You can stabilize the sea and be its outer shell, ensuring its invincibility...”

Li Hao considered the three. They were the most suitable and the only suitable candidates to support a sea of mental strength.

The sword tree initially remained silent. “Will we die from it?”

“No!”

“Then why do you look like we’re going to die?” the tree exhaled. Li Hao had such a grim look on his face! They weren’t afraid of death, they just wanted to live until they saw Li Daoheng die! Otherwise, they would never willingly accept their end.

Since they weren’t going to die, what was the young man being so solemn for?

“You won’t die, but the three seniors won’t be able to leave until I break into the immaterial dao universe,” Li Hao intoned. “If you do, the sea will collapse!”

“That is of no concern!” the sword tree responded blithely. “It’s just being imprisoned in another location! Weren’t we in the same circumstances for the last one hundred thousand years?

Perhaps... our situation may even be better this time around.

“Since Sword City has proven to be Stellaris, then we should change our location as well. It makes no difference where we are!”

Li Hao was being too serious.

“We are willing to lend our strength to you not because you are a descendant of the Lis—and you are not actually one,” the sword tree continued. “But because you have dealt multiple losses to Li Daoheng. Just for that alone, us three won’t care if we die in your endeavors!”

Li Hao, however, turned over their words.

“The three seniors possess spirits and as such, are alive. You are also my seniors of Sword City and have neither done me wrong, tried to kill me, or offended me. On the contrary, you have volunteered your help instead. Today, I ask the three to help me to build a sea of mental strength, but in reality it would be crafting your cages!”

The young man raised a hand when the sword tree wanted to interject.

“Don’t emphasize that you’re willing, I’m not trying to convince you otherwise. Since I’ve mentioned it, my ultimate hope is that the three seniors are willing to help me. I, Li Hao, do not shroud my intentions either. Since I’ve raised the request, I’m certain that the three seniors will not turn me down!

“I say this only because I wish to tell you that I have my own bottom lines as well. If I succeed, I will exert control over the immaterial dao universe. Not only that, but if I take it and the three seniors become your own little world, I will sever part of the world’s strength to you if Silver Moon becomes mine. I will help you form your own world!”

“There is no need for that...” The three didn’t take him seriously, but Li Hao was very grave.

“These are just my thoughts, it’s not guaranteed that I’ll be successful. I... might die before that day comes to fruition. I just want to say that I will keep my word if I do succeed! I say this not to placate the seniors, but to soothe myself!

“Silver Moon martial masters cultivate the heart when they cultivate dao,” smiled the young man. “Only when my heart is at peace will my dao be at peace! There is no need for the seniors to say anything, I’m just painting a pretty picture of the future and haven’t accomplished anything yet!”

The trio didn’t protest any further after hearing his words. True enough! The young man was yet to accomplish anything. They could save their thanks and gratitude for when he succeeded.

Li Hao smiled as he seemed to have convinced himself. “In that case, I won’t stand on ceremony any longer. With three premier Saints consolidating my sword intent, I dare say that even three Empyrean Kings won’t be as suited for my purpose as the three seniors!”

One tree, one stone, one seal!

The key was, they could withstand the Eternal Sword intent. How dominating was that sword intent?

If the three spirits could hold up against the Sword Sovereign’s sword intent, then they might endure Li Hao’s blow of one hundred moves, one thousand, or even ten thousand! Even if he didn’t end up seizing the immaterial dao universe, he would never have to worry about his sword intent being too strong for his body.

This was the best groundwork he could lay to consolidate his mental sea.

These three spirits were the most crucial discovery for him on this trip to Sword City—they were more valuable than even the ancient city!

“I’d... I’d like to ask...” The stone was delighted. “What will happen to you if this mental sea succeeds?”

“I’ll be peak Saint in two daos!” Li Hao smiled.

What good was that for? The spirits were disappointed.

“Although my immaterial dao will still be in the Saint level, my sword technique of a hundred moves in one move will be at hand! Once that is complete, I will be unrivaled in offense! I wouldn’t go so far as to say that I’d be able to battle a half step emperor, that would be too arrogant. But when it comes to any existences beneath that level... I will no longer fear them!”

Really?

The trio found that hard to believe. One sword technique would enable him to sweep through all Empyrean Kings?

In contrast to the obvious skepticism facing him, Li Hao was coolly composed and resolute.

If I complete the technique of one hundred moves, I’ll have opened 144 dao meridians in my body and be peak third level Fused Dao. I’ll rival any regular Empyrean King.

If I still can’t make quick work of modern Empyrean Kings once I complete that move... wouldn’t that be a waste of all the times I challenged the exalted emperor and half step emperor these months?

I’ve also died dozens of times. Each death was a true death. Having paid such a steep price and with three Saints as my foundation, I’ll absolutely be able to dominate Empyrean Kings once I succeed!

The three spirits’ morale was renewed after this revelation.

“Then... this will have been worth it!” They didn’t find anything inappropriate in this moment. If they died, so they died.

“Then let us begin. The process will be a bit painful but... since the three seniors could endure the Eternal Sword intent and even absorb it, you may be able to absorb my Hao Moon Sword intent once we’re finished. Your future will be limitless without bound!”

Li Hao wielded the smaller Stellaris, not the actual heritage weapon itself. It abruptly turned into a long river that encircled the world.

“The stone as the foundation!” The young man looked at the trio. “Senior Stone, I am going to... cut into you and forge the cornerstone of the sea. The power of time will wash over you to excise impurities from your being. A myriad of daos will baptize you. Can the senior... endure it?”

“I am the spirit of a stubborn stone and have experienced the baptism of all sorts of powers in the world. Just come at me!”

Li Hao said nothing more, enveloping the stone with the river and summoning his sword intent.

The river rushed through the world!

A massive boulder landed in the river. Nothing happened at first; a layer of impurities coating its outside was gradually washed away and revealed its translucent core.

Pain!

So much unendurable pain!

Even with the stone’s natural durability and unparalleled defenses, even after it’d been tempered by Stellaris, it still found the agony unbearable.

“It hurts so much!!” it suddenly screamed from the waters.

The sword tree jerked and yelled back to it, “You’re such an embarrassment! Don’t yell!”

“Ahh!!” came another cry. “It really really hurts! It’s like a thousand arrows piercing my heart! Sword Tree, Sword Seal... it hurts!”

It hurt too much!

“If you cannot endure it, then your mind may fall apart under the onslaught and you’ll become an ordinary stone through and through.” Li Hao’s expression was calm, though a light sparkled in his eyes. “Since we’ve begun, I would not like to give up. I’m sure the seniors would prefer not to as well! In that case, you can only bear the onslaught! If the senior fails... then Seniors Sword Tree and Sword Seal will likely fail as well. We can give up then!”

“I... can... do it!” the stone howled with anguish. “It’s only pain! I have experienced seas turning into mulberry fields and back again. I was but a pebble to begin with, but the Sword Sovereign gave me life and strength. If I can endure the Eternal Sword intent, how can I not endure your Hao Moon Sword intent!

“Do you think you have more potential than the Sword Sovereign? Do you think you can compare to him?!” screamed the stone.

The boulder was beginning to distort from the river’s force. It was like someone was smashing it to pieces!