Chapter 1400: A Callous Person (I)

Li Hao’s expression was calm. Last time, his future self—which was his current self—had told his past self that he would die in this encounter. While the enemy remained unnamed, he would perish all the same.

So this was the moment.

Would it be the Exalted Bone Eclipse Emperor who ended him?

Li Hao rushed out with the Firmament Sword, but in the absence of a master, a sword was just a sword. No matter how powerful it was, such as the Exalted Blood Emperor’s blade, it couldn’t kill a crippled exalted emperor by itself.

Given his complete lack of strength, there didn’t seem to be an opportunity for him to turn the tables. He might not even survive the encounter with Bone Eclipse, much less the thunder and lightning.

Li Hao laughed to himself.

Am I going to die here?

Probably.

But I won’t die to Bone Eclipse!

The world shifted in this moment and a figure materialized at the far end of the void. It brimmed with an air of death. Li Hao laughed when he saw it.

“You die for me, so I shall drag you out of the depths of hell. I don’t like to owe favors and you’re no exception, Lin Hongyu!”

The last vestige of time seeped out from the young man’s body and a star emerged from within. It was also wreathed by a deathly qi, but a myriad of daos converged on it!

This was Lin Hongyu’s personal dao star. Cracks marked it, but a circle of time prevented it from collapsing.

The star melded into Lin Hongyu’s body. Li Hao reached out with a hand; vitality surged in the surroundings. It came from everyone in the vicinity, not just him.

“Even if I die, I will not die to my enemies,” he smiled. “I will not die to Bone Eclipse. You died for me, and now I return that to you!”

All of the remaining vitality in his body surged into Lin Hongyu. Life blossomed in her.

Her shut eyelids twitched and she slowly opened her eyes. Death qi still emanated from her body, but it was like she’d returned to life after crawling out of hell. She stared dumbly at Li Hao.

The young man flashed a smile at her, instantly turning so old that his hair was completely white. The Firmament Sword returned to his hand with a beckon and landed in Lin Hongyu’s grasp. Li Hao was so weak that his lifespan had reached its end.

“Here... kill the exalted emperor... with one blow!” he chuckled softly.

As her hand closed around the hilt, Lin Hongyu stared dumbly at the haggard, crumbling Li Hao. An inexplicably complicated expression was in her eyes.

“Don’t hesitate... kill him!” Li Hao chuckled again. “He doesn’t deserve... my own hand! You do it!”

Lin Hongyu flared with dead qi. She set her jaw and whirled around, brandishing the sword. A myriad dao stars gathered in her body and that final sliver of the power of time erupted. The Firmament Sword wanted to struggle free, but Li Hao ordered, “Obey!”

The sword immediately quieted down. A blow intermixed with death qi, vitality, the power of time, and destructive force flashed out of the sword. It was a move of a myriad daos and Lin Hongyu struck with fury, resolution, and anguish!

This blow rivaled one from Li Hao at his peak.

“KILL!”

The call reverberated through the world.

Bone Eclipse’s expression changed drastically. The only thought in his mind was to flee. He was no longer in peak condition, he wasn’t even half of that. The nine thunderbolts had consumed almost all of his energy.

Death nipped at his heels; he howled with bitterness and despair, “This is impossible! I am an exalted emperor! I am an exalted emperor!!”

He was an exalted emperor!

He would accept it if Li Hao killed him, but what was this woman worth??

A dead person?

I die to someone already dead?!

A woman somewhat famous in Silver Moon, but otherwise unknown and bears only the title of Li Hao’s fiancé, can kill me??

This isn’t real!

Bam!

The longsword proceeded through its swing! Bone Eclipse roared and erupted with unending power!

“This emperor will not die here!!”

Bam!

The Firmament Sword had completed its trajectory and burst with infinite sword intent. The power of time froze Bone Eclipse for a split second. The sword cut him down from head to toe and flared with destructive force!

Kaboom!

The Exalted Bone Eclipse Emperor spontaneously burst apart, shedding Red Moon power through the air. It gathered together again, wanting to be reborn!

Li Hao, however, raised his eyes to the sky and laughed. He reached out, gathering the Red Moon power to his hand and shaping it into stars. Li Daoheng’s eyes widened.

The tenth thunderbolt was upon them!

KABOOM!

Li Hao was once more vaporized and Li Daoheng didn’t have effort to spare for Celestial Pole. The thunder and lightning smote him with a fury, eradicating him. However, he came back to life, then died again. When his core origin dao appeared, the thunderbolt broke it into two!

In the void, lightning crackled over boundless Red Moon power and an agonized wail rang out.

“This... this is impossible... I am an exalted emperor...”

Rumble!

The void exploded and Red Moon power swiftly fell apart. A large universe seemed to appear in the world, resembling a wheel of a red moon. Someone seemed to sense something and a voice carried upon the wind. “Bone Eclipse... a chaos tribulation... dead...”

The ethereal voice traveled over mountains and rivers, drifting in and out of hearing. The Red Moon universe vanished. Everything in the void was reduced to ashes and dust!

There was only one person standing beneath the heavens—one half dead person, staring blankly into space. Celestial Pole was also looking around, at a complete loss.

In the distance, the cat likewise stared at the sky, lost in thought.

The exalted emperor was dead, Li Hao was dead, Li Daoheng was dead, Zheng Yu was dead...

Everything seemed to have been a fever dream!

The strongest people in Silver Moon had all died in this calamity. After being sealed away for one hundred thousand years, Bone Eclipse had also emerged to die in this disaster.

A bloody rain began to drift from the sky, popping the last wisp of hope from the people. The heavenly will... was dead!

Lin Hongyu gaped at the void, not saying a word. Thin cracks covered the longsword in her hand and death qi emanated through the world.

“Were you... that opposed to my presence?” Lin Hongyu murmured at the crumbling void.

Did you want to clear your debt with me that badly? Aren’t I your fiancé? You pulled me out of hell, but left, just like that?

Li Hao, have you ever had the slightest sliver of emotions in you? You never liked to owe anyone anything!

......

Silver Moon was completely quiet after the thunder and lightning dispersed. All powerhouses had been demolished in one day and the exalted emperor that’d loomed over their heads for one hundred thousand years had also died.

The chaos tribulation had swept through the world, prompting its furious evolution and growth. There was no other minor world in the universe that would undergo the same experience as Silver Moon—having the equivalent of four exalted emperors die in one day as well as experiencing two chaos tribulations.

Clear qi rose and turbid qi sank. This was a sign of the creation of a world!

The bloody rain continued to fall, but the world was being reborn. Ash Mountain stretched further in the distance and the Forbidden Sea frothed. Countless beasts spontaneously gained sentience. Major monster spirits within Ash Mountain suddenly advanced in cultivation, bounding past Mountain and Sea and entering Sun and Moon.

Towering trees abruptly appeared and lifted their roots. They were sentient as well! Plant spirits were being born in Silver Moon.

The heavenly will had died twice in one day; the ensuing bloody rain contained the great dao. As it nurtured all life, monster spirits began to appear. Beast spirits and plant spirits evolved, and humanity benefited even more so. There was endless energy in the world, so people spontaneously cleared acupoints even if they weren’t cultivators.

This was a general cultivation in the true meaning of the phrase!

Just like in the first awakening, some babies were baptized by the world and born with the wishes of the heavens. In fact, the disturbance was much greater than this time.

The first awakening had seen the birth of premier existences such as Li Hao and the queen of the west. Today, the demise of exalted emperors and the heavenly will, as well as the occurrence of chaos tribulation, remade the world. If any babies were born on this day, they would be the favored children of the age and natural-born cultivators!

......

And yet, silence reigned throughout the land. There was no outpouring of joy for their world’s evolution. Only the roars of beasts and crying of babies could be heard. The rest of the people were completely lost, as if something precious to them had disappeared. An inexplicable sorrow wrapped around their hearts.

They didn’t know what was going on, but a bloody rain was drifting from the sky. The overwhelming presences that raged overhead had vanished, but it gave rise to the speculation that perhaps the marquis had died alongside his powerful enemies!

Li Hao was a demon when he walked his path and had killed more people than could be counted. He’d left Silver City to seek revenge; his course of slaughter had not stopped since then.

At the same time, there was a heroic core to him. He upheld justice when he traveled the world and eliminated sources of evil or disruption. He’d executed the corrupt ruling echelon. Revenge was one line item on his list of to-dos, as was taking a stand for what was right and good.

He advocated for an educated population, martial dao for all, learning for the masses, suppression of supernaturals, and breaking up the social hierarchy. While it hadn’t been long since he’d rolled out all of these reforms, Silver Moon denizens had benefited immensely from them.

No matter how strong the powerhouse, dangerous the war, New Martial traitors or New Martial remnants, no one was able to surpass Li Hao. He had ushered peace into the world and created an age of glorious prosperity!

The invasion of the four nations, the revitalization of the eight cities, the three great organizations, and the seven divine mountains... The young man had eliminated or subjugated each of these immense factions.

The people were awake and enlightened now, they knew good from bad, gratitude from hatred, logic and reason. They knew full well that their current days of tranquility were deeply tied to Li Hao. Even when the young man revealed himself less to the public eye, his name carried the greatest weight among all!

The ambitious ones of Supernatural City such as Lin Hongyu and Gan Wuliang, free-spirited Silver Moon martial masters such as Sky Sword and Tyrant Blade, New Martial nobles such as Zhang An and Jiang Yingli...

All of them were gathered together because of Li Hao; the young man made it possible for them to focus on fighting together with coordinated effort. Otherwise, how would there be a united Silver Moon if they endlessly warred with each other?

It was only today that people came to a belated realization of the reasons for their lives and an emotional reflection. Some were already uneasy and fearful. Li Hao was dead!

If Li Hao was dead, then would this be an age of prosperity or one of disorder? Who would keep New Martial powerhouses such as Zhang An in check? Who could suppress a premier half step emperor like Celestial Pole, one who supported the Great Li king?

The queen of the west was a ruthless divine spirit who’d replaced the real Moon God, who could stand against her?

Who could command the hotly ambitious Gan Wuliang? He had powers to read the heart, controlled the immaterial dao universe, and was a peak Empyrean King! Although Li Hao seemed to have given him free reign, Gan Wuliang was immensely cowed by the young man. Defiance was the last thing on his mind.

Li Hao was so young, but unparalleled in plots and planning. Powerhouses fell before him and he could reverse time itself. Who dared be impudent to his face? But from this day forth, who would rule over the world?