Chapter 1433: Hello, Chaos! (III)

Time passed differently in the chaos. A blink in the outside world was several days, even months in Silver Moon.

Seven days passed in a flash while Li Hao was in closed door cultivation. The stronger one was, the harder it was to improve and the longer closed door sessions were. Seven days was the span of a single breath to him, it didn’t feel nearly as long as it used to.

A long river traveled through the world, the white crests of waves racing over its surface like horses. A tree, a stone, and a seal could be faintly seen. They absorbed power from the river to strengthen themselves. By now, they were truly the three treasures of the Sword Sovereign that formed the foundation of the world.

The star of time suddenly resolved into Li Hao’s form.

He swam through the river, then walked out of it to raise his eyes to the sky. The Star Gate overhead sharpened in his vision. There was even a sense of disordered time near the door.

The young man knew that once the Star Gate opened, Silver Moon would no longer be isolated. Time would flow the same between the chaos universe and Silver Moon.

Currently, there was a time differential between the two—this was a protective mechanism erected by minor worlds. It gave them space to develop their own daos.

Li Hao swam through the past and perceived the power of time, coming to new understanding. Not much time should’ve passed in the outside world. One hundred thousand years in Silver Moon... might be only a few decades or one hundred on the outside.

There was a very big gap between them!

Not only that, but once the Star Gate opened and connected to the chaos, a large quantity of energy would surge into the world. It would no longer be the barren little rock of before.

There were pros and cons to isolation. The pro was that it gave a world ample time to develop. But no matter how much time there was, a lack of energy would make it difficult for powerhouses to cultivate. There was no bright future ahead for such a world. People like Zhang An, for instance, had to send themselves to sleep due to a lack of energy.

Apart from wasting their lives away, there didn’t seem to be much point in having so much time at hand. Li Daoheng and the others were different because they had prepared a vast quantity of energy ahead of time. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have made any improvements in cultivation either. It would’ve been an empty existence.

Silver Moon... should connect with the chaos!

Li Hao knew that this would increase the danger they faced, but continuing to self-isolate would not lead to a future for them. As more powerhouses appeared in the world, the problem was becoming evident.

They lacked energy!

There was not enough in the world to support even stronger heavyweights. Fused Dao were still the minority for now. Once they grew in number... Fused Dao would no longer be able to cultivate.

Silver Moon did not bleed energy into the outside world, but neither could energy from the outside world filter in. If it wasn’t for the chaos tribulation smiting a few premier existences to death, the world would not ascend at all.

Maintaining the status quo in the long run would only lead to disadvantages for the world. Once cultivation stagnated, there would be no road ahead for anyone. They could only wait for death, fall asleep, or kill each other.

There would be no other options!

“Senior Number Two!” Li Hao sent through the river.

A cat raised its head with impatience and some unhappiness at its end.

What an annoying person. Why does he keep calling out to me?

“Meow!”

“I wish to open the Star Gate, which will bring the chaos tribulation down on us. Therefore, I have a favor to ask...”

“Meow!” Number Two was dissatisfied.

Don’t ask me for a favor!

“A stable river makes the illusions more real,” Li Hao smiled. “Even... facilitating the primary body to truly visit the past!”

The cat immediately whipped its head around to look at Li Hao.

“The past is the past... but existences of the past may be able to come to us and we may be able to visit the past... If we select a memory portion and loop it infinitely, that will make it a real world!”

Li Hao’s explanation was complicated, but the cat understood.

“What do you want this cat to do?” Number Two grumped.

What an annoying boy! I’m starting to not like you!

“It’s simple. The arrival of the thunder and lightning is sure to attract attention from some strong foes. I need the senior to absorb some thunderbolts for me in a critical moment so I can be freed up to cut down the enemies!” Li Hao smiled radiantly. “That’s all I need you to do. We need to make those guys think I don’t have the capacity to strike back at them. Only then will I have a chance to kill them!”

He knew without heading into the outside world that there was certain to be strong opponents waiting out there. Such were the requirements of a world ascension. This was a trial he needed to weather if he was to reach the exalted emperor level.

A heavenly tribulation and a human tribulation!

There was a pattern to all things in the universe.

The cat thought for a bit before nodding its massive head. “Alright, don’t lie to this cat... someone liked to lie to me before, but then...”

Then what?

“Then what?” Li Hao was curious.

“Then I ate all of the dried fish he had, so he had no more fish to eat!”

“......”

And here I thought you did something terrible. What am I supposed to say to that?

“All cultivators that have reached Fused Dao are to come see me!” The young man’s voice carried through the land. Time was of the essence!

Setting aside the fact whether the Human King and Supreme Zhang had taken action or not, Li Hao was about to walk out of Silver Moon. They would connect with the chaos after that. Another pressing concern was... he couldn’t hold on much longer.

That trip to New Martial had depleted a great deal of his life force. He would die of old age soon if he didn’t do anything.

Was there a future in store for someone who died of old age? Even time would find it difficult to revive him!

......

Fused Dao cultivators quickly made their way over, as did some New Martial heavyweights.

“Senior Celestial Pole, please make haste!” Li Hao instructed upon seeing no more arrivals after waiting a while.

“......” The surroundings were quiet.

The void broke after a long moment, displaying an irritated face.

What did you summon me for? I don’t want to be involved!

“Senior, I’ve met the Human King and Supreme Zhang. They want you to put some more effort in...”

Celestial Pole blinked. What did that mean?

“I swam to the past and met them,” Li Hao chuckled merrily. “They want you to work hard!”

Seriously?

Celestial Pole blinked, uncertain of the truth. Zhang An was also speechless.

It looks like you learned nothing from your trip to New Martial, apart from the Human King’s skills at pulling the wool over someone else’s eyes.

You’re not the same Li Hao anymore! Birds of a feather flock together!

Celestial Pole wasn’t certain, but he knew that Li Hao would have to go through Zhang An to swim to the past. He looked at the man—he wore a dark scowl.

“It’s just a replica.” Li Hao’s voice rang in Zhang An’s ear. “And I’m only employing a small trick. Senior Celestial Pole would make a move all the same if I didn’t do this. After all, he’s the strongest on Silver Moon after me. He’ll come in for his fair share of suffering with the ascension of the world!”

Zhang An nodded with resignation. Celestial Pole curled his lip, not quite believing Li Hao, but also knowing that he would find it hard to avoid the tribulation.

“You must have visited the past...” He looked at Li Hao. “And met the Human King!”

Damn it!

Just listen to you! You even kinda talk like him now. The hell man, you could’ve learned from anyone or anything, but you decided to imitate how he bluffs!

Li Hao roared with laughter; Celestial Pole couldn’t hold in his reaction. “There’s no need to imitate his laugh. Your laugh was more feminine before, it was nice too...”

Feminine??

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Li Hao didn’t know what to say.

When the hell have I, Li Hao, ever been feminine?!

“Alright then, I’ll try not to laugh too loudly in the future,” he said with resignation. “Just so the senior won’t misunderstand me!

“I’m going to open the Star Gate, weather the tribulation to become an emperor, and work in tandem with the rise in the world’s status!” The young man switched topics back to the business at hand and didn’t wait for a response. “This is my decision, not a discussion. I must do so because my lifespan will run out in three months!”

The last line made everyone shut up. No one objected any further!

“There is certain to be danger involved, I will shoulder the chaos tribulation!” Li Hao looked around at the group. “What you guys have to do is simple. Martial Uncle Hong and Gan Wuliang will take the lead to combine the two daos. The other people will integrate their own daos together and ascend alongside the world.

“Martial Uncle Hong will lead the integration and utilize the Earthturner Sword as the primary method. He will focus on defense and collect everyone’s power to him. That will be sufficient to stop one exalted emperor! The full strength of a mid world and all of its people will be enough to defend against one exalted emperor, but only one!”

Gan Wuliang didn’t say anything, whereas Hong Yitang nodded rapidly.

“There’s something in it for everyone if we succeed. We’re all done for if this fails!” Li Hao continued. “There might also be a chance on that day for a disturbance in the chaos that will unsettle the invading powerhouses. If we seize this opening, we might be able to cut down our enemies!

“If we can kill exalted emperors and incorporate them into Silver Moon, that will bring the world to yet another height! While that may be insufficient to take us to major world status, we will receive a vast quantity of resources all the same. We will no longer fret about resources!”

He looked at a few people in particular. “King of Great Li, you must block one thunderbolt for me at a critical moment!”

The king blinked, then nodded. He’d known this would be a request. But, was it blocking a thunderbolt or being smote by it? What was the difference?

“Your Majesty the queen, you must block one thunderbolt too!” said Li Hao.

The queen was unwilling as this was a very dangerous endeavor, but there was no helping it. She could only nod after looking at Li Hao. “Alright, but... I...”

“You can do it!”

Screw you! You know how dangerous this is!

“Senior, what you need to do is very simple.” Li Hao turned to Celestial Pole. “Hide yourself at first, then appear on the perimeter at a crucial moment. Pretend to be your primary body and proclaim that New Martial is here. Then expend all of your energy to intimidate the four corners. This is not a dangerous undertaking and should be in line with what the senior expects!”

Celestial Pole blinked. Was that it? That was... a good idea! He could do it!

Would it intimidate the four corners?

It would!

“Senior Zhang An!” Li Hao smiled at the man. “What you need to do is very simple too. Use everything you can from the book of dao and coordinate with Senior Celestial Pole. Create the illusion of New Martial’s return.

“When we need you, your book of dao can present the great daos of the supreme, Human King, Exalted Blood Emperor, and others. Expend everything to create the illusion of the various emperors returning! New Martial’s reappearance will stun our enemies. That will create a chance for us!”

The group exchanged looks with each other; Zhang An nodded. This wasn’t a tall ask, but it would be troublesome to carry out. Li Hao’s potential enemies were all of the exalted emperor level. After all, it took that level of strength to journey through the chaos universe.