Star Gate

Chapter 726: Making Out Like Bandits (I)

Li Hao swiftly backed away as a tendril of sword intent came his way. His arm exploded, but the young man held Stellaris aloft. As he expected, a tendril of sword intent darted into the weapon. Stellaris trembled while Li Hao swiftly swallowed a few drops of Water of Life. His arm grew out, shattered, then grew again...

He continuously imbibed Water of Life. He’d known before that this sword intent was formidable, but only today did he know that it was more terrifying than he thought! He was an Arcanus, but his level of strength was having absolutely no effect. And this was just observing the stroke from a moment removed from its time! It was just a brand left behind from countless years ago!

He had to swallow eight drops of Water of Life before Stellaris fully absorbed all of the sword qi. Li Hao’s arm finally stopped being obliterated. When he next opened his eyes, a destructive presence agitated from them. The five auras also stirred within his organs and some changes seemed to take place in the sword overview. The bridges between the five organs began to twist as they took on a sword shape.

Li Hao raised his head to the sky again, seeing nothing there anymore.

“The cosmos, door, eight trigrams, seal...” murmured the young man. What was Silver City? This was what he’d seen this time. Who knew when he would be able to catch a glimpse next time? Thankfully, he’d accomplished almost all of the goals he’d come back with.

Li Hao crawled out from a pile of pebbles and looked at the stone door not too far away. It was as quiet as before. He dropped his gaze. This place was a land of inheritance. As he only had the Windchaser Boots and Stellaris at the moment, he was unworthy. This was very possibly the legacy site of the mallet of the Hongs.

......

At the same time, Red Moon headquarters.

Ying Hongyue looked toward the north, his blood qi shaking. He furrowed his brows when he seemed to see something.

“Li Hao...” he murmured. Had the kid returned to Silver City? As he thought, the legacy of the Sword Sovereign was different. The kid did not fall in any battle and a joint deployment of Arcanus was insufficient to kill him. What a pity, what a pity that he himself...

Ying Hongyue closed his eyes. He had to meld the seven bloodlines together for anything to be feasible. Li Hao was growing too quickly, so quickly that it outstripped the imagination. That the eight families had the Lis at their head did not seem to be empty rumor.

......

“The sword bloodline...” Li Hao walked out of the ruins with a few more thoughts in mind. He’d been debating lately on what path he should take next. Battle Heaven and Silver Moon martial masters had given him a lot of inspiration, and now there was the matter of the sword bloodline...

Indeed, the supernatural locks were showing signs of turning into a sword bloodline. Now that was interesting.

“There’s also the sever and break incarnation, and using mental strength to nurture the sword...”

So it turned out that many things were interconnected in the end! This further piqued Li Hao’s interest in martial dao. Although he was no longer a pure martial master, a supernatural martial master was still a martial master.

“Supernatural locks, nurturing the sword, the Incantation of the Blade of Blood, core origin dao...” Li Hao muttered a litany of keywords. There were so many thoughts rattling around his brain lately that they were proving difficult to digest. Director General Wang was right, seeing too much made it easy to wander off onto the wrong path. Many things had to be tried one by one and a full understanding gained before dwelling on them.

There’s too much and it’s too varied. That’s not good!

The more systems he learned of, the more thoughts he had. They had to be consolidated. Otherwise, he might plateau at an impasse if this continued.

There’s also my auras that have quieted down...

He needed to have a clear grasp on the topic of the auras as well. The auras, supernatural locks, core origin dao...

More and more subjects flooded his mind, filling Li Hao’s brain to the brim. He shook them all away; he would try them out one by one in the days to come. However, another thought appeared in his mind—consolidation. What if he could unite them all and have one concept be their common vehicle? He could somehow incorporate dao, aura, supernatural locks, and mysterious power with each other.

Mysterious power was outside force and could not be integrated into his body. What if he wrapped it in something that could be assimilated into his body? Would that work?

What if I could open the supernatural locks at will, release their power whenever I needed, and close them again? Doesn’t the Five Styles incorporate the aura into them? And if I create an opening in the supernatural locks... the kind that can be accessed at will...

Although he’d just decided to put all those thoughts out of his mind, he was suddenly gripped by new inspiration. Create a small opening in the supernatural locks? What a good idea! I’m a genius! But... how? And how should I close it after opening?

His teacher’s Five Styles temporarily ended after Refiner of Spirit. Yuan Shuo didn’t say what should happen next. Indeed, should they be opening their locks after Refiner?

Or should I use my previous method? Creating an opening isn’t hard, just force a hole into it like I’m planting a tree. Closing it at will is the hard part. I have to use something as a door... And it has to be something from my own body or it won’t be a match for myself. Blood qi? Mental strength? Or something else?

Or could they all be combined to be the doorstopper? Combining them together... wasn’t that the act of writing with his mental strength?

Li Hao laughed. How interesting. All of martial dao came together in the end!

Of course, these were just his preliminary thoughts. He needed more time to experiment. The Seventh Troop leader had it right. One should research so long as one was alive. What was there to be afraid of? He should just give it a try!

......

Silver City.

Li Hao returned to his old house. It’d been cordoned off as it’d become a condemned building—no one lived in it anymore. It’d been scheduled for demolition a long time ago, so moving away didn’t affect anyone.

Panther came back with him. The old den at the bottom of the stairs was still there. It was a bit messy and humid. Panther swept a disdainful look over it. Whoever wanted this old thing could have it!

“You don’t know the meaning of nostalgia at all!” Li Hao flicked a glance at Panther. “This was your home before!”

“Arf arf arf!” Panther refuted. This wasn’t! It was just a temporary den. Would you live in it if I gave it to you?

“Time passes without return!” Li Hao sighed with emotion. The strongest of powerhouses could not return to the past. Time was the greatest enemy. He’d been a pathetic little bug here a few months ago, but now he fully dominated wherever he was. Would he still have taken this path if he was returned to the past?

If a few months ago, he would have. But what if he could go back to when his parents were alive, when Little Yuan was alive?

Li Hao laughed and put the thought out of his mind. What was past was in the past. Time would not return, so why create troubles for himself.

......

The young man did not spend long in Silver City. As many secrets as the city held, they were not ones that he could trigger at the moment. He arrived back in White Moon City the next day, choosing to visit the Silver Moon Guards base this time. It’d been a month since he last set foot there.

......

The Silver Moon Guards base was very quiet. There weren’t many people to begin with and they were out and about on missions lately. The Demon Hunters had fought a few battles with the pirates and some with supernaturals. They were growing their reputation, but they paled far in comparison with Li Hao. When the young man appeared, the regrouping Demon Hunters agitated with excitement.

“Leader!” Everyone was highly overcome when Li Hao set off the alarms. Liu Long was shoved to the back as the entire group flooded forward. The first to arrive was none other than Hong Qing. She was so full of questions that she seemed fit to burst. She looked around in all directions when she saw Li Hao.

“Leader, where’s my dad?” she asked impatiently.

“Hmm?”

“Earthturner Sword!” She gave her father’s title in a fit of impatience. “Don’t they say that he was present at the battle of Skystar City? I also hear that he killed the Steppe Prince, is that true? Is my dad an Arcanus? No way! He shrinks in on himself so much—ahem, I mean he’s such a practical person. How could he have hidden his strength?

“I’m the daughter of an Arcanus? Then why am I doing so poorly for myself? The sons and daughters of Novas are either Solars or Novas themselves. My dad is an Arcanus, but look at me!” Hong Qing hadn’t been in such a hurry before, but she’d received some news lately as it made its way to Silver Moon.

The people were agog with praise for Silver Moon martial masters and their feats over the Skystar Sea. Demon Sword shone in all directions, Sky Sword appeared out of the void to dominate all directions. Earthturner Sword executed a titled prince in a fit of anger... Silver Moon martial masters were so arrogant that they reigned sovereign over the four seas and eight lands...

Rhymes and jingles were being made out of their accomplishments!

In Hong Qing’s eyes, the key person was Earthturner Sword Hong Yitang! He was listed on the Record of Thirty-Six Heroes, but he shone particularly brightly as he’d cut down a titled prince! This prince was an important key member of the royal family and not a person with a nominal title. How could the girl not be exhilarated?

What a pity that her father hadn’t come back these days. She didn’t have anyone to ask! Otherwise, she’d shake her father for an interrogation. If you’re so strong, why is your daughter so weak? I’m the worst off child of an Arcanus! I had to wash my own clothes and make my own food growing up! Damn if she wasn’t pitiful! Would she have to do all of this if she’d known her father was so strong??

Li Hao was placed in awkward straits by Hong Qing’s questioning. “Um... you should ask your dad this...” he said after a while. “I don’t know why he’s so wrong either. As for you being weak... perhaps your father thinks you need more tempering...”

Hong Qing looked woefully at him. That was it? That was all he had to say to her?

“What a pity I didn’t see my dad kill the Steppe Prince with one stroke... It must’ve been glorious!” she said with regret.