Chapter 772: Kings Do Not Meet

Walking upon the soil of the Realm of Humanity, behind him trailed a crowd.

Yet after a hundred battles, he could no longer recapture that sensation from days gone by.

He could feel that the Realm of Humanity now rejected him.

The thirty-six prefects present—he could sense their emotions too: resentment, indifference, unwillingness, and curses.

These people were too weak.

Such emotional ripples could not escape Baizhan.

Perhaps they hated him, asking: Why must you return?

Six thousand years ago, were you not sealed away?

Had you not already fallen in battle?

Now the Realm of Humanity has a new lord—why must you come back?

It was not only Baizhan who sensed it; the few beside him felt it as well. Their strength was not insignificant, so naturally they could perceive those varied emotions, and even faintly hear distant murmurs from some who were debating.

Someone said: This newcomer, the lord of men—after so many years, why come back?

Didn't he die back then?

As the strongest beneath Baizhan, Marquis Nanxi heard this.

Marquis Nanxi's expression grew complicated. Suddenly he said: "Your Majesty, they are but ignorant folk. Pray pay them no heed! They know nothing. If victory had been possible back then, would it have come to this?"

"Precisely because victory was impossible, and we refused to doom all of humanity, did we act as we did!"

Marquis Nanxi's face was troubled. He glanced at Xia Huyou and the others beside him, hesitated, then still spoke to defend Baizhan: "If we could have triumphed over the myriad races and the lineage of Prison King back then, we would not have chosen this path! Perhaps... you have guessed something, yet if we had not preserved the spark, then—had we been defeated—all of humanity might have been extinguished long ago!"

He seemed unwilling to accept it, for he received no reply. He added: "The Realm of Humanity appears hard-pressed, but in truth, His Majesty has always watched over it and cared for it. Were it not so, there would be no invitation from the Zhou Heavenly Court, nor the imminent aid of the Ancient Giant King!"

This matter, Marquis Yunshui had also mentioned.

Marquis Nanxi said solemnly: "The Ancient Giant King is willing to lend aid precisely because of His Majesty. Otherwise, why would he wade into these troubled waters?"

Xia Huyou smiled broadly and nodded: "Marquis Nanxi speaks truly—we all understand!"

Marquis Nanxi frowned. He knew these were merely perfunctory words.

Yet he truly could not resign himself.

If they had been utterly indifferent, dismissive, and uncaring, that would have shown he did not care much about the opinions of these weaklings. But at this moment, he did care.

Marquis Nanxi said in a low voice: "You are the descendant of War King. Since you became lord of this prefecture at such a young age, I have heard you are a close friend of Su Yu..."

Xia Huyou chuckled lightly: "Senior, I have heard—only heard, mind you—that Senior was rescued by Emperor Yu! At the cost of the Slayer King's life, Senior was saved. Though Senior is older and our elder... yet Emperor Yu is the Lord of the Tenth Tide. Senior addresses him by his given name... and in the upper realm, Senior had some dealings with His Majesty. Is that... quite appropriate?"

Marquis Nanxi was momentarily startled, his expression complex. He said nothing.

Beside him, Marquis Jianghai said coldly: "Do you know whom you are speaking to? Even in ancient times, your ancestor War King..."

Xia Huyou forced a smile, nodded, and before he could finish, said earnestly: "Yes, even my ancestor War King would not dare speak to everyone like that—he would have to kowtow and call you all grandfathers!"

Silence!

Absolute silence!

Ahead, Baizhan Wang, who had been looking around, did not turn back. He said lightly: "Enough, let the mood be lighter. Why so bitter and resentful? Jianghai, say no more."

"Your Majesty!"

Marquis Jianghai was somewhat irritated. He was a direct descendant of Dou Wang, different from the others.

Now these people seemed to reject them utterly, which angered him.

His Majesty's return would only benefit humanity—how could it harm them?

When His Majesty was on the throne, he loved the people as his own children!

In the Ninth Tide, which human did not praise His Majesty's sagely virtue?

Sincerely, from the heart!

Great Zhou Wang himself often said that Baizhan might have wronged the allied races, but he had never wronged humanity. Of course, the final battle of the Ninth Tide was another matter.

Xia Huyou smiled and did not continue.

If he said more, he might get himself chopped.

His strength was too weak.

Still, when Marquis Nanxi had addressed Su Yu by name, he had spoken up to rebut him: You owe Su Yu a life, so you must show respect!

Marquis Nanxi's expression was also complicated. He sighed: "Perhaps you are right. Indeed, he saved me."

But Marquis Jianghai frowned and said darkly: "Wrong! If he had not gone to the upper realm and stirred up trouble, would the myriad races have searched the Source of the Dao? Nanxi, do you think we owe him? No, we owe him nothing! If he had not gone to the upper realm, would the upheaval at the Source of the Dao have occurred?"

On this matter, he did not feel indebted to Su Yu.

He had been in seclusion, cultivating peacefully, when suddenly the myriad races came to sweep through—all because of Su Yu's meddling!

Marquis Nanxi said nothing.

Beside them, Marquis Zhennan frowned slightly and said: "Jianghai, enough! You have just returned to the Realm of Humanity. His Majesty is also tired. Perhaps we should rest a while, then meet the strong from each prefecture and city. The Yu Emperor's Mansion... ah, before Su Ren Zhu left, he did not take away the mansion he built. Your Majesty may stay there temporarily."

Baizhan nodded slightly, smiled, and said: "Let us go there. Zhennan, your physical injuries are not light. When we return, I will help you recover. You may even have hope of stepping into the quasi-king realm."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Marquis Zhennan bowed slightly. Baizhan then looked at Wen Qi beside him and smiled: "Wen Qi has also merged with the Dao. Not bad!"

"By Your Majesty's grace!"

"You... you are still the same as in the old days, fond of such flattery."

Baizhan smiled, then looked up at the sky. After a long moment, he said: "I will go later to see if I can rescue Anying and Wushan. If I can revive them, then the company will be nearly complete."

As for the rest, they were no longer here.

Baizhan said no more on this. As he walked toward the Yu Emperor's Mansion, he asked: "You are called Xia Huyou, are you not?"

"Yes, what are Your Majesty's orders?"

Xia Huyou wore a beaming smile, quickly catching up, his face radiant.

"I heard you are on good terms with Su Yu?"

Xia Huyou grinned obsequiously: "Only so-so. He is high above, I am but a small fry. Your Majesty must not misunderstand."

"Sly one!"

Baizhan laughed. "Do not worry. I have no intention of doing anything to you. Whether rejection, anger, or resentment—in truth, this lordship of men has been a thing of the past ever since I left six thousand years ago. Of course, I bear no ill will toward humanity. We share the same roots!"

"Su Yu left because he felt unwilling to serve under me, and I... am unwilling to serve him. Each has his own choice."

Baizhan walked as he spoke: "Now is not the time for him and me to fight among ourselves. Our ideals may differ, our thoughts may differ, even our paths may differ! But we are both still human!"

He continued: "Whether ancient or primeval, all are human! In truth, the primeval and the ancient were never severed—they have always been one, merely with a difference in time. As for Prison King, he surrendered to Chaos... If we speak of traitors to humanity, the lineage of Prison King is that!"

He said solemnly: "I may have erred, but I have never betrayed! The primeval and the ancient—that is one era! All that came after is still humanity!"

He could have offered no explanation.

These people were too weak—mere Sun and Moon Realm.

Yet, he still explained.

Seeing the Human Realm again, with a feeling so utterly different from that year, made him think that perhaps he ought to say a few words.

He and Su Yu—perhaps he represented the Primordial Era, while Su Yu embodied the Ancient Era.

But in essence, the difference was slight.

Whether the Human Ancestor or the Human Emperor, both belonged to the same age!

That age had not yet fully ended.

Behind the Prison King lineage, it was no longer the human race.

Xia Huyou nodded with a smile: “The Human Lord speaks truly; His Majesty the Universe Emperor said the same. Before he left, he declared that when the Human Lord returned, he would not treat the human race unjustly! It is also a sign of trust in the Human Lord. Otherwise, knowing him as I do, he would not have abandoned the Human Realm. If the Prison King lineage and the myriad races attacked, he would have died here rather than forsake the Human Realm!”

This was indeed Su Yu’s thought.

Xia Huyou knew Su Yu’s mind—Su Yu truly believed that Baizhan would not harm the human race, or else he would not have left so easily.

This was the unspoken understanding between Su Yu and Baizhan, though they had never met.

Whether you nurtured your own confidants or fostered your own direct followers, it did not matter.

The human race remained the human race.

In essence, everyone was still human.

No one had betrayed this clan!

Only, there were differences in philosophy—Su Yu did not agree with Baizhan, and Baizhan might not necessarily agree with Su Yu.

Baizhan also smiled: “What you say is true. In that case, I ought to be pleased! These are all trivial matters! Now, many things are pressing. Even the Human Emperor and others may return one after another…”

Baizhan continued: “When the Human Emperor and the rest return, the myriad realms will surely fall into chaos! That is not the most terrifying thing. What is terrifying is that the existence behind the Gate of Hell may break through the door!”

Baizhan sighed: “In truth, I knew some things back then. It was because I knew too much that I became so helpless, even desperate… and in the end, I had no choice but to take another path!”

Xia Huyou knew something of this too, though not the specifics. Now, he asked cautiously: “Then why did the Human Lord not gamble once in those days? Perhaps… there was hope! Now, after sealing yourself for six thousand years, your strength remains the same. If your power has not changed, were those six thousand years wasted?”

The faces of Nanxi Hou and the others turned strange—was this a blatant attempt to pry for information?

Baizhan laughed: “Strength has naturally changed!”

Xia Huyou’s round face broke into a grin: “Then the Human Lord must have many Heavenly Lords by his side? That would make the human race strong. With the Human Lord here, it is the fortune of humanity!”

Baizhan chuckled.

Beside him, Nanxi Hou gave a light cough.

It was almost as if he was directly asking how many Heavenly Lords Baizhan had.

Baizhan smiled: “As for the exact number of Heavenly Lords, I truly do not know! If luck is bad… then I am not sure.”

Five or six?

Xia Huyou quickly noted this down—Baizhan had no need to deceive him on this matter.

Baizhan also seemed to intend for him to relay this to Su Yu.

At that moment, Xia Huyou felt that his identity as Su Yu’s friend was rather advantageous. Baizhan might know this, and since he was a descendant of the War King, Baizhan treated him with some courtesy.

Xia Huyou then hurriedly asked: “Then, Human Lord, do you think we can defeat the myriad races and the Prison King lineage?”

“There is still hope!”

Baizhan nodded: “But it is best if both sides erupt into war and suffer losses. Otherwise, even if we win, it will be devastating! Even if the Human Emperor and the others return… the situation will not improve; it will only worsen!”

“Do not pin your hopes on the Human Emperor’s return to turn things around!”

Baizhan said solemnly: “First, the human race had fewer Rule Masters than the myriad races before. Over so many years, the losses may have been greater—the myriad races definitely hold the advantage! Second, the Gate of Hell may open soon… and other places may open as well. That will be the worst era for humanity!”

“So we must win, but not a pyrrhic victory. Once it is pyrrhic, it is over!”

“Even if Rule Masters are to be born, they can only be born from the human race—more of them, and give them support!”

At Baizhan’s words, Xia Huyou’s heart stirred.

Was the Human Emperor’s return not necessarily a good thing?

Perhaps… it was indeed so!

Su Yu had vaguely hinted at this too.

If the Human Emperor held the advantage, he would have returned long ago. Why delay? If he returned, it would likely be a great trouble.

On this point, Baizhan and Su Yu shared the same thought.

“Then… is there no hope at all?”

“Of course there is!”

Baizhan smiled: “If there were none, why would I emerge again? Of course, some things need not be said too much. In time, you will understand naturally!”

Xia Huyou nodded.

At this moment, he felt that Baizhan was actually quite decent… well, perhaps.

But then, who made him know Su Yu?

Who made Su Yu the master of this era?

Soon, the group arrived at the Universe Emperor’s Mansion.

Gazing at the magnificent mansion, Baizhan smiled but said nothing. Jianghai Hou, however, frowned slightly: “Extravagant and wasteful! When His Majesty inherited the Human Lord’s throne back then, he did not build such a splendid hall!”

Indeed, it was quite extravagant!

This Universe Emperor’s Mansion was built by Zhu Tiandao and Marquis Xia. To curry favor, they spared no expense. Just then, the front lines had conquered the myriad races and were attacking the myriad realms—they hauled back every treasure they could.

All sorts of treasures and specialties from the myriad realms, suitable for building palaces, were brought in!

They even dismantled many palaces of the myriad races and realms, just for a single piece of timber or a single tile.

Xia Huyou laughed heartily: “Senior misunderstands. This is nothing! The Universe Emperor led us to crush the myriad races and conquer the myriad realms! Except for the three races of gods, demons, and immortals, which we left untouched, we took whatever we wanted from the other realms! A mere palace—what is there to boast about?”

If you have the ability, conquer it yourself!

Once you conquer the myriad realms, you could even remodel the Heavenly Court, and no one would stop you!

Jianghai wanted to argue further, but Baizhan raised a hand and smiled: “Indeed, it is a great achievement to conquer the myriad realms—a feat that will be remembered for ages!”

“Your Majesty!”

Jianghai Hou said in a low voice: “If not for Your Majesty back then… the lower realm would not have so few Dao-Integrators. To say we crushed the myriad realms—in truth, there were only a few dozen Dao-Integrators. Such strength is hardly worth mentioning!”

Xia Huyou said nothing, just smiled and kept quiet.

Perhaps so!

Among the other mansion lords, some sneered inwardly, others looked down.

Hardly worth mentioning?

Hardly worth mentioning, yet you never conquered the myriad realms!

Yes, dozens of Dao-Integrators—indeed, few in the lower realm, but think on it: what was humanity’s starting situation?

Not a single Dao-Integrator!

It’s not the Ninth Tide, with nearly a hundred ancient Dao-Integrators!

Judging power balance isn’t about comparing strength.

A Rule Lord defeating Eternity—that’s no miracle!

Sun and Moon defeating Eternity—that’s what deserves remembrance!

Baizhan didn’t want to dwell on this either; he cut off Jianghai Hou’s words, and soon the group entered the Imperial Mansion of the Universe.

Inside the mansion, after a brief chat, Baizhan King said, “Then I’ll go seek them out, see if Shadow and Mist Mountain can still be brought back! Everything else, as before!”

He had no intention of altering any current laws of the human realm, nor did he wish to bother with it.

Since the human realm was peaceful and prosperous, why change anything?

Baizhan was a decisive master; with that, he tore through the River of Time and vanished from the mansion. As he left, he did add, “Human realm affairs, for now, under Nanxi and Zhennan’s charge, with Xia Huyou assisting; the rest, obey the three for now!”

He didn’t put Jianghai in charge—that would court trouble.

Nor did he put Yunshui Hou in charge; on Yunshui’s side, having met with human strongmen before, many now felt quite averse.

They remembered seeing Yunshui Hou under Su Yu’s command last time.

At these words, Xia Huyou smiled.

It seemed this old human lord had a mind like a mirror—clear on everything, seeing it all.

If Jianghai and Yunshui were truly put in charge, trouble might arise.

Once Baizhan left, Xia Huyou said with a grin, “Elders, any orders, just speak! What I can do, I’ll arrange for people to do; if you need anything, I’ll spare no effort!”

Jianghai Hou gave him a cold look, and after a long pause said, “Don’t think the Emperor’s leniency means you can keep provoking!”

Xia Huyou looked helpless—what had he provoked?

Were you not a complete fool?

Forget it, he couldn’t be bothered.

Beside them, Zhennan Hou frowned slightly, coughed lightly, and said, “Jianghai, enough. You should want to see the human realm as it is now—let me take you to look!”

“Nothing worth seeing!”

Jianghai Hou said coldly, “This… is no longer the human realm of yesteryear!”

Zhennan Hou was taken aback, then after a moment laughed, “Don’t say that. This is still our root, our homeland…”

Jianghai Hou said gravely, “But do you think the humans of today welcome our return? Zhennan, we have nothing left here—no descendants, no kin, no friends… Beyond this realm, everything here is irrelevant to us!”

Zhennan Hou frowned, his voice low, “Yet this is our place of origin! Jianghai!”

Jianghai Hou said coldly, “It’s just a place, not the people! Zhennan, wake up!”

Zhennan Hou frowned at him, then looked at Nanxi Hou and Yunshui Hou, and said quietly, “You two… feel the same?”

Nanxi Hou sighed, “Don’t listen to Jianghai’s nonsense! Jianghai, homeland is still homeland; the humans here share the same roots. Say no more of that. What happened six thousand years ago—maybe we thought it right, maybe… in others’ eyes, it was indeed wrong.”

Jianghai Hou snorted, “Wrong? Should we have fought to the death back then, bled both sides with the myriad races, only to be wiped out by the Prison King’s lineage? Then all humanity utterly annihilated? I don’t understand why these people think it was wrong! Back then too! If we hadn’t done as the Emperor said, Nanxi, do you think humanity would still exist today?”

He felt these people were beyond reason—no need to argue further!

If they had truly fought to the death back then, there would be no humanity now!

Not a shred of hope!

Seeing them bicker among themselves, Xia Huyou had no interest in the spectacle; he took the other mansion lords, smiled and greeted them, then quickly led his people away!

Baizhan was gone—why waste time wrangling with these fellows?

…

At the same time.

Baizhan entered the River of Time to seek Shadow and Mist Mountain.

Those two had just fallen; perhaps they still lived.

…

Meanwhile, in the Starry Mansion.

Su Yu didn’t wait long for Liu Hong and Zhou Hao; he had Tongtian Hou teleport him back first. He wanted to take Great Qin King and Great Xia King to seek the Dao, to find suitable paths of blade and spear.

As for the Dao of the Desolate Heaven Beast, he could extract rule power to help restore their physical bodies.

In the River of Time.

Su Yu also entered, through the opening he had dug himself.

He and Baizhan, one ahead, one behind, one left, one right.

At this moment, both were probing the great Daos within the river.

Su Yu sought suitable blade and spear Daos, while Baizhan sought the Daos of Shadow and Mist Mountain.

…

In the River of Time.

Great Xia King was also looking around, muttering, “Your Majesty, find me a powerful blade Dao! Stronger than my grandson’s!”

His grandson, Xia Longwu.

Now he had stepped into the Dao-Integration realm!

When he swung his blade, his power wasn’t as great, but his blade aura was more vigorous. The Xia clan’s foremost blade master was no longer Great Xia King—a sad thing!

“Of course!”

Su Yu laughed, “It must be stronger than Xia Longwu’s, or else you’d lose the title of the world’s first…”

“Ahem!”

Great Xia King coughed—what were you about to say?

Really… annoying!

Great Qin King turned to look at them, puzzled, “What’s wrong?”

“None of your business!”

Great Xia King couldn’t be bothered with him.

Great Qin King sneered—a forced, mirthless smile; he didn’t like smiling either, but now his grin was ugly, “Isn’t it about the world’s most handsome man?”

“…”

Great Xia King was stunned!

He suddenly looked at Su Yu, who shrugged, “Don’t look at me—nothing to do with me!”

Great Qin King snorted, “What are you looking at? Xia Chen is down there—are you blind? A few days ago, Xia Chen talked with us about the past, told us everything! He even mentioned you wetting the bed as a child! Oh, you happened to be away then, your grandson called you out. Well, except for Xia Longwu, probably everyone knows now. Is that a secret?”

Su Yu shrugged. Oh my god, this is truly embarrassing.

I’m someone who keeps their mouth shut!

It wasn’t me who said it—it was someone from your Xia family themselves. And indeed, I heard it from Xia Chen; he didn’t even treat it as a big deal. In his eyes, the Great Xia King is still that chuunibyou teenager.

The Great Xia King’s face turned purple!

Everyone knows?

He gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, “Everyone knows?”

“Of course!”

The Great Qin King said nonchalantly, “Everyone was there at the time, so of course they all heard!”

“You… in these past few days, why didn’t anyone tell me?”

The Great Xia King was furious, but the Great Qin King soothed him, “It’s fine. To put it bluntly, who doesn’t have some dark history these days? Don’t worry, it’s limited to this era. We’ve all agreed—after many years, no one is allowed to bring it up again! So everything must be sealed away! If anyone dares leave behind even a single word, we’ll all turn on them!”

He glanced at Su Yu. You understand, don’t you?

You get it, right?

This includes you too!

We’re stuck with being dark now, but the next generation must never know!

Su Yu nodded slightly, his expression calm. No problem.

I’m not that kind of person!

I’ve already planned it: after I retire, I’ll inscribe the biography of this era deep within the Great Path.

Rest assured, unless they are top-tier existences or monstrous prodigies, no one will discover the legends left behind by our era. But still, we must leave a little hope for future generations to learn about these legends.

Beside him, the Great Xia King sighed, wishing he could cover his face and weep!

How humiliating!

He didn’t want to live anymore!

It was something from so many eras ago, and yet it was still being brought up. And to make it worse, his Xia family still had an ancestor alive who blurted out all sorts of nonsense without even taking it seriously.

I’m not a child anymore!

Now, I’m the renowned Great Xia King of the human race—what a mess!

And he couldn’t even vent his anger.

Su Yu listened cheerfully to their idle chatter, feeling in a good mood at the moment.

He continued to probe the Great Path, while the Great Xia King no longer mentioned that matter. Instead, he said gravely, “Your Majesty, do you think… resurrection can truly succeed?”

Xia Chen was also among the dead spirits.

Su Yu smiled. “There’s some hope, but… it’s hard to say! Resurrection has many difficulties. First, suppressing the Dead Spirit Path—they are all essentially imprisoned by it. Second, granting them vitality—where does that vitality come from? Can the Path of Life alone be enough to revive them?”

“Third, connecting to the Path of Time to restore their original paths—this is also very difficult! According to the Wen King’s idea, just cobbling together some random path to fool them would suffice; the Paper Path was probably prepared for this purpose!”

“Fourth, after resurrection, bringing the dead back to life might be rejected by heaven and earth!”

Su Yu said solemnly, “Perhaps… the Path of Time will no longer accommodate them, nor will the Dead Spirit Path! In the myriad realms and the Dead Spirit Domain, they are actually being cast out!”

The Great Qin King was silent for a moment. “Then what does Your Majesty suggest?”

“Two choices!”

“First, find a way to the Upper Realm and connect to the Human Emperor’s Path. Second… connect to my path!”

Both of them were shaken!

Connect to your path?

What would that lead to?

Su Yu said calmly, “Connecting to the Human Emperor’s Path would make you pseudo-path powerhouses. Connecting to my path… would make you pseudo-pseudo-path powerhouses! Even more fake! Because the path I’ve opened is too weak and too narrow. Following me, to put it this way—I only have the combat power of a top-tier Heavenly Venerable now. If these people follow me and I don’t improve, they’ll be stuck as Celestial Kings at most for the rest of their lives, never surpassing me! And their combat power will also be constrained by the rules within the entire path!”

Su Yu sighed. “I still hope the Path of Time can accept them. Otherwise, neither of these choices is good! At least for now, whether it’s my path or the Human Emperor’s, neither is up to par!”

Compared to the perfected Path of Time, the gap was not small.

The Great Qin King and the Great Xia King exchanged glances, both frowning.

This wasn’t an easy choice!

But the Great Qin King still said, “I think if there’s really no other way, everyone might choose Your Majesty’s path. But will it affect you?”

Su Yu smiled and shook his head. “No, it will only help perfect my path! If it really had an impact, the Path of Time wouldn’t have been opened in the heavens for everyone to comprehend. Everyone comprehending the path also helps refine its power!”

“Then that’s a good thing!”

The Great Qin King laughed. “If Your Majesty can quickly become a Rule Master, everyone will naturally rise with the tide. I don’t see anything wrong with it. If it really comes down to it, Old Xia and I can try first. Or… Your Majesty, how about giving us the Blade and Spear Paths from your path?”

Su Yu was stunned. The Great Xia King also said with a grin, “The paths of the myriad realms are too scattered! A single Blade Path is split into hundreds of branches. But in Your Majesty’s path, there’s only one Blade Path. Once Your Majesty becomes powerful, we’ll be guaranteed to become Rule Masters!”

The Great Xia King laughed again. “Even now, Old Qin and I aren’t Celestial Kings. But if we each control a single path, we might still possess the combat power of a Celestial King—even if it’s just a pseudo-Celestial King! A pseudo-Celestial King is still a Celestial King! At worst, like Your Majesty, we won’t be good at prolonged battles. But in battles between powerhouses, does time really matter that much?”

At this moment, Su Yu suddenly looked at the two of them, frowning slightly. “You two… it feels like you’ve been waiting for me today, haven’t you?”

How did it suddenly seem like these two were setting a trap for him?

They suddenly brought up the resurrection of dead spirits, then the matter of paths. Even though he had said it himself, he still felt like he’d been schemed against and trapped!

The Great Qin King coughed lightly. “We weren’t waiting for Your Majesty here!”

The Great Qin King sighed. “The truth is… Old Xia and I have self-awareness. Our accumulation is insufficient, our strength is lacking. If we switched paths, could we become Celestial Kings? Your Majesty, tell me yourself—in this tide, besides you, who else has become a Celestial King?”

“Lan Tian and Wan Tiansheng opened their own paths instead of following fixed ones. Opening a path is different. Old Xia and I are ultimately a step behind. Could we open the Blade and Spear Paths? Even if we did, they might not be stronger than what we have now!”

“So Old Xia and I thought it over. Your Majesty’s current paths might not be strong enough, but we can nurture them!”

He continued, “The myriad paths were also nurtured by everyone. If we each control a single path, if it doesn’t work, we can steal more Blade and Spear power from the River of Time. That way, it won’t just be Your Majesty nurturing the path alone!”

The Great Xia King also nodded. “Princess Qi also said that true and false paths can actually merge. Old Qin and I mean to first merge a path here, then bring the power of the true path into Your Majesty’s Blade and Spear Paths. That way, we benefit, and Your Majesty benefits too! If ten thousand people come to merge paths, each merging one, it might quickly perfect Your Majesty’s path power!”

Su Yu looked at the two of them, frowning. “This doesn’t seem like your own idea. Who put you up to it?”

Was this feasible?

Of course, it was feasible!

But Su Yu said coldly, “I feel like someone is instigating you. You need to understand one thing: if I die, you’re finished, done for! If my path breaks, then we all go down together!”

The Great Xia King laughed. “Can we still separate now?”

They couldn’t!

The Great Qin King also said solemnly, “Old Xia is right. There’s no way to separate! Didn’t Your Majesty use the Human Sovereign Seal as the foundation of your path? If the Human Sovereign Seal shatters, Your Majesty probably won’t fare well either. Old Zhou’s idea is that those who have no hope of advancing further, who can’t become Celestial Kings in the River of Time, should just merge into Your Majesty’s path!”

“A pseudo-path Celestial King is still a Celestial King. Even if they can’t beat a true Celestial King, two against one should still work, right?”

“If Your Majesty’s path is perfected, then it’s a case of one person attaining enlightenment and everyone rising with them!”

“At that time, we’ll be considered the founders of the path!”

The Great Qin King said calmly, “Fate has long been intertwined! The moment Old Xia and I pushed you to become the Human Sovereign, everyone could only advance or retreat together! You give us individual paths, we nurture your path. If you die, we all die together! If we die, your path will probably suffer damage too!”

“The Great Zhou King…”

Su Yu murmured, then couldn't help but laugh: "That old fellow, off again to stir you up?"

"Not exactly."

The Great Qin King spoke: "Annoying as he is, what he said isn't without reason! Your Majesty, how long do you think it will take for me and Old Xia to advance to Heavenly King?"

Su Yu pondered, "If all goes smoothly... perhaps three to five years?"

Maybe.

The Great Qin King smiled: "Even if it's three to five years, will it be in time? And if I were to merge with Your Majesty's spear path, how soon could I become a Pseudo-Dao Heavenly King?"

Su Yu calculated, "If I help you control it, very quickly! But this Heavenly King would be far weaker in strength than a True Dao Heavenly King—it would be a full realm lower, on par with a Human Emperor Path Heavenly King, only equivalent to a second-tier Harmony Dao!"

To merge with his path meant dropping a full realm.

Even if one merged with his path and reached Celestial Venerable, it would only count as Heavenly King combat power.

In this regard, even the Human Emperor Path was far superior to Su Yu.

The Great Qin King asked again: "And if Your Majesty attains true Rule Lord strength, will our power rise accordingly?"

It felt like investing in a startup!

Su Yu smiled, "Yes! Once I truly possess that strength, your power will also increase."

Having said this, Su Yu didn't dwell on it further and said directly: "Think it over yourselves before deciding, don't just listen to that Great Zhou King's blather!"

The two nodded. They weren't children; they all knew how to choose.

At that moment, Su Yu silently probed the Great Dao, his mind also churning.

As he thought, his eyes flickered.

In a distant place, a figure also paused slightly.

The next moment, a Heavenly Gate appeared on Su Yu's forehead, and likewise, in the distance, a gate appeared on that person's forehead. They gazed at each other across the void.

After a moment, Su Yu's eyes moved, a glint flashing: "Let's go back the way we came. The Dao we seek might not be here."

The Great Qin King and the Great Xia King sensed nothing unusual and nodded.

Su Yu turned and led them back along the path. In the distance, Bai Zhan was silent for a moment, then turned and walked back as well.

After walking a stretch, they both looked back at the same time, meeting each other's gaze again.

Bai Zhan hesitated, then a wave of intent swept over: "If you want to go back... the Human Realm is yours, and I'll go to the Giant Realm!"

"Not for now!"

Su Yu's rule fluctuation replied: "Whoever is stronger takes charge! But don't stir up trouble in the Human Realm. Both you and I were once rulers of men."

"That's true!"

Bai Zhan's fluctuation carried a hint of amusement: "I know you might still hold a grudge over Yun Shui and the others... Each served his own master. If there's any score to settle, put it on my head!"

"We'll see!"

Su Yu didn't take the bait. Soon, they each went their separate ways until the rule fluctuations could no longer reach each other, and neither thought further of the encounter.

Better not to meet!

Even if they did, there was little to say.

...

The Great Xia King and the Great Qin King were completely unaware.

They only vaguely sensed some rule fluctuations.

But Su Yu's expression grew somewhat solemn. Bai Zhan... was strong!

Stronger than he was now!

Indeed, in six thousand years, he hadn't been idle.

Did he see no chance of victory?

Were the trump cards of the Ten Thousand Races and the Prison King lineage even more formidable than he had anticipated?

As he pondered, the Great Qin King actually sensed a spear path and joyfully began to merge with it. He planned to merge first, steal the True Dao power, and then channel it into Su Yu's Great Dao!

On the other side, Bai Zhan similarly pulled a strong figure from a Great Dao—the Shadow Marquis.

At this moment, the two top powerhouses of the Human race were both strengthening their own side's forces, preparing to join the battle in the Upper Realm.

Yes, the battle in the Upper Realm!

Neither of them was destined to merely watch from the Lower Realm. When the opportunity came, both would join the fight, first to annihilate the Prison King lineage and the Ten Thousand Races!

For now, there was a tacit understanding between the two sides.

At least the leaders shared an unspoken accord.

First, raise their strength. As for the Human Realm, they would deal with it after wiping out the other factions.

Su Yu had even begun to think of ways to proactively snipe the Ten Thousand Races' Rule Lords, ideally before the Hell Gate and Heavenly Gate opened!

Waiting passively was not a good choice.

Once the Human Emperor and the others fought their way back, and both the Heavenly Gate and Hell Gate opened simultaneously, that would be a massive disaster.

Soon, the Great Xia King also found a blade path and began merging with it. As for the Desolate Beast's Great Dao, both temporarily abandoned it, leaving Su Yu to seal it off for now, awaiting the extraction of its power to satisfy everyone's physical cultivation.

PS: Exhausted. The transitional chapters lack passion. I mentioned earlier that I'd take leave after the 18th. I'll write a leave note shortly. At Qidian, there's a year-end meeting, and I'll meet some authors in person. I'll take two days off to rest, then return with renewed vigor for the next big arc.

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