I reason with you, you show me your might.

All thirty thousand guest cultivators held their breath.

Wang Hao stood at the intersection of the two torrents. His robes fluttered wildly in the overwhelming aura, but a smile remained on his face.

Above his head, the Thunder Abyss Demon Suppression Pagoda rotated slowly. The lightning patterns on the pagoda lit up ring by ring, yet it did not release any pressure—it just hovered there, like a silent volcano.

"Sect Master Jiang."

Wang Hao's voice returned to a calm tone, as if he were just making small talk.

"I am actually quite easy to talk to. You want to change the ancestral rules? Fine. You want to redistribute the destiny? That is also fine. But there is one prerequisite—"

He held up a finger.

"The power to change the rules cannot rest solely in the hands of the sixteen families. Why should the Eastern Wasteland's share be reduced just because you say so? Why should destiny belong to whoever you dictate? This world belongs to the people of the world, not the private property of your sixteen families. You want to change the rules? Good, let us change them together. The Four Regions and the Central Continent will stand on equal footing. One person, one vote. Public discussion, public decision."

Jiang Tianchen laughed out of extreme anger. "Absurd! What qualifications do the Four Regions have to stand on equal footing with the Central Continent? The sixteen holy lands of the Central Continent have controlled the nexus of destiny for ten thousand years. We have made the greatest contributions to the world and possess the greatest strength. Allowing the Four Regions to be equal to the Central Continent would be the greatest injustice to this world!"

Wang Hao sighed, looking at Jiang Tianchen as if looking at an idiot.

"Sect Master Jiang, you have lived for six hundred years, how are you still so naive? I try to reason with you, and you talk to me about strength. Very well, then I shall talk to you about strength."

He raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

Snap.

The crisp sound of the snap echoed across the peak of Tianxu Mountain.

Then, everyone heard it.

From the bottom of the mountain, in the direction of the Canglan Plains, came the sound of war drums.

It was the sound of tens of thousands of war drums beating simultaneously, like rolling heavenly thunder, like an earth dragon turning over, like a ten-thousand-foot tide crashing against reefs. The drumming surged up the mountain, drowning out the entirety of Tianxu Peak, drowning out the exclamations of thirty thousand people, and drowning out the suddenly racing heartbeats of the sixteen holy land sect masters.

Immediately following was the neighing of armored cavalry.

The cries of seven hundred thousand armored cavalry converged into a soundwave that tore through the heavens and earth. Then came the sound of weapons being drawn—sabers, spears, swords, halberds, axes, battle-axes, hooks, and tridents. Seven hundred thousand weapons were unsheathed at once, and the sound of metal scraping made the spiritual energy within a thousand miles tremble.

Finally, it was the unified roar of seven hundred thousand men forming a military formation, their vitality surging like a dragon.

"Willing to die for Your Majesty!"

"Willing to die for the Eastern Wasteland!"

"Willing to die for the world!"

Three shouts, each louder than the last, each more intense than the last. The soundwaves rushed up Tianxu Peak like physical blows, causing the white jade plaza at the summit to buzz and vibrate. The guest cultivators with weaker cultivation bases were directly shaken until they bled from their noses and mouths, and even on the high platform of the sixteen holy lands, a few sect masters turned slightly pale.

Jiang Tianchen stared fixedly at Wang Hao, his voice squeezing through his teeth. "Wang Hao, are you threatening the sixteen holy lands?"

Wang Hao shook his head, his expression as innocent as a little white rabbit.

"Sect Master Jiang misunderstands. How could I dare to threaten the sixteen holy lands? I am merely letting my soldiers listen to the grand occasion of the Kunlun Assembly. After all, they rarely get to witness such a massive gathering of the entire world. However, speaking of which—"

His smile suddenly grew dangerous. "If today's meeting breaks down and the Four Regions and the Central Continent completely tear each other's faces off, I am afraid my seven hundred thousand armored cavalry will have no choice but to march up the mountain and seek justice."

This was a naked threat.

The thirty thousand people heard it, and the sixteen sect masters naturally heard it as well. Yet, Wang Hao's expression when he said this was so sincere that no one could find fault with it, as if he were truly just thinking of his soldiers' welfare.

Jiang Tianchen closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, his eyes were filled with icy resolve.

"Wang Hao, your seven hundred thousand armored cavalry are indeed magnificent. But do you think these people alone can shake the foundations of the sixteen holy lands? In the face of absolute power, no matter how large an army is, it is just a number."

Wang Hao smiled. "They might not shake it, but they can splash you all with blood."

Jiang Tianchen sneered. "Childish. Today's meeting ends here. Tomorrow, during the third round, I will let you know what the wrath of the Central Continent truly means."

With a sweep of his large sleeve, the sixteen sect masters stood up simultaneously, turning into sixteen streaks of flowing light and disappearing into the depths of the Kunlun Mountains.

Only Jiang Tianchen's final voice was left lingering in the sky.

"Wang Hao, didn't you say you like talking about strength? Tomorrow, my Tianque Holy Land will invite out a Martial God. If you can continue to spout your reasoning in front of a Martial God, I will personally restore the Eastern Wasteland's share of destiny."

Martial God.

These two words pressed down on Tianxu Peak like an invisible iceberg, crushing the voices of thirty thousand people into silence.

The Martial God realm was an existence that surpassed the Skysoaring realm; they were the beings that truly stood at the apex of this world. In the entire world, the number of publicly active Martial Gods did not exceed the fingers on two hands. Every Martial God was a living holy land, and their every word and action was enough to change the global landscape. The fundamental reason the sixteen holy lands had been able to rule the world for ten thousand years was not because they had many peak Skysoaring realm experts, but because they held Martial Gods in their hands—living Martial Gods.

For Jiang Tianchen to invite out a Martial God meant he intended to end this farce.

In the face of absolute power, all schemes, rhetoric, and imposing auras were nothing but illusions.

Elder Wu Gu's face turned extremely ugly. He walked up to Wang Hao and lowered his voice. "Your Majesty, a Martial God is no trifling matter. That Martial God from the Tianque Holy Land is named Jiang Cangyun. He is Jiang Tianchen's ancestor, an old monster who has lived for eight hundred years with unfathomable cultivation. I suggest we temporarily avoid this sharp edge."

Zen Master Du'e also walked over and pressed his palms together. "Amitabha. Your Majesty, beneath a Martial God, all are but ants. This poor monk believes that today's matters should be planned slowly."

Tuoba Xiong said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, the Northern Region is not afraid of death. But facing a Martial God, dying would be dying for nothing. Just say the word—do we retreat, or do we fight?"

Three pairs of eyes looked at Wang Hao simultaneously.

Wang Hao remained silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled.

"Do you three fear Martial Gods?"

Wu Gu smiled bitterly. "Who wouldn't be afraid?"

"I am afraid too," Wang Hao said. "But fear is fear. Tomorrow, I still have to fight in this arena."

"Why?"

Wang Hao turned around, gazing toward the gradually disappearing streaks of light deep within the Kunlun Mountains, a profound glint flashing in his eyes.

"Because I want to know one thing—what color is the blood of a living Martial God."

"I have killed quite a few dead Martial Gods."

Inside the main tent.

Wang Hao sat cross-legged on a futon, the Thunder Abyss Demon Suppression Pagoda floating in front of him. The seven-story pagoda body rotated slowly, the lightning patterns on each floor pulsating to a profound rhythm. Inside the window of the eighth floor, a white lightning phoenix was spreading its wings. Its feathers, condensed from thunder, stood erect one by one, emitting a terrifying pressure.

The system panel unfolded before Wang Hao's eyes.

[Sign-in Location: Kunlun Tianxu Peak - Kunlun Stone Stele]

[Sign-in Reward: The Skysoaring realm can unleash the Heaven Cleaving Nine Swords - Ninth Sword]

Description: The Heaven-Cleaving Nine Swords were created by the ancient Sword God, and each strike contains the power of the laws of heaven and earth. The ninth sword is named God-Slaying. It requires the sword heart as a guide and essence blood as a sacrifice. When drawn, the sword intent directly severs the opponent's divine soul, leaving the physical body unharmed while entirely destroying the soul. Note: This move is extremely effective against the Martial God Realm, but it comes with side effects.

Wang Hao looked at this line of text, a smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

God-Slaying. The name was a bit arrogant, but the effect was exactly what he needed.

He had already completely mastered the first eight of the Heaven-Cleaving Nine Swords. Relying on the power of this divine-level martial art, it was enough to sweep through the Sky-Soaring Realm. But facing a Martial God, the first eight swords could at most injure the opponent, unable to pose a fatal threat, and with his Sky-Soaring Realm cultivation, he simply could not execute the ninth sword. However, the ninth sword, God-Slaying, was specifically targeted at the divine soul. No matter how strong a Martial God's physical body was, or how thick their Astral Qi was, a divine soul was still a divine soul. As long as the divine soul was slain, the physical body would become an empty shell.

Seeing this reward, Wang Hao let out a breath, taking a rare moment to relax.

System, Wang Hao muttered in his heart, if I die, can you collect my corpse?

The system's cold voice sounded: After the host dies, the system will automatically unbind and search for the next host. It will not collect corpses.

Truly heartless, Wang Hao smiled. Then I will try my best not to die.

He put away the Thunder Abyss Demon-Suppressing Tower and took out another pill obtained from signing in from his sleeve, the Realm-Breaking Pill. This was the last Realm-Breaking Pill he obtained from signing in outside the Reception City. Its quality was higher than the ones he had given Xiao Chen and the other two before, and its medicinal efficacy was stronger. He had been saving it, waiting for this very day.

The chasm between the peak of the Sky-Soaring Realm and the Martial God Realm could not be crossed relying solely on pills. The Realm-Breaking Pill could only help him increase the probability of breaking through by a little bit; a true breakthrough still required an opportunity. But facing tomorrow's Martial God, every fraction of strength gained meant a fraction of a higher chance of winning.

He tossed the Realm-Breaking Pill into his mouth and closed his eyes.

The Astral Qi around his body boiled like water, and the spiritual energy inside the large tent was madly sucked over, forming a visible spiritual energy vortex. Under the impact of the medicinal power, Wang Hao's meridians continuously broadened and reinforced themselves. The Astral Qi vortex in his dantian spun faster and faster, gradually condensing into a liquid sphere the size of a fist.

Above the Sky-Soaring Realm and below the Martial God Realm, there was also a transitional stage, the Half-Step Martial God.

The hallmark of this stage was the transformation of the Astral Qi in the dantian from a gaseous state to a liquid state. Liquid Astral Qi was a hundred times denser than gaseous Astral Qi, and every drop contained power comparable to a full-force strike from a Sky-Soaring Realm expert. This was the unavoidable path leading to the Martial God Realm, and it was also a threshold that the vast majority of peak Sky-Soaring Realm experts could not cross in their entire lifetimes.

Wang Hao felt a burst of intense pain from his dantian, as if someone were scraping the walls of his dantian knife by knife. That was the liquid Astral Qi reshaping his dantian's structure. If he could not endure it, his dantian would shatter, and his cultivation would be ruined. He clenched his jaw tightly, veins bulging on his forehead, sweat pouring down like rain.

One hour.

Two hours.

Three hours.

When the first ray of morning light shone through the tent flaps, Wang Hao opened his eyes.

Within the pupils of his eyes, an extra ring of pale golden light appeared. That was the anomaly of liquid Astral Qi overflowing, the hallmark of a Half-Step Martial God. He slowly exhaled a breath of impure air, feeling the power within his body that was at least three times stronger than yesterday, and a satisfied smile appeared on the corners of his mouth.

But it was still not enough.

A Half-Step Martial God fighting a Martial God was still battling above his realm. He needed more trump cards.

He took out the New Son of Heaven's Sword from his sleeve.

This sword had always been nurtured within his dantian. The sword blade had absorbed enough imperial dragon aura and dark emotions, devoured countless anomalies, and had evolved to a new level. The golden patterns on the sword body were much denser, and a layer of faintly discernible blood-red light appeared on the edge of the blade.

Tyrant, the voice of the New Son of Heaven's Sword rang out in his mind, its tone uncharacteristically serious. That old thing tomorrow, are you confident?

Wang Hao smiled and said, No confidence.

You have no confidence and you can still smile?

What does smiling have to do with having confidence? Wang Hao asked in return. I have to fight anyway, fighting with a smile gives a better chance of winning than fighting while crying.

The New Son of Heaven's Sword fell silent for a moment, then spoke faintly, Sometimes I really want to split your brain open to see exactly what is packed inside.

It is packed with my subjects, Wang Hao said. And my empire.

What else?

And the specific plan on how to empty the treasuries of the sixteen Holy Lands of the Central State.

The New Son of Heaven's Sword was speechless.

Wang Hao burst into loud laughter, the sound of his laughter spreading out of the large tent, startling a flock of Kunlun Snow Sparrows.

Outside the tent, the Ten Great Paragons had already lined up and were waiting. Xiao Chen, Ye Guyun, and Lu Chenzhou stood at the very front, their auras much deeper than ten days ago. Ye Guyun was holding a new sword, it was the Heaven-rank high-grade divine weapon Cold Abyss that Wang Hao had selected from the national treasury. The sword body was entirely dark blue, exuding a piercing coldness.

Your Majesty, Xiao Chen cupped his fists. We request to fight.

Wang Hao glanced at him. Your task today is not to fight.

Xiao Chen was taken aback.

Your task today is to watch, Wang Hao said. Watch how I fight a Martial God. And then remember it. When you reach that realm, I won't need to take the field personally.

He paused, then added, Of course, if I am beaten to death, you all run. Run back to the Eastern Wasteland, tell the future Crown Prince that his father was beaten to death by an old immortal who lived for hundreds of years. Let him remember this grudge and come back for revenge when he grows up.

Wanyan Gu grew anxious, Your Majesty will not die!

Wang Hao patted his shoulder. Of course I won't die. I am just giving that old Martial God some face, what if he actually has a few tricks up his sleeve?

Everyone didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

But the tense atmosphere was indeed diluted quite a bit.

Wang Wudi walked out from the tent, handing a black dragon flag into Wang Hao's hands. That was the Great Zhou's military flag. A black dragon pattern was embroidered on the flag's surface, and the flagpole was forged from Heaven-rank divine iron, gleaming with a cold light under the sun.

Great-grandson, Wang Wudi's voice was somewhat hoarse. Your great-grandfather has never begged anyone in his life. Today I beg you this once, come back alive.

Wang Hao took the military flag, looking earnestly into Wang Wudi's eyes. Rest assured, Great-grandfather. I haven't finished spending the money from the Central State casinos yet, I can't die. Could a living Martial God be stronger than a Night Fiend?

Wang Wudi's mouth twitched, and he turned his head and walked away.

He was afraid that if he stayed any longer, he wouldn't be able to resist beating up this unserious great-grandson.