Star Gate

Chapter 165: Breaking Through (I)

A premier powerhouse!

Yuan Shuo tamped down agitation, fear, shock, and a tiny thread of anticipation stirring in his heart. “Let’s forget about this for now,” his voice was strained. “It’s too far removed from us and involves ancient experts. Our most pressing task at hand is to strengthen ourselves!”

He came back to his senses—personal strength was the foundation of everything. The waters of this world ran deep, possibly so deep that the ancient civilization and all of its heritages were submerged. Only some ruins remained, as well as the incredibly debilitated eight families of Silver City.

No, there was only one family left now. Technically speaking, there was only one person.

Li Hao grit his teeth and expelled everything from moments ago out of his mind. He didn’t dare dwell on them. Uncontrollable fear and excitement shook him whenever he thought of that stroke...

Was that person still human?

He gingerly picked up the little sword from the ground and suddenly regarded it with new worry. “Teacher, it’s... too sharp. Will my own sword be the death of me if I carry it around?”

Yuan Shuo blinked and ventured with difficulty, “Perhaps... supernatural objects should not be viewed through the lens of ordinary rules. Some supernatural objects recognize their owners. Poke yourself with it, maybe it won’t hurt you.”

“......” Was his teacher being serious? The thing was so sharp! What if it could hurt him and poked him to death?

Fine. Just a light poke shouldn’t result in anything major, right? His teacher’s words could be trusted. Who could he trust if not his teacher?

......

Seconds later.

Li Hao looked at his arm dripping with blood and then at his teacher. He had no idea what to say.

“Um...” An awkward expression crept across Yuan Shuo’s face and he looked around, conflicted. “It might hurt you because it hasn’t fully accepted you as its master yet. It’ll be fine in the future. Don’t worry, I’ll fashion a scabbard for you when we go back and you can carry it around as a dagger.”

I’ve got nothing else.

Yuan Shuo looked at the stone blade close at hand and slightly rejoiced that it was a curved blade made of stone. It wouldn’t hurt him like the sword even if it was unsealed in the future, right?

Li Hao said nothing more and wiped down his arm. It was just a flesh wound, no big deal! Teacher was right 99% of the time. This was the 1% when he was wrong, so Li Hao shouldn’t form the habit of questioning his teacher. He really shouldn’t, really!

Despite that, Li Hao couldn’t help but say, “Teacher, can you think before speaking next time something involves self harm?”

I still really trust you, so don’t abuse your creditworthiness like this! It’ll make me doubt your omnipotence.

“You little brat!” Yuan Shuo cursed. Who you talking to like that? It’s just a little poke! Your mouthful of blood almost killed me just now, did I say anything? “That’s enough of this nonsense. You absorbed some of the blood pearl earlier, didn’t you? What are you doing now? Don’t waste it!”

Alright, that drove everything else out of Li Hao’s mind. Digest energy!

He operated the Breathing Method of the Five Styles—sword energy from the void seemed to surge in faster than before. Yuan Shuo sensed it as well; his eyes lit up. The seal loosening over Stellaris seemed to be having a great effect! They gathered sword energy faster than before!

Yuan Shuo’s injuries were much better and the mental energy that he’d consumed for the Incantation of the Blade of Blood was greatly restored. A red pill appeared in his hand—the Solar level blood pearl. It was stronger than the scarlet shadow that Li Hao last killed.

The professor hadn’t formed many reflections about Dominator of Thousands after setting foot in this level. He wasn’t even sure how to differentiate the various Dominator stages. From that, it was apparent that he’d been talking out of the side of his mouth when he claimed to be peak Dominator. He didn’t even know the various stages of this cultivation level and what their characteristics were, so how could he identify which stage he was at?

However, Yuan Shuo was truly on the Dominator path and progressed rapidly at a tremendous pace. It had to do with how much he’d accumulated before and also the scarlet shadow, sword and blade energy.

He started daydreaming as he looked at the red pill in his hand. Can I possibly soar above Dominator after I eat this? Martial dao did not record any cultivation levels above Dominator. What’s above it?

Supernaturals are all trash. They go from Sunflare to Solar and then what, Super Sun? They lack culture! Yuan Shuo rolled his eyes and debated if he should name the realm above Dominator. He couldn’t just keep calling it “above Dominator”.

“Slayer of Tens, Sunderer of Hundreds, Dominator of Thousands...” Yuan Shuo sank into deep thought before brightening, “Slayer, Sunderer, Dominator... what about Vanquisher of Ten Thousands?”

One person quelling ten thousands, how about it?

Lofty sentiments lifted his heart as he thought about it. An army of ten thousand was regarded as a large army in ancient times. Those who liked to boast would upgrade an army of ten thousand to one of eighty thousand. Such an army reduced opponents to gibbering messes through sheer killing intent alone. But martial masters at that level could stand against ten thousand by themselves!

One suppressing ten thousand!

“Not bad, I think that works...” Yuan Shuo was satisfied with his naming acumen. When might he set foot into such an august level? Would any qualitative changes occur?

That was a thought for another day. He swallowed the red pill without further contemplation. The Breathing Method of the Five Styles enabled him to instantaneously absorb the massive power and swiftly digest it. He was starving as he’d exhausted his internal force in the battle with Qiao Feilong and resided in a hollow state since. With sustenance from the red pill, he felt that he could battle a Solar again.

I really want to find another Solar to fight!

Too bad Hao Lianchuan was gone or he would’ve found an excuse to spar with the man. Going a few rounds with a vastly experienced Solar might enhance understanding of his own strength. Qiao Feilong was a blockhead, Brokensky had fallen to an ambush—Yuan Shuo had never directly fought a veteran Solar.

The professor waded through his fantasies with delight.

......

At the same time.

Li Hao was also absorbing the scarlet shadow’s strength and daydreaming of breaking through to late Sunderer. If I can, I’ll count as peak Sunderer because I’ve grasped a rudimentary aura. Peak Sunderer... what day of the month is it?

The second!

When did I become Slayer of Tens?

...mid of last month. Ah, so it hasn’t even been a month. Li Hao was in high spirits and had shoved the memory of that stroke deep into the bottom of his heart. He did not compare himself to that figure. Some people loved to compare themselves to others too far ahead of them and grew more despondent the more they dwelled on it. They crushed their own confidence in the end. Not him, however. He wouldn’t follow in their footsteps.

His goal was currently Liu Long. His next goal might be his teacher. The swordsman in the eight trigrams might not be his goal for the next ten years—they were too harrowing.

Teacher and disciple quieted down once more, a different quiet from before. They swiftly absorbed the billowing scared shadow energy, some of which gradually drifted outward. Yuan Shuo’s heart suddenly quailed, as did Li Hao’s. He reacted a tiny bit slower than his teacher.

Yuan Shuo grabbed his student’s head before the young man opened his eyes. Yes, his head, and dragged him out through the karst cave. A massive explosion shook where they’d been sitting the moment they left!

Powerful force ripped through where they’d been. Several dozen meters away, Yuan Shuo roared like a massive bear and flung Li Hao away. The young man slammed into the rock wall and almost vomited blood; his bones felt like they would break.

Yuan Shuo erupted with the aura of the Five Styles. The mental forms of tiger, bear, deer, ape, and bird flared in unison and became one, crashing into a ferocious force. He went flying with a loud bam and hovered in the air, spewing out mouthfuls of blood. A blank look entered Yuan Shuo’s eyes as he thought... I need a blood bag.

He’d thrown up too much blood over the past two days, a pitiful state that hadn’t caught him even when he fought Solars. Li Hao had just ripped through him and now the energy did so once more. Who knew how much blood he’d lost?

“Teacher...” Li Hao gasped with shock.

“Cough cough cough!” Yuan Shuo looked into the distance as he crashed into the ground, the look in his eyes changing. “I’m not dead!”

Li Hao quickly ran over to help his teacher up. Various expressions flickering through his face, Yuan Shuo panted for a while.

“Red Moon!”

“Hmm?”

“Red Moon might have something to do with the eight families... They created the scarlet shadows and sword energy can neutralize that energy. But once it comes in contact with the mixture of the eight energies, it elicits a violent conflict that results in an energy explosion.”

The seepage of scarlet shadow energy had melded with that of the eight families and caused a gigantic detonation. It’d almost blown up a Dominator! How horrific.

Li Hao blinked. “Do you mean that the power of the eight families and the scarlet shadow are inherently opposed to each other?”

“It’s very possible!” Yuan Shuo nodded and spat out another mouthful of blood. “This is good!”

“Huh?” Had his teacher lost too much blood lately and gone insane? How was being blown up like this a good thing? Li Hao brightened as he thought of something the next second. “Yes, this is good!”

“You think so too?” Yuan Shuo looked at his student with surprise.

Li Hao bobbed his head rapidly. “Teacher, we should collect the eight energies! And then get some scarlet shadow power to create a super bomb! If it can send even you flying, it’ll blow right through a Solar!”

“......”

The young man looked raptly at Yuan Shuo. “Teacher, you think so too right, which is why you think this is good?”