Star Gate

Huff! Puff!

Loud breathing echoed in the surroundings. All of the powerhouses were bathed in blood and scanned the battlefield with solemn looks. Even the Skyward master was panting heavily.

Despite being replicas, they were equipped with bodies of flesh and blood. Disorder was cutting down all of them through the power of time. They’d arrived as two dozen ninth rank replicas—there were only half of them left now.

Many of the eighth ranks who’d come to reinforce their dao masters were dead. If it wasn’t for Chaos Sky’s own formidable capabilities and coordination from the Nine Layer Guard, Disorder might have already broken out of their encirclement!

However...

All of the ninth ranks eventually caught sight of something. Their eyes widened with disbelief when they digested what they saw.

Disorder’s black hair... was gray and stringy!

A faint sense of decay rose from his body, further shocking the crowd!

Some turned back to look at Li Hao, certain ideas rising in their mind. Ah... Disorder is very strong when he utilizes the power of time, but why... does it feel like he’s declining and falling apart?

Others looked at the Skyward master for answers. He seemed to have anticipated this development and simply looked at Li Hao without saying a word.

Time would cause the death of its wielder!

When a cultivator of time traveled to the past and future, or froze time, trouble resulted from each instant since it wasn’t their own time. It consumed a lot of lifespan, which was why Li Hao rarely employed time in his later battles. He mostly used it as a supplementary tool.

The young man had walked the cycle of life and death many times in the beginning. On the other hand, Disorder was not familiar with the dao of life and death.

Even if he was, he was yet to coalesce the heart of life and death. Setting aside whether or not Disorder could reverse life and death in his current state, even if he could, did he have sufficient energy to walk that cycle?

He was a ninth rank! A lot of energy would be required at that level!

Skyward assessed Li Hao with a shifting look in his eyes. Surely this guy knew about the drawbacks of time, but hadn’t breathed a word of it from beginning to end.

Disorder was currently surrounded by the group and attempting to break through the blockade. Since he’d cut down so many enemies, he was in high spirits. Under these circumstances, he wouldn’t really care even if he sensed the depletion of his vitality.

Would Disorder die of old age if the situation continued?

Skyward looked sharply at Li Hao.

“It’s best if you give up time, Disorder,” Li Hao suddenly said after killing Red Moon. “This dao ages people. It’s an external force, after all, and not something you created from your own cultivation. Each instance of use consumes a large amount of your lifespan!

“You’ve already depleted a lot of your life force throughout battle. Be careful of dying from old age if you continue like this!”

“Give up?” Disorder blazed with domineering might, having just thrown back Chaos Sky. This was the highest peak of his life!

“I know you’re skilled at scheming, Li Hao,” he denounced frostily as white hair whipped around him. “Perhaps this is all part of your plans! Do you honestly think that I’ll give up time after it’s come into my hands?”

He could sense the rapid depletion of his life span, but was he supposed to throw in the towel at this stage?!

He’d already paid the enormous price of offending all the ninth ranks! Not to mention, that feeling of sheer invincibility and being able to manipulate other people’s lives was completely intoxicating!

Isn’t this what I’ve aimed for in my entire journey of cultivation? I wanted to be unchallenged throughout the world!

“Time is the greatest desire of all,” Li Hao chuckled. “I said this a long time ago, but there’s no persuading someone who’s hellbent on dying. In that case, you should hurry up. Hurry up and kill everyone. If not, you’ll really be out of chances when the end is staring at you in the face.

“If you kill them all and break out of the blockade, comprehend life and death, form the cycle of life and death, and collect sufficient energy... You’ll be able to be reborn even if you die of old age!”

“Li Hao!!” Skyward roared with outrage. Damn it! This guy was doing this on purpose!

Indeed, Li Hao was purposefully laying out a future path for Disorder.

The latter knew that using time would deplete his life force, so he’d exercised some restraint whenever he employed the dao. He might be also thinking of how to resolve this problem. The solution that Li Hao had offered him was simple.

Kill all of these people as quickly as possible, seize their energy, break through the blockade, cultivate life and death, construct a cycle of life and death, and leave all of these troubles behind in the dust of his next life.

How would Disorder not be tempted by this solution?

Of course he was!

Disorder’s eyes darted around and he sent Chaos Sky reeling again with a powerful punch.

“Why are you... telling me this?” he asked coldly.

“Because you’re a ninth rank!” Li Hao laughed. “Even if you’re entranced by time, you won’t possibly be oblivious to the depletion of your lifespan. If you don’t hurry up and kill them, some unwanted developments are bound to happen as time drags on.

“Not to mention, they won’t have any effort to spare for me so long as you’re alive. If you really die, then won’t these eighth ranks and ninth rank replicas all refocus on me?”

This group of people was a very complicated mixture. No one was on the same team as anyone else. They needed to protect Li Hao one second, then wanted to kill him the next. Their minds shifted as time went on.

Slinking in a corner, the Calamity master grit his teeth and intoned, “Skyward and everyone else, let’s just kill this little bastard first!”

He was highly infuriated!

Did that little bastard really think that everything was within his control?! He was just an eighth rank, but here he was toying with everyone. Do you actually think that no one dares attack you?!

Could they really not activate time again once they killed Li Hao?

“Even if we don’t kill him, we can’t let him do whatever he wants like this,” said Calamity when his thoughts traveled here. “We need to corral him first and prevent him from getting into further trouble! We can’t let him be completely out of control and free to engage in all manner of nonsense!”

Corral Li Hao!

Everyone was wary of killing the young man, but restraining him? That could be done.

Even Disorder would support that course of action. Perhaps it would give everyone a chance to breathe.

“It’s not like I dug up your ancestors’ graves, Calamity, why are you enemies with me?” Li Hao laughed at the man. “We simply fought in your memories once a million years ago. You’re so petty and carry a grudge!

“Look around me, is there anyone around who hates me? Is there anyone who speaks ill of me? You’re the only one, for some reason!”

“......” Calamity glowered. There’s no one around who hates you?

We all hate you!

It’s just that whoever actually has a grudge with you has died to your blade. Of course there’s no enemies you can immediately point to!

Disorder didn’t say anything, his presence simply built again. Just as he was about to wipe out everyone present, Li Hao said, “Ah, yes, Senior Disorder, do you know how to reverse time? Compared to your state now, your condition a million years again was that of a true ninth rank. If you can return to your peak condition back then, that would make you a true ninth rank!”

“......” The premises stilled for a split second.

“Do you think I’m an idiot?” Disorder couldn’t help but curse. “Do you honestly think that I don’t know the consequences of traveling back one million years in time?! I’ll die of old age before anything!”

“Dying of old age is better than dying to someone else!” Li Hao chuckled. “Recover peak condition first, then kill everyone. You stand a chance of maintaining your condition for a bit if you seize all of their life force and dao strength.

“But the best would be to treat this as a trump card. You can even break through chaos dao at a critical moment and enter its depths with the power of time. If you kill a few ninth rank primary bodies and seize chaos origin... You’ll outright recover everything you’re lacking!”

“......” Disorder’s jaw dropped!

Fuck! The damn demon can talk!

He didn’t want to listen to any of this, but couldn’t help but listen to Li Hao’s words and ruminate over them.

If I really can recover my peak battle strength of a million years ago... and I can manipulate time to instantly make it to the center of the chaos... Can I kill some primary bodies, seize the origin of the chaos, and directly refine it?

And then... I’ll really be invincible then, won’t I?

I won’t be afraid of time consuming my lifespan!

He understood that this was another one of Li Hao’s schemes, the young man was trying to tempt him down a sinister path.

“You really think I’m an idiot, don’t you?!” he bawled with crazed fury. “How can I possibly do that?! They’ll be on guard against that after you’ve spoken of it! I won’t succeed!”

“He’s trying to herd you down the path he wants you to take!” intoned Skyward. “Your death will be ensured if you actually take him seriously. Time has you deep within its grasp, Disorder! You must give it up! If you continue this way... you’ll die without a doubt!”

That was the bald truth. Skyward could sense Disorder wavering, being swayed by what Li Hao had proposed.

Anyone would be tempted. The young man spoke the truth!

His suggestions were real, the results would also be real. The only caveat was that everything unfolded perfectly. If Disorder broke through chaos dao, cut down ninth ranks, entered the depths of the chaos and refined the origin of the chaos...

He would be invincible after that!

But could that truly happen?

Even Disorder himself knew that the likelihood was very low.

However, it wasn’t completely out of the question. For overlords like them, the slightest possibility was worth attempting. Even if he didn’t do so now, would he not take the gamble in the last possible moment if he was close to losing or dying?

Anyone would!

“And you think I’m an idiot too?!” Disorder raged. “Do you think I’d actually believe him? And pfft, give up time?! You’re delusional, Skyward! You want it yourself, all of you guys want it. Why can’t I control it?!

“It’s just that you guys don’t have the ability to wield it, but I do. Would any of you give it up if you controlled it?!”

The ninth ranks kept talking down time simply because they did not have the ability to command it themselves. If any of them had it, no one would be voicing these suggestions.

Disorder was nearly beside himself with fury!

Do you guys say all this just because I’m weaker than you?! Therefore I am unworthy??

Fuck you!

His mind unconsciously repeated Li Hao’s words. Granted, he couldn’t put full faith in the little bastard’s ideas. What Li Hao spoke of was the ideal, perfect situation.

Breaking through chaos dao, entering chaos origin, seizing it, and becoming the greatest in existence...

That was beautiful, but too hard.

But if he really could reverse time and return to life a million years ago and... if he killed a ninth rank then, like the dao master of life and death, could he seize the power of life and death? Would that make reincarnation available to him?

He would have a chance of rebirth then, right?