Chapter 755 – Dreaded By The Demon Race
There was a long distance between Demon City and Rising Sun City, so it would be impossible for the Demons to see what happened in Rising Sun City. It was also because of this that Besmir was unable to know what the Demons were doing unless he sent out scouts himself. He only managed to get information because of Zhao Hai.
One must say the Besmir really wanted to constrain the Demons, however, he was inferior to Zhao Hai when it came to commanding the other races. Because of this, he thought that unless it was Zhao Hai, it would be impossible for the city to work together in repelling the Demon Race.
This matter can be seen in Rising Sun City. In the city, the most suitable scouts would be the Elves. However, Besmir didn't have the authority to command the Elves. This essentially meant that the city had no scouts to use.
The Elves only accepted Besmir as their commander because they were giving Zhao Hai face. However, this didn't mean that they would listen to him.
But this time, the orders that Besmir sent out came from Zhao Hai. The Elves might not give Besmir any face, but they couldn't just disregard Zhao Hai. Zhao Hai had always been fair in his treatment to other races. If they were punished by Zhao Hai, then not only would their races do nothing, they might even get more punishment instead.
Because of this, the Elves immediately went out to deal with the Demon scouts, and with an overwhelming victory at that. Although they were smaller, they still managed to eliminate the group of Demons. Even if this was a small achievement, this was still a huge morale boost for the people in Rising Sun City.
Seeing the actions of the Elves, Zhao Hai couldn't help but feel delight. It seems like his decision with the Elves was correct. Most importantly, he also gained a metric about how strong 9th rank Elves could be. In the future, they would be able to understand how to utilize the Elves to their full potential.
The Demons wouldn't know about what happened to their scouts, but as Lizzy said, the Demons have reached a state of complete mastery when it came to troop management. If their scouts don't come back in a few hours, then it meant that they had an accident. Otherwise, the scouts would be punished if they came back late.
Because of this, when the Demons discovered that their scouts hadn't returned, they immediately knew that something happened. They quickly sent a battalion in order to seek those scouts, but in the end, they were unable to find anything.
The Demons also understood that if nothing was found, then the only possibility was that they had been eliminated by the Humans. The Demons knew that there won't be anything left once the scouts were defeated. This was because Zhao Hai was present, and he always turned his enemies into undead.
Because of this knowledge, the Demons decided to send a large unit to find the scouts. And even if a battalion was sent, they still didn't dare to approach Rising Sun City.
It was clear that the Demons were dreading Zhao Hai. They wouldn't dare face him before they had completed their preparations.
Zhao Hai looked at the actions of the Demons in the monitor. When he saw that they didn't attack immediately, he couldn't help but sigh in relief. This time, Zhao Hai sent the Elves out because first, he wanted to see how powerful the Elves were, and second, because he wanted the Demons to dread him even more, making sure that they would hesitate in making a move.
However, this situation held its advantages and disadvantages. They Demons might hesitate to make their attack, but when they do, then one could be assured that the Demons will be giving it their all. At that time, even if Zhao Hai personally went out, he would still be unable to stop their advance.
But the most fear that Zhao Hai had was the fact that he might not even be able to come out when the time comes. Although the Divine Race reinforcements were yet to arrive, there were all sorts of signals showing that they were on their way.
The Divine Race armies were very busy in the military barracks all the time. They had cleaned up every city in the Radiant Empire, this was a clear sign that the reinforcements would arrive.
After seeing the Divine Race, Zhao Hai couldn't help but sigh. He really couldn't understand why the Divine Race would want to obtain the Ark Continent. The Divine Realm was a plane that was a level above the continent. Properly speaking, there was nothing in the Ark Continent that was worth their effort. But they still decided to come, was this because the Divine Race had an inborn desire of conquest?
One could say that it would be unjustified if one were to compare the people in the Divine Realm and the Ark Continent. In the Divine Realm, children were born as 8th ranks, become 9th ranks through adulthood, and God-rank after some practice. In this case, why would they look into the Ark Continent? Even reaching 9th rank would be difficult for the people in the continent.
However, Zhao Hai suddenly changed his mind when he thought about the Divine Race's heavy cavalry. They seem to not be part of the Divine Race. Each and every heavy cavalry rider looked very much like wild men. It was impossible for the Divine Race to have those kinds of people among them. This could only point to the fact that the heavy cavalry units were the Divine Race's slaves. It might be possible for Iron Hammer and the others to be unaware of this fact.
This kind of situation was not impossible. Iron Hammer and the others hadn't been to the Divine Realm in tens of thousands of years. A lot of things can happen in those years and it was impossible to know about the actions of the Divine Race during that time.
If those heavy cavalry soldiers were really slaves of the Divine Race, then Zhao Hai could understand their motives. They wanted to do to the Ark Continent what they did to the heavy cavalry soldiers.
To be honest, Zhao Hai also held belief that the light cavalry soldiers were slaves of the Divine Race as well. It would be impossible for the Divine Race to send 9th ranks of their own people to the frontlines. One should know that no matter how formidable, light cavalry losses were also quite high.
If the light cavalry and the heavy cavalry were slaves of the Divine Race, then the Divine Race had become scarier. This was because it was possible that they had subdued this people not in the Divine Realm, but on other planes instead.
Zhao Hai's speculation was not based on nothing. The Ark Continent only had a written history of less than 10 thousand years. And the matters that Iron Hammer told Zhao Hai was only a few years before that. At that time, the Ark Continent still had people ascend towards the Divine Realm. This meant that, at that time, the people in the Ark Continent were quite strong.
Moreover, Iron Hammer's tale had told them that the ascendants of the Ark Continent had waged war with the Divine Race. There were the gods of the other races as well as some human gods that had fought with them. This might look simple, but when one looks at it carefully, they could see that the Ark Continent held enough talent that their ascendants were able to form a force that can fight with the Divine Race.
If this was the case, then this meant that the Ark Continent had been sending God-ranks for more than tens of thousands of years ago. This showed the longevity and strength of the Divine Realm.
And through all these time, the Divine Race had managed to stay formidable. If they can use their power to invade the Ark Continent, then why can't they use it on other planes? If the Divine Race used this method on other planes, then this would explain the existence of the light and heavy cavalry units.
This would also explain the reason why the Divine Race decided to invade the Ark Continent. They wanted to make a colony while at the same time, take revenge against the ascended God-ranks from the continent.
Zhao Hai thought about all of this while he was staring at the monitor. As the Divine Race got busy, the worries in Zhao Hai's heart increased. The military barracks that had been set up can accommodate at least several tens of millions of troops. However, the overall number of troops that the Ark Continent had not reach that number.
Lizzy looked at Zhao Hai's expression and consoled him, "Big Brother Hai, don't worry about it. At the very least, we know that the Divine Race and the Demons aren't allies. As long as they don't group up, then we would have our opportunity."
Zhao Hai nodded, then he held Lizzy's hand as he replied, "I'll be fine. After all, even if they become allies, we can just abandon the Ark Continent."
Lizzy nodded. The without notice, a day passed by. Just as Zhao Hai got up, Cai'er flew over to him and said, "Young Master, good news. The materials have matured enough to provide for one God-rank potion and I've already started its production. Also, in a few minutes, the tiny pagoda would be finish. Young Master should head over there and see."
Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Alright, I'll go. Just wait a minute." Then he went back to his room and cleaned himself up before he went towards the Processing Machine.
Laura and the others had also got up by now. They had also received the information before they quickly took care of themselves.
Laura and the others were different from other women in the continent, those that would need to do their makeup in half an hour, sometimes even over an hour. At this point, they had already abolished that custom. First reason was because they simply don't have the time to do so.
The second reason was because there was no need. In the past, they would apply makeup in order to make themselves more attractive. But there was no need to do that right now. They had been drinking spatial water everyday and also ate the things in the Space. This allowed their skin and complexion to be as delicate as a baby's skin. In this case, they would only ruin their face if they decided to put makeup on.
Because of these two reasons, Laura and the others didn't bother to do their makeup as they immediately went towards the Processing Machine. They just adjusted their hair and wore some decent clothes.
Chapter 756 – Immortal Cultivators Really Exist
Zhao Hai's group were currently in front of the Processing Machine. The tiny pagoda's upgrade would be finished in two minutes. On the other hand, the God-rank potion nearby had just started being processed.
After looking at the Processing Machine, Zhao Hai couldn't help but frown as he looked at Cai'er and said, "Cai'er, do we have enough money in the Space? Even if we use the materials in the magic backgrounds, we would still use gold coins to make God-rank potions. When that time comes, our expenses surely wouldn't be small."
Cai'er smiled and said, "Young Master, you don't need to worry. After the Space leveled up to 70, using the materials grown in the magic backgrounds would reduce the price of making God-ranked potions by about half. Moreover, in addition to the materials for the potion, I've also planted some highly prized crops in the magic backgrounds. Those things would definitely sell well in the Space, allowing us to be self sufficient in making the potions. Additionally, the materials in the magic backgrounds also reduced the time to make God-rank potions. Originally, the potions would take 48 hours, but now, they will be prepared in eight."
Zhao Hai felt relief after he heard this. He didn't think that the magic background would actually have this much benefits.
Laura turned to Cai'er and said, "Cai'er, keep some potions for us. I heard that after becoming God-rank, one's skin would improve. Moreover, one could also reach immortality."
Zhao Hai couldn't help but wipe a cold sweat on his forehead as he turned to Laura and said, "Laura, your skins are already soft. If you become God-rank, then I'm afraid I'd slip whenever I embrace you."
The faces of the women couldn't help but turn red, Laura slapped Zhao Hai's shoulder and said, "Talk less nonsense."
Cai'er smiled and said, "Young Master has a point. Actually, the God-rank potion mainly restores the energy of the body, making every cell of a person more energetic. This allowed the person to look as though they are young. By staying in the Space daily, all of you had already achieved this point. So there really is no need for you to use the God-rank potion."
Laura stared, then her face lit up as she replied, "Really? Then as long as we don't leave the Space, then we would live longer than people outside?"
Cai'er smiled and said, "Correct. However, because the Space's level is still quite low, people couldn't achieve immortality inside it. If we can obtain more plants and items, making the Space level up, then the lives of the people would get longer. Even if it cannot make you immortal, at the very least it won't make you age."
All of the women were now looking at Cai'er with shining eyes. Then they turned their heads to Zhao Hai. Seeing their blazing gazes, Zhao Hai couldn't help but put his arm up as he said, "What do you want? If you want to push me down against my wishes, then I will definitely resist."
Looking at Zhao Hai's expression, the women didn't know whether to laugh or get angry. All of them reached out to Zhao Hai's waist at the same time and twisted it so hard it even made Zhao Hai scream.
After pinching Zhao Hai, Laura snorted and said, "Why do you always talk nonsense? Brother Hai, if we go to the Demon Realm and the Divine Realm, then we must get some rare plants and magic beasts in order to upgrade the Space as soon as possible."
Zhao Hai was currently holding his own waist, he smiled bitterly and said, "When the time comes, we'll do just that. Right, the tiny pagoda is almost complete. Let's see what it looks like right now."
Just as Zhao Hai said that, the Processing Machine let out a white light before the tiny pagoda appeared in front of Zhao Hai. The pagoda was totally different compared to its past appearance. Originally, the tiny pagoda was black all over. But now, the pagoda looks almost transparent, it looked like it was made out of ten thousand year old ice.
Laura and the others were also looking curiously at the tiny pagoda. Apart from the translucent white appearance, the tiny pagoda had also become eight sided. Wind chimes were still present on each corner of the pagoda, but these chimes were now white, blue, black, red, and yellow.
Zhao Hai understood that these five colors represented the five elements. And these colors were actually arranged according to the eight trigrams position. They were divided into two whites, two yellows, two blues, one red, and one black. These eight represented the five attributes that the eight trigrams were representing. The water and fire elements correspond to their own trigram. The trigrams for heaven(天) and lake(澤) correspond to the gold/metal element. The trigrams for thunder(雷) and wind(風) belong to the wood element. And lastly, the trigrams for mountain(山) and earth/soil(地) corresponds to the earth element. This explains why the eight wind chimes had five different colors.
On the top of the pagoda was a small yin yang pattern. This pattern was always turning, making the pagoda look mystical.
Zhao Hai extended his hand as the tiny pagoda flew over. The pagoda revolved around Zhao Hai's hand as the wind chimes ringed. It sounded delightful, it was as soothing as a child's laughter.
Zhao Hai was somewhat attracted to this tiny pagoda. It was too attractive, Zhao Hai couldn't help but stroke it with his hand. This action surprised Zhao Hai since the tiny pagoda acted just like a child. It gently rocked back and forth as it rubbed his hand. It was the same as a child rubbing its small head on the arm of his father.
Zhao Hai couldn't help but smile as he made his divine sense sink slowly into the pagoda. When his divine sense entered, a surge of information suddenly came to his mind. Zhao Hai stared blankly as he comprehended the information. It didn't take too long before he was able to discover how to use the pagoda as well as its innate abilities.
The pagoda was quite strong. It can attack and defend, it can also utilize the power of the eight trigrams, five elements, and the yin-yang. It had a handy sound attack that can affect the minds of the enemy. However, its defense was more formidable. The tiny pagoda can emit a shield that can protect Zhao Hai. The shield can block physical, spiritual, and magic attacks. It was a very extraordinary defensive skill.
Most importantly, the tiny pagoda had also kept its swallowing attack. As long as the enemy gets swallowed by the pagoda, it can turn that enemy's flesh, bones, and soul into energy. As long as this person is within the realm of the eight trigrams and the five elements, then that person would be unable to escape.
And this didn't even count the fact that the tiny pagoda can use the five elements and transform them into dark energy, providing useful resource to dark creatures. At the same time, it can also transform dark energy into five element energy, allowing it to nourish the world. This property alone made the pagoda an extraordinary item of the world.
After knowing the abilities of the pagoda, Zhao Hai couldn’t help but laugh. He never expected the pagoda to reach this height.
Upon withdrawing his divine sense, Zhao Hai immediately called, "Artifact Spirit, come out."
Just as Zhao Hai's voice fell, a figure appeared on the tiny pagoda. This person wasn't the one who fought with Zhao Hai, instead, it was a small child who had a yin-yang belly band. It had a round head with black hair that was tied up with two small five colored ropes.
When Zhao Hai saw this artifact spirit, he couldn't help but stare. His complexion changed as he said, "You're the artifact spirit? What happened to the original one?"
The artifact spirit immediately replied, "Answering to the Master. The original artifact spirit has been turned into pure energy and has been absorbed by me. However, master can feel relieved, I had inherited the memories of the past artifact spirit. If master wanted to know something, then I can provide you with an answer."
Zhao Hai became relieved, he nodded and said, "Just call me young master. Tell me the background of the pagoda's original master. Tell me the realm where he came from."
The small child gave a nod and replied, "Yes, young master. The pagoda's original master is from a world of cultivators. In that world, cultivators rule over countless planes. The Ark Continent is just one of the smaller planes among those."
Zhao Hai stared, he couldn't help but frown, "If they rule this plane, then why can't they directly come here, but instead chose to send a projection?"
The small child quickly replied, "Answering the young master. They rule thousands of planes, but they aren't running them directly. Instead, they would compel powerful people in those planes to worship them and regard them as gods. This would provide the immortal cultivators with faith power."
Zhao Hai frowned, "Tell me about the stages of cultivation in that plane. And then tell me what this faith power is."
The small child replied, "The stages of cultivation are divided into eight parts. The first and second stage had 12 levels each while the 3rd to 8th stages only had nine. The first stage is called Body Tempering, it was a stage where the focus lied on strengthening the body of the practitioner. This would prepare them for immortal cultivation as well as make them able to study immortal arts. The second stage is called Qi Refining. This stage mainly tackles a person's breath. This stage would adjust the shortcomings of one's body as well as fix the damages caused by Body Tempering.
The third stage is the Foundation Establishment stage. Reaching this rank would allow a person to be a true Immortal Cultivator. Their breath would transform along with their bodies. This stage is said to be the starting point of immortal cultivation.
The fourth stage is called the Gold Core stage. People of this rank can reach lifespans of 2000 to 3000 years. They can form a golden dan in their body which can help them absorb energy from the surroundings more efficiently. Their rate of absorption is said to be ten times faster than those in Foundation Establishment.
The fifth stage is the Nascent Soul stage. Immortal cultivators of this rank would crush their gold cores to form a nascent soul inside their bodies. This nascent soul would be like another personification of the immortal cultivator, helping them cultivate and absorb energy. People in this stage can also use advanced level immortal arts .They can attach their divine sense on objects and turn them into incarnations. And even if their bodies were destroyed, as long as their nascent soul escapes, then they can seize a body from another being. The immortal cultivator that the Young Master had fought with is a Nascent Soul Expert.
The sixth stage is the Spirit Severing stage. Immortal cultivators of this rank can separate their divine sense. This separation is completely different to those in Nascent Soul. Nascent Soul Experts needed magic treasures to attach their souls into. Moreover, the strengths that these incarnations have would only amount to about a tenth of the expert's true strength. However, for those in Spirit Severing stage, their Divine Sense can exist independently to form incarnations. These incarnations would have about a sixth to a fifth of the Spirit Severing expert's true cultivation.They could also attach their souls to magic weapons in order to increase its strength.
The seventh stage is called Transcending Tribulation stage. Upon reaching this rank, the Immortal Cultivator would enter the peak powers in the realm. They can have as many incarnations as they can. And each incarnation would have nine-tenths of their true body's cultivation. Their main bodies were also allowed to study the Heavenly Dao of time as they prepare to face their tribulation. This is the reason why this stage is called Transcending Tribulation.
And the eight stage is the True Immortal stage. After reaching this stage, an Immortal Cultivator would live as long as the heavens and the earth. The heavens and the earth could no longer control their fate, thus they are called True Immortals!"
After speaking up to here, the small child caught his own breath, then he continued, "Faith power is a type of ability that Immortal Cultivators possess. However, average cultivators are unable to use it, even feel it. Only upon reaching Nascent Soul would one start to discover this ability. Faith power not only helps a person cultivatie, but it can also improve an immortal cultivator's magic treasures. Because of this, as long as an immortal cultivator is from a great sect, they would be allowed to have access to several planes in order to gather faith energy. These planes are inferior planes where the most powerful people are Foundation Establishment experts."
Zhao Hai couldn't help but frown, "So is it impossible for immortal cultivators to descend on a plane?"
The small child nodded and said, "It is impossible. Cultivators below Nascent Soul would find it difficult to break the Space by themselves. Only if one were to ascend to a higher plane would this be allowed. Nascent Soul Experts are also too powerful to descend, this is the same for Spirit Severing Experts and Transcending Tribulation Experts. On the other hand ,Immortal Stage cultivators can achieve this. But even if they did, they still needed to merge with the heavens and the earth in order to break the space between two planes. And this would be a violation of the laws"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Hai's frown couldn't help but turn tighter. He said, "But the Divine Race just destroyed the laws of the Ark Continent. Isn't this a violation to the heaven and earth?"
The small child shook his head and said, "What I was saying before refers to what the Immortal Cultivators describe to be major planes. These major planes have small planes under them, this included the Ark Continent, Divine Realm, and the Demon Realm along with countless other planes. These major planes are all managed by Nascent Soul Experts. These major planes have their own laws of the heavens and the earth. And if one were to look at the entire universe, the number of these major planes were also countless. So a change in a small plane like the Ark Continent wouldn't have a huge impact to the entirety of the universe. This meant that even if the Divine Race had broken the laws, it was still the law of a major plane, not the universe itself."
Chapter 757 – Five Gates Sect
Zhao Hai nodded. He had understood so much from what the small child had said. He looked at the artifact spirit and said, "What is the name of the cultivator that fought with me? What sect did he belong to?"
The small child replied, "Young Master, that person is called Lu Wei, an immortal cultivator of the Five Gates Sect. A Nascent Soul Elder."
Zhao Hai couldn't help but frown as he asked, "What sect is this Five Gates Sect?"
The child replied, "Five Gate Sect is created by a person know as Five Gates immortal. He was a talented person ever since childhood. But because his family was poor, he lived on as a monk. Later on, when it was discovered that his root was extraordinary, he was immediately selected to become an outer disciple in a famous sect called the Golden Light Temple. However, nobody thought that his talent would surpass what everybody expected. In just three years, he managed to breeze through the 12 levels of Body Tempering, going on to become an official disciple. And then in five years, he would break through to Foundation Establishment, becoming an inner disciple. Then ten years after that, he had managed to form his gold core, becoming a Golden Core cultivator, propping him into a position of a core disciple. This is also the stage that divided disciples from each other. If one's root is good, then they can become an official disciple, if it wasn't, then one can only do chores. If a disciple can reach level 9 or more in Body Tempering within five years, then they would be promoted to being a formal disciple. If he can reach Qi Refining within ten years, then he can become an inner disciple. And within 100 years of entering the temple, if one were to reach Gold Core stage, then he would become a core disciple, a genius within the temple."
The small child stopped for a moment here to look at Zhao Hai's expression. Seeing that nothing has changed, he continued, "But afterwards, when FIve Gates immortal went out to do a mission, he was ambushed by someone, causing him serious injuries. Although he has been able to protect his live, his cultivation has been lost. The person who ordered his ambush was suspected to be from a very high background within the temple. In the end, he was expelled out of the sect."
Zhao Hai gave a nod. Being heartless was a common trait of immortal cultivators.
Seeing how Zhao Hai was interested, the small child went back to his story, "But who would've thought that when Five Gates immortal got kicked out of the temple, he would actually meet a famous person. This person was titled Five Resolves Daoist. Five Resolve Daoist was a rogue cultivator that had become famous among the immortal cultivators. His cultivation method is known as the Five Resolves Art. To practice this art, one needed to achieve five goals in their emotions: absolute kinship, absolute love, absolute morality, absolute friendship, and absolute justice. It can be said that one needed to be resolved to be righteous in order to practice this art. After Five Gates immortal met Five Resolves Daoist, nobody knew what Five Resolves Daoist did or used, but he actually managed to restore Five Gates immortal's cultivation. Moreover, it seems like his cultivation had shot up to more than what he had before. After Five Resolves Daoist died, Five Gates immortal began to spread his name to the world. With his talent, he managed to use the Five Resolves Art in order to reach Transcending Cultivation stage. Afterwards, he created Five Gates sect and became the Sect Master. This was something that even Five Resolves Daoist haven't done."
Zhao Hai nodded, it seems like this Five Gates immortal was truly formidable. After thinking for a moment, Zhao Hai turned to the small child and said, "Where is this Five Gates immortal now? How strong is the Five Gates Sect? What status did Lu Wei have inside the sect?" The small child replied, "Nobody knows where Five Gates immortal is since he hadn’t appeared for a long time. Some people said that he had survived his great tribulation and had become a True Immortal. Some said that he had lost his life during his closed-door cultivation. However, all of these are rumors, nobody knew exactly where and what happened to the immortal. As for Young Master's second question, although Five Gates Sect can't compare to the extremely powerful sects, it can still be considered to be first rate. As for Lu Wei's status in the sect, it isn't that high. He only became an elder because of his cultivation level."
Zhao Hai nodded. Although he looked quite calm, his heart actually turned heavy. He wasn't worried about Lu Wei, instead, he was worried about the Five Gates Sect. If they become enemies with this sect, then their futures wouldn't be very good.
Laura and the others were currently standing by Zhao Hai's side as the small child answered the questions. Although they couldn't understand the conversation, they still knew that immortal cultivators were extremely terrifying people. In the eyes of immortal cultivators, they might just be like ants.
Zhao Hai looked at the small child. The child's face was adorably plump, looking just like China's olympic games mascot. Zhao Hai couldn't help but smile and said, "You'll be called Fuwa from now on. Tell me more about this plane where the immortal cultivators reside." Fuwa immediately replied, "Yes, Young Master. The immortal realm is incomparable large. Nobody knew how many planes it it had but these planes are connected with transmission formations. At the same time, there are also major planes larger than the Ark Continent and Divine Realm. In these planes, there would be a constant number of people who will ascend to the immortal realm. But to accomplish that, one needed to have cultivated up to Gold Core stage. Upon ascending, the best result that one could come up to is becoming a disciple to a big sect."[1]
Zhao Hai nodded, just as he thought, the immortal realm was much stronger than the Ark Continent. Lu Wei also said that when Zhao Hai ascends into the higher planes, he would then deal with him. People with a high enough cultivation would indeed ascend to a higher realm, much like how God-ranks of the Ark Continent ascend to the Divine Realm.
When Fuwa saw that Zhao Hai was listening intently, he said, "Young Master, there are also many large sects in the Immortal Realm. In addition to Five Gates sect and Golden Light Temple, there are also the 180 Buddhist Temples, 81 Supreme Dao Sects, 36 Demonic Sects, and 72 Earth Fiend Sects. These are the most famous sects in the realm."
Zhao Hai frowned as he said, "What is going on with this 180 Temples? Do they belong to one group or are they separate sects?"
Fuwa answered, "Young Master, one could say that they belong to different sects. Golden Light Temple is actually one of them. The 180 temples is just a collective name for the sects that cultivate in the way of Buddhism. The 81 Daoist sects are the same. However, one couldn't say that they are an alliance. Some of these sects are quite hostile to each other. The 30 Demon Sects and 70 Earth Fiend Sects also follow the same description. These sects can be said to be the actual rulers of the Immortal Realm. After them are the powerful cultivation families and then the different Rogue alliances. However, their overall strength is far worse than the big sects, so they don't have much say in the decisions of the Realm."
Zhao Hai nodded, then he looked at Fuwa and said, "Alright, we'll talk more about these things later. What I want you to do now is to improve the undead. Can you do it?"
Fuwa nodded and said, "Young master, that is not a problem. Although Young Master's undead aren't that strong, it is still not easy to upgrade them. I can only upgrade 81 undead at one time and it would take nine days to do so." Zhao Hai nodded, then he sighed, "Alright. However, can you still fight while you are improving the undead?"
Fuwa nodded, "I am, however, it would slow down the progress of the upgrade."
Zhao Hai nodded, "Alright, then upgrade these 81 first." Then he waved his hand as 81 undead appeared around him, these undead were dragons. The fighting strength of the Dragon race was much stronger than the Humans. Although the undead had the same rank of 9th rank, the dragons still held an edge compared to the other undead. Because of this, Zhao Hai decided to upgrade the dragons first.
At this point, Zhao Hai had placed his undead in the Hell background to upgrade them as soon as possible. But although the background was useful to the undead, its effects couldn't manifest in a short time.
Fuwa didn't say any words as he received the undead inside the tiny pagoda. Then he proceeded to stare at Zhao Hai, looking quite adorable while doing it.
Zhao Hai had no reaction to this stare. On the other hand, the eyes of Laura and the others were shining. Laura couldn't help but stretch her hand out and touch Fuwa. Fuwa seems to know about Zhao Hai's relationship with the women, so he didn't hide. However, even if he didn’t, Laura still couldn't touch his body. Fuwa was just an artifact spirit, he didn't have a corporeal body, only the tiny pagoda. Because of this, Laura's hand just went through Fuwa's body.
Laura stared, she couldn't help but look disappointed at Fuwa. Zhao Hai smiled faintly and then said, "Don't worry, as long as Fuwa gets upgraded, then he will slowly turn into a genuine child."
Fuwa nodded at Zhao Hai's words and said, "Indeed" Laura smiled when she heard this, then she turned to Fuwa and said, "How can you be upgraded?"
Zhao Hai smiled faintly and said, "That would have to depend on me. The stronger I get, the more benefits he would have." Then after that, the tiny pagoda entered his mouth and settled in his lower dantian, where it was nourished by Zhao Hai's body.
Since the tiny pagoda has been received by Zhao Hai, Fuwa naturally disappeared. But at this time, Laura and the others were staring at Zhao Hai. Laura couldn't help but say in surprise, "Brother Hai, did, did you just eat Fuwa?"
It can mean either lucky doll or blessed babyChapter 758 – Slaves of the Divine Race
When Zhao Hai heard Laura, he almost lost himself and fainted. He looked at Laura and said, "Why would I eat him? I just placed the tiny pagoda inside my body, nourishing it with my energy. Only through this can Fuwa slowly improve."
Suddenly, Laura seemed to have found something out, "So it’s actually that. So after nourishing him, he would become a true child? Then Brother Hai, wouldn't that be the same as you being pregnant with Fuwa?"
Zhao Hai's jaw slammed into the ground. As he looked at the laughing women, he couldn't help but shout, "You actually dared to tease me! Let's see how I'll deal with you all!" Then he went on to chase the women who were still laughing with glee.
After having fun for a while, the group returned to the villa with Zhao Hai's mind becoming very relaxed. After entering the living room, Zhao Hai immediately turned on the monitor to see the situation back in the Demon Race's camp.
The Demons were still calm despite having their scouts killed. However, starting from then, they began to send large scouting parties. Due to their numbers, it would be impossible for the Dwarves to kill them all.
It seems like the Demons had already decided to have a steady approach in their attack. This made Zhao Hai frown, this was because the more the Demons prepared, the less flaws their plans would have. It was just like how a worried farmer would double check every single piece of land, making sure that everything was plowed properly. This fastidiousness would allow the farmer to see which parts of his land was plowed quite shallow. On the other hand, a farmer that was in a hurry would never find any problems with his job.
The Demons were just like worried farmers right now. They were considering every more they make before taking a step forward. As long as they find no problems, they would proceed. Although their crops were slow, they can be assured that their harvests would be good.
Zhao Hai frowned as he lightly sighed and said, "I really am not sure if these people are Demons anymore. Aren't the Demons quite known for being aggressive fighters? But from what we see, it seems like they are taking things quite slow. It should be really hard for them to endure this long."
Laura was also frowning, "The behaviour of the Demons are really unusual. It can be seen that their commander is quite the patient fellow. This calm advance could only mean bad things for us."
Zhao Hai nodded, then he turned the monitor to look at the Divine Race. The Divine Race had already made good with their military barracks and had already started to send troops to the Buddha Empire's border. They already had the Radiant Empire under their full control.
What surprised Zhao Hai the most were the people that came from the Divine Realm today. Although these people came from the Divine Realm, Zhao Hai can clearly see that they weren't natives.
These people were short and small, similar to the Dwarves. However, they didn't have the strong bodies of the Dwarves, instead, they were quite thin and looked weak. Additionally, they had green skins, two sharp ears like the Elves, and big black eyes. They didn't have any shred of fur on their skin. They looked very strange, quite the opposite of cute.
At this moment, these small creatures were being driven forward by a Divine Race person using a whip. These little creatures were almost naked, only wearing a pair of shorts. A lot of them had injuries on their bodies, and their skins were almost sticking to their bones. They looked just like the starved slaves of the Ark Continent.
Upon seeing these people, Zhao Hai immediately knew that they were slaves of the Divine Race. But he didn't know where these slaves were taken from.
Laura and the others couldn’t help but feel sympathy towards these creatures. Laura turned her head to Zhao Hai and said, "Brother Hai, do you know who these little creatures are? Why haven't I heard about them from Iron Hammer?"
Zhao Hai shook his head and said, "I don't know. Iron Hammer hadn't mentioned these people as well. I reckon these creatures were captured by the Divine Race in the past ten thousand years. This might explain why Iron Hammer and the others weren't aware of them. They seem to have the same nature as the heavy cavalry units.
Laura nodded, then she continued to look at the small people and said, "Why would the Divine Race send them here? Are they here to help build more military barracks?"
Zhao Hai sneered and said, "Not to build. Look, you can see that they had brought grain along with them. At this point, bringing supplies from the Divine Race to here would be an inconvenience, it would cost them too much. And although the Radiant Empire is the smallest Empire in the continent, there is still quite a large arabel area inside its territory. If they use these lands for farming, then it would be possible to help supply the Divine Race army. It seems like the Divine Race had already decided to have a long and drawn out war."
Laura nodded, "That seems to be the case. If we didn't have the Space, then transporting food and supplies would truly be very costly. And the Divine Race didn't want it to be this way."
Zhao Hai sighed, "I'm afraid that with this move of farming inside the Radiant Empire, the Divine Race had started to take root in the continent. Later on, if we want to drive them away, the resistance would be more intense, it wouldn't be easy for us."
Lizzy knit her brows and said, "Brother Hai, do you think that the Divine Race has already conquered other small planes? Did Fuwa ever say any of these? We are in a major plane composed of smaller planes. If the Divine Race decided to deal with the Ark Continent, then its possible that they had done it to other planes. The heavy cavalry and their other slaves should have come from those smaller planes."
Zhao Hai had already thought about this, so he said, "Correct, that is highly probable. If this is really the case, then things would become quite troublesome. No wonder the Divine Race started to move in after occupying the Radiant Empire. It seems like this isn't their first time doing it."
Lizzy gave a nod, "The Divine Race are truly formidable, they're as difficult to deal with as the Demons. It seems like these two races would become great headaches in the future. I hope that when the time comes, they would get into a conflict with themselves. Otherwise, our burdens would only increase."
Zhao Hai can understand Lizzy's thoughts. Lizzy was referring to the time when they have already retreated to the Accra Mountains. They would block both parties there and then hope that they would fight each other. In this way, they would be catching fish without the help of a fisherman.
Zhao Hai gave out a sigh, he knew how cunning the Demons and the Divine Race were. If they want the two of them to fight, then Zhao Hai's side needed to have the capability to do so. Only when the two parties were unable to capture the Accra Mountain would they possibly fight. Otherwise, they would deal with the Ark Continent's residents first, fighting each other wouldn't be too late after the residents have been taken care of.
And just as what Zhao Hai thought, the slaves that the Divine Race brought had started to cultivate the ground. From their skillful actions, one could see that they were already used to this lifestyle.
Zhao Hai sighed, the Divine Race was truly determined to get the Ark Continent. With these slaves, they wouldn't need to care about the getting slaves from the Ark Continent. It seems like they would be more ruthless from now on.
After some time, Zhao Hai let out a loud breath before he stood up. Then he turned to Laura and the others and said, "From now on, we'll prepare a lot of spatial water in order to promote every single person in the continent. At this point, its is either the Demons and the Divine Race perishing, or us. We couldn't just wait here to be slaughtered, we need to take the fight to them."
Laura nodded, with a firm expression she added, "Alright. I agree with Brother Hai. Even if we can't make them God-ranks, as long as we have 9th ranks, we can deal with the attacks of the two races. Additionally, we also have our 9th rank magic beasts."
Megan gave a nod as well. "There are a lot of troops in the continent. But since their strengths are too low, they couldn't provide that much help. As soon as they get stronger, the average strength of the continent would rise. This would make it more convenient for us to deal with the Demons and the Divine Race."
Zhao Hai looked at their expressions and couldn't help but bitterly sigh, "However, if we do this, the secret of the Space will be exposed. Forget it, this is the only way forward. If we don't resist, then there would be no hope for the future. When that time comes, what will be the use of the Space? Laura, immediately contact the Rulers and Patriarchs of the various powers. Tell them about our plan to release massive amounts of potions in order to promote the troops of the continent. Tell them that we would upgrade them to 8th ranks and that the 9th rank potion would be on the way."
Laura and the others immediately nodded before going off to settle the affair. Then Zhao Hai turned to look at the Divine Race and sighed once more. To be honest, his decision to release spatial water was actually influenced by Fuwa.
Fuwa made him understand a lot about the Immortal Realm. The Divine Race might be powerful, but in the end, they were just pawns of an elder of the Five Gates Sect, used in order to gather faith power. The people of the lower realms were just livestock to them, just like pigs, chicken, and sheep.
Moreover, the Five Gates Sect wasn't the biggest sect in the Immortal Realm, only one of the numerous first-rate sects. From what he understood listening to Fuwa, the Five Gates Sect wasn't even a member of the 180 Buddhist Temples, 81 Daoist Sects, 36 Devil Sects, nor the 72 Earth Fiend Sects. In other words, the strength of the cultivators in the Five Gates Sect can only be ranked at most in the top 400 sects in the Immortal Realm. If a normal elder of such a sect is enough to control the lower realm, then how about those more powerful than him?
The great strength of these immortal cultivators had stimulated Zhao Hai. He didn't want to become just a pig inside a pen. He didn't want to become an ant in another person's eye. He wanted to rebel, he wanted to be competent enough that these immortal cultivators wouldn’t dare to look down on him. He wanted to prevent himself from being stepped on under their feet!