Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

The young man roared desperately, and two purple flames darted out of his hands and hovered around his arms like two purple dragons before they went all the way along his veins to his head where they turned into a crown.

At that moment, a vague halo appeared behind the young man, and he seemed to be a combination of the Blood God, Wuying Qi, and Li Jialing. It was impossible to distinguish them anymore.

However, he became the young lion that Li Yao was very familiar with again in the next second. No, perhaps he was not so familiar with the young lion at all…

“You’re very dangerous, Jialing.”

Scorched by the young man’s power, Li Yao couldn’t help but ask, “It’s great that you want to do something with your power, but I fear that you might be lost in the power. Do you know that you look like another Wuying Qi just now? It’s too dangerous! I can’t even tell whether or not you’re still haunted by Wuying Qi.”

“Yes, it’s truly dangerous. Every time when the purple electric arcs and the golden flames flowed among my cells, a voice that sounded like Wuying Qi 2.0 would whisper to my ears, making me wonder whether I’m 100% Li Jialing or some other things.”

The young man smiled at the flames and electric arcs in his hand for a while before he slowly retracted them and looked back at Li Yao. “What about you, Brother Yao? Are you not as dangerous as the master of the Gold Crystal Pyramid who has absorbed Wuying Qi 3.0’s power? Are you not scared that you would go crazy and lose your mind when you sit on the thorny throne as the sole balancer between the Imperium and the federation, that you would not turn into another vicious dragon with black scales and bloody wings? If you know that it was dangerous, why did you accept Wuying Qi 3.0’s heritage?”

“Because I didn’t have a choice!”

Li Yao said solemnly, “Nobody except me can be the master of the Gold Crystal Pyramid. I do not want anyone else to take the risks of turning into a vicious dragon, particularly not you!”

“Well said. That’s also my answer. Just like you, I don’t have a choice.”

Li Jialing said fast, “First of all, the Cultivators and the Immortal Cultivators are in a subtle relationship. You said yourself that every candidate for the new emperor was eager to swallow the Cultivators and the federation. Even General Lei Chenghu wouldn’t work with you forever, would he?

“No. We’re putting our disagreement aside only to deal with the four families and the Covenant Alliance. But one day, when our mutual enemies are destroyed, will the Imperium and the federation start a war?

“No emperors can hold back their resentment at the Cultivators and the federation except me. Only I can treat the Cultivators and the Immortal Cultivators equally, suppress the eagles who intend to annex the federation, and bring real peace to the Imperium and the federation!

“Also, haven’t you been trying to reform the Imperium in the Cultivators’ way? I know that you’re adopting a bottom-top approach by gradually changing the general public.

“But it’s impossible! The Imperium is too big and chaotic, and the true path of immortality has been spread for a thousand years. It’s hardly possible to change social customs! Your reform is bound to be caught in trouble. It may even raise friction between the Imperium and the federation!

“The Imperium today cannot bear a bottom-top reform. We have to change the obsolete architecture from the top with new power and go down to the bottom. That’s the only way!

“The queen and General Lei Chenghu are naturally real reformists. On one hand, they’re too old to lead the reformists until the completion of their cause, and on the other hand, they’re too bound by the ideas of the Immortal Cultivators, and their reforms are too trivial.

“I’m not overestimating myself. I do not think I’m better than the queen, General Lei, you, or Sister Long. No, I’m not nearly as good as any of you right now, but none of you can be the emperor of the Imperium! On the other hand, I’m far better than any of the emperor candidates!

“If any of those pieces of garbage becomes the emperor of the Imperium, what do you think they will do? How will they treat the Cultivators and the federation? How will they face you as the deterrent in the Gold Crystal Pyramid? Will you carry on the reforms instead of being swallowed by their great ambitions?

“No, they won’t. You know very well the catastrophic consequences if they become the emperor. It’s why you and General Lei have never selected one of them yet!

“So, I cannot watch those pieces of garbage become the emperor of the Imperium only to ruin the Imperium, the federation, and everything I’ve finally got.

“Lastly, there’s a small but not unimportant reason. The queen, controlled by Wuying Qi, almost caused a disaster in the Next Sun Plan. Although she was stopped by Brother Yao in time, severe losses were caused, and too many people lost their lives.

“The queen’s crime is certainly unforgivable, but those who died because of her cannot be brought back to life even if she’s cut into pieces.

“So, as her son, I should answer for her crime and atone for it every day for the rest of my life!”

Looking at the young man who was blushing in excitement, Li Yao was at a loss again.

Or rather, he was about to be melted by the young man’s passion.

“Have you really thought it through?”

Li Yao asked, “Is it your final decision?”

“Yes.”

Li Jialing declared resolutely, “I’ve made my decision. Nothing can change my mind!”

“Then, it seems that…”

Li Yao smiled. “I don’t have a choice except to support you, right?”

Li Jialing also smiled. “If you don’t support me, Brother Yao, I’ll have to cling to your thigh and beg for your support. Though many people are behind my back at this moment, what I need most is your support!

“Remember the other thing you said to me in the Great Iron Factory? You said that even a tiny butterfly might raise a destructive tornado with a flicker of its wings. Come to think of it, maybe I’m the tornado that you’ve already raised. Now that you’ve started a tornado, how can you make it die down quickly?”

“Sounds fair.”

Li Yao thought for a moment and looked at Li Jialing. “Then, answer my last question. What are you right now? Are you a Cultivator or an Immortal Cultivator?”

“I don’t know. I’ve been bullied by the Immortal Cultivators since I was born, and Li Lingfeng and Wuying Lan built me into a monster. I’m never fond of the true path of immortality.”

Li Jialing said, “However, about the path of the Cultivators, no matter how you sell it to me, I feel that it’s still too unrealistic and impractical and requires too many lucky accidents.

“I remember what we talked back in the emperor’s mausoleum, about how it would be best if we could combine the ideas of the Cultivators and those of the Immortal Cultivators. Of course, I haven’t quite figured out the details yet. If I’m lucky enough to be an emperor for several decades, I think I’ll probably be able to find an answer.”

“There was a guy named Lu Qingchen in the federation who had a similar idea. He believed that both the ideas of the Cultivators and those of the Immortal Cultivators were outdated and had to be revised.”

Li Yao said, “I think you have a lot in common.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Li Jialing said in delight, “I didn’t know that there were such wise men in the federation. Where is he right now? I think it’s necessary that we invite him to the Imperium for our cause!”

“Well, I think it would be tricky.”

Li Yao rubbed his nose and said, “This man has already been killed, though not entirely. Part of his soul escaped, but I don’t know where he is right now. I’m afraid that he can’t help your cause in the Imperium anymore.”

Li Jialing and Li Yao stared at each other for a long time before they burst into laughter at the same time.

“What a shame.”

Li Jialing said, “He could’ve given me new perspectives!”

“It’s indeed a shame.”

Li Yao sighed. “Come to think of it, the ideas of many people, including Lu Qingchen’s, had their shining parts, but why did we have to fight instead of discussing in peace to find out the best solution? They had to throw themselves at me and get themselves killed, making me feel upset and guilty. Why bother?”

“Aren’t we discussing in peace right now?”

Li Jialing said, “Let’s hope that we can learn from the past and do not make the same mistake while we look for the most suitable path in the sea of stars!”

Li Yao stared at the young man for a long time again.

“Something else suddenly occurred to me.”

Li Yao said, “When you become the emperor, I don’t think you can use the name Li Jialing anymore, can you?”

By saying that, he was expressing his support for Li Jialing.

“I’m Li Jialing, and I’ll always be Li Linghai’s son and Li Yao’s brother.”

The young man was not delighted at all after receiving Li Yao’s support. Instead, he hesitated for a moment, as if he were going to cut himself loose from his past life and embark on a dangerous expedition.

However, after a brief struggle, golden flames were ignited in his eyes, burning up all his hesitation.

“But on the surface, I will be using a different name. I have to ‘return’ to the Wuying family!”

The young man rose and opened the door of the medical room. Allowing the scorching sunlight to don him with a burning armor, he looked back at Li Yao with the most brilliant smile. “From today onward, I will be called ‘Wuying Ling’!”