Chapter 426: Necessity

What's wrong with waiting a hundred years?

From Shen Shuibi’s perspective, it really wasn’t a big deal; the gains during this period had already allowed Mount Luofu to leave a seed, and there was no need to rush the remaining matters, slowly taking their time would be fine.

After a hundred years, once the Formation was complete, they could go to the outer domain, find ownerless world clusters, drag them back, and then begin to mine resources; this way, although not quick, it would be stable and without too much risk.

But for Li Qi, it wasn’t like that at all. He put his arm around Shen Shuibi’s shoulder and said, “We don’t have that much time. Don’t forget, why did I come to Tang Nation?”

“Because of the Celestial Pole Golden Elixir Method, so you came here as a hostage.” Shen Shuibi asked, puzzled, “But what does this have to do with you going to the East Sea?”

Li Qi sat up straight and began to speak seriously: “It has a great deal to do with it. The reason the Celestial Pole Golden Elixir Method is important is because of the Sun-Moon Orbit Dao. The Celestial Pole Golden Elixir Method is one of the keys to this Dao, capable of awakening the Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron. This matter cannot be leaked, especially not to the people of Shaman God Mountain.”

“So, at that time, there were only three paths before me: either self-destruct my Spirit Soul and erase my memories, or be killed by Tang Nation, or simply come to Chang’an and accept surveillance. In the end, at Teacher Zhu’s suggestion, I chose the third path and came to Chang’an.”

Shen Shuibi listened quietly, waiting for Li Qi to explain his thoughts. She had always been a very good listener.

Li Qi looked at Shen Shuibi and said, “But there’s a problem in Chang’an. I can’t stay in Chang’an forever, so Mount Luofu can’t wait forever either. The Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron and Empress Luofu will awaken sooner or later. This matter cannot be stuck here.”

“But from Chang’an’s perspective, they wouldn’t want Mount Luofu to awaken. After all, the human emperor sword personally acted, a dignified second-grade Spiritual Artifact acted to destroy Mount Luofu. This grudge cannot be resolved. So, I think if we continue to stay in Chang’an, the road ahead will definitely not be easy.”

Shen Shuibi was silent; this problem indeed existed.

Ultimately, no matter how ‘generous’ Chang’an is now, Tang Nation fundamentally does not wish for Mount Luofu to continue to exist. Mount Luofu’s current survival still relies on the protection of Shaman God Mountain.

But the protection of Shaman God Mountain isn’t free…

Several second-grade Great Shamanes have already shown great interest in the opportunity of the Sun-Moon Orbit, and their promotion will not be hindered by other Great Powers.

Therefore, Mount Luofu only has two chances to survive.

One is to quickly break free, seizing the opportunity now while no one is paying attention.

The second is to continue to lie dormant. This dormancy might not be something that can be resolved in three to five hundred thousand years; at least they would have to wait until everyone believes the Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron cannot be revived and there is no chance, then temporarily relax, only then will there be an opportunity.

If they don’t find a way during these two opportune moments, it would be giving Shaman God Mountain and Tang Nation time, giving them a chance to gradually clear out other competitors.

One should know that Tang Nation and Shaman God Mountain are still working together to deter other forces attempting to lay claim to the Sun-Moon True Lead Cauldron, and they are also negotiating internally.

During this period, Li Qi was actually the safest.

External forces were watching Li Qi, Shaman God Mountain was unwilling to give up Li Qi, and Tang Nation could only protect him, otherwise, their joint clear-out plan with Shaman God Mountain might show cracks.

With everyone watching, it was difficult for anyone to make a move.

Therefore, Li Qi’s move had three layers.

Fools would think he was going to foolishly sell Shamanic Silkworm Artifacts, but some people, after careful consideration, might detect the possibility of a spy, and further investigation might even uncover the possibility of Li Qi’s ‘bluffing.’

But only truly intelligent people, after obtaining enough information, could see that he was going to stir up trouble.

He wanted to involve the East Sea, the East Sea that had already entered the fray through this war!

This was not impossible, because the East Sea had actually already entered the fray, and the war with Tang Nation was the biggest clue, and… Li Qi’s arrival would surely give the East Sea a reassurance.

Because, currently, Shaman God Mountain and Tang Nation are allied, which is why they can drive out other forces. But if a Young Master of Shaman God Mountain were to involve the East Sea in the game, the standoff between two tigers would turn into a three-way free-for-all.

At that time, could they still be of one mind?

Then, with numerous forces intervening and undercurrents surging, Mount Luofu’s chance of survival would emerge in this chaotic situation.

This was Li Qi’s plan.

Going to the East Sea was to give the True Dragons a reason, an opportunity, to begin contending for the Sun-Moon Orbit.

One must know, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, from where does it rise?

The extreme East, that legendary Fusang Valley.

Ancient texts say: “Above Fusang Valley there is Fusang, where ten suns bathe, north of the Black-toothed people, located in the water, with a great tree.”

A great tree in the water, the place where the sun rises.

The East Sea is the place where the sun rises; would they not covet the Sun-Moon Orbit?

Therefore, Li Qi’s idea was feasible. His identity could indeed accomplish such a thing, and there was no risk, no need for investment, and it could quickly expand production capacity and find a breakthrough point for Mount Luofu.

However, there was still one problem.

After Shen Shuibi understood Li Qi’s meaning, her face was full of worry, and she held Li Qi’s hand: “Li Qi, can you represent Shaman God Mountain…? If not…?”

The rabbit didn’t continue speaking.

If he couldn’t, then it would mean Li Qi had acted on his own initiative, using the sect’s name to participate in such a major event, and privately taking sides, dragging Shaman God Mountain into a vortex of conflict, affecting the overall situation.

At that time, could Li Qi bear the consequences?

One must know, what Li Qi was about to do was to privately represent Shaman God Mountain and introduce a third-party force, which was equivalent to making Shaman God Mountain and Tang Nation suffer a hidden loss.

This was truly something that would cause great harm to Li Qi.

“Don’t worry, by that time… I believe Teacher Zhu will definitely stand up and help me.” Li Qi spread his hands and said with a smile.

Only, the smile was a bit forced.

To be honest, this was Li Qi’s confidence.

He had never doubted this point.

Zhu Fengdan would definitely stand up and support him, there was no doubt about that.

Moreover, Teacher Zhu himself had done such things frequently, so he was quite familiar with it. Li Qi considered himself to be inheriting the excellent traditions of his master’s sect.

Of course, he was just comforting himself; the risk of this matter was obvious at a glance.

After hearing this, Shen Shuibi was silent for a moment, then said, “We owe Grand Invoker a great deal. If there is an opportunity in the future, we will not hesitate to give our lives.”

Then, she hugged Li Qi, resting her head on his shoulder, and said, “I owe you too much…”

She knew why Li Qi was doing these things, and she knew what Li Qi was bearing.

Although there was no so-called ‘risk’ currently, all of this would come at a cost in the future.

Li Qi smiled and said, “You and I are husband and wife, one body. How can there be a matter of owing or not owing? If something were to happen to me, would you stand by and do nothing? There’s no need to say such things.”

“Then I’ll go to the East Sea with you,” Shen Shuibi said.

“…” Li Qi frowned slightly, not replying immediately.

He thought for a moment and said, “Your going would be of no help. It’s safer for me to go alone this time. If you come along, it would only add to my worries. After all, they won’t touch me; even if things are exposed and I’m caught, it would only be house arrest, and I’d be released afterward. But you’re different.”

“Staying here and perfecting the Formation is more important than anything else. After all, our next step still requires this Formation. I’ve never seen any force that couldn’t establish a foothold in the outer domain.”

Establishing a foothold in the outer domain wasn’t just about occupying a world; at the very least, it required dragging a world cluster to an area where Golden Dais and Star-Mansion Array could quickly reach.

Currently, a round trip to the Holy Flame World takes more than seven days, which is too inefficient. If this world were pulled to a range that Golden Dais could reach, for example, next to Dou Su Six, then a trip would only take a few hours, much more convenient.

And to drag an entire world cluster, one would need to use such a large Formation to slowly move it.

One should know, the world cluster where the Holy Flame World is located was originally very far away. The reason it is only a little over three days away from Dou Su Six is that the Heaven-Devouring Demon Lord and his group spent a hundred years slowly dragging it over. They also wanted to place it within the range that Golden Dais could reach.

Shen Shuibi closed her eyes, not speaking for a moment.

Li Qi also said nothing, and silence fell between the two.

After a while, the rabbit opened her eyes: “How long will you be gone this time?”

“I’ll go after this year’s coursework ends, taking advantage of the break, and return before the next set of classes begins, so about three months,” Li Qi said.

Three months, that is, three cycles of the Tai Yin’s change.

The Tai Yin, or the moon, in the world, emits its own light. As a celestial body as large as the sun and capable of emitting its own light, its changes do not depend on sunlight and its position relative to the ground, but are entirely self-transforming.

The waxing and waning of the moon are all changes of the Tai Yin itself, thus forming the concept of the moon. This ‘change’ is also one of the Tai Yin’s authorities.

“Three months, then… Alright, I’ll wait for your news. Oh, here, take this.” Shen Shuibi said, handing over a small bag.

It was made of gauze, entirely silver-gray, with no decorations, and felt good to the touch, with a fresh scent.

“Sachet?” Li Qi took it, asking curiously, “What kind of incense is used? This smell… why does it seem a bit familiar…?”

“I put some… hair from my back. Don’t smell it, this isn’t a sachet, it’s a protective charm.” Shen Shuibi quickly pressed down Li Qi’s hand, which was trying to continue smelling it, and then tied the item, which she called a protective charm, to his waistband.

“This item is not a sachet, so don’t smell it. I’ve cast some spells inside that can protect you completely. Within the fifth grade, it won’t harm you in the slightest for fifteen minutes. Although I don’t know if it’s enough, I can’t do any better.”

Then, seeming to feel a bit undignified, she got up and said, “I’m going to rest for a bit.”

Saying that, she shrunk her body and curled up on the bed.

She used a rather clever angle to hide her tail.

However, Li Qi still clearly saw that the fur on her back was intact.

In this sachet… was it really hair from her back?

Never mind, don’t think about those things, it’s impolite.

The two temporarily stopped talking. Since they had already decided what to do, there was no need to say more.

After that, Li Qi returned to his daily life.

The handover of Sacred Flame, daily studies, providing daily food reviews for the Peng Hai Cauldron, the research and development of Shamanic Silkworm Artifacts, and occasionally dealing with after-sales or pre-sales inquiries.

Peaceful study and work gradually filled his life.

Of course, his life with the rabbit was also very fulfilling, with no accidents occurring, and everyone was doing very well.

Everything was peaceful and developing in an orderly fashion.

Half a year passed.

Li Qi’s wealth also expanded somewhat. Although the growth was not fast due to the Bottleneck, he now controlled six or seven sixth-grade worlds.

Of course, this was just a unit; in reality, all his resources were stored in the form of silver taels, but Li Qi didn’t trust silver taels and was looking for an opportunity to exchange them all for physical goods.

Silver taels… were truly mysterious. Li Qi couldn’t convince himself to trust them. However, Bo Yue and Liu Canzhi seemed quite confident in silver taels. Bo Yue even told Li Qi, “As long as Tang Nation doesn’t fall, are you worried that silver taels will become worthless? This is the Dao foundation of a current Director of the Secretariat.”

But no matter what, Li Qi still felt that the physical goods he held were more trustworthy than general equivalents.

Time flowed by, and at the end of the semester, Li Qi finally completed his Military School of Thought coursework.

Inside Imperial Academy.

In the classroom, after the assessment ended, the silent, burly teacher announced the results: “Final results, Li Qi, A+.”

“Landy, B+.”

“Lord of Pestilence, A-.”

“Li Lieqi, A+.”

“This is the last batch of assessments. Congratulations, you have mastered the Military School of Thought curriculum. From now on, you are qualified to lead troops. This is everything the school can teach you, but it’s only a superficial understanding of the battlefield. However… I see that among you, besides Li Lieqi, no one else has plans to lead troops, so consider it for cultivating character and strengthening will.”

“Now, class dismissed. You have received your scores for this course.”

After speaking, the fifth-grade teacher turned and left. The course was over, and he didn’t need to say anything more.

As for Li Qi, he stretched and prepared to leave.

But at that moment, he heard Lord of Pestilence call out to Li Qi: “Brother Li, may I trouble you to stop?”

“Hmm? Lord of Pestilence, what’s wrong?” Li Qi turned his head and responded.

Lord of Pestilence had only joined the Military School of Thought course this year, and it was Li Qi who recommended him.

The Military School of Thought’s method of using collective Qi had a similar effect to Lord of Pestilence’s collective power, making it an excellent learning method for him. After all, strictly speaking, Lord of Pestilence himself was essentially a large army with interconnected minds.

It was also because of this that he readily accepted Li Qi’s suggestion and became Li Qi’s classmate.

“This year’s course is over. How about we go to the dining hall for a meal together? With your personality, it might be difficult to see you again in the future,” Lord of Pestilence said with a smile.

Li Qi felt a bit embarrassed upon hearing this.

It was pretty much true; he usually had a lot of things to do and was busy, so he would leave immediately after class and rarely talked much with his classmates.

“Lord of Pestilence, why say such a thing? A classmate’s invitation, how could I refuse? Then please, lead the way.” Li Qi wiped his sweat and readily agreed.

So, the group arrived at the dining hall.

Li Qi, however, discovered—

It seemed… Lord of Pestilence had something he wanted to say?