War God Long Ao

Join forces?

Long Ao didn't agree immediately. After all, even if the Dragon Sect and the Ghost King joined forces, they would be no match for the Four Great Dominators.

"It seems our alliance can't be out in the open."

"Long Ao, I know what you're thinking, but this is the most I can do. If you truly manage to rise to power one day, I will assist you from the shadows. I believe it could lead to some unexpected results."

Long Ao just smiled and said nothing more.

After the Ghost King left, Long Ao and Ao Xue sat down, speaking of how much they had missed each other.

The Imperial City established a presence in the Celestial State, and everyone assumed the other three Great Dominators would follow suit, sparking a battle for hegemony. But what happened in the end?

The three Great Dominators had yet to officially move into the Celestial State when the rising Dragon Sect suddenly attacked the Four Great Sects: the Golden Sun Sect, the Thunder Sect, the Wind and Thunder Sect, and the Flame Sect.

Long Ao's intention was simple: to gain a foothold in the Celestial State, one first had to be forceful, and the Four Great Sects were the perfect targets to make an example of. However, Long Ao was clever; he didn't exclude the Thunder Sect, but attacked them all at once.

It looked like an attack, but it wasn't a real one.

Did Long Ao really want to destroy the Four Great Sects?

No one believed it. Though Long Ao was powerful enough to instantly kill a Supreme Venerable, the Four Great Sects were incredibly formidable when united. It would be no easy feat for the Dragon Sect to annihilate them in a short period.

Furthermore, the Imperial City wouldn't just stand by and watch the Dragon Sect deal with the Four Great Sects. Once the Imperial City intervened, the Dragon Sect would be in serious trouble.

But to everyone's utter astonishment, in a single night, the Dragon Sect annihilated three of the major sects. Only the Thunder Sect was spared.

Annihilating three major sects in a single night—what did that imply?

No one could process what had happened. Even the Ghost King was stunned, never having imagined that Long Ao could actually annihilate three major sects overnight.

With the Thunder Sect spared, Xia Fang was nearly scared to death. He too had never imagined that a newly established Sect could be so terrifying.

According to rumors, the three major sects had been wiped out by the Dragon Sect without being able to put up the slightest resistance.

The power displayed by the Dragon Sect was too immense. For this very reason, the Thunder Sect immediately convened a meeting to discuss their future path.

After a short deliberation, the Thunder Sect was left with only two choices: first, to submit to the Ghost King Sect, and by extension, the Imperial City; second, to submit to the Dragon Sect and oppose the Imperial City.

Two options. Which would they choose?

The Thunder Sect split into two factions. All the Elders chose to submit to the Ghost King Sect. In their eyes, the Imperial City was one of the Four Great Dominators of Kyushu, an immense power; there was no going wrong by siding with them.

The other faction, led by Xia Fang, Dugu Bai, and Xia Jun, chose to submit to the Dragon Sect. They believed the talent and power Long Ao had displayed were simply too astounding. Perhaps one day, he could defeat the Imperial City and become the hegemon of Kyushu.

Long Ao's rise was undeniable. Before this, who could have imagined that Long Ao, by his own strength, could massacre the entire Blood Sea Sect and then annihilate three major sects in a single night? Whether others believed it was possible or not, Xia Fang and his two companions were now firm believers.

In the end, the Thunder Sect split in two. Half chose to submit to the Ghost King Sect, while the other half chose to submit to the Dragon Sect. From that day on, the Celestial State no longer had Six Great Sects; only the Ghost King Sect and the Dragon Sect remained.

One was an established sect of the Celestial State, while the other was a newly-risen power. Everyone predicted that the Dragon Sect and the Ghost King Sect would inevitably clash to decide who would dominate the Celestial State.

No one was optimistic about the Dragon Sect. After all, the Ghost King Sect had the full backing of the Imperial City. If the Imperial City made a move and dispatched a Law Enforcement Celestial Venerable, destroying the Dragon Sect would be over in an instant.

「Dragon Sect.」

Long Ao's move to annihilate the three major sects was a blitz. He knew he couldn't afford to let it drag on, because if the Imperial City intervened, the consequences would be unthinkable.

For this very reason, Long Ao had directly deployed all of his Corpse Slaves. One had to admit, the Corpse Slaves were overwhelmingly powerful, annihilating all three major sects in just a single night.

"Sect Leader, we have now destroyed the three major sects. If the Imperial City intervenes, how should we respond?"

Hao Chao looked at the young man before him, his mind still reeling. He never would have imagined that in less than a year, Long Ao could accomplish so much—not only massacring the Blood Sea Sect, but also annihilating three major sects and becoming one of the two dominant powers in the Celestial State.

Hao Chao was originally an Honored Guest Elder of the Long Family, but Long Ao had invited him to become an Elder of the Dragon Sect. After all, the Dragon Sect had just been established and was in desperate need of talent.

With a smile, Long Ao said confidently, "The Imperial City definitely won't make a move. Hmph. We and the Ghost King Sect are now rival powers. If the Imperial City attacks us, I can assert that the other three Great Dominators will certainly intervene. Unless they have no other choice, I'm sure the Imperial City won't provoke a war."

Long Ao was very confident. He reasoned that if the Imperial City were truly powerful enough to disregard the other three Great Dominators, it wouldn't have let the Ghost King Sect represent it in the Celestial State in the first place.

In truth, Long Ao was also gambling—betting that the Imperial City wouldn't move against the Dragon Sect. If he won, the Dragon Sect would have completely secured its position. If he lost, the Dragon Sect would undoubtedly be destroyed.

Though confident in his own power and that of his Corpse Slaves, Long Ao was self-aware. With the Dragon Sect's current strength, it was impossible to fight the Imperial City head-on. His current strategy was to use the other three Great Dominators to keep the Imperial City in check, thereby securing his own position as a hegemon in the Celestial State.

Hao Chao was still worried, but matters had already progressed this far. His only choice was to follow along.

Hao Chao also knew that if Long Ao and the Dragon Sect failed, they would be plunged into an irredeemable abyss. But if they succeeded, the Dragon Sect would establish a legacy for the ages. And this momentous step had been taken in a single night.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't impressed; after all, Long Ao's talent and potential were undeniable.

"Brother Hao, we've destroyed three major sects. While it's unlikely the Imperial City will make a move, we still must prepare for the worst. If things look bad, we'll all retreat and switch to guerrilla tactics. I refuse to believe the Imperial City will be able to do a thing to me then."

Nodding, Hao Chao immediately took his leave. He understood the gravity of the situation; destroying three major sects was no small matter. If the Imperial City truly decided to move against their Sect, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Long Ao's meaning was simple: if his prediction turned out to be wrong, they could retreat instantly and avoid being annihilated by the Imperial City. This was his contingency plan.

"Sect Leader."

"What is it?"

"Reporting to the Sect Leader, Sect Leader Xia Fang of the Thunder Sect has brought his followers to our Sect to pledge allegiance."

'Dugu Bai and Xia Jun?'

Hearing this, Long Ao shot to his feet, his face filled with delight. He had already guessed why the Thunder Sect had come.

(PS: The last two chapters for today will be up later. Please send lots of monthly passes! If the response is good, Xiaojiu will pull an all-nighter and upload ten chapters at 10 AM tomorrow. Please show Xiaojiu your support!)