Hearing Chen Xu’s enigmatic reply, Abel felt a wave of conflicting thoughts. He had always considered himself quite the riddle-monger, but compared to his own Lord and this Lord of the Undead, he was still far outmatched.
However, Abel was an experienced Angel Priest; he knew better than to let personal feelings interfere with his work or show any emotion.
He slowly stood up, bowed once more to Chen Xu, and replied.
“Lord Chen Xu, I will certainly convey your words to my Lord.”
“Very well. Do you have any other business?”
Abel shook his head.
“No.”
“In that case, Big Boss will handle the remaining negotiations with you. I have matters to attend to, so I will take my leave first. Oh, and remember to give my regards to the Lord of Heaven.”
“You are too kind. I will certainly deliver your message.”
With that, Chen Xu left the Land of the Undead and returned to the Undead Dao Court.
The curtains had been drawn on the Great Expedition, and the Lord of Heaven had made his decision.
Soon, either Hell would be destroyed and the Holy Light would shine upon the myriad worlds, or Heaven would fall and demons would slaughter all of existence.
Neither outcome was what Chen Xu wanted to see.
What he wanted was for the undead to act as a third party, entering at the perfect moment to reap the ultimate benefits.
Therefore, before the final act arrived, Chen Xu needed to find more allies.
Having only Li Taiji, the Martial Dao Lord, was far from enough.
Ideally, he could pull in the Martial Arts Alliance and even the Dao Lords of the Immortal Dao Alliance.
If necessary, even the Dao Lords of the Yokai Dao were not out of the question.
In ancient times, they had all been comrades on the same front. Although times had changed and friction had arisen, when it came to matters of survival and great principle, everything was negotiable.
As long as there were shared interests, they could still sit down to discuss cooperation and face a common enemy together.
While Chen Xu was still contemplating what rhetoric to use to deceive—no, to recruit—the Dao Lords of the Martial and Immortal Daos, a very specific aura passed through the teleportation array of the City of Miracles and entered the Land of the Undead.
Chen Xu looked up instantly, the corners of his mouth curling into a meaningful smile.
“Speak of the devil.”
This special visitor was an old friend of Chen Xu’s, one of the Dao Lords of the Immortal Dao. He was a veteran of the Immortal Dao who had participated in the demon-slaying operation of the ancient era—the Hunyuan Dao Lord.
Currently, the Hunyuan Dao Lord had hidden his aura and even changed his appearance, disguising himself as a Martial Artist.
The disguise, the hidden aura, and the current situation made it clear: the Hunyuan Dao Lord wanted to avoid the gaze of Heaven.
And if he was avoiding Heaven while secretly traveling to the Land of the Undead, his intentions were self-evident.
Over at End City, Abel and Big Boss were still discussing the details of their cooperation. Since the Hunyuan Dao Lord wanted to avoid Heaven, they needed another place to meet.
Chen Xu thought for a moment and decided to show his sincerity first.
He mobilized the authority of the Land of the Undead, warping the space around the Hunyuan Dao Lord to isolate him completely from the surrounding creatures.
Then, he opened a spatial gate beside the Hunyuan Dao Lord. On the other side was the Undead Dao Court.
“Friend Hunyuan has come from afar. Please, enter my Dao Court for a talk.”
Sensing the spatial distortion and the world authority earlier, the Hunyuan Dao Lord guessed that Chen Xu had discovered him.
This was the terrifying aspect of being the ruler of a special world; one could completely command a world and use it for their own purposes. Anything within the world, even a speck of dust, could not escape the ruler's eyes.
Facing Chen Xu’s invitation, the Hunyuan Dao Lord swept his sleeve, restoring his original appearance while saying with a laugh,
“Hahaha! Since Friend Chen has invited me, how could I refuse?”
The Hunyuan Dao Lord stepped through the spatial gate and arrived inside the Overlord's Castle.
This was the first time Chen Xu’s Undead Dao Court had hosted a powerhouse of the Dao Lord level. The last time it had hosted an external expert, it was only Li Taiji’s eldest disciple, who was at the Eternal Rank.
Before the Hunyuan Dao Lord arrived, Chen Xu had already stood up from his seat. When he saw the visitor, he immediately went to greet him.
“Friend Hunyuan, it has been a long time.”
“Hahaha! Friend Chen, didn't the two of us just meet not long ago in the Immortal-Yokai territory?”
Chen Xu gestured for the Hunyuan Dao Lord to sit. With a wave of his right hand, a Black Knight brought out a pot of tea and poured a cup for the guest.
The Hunyuan Dao Lord took a sip and continued.
“To an old man like me, that amount of time is but a mere nap. It is only because you are young and promising, Friend Chen, that you feel time moves slowly.”
The Hunyuan Dao Lord’s sentiment came from the heart. Compared to old fossils like them, Chen Xu was truly too young—almost excessively so.
Throughout history, Mythic-tier experts this young were common, and there were even a few Eternal Rank ones, though those were usually artificial creations built through the enlightenment of a Dao Lord.
But a Unique-tier expert this young... there was only this one.
Even if he had inherited the necrotic authority and the legacy of a special world, it was still extraordinary.
This was precisely why the Hunyuan Dao Lord valued Chen Xu so much. He valued his talent and that purple-black providence that was so intense it was almost crimson.
More importantly, although Chen Xu was the ruler of a special world, he was fundamentally different from the Lord of Heaven and the Lord of Hell.
Chen Xu had attained his position through effort, whereas Heaven and Hell were primordial. Fundamentally, Chen Xu was still part of the human race.
Rather than cooperating with Heaven, the Hunyuan Dao Lord would much rather work with Chen Xu, a fellow human.
This was the reason he had come to the Land of the Undead. A great war that would affect the entire myriad worlds was approaching, and the Hunyuan Dao Lord did not want to repeat the failure of the past.
“Friend Chen, I wonder what your thoughts are regarding Heaven and Hell?”
“My thoughts?”
Chen Xu tapped his finger lightly on the table and replied.
“Hell is too mad. As long as it exists, the myriad worlds will face unpredictable risks.”
“And while Heaven appears peaceful, the Divine Dao is not a path of benevolence. For the sake of faith, gods can do anything.”
“If the balance provided by Hell is gone, the future of the myriad worlds might become an autocracy ruled by Heaven.”
Chen Xu had guessed the purpose of the Hunyuan Dao Lord’s visit, so he went straight to the point without beating around the bush.
Hearing Chen Xu’s reply, the Hunyuan Dao Lord was secretly delighted and hurriedly continued.
“Friend Chen’s words are exactly what I was thinking. I also feel...”
Before the Hunyuan Dao Lord could finish, Chen Xu raised a hand to interrupt him and revealed the inside story.
“Friend Hunyuan, the reason I do not trust Heaven, nor that Lord of Heaven, is that I have discovered a few things.”
“You should know of the Great Sage, right?”
At those words, a look of shock appeared on the Hunyuan Dao Lord’s face.
“I do. Who doesn't know of the Great Sage? Friend Chen, you suddenly mention him... could it be!”
As expected of a veteran, he immediately guessed what Chen Xu was implying.
“Indeed. I have discovered that behind Heaven and Hell—and even behind every special world—lies the shadow of the Great Sage.”
“What?!”
The Hunyuan Dao Lord’s expression changed drastically as if he were recalling something.
“But back then, it was he who...”
Before the Hunyuan Dao Lord could finish, a token in his robes began to glow, cutting him off.
At the same time, Chen Xu received a transmission from Bone Guard One.
“My Lord, Hell has begun its counterattack!”
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