After returning to the quarters of his squad, there was no one that came to interrupt Yao Jun. Azemar greeted him, but after that he left Yao Jun to his own devices, allowing him to focus on his cultivation. Despite using quite a few of the fiery crystals and Spirit Stones to keep himself going during the last battle, Yao Jun had so many left that he was more than confident that he could reach the 4th Houtian Sky.
He sank into the shadows beneath his bed and surrounded the shadows with a wall of space, making sure that nothing could interrupt him during a crucial moment. He took a deep breath, shutting his eyes and putting almost all his focus on the Qi that was coursing through his veins. The fiery crystals within the God Gate started burning, more and more energy flooding into Yao Jun's veins, slowly shattering every obstruction they encountered.
This time he did not split his attention like he did last time, all his focus on breaking through as fast as possible. Any obstruction in his way was shattered, the amount of Qi flowing through his body swiftly increasing as time passed. He had already reached the very peak of the 3rd Mortal Earth, so the actual breakthrough did not take too long, the last barrier shattering after a little over three weeks of cultivating.
Despite not feeling any great increase in strength after breaking through, Yao Jun knew that his strength had grown by a deceptive amount. After all, every new realm was said to be much stronger than the previous one, adding on his strengthening techniques, Yao Jun was getting more and more confident in his strength. Yao Jun was not the only one getting stronger, his Demonic beasts greedily devouring all the resources Yao Jun had gotten his hands on after the last battle, not wasting any time as they worked on increasing their own strength.
Yao Jun left the shadows, stretching his body and enjoying the popping sounds that his joints produced after sitting still for almost a month. The next and final battle would start in less than a week, so there was a tense and uneasy atmosphere hanging over the camp. Yao Jun pondered over what he was going to do until the start of the battle but suddenly remembered that there was a piece of information he had forgotten to tell Diana, the information about Peyton.
He figured that there was no harm in telling Diana about Peyton, so he quickly left the tent. But as he left the tent, the scenery that greeted him caused him to halt his steps, his mouth gaping in awe. There were many more soldiers within the camp now, far stronger soldiers than those that had been here earlier. But Yao Jun completely ignored them, his eyes glued to the sky, to the ships that were floating silently in the sky.
They looked like the normal wooden galleons he had seen on his own planet, cannons at the sides and front, they even had the triple sails. But they were floating in the sky, anchored to the ground thanks to thick metal chains. Yao Jun could see that the ships were covered in intricate runes, so he guessed that the ships were kept afloat thanks to an array. But despite guessing that, he was still amazed, as this was the first time he had ever seen a flying ship.
Yao Jun took his eyes off the ships, giving a slight shake of his head, a chuckle escaping his lips. There was a terrifying energy radiating from each of the ships, so it seemed that Diana truly meant it when she said that none of the Final Fire Clan or Merged Heaven Clan would get to leave this planet. Yao Jun quickly made his way towards Diana's tent, glancing at the new soldiers that were filling up the entire camp.
A few of the soldiers glanced at him, but everyone seemed to be fully focused on the forthcoming battle, so they kept it at only a short glance. Just like usual, the soldiers outside Diana's tent stopped Yao Jun from entering. Judging from the voices coming from within the tent, Diana was talking to Gilberd and Leylan, so Yao Jun stayed put an waited in silence, Diana's voice sounding out after a few minutes.
"You can send him in."
The soldiers stepped aside, allowing Yao Jun to enter the tent. Just like he thought Gilberd and Leylan were also inside the tent, so were Isolde and Emeric, but they were quietly standing at the side. Yao Jun nodded his head at Leylan and Gilberd, sending them a faint smile as he greeted them.
"I didn't expect both of you to have arrived for the upcoming battle."
While talking, Yao Jun sent a slight glance at Leylan. His cultivation had improved greatly since they had last met, Leylan jumping all the way to the Soaring Immortal stage of the Immortal Rebirth realm. But even that cultivation did not seem like it would be useful in the upcoming battle, so Yao Jun was uncertain why Leylan had arrived here. The one who responded to Yao Jun's greeting was Gilberd, giving a nod of his head that caused his golden hair to sway.
"I heard you have been doing well during your battles, I appreciate it."
With Diana personally keeping an eye on Yao Jun, most of Gilberd's suspicions had been removed. He had also received an extensive report of what Yao Jun had done during the two battles he had taken part in, the result shocking him quite a bit. Gilberd swiped his interspatial ring, taking out a smooth gem that was a few centimeters across, as well as a piece of emerald paper engraved with serpentine runes, handing both to Yao Jun as he explained their use.
"It's the formation core that Diana promised you. Activating the array within will allow you to access the collective energy of all the soldiers that are going to remain within the camp. Take care that you don't let it run rampant. As for that talisman, it is a defensive talisman that can block the attacks of someone at the late stage of the Earthly Deity realm, but it can only last for half a minute."
Yao Jun glanced at the emerald paper with some awe, just how had they packed so much defensive force into such a small item? He stored it away with the two other talismans he had received from Leylan before he joined Diana, his eyes landing on the smooth gem. The gem was a bit murky, a faint white light radiating from within. Just by holding the gem, Yao Jun felt a sense of power well up inside him. He stored the gem into his interspatial ring, turning towards Diana and stating why he had come.
"I forgot to deliver some information last time. I met someone during the previous battle, Peyton Eluard."
The expressions of the people within the tent fell somewhat after hearing Yao Jun's report. Diana's eyes glowed with a faint red light as she turned towards Leylan, a faint curve appearing on her lips.
"The 7th Lord of Life. So even he will be taking part in this battle? It seems you were right when you said we would need as much firepower as we could bring."
Leylan had used his laws of destiny to try and learn a little about the upcoming battle, but he had only been able to glean a single piece of information, they had to bring as much firepower as they could, or they would lose. Yao Jun had already guessed that they might know who Peyton was, but he still asked a little to learn a bit more.
"It seems you know about him already. Is he famous?"
Diana turned back to Yao Jun, the crimson light within her eyes fading somewhat. She gave a light shrug of her shoulders, nonchalantly explaining a little.
"Famous and famous, he is just one of the more flamboyant fragment lords. Most of the fragment lords prefer to lay a bit low until they have enough strength to protect themselves, but Peyton does not mind bragging and showing off."
Since the fragments could be stolen, most fragment lords were hidden away by their clans and sects, waiting for the day where they could become a true overlord. Seeing a chance to learn a little more about the Supreme Laws, Yao Jun decided to ask Diana.
"The Nine Supreme Laws, what do you know about them?"
Yao Jun only knew about the God Gates he had encountered, but there were still three God Gates he knew nothing about. The more he could learn about them before encountering them, the better. Diana tilted her head slightly at his questions, giving a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders as she leaned back in her chair.
"What I know about them? Maybe a little more than most, but whether or not what I know is the whole truth is uncertain."
Diana rolled her eyes slightly as she did her best to recall everything she could remember about the Supreme Laws, slowly organizing her thoughts as she started with the most basic of information.
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"Each Supreme Law is divided into eight fragments, spread around the universe as hidden realms. Conquering the hidden realm and taking over the core will allow you to take the Supreme Law fragment into yourself, becoming a fragment lord."
Most sects and clans knew this piece of information, but as she was uncertain how much Yao Jun knew, she had decided to repeat it. After explaining the basics, she started describing the actual uses of the Supreme Laws, raising a finger each time she described one of the laws.
"The actual Supreme Laws are the Supreme Law of Illusions, allowing the controller to turn all things into illusions, as well as turning illusions into reality. The Supreme Law of Attack is often also known as the law of weapons, allowing the controller to control all weapons in existence, summoning the weapons of the warriors he has slain. Each weapon retains the experience of the previous holder, so they are fearsome warriors. The Supreme Law of Defense boasts the strongest defensive power, able to turn everything in the world into an impenetrable shield. The Supreme Law of Souls allows the controller to command the souls of anything they kill, attacking the minds and souls of their enemies and adding them to their evergrowing army. The Supreme Law of Destruction boasts the strongest attacking power, able to harness the power of true destruction, turning anything in existence into naught. The Supreme Law of Elements allows the controller to command every element, making any cultivator who cultivates any of the elemental laws useless. The Supreme Law of Life gives the controller the ability to control all living beings, turning them into slaves and scouts, making them the perfect spies. The Supreme Law of Demons allows the controller to command and absorb all Demonic beasts, gaining the abilities of each Demonic beast they absorb. The final one, the Supreme Law of God, is reputed to be the strongest one. It allows the controller to use any law in existence, even other Supreme Laws. As long as they kill someone, they immediately gain the laws of that person. Truly a terrifying law."
Yao Jun quietly listened and made sure he remembered every word she said. He wasn't certain if her information about the Supreme Law of Elements was wrong, or if Yuan Shen had been too weak a the time, but he was certain that there were certain elements that Yuan Shen was unable to control. But after hearing the explanation about the Supreme Law of God, he could not help but swallow. It resembled his Demon God's Gate, but it was quite a bit more terrifying, having no restrictions. He shook his head slightly, bidding Diana and the others farewell.
"No kidding. Well, the battle is going to start soon, so I am returning to my quarters until then."
Yao Jun had only come to tell them about Peyton, so he had no more reason to stay behind. Leylan seemed like he wanted to say something, but he was held back by a glance from Diana so it seemed that they still had a few things to talk about with each other.
Once he returned to his quarters, Yao Jun did not start cultivating again, as it would do next to nothing after his recent breakthrough. He instead tested out the formation core, using it on the spider within his God Gate. Only once nothing happened to the spider did he trust that it was mostly safe. Other than testing the formation core, he also painted a few more pictures, slightly improving his skills.
There were only a few days until the arrival of the battle, and those days quickly flew by as Yao Jun did his own things, the dawn of the battle quickly arriving. Yao Jun put on his armor before he even left the tent, hiding his face behind the helmet so that the enemies would not recognize him. He did not put on the mask and alter his features, as the armor alone already made him incredibly recognizable, so altering his features was useless.
When he left the tent, the flying ships were already moving into position, countless soldiers boarding them and heading towards the battlefield. Yao Jun could also see the armies of the Merged Heaven and the Final Fire Clan in the distance. Their reinforcements had also arrived, a horde of Demonic beasts and mutated people standing side by side with the Final Fire Clan people.
Yao Jun did not board a ship but followed the soldiers that walked on the ground. Diana and Gilberd stood at the front of the leading ship, but Leylan walked next to Yao Jun, the two casually chatting as they approached the battlefield. Upon seeing a group of people standing amongst the Merged Heaven Clan army, Leylan could not help but click his tongue.
"Tch, they even brought some of those bastards, they really are gathering as many forces as they can."
Yao Jun followed Leylan's gaze, his eyes landing on a group that consisted of a few thousand people. They looked like normal people, but they had pale skin and pitch black veins, a faint dark light glowing within their veins. Leylan noticed Yao Jun inspecting the group so he took the chance to explain what he knew about them.
"Brother Yao, those people over there are from the Heaven Devouring race. They are a race that originates from the universe ruled by the Divine Emperor and the Divine Empress. Despite coming from a different universe, quite a few of them fled from a calamity, ending up here. They are born with control over the devouring aspect of the laws of darkness, so they are very troublesome opponents, don't underestimate them."
Leylan explained it rather calmly, but Yao Jun could not help but be shocked, his mouth gaping in surprise as he turned towards Leylan.
"There are multiple universes?"
Just this universe he was in right now felt infinitely large to him, but now he was told that there were multiple? And one such universe was even ruled by two people, just how mighty must the Divine Emperor and Divine Empress be? Leylan quickly shook his head, a somewhat self-deprecating smile on his face.
"Don't ask about it, even I barely know anything about the existence of other universes. And I was only told about it because I am the future patriarch of the World Tree Clan."
Yao Jun wanted to ask more, but it seemed like he would learn nothing more from Leylan. While Yao Jun was digesting the information, Elysande's soft voice resounded over the entire area, reaching every single soldier.
"Diana, I don't see Arthurius, Lissandra, or Salaman. Are you perhaps taking us a bit too lightly?"
Yao Jun had never heard of the three people Elysande mentioned, but Leylan quickly explained that they were his siblings, two brothers, and one sister. Diana did not respond to Elysande, a single calm word sounding out from her.
"Attack."
The moment her voice rang out, the cannons at the front of the flying ships launched their attacks, massive metal balls launched through the air as fast as lightning. The moment the cannon balls touched anything, they exploded into a myriad of elements, shredding almost everything they touched.
The ground soldiers also joined the fray after the cannons launched the starting attack, dashing directly towards the enemy army. Yao Jun activated the formation core, a nearly limitless amount of energy filling him as he simultaneously activated his strengthening techniques.
He dashed forward, but before he managed to get very far, someone from the Merged Heaven Clan landed in front of him and blocked his path. Yao Jun's sword appeared in his hand, a quick slash leaving a black line in space and beheading the soldier. But the moment Yao Jun killed him, three more Merged Heaven Clan soldiers attacked him.
Yao Jun jumped through the shadows to build some distance, but wherever he moved, Merged Heaven Clan soldiers would swarm towards him, even ignoring the World Tree Clan soldiers. As more and more soldiers started to surround him, Yao Jun furrowed his eyebrows and let out a slight mutter, glancing at the Final Fire Clan soldiers in the distance.
"They seem to be focusing me pretty heavily, I guess Peyton told them about me. But the Final Fire Clan doesn't seem to be paying attention to me, did they not share the information? Oh well, in that case, I will have to change my plans a little."
While Yao Jun was muttering to himself, a boulder materialized above him, smashing down on him and sinking his body into the earth. But thanks to the energy supplied by the formation core, there was no damage done to Yao Jun. He did not immediately leave the hole in the ground, his voice ringing out inside the God Gate.
"Sirius. Didn't you guys want a change to rage around a little?"