Sage Monarch

The initiator was convinced that the Invincible Dugu was somewhere in the area. However, calling out to him didn’t provoke any response.

“Don’t worry, my Master isn’t right here,” Yang Qi said. “But he’s aware of every move and action you initiators make.” Yang Qi chuckled inwardly, aware that he had this initiator completely duped.

It was now obvious that a whole group of initiators were plotting against him. Considering that he knew exactly what they were after, he decided that instead of feigning politeness and compliance, he would just challenge them outright. Unfortunately, he could only take on one of them in a fight, not all of them. Therefore, his best bet was to sow division amongst them, a method he had used on other occasions in the Titan Emperor Collegium.

The initiator remained silent for a long moment, then said, “I underestimated you, boy. However, that conspiracy theory of yours is all wrong. As a student here, you’re required to provide contributions to the collegium.”

“Whether or not I provide contributions depends on my mood. As you well know, I’ve never collected a single resource from the collegium. Look, I know that not all the initiators want to get my godly-class energy art. After all, if I ascend, it's entirely likely that I’ll leave my energy art behind as a reward for people loyal to me.” Not allowing the initiator to respond, he shifted the conversation topic. “It’s also possible that I’ll leave behind some primeval god skills.”

“Are you serious?” the initiator said. His eyes glittered for a moment, before going flat. “Well, we’ll all ascend long before you do.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Yang Qi said. “When I was in the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart, I got my hands on well over a hundred primeval godworm eggs. I've used some since, but I still have over a hundred. How many of you initiators are there? A few dozen? It would be a simple thing for me to just give all of you an egg.”

“What? You got over a hundred?” The initiator’s eyes flashed with avarice, yet he couldn’t help but look around suspiciously. He was still convinced that the Invincible Dugu was around somewhere, therefore he suppressed any errant thoughts.

Considering his status, and the potential threat of Yang Qi’s Master, he said, “If you give one to each of us, that would count as an incredible act of virtue. In fact, you would be appointed to succeed the supreme rector after he ascends to the immortal world. Including me, there are sixty-four initiators, so please prepare sixty-four eggs.” With that, the initiator held out his hand expectantly.

In response, Yang Qi snorted coldly. “My Master pointed out that there were some very stubborn initiators who still have it out for me. In fact, after you use me to kill enemy students in the Immortal Army Battlefield, they’ll cause even further trouble, even going so far as to rob me. I definitely won’t be giving godworm eggs to anyone like that.”

“No such people exist!” the initiator said, a surprised look on his face. “Look, we just had a big meeting, and everyone agreed. We want to get on your good side! You're obviously a genius, so why would the collegium just abandon you for no reason?”

“If that’s the case,” Yang Qi said casually, “then I’ll just follow my Master’s instructions. I’ll wait until I become a Greater Demi-Immortal, or even reach the Profound Demi-Immortal level. At that point I’ll be able to summon Universal Demi-Immortal fiend-devils, and will feel comfortable giving you the godworm eggs. Besides, considering that my master will be ascending soon, I need to take advantage of his protection to further my cultivation as quickly as possible. Think about it. My Master already passed the Invincible Society on to me. He obviously knows that once he ascends, people could cause problems for me. Do you think he would really just leave me unprepared and vulnerable?

“Very well, oh exalted initiator, please see yourself out. Go explain to the supreme rector and the other initiators that I have no plans to betray the Titan Emperor Collegium. However, if you try to force my hand, or conspire against me, then that will make the two of us enemies. And in that case, some very bad things are going to happen.”

“You want something from us, don’t you?” the initiator said. “What is it?”

“Simple,” Yang Qi replied. “My Eldest Brother and Elder Second Brother are currently in the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart. I want you to arrange to have them freed.”

“How could we possibly do that!?” the initiator replied furiously. “We’re all mortals, and the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart is an impossible nut to crack for anyone but immortals.”

“There’s someone who can get in out of the monarch chart at will.”

“Who?” The initiator couldn’t help but be curious about this sudden shift in conversation. If there was someone who could freely enter and exit the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart, he would be just as valuable as Yang Qi, if not more.

“The person who spread rumors about me having godworm eggs. You see, I gained a rival in the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart, someone who knows everything about me, including the fact that I acquired the godworm eggs. He also has two of King Immortal-Slayer’s legacy medallions. Without him spreading the news, there’s no way you, or anyone else, could know about the godworm eggs.”

The initiator looked at Yang Qi through narrowed eyes, but after a moment, came to the conclusion that this was really some new information. After all, the initiators hadn’t looked into the source of the rumors, although now it seemed as if they should.

“Who is this person?”

“Take a look.” Yang Qi waved his hand, causing a mist to swirl out in front of him, within which was an image of the yellow-garbed young man with the buzz cut. He was even holding King Immortal-Slayer’s legacy medallion. “This is him. I suspect that he joined the Titan Emperor Collegium already. Either that, or he's searching the Yore-Wilds planetary system for his third legacy medallion. If he gets it….”

“Wait, you mean you didn’t take the Crown Prince's legacy medallion?”

“No, I didn’t. Incidentally, who exactly was the Crown Prince? Which heaven did he come from?”

“He came from the Crapemyrtle Heaven, but as for his original identity, none of us are sure. When he descended, we received strict instructions from the immortal worlds not to look into him. In fact, we were supposed to act as though we weren’t aware of his existence. Nobody could possibly have guessed that you would kill him.”

Looking back at the young man in yellow, Yang Qi said, “If this young man is in the Titan Emperor Collegium, he’ll definitely have assumed a disguise. You need to look into the matter. Think about what it would mean if we could freely enter and exit the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart. Would my godly-class energy art matter very much then? After all, in the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart, godly-class energy arts abound. And do you know how many primeval godworm eggs there are to be had?”

Yang Qi knew that he had successfully managed to divert this initiator’s attention.

“Freely enter and exit the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart…?” All of a sudden, new plots and schemes began taking root in the initiator’s heart. “Have you told anyone else about this?”

“Of course not. You think I would just go around telling people a secret this important?” Yang Qi could see that this initiator wanted to keep the information, and the rewards, to himself. “Obviously, I want to track down that yellow-garbed young man with the buzz cut, take his legacy medallions, and get into the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart.”

The initiator nodded. “This is an important matter, Yang Qi. You absolutely, positively must not tell anyone about it. I'm going to head back and discuss the matter with the other initiators. Whatever you do, don’t inadvertently alert that young man to the fact that we're on to him. I want to capture him and force him to reveal the secrets of the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart. With that information, our collegium would immediately surpass the Megaplexus Collegium in terms of power, and the Coiling Arc Collegium as well. We would become the number one force in the mortal world. We’d be invincible! There’s no time to lose. I’ll leave immediately!”

“Forgive me for not escorting you off,” Yang Qi said, watching him leave, a slight smile on his face. Everything had gone according to plan. For the time being, the initiators’ interest in the young man in yellow would alleviate a lot of pressure.

“You handled things perfectly, Junior Brother,” Sword Seventeen said, clicking his tongue in admiration. “Three birds with one stone! First, you diverted the attention of the initiators. Second, you struck a blow against that buzz-cut kid in yellow. And third, you made significant headway in saving Eldest Brother, Elder Second Brother, and the others.”

“That’s right,” Yang Qi said. “Those initiators harbor evil intentions and we can’t take them lightly. Hopefully I've bought enough time to achieve another breakthrough. My mother godworm is about to reach the Universal Demi-Immortal level. When that happens, I’ll break through to the Greater Demi-Immortal level and be able to summon even more powerful fiend-devils.”

“Those initiators are definitely up to no good. What’s your plan for them in the long run?”

“Kill them! Nothing more, nothing less. You see, I’m not just going to take over the old Yore-Wilds. I’ll absorb the Proto-Wilds, Waste-Wilds, and Brute-Wilds as well. And I'm going to take the Central Planetary River and the Titan Emperor Collegium too.”

At this point, his eyes flickered with killing intent. “Elder Brother, could I trouble you to stay here and keep watch over the Sage Monarch planetary system? I need to head to the Hanging Mountain and talk to my mother. Once she has a godworm of her own, she’ll be able to reach an even higher level of enlightenment.”

Sword Seventeen nodded. “Of course! No problem. Hurry up and get to it!”

Swish!

Yang Qi took a step forward and vanished into the boundless starry sky.

Before long, he was closing in on the Hanging Mountain. The first thing he noticed was that the golden Mount Sumeru was no longer as majestic as it had once been. For one thing, the areas formerly occupied by the Demonfolk were almost completely empty.

There weren’t even any Mammothfolk present.

It had once been a prosperous and flourishing place, but now it looked bleak and desolate.

Apparently, the Mammothfolk had left to join the Titan Emperor Collegium.

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