Everyone was a little surprised to be entrusted with something, but not that surprised. They all just took it as Bao Gu being polite.
Though she said it was related to Ba’s calamity and the Path of Ascension, no one knew what it actually was. Even those on especially good terms with Wang Ding couldn’t pry anything out of him.
Because Wang Ding himself didn’t know. Even those closest to him only got one vague line out of him: it concerned the Arrow Envoy, so anything was possible.
Even the Purple Sect Master of Xuantian Sect had said, once you got Bao Gu tangled up with Yu Mi, the two of them together were lunatics who didn’t value their lives. Now that Yu Mi had fallen into Ba’s hands, what was there that the Cleaver Gang Lord wouldn’t dare to do?
Someone in the hall immediately stood up and said,
“Whatever orders the Lord has, please speak freely. Our Shenxu Sect will follow your lead.”
Bao Gu gave him a slight nod, lifted her hand a little, and said,
“Please sit, Sect Master of Shenxu.”
She paused, then said,
“As everyone knows, Ba captured the Cleaver Gang’s Arrow Envoy, Yu Mi.”
How could they not know?
Because of that, this Lord of the Cleaver Gang had personally charged into the Desolate Ancient Mountains and had her heart gouged out by Ba. If not for the people of the Cleaver Gang and all the other factions throwing their lives away one after another to buy her a moment, letting her escape alive under the protection of one of the gang’s commanders, she would already be buried in the Desolate Ancient Mountains.
This could only be complained about in their hearts; no one dared say it aloud. Everyone already had a clear impression of what happened when Bao Gu got mixed up with that explosive-tempered dragon.
No one spoke up, but quite a few people glanced at Zi Tianjun.
Many of them really didn’t understand why this Xuantian Sect master had dared to let Yu Mi take that risk. Did he think the Cleaver Gang Lord was so heaven-defying she could even kill Ba, and wanted to force Bao Gu to exterminate Ba?
Zi Tianjun’s face looked terrible.
If he’d known Yu Mi could get into trouble, even if someone chopped off his head, he would never have let her go to the Desolate Ancient Mountains. Right now he regretted it so much his insides ached.
Bao Gu said,
“Today, I went to the Demon Domain to see my master’s wife.”
The entire hall was shocked.
Many people immediately started guessing—could it be that the Cleaver Gang Lord had invited that existence from the Demon Domain to act?
That was enough to make one’s blood boil.
If that senior from the Demon Domain was willing to make a move, with the treasures in her hand, what was there to fear from Ba? That great cauldron of hers alone might be enough to suppress Ba.
If they weren’t worried about the Cleaver Gang Lord sitting right here, they really wanted to turn to Zi Tianjun and give him a big thumbs-up: Purple Sect Master, brilliant! Truly impressive!
Zi Tianjun had already guessed Bao Gu might go to the Demon Domain to find their Founder-Grandmother, but hearing Bao Gu say it out loud still shocked him.
He asked,
“Bao Gu, did Founder-Grandmother give you any guidance?”
Bao Gu said,
“According to my master’s wife, Ba’s former body was the daughter of the Heavenly Emperor of the Upper Realm.
“When war broke out among the human race in the Upper Realm, the Heavenly Emperor fell. His daughter fled into this lower world, but was still hunted down and killed; even her soul was scattered.
“The Heavenly Emperor’s daughter possessed an undying, indestructible golden body. By a twist of fate, that body turned into Ba, who then gave birth to a new consciousness. At present, her combat strength is at the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm.”
The entire hall went cold.
Many people’s faces went green.
They all knew that the one in the Demon Domain had also come from the Upper Realm and had an unimaginably terrifying background, yet when she arrived in this world, her cultivation had fallen so much that when she showed herself a few years back, she was only at the Divine Transformation stage.
But Ba, in this same world, had become something that could fight a Great Luo Golden Immortal.
How were they supposed to contend with that?
This was simply cutting off everyone’s path to survival.
A cultivator asked in a slow, heavy tone,
“I wonder what wise strategy the Lord has regarding Ba’s calamity? Even if we cannot eradicate it, being able to restrain it somewhat so Ba cannot rampage unchecked would already be good.
“I believe everyone present is just like our Lingbo Holy Hall—willing to spare no effort in the battle against Ba.”
Others around the hall immediately voiced their agreement.
Everyone here was the sharpest of the sharp. They heard how serious Bao Gu made it sound, but since she had been able to “invite” them here and raise this matter at all, surely she must have some sort of countermeasure.
Bao Gu said mildly,
“Ba’s body is an undying, indestructible golden body. She can’t be killed.
“But the fact we can’t kill her doesn’t mean there’s no way to resolve the Ba calamity in our cultivation world. You all need not worry about that. Leave it to me.”
The hall was stunned yet again.
Many people were thinking: you couldn’t even last a single exchange against her—how exactly are you going to deal with Ba?
Still, if the Cleaver Gang Lord wanted to shoulder this burden, no one was going to object. They simply felt that, with Bao Gu’s current abilities, she probably couldn’t handle Ba.
Forget Bao Gu; even if a cultivator at the perfected Void Tearing stage charged up, Ba could probably squash them with one slap like swatting a mosquito.
Everyone present basically represented the peak combat power of the cultivation world. Even if all of them charged in together, they probably wouldn’t survive more than two rounds. Ba only needed to unleash a sky full of blood fiend death-qi to melt them on the spot.
The Cleaver Gang Lord did indeed have some skill, and she certainly had a terrifying backer behind her, along with advantages no other faction possessed. But no matter how many advantages she had, she was still just a little girl who had only stepped into the cultivation world a bit over ten years ago. To these people, a woman in her early twenties wasn’t even a fraction of their age.
The only reason they were willing to give her face and show her respect was because she conducted herself fairly, never let anyone suffer losses in their dealings with her, had a bit of compassion for the common folk, and truly did have abilities that no one could look down on.
But that didn’t mean they believed Bao Gu alone could end a Ba calamity that had left the entire cultivation world helpless.
They all knew that because of Ba’s calamity, even a powerhouse like the Yue Kingdom had lost its entire homeland and been forced to migrate south, seizing the territory of Sacred Dao Sect—once the number one sect in the cultivation world—to reestablish their nation.
Even if they wanted to give Bao Gu some face, someone couldn’t help but ask,
“Lord, may we ask what method you intend to use against the Ba calamity? Could you perhaps reveal a bit?”
Bao Gu asked in the same calm tone,
“If I perish together with Ba—would that be acceptable?”
The hall erupted in shock yet again.
Some people were even at a loss for words.
Zi Tianjun’s eyes went round.
Si Ruo, Qu Yirou, and Jade Shura all stared at Bao Gu, dumbfounded.
Many people suspected Bao Gu was joking.
Jade Shura was seated behind her master; strictly speaking, by status she had no right to speak up here, but she couldn’t care less.
She blurted out,
“Bao Gu, you’re joking, right?”
Bao Gu said,
“I’m not joking.”
Zi Tianjun shot to his feet and shouted,
“Absolutely not! Bao Gu, don’t even think about it!”
You want to die together with Ba? What kind of joke was that?
He sucked in a deep breath, forcing himself to soften his tone as he tried to persuade her.
“You carry our Founder-Grandmaster’s legacy. Once you mature, it’s not certain you won’t be able to deal with Ba.
“Right now your cultivation is still shallow. Even if you die together with Ba, you may not actually be able to do anything to her. You must remember—Ba has an undying, indestructible golden body.”
Although everyone felt Zi Tianjun mainly couldn’t bear to see Xuantian Sect’s pillar that held up the heavens break here, they still agreed with his words.
Qu Yirou said in a low voice,
“Bao Gu, think it over. Don’t be impulsive.”
Bao Gu said,
“I came up with this plan back when Ba’s calamity had just appeared.
“I may not necessarily die.
“Of course, I’ve never thought I could kill Ba, but I’m confident I can eliminate the Ba calamity from the cultivation world.
“However, I’ll need everyone’s help.”
Si Ruo rubbed her forehead.
“Let’s hear it, then. One person’s plan is short; the wisdom of many is long. With everyone here, we might not be unable to come up with a comprehensive approach.”
Bao Gu said,
“I need a warship or vehicle capable of traversing the void.
“In addition, I’ll need a massive quantity of spirit stones as an energy source. After all, crossing the void consumes an enormous amount of power, and there’s no way to replenish it from the outside. Without a large stockpile of spirit stones as fuel, it won’t work.”
Zi Tianjun’s brow twitched, and veins bulged on his forehead. Forgetting about saving face, he shot to his feet and roared,
“What exactly do you intend to do?”
Bao Gu looked at him calmly.
“Grandmaster, I’m not seeking death. Please sit.”
Zi Tianjun’s chest heaved violently with anger.
Having Yu Mi trapped in the Desolate Ancient Mountains was already enough to make his head throb, and now Bao Gu was causing this on top of that.
Ignoring Zi Tianjun’s opposition, Bao Gu continued,
“At least one void-traversing vehicle. Ideally, two or three backups.
“In addition, each faction present will provide fifty thousand supreme-grade spirit stones and one million high-grade spirit stones.”
That was an absolutely outrageous demand.
No one responded immediately. They were all silently weighing her words.
Bao Gu did not press the issue. She went on,
“The second matter.
“After I leave, Yu Mi will succeed me as Lord of the Cleaver Gang. The gang will operate as usual.”
Si Ruo reminded her,
“Yu Mi is still in Ba’s hands right now.”
“I know,” Bao Gu said.
She finished and looked over at Wang Ding.
Wang Ding did not dare to speak.
Bao Gu continued,
“After Yu Mi takes over as Cleaver Gang Lord, everyone in the gang will follow her orders and treat her as they treated me. Anyone who refuses will be regarded as a rebel.”
Wang Ding dropped to one knee and pleaded,
“Lord!”
Zi Tianjun was so furious he almost wanted to kneel as well.
He demanded,
“Have you not thought about this at all? If you do this, and if Yu Mi returns safely one day, how is she supposed to face it?
“How is she supposed to live with it?”
Bao Gu smiled faintly.
“Grandmaster, to Senior Sister, I have never been irreplaceable.
“My mind is already made up.
“And besides, this is the Cleaver Gang’s internal business; it’s not Xuantian Sect’s concern.”
Zi Tianjun glared at her.
“Your wings have grown hard—you don’t even listen to your sect master anymore?”
Bao Gu said,
“By seniority, Grandmaster, you ought to be calling me Grand Martial Aunt Xuan.”
Zi Tianjun choked on his anger.
Bao Gu went on,
“The third matter: the Path of Ascension.”
She turned to Si Ruo.
“As everyone knows, the Empress of the Yue Kingdom holds a complete map of the Path of Ascension.”
Si Ruo said,
“It’s still missing something.”
Bao Gu nodded.
“It lacks the coordinates.
“I’ll leave the coordinates with the Duobao Spirit Monkey. When the time comes, he’ll pass them on to Yu Mi.
“And there’s one more crucial thing: the materials needed to build the Ascension Platform.
“I told you all before that we needed Chaos Soil. I’m sure none of you have any idea where to find such a thing.
“There is, however, something that can substitute for Chaos Soil: Five Elements Immortal Stones.”
Zi Tianjun’s face was iron-blue. He sat in his chair without saying a word.
The hall was utterly silent.
Everyone present had weathered countless storms in their lives, yet they were still shaken by Bao Gu.
Some people sank into deep thought.
Others stared at Bao Gu without blinking, trying to see this Cleaver Gang Lord clearly, inside and out.
Qu Yirou sighed softly.
“Deep love does not last.”
She turned her head to glance at Jade Shura. Her heart ached, yet there was a trace of relief as well. She had never imagined Yu Mi and Bao Gu would reach this point.
Jade Shura’s eyes were red as she asked,
“Bao Gu, if you do this, what do you expect Yu Mi to do?
“Are you really so sure you’re not that important to her?
“Even if you aren’t the most important, if something happens to you, how could she not be heartbroken? How could she not grieve?”
Bao Gu smiled faintly and did not argue.
She said,
“I have Five Elements Immortal Stones—taken from the ruins of the Ascension Platform in the Desolate Ancient Mountains. Most of them are completely intact.”
Her gaze swept over everyone present.
“I intend to bring out the Five Elements Immortal Stones.
“But I don’t want these stones to spark yet another bloody storm in our cultivation world.
“Do any of you have a good way to ensure I don’t have to worry about that?”
