During the period when Gu Changge was away from the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, Ling Yuling and Yao Yao both came looking for him several times. One wanted to bring up the matter of Jiang Weiyang, the other wanted to ask about the Immortal Dao Alliance, but without exception, neither saw any trace of him.
The day of the Immortal Dao Alliance's establishment was imminent. The Alliance of Righteous Unity had already dispatched many high-ranking members to attend.
Now, all major Dao lineages and clans in the Vast Expanse were casting their gaze this way, closely watching every move the Heaven-Slaying Alliance made.
But precisely at such a critical moment, Gu Changge had vanished. Even Ling Yuling, normally considered the person closest to him, did not know his whereabouts.
This left Ling Yuling somewhat exasperated, feeling like the eunuch who worries more than the emperor himself.
The top brass of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, such as Chu Heng, White Bone Ancestor King, Hun Yuanjun, and others, all proposed that Ling Yuling should decide how to handle the observation ceremony for the birth of the Immortal Dao Alliance this time.
After all, before this, Gu Changge had said he would not make things difficult for the Immortal Dao Alliance, nor did he wish to make too many enemies and become the public enemy of all the Dao lineages and true worlds in the Vast Expanse.
"Let's wait a bit longer," Ling Yuling said in the great hall, gently shaking her head.
Currently, aside from the top brass of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, many civilization clans and groups in the outside world believed that she was still trapped in the void of space-time.
Even many powerful figures within the Heaven-Slaying Alliance did not know that she had actually been fished out from the void by Gu Changge the very next day after the great battle between the Heaven-Slaying Alliance and the Alliance of Righteous Unity ended.
As for the aspect of Gu Changge's strength, Ling Yuling had never harbored the slightest doubt.
"But I'm just worried whether the Alliance of Righteous Unity might stir up trouble and incite hatred between our Heaven-Slaying Alliance and the various civilizations and true worlds," Hun Yuanjun frowned deeply.
Chu Heng beside him sneered, "In the eyes of the various clans of the Vast Expanse today, isn't our Heaven-Slaying Alliance already a group of deviants who stray from orthodoxy? Hatred and the like have existed long ago. If not for the Alliance Leader holding the fort and the whole world being wary, we would probably have been attacked by a united force long ago."
"In my opinion, the establishment of the Immortal Dao Alliance this time perfectly suits the Alliance of Righteous Unity. In the future, they will likely find ways to unite against our Heaven-Slaying Alliance."
"The best approach is still to solve it once and for all, to prevent the establishment of the Immortal Dao Alliance. A great battle is bound to break out sooner or later anyway, better to settle it early to avoid becoming a major future threat."
The upper echelons of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance were actually divided into several factions now.
Chu Heng happened to be from the hawkish faction, fond of leading great armies to campaign in all directions, expanding the territory, and accumulating enough war merits so that Gu Changge would fulfill his wish and help him resurrect his wife.
Hun Yuanjun, Zhuo Fengxie, and others belonged to the moderate faction. They were not fond of being overly aggressive and wished to proceed gradually with everything — first disintegrating the opponent's interior through means, then annexing them through encirclement. Or to intimidate them first, forcing them to submit and surrender, and only as a last resort resolve things through force.
Over these years, Gu Changge had never interfered in these matters, leaving everything for Ling Yuling to handle, quite like an absentee boss.
Under normal circumstances, he would only make a decision when something important happened. For instance, the last slaughterous battle with the Alliance of Righteous Unity was issued under his orders.
In such major affairs, no one could sway or influence his decision.
Listening to the crowd of top brass arguing endlessly in the hall, Ling Yuling's eyebrows furrowed slightly. She rubbed her temples with a bit of a headache.
But then, as if suddenly sensing something, she glanced toward the outside of the hall. After pondering for a moment, she told everyone to wait here while she turned into a stream of light and sped away.
"Could it be that the Alliance Leader has returned?" White Bone Ancestor King guessed.
By his side followed a gray-haired young girl, with snowy-white skin and delicate features, as if carved from ice and snow. She was none other than Mo Tong, whom Gu Changge had brought out from the arena of the Immortal Spirit Civilization.
She had inherited the mantle of White Bone Ancestor King, entering the Dao through slaughter, and was a leading figure among the countless prodigiously talented young geniuses of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance today.
Mo Tong had later overtaken many, and on the surface, her cultivation strength was already close to catching up with Mu Yan's.
And Mu Yan, due to her laziness and slackness, had made very slow progress in her cultivation. If not for Gu Changge driving her out of the courtyard some time ago, she likely would not have taken the initiative to go train outside and improve her cultivation strength.
"Master, I want to participate in the observation ceremony for the establishment of the Immortal Dao Alliance this time," Mo Tong said in a low voice to White Bone Ancestor King only after Ling Yuling had disappeared.
"There's no problem if you want to participate, but the Alliance Leader's true intentions are still uncertain at the moment," White Bone Ancestor King nodded.
"The Alliance Leader won't act against the Immortal Dao Alliance, because the Immortal Dao Alliance will restrain the Dark Clans. For the sake of the bigger picture, the Alliance Leader won't easily deal with the Immortal Dao Alliance."
"Right now, the Dark Clans are the greatest threat," Mo Tong said softly.
White Bone Ancestor King glanced at her, smiled, and did not comment.
Soon, Ling Yuling, who had left the great hall, returned, but her face bore a somewhat strange expression.
"Regarding the matter of the Immortal Dao Alliance, the Alliance Leader has said that he will personally go at that time."
"When the time comes, White Bone Ancestor King and Tong Xian, among others, will accompany him."
She swept her gaze over the top brass in the hall, then looked at Chu Heng, "Commander Chu Heng, on the Alliance of Righteous Unity's side, you and Demon Emperor Di Kun are needed to lead the great army. The Alliance Leader intends to give the Alliance of Righteous Unity a huge surprise during the founding of the Immortal Dao Alliance this time."
"On that day, the Alliance Leader might personally take action and break through the Alliance of Righteous Unity."
The moment her words fell, the great hall fell into a dead silence.
All the top brass of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, regardless of their cultivation, were shaken, their faces full of shock and astonishment.
Even the several Taboo Existences who had been in the distance and never spoken — Mu Fuguang, Beici Chanfu, Tong Xian, and others — couldn't help but look over, their expressions immensely shaken.
What did it mean that Gu Changge might personally take action?
The Heaven-Slaying Alliance and the Alliance of Righteous Unity would likely truly welcome the final decisive battle.
The situation in the Vast Expanse was about to undergo a major reshuffling.
They had witnessed with their own eyes Gu Changge's utterly unmatchable might, and understood that unless the true mastermind behind the Alliance of Righteous Unity appeared, relying on the Alliance's current power and foundation, it was absolutely impossible to withstand Gu Changge.
Or was it that Gu Changge intended to force that person to show himself?
He had not intervened in the battles between the Heaven-Slaying Alliance and the Alliance of Righteous Unity before. Why had he suddenly made such a decision?
Even Ling Yuling couldn't fathom Gu Changge's thoughts. Just now, after sensing Gu Changge's aura return to the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, she had hurried to that courtyard where he cultivated in peace.
But what she saw was a group of beautiful women around Gu Changge, all devastatingly gorgeous, with faces like flowers and appearances not in the least inferior to hers.
She almost doubted whether she had come to the wrong place at the wrong time.
Yet Gu Changge was still as serene as clouds and unfathomable as ever, not at all surprised to see her, and just casually introduced her, saying that these women were all his lawfully wedded wives.
Ling Yuling did not know Gu Changge's past, but seeing such a scene, it still took her a long time to recover.
So the period he had disappeared was to visit his beloved wives. She had never imagined before that he actually had a family.
Ling Yuling had always thought that Gu Changge was all alone, standing solitary and independent.
Probably no one in the entire Heaven-Slaying Alliance knew about this.
No, Gu Changge's disciple, that young girl Yao Yao who liked to wear red dresses, she should know about this.
She should have guessed this all along. After all, he had a disciple; having a family was only natural.
Just as Ling Yuling's thoughts were in disarray, one of them, a sly and quirky woman, even stepped forward, calling her "sister" and familiarly linking arms, then proceeded to ask about her name, origins, and the details of how Gu Changge had won her over.
This made Ling Yuling quite overwhelmed, her face heating up, thinking this woman's temperament could rival Mu Yan's.
She had once seen Gu Changge open up worlds and refine chaos within this courtyard, and had been somewhat curious and puzzled whether he was too idle. Now it seemed he must have been preparing early on to bring his female companions here.
This stirred an inexplicable sourness and envy in Ling Yuling's heart.
So Gu Changge also did consider others.
Later, recalling the matter at hand, she asked about the Immortal Dao Alliance. Gu Changge then informed her of all his subsequent plans and instructions.
Ling Yuling did not disturb him further and left the courtyard.
In the great hall, the many top brass of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance were all filled with complex emotions.
The establishment of the Immortal Dao Alliance had already thrown the situation in the Vast Expanse into greater chaos. If Gu Changge truly attacked the Alliance of Righteous Unity next, then the Vast Expanse would truly become a chaotic world.
"It seems he doesn't intend to give the Alliance of Righteous Unity the slightest chance to catch its breath. The Alliance of Righteous Unity probably thought that after the great battle just ended, the Heaven-Slaying Alliance would need to withdraw and recuperate."
"No one could have predicted this sudden change," Mu Fuguang, Tong Xian, and others all could not help but sigh inwardly.
In the previous great battle, none of them had taken the field, because they sensed that the Alliance of Righteous Unity also had existences with auras comparable to theirs, hidden in the shadows, waiting for the right moment.
But if a decisive battle between the Alliance of Righteous Unity and the Heaven-Slaying Alliance erupted next, and even Gu Changge took action, they would not be able to stand by and look on either.
Knowing Gu Changge's character, he wouldn't let them simply watch from the sidelines.
It was quite possible that several Ancestral Dao Realm existences of the same level would die next; even they themselves could face calamity.
"Before, he was in no hurry. Why has he suddenly decided to personally take action? I can't help but feel there's some deeper meaning," Mu Fuguang, who was the longest-lived and most unfathomably powerful among the Taboo Existences, mused.
Yet at this moment she felt a terrifying malice descending, about to sweep across all worlds and realms.
Meanwhile, in the courtyard, Gu Changge had just finished settling the Divine Kingdom. Although he could go to Dao Prosperity True World with just a thought, in a few breaths' time, to Yue Mingkong, Jiang Chuchu, and the others, it felt as if they were separated by billions of light-years and endless space-time.
Now the Divine Kingdom was placed within this courtyard, becoming a separately opened universe world, essentially his rear garden.
Jiang Chuchu, Wang Zijin, and the others could also easily see him, able to come out at any time. Although the process of cultivation was dry and tedious, to them, it added a sense of peace and enjoyment.
Splash...
In the pond, ripples and spray were stirred up as Gu Changge placed the reincarnated fish of Xi Yao into it.
Rich essences of the sun and moon, as well as the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, were drawn in with her breathing. Her originally crystalline and beautiful body surface began to shimmer with thread-like substances akin to chaotic energy.
The Vast Expanse, after all, was different from Dao Prosperity True World; the level of the world and the rules of heaven and earth were completely distinct. Xi Yao cultivating and transforming here would forge a foundation far surpassing any time she had in the Demon Realm.
By the time her spiritual intelligence was born and her past-life wisdom awakened, her cultivation would probably directly catch up to that of her previous life.
Especially in this pond, there was also a portion of the Divinity Essence that had leaked out from that deity Gu Changge accidentally hooked when he was fishing for Taixuan Ancestral God.
This was also a rare tonic for Xi Yao.
Of course, Gu Changge did not interfere with her growth, letting it take its natural course.
That said, mentioning Taixuan Ancestral God, Gu Changge recalled that the contingency he had left on her should soon take effect as well.
After all, how could the bait that had passed through his hands be so easy to retrieve? Even if it was something that originally belonged to her, it was the same.