Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

“Gold Vulture… Li Yao…”

Wei Guanghui pondered on the name for quite a while and could not come up with the guy’s background at all. Frowning, he asked, “Who is this guy? Since when does the Imperium have such an unparalleled expert who could use such a super Colossus?”

“You may not know this, Father, but according to sources, Vulture Li Yao is from the capital.”

Wei Yuanjia blinked his eyes. Although there were only the two of them, he still covered his mouth with his palm and said in a low voice, “Not only is he from the capital, but he is also someone who has escaped from the royal palace. He used to be around His Majesty.”

“Around His Majesty?”

Wei Guanghui bulged his eyes. “He has escaped all the way from the capital? How did it happen?”

“According to the sources, this Vulture Li Yao comes from a very secret family of Immortal Cultivators which has been loyal to the emperor since the age of Blackstar the Great a thousand years ago.”

Wei Yuanjia said, “The offspring of Vulture Li Yao’s family are few. It seems that the weird techniques that they practice can only be passed on to one heir in each generation. So, it is perfect for them to be the emperors’ personal bodyguards. They have been deeply trusted by the emperors.

“However, as you know, Father, the royal authority has been declining in the past five hundred years. The monarch of the Imperium of True Human Beings that should be supreme has been reduced into a ‘figurehead’. The corrupted lords and officials, on the other hand, dominated politics. Therefore, Vulture Li Yao’s family was not as distinguished as the old days and could only lay low in the royal palace. Nobody in the outside world knew their existence.

“This time, the four Kurfürst families pushed too far. Because His Majesty disagreed with them on the government of the newly recovered territory and was persistent in his opinion, they have heisted Emperor Shenwu from the royal palace and even plotted to kill Her Grace!

“This is too much for anyone to tolerate. Emperor Shenwu has decided to remove the scoundrels and to take back the power. Therefore, he asked Vulture Li Yao to escape from the capital with the jade chip that stored his decree, hoping to summon all the righteous men in the world to attack the insubordinate rogues!”

“Well…”

Fascinated, Wei Guanghui couldn’t help but hesitate.

For the remote worlds that did not join the Imperium until five to six hundred years ago, they had complicated feelings for the emperor of the Imperium of True Human Beings.

On one hand, in the official propaganda of the Imperium, the emperor was naturally described as brilliant, smart, invincible, supreme, and almost a living god.

As time went by, the general public of the Imperium had unrealistic illusions about the emperor. They believed that the reality, however dark and cruel, was just a temporary suffering, and that the emperor would lead all the people of the Imperium out of the trouble to the dawn someday.

But on the other hand, for the rulers of a whole Sector such as the Wei family, they had a rather deep understanding of the politics in the capital and the awkward situation of the emperor as a “figurehead”.

The emperor seemed high and mighty, but he was also exploited and oppressed by the noble families, just like the Immortal Cultivators from the remote worlds!

Such an understanding made them more or less sympathetic to the emperor.

Deep down in their heart, they also hoped that a second powerful, unquestionable sovereign like Blackstar the Great would show up, who could let them realize the value of their life while leading millions of Immortal Cultivators to explore the vast universe and bring the civilization of mankind to a new peak!

It would be much better than to work as the dogs of the four Kurfürst families right now!

“His Majesty’s life is so difficult, and he hates the four Kurfürst families so much that he has asked someone most intimate to him to escape from the capital with his decree?”

Wei Guanghui’s eyes rolled fast with complicated feelings beaming out. Breathing heavily for a moment, he hesitated again before asking, “This is a very important matter. Is it true or not?”

“My dear father, are you still unable to see things through? It doesn’t matter if the so-called ‘hidden decree’ is true. What matters is that, since such an ‘expert from the royal palace’ has escaped with His Majesty’s decree, we now have the legitimacy to resist the Council of Elders!”

Wei Yuanjia slightly raised his voice as he said, “Also, the force hiding behind the Business Alliance of the Ten Thousand Sectors was capable of rescuing General Lei Chenghu from their heavily-guarded prison, which is indicative enough of their strength!

“Now, General Lei has controlled the Astounding Thunder Fleet again, and the local fleets in the Third Battle Area are swarming to respond. There is also an immeasurable force cooperating with us in the capital. Isn’t this our best shot?

“‘Honor the Majesty and Settle the Rebellions’ is exactly the legitimacy that the decree offers us. This is the best opportunity to overthrow the old and replace it with the new. If we miss out on such a great opportunity, the Immortal Cultivators of the Red Nimbus Sector would never get rid of the fate of being manipulated by somebody else!

“Besides, by my estimation, this Vulture Li Yao who’s using the Gold Vulture was probably a real expert from the royal palace. You have seen the splendor of the Colossus and his unparalleled combat ability with your own eyes. Such a person has never been seen in the Imperium before. If he is not from the royal palace, where on earth could he have found such an advanced super Colossus, and how is he able to boost such terrifying spiritual energy? He can’t just have appeared out of thin air, right?”

“Huh…”

Wei Guanghui re-played the battle videos and watched them several times. The more he watched, the more shocked he became. Such a Colossus was indeed not something that a common sect could have.

“Father, there is no time for hesitation.”

Wei Yuanjia said passionately, “Let’s do it!”

Wei Guanghui was still considering when the mini crystal processor on his wrist buzzed crazily and reported an uncanny message to him.

The carrier from the special investigation committee, which had been docked at the periphery of the No. 233 resource planet, was showing signs that it had fully activated the power units and about to escape through a space jump when the time that they demanded earlier had not come yet.

“They must’ve received the news too. They know that General Lei is back!”

Both surprised and excited, Wei Yuanjia looked at Wei Guanghui nervously. “Father!”

Wei Guanghui took a deep breath. Now that he had made up his mind, he looked much more aggressive than before. Slashing his hand down brutally, he demanded, “Do not let the little bas*ard run away. Shoot him down!”

At the edge of the No. 233 resource planet, a carrier, which was carved with the dual emblems of the Council of Elders and the special investigation committee, was already spreading out ivory halos, implying that it was tearing apart the barrier of the three-dimensional space and about to enter the void for a space jump.

Suddenly, the bombardment from the starships around and the ground enshrouded the carrier like a storm.

After the bombardment, the smooth and flawless carrier a moment ago was riddled with holes, with air currents and pieces of explosion hissing out everywhere.

With all the wounds, it was impossible for the carrier to perform a space jump at all. If it were determined to jump, it would only be completely shredded by the surging tides in the four-dimensional space, never to be filled up again!

“Envoy Zhao…”

In the communication channel, Wei Guanghui grinned hideously. “The time of our agreement has not come yet. Why are you in such a hurry to leave without even saying goodbye?”

“General… General Wei!”

The sharp-mouthed scoundrel now had a face paler than that of a dead person. He stammered, pretending to be tough, “What-What is the meaning of this? Are you not scared of the wrath of the Council of Elders?”

“I don’t mean anything.”

Combing his beard, Wei Guanghui said with a smile, “All the radicals on the name list have been captured by me without missing any. I am sending them to your starship right now. There are so many secrets that they would like to confess and so many questions that they want to ask you. You can stay here until the investigation is over!”

From all directions, the assault warships that looked like sharks charged at the carriers that were heavily damaged and unable to move anymore. A bloody feast was about to commence.

“N-No!”

Envoy Zhao screamed aloud, “How-How dare you? Ahhhh!”

…

Nine thousand and seven hundred years away, at the center of the Third Battle Area, in the area where the flagship of the Astounding Thunder Fleet was temporarily stationed, on the head of “Iron Torrent”, the flagship of the Third Battle Area of the expedition army of the Imperium that looked like a high-rising horn, bathing in the infinite darkness of the universe and faced with countless stars was an overwhelming gold Colossus!

The powerful saber that was enough to chop a light cruiser into halves was kept on its legs. Below the shining gold mask, however, the complicated feelings of human beings were beaming out of its eyes while it stared at the sea of stars, deep in thought.

The Colossus sitting cross-legged on the flagship of the Astounding Thunder Fleet, called by all the soldiers of the Astounding Thunder Fleet as “Gold Vulture” in reverence, was naturally the “Tartarean Skeleton” that was fully upgraded with the secret treasures of the Supreme Emperor.

The user of the Colossus who was soaked in the mysterious liquid metal that “Little Black” transformed into, which allowed him to extend his spiritual energy and his thoughts to the tiniest sensors on the Colossus, was naturally Li Yao, who had become “an expert from the royal palace”.

Li Yao was waiting for someone.

Shua! Shua! Shua! Shua! Shua!

Soundwaves could not be transmitted in the vacuum. However, when the three-dimensional space before Iron Torrent was torn apart and the ripples spread to the Colossus, slight noises were still raised.

Like fireflies rising from the bushes in a dark night, one starship after another in colorful camouflages with different emblems leaped out of the void and shone brilliantly before Iron Torrent.

Those starships were the armed forces and fleets in the Third Battle Area that came from local regions. They were even the most powerful warships and flagships that the leaders of the local troops treasured most.

They had indeed responded to Lei Chenghu’s call and come to join Lei Chenghu’s cause while ignoring all the obstacles and concerns!

Although it was just a war of interests within the Immortal Cultivators, Li Yao was still more or less touched by the starships that were jumping out of the void one after another, turning the darkness and nothingness into a glorious square of starships. He also burned his soul and triggered the majestic flames of the spiritual energy of the Gold Vulture.

“Hu!”

A vivid gold vulture did soar from the head of Iron Torrent and swallow the colors of all stars!

The starships from different Sectors released rays from the heads of their starships, which congregated into a dazzling band of light.

According to the tradition of the Imperium, it was the way for starships to express their highest respect when they countered.

They all sensed the magnificence of the Gold Vulture, recognized Li Yao’s identity, and showed their sincere reverence for the “warrior from the capital”.