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Seven days later, Tang Xiao of the Haotian Sect arrived at Soul Sea City with two elders and three hundred Haotian disciples.
Why not Tang Hao?
Naturally, Tang Xiao was concerned about potential conflicts between Tang San and Tang Hao. Therefore, he had arranged for Tang Hao and the other three elders to stay behind at the sect while he brought the Second Elder and the Sixth Elder—who had somewhat milder temperaments—to the front lines.
"With the assistance of the Haotian Sect, victory in this battle is assured," Ge Long greeted Tang Xiao and his party. Although he knew about the connection between Tang San and the Haotian Sect, he welcomed them with open arms. After all, they were here to help.
On the Spirit Hall side, Tang San was indeed present. However, he only exchanged polite words with his blood relative, Tang Xiao, in his capacity as the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall, showing no sign of personal warmth.
The Second Elder and Sixth Elder were visibly displeased but refrained from expressing their frustration in such a formal setting, preferring to address these issues later.
"May I ask, Ge Long, how is the current situation?" Tang Xiao inquired, noticing the trench outside Soul Sea City covered with a canopy, under which lay, sat, or stood tens of thousands of people. They appeared to be prisoners from the Sun and Moon Empire, their skin darker and lips thicker compared to those from the Douluo Continent.
Although people living near the infinite desert also had darker skin, the difference was still noticeable.
"Since the battle at Sea God City, the Sun and Moon Empire's raiders have once again attacked and occupied Sea God City. However, they have spent the past seven days setting up camp without taking any significant actions," Ge Long explained. "It seems they plan to drag out the conflict."
A prolonged war was not a concern for them.
The Sun and Moon Empire's supply lines had to be transported from the overseas Sun and Moon Continent, while they could rest and prepare for the long haul.
The only issue was their high-level combat power.
The Emperor of the Sun and Moon Empire was not stationed in the Sun and Moon Continent but had instead come here with such formidable strength, which was indeed puzzling.
Could the Sun and Moon Continent be so stable without its Emperor? If an empire could function normally without its Emperor, what was the Emperor's role? Was the Emperor not involved in any governance at all? It seemed like a typical case of an ineffective ruler!
"Does Ge Long have a plan?" Tang Xiao frowned. He was not well-versed in warfare. Although he was more composed than Tang Hao, his expertise lay in managing the sect rather than in war strategy. He believed it would be far more effective to test the strength of the Sun and Moon Emperor directly and discover the potential drawbacks of his god-like power, rather than waiting idly.
"We've drafted a letter of indictment and a letter of compensation for negotiations…" Ge Long said.
Tang Xiao's brow furrowed as if it were hardened lava, puzzled by the strategy. What was the point of discussing compensation before the battle had even begun? The enemy had someone capable of unleashing god-level power!
Was it assumed they would win so confidently? Was it possible that Tang San had some assurance of handling the Sun and Moon Emperor? Only a nephew with such extraordinary talent could possess such capability, but why join the Spirit Hall?
"You're truly irresponsible, Hao!"
"...Unfortunately, they did not agree."
Hearing this, Tang Xiao was left speechless.
"However, they did issue a challenge to us. They propose a one-on-one duel outside Soul Sea City in fifteen days."
"A best-of-three match. If they win, Sea God City and the surrounding territory will belong to the Sun and Moon Empire. If we win, they will withdraw from the Douluo Continent and compensate for all reasonable losses."
Tang Xiao's expression eased slightly.
This method was perfect for the Haotian Sect. One-on-one duels were their specialty, and it would also enhance the prestige of the sect.
They had arrived at just the right moment!
"However, we declined."
Ge Long's next statement shattered Tang Xiao's expectations. "Sea God City is the territory of the New Tian Dou Federation. Thus, the New Tian Dou Federation, Star Luo Empire, and Spirit Hall did not intervene. I reported this to His Majesty, and he did not agree. Furthermore, Count Silver Blue also mentioned that the enemy, being overseas invaders, had no right to use anything from this land as stakes."
"This represents the dignity of an empire. If we agree now, they could use Sea God City today, Soul Sea City tomorrow, and perhaps even Tian Dou City as stakes in the future."
"If they want to gamble, let them wager territory from the Sun and Moon Continent."
"Sea God City is only temporarily occupied by them; it can be reclaimed later!"
Although Xu Huang's strength had become formidable with the Eternal and Creator God's Throne, Tang San knew that while his minions could destroy a city, Xu Huang himself could not.
If Xu Huang did that, he would lose the Eternal and Creator God's Throne.
A Creator God, how could he not be compassionate?
Of course, Tang San would not rely on the opponent's "compassion," since even gods have emotions and can lose their reason. How much more so for humans?
Such things should not be tested.
Unless one had absolute certainty.
For example, when encountering the Star Crown Sect in the Infinite Desert, Tang San was bold because he was confident he could annihilate them all.
Currently, he did not have such absolute assurance.
However, Xu Huang surely did not want to lose the Eternal and Creator God's Throne. Thus, even if he attacked later, he would likely refrain from using that power against the four-party alliance unless absolutely necessary.
The longer the delay, the more advantageous it would be for Tang San.
As long as the Blue Silver Network continued to be used and the Starry Sky World continued to be accessed, that space would keep growing, and Tang San's strength would continually increase. The passage of time would primarily benefit Xu Huang by increasing his soul power level.
As for the control of the Eternal and Creator God's Throne...
The fact remained that Xu Huang was merely a user, and the control rested with the divine consciousness of the Creator God, the "Eternal Lord."
This was something Tang San had deduced seven days earlier when he used a thought body to provoke Xu Huang, forcing him to use the Eternal and Creator Sword to strike.
Power alone without understanding.
To put it bluntly, the Eternal and Creator God's Throne was like a supercomputer. Xu Huang only had user access, while the true control and authority rested with the Eternal Lord. Every inch of the throne's structure and every line of divine power flow was marked by the Creator God's imprint.
In Tang San's view, truly mastering the Eternal and Creator God's Throne would require not only defeating the Eternal Lord but also completely remaking the throne, essentially replacing its "basic program logic equations" with his own.
This is what is known as—
Imprinting Divine Consciousness!
(End of Chapter)