Tianming couldn’t be bothered with pleasantries, so he smiled and said, "Palace Lord, leave that to Li Wudi. I’m a free and easy man who’s waiting to roam the mountains with Ling’er and have a bunch of babies!”
"Bullying Ling'er again, you naughty boy," Weisheng Yunxi chuckled. "That’s all in the future. It might not necessarily come true. If it can be done, I’ll certainly place your godfather here. Although he’s rather arrogant and despotic, he’s a man of strong means, a founding monarch. Fourteen years of tribulation was enough to create the perfect man.”
Lightly patting Tianming on the shoulder, she said, "Let's go to the Decimo Sacred Hall and declare your position.”
Weisheng Yunxi was going to arrange an army for Tianming. As a man who had never led a soldier in battle, Tianming was undoubtedly a little excited. Although he’d turned the tide in the Grand-Orient Realm sect war, he had yet to join the ranks of the strong. This time, he could rely on his own combat power to control the war.
"Autarch Yun, death is coming! It’s time the Theocracy of the Ancients and the Theocrats are destroyed.”
...
The Decimo Sacred Hall was where the real decision-making happened. On this day, the top figures of the Dark Hall and the dao palace were gathered there. There were major decisions to be announced. Tianming was to enter the Dark Hall, so he could leapfrog from the school and immediately join management.
Tianming returned to grab Ye Lingfeng. Ye Lingfeng didn't dare stray too far away from the Soulfiend; it was still an uncontrollable and uncertain factor. After returning from the tomb, the Soulfiend was inseparable from Ye Lingfeng. Wherever he went, the Soulfiend tagged along like a loyal and obedient servant.
The Soulfiend had three heads. Except for the angry face it showed when fighting, it usually switched between joy and sorrow. During this time, the Soulfiend and Lan Huang had become best buddies who played together. When walking down the street, the Soulfiend had its happy head at the front, with all six arms swaying delightedly. Whenever the young disciples of the Dao Palace came across the ferocious monster, they quickly hid.
"I heard Tianming killed the crown prince Dongyang Fengchen.”
"The crown prince! A peerless genius with a nine-headed hydra who once had the entire Divine Capital trembling in fear!”
"Yeah, the winds have changed. After the previous autarch passed, Jiang Ling and Autarch Yun started fighting for power. Infighting has caused huge losses, and even the crown prince was killed. The Shenwu Legion actually marched to our doors on a punitive crusade in a bid to force us to hand over Li Tianming."
"There’s rumors that the Dao Palace wants to support Jiang Ling in the war against Autarch Yun, who’s retreated to the Imperial City. He’s probably finished.”
"Yes, in contrast, the Dark Hall is really strong. I’d like to join them in the future. ”
"The Theocracy has reached its most chaotic period since ancient times. If we join the Dark Hall, we can certainly sit back and relax. I have a clean background, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”
"Let's work hard then!”
They watched Tianming walk by, their expressions filled with envy.
"Is Li Tianming still a disciple of the dao palace like us?”
"I heard that he’s valued by the palace lord and might become the future palace lord.”
"Who would’ve thought he’d be so destiny-defying! When he first came, he looked like a complete bumpkin. I couldn’t tell at all.”
"Yeah, if we get the chance, we must curry favor with him.”
"I heard that Zhou Yuanyuan of the Future Hall is good friends with Li Tianming, and now he has several girlfriends, all of whom are great beauties.”
"Several.... Damn, doesn’t that fat pig have kidney deficiency! I'm so jealous!”
They laughed.
In the crowd stood an inconspicuous, white-robed man. His eyes were red, body shaking.
"Is there still a chance for revenge?”
Jun Niancang leaned against the wall, a little unsteady. In his eyes, the young man who had provoked his monstrous anger in the Realm War was now unattainable.
...
"Feng, the full title for the Dark Hall is the Seven Astral Dark Hall. The army of beastmasters in the Dark Hall is called the Seven Astral Legions. They’re divided into seven legions: Skycore, Skypearl, Skyrule, Skyjade, Stilljade, Shimmerglow, and Grandsol. Each legion is led by an Astral King. Under the Astral King are more than a hundred thousand powerhouses at Saint stage, meaning there’s close to a million people in the Seven Astral Legions. They’re the core power of the Dao Palace,” Tianming explained on the way to the Decimo Sacred Hall.
"What about Senior Ye Yi? "Ye Lingfeng asked.
Ye Yi was currently guiding him in cultivating an extraordinary sky saint battle art.
"He’s the commander-in-chief of the Seven Astral Legion. The seven Astral Kings are under his control," said Tianming.
"I understand.”
"Additionally, under each Astral King are ten Astral Generals. Each general controls ten thousand people. And below the Astral Generals are chiliarchs, centurions, and squad captains," said Tianming.
Simply put, the Seven Astral Dark Hall was the army of the Dao Palace. Its discipline, as well as its internal reward and punishment system, was no different from the imperial army. In the Theocracy of the Ancients, the Decimo Dao Palace’s real identity wasn’t a school, but a small country within a country. It had been suppressed for tens of thousands of years, but had yet to be swallowed.
...
The Decimo Sacred Hall.
When Tianming and Ye Lingfeng arrived, Weisheng Yunxi was sitting at the top, with Ye Yi and Bai Mo on her left and right respectively. Ye Yi represented the Seven Astral Legions of the Dark Hall, while Bai Mo controlled the school and was responsible for the passing on of disciples. The Future Hall had always been the number one hall. All of the halls were under Bai Mo’s control, hence his great power.
Aside from them, the seven Astral Kings of the Dark Hall and nine hall kings were all there in their own places. The new North Hall King, Bai Zifeng, sat in the lowest position. After all, he was the youngest of them all. Below them were dozens of Astral Generals of the Seven Astral Legions, as well as the hall prefect of the school.
"Come in." Upon seeing the two, the elders in the Sacred Hall smiled.
"Greetings Palace Lord, Hall Master, Hall Kings, and Astral Kings," said Tianming.
The elders in the Dark Hall were basically familiar with him, especially since his performance in the tomb had been payback on their behalf. By the time Tianming entered the hall, Weisheng Yunxi had already finalized their battle plans.
As soon as Tianming arrived on scene, she announced, "In view of Tianming’s contributions in slaying the son Dongyang Yun was most proud of, the Hall Kings, Astral Kings, and I have decided that he will be made an Astral General of the Skycore Legion, in command of an army of ten thousand under the jurisdiction of the Skycore Astral King, Bai Zijun.”
This was an order, not a discussion. The other seniors seemed to agree with her decision.
"Thank you. I’ll do my best to command the army and I won’t let you down!" Tianming’s eyes burned with passion.
An Astral General of the Skycore Legion with ten thousand troops! All of them were at Saint stage. This army alone was enough to crush the entire Grand-Orient Realm. There were hundreds of Astral Generals in the entire Seven Astral Legions, and the youngest was over forty. This was a position with real power, which showed how much the Decimo Dao Palace valued him.
Most importantly, Tianming's immediate superior, Astral King Bai Zijun of the Skycore Legion, was Bai Mo's second son and Bai Zifeng's younger brother. They were about the same age, with little difference in their strength.
Before today, Tianming had come across Bai Zijun several times and had long recognized the man. One of the seven Astral Kings, Bai Zijun was also the youngest among them. The man was a bright star, gentle and elegant—all in all, a handsome middle-aged man with a deep, mellow voice and the air of a great commander.
Bai Mo had two sons, one a Hall King, and the other an Astral King. It was no wonder Bai Zijin could do as she pleased in the Decimo Dao Palace and no one dared to provoke her. With such a father and two brothers, she was invincible....
There were a hundred thousand people in the Skycore Legion. Allowing a young man like Tianming to command ten thousand of them was both a sign of trust and a challenge.
While the others congratulated him, Weisheng Yunxi added, "Ye Lingfeng will assist Tianming as deputy general. Although the two young men have little experience, they have endless potential. With respect to strength, Tianming was able to kill Dongyang Fengchen, which places him on par with an Astral General. The Divine Capital is about to go to war. Brothers and Sisters, as their senior, resent them not. Help them grow quickly. Skycore Legion Astral King, Bai Zijun, this task is left to you.”
"Don’t worry, Palace Lord. Tianming and Feng are assets of the Dao Palace. If anyone refuses to accept them, the solution is very simple: just ask yourselves if you dare kill the crown prince of the Theocracy." Bai Zijun smiled and nodded.
"Very well." Nodding, Weisheng Yunxi stood up and declared, "The Seven Astral Legions will follow my arrangement, strictly execute it, and prepare for battle! Given the current situation in the Divine Capital, the day we go to war is near. As everyone is aware, Autarch Yun is a bloody and cruel tyrant who conspired to murder the previous autarch, angering both gods and men. On the other hand, ninth prince Jiang Ling is benevolent and righteous. He has the support of the clans and the major sects of the realm. The dao palace shall assist him. Only when Autarch Yun is killed, the ninth prince ascends the throne, and the chaos of the nation is put to rest can we be at ease. ”
"Yes!" the crowd shouted in unison, Tianming included.
He was well aware of the reason behind the dao palace’s current move. They were aiming for Dongyang Yun in support of Jiang Ling. Even if they were the core of the dao palace, who could guarantee there were no spies amongst them?
Right now, they couldn’t use the destruction of the Theocrats as their goal. Otherwise, Jiang Ling wouldn’t dare accept their support. Both he and Dongyang Yun would have to deal with the dao palace.
For now, knowledge of the Decimo Dao Palace’s resolve to destroy the Theocrats was limited to a few people. Others could only guess.
...
With this, Tianming was now in charge of ten thousand Saint stage experts and would soon join the war against Dongyang Yun. When the meeting concluded, Weisheng Yunxi handed Tianming over to Bai Zijun. Next Tianming would officially meet his men!