“Why should I travel with you?” asked Song Tiandao.
“There were Gods among the aliens earlier. Could you have defeated them alone?” asked Xiang Shaoyun.
“If I don’t even have that much confidence in myself, how am I supposed to grow to become the strongest blademaster?” Song Tiandao retorted before swaggering off.
Xiang Shaoyun smiled helplessly as he muttered, “What an arrogant fellow.”
He did not continue persuading Song Tiandao and resumed searching for more aliens with his group. Day after day passed, and the group encountered one danger after another. With Xiang Shaoyun’s strength, he was able to not only kill many aliens but also protect his people. It was rare to see people capable of protecting their companions so well in the ancient battlefield.
During their travels, they had encountered Ouyang Chuanqi, Han Chenfei, Lady Shura, and Zhuge Zhantian. With the inclusion of these people, the group became even stronger. Surprisingly, Ouyang Chuanqi had gotten into a relationship with Han Chenfei. The two were similarly talented and attractive, and they were simply a match made in heaven.
Xiang Shaoyun did not feel any envy. Rather, he gave them his sincere blessings. Ouyang Chuanqi calmly received the blessings. After all, Xiang Shaoyun had never reciprocated Han Chenfei’s feelings, and she had decided to give up on him. Thus, things weren’t too awkward between them, and their friendship was as strong as ever.
Ouyang Chuanqi, Han Chenfei, Lady Shura, and Zhuge Zhantian were much stronger than before. Ouyang Chuanqi had reached seventh-stage Heaven Battling Realm, Han Chenfei had reached sixth-stage Heaven Battling Realm, Lady Shura had reached fifth-stage Heaven Battling Realm, and Zhuge Zhantian had reached third-stage Heaven Battling Realm.
The group also stumbled upon a few other Overlord Legion members who were also Heaven Battling Realm cultivators.
These people had not entered with Tang Longfei, not because of some internal conflict but because they had arrived at the Immortal Capital at different times. Thus, they had entered the ancient battlefield separately.
“Overlord, the deeper we go, the stronger the aliens we encounter. We don’t have enough strength to go deeper. We need more strength,” reminded Zhuge Zhantian.
He now carried himself with the temperament of an army formation master. His every move seemed to radiate a unique aura. It was rumored that Zhuge Zhantian’s clan was very closely related to the Guardians Guild. Zhuge Zhantian had been able to attract the attention of his clan, and he would most likely obtain even more support from his clan after the Heaven Battling Ranking Competition.
“What do you have in mind?” Xiang Shaoyun asked.
“I think we can gather some smaller groups or individual cultivators to strengthen our group. Only then will we be able to go deeper and kill more aliens,” suggested Zhuge Zhantian.
“You mean I should subdue those unaffiliated cultivators?” Xiang Shaoyun immediately understood Zhuge Zhantian’s meaning.
“That’s right. There are fewer and fewer aliens to be found. They must have returned to their territory, which would probably be the venue of the final battle. With our strength, we won’t be able to obtain much in the final battle,” said Zhuge Zhantian.
Ouyang Chuanqi interjected, “It won’t be easy to subdue these unaffiliated cultivators. Trust is a big issue.”
“It will definitely be hard when everyone first enters, but everyone is probably aware of how troublesome those aliens are by now after so many casualties. If they still want to continue staying in the ancient battlefield, they have no choice but to join stronger groups. Trust is not an issue. Before absolute strength, they won’t dare to try anything stupid. The worst that can happen is them deserting during a battle,” said Zhuge Zhantian.
After giving it some thought, Xiang Shaoyun said, “That’s feasible. The more people we can gather, the more strength we can muster. Only then will we be able to contend against the aliens and other groups.”
And thus, they started expanding.
Xiang Shaoyun was a strong cultivator who had won 500 continuous matches in the Immortal Arena. His feats in the arena had long spread far and wide. Thus, some comparatively weaker Heaven Battling Realm cultivators were more than happy to join him. They were mainly looking for protection and hoping to gain more contribution points after joining a group.
After about half a month, Xiang Shaoyun’s group had expanded to nearly 100 members. Of course, that was still a small group, but it was already much stronger than before. After all, most of the new members were people who had encountered misfortune in the ancient battlefield. There were also some who were previously daredevils, but after suffering at the hands of the aliens, they had no choice but to search for allies.
Three days later, Xiang Shaoyun encountered Baili Yixiao. As one of the Dragon Phoenix Academy’s strongest geniuses, there was no doubting Baili Yixiao’s strength. He was now an eighth-stage Heaven Battling Realm cultivator and was not far away from becoming a Great Saint. He also had some Saints around him. Some of these Saints were the academy disciples, and some were from outside the academy. Every one of them looked bruised and battered. Evidently, they had been having a hard time on the ancient battlefield.
Xiang Shaoyun walked up to Baili Yixiao and offered, “Brother Baili, what do you think about joining the Overlord Legion?”
“Not like we have any other choice,” said Baili Yixiao helplessly.
Xiang Shaoyun was now an elder of the academy. In the ancient battlefield, they could be considered comrades due to their mutual affiliation with the academy. There was no reason for Baili Yixiao to reject the invitation. In any case, he had just experienced something that had greatly angered him.
Right at that moment, a group of powerful-looking people arrived and surrounded them. The group was not from one of the three superpowers. Neither were they members of the Guardians Guild. Rather, this was a group formed by White Lotus Sect members. They were strong and had no fewer than 100 members in their group. The leader was a sixth-stage pseudo-God.
“All unrelated personnel, leave. We are only here for Baili Yixiao’s head,” demanded the leader.
“What trouble did you get yourself into?” asked Xiang Shaoyun with a smile.
“We discovered an ancient site of a God. We were too weak and were chased away from that place,” said Baili Yixiao honestly.
“Baili Yixiao, you’re courting death!” berated the pseudo-God as he unleashed a claw attack at Baili Yixiao.
Instantly, the dreadful eagle claw arrived above Baili Yixiao, threatening to crush his head.
“Watch out!” the ones in Baili Yixiao’s group cried out in alarm.
Baili Yixiao had already been injured before this. Furthermore, he was facing the attack of a pseudo-God. How could he resist the attack?
“Have you asked for my permission before touching him?” asked Xiang Shaoyun with derision as he reached out and grabbed the claw.
“Who are you? You dare interfere in the affairs of our White Lotus Sect?” questioned the pseudo-God with a frown.
“White Lotus Sect? Yes, I’m definitely looking for trouble with you guys,” said Xiang Shaoyun with a mocking smile.
Next, he crushed the eagle claw in his palm.
Boom!
