Ascending the Heavens as an Evil God
chapter-473

Star Rulers hunting gods had become an act that concerned the core interests of the weaker Star Rulers, so it was never something that could be stopped as long as a ban was issued.

The thirteen Unified Dao existences were well aware of this.

But then again, judging from the fact that Lu Wen was still in the mood to look for the mastermind, it was clear that they weren’t as anxious as the greater gods next door.

This time, certain gods were hunted down, and some of the Star Rulers were also killed by powerful gods from the World of Gods, so both sides suffered considerable losses.

But the dead couldn’t be brought back to life. Instead, they needed to concern themselves with the future.

Those in the World of Gods had to curb the God Hunt at all costs, or else the gods would be killed off sooner or later, while the Myriad Heavens had no such worries—the weak Star Rulers would get scared as soon as their death count increased. It wasn’t like they would continue to foolishly throw their lives away.

What really gave the Thirteen Heavens a headache was the fact that the greater gods of the Worlds of Gods had such an uncompromising stance on this matter, making them at a loss on how to respond.

Song Fei's youngest disciple dying in the World of Gods was no longer a secret among the Unified Dao figures; they naturally had their own intelligence sources.

They even knew that such situations were by no means few and far between. Perhaps they might even encounter the same situation as Song Fei in the future. So other than someone with a big heart like Zou Jiming, no one would make light of this.

Or rather, by the time more and more Star Rulers were affected, the web of connections would sooner or later implicate them as well.

So by tacit agreement, nobody present brought this up first. They were all waiting for Song Fei to speak up and make a decision. As long as he made a decision, everyone else could just follow suit, and any curses from below would only be directed at Song Fei first.

Song Fei looked around and saw that each and every one of these Unified Dao figures either made it clear that it was none of their business or were filled with righteous indignation but never had any intention of speaking up, so he could only sigh in secret.

"A war cannot be started lightly," after a moment of silence, Song Fei finally provided a response that satisfied the crowd, and the crowd also seemed to let out a collective sigh of relief.

The Unified Dao existences were waiting for precisely this statement!

If the Light Faction in the World of Gods could be described as incomparably united and the Dark Faction slightly less united, then the Myriad Heavens’ leaders were basically scattered sand.

The Thirteen Heavens were all fighting their own battles. At most, two people might have a slightly better relationship, forming an offensive and defensive alliance or something similar, but there had never been any united factions to speak of.

If they truly went to war with the World of Gods, it would definitely be the Myriad Heavens’ side that would have more problems.

What's more, the greater gods over there actually wanted to go to war. On one hand, they wanted to vent some anger, and on the other hand, they also wanted to strike fear into the Star Rulers on this side, turning the "ban" on the God Hunt into a real ban.

For them, stopping a loss was the same as gaining a victory.

But what would the Thirteen Heavens gain by starting a war? Nothing!

The ones who would get the Godheads were the weak Star Rulers just starting out, but the ones who would have to fight the war were the Unified Dao figures. Their victory wouldn’t bring any benefits, and their defeat would just be laughed at, so who would be willing to do such a thing?

But although it would be nice to admit defeat against the gods, they would get a cowardly reputation if word spread, so everyone was waiting for Song Fei to take the lead.

After Song Fei glanced at everyone’s expressions, his face suddenly showed some amusement as he changed the subject, "Indeed, the matter of the God Hunt benefits others at our own detriment, so it shouldn’t be done. But this humble one’s youngest disciple, Lu Yang, was residing in the World of Gods 600 years ago. How could he be related to this matter?"

The Unified Dao cultivators didn't expect him to suddenly change the subject, and while they were still taken aback, Song Fei continued, "This humble one is willing to go to the World of Gods alone to seek justice for my youngest disciple. I would like to ask that all of you please stay at the headquarters to avoid any misunderstandings from that side."

The crowd finally understood Song Fei's intentions this time. He wanted to be the only hero and make everyone else endorse him!

A silver-haired man who’d been silent so far smiled lightly and replied, "Since Daoist Friend Song's disciple was wrongly accused, is there any reason to ignore this injustice? This humble one is willing to go with Daoist Friend."

This was Milky Way Heaven’s Star Ruler Si Yun, the same person who was hiding a Nine Abyss Heavenly Demon in his astral world, the only starry sea-type astral world in the Thirteen Heavens.

Song Fei put on a troubled smile and dissuaded, "That's why this humble one said that a war should not be started lightly—"

"Say no more! How can we let outsiders bully people from our Myriad Heavens? We’re going together!"

"That’s right. Didn’t just a few gods get hunted down? That was due to their lack of ability, but now they’re retaliating by killing innocent people. Do they really think my Myriad Heavens has no one?"

The crowd was so excited that no trace of the previous silence could be seen.

Those not in the know might mistake this for Song Fei's ability to rally supporters. It might even make for a riveting story to pass on to future generations, but only the parties involved knew what was going on.

Song Fei had always urged everyone to focus on the big picture. It was enough for him alone to go; the others shouldn’t casually take action.

How could he be willing to be the first to cause war? Although being the leader would improve his reputation in the eyes of weaker Star Rulers, it might not necessarily be the case in the powerful Star Rulers’ circles.

After all, they also didn’t lack Void Cutters. If they were unable to benefit from the God Hunt but still had to contribute to the war because Song Fei was leading the way, then wouldn’t all the blame fall onto him, Song Fei?

But Song Fei's words had already left his mouth, so the rest of the Unified Dao existences couldn’t possibly let him take them back. Regardless of his intentions, the "pro-war faction" label had already been forced onto Song Fei's head.

……

"Many thanks, Master!"

Shi Yeyan had remained inside Academic Heaven, and when Song Fei returned, he was already greeting him with a deep salute.

Song Fei wasn’t really surprised. He knew that as soon as the words left his mouth, the others would spread them far and wide, cementing his stance as the leader of the pro-war faction.

"You and I are master and disciple, so there's no need to say this." Song Fei was prepared for this and said with a faint smile, "You are coming along with me this time. But remember, we're only there to seek justice for your Youngest Martial Brother."

"Your disciple understands." Shi Yeyan was meticulous and was well aware of what kind of predicament Song Fei was facing. He responded solemnly, "We travel the world with reason and must not rush indiscriminately into war."

Song Fei nodded. "Let’s go."

……

After the meeting of the Thirteen Heavens, Song Fei returned to Academic Heaven alone, but he knew that someone would come over very soon.

"I didn't expect the first visitor to be you." Song Fei looked at the person in front of him with an I knew it smile on his face.

Only two figures stood across from each other in the empty hall. After all, Song Fei naturally wouldn’t let his disciples watch his meetings with Unified Dao powerhouses.

The visitor was Weapon Martial Heaven’s Zou Jiming.

This Unified Dao cultivator who was very good at pulling aggro had mocked Song Fei to his face mere hours ago, but now he changed his tune and ran over to see him in private without the slightest hint of embarrassment.

"Our thoughts are the same," Zou Jiming cut straight to the chase, starting with this sentence.

"Oh?" Song Fei was noncommittal.

"You don't want a war." Zou Jiming continued, "As long as a war starts, you’ll be criticized no matter whether you win or lose, and I also don't want a war."

Face didn’t really matter for people at the level of the Thirteen Heavens, but when no concrete benefits were involved, sometimes the fight really was about reputation.

The better their reputation, the easier it was to attract other talents, which was no different from a normal Star Ruler.

"Why?"

Zou Jiming met Song Fei's gaze and said seriously, "Because of the Heaven-God Alliance."