Zhang Hongzheng took the path of pooling ideas, bringing countless Prodigies together to ponder the problem with him.
But Li Chang'an did not understand the slaughter.
"Fellow Daoist Zhang, conquering these Mortal Realms should be enough. Why slaughter people on such a vast scale?"
"For hatred."
"Hatred?"
"Exactly!"
Though the two were rivals, Zhang Hongzheng did not conceal his intentions.
He explained them to Li Chang'an.
Hatred was one of the greatest driving forces behind the practice of the Martial Dao.
Whenever he carried out a slaughter, he deliberately spared a few talented young people with potential, letting them grow amid their hatred.
The more they hated him, the more frantically they would train.
That frenzy could give an utterly ordinary person a pace of cultivation no slower than a genius's.
What Zhang Hongzheng wanted was countless top Prodigies driven to frenzy.
"They'll discover that even after becoming Martial Grandmasters, they still can't defeat me or take revenge. Driven by hatred, they'll desperately search for a higher realm."
"Sometimes, I deliberately offer them opportunities, so they can glimpse hope amid their frenzy and won't lose their reason entirely."
With that explanation, Li Chang'an understood everything.
There was no single motive for practicing the Martial Dao.
Some did it for their families, some for longevity, and others to prove themselves.
After demanding that the entire nation practice martial arts, Zhang Hongzheng had not simply issued orders. He had made careful distinctions so that most martial artists had ample motivation to train.
"This really is one way to do it. Thank you for telling me, Fellow Daoist Zhang."
Li Chang'an thanked him at once.
He then took his leave of Zhang Hongzheng and traveled across the Mortal Realm, observing the results of this approach.
That night,
in a stretch of mountains,
Li