Hongchu supported Taichu, who was still regulating his breathing. He cursed under his breath, but could not hide the joy on his face. "Taichu, you old bastard. You really are hard to kill."
Taichu brought the primordial qi rampaging through his body under control and slowly opened his eyes. He gave Hongchu a complicated look before finally turning his gaze to Zhou Ming.
He said nothing. He simply bowed to Zhou Ming, slowly and deeply.
That bow expressed his gratitude for saving his life.
It also carried a trace of wholehearted submission that even he had not noticed.
"All right, all right. We're all friends here. What's with the formalities?"
Hongchu casually slapped Taichu on the back, nearly making him cough up another mouthful of blood just after he had steadied his breathing.
Cangxuan shook his head helplessly and stepped forward, sending a stream of pure wood element vitality into Taichu to stabilize his injuries.
Zhou Ming watched True Lord Hanchuan and the others flee in disarray, then glanced at the weakened Taichu and spoke calmly.
"Let's go."
"Go? Where?" Hongchu froze. "Shouldn't we find somewhere to recover first?"
Taichu also looked at Zhou Ming in confusion.
Zhou Ming gazed in the direction True Lord Hanchuan had fled, toward the Hanchuan Domain.
"To collect a little interest."
Hongchu and Cangxuan understood at once.
Taichu paused, then caught on as well.
The Hanchuan Domain.
As a major domain presided over by an expert at the peak of Dao Fusion, the Hanchuan Domain had always held unquestioned authority among the neighboring star regions.
Today, however, an unprecedented calamity descended upon it.
The Hanchuan Domain governed three hundred and seventy mid-tier worlds and one hundred and twenty high-tier worlds.
Over the next few short months.
More than thirty of those worlds—the richest in