Planting a banner five thousand li away

The boy's expression changed slightly when he saw that Li Hao had recognized his identity at a glance.

He glanced at the Aura young man, finding it hard to reconcile the image of the fierce-looking boy he had seen from Outside the Pass the Great Wall.

But he knew that if he made the slightest mistake, he could lose his life.

"Greetings, Young General."

He bowed respectfully before speaking somewhat nervously:

"I have come on orders. When you were clearing the Outside the Pass, you destroyed the palaces cave abode of three Demon Kings. They sent us from the Tianji Hall to inquire about your plans for compensation, Young General."

"Compensate?"

Li Hao looked at him with some surprise. "What kind of compensation do they want?"

"They want you to apologize and promise not to provoke them again, and for both sides to keep to themselves. If that happens, they can also guarantee that Heaven's Gate Pass will remain peaceful, allowing you to successfully guard it for three years."

The boy spoke respectfully, but his voice trembled slightly.

Li Hao narrowed his eyes slightly and chuckled, "You actually knew I'd be stationed here for three years, so it seems you know me quite well. In that case, tell them the compensation is right here. They can have whatever they want, but they'll have to come and collect it themselves."

"This..."

The boy looked troubled and said, "Young General, we're discussing this. Please don't be angry. You can't stay at Heaven's Gate Pass forever. I advise you to reconsider."

"Um?"

Li Hao looked at him, his gaze suddenly seeming to contain immense force, pressing down on the boy and frightening him so much that feathers rose from his skin, almost revealing his true form.

His body bent down, and he knelt on the ground.

"Young General, spare my life! Young General, spare my life..."

The boy, with his prominent beak, pleaded hastily.

Li Hao withdrew his gaze and said calmly, "I've said my piece. If they want compensation, let them come here in person. What compensation do they expect from these cowardly creatures? Didn't your Tianji Hall tell them how I razed their Mountain Peak to the ground?"

The boy said nervously, "We already told them, but they're angry..."

Li Hao interrupted him, saying, "Could it be that your real purpose in coming here is to test my patience, or something else?"

The boy's heart clenched suddenly, and he almost screamed in fright, but he only managed a weak smile and said:

"How could that be? Although our Tianji Hall is Demon force, we never participate in wars and have some cooperation with your Human Race. We were just helping to relay messages."

"Oh, then tell me, which of our Human Race have you partnered with?"

"This, this I don't know, my cultivation level is too low..." the boy said, trembling.

Li Hao, too lazy to play along with this insignificant character any longer, coldly said, "Get lost."

"Yes, thank you for sparing my life, Young General..."

The boy felt the oppressive force that had been piercing his back disappear, and he hurriedly got up to leave.

"Etc."

Li Hao stopped him and said coldly, "Are you just going to leave empty-handed? Qian Qian, give him my Military Banner."

Ren Qianqian, who was listening intently, was startled by what she heard. She reacted quickly, pulling out a Military Banner from the side of the courtyard and tossing it to the Bird Demon boy.

The Bird Demon boy caught it, looking at Li Hao with a mixture of nervousness and confusion.

"Take my Military Banner and go back to your Demon territory. Plant my Military Banner on the Mountain Peak I went the furthest from. Your Tianji Hall should know which Mountain Peak it is, right?"

Li Hao's eyes were cold as he stared at the boy Bird Demon: "When I go on my next patrol, if I see my Military Banner fallen or damaged, I will once again massacre the entire Outside the Pass, and I will expand the scope!"

"Also, those of you in the Tianji Hall should be careful when you see me in the future."

Sensing Li Hao's undisguised Killing Aura, the boy Bird Demon was dumbfounded and trembled with fear.

Why should a Demon help this boy plant the Military Banner?

It can't collapse or break down?

You must know that the distance Li Hao had previously pushed across was five thousand miles Outside the Pass, which was the heartland of the Demon!

Now, this young man is about to raise his Military Banner right under the noses of those Demon —this is blatant humiliation and intimidation!

Domineering, tyrannical, and arrogant!

At this moment, in its eyes, the peaceful and gentle boy from before had long since disappeared, replaced by a young war god who looked down upon the Eight Wastelands, sitting before it, making people bow their heads and tremble!

"I... I understand."

After being shocked, the boy Bird Demon trembled as he agreed.

It knew that the only reason it could survive and leave this place was to complete this task for Li Hao; otherwise, it would never be able to leave this Small Courtyard.

After the Bird Demon boy shakily took his leave, Ren Qianqian stepped forward, her small face full of surprise, and said:

"Young Master, when you went to the Outside the Pass, you razed the Demon King's lair to the ground?"

Li Hao nodded slightly, smiled when he saw her surprised expression, and said, "Practice your swordsmanship diligently, and you'll be able to do it too in the future."

Ren Qianqian's heart skipped a beat, and she smiled bitterly to herself. Her past pursuit was simply to surpass the Grandmaster level.

The Demon King... that's a being at the Four Establishments Realm.

However, Li Hao's words seemed to open a wider door in her heart.

Her eyes sparkled, and she felt her motivation to cultivate greatly increased.

Just as she turned around, eager to practice her swordplay, Li Hao called her back and asked her to find some stationery, as he wanted to write her a letter.

Ren Qianqian obediently went to her room to find some letter paper, and asked in confusion, "Young Master, who is this letter addressed to?"

"Send it to the Liang Province Military Headquarters," Li Hao said.

"Huh?" Ren Qianqian asked in confusion, as Li Hao didn't seem to be very familiar with the other side.

"The Demon from the Tianji Hall are probably testing me."

As Li Hao wrote the letter, he wrote, "What Demon King demanding compensation? If their Intelligence is accurate, that Demon King wouldn't even dare to mention it, let alone threaten me. I think this Bird Demon came here just to test my bottom line, or perhaps to test whether I will stay here for three years..."

Based on the Military Report and instructions sent by his Top Five uncle, he had some vague suspicions. However, perhaps he was overthinking it, but it was always better to be cautious.

Ren Qianqian's eyes widened slightly. There was a lot of information in Li Hao's words, and she couldn't quite process it all at once.

All we could glean was that the Demon King didn't even dare to mention compensation when facing Li Hao?

What exactly did Li Hao do Outside the Pass?

Soon, Li Hao finished writing the letter and handed it to Ren Qianqian, asking her to give it to Li Hongzhuang and send it to her fifth uncle, Li Xuanli.

After finishing these tasks, Li Hao regained his composure and resumed painting.

Under the watchful eyes of numerous Warriors and soldiers, the boy Bird Demon flew cautiously out of the new Border Pass city and then soared straight into the sky.

After flying into the Cloud End, it began to accelerate until it was seven or eight hundred miles away, at which point it slowed down slightly. Several birds were perched in the clouds ahead, waiting for it to approach.

"Why did you steal a Military Banner?"

One of the red birds transformed into Red Skirt Girl. She recognized the Military Banner in the boy Bird Demon's hand as Li Hao's Battle Flag and couldn't help but say speechlessly.

The boy Bird Demon nearly choked upon hearing this. Steal?

Why would I waste my time stealing that guy's Military Banner?!

"Guardian, I didn't steal it; that brat forced it on me," the boy Bird Demon said, addressing the boy as "brat."

"Um?"

The girl in the red dress was confused and asked, "Why did he give you the military flag?"

"Let me plant it on the Mountain Peak he flattened, and I can't let the Battle Flag be damaged, otherwise he'll cause trouble for our Tianji Hall and we'll have to massacre the Outside the Pass again," the boy Bird Demon said indignantly.

The Red Skirt Girl and the three birds beside her were all stunned. This was too domineering!

"What about the matter I instructed you on? How did the test go?"

The Red Skirt Girl glanced in the direction of the Heaven's Gate Pass and then asked.

"That kid is too shrewd. I only mentioned it briefly, and he almost noticed."

The boy Bird Demon, recalling everything that had happened, felt a pang of fear turn into resentment on his face, and said, "Judging from what he said, he really has no intention of leaving Heaven's Gate Pass. That promise was true."

The Red Skirt Girl frowned and asked him to explain what had happened in detail.

After listening, her brows furrowed even more. "This young man is indeed a major concern for us. It's time to let the Dragon Gate and the Saint Palace know. If we don't eliminate this hidden danger, it will cause endless trouble in the future."

"Good."

The boy Bird Demon nodded in deep agreement.

"However, judging from the current situation, he probably won't leave Heaven's Gate Pass easily to participate in the war in Liang Prefecture. We can deal with him when the Grand Elder of Dragon Gate comes out of seclusion."

The Red Skirt Girl glanced at the Military Banner in his hand and said:

"Go, plant this Military Banner there, consider it as sealing off a mountain for him. Communication to the surrounding Demon not to approach that mountain, just avoid their sharp edge for now."

"Um."

Several birds immediately flew away to a more distant place.

Liang Prefecture, in the west.

A Blood Eagle into the military camp and landed on the arm of a lieutenant general. The lieutenant general took the letter wrapped in oiled paper that the Blood Eagle spat out from its beak, turned around and quickly delivered it to Li Xuanli in the tent.

"A letter from my little sister?"

Li Xuanli was somewhat surprised to hear the report from his deputy's attendant; he had just sent a letter to Heaven's Gate Pass and received a reply.

These are extraordinary times, and frequent correspondence is not a good thing, as it is easily intercepted.

He opened the envelope and quickly flipped through it, his expression soon turning serious.

"Do the Demon intend to attack Liang Prefecture?"

How did Hao'er know?

When Li Xuanli saw that the letter was actually sent by the young man, he was surprised and somewhat suspicious.

The letter did not specify the reason, only saying it was a speculation, and told him to pay attention to the movements of the Demon.

Considering the previous retreat of the Beyond the Border Demon, Li Xuanli suddenly felt a chill. Could it be that the Demon' retreat was just a pretense, and they didn't really intend to leave Liang Prefecture?

He put away the letter, immediately summoned his deputy general and his personal guards, and ordered them to keep a close watch on Outside the Pass, while also sending the original reconnaissance team to investigate areas further away.

Time flies.

Heaven's Gate Pass, Azure Cliff City.

Not long after the Bird Demon boy left, Li Hao set off for the Outside the Pass, Demon sprang up like mushrooms after rain in the areas he had cleared, which he dealt with in the process.

When he reached the farthest Mountain Peak, Li Hao saw the Military Banner he had erected. There were no Demon around, and it seemed to be sealed off. He also saw birds secretly guarding the area. Li Hao was satisfied and then patrolled the area from east to west.

Wherever it went, the Tianji Hall was on high alert, and hurriedly and secretly notified the Demon in various places to take emergency evasive action.

These Demon hastily abandoned their unfinished cave abode and fled, only slowly returning after the young man had flown by.

But some Demon had had enough of this terrifying existence and couldn't bear it any longer, so they chose to move away and find another place.

Even if it's just squeezing in with the Great Demon that already inhabit other territories, it would save us from this unrest.

Once the Outside the Pass the pass was peaceful, Li Hao summoned his Warrior and instructed them to use their networks to spread the word and seek out various art masters skilled in Painting Dao, Chess Dao, and other arts, inviting them to visit Azure Cliff City.

During this time, Li Hao dismembered the Ghost Lady's corpse and cooked it together with the other Great Demon every day to feed everyone.

My Path of Cooking experience increased rapidly. After reaching Seventh Dan, I needed 500,000 experience points to advance to Eighth Dan.

A Great Demon at the Four Establishments Realm can provide a huge amount of experience, which is almost half of the original 100,000 experience bar.

But now, it's less than one-tenth.

Even after Cooking and defeating all the other Great Demon, I only accumulated a little over 70,000 experience points.

Fortunately, depicting these Demon corpses allowed Li Hao to reach the Sixth Dan of his Painting Dao skills, a bottleneck he had previously faced. He only needed to "Painting Heart Entering Spirit" to advance to the Seventh Dan.

Before that, Li Hao planned to find an art form to refine his Heart Entry Movement Method, breaking the Third Dan shackles of his movement technique. This way, he could directly add points to the Sixth Dan, greatly increasing his Movement Method. Even some Four Establishments Realm Great Demon King might not be able to escape his grasp.

Li Hao had various refining materials he had taken from the Demon, along with the Dragon Sky Sword, delivered to the Ten Thousand Artifacts Pavilion.

Leave his signature.

Secondary casting is then performed.

The Ten Thousand Artifacts Pavilion is a semi-official organization, and Li Hao, being Border Pass Major General, wouldn't dare to embezzle its property.

Li Hao tried the Magic Array constructed by the old man from the Constellation Official twice more, and both times it easily suppressed the five Great Demons.

The old man from the Constellation Official examined the problem repeatedly but couldn't find it. Finally, he suddenly realized something and suggested that Li Hongzhuang, a general at the Three Immortalities Peak, should give it a try.

As a result, Li Hongzhuang was beaten black and blue by five Great Demon outside the Magic Array and forced to retreat in defeat. Only then did she finally realize that there was no problem with the Magic Array, but rather with Li Hao.

The old man from the Constellation Official and his students were speechless. They had examined the problem repeatedly, practically tearing their hair out, but still couldn't find the cause. It turned out the cause wasn't with them at all.

This boy's strength is simply outrageous.

Who could have imagined that this fourteen-year-old boy would possess power surpassing that of an ordinary Demon King?

The old man from the Constellation Official was both helpless and secretly excited. Li Hao's existence undoubtedly foreshadowed the rise of the Great Yu Dynasty in the Future. If this young man were given more time, the Future Great Yu would have another new War God, standing shoulder to shoulder with that True Person from the Qian Dao Palace!

With his students by his side, the elderly Constellation Official bid farewell to Li Hao.

Before leaving, Xia Xianglan looked at Li Hao with some lingering affection and asked, "Will you stay here forever?"

"I will leave once no Demon dare to invade this place."

Li Hao smiled slightly.

Xia Xianglan nodded, then added, "I am from the Xia Family. We are all from the Divine General Residence's Aristocratic Clan. You are welcome to visit the Xia Family anytime you have time."

Li Hao shook his head slightly. "But I am not from the Divine General Residence Aristocratic Clan; I am just a Rogue Person."

"But you..."

Xia Xianglan was about to say something when the old man from the Star Constellation Official stopped her. The old man glanced at Li Hao, sighed inwardly, and then called his student to leave.

Li Hao saw them off at Dragon Gate Road before turning back.

Time flies by when you have nothing to do.

This Outside the Pass has become unusually peaceful, and the city within it has become increasingly prosperous and bustling.

The caravans and escort agencies transporting supplies from various cities spread the word upon their return, making everyone in those cities aware that Heaven's Gate Pass was now a very strong fortress and Azure Cliff City was an extremely prosperous and bustling place.

As caravans and travelers gathered, people gradually settled down here, buying and renting houses and doing business.

By saving on round-trip transportation, they sell goods at higher prices than those in the interior, but it's still a good deal.

The All Under Heaven is bustling with activity, all driven by the pursuit of profit.

More and more people flocked to Azure Cliff City. Where there was demand, there was supply. Soon, there were tourists, as well as many famous martial arts heroes who traveled the world, who also visited Azure Cliff City, wanting to see the scenery Outside the Pass the pass.

Li Hao sat in Hedge-Enclosed Courtyard inside the city.

No one disturbed them.

He selected Musical Rhythm to Heart Entry, playing the piano and listening to the sounds every day. Occasionally, he would go outside the city, sit on Snow Mountain, and quietly listen to the sound of spring arriving—the sound of melting snow.

Now, the snow Outside the Pass is gradually melting, revealing large areas of black soil buried under the white snow.

From the black soil, tender green shoots gradually sprouted.

As Li Hao absorbed the Musical Rhythm into his Heart Entry, some art masters whom his Warrior had previously invited through their connections also came to visit Azure Cliff City.

Li Hao invited them to the courtyard, where he played music, discussed painting, Chess, and drank wine with them, displaying the demeanor of an Aristocratic Clan and pleasure-seeking nobleman.

But the Warrior within the Border Pass all knew how extraordinary this young man's Heavenly Talent was, and aside from curiosity, they had no other thoughts about him.

Li Hongzhuang was surprised to see that Li Hao was not cultivating himself, but instead spending his days in leisure and cultivating his mind. However, she did not interfere much. She focused on the results. Regardless of the process of Li Hao's cultivation, the results were already beyond the reach of others.

That's enough.

These art masters initially thought that Li Hao was just acting on a whim, mainly coming with the intention of making friends.

Upon closer examination, some of the art masters nearly collapsed under Li Hao's weight. Some of the expert questions he asked left them speechless, and while they were secretly amazed, they also developed a deep respect for the young man.

They have reverence for Warrior, but only for their power. However, when someone can discuss with them what they have studied for many years, their respect is admiration, appreciation, praise, and joy.

Through these art masters, Li Hao seeks out illustrated guides to masterpieces.

There was indeed an unexpected bonus.

A master painter is willing to give away a Famous Painting that he has treasured for many years.

A renowned Chess Dao, known as the "Little Chess Saint," gifted Li Hao two Chess Manual.

Unfortunately, one of the Chess Manual is not considered a famous one and therefore cannot be included.

In addition, they mentioned other clues about Famous Painting and who owned them.

Li Hao noted them all down, planning to have someone visit them later to see if they were willing to transfer the shares.

Time flies by, and in the blink of an eye, the snow has melted.

Spring will come next year.