Hodan still had over 300,000 Inkstones on him, but he felt his Saint-level clone still needed time to grow, so he didn't waste money indulging himself. Instead, he spent a while wandering around Silvermoon City, visiting more than a dozen hotels to look at their accommodations. In the end, he chose a quiet, elegantly furnished hotel of modest size.
A year's stay cost 300 Inkstones.
Hodan paid 300,000 Inkstones on the spot and booked a thousand years' lodging. He was confident his Saint-level clone would make good progress in a thousand years. And even if it didn't, he still had a full set of Thunder Godheads, so he had some capital to fall back on.
After paying the lodging fee, he received a black room token. Hodan entered his quarters and pushed open the courtyard gate. Before him lay an elegant courtyard with a small pond and a little garden. Behind them stood a three-story bamboo building, lending the place a distinctive air of tranquility. Hodan had always been a quiet person, and he was pleased. He felt that his 300,000 Inkstones had been well spent.
Hodan looked up at the sky. It was only dusk, and the blood-red sun was setting in the west. Every city in Hell had a curfew, and those watchers were probably still waiting outside, so Hodan didn't go out. Once the curfew began, the watchers would know he had checked into a hotel.
The innkeepers wouldn't casually reveal their guests' information. After all, the proprietors in Hell had a certain professional integrity. Besides, this was the Chief Sovereign's territory. Unless someone was a Paragon, no one dared cause trouble in a city. That would naturally deter anyone from trying.
Hodan calmed himself and took the opportunity to absorb Soul Golden Beads, hoping to raise his soul to its limit as quickly as possible and speed up his cultivation.
Hodan held a Soul Golden Bead in his hand and touched it directly with his divine soul, guiding its power as he began absorbing the Soul Essence and strengthening his soul.
As expected of a Soul Golden Bead, it required no focused control at all. His soul absorbed the Soul Essence directly. The sensation of his soul growing with its constant nourishment was very pleasant.
While absorbing the Soul Golden Beads, Hodan discovered that his soul was actually blade-shaped, which meant he had a talent for cultivating the Destruction Rules. That made sense: lightning was one of the most destructive forces in the world, and Hodan had become a Thunder-element Mid-God, so of course he had some talent for the Destruction Rules. It was hard to say how much talent he had, but the discovery still made him very happy. It meant he had another path to becoming stronger.
Since Hodan had gained insight into the Fate Rule, the limit of his Saint-level clone's soul power had also increased. So he replenished his Saint-level clone's soul power first. After all, the Saint-level clone had unlimited potential and was perhaps the foundation of Hodan's strength.
But the Saint-level clone reached its limit after absorbing only about twenty beads and could absorb no more. Hodan had already replenished its soul to the limit before. Although he had gained insight into the Fate Rule, he hadn't become a god, so even if its limit had increased, the increase was only slight.
His Thunder-element Mid-God clone, on the other hand, absorbed all the Soul Golden Beads, along with the ones he had saved from before. Only then did its soul barely reach a full state. The sudden surge in his divine soul made Hodan feel as if he were floating on air. He knew it was an illusion caused by his soul's rapid growth, and that the feeling would fade once he had adjusted to it.
Hodan calmed himself and savored the benefits of the surge in his divine soul. He found that his understanding of the laws and rules corresponding to both his Thunder God Clone and his Saint Domain True Body had become clearer. His Thunder God Clone, in particular, could faintly sense several Mysteries he hadn't yet cultivated. Now that he had a sense of them, Hodan believed he would soon grasp the basics.
After a night of absorbing and cultivating, Hodan didn't feel tired at all. Instead, he felt refreshed. Cultivation really was addictive.
After resting through the night, Hodan left his set of Thunder Godheads and the items he used to protect his life with his Saint Domain True Body, so it could cultivate properly in Hell. His Thunder God Clone took only its own set of artifacts and the sword-shaped Highgod sword.
Apart from Beirut's family, no one on Yulan Continent could threaten Hodan. At this stage, the strongest people on the continent were only four Lowgods. Without Beirut's family, Hodan could practically have walked all over Yulan Continent and become its king without a problem.
After all, a Plane Overseer's purpose was to guard a plane and prevent powerful beings from damaging a Material Plane. Under ordinary circumstances, the Plane Overseer was the strongest person on that plane. Of course, there were also powerful beings born on Material Planes who returned to live in seclusion after traveling to a Supreme Plane to gain experience, but such cases were rare.
After all, those who could return to a Material Plane were generally Seven-Star Fiends. People who had seen countless wonders were like city-dwellers used to life in a metropolis. They might enjoy a brief stay in the countryside, but few would want to remain there for long.
Besides, only the Supreme Planes offered the possibility of further progress. What strong opponents could one find to hone oneself against on a Material Plane? Which powerful being who had become a Seven-Star Fiend wouldn't want to reach the summit and see the view from the top?
After a night under curfew, Hodan believed the watchers outside had left. They didn't know how long he would stay. A single hotel stay could last a year, and a god's retreat could last a hundred years or more. They were better off finding another target rather than wasting that much time.
Still, to avoid trouble, Hodan put on the concealing black robe. Better safe than sorry. He made a few rounds through Silvermoon City in the robe and confirmed that no one was watching him anymore.
As the city closest to the Plane Teleportation Array, Silvermoon City also had members of the Renars Clan stationed there.
Hodan found a tavern with a Thunder Serpent emblem hanging above it. It was the Renars Clan's crest.
He showed his clan crest to the person in charge and revealed his soul aura. After the man verified his identity, Hodan asked him to send word to Elder Muli that he was safe. After all, Elder Muli had helped him hold off Jiawei of the Four Divine Beasts Clan, giving Hodan the chance to escape. Muli had no idea what had happened to him since.
It was only right for Hodan to let Elder Muli, who cared about him, know that he was safe.
As for why Hodan hadn't chosen to cultivate in peace at the clan's residence, it was because he had a secret as a transmigrator, and he absolutely couldn't let anyone find out about it—not until he could protect himself, at the very least.
Hodan worried that he might accidentally act differently from before and make others suspicious. He didn't know whether this world had a concept of body-snatching, but soul control certainly existed. The Renars Clan wouldn't stand by and do nothing if one of its members were controlled. Especially since Elder Muli was quite close to him.
So Hodan chose to stay on his own in Silvermoon City and rent a place there. That was the best way to protect his secret, and it benefited both him and the Renars Clan.
Then Hodan left the city and flew toward the Plane Teleportation Array. The world was vast, and a Mid-God was still too weak. The journey of ten thousand miles took him three days, even though he devoted himself to traveling. Fortunately, there weren't many bandits in the area, or things might have taken another turn.
Three days later, Hodan finally reached the teleportation array. Perhaps it was one of Lord Black Sand's eccentric whims, but the Plane Teleportation Array was built atop a cliff that had been carved into the shape of billowing smoke. From a distance, it looked like a column of black smoke shooting straight into the sky. At its top stood an ancient castle built entirely of black stone.
The ancient castle seemed to have existed since time immemorial, yet a dreamlike light always shone faintly from within its black walls. Lord Black Sand must have had a particular fondness for the color black. After all, everything Hodan had seen associated with Lord Black Sand was black.
At the center of the black castle was a wide-open courtyard paved with smooth, flat slabs of gleaming silver stone. Two enormous magic arrays, each a hundred meters across, sat side by side, making them impossible to miss.
These enormous magic arrays were Hodan's destination: the Plane Teleportation Arrays. He would use one of them to travel to the Material Plane of Yulan Continent. The other led to a different divine or Supreme Plane.
Hodan flew over. The many Black Oblivion Army soldiers patrolling the area had spotted him long ago.
"Stop right there!" a Black Oblivion Army soldier shouted.
Hodan immediately descended. The golden-haired, close-cropped commander, whose hair stood like steel bristles, swept a cold gaze over him and barked, "What business do you have in Black Annihilation Heaven?"
"I'm taking that teleportation passage to assume my post on a Material Plane," Hodan said politely, then took out his Plane Overseer Token.
The golden-haired commander's expression softened. "So you're a fellow Overseer. What's your name, brother? Which plane are you being assigned to?"
It was no wonder the golden-haired commander's expression had changed. Plane Overseers and the Chief Sovereign's armies both belonged to the Chief Sovereign's organization, though they were different departments. But being an Overseer was a cushy job, and it took connections to get one.
After all, who wouldn't want a job where they could rule over a Material Plane and safely earn Inkstones? Of course, that didn't apply to special planes inhabited by powerful beings.
"Oh, you're too kind, brother. My name is Hodan," he replied. "What should I call you?"
Hodan wanted to get along with these people. After all, they were all part of the same organization, and when he eventually returned to Hell, he would come back here. As a Plane Overseer, he also had one chance each year to send supplies to his clone on the Material Plane or switch places with it. There was no harm in making friends.
Many gods believed that traveling from a Material Plane to a Supreme Plane involved random destinations, but that wasn't true. The secret lay in the Plane Overseer Token Hodan held. A miniature magic array engraved inside it could connect to one teleportation array in one of the Four Supreme Planes—but only one.
This was also done for administrative convenience. Hell and the other three Supreme Planes each had more than a dozen teleportation arrays scattered across their vast lands. After all, without the Plane Overseer Token, no one knew which array they would randomly arrive at. If they were unlucky, they might need hundreds or even thousands of attempts just to return to where they had started.
This also took into account the problem of gods settling in cities near teleportation arrays. Real estate in the Supreme Planes was so expensive that no one should have to give up their home just for a job.
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