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Chapter 1000: For a Single Slot

Yang Haoran's decision to go to Gu Mo City as an Emissary of Death had another crucial objective.

His aim was to forge a closer relationship with Luo Yao, the Guardian. Once he resolved the issues in Gu Mo City, Luo Yao was sure to bestow a reward.

Though he had spoken beautifully in Luo Yao's presence, claiming it was his honor to relieve his superior of his worries and such, those were merely empty pleasantries meant to leave a good impression.

However, the reward he desired wasn't necessarily one Luo Yao would choose for him; Luo Yao's selections might not align with his deepest wishes. Thus, he intended to ask Luo Yao for the specific reward he truly sought.

Naturally, he wouldn't be so foolish as to make an exorbitant demand of Luo Yao. Besides, Luo Yao wouldn't be so naive as to grant his every wish. What he wanted was something Luo Yao could easily provide, a matter of a single word for the Guardian.

What he wanted was quite simple: a slot, specifically a slot as an Emissary of Death.

Currently, the Jingling Continent Underworld Office had suffered heavy losses, and many Emissaries of Death under Luo Yao had perished. This left numerous Emissary of Death positions vacant, so acquiring one slot would naturally be no difficulty for Luo Yao. After all, Luo Yao would find a way to fill these empty posts anyway.

A slot for an Emissary of Death meant little to Luo Yao, who would certainly not concern himself with it. But to Yang Haoran, this slot was of utmost importance, for it concerned Old Master Wu's very life.

As Old Master Wu grew older, his body deteriorated day by day. Although he had successfully opened his Heaven Soul, he was not a true Underworld Agent. His physical body hadn't undergone the transformation by the rules of Heaven and Earth, so he was still subject to birth, aging, illness, and death. He simply wouldn't die as quickly as an ordinary person, as the power within him could delay the aging process of his physical body.

But delaying senescence wouldn't solve the problem. To resolve it at its root, his physical body had to undergo the transformation by Heaven and Earth. Only then would his body cease to decay with the passage of time.

Once, Yang Haoran had naively believed that perhaps only the Underworld Agents of their Underworld Office in this world possessed immortal, ageless bodies. However, as his strength grew and his knowledge broadened, he discovered that this was not the case.

There were two ways to achieve an ageless, immortal physical body. One method was similar to that of the Underworld Agents from their Underworld Office: the body undergoes transformation by the rules of Heaven and Earth, thereby ceasing to age naturally and thus never dying.

There were also two ways for a physical body to undergo the transformation by the rules of Heaven and Earth. One was to become an Underworld Agent, like Yang Haoran. The other was to cultivate one's power to a level where it gained the recognition of Heaven and Earth during one's lifetime. Once acknowledged by Heaven and Earth, the physical body would similarly be transformed, granting it an ageless, immortal form.

Since both these methods involve altering the physical body through the rules of Heaven and Earth, they both fall under the first general approach.

Beyond transformation through the rules of Heaven and Earth, there was another method: consuming heaven-defying elixirs or heavenly treasures and earthly wonders that could render the body ageless and immortal. With immense luck, acquiring such miraculous items could likewise grant one an ageless, immortal physical form.

However, this method was far too ethereal. Yang Haoran had only ever seen records of it in ancient texts. Whether anyone in reality truly possessed such heaven-defying luck, he couldn't be certain. At any rate, he hadn't encountered it so far.

In comparison, the first method was far more tangible and relatively simpler.

Besides these two methods, there was also a 'non-method' method: becoming a ghost and then finding a way to enhance one's power. When one successfully broke through to the Ghost King realm, they could reshape a physical body. In a sense, this did count as a method, but it was applicable only to the deceased, not the living. Hence, it was merely a 'non-method' method.

Yang Haoran's goal was to ensure Old Master Wu's survival. Naturally, the method of turning Old Master Wu into a ghost was not within his consideration. He wouldn't resort to such a method unless absolutely pushed to the brink.

Therefore, to grant Old Master Wu an ageless, immortal physical body, one either had to choose to let the rules of Heaven and Earth transform it, or consume heaven-defying heavenly treasures and earthly wonders or elixirs to modify it. The latter was far too elusive and certainly unfeasible, leaving only the option of allowing the rules of Heaven and Earth to transform the body.

Among the two methods for the rules of Heaven and Earth to transform the physical body, choosing to have Old Master Wu's strength reach a level recognized by Heaven and Earth was equally unrealistic. Old Master Wu's physical body wouldn't last for more than a few years, and there was no way his strength could reach the level of Heaven and Earth's recognition before his body perished. Hence, this method was definitely unworkable.

Since this method was unfeasible, there was only one remaining way for Old Master Wu's physical body to undergo transformation by the rules of Heaven and Earth: for Old Master Wu to become an Underworld Agent.

Compared to other methods, this one was the simplest. Of course, this simplicity was merely relative; it was only simpler when weighed against the other options. But truly, becoming an Underworld Agent was by no means easy.

Because Underworld Agents are ageless and immortal, prior to the world's great chaos, it was incredibly difficult to become a true Underworld Agent. Many Night Watchers, even after opening their Heaven Souls, found no vacant positions for them to become true Underworld Agents.

But things were different now. With the world in great chaos, Underworld Agents fell every now and then, leaving many Emissary of Death positions vacant. Precisely because of this, becoming an Underworld Agent was now much simpler than in peacetime.

Yang Haoran intended to ask Luo Yao for a slot as an Emissary of Death, specifically for Old Master Wu.

Even before Luo Yao had departed, Yang Haoran had considered asking him for an Emissary of Death slot. However, after a brief deliberation, he hadn't spoken up, believing it wasn't the right time.

It wasn't Yang Haoran's style to demand things from his direct superior before achieving anything. Furthermore, Luo Yao might not even agree. If he failed to secure the slot, he would only leave a poor impression on Luo Yao, making the effort counterproductive.

Thus, he remained silent. He decided to proceed to Gu Mo City, achieve some results, and then find an opportune moment to request a slot from Luo Yao. This was also one of the reasons he was willing to go to Gu Mo City.

Old Master Wu had been with him for several years. During this time, Old Master Wu had handled almost all the miscellaneous affairs of the Lecheng Underworld Office. It was precisely because of Old Master Wu's presence that Yang Haoran could confidently be a hands-off manager.

Now, Old Master Wu was aging, with not much life left. Under these circumstances, Yang Haoran had to find a way to change this, for he had never forgotten the promise he made to Old Master Wu back then.

Moreover, even if he hadn't made any promises to Old Master Wu, he wouldn't simply stand by and watch him die.

He had also considered becoming a Guardian himself. Once he became a Guardian, making Old Master Wu a true Underworld Agent would be an easy task.

However, Jingran Pharmacy had only been operating for a short while. If he were to contend for the Guardian position now, exposing his full strength to the public, he wouldn't just fail to achieve his goal; he would also risk losing himself. It would be incredibly difficult to explain the source of his power, and even if he did, others might not believe him. If it came to that, not only he but everyone around him, including Xu Meijing, would suffer. Thus, he dared not take that risk.

Furthermore, contending for the Guardian position was not as simple as vying for an Emissary of Death slot. Opening both the Heaven and Earth Souls was merely the minimum requirement. Some Emissaries of Death who had long since opened both their Heaven and Earth Souls would certainly participate in the competition. If he encountered such powerful experts, even if he unleashed his full strength, he might not necessarily defeat them.

Therefore, at present, he had no intention of competing for any Guardian position. He felt the most rational approach was to first establish a good relationship with Luo Yao, his superior, and obtain as many benefits from him as possible.

Previously, he had no opportunity to build a good relationship with Luo Yao; the man simply hadn't taken him seriously. Now that an opportunity presented itself, he naturally didn't want to miss it.

Furthermore, he also wanted to use Luo Yao as a connection to understand the higher echelons of the Underworld Office. Only by gaining a deeper understanding of that circle and establishing his own network would it be easier for him to contend for the Guardian position when the time came.

The world's great chaos had only just begun and certainly wouldn't end anytime soon. There would undoubtedly be more than just two Guardians falling in the Underworld Office, so he still had opportunities. There was no need to rush at this moment.