Mount Baiyun had returned to its usual tranquility, peace and quiet. Not a single trace of their peril and danger during the invasion of the Hades Tribe remained, and layers of dreamy white clouds encircled this spiritual mountain.
Three ladies sat facing each other in a stone room deep within Mount Baiyun. The person sitting on the main seat was a white-robed lady with an appearance that possessed the elegance of a grown female but also the look of an immature little girl.
This lady wore a casual look on her face. One couldn’t see her injuries on the outside, but the aura of mana around her body appeared as feeble as ever.
She was a member of the Great Void Sect’s Supreme Elder Council, and the disciple of the Qing Yi Holy Woman who had passed away. She was Yan Mingyue’s master, Yun Yuanzhen, and she was slashed by Lin Feng’s sword and almost died on the spot before she was thrown into the Black Sea. It was unimaginably fortunate that she was able to survive the ordeal and that she even returned with her life.
Another female in white clothes sat opposite her. Compared to Yun Yuanzhen’s plain look on her face, this lady’s expression was a lot more solemn and serious. She was another supreme elder from the Great Void Sect, the Yu Yuan Holy Woman.
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman said, “Yun Yuanzhen, all your plans in the past don’t seem like they can be realized. What do you intend to do next?”
She turned towards Yun Yuanzhen before she glanced at the young-looking girl sitting beside Yun Yuanzhen. She was Yun Yuanzhen’s disciple, Yan Mingyue.
Yun Yuanzhen sighed and said, “The Great Zhou Empire was originally the most appropriate choice. If not for the appearance of the Celestial Sect of Wonders, everything should have gone according to plan. However, saying all this at this point in time is meaningless. Just as you said, the projections that Yan Mingyue and I had in mind will never come true. At least, they will never come true for as long as the Celestial Sect of Wonders is around.”
Yan Mingyue hadn’t said a single word from the beginning as she said at the side. She listened quietly to the conversation between her elders as she bowed down halfway and said, “It’s my fault, and my reasoning wasn’t complete enough.”
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman and Yun Yuanzhen shook their heads. Yun Yuanzhen said, “Don’t blame yourself. You’re not the only person who have miscalculated when it comes to the Celestial Sect of Wonders – if you really want to go there, this includes my master, the Tai Yi Holy Man, the Zheng Yi Holy Man and the Xuan Yi Holy Man, and even myself. Everybody else have also been wrong.”
Yan Mingyue grew silent once more. She couldn’t help but think back to her conversation with Lin Feng back during the battle of Xiling City.
“I have more faith in the vast ocean. No matter how big the boat is, it will still travel along the ocean.”
“That may not be true. My boat – it might be able to fly.”
The mortal ocean couldn’t hold down a divine ship, and the universe and the stars in the skies were its rightful path.
Yan Mingyue shook her head as she laughed at herself. She had a foreboding feeling and this foreboding inkling had gradually become reality over the years. However, never once did she think that this day would arrive so quickly, and so fast that everybody else besides the Celestial Sect of Wonders themselves were caught off guard.
Reality was laid out right before her eyes and it didn’t allow her any room for doubt and disregard. All she could do was face reality.
“The Great Zhou Empire have been laid to waste. The other powers in the world are not as powerful as they seem and some are even learning towards the Celestial Sect of Wonders. The situation inside the Divine Lands has deteriorated,” Yun Yuanzhen sighed again and said, “The day when the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders will tear down his facade and reveal his ferocious teeth is upon us.”
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman replied, “The original body of the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders and his fearsome sword are sitting inside Mount Yujing, and they are holding back the demons. Even his disciples can destroy the Great Zhou Empire by themselves, and everybody else remains fearful of the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders and will never interfere without a proper reason. The Great Void Sect has sealed itself inside the mountain and we can only watch on as everything unfurls around us.”
“The most important consideration after the destruction of the Celestial Sect of Wonders is that they could become a lot stronger as a result.”
“The Imperial Palace and the Great Heavenly Wheels are extremely powerful magic treasures. It’s unimaginable when they eventually bend to the Celestial Sect of Wonders’ will, and when Liang Pan and Zhu Hongwu will gift the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain to them as well. They would control both the Fangzhang and the Yingzhou Celestial Mountain, and they will have an immense advantage the next time the Ying Sea opens up.”
Yun Yuanzhen and Yan Mingyue grew solemn as they heard the Yu Yuan Holy Woman’s words.
Yun Yuanzhen turned towards the Yu Yuan holy Woman and said, “Do the Zheng Yi Holy Man and the others intend to snatch the Imperial Palace and the Great Heavenly Wheels?”
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman answered, “They did consider this before. However, they never had the chance and as the Celestial Sect of Wonders is watching over the Barren Expanses, they are also watching us and it will be a mistake if we make a move.”
She exchanged a look with Yun Yuanzhen and shook her head.
For the Great Void Sect, their only chance at taking in the Imperial Palace and the Great Heavenly Wheels was to reach them before the Celestial Sect of Wonders.
However, when the war between the worlds ended, the Great Void Sect was weak, and their losses were relatively severe. The Qing Yi Holy Woman and Yan Nanlai perished in the battle, and the Tai Yi Holy Man, the Zheng Yi Holy Man and the Xuan Yi Holy Man and Wu Mengqi, who was able to direct the power of the Netherworld Sea, sustained injuries and were all anemic.
Even if they took down the Great Zhou Empire, they would easily fall behind the others.
The Great Zhou Empire had been getting closer to the Great Void Sect these few years. They even used the Imperial Palace and the Divine Lands’ Draconic Energy to reinforce Mount Baiyun during the war between the worlds. The Great Void Sect taking down the Great Zhou Empire would be unsightly indeed.
The Great Zhou Empire had a history of evil deeds and they even ambushed the Great Qin Empire during the war between the worlds to use their Draconic Energy to reinforce Mount Baiyun. Even though they helped out the Great Void Sect, they were trying to weaken the Great Qin Empire at the same time. If the Great Void Sect wanted to settle things with the Great Zhou Empire and if they treated every achievement and every mistake as they were, taking them down wouldn’t be entirely out of the question.
However, the Great Void Sect had no reason to stop the Celestial Sect of Wonders if they wanted to interfere. The Great Void Sect would never want a conflict to arise because of this.
This invasion of the Great Zhou Empire was executed after the war between the worlds. This wasn’t just a feud between the Celestial Sect of Wonders and the Great Zhou Empire and between the Great Qin and the Great Zhou Empire – this was also a contest of power between the Celestial Sect of Wonders and the Great Void Sect after the war.
The effects of the war between the worlds had far-reaching consequences, and this was only the beginning of the Celestial Sect of Wonders taking over the Great Void Sect as the number-one sect in the Divine Lands. This was only the first step in the days to come.
“The Emperor of the Dead is severely injured and there’s nothing much he could do. The Ancients should be officially leaning towards the Celestial Sect of Wonders after this,” the Yu Yuan Holy Woman muttered, “The only people that can stop their conquest of the Great Zhou Empire are the Buddhists. I just don’t know what their perspective towards the Celestial Sect of Wonders is.”
“Even though there was that Karmic Theory Debate all those years ago, Emperor Ru’s mastery isn’t something that can be matched by normal Buddhist cultivators and their opinion off the Karmic Theory Debate is hard to ascertain.”
“Just from the perspective of power, the Cosmic Marble Buddha is his birth from the past into the future, and has eventually become his current form in the present. This concept is mystical and profound, and his power will increase greatly following the passage of time. Once he reaches the peak of his power, he might be able to become the Celestial Sect of Wonders’ nemesis and this could possibly distract the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders a little.”
Yun Yuanzhen said, “It’s hard to judge what the Buddhists are going to do. However, many great demons are on the verge of action over in the Barren Expanses, except they are fearful as the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders hasn’t made a move and all they can do is stop in their tracks and watch.”
Anything that the Celestial Sect of Wonders did in the world today would draw the attention of everyone in the Divine Lands and the Barren Expanses.
Lin Feng dealt a major blow to the demons during the war between the worlds, and every single demon wanted to get back at him. Another rising great power from the human race besides the Great Void Sect and the Supreme Heavenly Mirror wasn’t good news for the demons.
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman’s gaze fixed upon her junior. “Yun Yuanzhen, have you seen the images of Zhu Yi’s battle against Zhu Hongwu inside the Arctic State?”
Yun Yuanzhen knew what she was trying to say, and her expression changed a little. She contemplated momentarily before she answered, “Senior Yu Yuan, I understand what you’re trying to say.”
“Zhu Yi of the Celestial Sect of Wonders has just ascended to the second-level immortal soul stage. His prowess and his abilities can rival that of a Vipralopa Stage cultivator. Such immense power is simply terrifying,” Yun Yuanzhen said slowly, “The other people from the Celestial Sect of Wonders, when they are in the same level of mastery as he is, would probably also possess similar levels of power.”
The stone room entered a state of silence before the Yu Yuan Holy Woman broke it and muttered, “I can’t help but think about what the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders has done over the years. What do you think he…”
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman, Yun Yuanzhen and Yan Mingyue didn’t even there to go down that chain of thought.
“Speculation is worthless at this point. What’s important is that he’s the most powerful being I nside the Divine Lands and this is an undeniable fact,” Yun Yuanzhen sighed and shook her head. “After this war between the worlds, the Divine Lands’ initiative no longer belongs to the Great Void Sect.”
“We have sealed ourselves inside the mountain to plan for our future. This can’t be helped and we can only suck it up. We should recuperate within Mount Baiyun for the near future. Yan Mingyue will stay inside Mount Baiyun to cultivate and our projections from before shall be shelved indefinitely.”
Yan Mingyue appeared as if she had known this all along as she listened intently with a calm face, and nodded towards the Yu Yuan Holy Woman.
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman said, “Everything will be resolved at the Spirit Sea. The leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders isn’t personally at the Ying Sea, so Liang Pan and Zhu Hongwu might yet have a chance of escaping.”
As they spoke, a sphere of light appeared in the center of the stone room and a voice cacme out from within. “My fellow seniors, do hurry to the summit of the mountain for a meeting.”
This voice was plain and monotonous and there wasn’t a single fluctuation in his tone – it was Lin Daohan.
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman, Yun Yuanzhen and Yan Mingyue bowed their heads and said, “Sect leader.”
Lin Daohan continued to speak, “Liang Pan and Zhu Hongwu have been defeated. Both of them were either murdered or captured, and the Imperial Palace, the Great Heavenly Wheels and the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain have all landed in the hands of the Celestial Sect of Wonders.”
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman and the three others sighed yet again. “If the Celestial Sect of Wonders can assimilate all these plunder, their powers will be amplified.”
However, Lin Daohan didn’t stop. “Besides that, the leader of the Celestial Sect of Wonders has been extremely reserved and it’s always a mystery with him. Besides the Yingzhou Celestial Mountain, the Penglai Celestial Mountain have been in their possession all along. Now that they have the Fangzhang Celestial Mountain, all three mountains are in the Celestial Sect of Wonders’ control.”
“The Ying Sea is in danger!”
The Yu Yuan Holy Woman, Yun Yuanzhen and Yan Mingyue’s eyes widened and their mouths hung open. “What?!”
