Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
When the trio left the Myriad Buddhas Sect, they carefully hid their stature and breath, all to avoid the pursuit of the Emperor’s men nearby. After all, Jiang Hongyan had not received the Celestial Concealment Herb when she arrived with Xu Que. The Emperor must have known that she had come to the Myriad Buddhas Sect; however, now with the coverage from the Celestial Concealment Herb and the engulfment of Lord Zeng’s powerful Soul Strength, they managed to leave undetected.
After a long journey boarding and traveling through several Teleportation Spells, the three of them arrived outside a remote mountain village in the Tong Tian Nation after more than ten days.
“According to our plan, I will first go to the Imperial Palace and pick some bones with that old fellow. I’ll keep him away from the palace, but the rest is up to you two. Since that old fellow was always distrustful, I’m afraid you don’t have a lot of time. You’d better get that tree out within three days!” Lord Zeng solemnly advised.
According to the plan they had developed along the way, Lord Zeng would be the first to set out. After the Emperor was led away, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan would sneak into the Imperial Palace to steal the God-realization Tree. In any case, it was a rough and straightforward tactic to lure the enemy away from his base, but it was undeniably the most convenient and efficient. Also, it had the highest success rate of all the plans they had discussed!
After giving his advice, Lord Zeng left in a hurry and headed toward the Imperial Palace.
They were racing against time; the quicker they started, the better their chances.
Xu Que looked at Lord Zeng’s disappearing silhouette and pursed his lips slightly: “C’mon, Hongyan, let’s follow him!”
“Huh? Aren’t we supposed to wait for four hours?” Jiang Hongyan asked curiously.
“That’s just what we told him. If we wait here for four hours, we’ll be in danger if he betrays us!” Xu Que shook his head and said. He was never a man for waiting.
With his personality, it was impossible for him to trust Lord Zeng unreservedly even if he had thought well of him. Therefore, Xu Que made a plan that belonged solely to them both.
Otherwise, if Lord Zeng betrayed them, them waiting here would be like fishes throwing themselves into the net. It would be too passive!
“Rest assured, little fellow. According to Lord Zheng’s character, he will not be of bad faith. If he wanted to harm us, there’s no need to use such means. He could have done it himself ages ago!” Jiang Hongyan chuckled and told Xu Que that he didn’t need to be too vigilant, hoping that he would relax.
Xu Que shook his head again and said, “I also believe that Lord Zheng’s not that kind of person. I am just preparing for the worst, just in case! And my new plan is perfect, more effective than the previous plan. If all goes well, we might even push from behi…bah, no, catch them off-guard! With the original diversion tactic, it will be a two-pronged approach!”
“Okay!” Jiang Hongyan looked at Xu Que’s face and nodded with a smile. Anyway, she would always believe in Xu Que’s decisions. As a result, as soon as Lord Zeng had left, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan set off quickly for the Imperial Palace as well. Xu Que just had a small change in his new plan. They would take a shortcut and reach the Imperial Palace before Lord Zheng!
…
For the next ten days, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan used the transmission Array to ensure not a second was wasted. They had finally arrived outside the Imperial Palace!
Xu Que was shocked.
He had thought that the Imperial Palace would be similar to the palace in the Five Elements Mountain or just a more enormous and magnificent palace! He never expected to see a heavenly palace suspended in the sky, made from countless white Spiritual Jades.
It was almost the same as what he had seen in mythological dramas he saw back on earth when he was a child. A spiritual mist surrounded it and, with only the palace visible in the fog, it appeared to be extraordinarily divine.
“Little Miss, my god, you lived here in your previous life? No wonder, this proves that I must have guessed right! When I first saw you, I thought you must be a fairy, but also only a god could….cough, no, you’re a fairy anyway! That’s terrific!” Xu Que was both shocked and amazed.
Because ever since Xu Que’s arrival in the cultivator world, he had seen countless magic and many magnificent buildings. However, this was his first time witnessing such a structure that completely hovered in the air. It was like a magnificent structure from Heaven, full of fairy existence!
At this time, he realized that he seemed to be a step closer to the immortal, who seemed so out of reach before. At least, such a thing as “getting Tao to become immortal” no longer felt illusory!
“In my memory, this is but a cold and heartless place. There is no beauty worth reminiscing about!” Jiang Hongyan looked at the Imperial Palace with a complex expression, and said softly.
Xu Que knew that Jiang Hongyan was reminded of her awful past. From an early age, she had been controlled by the emperor as a puppet. She was carefully cultivated to extract her soul to be implanted into the God-realization Tree. After that, she was slaughtered and reincarnated with immortal artifacts. The Emperor had made her a tool to steal the kismet and Enlightenment of heaven and earth, all to seize them from her later.
However, all these were still ideas of the Emperor planning for his future. Once he refined the God-realization Fruit and the soul of Jiang Hongyan, he could take away Jiang Hongyan’s kismet and use it for himself. No one could imagine how messed up a man had to be, to commit such cruelty to his child!
“Rest assured. I will avenge whatever he did to you; I will double the payback!” Xu Que turned his head and looked at Jiang Hongyan. He reached out and gently scraped the tip of her nose. Jiang Hongyan smiled slightly. Her elegance was extraordinary and beautiful enough to make everything else lose color!
Boom!
At this time, a sound of something breaking the air suddenly came from the distant clouds.
In a blink of an eye, a golden light pierced the clouds and appeared directly outside the Imperial Palace, turning into a figure. It was Lord Zeng! He did keep his promise. As soon as he arrived, he released his soul and shouted angrily, “Old Ji, you are going to answer me today! How on earth did my Myriad Buddhas Sect ever offend you!”
As his voice fell, Lord Zeng put his palms together. His whole body bloomed into a ray of dazzling golden light, like a power to purify the world that shone in all directions.
Xu Que hid in the distance and was stunned to hear Lord Zeng’s roar.
Old Ji?
Jiang Hongyan’s surname was Ji in her previous life. Should he call her Ji Hongyan or Jiang Hongyan from now on?
Boom!
A terrible loud crash and the golden light on Lord Zheng’s body thundered toward the Imperial Palace! Outside the Imperial Palace, a hemispherical light screen flashed. The dome forcefully blocked the golden light but also dimmed instantly. Then, an audible crisp clack resounded. The light screen instantly cracked and broke apart!
However, right when the protection was about to collapse, an unmatched Taoist Connotation suddenly swept out of the Imperial Palace!
Boom!
With a loud bang, he had blasted Lord Zheng’s golden light into oblivion. Moments later, a pair of golden luans, basking in a delightful glow, pulled a carriage out of the spiritual mist.
A man in a Golden Dragon Robe sat in the carriage. His hair had turned white, but his face was childlike; his skin was as smooth and tender as a baby. He looked indifferent and carried an air of neutral and self-assertive dignity. High and mighty, his eyes swept toward Lord Zeng. He bellowed, “Fat Buddha, what’s the meaning of this? Are you declaring war?”
“Hmph! What’s the meaning of this, you ask? I’m the one who should be asking you that! Your daughter brought a teenager along and barged into the Myriad Buddhas Sect, wreaking havoc and even stole my Celestial Concealment Herb. Tell me then, what’s the meaning of that?” Lord Zeng showed no intention of retreating. Instead, he heightened his powerful aura and crushed it directly down at the emperor.
“Nonsense! My daughter was in the Imperial Palace doing Secluded Meditation and never left. How could she appear in your Myriad Buddhas Sect? Have you gone crazy seeking the Buddha?” The Emperor hummed coldly.
Lord Zeng, however, looked furious and shouted, “My Buddha is merciful! Today, I will help you to cross the bitter sea of life!”
Boom!
Before the sounds of the Buddha ceased, Lord Zeng slapped his palms together and pushed them forward. Lord Zeng was truly furious. The Emperor looked down on his Buddhist doctrine, which was tantamount to provoking the belief he was pursuing!
“Atrocious! Do you truly want to fight with me?” The Emperor also frowned and roared.
Lord Zeng’s attack was crushingly powerful. It was clear that he wanted to fight head on.
Lord Zheng ignored his comments. After pushing out a palm move, a golden Buddha seal suddenly ploughed down at the emperor.
“Do you think that I’m afraid of you? You couldn’t even keep an eye on your things, yet you dare to come to me for justice! You are seeking death today!” the Emperor shouted angrily and swept out from the luan carriage. He bounced off the top of the golden luan’s head and flung out a purple glow from his palm; like imperial air coming from the east, it bore down at Lord Zeng.
Boom!
With two great powerhouses at the Great Vehicle Stage fighting, the collision they made was terrifying! The whole void was shattered and cracked.
Fortunately, Lord Zeng deliberately lured the Emperor astray, and the further away he fought with the Emperor, the battlefield gradually headed far from the Emperor’s palace.
“So, this is the real strength of the Great Vehicle Stage! By contrast, Qin Wei is nothing…. Xu Que was shocked and glad that he had not been impulsive enough to pick a fight with the Emperor without any plan. But now, with Lord Zeng starting the fight, it was time for him to act too!
“Come with me, little fellow. The God-realization Tree is hidden somewhere in the Imperial Palace!” At this time, Jiang Hongyan opened her mouth, ready to take Xu Que into the Imperial Palace!
Xu Que suddenly stopped her and said with a smile, “Wait a minute, little miss!”
“What’s wrong?”Jiang Hongyan was startled.
Xu Que smirked. “I’m going to make him lose more than just one tree!”
Jiang Hongyan suddenly became more confused; she did not understand Xu Que’s words.
There was only one tree of God-realization. If they took it away, it would be a waste of the thousands of years of sacred effort he had put in it. This cost was enough to hurt the Emperor to his core!
“Do you remember the rules of the Exploding Heavens Faction?” Xu Que narrowed his eyes and looked abruptly at the vast Imperial Palace in front of him. He sneered, “When the Exploding Heavens goes to war, not a blade of grass will grow at all! When the Exploding Heavens appears; all they leave is a thread and a single needle!”
He bullied you all those years ago, and in this lifetime I’ll make him pay; I’ll take double the payback. This palace, first of all, shall be considered as the interest!”
With those words, Jiang Hongyan looked at Xu Que in astonishment. Xu Que’s figure suddenly blurred and transformed into a bolt of light, and it swept toward the Imperial Palace.
Boom!
With a big wave of his hand, he poured out an enormous amount of true core. At the same time, he called out the System interface and shouted: “System, open the second Holy-Weapon Keeping Pavilion! Collect the entire Imperial Palace for me! Remember to leave him a needle and thread!”
