Chapter 660: Gongsun Xuanyuan

Changchun Emperor’s voice came from far away. “Master, is that treasure an earthly treasure and spiritual root?”

His voice trembled slightly. He was clearly quite excited.

He had never seen an earthly treasure and spiritual root so enormous.

The reason Changchun Emperor had suffered Dao injuries from the external Dao was that, back then, he had judged himself unable to survive the Opening the Calamity, and had therefore ventured deep into the Dark Sea in search of an earthly treasure and spiritual root that could help him cross the calamity. He had endured all manner of hardship, yet still failed to find one capable of helping a Great Luo Gold Immortal survive the Opening the Calamity. The depth of his excitement at seeing the Ni Li Sacred Tree now could well be imagined.

“That’s right. It’s an earthly treasure and spiritual root,” Chen Shi said. “This is what the Great Celestial Venerable wants. There will certainly be a struggle between the Immortal Court and the Celestial Court along the way. Emperor, don’t get involved. The Jade Emperor and Great Celestial Venerable will most likely use this opportunity to have a showdown with the Immortal Court. This earthly treasure and spiritual root is probably bait to lure the enemy. The Great Celestial Venerable must have made preparations in advance. Let’s see who takes the bait.”

Changchun Emperor’s heart tightened when he heard this. “Thank you for the warning. Though I can neither live nor die, I no longer need this Great Luo earthly treasure and spiritual root.”

In the distance, Lady Niangpo also sighed faintly, giving up the thought of making a move.

A Great Luo-level earthly treasure and spiritual root was certainly a great temptation to her. Though letting the external Dao infect her would allow her to avoid the Opening the Calamity, she would have to endure the torment of its pollution day and night, a fate worse than death.

She had once been an incomparable beauty, but now she could only lie on a sickbed and cling to life.

If she could obtain a Great Luo earthly treasure and spiritual root, she would be free and at ease, with no need to worry about whether she could survive the Opening the Calamity.

Chen Shi said, “Fellow Daoist Changchun, could you send a message on my behalf and warn the fellow Daoists in the Dao Ruins not to touch King Li?”

Changchun Emperor hesitated for a moment. “Since Master has asked, I’ll do my best to try.”

He immediately circulated his cultivation and sent his voice into every corner of the Dao Ruins, speaking clearly and loudly. “Fellow Daoists in the Dao Ruins, listen to Changchunzi for a moment. King Li is Master’s honored guest, and the treasure he carries is bait laid by the Great Celestial Venerable. I urge you all to cherish your lives and not fall into the trap.”

There had originally been quite a few ancient beings in the Dao Ruins itching to make a move, causing the Great Dao within the ruins to stir strangely. After Changchun Emperor’s warning, they gradually settled down.

An aged voice called out, “Thank you, Master and Fellow Daoist Changchun, for the warning. I should have paid Master a personal visit, but my withered body is in such poor condition that I can barely move. If Master has time, please come visit me in Yangshuo Valley.”

Chen Shi smiled. “The Great Celestial Venerable wants my life, so I must leave as soon as possible. If I survive, I’ll certainly come pay you a visit.”

After he said this, there was no reply from the aged voice for a long while.

Changchun Emperor said, “The speaker is the Hermit of Yangshuo. Yangshuo Valley, where he lives, is extremely far from here. Master’s magical power is a little lacking, so your voice can’t reach him. I’ll relay your message for you.”

Chen Shi felt somewhat embarrassed.

Changchun Emperor then relayed the message for him. Sure enough, the Hermit of Yangshuo’s voice came back, laughing. “Master is so free-spirited, unafraid of the Great Celestial Venerable’s threats. I admire you. If anyone else wanted to harm Master, I could still offer my services. It’s only the Great Celestial Venerable I fear. I’ll have to wait for Master to return before paying you a visit.”

Chen Shi said, “Emperor Changchun, please exchange a few pleasantries with him for me. I’ll make my escape first, lest the Jade Emperor and Great Celestial Venerable send someone here to see me off.”

Changchun Emperor smiled. “Master, go ahead.”

Chen Shi immediately left the Dao Realm and returned to the edge of the Dark Sea. He sprang into the air and flew along the surface of the mysterious yellow sea toward the nearest ferry crossing, thinking, “I still don’t know where the worlds of Sanyuan and Tailai are, or how to get there. I’ll head to the ferry crossing first.”

This ferry crossing on the Dark Sea had originally been established by the Celestial Court, with star rafts connecting it to the White Tiger constellations in the west.

The Western Golden Emperor’s Heavenly Palace was located among the White Tiger constellations, a place of great prosperity. The ferry crossings there would surely lead in every direction. Perhaps he could find a star raft bound for worlds like Sanyuan and Tailai.

“But the moment the Jade Emperor and Great Celestial Venerable see King Li, they’ll probably realize that King Li didn’t kill me. Then my situation will become dangerous. I can’t stay long in the Golden Emperor’s territory…”

In the Dao Ruins, Changchun Emperor indeed exchanged a couple of words with the Hermit of Yangshuo on Chen Shi’s behalf. After a moment of silence, the Hermit of Yangshuo’s voice came through. “Master has already left, hasn’t he? Changchunzi is speaking in his place, isn’t he? Changchunzi, don’t think you can fool me! I can tell it’s you as soon as I hear your voice.”

Changchun Emperor laughed heartily. “Master knows you’re a lonely old man and doesn’t want you to get bored, so he asked me to keep you company and chat. You’re an ungrateful old bachelor!”

The Hermit of Yangshuo laughed. “I may be a lonely old man, but I enjoy living by myself. Unlike you, with your two immortal boys, both of them male.”

The two traded jibes, each working himself into a fit of anger.

Changchun Emperor was so infuriated that his temper flared. He thought, “Master has helped me regulate things, so the external Dao and immortal path within me are now balanced. But the Hermit of Yangshuo has been eroded by the external Dao and his strength has greatly diminished. He’s surely no match for me. I might as well storm Yangshuo Valley and send the old gentleman on his way!”

He then took a long breath and thought, “Calm down, calm down. The Hermit of Yangshuo and I are both half-crippled, neither dead nor alive. Why make trouble?”

Meanwhile, King Li had no idea that a moment of kindness had let him survive by sheer luck.

“The Ni Li Sacred Tree is of immense importance. If word gets out, it will surely draw Great Luo Gold Immortals who will fight over it. I’m no match for them.”

Holding the sacred tree aloft, he finally flew out of the Dao Ruins’ territory and entered the surrounding region.

The area around the Dao Ruins was also extremely dangerous, a notorious forbidden zone in the Earth Immortal Realm.

When the Three Purities opened up the Earth Immortal Realm, they piled together everything they couldn’t refine, forming the Dao Ruins. The pollution caused by that ruin spread into the surrounding region.

This area belonged to the Heavenly River’s floodplain. The Earth Immortal Realm therefore called it the Dao Polluted Marsh.

The cyan stele suppressed the Dao Ruins, making them less dangerous. By contrast, the surrounding Dao Polluted Marsh was the most perilous place of all.

Back then, when the Celestial Court handed the Dao Ruins to Chen Shi, it was like drawing a cage around him that he couldn’t move freely within, trapping him there. If Chen Shi tried to escape the Dao Ruins, he would only discover that he had become a bird in a cage, trapped within the ruins with no way out.

King Li was remarkably capable. He crossed the Dao Polluted Marsh, his divine power surging forth, and soon reached the center of the marsh. He thought, “Though I had the thirty-two Celestial Way Divine Beings obscure the secrets of heaven, they can’t hide me from the eyes and ears of Great Luo Gold Immortals. Over the years, the Celestial Court has long been infiltrated by their people until it’s full of holes. There are bound to be countless eyes watching the Ni Li Sacred Tree descend into the Dao Ruins.”

What he needed was half a day.

The thirty-two Celestial Way Divine Beings had bought him time so he wouldn’t be ambushed and plotted against in advance. Now, what he needed to buy for himself was half a day!

King Li quickened his pace, about to rush out of the Dao Polluted Marsh. Beyond it lay the Heavenly River.

The Heavenly River navy was also one of the Celestial Court’s major forces. The navy marshal commanded a hundred thousand heavenly soldiers and generals, but they were not under King Li’s command. The navy marshal had originally been named Tianpeng, but after committing an offense, he was demoted and turned into a swine. Rumor had it that he later went over to the Western Heaven.

The new navy marshal was surnamed Ximen and named Bao. He commanded a hundred thousand troops and had a very good relationship with King Li.

As long as he reached the Heavenly River, which was under Marshal Ximen’s jurisdiction, the hundred thousand troops could form a battle formation and cover his entry into the Celestial Court.

Just then, a celestial gourd suddenly appeared suspended in front of him, hanging abruptly in the sky as it swallowed the external Dao’s qi in the Dao Polluted Marsh.

The marsh was full of monsters and evil creatures formed by the invasion of the external Dao. Even Tai Yi Golden Immortals were unwilling to set foot there. Yet a magic treasure that absorbed the external Dao had appeared here, a truly astonishing sight.

King Li’s heart sank. The suction coming from the celestial gourd had already taken hold of the Ni Li Sacred Tree he was holding aloft. It was tugging at the tree, trying to draw the treasure into the gourd.

He held up the Ni Li Sacred Tree with all his strength, but the pulling force was so immense that he gradually felt he was losing control of it.

Suddenly, King Li dropped the Ni Li Sacred Tree, summoned the exquisite golden pagoda, and drove it at full force toward the celestial gourd!

The celestial gourd had the Ni Li Sacred Tree caught in its grip and was about to draw the treasure inside when the exquisite golden pagoda slammed into its body. The gourd immediately tipped, and immortal flames spilled out of it, setting tens of thousands of miles of territory ablaze in an instant!

The celestial gourd steadied itself, floating amid the immortal flames. Its treasure light blazed, forming golden lotuses that surged upward in layer upon layer, bearing the gourd aloft as it faced off against the exquisite golden pagoda.

The exquisite pagoda now revealed all thirty-three Heavens, resembling thirty-three layers of Dao Realms as it tried to suppress the celestial gourd.

King Li paid no attention to the two treasures. He chased after the Ni Li Sacred Tree, lifted it with one hand, and strained to charge out of the marsh.

The exquisite pagoda had always stayed by his side, yet now he had even abandoned it.

Strangely enough, though he hadn’t activated the exquisite pagoda, it had released its power on its own to fight the celestial gourd.

This sight made King Li’s heart turn cold, his face darkening.

“The Ancient Buddha has noticed it too,” he thought.

Behind him, the two treasures were already fighting so fiercely that heaven and earth were overturned. Even the treacherous Dao Polluted Marsh could not hinder their battle.

The two Great Luo magic treasures fought as they pursued him!

At that moment, the sky suddenly blazed with light. A jade bottle carved from white mutton-fat jade emerged from the void, enormous beyond compare. Its mouth alone appeared larger than the Ni Li Sacred Tree. It pressed against the surrounding space, its opening pointed downward!

Boundless light shone from within the jade bottle, as though the Buddhas had been imprinted on its walls. Then the waters of the Heavenly River poured out of the bottle, cascading down to suppress King Li!

At the same time, the Ni Li Sacred Tree was lifted up and drawn toward the bottle.

King Li gave a great shout and offered up the Ni Li Sacred Tree. Its countless roots suddenly writhed, plunged into his back, and burrowed into his body.

The Ni Li Sacred Tree was more than just an earthly treasure and spiritual root. It was also a treasure of astonishing power. The external Dao powerhouse from the Ni Li World had been absolutely no weaker than a Great Luo Gold Immortal. After his death, this treasure had controlled him, manifesting the countless living beings of an entire major world.

King Li was deliberately connecting himself to the Ni Li Sacred Tree, drawing on its power to fight the magic treasures of the Great Luo Gold Immortals!

His own strength was insufficient. Without the exquisite pagoda, he couldn’t fight against Great Luo magic treasures. The Ni Li Sacred Tree was his last hope!

The instant the sacred tree connected with him, he felt a surging, alien Dao power pour into him and merge with his own. The countless roots of the sacred tree seemed to become his countless arms.

“Back then, I too was a God of War!”

King Li clenched his fist. The sacred tree’s countless roots surged and clenched along with him. With a thunderous crash, they struck the jade bottle, sending it flying backward toward the direction from which it had come!

King Li bolted, racing toward the Celestial Court.

The celestial gourd and exquisite pagoda were still colliding and fighting behind him. Suddenly, the celestial gourd lunged at him. King Li turned and leaped into the air. The Ni Li Sacred Tree moved like countless arms of his own, meeting the celestial gourd’s attack head-on while also slapping away the exquisite pagoda flying toward him.

King Li landed again and charged with all his might toward the Celestial Court.

He didn’t dare take the route along the Heavenly River. Now that Great Luo Gold Immortals had made their move, using the river as a passage would likely cause terrible casualties among the navy.

He raced along the riverbank, dodging attacks from one Great Luo magic treasure after another, and meeting them head-on when he could not evade them.

Just then, an old monk appeared on the bank of the Heavenly River ahead. Seeing King Li rush toward him, he smiled and said, “Greetings, Heavenly King.”

With that, the old monk shook his head, revealing nine heads. He opened his bloody jaws and snapped at King Li and the Ni Li Sacred Tree!

King Li reached out to grab him. Countless roots shot out, burrowing into the old monk’s mouth, nose, eyes, and ears, making for a horrifying sight.

The old monk burst into laughter and rushed forward. The two fought at close quarters. In a single exchange, the roots in the old monk’s eyes, ears, mouth, and nose nearly ripped off all nine of his faces. He was then flung away, while King Li hit the ground, coughing up mouthfuls of blood before sprinting away.

The old monk landed on the water and transformed into a nine-headed lion, charging after King Li.

King Li kept running forward. Behind him, the sacred tree’s countless tentacle-like roots thrashed about, attacking the nine-headed lion and blocking the Great Luo magic treasures. Though there were times when they couldn’t hold them off, they were still enough to keep him alive.

He was drawing closer and closer to the Celestial Court, and a glimmer of hope rose in his heart.

Just then, a horsetail whisk appeared in the sky. Its whisk strands danced, forming one Heavenly River after another in front of him and blocking his way.

King Li leaped into the air, only to see the river surface widening and the water transforming into countless stars.

Farther ahead, the Heavenly River formed from the whisk strands shuddered and bore down on him.

His heart sank. The power of this treasure had already surpassed his imagination. Even if he offered up the Ni Li Sacred Tree, he would still be no match for it.

“Now, I have no choice but to fight to the death!”

He charged forward, dodging the crushing Heavenly River. But after evading one, another followed, over and over without end.

Though his divine abilities were vast, he was now like a fly caught in a horsetail whisk, about to be crushed to death.

The nine-headed lion charged into the whisk and strained to lift one of the Heavenly Rivers, saving King Li.

Just then, the celestial gourd, jade bottle, exquisite golden pagoda, and other Great Luo magic treasures flew over and entered the Heavenly Rivers formed by the whisk. While fighting over the Ni Li Sacred Tree, they also viciously attacked the other treasures.

King Li was wounded again and again, but gritted his teeth and held on, driving the Ni Li Sacred Tree to fight the treasures. Taking advantage of the chaos as the treasures battled one another, he finally charged out of the horsetail whisk.

Blood flowed endlessly from the corner of his mouth. His injuries were severe, but he still forced himself onward toward the Celestial Court.

All around him, the clouds in the sky suddenly parted. Hands radiating a dense, ethereal aura of the immortal path broke through the void and reached for him and the Ni Li Sacred Tree from every direction.

Some hands were young, some old, some belonged to women with jade-white skin, and others to children. They were all different, yet the magical power they contained was boundless. Even at the peak of his strength, King Li would have been unable to resist them, even fused with the exquisite golden pagoda!

And this was not just one hand. More than ten hands reached out of the void at once!

Just as despair filled King Li’s heart, a young man in yellow robes and a tall official’s hat came walking over. He wielded a long sword, and as its light flashed, he severed the arm of a Great Luo Gold Immortal.

The young man slipped nimbly between the arms, his sword sweeping through the air. One arm after another was severed, some at the shoulder, some at the elbow, and some at the wrist!

The young man struck with his sword, slicing off three of the nine-headed lion’s heads. The remaining six turned and fled at once. With another stroke, he sliced off a corner of the jade bottle.

Sword light swept through the air, cutting away a layer of the exquisite pagoda.

He spun his sword light, tangling it with the horsetail whisk. The whisk strands were shaken apart in every direction and sent flying. With another stroke, he left a crack in the celestial gourd.

The many magic treasures retreated one after another. The severed arms floated back up, each transforming into an immortal of a different appearance. They flew away, but before they could escape, the Heavenly River navy cast a Heaven-Encompassing Net and captured them.

The young man sheathed his sword behind his arm and looked at King Li.

Dragging his heavily wounded body, King Li hurriedly saluted. “Your subject pays his respects to Your Majesty, the Yellow Emperor.”

The one who had arrived was the foremost of the Five Emperors and one of the Five Elders, the Yellow Sovereign of the Center, Gongsun Xuanyuan.

“Fellow Daoist Li, there is no need for formalities. I came on the Great Celestial Venerable’s orders to give these Great Luo Gold Immortals a little lesson.”

Gongsun Xuanyuan’s expression was kind as he said, “It will keep them from getting carried away and looking down on the Celestial Court.”