Chong Yuanzi and the others originally did not intend to fight the ancient immortals to the death, still hoping they could sit down and talk things through, handling everything through negotiation.
However, now the ancient immortals had forcefully seized power, taking control of the major sects in the Immortal Realm, as well as various departments and countless celestial soldiers and generals in the Nine Heavens, completely disregarding the Four Great Lords, attempting to sideline them entirely!
This was undoubtedly going too far!
Seeing the ancient immortals act so arrogantly, Chong Yuanzi felt they must be taught a lesson, given a sharp warning, so they would realize that the current Four Great Lords were not easy targets. Only then could they be forced into negotiations, and only in this way would there be hope for the Immortal Realm and all beings across the Three Realms.
Chong Yuanzi laid out his plan, which was further refined by the Emperor of Literature and discussed thoroughly by everyone, ultimately devising a complete strategy to seize control of the Immortal Realm. Thus, a contest of schemes, a grand battle of wisdom and strength, was about to begin.
※※※
The Celestial Court suddenly grew quiet, except for the commotion caused by the ancient immortals.
The Third Prince, accompanied by his Howling Heaven Dog, led the Seven Holy Men of Meishan ahead, while Laozi the Supreme led hundreds of Dao Lords and elders from several major sects following behind, arriving outside Fa City.
In the First Heaven, the Three Purities Sect had originally been the strongest force. However, after Shui Miao’s interference, the Three Great Elders of the sect engaged in a fierce battle, which left dozens of experts at the Immortal Emperor level within the sect gravely weakened, their sacred treasures damaged, their strength plummeting, and their influence waning, ultimately being driven out of the First Heaven by other sects.
However, the remaining major sects did not enjoy their dominance for long.
Under the leadership of Laozi the Supreme, the newly established Tianqing Sect forcefully absorbed all the other sects.
Therefore, the elders of the remaining sects were having a hard time.
“Old Master, Fa City is completely empty; its people must have fled in fear of us.”
The Third Prince, clad in golden armor and a red battle robe billowing behind him, held his three-pointed, double-edged blade and rode on clouds to approach Laozi the Supreme. His voice was loud and mighty, causing involuntary ringing in the ears and tingling on the scalp.
“Empty?”
Laozi the Supreme, dressed in an orange Taoist robe and holding a fly whisk, looked grave upon hearing this. He immediately performed a divination with his fingers and frowned, saying, “Not good! The Five Elements here have been reorganized, Yin and Yang have been inverted, and there is hidden malevolence in the air. There may be an ambush.”
“Hahaha…”
The Third Prince burst into laughter. “Old Master, don’t be so alarmist. This First Heaven is nothing but a few empty immortal cities. What kind of ambush could there possibly be? Even if there were, I wouldn’t need to lift a finger. My Howling Heaven Dog could just bite them all to death one by one!”
“Woof woof…”
The black, long-bodied Howling Heaven Dog, as large as a lion, hearing his master’s words, proudly wagged its tail and shook its head.
“Absolutely cannot be careless! Everyone, leave the First Heaven immediately. This place is not safe to stay,” Laozi the Supreme quickly performed a divination, drawing a very ominous omen. “Hurry, evacuate completely and go protect the Jade Emperor!”
Having said this, Laozi the Supreme turned and left immediately.
Accompanied by Bai Lian, the thousand-year-old female ghost, who followed closely behind, she hurriedly whispered, “Master, what exactly did you divine?”
“Old Master, what are you doing?”
The Third Prince had endured thousands of years in the mortal realm and had finally come out, eager for a good fight, but Laozi the Supreme was unexpectedly timid.
Laozi ignored the Third Prince and quietly spoke to Bai Lian beside him, “This is an extremely ominous omen. I suspect that Shui Miao hasn’t truly entered the Immortal Demon Realm; he remains within the Immortal Realm. These immortal cities may have been altered by him, transformed into self-destructing magical treasures. These immortal cities are supreme immortal treasures, and once they self-destruct, their power would be sufficient to destroy heaven and earth!”
“Pah! Coward!”
The Third Prince muttered a curse at Laozi in a low voice, then looked around at the immortal cities and asked the Seven Holy Men of Meishan, “What do you think? What kind of ambush could there possibly be here?”
Laozi had only recalled various ancient immortals but hadn’t informed anyone that Shui Miao, the abnormal forging fanatic, was still in the Immortal Realm.
He didn’t speak of it because he dared not.
If he had spoken, he himself would have been implicated.
Because Shui Miao was a pawn he had cultivated himself, and now this pawn had escaped from his palm.
Moreover, this pawn had become increasingly unpredictable, and he was afraid—afraid this pawn would expose his true identity.
Indeed, this Laozi the Supreme was not the real one. The true Laozi, like the Heaven Mechanism Venerable, had perished during the Immortal Demon War. However, Xuan Kong’er still had their souls. This Laozi was actually a special puppet created by Xuan Kong’er, infused with Laozi’s original soul.
This was precisely why Shui Miao had sensed the yin and malevolent aura from him.
“No signs found…”
“It seems like there aren’t many powerful figures in the current Celestial Court, right?”
“Yeah! I heard there’s only one powerful figure, the Thunder Sect’s Fa Zun, named Chong Yuanzi. The others are all useless bureaucrats.”
“Brother, why don’t we go inside the immortal city for a look? I heard these cities are all top-grade immortal treasures. Why don’t we just take them?”
“That’s a great idea! We don’t even have a place to live now. Why don’t we take the opportunity while no one is in charge here and get some benefits? We can take these immortal cities back and use them as our headquarters!”
“…”
The Seven Holy Men of Meishan began discussing excitedly.
Everyone knew that these immortal cities were supreme immortal treasures, and now they were unguarded—why not claim them for free?
The Seven Holy Men of Meishan were Yuan Hong (the monkey), Chang Hao (the long snake), Zhu Zi Zhen (the wild boar), Yang Xian (the goat), Dai Li (the mountain dog), Jin Da Sheng (the wild ox), and Wu Long (the centipede). They had followed the Third Prince through hardships in the mortal realm and had finally returned to the Immortal Realm, naturally eager to enjoy themselves.
The Third Prince’s eyes flickered with an idea, and he pointed at Jin City, saying, “I think this immortal city looks great. Let’s choose this one!”
“Good!”
“Boss, you’ve got great taste!”
“…”
The Seven Holy Men of Meishan were no fools and naturally recognized the grandeur and majesty of Jin City, the finest immortal city in the First Heaven.
Thus, the Third Prince, together with the Seven Holy Men of Meishan and the Howling Heaven Dog, arrived outside Jin City.
As soon as they had just positioned themselves, someone came flying rapidly like lightning, abruptly blocking the path of the Third Prince and his companions.
“Halt! Where do you demon immortals come from? How dare you intrude into the restricted area of Jin City? Take another step forward, and don’t blame me, Xing Tian Fa Zun, for being merciless with my iron face!”
The person who arrived was none other than Xing Tian Fa Zun.
Xing Tian Fa Zun had his upper body bare, revealing his grotesque, bulging muscles. With a panther’s head and round eyes, he looked extremely fierce!
Seeing Xing Tian Fa Zun like this, the Seven Holy Men of Meishan couldn’t help but feel their scalps tingling.
Xing Tian Fa Zun possessed several supreme immortal treasures, whose power was terrifyingly immense—far beyond what ordinary immortals could withstand.
“Damn it! Did you just call me a demon immortal?”
The Third Prince was furious. He slammed his three-pointed, double-edged blade into the ground and pointed at Xing Tian Zunzhe, his voice low but threatening, “If you’ve got the guts, say that again!”
“Hmph! Three-eyed freak, if you’re not a demon immortal, then what are you? Die for me…”
Unexpectedly, Xing Tian Fa Zun offered no explanation. Without hesitation, he gripped his twin axes and launched a furious attack on the Third Prince!
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