Xu Fu invited Xu Ying to step onto the immortal mountain, but Xu Ying paid him no heed. The Son of Heaven of Zhou wished to board, yet Xu Fu offered no invitation. Qingluan cast a wary eye over Feng Xian'er; the young phoenix looked up to Xu Fu with deep reverence, while regarding Xu Ying with suspicion.
Opening her Jade Pool cave-heaven, Feng Yao looked at the assembled figures and wondered silently, Can they truly pull together through the rough waters and step into the Jade Void Palace?
"Do not fool around once inside the cave-heaven," Qingluan warned everyone. "This is my young mistress's cave-heaven. If your divine powers brush against it, you might very well harm her. And if my mistress closes the cave-heaven, none of you will ever get out!"
Xu Ying's gaze fell upon Zulong Zhao Zheng. "Some talk big with their mouths, but when the moment comes, they had better not prove useless and get pounded into the dirt by a Nuo ancestor."
Zulong Zhao Zheng replied, "In this world, only We pound others—none can pound Us. Xu Fu has already proven this."
Xu Fu arched a brow and was about to speak when Zulong Zhao Zheng said, "Beloved Minister Xu, consider carefully. Should you provoke Us, there will be no need for the Nuo ancestors to act; We can slay the little Undying girl and seal you all on the other shore, never to emerge."
Xu Fu offered flattering words: "Your Majesty is wise and sagacious."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou remarked, "Using martial force to coerce ministers into submission is hardly the conduct of an enlightened ruler."
Zulong retorted, "Brother Ji, your empire was seized by Us. If you are not satisfied, then upon Our return from Kunlun, We can march straight into Haojing and seize it once more."
The Son of Heaven of Zhou laughed heartily. "I shall await you. My only fear is that you will not live long enough to see that day."
Seeing that they might break into open conflict before even setting foot in the Jade Void Palace, Feng Yao cleared her throat in haste. "Gentlemen, if you please."
Suppressing the displeasure in their hearts, the group leapt into the air together, dropping into her Jade Pool cave-heaven and heading inward.
Zulong and Feng Yao stayed outside. Feng Yao asked with cautious reserve, "Brother Zhao will not take anger at this and vent it upon me, will you?"
"We will not," Zulong said calmly. "We possess at least that much magnanimity. As long as a goal is set, Our magnanimity is boundless."
He looked toward Jade Void Peak, where the radiance of the other five shores blazed with increasing brilliance. "Right now, five of the six Nuo ancestors must preside over those five other shores and harvest herbs in their palaces. That is to say, only the Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu might come to attack. In single combat, We have never lost."
* * *
Inside the Jade Pool cave-heaven, Xu Ying, Xu Fu, the Son of Heaven of Zhou, and the others hurried forward. Before long, blazing flames surged before their eyes, burning ever hotter.
Feng Xian'er and Qingluan flew ahead, surveying their surroundings.
The pressure within the immortal fire mounted sharply. Inside the blaze swam creatures resembling flying fish, darting back and forth in great numbers. Ordinary perils, however, were well within the two phoenixes' power to handle.
Feng Xian'er was like a fish in water amidst the flames. Darting to and fro, she caught the flying creatures in the fire, tilting her head back each time she snapped one up to swallow it whole.
Qingluan's strength was scarcely inferior to Feng Yao's. She, too, was a great master who cultivated both Nuo and qi. Driving her six secret depositories within the cave-heaven, she gave off an immense sense of oppression. She did not flit about like Feng Xian'er, appearing indifferent to the creatures darting through the flames.
Yet seeing Feng Xian'er eat with such relish, she could not resist a spark of curiosity. Snapping her head forward, she caught one of the flying things in the fire and tilted her head back to swallow it.
With just that one bite, she could no longer hold back. Spreading her wings, she swooped up and down, hunting down the fire-dwelling creatures.
"What are those things?"
Xu Ying narrowed his eyes to look. The things caught by the two phoenixes looked like metallic ore yet also resembled swimming fish; it was hard to tell whether they were living beings.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou said, "We have captured creatures in the fire before. They are a kind of fish with extraordinarily tough skin that live within immortal fire. The scales on their surface are a variety of immortal gold. If one can collect a great many of them, they can be forged into treasures. Capturing them, however, is exceedingly difficult."
Xu Ying recalled how the big bell, while protecting Pei Du inside the Guo clan ancestor's cave-heaven, had been attacked by strange creatures in the fire. They must have been these very fish that lived within the immortal flames. Back then, the bell had been gouged with mark after mark and nearly ruined.
At the time, facing these swimming fish, neither the bell nor a Nuo Immortal like Pei Du could withstand them. Yet now, there were barely enough of them to satisfy the appetites of the two phoenixes.
Moreover, with Xu Fu's Mount Fangzhang present, the immortal fire could not even approach them. Xu Ying and the Son of Heaven of Zhou advanced with utter ease and comfort.
Right then, an abnormal fluctuation rippled through the flames. Both Xu Ying and the Son of Heaven of Zhou sensed it and snapped to full alert.
Xu Ying was proficient in the Heaven-Human Induction, and through dual cultivation with Yuan Weiyang, he had refined the Yuan Dao Heavens Induction. His perceptual abilities were peerless, allowing him to immediately detect the anomaly.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou, on the other hand, was intimately familiar with this strange fluctuation. For six thousand years, he and the civil and military court of the Great Zhou had lived in perpetual dread every day, guarding against this very thing!
"Heavenly fiends!"
The Son of Heaven of Zhou murmured, "Beware of those herb gatherers in the fire—they will become the hosts for heavenly fiends to parasitize!"
Xu Fu smiled faintly, saying in a leisurely manner, "There is no need for the Son of Heaven of Zhou to worry. This mountain recluse has prepared long ago."
No sooner had he spoken than Feng Xian'er and Qingluan darted left and right through the fire, arriving before a seated, desiccated herb gatherer the very next moment.
Feng Xian'er let out a shrill cry. The sound waves actually took physical form, transforming into a phoenix with rainbow wings that fluttered and bored straight into the herb gatherer's brow!
An instant later, a humanoid phantom was blasted out from the back of the herb gatherer's head by the sonic wave. The phantom trembled as the vibrations shook it free of the gatherer's body!
Yet flesh and blood still linked the humanoid phantom to the herb gatherer; clearly, this possessed heavenly fiend was loath to abandon the physical vessel.
Suddenly, Qingluan struck like lightning, clamping her beak onto the heavenly fiend's head. With a violent jerk, she tore the fiend cleanly from the herb gatherer's body and slammed it against the ground with a loud crack.
Furious, the heavenly fiend lashed out with countless writhing tentacles that shot toward Qingluan's eyes, ears, mouth, and nostrils.
Its divine consciousness was exceptionally powerful, invading the phoenix's mind. But the moment it forced its way into Qingluan's body, far from throwing her consciousness into disarray, its own mind nearly shattered.
Qingluan's divine consciousness was like spheres of azure immortal light; wherever they shone, its divine thoughts burned away like smoke!
Such was the crushing dominance of a natural predator!
Qingluan whipped her head violently. A succession of sharp cracks echoed through the fire as the heavenly fiend was smashed against the ground outside the Jade Void Palace. In moments, it was shaken limp as overcooked noodles, its tentacles slumping across the stones, unable to move.
With a deep inhalation, Qingluan drew the heavenly fiend into her maw.
Feng Xian'er pounced over, crying out, "I found it first!"
She seized the other end of the heavenly fiend and pulled with all her might.
Qingluan said angrily, "You clearly couldn't handle it, so I stepped in to help you. Now that I've subdued it, you dare snatch my food!"
Each phoenix clamped onto one end of the heavenly fiend and pulled back, engaging in a fierce tug-of-war. Suddenly, with a loud snap, the heavenly fiend was ripped clean in two!
Qingluan and Feng Xian'er each swallowed half.
Witnessing this, Xu Ying resolved to treat Qingluan and Feng Xian'er with greater respect.
At that moment, waves of eerie ripples swept through the immortal fire. One by one, the herb gatherers stood up, their expressions blank, and began striding toward the two phoenixes.
Qingluan sneered, "There are plenty of heavenly fiends now. I won't fight you for them—can you handle it?"
Unwilling to show weakness, Feng Xian'er yelled, "Of course!"
The two phoenixes took flight, swooping toward the herb gatherers.
Just moments ago, there had been only a single fiend, completely suppressed by the two phoenixes before it could even strike. Now, however, the fiends were numerous. Even though phoenixes were their natural enemies, the pair could not kill them all at once, giving the heavenly fiends an immediate opening to counterattack!
Possessing immense physical strength and driving the immortal herbs within the gatherers' bodies, the fiends unleashed formidable power. With a whoosh, one fiend transformed its arms into tentacles, coiling tight around Feng Xian'er!
Feng Xian'er was, after all, a newly hatched phoenix. Though tough-tongued, her cultivation was shallow and far behind Qingluan's. Once ensnared, she felt as if the fiend were about to twist her head straight off!
Right then, an azure flash fell from the sky. Qingluan descended, her talons clamping onto the fiend's skull and driving it down with brute force. With a dull thud, she smashed the fiend's head open, scattering brain matter!
Though its head shattered into countless fragments, it simply split apart into petal-like pieces that danced in midair to form a gaping maw, snapping at Qingluan!
Qingluan spat phoenix fire straight down its gullet, igniting the fiend's entire body in an instant until it burned like a human-skin lantern.
Spreading her wings, Qingluan took flight, spiraling between two lunging fiends. Her wings sheared outward, slicing both fiends in two!
Her wings snapped wide as she hovered in midair, halting abruptly to transform into an azure-robed maiden. Striking out with her palms behind her, she detonated both fiends with explosive cracks.
The maiden leaped backward, flipping head over heels. Before she even landed, she resumed her true form as a qingluan, drawing a deep breath to suck the two shattered fiends into her gullet.
Whoosh.
She beat her wings amidst the immortal fire, diving toward the other heavenly fiends.
"The Qingluan of the Jade Pool truly lives up to her fame," Xu Fu praised.
Xu Ying, the Son of Heaven of Zhou, and Xu Fu had now arrived before the Jade Void Palace. The closer they drew, the greater the pressure grew, and the more ferocious the immortal fire became.
Xu Ying had long readied his twenty-four Bright Moon Mountains and Rivers Beads, while the Son of Heaven of Zhou secretly prepared his own treasures, which faintly gave off the aura of immortal artifacts, ready to be deployed at any moment to combat the flames.
Yet the Mount Fangzhang beneath Xu Fu's feet steadily pushed back the immortal fire throughout, sparing both of them from expending their strength.
Before the gates of the Jade Void Palace, the three came to a halt.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou fixed his gaze upon Xu Ying, waiting in silence. Xu Ying wore a look of utter bewilderment and turned to look at Xu Fu.
Xu Fu smiled. "Lord Xu, please open the immortal palace."
Xu Ying shook his head. "I do not know how to open it. When Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu cast his incantations to open the palace, I was unable to see his hand seals clearly."
Xu Fu frowned slightly. "If he could open the Jade Void Palace, you naturally can as well. Think again."
Holding his breath and focusing his spirit, Xu Ying stared at the gates of the Jade Void Palace, carefully recalling the technique Nuo Lu had used. To Xu Ying, all manner of Immortal Dao runes were self-taught; he could naturally grasp the principles within them. If only he had seen the technique Nuo Lu used to open the palace, he could reproduce it.
Yet at the time, Nuo Lu had had his back turned to him, coiled around by the red-spotted serpent, leaving Xu Ying completely unable to see what Immortal Dao arts he had employed to open the gates!
Xu Fu said, "Lord Xu, the heavenly fiends' assault is merely an appetizer. Nuo Lu is certain to attack in person! Once he assaults the Undying girl Feng Yao and is repelled by Emperor Zulong, he will settle for second best and come here himself to slaughter us! You must open this gate as soon as possible—the sooner, the better!"
Xu Ying's mind raced frantically as he racked his brain for a way to open the palace. But the more anxious he grew, the emptier his mind became!
* * *
Outside, Feng Yao maintained the operation of her six cave-heavens while Zulong stood beside her. Tall and slender in black robes, his narrow eyes swept over the surroundings.
Suddenly, mist rolled in from the far side of the mountain, carrying a foul, fishy stench. With a sharp ring, the Tai'e Sword at Zulong's waist leaped forward, revealing a section of its blade. A brilliant sheet of sword light shot into the sky, connecting with the Dipper and Ox constellations above.
Zulong drew his sword and slashed outward in a level sweep. It was as if Kunlun dwarfed all the world's mountains, the sword light seeming to plane away countless landscapes of Yuanshou!
Where the sword light swept, a red-spotted serpent rode the clouds, writhing and twisting to evade the edge. At the same moment, a white-haired elder stepped out from beneath the serpent's head with a smile on his face, casually lunging forward with an open palm toward Zulong.
Zulong's expression shifted slightly. Raising both hands, he met the strike. The moment their palm forces met, countless mountains and rivers rumbled from the earth around Zulong. Nine Cauldrons surfaced, transforming into the lands of the nine provinces to assemble the great domain of Shenzhou!
Zulong's qi vibrated violently as he felt the other's rolling magic power crush down upon him. With a sharp bark, golden colossi materialized behind him one after another, linked front to back, each pressing a palm against the back of the one before it to channel force!
The final colossus held Zulong aloft in its palm, pouring all its surging magic power into his body!
Boom!
Their earth-shattering power clashed. Nuo Lu's white hair fluttered as the Jade Void Palace manifested behind him, nine layers of immortal light shining outward with crystalline clarity, gradually pressing Zulong back!
Zulong Zhao Zheng's heart gave a jolt. Impossible! No one can surpass Us in raw magic power!
With a long roar, the vista of the Kunlun mountain range materialized behind him!
Ever since the Kunlun Ruins reappeared in the mortal realm, he had come here and begun pacing out Kunlun stride by stride. Only Jade Void Peak before him remained before he could incorporate all of Kunlun into his Dao image.
His divine art was not yet complete, but seeing Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu's staggering strength, he was forced to unleash this unperfected, ultimate strike!
His magic power surged once more. Yet the Jade Void Palace behind Nuo Lu was a tangible, true other shore; unless Zulong completed his Kunlun Dao image and restored the missing link of Shenzhou, matching him would be near impossible!
Suddenly, noticing his precarious situation, Feng Yao drifted forward like a celestial maiden descending to earth, extending a finger through the air toward Nuo Lu's brow.
Nuo Lu grunted and flicked a finger in return. The Jade Pool cave-heaven behind Feng Yao abruptly tore free of her, drifting like a fallen leaf as it was severed by Nuo Lu's single strike!
Her breath thrown into disarray, Feng Yao tumbled to the ground and coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood.
Her Jade Pool cave-heaven had been forged through thousands of trials and tribulations. She had never imagined that upon meeting the Nuo ancestor of the Jade Void Palace, it would be sheared away in a single move, dealing immense damage to her cultivation.
Panic seized her mind—she could no longer sense her Jade Pool cave-heaven at all!
She hastily looked inward to inspect her Jade Pool secret depository, and her heart sank. The depository had solidified to the point where it could no longer be opened, so firm that not even an immortal artifact could breach it.
Seizing the opening, Zulong thrust the Tai'e Sword toward Nuo Lu. Catching Nuo Lu right as he suffered Feng Yao's strike, it seemed he would cut down the Nuo ancestor on the spot. But the white-haired elder suddenly leaped backward, plunging into the Jade Void Palace behind him.
The palace's light dimmed and vanished without a trace, and the red-spotted serpent disappeared along with it.
* * *
Before the Jade Void Palace, Xu Fu saw the path behind them abruptly severed and felt a chill in his heart. Seeing the immortal fire churn, he said, "Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu severed Feng Yao's cave-heaven, yet still unsatisfied, he has entered the Jade Void Palace! Lord Xu, not even Zulong could stop him. Have you still not opened the gates?"
The immortal fire surged and parted to either side as a red-spotted serpent slithered forward, coming into the view of Xu Fu and the Son of Heaven of Zhou.
Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu stepped out at an unhurried pace. He sighed softly and said, "Why must you go through all this... seeking your own doom?"
Standing atop his fairy mountain, Xu Fu smiled faintly. "Seeking our own doom? Do you believe that merely possessing the Jade Void other shore gives you the right to look down upon the heroes of this world?"
He advanced to meet Nuo Lu.
Xu Ying stared at the gates of the Jade Void Palace, his mind roaring. The harder he focused, the less he could fathom how to open the gateway, until his head spun and his vision blurred.
Suddenly, in a daze, he seemed to see a figure walking over. The figure stopped before him, raised a palm, and sent various Immortal Dao runes flying out from its center to imprint upon the gates of the Jade Void Palace.
That was his own silhouette.
In his trance, Xu Ying lifted a hand and pressed it gently against the palace gates. His divine consciousness mobilized his primordial qi, and brilliant, dazzling Immortal Dao runes flowed from his palm.
Crack.
A gentle tremor ran through the gates of the Jade Void Palace, which then parted to both sides.
The Son of Heaven of Zhou froze. "It truly opened?"
Xu Ying stepped forward, walking into the Jade Void Palace. Steadying his mind, the Son of Heaven of Zhou followed him inside.
Within the palace sat a massive immortal furnace, taller than three men combined. A rich medicinal fragrance wafted from it, yet the exterior of the furnace vessel was covered in sealing talismans radiating brilliant gold light, barring anyone from approaching.
"The seals are still intact—this immortal furnace has never been opened!" the Son of Heaven of Zhou cried in astonishment. "If the immortal furnace was never opened, then what were those nine immortal pills Nuo Ancestor Nuo Lu brought out truly refined from?"
Chapter 249