Xiao Xixian's immortal raft was astonishingly fast, hailed as the quickest under heaven, yet it was still somewhat slow in pursuit of the Heavenly Venerable.
Although the Heavenly Venerable was grievously wounded, his cultivation was immense beyond measure. Even after sustaining devastating injuries in the Dragon Court and having his Primordial Spirit slashed by the Imperial Monarch, he still managed to outrun the immortal raft's pursuit.
The Heavenly River terminated at the Heavenly Sea, flowing from the Ancestral Court, through the Yuanchu Great World, and into the Heavenly Sea.
The Heavenly Venerable touched down upon the sea's surface and looked around. The world felt somewhat foreign to him. Fearing an ambush by the Imperial Monarch, he had deliberately taken a circuitous path.
However, the Yuanchu Great World had already merged with the Ancestral Court, and numerous other worlds were now connected to the Yuanchu World as well, forming vast continents and oceans. The mountains and rivers were majestic, but the sweeping geographical changes gave him an unfamiliar sensation, leaving him momentarily disoriented.
The ancient Earth Immortal Realm had in truth fractured into the myriad worlds of the heavens.
The Heavenly Venerable had never seen the Earth Immortal Realm in its entirety, so arriving upon the Heavenly Sea left him struggling to find his bearings.
He groaned softly as his physical body showed faint signs of crumbling. He hurriedly circulated the Ten Thousand Realms Supreme Indestructible Sutra to suppress his wounds. Above his head, the Zuzhou cave abyss manifested, immortal spiritual energy surging forth like a tidal wave. It was precisely because of this cave abyss that his whereabouts had been exposed, allowing the Imperial Monarch to lie in wait on the Heavenly River beforehand.
The tail swipe from the Distant Ancestor's great dragon form had already inflicted horrific internal damage upon him, shattering his physical body and nearly pulverizing his Primordial Spirit. Fortunately, the Distant Ancestor had possessed no killing intent and had merely brushed against him by accident upon departing.
Yet the Imperial Monarch had truly sought to eliminate him!
*A supreme-grade technique is extraordinary indeed. After four hundred and eighty-two reincarnations, Zhou Wu's mastery over cultivation arts has attained the level of the Supreme Realm. His Twelve Dao Wheels broke free from the shackles of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths—an incredible achievement!*
Circulating his technique, the Heavenly Venerable forced down his injuries. In name, the Imperial Monarch had created the Nine Heavens Ten Earths Extermination Immortal Array to deal with Xu Ying's Undying True Spirit, but in truth, it had been designed against him.
Xu Ying's Undying True Spirit was potent, yes, but the Heavenly Venerable was the one who had received the Ancestral God's true teachings. He had long since refined an Indestructible Primordial Spirit, allowing his Primordial Spirit to reach the Supreme Realm before all else.
He had seen the Imperial Monarch unleash the Twelve Dao Wheels before, but when those Twelve Dao Wheels merged into one and the Nine Heavens Ten Earths Extermination Immortal Array transformed into the Purple Serene Extermination Nether Saber, it gained the power to slay his Primordial Spirit!
*Too bad for him, he didn't want to risk his life against mine. He only wanted to take me down unscathed. If you aren't willing to stake your life, don't even dream of keeping me here!*
The Heavenly Venerable caught his breath, his condition stabilizing slightly. Suddenly, the sky trembled, followed by thunderous crackling sounds across the firmament as an abyss stretching over the horizon tore open.
Hanging in the heavens, the abyss opened with a low hum, transforming into a colossal eye that swept across the surroundings.
"Weixu?"
The Heavenly Venerable froze. The monstrous eye of Weixu snapped into focus, fixing its gaze straight upon him. Within the grotesque eye, two Immortal Kings were peering out. One cried in delight, "We found the rebel!"
"Mere Heavenly Kings dare offend me?"
Enraged, the Heavenly Venerable was about to flick his fingers to obliterate the Five Extremes Immortal King and the Ninth Immortal King when a towering silhouette stepped out of the Heavenly Eye. With his back to the bright glare of the grotesque eye, he strode out from Weixu toward him.
The Heavenly Venerable's heart skipped a beat. "Heavenly Venerable Taisui, Ning Zhong!"
Weixu was the domain of Heavenly Venerable Taisui, Ning Zhong. This venerable lord held little fame in the Immortal Court; though the Taisui Department was one of the court's Six Ministries, its influence was too feeble to carry weight, and Ning Zhong kept a low profile, rarely drawing attention.
Yet during this Tide of the Three Realms, Ning Zhong had shown remarkable fervor. He had even taken part in the events at Wuzhuang Temple.
Heavenly Venerable Taisui descended from Weixu, came before the Heavenly Venerable, and bowed in greeting. "Heavenly Venerable, your younger brother has come to see you off on your final journey."
The Heavenly Venerable laughed aloud, though his face turned livid. "Ning Zhong, you are my subordinate, subject to my command. You dare come to kill me?"
Ning Zhong replied, "Your might is formidable, Heavenly Venerable. Were you uninjured, I would naturally keep a respectful distance. But now that you are wounded, I might just have a fighting chance."
The Heavenly Venerable's expression darkened. "If you strike at me, you may die."
Ning Zhong said leisurely, "For the sake of the Zuzhou cave abyss, it is a risk worth taking."
The Heavenly Venerable said coldly, "Ning Zhong, do not forget you are my student. Back when I forged the Heavenly Dao world and took control of the Heavenly Dao, you were the first person to ascend and attain immortality. You entered my tutelage and called me Master. You owe your present station entirely to my patronage."
Ning Zhong said, "I am profoundly grateful for your promotion, Heavenly Venerable. If you surrender the Zuzhou cave abyss, I will gladly let you leave."
The Heavenly Venerable sneered and shook his head. "Impossible. If I surrender the Zuzhou cave abyss, I can forget about ever recovering my strength. I would only grow weaker by the day, left at the mercy of others."
Ning Zhong let out a soft sigh and slowly channeled the Supreme Profound Origin Jade Hall Great Method, unfurling his bodhimanda. The bodhimanda resembled a magnificent jade palace filled with pavilions and towers, all carved from exquisite jade.
Within this jade hall stood a blood tree—his Dao tree. Hanging upon it was a blood-red Dao fruit, beating steadily like a heart.
As Ning Zhong invoked his Taisui true body, the flesh and blood of that Dao tree formed armor covering his entire form.
Both men erupted simultaneously. In an instant, stormy waves surged across the Heavenly Sea. Two towering Primordial Spirits manifested between heaven and earth, clashing in a life-and-death struggle with strikes swift as lightning.
The Dao sounds bursting forth in that fraction of a second roared deafeningly like myriad dragons and elephants bellowing in unison. Instantly, countless brilliant colors flooded the sky above the Heavenly Sea!
It was the taint left by the immortal dao—the gleam of divine arts. This stretch of the Heavenly Sea had been overtaken by the Great Dao of the Ancestral Court, falling into its domain, which made the immortal dao taint extraordinarily striking.
Up in the sky, the monstrous eye of Weixu rolled frantically, desperate to discern the details of their clash.
The two figures brushed past one another. The Heavenly Venerable's heart sank, his expression solemn.
Ning Zhong burst into laughter. Standing half-crouched, half-kneeling upon the waves, he slowly rose and chuckled. "Celestial Venerable Xu is a man of his word after all. The Three Thousand Heavenly Dao Runes he passed to me were indeed complete."
The Heavenly Venerable's face went pale with fury. "He passed them to you?"
Ning Zhong turned around, surging with cultivation to prepare his second strike. He smiled. "It was a trade between us at Wuzhuang Temple. He taught me the Three Thousand Heavenly Dao Runes, and I let him walk free. Heavenly Venerable, back when you controlled the Heavenly Dao world, you intentionally introduced flaws into the Heavenly Dao runes, ensuring that those undergoing tribulations would leave flaws in their arts and divine arts due to a false Heavenly Dao. You never imagined I would complete my technique, did you?"
His expression turned chillingly cold, his voice grim. "During the tens of thousands of years you controlled the Heavenly Dao world, how many people's futures did you ruin? You harbored treacherous designs, forcing every ascendant to become your student while holding their fatal weaknesses in your palm. With selfishness so profound, you brought this calamity upon yourself!"
He lunged once more, and the two clashed a second time above the Heavenly Sea. The sea abruptly ruptured as two roaring water spouts hundreds of li wide twisted around each other, spiraling higher and higher into the sky.
Seeing the water spouts hurtling straight toward them, the two Immortal Kings within the monstrous eye of Weixu hurriedly slammed the eye shut.
Colossal waves crashed across the ocean. Suddenly, the Heavenly Venerable blurred and vanished into the distance. At the same time, Heavenly Venerable Ning Zhong climbed skyward step by step toward Weixu.
The monstrous eye of Weixu reopened. Seeing him approach, the two Immortal Kings rushed to receive him.
The moment Ning Zhong stepped inside the monstrous eye, he violently coughed up a mouthful of blood. His aura withered, and the Taisui flesh and blood covering him nearly peeled off his physical body.
"To remain this formidable despite such devastating injuries... as expected of the Heavenly Venerable!"
Staggering with unsteady steps, he rasped hoarsely, "Take me back to the Immortal Realm's Taisui Heavenly Palace!"
The immortal raft drifted over the surface of the sea. Xiao Xixian brought the vessel to a halt while the Imperial Monarch stood at the prow, calmly watching the clash between the Heavenly Venerable and Ning Zhong without interfering.
Xiao Xixian did not dare pry, only whispering, "We've left the Heavenly River now. The fare you paid earlier isn't enough anymore..."
Before she could finish, more than a dozen jade bottles flew over, landing in her embrace.
Xiao Xixian caught them in a fluster and uncorked one. Inside was spiritual liquid condensed purely from immortal spiritual energy.
Xiao Xixian beamed with delight. *I've landed a big spender today!*
Only after the Heavenly Venerable fled did the Imperial Monarch speak: "Keep following him. Don't get too close."
Xiao Xixian steered the raft onward, resuming the chase.
Escaping the Heavenly Sea, the Heavenly Venerable arrived in the Yuanchu Great World. Spiritual light leaked from his physical body; the clash with Ning Zhong had only worsened his wounds.
Just then, the massive head of a heavenly god peeked down from the sky, an eye positioned at the center of its brow glancing all around. Then came a barrage of soft popping sounds as eyes pushed out of the empty air, blanketing the sky, the mountains, and the rivers—even sprouting along sheer cliffs!
The ground split open here and there as eyes opened beneath the grass and fungus, rolling frantically.
"Tianyi?"
The Heavenly Venerable flared with rage. These were the heavenly gods of the Heavenly Dao world searching for his whereabouts!
The Heavenly Dao world had been under his control, his private domain. To think that even these heavenly gods had turned against him!
"The rebel is found!"
Suddenly, an eye spotted him. A clamor of human voices erupted from the myriad eyes, shouting, "The rebel is found!"
The Heavenly Venerable snorted coldly. The eyes filling the heavens shattered at once, their eyeballs bursting apart. The corpse of High God Tianyi tumbled from the sky, meeting an unnatural end.
"Ungrateful wretches, I shall not spare you!"
Truly incensed, he sensed that the gods within the Heavenly Dao world were desecrating his statues. Instantly, his statues awakened, launching into a slaughter that exterminated every single god in the Heavenly Dao world—whether heavenly god or god king!
Just as his statues finished cleansing the Heavenly Dao world in blood, an immortal seal came flying, striking his primary statue squarely in the forehead and shattering its skull.
Looking toward the source of the strike, the statue saw immortal officials from the Thunder and Fire Ministry of Works wielding the immortal seal.
The seal slammed down once more, completely destroying the Heavenly Venerable's statue.
"The Thunder and Fire Ministry of Works... my own subjects whom I raised..."
The Heavenly Venerable's hands and feet trembled. Suddenly, the voice of the Heavenly Venerable of Fire, Li Sixue, rang through the sky with a light chuckle: "Heavenly Venerable, your little sister has come to set a fire for you!"
The Heavenly Venerable looked up to see war banners fluttering across the sky. Li Sixue stood clad in full armor, her crimson robes blazing brighter than fire, while the thousands of immortal maidens beneath her command had already laid down the Boundless Immortal Fire Tribulation Array.
Without a word, the Heavenly Venerable charged forward, forcing his way into the array.
A short while later, the array shattered. Li Sixue covered the retreat in person, returning to the Immortal Court with her immortal maidens.
The Heavenly Venerable coughed up mouthfuls of blood and glanced into the distance. Far away, an immortal raft drifted silently in the air like a tiny stalk of grass floating in the sky.
The red dress on the raft was small yet vivid, making the other figure beside it appear less distinct.
Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, the Heavenly Venerable no longer hid his presence and headed straight toward the Ancestral Court.
"Hahaha! Heavenly Venerable, Xie Qingshan of the Water Department has been waiting here for a long time!"
A loud shout boomed from ahead. The Heavenly Venerable gazed into the distance to see war galleons of the Water Department rising into the air, formidable and heavily armed. Thousands of immortals aboard the vessels raised their Dharma treasures, reeking of murderous intent.
Refusing to waste words, he charged headlong into battle. Withstanding the immortal treasures of those thousands of immortals and braving the bombardment from the towering warships, he fought his way straight onto Xie Qingshan's ship.
*Boom!*
The warship exploded. The two clashed at close quarters, their duel ascending higher and higher until they reached the sky. Suddenly, the Heavenly Venerable's physical body blew apart, his flesh and blood shredded until only an Indestructible Primordial Spirit remained, radiating beams of spiritual light!
Xie Qingshan groaned, tumbling from the sky while spewing blood. He bellowed, "The Heavenly Venerable's lingering might is formidable! Retreat!"
Leading the warriors of the Water Department, he beat a hasty retreat.
The Heavenly Venerable did not pursue them. He stood suspended in midair, filled with a deep sense of desolation.
The spots radiating indestructible spiritual light on his form were the wounds left behind by the Imperial Monarch and the Distant Ancestor, injuries that refused to heal.
He channeled the Ten Thousand Realms Supreme Indestructible Sutra, regrowing flesh and blood from his Primordial Spirit to slowly reconstruct his physical body. Before long, his physical form was restored, but gruesome wounds still crisscrossed his skin!
Indestructible spiritual light seeped from these gashes, the mangled flesh rolled back in a terrifying display.
Steeling himself, the Heavenly Venerable continued forward.
Standing upon the immortal raft, the Imperial Monarch watched him from afar and instructed, "Keep following him."
Xiao Xixian steered the raft, tailing the Heavenly Venerable from a distance. The Heavenly Venerable was now moving too slowly to shake off the raft.
Entering the Ancestral Court, the Heavenly Venerable soon spotted countless more immortals assembled in formations, banners fluttering above their ranks—banners he knew intimately.
A great shock rocked his spirit, striking him like a grievous blow. His footsteps grew feeble and unsteady.
As he walked forward, he saw the immortals and gods of the Shenxiao Jade Clarity Mansion, the Five Thunders Court, the Exorcism Court, the Ten Thousand Gods Thunder Office, the Thunder Capital Office, and the Thunder Department Office drawn up in battle array. At their head stood the Lord of the Shenxiao Jade Clarity Mansion of the Thunder Department, Zhang Changqing.
Seeing the Heavenly Venerable arrive, Lord Changqing hurriedly rose and bowed. "Heavenly Venerable, to preserve the lives of the countless immortals and gods of the Thunder Department, I had no choice but to come."
Bitterness filled the Heavenly Venerable's heart, yet he laughed aloud, his heroic spirit undiminished from years past. "Say no more, Changqing. I understand."
Lord Changqing breathed a sigh of relief and said solemnly, "Please step into the array, Heavenly Venerable, and clear our names!"
With head held high and broad strides, the Heavenly Venerable walked into the Thunder Department's killing array. He looked at the faces around him—all familiar faces, some filled with dread, others alight with excitement.
"It has been a very long time since a Heavenly Venerable has fallen in the Immortal Realm. The fall of one Heavenly Venerable will pave the path to glory for tens of thousands of immortals. Immortal Monarchs, Immortal Kings, Heavenly Immortals, Earth Immortals, and even Human Immortals will all gain the opportunity to ascend to the next realm."
Aboard the immortal raft, the Imperial Monarch remarked leisurely, "One Venerable falls, ten thousand immortals ascend. Many have been waiting for this chance."
Watching this unfold, Xiao Xixian felt a surge of mixed emotions. When Xu Ying fell as the Celestial Venerable of the Dou Bureau all those years ago, it had likewise been an absolute frenzy.
The Heavenly Venerable fought his way out of the Thunder Department's immortal array, his wounds deepening once more.
He staggered toward the Heavenly Dao Ancestral Court.
The immortal raft trailed steadily behind him, neither rushing nor lagging. Like sharks scenting blood, loose immortals of the Immortal Realm mounted countless ambushes, assassinations, and surprise attacks along the way, while experts from the Immortal Court also stepped out to plot against him, seeking stepping stones for their own advancement.
By the time the Heavenly Venerable reached the Heavenly Dao Ancestral Court, even his Indestructible Primordial Spirit could barely hold together, on the verge of collapse.
He knocked open the gates of the Heavenly Dao Ancestral Court and stumbled inside.
At that moment, Xu Ying arrived at the Heavenly Dao Ancestral Court as well, riding an imperial carriage with the dragon bell resting in his palm.
Chapter 557