Chapter 1085: The Fourth Acknowledgment (Third Update!)
In the Xiao Han Heavenly Court.
Cloud Celestial sat down, letting out a long sigh. A young man with a still-immature face stepped forward, offering a cup of fragrant tea, and said, "Master, is the Heavenly Emperor dead?"
Cloud Celestial took the tea, took a sip, exhaled deeply, set down the cup, and said, "Finally dead. Wei Su, the battle to slay the Heavenly Emperor was of utmost importance. I couldn't risk any leaks beforehand, so I didn't inform you."
The young man smiled and said, "I understand naturally. With matters like this, the fewer people who know, the better. To accomplish great things, one must guard one's mouth well. Master, during this expedition to the Heavenly Court, who obtained the physical body of the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor?"
"No one can fully control the Heavenly Emperor's physical body, so they can only restrain each other and haggle endlessly."
Cloud Celestial picked up his teacup again, took a drink, and said, "Thus, we each left a strand of vital energy within the Heavenly Emperor's body to jointly control his physical form. But this is fine. Although the grievances between us and the demigods run deep, the root of everything lies with the Ancient Gods. The Ancient Gods are the source of all calamities, and the Heavenly Emperor is the chief culprit. Now that the Heavenly Emperor is dead, I have discussed with Hao Celestial and the others to have the Heavenly Court leave the Primordial Realm, making it difficult for the Ancient Gods to descend easily. That way, those Ancient Gods can no longer harass the beings of the Primordial Realm."
"What about Tu Bo, then?"
The young man raised an eyebrow and said, "And Di Mu Yuan Jun? And Tian Gong! These Ancient Gods must also die! Master, after eliminating the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor, you have lost much of your edge. Now you should press the advantage, join forces with Hao Celestial, and use the Heavenly Emperor's physical body to slay Di Mu, kill Tu Bo, and eliminate Tian Gong!"
Cloud Celestial frowned slightly and said, "The ones who have brought calamity to the Primordial Realm are not Tian Gong, Tu Bo, or Di Mu, but the gods under the Heavenly Emperor's command. Tian Gong governs the Xuan Du, overseeing the sun, moon, and stars—he has committed no wrong. Tu Bo governs the Nether Realm, managing the resting place of the dead—he has committed no wrong either. Di Mu Yuan Jun, though proud, has taken good care of the beings of the Primordial Realm over the years—she too is without fault. Why must they be killed?"
The young man was about to speak, but Cloud Celestial smiled and said, "Moreover, this success in slaying the Heavenly Emperor was greatly aided by the help of these three beings. Without them, the Heavenly Emperor's death could not have been so calm and without turmoil."
The young man's face flushed red, and he said loudly, "Master, the Heavenly Emperor's death may fool the world, but it cannot fool Tian Gong, Di Mu, and Tu Bo! These three giants covet the Heavenly Emperor's power and will surely rebel. If you don't eliminate them now, it will be too late to regret later! Master aims to unify the cosmos and become the lord of all realms..."
"Xiao Wei Su, you overstep your bounds!"
Cloud Celestial slammed the table and shouted, "Enough! My goal is only to secure a way for humanity to survive, not to pursue my own power! Tian Gong, Tu Bo, and Di Mu each have their duties. They have done no wrong and even have merits. How can we indiscriminately kill the innocent? Go down and think this over properly!"
The young man, Xiao Wei Su, bowed his head in acknowledgment and rose to leave.
Ling Celestial happened to be walking over, and Xiao Wei Su quickly bowed: "Senior Uncle Ling!"
Ling Celestial waved her hand, and Xiao Wei Su departed.
Ling Celestial watched him walk away before entering the hall and said, "Arguing with Xiao again?"
"This disciple is too extreme!"
Cloud Celestial rubbed his temples in great frustration and said, "He wants to eliminate all the Ancient Gods! Tian Gong, Di Mu, and Tu Bo—when have they ever done evil? On the contrary, they maintain the order of the myriad heavens and realms. If they were to die, the stars would shift, the constellations would fall into chaos, vengeful spirits would fill the land, fierce ghosts would run rampant, and the heavens would see all life perish. That would be the true catastrophe!"
"I don't like this Xiao Wei Su."
Ling Celestial said, "His temperament is too unruly, and he gives off an unreliable feeling."
Cloud Celestial smiled and said, "But his talent is a rarity among humanity—a genius not seen in hundreds of thousands of years. After all, humanity lacks divine or demonic bloodlines, so we need strong figures from the younger generation. Xiao Wei Su is the cream of the crop. His future achievements will not be inferior to yours or mine."
Ling Celestial thought for a moment and said, "You are the sovereign; you can decide. I came to you about another matter. Now that the Heavenly Emperor issue is resolved, the Four Imperial Lords have left the Heavenly Court for the Four Extremity Heavens. As for the other Ancient Gods, aside from Tian Gong, Tu Bo, and Di Mu, none are worth worrying about. Our greatest enemy is no longer the Ancient Gods, but the demigods."
Cloud Celestial said, "I understand."
Ling Celestial continued, "The demigods' power far exceeds that of humanity. And figures like Yin Tianzi and Fire Celestial, outstanding talents among humanity, have even chosen to aid the demigods. If Fire Celestial and Yin Tianzi could assist us, along with Nether Celestial, we could at least stand as equals against the demigods."
Cloud Celestial nodded and said, "I understand that too. But Fire Celestial does not."
He sighed and said, "Fire Celestial has his own thoughts. In his mind, our victory this time relied not on our own strength, but on the power of Hao Celestial's faction."
A trace of worry lingered on his face as he said, "Fire Celestial believes we succeeded in eliminating the Heavenly Emperor only with the help of the Empress sisters. Moreover, the Empress sisters are close to Hao Celestial, and there are figures like the Void God King, Tu Bo's daughter, the Ancestral God King, Tian Gong's son, and among the demigods, powerful beings like Lang Xuan Divine Emperor—far outnumbering humanity. A wise bird chooses its tree to perch on. I do not blame him for making that choice."
Ling Celestial frowned and said, "What about Nether Celestial? Can he be swayed?"
Cloud Celestial shook his head and said, "Only one person could persuade Nether Celestial, and that person is already dead."
Ling Celestial fell silent.
The only person in this world whom Nether Celestial admired was Imperial Celestial, but he had been dead for four hundred thousand years.
"Hao Celestial and the others have already infiltrated the Heavenly Alliance."
Ling Celestial said, "Even someone like me, who is not sensitive to external affairs, can now feel the undercurrents surging within the Heavenly Alliance. When we founded the Heavenly Alliance, we never imagined it would be slowly eroded by others."
"I know."
Cloud Celestial showed a smile and comforted her, saying, "Don't worry. I know the path to rise is difficult, but I am here."
Upon hearing this, Ling Celestial felt reassured and said, "I have always been immersed in research and rarely concern myself with external matters. If you encounter difficulties, just say the word. Yue and I will fully support you."
Cloud Celestial laughed and said, "You focus on your research into divine abilities and don't bother with these troublesome matters. I am increasingly looking forward to your Immutable Divine Ability!"
He laughed heartily and said, "Once your divine ability is fully complete, I must be the first to enter it, to travel through past and present, and meet the heroes of every era!"
His spirit soared with ambition: "I want to go to the early Long Han era and meet Imperial Celestial! I never got to exchange ideas with him in life or discuss the Dao of divine abilities—I must make up for that opportunity!"
"I want to go to the future to meet Qin Celestial and Mu Celestial! Those two must be from the future—I will go see them and learn how their circumstances are!"
"I also want to witness the divine abilities of the future and go to the past to mend my regrets!"
He paced excitedly, clapping his hands, and said, "I feel like there are so many things I want to do!"
Ling Celestial smiled and said, "That's still far from certain. I've only just succeeded in experimenting with the Ghost Ship. Where that ship traveled to, I'm not even sure myself."
Cloud Celestial encouraged her, saying, "With the first success, there will be a second. You will surely succeed!"
Ling Celestial felt a great joy in her heart. The first time she received acknowledgment was when Qin Mu and Qin Ye returned from the future, and when everyone else rejected her, only those two supported her, even accompanying her in researching the arts of creation and the immutability of matter.
The second acknowledgment came when Qin Mu traveled to the past and showed her his hairpin.
The third acknowledgment was when Cloud Celestial asked her to help Yuan Mu Furen bury the secrets of the Yu Lin Army and the Ghost Ship in history.
Now came the fourth.
From the early Long Han era to the present, four hundred thousand years, four acknowledgments—it made her smile like a simple little girl who had finally received the praise she had long awaited.