Chapter 1236: The Grand Plan to Slay the Shepherd (Second Update)
Fire Heavenly Lord couldn’t suppress the fury in his heart. Shang Pingyin, due to a flaw in his Dao heart, had once been severely wounded in that regard by Longshan the Wanderer in his early years. Although he later patched it up, the cracks in his Dao heart remained.
Now, trapped by Qin Mu’s formation based on “Longshan the Wanderer,” even after being healed by the Celestial Physician, the formation of “Longshan the Wanderer” still lingered in his mind, constantly obsessing over how to break it.
In such a state, Shang Pingyin would find it very difficult to handle the fierce, wolf-like army of the Opening Emperor.
Fire Heavenly Lord frowned and summoned a divine being, asking, “Where is Shepherd Heavenly Lord?”
“Reporting to Your Lordship, after Shepherd Heavenly Lord left here, he went to see the Fourth Celestial Master, Zhu Shaoping, and then went to see the Northern Heavenly King, Yi Luo.”
Fire Heavenly Lord’s brow furrowed deeply. “He went to see the Southern Celestial Master, Zhu Shaoping? How is Zhu Shaoping now?”
The divine being hesitated, then said, “Celestial Master Zhu is doing well. He chatted and laughed with Shepherd Heavenly Lord, and when Shepherd Heavenly Lord left, Celestial Master Zhu even saw him off warmly.”
Fire Heavenly Lord breathed a sigh of relief. If even Celestial Master Zhu had been crushed by Qin Mu’s tactics, then the Heavenly Court’s Four Celestial Masters would have lost two of their combat forces!
He then looked at Shang Pingyin. After treatment by the Celestial Physician, Shang Pingyin’s complexion had improved a lot, but he still occasionally lost focus.
“Without shedding a drop of blood, he’s ruined the Heavenly Court’s First Celestial Master. This Qin Mu…”
Fire Heavenly Lord felt a massive headache. Yet, at this moment, he simply couldn’t catch Qin Mu in any wrongdoing. Even Shang Pingyin believed that Qin Mu wasn’t harming him but rather guiding him. Fire Heavenly Lord couldn’t find any excuse to make a move against Qin Mu.
“His purpose in this trip is to visit the Four Celestial Masters and then the Four Heavenly Kings. It’s hard to guarantee that none of the Four Heavenly Kings will be swayed by him. I can’t let him continue his reckless mischief!”
He arrived at Zhu Shaoping’s divine city. Zhu Shaoping hurriedly welcomed him, asking, “What brings Your Lordship here?”
Fire Heavenly Lord inquired, “When Shepherd Heavenly Lord came to your place, did he do anything?”
Zhu Shaoping smiled faintly and said, “Shepherd Heavenly Lord came to probe my strengths and weaknesses, to observe the formation of my army. But the Dao that a Celestial Master seeks is the grand situation of the world. The formation changes he saw were merely minor arts.”
Fire Heavenly Lord praised him inwardly and asked, “How do we eliminate Shepherd Heavenly Lord?”
Zhu Shaoping was unaccustomed to such a direct approach and hesitated for a moment before saying, “Whoever kills Shepherd Heavenly Lord will bear a bad reputation. Since that’s the case, why not shift the blame to someone else? I have a plan. When we attack the Grand Void in the future, let Shepherd Heavenly Lord charge at the very front.”
Fire Heavenly Lord said displeasedly, “Qin Ye is colluding with him; he won’t kill him!”
Zhu Shaoping smiled and said, “Your Lordship, the Opening Emperor won’t kill him, but won’t we? In the chaos of battle, weapons have no eyes. If Shepherd Heavenly Lord dies on the battlefield, killed by the Opening Emperor’s forces, it would be only natural.”
Fire Heavenly Lord pondered for a moment, then asked, “How many troops do you need to ensure Shepherd Heavenly Lord dies in the chaos of battle?”
Zhu Shaoping said, “The Nether Emperor sent Hu Mengdie, Yin Jiuzun, and Yu Wufei, three top experts, to kill him, but he killed them instead. Shepherd Heavenly Lord has too many tricks up his sleeve, and his realm makes it hard to gauge his strength. If you judge him by his Divine Treasury and Heavenly Palace realms, his power fluctuates unpredictably, making it very difficult to understand.”
Fire Heavenly Lord frowned. Qin Mu’s cultivation and strength were indeed a mystery.
Zhu Shaoping analyzed, “I think it’s because he cultivates too many fused systems. If you judge by Heavenly Palace, his realm is True God. If you judge by Dao realm, he’s probably around the twenty-seventh or twenty-eighth level of Dao Attainment. But neither measure is accurate.”
He paced back and forth, continuing, “When he encounters experts at the Lingxiao realm who have a deep understanding of the Dao, his strength seems weaker. But if they only rely on techniques and divine abilities to enter the Dao, then he appears very strong. We just need to find a few Lingxiao experts with a profound grasp of the Dao, and they can kill him in the chaos of battle. If we can find someone at the twenty-seventh level of Dao Attainment, or even at the Yujing realm, they can take him down!”
He analyzed further, “But this isn’t his full strength. I haven’t seen him fight the Cycle Bell in person, but I’ve heard about the battle. He should be proficient in Ling Tianzun’s Immutable Divine Ability.”
Fire Heavenly Lord’s brow tightened, and the flame wheel behind his head suddenly spun faster, his mood unsettled. “Back then, the four of you Celestial Masters studied Ling Tianzun’s notes together, yet you couldn’t decipher the mysteries of the Immutable Divine Ability. That disappoints me.”
Zhu Shaoping said cautiously, “Ling Tianzun spent over nine hundred thousand years to comprehend the Immutable Divine Ability. The four of us Celestial Masters, with our white hair and lifelong study, couldn’t possibly grasp it in just a few tens of thousands of years.”
“But Shepherd Heavenly Lord learned it,” Fire Heavenly Lord reminded him.
Zhu Shaoping’s face flushed slightly. “It’s likely that Ling Tianzun taught him directly. We naturally can’t compare. Your Lordship, although I haven’t fully understood Ling Tianzun’s notes, I have gleaned some insights. Combined with what the other three Celestial Masters have each gained, the four of us should be able to devise a method to counter the Immutable Divine Ability and kill him without much trouble.”
Fire Heavenly Lord nodded lightly. “Shang Pingyin’s Dao heart is cracked. Only the three of you Celestial Masters remain. Can you design a means to deal with Shepherd Heavenly Lord?”
Zhu Shaoping smiled confidently. “We Celestial Masters excel in wisdom. Our combat prowess may not be top-tier, but in terms of strategy, throughout the entire Opening Emperor’s Heavenly Court, only Wen Tiange is worthy of being our opponent.”
Fire Heavenly Lord let out a sigh of relief and said firmly, “Go and summon Bai Yuqiong and Meng Yungui. Begin preparations immediately!”
Qin Mu left the divine city where the Northern Heavenly King, Yi Luo, was stationed and went to see the Eastern Heavenly King, Huang Qianxi.
The Northern Heavenly King, Yi Luo, also known as Yi Tianjun, was a clever man but only skilled in charging into battle. When Qin Mu observed the formation changes of his army, they were inferior to those of the Four Celestial Masters.
Each had their specialty. The Four Celestial Masters were called Celestial Masters for their strategic brilliance, favoring schemes, while the Four Heavenly Kings excelled in leading charges and valued martial prowess.
Back in the later period of the Opening Emperor’s Heavenly Court, the reason for their swift and devastating defeat was that the Four Heavenly Kings couldn’t participate in battle for various reasons, forcing the Four Celestial Masters to lead the charges, leading to a collapse like a landslide.
“Heavenly Kings are easy to deal with, but Celestial Masters are hard. Fortunately, the Heavenly Court’s Celestial Master Shang Pingyin has a flaw in his Dao heart.”
Qin Mu arrived at the divine city where the Eastern Heavenly King, Huang Qianxi, was stationed. Huang Qianxi had already heard the news and avoided meeting him. A divine being said, “Your Lordship has come at an inopportune time. Heavenly King Huang has gone to the Void Heavenly Lord to receive his teachings.”
Qin Mu thought to himself, “The Eastern Heavenly King won’t see me, so the other Heavenly Kings are likely the same. There’s no need to visit them.”
The Heavenly Court’s Four Heavenly Kings all bore the title of Tianjun: the Northern Heavenly King Yi Luo, Yi Tianjun; the Eastern Heavenly King Huang Qianxi, Huang Tianjun; the Western Heavenly King Xi Murong, Xi Tianjun; and the Southern Heavenly King Sang Geng, Sang Tianjun.
These four Tianjuns were even stronger than the Four Celestial Masters, but the most skilled were still the Four-Colored Emperors: the Black Emperor, the White Emperor, the Red Emperor, and the Azure Emperor.
This time, the Four Tianjuns, the Four Heavenly Kings, and the Four Emperors were all leading troops to attack the Grand Void, showing how much importance they placed on Carefree Village!
“If we add the Heavenly Court’s Ten Guards, it becomes even more terrifying. Even with the support of the Nether Capital, the Grand Void won’t be able to hold out.”
He gazed into the distance at the Opening Emperor’s camp and silently thought, “Opening Emperor, how long can you hold on?”