Chapter 1257: Zero and One (Third Update)
The crowd stared at this great Dao cocoon. Although a path had already been forced open by the demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables, it still exuded an aura of danger.
Just moments ago, so many demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables had failed to breach the deepest part of the Dao cocoon. Their own journey here would likely be fraught with peril as well.
The group steadied their nerves. Suddenly, Xi Tianjun burst into laughter: "Wen Ji... Wen Tian Pavilion is a loyal minister and righteous subject, utterly devoted to the Heavenly Court! He is an unswerving vassal! So, let Brother Wen lead the way into this great cocoon. What say you, Brother Wen?"
The Woodcutter replied calmly, "Since that is the case, I shall naturally guide you all!"
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Although the Woodcutter's cultivation realm was not high, his wisdom was extraordinary. Only he could unravel the deadly traps hidden within Hao Heavenly Venerable's Dao cocoon.
The Woodcutter stepped forward first, entering the opening of the Dao cocoon. He carefully examined the Dao pattern threads on the cocoon's surface. These thread-like structures were formed from the overflow of Hao Heavenly Venerable's Great Dao while he was unconscious.
"These Dao pattern threads should be the result of Hao Heavenly Venerable being too severely injured. His physical body could no longer contain these Heavenly Daos, which became a burden on him, so he expelled them from his body."
The Woodcutter murmured, "From the fine structure of these Dao pattern threads, they are formed from his heavenly palaces. Different heavenly palaces create different Dao cocoons. This is the first layer of the cocoon."
The crowd followed him, listening in confusion.
The Dao pattern threads had taken the form of cocoons. Earlier, many demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables had died here. As they walked past these corpses, it was clear that the demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables had suffered heavy casualties trying to break through the cocoon.
Strangely enough, these demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables had also formed cocoons of their own, hanging upside down along the passage.
The group avoided these bodies. Some demonic hearts were still alive, their flesh pierced by the Dao pattern threads within the cocoons, staring at them with wide eyes.
"Heh heh, what a sight these little Mu Heavenly Venerables make..." Lü Zheng chuckled.
They hadn't gone far before they indeed saw the second layer of the Dao cocoon.
The Woodcutter Sage continued his careful inspection. The cocoon had been forcibly cut open by the demonic hearts, creating a passage that led straight to the cocoon's depths.
"Based on Hao Heavenly Venerable's cultivation realm, his Dao cocoon should be divided into thirty-five layers. However, Hao Heavenly Venerable is the son of the Heavenly Emperor and Lady Yuanmu. He is highly proficient in both the Heavenly Emperor's Primordial One Qi and Lady Yuanmu's Return to Void Great Dao."
He looked at the demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables wrapped in cocoons and hanging upside down in the passage, his expression grave. He said in a low voice, "Primordial One Qi is one, and the Return to Void Great Dao is zero. One, zero, zero, one... There must be some trick to this..."
"Wen Ji, you thief, can you handle this or not?"
Xi Tianjun couldn't hold back and shouted, "If we don't move forward soon, and Hao Heavenly Venerable recovers..."
He didn't finish his sentence.
Emperor Chi Qiyayu's eyes flickered. Radiant light spilled from her body like a nine-colored phoenix. When the light faded, she had changed her clothes and her appearance.
She wore a ringed crown on her head, a short-sleeved top, a black skirt, and was adorned with various trinkets, looking like a village girl from the Western Lands of the Yuan Realm. Her original appearance was completely unrecognizable.
Xi Tianjun shuddered and also changed his appearance. After all, he was a Heavenly King of the Heavenly Court. If he failed to kill Hao Heavenly Venerable, he would surely be found and killed by him later!
The Woodcutter Sage was still examining the demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables hanging in the passage. Suddenly, he took out his large axe and tried to cut off a cocoon wrapped around one of them, but the cocoon was extremely tough. Even using all his strength, he couldn't cut it open.
"Let me do it!"
Yan Yunxi, suppressing her injuries, stepped forward. With a single sword strike, she cut the cocoon down.
The fine threads inside the cocoon suddenly lashed out like tentacles, lunging at her!
Startled, Yan Yunxi's sword flashed. A dense, rapid series of clanging sounds rang out as the incredibly tough threads collided with her blade, sparking flashes of light!
Yan Yunxi severed these threads and frowned slightly.
Bai Yuqiong had injured her severely. This time, using her sword had aggravated her wounds, and she felt the pain flare up again. But strangely, when her sword clashed with the threads, she vaguely sensed that some of her own vital energy seemed to have been drained away, stolen by these threads.
"Zi Xi, did you feel a loss of your vital energy?" the Woodcutter asked.
Yan Yunxi nodded. "These threads are strange."
The Woodcutter Sage said, "Split open this demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerable and see if his body is also filled with these threads. I have a bad guess that I need to verify."
"Old bastard! Stinking old man!"
The demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerable was still alive. Hearing this, he roared angrily, "Wait until I get out of here and eat you!"
Yan Yunxi swung her sword, cutting open the demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerable's belly. His stomach split open, and what flowed out was not his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, or kidneys, but countless fine threads!
These threads were like tiny, writhing snakes, all raising their heads and lunging at Yan Yunxi.
Yan Yunxi cut them down, her frown deepening.
The others also furrowed their brows. Niu Sanduo muttered, "These guys are all filled with threads inside. What does that mean?"
"Just as I thought."
The Woodcutter Sage said, "This is the effect of zero and one. Hao Heavenly Venerable's Return to Void Great Dao is zero. The Return to Void devours all things, causing the Dao to cease to exist. It devoured the energy within these demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables! The Primordial One Qi is one, transforming from zero to one, converting the energy of the demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables into one! Hao Heavenly Venerable is indeed unconscious, but he is deliberately unconscious!"
The crowd was startled.
The Woodcutter Sage continued, "He deliberately brought a piece of collapsed void into the Taixu Land, evolving it into the Taixu Demon Domain! He planned to use the strangeness of the Taixu Demon Domain to allow his own demonic heart to borrow that strangeness and manifest into reality, devouring the energy of the demonic hearts to heal himself as quickly as possible! He is using the process of transforming from zero to one to cure his Dao wounds. Once he devours the demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables and then absorbs and refines these Dao cocoons, he will return to his peak state, perhaps even stronger than before!"
The group's faces changed drastically. Staring at the deep passage, they all hesitated.
Suddenly, Xi Tianjun burst into laughter and declared loudly, "Excellent! You rebels actually dare to plot against Hao Heavenly Venerable! Your subject, Xi Muhong, is unmatched in loyalty and has come specifically to protect His Majesty!"
He radiated righteousness, inspiring awe and admiration.
The Woodcutter Sage glanced at him and said calmly, "Hao Heavenly Venerable is still unconscious and cannot hear your words. If he were awake, so many demonic heart Mu Heavenly Venerables would not have come to die, nor would he have allowed us to reach this place. He could have used the thirty-five layers of the Dao cocoon to attack us."
Emperor Chi Qiyayu nodded. "These cocoons only counterattack when attacked, which shows that Hao Heavenly Venerable is still asleep."
Xi Tianjun remained expressionless. "What you two say is true. So, what should we do now?"
His thick skin was truly astonishing.
The Woodcutter Sage said, "Whether we are enemies or allies depends on whether there is a possibility of killing Hao Heavenly Venerable. Since that's the case, why don't I go to the center of the Dao cocoon and take a look?"
He took the lead and walked forward. Martial Combat Heavenly Master Zhuo Cha quickly came to his side and whispered, "I'll protect you. Woodcutter, how much of his strength do you think Hao Heavenly Venerable has recovered?"
The Woodcutter Sage said quietly, "Don't even talk about recovering a fraction. Even if he had half his strength, we would all die if we attacked together. The only advantage now is that Hao Heavenly Venerable is unconscious. If he remains in that state, there is a chance to kill him! Have you completed your Heavenly River Divine Treasury?"
Martial Combat Heavenly Master nodded and smiled. "No more weaknesses."
The Woodcutter Sage said solemnly, "Among us, you are the strongest now. Keep an eye on Xi Tianjun and Emperor Chi. It's hard to say whether one of them might be Hao Heavenly Venerable's man."
Martial Combat Heavenly Master Zhuo Cha felt a chill in his heart.
The group passed through layer after layer of the Dao cocoon. Suddenly, the space ahead opened up. Dao light was thick and hazy, rising and falling like waves in this vast space.
They looked and saw countless threads converging from all directions inside the cocoon, gathering onto Hao Heavenly Venerable at the center!