Chapter 1320: Returning the Treasure to Its Rightful Owner (Fourth Update)
Qin Mu seemed oblivious, yet his steps were extremely fast. In a short while, he had traveled a thousand miles. When Earth Mother Primordial's roots extended to a distance of a hundred miles, new roots would immediately sprout behind them, while the original roots retracted at lightning speed.
They advanced like this for hundreds of thousands of miles, but Earth Mother Primordial still couldn't break the Four Ore Seal on the treasure seal!
The Imperial Emperor's eyes flickered. "Earth Mother still can't do it. She can't break Qin Mu's seal at all!"
Suddenly, dozens of roots gently coiled around the treasure seal, tearing it off Qin Mu's back with brute force.
The treasure seal fell to the ground and vanished instantly, pulled into the earth and disappearing from sight.
Qin Mu stretched lazily, not looking back, and continued forward.
After a moment, the treasure seal emerged from the ground tens of thousands of miles away. Along with the seal, countless thick roots surfaced. The surrounding mountains quickly regained their lush green, with countless trees growing wildly, flowers and grass bursting with vitality, and blossoms blooming in splendor.
Roots danced in the air, forming an altar. Earth Mother Primordial rose slowly from the altar, bowed to the treasure seal at the center, and said, "Imperial Emperor, Earth Mother pays her respects."
The Imperial Emperor nodded slightly and said indifferently, "Earth Mother, no need for formalities. Rise."
Earth Mother Primordial straightened up and said with a smile, "That boy's seal is extremely strange. I couldn't break it without alerting him, so I had to steal the Imperial Emperor. I hope you will forgive me."
In the ancient era, the Imperial Emperor ruled the universe. Though he was brutally tyrannical, all ancient gods were his subjects. Therefore, Earth Mother Primordial followed the old customs and still addressed him as "Your Majesty."
Of course, during the Blood Rust Campaign of that ancient era, Earth Mother had also followed Heavenly Emperor Taichu and played a significant role in the campaign to eliminate the Creators and remove the Imperial Emperor.
The Imperial Emperor said solemnly, "Earth Mother, why didn't you directly kill Mu Tianzun? Instead, you sneaked around and stole the seal? With your strength, if you had struck directly, he would have been no match for you."
Earth Mother Primordial examined the treasure seal, then suddenly shuddered, a look of terror in her eyes. "Mu Tianzun has someone backing him. In the Chaos Sea, the existence behind him forced back the Four Heavenly Venerables with a single blow! That existence is far more terrifying than the Ten Heavenly Venerables! I feared that existence might not have left yet, so I didn't dare make a move against him."
"Forced back the Four Heavenly Venerables with a single blow?"
The Imperial Emperor's expression grew grave. He murmured, "The Four Heavenly Venerables were severely wounded by me. Their strength isn't at its peak. Forcing them back—I could have done that at my peak, and Heavenly Emperor Taichu could have done it at his peak too... When did such an existence appear in the Ancestral Court? Could it be Hong Tianzun..."
He had always been wary of Hong Tianzun.
Hong Tianzun's identity was Da Hong. Back then, the Imperial Emperor had borrowed Da Hong's body and walked the world under that name. Because Yun, Ling, and Yue had ambushed his true body in the Great Void, he flew into a rage and prepared to destroy the Xiao Han Heavenly Court. But on the way, he was intercepted by Qin Mu at the Xiao Han Heavenly Court.
The two fought a battle on the Heavenly River. Qin Mu was severely injured, and Da Hong was also gravely wounded by Qin Mu. Both retreated. During his escape, Da Hong encountered a terrifying force that completely obliterated the Imperial Emperor's divine consciousness within Da Hong's body!
Later, the Imperial Emperor transformed into Ming Fangyu, but he never exposed Da Hong's identity.
Because by keeping this terrifying opponent alive, he could make the other Heavenly Venerables suspect that Hong Tianzun was the Imperial Emperor, diverting suspicion away from himself.
In fact, Hong Tianzun had indeed taken the blame for him many times, to the point where even Gong Tianzun had attacked Hong Tianzun countless times!
Earlier, Earth Mother Primordial had only used her roots to try to break Qin Mu's Four Ore Seal. Now, she was going all out!
Her strength was formidable. In such a short time, she had recovered to the level of a minor heavenly court powerhouse!
Yet, to her confusion, no matter how powerful her divine abilities were, no matter how she tried to break the Four Ore Seal on the treasure seal, the seal remained unbreakable!
Not only could she not break it, but none of her attacks could even affect the treasure seal!
Even when she used all her strength to strike the seal, not a trace of power landed on it!
Every one of her divine abilities passed straight through the seal without touching it at all!
After a long time, Earth Mother Primordial's forehead was covered in cold sweat, and she was panting heavily.
The Imperial Emperor watched her expressionlessly. Suddenly, he said, "Earth Mother, enough! I understand your intentions. You wish to pledge allegiance to me. That is acceptable. I have another identity among the Ten Heavenly Venerables and can shelter you and protect your life."
Earth Mother Primordial's face flushed slightly. She bowed and said, "Thank you for your mercy, Your Majesty. But this seal..."
"This seal—not even you can break it, nor could I if I acted personally."
The Imperial Emperor said coldly, "None of the Ten Heavenly Venerables could break his seal either! His seal has surpassed the understanding of this era. It belongs to the unknown. Even I can only comprehend half of the knowledge within one of the seals. The Heavenly Emperor might understand the other half, but he won't join forces with me to break it."
Earth Mother Primordial was startled and blurted out, "Mu Tianzun is actually that formidable?"
"He's just weak in cultivation."
The Imperial Emperor said lightly, "If his cultivation were raised to the level of Hao Tianzun, heh, even if he were to contend for the world against me and Taichu at our peaks, he wouldn't be at a disadvantage. The five founding leaders of the Heavenly Alliance—Yun, Ling, Yue, Qin, and Mu—Yun is dead, Ling has vanished, Yue is wounded, and Qin is in hiding. Only Mu Tianzun remains. His divine abilities truly live up to the title of leader. No wonder the last Heavenly Alliance meeting wanted him to attend..."
Earth Mother Primordial's heart shook violently. Thinking back to Qin Mu's younger days, she found all this almost unbelievable.
Back then, Qin Mu was just a country bumpkin led by Gongsun Yan into Earth Mother Primordial's underground palace, gawking around with no real insight or experience.
But now, even the Imperial Emperor said Qin Mu was not to be underestimated, treating him as a true opponent!
Besides Taichu, the Imperial Emperor had never regarded anyone else as an opponent—not even Earth Mother Primordial was qualified!
Earth Mother Primordial hesitated for a moment and then tested the waters, "Your Majesty, what should we do now..."
The Imperial Emperor said expressionlessly, "Now, send me back."
Earth Mother Primordial was startled.
The Imperial Emperor snorted coldly. "Don't send me back to where I was. Take me directly to Da Hei Mu and wait for him there."
Earth Mother Primordial looked incredulous and blurted out, "Your Majesty, you finally escaped..."
"Earth Mother, the baleful qi has clouded your wisdom, making you dangerously unclear-headed."
The Imperial Emperor sneered. "You shouldn't be staying in the Ancestral Court at all. You should leave immediately and seek out Da Fan Tian to use his Buddhist teachings to purify the baleful qi. Otherwise, you will surely die. The world is bustling, all for profit. Mu Tianzun and I are not people of our word, but we share one principle: when interests align, we cooperate; when they diverge, we part ways. He wants to use my territory, so he won't harm me. Now, take me to Da Hei Mu and wait for him!"
Qin Mu strolled leisurely along the way, admiring the magnificent scenery of the Ancestral Court. The Ancestral Court was far better than when he had first visited it. Everywhere were sacred lands, birds singing and flowers fragrant, giant beasts roaming freely—a sight to behold.
Before he knew it, he finally arrived at the Ten Thousand Black Mountains. A large seal stood before him.
Qin Mu walked up and said with a smile, "Brother, sorry to keep you waiting."
The Imperial Emperor snorted coldly. "Call me Imperial Emperor."
Qin Mu smiled faintly, hoisted him onto his back, and walked into the Ten Thousand Black Mountains.
Ahead, a big-headed youth hurried over, laughing from a distance, "Mu Tianzun, what took you so long? There's something you probably don't know yet. That bastard Imperial Emperor fought the Four Heavenly Venerables and got beaten to a pulp—it was a sight to behold! He was dismembered, arms and legs falling from the sky. What a delight... What are you carrying on your back?"