Chapter 1379: The Four Heavenly Gates (Second Update)
"Although Long Xiao is extremely shrewd, he possesses not great wisdom but petty cleverness. I must guard against him."
Qin Mu walked toward the Southern Heavenly Gate of the Ancestral Court, thinking to himself: "He excels in divine consciousness and physical strength, but like the creators of the ancient era, he cannot refine his soul. His soul is very weak compared to his body and divine consciousness. If he breaks his promise, that will be his death. As for Lady Yuanmu, I did not expect her to suddenly manifest a divine artifact, Imperial Heaven, for the sake of interests on the reverse side of the Ancestral Court."
The divine artifact Imperial Heaven descended on the reverse side of the Ancestral Court, drawing the attention of all nine Heavenly Sovereigns, yet no battle has broken out to this day.
If the nine Heavenly Sovereigns—Hao, Hong, Huo, Lang, and the others—wished to destroy the divine artifact Imperial Heaven, it would not be difficult. A combined strike from the nine of them would be unstoppable even by beings like Heaven Duke or Earth Bo, and would certainly kill it.
Although Lady Yuanmu's divine artifact Imperial Heaven was powerful, it could not withstand such an attack.
The reason they had not acted was that they did not know who Lady Yuanmu was. Moreover, Lady Yuanmu had only manifested the divine artifact Imperial Heaven; her true body had not appeared. They also worried that after destroying the divine artifact Imperial Heaven, Lady Yuanmu might ally with the Opening Emperor, Heaven Duke, and others, strengthening the enemy's power.
More critically, Lady Yuanmu had no fundamental conflict with them; she was not an irreconcilable enemy.
In that case, why not share some benefits with Lady Yuanmu and gain an ally?
Qin Mu had experienced the Nine Prison Platform, and his Dao heart had become increasingly clear. His judgment of worldly affairs had also grown sharper. In a short time, he had sorted out cause and effect and even deduced future changes.
The realm of the Nine Prison Platform indeed had a miraculous effect, allowing him to see his true nature and gain more precise control over himself and the world.
"The Nine Prison Platform realm will surely shine brilliantly among the gods in the future, becoming a crucial realm! But it will also be the realm with the highest mortality rate, likely not inferior to the Decapitation Platform realm, perhaps even higher! However, speaking of which..."
Qin Mu's expression turned strange. The Nine Prison Platform realm was positioned after the Decapitation Platform realm and before the Jade Capital realm. He had already cultivated the Nine Prison Platform realm, yet his cultivation realm had only just reached the Jasper Terrace realm.
So, what realm was he in now?
"This only shows that even the Heavenly Palace Dao Realm system is still imperfect, unable to fully describe my realm. Even the perfect Heavenly Palace Dao Realm system is only a part of my realm."
"If I reach the end of the Heavenly Palace Dao Realm system, will there still be a path ahead? How should I walk that path?"
He stopped, pondering quietly, then after a moment continued walking, thinking: "The Heavenly Palace Dao Realm system is currently built on the foundation of the Ancestral Court and the innate great Dao. Besides these, there is also the opening and development of the acquired Dao. There is still much to be done in the acquired great Dao. The path of the acquired Dao, the road where the acquired surpasses the innate, is also an immensely important path!"
"However, the Ancestral Court is the key to perfectly combining the Dao Realm system with the Heavenly Palace system. No matter what, I must establish a firm foothold in the Ancestral Court."
He arrived at the Southern Heavenly Gate of the Ancestral Court. Xu Shenghua, Lan Yutian, Wei Suifeng, Granny Si, Youming Crown Prince, and the First Patriarch were all surveying and studying, intending to map out the Southern Heavenly Gate and the Dao fire within it in detail.
Xu Shenghua and the others entered the Dao fire of the Southern Heavenly Gate, mapping its Dao patterns. The Dao fire targeted the primordial spirit, primordial qi, divine consciousness, and Dao runes. As long as one did not release their primordial spirit, there was no danger.
However, Qin Mu still saw Shu Jun, Wei Suifeng, Granny Si, Youming Crown Prince, and the First Patriarch manifesting their primordial spirits, tempering themselves in the Dao fire. When their primordial spirits could no longer bear it, they immediately returned to their physical bodies to avoid the burning of the Dao fire.
Qin Mu marveled, surprised that they used this simple method to evade the power of the Dao fire.
But this was still extremely dangerous, because the pressure of the Southern Heavenly Gate came not only from the Dao fire but also from the gate itself. If one's physical body had not been cultivated to the level of a true god, it would certainly be crushed.
Of course, the physical bodies of these individuals were extremely strong, especially Shu Jun's, which had reached the level of an Imperial Throne.
Qin Mu walked forward. Wei Suifeng saw him coming and immediately manifested his primordial spirit, walking through the Dao fire with great pride.
Qin Mu smiled faintly, unconcerned.
If Wei Suifeng and the others could safely pass through the Southern Heavenly Gate, he would be happy for them.
"But it's very difficult," Qin Mu thought with a smile.
Shu Jun told him the locations of the other three Heavenly Gates. Qin Mu asked Wei Suifeng for the Moon Sovereign's lantern, then picked it up and left.
Of the other three Heavenly Gates, the Northern Heavenly Gate was located on the reverse side of the Ancestral Court, directly opposite the Southern Heavenly Gate.
The Eastern Heavenly Gate and the Western Heavenly Gate were on the front side of the Ancestral Court.
Two days later, he arrived at the Northern Heavenly Gate. The surroundings were icy and snowy, with a biting wind. Dark clouds filled the sky, and thunder fell like rain, continuously striking into the Northern Heavenly Gate!
This gate was covered in bloodstains, with lightning rolling back and forth inside. A large-scale battle must have occurred here in the ancient era, claiming many lives.
Qin Mu entered the gate, placed his physical body at its center, and then manifested his primordial spirit to comprehend the principles contained within this gate.
More than ten days later, he had fully comprehended the principles of the Northern Heavenly Gate.
The great Dao contained in the Northern Heavenly Gate was something he had rarely encountered before, very profound. Qin Mu spent a few more days thoroughly understanding the principles of the Northern Heavenly Gate before leaving and returning to the front side of the Ancestral Court.
He found the Eastern Heavenly Gate. This gate was surrounded by purple qi and a blazing sun. It was extremely peculiar: a purple sun revolved around the gate's zenith, and a beam of purple qi shot from that sun into the gate.
At the center of the two mountains forming the gate, the purple qi coalesced into a purple eye. As Qin Mu walked into the gate, that purple eye shot out purple qi Dao chains that pierced into his primordial spirit.
Qin Mu stayed at this gate for over twenty days, feeling that his understanding of the Dao realm had deepened, yet he still could not advance his Dao realm further.
He picked up the lantern and left, then arrived at the Western Heavenly Gate.
Near the Western Heavenly Gate were mountains of gleaming divine gold, filled with metallic qi. The layout of the mountains resembled a vast formation, with tens of thousands of golden beams shooting from the mountain peaks into the Western Heavenly Gate, creating a spectacle of interweaving golden light within the gate.
Qin Mu spent over twenty days at this gate as well, comprehending it thoroughly before stepping out.
In his nineteen Heavenly Palaces, the four Heavenly Gates were reforged, and the four Heavenly Gates were also erected in the Ancestral Court, making his cultivation even more profound.
Not only that, but he also felt that his understanding of the Dao realm had advanced further. He sensed that he was closer to the twenty-sixth level of the Dao realm, but when he tried to enter the Dao again, he still lacked something.
"Were the four Heavenly Gates formed naturally, or are they relics from the previous era?"
Qin Mu pondered for a moment, then shook his head and returned to the Ten Thousand Black Mountains of the Ancestral Court. As soon as he arrived, an envoy came forward, presented an invitation, and bowed, saying: "Pastoral Heavenly Sovereign, the ten Heavenly Sovereigns jointly invite the leader of the Heavenly Alliance, Pastoral Heavenly Sovereign, to attend the Heavenly Alliance meeting at the Heavenly Alliance Hall in the Heavenly Court!"
Qin Mu opened the invitation and indeed saw the signatures of ten Heavenly Sovereigns, though Xiao Heavenly Sovereign's signature was likely signed by his disciple on his behalf.
"How many people from the Heavenly Alliance will attend the meeting?" Qin Mu closed the invitation and asked.
"Attendees number thirteen thousand."
The envoy said: "Besides the Heavenly Sovereigns, there are also various emperors and leaders from all realms across the heavens."
Qin Mu's body trembled slightly. The Heavenly Alliance he had founded had now become a behemoth ruling over all the heavens and myriad realms!
And now, he was going to overthrow this behemoth!