Chapter 1484: The Jade Capital Trap
Taiyi fought his way from this side of the river all the way to the middle, when suddenly a skeleton rose slowly from the river, blocking their path.
"Dao brothers, you are beings who have attained the Dao. Why do you still place such importance on life and death?" Taiyi stopped, leaning on his staff, and asked.
The skeleton seemed to understand his words. Its jaw opened and closed, but the words it spoke were unintelligible to Wei Suifeng and Shu Jun. This was a profound Dao language.
It seemed to be rebuking Taiyi.
There were countless races in this world, like the stars in the sky, and this universe had undergone sixteen cycles of creation and destruction. Naturally, languages were not mutually intelligible.
However, there was one language that could be used for communication: the Dao language.
Using the Great Dao as a language, one could express one's thoughts. But to be able to communicate using the Dao language, one's own abilities naturally had to be extremely high.
This skeleton in the river was also a being who had attained the Dao, with formidable strength.
Taiyi listened for a moment, then shook his head and said, "No matter how well you speak, you are nothing more than someone who fears death and clings to life."
The skeleton in the river lunged at Taiyi. At the same time, the Chaos River boiled, and skeletons rose one after another from the river, attacking Taiyi from all directions!
Even from the Chaos River beneath Taiyi's feet, a skeleton emerged to strike!
The divine abilities they employed were truly profound and unfathomable to Wei Suifeng and Shu Jun. The depth and profundity of their Dao realm were beyond anything the two had ever seen!
Even the divine abilities of the Ten Celestial Venerables could be partially understood by the two, but the divine abilities of these river skeletons were completely incomprehensible!
Taiyi raised his staff and pointed it. No matter how myriad and mysterious the divine abilities of the river skeletons were, this single strike accurately pierced through their abilities and struck them right between the eyebrows!
One skeleton's skull shattered, and it retreated into the Chaos River.
Taiyi's staff flew up and down, sometimes pointing, sometimes sweeping, sometimes smashing. Every move and technique looked simple to the point of clumsiness, yet every strike hit its opponent with perfect accuracy. Seeming slow but actually fast, he soon knocked all the skeletons back into the Chaos.
He withdrew his staff, its tip resting on the river's surface. The skeleton at the bottom of the river, which had been preparing to ambush his foot, was precisely struck between the eyebrows by the staff's tip and sank silently into the river without a sound.
Taiyi said to the still-shaken Shu Jun and Wei Suifeng, "These people are former Dao attainers. This Chaos River is the destroyed universe they inhabit. When they leap out of the river to attack, they are striking from their destroyed universe. As long as we knock them back into the river, they will return to their own universe and cannot come over."
Wei Suifeng asked, "Dao brother, what if they leap out of the Chaos River and set foot on the shore?"
"If they leap out of the Chaos River but do not set foot on the shore, they are still not considered to have entered our universe. If they do set foot on the shore, even I would be helpless."
After a long time, they finally reached the opposite bank. The three looked ahead and saw another Chaos River blocking their path.
Taiyi frowned, and Wei Suifeng and Shu Jun were also puzzled.
"This body of mine is old and decrepit. Although my divine abilities are extremely high, my physical functions are failing. Fighting all the way through will certainly leave me exhausted."
Taiyi said to the two, "Stay here and don't move. I'll go and change into another body."
The two were startled. They watched as Taiyi jumped into the Chaos River. After a moment, the river's surface churned, and a young man emerged from it. He was handsome, with delicate features and a spirited demeanor, holding a wooden long spear with a few tender green leaves still on it. He said, "Let's go."
The two didn't know where he had jumped to or whose body he had taken over.
They examined the wooden spear in Taiyi's hand, wondering what kind of wood it was made from.
The young Taiyi led them into the second Chaos River. This time, the young Taiyi was not as steady as the old Taiyi. His spear techniques and divine abilities had many more variations, no longer simple and unadorned.
Although the two's insight wasn't as high as Taiyi's, they could still tell that the young Taiyi's spear techniques, though close-combat, seemed to lack the feeling of the Great Dao being reduced to simplicity that the old Taiyi's gave.
Fortunately, the young Taiyi's advantage lay in his stronger physical functions. Charging all the way through, there were a few more close calls.
The journey was nerve-wracking, but they managed to cross this great river safely.
However, on the opposite bank, there was another Chaos River.
The young Taiyi frowned, observed for a moment, and said, "This river is difficult to cross. Wait while I go and change into another body." With that, he jumped into the river again.
Wei Suifeng and Shu Jun were already used to it. They stood by the river and waited. After a moment, a seductive woman emerged from the river, holding a slender sword in her hand. She said very charmingly, "Come with me, you two."
The woman led the two across the river. Along the way, her sword light flashed like lightning, hissing and darting through the Chaos, cutting down the many strange dangers within and sending them crashing into the Chaos.
They traveled this way, crossing one great river after another. Taiyi also changed into more than a dozen forms, and the weapons in his hand changed more than a dozen times as well.
Wei Suifeng and Shu Jun were puzzled, wondering where he was getting these weapons.
They came to another great river. This time, Taiyi transformed into a burly man with a divine bow slung over his back.
Wei Suifeng thought the divine bow looked familiar, and his eyelids twitched uncontrollably. "It looks like the divine bow my junior brother carries! Strange, did Taiyi run off to the previous universe and borrow the physical body and weapon of another Dao attainer? How did he get to the previous universe? Could this Chaos River really lead to other universes?"
Shu Jun also noticed that this divine bow was somewhat similar to the one Qin Mu had dug out from the mineral vein. He wondered to himself, "All the various forms Taiyi has taken before—were they all borrowed from other Dao attainers' bodies? That would be an incredible display of power!"
Neither of them asked any questions. Instead, they looked down at the river, but the Chaos was thick and murky, obscuring the view below.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew. The burly Taiyi raised his hand to shield himself, and the Chaos River churned, the water layer thinning. Wei Suifeng and Shu Jun immediately felt as if they were standing on clouds, and below them was the vast and boundless Ancestral Court!
However, it was not the Ancestral Court of today, but a more ancient, more dilapidated Ancestral Court!
At that moment, the Ancestral Court below was actually collapsing!
Not only was the Ancestral Court collapsing, but the entire universe was collapsing and contracting. Only a single magnificent giant tree stood tall between heaven and earth, unshaken by the great destruction!
The two shivered violently. They vaguely saw many incredibly powerful figures, as the universe crumbled, coming to the roots of that giant tree. Their strong and mighty bodies reshaped heaven and earth, moved stars and constellations, and built a magnificent divine city!
Just then, the wind stopped. Chaos Qi filled the riverbed, blocking their view.
The two were deeply shocked. They exchanged a glance and remained silent.
Taiyi drew his bow and shot down the strange beings in the river one by one.
They arrived at the sixteenth great river. Taiyi said, "The master of the Miluo Palace is waiting at his leisure. I must meet him in my strongest form. Wait here for a moment."
He jumped into the river again. After a moment, a burly and powerful man emerged from the river. His muscles were fierce and imposing, and he carried a Chaos Axe on his shoulder. He said to the two, "My preparations are not entirely sufficient, but this will have to do for now. After we cross the river, you two stay outside. I will go in to see him."
The two could only nod.
The sixteenth great river was extremely wide. Taiyi, holding his axe, led the two as they charged across. The river's surface was calm, without the many strange occurrences of before.
The two were on edge, their vigilance heightened. They saw thick fog ahead, Chaos Qi like mist obscuring their vision. Following Taiyi through the Chaos, they saw in the distance many huge shadows standing within the Chaos Qi, but they couldn't make out what they were.
The two grew even more tense. However, when they reached the opposite bank of the Chaos River, they discovered that the shadows ahead were actually towering, majestic jade palaces and various strange structures.
"A magnificent city!"
Wei Suifeng couldn't help but praise, "Jade Capital, Jade Capital—white jade as the capital. This is the true Jade Capital City. Compared to this, the Jade Capital City of the Heavenly Court is nothing but a pile of dirt!"
Shu Jun nodded repeatedly, also full of admiration.
"This place can be called Jade Capital, or it can be called the Miluo Palace."
Taiyi slung the Chaos Axe over his back and took a step. When he took one step, Wei Suifeng and the others had to run a hundred steps to keep up. Taiyi said, "The Lingxiao Hall of the Heavenly Court is just one of the great halls in this Miluo Palace. Look over there!"
He raised his axe and pointed. The two quickly looked and indeed saw a Lingxiao Hall!
However, this Lingxiao Hall was even more magnificent and imposing than the one in the Heavenly Court. It also possessed a natural aura of the Great Dao, lingering around the hall!
The Lingxiao Hall of the Heavenly Court could not compare to this hall at all.
"The Lingxiao Hall of the Heavenly Court was actually visualized by the Creators. The Grand Emperor must have seen this hall and visualized its form, but he could not replicate the true hall." Taiyi said unhurriedly.
Wei Suifeng was dumbfounded. Suddenly, he thought of a crucial matter and hurriedly asked, "This Lingxiao Hall was not formed naturally, but was refined by the master of the Miluo Palace?"
Taiyi nodded and said, "This hall was refined from the Great Dao. The entire Jade Capital City was also refined from the Great Dao of Dao attainers. Therefore, it possesses supreme power."
Wei Suifeng felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, from head to toe. His heart turned icy cold, and he exclaimed, "Then what is the origin of the three realms: the Jade Capital realm, the Lingxiao realm, and the Imperial Throne realm? These three realms were established based on the Jade Capital City of the Heavenly Court. If the Jade Capital City was built as an imitation of this place, then doesn't that mean... doesn't that mean..."
He shivered several times and dared not continue.
Shu Jun suddenly said, "Doesn't that mean these three realms are all traps?"
The Jade Capital trap!
The Jade Capital realm is a trap, the Lingxiao realm is a trap, and even the Imperial Throne realm is a trap!
What kind of person possessed such great ability, such powerful means, and such far-reaching schemes to set up such a terrifying trap, catching all the world's powerful experts in one net?
Could it be that master of the Miluo Palace?
They looked at the palace ahead, which was getting closer and closer, and couldn't help but shiver. A chill rose from the bottom of their hearts, climbing up their spine to their necks, then to the back of their heads, and finally burrowed into their minds.
Taiyi did not say anything, nor did he confirm their guesses, but they had already confirmed their suspicions from the clues.
"Back then, we discovered the Ancestral Court's Jade Capital City by pure chance."
Shu Jun murmured, "Bo Yang and I entered from another path. The path the Grand Emperor and the Primordial Emperor took was different from ours. Did they come here? If the master of the Miluo Palace was setting up a scheme, it must have started from that time..."
"You two stay here."
Taiyi planted a staff into the ground, slung the Chaos Axe over his back, and walked straight toward the Miluo Palace. He said in a deep voice, "I will go and meet him! If I can stop him, everything will be fine. If I cannot..."
——In the morning, I sent my daughter to school, then came back to rush the manuscript. This chapter was uploaded early. Zhai Zhu went to the hospital to accompany his wife. In the afternoon, he will go directly to pick up his daughter from school. After returning, he will continue writing!