Chapter 1640: Old Seven and Old Three
There were only twenty-four treasure halls, and these twenty-four treasure halls represented the twenty-four Dao Achievers from past universes. These beings were Dao Achievers similar to Primordial Sage, and they could be considered the backbone of Miluo Palace!
For example, Primordial Sage was a being who had lived through three cosmic epochs. His power absolutely surpassed that of today's Heavenly Emperor Hao, Grand Primordium, and Kai Huang by a wide margin.
Although he died at the hands of the Ten Celestial Venerables, that was because he was unable to truly descend into this universe—only his Dao Fruit and Dao Tree had arrived. He was also ambushed by Wei Suifeng and Shu Jun, forcing him to clash head-on with Nanxiang Yuanjun, sustaining severe injuries, which ultimately led to his death at the hands of the Ten Celestial Venerables.
Though Primordial Sage was dead, the others from the seventy-two halls were still alive.
Heavenly Emperor Hao and Grand Primordium had taken away fifty-six treasure halls in total, leaving sixteen treasure halls remaining in the Ancestral Court's Jade Capital City. Among them was Miluo Palace's Fragrant Incense Hall, which belonged to Primordial Sage.
Although Qin Mu ridiculed these twenty-four prehistoric Dao Achievers, deep down he held no contempt for them.
Every one of them who had achieved Dao in prehistory and survived to the present day possessed extraordinary accomplishments. Even if they couldn't descend in their true bodies, they were still formidable!
These twenty-four Dao Achievers were not merely a little stronger than before—they were vastly more powerful!
The last time they tried to stop Qin Mu from achieving Dao, their power came from those treasure halls, which were the seventy-two halls Qin Mu had comprehended, not the real seventy-two halls.
When they took the opportunity to descend, their strength wasn't too great. They could only project their physical forms and the projections of their Dao Trees, Dao Flowers, and Dao Fruits.
Qin Mu had also used the birth and death cycles of his Divine Treasury Universe to completely refine and absorb the power of their projections, leveraging the advantage of his terrain and the unification of his techniques.
But now, the treasure halls of these twenty-four Dao Achievers had truly appeared in the One Qi Great Luo Heaven, and this was Grand Primordium's One Qi Great Luo Heaven, not Qin Mu's Fetal Soul Divine Treasury.
Whether he could defeat these twenty-four Dao Achievers, he had no certainty.
More critically, Grand Primordium was still nearby!
Qin Mu wore a smile, leaning on his Calamity Sword without moving.
The twenty-four Dao Achievers also stood there motionless.
This time, they hadn't descended with projections of their Dao Trees, Dao Flowers, and Dao Fruits, but each treasure hall seemed to come alive. The runes, Dao patterns, and Dao chains within the halls awakened, exuding the unique Dao resonance of Dao Achievers!
Their physical bodies grew stronger, their power surging wildly as the runes, Dao patterns, and Dao chains flew out of the halls and drilled into their bodies, amplifying their strength.
Grand Primordium sensed these waves of powerful energy and was secretly alarmed. These twenty-four beings were already immortal and indestructible. Though they couldn't descend in their true bodies, merely obtaining a drop of his blood allowed them to elevate their strength to this level, like twenty-four Celestial Venerables—truly terrifying!
"Grand Primordium, do you see now?"
Qin Mu smiled faintly and said leisurely, "Both you and Heavenly Emperor Hao have taken the wrong path."
Grand Primordium was startled. "What do you mean by that, Celestial Venerable Mu?"
"These twenty-four prehistoric Dao friends, their cultivation achievements are not the Jade Terrace Hall or the Purple Firmament Hall. Instead, after achieving Dao through their respective techniques, they transformed into their own halls."
Qin Mu's gaze swept over the Audience Hall, Soaring Void Hall, Treasure Light Hall, Radiant Hall, and other treasure halls, speaking unhurriedly. "In their hearts, you and Heavenly Emperor Hao are not yet their own people. They haven't taught you the true Jade Capital Dao Achievement method. If it were the true method of achieving Dao, you wouldn't be cultivating the Jade Terrace Hall or the Purple Firmament Hall. Instead, you would cultivate your own treasure hall, your own Throne of the Sovereign, and achieve your own Dao."
Grand Primordium's heart tightened, and he remained silent.
Indeed, as Qin Mu said, these twenty-four prehistoric Dao Achievers had ultimately transformed their Great Dao into their respective treasure halls, not achieving Dao through the Jade Terrace or Purple Firmament paths.
This clearly showed that the Jade Terrace and Purple Firmament Dao Achievement paths he and Heavenly Emperor Hao were following were traps!
Qin Mu was absolutely right. He and Heavenly Emperor Hao were merely pawns of the Third Young Master and Fourth Young Master of Miluo Palace, not considered their own people.
"But since things have come to this, there's no turning back." Grand Primordium thought to himself.
Suddenly, the twenty-four prehistoric Dao Achievers moved in unison, attacking Qin Mu from all directions!
Prehistoric Great Dao techniques appeared for the first time in this universe. These beings were peerless geniuses who had stood at the pinnacle in their own eras. Though their techniques and Dao methods differed from those of this universe, their power was in no way inferior!
Moreover, their techniques had been honed through countless refinements. As followers of the Miluo Palace Master, they surpassed the current Heavenly Court by an immeasurable margin in both sophistication and application!
One of them clearly followed the path of achieving Dao through raw power, cultivating his physical body so that his primordial spirit and flesh were tightly unified. His physical strength was rarely seen in the world.
His techniques resembled martial arts, grand and sweeping, like a giant splitting heaven and earth, tearing apart sun and moon with his hands, and grasping the cosmos with his palms!
Another followed the path of innate sacred fire, his flames refined into heat-death winds, surpassing Fire Celestial Venerable. His Dao methods twisted space, and with a single strike, flames consumed everything!
Yet another walked the path of Heavenly Dao. His cultivation realm was comparable to Ancestral God King, but his Dao methods were even more exquisite and wondrous!
One by one, the prehistoric Dao Achievers unleashed their combined power, charging at Qin Mu!
Grand Primordium took a step back, suppressing the injury on his brow, waiting for the right moment.
His injuries were severe. His physical body was arguably the strongest in the current world. With this body, the Grand Emperor could sweep through all opposition without defeat, only falling when Ling Celestial Venerable ambushed him, leading to his death.
But now, Qin Mu had grown to the point where he could damage this undefeated body. In their earlier clash, Qin Mu had nearly killed him!
He had not only injured his physical body but also his primordial spirit. Qin Mu's Calamity-Breaking Sword excelled at destroying Great Dao. That sword strike piercing his brow had inflicted severe Dao wounds.
Just as he stepped back, Qin Mu's domain erupted, spinning and roaring as it collided violently with his One Qi Great Luo Heaven!
Grand Primordium stumbled, taking another step back as his One Qi Great Luo Heaven was knocked backward, spinning away.
When a domain was cultivated to its peak, it could become a Great Luo Heaven imprinted in the ultimate void. The Grand Emperor's Divine Awareness Great Luo Heaven and Kai Huang's Sword Dao Great Luo Heaven were both domains.
Now, Qin Mu's Divine Treasury domain clashed with Grand Primordium's One Qi Great Luo Heaven without showing any weakness, shocking him even more.
"His growth rate is simply too fast. To reach this level at just the thirty-second level of Dao Realm, it's fortunate he hasn't cultivated a Dao Tree..."
Just as this thought crossed his mind, a World Tree suddenly rose behind Qin Mu, exuding the unique Dao resonance of a Dao Achiever!
Grand Primordium's eyelids twitched violently, and he silently cursed.
The appearance of this World Tree caused Qin Mu's aura to surge, taking on the demeanor of a Dao Achiever!
Boom—
A violent shockwave erupted as Qin Mu, his muscles bulging fiercely, clashed head-on with the prehistoric being who had achieved Dao through raw power. In that instant of collision, the Dao Achiever's body exploded, blood and flesh splattering everywhere!
Qin Mu's strength had clearly surpassed his. With one punch, he hammered him into his own treasure hall, splattering gore across the walls!
Grand Primordium immediately sensed that the physical form formed from his blood had been completely stripped of all spiritual essence and energy!
One punch—just one punch—and Qin Mu had utterly annihilated this being, who was comparable to a Celestial Venerable!
At the same time, the techniques of the other twenty-three Dao Achievers struck Qin Mu simultaneously, and the terrifying shockwave engulfed him!
In that same moment, a phantom of the Jade Terrace Hall appeared behind Grand Primordium's head, and he involuntarily lunged forward, charging into the midst of the twenty-three Dao Achievers' techniques!
His heart was filled with terror. This force wasn't his own power—it was the power of the Jade Terrace Hall!
The phantom of the Jade Terrace Hall behind his head had been bestowed upon him by the Third Young Master to protect him. He had once used this power to deal with the Grand Emperor and preserve himself.
Later, after obtaining his own body, he had also used this power to imprint the ultimate void and achieve his Great Luo Heaven.
When borrowing this power, he had felt nothing wrong. But now, being controlled by this force and thrown into danger, he was utterly horrified.
The deeper his reliance on the Third Young Master's power, the more he was controlled by it, making him feel as if he had fallen into a spider's web.
He saw himself activating a technique—an exceptionally terrifying technique, ancient and vast. It was the ultimate power of the Grand Primordium Dao, combining the thirty-six heavens of divine awareness and the thirty-six heavens of One Qi, a technique born from the ultimate Dao realm of the Grand Primordium Dao!
He charged into the midst of the erupting techniques and saw Qin Mu's battered figure. The combined strike of twenty-three Dao Achievers, each possessing the power of a Celestial Venerable, had still failed to kill Qin Mu!
Not only was Qin Mu not dead, but he was even activating the Indestructible Technique and the Creation Divine Art, desperately trying to restore his physical body and primordial spirit!
Grand Primordium saw his own hand reaching forward, the power of the ultimate Grand Primordium Dao pouring out from his palm—so domineering, so brilliant. This was the power he had dreamed of, yet it sent chills down his spine!
"What does the Third Young Master intend to do by controlling my body?"
Terror filled his heart: "He can make me commit mass slaughter, turn me into his avatar, and hasten his descent!"
Just as he extended his hand, Qin Mu turned around and raised his hand to meet his palm!
Five red strings shot out from Qin Mu's palm, piercing through Grand Primordium's technique, and with a swish, they passed through Grand Primordium's brain. The strings knotted together, locking onto the Jade Terrace Hall behind his head!
"Second Brother, I'm saving your life!"
Qin Mu revealed a smile, and then his body shattered under that strike, reduced to a mass of Grand Primordium Qi!
Grand Primordium was stunned, immediately sensing the power of Qin Mu's red string knot technique erupting, forcing the power surging from the Jade Terrace Hall behind his head back into the hall and sealing it!
"Old Seven, you're still as slippery as ever..." An unfamiliar voice came from within the Jade Terrace Hall.
Grand Primordium's hair stood on end. Then he felt the foreign power within his body rapidly receding, restoring his control over his physical form.
"They're both wounded. I can take the opportunity to absorb Celestial Venerable Mu!"
Grand Primordium's eyes lit up. He took a deep breath, intending to swallow and refine the Grand Primordium Qi that Qin Mu had become.
At that moment, Qin Mu's World Tree swayed, the Abyss erupted, devouring everything. His Divine Treasury domain reopened heaven and earth, experiencing the five phases of cosmic evolution in an instant!
The Grand Primordium Qi before Grand Primordium vanished, and he immediately heard the sounds of techniques clashing behind him. Turning around, he saw Qin Mu wielding his sword, slaying the avatar of a prehistoric Dao Achiever!
"Third Brother, this is our first clash!"
Qin Mu pierced the brow of one prehistoric Dao Achiever with his sword, then reversed the hilt and pushed forward, causing another Dao Achiever to explode into a mass of chaos. He smiled, "When I return to the past, I will personally pay my respects!"
The sword in his hand flew out, piercing the Jade Terrace Hall behind Grand Primordium's head. The phantom of the Jade Terrace Hall exploded with a thunderous roar!
"I'll be waiting for you!" A muffled grunt came from within the Jade Terrace Hall!
—The college entrance exam is approaching. Senior high school readers, hurry back to review and prepare for the exam! The Legend of the Shepherd God can wait until you've passed the exam with flying colors. Go quickly, go quickly. Focus on your exams while I focus on writing. The Legend of the Shepherd God is right here; it's not going anywhere!