Chapter 1676: Empress and Xie Wuqi
The Empress's aura shifted abruptly, as if a vast abyss of nothingness stood there, space tilting toward her, even the void seeming to fall into her body!
To Heavenly Emperor Hao and the Hall Master of the Lingguan Hall, she felt immensely dangerous, as if even their Dao trees and their Great Luo Heavens could barely keep their footing—nay, if they drew even slightly closer, even their cultivation bases would be utterly devoured, leaving nothing behind!
This was achieving Dao through Guixu!
Across sixteen cosmic epochs, only one person had achieved Dao through Guixu: the Second Young Master Wuji of the Miluo Palace. Among those epochs, many Guixu goddesses had cultivated the path of Guixu, ancient gods born from the abyss, yet none had managed to achieve Dao through Guixu; they often bloomed briefly and then vanished without a trace.
The Empress was the second person to achieve Dao through Guixu!
"The master of the Miluo Palace is the most powerful, the most terrifying existence!"
Heavenly Emperor Hao's heart shook violently. The Empress had achieved Dao through Guixu thanks to a single Dao phrase left by the master of the Miluo Palace!
"Lady Yuanmu," having received the guidance of that Dao phrase, had finally grasped the key to achieving Dao through Guixu!
Such an existence—capable of granting Dao with a single word—how terrifying must that be?
Even more terrifying was that the master of the Miluo Palace had not himself achieved Dao through Guixu, yet from the Second Young Master of the Miluo Palace, he had seen through the essence of Guixu Dao achievement!
Heavenly Emperor Hao's heart grew fervent again. If he too could achieve Dao through Guixu, then he would simultaneously possess the Force-Based Dao Achievement of the Jade Capital Method and Guixu Dao Achievement, making his accomplishments unparalleled in the current age!
Moreover, if he could also achieve Dao through the Dao Realm, his strength would surely rival the hall masters of the Seventy-Two Halls!
At that point, why would he need to beg the young masters of the Miluo Palace?
He would rule the world, resist the invasions of Jade Capital City and the Miluo Palace, and become the Heavenly Emperor revered by countless people—the one and only Heavenly Emperor!
His fame would be unmatched!
"Congratulations, Mother, on finally achieving Dao!"
Heavenly Emperor Hao laughed heartily and said, "Mother, can you impart the secret of Guixu Dao Achievement to me?"
The Empress's gaze fell upon him. Heavenly Emperor Hao smiled faintly and glanced at the Hall Master of the Lingguan Hall.
The Empress's gaze involuntarily shifted to the Hall Master as well. Though she had now achieved Dao—specifically Guixu Dao Achievement—and felt a natural suppression over those who achieved Dao by entrusting themselves to the void, facing both Heavenly Emperor Hao and the Hall Master simultaneously, she knew she had no chance of victory!
She longed to strike now, to subdue Heavenly Emperor Hao, subdue Taichu, and become the first female Heavenly Emperor in history, but with the Hall Master present, she dared not act recklessly.
Though the Lingguan had no head and had lost one Dao fruit to Qin Mu's sabotage, he still had two Dao fruits and one Dao flower left, his strength still unfathomably deep!
"I comprehended the Guixu Dao Achievement method from Brother Lingguan's Dao phrase, so it is only right that I fully impart my insights."
The Empress said, "The method I comprehended is called the Guixu Mirror. It dissolves one's own cultivation base, fully merging into Guixu, evolving into chaos. The chaotic pool remains calm, like a bright mirror. Once this mirror is forged, one can illuminate their true heart, turning it into a single lotus seed."
She recited softly, "A pond of chaotic pool, planting a golden lotus blooms. Achieving this step means achieving Dao through Guixu."
Heavenly Emperor Hao was overjoyed: "Please, Mother, teach me the Guixu Mirror!"
The Empress did not conceal the method of the Guixu Mirror, imparting it to him.
The Hall Master of the Lingguan Hall was also present, carefully pondering the Guixu Mirror, but having never cultivated the path of Guixu, he could not tell whether this technique was genuine or false.
Heavenly Emperor Hao studied it intently, feeling that the Guixu Mirror method was indeed profound and vast, impossible to be a forgery. Yet he wondered inwardly, "My mother, Lady Yuanmu, is one who delights in chaos. Why would she kindly pass on the Guixu Dao Achievement method to me? But this Guixu Mirror seems to have no deception…"
He dared not rashly cultivate it.
The Empress said, "Your Majesty, take your time to ponder. I have just achieved Dao and need to contemplate it further myself."
Heavenly Emperor Hao nodded and continued to study the Guixu Mirror, his suspicion growing.
The Empress turned and walked away, thinking, "This Guixu Mirror was taught to me and that little wretch by the Second Young Master. Back then, she and I each told our respective Guixu Mirror methods to Celestial Venerable Mu. He said the methods we received were different and saw the hidden schemes within. That Second Young Master intended to use our cultivation to possess us!"
At that time, Qin Mu had tested the Guixu Mirror in a dream, and the Qin Mu in the dream had transformed into a woman with a large chest, becoming identical to the Second Young Master Wuji, possessed by him!
Only then did the Empress and Yuanmu realize that Qin Mu was right—the Second Young Master indeed harbored malicious intent!
"If Heavenly Emperor Hao cultivates the Guixu Mirror, he will be possessed by the Second Young Master."
The Empress's eyes flickered, thinking, "But the Second Young Master won't be able to fully possess him either, because Heavenly Emperor Hao has two sides and simultaneously cultivates Force-Based Dao Achievement. The Second Young Master will only possess his Guixu side. They will be crammed into one body, just like me and that little wretch."
She let out a low laugh, a glint of satisfaction in her eyes: "Little wretch, your son harmed my son, so I will harm your son!"
She was not Yuanmu but the Empress. When Celestial Venerable Yun entered the Guixu Great Abyss to rescue Celestial Venerable Ling, he used the path of reincarnation to suppress Yuanmu and release the Empress, intending for the Empress to masquerade as Lady Yuanmu and stay close to Heavenly Emperor Hao, disrupting his camp.
Now, the results were finally bearing fruit!
The Empress unconsciously walked outward, entering the battlefield between the Heavenly Court and the Land of No Worries. She activated the path of reincarnation, delving deep into the fray. The battle was brutal, but whether it was the divine demon army of the Heavenly Court or the forces of the Land of No Worries, they seemed not to see her, letting her pass through the battlefield unhindered.
Her path of reincarnation, though inferior to Qin Mu's or Celestial Venerable Yun's, still affected both friend and foe upon sight, unconsciously making them see her as one of their own.
Such was the mystery of the path of reincarnation.
Without alarming anyone, the Empress crossed the Land of No Worries and arrived at its rear.
Standing atop the Grand Imperial Heaven, she looked out. On the eastern continent, countless sun ships were visible, artificial suns tethered by chains, bringing light to the Yankang people.
Yet not far from the Grand Imperial Heaven, there was a place even the sun ships avoided.
That place was a thousand miles of barren land, where a thousand miles of karmic fire blazed fiercely. A demon god was bound by chains, dwelling at the heart of the karmic fire.
The Empress stepped into the karmic fire, her heart surging with emotion. As she neared the demon god within the flames, her Dao heart grew increasingly turbulent—a rare occurrence for her.
That demon god in the karmic fire was her son.
After achieving Dao, she suddenly remembered her son, and an urgency drove her to see him.
This urgency grew stronger and stronger, a feeling she had never experienced before.
Xie Wuqi had been schemed against by Heavenly Emperor Hao, forced to rebel, suppressed by the ancient god Heavenly Emperor Taichu, and cast into the Youdu Jade Lock Pass to suffer the torment of karmic fire. In the past, though the Empress cared for her son, the familial bonds of the imperial family stopped there; the longing between mother and son was not strong enough to shake her Dao heart.
Now that she had achieved Dao, the mother-son bond had suddenly become overwhelmingly intense!
Finally, she reached Xie Wuqi.
Xie Wuqi knelt on the ground, covered in chains, with eight arms pulled back by the chains, kneeling there.
The Empress's body trembled. Just as she was about to approach, a young man stepped up to Xie Wuqi, tending to him with care.
Xie Wuqi looked up, showing him great tenderness.
The Empress paused, startled. This young man was none other than Crown Prince Mingya!
Heavenly Emperor Hao's son, Crown Prince Mingya!
The Empress's expression twisted. That Crown Prince Mingya was Heavenly Emperor Hao's son was known to nearly all of the Ten Celestial Venerables, except for Mingya himself.
Crown Prince Mingya had always believed himself to be the son of the ancient god Heavenly Emperor Taichu and the younger brother of Heavenly Emperor Hao. Believing Taichu had been harmed by Heavenly Emperor Hao, he sympathized with Xie Wuqi's plight and had entered Youdu to rescue him.
Released by Celestial Venerable You, they had lived here ever since.
The Empress stepped forward. Crown Prince Mingya was startled but did not stop her, silently retreating.
The Empress caressed Xie Wuqi's face, scarred by the karmic fire, and could not help but weep. In the past, she had little familial affection, but now, after achieving Dao, she had become sentimental for some reason. The mother-son bond unleashed an indescribable emotional outburst within her.
Xie Wuqi looked up, his gaze fierce as he stared at her. After a moment, his fierce look softened, and he let out a low whimper, rubbing his rough cheek against her palm.
"Your Majesty, Xie Wuqi has been burned by karmic fire for nearly a million years. His soul is already incomplete, leaving him mentally unclear."
Hearing this voice, the Empress spun around and saw Ugly Tu Bo, an exceedingly ugly man.
Ugly Tu Bo was so ugly he didn't look human, yet he was genuinely of the human race. In his past life, Tu Bo had reincarnated as a human, not through possession, but by entering an ordinary woman's womb, gestating for ten months, and being born.
However, Tu Bo's primordial spirit was too powerful, altering his form and giving him Tu Bo's features.
"Tu Bo, Celestial Venerable Mu has resurrected you after all."
The Empress said calmly, "But you suppressed my son in Youdu for nearly a million years, burning his soul to fragments, leaving him mentally unclear. You harmed my son, and you still dare to face me?"
Ugly shook his head: "The one who harmed your son was Heavenly Emperor Hao. Back then, Taichu cast him into the Youdu Jade Lock Pass, suppressing him in the karmic fire stele forest. It was Heavenly Emperor Hao who, fearing he might be released, repeatedly descended into Youdu with the Nether Emperor, using karmic fire to burn his primordial spirit, reducing him to this state."
The Empress snorted angrily.
Ugly Tu Bo continued, "Your Majesty, the Nether Emperor is dead. Only two enemies remain: Heavenly Emperor Hao and Taichu."
The Empress turned to look at Xie Wuqi and said, "I will take him away. I possess the path of reincarnation, allowing him to be reborn through reincarnation and restore his incomplete soul."
Ugly Tu Bo couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty should know that even if he is reborn, he will no longer be the same person. The Xie Wuqi after rebirth will no longer be your son."
The Empress sneered, "Is the Celestial Venerable Xu raised by Taichu your daughter? Tu Bo, don't be so one-sided!"
She waved her hand, and the chains clattered as they broke. Xie Wuqi showed panic, frantically grabbing at the chains to put them back on himself. Having been bound by chains for nearly a million years, suddenly being without them felt like losing his support.
The Empress showed a look of pity, then turned her gaze to Crown Prince Mingya and said, "I will take Crown Prince Mingya as well."
Ugly Tu Bo hesitated.
The Empress sneered, "Ugly Tu Bo, the reason you've ended up in your current state is that your divine nature is too weak and your human nature too abundant!"
Ugly Tu Bo said no more.
The Empress flicked her sleeve, and Crown Prince Mingya was involuntarily pulled to her side. The Empress led Crown Prince Mingya and Xie Wuqi out of this karmic fire wasteland.
Ugly Tu Bo did not stop them, letting them leave.
The Empress passed through the Grand Imperial Heaven. Just as she was about to cross this heavenly realm, she slowly halted, seeing a tall figure ahead with his back to her, as if he had been waiting for her for a long time.
That figure still looked like a youth, but his temples were streaked with white, clearly having endured many trials and tribulations.
The Empress made Xie Wuqi and Crown Prince Mingya stop, then walked forward herself.
"Celestial Venerable Mu, have you come to stop me?"
The figure turned around—it was Qin Mu. He smiled and said, "Empress, you help me break Heavenly Emperor Hao and the Heavenly Court. Why would I stop you?"
The Empress said calmly, "Once a Celestial Venerable of the Ten, always a Celestial Venerable of the Ten. I will not disrupt the Heavenly Court's grand strategy for the sake of family matters. My interests all lie within the Heavenly Court. Heavenly Emperor Hao's destruction of the Land of No Worries and Yankang is both his will and that of the Ten Celestial Venerables. If you intend to persuade me to defect, spare your breath."
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