Chapter 744: Opening the Heavenly Palace
Within the main hall of the side palace, supernatural power practitioners from all realms filled the vast space, which could easily accommodate ten thousand people. At this moment, everyone in the hall stared in stunned silence at the man who had "returned from the dead." He was the leader of the ancient people, and his sudden death had caused countless to weep bitterly. His murder had also sparked suspicion, with some wondering if it was the work of ancient gods or demigods. Now, he had "returned from the dead" and appeared before the crowd.
The crowd parted automatically, forming a path, silently watching as he walked unhurriedly toward Heavenly Lord Hao. Suddenly, a buzz of murmuring arose from the crowd, growing louder and louder.
"Heavenly Lord Yu!" someone suddenly shouted.
"Heavenly Lord Yu!" more voices joined in.
"Heavenly Lord Yu! Heavenly Lord Yu!"
...
The waves of sound rose higher and higher, each surpassing the last. The sudden roar of shouts caused the air in Empress Dowager's side palace hall to surge, the sound waves reaching the sky and parting the clouds.
More and more practitioners joined in, shouting only the name of Heavenly Lord Yu. In their eyes, the man walking toward the altar was their leader, the one who had led all races to carve a path through the wilderness.
Qin Mu was stunned, slowing his pace as he looked at the impassioned crowd around him. As a person from a future era, he couldn't fully understand the fervent devotion of these practitioners. The practitioners in the hall came from various lower realms and could be considered leaders in their own right, yet they followed another leader with such zeal—it was somewhat hard for him to comprehend.
What he didn't know was that in the current Heavenly Court, civilization flourished, but in other heavens and worlds, there was no such harmonious scene. Instead, snakes and insects ran rampant, and divine beasts with the bloodline of ancient gods were everywhere. Most humans and other races wore straw sandals and grass skirts, carrying wooden spears, struggling to survive. If they encountered ordinary beasts, they might be fine, but if they met divine beasts with ancient god bloodlines, they would suffer heavy casualties, becoming meals for demigods.
Even the weakest demigod was far stronger than humans. Danger came not only from this but also from natural phenomena—storms, lightning, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes—all kinds of disasters shrouded the primitive era.
It was at this time that Heavenly Lord Yu opened the Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury, giving weak races the power to protect themselves, to fight against disasters and demigods. He was the leader of all people and all weak races!
On the altar in the side palace hall, Heavenly Lord Hao's eyes showed a flicker of panic, but he quickly regained his composure, glancing sideways at the nearby Netherworld Emperor.
The Netherworld Emperor's face was pale as he watched the "Heavenly Lord Yu" approaching the altar, feeling lost and at a loss.
Qin Mu climbed the altar step by step.
Heavenly Lord Hao, still on the altar, was momentarily flustered but soon calmed down, watching Qin Mu ascend and breaking into a smile.
"Even though I know you're fake, I can't expose you," he thought, his face showing a joyful expression, appearing deeply moved. "You're already dead, your soul scattered—you can't be resurrected. So who is impersonating you? This technique of altering one's physical structure, changing appearance and temperament, is indeed exquisite. I can't expose you; if I do, I'll reveal myself, and others will know you died by my hand. But you can expose yourself."
The altar was very high, allowing everyone below to see clearly.
Qin Mu reached the altar, and Heavenly Lord Hao opened his arms, embracing him tightly, sobbing with emotion, but thinking, "The real Heavenly Lord Yu passed the method of becoming a god to me, but not to others. You don't understand the method of becoming a god, so I can wait for you to expose yourself. Then you'll be the murderer of Heavenly Lord Yu, and everyone will want to kill you!"
He released Qin Mu and wiped the tears from his eyes.
Qin Mu laughed heartily, saying, "Heavenly Lord Hao, why are you putting on such a show now that I've returned from the dead? Please, sit."
Heavenly Lord Hao sat down, his eyes red, and said, "Brother is still alive. I thought you had passed, even kept vigil for ten days and personally buried you. Brother pulling this stunt is both surprising and joyful. Who ambushed you?"
"Two close ones," Qin Mu said with a faint smile. "One destroyed my physical body, and the other shattered my soul."
The Netherworld Emperor's hand trembled, and Heavenly Lord Hao's pupils contracted.
Suddenly, Qin Mu moved, and under the gaze of tens of thousands, he punched Heavenly Lord Hao in the back of the heart. "He used this move to shatter my heart!"
The Netherworld Emperor was startled, but Heavenly Lord Hao stood firm, because Qin Mu's punch carried no force at all!
Qin Mu moved swiftly like lightning, his strikes fierce and domineering, each punch and kick clear for all to see!
"He used this move to break my ribs!"
"He used this move to snap my finger bones!"
"He broke my arm like this!"
...
Qin Mu moved like a gust of wind and lightning, recreating the assassination of Heavenly Lord Yu in just a few moments. Heavenly Lord Hao's forehead beaded with cold sweat, and he laughed, saying, "Brother startled me. And how did the other person destroy your soul?"
Qin Mu's primordial energy surged, bringing a chill wind and gloomy clouds as he prepared to use a divine ability. Seeing this, the Netherworld Emperor suddenly fell to the ground with a thud, fainting.
Qin Mu pointed a finger at Heavenly Lord Hao's brow, saying, "The other person used this move to destroy my soul the moment my physical body died."
Heavenly Lord Hao showed a sincere smile, saying earnestly, "But fortunately, brother didn't die. Brother has the blessings of heaven and has returned safely—this is a great fortune! Look, Chaojin has fainted from excitement. Since brother is here, I won't overstep my role. Please, brother, personally teach the method that can allow all beings to become gods! I'll take my leave now..."
Qin Mu grabbed his wrist, laughing heartily, and said, "Since I've already passed the method of becoming a god to you, this time, let's teach it together. I'll speak one part, and you'll speak the next."
Heavenly Lord Hao said joyfully, "Brother promotes me—how could I refuse? Then let brother begin with the opening discourse, and I'll speak the second part!"
Qin Mu, in his wide robe and large sleeves, sat down and gestured for Heavenly Lord Hao to sit.
Heavenly Lord Hao sat down, smiling, and said, "Brother, please go first."
The Kaihuang Emperor had quietly retreated to the hall's entrance, approaching Old Ox, and whispered, "If something goes wrong, you must act to save people!"
Niu Sanduo quickly asked, "How could something go wrong? The Divine Bridge connects to the Heavenly Palace. All the junior brother needs to do is talk about the primordial spirit ascending to the Heavenly Palace to get by. Heavenly Lord Hao can't expose him."
The Kaihuang Emperor shook his head, speaking solemnly, "Heavenly Lord Hao has ill intentions. Having him speak the first part is a deliberate trap to make him reveal himself. You know that ascending the primordial spirit to the Heavenly Palace allows one to become a god, immortal, equal to ancient gods. But the people of this era have no Heavenly Palace!"
Old Ox was stunned, cold sweat forming on his forehead.
The Kaihuang Emperor continued solemnly, "The people of this era haven't yet opened a Heavenly Palace within their bodies. Their Divine Bridge is just a flying bridge! Heavenly Lord Yu's great achievement was to create a Heavenly Palace out of nothing! With Heavenly Lord Yu dead, only Heavenly Lord Hao knows the method to open the Heavenly Palace! Mu Qing—does he know how to open the Heavenly Palace? If he does, he'd be another Heavenly Lord Yu! If he doesn't, he'll be exposed!"
Old Ox's heart sank, and he muttered, "It would be simpler to just say Heavenly Lord Hao killed him and then beat him to death. Why does he have to go through this teaching nonsense..."
"He's teaching for another purpose—to both restrain Heavenly Lord Hao and force him to pass on the method of becoming a god, so future generations won't lose it. That's why he can't kill Heavenly Lord Hao immediately."
The Kaihuang Emperor lowered his voice, saying, "But Heavenly Lord Hao is a peerless schemer and saw through his intent. This man's malicious intentions make him my lifelong enemy! This is the ancient Heavenly Court of the ancient gods, surrounded by demigods and practitioners. If Mu Qing can't answer, Heavenly Lord Hao won't need to act—the other demigods and practitioners will beat him to death! Moreover..."
He showed a worried expression, thinking, "The Jade Pool is the Empress Dowager's back garden. For Heavenly Lord Hao to dare kill Heavenly Lord Yu on the Empress Dowager's turf—the waters here are too deep. Heavenly Lord Hao is a demigod, a child of an ancient god and a human. Which ancient god? Mu Qing is too impulsive. We came to explore the mysteries of the ancient times, and now he's thrown himself into the middle of it, risking everything..."
On the altar, Qin Mu's primordial energy soared, brilliantly vivid. His energy transformed, forming the seven divine treasuries—Spirit Embryo, Five Luminaries, Six Harmonies, Seven Stars, Heavenly Human, Life and Death, and Divine Bridge—above everyone's heads. He manifested the mysteries of the seven divine treasuries with his energy, allowing all to see.
"Profound mathematics! Monk, Heavenly Lord Yu's mathematical skill is this high!"
A Taoist, holding a compass, looked up and praised repeatedly, saying to a nearby monk, "Truly worthy of Heavenly Lord Yu—he's almost entering the Dao through mathematics. Marvelous, marvelous! Can you see that his divine treasuries are constructed from mathematics?"
The monk beside him was begging for alms, saying, "Senior brother, my fellow disciple and I have been starving for days. Give us a couple of spirit pills out of kindness... This mathematics is useless to me—I only cultivate the mind."
Qin Mu used his primordial energy to construct the divine treasuries, exactly the mathematical models of the divine treasuries he, Xu Shenghua, and others had built in later times, making them lifelike.
His energy transformed into a phantom of Heavenly Lord Yu, who stepped onto the Divine Bridge and was about to reach its end.
The Kaihuang Emperor grew tense. This was the critical moment. If Qin Mu couldn't produce the method to open the Heavenly Palace, Heavenly Lord Hao would directly point out that he was a fake Heavenly Lord Yu and pin Heavenly Lord Yu's death on him!
The phantom of Heavenly Lord Yu, formed from Qin Mu's energy, reached the bridge's end and stopped.
The Kaihuang Emperor's palms were slick with cold sweat.
People of later generations only knew that by cultivating to the Divine Bridge realm, one's primordial spirit could cross the bridge and ascend to the Heavenly Palace, but they didn't know how the Heavenly Palace came to be! The method to open the Heavenly Palace had long been lost!
Later generations only knew the "what" but not the "why"!
They were descendants of practitioners who had opened the Heavenly Palace. From birth, both their divine treasuries and Heavenly Palace existed; they only needed to cultivate to a certain realm to open the treasuries and ascend. They didn't need to think about the reasons behind it.
And that was precisely why Heavenly Lord Yu was so great!
Qin Mu naturally couldn't know how to open the Heavenly Palace. If he didn't, he would make a mistake at the first step, and Heavenly Lord Yu would slap the label of "murderer of Heavenly Lord Yu" on him!
This was the crux, the danger!
"How can one create a Heavenly Palace from nothing?"
The Kaihuang Emperor's mind raced, various thoughts and methods flooding in: "How did Heavenly Lord Yu open the Heavenly Palace? If he could do it, others could too. If he could create this method, others could create it too. How did he do it?"
Suddenly, inspiration struck: "Why did Heavenly Lord Yu insist on holding the grand gathering at the Jade Pool to announce the method of becoming a god? It wasn't just to borrow influence—there was another reason! The Heavenly Palace, the Heavenly Palace! That's it!"
He suddenly understood: "The Heavenly Palace Heavenly Lord Yu opened—its layout is the same as the Heavenly Palace in the Heavenly Court! Heavenly Lord Yu opened the Heavenly Palace by observing the construction of the Heavenly Court, inspired and creating it!"
"The divine treasuries unlock the power of one's own physical body, while the Heavenly Palace..."
Just as he thought this, Qin Mu's voice came from the altar: "The divine treasuries unlock the power of the physical body; the Heavenly Palace unlocks the power of the gods within the body. I name this great realm the Heavenly Palace."
The Kaihuang Emperor's body trembled violently as he looked up at the purple-robed youth on the altar. In a daze, he seemed to see another Heavenly Lord Yu.
Heavenly Lord Hao's heart shook violently, an expression of disbelief on his face.
At that moment, the Netherworld Emperor slowly regained consciousness, just in time to hear these words. Filled with terror, he fainted once again.
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