Chapter 826: The Originator
Qin Mu pondered for a moment, then said, "He should know. Although he is younger than you, it's not by much. When it comes to antiquity, among the human race, he is also at the top, second only to the Seven Heavenly Sovereigns. He definitely knows a lot!"
Imperial Heavenly Sovereign's spirits lifted greatly.
They flew into that azure glow, and the green light before their eyes receded, revealing Azure Cloud Heaven. Qin Mu looked back; outside, the sun was already setting in the west, but here, the sun was still blazing high in the sky.
He looked up at the sky. The sun in the sky was not a real sun but one constructed by the Taoists here. He could even see many Taoists flying in and out of that sun.
"Lin Sect Leader, your Dao Sect's branch has extremely high attainments in the art of numerology!" Qin Mu said to Lin Xuan.
Lin Xuan Sect Leader was very happy and laughed, saying, "All things in heaven and earth can be described using numerology. Our Dao Sect specializes in the path of numerology, so naturally, we have achieved something."
His mood brightened considerably. He looked around and nodded repeatedly.
The geography of Azure Cloud Heaven was mountainous, with rivers and lands everywhere. However, the place was not large, about the same size as the former Yan Kingdom, spanning a hundred thousand li in all directions.
Yet, though small, it had all the necessary parts. Qin Mu even saw a man-made moon and a man-made Milky Way. The stars in the moon and the Milky Way were not large; they were round spheres, only about a hundred zhang in size, and many of them had a palace on top.
Those stars could just barely accommodate one palace; adding another would make it seem crowded.
Some Taoists were swimming in the Milky Way, changing the positions of the stars to form a star formation, while some elderly Taoists nearby were instructing them on how to arrange the formation.
Looking at the sky as a whole, the stars, constellations, and the Milky Way array precisely formed the shape of a majestic divine being. The two rivers of the Milky Way formed the eyes of that divine being, the nebula formed its skin texture, and the constellations formed its physical structure.
"Heavenly Lord?"
Qin Mu exclaimed in wonder, laughing, "Azure Cloud Heaven actually used stars to create a form of the Heavenly Lord! This level of numerological skill is truly supreme!"
Yu Chen said, "Naturally. Our Dao Sect excels in numerology, and the Heavenly Court values us for this, having us calculate the Heavenly Dao and analyze the structure of the Heavenly Lord's physical body. The Taoists of our Azure Cloud Heaven often go to the Xuan Capital to survey and map the Heavenly Lord's bodily structure. There are many Dao Sect disciples on the Heavenly Lord's body."
Qin Mu's eyelids twitched violently.
The Heavenly Court had the Dao Sect calculate the Heavenly Dao, survey and map the Heavenly Lord's physical structure, and use a star array in Azure Cloud Heaven to construct the Heavenly Lord's body. What did the Heavenly Court intend to do?
A bad feeling arose in his heart: "Replace him! The Heavenly Lord is in danger! After eliminating the Heavenly Lord, the Heavenly Court wants to create a new Heavenly Lord!"
"Although your Yan Dao Sect is not considered mainstream, it is still a small branch of the true Dao Sect."
Yu Chen said to Lin Xuan, "Since we share the same origin, I will permit you to return to the ancestral sect this time."
The Zha Daoist raised an eyebrow, feeling quite displeased. Lin Xuan Sect Leader said, "Thank you, Senior Brother Yu Chen."
Yu Chen looked at Qin Mu and frowned slightly, saying, "As for Qin the Overlord Body, you really shouldn't have come to my Azure Cloud Heaven. The Heavenly Saint Sect is also called the Heavenly Demon Sect. Subduing demons and upholding the Dao is the duty of the Dao Sect. Moreover, Yan is also a target the Heavenly Court wants to eliminate."
Qin Mu looked up at the sky, his gaze falling on the Heavenly Lord in the heavens, and smiled, "For both public and private reasons, I had to come. If I didn't, the heavens would change."
Yu Chen looked at him, feeling his words held deep meaning, but didn't think much of it. He said, "Over there is the Dao Palace. I will take you to meet the Sect Leader of our Azure Cloud Heaven. Whether the Sect Leader will see you or not, I am not sure."
The Dao Palace was located in the center of Azure Cloud Heaven, surrounded by numerous mountains and forests. There were twenty-four halls encircling the Dao Palace, presumably corresponding to the twenty-four divine kingdoms under Azure Cloud Heaven's command.
Azure Cloud Heaven was one branch of the Dao Sect, the Azure Cloud Sect, and its scale was already extremely grand. The Dao Sect must have other branches, so one could imagine how astonishing the power of the true Dao Sect was!
When they arrived outside the Dao Palace, everyone dismounted from their mounts. Yu Chen asked them to wait outside while he hurriedly ascended the stone steps layer by layer, heading towards the golden hall at the top.
Those stone steps were built along the mountain. Looking up, one couldn't tell how many steps there were; it was impossible to count.
"Is this the way to treat guests?"
The Zha Daoist laughed in anger, pulling a steel trident from his Daoist crown, and shouted, "We are also from the Dao Sect! Even if we are not orthodox, there is no reason to leave us outside the door! Sect Leader, let's charge in and cause a ruckus first!"
Lin Xuan waved his hand, saying, "Coming as a guest, we follow the host's arrangements. Let's just look around."
The Dao Palace was extremely large, with many Taoists practicing Dao techniques. Qin Mu and the others came to a place where Taoists were practicing techniques. They saw many Taoists standing before a copper wall over ten zhang high and more than a zhang thick. An old Taoist said slowly, "All things in the world are composed of countless particles. The human body is like this, and so are copper walls and iron barriers. Once you see through this, you can change your own physical structure, making the vibration frequency of your body's particles equal to that of the copper wall, and you can pass through it. Once you master the Wall-Passing Technique, no forbidden method or seal in the world will be able to stop you. Watch me."
He walked up to the copper wall, slowly walked into it, passed through to the other side, and then walked back, saying, "You can give it a try."
The other young Taoists were excited and tried one after another. Some bumped their heads and bled on the wall, but others managed to pass through.
The old Taoist squinted his aged eyes, watching these young Taoists practice, occasionally pointing out their mistakes.
Dragon Qilin watched this scene curiously and couldn't help but say, "Elder, you're missing a disciple! There were seventeen just now, but now there are only sixteen!"
The old Taoist counted and panicked. He quickly slapped the copper wall hard. A Taoist whose cultivation was insufficient was stuck inside the copper wall. The old Taoist slapped him out, and the disciple gasped for air, nearly dying.
The old Taoist looked at Dragon Qilin and praised, "You have spiritual insight. Would you be willing to join my Azure Cloud Sect and cultivate with me?"
Dragon Qilin shook his head.
"The Dao Sect's Wall-Passing Technique is somewhat similar to the Heavenly Saint Sect's Demon Shadow Illusion Skill and Cripple Grandpa's Heaven-Stealing Hand."
Qin Mu watched for a while and said to Imperial Heavenly Sovereign, "There are only slight differences in the application of the principles. Once the logic is understood, it's not difficult to learn."
Imperial Heavenly Sovereign was eager to try and said, "I think I understand. Can I give it a try?"
Qin Mu nodded.
Imperial Heavenly Sovereign walked up to the copper wall and passed straight through it, then walked back out of the wall.
The old Taoist's eyes lit up, and he laughed, "This young man has great spiritual insight..."
Qin Mu quickly pulled Imperial Heavenly Sovereign away. They came to another part of the Dao Palace, where some Taoists were gathered together, drawing a formation diagram on a huge circular platform.
Qin Mu approached to look and his expression changed drastically. He said in a deep voice, "These senior brothers, are you drawing the Heavenly Cycle Star Chart?"
"Your eyesight is not bad. Which divine kingdom's disciple are you?" a Taoist looked up and asked.
Lin Xuan Sect Leader stepped forward, looked at the formation diagram, and his expression also changed drastically. He hissed, "The sky chart covering Yan was made by Azure Cloud Heaven?"
The few Taoists were taken aback.
The formation diagram they were drawing was almost identical in form to the sky chart that hung over the Yan Kingdom. The movement of the stars in the diagram was almost exactly the same.
Qin Mu and Lin Xuan were both founding members of the Heaven Alliance. The original intention of establishing the Heaven Alliance was to tear apart that false sky, allowing the people of Yan to see the outside world.
For twenty thousand years, none of the Yan Dao Sect's Sect Leaders had been able to cultivate the fourteen chapters of the Dao Sword. They had exhausted their lives in the pursuit of the fourteenth sword, dedicating their entire life's work to deducing it.
Lin Xuan's master, the old Sect Leader, had spent his entire life only cultivating half a move. He died in battle at the Divine Severing Mountain Range precisely because the fourteenth sword was not perfected. If he had cultivated the fourteenth sword, he wouldn't have died.
It was precisely because the celestial phenomena in the sky chart were false that they misled the successive Sect Leaders. No matter how they calculated, the results they obtained were false, so they could not cultivate the fourteen chapters of the Dao Sword!
It was also because of this sky chart that Lin Xuan's Dao heart almost collapsed. He went mad on the spot. Fortunately, Qin Mu, Xu Shenghua, and others were by his side, encouraging him, and he finally emerged from the shadows.
Now, seeing the formation diagram drawn by these Azure Cloud Heaven Taoists, his Dao heart was shaken once again, filled with indignation.
An extremely intense indignation!
Those few Taoists sized up Qin Mu and Lin Xuan. One of them laughed and said, "Are you talking about the sky chart above the Primordial Realm? It was indeed refined by our Dao Sect. Our Dao Sect was ordered by the Heavenly Court to refine the sky chart to cover the Primordial Realm. However, it was made hastily back then, and many flaws appeared. This time, we plan to repair the sky chart and fill in the deficiencies of the formation."
Another Taoist said, "The Heavenly Court ordered the Dao Sect to refine the sky chart. Our Dao Sect's predecessors designed several algorithmic dead ends with infinite solutions into the sky chart. If people in the Primordial Realm observed the celestial phenomena and tried to calculate the mysteries of their movement, they would fall into infinite solutions. Therefore, although the sky chart has loopholes, these infinite solutions can consume the wisdom of those with extraordinary intelligence, making them forever unable to realize that the celestial phenomena are false. For you to recognize that the formation diagram we drew is the sky chart shows that your attainments in numerology are not shallow. Which divine kingdom are you from?"
Lin Xuan Sect Leader clenched his teeth, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.
"This time, guests from the Heavenly Court said the sky chart was damaged and asked us to repair it. Once the sky chart is repaired, no one will be able to see any flaws anymore," those Taoists laughed.
Lin Xuan Sect Leader could be heard grinding his teeth, almost shattering them. He said woodenly, "Qin Sect Leader, please go back. This is a private matter of my Dao Sect."
Qin Mu glanced at him and shook his head, saying, "This is not a private matter of the Dao Sect, but a public matter of the Heaven Alliance. Wasn't the original purpose of our Heaven Alliance to tear open this false sky?"
Lin Xuan Sect Leader spat out the blood and broken teeth from his mouth and laughed grimly, "The sky chart, the sky chart... The sky chart that destroyed my Dao Sect for twenty thousand years was actually refined by the Dao Sect itself! Master, Master, if your spirit in heaven can see this scene..."
He wailed loudly, two streams of bloody tears flowing from his eyes.
Clang—
The Dao sword behind his back was drawn, its sword light shooting into the clouds.
Suddenly, Qin Mu's hand pressed down on his shoulder.
"A founding member of the Heaven Alliance shouldn't be so impatient, right?" Qin Mu said with a gentle smile.
Lin Xuan Sect Leader looked at his warm eyes, and his grief-stricken, raging Dao heart calmed down. He closed his eyes. After a moment, the soaring sword energy subsided and returned to its sheath.
Qin Mu turned his head, looked at the suspicious Taoists, and revealed a pure, innocent smile: "May I ask where the envoy of the Heavenly Court is?"
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