Chapter 992: The Celestial Venerable Mu Estate
Lang Wan Divine King was very puzzled. "Why does everyone say I am Jue Wuchen?"
After all, she was a Divine King of the Creator race. Although she had rarely interacted with the outside world, as the only Divine King of the Creator race in a million years and a force that had fought the Kaihuang and the Land of No Worries to a standstill, her schemes and cunning ran deep. Despite her confusion, she did not speak.
As soon as Qiang Tianfei uttered those words, she knew she had misspoken. A single sentence could reveal too much information.
She immediately fell silent, sinking into thought.
On the other side, Qin Mu was dumbfounded. A storm raged in his mind, and he too was speechless.
Only a few people knew of Jue Wuchen: the leaders of the Heavenly Alliance who had participated in the ambush and murder of the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor, and the Heavenly Emperor himself.
At that time, the Heavenly Alliance had sought to unite all forces hostile to the Heavenly Emperor, so its composition was extremely complex. Besides the original several Celestial Venerables, there were leaders of the demigods, the son of the Heavenly Lord, the daughter of the Earth Lord, and even the Grand Emperor had mingled among them.
But there were not many who reacted so strongly to Jue Wuchen. Excluding the Empress and Lady Yuanmu, the most likely candidate was the Heavenly Emperor himself!
If Qiang Tianfei were the Heavenly Emperor, that would be incredibly interesting.
Qin Mu immediately thought of a possibility regarding the Longhan Heavenly Court of that era. To maintain his rule and guard against the Empress consolidating the power of the harem, the Heavenly Emperor had split off a soul, transforming it into Qiang Tianfei, and placed her in his own harem to prevent the Empress's faction from growing too strong.
The Empress and Lady Yuanmu stirred up trouble in the harem, and he, as Qiang Tianfei, witnessed it all.
When he descended to reincarnate and slept with Jue Wuchen, who was Lady Yuanmu in disguise, Qiang Tianfei remained in the harem.
At that time, the Heavenly Emperor's physical body was also stationed in the Heavenly Court, but it was empty, lacking his primordial spirit.
Lady Yuanmu, in collusion with the Heavenly Alliance at the time, killed the Heavenly Emperor's reincarnated body, shattering his soul. At that very moment, Cloud Celestial Venerable, Hao Celestial Venerable, and Jue Wuchen (Lady Yuanmu) all rushed to the Heavenly Court, attempting to seize the Heavenly Emperor's physical body.
These were all things Qin Mu already knew.
"What if, when those three broke into the Heavenly Court and tried to control the Heavenly Emperor's body, they found it was already under someone else's control?"
Qin Mu blinked. "What if the one controlling the Heavenly Emperor's body was Qiang Tianfei?"
Who was the snipe and who was the clam? Who was the fisherman? Who was the victor of that era?
Of course, this was just his speculation. But one thing he could be sure of was that if the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor of that time wanted to maintain his rule and prevent it from being stolen by outsiders, he would have left a contingency to protect his physical body.
The simplest path would be to leave a part of himself in the harem. Therefore, that one soul of the Heavenly Emperor was most likely hidden in the harem.
Thus, both Qiang Tianfei and Yan Tianfei could be the Heavenly Emperor, but Qiang Tianfei's shock at seeing Lang Wan Divine King made her the more likely candidate.
"However, besides this, there is another matter: the biological father of Hao Celestial Venerable."
Qin Mu's gaze still rested on Qiang Tianfei, a habitual simple and honest smile on his face. He thought to himself, "Back then, the Heavenly Emperor took a fancy to his sister-in-law, Lady Yuanmu. Using the pretext of wanting to birth a demigod to find a path to immortality for the demigod race, he reincarnated as a human. As a human, he fathered the demigod Hao Celestial Venerable with Lady Yuanmu, who was an Ancient God. After fathering Hao Celestial Venerable, did this incarnation of his still exist? Was it hidden among the Ten Celestial Venerables? If this person still existed, then the Heavenly Emperor wouldn't need to transform into Qiang Tianfei or Yan Tianfei. He would only need to leave one soul in this incarnation."
The identity of Hao Celestial Venerable's biological father had always been a secret. Probably only Lady Yuanmu knew the true identity of the Heavenly Emperor's reincarnated body.
If Lady Yuanmu exposed the identity of the Heavenly Emperor's reincarnated body, her own identity would also be revealed. Therefore, a delicate balance could be maintained between these two Celestial Venerables, with neither exposing the other's identity.
In the Heavenly Emperor's harem, Qin Mu, Qiang Tianfei, and Lang Wan Divine King stood silently facing each other, the atmosphere extremely tense.
Only Shu Jun Divine King was unconcerned with this situation. He looked around and said, "So this is the Heavenly Emperor's harem? No wonder it's so fragrant and alluring."
His words startled the three of them awake.
The smile on Qin Mu's face grew even more simple and honest. He bowed to Qiang Tianfei and said politely, "Greetings, Qiang Tianfei. Although I am honored with the title of Celestial Venerable, I have been so busy since arriving at the Heavenly Court that I haven't had the chance to pay my respects. Please forgive me, Tianfei."
Qiang Tianfei returned the bow, smiling as she said, "Celestial Venerable Mu is too kind. I have been living in seclusion in the harem and have not had the opportunity to visit you. Please forgive me as well, Celestial Venerable Mu."
They exchanged pleasantries, neither voicing the doubts in their hearts.
Qin Mu said, "We stumbled into this place by accident and were fortunate to meet Tianfei. Otherwise, my reckless actions might have caused a great disturbance."
Qiang Tianfei smiled and said, "The paths in the harem are intricate and confusing. It's understandable that Celestial Venerable Mu, unfamiliar with the way, would end up here. If you have trouble finding your way out, I can have someone escort you out."
Qin Mu thanked her, and Qiang Tianfei said with a smile, "It's a small matter. I heard that Celestial Venerable Mu was campaigning in the Tai Xu, searching for the Land of No Worries. There have been many rumors lately, saying that you had died in the Tai Xu and your entire army was annihilated. I never expected you to return alive, and to appear in the harem. Are these two by your side figures from the Land of No Worries?"
Qin Mu laughed heartily. "Of course not. Tianfei seems to recognize my sister? Have you two met before?"
Qiang Tianfei smiled faintly. "No, we have not. Celestial Venerable Mu has never been to the harem before."
Qin Mu smiled. "And I have never met Qiang Tianfei."
Qiang Tianfei nodded, lightly clapped her hands, and two palace maids appeared. She whispered a few instructions to them, and the two maids acknowledged, saying softly, "Honored guests, please follow us."
The two maids led Qin Mu and his companions away. Qiang Tianfei watched them go, furrowed her brow, and murmured to herself, "Which one of those two little sluts is she? Strange, truly strange..."
Qin Mu looked back, and Qiang Tianfei smiled again. They nodded to each other from a distance, smiling.
Qin Mu followed the two maids away. The maids clearly recognized Qin Mu. They exchanged glances but dared not speak.
Qin Mu smiled and asked, "Ladies, how long have you been serving Tianfei?"
The two maids did not reply. One of them suddenly giggled and said, "Celestial Venerable Mu is so shameless. The other day, you peeked at the Imperial Consort and us while we were bathing and playing. Today, you've put on your clothes and forgotten all about it."
Qin Mu's face flushed red. He dared not ask further and secretly glanced at Lang Wan Divine King.
Lang Wan Divine King's expression remained calm, without a ripple.
Shu Jun became interested and asked, "Ladies, which Imperial Consort was bathing that day? Was it Qiang Tianfei just now?"
Qin Mu's face turned as black as iron.
The two maids dared not answer. If they spoke of it, it would be a capital offense.
Back when Qin Mu had opened the door to the Heavenly Emperor's harem twice on the Void Bridge, it had caused a huge commotion. The Imperial Consort had suppressed the news and executed a batch of gossiping maids. They had survived and were naturally very worried about their own situation.
The Heavenly Emperor's harem was extremely vast. The two maids led them through small doors and side paths, avoiding crowded areas, and finally escorted them out through the back gate.
Qin Mu looked back and muttered, "The Heavenly Emperor's harem hides many secrets..."
Lang Wan Divine King smiled ambiguously. "And many ladies who frequently bathe."
Qin Mu fell silent.
Shu Jun nodded. "Last time the Saint Child opened the door, we happened to catch the Imperial Consort and the maids bathing. So many of them, all fair-skinned."
Qin Mu glanced at Shu Jun, who shuddered as if falling into an abyss.
Qin Mu smiled and said, "Divine King Sister, this is the Heavenly Court. You wanted to see the ancestral home of your Creator race. Now your wish has come true, hasn't it?"
Lang Wan Divine King looked around. She saw streams of light in the sky above the Heavenly Court, shaped like two funnels locked together. It was very strange.
That was the Spiritual Energy Transfer Bridge designed by Qin Mu, but she didn't recognize it.
The number of Spiritual Energy Transfer Bridges now was several times greater than when Qin Mu had left. It seemed that all the myriad realms, even the Netherworld and the Celestial Realm, were connected by these bridges, facilitating travel and the rule of the Heavenly Court!
Shu Jun Divine King shook his head. "This is the Ancient God Heavenly Court, not the ancestral home of our Creator race. Lang Wan Divine King is still young and has probably never been to the ancestral home. It is not here."
Qin Mu was startled. "The Heavenly Court is not the ancestral home?"
Shu Jun Divine King shook his head. "No."
Lang Wan Divine King said, "I don't think so either. According to the ancestors, the ancestral home is extremely vast, filled with sacred places, expansive mountains and rivers, and deposits of Creation Divine Stones, along with countless other heavenly treasures. Although this place is rich, it doesn't seem like the ancestral home the ancestors spoke of."
Qin Mu frowned. He had taken it for granted, always assuming that the ancestral home the Creators spoke of was the Heavenly Court. Now it seemed he had guessed wrong.
"This should be the birthplace of the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor."
Shu Jun Divine King sniffed the air and said, "I just caught the scent of his Great Dao. His birthplace hides a great secret. From the scent I picked up, his birthplace is somewhere in the harem."
Qin Mu looked at him in surprise, thinking, "The scent of the Great Dao? Can he really smell that? Is Shu Jun's nose built differently from ours? However, the Heavenly Emperor's birthplace being in the harem is a shocking secret! If I could enter the harem again to investigate..."
He shook his head. Although Qiang Tianfei had politely had them escorted out, re-entering the Heavenly Emperor's harem would be extremely difficult.
"Yan'er and Fatty Long are currently at the Vermilion Bird Palace. I should go pick them up first."
Qin Mu calculated in his mind. "I have no property in the Heavenly Court, and no money to buy a house. That's a troublesome matter..."
He led the two of them to the Southern Emperor Vermilion Bird's palace in the Heavenly Court. The Southern Emperor Vermilion Bird originally had her own celestial palace in the Heavenly Court, called the Vermilion Bird Palace. However, she later moved to the Southern Extreme Heaven, leaving only a temporary palace here for lodging, also called the Vermilion Bird Palace, but it was not as grand as before, just an ordinary palace.
When Qin Mu arrived, he saw that the Vermilion Bird Palace was not large. Next to it was another palace, resplendent and vast. It was Qi Xiayu's palace, located in the southern part of the Heavenly Court, called the Guiyi Hall, meaning "Submission to Righteousness."
Because the Red Emperor Qi Xiayu was not originally the Red Emperor of the Heavenly Court but had submitted to the Heavenly Court during the battle that destroyed the Shanghuang Heavenly Court, the palace she lived in was called Guiyi Hall.
Guiyi Hall was even more magnificent and towering than the Vermilion Bird Palace.
Qin Mu arrived at the Vermilion Bird Palace, only to find its doors tightly shut. He asked the divine being guarding the gate, who replied, "So it's Celestial Venerable Mu. Princess Yan and Young Master Pi left here long ago and returned to the Celestial Venerable's Estate."
Qin Mu was surprised. "The Celestial Venerable's Estate?"
"Does the Celestial Venerable not know?"
The divine being smiled and said, "The Celestial Venerable's Estate was bestowed by His Majesty. It is located in Jade Capital City. Please follow me, and I will escort you there."
Qin Mu frowned, feeling uneasy. "I'm penniless in the Heavenly Court. How can I afford to maintain such a large estate as the Celestial Venerable's Estate? I'd better stay at the Jade Pool and mooch off the Empress. Otherwise, I won't even be able to cover the daily expenses..."
The divine being escorted them to the Celestial Venerable Mu Estate in Jade Capital City. The estate was extremely vast and luxurious, with a pavilion every five steps and a tower every ten steps. It was practically a small celestial palace!
Qin Mu was a bit dazed when he heard Hu Ling'er's voice from inside. "Hurry up! Hurry up! We need to decorate this place before the young master gets back... This is the Celestial Venerable's Estate. It needs to have the dignity of a Celestial Venerable's Estate. We can't embarrass the young master. It's not like we're short on money... Fatty Long, come over here. This palace is for you..."
Qin Mu walked into the estate, hearing Hu Ling'er's voice getting closer. "...Do you want it decorated like a dragon's nest or a qilin's den? Do you need to be chained up to fall asleep? Or should I have the Yan-Kang Heavenly Works Factory forge a pure gold chain for you?"
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