Chapter 1852: Backup

"The Ancestral God's divine quality, just like that, so easily given away?"

Had Xu Xiaoshou not seen the Ancestral God's divine quality before, he would have thought what was thrown out was just a toy to deceive people!

"The Ancestral God's divine quality is a necessity for becoming a deity and an ancestor. This is indeed a fortunate encounter for Yue Gongqi, but isn't it also one for the Demonic Ancestor?"

"If he gives the Ancestral God's divine quality to Yue Gongqi, what will he use himself?"

"Is it truly as he says, that he's about to enter reincarnation and fall into slumber, so he doesn't care whether he's an Ancestral God or not, and it's fine if he reverts to a Saint Emperor?"

If Xu Xiaoshou believed even a fraction of what the Demonic Ancestor said, he'd think his brain could be taken out and donated to Rao Ke'ai, who was about to reincarnate.

The path of reincarnation is controlled by the Ghost Ancestor. The Demonic Ancestor must have had his brain kicked by a donkey to choose such a method of "resurrection."

This is tantamount to handing his vital essence over to the Ghost Ancestor's control!

Therefore, any statements built upon such a foundation are entirely untrustworthy, yet the Ancestral God's divine quality is real...

"There's another possibility: this Ancestral God's divine quality isn't the Demonic Ancestor's own!"

Whose could it be then?

Could it be from the four ancestors who have already reincarnated, those depicted in the four murals, all struck by spear marks, or even killed by the Demonic God's great spear?

Even if the Four Ancestors lost, they should have been able to protect their Ancestral God's divine quality at the last moment. Even if it was lost, it shouldn't have been given to the enemy, right?

Otherwise, the stronger the Demonic Ancestor becomes, the lower the probability of the Four Ancestors' resurrection.

—Even in reincarnation, at the level of an Ancestral God, who wouldn't want to revive, who wouldn't have a way to plan for their revival?

Cui Yin is a successful case.

Even after her revival, her path was arduous, but she slowly climbed back up from the bottom.

"Ba Zun'an once said that gathering the famous swords might summon the Sword Ancestor's divine quality. Then the other three ancestors should also have their own arrangements."

"Since this Ancestral God's divine quality is unlikely to be from the four reincarnated ancestors, nor is it the Demonic Ancestor's own, then who else is left?"

There are only a few Ten Ancestors. Applying the process of elimination:

First, subtract four, then subtract the Medicine Ghost, then subtract Cui Yin. Only two are left.

"Either the Time Ancestor or the Saint Ancestor..."

The Time Ancestor is so enigmatic that the Demonic Ancestor would likely find it hard to even locate him, let alone extract his essence like dissecting a clam for its pearl.

So the answer is quite obvious, isn't it?

"Saint Ancestor?"

Xu Xiaoshou's mind was shaken.

The Five Domains are named the Saint God Continent, and the Saint Ancestor is the true orthodox.

The Demonic Ancestor is merely a manifestation of the Saint Ancestor, separated to cultivate the path of unification. Has he been backlashed?

"Given this situation, even the Ancestral God's divine quality can be given away so easily. The Saint Ancestor probably no longer exists."

"The Demonic Ancestor has silently completed the path of unification, reaching the same realm as Cui Yin, or even surpassing the revived Cui Yin by a thousand years?"

"No wonder after Cui Yin emerged, she was subservient to the various ancestors of the Five Domains, not even daring to return to the Saint God Continent, only daring to develop cautiously in the God's Vestige..."

Everything, surprisingly, has a trace!

Pushing this conclusion further, after unification, comes 'returning to zero'.

The Demonic Ancestor certainly isn't satisfied with one and wants to become zero. The task he currently ordered Yue Gongqi to do is part of the groundwork for returning to zero?

"According to the timeline, the Tree of Firmament birthed the Ancestor Jing Zhao."

"The Jing Zhao lineage first produced Long Rongzhi, the Half-Saint of the Saint Palace, which is indeed closely related to the Saint Ancestor. Then came Old Sang, and then me..."

At this point, Xu Xiaoshou froze, feeling his brain wasn't quite keeping up.

"Am I, the Demonic Ancestor's backup plan?"

It sounded a bit comical.

He overturned this conclusion.

One should not think about problems from such a low position as his own, but rather from the Demonic Ancestor's elevated perspective, with a broad overview.

Neither Long Rongzhi, Old Sang, nor he himself were at a high enough level to even qualify as the Demonic Ancestor's pawns.

Only Ancestor Jing Zhao was the step the Demonic Ancestor actively took!

"Half-Saint ranks and Saint Emperor ranks have all been properly assigned."

"Either he foresaw, planned, and guided the situation of the Five Domains, leading it to this current state, and at a critical moment wants to pull the rug out from under Ba Zun'an?"

No, that's not right...

Even if Ancestor Jing Zhao launched a sneak attack, it would probably have little effect on Ba Zun'an.

Moreover, Ancestor Jing Zhao's origins have now been discovered by him, making him feel somewhat like a discarded piece.

"Or perhaps, I've overestimated Ancestor Jing Zhao."

"Although he is a Saint Emperor, to the Demonic Ancestor, he is still just an idle chess piece."

"Has Ancestor Jing Zhao completed his mission by stirring up trouble in the Five Domains and planting an eye in the Void Island to constantly observe whether the Heavenly Ancestor might revive?"

This relaxed and casual way of thinking actually seems to fit the mindset of a high-ranking individual like the Demonic Ancestor.

The title "Ancestor of All Ancestors" sounds impressive, but that's only for Saint Emperors and below. If truly compared to the "Ancestor" in Ancestral God, they wouldn't even be fit to carry his shoes.

"Ancestor Jing Zhao is merely an insignificant troublemaker, similar to me during the White Cave and East Heavenly King City periods..."

"He didn't exceed the Demonic Ancestor's expectations, didn't bring any surprises, but he did complete his task as planned. So, this chess piece is now idle, and whether it will be reactivated is another matter?"

Xu Xiaoshou didn't know what to make of this seemingly plausible conclusion.

A Saint Emperor chess piece, discarded as soon as he pleased. It only goes to show that the Demonic Ancestor, rooted in the Saint God Continent, truly possesses an immense foundation.

Compared to Cui Yin, who revived in the God's Vestige, starting with a fragile Divine Infant Sacred Plant, with no better combat-type talents to assist throughout, trying to guide a long-scheming Ten Seat Ai Cangsheng to temporarily serve her, and her grand plan was inexplicably ruined by Dao Xuanji.

In the end, starving to death, she could only stealthily scavenge some discarded Half-Saint ranks from the Five Domains to replenish her nutrients, but the outcome was not a pleasant surprise, but rather the Divine Overlord's single blow...

Cui Yin was on the verge of tears from envy!

"Comparing people truly makes one angry." Suppressing his chaotic thoughts, Xu Xiaoshou looked again at Yue Gongqi, who had received the Ancestral God's divine quality in the stone hall.

Yue Gongqi could not hide his excitement.

Even though he suppressed it on his face, Xu Xiaoshou could tell from his surging soul that he had achieved his wish.

"Saint Ancestor above, bless my Han Palace with eternal prosperity."

Having held a high position for a long time, the Han Palace Saint Emperor did not lose his composure, but seeing him now, and hearing his words...

Xu Xiaoshou once held reverence for the Han Palace Saint Emperor.

After all, half a year ago, he had taken a blow from this person's Saint Ancestor's Hand, which had required all of his Heavenly Ancestor power to resist.

Now, it seems he was nothing more than a pawn of the Demonic Ancestor, even being used by her without knowing it, still believing he was following the promising Saint Ancestor.

Yue Gongqi then asked "which day is auspicious," but the Demonic Ancestor statue did not reply.

After waiting for a while, he asked "what other commands," and the Demonic Ancestor statue still did not reply.

Just as it said before, "from now on, there will be no more replies to anything." This sounded even more delightful:

The Ancestral God's divine quality was obtained, and the only Saint Ancestor who could potentially control him had fallen into slumber...

If he, Yue Gongqi, were to become a deity and an ancestor, who would be giving orders to whom might be a question mark!

Yue Gongqi waited a moment longer, still without any response.

He then rose from the futon, meticulously bowing before stepping back and departing.

Xu Xiaoshou's perception followed, noting that Yue Gongqi displayed no extraneous expressions or movements until he exited the hall, his soul merely surging incessantly, pondering something unknown.

"He definitely has to think a lot!"

"A soldier who doesn't want to be a general isn't a good soldier, let alone a privileged child who has been pampered since childhood. How could he want to be controlled?"

But he took the Ancestral God's divine quality bestowed by the Demonic Ancestor, and he cultivates the Saint Ancestor's Spirit Refining Dao, which has been unified. Yet, in the end, he wants to transcend?

Isn't that perhaps overly idealistic?

"No wonder Kui Leihan refused to become a Saint, insisting on meditating on the 'Thorough Divine Thought' and directly pursuing the path of 'returning to zero'..."

Yue Gongqi left.

The stone hall returned to silence.

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at the information bar, still no pop-up messages. The Demonic Ancestor seemed to have truly fallen into slumber.

He didn't leave the Ancestral God's time node immediately, but instead strolled through the entire stone hall, only to find nothing unusual in the end.

"Since I can see Yue Gongqi here, this place should be the earlier Han Palace Imperial Realm, right?"

Through soul reading, Xu Xiaoshou dared to transcend his Intent Dao, using this method to infiltrate the Five Great Saint Emperor's Secret Realms.

Since he could directly trace back this place from the River of Time, what could he not pry into?

"Underground…"

Since he was underground at the moment, a look above would reveal the truth.

Thinking of it, he did it. His spiritual consciousness quickly ascended, and Xu Xiaoshou felt his soul detach from the stone hall, but it soon encountered an obstacle.

"The power of the Saint Ancestor!"

Surprisingly, it wasn't the Demonic Ancestor's power, but very pure Saint Ancestor power, acting as a barrier protecting the surroundings of the stone hall.

Xu Xiaoshou was not disheartened. Just as he was about to draw his sword and slash it open, the barrier unexpectedly cracked open on its own. This surprised him slightly, but he didn't ponder it for long. He chose to split off a strand of his will and throw it out.

As his will emerged from the ground, the world transformed.

The unfamiliar yet somewhat familiar scenery of the Han Palace Imperial Realm came into full view.

Xu Xiaoshou searched for a bit, but couldn't find the Listening Rain Pavilion where he had once stayed. But then he thought about it.

"At this time, Yue Huli wasn't even born yet, right?"

Yue Gongqi hadn't yet gone into seclusion, the Tree of Firmament in Jing Zhao's Prison Sea hadn't been planted, and even Ancestor Jing Zhao hadn't been born.

This time node was at least a thousand years earlier than the last Ten Seats?

"The flowers, plants, and lake scenery near the Listening Rain Pavilion are also different from what came after. The mountain ranges don't quite align either; only a faint outline can be made out..."

As for the first?

Xu Xiaoshou had figured it out long ago.

The location of the underground stone hall, when compared to the Listening Rain Pavilion as a reference point, was precisely where Yue Gongqi would later go into seclusion.

That was the Han Palace Grotto-heaven, where even Dao Qiongcang didn't dare to leave a trace of urine. Now it seems, it was not only guarded against the Han Palace Saint Emperor, but also against the Demonic Ancestor.

"Oh, right, urine marks..."

The thought of Dao Qiongcang casually urinating.

Xu Xiaoshou immediately grew curious: would the past of the Han Palace Imperial Realm in the River of Time also retain Dao Qiongcang's stench?

But before he could confirm, his own thought amused him.

"Yue Gongli isn't born yet, and Dao Qiongcang, who is from the same period as him, isn't even an egg at this time. How could he possibly urinate?"

Thinking this, Xu Xiaoshou still secretly opened his Intent Dao disk.

After all, it's the unfathomable Dao Qiongcang!

Better safe than sorry.

Just a glance, and Xu Xiaoshou relaxed. As expected, not a single handshake pattern was seen in the Han Palace Imperial Realm a thousand years ago.

"What unfathomable, it's just average."

"Truly unfathomable means not only planning for a thousand years later, but also having planned well for a thousand years prior, right?"

But this clearly stumped Dao Qiongcang; he only had Dao-transformed memory, not Dao-transformed time.

The Ten Seats also had their limits.

Not everyone was like him, able to comprehend any Dao and lay a basic foundation, and then rely on adding points.

"Go back!"

His will tried to escape back to the underground stone hall but was unexpectedly blocked.

Xu Xiaoshou waited for a while. This time, the barrier created by the Saint Ancestor's power did not voluntarily crack open to let him return.

Without hesitation, he extinguished the strand of will that had gone out.

"Ba Zun'an?"

"I am here."

You're still here, then I'm relieved.

The stone hall was empty, only Xu Xiaoshou remained.

Since Ba Zun'an dared to say he would cover him, and showed no fear of the Ancestral God, and was even anticipating the first 'early bird' to appear...

If the 'early bird' didn't show up, Xu Xiaoshou decided he would court disaster.

He approached the futon where Yue Gongqi had been sitting cross-legged, wanting to see in what form the Demonic Ancestor existed at this time node.

The unknown breeds fear.

Only by breaking through the unknown can one find the courage to face it afterward, for the Demonic Ancestor must be faced sooner or later!

In front of the Demonic Ancestor's stone sculpture, regardless of whether this fellow was truly in slumber or merely feigning it, Xu Xiaoshou performed a grotesque trick, transforming himself into Yue Gongqi—considering him to be truly in slumber!

It consumed a lot.

But it was within an acceptable range.

The Han Palace Saint Emperor of this period was only a Saint Emperor, not yet having reached any stage of becoming a deity and an ancestor. It wasn't difficult to simply borrow his form to talk and chat.

Xu Xiaoshou also sat cross-legged on the futon, his face respectful, with learned piety, and closed his eyes, saying:

"Saint Ancestor above, bless my Han Palace with eternal prosperity."

As soon as his voice fell, he felt the scenery around him change. Realizing something was wrong, Xu Xiaoshou immediately opened his eyes.

"This..."

He was stunned.

The stone hall, which had just been filled with gloomy tones, suddenly became resplendent and incredibly sacred.

Even the four murals on the side walls had changed their content, now depicting the Saint Ancestor and the Dragon Ancestor standing side by side on the sea, gazing into the distance;

They turned into the Saint Ancestor and the Sword Ancestor sitting opposite each other in a solitary tower under the moon, raising cups to drink together;

They became the Saint Ancestor and the Battle Ancestor grappling in a ring, without murderous intent, only a simple desire to win or lose.

They turned into the Saint Ancestor and the Heavenly Ancestor on the Void Island, the former presenting a silver Broken Ruler Shield, and the latter accepting it with a smile.

Harmony!

Too harmonious!

So harmonious it sent shivers down his spine!

"So, this is the stone hall as seen through Yue Gongqi's eyes..." Xu Xiaoshou's goosebumps rose, and he thought of the Demonic Ancestor's stone sculpture.

He looked up and saw the stone sculpture shining brightly and sacredly, radiating divine light that made people want to worship it.

"Saint Ancestor?"

Xu Xiaoshou couldn't pretend to be Yue Gongqi anymore. He stood up straight, returning to his original appearance:

"Come out, Demonic Ancestor, I know you're watching me!"

He felt as if the Demonic Ancestor was toying with him: first, she shielded Yue Gongqi's senses so he couldn't discover him;

Then, she allowed his will to leave the stone hall but blocked it from returning;

Finally, she orchestrated this whole spectacle, brimming with malicious amusement.

But after getting up and leaving the futon, the sacred hall reverted to a stone hall. The stone hall was empty, and the Demonic Ancestor didn't even respond, as if everything he had just experienced was false, merely an illusion.

"Not coming out?"

"Fine, I can find you myself!"

As long as it exists, it cannot evade the three paths of 'body,' 'spirit,' and 'will.'

Xu Xiaoshou had already Dao-transformed all three of these paths. To find someone within a fixed range, even an Ancestral God, the Ancestral God would have nowhere to hide.

"Body!"

The Body Dao disk beneath his feet spun, engaging the Heaven-Man Unification state.

The opening of a single grand dao disk caused Xu Xiaoshou to gradually enter a virtual dao-transformation state, and the insights from his Dao-transformation of the "Body Dao" surged forth one after another.

Even so, after searching for a moment, there was no result.

The stone hall was still empty. Xu Xiaoshou promptly closed the Body Dao disk, fearing he might lose his rationality if he kept it open for too long.

Even with the insights into 'body' beyond Dao-transformation, he still couldn't find the Demonic Ancestor's 'body,' proving that the Demonic Ancestor's form of existence in the stone hall was definitely not a physical body.

"Spirit!"

Without hesitation, the Spirit Dao disk immediately spun open.

The same single grand dao disk opened, and the same virtual dao-transformation insights surged forth, this time into the 'spirit' beyond Dao-transformation.

Still no result.

The stone hall was still empty.

This proved that in this place, the Demonic Ancestor's form of existence was neither 'body' nor 'spirit.'

At this point, Xu Xiaoshou was roughly certain: if the Inverted Pagoda suppressed the Demonic Ancestor, and the so-called Great Demon sealed in the Sword Tower was also the Demonic Ancestor...

The Demonic Ancestor's body.

The Demonic Ancestor's spirit.

These two are 70% certain to be out there.

Then here, in this stone hall, the Demonic Ancestor's form of existence could only be one more...

"Receiving attention, Passive Points, 1."

"Receiving anticipation, Passive Points, 1."

Before he could even move, two messages suddenly popped up in the information bar.

To say he wasn't nervous would be a lie... Xu Xiaoshou took a deep breath, but didn't stop his actions because of it.

"Intent!"

The Intent Dao disk, spinning out singularly.

Xu Xiaoshou looked up at the Demonic Ancestor's stone sculpture. This time, he found something. His pupils constricted, his face filled with surprise.

"This is..."

At first, Xu Xiaoshou didn't see the Demonic Ancestor.

But he saw a memory imprint on the chest of the Demonic Ancestor's stone sculpture, which still seemed to exude Dao's urine smell.

It wasn't the handshake pattern.

But another, which he had also seen, the goofy cartoon version of the Heavenly Secret Puppet pattern:

"囧!"