Chapter 1003: Eggshell

The Crown Prince led the way, while Qin Mu, controlling the Celestial Emperor's physical body, strolled leisurely through the imperial harem. The harem was filled with countless beautiful women, making it a place one would never want to leave.

With so many beautiful women in the harem, there were naturally many palaces as well. Winding paths led to secluded spots; any small path chosen would eventually lead to the delightful love nest of a beautiful and gentle concubine, truly a pleasant experience.

Qin Mu looked at the various paths and couldn't help but shake his head. "The Celestial Emperor certainly knew how to enjoy himself. However, now that he's dead, it's not him who enjoys these things, but one of the Ten Celestial Venerables. I wonder if the Celestial Emperor had any other children during his lifetime? If so, whose children would they be?"

His curiosity was strong. Despite his current extremely perilous situation, where he felt like he was treading on thin ice and any slight mistake could lead to his demise without a burial place, he still couldn't stop his mind from wandering.

Finally, the Crown Prince led him to a restricted area within the imperial harem. The surroundings were sparsely populated, guarded by ancient divine statues. As they passed each statue, it shed its stone form, transforming into a flesh-and-blood being, holding various divine artifacts, and bowing in greeting.

Qin Mu gazed intently, observing that these divine beings were all extremely powerful individuals. Their qi and blood were incredibly vibrant, capable of instantly reaching their peak even when recovering from a petrified state.

"These warriors must belong to one of the Ten Imperial Guards of the Heavenly Court, specially tasked with guarding this restricted area."

Qin Mu's heart grew solemn. The Ten Imperial Guards of the Heavenly Court — the Left and Right Feathered Forest, Left and Right Dragon Martial, Left and Right Divine Martial, Left and Right Divine Stratagem, and Left and Right Divine Might — were all composed of the most powerful gods and devils in the world, with a minimum cultivation level of the Jade Capital realm.

The combat power of the gods and devils guarding this restricted area was likely terrifying!

Moreover, the divine artifacts in their hands were not ordinary divine weapons. Each artifact contained an ancient god's Great Dao. It was conceivable that a small number of these artifacts, when combined, could form an ancient god's manifestation and unleash astonishing power!

It was worth noting that even Heaven Duke was composed of only forty-nine types of Heavenly Dao.

Here, however, the number of gods and devils, as well as their divine artifacts, numbered in the tens of thousands!

While the combined artifacts might not compare to true ancient gods, such a vast quantity was not to be underestimated.

"The ancient god Celestial Emperor held this place in extreme importance. I wonder if the other Celestial Venerables have visited here?"

Qin Mu walked forward, thinking to himself, "They must have. Those Celestial Venerables wouldn't overlook the Celestial Emperor's birthplace. This place has likely been thoroughly searched countless times."

Ahead, the Crown Prince stopped and bowed, saying, "Imperial Father, I dare not trespass into the restricted area ahead."

Qin Mu stepped forward and chuckled, "Since your father allows you to enter, what is there to fear?"

Melodies drifted into his ears—wonderfully mysterious Dao sounds and rhythms, as if the Great Dao itself was murmuring.

Upon hearing these sounds, Qin Mu immediately felt that the Celestial Emperor's Great Dao runes, which he had previously found incomprehensible, suddenly became clear one by one. The profound mysteries hidden within these runes flowed into his ears, transformed into incredibly subtle information, guided by the Dao sounds and rhythms!

He had obtained a vast number of Celestial Emperor's Great Dao runes from the Scroll Repository, yet these runes were profound, unfathomable, and very difficult to understand.

Therefore, Qin Mu had focused more of his energy on the Great Dao runes of other ancient gods like Heaven Duke, Earth Count, and Earth Mother. He had deciphered the most Heavenly Dao runes from Heaven Duke, recalculating them with the Taiwei Calculation Canon, and gaining the most insights.

He had managed to decipher very few of the Celestial Emperor's Great Dao runes.

As the strongest among the ancient gods, the Celestial Emperor commanded all Daos, and his Great Dao runes were the most profound. Both the Heavenly Court's Dao Sect and Dao Ancestor had dedicated the most effort to this area.

Even after Qin Mu had learned the Immeasurable Kalpa Sutra of the Great Brahma Heavenly King Buddha, attempting to analyze the Celestial Emperor's Great Dao runes through dream-Dao entry proved incredibly difficult.

Unexpectedly, upon arriving at the Celestial Emperor's birthplace, even before entering the restricted area, merely hearing some Dao sounds and rhythms allowed him to decipher some of the previously obscure and difficult Great Dao runes.

This was truly peculiar.

He looked forward, slightly stunned. Ahead, radiant light shimmered and mist curled, interweaving to create an ethereal scene.

The purple radiance seemed substantial, and the Dao sounds and rhythms emanated from it.

Curiously, although the area initially appeared small, as he walked deeper, the space gradually expanded. Streams of radiant light gently undulated, like vast purple waterfalls, swirling around them.

"The ancient god Celestial Emperor was born here?"

As Qin Mu perceived the rhythms of the ancient god Celestial Emperor's Great Dao, more of the runes became deciphered, bringing him a sense of physical and mental ease.

The flow of purple radiance and mist was highly regular. Some formations resembled mountains that could be walked upon, others like a celestial river, drifting erratically. Some of the purple light contained countless stars, like a starlit river flowing within the purple glow, occasionally transforming into stellar rings or jade clasps.

Other formations of radiance and mist coalesced into continuous continents. As they walked on them, it felt like treading on real land, with the radiance and mist forming various strange trees, flowers, and grasses.

And the Dao sounds and rhythms, as they entered their ears, were equally profound and wondrous.

Even more remarkably, as Qin Mu breathed in the radiance and mist of this place, he felt his own vital qi become more refined and pure.

This was truly a supreme cultivation sanctuary, possessing unparalleled power.

Suddenly, the Crown Prince let out a muffled groan. His legs were bloody; unbeknownst to him, the radiance and mist had corroded and injured his feet.

The radiance and mist contained the purest Great Dao. Walking through them, he endured the Celestial Emperor's Great Dao's onslaught. To have made it this far was truly remarkable, befitting someone capable of subduing the Red Emperor Qi Xiayu.

"Your cultivation is too weak."

Qin Mu shook his head and said, "I originally intended for you to enter this ancestral land, grant you some benefits, and allow you to cultivate here to enhance your strength, so that in the future, you could be my right-hand man. Unfortunately, you've disappointed me greatly."

The Crown Prince was overwhelmed with shame and lowered his head, saying, "Your son's abilities are meager; I cannot alleviate your Imperial Father's worries and difficulties."

Qin Mu continued forward, stating, "The deeper we go, the greater the pressure on you. Retreat to a safe place, use the spiritual energy of this area to cultivate for a while, and do not disappoint your father's expectations."

The Crown Prince was overjoyed and quickly retreated. He stopped only when he reached a safe spot and began to cultivate peacefully.

Qin Mu's gaze fell upon the center of the Celestial Emperor's birthplace. There, purple mist swirled, and something vaguely floated within it, exerting a tremendous pull on him.

"Whether the ancient god Celestial Emperor and other ancient gods were born of heaven and earth, or created by the primordial spirits of the Creators, I will know for sure once I reach that spot!"

He felt the fluctuations of the Great Dao here; the Dao rhythm was deep and prolonged, allowing him to perceive more and more of the Celestial Emperor's Great Dao mysteries and decipher more and more Great Dao runes.

Countless profound messages surged into his mind, transforming into his own knowledge.

In the Primordial Spirit World of the World of the Living, he had gained knowledge from the primordial spirits of the Creators there. However, the Creators of the Primordial Spirit World had no memory regarding the creation of ancient gods.

During the Primordial Era, most Creators were annihilated by the ancient gods, leading to a disruption in their civilization's lineage. Coupled with the Grand Emperor's invasion of the Grand Void, there were many blank spots in the Creators' heritage.

Because Qin Mu had seen the ruins in the Blood Rust Zone, he suspected that the Creator race had created countless ancient gods, only to be subsequently eradicated by them.

However, this was merely his speculation. Whether it was true or not could only be confirmed by personally witnessing the place where the ancient god Celestial Emperor was born.

Once he reached the deepest part of the purple light, he should be able to uncover this secret!

Qin Mu could hardly suppress the excitement in his heart. This secret might only be known to the Ten Celestial Venerables and the ancient god Celestial Emperor, and now he was about to discover it himself!

He continued forward, drawing closer to the mass of purple qi where countless radiant lights converged. Suddenly, Qin Mu stopped, frowned, and looked at the Celestial Emperor's body's feet.

At some unknown point, the legs of this incredibly powerful physical body had been cut by the radiance and mist!

The muscles on his legs had significantly thinned under the terrifying pressure!

"After all, this isn't the ancient god Celestial Emperor's true body, but a replica created by the artifact forging deity of the Creating Palace. It's difficult to compare it to the genuine Celestial Emperor's physical body."

Qin Mu frowned. The Celestial Emperor's physical body was formed through the Celestial Emperor's Great Dao, but the Great Dao runes researched by the Heavenly Court's Dao Sect were etched based on macroscopic mathematical techniques, lacking microscopic ones.

Therefore, the Celestial Emperor's physical body created this way was significantly inferior to the true Celestial Emperor's body in terms of both strength and power.

Having reached this point, the replica body could hardly endure any longer.

Qin Mu tried to activate nearly two thousand power sources within the Celestial Emperor's body, which slightly alleviated the Great Dao's pressure from the birthplace. However, he wasn't entirely sure if he could reach his destination.

He looked around, slightly startled.

From his vantage point, he could actually see Xuandu, Youdu, and even the Primordial Realm was fully visible!

Furthermore, the four poles of the universe and even the myriad worlds of the heavens were clearly visible, as if they were close enough to touch with an outstretched hand.

Qin Mu pondered for a moment, then looked at the distant purple light cluster. The object floating within the cluster gradually became clearer in outline, resembling a cracked chicken egg, though something else lay beneath, obscured by the purple light.

The Crown Prince sat at the edge of the Celestial Emperor's birthplace, drawing in the radiance and mist, cultivating slowly. He felt his previously stagnant cultivation gradually improve, filling his heart with joy.

He watched Qin Mu venture deeper into the restricted area, a fervent thought in his heart: "Imperial Father neglected me and the other princes for forty thousand years, but only today do I understand his anguish. Imperial Father has endured immense pressure all these years, also to protect us..."

Suddenly, a look of doubt appeared on his face. "Why has Imperial Father stopped?"

He stared blankly at Qin Mu, who had ventured deep into the restricted area, and the expression on his face gradually turned to horror.

He saw that the Celestial Emperor's legs, just like his own, were injured by the radiance of the birthplace!

A chilling sensation crept over him. The true ancient god Celestial Emperor would never be injured by the radiance of his own birthplace.

"He's not Imperial Father!" A terrifying thought arose in his mind.

Under his gaze, Qin Mu continued to advance, getting closer and closer to the purple light and qi. His legs were already bloody and mangled, and the Celestial Emperor's majestic body began to twist under the terrifying pressure of the Great Dao, muscles contracting and the body shrinking.

Even Qin Mu, hidden within the Celestial Emperor's glabella, gradually felt the Dao pressure permeating the Celestial Emperor's body and pressing down on him. This pressure was so intense that if he were exposed, he would likely turn to ashes and cease to exist in an instant!

"I can't go any further!"

Qin Mu stopped and looked at the purple light cluster through the Celestial Emperor's eyes, but it remained blurry, and he couldn't discern what was beneath the eggshell.

"The Celestial Emperor's physical body's eyes aren't good enough; my own eyes are better! Open!"

Qin Mu let out a low cry, mobilizing all the power within the Celestial Emperor's body to protect the glabella. The glabella split open, his true body emerged, and he opened his third eye at the glabella to gaze at the object within the purple light cluster.

His mind reeled with shock. Beneath the cracked eggshell, enveloped and submerged by layers of purple light, was an extremely ancient altar!

The altar seemed to possess a peculiar power, continuously drawing the Great Dao of heaven and earth towards its center. The cracked eggshell was imprinted with countless incredibly complex runes and markings by the radiance and mist!

The markings on the eggshell were extraordinarily profound and intricate, even more complex and numerous than the jade slip runes he had seen in the Scroll Repository!

However, the eggshell itself was empty, containing nothing. Only the endlessly profound runes continued to flicker, occasionally emitting mystical light that appeared and vanished.

"It seems there's still some egg white inside..."