Chapter 1170: Yuanmu at the Back

Soon after, Qin Mu's spirit recovered, and he looked energetic. The various Heavenly Venerates felt a chill: "His recovery ability is so fast! It's many times quicker than a normal god or demon!"

Qin Mu pondered for a moment, then called Long Qilin and Yan'er. He said, "I also need to leave for a while and go to Yankang to find some divine beings to mine the divine ore and explore the Blackwood Mountains. You two will stay here for now."

Long Qilin and Yan'er were startled and shook their heads repeatedly.

Qin Mu chuckled, "You don't need to be afraid of the void beasts. I'll leave the Lapis Lazuli Sky Pagoda here. With this treasure, you can rest easy; it wields power no less skillfully than I do. Moreover, the void beast mother has died, and even if a new void beast mother emerges, it should take a few years to grow. So don't worry."

Long Qilin stammered, "These Blackwood Mountains are very strange..."

Qin Mu chuckled, "What's so strange? With the Lapis Lazuli Sky Pagoda in your hands, what is there to fear? I'm leaving now!"

Long Qilin trembled. Suddenly, Qin Mu's voice transmitted to them, saying, "After I leave here and return to Yankang, it will take some time. These Heavenly Venerates will certainly send disciples after they return to the Heavenly Court. These people have ill intentions, so you must be careful. They will definitely come to seize the Lapis Lazuli Sky Pagoda."

His voice carried a hint of killing intent: "Even if the Heavenly King himself comes, kill them!"

Qin Mu withdrew his divine consciousness and looked at the eight Heavenly Venerates with a beaming smile, laughing heartily, "Gentlemen, please!"

The Heavenly Venerates politely replied, "Brother Mu, please."

As they walked out of the Blackwood Mountains, Qin Mu immediately took out the altar. Everyone stood on it, and Qin Mu tried to remotely sense the altar that had been left at the entrance of the Ancestral Court.

Suddenly, his heart skipped a beat.

The altar was gone!

Qin Mu's eye twitched: "Could it be that I expended too much spiritual energy just now, and my sensing ability is weak?"

He tried to sense it again with all his might, but still couldn't detect the altar!

A drop of cold sweat appeared on the back of his neck; the altar was indeed no longer there.

"It might not be that the altar isn't there, but that it's been shattered! Even if someone had simply taken it away, I'd still be able to sense its location. Only by shattering the altar and destroying its runes would I be unable to detect it!"

Drop after drop of cold sweat trickled down the back of his neck. Qin Mu's smile slowly froze on his face.

He had been able to survive in the Ancestral Court by virtue of his ability to lead the eight Heavenly Venerates out. Now that ability was gone; how was he to save his own life?

Consort Qiang cleared her throat and asked, "Brother Mu, when can we leave?"

The other Heavenly Venerates' gazes also fell on Qin Mu's face, showing confusion. Qin Mu burst into laughter, and the others on the altar followed suit, but only Heavenly Venerate Hao and Ancestral God King remained expressionless, not laughing.

Qin Mu's hearty laughter gradually subsided. He said seriously, "We can't leave. Someone outside has destroyed the altar."

The smiles on everyone's faces slowly vanished. Emperor Langxuan calmly said, "Heavenly Venerate Mu isn't joking, is he?"

Qin Mu said solemnly, "How could I joke about such a thing? My ability to bring you in and take you out is precisely why I've been able to survive in the Ancestral Court. If I can't take you out, wouldn't I be joking with my own life? That altar has indeed been destroyed. If I'm not mistaken, the one who destroyed it is the eleventh Heavenly Venerate of the Heavenly Court."

Heavenly Venerate Hong's expression subtly changed. He asked, "Ming Fangyu?"

Heavenly Venerate Xiao said, "Ming Fangyu is dead; it absolutely cannot be him. His primordial spirit was taken by Heavenly Venerate Ling, and his physical body was shattered by Qin Ye."

The gazes of Consort Qiang, Emperor Langxuan, Ancestral God King, and others all fell on Qin Mu's face. Heavenly Venerate Gong cleared her throat and said, "Heavenly Venerate Mu, don't keep us in suspense. Who exactly is the eleventh Heavenly Venerate of the Heavenly Court?"

Qin Mu sighed and said, "Madam Yuanmu."

On the altar, the Heavenly Venerates' bodies trembled slightly. Each took a step back, vigilantly watching one another.

They appeared harmonious, uniting to fight the ancient gods, ruling the Heavenly Court together, advancing and retreating as one, sharing life and death.

However, they all knew that while they were partners, they were also rivals.

Their alliance was not unbreakable.

They had long suspected that the Grand Emperor and Heavenly Emperor were lurking among them, and perhaps even the Empress and Madam Yuanmu were hiding nearby. It was even possible that these four ancient gods were among the Ten Heavenly Venerates themselves!

If Madam Yuanmu was indeed hidden among them, then who could she be?

Eyes drifted back and forth between Heavenly Venerate Gong, Consort Yan, and Consort Qiang, clearly harboring more suspicion towards these three female Heavenly Venerates.

Especially Consort Qiang and Consort Yan. The Empress and Madam Yuanmu were both part of the Heavenly Emperor's harem, and Consort Qiang and Consort Yan were nominally also part of the Heavenly Emperor's harem, which could not help but arouse their suspicion.

Qin Mu shook his head and said, "Madam Yuanmu is not among us here. In fact, she isn't even among the Ten Heavenly Venerates. Her status in the Heavenly Court should be somewhat lower than yours. She didn't enter the Ancestral Court but came outside it to destroy our altar, intending to trap us here to die."

Silence fell upon the altar.

After a long time, Consort Yan said, "If Yuanmu seals us in the Ancestral Court, then she can deal with Heavenly Venerate Fire and Heavenly Venerate Void. Since those two don't know her identity, it's hard to guarantee they won't fall victim to her schemes. At that point, I fear we would return to the era of ancient god rule."

Heavenly Venerate Xiao sighed, "From the Dragon Han era until now, the fruits of countless martyrs' struggles would be completely wiped out."

Consort Qiang said, "As things stand, the only way for us to leave the Ancestral Court is to break the seal. However, if we break the seal, the void beasts in the Ancestral Court will likely escape. What's even more terrifying is the Grand Emperor."

With a murderous look on her face, she coldly stated, "The Grand Emperor is definitely waiting for this opportunity to gather the void beasts and wreak havoc upon the world! For the safety of all living beings, we should not open the Ancestral Court!"

Heavenly Venerate Xiao and Heavenly Venerate Gong glanced at her. Consort Qiang, radiating righteousness, looked around and said, "Surely you all agree with my opinion?"

Ancestral God King, Emperor Langxuan, and others cleared their throats, saying, "That's not entirely true. While releasing some void beasts is certainly dangerous, the ancient gods regaining their dominance is also extremely dangerous. Between two evils, we should choose the lesser. Let's discuss it further."

Everyone turned to Heavenly Venerate Hao, saying, "Heavenly Venerate Hao, you are the leader of the Ten Heavenly Venerates. Please offer your thoughts. We will all listen to you."

Heavenly Venerate Hao calmly surveyed his surroundings and said, "The Grand Emperor has been in hiding and hasn't appeared for a long time. Unless we draw him out, it will always be difficult to eliminate him. This, however, is a good opportunity to lure him out."

Everyone's hearts stirred slightly, and they nodded in agreement.

Heavenly Venerate Hao continued, "Among the ancient gods, only Heavenly Duke and Earth Count remain as stubborn obstacles. We have fought for the welfare of all living beings for millions of years, and success is within our grasp. How can we allow the ancient gods to revive simply because of the void beasts?"

The Heavenly Venerates politely asked, "Then what is Heavenly Venerate Hao's intention?"

Heavenly Venerate Hao said, "We should open the Ancestral Court's seal, specifically from the cracks, and then we will reseal those cracks. With the strength of us eight Heavenly Venerates, resealing it shouldn't be difficult, should it?"

Everyone turned to Consort Qiang and asked, "What does Consort Qiang think?"

Consort Qiang's face showed a difficult expression. After a moment, she sighed regretfully and said, "At this point, we have no choice but to proceed. However, this time we must, by all means, exert our full strength to reseal it and not give that villainous Grand Emperor any opportunity!"

Everyone chimed in, "Consort Qiang has a compassionate heart and cares deeply for the world."