Chapter 1189: Innate One Qi

Gao Huaitong's heart was filled with awe; he held not the slightest contempt for the First Ancestor Human Emperor.

Venerable Master Xiao highly praised Emperor Kai's Dao Realm cultivation system, believing it filled the most crucial gap in the Heavenly Palace system.

The Heavenly Palace system was pioneered by Celestial Venerable Yu, developed and refined by Celestial Venerable Mu and Celestial Venerable Hao, and perfected by countless later generations. However, it had a significant flaw: its overwhelming focus on power.

With each cultivation realm ascended in the Heavenly Palace system, power would increase dramatically. This advancement was founded on the Dragon Han Heavenly Court, which became a symbol of the Great Dao for gods entering the divine realm.

However, this cultivation method neglected the comprehension of the Great Dao.

Emperor Kai Qin Ye's Dao Realm system precisely compensated for this, emphasizing the comprehension of the Great Dao and entering it layer by layer to approach its essence. When combined with the immense power of the Heavenly Palace system, both combat strength and cultivation would experience another leap forward.

Gao Huaitong largely agreed with Venerable Master Xiao's words, an agreement rooted in Emperor Kai's feat of splitting the Heavenly Court with a single sword stroke.

On that day, when Emperor Kai attacked the Heavenly Court and split it with a single sword, all deities felt the shock and fear that came with the Heavenly Court's fracturing.

Of course, the Heavenly Court did not fully split, so the shock and fear felt by all deities lasted only for a brief moment. After that period, the shock and fear dissipated, and most deities did not dwell on the matter.

Gao Huaitong was among the few who did.

He deeply felt that his Dao Heart had almost fractured, and the tremor in his spirit was unparalleled.

If the Heavenly Court had truly split, what consequences would have befallen the deities of the world?

Would their Dao Hearts crumble as a result?

Would their Heavenly Palaces lose their divine power?

This was the most terrifying prospect!

He also realized that Emperor Kai's Dao Realm system could precisely compensate for this. If both were cultivated simultaneously, even if the Heavenly Court were destroyed, his Dao Heart would not collapse.

However, he was currently still in the exploratory stage, having only just begun to comprehend the Dao Realm.

Upon observing the First Ancestor Human Emperor's demeanor, he realized this person was a master of the Dao Realm system. Holding no trace of disrespect in his heart, he bowed and said, "Please enlighten me, fellow Daoist."

The two exchanged salutations and then fiercely made their move!

Gao Huaitong only displayed cultivation at the Numinous Sky Realm, but his first move was a Grand Divine Art of the Emperor's Throne Realm. Behind him, Heavenly Palaces emerged with a clang, thousands of palaces and myriad halls piled up like towering mountain ranges.

He deeply knew the power of the Dao Realm system: each Dao Realm layer represented a new heaven, and each heaven brought a new divine art. If he were to cautiously probe and wait for his opponent to display a profound Dao Realm, he feared he would end up regretting it.

The First Ancestor Human Emperor remained as before, appearing calm and composed. With a sweep and hook of his hands, a scene of heaven and earth collapsing immediately appeared. He stood in the center of the collapsing world, like a pillar of stability.

The Heaven and Earth Heart Sacred Art!

His divine art bore the mark of an era: a time of crumbling rites and decaying music, of rampant chaos, and of heaven and earth collapsing.

He sought to establish a heart for heaven and earth, and a destiny for the people!

When the two divine arts collided, Gao Huaitong immediately felt as if he was in the midst of a magnificent catastrophe. His attacking divine art became part of the opponent's collapsing world, feeding the power of the opponent's divine art!

The First Ancestor's Heaven and Earth Heart Sacred Art was precisely such a cultivation method and divine art. At that time, he was young and weak, and in a chaotic world, he could only rely on the mighty power of collapsing heaven and earth to resist enemies; any enemy's attack would transform into a part of his strength!

This cultivation method and divine art would become stronger and more courageous with each battle!

Gao Huaitong, an existence at the Emperor's Throne Realm after all, realized this and immediately changed his divine art, letting out a long cry.

"Primordial Qi of Innate Oneness!"

His divine art drastically changed, giving a feeling of ten thousand Great Daos merging. It pressed forward relentlessly, leaving the First Ancestor Human Emperor with no power to borrow.

Qin Mu's expression subtly shifted, and his gaze turned towards Yan Qiling.

Yan Qiling had once displayed a similar divine art, which should have been a divine art born from the Heavenly Emperor's own Great Dao. This "Primordial Qi of Innate Oneness" felt to Qin Mu like the Heavenly Emperor's true capability.

However, how could the Heavenly Emperor impart his true capabilities to Gao Huaitong and Yan Qiling?

"What Venerable Master Xiao taught them must be incomplete fragments! But they are still extraordinary!"

Qin Mu thought to himself, "If Venerable Master Xiao were to personally display the Primordial Qi of Innate Oneness, the power would be..."

A chill ran down his spine.

Venerable Master Xiao would likely be one of the most powerful existences among the Ten Celestial Venerables!

Gao Huaitong's divine art was incomparably overbearing and immediately broke through the First Ancestor's divine art. Simultaneously, the First Ancestor's divine art suddenly changed, no longer borrowing the power of collapsing heaven and earth, but instead harnessing a Dao Heart like a raging fire, a spark setting off a prairie fire!

As his Dao Heart transformed, his divine art also changed accordingly!

He was skilled in hand seals and had already entered the Dao during Emperor Kai's Calamity two millennia ago. Now, his Dao entry realm was even deeper.

However, unlike the Dao entry divine arts he comprehended during the great calamity two millennia ago, his current Dao entry divine arts displayed a sharp, pioneering spirit capable of transforming heaven and earth. They were invincible, directly confronting Gao Huaitong in a head-on clash!

Gao Huaitong's divine art was like a long wind breaking through waves—a single long wind, ten thousand spray flowers, ten thousand wave crests. The divine art's range was extremely wide, and its power was vast.

The First Ancestor Human Emperor's hand seals were more subtle. The range of his divine art's power was merely a square inch, yet when it erupted, it was terrifyingly immense.

This was the style of divine arts from Emperor Kai's era.

Divine arts of Emperor Kai's era were often subtle, not seeking grandness but precision in smallness, unleashing the full power of their divine arts within extremely confined spaces.

Qin Mu watched with great delight; he was also quite curious about the First Ancestor Human Emperor's current strength.

He hadn't seen the First Ancestor in many years. Back then, the First Ancestor was already at the Jade Capital Realm; although his realm didn't seem high in a place like the Heavenly Court, his actual strength was formidable.

His cultivation and strength increased fastest during the late Emperor Kai era, when he led countless races, including humanity, in escaping to Yankang.

At that time, he transformed from an unremarkable prince to a master at the God Slaying Platform Realm, establishing his Dao through divine arts with astonishing combat power. He was revered as the Human Emperor, with boundless prospects.

For the next two millennia, his cultivation stagnated. Without those he needed to protect, he became immersed in sorrow and self-reproach.

It wasn't until he met Qin Mu, who helped him resolve his inner turmoil, that he emerged from his state and once again became the Human Emperor who led his people forward in search of hope.

In a very short time, he broke through to the Jade Capital Realm.

Coming into contact with Yankang's reforms would only accelerate his cultivation speed!

Gao Huaitong and the First Ancestor Human Emperor engaged in a rapid-fire exchange. In mere moments, they had almost reached a point where victory or defeat, life or death, would be decided!

Just then, Gao Huaitong's aura suddenly surged, directly elevating him to the Emperor's Throne Realm. The First Ancestor Human Emperor's expression subtly changed, and he withdrew immediately. Gao Huaitong did not pursue.

The reason he elevated his cultivation realm to the Emperor's Throne level was also to make his opponent retreat upon realizing the difficulty.

The recent life-and-death struggle between them was extremely perilous. He saw signs of his own impending defeat; even if he were to achieve a mutual destruction with the First Ancestor Human Emperor, his own reputation would suffer. So, by directly elevating to the Emperor's Throne Realm and making the First Ancestor retreat due to the perceived difficulty, he also saved face for himself.

Even so, he still felt a loss of face and was about to say something for the sake of appearances, but the First Ancestor ignored him. Instead, his gaze fell upon Qin Mu's face.

Qin Mu chuckled, stood up, and waved, saying, "Gao Xianzhi, you may step down. I'll have to deal with him myself!"

Gao Huaitong felt a surge of suppressed frustration that he couldn't express and thought to himself, "Your tone sounds like you're here to stand up for us! But it's clearly you who brought them to block our path!"