Chapter 1271: Wish Fulfillment

Qin Mu and Heavenly Venerable Haotian arrived at the Heavenly Court encampment, immediately throwing it into chaos. Divine beings and generals scattered in every direction. The generals overseeing the various camps were bewildered, watching helplessly as Qin Mu unleashed his divine powers, destroying vast swathes of the encampment.

Meanwhile, Heavenly Venerable Haotian fled, heading directly towards Emperor Qing, Emperor Bai, and their contingent.

Emperor Qing, Emperor Bai, and the Celestial Masters and Heavenly Kings were greatly troubled. Fourth Celestial Master Zhu Shaoping sighed, "Where is Heavenly Emperor Yin?"

"Heavenly Emperor Yin is so cunning; even if he knows, he won't come. He'll just push this hot potato onto us."

Meng Yungui gritted his teeth, "Everyone, Heavenly Venerable Haotian is now running towards us. We absolutely must intervene."

Their hearts tightened, and they nodded in silence.

Heavenly Venerable Haotian had clearly spotted them, which explained his approach. If they failed to rescue him, their transgression would be enormous.

One must remember that Heavenly Venerable Haotian, alongside Heavenly Venerable Mu, taught all beings the method of deification. Who would dare to openly slay either of these venerated figures?

If they stood idly by, they would first fail in their fundamental duties to the Heavenly Court.

All beings across the world would condemn them. While death and the dissipation of their Dao were minor concerns, an everlasting infamous reputation was a grave matter.

As they prepared to intervene, a sudden, thunderous roar erupted, and both Heavenly Venerable Haotian and Qin Mu vanished.

The group was startled. Meng Yungui instantly understood, shouting, "Heavenly Venerable Mu has dragged Heavenly Venerable Haotian into the Great Void Nether Capital!"

Everyone was bewildered. Northern Heavenly King Yi Luo chuckled, "It shouldn't be far from Heavenly Emperor Yin's encampment below. Now Heavenly Emperor Yin will be forced to act."

In the Nether Capital, Heavenly Emperor Yin had long received reports of Qin Mu's pursuit of Heavenly Venerable Haotian. His face was ashen, and he was restless.

His concern wasn't whether Qin Mu's power was truly sufficient to slay Heavenly Venerable Haotian. He had heard about Heavenly Venerable Haotian being severely wounded in his battle with the Grand Emperor; what he hadn't realized was just how profound those injuries were.

The Heavenly Court's universally acknowledged First Heavenly Venerable was actually reduced to fleeing frantically from Qin Mu's pursuit.

He was disinclined to rescue Heavenly Venerable Haotian, for the same reasons Meng Yungui and the others were hesitant. Heavenly Venerable Haotian had been chased by Qin Mu from the highest heavens down to the Nine Springs, a truly pathetic and miserable ordeal.

If Heavenly Venerable Haotian survived, he would undoubtedly purge those who knew of this incident in the future, to preserve his image of glory, greatness, and righteousness.

The more one knows, the faster one dies; Heavenly Emperor Yin understood this principle better than anyone.

After all, he had personally witnessed Heavenly Venerable Haotian shoot down the Great Sun Star Lord.

"However, Qin Mu's pursuit of Heavenly Venerable Haotian has reached the gates of the Nether Capital encampment. If I don't intervene..."

Heavenly Emperor Yin gazed into the distance, observing Qin Mu overwhelmingly pressuring Heavenly Venerable Haotian. Divine abilities soared everywhere as Heavenly Venerable Haotian, while forcefully resisting, fled towards the Nether Capital encampment.

However, it was evident that he was nearing exhaustion and would not be able to hold out for much longer.

As he fled for his life, Heavenly Venerable Haotian simultaneously dispersed the chaotic cultivation within his body.

Qin Mu held the undeniable advantage, forcing Heavenly Venerable Haotian from the heavens to the ground, from Nether Capital to the Great Void, and from one camp to another. During this relentless chase, Heavenly Venerable Haotian had already dispersed twenty-six of his Heavenly Palaces, with only nine now remaining.

Despite this, he still could not suppress his injuries.

If he continued to disperse his cultivation, he would eventually exhaust all his power and ultimately die by Qin Mu's hand.

Even in this pathetic state, having utterly lost face before the soldiers of the Heavenly Court encampment, he knew he had to persevere.

Meanwhile, Heavenly Emperor Yin paced restlessly on the city wall, his expression shifting. "Qin Mu is responsible for the death of my son and the loss of my wife; this vengeance must be exacted. Yet, if I intervene, I might well become a second Great Sun Star Lord in the future."

He was deeply conflicted. Heavenly Venerable Haotian was his patron, and his long-standing position as Black Emperor was largely due to Heavenly Venerable Haotian's support.

If Qin Mu genuinely killed Heavenly Venerable Haotian, his patron would be gone. While he might not face execution, his power and status would certainly be difficult to maintain.

Caught between his life and his power, he found it difficult to relinquish either.

As he hesitated, drumbeats suddenly thundered. A divine general reported, "Your Majesty Emperor of the Underworld, the rebels Qin Fengqing and Yama are attacking!"

"This is my saving grace!"

Heavenly Emperor Yin's spirits soared. He sharply commanded, "Mobilize the army! March out and annihilate the rebels!"

A Northern Heavenly General hesitated, "Your Majesty, Heavenly Venerable Haotian..."

Heavenly Emperor Yin shot him a glance, and the general froze as if plunged into an ice abyss, daring not to utter another word.

Carefree Village and the Void of the Other Shore also received news that Qin Mu was relentlessly pursuing Heavenly Venerable Haotian, having chased him for tens of thousands of miles and causing massive disarray within the Heavenly Court's ranks.

Many high-ranking figures in Carefree Village exchanged bewildered glances, while the creators in the Void of the Other Shore were jubilant, exclaiming, "The Sacred Infant is invincible!"

Qiaofu, Yan Yunxi, Martial Celestial Master, Xiu Zhong, Can Nü, and others returned to their camp. Upon hearing this news, they were inexplicably stunned, their eyes wide with disbelief and unable to speak.

Qiaofu sighed, "Mu'er driving Heavenly Venerable Haotian into the Heavenly Court encampment serves to diminish his prestige and shatter his image, utterly ruining Heavenly Venerable Haotian's invincible reputation. If he were truly capable of killing Heavenly Venerable Haotian, he wouldn't need to resort to such tactics."

He understood this perfectly.

Qin Mu diminished Heavenly Venerable Haotian's reputation and shattered his image because he wasn't certain he could kill him. Instead, he sought to maximize his advantage by planting the seed of his own invincibility before the gods of the Heavenly Court and casting a profound shadow within Heavenly Venerable Haotian's Dao heart.

Saint Qiaofu then perked up, "However, now is indeed the opportune moment to attack the Heavenly Court encampment!"

Just as he was about to issue the command, he saw that the divine and demonic armies of Carefree Village and the Void of the Other Shore had already mobilized, majestically advancing toward the Heavenly Court's position.

Saint Qiaofu paused in surprise, then looked up. He saw a monk and a Taoist marshaling the forces of Carefree Village and the Other Shore creators, assisted by the former Heavenly Court First Celestial Master, Yue Tingge.

Saint Qiaofu smiled, "Both of my disciples are very capable. Only the eldest is not quite as ambitious, but having two such capable ones is already quite excellent."

Heavenly Venerable Haotian tumbled and crashed into Heavenly Emperor Yin's Nether Capital encampment. This was Hades City, Heavenly Emperor Yin's military base, but what enraged Heavenly Venerable Haotian was that there wasn't a single soldier within the city walls at that moment.

Heavenly Emperor Yin had actually ordered his entire army to march out of the city and confront Carefree Village.

"Yin Chaojin!"

Heavenly Venerable Haotian gritted his teeth, wobbled to his feet, then suddenly his knees buckled, and he collapsed heavily to the ground, unable to rise again.

His head bowed, his hands braced against the ground, but the strength in his hands also dissipated.

His body toppled forward, his face scraping against the cold ground, sliding until he lay completely prone.

Blood gurgled from his mouth.

He struggled to lift his head to see where Qin Mu was, but he couldn't manage it.

He still possessed one final trump card: completely crippling all his other Heavenly Palaces, retaining only the main one. This would allow him to regain control of his power.

However, that would mean abandoning his Heavenly Court realm cultivation, effectively reducing himself to the Emperor's Throne realm.

Furthermore, even if he crippled his cultivation, his injuries would persist, and he might not possess enough power to eliminate Qin Mu.

He was defiant, unwilling.

But he had no choice.

He prepared to gather his last reserves of strength to deliver a fatal blow to Qin Mu.

Just then, he heard footsteps, which he presumed were Qin Mu's.

What puzzled him, however, was the sound of another person's footsteps coming from behind him.

Qin Mu's footsteps halted, a short distance away, clearly indicating extreme wariness of the person behind Haotian.

He heard a beautiful female voice softly speak close to his ear, "Heavenly Venerable Haotian, do you wish for your injuries to heal?"

Heavenly Venerable Haotian's mind was clouded, his throat filled with blood. He could only produce gurgling sounds, with bubbles rising from the crimson fluid.

He was unable to speak.

"Just say you wish it, and your injuries will heal."

The woman's voice was enchanting, as if imbued with a natural allure. She whispered, "If you wish it, your fractured Heavenly Palaces can be restored. If you wish it, your cultivation can be recovered."

The voice, gentle and distant, seemed to emerge from a dream, as if from the very depths of his heart: "If you wish it, your Dao injuries can heal. If you wish it, you can overpower all heroes, eliminate Heavenly Duke and Earth Count, remove all obstacles, and become the Heavenly Emperor. Do you wish for this?"

Heavenly Venerable Haotian struggled to spit out the blood filling his mouth, finally able to utter a hoarse "Yes."