Chapter 1327: 物归原主

Qin Mu seemed oblivious, but his pace was extremely fast. He quickly covered a thousand miles. As soon as the Earth Mother Sovereign’s roots extended a hundred miles, new roots immediately emerged from behind them, while the old roots rapidly retracted.

After traveling hundreds of thousands of miles this way, the Earth Mother Sovereign still couldn't unlock the four-mineral seal on the treasure seal!

The Grand Emperor's eyes flickered. "The Earth Mother still can't do it; she can't break this fellow Qin Mu's seal at all!"

Suddenly, dozens of roots gently coiled around the treasure seal, forcibly tearing it from Qin Mu's back.

The treasure seal fell to the ground, then vanished, pulled into the earth and disappearing from sight.

Qin Mu stretched lazily, didn't look back, and continued forward.

A moment later, the treasure seal reappeared from the ground tens of thousands of miles away. Along with it emerged countless thick roots. The surrounding mountains quickly turned lush green, countless trees grew wildly, and flowers and plants thrived, blossoming profusely.

Roots danced in the air, forming an altar. The Earth Mother Sovereign slowly rose from the altar and bowed towards the treasure seal at its center. "Your Majesty, the Grand Emperor, I greet you."

The Grand Emperor nodded slightly and said indifferently, "Sovereign, there's no need for such formalities. You may rise."

The Earth Mother Sovereign straightened up and smiled. "That young man's seal is extremely strange. I couldn't break it without alerting him, so I had no choice but to seize Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me."

In the primordial era, the Grand Emperor ruled the universe. Although exceedingly cruel, all ancient gods were his subjects. Therefore, the Earth Mother Sovereign followed the ancient custom and still addressed him as "Your Majesty."

Of course, in the Blood Rust Battle of the primordial era, the Earth Mother also followed the Celestial Emperor Tai Chu and played a significant role in eliminating the Creator Race and overthrowing the Grand Emperor.

The Grand Emperor said gravely, "Sovereign, why didn't you directly eliminate Celestial Venerable Mu? Instead, you furtively stole the treasure seal? With your power, if you had struck directly, he surely wouldn't have been your match."

The Earth Mother Sovereign examined the treasure seal, then suddenly shivered, a look of dread in her eyes. "Celestial Venerable Mu has someone backing him. On the Chaos Sea, the entity behind him forced back the Four Celestial Venerables with a single strike! That entity's power is far beyond that of the Ten Celestial Venerables! I was worried that entity hadn't gone far, so I didn't dare to act against him."

"Forced back the Four Celestial Venerables with one move?"

The Grand Emperor's expression became solemn. He murmured, "The Four Celestial Venerables were severely wounded by me; their strength isn't at its peak. Forcing them back is something I could do in my prime, and Celestial Emperor Tai Chu could do it in his prime... When did such an entity appear in the ancestral court? Could it be Celestial Venerable Hong..."

He had always been wary of Celestial Venerable Hong.

Celestial Venerable Hong's true identity was Da Hong. Back then, the Grand Emperor manifested through Da Hong and moved about the world under his name. Because Yun, Ling, and Yue ambushed his true body in the Great Void, he furiously prepared to destroy the Xiao Han Heavenly Court, but encountered Qin Mu blocking his path there.

The two fought on the Heavenly River. Qin Mu suffered severe injuries, and Da Hong was also gravely wounded by Qin Mu. Both retreated. During his escape, Da Hong encountered a terrifying force that completely obliterated the Grand Emperor's divine consciousness within him!

Later, the Grand Emperor transformed into Ming Fangyu, but he never revealed Da Hong's identity.

By keeping this formidable opponent, he could make other Celestial Venerables suspect Celestial Venerable Hong was the Grand Emperor, diverting suspicion away from himself.

In fact, Celestial Venerable Hong had indeed shielded him many times, and even Celestial Venerable Gong had beaten Celestial Venerable Hong countless times!

Previously, the Earth Mother Sovereign had only used her roots to attempt to break Qin Mu's four-mineral seal. Now, she was exerting her full power!

Her strength was immense; in such a short time, she had recovered to the level of a Lesser Heavenly Court powerhouse!

However, what baffled her was that no matter how powerful the divine abilities she employed, no matter how she tried to break the four-mineral seal on the treasure seal, the seal simply would not budge!

Not only could it not be broken, but none of her attacks had any effect on the treasure seal!

Even when she used all her strength to attack the treasure seal, not a single bit of power landed on it!

All her divine abilities simply passed through the treasure seal without touching it in the slightest!

After a long time, cold sweat poured down the Earth Mother Sovereign's forehead, and she panted heavily.

The Grand Emperor watched her expressionlessly and indifferently. Suddenly, he said, "Sovereign, that's enough! I understand your intention. You can defect to me. I have another identity among the Ten Celestial Venerables and can protect you, saving your life."

The Earth Mother Sovereign's face flushed slightly. She bowed and said, "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty. This seal..."

"Let alone you, even I cannot break this seal, even if I personally tried."

The Grand Emperor said indifferently, "Among the Ten Celestial Venerables, no one can break his seal! His seal transcends the understanding of this era; it is unknown. Even I can only comprehend half of the knowledge within one of its seals. The Celestial Emperor might understand the other half, but he would not join me in breaking the seal."

The Earth Mother Sovereign was startled and exclaimed, "Celestial Venerable Mu is that powerful?"

"He is only weaker in cultivation level."

The Grand Emperor said calmly, "If his cultivation level were to rise to the level of Celestial Venerable Hao, heh heh, even if he contended for supremacy with me and Tai Chu at our peaks, he wouldn't be at a disadvantage. Among the Five Grand Elder Alliance Leaders of the Heavenly Alliance—Yun, Ling, Yue, Qin, and Mu—Yun is dead, Ling has vanished, Yue is injured, Qin is hidden, leaving only Celestial Venerable Mu. His divine abilities truly merit the title of Alliance Leader. No wonder the last Heavenly Alliance meeting wanted him to be present..."

The Earth Mother Sovereign's heart was greatly shaken. Recalling Qin Mu's past, she found all this somewhat incredible.

Back then, Qin Mu was just a country bumpkin, led by Gongsunsun Yan into the Earth Mother Sovereign's underground palace, looking around with little experience or insight.

Yet now, even the Grand Emperor said Qin Mu was not to be underestimated, clearly treating him as a true opponent!

It should be known that, besides Tai Chu, the Grand Emperor had never regarded anyone else as an opponent; not even the Earth Mother Sovereign had that qualification!

The Earth Mother Sovereign hesitated, then tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, so now..."

The Grand Emperor said expressionlessly, "Now, send me back."

The Earth Mother Sovereign was startled.

The Grand Emperor scoffed. "Don't send me back to the original spot. Take me directly to the Great Blackwood and wait for him there."

The Earth Mother Sovereign looked incredulous and blurted out, "Your Majesty, you've just managed to..."

"Earth Mother, your wisdom has been clouded by malevolent energy, making you somewhat unclear-headed and quite dangerous."

The Grand Emperor sneered, "You absolutely should not remain in the ancestral court now. You should immediately leave and seek out Great Brahma to use his Buddhist teachings to refine the malevolent energy, otherwise, you will surely die. Everyone in the world strives for their own benefit. Celestial Venerable Mu and I are not individuals who keep their word, but we share one principle: when interests align, we cooperate; when they diverge, we part ways. He wants to use my territory, so he won't harm me. Now, send me to the Great Blackwood to wait for him!"

Qin Mu strolled leisurely along the way, enjoying the magnificent scenery of the ancestral court. The ancestral court now was far better than when he first arrived; it was filled with sacred lands, birdsong and fragrant flowers, and roaming colossal beasts, a truly delightful sight.

Unknowingly, he finally arrived before the Hundred Thousand Black Mountains, where a large seal stood in front of him.

Qin Mu walked up to it and smiled, "Big Brother, you've waited a long time."

The Grand Emperor snorted, "Call me Grand Emperor."

Qin Mu smiled slightly, lifted him onto his back, and walked into the Hundred Thousand Black Mountains.

Ahead, a big-headed youth swiftly approached, laughing from afar. "Celestial Venerable Mu, what took you so long? There's something you probably don't know yet: that scoundrel, that little bastard Grand Emperor, fought with the Four Celestial Venerables and was beaten horribly... dismembered, arms and legs falling from the sky, truly satisfying... What are you carrying on your back?"