Chapter 1456: Nine Prisons Locking the Heavenly Duke

"Dead?"

The Celestial Venerable Yuanshen greeted them, inviting them into his Celestial Palace. He said calmly, "I have been anticipating this day, anticipating my death, and the release from the shackles of the Heavenly Dao. Celestial Venerable Mu, you are free. You are not an ancient god born of the Great Dao, so you don't understand the oppression the Great Dao exerts on me. This is my body. Look, can I still use it now?"

"What does it mean to be beyond one's own control?" he said grimly. "Gods born from the Dao are inherently beyond their own control. Now, the consciousness of the Heavenly Dao has completely taken over my body, even my Yuanshen. Although I possess my own consciousness, my every action, every word, is dictated by the Heavenly Dao. Do you think it's me controlling my body right now? No! It's the Heavenly Dao!

"It is the Heavenly Dao that endlessly pervades this universe! I am not truly free; I am merely a puppet of the Heavenly Dao! You envy the Celestial Venerable's power, his lofty position, his boundless authority and might. But I hate it. I hate that I was imprisoned within this body, within this cage, from the moment I was born!"

At this moment, he seemed somewhat excited, but in front of Qin Mu and the others, he suppressed his excitement.

"I even envy the Sacrificial Gods. They are born from sacrifices and do not have as many limitations as the Dao-born gods. I also envy the myriad beings in the great worlds. They are as small as ants, yet they can be free..."

"No! You don't envy them!" Qin Mu stopped, looking at him coldly. "How could the Celestial Venerable envy these ants? Celestial Venerable, your goal is to escape the control of the Heavenly Dao, and in doing so, not to become an ant, but to retain the power of the Celestial Venerable and remain supreme! What you truly wish to do is not to become one of the myriad beings, but to rule them!"

"Wrong!" The Celestial Venerable Yuanshen also stopped, turning to face Qin Mu and the five others. He said solemnly, "You are correct that I do not envy ants, but the latter half of your statement is utterly mistaken! I do not wish to rule the myriad beings; what I seek is transcendence! To transcend the Heavenly Dao, to reach a state of unrestrained freedom like my Dao Brother, Grand-Beginning!"

Qin Mu pointed at him and burst into laughter, "Do you know Celestial Venerable Hong's thoughts? Do you know that what Celestial Venerable Hong calls 'transcending the Heavenly Dao' means the complete death of the former Celestial Venerable, to become one of the Ten Celestial Venerables, to become the ruler of this universe? You cannot transcend!"

Although he was laughing, there was no joy on his face or in his heart. Butcher frowned.

He knew Qin Mu very well; after all, Qin Mu had been raised by him and the other elders of Crippled Village. Qin Mu's current demeanor often indicated that his concern and seriousness had reached a point where he would abandon reason! At such times, Qin Mu had only one approach: to stop at nothing!

He subtly turned the hilt of his Celestial Blade. Zhe Huali, Luo Wushuang, and others immediately understood. Tian Shu abruptly tilted his head back, taking two large gulps of wine to bolster his courage. They were ready. Even if Qin Mu truly confronted the Celestial Venerable on his Spirit Platform, and even if they had to face the Heavenly Dao's attacks, they would not hesitate.

"Of course I know," the Celestial Venerable Yuanshen remained as calm and indifferent as before, speaking unhurriedly. "Celestial Venerable Hong is me; his thoughts are my thoughts. Celestial Venerable Mu, do you perhaps believe that Celestial Venerable Hong is merely a part of my soul, who has wandered the mundane world for too long, become corrupted by it, and thus transformed into one of the Ten Celestial Venerables? Do you think he is not united with me, that his thoughts are not one with mine? Do you think he acted secretly, without my knowledge? If so, you are wrong, utterly wrong."

The white light in his eyes floated like mist, and his voice was as resonant as a heavenly bell. "Celestial Venerable Hong is me. All his thoughts are my thoughts! All his actions are my actions, and all his intentions are reflected without reservation in my Heavenly Heart. His desires and pursuits are also my desires and pursuits!"

Qin Mu clenched his fists, his voice hoarse. "His desires and pursuits are *a part* of your desires and pursuits, aren't they?"

The Celestial Venerable Yuanshen smiled. "You've finally understood that point. Indeed, all of Celestial Venerable Hong's thoughts are merely a portion of my thoughts. He is a part of me and cannot replace me. When I die, and I break free from the Heavenly Dao's control, my consciousness will descend, and all his thoughts and desires will become a part of me."

"Then will you still possess a Heavenly Heart? Will you still have the Heart of the Heavenly Dao?" Qin Mu pressed on, "At that point, will you become one of the Ten Celestial Venerables, or will you remain the Celestial Venerable?"

The Celestial Venerable Yuanshen thought for a moment and said, "What is the Heavenly Heart? What the Heart of the Heavenly Dao seeks is for the Heavenly Heart to be my heart, while what I seek is for my heart to be the Heavenly Heart."

The moment his words fell, Qin Mu immediately attacked. His attack was the twenty-fifth heaven of the Divine Arts Dao Realm: Nine Prisons Locking the Heart Dao Everlasting! Countless sharp thorns erupted within the Celestial Venerable's Spirit Platform. The thorns, sharp and pointed, instantly surged upon landing, transforming into slanting peaks, becoming prison platforms! Layer upon layer of prison platforms rotated, swirling around the Celestial Venerable Yuanshen, trapping him securely within the Nine Prisons Platform!

Nine Prisons Locking the Heart locks the Dao Heart! The Dao Heart is not equivalent to the Dao Realm. If the Dao Heart is locked, it will affect one's performance in the Dao Realm, as well as one's perception of the Dao, one's recovery ability, and one's cultivation progress!

The instant Qin Mu unleashed Nine Prisons Locking the Heart Dao Everlasting, the Heavenly Dao runes imprinted on the ground of the Celestial Venerable's Spirit Platform hummed, and the Heavenly Dao treasures standing on the Spirit Fetus roared and vibrated—this was the wrath of the Heavenly Dao! Should anyone dare to attack the Celestial Venerable, the Heavenly Dao would control the Celestial Venerable to obliterate that person!

As Qin Mu made his move, Butcher, Zhe Huali, Tian Shu, and Luo Wushuang drew their blades. With four sounds of blades being drawn, four figures were sent sprawling in different directions. Their cultivation was still insufficient; before the immense power of the Celestial Venerable and the Heavenly Dao, any intricate blade technique or divine art would be easily shattered! Just as it seemed Qin Mu was about to perish under the Heavenly Dao's might, all the Heavenly Dao treasures and Heavenly Dao imprints suddenly froze.

The Celestial Venerable Yuanshen trembled, struggling with all his might to use his own will to resist the Heavenly Dao's will, his voice hoarse. "Celestial Venerable Mu, disperse your divine art, and you can still live. I cannot resist the will of the Heavenly Dao!"

Qin Mu looked at the Celestial Venerable Yuanshen within the Nine Prisons Platform, clenching his fists. "First, break free from this divine art!"

The Celestial Venerable Yuanshen took a step, attempting to move upward. The moment he moved, thorns sprouted everywhere! Countless thorns pierced from the four walls of the Nine Prisons Platform, making it impossible for him to move even an inch!

Even more terrifying were the thorny thickets aimed directly at his Dao Heart; even if he remained still, he felt an excruciating pain emanating from his Dao Heart! Suddenly, the Celestial Venerable's Spirit Platform shook again. The Heavenly Dao treasures and Heavenly Dao imprints once more unleashed their power. Butcher and the others scrambled back to their feet, surrounding Qin Mu protectively, holding their blades and watching the pervasive Heavenly Dao light and the various Heavenly Dao treasures around them!

The Heavenly Might here was overwhelmingly strong—so powerful that a single ripple would be enough to reduce them to ashes, erasing them from existence!

"Cult Master Qin, I think you should consider the Celestial Venerable's suggestion!" Zhe Huali licked the blood from the corner of his mouth and proposed, "There's no need to risk your life, and our lives, for someone you respect in your heart but who doesn't deserve it in reality!"