Chapter 1697: Horse Trampling the Sky

The Heavenly Court’s grand camp was in chaos. If the Da Luo Heaven were to fall, the resulting destruction would likely cause heavy casualties in the Heavenly Court’s various military camps.

Immediately, countless gods and devils flew up, each activating their divine abilities and expanding their physical forms into towering giants, attempting to prop up the falling Da Luo Heaven.

Just as they were about to make contact with the Da Luo Heaven, a Dao flower suddenly appeared. The Dao flower rotated, growing larger and larger, lifting the falling Da Luo Heaven.

Grand Emperor Tai Chu’s face was ashen. He activated his Dao Tree, which flew over, its roots extending in all directions to pierce into the Da Luo Heaven, which had split in half, attempting to reconnect the severed halves.

The Da Luo Heaven is the imprint of the Great Dao in the ultimate void, a manifestation of the Dao. Although Qin Mu had managed to split Tai Chu’s Da Luo Heaven, he could not yet destroy his Dao cultivation.

He only needed to merge the split Da Luo Heaven, and he would return to his peak state. However, the blow Qin Mu dealt to his Dao Heart was not something that could be recovered from quickly.

He had intended to scheme against Qin Mu and had made preparations well in advance. However, to his dismay, Qin Mu was no longer the same Qin Mu from the Dragon Han Era; in both wisdom and methods, he had far surpassed Tai Chu.

At that time, Qin Mu was at Tai Chu's mercy, feeling incredibly stifled, like a naive child.

Now, everything seemed to be reversed. His scheme, which he had planned for over twenty years, appeared like that of a naive child in front of Qin Mu. Not only was it easily thwarted, but he himself was also heavily injured as a result.

Suddenly, the Da Luo Heaven split open again. Tai Chu groaned, a mouthful of fresh blood rushing to his throat. He closed his mouth, but the blood surged up through his nasal cavity and sprayed from his nostrils.

He was still injured. Qin Mu had not only seized the Azure Dragon's soul but had also gravely wounded him!

"Grand Emperor, if you plan any further actions, it's best to inform me beforehand."

Emperor Haotian came up behind him and said indifferently, "Every one of your failures is a blow to the Heavenly Court's morale. The Heavenly Court cannot afford any more failures now."

Tai Chu's muscles tensed in his back. He did not turn around, nor did he dare to wipe the blood flowing from his nose. He said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty's lesson is well-taken; I understand. However, Heavenly Venerate Mu should also be injured. To scheme against me, he had to summon the Azure Dragon's soul while simultaneously performing arts to calculate against me, leaving himself undefended. He must have been gravely wounded by my divine ability!"

Emperor Haotian said with a faint, unreadable smile, "Do you really think he would be gravely wounded by your divine ability? Grand Emperor, you are still so conceited. In this world, there is no one left who can gravely wound him through a scheme. You are old; you cannot contend with him. What you need to do is honestly follow my command and stop being so conceited."

Emperor Haotian raised his hand, and vast magical power surged out, helping Tai Chu stabilize the Da Luo Heaven, which was on the verge of splitting again. "Your methods are outdated; they cannot deal with him."

Tai Chu fell silent. After a moment, he said, "I still think he's injured."

Emperor Haotian said nothing more. After helping him stabilize the Da Luo Heaven, he turned and left.

Meanwhile, Qin Mu summoned the three souls of the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon, sealed them within a dragon scale, and handed it to a soldier from Jiangling. The soldier immediately left with the dragon scale, returning to Jiangling via a teleportation portal.

Qin Mu dismissed the altar and withdrew his primordial spirit. He praised, "Tai Chu is indeed formidable; he managed to wound me. My estimation of him was a bit off. He must have cultivated the Seventy-two Treasure Palaces, elevating his magical power to another level, and his path of 'Dao through strength' has matured further."

Ling Yuxiu stepped forward, took out some medicinal pills, and dabbed them on the wound on his knuckle. She said with heartache, "You mustn't push yourself so hard next time."

Qin Mu nodded. "My wife's lesson is well-noted. Next time, I'll let Lord Shang block him."

Heavenly Venerate Yun stared at the wound on his knuckle, saying nothing.

Earlier, when Qin Mu was performing arts to summon the Azure Dragon's soul, Tai Chu's divine ability launched a sneak attack without warning, which was extremely perilous!

Tai Chu's divine ability was designed to trace the source, going straight for the origin of the soul-summoning ritual, which was truly impossible to guard against. Even Heavenly Venerate Yun felt the extreme danger!

At that moment, Qin Mu unleashed all his methods. Standing on the altar, various divine abilities erupted, blocking and breaking Tai Chu's divine abilities one by one!

The most terrifying aspect was that the power of Tai Chu's divine ability couldn't even extend beyond the altar; it was completely disintegrated!

This was what truly shocked Heavenly Venerate Yun the most!

Heavenly Venerate Mu, who established the Dao of divine abilities, had reached a level of mastery in divine abilities that was incomprehensible. Heavenly Venerate Yun had fought Tai Chu many times, knowing Tai Chu's mastery of divine abilities inside out, and held great admiration for him. Although Tai Chu achieved Dao through strength, his mastery of Primordial Qi was exceptionally high; he could be called the foremost expert in Primordial Qi!

Similarly, he was also extremely proficient in Tai Chu's Dao, and his Dao Realm cultivation had reached a profound level, cultivating up to the twenty-plus Heavens of the Dao Realm.

Yet, for such an existence, under a sneak attack, the power of his divine ability surprisingly couldn't even exit the altar!

One must realize that when the divine ability of a Dao practitioner erupts, it could likely destroy more than half of Carefree Village's Grand Purity Realm. Yet, such immense power was completely confined to the altar by Qin Mu!

In the end, Tai Chu's divine ability only managed to wound Qin Mu's knuckle. Qin Mu regretted that his own divine abilities were not perfect, but the shock he delivered to others was unparalleled!

After Ling Yuxiu tended to the wound on Qin Mu's knuckle, Qin Mu looked up at the sky. He saw the Heavenly Duke's gigantic face shrouding the west, countless Sun Guardians dragging suns gathering beneath the Heavenly Duke's visage, and Xuandu's vast army already prepared.

"The Heavenly Court's power is truly immense."

He frowned slightly. The Heavenly Court possessed ten, even dozens of times the military strength of Carefree Village and Eternal Peace. Currently, the Heavenly Court's grand army was blocked by Carefree Village, and the battlefield had not yet expanded. But once the battlefield fully expanded, Carefree Village would likely not be able to escape disaster!

"At that time, even Heavenly Venerates and Dao practitioners would have to enter the fray!"

Qin Mu's chest swelled. The most dangerous place was not Carefree Village, but the Western Land. The Western Land would likely be utterly indefensible!

"Before Carefree Village suffers a great defeat, we must pacify the forces in the east, south, and north. Otherwise, it will become a situation to encircle and annihilate Eternal Peace!"

East Sea.

The envoy from Jiangling stepped out of the teleportation portal. He quickly arrived at the East Sea encampment, passing through columns of Eternal Peace's gods and devils.

Under the command tent, Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor Jiang Baigui looked up and saw him. Though there was no ripple of emotion in his eyes, he involuntarily stood up.

The envoy quickly approached. He presented the Azure Dragon's dragon scale and said in a deep voice, "Imperial Preceptor, Heavenly Venerate Mu has already summoned the three souls of the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon and sealed them within this dragon scale!"

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor took the dragon scale and said, "You've worked hard; go and rest."

"This humble general is not tired!"

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor gazed at him for a moment and revealed a faint smile. "Very well. When the war begins, you shall accompany me into battle. Someone, invite Earth Count Monarch!"

"No need, I am already here!"

A soft voice came. Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor looked in the direction of the voice, and saw Earth Count Monarch Gongsun Yan walking forward. He quickly turned his head and looked towards the direction of Eternal Peace's capital, seeing that the Primordial Wood was still there, and only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

Gongsun Yan said, "I left my true body in the capital and came here with my physical form, to avoid alerting the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor."

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor bowed and said, "Monarch's consideration is excellent. If Monarch's true body were to come, the Azure Emperor, even if he hated the Azure Dragon to the bone, would not dare to engage in battle. If he doesn't fight, we won't be able to capture and subdue him alive. Heed my command, prepare the three armies!"

His order was relayed. Immediately, war horns sounded from the camps on the sea surface, and Duke Weiguo, General Tian Ce, King Taishan, Qin Feiyue, and other military lords began inspecting their respective armies.

On the sea surface, the camps resembled a city wall stretching for ten thousand miles. In the sky, there were flying divine cities, and beneath the sea, massive gods and devils lay submerged, their ranks orderly and ready for deployment at any moment.

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor calculated the time down to the slightest detail. Suddenly, he said in a deep voice, "Beat the drums! Bring forth the Eastern Emperor Divine Artifact!"

At his command, drumbeats roared, shaking the heavens, causing the East Sea's waters to churn and waves to rip through the air. Amidst the towering waves, the camp gates opened, and an immensely colossal Azure Dragon divine artifact was pushed out by thousands of Eternal Peace's divine beings.

The Azure Dragon divine artifact sat on a massive sea platform, as if the Eastern Emperor himself had returned!

The Azure Dragon was coiled, its claws clasped, and before its claws was a spiritual treasure mountain used for grinding its teeth!

That was a spiritual treasure mountain that the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon lost to Qin Mu, when he was defeated by Qin Mu during his visit to the Eastern Pole Heaven back then!

And this Azure Dragon divine artifact was precisely a divine artifact forged by Eternal Peace's creation artifacts, modeled after the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon's form, similar to the Divine Artifact, Yu Tianzun!

However, this divine artifact was made of flesh and blood, containing the Great Dao of the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon, making it immensely powerful.

As the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon divine artifact emerged, across from the grand camp, heavenly palaces stood one after another, and divine cities stretched endlessly. The sixty military lords of the Eastern Heaven, led by the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor, commanded truly vast and boundless forces. They had almost established a magnificent golden continent on the sea. In comparison, the Jiangling front appeared extremely small!

The two sides were vastly different in size, with a huge disparity in military strength. However, the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor held firmly to his position, remaining immobile no matter how Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor provoked him.

If Eternal Peace were to launch a direct assault, they would fall into an unfavorable situation, and thus could only remain in a stalemate.

As Jiangling pushed out this Azure Dragon divine artifact, the Heavenly Court's grand camp opposite was not idle either. Its gates opened wide, revealing an incomparably massive Azure Dragon!

That Azure Dragon was hideous and fierce. Its physical body was boundless, permeated with the unique Dao providence of an ancient god, suppressing the East Sea. However, the Azure Dragon had no head; its head had been severed. It was none other than the physical body of the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon!

Tai Chu had slain the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon, sealed the Azure Dragon Heavenly Venerate's head in a box and sent it to Emperor Haotian, but had left the body to the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor!

Eternal Peace had only an Eastern Emperor divine artifact, while the opposing side had the Azure Dragon's physical body. Evidently, the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor intended to flaunt his power and undermine Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor's confidence.

Not only that, but in the Eastern Heaven's camp, blood qi was like an inverted ocean, pervading the skies above the sixty military lords' camps of the Heavenly Court, incredibly dense. It turned out that the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor had even moved the Myriad Dragon Nest, the sacred ancestral land and birthplace of the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon from the Eastern Pole Heaven, here!

The Myriad Dragon Nest contained incredibly vigorous and vibrant blood qi, enough to allow the countless armies of the sixty military lords to regrow severed limbs and fear no injuries on the battlefield, truly like an immense Creation Divine Artifact!

Even with strength and power far superior to Eternal Peace, and extraordinary treasures, the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor still kept his gates closed and refused to fight.

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor Jiang Baigui waved his hand. The thousands of divine beings escorting the Eastern Emperor divine artifact retreated one after another, returning to their positions.

At this moment, a small boat sailed out from the encampment. Jiang Baigui stood at the bow of the boat. At the center of the boat stood an old, reddish-brown horse. It drew a straight line across the sea surface, arriving in front of the head of the Eastern Emperor divine artifact.

Opposite, the Eastern Heaven's camp remained completely calm. No one came out to fight.

Jiang Baigui's small boat stopped. Jiang Baigui took off his crown and placed it on the bow. He then removed his hairpins, letting his hair fall over his shoulders.

He took out a divine sword and the Azure Dragon's dragon scale. Holding the sword, he began performing arts in front of the dragon's head.

The opposing side remained completely motionless.

The Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor ascended the city tower. He leisurely took a seat, ordered fine wine and delicious food to be brought to him, and watching the scene from afar, he laughed, "That Eternal Peace brat Jiang Baigui is full of tricks. Now he's playing the ghost to lure me into battle again."

No sooner had his words fallen than the sea surface suddenly surged with waves, and the dragon scale radiated blue light in all directions. An immensely colossal Azure Dragon soared up from the dragon scale, vast and boundless. For a moment, dragon roars reverberated incessantly, and the great sea cracked with a sound, revealing a Heavenly Scourge extending for countless miles!

For a moment, in the Eastern Heaven's camp, countless dragon slaves from the Eastern Pole Heaven continuously roared, roaring up at the sky, shaking the Dragon-Binding Ropes on their bodies into a clatter!

Those divine dragons were from the Eastern Pole Heaven. After the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon died, the Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor occupied the Eastern Pole Heaven, capturing all of the Azure Dragon's descendants. Some were killed, some imprisoned, some had their tendons pulled and skins flayed, and some were even made into dragon liver feasts!

Those who survived were relegated to slavery, chained with Dragon-Binding Ropes, and used as livestock for his armies, employed in warfare to avenge his past grievances.

These divine dragons sensed the aura of their ancestor, and became agitated one by one, causing chaos among the various armies. Countless gods and devils lashed their whips, fiercely striking the agitated dragons, beating them until they were bloody and mangled.

However, the Myriad Dragon Nest, the ancestral land of the Eastern Pole Heaven, also suddenly erupted with blood qi, causing the blood qi of countless Eastern Heaven soldiers to become chaotic, making them extremely uncomfortable!

The Eastern Heavenly Azure Emperor's expression drastically changed. The wine cup in his hand shattered with a 'crack'. He suddenly stood up, looking afar at the Azure Dragon's soul that had suddenly appeared on the sea surface!

That dragon soul was incredibly powerful. Under Jiang Baigui's spell, it involuntarily drifted towards the Eastern Emperor divine artifact, entering its body!

"Rooooar—"

The divine artifact suddenly came to life. The Azure Dragon stretched its body, and countless Azure Dragon Daoist patterns and runes on its body lit up entirely, shining brilliantly. With a mighty roar, the cracked sea surface suddenly exploded, "Boom, boom, boom!" The East Sea split into a cross shape, tearing all the way to the front of the Eastern Heaven's grand army's camp, causing divine cities to float unstably!

The Azure Dragon coiled its body. It grabbed the spiritual treasure mountain and put it into its mouth to grind its teeth, polishing them to a gleam. Its voice was incredibly resonant: "Azure Emperor, how dare you humiliate my corpse and my descendants like this? I will never rest until you are dead! Jiang Baigui!"

The Azure Dragon's head lowered. Its gigantic head, like an immense mountain, floated before Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor Jiang Baigui. Its breath exhaled, causing Jiang Baigui's clothes to flutter wildly backward, while the old reddish-brown horse on the small boat was already so terrified that it lay prostrate, soiling itself.

"Jiang Baigui, how many soldiers will you give me? I will charge into the enemy camp and bring you the Azure Emperor's head!"

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor pulled the old reddish-brown horse up. He said solemnly, "Heavenly Venerate Azure Dragon, a renowned general deserves a splendid steed, and a precious sword is given to a hero! This is the Fire Dragon Steed, exceptionally valiant, capable of assisting Heavenly Venerate in battle."

The Azure Dragon lowered its head to look. It saw that the old horse was bony and scrawny, likely just a common horse, and had been so startled by its divine might that it had been defecating all the way and was now trembling, unable to stand steady.

Jiang Baigui's emotions were stirred, and his voice thundered as he shouted, "Heavenly Venerate shall gallop across the heavens, and I will beat the drums to cheer you on! This campaign is destined for victory!"