Chapter 1714: Jiang Shang Yun Tian, Clouds Roll and Unfold

The moment Lan Yutian saw Madam Yuanmu charge out, he too darted forward. Madam Yuanmu was severely wounded, presenting him with a rare opportunity. Though lacking combat experience, he had learned a great deal over the years by observing the battles between the Heavenly Court and Wuyou Township, studying the techniques of the opposing gods and devils on the battlefield. He was inherently intelligent, able to infer from one point to others and generalize across categories, progressing rapidly.

The instant their powers collided in the sky, Madam Yuanmu’s and Lan Yutian’s divine arts erupted, but they separated as quickly as they touched. Lan Yutian's heart sank: "This body isn't Madam Yuanmu!" The moment he exchanged blows with her, he sensed that Madam Yuanmu had automatically receded due to her severe injuries. Now, wielding the body and fighting him was Empress, or rather, the Guixu Goddess!

"My brother's Samsara divine art, which he used to trap the Guixu Goddess, was broken by her when Madam Yuanmu was injured. But this is a good thing!" Behind Lan Yutian, manifestations of divine weapons, each resembling him, attacked the Empress in rapid succession, a relentless onslaught. He thought to himself: "This way, the divine art I left inside her can now activate!"

Empress suddenly let out a muffled groan. The Guixu Dao within her body was twisted by a strange force, and a portion of her Great Dao transformed into the Grand Primordium Dao! Caught off guard, her divine arts immediately fell into disarray. She was severely wounded by the legion of divine weapon Lan Yutians, spitting blood, and was forced to shoot towards the heavens, trying to evade Lan Yutian.

Lan Yutian's eyes flickered, and he pursued her closely. In the Grand Pure Realm of Wuyou Township, he had planted his divine art within Madam Yuanmu while she was lost in the Samsara. His approach differed from Qin Mu's. Qin Mu had secretly learned from Yin Tianzi, developing Yin Tianzi's incomplete Samsara Dao, using it to trap the Guixu Goddess and effectively create the persona of Madam Yuanmu to restrict the Guixu Goddess. At that time, Qin Mu was helpless against the Guixu Goddess's Great Dao and could only seal her. The Guixu Goddess had already attained Dao; logically, even if she were destroyed and turned into chaos, she couldn't be killed and would revive. Qin Mu himself cultivated the Guixu Dao, having grown a Chaos Lotus and bloomed Chaos Lotus flowers, thus he knew he couldn't eliminate the Guixu Goddess. Moreover, even Qin Mu's Samsara seal was merely a temporary solution. The Samsara seal couldn't permanently keep the Guixu Goddess imprisoned under Madam Yuanmu's consciousness; sooner or later, the Guixu Goddess would break through Samsara and devour Yuanmu's consciousness!

Lan Yutian, however, focused on how to counteract the Guixu Great Dao; the thought of killing the Guixu Goddess never crossed his mind. He began with the Innate Five Tai, using Qin Mu's Samsara divine art to plant a Five Tai Samsara seal within the Guixu Goddess. His objective was simple: the Guixu Goddess could devour all things and transform them into chaotic energy, making her increasingly powerful in combat, and she was immortal. Sooner or later, her cultivation and strength would surpass anyone. However, chaos gives birth to the Five Tai. Lan Yutian's Five Tai Samsara seal was designed to steal the Guixu Goddess's magic power. When she fought, the chaotic energy would transform into Grand Primordium Dao, then Grand Beginning Dao, undergoing the Five Tai transformations, ensuring she could never unleash her full power. Qin Mu sealed the Guixu Goddess's consciousness, while he sealed her magic power and Great Dao. However, Lan Yutian couldn't achieve this on his own, which is why he needed to borrow Qin Mu's Samsara divine art.

Empress also noticed the abnormality in her body. When she activated her cultivation and magic power, her body was filled with alien Great Daos that were stripping away her cultivation, causing her immense discomfort. She couldn't unleash even half of her full strength! Lan Yutian pursued relentlessly. Empress fought and fled simultaneously, but she could never shake him off.

"If I force her into the ultimate void, she's dead," Lan Yutian's eyes flickered as he thought to himself. "Yun Tianzun used this exact method against the Second Young Master of Miluo Palace. As long as Empress is forced into the ultimate void, and a portion of her Guixu Dao transforms into Five Tai Dao, then she'll die even faster!" However, Empress clearly knew the dangers of the ultimate void. Even though she was repeatedly severely wounded by him, she never ventured deep into the void to hide.

Just then, the ultimate void above them exploded. Both hurriedly looked up to see a Grand Beginning Great Overarching Heaven, more than half integrated, tilting and cracking within the ultimate void! That Grand Beginning Great Overarching Heaven was already tattered and riddled with holes, and the fusion of the One Qi Great Overarching Heaven and the Divine Consciousness Great Overarching Heaven was incomplete, not yet fully integrated. On the shattered Great Overarching Heaven, two Dao trees, largely integrated, had already been destroyed by the winds of heat death, burned down to black stumps. The Dao flowers on the trees were extinguished, and the Dao fruits had been pulverized by the Second Young Master of Miluo Palace's Primordial Chaos divine art.

And on this Great Overarching Heaven, which was now falling out of the ultimate void, the battle between Yun Tianzun and Second Young Master Wuji had reached its final critical moment. As Empress and Lan Yutian looked up, they saw the Second Young Master of Miluo Palace standing on the half of the Great Overarching Heaven still in the ultimate void, while Yun Tianzun stood on the half that was falling out, both still fighting to the death! Yun Tianzun's Grand Beginning Emperor Sword, infused with the Grand Beginning Dao, burst forth with its final radiance, piercing through Second Young Master Wuji's body. Simultaneously, Second Young Master Wuji's palm struck Yun Tianzun's forehead!

The Great Overarching Heaven's collapse intensified! At this point, the Great Overarching Heaven didn't seem to be disintegrating from their power; rather, it appeared to be entering a sacrifice. Lan Yutian's intellect was keen, and he recognized it as a blood sacrifice. Empress, with her extensive knowledge, immediately identified it as the Way of Sacrifice mastered by the Grand Emperor. However, neither of them knew that Yun Tianzun had inherited the Grand Emperor's Great Overarching Heaven and his cultivation methods, completing the Grand Emperor's incomplete techniques. Among these was the sacrificial method to attain Dao that the Grand Emperor had obtained from the Miluo Palace Prime Saint. The sacrificial method obtained by the Grand Emperor was incomplete, and Yun Tianzun had helped to complete it.

The shattering Grand Beginning Great Overarching Heaven was, in fact, directly sacrificed by Yun Tianzun, transforming into a torrent of Grand Beginning Dao that followed his sword as it pierced into Second Young Master Wuji's body! He sacrificed not only the Grand Beginning Great Overarching Heaven but also the Grand Beginning Emperor Sword in his hand. With such immense energy, he sacrificed the Second Young Master of Miluo Palace to the ultimate void! The Second Young Master's body was pressed into the ultimate void by that terrifying power. The sacrificial energy caused her body to suddenly explode, exposing her physical form and Great Dao within the ultimate void! Instantly, the Cold Silence Wind became incredibly violent. The Second Young Master's Guixu Great Dao, along with her flesh, blood, and primordial spirit, rapidly dissolved, quickly revealing bare bones! Inside her, another body emerged, also struggling in the void, its face distorted, trying desperately to break free from its connection to the Second Young Master. It was none other than Emperor Haotian!

Piercing screams echoed, sounding like a woman's voice mixed with a man's, overlapping and sending shivers down Empress's spine. She immediately darted away. Lan Yutian wanted to pursue but then saw Yun Tianzun descending from the ultimate void, which made him hesitate.

"Brother Yu, go ahead," Yun Tianzun waved at him as if nothing was wrong.

"Yun Tianzun, just call me Lan Yutian; I'm not Emperor Yu! Your condition is very serious!" Lan Yutian went to meet him, saying, "The Second Young Master's strike embedded in your body is extremely dangerous!"

Yun Tianzun waved him away from a distance: "No need to come closer. Go do your work. If you see Emperor Mu, tell him that what he couldn't accomplish, I, Yun, have done." Lan Yutian paused, then instead of following Yun Tianzun, he turned to pursue Empress. His mind was in a daze, and in the ultimate void, the phantom images of Miluo Palace's Lingxiao and Zixiao Treasured Halls suddenly appeared, shaking violently. Emperor Haotian's body and the Second Young Master's body abruptly separated!

Emperor Haotian spat out mouthfuls of blood, immediately distanced himself from the Second Young Master, flew out of the ultimate void, and headed towards the Heavenly Court army. Yun Tianzun stopped, gazed at Emperor Haotian, and a faint smile appeared on his face: "Emperor Haotian, for the rest of your life, you will never be able to erase the shadow I have left in your Dao heart. I, Yun, will make you remember this for eternity!" He drifted away, free and unburdened.

The remnants of Wuyou Township were marching towards Yankang, with the Woodcutter Sage leading the front and Emperor Yi Yue guarding the rear. Along the way, they endured attacks and skirmishes from the Heavenly Court's vanguard, struggling onward through mountains and rivers. At this moment, the Woodcutter and many Wuyou Township soldiers looked up, seeing Yun Tianzun's figure flying over them.

"Did Yun Tianzun win?" a soldier murmured.

The Woodcutter remained expressionless and silent. The remnants of Wuyou Township continued forward, and another group of soldiers voluntarily stayed behind to cover their retreat, ensuring that others could reach Yankang as quickly as possible.

Moon Goddess and God King Langwan were locked in combat with Heavenly Duke's physical body and Ancestral God King. Moon Goddess cut off the River of Heaven swung by Heavenly Duke's body, and inadvertently saw Yun Tianzun walking through the battlefield, promptly calling out to him. Yun Tianzun heard her, smiled faintly, and waved goodbye. Langwan also saw him. Yun Tianzun bowed deeply to him, then drifted away.

Heavenly Duke and A Chou were leading the defenders of Yankang's divine cities, strenuously resisting the onslaught of Xuandu's army and covering the evacuation of people from various cities within Yankang. Heavenly Duke distributed the fifty Heavenly Dao supreme treasures among the city defenders, while he himself wielded the Celestial Fiend supreme treasure, the God-Slaying Profound Blade, slaughtering enemies in all directions. Yet, even so, this fierce battle remained extremely perilous. Seeing Yun Tianzun pass by, Heavenly Duke quickly called out: "Yun Tianzun, did you win? Come help quickly!"

A Chou, who was countering the formations of the Heavenly Court's Dragon and Martial Guards, caught a glimpse of Yun Tianzun, his heart skipped a beat, and he shook his head, saying, "Brother Dao, let him go." Heavenly Duke's cultivation and strength were far inferior to A Chou's; he relied on the power of the fifty Heavenly Dao supreme treasures, whereas A Chou had already cultivated the Dao of Youdu to the thirty-fifth heaven, which allowed him to discern Yun Tianzun's true condition. Heavenly Duke, puzzled, let Yun Tianzun depart.

Yun Tianzun crossed the long battle lines and arrived at Luanfeng Valley, the first formidable pass in western Yankang, guarded by hundreds of thousands of gods and devils. Along the way, many Yankang troops were heading to the front lines, transporting refugees to safer areas in Yankang's interior. Yun Tianzun entered Luanfeng Valley, where every divine city was heavily guarded. Yankang had fortified this area as a crucial stronghold for defending its western flank, stationing its most outstanding young experts and deploying its most advanced heavy weaponry here.

Yun Tianzun entered a divine city. Its commanding general was Yan Shaoqing, originally the Left Junior Tutor of the Heavenly Court, who primarily cultivated divine consciousness, and later came to Yankang to seek the Dao. Upon seeing him, Yan Shaoqing was startled and was about to step forward to pay his respects, but Yun Tianzun waved his hand and walked into a mansion within the divine city: The Yun Residence.

Madam Yunxiao, leading the many Yun family widows and Yun Jianli's couple, came to greet him. Madam Yunxiao held his hand tightly, choking back tears and saying, "Since your resurrection, Your Majesty has never returned to see your family. Why have you finally deigned to come today…" Her words contained a hint of complaint, but it was overwhelmed by the joy in her heart.

Yun Tianzun smiled: "Xiangying, I wouldn't be at ease if I didn't come to see you all."

Yun Jianli hurried forward to pay his respects, his eyes red: "Greetings, Ancestor!" Yun Tianzun looked him over, saying, "You are good. Emperor Mu speaks highly of you; he didn't misjudge. In this Yankang war, the Yun family must also go to battle. Do you have any children?" Yun Jianli's wife quickly led their three children forward to kneel and pay respects to their ancestor. Yun Tianzun smiled, saying, "Very good, very good. The Yun family has successors; the bloodline continues. Jianli, once you are on the battlefield, do not disgrace the Yun family."

Yun Jianli straightened his back, his voice firm and resonant: "Jianli is of Emperor Yun's bloodline; I will never bring shame upon my ancestors!"

Yun Tianzun's expression became solemn: "If you survive, remember one thing: there is no such thing as an 'Emperor's bloodline' in this world. I was born human, never superior, and started from humble beginnings. Among the Yun family's descendants, who has achieved more or performed greater deeds than I? If I dare not call myself an Emperor's bloodline, how dare you?" Yun Jianli was startled and dared not speak further.

Madam Yunxiao embraced him and led him into the main hall, smiling: "You're so serious again. Let these descendants pay their respects to you and serve you tea." Yun Tianzun sat in the main hall. Madam Yunxiao stood beside him, and Yun Tianzun told her to sit as well, smiling: "Husband and wife are one. I am an ancestor of the Yun family, and so are you. Sit down." Madam Yunxiao sat down.

The Yun family had a history of only single male heirs each generation, leaving behind many widows. They all came forward with tea, kneeling to pay their respects. Yun Tianzun and Madam Yunxiao accepted their daughters-in-law's teacups, drank, and set them down. Yun Tianzun looked around and smiled: "Most men of the Yun family have died young, leaving you all as widows. They died early without instructions. As the head of the Yun family, I instruct you all that you may remarry. If you meet a good person you fancy, then marry him." In the hall, the many Yun family widows were stunned, exchanging bewildered glances.

Yun Tianzun turned his head to Madam Yunxiao and said, "I owe you, owe all of you, so much. Xiangying, from now on, you can also remarry. There's no need to consider me." Madam Yunxiao's heart trembled, and she suddenly understood something.

"You and I are husband and wife. When you died in battle before, I had to care for the child in my belly and couldn't accompany you. Later, our child died young, leaving our grandson, so I had to survive to preserve the Yun family bloodline, lingering until now." Madam Yunxiao grasped his hand, looked up at his face, and smiled: "Now you have returned, and the Yun family has descendants. Wherever you go, I will follow. Isn't that what husband and wife are meant to be?"

Yun Tianzun felt a pang in his heart and withdrew his hand: "I have wronged you for six hundred thousand years; I am sorry. How can I bear to... The place I am going is very far, you cannot go. Stay here." Madam Yunxiao once again seized his hand: "Wherever you go, I go!" Yun Tianzun looked at her and nodded silently.

Yun Jianli watched them in a daze as Yun Tianzun and Madam Yunxiao walked hand in hand, out of the main hall, out of the Yun Residence, and out of the divine city. Yun Jianli tried to catch up, but he saw the couple growing more and more distant; he simply couldn't keep up.

After a long while, Yun Tianzun stopped and descended to the ground. They were by the banks of the Surging River, its waters flowing ceaselessly eastward. By the river lay an abandoned village, uninhabited. The couple walked into the village and sat facing each other in a thatched hut.

"This is it then." Yun Tianzun gripped Madam Yunxiao's hand, lowered his head, his breath growing fainter and fainter. He whispered, "Xiangying, don't let anyone know I died here…" The Second Young Master of Miluo Palace had already destroyed his soul; what remained in his physical body was merely his last obsession. Now, that obsession was fulfilled.

Madam Yunxiao's vital energy erupted, shrouding the abandoned village. "My lord, don't go far." Her aura grew weaker and weaker, finally dispersing. The waters of the Surging River flowed endlessly, surging and churning. Above the river, clouds gathered and dispersed.