Chapter 1759: Birds and Clams Fight, Fisherman Gains

The Ancestral Court and Heavenly Court had completely collapsed. Huang Tang, Li Shu, and Yan Xiu Ge fought with maddened fury, forcing the Joyful Palace Master and Emperor Haotian to flee towards the Empress's Heavenly Court army.

Only the strongest had survived in the Heavenly Court army. The Empress personally led them as reinforcements, forming a battle array to block the three elders.

As the Guixu Goddess, the Empress possessed extraordinary strength. She personally confronted Li Shu, implanting Guixu within him, which almost completely devoured the elder's vitality and Grand Dao.

Huang Tang and Yan Xiu Ge teamed up to neutralize the Guixu divine ability, only then managing to rescue Li Shu. Enraged, they mobilized thousands of prehistoric powerhouses, slaughtering the Heavenly Court's seven hundred thousand gods and devils and forcing them into a complete rout.

Even the Empress found it difficult to reverse the Heavenly Court's decline. She had no choice but to retreat towards the Ancestral Court's Jade Capital City.

The three elders, leading the prehistoric powerhouses, slaughtered their way forward. The Heavenly Court army suffered countless casualties, and by the time they reached the Ancestral Court's Jade Capital City, only two hundred thousand remained.

Even the Empress and Emperor Haotian felt the despair brought on by their desperate situation.

The Ancestral Court's Jade Capital City only appeared to be located within the Ancestral Court. In reality, it spanned across the destruction tribulations of successive cosmic epochs. No true Dao achievers from Miluo Palace had actually descended to the Seventeenth Epoch within the Jade Capital City.

They could only descend to the Seventeenth Epoch through blood sacrifice and mass-energy conversion.

The Joyful Palace Master was arguably the only Dao achiever who had descended to the Seventeenth Epoch, yet she was severely wounded by Shang Jun immediately upon arrival.

The Ancestral Court's Jade Capital City was nothing but ruins.

Although the city appeared to contain thousands of palaces and halls, with Dao trees forming vast forests, and seemed unfathomably mysterious, in reality, no Dao achiever could truly leave it.

They were all still caught within the destruction tribulation.

The Empress and Emperor Haotian led their remnant forces into the city to take refuge. The three elders, in a frenzy, led their prehistoric powerhouses into the city. However, upon entering, they suffered heavy casualties. Various bizarre incidents occurred frequently, causing the invading prehistoric powerhouses to die without even understanding how.

The three elders had no choice but to retreat from the Jade Capital City.

Emperor Haotian was able to catch his breath, but then saw the three elders setting up a sealing array outside the city and erecting an altar, preparing to refine the Jade Capital City.

"These three elders truly have a death wish!" The Joyful Palace Master couldn't help but shake her head. "Emperor, come with me to cross the river and seek an audience with the Young Master. I was severely wounded by Shang Jun and also struck by that Moon Heavenly Venerate's killing Dao melody. Only the Young Master's intervention can heal my Dao injuries. His divine abilities are myriad and profound; slaying these three elders would be effortless."

Emperor Haotian agreed. "I was cut down from the realm of Great Overarching Heaven by Heavenly Venerate Yun. I've lost my Dao tree and Dao flower, and no longer have Great Overarching Heaven. Palace Master, could you perhaps speak a few kind words on my behalf to Third Young Master, so I might recover my cultivation realm?"

The Joyful Palace Master glanced at him, a half-smile playing on her lips. "Emperor, who in Miluo Palace hasn't struggled through the threat of death? Every single person in Miluo Palace has experienced more than one defeat in their lifetime. Some have even suffered greater setbacks than you! If they can return to Great Overarching Heaven and cultivate Dao flowers and Dao fruits, why can't you?"

Emperor Haotian said hoarsely, "They haven't experienced setbacks like mine! In my life, I've had two major ups and downs, and each time I emerged stronger than before. But this third great defeat is different. Before this collapse, I had ascended to the peak of power with an excellent situation, yet it was all dismantled by Heavenly Venerate Yun and Heavenly Venerate Mu. Everything turned to naught! My Heavenly Court, my authority, even my cultivation realm—nothing could be preserved! In everyone's eyes, I am nothing but a joke, a laughingstock!"

The Joyful Palace Master looked at his dejected and somewhat desperate demeanor and couldn't help but shake her head. "This is the drawback of cultivating the Dao without cultivating the Dao heart. Emperor, your heart only holds power, and your attainment in the Dao heart is not as strong. If you cultivated your Dao heart, even if you experienced setbacks a hundred times more severe than now, you could still make a comeback. The person who has suffered the greatest setbacks in this world is actually Master, the Miluo Palace Master."

Emperor Haotian was slightly startled. He shook his head and said, "The Miluo Palace Master is the strongest being across seventeen cosmic epochs. What setbacks could he possibly suffer?"

"Master cares for all beings and wishes to save them. In terms of martial power, no one is his opponent, yet every destruction tribulation is a tremendous setback for him."

The Joyful Palace Master patiently admonished him, "In every great tribulation, he tried to save the world, but each time he failed. He possessed boundless power, yet he could only watch helplessly as people died before him, rendering his power useless. That kind of pain is beyond your imagination. Yet, after every setback, Master's Dao heart was reborn through tribulation, reigniting his fighting spirit. This is the mark of a true Dao heart cultivator."

Emperor Haotian asked, "And where is the Miluo Palace Master now?"

The Joyful Palace Master fell silent. After enduring sixteen defeats, the Miluo Palace Master had finally become utterly dejected, and his Dao heart had died.

"If Master were here," she sighed inwardly, "so many things wouldn't have happened in the Seventeenth Epoch, and Miluo Palace wouldn't still be obstructed, unable to descend." She then went with Emperor Haotian to the River of Chaos.

Within the long river, the chaotic qi was turbulent and surging, more violent than ever before.

The Joyful Palace Master felt surprised. She activated her Dao tree to stabilize the wind of heat death and the churning chaotic qi. Just then, she saw the Third Young Master, Fourth Young Master, and other Palace Masters of Miluo Palace.

These Miluo Palace powerhouses were in the midst of the destruction tribulation, looking in one direction.

The Joyful Palace Master, bringing Emperor Haotian along, stepped forward and hastily bowed in greeting. "I am incompetent," she said, "and failed to achieve what the Young Master and my fellow Daoists entrusted to me."

The Third Young Master raised a hand. "No need for such formalities. The failure of this battle is not your fault. This time, three from Miluo Palace descended to the Seventeenth Epoch, and you are the only one who survived. Your survival is a merit in itself, as it allows for future actions. Other variables emerged this time; even if you could have presided over the great sacrifice, it would have been futile."

The Joyful Palace Master felt puzzled.

Third Young Master Lingxiao's expression was solemn as he said in a deep voice, "This variable is something neither Zi Xiao nor I anticipated. The old one beneath the World Tree has come back to life."

The Joyful Palace Master's heart trembled slightly, and she dared not speak further. She had once heard that the Miluo Palace Master had even sought guidance from that old man beneath the World Tree; he was extremely mysterious!

Later, the Miluo Palace Master seemed to have sensed something and gradually distanced himself from the old man beneath the tree.

Following everyone's gaze, her heart pounded violently, and she exclaimed, "Second Young Master!"

Emperor Haotian also hastily looked over. He saw a section of the River of Chaos surface rise up, as steep as a cliff. On that cliff-like surface floated two lotus leaves and a lotus flower.

The lotus leaves and flower were incredibly vast. Faintly, one could see the lotus's roots piercing into the River of Chaos, drawing energy.

The rootlets were fine, numbering in the thousands, and the lotus root segments were long, though there were only two, like a monster lurking in the river.

"That is not Second Young Master Wuji, but Seventh Young Master Chaos," Fourth Young Master Zi Xiao said calmly. "If it were Second Young Master, his strength would be far more terrifying than this."

The expressions of the other Palace Masters subtly changed, and they remained silent, clearly recalling the terrifying nature of Second Young Master Wuji.

"Seventh Young Master Chaos?" Emperor Haotian shivered. "Heavenly Venerate Mu! Has his strength already become this powerful?"

Besides the Guixu Lotus, they also saw an anomaly involving the World Tree. It wasn't as vast as they had imagined, but it was still extraordinary, many times larger than the Guixu Lotus. It was currently attacking the Guixu Lotus, putting the flower in a precarious position.

"The one contending with Old Seven is that old monster beneath the World Tree, Old Man Wuya," said the Third Young Master. "He is a manifestation of the World Tree, extremely powerful, and possesses the deepest knowledge and foundation. Master had great respect for him back then, but later they went their separate ways. The interference with our blood sacrifice this time was his doing."

He turned around and, with indifference, erased the ultimate killing intent and the remnants of Shang Jun's killing Dao from the Joyful Palace Master's wound. "He lingered on even after death," he stated, "stealing the energy from the blood sacrifice for his own use. This is why the majority of the sixty-billion-year blood sacrifice of the Seventeenth Epoch was intercepted by him, making it so difficult for Dao achievers from Miluo Palace to descend. Now he has revived, and the World Tree has been reborn. As the number of Dao achievers in the Seventeenth Epoch increases, his strength will also slowly recover."

Emperor Haotian suddenly realized.

The primary reason Old Man Wuya beneath the World Tree released so many prehistoric powerhouses was to allow them to achieve Dao in the Seventeenth Epoch.

Old Man Wuya is a manifestation of the World Tree, and the Dao trees of Dao achievers imitate the World Tree. Therefore, the more Dao achievers there are, the faster Old Man Wuya's strength will recover.

The Seventeenth Epoch universe had undergone the Yankang Reform, which brought about a qualitative change in Dao arts and divine abilities. This was especially true after a new generation of Heavenly Venerates like Lan Yu Tian and Xu Sheng Hua created and perfected the Ancestral Court Dao Realm system. Under this system, Dao achievement did not rely on external sources or require cultivation in the void; instead, it was achieved internally by analyzing the fundamentals of the World Tree and cultivating it within one's own body.

If Yankang gained the upper hand and propagated this method of Dao achievement throughout the world, eventually there would be no Dao achievers cultivating Dao trees reliant on the void, and Old Man Wuya's cultivation would likely stop there.

Miluo Palace's strength was too great, and its Young Masters were the supreme existences of each cosmic epoch. Old Man Wuya could not control this power. If he allowed Miluo Palace to descend to the Seventeenth Epoch, he would only become its vassal.

Therefore, he intercepted the energy from Third Young Master Lingxiao's blood sacrifice, protecting a group of prehistoric powerhouses who had smuggled themselves into the Seventeenth Epoch.

These prehistoric powerhouses often possessed Heavenly Venerate-level combat power, just one step away from achieving Dao.

As they achieved Dao in the Seventeenth Epoch, Old Man Wuya's strength would continuously increase, eventually allowing him to dominate the Seventeenth Epoch.

"There are three sides in this game," Fourth Young Master Zi Xiao said unhurriedly. "Old Man Wuya's side, Miluo Palace's side, and Yankang led by Old Seven. Among the three, Yankang is the weakest, and Miluo Palace is the strongest. However, because Miluo Palace is within the destruction tribulation and cannot descend to the Seventeenth Epoch, the power it can exert is paradoxically the smallest."

The Third Young Master added, "Old Man Wuya can exert the greatest power. Once he defeats Old Seven and sends him to the past, he can dominate the Seventeenth Epoch and prevent Miluo Palace from ever descending."

Emperor Haotian's heart pounded erratically. "With three sides contending, Heavenly Venerate Mu certainly has no chance of winning; he cannot possibly contend against the other two parties. As the saying goes, 'rare goods are worth hoarding.' This Old Man Wuya seems to have more prospects than Miluo Palace. If I pledge allegiance to Old Man Wuya and gain his support..."

Suddenly, his mind buzzed as a thought occurred to him: was he truly the 'rare good' that Old Man Wuya needed?

Old Man Wuya had the support of so many prehistoric powerhouses; he absolutely didn't need him!

Apart from two hundred thousand Heavenly Court remnants, he had nothing!

Old Man Wuya wouldn't even spare a glance at someone like him!

The only entity he could rely on was Miluo Palace!

Cold sweat trickled down his forehead. He had been completely tied to the interests of Miluo Palace and could not escape.

"However, Old Seven's power is not to be underestimated either," Third Young Master Lingxiao said calmly. "Tai Yi, a remnant of Tian Du, once cut down the World Tree and suppressed Old Man Wuya. He single-handedly blocked the stowaways and prevented Miluo Palace's descent plan for sixty billion years. Only after Old Seven grew strong did Tai Yi leave the World Tree to provoke Master, and was subsequently struck down by Master to the Fourth Epoch. In the Sixteenth Epoch, he was suppressed by Senior Brother Taishang. Senior Brother Taishang is elusive, appearing and disappearing unpredictably; he vanished without a trace after suppressing Tai Yi. However, not long ago, Senior Brother Taishang returned."

The expressions of the other Palace Masters greatly changed. They exchanged glances, a faint worry in their hearts.

"Senior Brother Taishang's return means Tai Yi has escaped his predicament," Fourth Young Master Zi Xiao interjected. "Old Seven, contending with Old Man Wuya, certainly won't be a match for him. After escaping his predicament, Tai Yi will absolutely not stand idly by. Historically, Old Seven's attitude towards Tai Yi has always been ambiguous, and he has also been colluding with the Dao-violators; their relationship is suspicious. Tai Yi will surely act to save him, and the moment Tai Yi makes his move..."

He and Third Young Master Lingxiao exchanged a knowing smile. "...will be the moment we severely wound Old Man Wuya, severely wound Tai Yi, and send Old Seven back to the past!"