Chapter 1766: Clear Judgement of Right and Wrong

Everyone felt as if they were facing a formidable enemy; almost everyone present had been captured by the Elder Prince Tai Shang. The Elder Prince Tai Shang was like an old monster with nothing to do. Ever since following the Master of the Mi Luo Palace, he had spent his days vigilantly watching over forces disloyal to the Mi Luo Palace, capturing and suppressing anyone who made the slightest misstep.

The obelisk forest contained countless stone tablets, each sealing and suppressing a prehistoric Daoist practitioner. Many had not survived, long since reduced to ash within the tablets. The Elder Prince Tai Shang remained uneasy. Before Qin Mu’s arrival, he had even planted his Dao tree here, with his eyes transformed into the sun, monitoring ceaselessly day and night.

It wasn't until Qin Mu's last visit, when he revealed the presence of an eighth Dao tree, that they realized the Elder Prince Tai Shang had been secretly observing them all along! Only after that did Tai Shang's Dao tree and eyes vanish.

"Shameless!" the maid shouted skyward.

"If you're brave enough, come down and fight Grandpa Zhu one-on-one!" Zhu Santong cried out with righteous indignation.

In the sky, Tai Shang’s face remained expressionless, completely unfazed by her insults.

The old man, brimming with killing intent, looked up and declared, "Tai Shang, you may wield immense power, but you are not invincible! We were once equally renowned. If I hadn't willingly allowed you to suppress me back then, how could you have been so audacious in my presence?"

Just then, Tai Yi's face in the sky descended lower and lower, as if leaning down to observe them. The immense, sky-collapsing pressure made everyone’s scalp tingle. They had been imprisoned for too long, their cultivation and strength far diminished from before. While they weakened, Tai Yi grew ever stronger. Now, they were no longer worthy opponents for him.

When this pressure reached its peak, the group could no longer bear it and were about to strike. Suddenly, Tai Yi's face pressed down over the obelisk forest, then rapidly shrank and descended into the forest of tablets.

Zhu Santong was the first to lose control, involuntarily flying backward. With a whoosh, he vanished into an obelisk, becoming a man trapped within the tablet. With flashes of light, the maid, the madam, and the old woman successively flew backward, landing in various obelisks. They could only struggle beneath the mirror-like surface of the tablets, unable to escape.

The Elder Prince Tai Shang walked out of the tablet forest. Qin Mu had placed a stone tablet on the Golden Ferry to transport it to the ancestral court, hoping to prevent Tai Yi from completing the tablet formation. However, Tai Yi himself became like the missing tablet; as he descended into the forest, he completed the formation.

The old man’s hair stood on end in anger, his body constantly trembling under the obelisk forest’s suppression as he tried to strike. However, the suppressive power of the tablet forest was too strong, rapidly diminishing his cultivation and rendering his Dao realm dormant, unable to sense any Great Dao.

"Tai Shang, do you not dare to compete with me?" he rasped, standing in front of Qin Mu, his eyes bloodshot.

"Old Monster Dongyang," Tai Shang said, "you ceased to be my opponent the moment you willingly allowed me to suppress you."

The Elder Prince Tai Shang raised his palm and gently flicked it. The old man was sent flying with a howl, crashing into an obelisk. His back had already sunk into the tablet's surface, but his hands and legs remained outside. He sharply declared, "If you have the courage, fight me to the death! What skill is there in dealing with a cripple?"

The Elder Prince Tai Shang, expressionless, raised his palm. With a thunderous boom, Old Man Dongyang's legs and arms could no longer resist, and he was forcibly pressed into the stone tablet, sealed away.

The five stood behind the mirror-like surface of their stone tablets, watching Tai Shang approach Qin Mu. Their faces showed sorrow, anger, and despair. The cripple had just barely gained hope of resurrection, but Tai Shang's arrival shattered it completely!

The Elder Prince Tai Shang arrived before Qin Mu. Qin Mu’s cultivation was also suppressed by the complete obelisk forest, and his dream realm slowly vanished. He opened his eyes. "Senior Brother Tai Shang," he said, "didn't you say you would remain impartial, favoring neither me nor third and fourth senior brothers? Why then do you appear today to stop me?"

The Elder Prince Tai Shang sat down before him, his gaze passing over Qin Mu to rest on the cripple and the coffin. "I will not favor you, nor will I favor them," he said. "However, you should not try to revive the Lord of Heaven Capital."

Qin Mu was puzzled. "May I respectfully ask Senior Brother to elaborate?" he said.

"Our Teacher killed the Lord of Heaven Capital not out of personal malice, but because of the Lord of Heaven Capital's actions," Tai Shang explained. "The Great Dao of Heaven and Earth is a public instrument, utterly impartial. The Dao does not favor you because you are a Daoist practitioner, nor does it ignore you because you are unknown. Yet, Heaven Capital's creation of heaven and earth transformed the Dao, a public instrument, into a private one."

Tai Shang continued unhurriedly, "You have not been to the Seventh Epoch and are unaware of its circumstances, so your sympathy for the Lord of Heaven Capital is understandable. In the Seventh Epoch, after Heaven Capital City created heaven and earth, the Great Dao became private, belonging exclusively to the creators of Heaven Capital City. At that time, all living beings had to cultivate their Dao. The creators of Heaven Capital City could control the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, acting as they pleased, and many among them were reckless and arbitrary."

Qin Mu raised an eyebrow. "The feud between our Teacher and the Lord of Heaven Capital was instigated by Elder Wu Ya," he said. "Senior Brother Tai Shang should know better than I how the title 'Blasphemer' came about."

"What kind of being was our Teacher?" Tai Shang countered. "Elder Wu Ya's influence on him was limited; at most, he merely helped him solidify his own thoughts. Elder Wu Ya overestimated his own importance; in our Teacher's heart, he was not that significant."

The Elder Prince Tai Shang continued calmly, "Heaven Capital City, while educating without discrimination, also harbored many morally corrupt individuals. The creators could bestow or seize their Great Dao at will, arbitrarily stripping others of their hard-earned cultivation or bestowing it upon others based on their whims. The entire history of the Seventh Epoch was chaotic and murky, with no one else achieving Dao. Our Teacher went to reason with the Lord of Heaven Capital, persuading him three times, and I was present for all three."

Qin Mu frowned. He knew little about the feud between Heaven Capital and Mi Luo Palace. Now, hearing Tai Shang speak of its history, he realized it was far more complex than he had imagined.

"Our Teacher visited Heaven Capital City three times, approaching as a fellow Daoist to discuss and seek guidance, hoping to persuade the Lord of Heaven Capital to abandon his original philosophy," Tai Shang continued. "However, upon arriving at Heaven Capital City, our Teacher was met with cold sarcasm and disdainful glares from the creators."

The Elder Prince Tai Shang continued, "What kind of being was our Teacher? He had already achieved Dao in the First Epoch. For the next five cosmic epochs, our Teacher actively entered the world, spread the Dao, taught, and lectured, hoping for more fellow Daoists. Who in Heaven Capital City didn't achieve their current cultivation through our Teacher's grace? Yet, the creators of Heaven Capital dared to insult him. Our Teacher treated all provocations as fleeting clouds, not dwelling on them. However, in all three visits, the Lord of Heaven Capital refused him."

Qin Mu glanced at the cripple beside him and slightly frowned.

"Our Teacher had no intention to kill back then," Tai Shang continued, "but later, signs of collapse appeared in the Seventh Epoch. The Seventh Epoch universe was on the verge of destruction, ravaged by Heaven Capital, and at that time, our Teacher saw the creators of Heaven Capital City preparing to create heaven and earth again."

Tai Shang said, "At that time, to prevent the Eighth Epoch from repeating the same mistakes, our Teacher finally made up his mind and went into seclusion for several millennia. After emerging from seclusion, our Teacher killed the Lord of Heaven Capital and ordered me to suppress his corpse here."

Tai Shang pursed his lips. "Our Teacher did not go to extremes with this matter," he said. "If he had intended to be absolute, the blasphemer named Ling would not have been able to rescue Heaven Capital's primordial spirit. Our Teacher still gave the Lord of Heaven Capital a chance, allowing him to become Tai Yi of the Seventeenth Epoch. Moreover, our Teacher sent Tai Yi into the destruction tribulation of the Fourth Epoch, giving him a chance to rise again. I ask you, who else in this world possesses such magnanimity?"

Qin Mu fell silent. He did not possess such magnanimity. If it were him, he would surely have rooted out the evil completely, leaving no chance for the Lord of Heaven Capital. Tai Shang also lacked such magnanimity. That is why Tai Shang, after the Master of the Mi Luo Palace's Dao heart died, suppressed Tai Yi, imprisoning him in the Tai Shang Hall and suppressing him with the God Coffin of Dao Burial. The only one who possessed such magnanimity was the Master of the Mi Luo Palace, the man countless people called Teacher.

"You rescued Tai Yi, and I did not make things difficult for you; I allowed you to rescue him," Tai Shang said. "After all, our Teacher gave him a chance, and I cannot deprive him of it."

The Elder Prince Tai Shang was silent for a moment. "However, if you intend to save Heaven Capital and merge Tai Yi with Heaven Capital, I cannot permit it," he said. "Chaos, I will not engage you in combat. I will only ask you one question."

Qin Mu composed himself and bowed. "Senior Brother, please ask," he said.

"If Heaven Capital's injuries heal, Tai Yi merges with Heaven Capital, and the Lord of Heaven Capital is resurrected, have you considered the consequences?" Tai Shang asked.

Tai Shang continued, "Heaven Capital City is not truly dead. Its creators from back then are hidden in history, in dark corners. If the Lord of Heaven Capital revives, with a single call, the struggle will no longer be between you and Ling Xiao and Zi Xiao, but between Mi Luo Palace and Heaven Capital City. Without our Teacher, no one can suppress the Lord of Heaven Capital or Heaven Capital City. Is your Seventeenth Epoch universe ready to welcome the transformation by Heaven Capital's creators?"

Qin Mu shivered several times, his blood running cold.

Tai Shang stood up, raising a finger to point at the obelisks in the forest. "Every Daoist practitioner suppressed in these stone tablets is an utterly evil individual," he said. "Every single one has a reason to be suppressed here. That includes Shang Jun, whom you rescued, Old Monster Dongyang, and Zhu Santong! Not a single one is innocent!"

His gaze fell upon the cripple behind Qin Mu. "He is also the same," Tai Shang added.

Qin Mu stood up, looking at Tai Yi's coffin and the cripple on the sickbed, finding it difficult to make a decision.

"Seventh Junior Brother," Tai Shang said, "you cannot control the Lord of Heaven Capital, nor can you control Heaven Capital City."

Tai Shang's figure slowly rose, higher and higher, gradually merging with the sky of this forbidden zone. His voice came from beyond the heavens: "If you release him, you will unleash a monster that will destroy the entire universe! Make your own decision!"

His figure vanished, and the terrifying suppressive force also disappeared without a trace.

Not long after, Old Monster Dongyang, Zhu Santong, and others emerged from the obelisks. They saw Qin Mu pacing around Tai Yi's coffin and the cripple, utterly distraught, as if he had completely lost his mind.

"I'm not the Seventh Young Master yet!"

They heard Qin Mu muttering to himself: "If only I were the Seventh Young Master, then I wouldn't have so many worries..."

After a long time, Qin Mu stopped, hoisted Tai Yi's coffin onto his shoulder, and turned to leave.

"Seventh Young Master!" the maid called out loudly, her voice full of doubt.

Qin Mu waved his right hand and vanished into the obelisk forest. "I'm not the Seventh Young Master yet," he said. "The Seventh Young Master relies on no one. From now on, I have decided to rely on my own strength. Everyone, farewell until I can discern right from wrong and control the situation in the future!"