Chapter 958: Tai Emperor, Please Die

If the third seal were to break, Grand Emperor's divine consciousness would instantly surge into Qin Mu's Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure, shattering his own divine consciousness, erasing his awareness, and turning Qin Mu into another version of himself.

The Three Heavenly Yuan Battles, taught by Shu Jun, crumbled almost immediately when confronted by Grand Emperor's divine consciousness. Grand Emperor's divine consciousness was far stronger than anyone had anticipated.

Yue Tingge and Luo Wushuang watched with extreme nervousness, looking up to see Grand Emperor's figure battling the Celestial Emperor's seal. Ultimately, the Grand Emperor's phantom proved superior, breaking the final seal of the Three Heavenly Yuan Battles.

The Three Heavenly Yuan Battles, as taught by Shu Jun, differed from Qin Mu's improved version. Qin Mu's modifications made the final stage of the Three Heavenly Yuan Battles involve the Ancient God Celestial Emperor, rendering it incomparably more powerful than the traditional version, yet it was still easily breached by Grand Emperor's divine consciousness.

However, after passing through three seals, the phantom formed by Grand Emperor's divine consciousness had weakened considerably.

Yue Tingge looked up towards the heavens, seeing the Grand Emperor's phantom drawing closer. Its immense pressure caused the starry sky within Qin Mu's Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure to tremble like a rippling water surface.

Yue Tingge and Luo Wushuang's divine consciousness and vital qi surged forth continuously, causing their bodies to expand.

Whoosh—Their souls descended first into Qin Mu's divine treasure, landing on the Taiji Diagram and merging with their previous avatars.

One of them was at the Emperor's Throne Grand Completion realm, and the other at the Numinous Sky realm. With their true souls personally present, they were naturally far stronger than Qin Mu's soul.

In comparison, Qin Mu's spirit embryo appeared incredibly small and insignificant.

From beyond the heavens, Grand Emperor's phantom descended, infiltrating the Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure. Its colossal face looked down, seemingly curious about Qin Mu's divine treasure.

"Just a dead man, daring to cause trouble?" Yue Tingge roared. Behind his soul, vital qi transformed into a majestic celestial palace. His soul soared, directly confronting the Grand Emperor's phantom.

At the same time, Luo Wushuang, holding a blade in one hand, shot skyward and struck at Grand Emperor with his blade.

Although neither of them were masters of divine consciousness, their cultivation levels were formidable. Despite their divine consciousness not being as powerful as Grand Emperor's, they were confident they could fight.

The instant they charged, Grand Emperor's vast divine consciousness surged forth. Wherever it passed, their divine consciousness immediately disintegrated, proving utterly defenseless!

With their divine consciousness shattered, their divine arts instantly spiraled out of control, and their vital qi became chaotic. Their souls plummeted from the sky, their hearts filled with dread.

"Soul close combat!" Yue Tingge shouted loudly.

Luo Wushuang understood. Since divine arts couldn't contend with the Grand Emperor's phantom, only by engaging with their souls in close combat could they hope to eliminate it.

However, in battle, souls were typically used to cast divine arts from a distance to bombard opponents. Engaging in soul close combat was considered a grave taboo.

This was because a soul was not a physical body; it was an energy construct formed from a spirit embryo and soul. If it were destroyed by an opponent, the individual would be utterly annihilated!

Yet, given the current circumstances, they couldn't conceive of a better plan. Only through soul close combat might they stand a chance against the Grand Emperor's phantom.

The Grand Emperor's phantom, being formed from divine consciousness, also lacked a physical body. Its divine consciousness contained no vital qi, its divine arts were not powerful, and it lacked the sharpness of divine weapons, making it unlikely to inflict significant harm on souls.

Grand Emperor's figure swooped down. Yue Tingge and Luo Wushuang's souls charged forward, just about to strike, when suddenly, dragon roars and tiger snarls echoed. Ferocious, monstrous flood dragons flew out from Grand Emperor's body, attacking the two.

"Is this what Celestial Venerable Mu calls 'Visualization Divine Arts'? Divine arts formed by visualizing with divine consciousness?"

Luo Wushuang and Yue Tingge were greatly shocked. This method of forming divine arts was entirely different from their own cultivation methods; it was an entirely different cultivation system!

Currently, most divine arts were based on runes. Practitioners learned various runes, using vital qi to form runic patterns, with numerous runes collectively constructing different divine art forms.

As early as the beginning of the Dragon Han era, divine art practitioners had studied ancient gods and demigods, analyzing the runes on their bodies, comprehending their meanings, and organizing complete runic systems.

For instance, the Four Spirits Divine Arts originated from the four primordial ancient gods: Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise. The Youdu Divine Arts came from Earthly Lord, and the Xuandu Divine Arts from Heavenly Duke. There were also the Earth Mother Sovereign's divine art system, the All-Heavens Stellar God's divine art system, and so on.

This cultivation method had persisted for millions of years.

The only exception to the runic system was the Post-celestial Great Daos, such as the Path of the Sword, Path of the Blade, Path of Painting, Path of Martial Arts, and Path of Music, which were created later and did not rely on runes.

However, the divine arts displayed by the Grand Emperor's phantom transcended this system, belonging to a divine consciousness visualization system. They involved visualizing powerful beings like dragons, phoenixes, gods, and devils to aid in battle!

Although Luo Wushuang and Yue Tingge had seen Qin Mu visualize fine wine, delicious food, and beautiful women, and even a divine dragon, Qin Mu had never used divine consciousness visualization for combat.

Only now, witnessing this combat method firsthand, did they truly feel shocked.

The divine dragons visualized by the Grand Emperor's phantom were immeasurably stronger than the one Qin Mu had visualized. They possessed physical bodies, robust enough to rival grand masters of the Jade Capital realm, and they fought fiercely against them, completely unafraid of death.

For a time, dragon roars and snarls filled the sky without cease!

Luo Wushuang and Yue Tingge were formidable after all, slaughtering the multitude of dragons. Dragon heads and bodies continuously fell from the sky, crashing into the Taiji Diagram. However, the next moment, the dragon corpses vanished, transforming into torrents of divine consciousness that surged skyward, once again becoming divine dragons and charging towards the two.

The two couldn't kill them all, growing increasingly anxious. The Grand Emperor's phantom's divine consciousness was too powerful. In this situation, they feared they would be worn down to death, utterly unable to stop the Grand Emperor's phantom!

The Grand Emperor's phantom split off a portion of its divine consciousness to obstruct them, and the phantom itself shrank slightly, continuing its approach toward Qin Mu. Just then, an altar appeared in the sky, positioned in front of him. On the altar, a colossal head opened its eyes, its empty, cavernous mouth opening and closing as it laughed heartily, "Grand Emperor, long time no see!"

The swooping Grand Emperor's phantom immediately halted, its gaze falling upon the incomplete head. It said in surprise, "Shu Jun, one of the Three Kings of the Primordial Era? You're actually still alive?"

"That's right, I'm alive!" Shu Jun's massive head erupted with divine consciousness, transforming into a colossal Creator, who chuckled, tucking his own head under his arm. "Didn't expect that, did you? I actually survived that battle! Grand Emperor, I'm here, so get lost!"

The Grand Emperor's phantom scoffed coldly, stating indifferently, "You're merely a defeated foe of mine. Are you worthy of speaking so bravely?"

"Pah!" Shu Jun sneered, "Grand Emperor, if you hadn't gathered all your kin to visualize you back then, could you have defeated the Three Kings and become Emperor? Don't leave today; I'll fight you for three hundred rounds!"

The Grand Emperor's phantom chuckled lightly, "Your body is incomplete, and your divine consciousness hasn't recovered. Why would a battle with you require three hundred rounds?"

With a flicker of his body, he split into two. One Grand Emperor phantom moved to confront Shu Jun, while the other headed towards Qin Mu.

Shu Jun was enraged. "Underestimating me? I'll show you my Three Enclosures Super-consciousness!"

His divine consciousness erupted, and numerous star gods and devils from the Purple Star Enclosure, Supreme Palace Enclosure, and Celestial Market Enclosure appeared together. Starlight surged, forming a void storm. At the storm's center, countless titanic gods and devils charged out wildly, almost identical in form to ancient gods, wielding blades, spears, swords, and halberds as they rushed towards the Grand Emperor's phantom.

"The Three Enclosures Super-consciousness is nothing more than this. Can it compare to my Grand Empyrean Supreme Divine Consciousness?" The Grand Emperor's phantom laughed heartily, also visualizing various divine objects, and the two sides clashed fiercely.

Shu Jun roared like thunder, his massive head soaring and charging at that Grand Emperor phantom. The Grand Emperor, completely fearless, engaged him in close combat, causing Qin Mu's Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure to tremble as if the sky was falling and the earth rending!

The other Grand Emperor phantom paused gently, landing in front of Qin Mu's spirit embryo, looking at him with curiosity.

Qin Mu also curiously observed this legendary being. The character 'Tai' in 'Grand Emperor' meant ancient, beginning, initial. So, 'Grand Emperor' essentially meant the most ancient and primordial Celestial Emperor.

Such a being couldn't help but pique his curiosity.

"Dragon Han Overlord Body, we finally meet," the Grand Emperor's phantom said with a smile.

Qin Mu's heart stirred slightly. He said, "Grand Emperor knows me?"

"At the beginning of the Dragon Han era, you were titled Celestial Venerable Mu at the Jade Pool Assembly. I was also present then, though I was attending His Majesty the Celestial Emperor's assembly in the Heavenly Court."

The Grand Emperor's phantom smiled, "By the time I heard the name Celestial Venerable Mu, Celestial Venerable Mu had already left the Dragon Han Heavenly Court. It's a pity we couldn't meet."

Qin Mu chuckled, "I traveled to the beginning of the Dragon Han era and met many beings who would later become renowned, but there were also many I never saw. So, are you planning to possess me, Grand Emperor?"

The Grand Emperor's phantom shook its head. "Not possession, but 'borrowed life'."

Qin Mu asked curiously, "What is 'borrowed life'? What's the difference between 'borrowed life' and possession?"

"There's a significant difference," the Grand Emperor's phantom frankly stated. "Possession is devouring your soul and using my soul to occupy your physical body. 'Borrowed life,' however, has nothing to do with the soul; it's a superior method to possession. While the soul is incredibly important to you, for us, survival doesn't rely on the soul, but on divine consciousness. Divine consciousness is the essence of life."

He smiled gently, "I use my own powerful divine consciousness to erase yours, but your soul will remain. Strictly speaking, after 'borrowed life,' only your awareness dies. You, including your soul, do not truly die. Consider it a small consolation."

Qin Mu's eyes flickered, and he smiled, "Well said, well said. I am deeply honored to offer my physical body and go through fire and water for Your Majesty. But how did Your Majesty end up in your current predicament?"

The Grand Emperor's phantom's expression shifted slightly, and he shook his head with a smile. "It wouldn't hurt to tell you, but it's simpler not to."

He stepped forward and said, "It's time for you to sleep."

His figure suddenly transformed into a swirling torrent of divine consciousness, shooting towards Qin Mu's glabella, like a wisp of smoke attempting to penetrate Qin Mu's spirit embryo.

Suddenly, the sky became incredibly bright. Countless starlight glittered, converging into a pillar of light that descended from the heavens, landing before Qin Mu and transforming into a Heavenly Duke with white eyebrows and a white beard, who raised a hand to block the torrent of divine consciousness formed by the Grand Emperor's phantom.

Swish, swish, swish, countless beams of light fell. One after another, the Stellar Gods slowly rose from the Taiji Diagram, trapping the divine consciousness torrent.

The torrent of divine consciousness condensed, transforming back into the Grand Emperor's phantom, which looked around with a solemn expression.

At the same time, beneath his feet, he saw Earthly Lord on the reverse side of the Taiji Diagram.

Whether it was Heavenly Duke or Earthly Lord, or even these Stellar Gods, all of them bore Qin Mu's face!

The Grand Emperor's phantom's eye twitched, and he chuckled ruefully, "Celestial Venerable Mu, are you trying to reenact the scene where the ancient gods besieged my primordial Creator race? What a grand display. However, your formation seems to be missing quite a few ancient gods."

"Is Your Majesty looking for Earth Mother, Heavenly Yin, and the Four Emperors of the Four Directions among the ancient gods?" Qin Mu smiled faintly. Behind him, a Primordial Tree took root and sprouted, instantly growing into a towering tree. As the Primordial Tree grew, a woman emerged from it, also bearing Qin Mu's face, a male countenance on a female body.

Simultaneously, a goddess emerged from the shadow of Heavenly Duke Qin Mu, also a female body with a male countenance.

Then, the Four Emperors—Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, Azure Dragon, and White Tiger—walked from the four cardinal directions of the Taiji Diagram, all bearing Qin Mu's face.

The Grand Emperor's phantom's expression changed slightly, and he chuckled, "It seems Shu Jun taught you his Three Enclosures Super-consciousness, and you integrated it with the runic great dao, which is how you achieved this. Unfortunately, you haven't seen the Blood Rust Zone battle from back then. This is missing the two goddesses of the Great Ruins, and also the Celestial Emperor. You cannot defeat me."

Qin Mu smiled faintly, "In the Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure world that I've opened, I am the Celestial Emperor here."

With a gentle sway, his body rapidly expanded. His soul merged with his spirit embryo, his primordial spirit became vast, and his voice boomed like thunder: "Once you've entered the urn, shouldn't I pay a little price?"

His primordial spirit transformed into the Ancient God Celestial Emperor, though his face remained his own, and he roared, "Grand Emperor, prepare to die!"

Above and below the Taiji Diagram, whether Heavenly Duke, Earthly Lord, Earth Mother, Heavenly Yin, the Four Emperors of the Four Directions, or the All-Heavens Stellar Gods, all attacked the Grand Emperor's phantom!