Chapter 929 — Meeting Beneath the Moon at Yao Terrace

"The man from a million years ago has returned."

The Heavenly Court was resplendent in gold and jade, teeming with gods and divine beings beyond count—who knew how many deities and demons dwelled within this incomparably luxurious world. The Heavenly Court had originally been a place of peace, or at the very least, surface peace. Even when its great armies descended to the mortal realm, eradicated the Earth Mother Primordial Sovereign, and leveled the Yuan Realm, not a ripple had stirred within the Heavenly Court.

Yet now, the once-calm Heavenly Court was like a still lake into which a stone had been cast, sending wave after wave of ripples spreading outward.

News of every kind spread in all directions, reaching not only the palace chambers but also the ears of the Celestial Lords, becoming the topic that swept through the entire Heavenly Court.

That man had returned.

A million years ago, in the early years of the Dragon Han era, that man had been invested by the Heavenly Emperor as a Celestial Lord, becoming one of the Nine Celestial Lords, subduing an entire age with his unmatched Dao arts and divine powers.

He had transmitted the Dharma on behalf of Lord Yu, established the Heavenly Palace cultivation system for the world, and gravely wounded Lord Hao, leaving him bedridden for many years without recovery.

And now the Heavenly Emperor paid no heed to worldly affairs, and Lord Hao had become the supreme sovereign wielding the authority of the Heavenly Court, enthroned on high.

Yet the man who had wounded him had vanished without a trace, disappeared from the world for a full million years.

There were also reports that when Lord Hao wielded his strongest weapon to descend to the mortal realm and quell the rebellion, that man had borrowed the Earth Mother's hand to grievously wound Lord Hao's primordial spirit.

Other reports said that the man was the Divine Son of Youdu, and having encountered the interception of the Heavenly Court's Four Emperors, had suffered severe injuries.

Still other reports said that the man had dug out his own soul and spirit, becoming a soulless being, and now lacked even the strength to truss a chicken.

Yet more reports came that the man had killed many young powerhouses of the Heavenly Court in the Yuan Realm, and that untold numbers of ancient gods and disciples of the Four Emperors had died at his hands.

There were also gods and demons who had returned to the Heavenly Court from the mortal realm who said that the man's aura was feeble, that he had not long to live.

Countless people discussed that man's arrival, spoke of that man's affairs. A strange atmosphere pervaded the Heavenly Court, undercurrents surging beneath the calm surface.

"The Vermilion Bird, the Southern Emperor's ship arrived at the Heavenly Court today—is it connected to that man?"

"I heard the Eastern Emperor has left the Eastern Pole, and the Western Emperor has also left the Western Pole."

"The waters of the Heavenly River have shown anomalies—the water level has been rising lately. Some suspect the Black Tortoise, the Northern Emperor, has secretly arrived at the Heavenly Court!"

"I also heard that the Four Emperors of the Heavenly Court submitted a memorial to the Heavenly Emperor, saying they would return to the Heavenly Court soon. It's said the Black Emperor arrived long ago!"

"I heard many ancient gods of the Great Wilderness have come to the Heavenly Court to give their reports—Lord Sunstar and others have arrived as well! I also heard that the Dao Ancestor, who vanished for many years, has returned to the Daoist sect of the Heavenly Court, and the Great Brahma King Buddha, who slept for who knows how many years, has awakened and also arrived at the Heavenly Court, going to see the Dao Ancestor at the first opportunity!"

"The situation in the Heavenly Court is rather strange."

"I heard that man has gone to the Yao Pool, saying he wishes to pay his respects to Her Majesty the Empress! Truly audacious beyond belief! A million years ago, it was at the Yao Pool that he grievously wounded Lord Hao!"

"Her Majesty the Empress has permitted him to stay at the Manhui Corridor Pavilion—the very place where Lord Yu was assassinated all those years ago!"

"I went to the Yao Pool myself and saw that man. His aura is withered and decayed, skin and bones, his complexion truly poor, his vital essence draining away moment by moment. I suspect he has come to mourn old friends and seize the opportunity to seek death—it all depends on who cannot resist killing him, and then bears the infamy of all ages!"

"Who would dare kill him? Aren't they afraid of being attacked by political enemies?"

"There are plenty who want to kill him, and plenty of ways to do it. After killing him, just find a few scapegoats."

"The Heavenly Court of today is no longer the Heavenly Court he once knew."

…

The Yao Pool Holy Realm, the Manhui Corridor Pavilion.

Shen Mu came to the window of the Manhui Corridor Pavilion, gazing at the enormous lotuses blooming one after another in the Yao Sea, and at the divine turtles carrying sacred mountains on their backs as they roamed through the Yao Sea, just as before.

His body was somewhat gaunt, his complexion indeed not particularly good. Revisiting an old haunt filled him with boundless emotions.

Though the Heavenly Court of today and the Heavenly Court of the early Dragon Han era had not changed in their essential form, they were vastly different.

In those days, the Heavenly Court had been surrounded by thirty-six Heavenly Palaces and seventy-two Treasure Halls. Now, most of those Heavenly Palaces and Treasure Halls had relocated elsewhere, scattered throughout the universe to suppress the heavens and earth, with only a few Heavenly Palaces remaining.

Even so, the scale of the Heavenly Court was grander than before—a thousand towers and ten thousand halls, incomparably luxurious.

The Yao Pool had also been rebuilt. In those days, the Yao Pool had already been exceedingly vast; after a million years, this Yao Pool was more like a Yao Sea, its sacred scenery breathtaking beyond measure.

It was here that he had attended the Yao Pool Grand Gathering and experienced a great upheaval—an upheaval that had shaped the course of a million years of history.

In those days, both he and Kaihuang had relied on cleverness, astonishing an era with a foundation of knowledge that surpassed the early Dragon Han era by a million years. Had he and Kaihuang been born in that era, perhaps they would have been but two unremarkable figures in that magnificent and tumultuous age.

This was also the reason why many of the younger generation in the Heavenly Court looked down on him. These young people believed that if they had been the ones to travel back to the early Dragon Han era, they would have done better, not worse.

Yan'er came to his side, carrying a platter of fruit, and said, "Young Master, the palace maids picked some fruit. I had Long Pang and Young Master Qi taste them earlier. Long Pang and Young Master Qi are still alive, so they should not be poisonous."

Qi Jiuyi and Long Qilin, following behind her, could not help but darken their expressions at these words, a sharp pain twisting in their hearts.

The Phoenix Ship had delivered them outside the Southern Heavenly Gate before promptly returning to the Yuan Realm. Only Qi Jiuyi had stayed behind, out of worry for Long Qilin's safety.

After Shen Mu arrived at the Heavenly Court, the news spread throughout the Heavenly Court. He sought an audience with Her Majesty the Empress, but she did not appear in person. Instead, she sent someone to invite him to stay at the Yao Pool, in the Manhui Corridor Pavilion where Lord Yu had been assassinated all those years ago.

The palace maids here all served Her Majesty the Empress, each one a deity, gorgeously adorned, beautiful and alluring.