Ch. 1078 - Bright Emperor's Particle World

“There’s no need,” Hidden Ox Emperor said after a moment of silence, smiling faintly.

“I’ve been alone too long, don’t wish to be bound.”

“The Celestial Citadel won’t restrict you,” the War God replied. “Only when the time comes, you’ll need to answer the summons.”

“I’ll think about it,” Hidden Ox Emperor smiled again. “The favor I owed the Celestial Citadel is paid. Now, I’ve got this big mess to clean up.”

The War God nodded slightly, not pressing further.

“And what about that man?” Hidden Ox Emperor asked. “You just let him escape?”

“He’ll be back. The Infernal Heart carries a seal. To break it, he must return.” The War God’s eyes darkened. “But the intelligence we received doesn’t match. He was reported as just having entered the Grand Emperor Realm, yet his power rivaled the Fifth Stage of the Grand Emperor Realm. Strange indeed.”

He added, “We’ll wait for him at the next step. He cannot escape. The only question is, how long before this turtle takes the bait?”

“Then you’d best be careful,” Hidden Ox Emperor said coolly. “Don’t let that turtle bite you instead.”

Whether his words were warning or mockery was unclear.

The War God merely waved a hand, leading the Myriad God Army upward into the void.

Golden light surged, their golden robes dissolving into radiant brilliance, and as suddenly as they had come, they vanished, leaving no trace.

“Ancestor,” only after everyone had left did Dongfang Li arrive with the elders, bowing before Hidden Ox Emperor. “Do you need us to do anything?”

“I’m fine,” Hidden Ox Emperor shook his head.

Though the Dao Court now lay in ruins, once the Dao Source had descended, it would naturally regenerate, even without manpower.

“Ancestor, we captured two people,” Dongfang Li gestured. Lin Yunhen and Xia Wanqing were brought forward.

“These two traveled with that Grand Emperor. They must know him.”

Hidden Ox Emperor frowned slightly, recalling Xu Zimo’s words earlier.

“Where are you two from?”

“He is Crown Prince of the Mountain Dragon God-Dynasty. As for the girl, she is a disciple of the Martial Heaven Sacred Ground,” Dongfang Li answered carefully.

“Ancestor, didn’t you have an old pact with Martial Heaven Emperor? They’re supposed to receive one slot for the Dao Source.”

“Martial Heaven Sacred Ground…” Hidden Ox Emperor fell into thought.

At last, he said, “Go ask their wishes. If they want to leave, let them go. If they wish to join our Dao Court, you are to look after them.”

“Ancestor, this…” Dongfang Li was stunned.

He’d thought the two would be punished. Instead, not only were they spared, but he himself was given responsibility over them.

“What is it?” Hidden Ox Emperor asked.

“Nothing, nothing,” Dongfang Li said quickly. “Ancestor, rest assured, I’ll take good care of them.”

“Go. This incident has shaken the realm, suppress it as best you can,” Hidden Ox Emperor ordered. “I want to be alone for a while. No one is to disturb me.”

The events had dealt him a heavy blow.

Not just defeat, but a crack in his Dao Heart.

At his level, any damage to the Dao Heart could easily give rise to inner demons.

And inner demons were the greatest taboo of high-level cultivators.

The aftermath would have to be left for Thousand-Ox Dao Court to manage.

Meanwhile, in another stretch of the void, a great hand tore through the stillness, and Xu Zimo stepped out.

His face was pale, aftereffects of using the War God’s power.

That power was like overdrawing his own life essence.

Each use left his body weakened, requiring time to recover.

Looking around, he found himself in a dense forest.

While traversing the void, he hadn’t cared for direction.

He simply didn’t want further entanglement with the War God. Neither of them could kill the other, and Xu Zimo didn’t want to expose too much of his trump cards. And if reinforcements from the Celestial Citadel had arrived, the situation would have turned against him.

Taking a step, he soared into the air, passing above the forest canopy, surveying the land.

The forest ended in a vast plain.

Farther north, he saw a great gathering of people in a valley.

Xu Zimo decided to head there.

“When will the Bright Emperor’s inheritance begin? I’ve been here three days and nights already.”

“That’s nothing. Plenty have been waiting half a month.”

“Even Gongyang Ce, the world’s foremost diviner, wasn’t precise enough,” someone grumbled at the valley’s edge.

“He only said ‘within a month.’ The month isn’t over yet, why the rush?”

“Exactly. And even when it starts, the great powers will seize everything. We’ll be lucky just to sip the leftovers.”

Several rogue cultivators were chatting when Xu Zimo approached, Shadow Tyrant slung across his back.

“What’s up guys, may I ask, what is this place?”

“Huh? A rogue cultivator?” they eyed him.

“You could say that,” Xu Zimo nodded.

“Then you must be here for the Bright Emperor’s Particle World,” one man said.

“Bright Emperor?” Xu Zimo frowned. “Never heard of him.”

“Come on, don’t play dumb,” a burly man laughed. “The Bright Emperor’s Particle World opening is being spread across the entire Azure Frontier. And you say you don’t know?”

“Azure Frontier…” Xu Zimo murmured, heading toward the valley.

But the men blocked him.

“Hold up, brother. Us rogues can only stay on the outskirts. Inside is the domain of the great powers.”

“What powers?” Xu Zimo asked.

“The Unified God Sect, the Three Thousand Dao Court, the Primal-Chaos Demon Tower, all of them are here,” another man explained.

“If you’re interested, join our Blade-Axe Sect. We drink together, eat together, we’re all brothers. How about it?”

“No thanks,” Xu Zimo waved them off.

Finding a quiet spot at the edge, he planted Shadow Tyrant before him and took out the Infernal Heart he had obtained.

It was heavily suppressed, its seals impenetrable even to him.

“My Lord,” Paimon’s voice sounded in his ear. “This is a special seal of the Heavenly Court.”

“How do I break it?” Xu Zimo asked.

“This is not a formation, it cannot be unraveled through formation arts,” Paimon explained.

“To my knowledge, this seal was forged with the power of Imperfect Stone. There are only two ways to break it.”

“Speak.”

“One way, go to Imperfect Mountain, trace the origin, and break it from the source. The other, obtain the Grand-Pivot God-Sword. Ranked third among the Grand Thousand Treasures, it cuts through anything. It could shatter the Imperfect Stone seal.”

“Where is Imperfect Mountain?” Xu Zimo asked.

“It is the ancestral mountain of the Zhou God-Clan, one of the Ten God Bloodlines. Naturally, it lies in the Absolute God Heaven,” Paimon replied. “With your current circumstances, my Lord, it would not be wise to head for the Absolute God Heaven.”

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