Chapter 1353: A New Generation Replaces the Old (Second Update)
"The corpse fiend is my physical body!" Vân Sơ Tụ couldn't help but grow anxious.
Minh Nha Thái Tử paid her no mind, carrying the corpse fiend as he flew up and vanished from sight.
"Chase after him!" Vân Sơ Tụ was both angry and anxious.
The three of them hurried over, and upon arriving at U Đô Tôn's territory, Vân Sơ Tụ immediately flew into a rage, saying angrily: "U Đô Tôn, what is the meaning of you occupying my physical body? You're a solitary man—could it be you wish to lay a hand on the Heavenly Emperor's woman?"
U Đô Tôn couldn't stand her shrewish behavior, and on top of that, Vân Sơ Tụ was using the appearance of Tuyệt Vô Trần. Back when Tuyệt Vô Trần had appeared, he too had once coveted her beauty.
Now seeing Vân Sơ Tụ, U Đô Tôn found himself at a loss for words, and simply beckoned to Vân Tiệm Ly.
Vân Tiệm Ly quickly ran over. U Đô Tôn whispered a few words in his ear, and Vân Tiệm Ly nodded, then ran back to tell Vân Sơ Tụ: "Nhân Thánh Vương says that if you want this physical body, you must offer something in exchange."
The anger on Vân Sơ Tụ's face vanished, and she smiled: "Then what does U Đô Tôn wish to exchange? Having me accompany him for a night won't do—I belong to the Heavenly Emperor."
Vân Tiệm Ly ran over again, and U Đô Tôn whispered a few more instructions. Vân Tiệm Ly ran back and said: "He wishes to borrow your hands, madam, to repair Hiểu Thiên Tôn's divine artifact Ngự Thiên Tôn."
Vân Sơ Tụ had been smiling, but upon hearing this, her expression changed drastically. She sneered coldly: "Repair the divine artifact Ngự Thiên Tôn? Is that the one you lot snatched into U Đô? Dream on! With the Ngự Thiên Tôn divine artifact, how could you still kill Thổ Bá?"
U Đô Tôn said not a word, and waved his hand to send the Nguyên Mẫu corpse fiend to Tà Vô Kỳ. Tà Vô Kỳ roared repeatedly, reaching out to grab at Nguyên Mẫu's physical body, drool dripping from the corners of his mouth, as if he wanted to tear Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân to shreds.
Vân Sơ Tụ let out a mournful sigh: "U, U! Stop quickly! I'll go along with you then!"
U Đô Tôn withdrew the Nguyên Mẫu corpse fiend.
Vân Sơ Tụ looked at her own physical body, then at U Đô Tôn, and sneered coldly: "You're an honest man, U Đô Tôn. This move of yours doesn't seem like you at all! Who gave you this rotten idea? Was it Mục Thiên Tôn?"
U Đô Tôn silently put the ghost-face mask back on his face, so she couldn't see his expression.
Vân Sơ Tụ sneered coldly: "I know it was him! Only he could be so underhanded. Bringing out Tà Vô Kỳ and Minh Nha Thái Tử—that must have been his idea too, wasn't it? You're offending Hạo Thiên Tôn to the death!"
She turned and left: "I'll make a trip to U Đô and repair that Ngự Thiên Tôn divine artifact. When that time comes, if you don't return my physical body and dare to make any more demands, I'll personally descend and slaughter you!"
U Đô Tôn lifted his mask and let out a sigh. His old face was covered in wrinkles.
Vân Tiệm Ly asked curiously: "Was it really Mục Thiên Tôn's idea?"
U Đô Tôn nodded helplessly and said: "Mục Thiên Tôn knew that Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân was one who controlled Tạo Phụ Thiên Cung and the Tạo Hóa divine artifacts, so before leaving U Đô, he gave me an idea—to use the Nguyên Mẫu corpse fiend to threaten her, forcing her to repair U Đô's Ngự Thiên Tôn divine artifact. This idea indeed worked well."
Vân Tiệm Ly hesitated for a moment, glanced at Minh Nha Thái Tử and Tà Vô Kỳ, and lowered his voice: "Then what about them?"
"Minh Nha Thái Tử entered U Đô of his own accord, begging me to allow him to see Tà Vô Kỳ."
U Đô Tôn said: "He discovered that the Heavenly Emperor in the Heavenly Court is a fake—the Ten Heavenly Venerables created a physical body for the Heavenly Emperor—and so he was terrified beyond measure. His elder brother Hạo Thiên Tôn being among the Ten Heavenly Venerables made it so he dared not remain in the Heavenly Court for even a moment. These years he has hidden in U Đô, together with Tà Vô Kỳ. Tà Đế Tà Vô Kỳ is his elder brother."
Vân Tiệm Ly looked at Tà Vô Kỳ and Minh Nha Thái Tử. Minh Nha Thái Tử was tending to Tà Vô Kỳ, and Tà Vô Kỳ only stopped being raving mad when facing him.
Now, these "two brothers" depended on each other for survival.
Vân Tiệm Ly thought to himself: "If Tà Vô Kỳ hadn't died, there would probably have been a spot among the Ten Heavenly Venerables for him. Unfortunately, history has no 'what ifs.'"
On the other side, Tần Mục's tower ship sailed into the ancestral court. This tower ship represented the highest achievement of Diên Khang's forging—the furnaces could now be refined to a very large size, and the tower ship's speed had also greatly increased.
However, although Diên Khang now had many skilled craftsmen, they still couldn't forge warships like floating continents the way the Heavenly Court or the Khai Hoàng era could.
In the Khai Hoàng era, the pinnacle of forging technique was represented by Vô Ưu Hương and Bỉ Ngạn Phương Chu!
Forging warships like those required not just pure forging skill, but a powerful nation with immensely abundant resources!
The Heavenly Court's warships also reached that standard. Although the Heavenly Court couldn't match the Khai Hoàng era or Diên Khang in forging technique, the Heavenly Court's foundations were simply too deep.
The Khai Hoàng era's financial resources could only forge two great ships like the Bỉ Ngạn Phương Chu, while the Heavenly Court had dozens of similar warships!
The tower ship sailed over the ancestral court, and Tần Mục gazed downward, surveying the geography of the ancestral court.
Ngụy Tùy Phong, Tư Bà Bà, Hoa Tuyên Tú, and U Minh Thái Tử and the others were marveling at the ancestral court's magnificent grandeur. The scenery here was breathtaking, and the primordial giant beasts flying past beside the tower ship were even more astonishing.
The tower ship flew between various divine mountains and holy lands, leaving them staring wide-eyed, with cries of amazement coming from the ship from time to time.
Tần Mục frowned. The ancestral court's territory was incomparably vast, and finding the locations of the Four Heavenly Gates would not be easy.
"I should go back and fetch Thúc Quân. He would likely know the locations of the ancestral court's Four Heavenly Gates. Otherwise, searching like this, who knows when we'll find them."
He hung up Nguyệt Thiên Tôn's lantern, and after a few days, the tower ship arrived at the Ten Thousand Black Mountains.
Long Kỳ Lân and Yên Nhi hurried out to greet him. Suddenly, Long Kỳ Lân caught sight of the young Văn Nguyên and froze for a moment, then abandoned Tần Mục and rushed straight toward the young Văn Nguyên.
Tần Mục felt a pang of bitterness in his heart: "A new generation replaces the old—I suppose I truly am past my prime..."
Long Kỳ Lân fussed over the young Văn Nguyên for a while, then ran back, and said cautiously: "Giáo chủ..."
"Call me old giáo chủ."
Tần Mục said listlessly: "Where are the First Ancestor and the other human emperors?"
"They got lost." Long Kỳ Lân said even more carefully.
"Lost?"
Tần Mục was surprised, and laughed: "They went to tame giant beasts, didn't they? What about Thúc Quân?"
Long Kỳ Lân said in a low voice: "He got lost too..."
Tần Mục was momentarily stunned, then looked him over carefully, raising the tip of his left eyebrow: "What about Giang Vân Gian and the others?"
Long Kỳ Lân said with a mournful face: "They got lost together with Hư Sinh Hoa and Lam Ngự Điền."
Tần Mục steadied himself and looked toward the depths of the Ten Thousand Black Mountains. There were still quite a few divine beings here—some mining, some refining treasures—but the ancestral court's key figures had all vanished!
"How did they get lost?"
Tần Mục's voice was hoarse as he asked: "Did they go out under cover of night?"
Long Kỳ Lân hastily shook his head: "They weren't as bold as giáo chủ—they didn't dare go out at night. It was Thúc Quân who tempted them, saying he had a way to enter the back side of the ancestral court to capture the giant beasts there. The primordial giant beasts there were even stronger, so they all ran off to the north side of the ancestral court..."
Tần Mục breathed a sigh of relief. As long as they hadn't gone out at night, there was still hope. Then he said coldly: "Thúc Quân doesn't know reverse summoning—I never taught him that technique. In this world, besides me, the ones who know reverse summoning are Lãng Oản thần vương, and the other one is you!"
Long Kỳ Lân lowered his big head and said in a small voice: "Thúc Quân said he wanted to go to the back side of the ancestral court, where the world's most powerful giant beast, Long Hiêu, resides, but they didn't know how to get there. I love showing off, so I taught him..."
Tần Mục's vision went dark, and he steadied himself.
The most learned being in this world, besides himself, was Long Kỳ Lân.
——Trại heo is currently on the high-speed rail, heading straight to Nanjing, to participate in the Jiangsu Influence Summit's online literature segment... He won't be back until tomorrow, but he'll do his best to write, striving not to miss an update!