Chapter 1606: Mother's Kindness, Son's Filial Piety
"Mother, there's no need to worry. I will definitely find the best divine physician to treat your injuries!"
Hạo Thiên Tôn carried Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân on his back, rising up from the Quy Khư Đại Uyên and charging into U Đô.
U Đô was shattered and broken. Hư Thiên Tôn, Âm Thiên Tử, and the other gods who cultivated the demonic path were diligently trying to restore order, attempting to piece together the fragmented worlds one by one.
Yet without Thổ Bá, they were unable to restore U Đô to its former state.
"Your Majesty's filial piety moves heaven and earth. Mother's kindness and son's filial piety—a model for all the world!"
Âm Thiên Tử saw Hạo Thiên Tôn carrying his mother toward him, and hastily knelt in prostration, sobbing: "What kind of heartless wretch would dare to harm the Empress Dowager? They deserve to die ten thousand deaths!"
Hạo Thiên Tôn said: "It was that old villain Mục Thiên Tôn who injured my mother."
Âm Thiên Tôn's face burned with righteous indignation, his eyes splitting with rage as he hissed: "To harm my great-grandmother, I will never rest until one of us is dead! Your Majesty, please issue the order to attack Diên Khang. I am willing to be the vanguard to punish the traitor Mục!"
Hạo Thiên Tôn shook his head: "Triệu Cẩn, I know you have always been loyal, your heart as clear as the sun and moon. But a dead Diên Khang is not the best Diên Khang. The Heavenly Court may appear glorious now, but I have not yet ascended the throne—Father is still on the seat. Should any unexpected upheaval arise, I will still need Diên Khang to forge divine weapons and treasures for me, to suppress the disloyal. Furthermore, Mạnh Thiên Sư has submitted a memorial, telling me that there are signs of chaos across the Chư Thiên Vạn Giới, threatening to engulf half of all heavens. This cannot be taken lightly."
He sighed, a desolate look on his face: "My martial power is unmatched in this world, but pacifying the realm relies on force, while sitting upon the realm relies on more than mere force. And governing the realm is even more difficult. The ancient gods who ruled by brute force have long been overthrown. The lessons of the past must not go unheeded. Therefore, I must obtain both U Đô and Huyền Đô. These two places can ensure my dynasty remains unshaken."
Âm Thiên Tử bowed: "Your humble servant does not understand."
Hạo Thiên Tôn said: "Should the Chư Thiên Vạn Giới rise against me, Huyền Đô can unleash heavenly calamities—cutting off their sun, moon, and stars, causing crops to fail and plants to wither. Let the rebels starve for a hundred years and they will die out on their own. Should there be creators who build sun ships and moon ships, then I will strike from U Đô, directly stripping away their lifespans, beheading the ringleaders, and the world will know peace. But this kind of deterrence is not enough. I cannot casually exterminate entire heavens—if all the common people die, who would I rule over?"
Âm Thiên Tử suddenly understood, saying: "Your Majesty's meaning is that these commoners will still find various ways to rebel against Your Majesty, and therefore even stronger measures are needed?"
Hạo Thiên Tôn's eyes flickered: "The Dao fire of the Nam Cực Thiên can transform into a heavenly calamity of fire that burns everything, scorching ten thousand li of wilderness. The metal qi of the Tây Cực Thiên can transform into a calamity of war, causing the commoners to slaughter each other. The divine water of the Bắc Cực Thiên—a single drop can become a vast ocean, turning rebellious commoners into fish and turtles in the sea. There are also the five great cloud thunders to strike down these troublemakers. The Chấn Đỉnh of the Đông Cực Thiên—one cauldron can change the geography of the world, causing the entire heavens to shake and bury the rebels. Unfortunately, these four places are not in my grasp."
Âm Thiên Tử's heart stirred. The Đông Cực Thanh Long, Tây Cực Bạch Hổ, and Bắc Cực Huyền Vũ were all ancient gods, disloyal subjects who had always opposed the Heavenly Court.
But the Chu Tước of the Nam Cực Thiên had already died at the hands of Hỏa Thiên Tôn, and the Nam Cực Thiên had fallen under Hỏa Thiên Tôn's control.
Hỏa Thiên Tôn could be said to be Hạo Thiên Tôn's number one general, always loyal to him, his most trusted minister. Why would Hạo Thiên Tôn say that even the Nam Cực Thiên was not in his control?
Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân was barely breathing, but she smiled: "The sky is high and the emperor is far away. The Nam Cực Thiên is too far from the Heavenly Court. Hỏa Thiên Tôn is the Heavenly Emperor of the Nam Thiên, the Heavenly Emperor of the Nam Cực Thiên. How could Xích Đế Tề Hà Dư possibly contend with Hỏa Thiên Tôn? In today's Nam Thiên and Nam Cực Thiên, people only know of Hỏa Thiên Tôn—who knows of Hạo Thiên Đế?"
Hạo Thiên Tôn sighed: "Besides, Hỏa Thiên Tôn is ultimately of the human race. And his loyalty is questionable. When I was stranded in the Thái Hư chi Địa, that traitor Mục chased me until I had no path to heaven and no door to earth. Hỏa Ái Khanh, who claims to be my most loyal minister, merely watched from the sidelines. He even sent people to search for where I was recuperating. His intentions are worthy of death."
Âm Thiên Tử couldn't help but shiver, bowing without daring to speak.
At that time, Hạo Thiên Tôn had encountered Thái Đế, fought a desperate battle, and nearly died. The various Thiên Tôn in the Thái Hư chi Địa had all secretly sent powerful experts to search for Hạo Thiên Tôn, their intention being to take advantage of his severe injuries to eliminate him!
Later, when Tần Mục found Hạo Thiên Tôn and chased him for six hundred thousand li, humiliating him utterly, Hỏa Thiên Tôn and the others had not come to his rescue either—they all harbored the intention of using Tần Mục's blade to remove Hạo Thiên Tôn!
At that time, Âm Thiên Tử's status was too low, and he did not dare to help either.
Hạo Thiên Tôn bringing this up again clearly had the intention of settling accounts after the fact.
"Hỏa Ái Khanh controls the elite troops of the Nam Thiên. Now that the world is pacified, if he hands over his military authority and retires to farm, I can give him a lifetime of glory and inexhaustible wealth."
Hạo Thiên Tôn said unhurriedly: "I am one who shares hardship with others, and one who shares wealth with others. No matter how much wealth he wants, I can give it to him—except for the Nam Thiên and Nam Cực Thiên. Triệu Cẩn, you are close to Hỏa Ái Khanh. Go and persuade him."
Âm Thiên Tử acknowledged the order.
Hạo Thiên Tôn patted his shoulder, saying with emotion: "If Hỏa Ái Khanh were a loyal and righteous minister like Triệu Cẩn, I would be at ease. Triệu Cẩn, Hư Thiên Tôn is the Thiên Tôn of the demon race, and all demons obey her commands, but her energy is ultimately limited. Triệu Cẩn should diligently assist her. U Đô will be divided into two halves—one half will be managed by Triệu Cẩn."
Âm Thiên Tử was overcome with gratitude, hastily kneeling and prostrating himself, sobbing so hard he could not speak.
Hạo Thiên Tôn reached out with both hands to help him up, laughing: "You're too easily moved to true emotion. If I told you that I plan to enfeoff you as Âm Thiên Tôn, you'd probably cry yourself into a fit!"
Âm Thiên Tử indeed burst into loud weeping, crying until he nearly choked. After a moment he caught his breath and said through tears: "Your Majesty's kindness in recognizing my worth—I would gladly grind my bones to dust to repay it! But I heard that when Your Majesty previously proposed enfeoffing me as Thiên Tôn, Hỏa Thiên Tôn suppressed it. This time, Hỏa Thiên Tôn..."
"I proposed enfeoffing you as Thiên Tôn not once, but twice, and he suppressed both times."
Hạo Thiên Tôn sighed: "I don't have much real power either. I still have to be constrained by Hỏa Thiên Tôn, my number one general. He has many little schemes, and I know them all. I can tolerate him, but now that the world is about to be unified, he has instead become my greatest worry..."
Âm Thiên Tử did not dare to say more.
Suddenly, Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân coughed repeatedly, then laughed: "Hạo Nhi is worried that Hỏa Thiên Tôn is holding out for a better price, isn't he? If the price you offer isn't high enough, he might defect to Thái Sơ, or even to Mục Thiên Tôn!"
"Mục Thiên Tôn is no longer a concern. His greatest weakness is in my palm—that is, the human race."
Hạo Thiên Tôn said: "As long as U Đô is in my hands, I can issue a single decree and wipe out the human race in the blink of an eye. Mục Thiên Tôn has weaknesses. Grasp this one weakness and I have him by the throat—he won't dare to move. Moreover, he does indeed have the power to fight me to the death, so I cannot push him too hard. I must proceed slowly. But Hỏa Ái Khanh has no weaknesses..."
A worried expression appeared on his face: "The humans of the Nam Thiên—he can casually blood-sacrifice them to the demigods to curry favor with the demigod races, to please Lang Hiên, Tổ Thần Vương, and Hư Thiên Tôn. The demigods of the Nam Thiên can be said to live the best lives of all the Chư Thiên Vạn Giới—carefree and happy. Using human lives cannot control Hỏa Thiên Tôn, and using the lives of his disciples cannot control him either. I cannot grasp any weakness of his. He only showed me a flaw of a weak soul, and I cannot even be certain whether that flaw is real..."
He sighed: "Hỏa Ái Khanh... he does not put my mind at ease. Triệu Cẩn, I trust your loyalty. Keep an eye on him for me. If there is any unusual movement..."
His expression turned cold and stern.
Âm Thiên Tử bowed and acknowledged: "What about Mục Thiên Tôn..."
"Mục Thiên Tôn is destined to come and surrender."
Hạo Thiên Tôn said calmly: "As long as he surrenders, it will cause Lăng, Nguyệt, U, Vân and the others to become estranged from him. Without their help, he cannot amount to anything. At that time, he will become the Tenth Thiên Tôn, or even another Hỏa Thiên Tôn."
A smile appeared on his face: "I can tolerate him, but Lăng, Nguyệt, U, Vân and the others cannot tolerate him. At that time, he will kill them with tears in his eyes, and still say, 'You don't understand me.' The day I transform him into another Hỏa Thiên Tôn is not far off."
"Your Majesty is brilliant!" Âm Thiên Tử's heart shook violently as he prostrated himself on the ground.
Hạo Thiên Tôn laughed heartily.
Âm Thiên Tử rose, and Hạo Thiên Tôn had already disappeared, leaving only his voice behind: "Triệu Cẩn, I am about to ascend the throne. Come and offer your congratulations."
Âm Thiên Tử paced back and forth excitedly, unable to calm down for a long time.
"Âm Thiên Tôn, Âm Thiên Tôn... Hahahaha, I am finally a Thiên Tôn too!"
Hạo Thiên Tôn returned to the Heavenly Court without alerting anyone. He did not want outsiders to know about his rescue of Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân.
When he had encountered Âm Thiên Tử earlier, he had even entertained the thought of killing him to silence him, but he had restrained himself.
Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân was one of his trump cards—a trump card against Thái Sơ. If he alerted Thái Sơ now, he would not have sufficient justification to execute Thái Sơ.
Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân's conflict with Thái Sơ was irreconcilable, and Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân was also a trump card against Lăng Thiên Tôn, Nguyệt Thiên Tôn, and the others. Naturally, she had to be well hidden.
"Hạo Nhi, didn't you say you were going to treat your mother's injuries?"
Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân's complexion had improved somewhat, and she smiled: "The Dao wound that Mục Thiên Tôn left on your mother is extremely stubborn. With my own power, it's difficult to eliminate. Hạo Nhi devoured the Thái Tố thần nữ and refined the Thái Tố chi Đạo, which grants all requests. I imagine curing your mother won't be difficult. Use the Thái Tố chi Đạo to heal me, and I will fall into your control—isn't that what Hạo Nhi is thinking?"
Hạo Thiên Tôn said solemnly: "Mother is not an outsider. How could I possibly try to control Mother? Rest assured, Mother. I have heard that Diên Khang has a divine physician. I will have Mục Thiên Tôn send the physician here. He wouldn't dare refuse."
Suddenly, his expression shifted slightly, and he said: "Mother, please rest first. I have some matters to attend to." With that, he bowed and retreated step by step. Only after exiting the palace did he turn and stride away.
"That boy—even when leaving, he's so cautious, guarding against me ambushing him."
Nguyên Mẫu phu nhân shook her head and muttered to herself: "The Dao wound I can still heal. I only need to activate the Luân Hồi chi Đạo that Mục Thiên Tôn taught me, and it should be cured. But the Luân Hồi chi Đạo has hidden mechanisms planted by that wicked Mục Thiên Tôn. If I activate the Luân Hồi chi Đạo, I might fall into his schemes once again. Moreover, when I activate the Luân Hồi chi Đạo, I will temporarily lose control of my physical body. That little bitch sister of mine has been waiting for this opportunity..."
She fell silent: "The divine physician of Diên Khang—he's said to be a handsome man. Having him come to examine me wouldn't be bad either..."
"Your Majesty, the envoy from Diên Khang has arrived."
Hạo Thiên Tôn came outside the palace, and the Thượng Tể minister among the four ministers of the Heavenly Court hurried to report: "The envoy said that Mục Thiên Tôn requests to surrender and presents the letter of submission. Your servant deemed this matter of great importance and has arranged lodging for the envoy."
Hạo Thiên Tôn raised an eyebrow: "Where is the letter of submission?"
The Thượng Tể minister quickly smiled apologetically: "Your Majesty, the letter of submission must be presented to Your Majesty before the assembled ministers of the Chư Thiên Vạn Giới during the morning court session. Presenting it now would not be proper..."
"I don't care about propriety!"
Hạo Thiên Tôn sneered: "I thought that Mục Thiên Tôn, having no way out, would come bearing brambles on his back in self-punishment, kneeling before the Nam Thiên Môn to beg me to spare Diên Khang and the human race! I didn't expect him to merely send a letter of submission! Tell that envoy that I want to see the letter of submission right now. As for presenting it at court, after I've read it, I'll give it back to him! And you tell the Diên Khang envoy: surrender is acceptable, but Mục Thiên Tôn must kneel before the Nam Thiên Môn!"
The Thượng Tể minister stammered his assent, saying: "The spies in Diên Khang report that Mục Thiên Tôn has already stripped off his clothes and bound himself, preparing to come kneel before the Nam Thiên Môn to offer his humble apology. However, Lăng, Nguyệt, and the others have been obstructing him in every way and have blocked him."
Hạo Thiên Tôn laughed: "Mục Thiên Tôn's Dao heart has collapsed. He understands what is beneficial and what is harmful, but Lăng and Nguyệt and the others still refuse to give up!"
The Thượng Tể minister hesitated for a moment, then added: "Your Majesty, there is news from the spies in the Nam Thiên. Lang Hiên Thần Hoàng's reincarnated body, Dư Thương Khất, has fled to the Nam Thiên, to Hỏa Thiên Tôn's heavenly palace, seeking refuge with Hỏa Thiên Tôn..."
Hạo Thiên Tôn's face turned as cold as frost, and he let out a cold snort.
The Thượng Tể minister felt as if struck by a thunderbolt from a clear sky, his head spinning from the shock.
"Does Hỏa Thiên Tôn know about this?" Hạo Thiên Tôn's voice carried no emotion as he asked.
The Thượng Tể minister hesitated again, then said: "Hỏa Thiên Tôn's senior disciple, Viêm Nhai Tử, has already sent someone to inform Hỏa Thiên Tôn."
"And then?" Hạo Thiên Tôn's voice turned icy.
The Thượng Tể minister felt the killing intent in his voice, cold sweat beading on his forehead: "After receiving the news, Hỏa Thiên Tôn acted as if nothing had happened. However, the person who came to deliver the message was burned to ashes by him."
"He didn't leave his palace to go to the Nam Thiên?"
Hạo Thiên Tôn said with interest: "He also didn't go to see the Thái Thượng Hoàng?"
"No."
The Thượng Tể minister said honestly: "Hỏa Thiên Tôn did not step one foot outside his door, remaining in his palace the entire time. However, he did send a trusted subordinate out of the palace, heading toward the Nam Thiên. It's unknown what he intends to do."
Hạo Thiên Tôn waved his hand to dismiss him, a half-smile on his face: "Hỏa Ái Khanh, oh Hỏa Ái Khanh. You didn't come to see me immediately—are you holding out for a better price, planning to sell Lang Hiên for a good deal? Ah, yes. If you sell him to the Thái Thượng Hoàng, you could gain an even higher position. As long as Lang Hiên grows up, combined with you, Thái Cực cổ thần, and the Thái Thượng Hoàng, you could turn the world upside down. And I only have Hư Thiên Tôn and Tổ Thần Vương—how could I possibly be your match?"
His expression darkened, and he sneered: "But you never expected that with Mother by my side, you are all just clowns putting on a show! My dynasty will not tolerate a second person laying a finger on it—not even the thought of it!"
—A four-thousand-word chapter. Happy Mother's Day!