Chapter 1713: Retreat Three Thousand Miles
"Heretic?"
Qin Mu gasped for breath, trying to recover from his physical injuries, but Fourth Brother Zixiao's Hongmeng Finger surpassed him in its transformations, making it impossible for him to break through in a short time.
Breaking through the transformations of this technique was not impossible for him—Qin Mu had also studied the Hongmeng Finger, but he was inferior to Fourth Brother in terms of transformations. As long as he could comprehend the transformations at the wound, he could heal the Dao injury.
"Third Brother, you call my technique a heretic's art?"
He forcibly sealed the wound, speaking with a half-smile: "Just because my technique isn't among the Dao techniques of the Miluo Palace, it's a heretic's art? With the teacher absent, you lot have grown increasingly spineless and petty. Not only can you not tolerate others, but you can't even tolerate new Dao techniques and divine abilities. How disappointing. No wonder the Miluo Palace is so filthy and chaotic these days!"
Third Brother Lingxiao's face darkened, and he said coldly: "Seventh Brother, you don't know the origins of the heretics of Tiandu, so it's understandable that you've learned their techniques. Our war between the Miluo Palace and Tiandu has lasted for ten cosmic epochs. Tiandu is not the righteous path—they blaspheme the great Dao of heaven and earth, relying on brute force to wreak havoc upon it. And now you've walked down this same wrong path!"
He clasped his hands behind his back and said calmly: "The conflict between you and me is merely an internal struggle within the Miluo Palace. Even if we fight until our heads are bloodied, it remains a contest between fellow disciples. But the struggle between Tiandu's heretics and the Miluo Palace is different—this is a struggle of orthodoxy, a struggle between right and wrong! Seventh Brother, don't bring ruin upon yourself!"
Qin Mu burst into laughter: "Third Brother, so now you and Fourth Brother have joined forces, intending to destroy my orthodoxy, and you still won't let me use my strongest technique? Truly a fine deal!"
Third Brother's face sank, and behind him, the phantom of a Dao tree gradually materialized. He said in a deep voice: "Fourth Brother has a weakness in his state of mind. You exploited that weakness to force his retreat. But I have no such weakness. I entered the Miluo Palace earlier, and I attained the Dao earlier. When the teacher eliminated Tiandu back then, I was present. If you use heretic techniques before me, I will use the teacher's ultimate arts and kill you just as the teacher killed the Lord of Tiandu!"
His Dao tree grew increasingly distinct, and the Dao fruits on the tree gradually emerged, each one containing a different Dao.
The phantom of that Dao tree took root in Qin Mu's domain, piercing through the Thirty-Three Heavens. It was even more massive than Qin Mu's World Tree, even more inconceivable!
With just the phantom of this Dao tree, it was enough to suppress Qin Mu's Dao realm domain!
The two locked eyes, and Qin Mu's pupils contracted slightly. Within the Chaos Hall, chaos qi once again surged, forming a vast Chaos Long River around the World Tree, like an apocalyptic cataclysm!
Not only that, his aura exploded fully, causing his Dao realm domain to begin collapsing as well, transforming into chaos!
His Dao realm domain was being suppressed by Third Brother, so he simply destroyed the entire domain along with it!
The Dao realm domain was his divine treasury—he was prepared to destroy his own divine treasury in one fell swoop to amplify the power of the Tiandu Heaven-Opening Chapter!
The Thirty-Three Heavens domain immediately plunged into the cataclysm of destruction. Countless heavenly court gods and demons nearby immediately witnessed that terrifying apocalyptic vision—heaven and earth, all things, collapsing toward Qin Mu, transforming into chaos, transforming into a great cataclysm of annihilation!
Whether it was sun, moon, and stars, or the myriad worlds, everything was ground to pieces, wiped from existence!
If this cataclysm erupted, countless heavenly court armies would fall into it and be reduced to nothing!
Just then, Third Brother's Dao tree suddenly shook violently. Countless roots, branches, and leaves pierced through the Thirty-Three Heavens, and enormous root tendrils plunged into the cataclysm, forcibly stabilizing it!
The heavenly court's naval forces, divine armies, and all other legions breathed sighs of relief. At that moment, the two Taiji Ancient Gods shot into the air and shouted: "Now! Run!"
Qin Mu's divine treasury domain was suppressed, and all the wonders of the domain vanished. Immediately, the heavenly court's various armies frantically fled outward, like a great rout. Gods and demons were colliding and trampling everywhere, and some even killed those blocking their path.
In an instant, the heavenly court's armies were slaughtering each other, suffering heavy casualties!
The two Taiji Ancient Gods hurriedly activated the Taiji Sand Table, which transformed into a Taiji star domain, sweeping up the heavenly court's armies and sending them beyond the domain.
Qin Mu's feet suddenly spread apart, standing in a stance neither fully open nor closed, as if stepping on a sacred altar of heaven and earth!
Boom!
His vital energy suddenly surged severalfold. Within his Hongmeng physical body, blood flowed through his veins, and the violent vital energy blasted the wound on his chest open once more. He pushed his Hongmeng primordial qi to the absolute limit, causing every strand of his hair to shoot skyward, whipping wildly in the air!
Qin Mu lowered his waist, extended his right hand, and made a gesture of drawing a sword.
When his aura reached its peak, the ground around him rumbled and rose continuously. The World Tree behind him, struck by his surging vital energy, tore its roots from the earth. Countless roots danced through the air, each root twisting through the sky like a giant dragon!
The World Tree's branches and leaves rustled violently, each leaf like an entire world, dazzling and radiant. The veins of the leaves were like great rivers and mountains, with peaks and valleys stretching endlessly!
And within the branches and trunk, streams of great Dao flowed, shimmering with infinitely fine Hongmeng runes!
Bang!
The ground beneath him shook violently. The Guixu Abyss suddenly split open, revealing an unfathomably deep chasm. The Dao light surging from the abyss was intensely bright, like the tides of Guixu.
Within the Dao light, a lotus flower with two lotus leaves rose gracefully. Beneath the lotus was the Chaos Sea, connected to the surrounding chaos qi. The lotus trembled lightly and burst into bloom!
At this moment, within Qin Mu's domain, everything was vast and chaotic, leaving only the cataclysm swirling. The wind of heat death howled through the cataclysm, carrying rolling flames!
His aura rose to an unprecedented peak. Dao sounds rumbled and shook the heavens. The World Tree and the Guixu Lotus formed a magnificent tableau of the universe after its destruction!
Just then, Third Brother Lingxiao raised his hand and lifted it upward. All the heavenly court soldiers fleeing toward the edge of the domain found themselves moving involuntarily—their vital energy began to circulate on its own, and from between their brows, palaces flew out, floating behind their heads!
Within those palaces, countless Lingxiao Halls blazed with light. Millions upon millions of gods and demons—whether or not they had reached the Lingxiao realm—their Lingxiao Halls all erupted with inconceivable power.
Third Brother's raised palm turned over and pressed downward. The power of those heavenly court soldiers' Lingxiao Halls crashed down simultaneously, all of it slamming into Qin Mu's divine treasury domain!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Thirty-two consecutive sounds of heavy impacts rang out. In an instant, the Thirty-Three Heavens were crushed together, pressing down violently upon Qin Mu and the World Tree!
Qin Mu's bones cracked and popped under the pressure. He roared in fury, the muscles beneath his skin bulging as he pushed the power of his Hongmeng body to its absolute limit!
His shoes suddenly exploded, his robes tore apart into pieces, and his trousers blasted away until only a scrap remained.
Suddenly, behind Third Brother's head, a Lingxiao Hall rose into the air, blazing brightly, and crashed down upon Qin Mu with a thunderous boom!
"Yaaah—"
Qin Mu's body bent low, his skin split open, blood mist billowing. A roar tore from his throat as his right hand, formed into a sword, was savagely drawn forth.
"Seventh Brother, you are stubbornly deluded. It seems you won't be able to return intact to become the Seventh Young Master of the past!"
Third Brother's face was cold as he closed in. A wondrous technique erupted in his hands!
His ten fingers danced, each one tracing a magnificent arc through space. Within each arc, a perfect Dao flowed along its curve. It didn't look like a technique—it looked more like exquisite art!
This was the technique the Miluo Palace Master had used when killing the Lord of Tiandu. To slay that powerful enemy, the Miluo Palace Master had even gone into seclusion for several thousand years before acting, comprehending the great Dao until finally breaking out of seclusion!
Third Brother was a witness to that battle. He had watched with his own eyes how the Miluo Palace Master used this technique to kill the Lord of Tiandu.
That was the end of the Seventh Epoch. Countless eons had passed since then, and the Miluo Palace Master's foundation had long since surpassed that era by an unfathomable margin.
As for Third Brother, it was only at the end of the Sixteenth Epoch that he finally comprehended this technique thoroughly and mastered it.
He had thought he would never have the chance to use it. Yet he never imagined it would be used against someone from the Miluo Palace—and that person would be Seventh Brother!
Shiiik! Shiiik! Shiiik!
Blood holes suddenly burst open across Qin Mu's body. Even with the most powerful physical body of the Seventeenth Epoch, even with his Hongmeng primordial spirit, he could not block this technique!
Third Brother advanced straight toward the sword Qin Mu had drawn, pushing the technique to its absolute limit. Just as life and death were about to be decided, Qin Mu's right hand—the one that had drawn the sword—suddenly spread its five fingers and slapped directly onto Third Brother's face!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! A series of explosions rang out. In an instant, Qin Mu's right hand was blasted into a bloody mess by the power of this technique. The flesh dissolved away, leaving only white bone.
Third Brother was stunned. His technique had been aimed at Qin Mu's Tiandu Heaven-Opening Chapter, but what Qin Mu had unleashed was not the Tiandu Heaven-Opening Chapter at all.
"You fell for it, Third Brother."
Qin Mu's face was covered in blood, his eyes wide open as he stared at him. His skeletal hand still gripped Third Brother's face, and a gleeful smile spread across his lips: "You dispersed so much power to suppress me that your own strength wasn't enough for a killing blow. I truly can't defeat you, but—did the teacher ever show you the technique he created to deal with Second Sister?"
Whoosh!
The Red Rope Knot plunged into Third Brother's mind, passing through the back of his skull, blasting out the Hongmeng primordial qi and consciousness he had used to possess Emperor Haotian's body!
That terrifying surge of Hongmeng primordial qi, carrying Third Brother's consciousness, flew backward. Strands of red rope spread out in all directions, forming dense Dao chains that shot backward at tremendous speed.
The Dao chains extended in every direction, latching onto the Lingxiao Hall that was suppressing Qin Mu, lifting the massive hall and sending it whistling toward Third Brother's consciousness.
The Lingxiao Hall collided with that surge of Hongmeng primordial qi and Third Brother's consciousness. A thunderous boom rang out as Third Brother's Hongmeng primordial qi and consciousness crashed into the hall. The five red ropes of the Red Rope Knot locked onto the hall's gates, forming a net. The five ropes plunged deep into the hall, binding Third Brother's power and consciousness tightly.
A smile spread across Qin Mu's face. His body swayed unsteadily. Before him, Emperor Haotian regained consciousness, his expression changing drastically. He turned and fled, transforming into a streak of light that shot out of Qin Mu's divine treasury domain.
Qin Mu laughed heartily, but blood sprayed from his mouth, cutting off his laughter.
He sat down grandly beneath the World Tree, with the Guixu Lotus beneath him.
His domain contracted rapidly, but it still spanned a thousand li.
His domain was tattered, full of holes, letting wind through on all sides. The heavenly court gods and demons within had long since fled, leaving corpses strewn across the ground of his domain.
The two Taiji Ancient Gods reorganized their troops and looked back. They saw Qin Mu sitting there motionless, his aura faint, head bowed.
"Is Mu Tianzun dead?"
Taiyin Tianzun's brow twitched. He wanted to approach and check, but didn't dare to rush in. He summoned a hundred or so heavenly court soldiers and shouted: "Go in and see—is he dead or alive!"
Those hundred soldiers were extremely reluctant, but orders were orders. They steeled themselves and walked into Qin Mu's broken domain.
Emperor Haotian had already retreated to the front of the detached palace hall. Seeing this, he stopped and watched from afar.
The hundred soldiers mustered their courage and advanced cautiously. When they were still more than ten li away, they felt Qin Mu's aura growing weaker and weaker, and only then did they relax slightly.
Suddenly, Qin Mu stirred. The hundred soldiers screamed and immediately turned to flee, wailing and crying.
"Retreat three thousand li!" Emperor Haotian turned and left, shouting at the top of his lungs.
The heavenly court armies swept away in retreat, wailing and howling all the way, feeling as though Qin Mu might strike at any moment.
After retreating three thousand li, the various army commanders hurriedly stopped the fleeing soldiers and stabilized their positions. Emperor Haotian climbed to a high vantage point and looked back—Qin Mu was still sitting there, motionless.
—Wishing Yan Zhizhi a happy birthday!
Recommend this book: Wuzhi's new book, "Kryptonite Cultivation to Immortality": A profiteer who transmigrates to a world where cultivation and magic are highly developed! He sells great swords on Taobao and spicy crayfish on Meituan. His slogan is: Kryptonite to become immortal, liver it to the end!