Struggle

The magnificent and resplendent palace was in disarray.

Blood, scattered in patches, stained the ground paved with Kunlun jade.

The divine blood was golden-yellow, shimmering with a faint blue watery light, and had not dried even after several eons.

The Eighteenth Prince of the Tianshui Divine Dynasty stood in the grand hall's plaza, hands behind his back.

Before him stood a colossal divine statue.

The statue wore a crown and a sky-blue ceremonial robe adorned with depictions of rivers flowing.

It exuded an aura of majesty and solemnity.

But after several eons, the mottled spiritual light around it had long since faded.

Now, it resembled a mere stone statue.

What drew the Eighteenth Prince's attention, however, was the divine seal held in the statue's hand.

This divine seal was formed from the essence of the Wei River, with golden seal script characters flickering around it. They were profound and mysterious, shining with a scattered brilliance, as if resonating with the Great Dao of Water Element.

Golden light erupted from the Eighteenth Prince's eyes, and his heart was filled with immense joy.

"I never expected the Wei River Divine Seal to be here."

"Truly, it has come without any effort."

Following his thoughts, with a mere intention, the Eighteenth Prince moved to seize the golden seal and refine the Wei River.

But at that very moment.

A group of cultivators from other realms had entered the great hall.

"Hold on, fellow Daoist."

A deity with a pig's head and a human body, portly and round, spoke to stop him.

"How the spoils from this divine hall are to be distributed, we must have an agreement."

The Eighteenth Prince paid no heed to the deity's words.

Instead, his escape light accelerated.

As he was about to seize the Wei River Golden Seal.

A cold glint flashed in the pig-headed deity's eyes.

"Hmph, refusing a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit."

This deity was also a cultivator of the True One Realm, a Divine Demon.

He hailed from an extremely ancient lineage, but his foundation was low and his background shallow, which was why he had been unable to attain the status of Grand Unity Great Sage for so long.

However, his combat techniques were truly remarkable.

Without any visible movement from him.

A yellow-skinned gourd appeared in the Water Mansion, shimmering with a hazy yellow light.

The Divine Demon formed a hand seal.

The gourd in the air spun.

Instantly, two Earth Dragons formed from Innate Divine Sand let out roars. They then transformed into two earthy-yellow ropes and lunged towards the Eighteenth Prince.

"My Lord, be careful."

An old god from the Tianshui Divine Dynasty exclaimed upon seeing this.

Then, his sleeve flicked.

Two pale blue divine lights intertwined and evolved into a pair of deep blue scissors, radiating a killing aura, and slashed towards the ropes.

Witnessing this scene, the cultivators present all attacked.

Some wielded swords, spears, sabers, and halberds; others used axes, battle-axes, hooks, and forks.

Divine lights flashed, spiritual energy intertwined, and the entire palace trembled amidst the clash of gods.

A moment later.

The situation in the field became clear, with the great hall divided into two factions.

One faction was led by the Eighteenth Prince of the Tianshui Divine Dynasty.

The other faction consisted of rogue cultivators led by three Divine Demons of the True One Realm.

The Tianshui Divine Dynasty had only brought the Eighteenth Prince and that old god, two Divine Demons of the True One Realm.

Seemingly, they were at a disadvantage.

The pale blue divine robe on the Eighteenth Prince had transformed into a radiant divine armor.

He held the Fang Tian Hua Ji Halberd, his face grim as he stared at the rogue cultivators before him, and said coldly:

"My father is the Tianshui Dao Lord of the Tianshui Divine Dynasty."

"He is a powerful being who has attained the Dao Fruit."

"The opportunity in the Wei River was calculated by my father long ago."

"You dare to snatch food from a tiger's mouth, are you not afraid of the retaliation from my Tianshui Divine Dynasty?"

The Eighteenth Prince said, then snorted coldly:

"Moreover, even if you obtain the Water Lord Divine Position, can you walk out of this Wei River?"

"My Tianshui Divine Dynasty has already laid a Heavenly Net and Earthly Net above the Wei River."

"How powerful is an Innate Dao Lord."

"With a single thought, the universe shakes and mountains and rivers shatter."

"Your cultivation journey has not been easy, do you really want to be blinded by greed and have your hundreds of thousands of years of cultivation destroyed in an instant?"

As these words were spoken.

The beings in the field immediately felt fear.

That Tianshui Dao Lord had existed since the Primordial Divine Court era and had attained the status of Innate Dao Lord during the Dragon-Han Calamity.

His formidable reputation spread throughout the Eastern Desolation Divine Dynasty and among countless Divine Demon Tribes.

They truly hadn't expected.

That this Innate Deity was the direct son of an Innate Dao Lord.

The Heavenly Humans and Divine Demons were already in a state of panic and terror.

Compared to them, an Innate Dao Lord was like a dragon to an ant.

Like the Great Sun to a firefly.

How could they dare to harbor any thoughts of resistance.

Compared to the Heavenly Humans and Divine Demons who were hesitant to speak, the three great cultivators in the True One Realm exchanged glances, seeing hesitation in each other's eyes.

This situation was truly troublesome.

Seeing this, the Eighteenth Prince gave a look to the Old God under his command.

The Old God of the Tianshui Imperial Dynasty understood.

He stepped forward and chuckled:

"A misunderstanding."

"It's all a misunderstanding."

He cupped his hands towards the Eighteenth Prince:

"My Lord."

"These fellow Daoists likely did not recognize your identity, hence this dispute."

"This is only natural divine sentiment."

"Ignorance is forgivable, ignorance is forgivable."

The Eighteenth Prince's expression was displeased, and he let out a soft snort, but the killing intent on his face had also dissipated considerably.

The Old God of the Tianshui Imperial Dynasty then cheerfully said to the three great cultivators in the True One Realm:

"Fellow Daoists, you have cultivated for many years, and a slight misstep for the sake of your Dao path and resources is understandable."

"However, the Wei River Divine Seal favors spirits who cultivate the Great Dao of Water Element."

"I observe that none of the Dao paths you cultivate are the Great Dao of Water Element."

"Even if you obtain this Divine Seal, you may not be able to refine and control the Wei River."

"Why offend my Tianshui Imperial Dynasty for this Divine Position?"

Seeing the hesitation in the eyes of the three great cultivators in the True One Realm.

The Old God seized the opportunity:

"Fellow Daoists."

"I have a method here that will not harm your interests and will also maintain harmony between both sides. Would you be willing to hear it?"

The three great cultivators in the True One Realm were now in a difficult position.

Upon hearing this, they suppressed their inner irritation and said in a deep voice:

"Please, Daoist, tell us."

The Old God of the Tianshui Imperial Dynasty cupped his hands and smiled:

"You all entered the Water Mansion of the Wei River this time, at most for cultivation resources."

"And these resources are not lacking in my Tianshui Imperial Dynasty."

The Tianshui Imperial Dynasty lacked resources, or rather, it did not lack them, but it also did.

After all, the Imperial Dynasty's scale is there.

Even though the upper echelons of the Imperial Dynasty could obtain massive resources by exploiting the Dao lineages and tribes within it.

The Imperial Dynasty still had to support the Tianshui Divine Clan, and a vast number of cultivators and Dao Soldiers.

How could it not be short of resources?

The resources consumed by Divine Demon cultivators for their practice were far beyond those of later Immortal Path cultivators.

This was also the reason why the Mystic Gate Immortal Path would flourish in the future, while the Turbid Fiend Divine Demon Dao lineage would gradually decline.

But at this moment, to appease these three True One Realm cultivators, the Old Gods of the Tianshui Imperial Dynasty naturally praised the Tianshui Imperial Dynasty's resource situation without batting an eye.

Finally, he said meaningfully:

"Since ancient times, rogue cultivators have had an incredibly difficult path."

"My Tianshui Imperial Dynasty has an Innate Dao Lord overseeing its Dao lineage."

"Now that the Eighteenth Prince has refined the Wei River Golden Seal, the Grand Unity Great Sage can be anticipated."

"My fellow Daoists have wandered outside for many years; you should know that the Great Dao is paved with many withered bones."

"Instead of this, why not pledge allegiance to my Lord? In the future, we can jointly manage the Wei River and even the Huai River water systems."

"It is not an unpromising path."