Ruins of the Ancient Battlefield, with baleful winds howling.
Tongtian hovered outside the cave. His robes snapped in the gale, but his gaze pierced the clouds for thousands of miles, fixed on the Thirty-Three Heavens, resplendent with auspicious light. Haotian was about to personally lead an expedition to the Guixu, leaving the Heavenly Court short-handed. This was indeed the opportunity he had awaited for a long time. But the more opportune the moment, the more he needed to stay calm. The Heavenly Court had been built up over countless eras; even with its main forces away, its reserves and wards were no ordinary matter.
A direct assault would be the worst option. He had to outwit them.
His thoughts raced, and he settled on a plan in an instant. He needed to accomplish his goal while stirring up confusion and drawing away any eyes that might be watching.
"Wudang."
"Here, Master."
"Set out at once for the Flowing Sand River, at the border between the Western Ox Continent and the Southern Jambudvipa Continent." Tongtian spoke rapidly as he gave his orders. "That's where the Curtain-Rolling General, Sha Wujing, was exiled and punished. It's also a key node in Buddhism's eastward transmission of Auspicious Qi. When you arrive, don't hide your presence. Make a grand show of it. Use this talisman to activate your magic power and imitate my aura, making it seem as if I intend to rescue an old subordinate there. The bigger the commotion, the better. But remember: strike once, then leave. Don't get bogged down in battle. Lead the pursuers west, then immediately escape and return here."
He handed Wudang a specially made jade talisman, sealed with a strand of his pure Chaos Sword Qi and aura. It was enough to pass for the real thing.
Wudang immediately understood that this was a diversion. She solemnly accepted the talisman. "I obey, Master! I won't let you down!" With that, her figure transformed into a sword and tore through space, speeding toward the Flowing Sand River.
Tongtian watched her leave, then turned to Kui Niu. "Old friend, I have a task for you, too. Hurry to the old site of the Heavenly Demon Hall in the Northern Kuru Continent. Some of the Ancient Demon Court's ruined formations remain there. Use this scale to activate them and imitate the disturbance of a Taiyi Realm great demon attacking a pass. Just make it look as if the demon race intends to take advantage of the Heavenly Court's absence. Once you're done, escape at once."
He took out a scale from the Dragon Palace treasury, imbued with the blood essence of an ancient great demon, and handed it to Kui Niu. Kui Niu gave a low growl to show he understood, then stamped the air with his four flaming hooves and soared away.
With both diversions dispatched, Tongtian had to take the most crucial step himself—truly infiltrating the Heavenly Court!
He didn't act immediately. Instead, he sat cross-legged and formed hand seals. The Chaos Bead slowly appeared above his head, trailing streams of dark gray qi.
"Chaos, a thousand faces; ten thousand transformations, without form!" he shouted. His bones crackled as his face and body rapidly changed beneath the veil of Chaos Qi. At last, he had become an ordinary-looking Heavenly Court Divine General in standard silver armor, his expression faintly arrogant. He had taken the appearance of Wang Lingguan, a Heavenly Patrol Division general in charge of patrolling the area outside the South Heaven Gate—a figure he had gleaned from Ksitigarbha's memories. Even his aura and fluctuations of magic power were imitated to perfection!
This wasn't a simple transformation technique. It was a profound divine art that used the Chaos Dao Fruit to recreate the essence of all things. Unless a Saint deliberately investigated him, it would be exceedingly difficult to see through.
Once the transformation was complete, he didn't hurry to the South Heaven Gate. Instead, he forced out a drop of dark golden blood and rapidly inscribed it with his Spiritual Sense. The blood wriggled and changed, eventually becoming a peculiar flying insect no bigger than a grain of rice, almost transparent, with Space Runes naturally etched on its wings.
"Go." Tongtian flicked his finger. The blood insect instantly merged into the void and vanished. He had created it by combining the Chaos Law with the properties of the Nether Soul-Eating Insect. The Void Blood Mite could travel through space with extreme stealth, making it ideal for reconnaissance and transmitting tiny messages.
With everything ready, Tongtian took a deep breath. His figure flickered, and he appeared high in the sky, thousands of miles above the earth. Riding a streak of silver light, he flew toward the towering South Heaven Gate, gleaming with countless golden rays, neither hurried nor slow.
The closer he got to the South Heaven Gate, the more he felt the majesty of the Heavenly Court. Auspicious clouds paved the way, cranes soared through the air, golden-armored warriors stood at attention with swords in hand, and patrols of Heavenly soldiers passed without end. Powerful strands of Spiritual Sense intertwined into a net, covering the surrounding skies. Though the Heavenly Court seemed somewhat busier than usual as its main forces prepared for the expedition to the Guixu, it was orderly and heavily guarded.
Tongtian remained calm, even adopting the particular air of an arrogant Heavenly Patrol Envoy as he rode straight toward the gate.
"Stop! Identify yourself!" King Virupaksha Mo Liqing's voice boomed as he stepped in front of Tongtian, holding a blue-glowing treasured sword. Three of the Four Heavenly Kings were on duty here today—a clear sign of the high alert.
Tongtian halted and produced Wang Lingguan's token. He infused it with a trace of imitated magic power, and the token immediately radiated pure immortal energy and identifying information. In an impatient tone, he said, "Mo Liqing, don't you recognize me, Wang Lingguan? Stand aside. I just returned from patrol, and I have urgent business to report to King Li!"
Mo Liqing carefully inspected the token and sensed the pure aura of a Heavenly Court Divine General. It was undoubtedly Wang Lingguan. Still, out of duty, he asked one more question. "Why have you returned late from your patrol today, General Wang?"
Tongtian had prepared his excuse in advance. He frowned. "Hmph! It's because of that disturbance at the Flowing Sand River in the lower realm! It seemed that demons were gathering there, and the energy fluctuations were strange. I investigated for a while longer and nearly got hurt by a hidden strand of Chaos Sword Qi! Something's amiss. I need to report it at once!" He deliberately mentioned the Flowing Sand River and Chaos Sword Qi, subtly pointing suspicion in that direction.
At the mention of the Flowing Sand River and Chaos Sword Qi, Mo Liqing's expression shifted slightly. He had evidently heard some rumors, and "Wang Lingguan" seemed steady in aura but urgent in tone. It didn't look like a lie, so he stopped doubting him and waved him through. "I see. Thank you for your hard work, General. Go ahead!"
Tongtian gave a cold snort and rode his silver light into the South Heaven Gate without haste.
As soon as he entered, a dense rush of innate spiritual energy swept over him. Before him stretched towering palaces, halls upon halls, and rainbow bridges, an immortal realm of supreme grandeur. Yet Tongtian could keenly sense the countless powerful wards and formations hidden beneath the tranquil façade. Subtle but formidable auras lay dormant in many of the palaces. Clearly, the forces left behind were still not to be underestimated.
He didn't dare let his guard down. Relying on Ksitigarbha's memories of the Heavenly Court's layout and Wang Lingguan's jurisdiction, he flew toward his planned destination: the Record and Registry Department, which oversaw some of the lower-ranking divine officials. It wasn't a core stronghold, so its defenses were relatively lax. It might also give him access to information on the outer reaches of the Investiture of the Gods, making it the ideal first stop for his plan.
But just as he flew over a cluster of palaces wreathed in immortal clouds, a sudden, inexplicable pang seized his heart! An exceedingly subtle yet supreme, cold, indifferent will swept silently across the entire Heavenly Court, like an unseen breeze.
This will was far beyond Haotian's! It was even more ancient and profound than the Saintly Might of Yuanshi and Zhunti that he had felt before, and seemed closer to the Heavenly Dao!
It was Grand Supreme Elder Laozi! Or rather, a strand of the Grand Pure Saint's incarnation—or some other contingency—left behind in the Heavenly Court!
Tongtian's hair stood on end. He instantly pushed the concealment power of the Chaos Dao Fruit to its limits. His imitation of Wang Lingguan's aura was flawless, even the trace of arrogance in his eyes maintained to perfection. His heartbeat and blood flow showed not the slightest irregularity. Like the most precise puppet, he continued flying according to Wang Lingguan's habits, while inwardly waves of shock crashed over him.
Laozi's will seemed to pass over the Heavenly Court as part of a routine check. It didn't linger on him, a "mere divine general," but slowly swept onward toward other places.
Tongtian had just let out half a breath of relief and was about to hurry away when—whoosh! A golden light shot out of a palace below and blocked his path. As it faded, it revealed a venerable-looking Daoist in a Eight Trigrams immortal robe, holding a horsetail whisk. It was Grand Master Xuandu!
Xuandu calmly regarded Tongtian and spoke in a mild voice, revealing no emotion. "General Wang, you seem to be in a hurry. Where are you headed?"
Alarm bells rang in Tongtian's mind! Why had Xuandu suddenly stopped a mere patrol divine general? Was it a coincidence, or had the strand of the Grand Pure Will detected something?
Before you continue