Ascension Imminent, Knocking on the Heavenly Gate

Gu Mo sized up the Nascent Soul Body Wang Qingping before him and said, "No wonder. I was wondering why you were both parasitizing Zhu Zixiong's Sea of Consciousness instead of directly controlling him as a puppet, and instead playing tricks by impersonating Gongsun Jue. Turns out you're willing but unable."

Gu Mo let out a light laugh and asked, "What's wrong? Your Nascent Soul本体 can't move?"

He said this because Gu Mo realized that the Nascent Soul before him was not a complete one, but a split-off Nascent Soul clone. Although it wielded Nascent Soul Power, its Nascent Soul strength was limited.

"As expected of someone who cultivates Mental Secret Methods. You truly are gifted when it comes to understanding Nascent Soul Power. Not only can you discover me, but you can also see my condition."

Wang Qingping floated forward slightly, looking down at Gu Mo, and asked, "Young Person, how did you guess my identity?"

Gu Mo said, "Because your Wang family's bloodline power is very strong. Even after so many generations, the resemblance between you and Wang Dongli is still discernible."

"Then can I not be his Father, his Grandfather?" Wang Qingping asked with Doubt.

Gu Mo shook his head slightly and said, "You carry the aura of the Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art. Although in theory, the Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art can be cultivated to the Ascension Realm, its difficulty is immense. Throughout the generations of the Wang family, apart from the founder, no one has Accomplished much."

"Hmm?" Wang Qingping was slightly taken aback and said, "No, how do you know about the Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art? Wang Dongli never told you that our Wang family's inherited martial art was originally called the Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art!"

Gu Mo was also stunned and said, "How do you know Wang Dongli didn't tell me? Do you have a clone on Wang Dongli? Impossible. If you had a clone on Wang Dongli, I wouldn't have been unable to detect it..."

As he spoke, Gu Mo recalled Wang Dongli's mention that morning about being plagued by multiple dreams. Suddenly, he thought of something and said, "The Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art inherited by your Wang family, you tampered with it, didn't you? The Wang family's curse isn't the bloodline, it's the martial art!"

Wang Qingping looked at Gu Mo and said, "As expected, everyone who can become Number One Under Heaven in an era is extraordinary. How about this, Young Person, you and I have no past grievances and no recent enmity. I also don't wish to make an enemy of a genius with such boundless potential as yourself. Let's let today's matter end here, how about it?"

Gu Mo shook his head slightly and said, "Do you think you're qualified to negotiate terms with me?"

Wang Qingping let out a light laugh and said, "Young Person, you don't know the immensity of heaven and earth. I don't want to make a move against you simply because I don't want to stir up more trouble. Do you really think I'm afraid of you? Even if I'm just a clone, I'm still an Ascension Realm cultivator. Your Mental Secret Method is good, barely able to touch Nascent Soul Power, but that's all. You..."

Slap

Gu Mo raised his hand and slapped Wang Qingping across the face.

He sent Wang Qingping flying directly, causing his entire Nascent Soul Body to tremble.

Wang Qingping's words stopped abruptly, his face filled with bewildered confusion. "You... hit me with your hand? No, you just hit me with your hand? No, you..."

Just then, Gu Mo took a step forward, reached out, and directly grabbed Wang Qingping by the neck.

The smile on Wang Qingping's face instantly changed, replaced by sheer Terror.

In that moment, he snapped out of his daze and truly confirmed that Gu Mo had hit him with his hand, and now he was choking him with his hand.

"Physical Body... How is that possible..."

In that instant, Gu Mo performed the Dao Heart Seed Demon Great Technique, using his Spiritual Power to envelop Wang Qingping. Demonic Energy, like threads, pierced into Wang Qingping's Nascent Soul, causing a strange disturbance.

A short while later, Wang Qingping's eyes became vacant.

Gu Mo slowly asked, "Who are you?"

"Wang Qingping."

Gu Mo inquired, "What exactly is the Wang family's curse?"

Wang Qingping replied, "The Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art that the Wang family currently inherits was created by me specifically to seek longevity and avoid inner demons. I inscribed the Wang family's Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art onto a stone tablet, imbuing it with my Nascent Soul Power.

For cultivators to practice the Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art, they must observe the stone tablet. Once they observe it, they will be invaded by my Nascent Soul Power. Because the Wang family are descendants of the Peacock Spirit Race, their bloodline contains Spiritual Energy. No matter how many generations pass, the Spiritual Energy remains the same and does not change. My Nascent Soul Power can be passed down through generations and fully integrate, showing no discernible difference.

Over time, my Nascent Soul will completely replace the cultivator, and they will become my Nascent Soul clone. The Spiritual Energy in the Wang family bloodline can also convert physical strength into Nascent Soul Power. The clone can continuously grow stronger to feed back into the original Nascent Soul, maintaining the original body's longevity.

In theory, as long as the Wang family line continues, I can live forever."

Gu Mo let out a light laugh.

Wang Qingping's theory actually had flaws. Firstly, the Peacock Spiritual Energy of the Wang family would surely weaken with each generation, and the Nascent Soul Power would also become weaker. Secondly, due to bloodline issues, the Wang family only had one heir per generation. If any of them died prematurely or were unable to cultivate for some reason, there would be no Nascent Soul Power to offer.

However, Gu Mo found the whole thing rather twisted. He said, "According to you, your son is you, your grandson is you, and your great-grandson is also you..."

Wang Qingping stated, "The first half of their lives, they are themselves. The latter half, they are me."

Gu Mo said, "The people of the Wang family, throughout the generations, become mentally unsound and eventually die from the collapse of their vital energy. This isn't because of the Peacock Spiritual Energy, but because their Nascent Soul gradually becomes you. This process gradually erodes their original consciousness, which is why they become mentally unsound and fall into madness. Afterward, you absorb their vital energy to death for your Nascent Soul Power."

"Yes," Wang Qingping replied.

"Specifically, why did you do this?" Gu Mo asked.

Wang Qingping explained, "Because of inner demons. Over 160 years ago, I reached the Half-step Ascension Realm. While preparing for ascension, I personally witnessed a cultivator who had ascended before me being devoured by inner demons at the gate of heaven.

I was terrified at the time, so I consulted many classics, but found no way to deal with inner demons. I dared not ascend. However, I was already very old then. If I didn't ascend, I could only wait for death.

I was filled with fear. I didn't want to die, but ascending meant certain death. In my panic, I accidentally discovered that my Nascent Soul Power could fuse with my son's Nascent Soul. At that Moment, I found a way to survive.

I modified the Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art, renamed it the Nurturing Spirit Art, and tampered with it. The deeper one cultivates, the closer their Nascent Soul Power becomes to mine, until the cultivator's Nascent Soul completely becomes my clone.

So, I went to the Far North Land to find a piece of Ten Thousand Year Cold Ice, then I triggered a flood, creating a place where Earth Veins converged. I then set up a formation, using that Ten Thousand Year Cold Ice as a conduit, and sealed my physical body and original Nascent Soul within it.

I then controlled the clones, and every few years, I would feed the stored Nascent Soul Power back to my original body, keeping myself in the Half-step Ascension Realm in an Undying and Unperishing state. I am waiting. I believe that one day I will be able to wait for the inner demons to leave, or for a way to ascend."

Gu Mo understood why Wang Qingping, as the president of the Heavenly God Society, was classified as a six-star fugitive the moment he was wanted. This guy had caused floods and altered the terrain, setting up formations back then. Who knew how many people he had killed.

Then, Gu Mo asked again, "What are you doing controlling the Heavenly God Society?"

Wang Qingping replied, "Because the earth vein power of my main body in the Frozen Land is almost depleted, I need to create a new place for earth vein power to gather. Setting up a magic formation requires a large amount of energy.

My original plan was to have Wang Dongli control the Yun Province Martial World and gather the strength of the Yun Province Martial World to collect various energy Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures. Therefore, I began to guide Wang Dongli to use Nascent Soul Power, and even disguised it as bloodline spiritual energy to teach him ultimate skills, making his martial arts improve by leaps and bounds.

However, at this time, I met Zhu Zixiong. A flash of inspiration struck me, and I thought of a shortcut. I could use the characteristics of the Taotie Divine Skill to absorb enough internal energy as the energy needed to set up the magic formation, which would be much faster than having Wang Dongli become the Martial Arts Alliance Leader.

Coincidentally, I had seen and learned the Taotie Divine Skill on Penglai Island before. So, I used Zhu Zixiong's loyalty to Gongsun Jue to trick him into working for me and creating the Heavenly God Society.

To avoid detection, I had the Heavenly God Society hide in the shadows, instigating conflicts and stirring up trouble everywhere. Then, they would absorb internal energy amidst the chaos, and the disputes would provide good cover.

It's just that I never expected my inner demon to suddenly disappear. Inner demons have tampered with the minds of cultivators with profound cultivation, and I am no exception. But now, it's gone.

I know my chance has come. I don't know when the inner demon will return, so I must seize this opportunity to ascend. Thus, I instructed the Heavenly God Society to do Everything Possible to throw Yun Province into chaos and absorb enough internal energy amidst the turmoil."

Gu Mo asked doubtfully, "Since you are about to ascend, it means you no longer need the earth vein power to seal you, nor do you need so much internal energy to set up the magic formation. Why do you still need the Heavenly God Society to absorb internal energy everywhere?"

"I need it even more," Wang Qingping said. "Now that I am about to ascend, I must break through from the Half-step Ascension Realm to the Ascension Realm. I need to leverage external forces, so I need a grand formation. However, before, I needed the earth vein power to seal me and ensure my survival. Now, I need to borrow the great momentum of heaven and earth to help me make a concerted effort and directly enter the Ascension Realm.

At this moment, not even a trace of power is too little. Therefore, I accelerated the fusion of Wang Dongli's Nascent Soul. Originally, like his father, it took me several years to completely fuse his Nascent Soul. Now, I plan to completely fuse Wang Dongli in about ten days to half a month.

I just didn't expect the Heavenly God Society to make such a big oversight in handling affairs. They actually tried to kill Wang Dongli, which exposed them and forced me to directly let the Heavenly God Society operate openly and absorb internal energy on a large scale.

However, it doesn't matter. If it's exposed, it's exposed. The energy required for ascension has been prepared almost completely, and I can ascend soon."

Gu Mo asked, "Many Weapon Forging Masters have gone missing in Yunzhou City recently. Was it you?"

"Yes," Wang Qingping replied. "Because I am about to ascend, the original magic formation that gathered earth vein power has been changed to the Flying Heaven Grand Formation. It requires the fastest speed to forge some new Formation Disks and Formation Eye Pestles. These things require extreme precision, so the top-tier Weapon Forging Masters are necessary."

Gu Mo hurriedly asked, "Are the people still alive?"

Wang Qingping nodded. "They are alive. I control them all with my Nascent Soul Power. They are honestly working for me, so they are naturally all alive. Whether they live or die has no impact on me, so there's no need to deliberately kill them."

Gu Mo asked, "Where is your main body now?"

"Under Tiansheng Lake," Wang Qingping answered.

"Tiansheng Lake?"

Gu Mo was slightly stunned. This lake was the large lake directly beneath the burial site of Old Master Wang.

A couple of days ago, Gu Mo and Du Sha went to pay their respects, and they were discussing how it was a geomantically auspicious place. However, that lake was formed by a great flood that occurred over a hundred years ago. The imperial court spent a huge price to dam that lake and named it Tiansheng Lake.

Gu Mo suddenly realized and said, "So, Old Master Wang's tomb was deliberately chosen there."

Wang Qingping nodded. "A few years ago, I began preparing a new place for earth veins to gather. I pretended to have recovered my spirits and built a tomb there. In reality, I was secretly controlling puppets to move the materials of the original magic formation out from inside, preparing to move my main body away once the new magic formation was completed.

As it turned out, it was all for nothing. The things that were moved out were secretly moved back. Now, my Flying Heaven Grand Formation is located beneath Tiansheng Lake."

Gu Mo asked again, "Are you from the Peacock Spirit Race? Why did you come to Gan Country?"

Wang Qingping said, "I am from the Peacock Spirit Race, from the Kong Clan in Changping Commandery, Yong Country. We are the Peacock Spirit Race, generations of whom have worshipped the Seven-Colored Peacock. We have always lived in seclusion in the mountains and wilds. However, about two hundred years ago, the Emperor of Yong Country learned of the Kong Clan's unique bloodline talent and became greedy. He massacred us extensively, and the Kong Clan was destroyed.

I don't know how many people escaped that year. I went back later, but by then, Yong Country had already been destroyed. I only managed to slaughter some of the Yong Country royal descendants to vent my anger, but I didn't get any news about the Kong Clan."

Gu Mo asked doubtfully, "Don't you worship the Seven-Colored Peacock? When the Kong Clan suffered the catastrophe of extermination, didn't the Seven-Colored Peacock shelter you?"

Wang Qingping said, "According to the family tree records, more than five hundred years ago, the Seven-Colored Peacock suffered an encirclement and suppression and was severely injured. It then left the mortal world and returned to the Divine Mountain to recuperate. It has not appeared since."

"Where is the Divine Mountain?" Gu Mo asked.

Wang Qingping said, "I don't know. Only the successive clan leaders know the location of the Divine Mountain. I wasn't the clan leader back then, so I had no right to know."

Gu Mo nodded slightly.

He had understood what he wanted to know.

Immediately, he stopped his cultivation.

The next moment, Wang Qingping's clone woke up from its puppet state. He looked at Gu Mo, his heart filled with panic.

Although Gu Mo had controlled his consciousness just now, he remembered everything he had done and said. He knew he had been controlled by Gu Mo.

However, after the panic, the next moment, he calmed down and said, "Good, good, good. A truly Number One Under Heaven. You live up to your name. No wonder you are so fearless. So you have already reached the Half-step Ascension Realm."

Gu Mo was speechless. "Can't you guess bigger?"

Wang Qingping sneered, "What, you want to tell me you've reached the Ascension Realm? If you had reached the Ascension Realm, could you still be here with your physical body? The Ascension Realm is uncontrollable; you will inevitably ascend to the Heavenly Gate. Young Person, you can't fool me with this."

Gu Mo: "..."

Wang Qingping continued, "However, it's a pity, young person. There's something you might not know. Just as you came to intercept Zhu Zixiong and revealed yourself, I knew that Zhu Zixiong probably wouldn't be able to send his internal energy over in time.

Although my main body isn't lacking this bit now and can ascend anytime, your appearance is annoying. So, to make up for it, my main body has forcibly controlled Wang Dongli to go on a killing spree in the Dongli Sect. The first targets are your younger sister and that maidservant of yours. It is said that both of them are Grandmasters and must have a lot of internal energy. By now, they have probably been drained to death."

Wang Qingping showed a smile and looked at Gu Mo, saying, "Do you regret it? Does it hurt? This is the price of your ignorance and meddling. Hahahaha!"

Gu Mo looked at the proud and arrogant Wang Qingping and pondered for a moment, saying, "Perhaps, it is your clone that is in pain now."

Wang Qingping frowned and said, "What do you mean?"

Gu Mo chuckled and said, "Before my maidservant became my slave, she had another identity. That identity was..." As he spoke, Gu Mo took a step forward and leaned close to Wang Qingping's ear, saying, "The Great Island Master of Penglai Island."

Wang Qingping's pupils suddenly widened.

Gu Mo added, "Also, do you know why the Inner Demon disappeared?"

"Why... why?"

"Killed by me."

Wang Qingping trembled all over, his eyes filled with disbelief and terror.

Gu Mo gently pressed a palm forward, pressing it against Wang Qingping's chest.

In an instant, Wang Qingping's figure shattered and disappeared into a wisp of mist.

Then, Gu Mo walked over to the unconscious Zhu Zixiong, woke him up, and after clarifying the specific information about the remnants practicing the Taotie Divine Skill, he slapped him to death.

[Killed Five Star Wanted Criminal]

[Received Five Star Reward - Max Level Divine Blade Slash]

[Receive?]

After receiving the Divine Blade Slash, Gu Mo took a step forward, and his figure instantly disappeared.

Inside the Dongli Sect, the afternoon sun lazily spilled into the courtyard.

Gu Chundong was sitting at a stone table with Hongyi, talking softly.

"Sister Hongyi, can you ascend?" Gu Chundong asked.

Hongyi held a teacup with her fair hand, her expression calm. "I can, but according to the Lord's martial arts theory, both the physical body and the nascent soul need to ascend, and the order is physical body first, then nascent soul. Therefore, I need to wait for my physical body to ascend before my nascent soul can ascend."

Gu Chundong asked in surprise, "Sister Hongyi, can your physical body also cultivate?"

Hongyi said, "Yes, in fact, I'm not much different from a person. My physical body is also a real person's physical body, and it came out of my mother's womb. My nascent soul was also generated by simulating a person's nascent soul. The only difference is that I lack emotions.

This is the biggest drawback of White Jade Capital. The reason why a sufficiently perfect human body has not appeared is because emotions have not been generated."

Gu Chundong asked curiously, "What would happen if emotions were generated?"

"Then you would be a real person," Hongyi said.

Gu Chundong: "..."

"Sister Hongyi, you said you're not much different from a person, so can you have children?"

Hongyi: "??"

Gu Chundong grinned and said, "It's just doing the deed, and then having a baby. Can you do it?"

"Yes."

"Really?" Gu Chundong asked excitedly, "Then does the baby you have have emotions?"

"This... I can't answer that!"

Gu Chundong scratched her little head and was about to speak again, Just then, A figure suddenly appeared at the courtyard entrance. It was Wang Dongli.

Gu Chundong got up and walked over, asking, "Sect Leader Wang, what is it?" As she spoke, her brow furrowed slightly, and she asked in doubt, "Why did you take out those silver needles from your head? They were to help you control your emotions..."

Gu Chundong's words stopped abruptly, because she clearly saw that the smile on Wang Dongli's face was not the blankness of someone out of their mind, but a cold, sinister smile filled with intense malice.

That smile made Gu Chundong's hair stand on end.

"Sect Leader Wang?" she asked warily, standing up and stepping back.

Wang Dongli remained silent, his eyes flashing with even more sinister light. His figure suddenly erupted like a ghost, his five fingers forming claws, accompanied by a sharp sound of breaking air, and lunged straight for Gu Chundong's throat.

The speed was astonishing. Where the claw wind passed, the air itself let out a shriek.

However, Gu Chundong reacted extremely quickly. Her movements were like the wind. With a tap of her foot, she instantly retreated, dodging the fatal claw. Her figure floated back, her eyes filled with doubt and surprise: "Sect Leader Wang, this is reality, not a dream. Control your emotions!"

Hongyi had already flashed in front of Gu Chundong, her gaze sharp as a knife, locking onto Wang Dongli. She said, "Something's wrong. This doesn't seem like just being irritable or out of your mind... It's like you're being controlled!"

"Heh heh..." Wang Dongli let out a grating, strange laugh. His voice was hoarse and distorted, completely unlike his own. "If you want to blame someone, blame your brother Gu Mo for meddling and angering me!"

Before his words fell, Wang Dongli's aura suddenly surged. A terrifying suction force erupted from him as the center!

Taotie Divine Skill.

In an instant, the wind and clouds changed color in the courtyard.

Gales rose from the ground, kicking up dust and falling leaves. The flowers, plants, and trees in the courtyard withered and died at a visible rate. The stone tables and benches trembled violently, as if they were about to be torn apart by an invisible force.

A huge, greedy, black hole-like power, capable of devouring everything, firmly locked onto Hongyi and Gu Chundong, intending to forcibly extract their essence, qi, and spirit, their internal energy, and even the source of their life.

"Meddling always comes with a price. I will ascend today and wait for Gu Mo in the heavenly realm."

As soon as the words fell, Wang Dongli increased his cultivation. Instantly, the domain enveloped them, and the majestic devouring power surged and rolled.

However, Red Clothes and Gu Chundong's robes fluttered, but their bodies remained motionless.

Wang Dongli's expression froze, replaced by doubt: "Why can't I absorb it?"

Just then, Red Clothes took a step forward, her figure seemingly ignoring the distance of space, instantly appearing less than three feet in front of Wang Dongli.

She lightly raised her delicate hand, seemingly casual, yet containing an indescribable, unstoppable, majestic power. She lightly pointed towards Wang Dongli's center of forehead, and immediately let out a soft "Yi," saying, "Body Seizing? Nascent Soul?"

Wang Dongli was slightly startled. He clearly hadn't expected this woman to see through his existence at a glance. He immediately realized he might have encountered a tough opponent and prepared to make a move.

But Red Clothes was faster. She turned her finger into a palm and struck down.

A dull, soft sound, like a bubble being popped.

"Bang--!"

Wang Dongli flew backward, but at the same time, a semi-transparent, flickering Nascent Soul phantom flew out from the depths of Wang Dongli's Sea of Consciousness!

The Nascent Soul phantom was now filled with shock and horror.

This was also the Nascent Soul clone of Wang Qingping, who had already fused more than half of Wang Dongli's Nascent Soul. At this moment, it was forcibly stripped out from Wang Dongli's Nascent Soul by Red Clothes.

Wang Dongli's eyes were filled with horror.

Although he couldn't figure out why Gu Mo's maid possessed such powerful Nascent Soul Power, his reaction was swift. Without any hesitation, he transformed into a dim streamer of light and was about to tear through space to escape, his speed as swift as a startled swan.

"Trying to run?"

Gu Chundong snorted coldly, carrying a chilling killing intent.

The moment Wang Qingping's Nascent Soul escaped, the Gouchen Demon Blade she had been tightly gripping was slashed out.

Zheng--!

The blade's hum wasn't loud, but it carried a soul-tearing sharpness, like the death knell from the Nine Netherworld Hell!

Blade light flashed!

This was no ordinary blade light, but a blood-red moon wheel condensed to the extreme, as if formed from the deepest despair and pure demonic energy!

Where the blade light passed, space let out groans of being unable to bear the burden. Light was distorted and swallowed. All colors in the courtyard instantly faded, leaving only heart-pounding dark red and deathly still black.

Dozens of demonic shadows seemed to appear between heaven and earth, and it was as if the entire world was controlled by demonic energy.

The world lost color, and all things fell silent!

The Demonic Blade emerged, shocking gods and ghosts alike!

This is the Demonic Blade.

Gu Chundong forged this Demonic Blade with the world's purest Demonic Stone Origin Qi as its foundation, with Gu Mo's help.

At this moment, Gu Chundong's figure merged with the blade light, transforming into a blood-red ribbon that tore through the Sky Dome. Striking from behind, it precisely sliced towards the fleeing Nascent Soul phantom!

Wang Qingping's Nascent Soul felt a fatal threat, letting out a terrifying shriek as he desperately burned his Nascent Soul Power to resist.

But, facing Gu Chundong's strike, which poured all her Essence, Qi, and Spirit into pushing the Demonic Blade's intent to its absolute limit, his struggle appeared so pale and powerless.

"Dē--!"

The piercing roar abruptly ceased.

The blood-red blade light, like cutting through the most fragile glass, passed through the middle of the Nascent Soul phantom without obstruction.

Screech!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a faint sound like tearing silk.

The Nascent Soul phantom, representing a wisp of Wang Qingping's clone, was like thin ice thrown into the scorching sun. The moment it touched the terrifying blade intent condensed to its extreme, it silently shattered, disintegrated, and annihilated!

Specks of dim Nascent Soul light scattered, then were thoroughly shredded and devoured by the still-lingering blood-red blade intent, turning into the most primitive void, leaving not even a trace behind.

In the courtyard, the violent suction disappeared, and the distorted space returned to calm. However, the suffocating deathly stillness and the afterimage of the dark red blade light seemed branded into the air, lingering for a long time.

Wang Dongli's Physical Body lost its support and collapsed softly onto the ground, unconscious.

Gu Chundong retracted her blade and stood, the Blade Tip pointing diagonally at the ground. (She) panted slightly, (her) small face a little pale, but (her) eyes were filled with shock as (she) said, "Hongyi Jie, I can really kill a Nascent Soul!"

Hongyi stood beside her, looking at the dissipating Nascent Soul light spots with a calm expression. (She) said, "It's not surprising. The blade technique the Master passed down to you is the most demonic blade in the world. The demonic energy it generates is already a substance of the same level as the Ascension Realm. Moreover, your demonic energy was forged with Demonic Stone Origin Qi as its foundation. Although you haven't reached the Ascension Realm, the power you wield is on the same level as a Nascent Soul."

Gu Chundong grinned.

Just then, Gu Mo descended from the sky.

(He) sensed the demonic energy and Nascent Soul Power lingering in the air and said, "It seems you two killed Wang Qingping's clone."

Gu Chundong hurriedly asked, "Ge, what exactly is going on? Why was there a Nascent Soul in Sect Leader Wang's Sea of Consciousness? We didn't notice it before."

Gu Mo said, "The reason you couldn't detect it is because this Nascent Soul was originally Wang Dongli's own..."

Immediately, Gu Mo briefly recounted how he captured Wang Qingping's Nascent Soul clone.

"The Wang family's curse doesn't come from Peacock Spiritual Energy, but from the Three Flowers Gathering Spirit Art, from their ancestor Wang Qingping," Gu Mo said.

Gu Chundong was shocked after hearing this, "He... is that perverted? His son is him, his grandson is him, and his great-grandson is also him..."

Gu Mo nodded slightly, "I also think it's perverted, but right now, we need to rush to Tiansheng Lake to save Tie Tou."

Hongyi suddenly said, "Master, there was also something I saw in my hexagram reading."

Gu Mo raised an eyebrow, "Are you talking about... the flood?"

Hongyi nodded, "You killed one of Wang Qingping's clones, and Miss Chundong just killed one too. You severed the connection between the clone and the main body, so Wang Qingping's main body doesn't know what happened. But we didn't sever the connection, so he's very clear about it.

Therefore, Wang Qingping definitely knows we have the ability to stop him, so he will definitely activate the Flying Heaven Grand Formation to ascend in advance. And if my prediction is correct, what he calls borrowing the power of heaven and earth is to imitate the legendary Flood Dragon Transforming into Dragon, borrowing the power of rivers to ascend. That's why I saw a flood in the hexagram reading."

Gu Mo frowned. Tiansheng Lake connects to several major rivers. If the dikes were breached, the resulting flood could inundate the entire Qingyang City in a very short time.

"Let's go, to Tiansheng Lake!"

Immediately, Gu Mo didn't even bother with Wang Dongli, who was lying on the ground, and turned into a streamer of light, rushing towards Tiansheng Lake.

At this moment, At the bottom of Tiansheng Lake, beneath the surging lake water, there is an underground palace, a strange space made of extremely cold profound ice. The entire underground palace is filled with visible white ice mist, surging like an invisible ice storm roaring silently between the dome and the four walls.

At the core of the underground palace is a formation so huge it causes palpitations.

This formation is not carved on the ground but floats in mid-air, composed of countless incredibly precise formation disks and energy crystals emitting different glows.

Dozens of people are constantly inspecting the formation. Among them is Tie Tou, whom Gu Mo is looking for, meticulously checking the operation of the formation.

Countless energy beams shoot out from the formation disks, intertwining in the air to form a huge and intricate light net, which finally converges at the core in the center of the formation--

There, it is not a Formation Eye Pestle, but a piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Ice Jade Stone, as large as a small hill, completely transparent!

The cold ice jade stone emits an eternal, extreme coldness. Its interior is not completely transparent but contains a deep Ice-Blue Radiance, like a frozen galaxy. Within this massive ice crystal core, a human figure is clearly sealed.

It is Wang Qingping's main body.

He is not sitting cross-legged but floats in the center of the ice crystal in a near-sleeping state. He is wearing an ancient, uniquely styled Green Robe, his sleeves seemingly frozen in time, unmoving.

His face does not appear old but retains the features of a middle-aged man. Beneath this deathly still shell, a majestic Nascent Soul fluctuation that makes the soul tremble is tightly connected to the roaring Ascension Grand Formation outside through the ice crystal.

On his ice-sealed face, his eyelids, which have been closed for who knows how many years, suddenly tremble slightly. In a daze, he abruptly Opens Eyes.

"How unlucky."

Wang Qingping pondered, "I thought Gu Mo was just powerful due to his profound cultivation and used mental secret methods to deal with that clone. Now it seems that's not the case. His maid and younger sister both possess such strong power. This Gu Mo is definitely not simple, he must also be Half-step Ascension Realm. I've been dormant for many years, and if they join forces, I might not be a match for them. I should have stopped earlier instead of being greedy for that last bit of energy."

At this moment, the cold ice rapidly melts.

Wang Qingping floats out from within, looks at the operating Flying Heaven Grand Formation, and lets out a light laugh, "It doesn't matter. Now that there are no inner demons blocking my path, once I ascend, I will immediately Knock on the Heavenly Gate. Once inside the Heavenly Gate, Gu Mo and the like won't be able to affect me!

Heavenly Gate, Heavenly Gate, it's been over 160 years.

Today, I, Wang Qingping, will Knock on the Heavenly Gate!"