This was one of the two Supreme Dao powers in the Northern Region of the Eastern Wilderness, the Jade Lake Sacred Land founded by the Queen Mother of the West. Its fame was immense, spreading not only throughout the Eastern Wasteland, but also to the Central Province and the Western Desert. It was regarded as the sacred land with the most immortal air, and all its women were blessed with the spiritual wisdom of heaven and earth.
Today, the bells of Jade Lake's Heavenly Palace rang nine times. All of Jade Lake Sacred Land's Great Powers stood before the Heavenly Gate, and even the sacred land's Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon, the Immortal Tear Green Gold Pagoda, briefly awakened, letting down strands of immortal light.
In the Heavenly Palace's main hall, white mist surged across the floor, rising past people's knees. Jade tables were laden with immortal wine and jade nectar, but none of the hosts touched them. All the serving women waited solemnly.
Surrounded by a crowd of female cultivators, the Queen Mother of the West appeared at the entrance to the hall. Her dark hair was like a cloud, with a small silver hairpin tucked into its black strands. She wore an immortal-spirit brocade robe woven with strands of jade. Holy and dignified as a divine lotus, she possessed peerless grace and an unmatched jade countenance.
Looking somewhat reserved, she bowed slightly toward the space beyond the Heavenly Palace. "Greetings, Saint."
The other female cultivators called out in unison, "Greetings, Saint!"
A powerful being flew over from not far away. Treading on clouds and mist, he came to the Heavenly Gate.
This humanoid primordial creature stood over three meters tall. Fine silver scales covered his entire body, their luster flowing, and his face was no different. He had three pairs of broad silver wings, giving him a distinctive beauty. Clad in golden battle armor, with silver hair cascading like a waterfall, he had two jade horns growing from his head. They curved like horned dragons, were over a foot long, and shone with crystalline clarity.
"Human Clan, return the deity's offspring at once, or bear the consequences. Our clan's Ancient Emperor Weapon is already aimed at the Jade Lake Sacred Land!" the primordial being said coldly. He ignored the many elders outright, fixing a fierce gaze on the Queen Mother of the West.
He spoke in the Primordial Divine Language. Many of the elders and Great Powers could not understand him, but the expressions of the Queen Mother of the West and several aged women changed slightly.
"Jade Lake has no descendant of a god. You have come to the wrong place," an aged elder of Jade Lake replied in the Primordial Divine Language.
Unexpectedly, the primordial creature disdained even to speak with her. He looked past her and stared fixedly at the Queen Mother of the West.
One of Jade Lake's grand elders was somewhat furious. The one they respected was that Saint, yet this envoy was so rude!
Before she could speak, the Queen Mother of the West began to address him in a grave voice.
"Envoy, there is no deity's offspring in Jade Lake. Even if a Saint comes to demand an accounting, there must be grounds for it. I hope the Saint will see the truth."
The primordial creature's expression changed slightly upon hearing this. His scarlet eyes turned lecherously toward the Jade Lake Holy Maiden beside him, and he withdrew his gaze when he saw her hide behind an elder.
Secure in his backing, he said, "Lies! The scent of the deity's offspring is right here in Jade Lake, along with our clan's treasures. All were stolen by your Human Clan's Source Heavenly Masters. As the master of a Supreme Dao power, I believe you should know what a Great Saint represents!"
Having issued his threats, the primordial creature fell silent and looked at the people of Jade Lake with a hostile gaze.
Outside Jade Lake's pure land, layers of clouds and mist churned incessantly, and the void continually collapsed. Purple clouds, gray haze, and white water vapor joined together, with seven-colored light flickering within.
At the center of the heavy clouds stood an imposing man whose face was concealed by purple light. Radiance shone from him for ten thousand zhang, making it impossible to look directly at him.
Strands of chaotic mist curled around the heroic-looking man's face, making it difficult to see him clearly, but there was no doubt that he was a Primordial King!
More terrifying still, a trace of Supreme Dao imperial might faintly emanated from the man, drawing resistance from the Immortal Tear Green Gold Pagoda. Countless immortal-spirit carvings appeared on the Western Emperor Pagoda, and a scene of an immortal spirit shedding tears could faintly be seen.
The two weapons at the Supreme Dao level began to draw upon each other, and both began to awaken.
Seeing Jade Lake's Emperor Weapon awaken, the primordial creature outside the Heavenly Palace suddenly grew furious. The six divine wings on his back began to spread, seemingly capable of slicing through space. Some female cultivators below the Immortal Platform Secret Realm had their very souls seized by his pressure.
"Queen Mother of the West, are you provoking our clan's Great Saint? Even if you also possess an Extreme Dao Weapon, our clan's Great Saint Ancestor King still lives, while your Jade Lake doesn't have even a single Saint. Do you want rivers of blood to flow through Jade Lake? Return the deity's offspring and our clan's treasures at once!"
This time he spoke the human tongue. His words were fierce, their threat unmistakable, and in a sense he was being outrageously overbearing. Yet no one dared contradict him again, and a deathly silence fell over the scene.
The elders who had been angry before all lowered their banners and stilled their drums. Their faces were pale, and they were shaken by that Supreme Dao Might.
This primordial creature was none other than Su Yu in disguise.
He had seen the true ancient clans in Purple Mountain and had devoured several of their members with the Great Dao Treasure Vase. His impersonation of an ancient clansman was convincing enough to pass the false off as genuine.
The one backing him was at the peak of the Ninth Heaven of the Saint King Realm, a Heavenly King-level expert. Rounding up, who would dare object if he called her a Great Saint? The group of Immortal Platform Second Heaven Great Powers opposite him had never even seen a Saint. How could they tell the difference?
Faced with a powerful enemy at her gates, the Queen Mother of the West knitted her brows tightly. After several breaths, the beautiful woman sighed helplessly and spoke for a moment with a grand elder beside her.
Soon, nine Jade Lake female cultivators carefully escorted several stone kings out. Two grand elders received the stones at the side, but did not hand them to Su Yu. Instead, they waited for the Queen Mother of the West's command.
Of the stone kings, one was the strangest. It shone with a dazzling array of colors and gave off powerful fluctuations of life.
The moment Su Yu saw the stone, a powerful desire surged up in his heart. He gazed at it with burning eyes while calling out, "Great descendant of the Undying Heavenly Emperor, offspring of a primordial deity, we have come to welcome Your Highness home."
Though his appearance and words were utterly devout, Su Yu's heart was already filled with a succession of cravings. The desire and impulse were almost the strongest he had ever felt in his life, second only to how he had felt when reclaiming the body of the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar.
Su Yu had originally intended only to seize it by force and carry off the Heavenly Emperor's Son. But with the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar made whole and a complete Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon in his hands, desire rose in his heart.
He wanted every last one of the rare treasures the five generations of Source Heavenly Masters had left Jade Lake!
After sensing his malice, the stone sent ten thousand rays of auspicious light soaring into the sky. The imprints of its racial inheritance were projected into the void, a display of mystery and splendor that even formed a Dao diagram in the sky.
"Buzz!" The strange stone trembled violently and shot out nine rays of divine light. The imprints on the divine egg within the stone came to life, all of them appearing in the void and emitting terrifying fluctuations.
"Boom!"
A mysterious presence spread out of Jade Lake. Its light pierced the heavens and could be seen in every direction. If not for the Immortal Tear Pagoda suppressing it, it would most likely have pierced the firmament.
The Divine Silkworm Princess, disguised as the heroic-looking man in the clouds, saw what was happening and recalled the information Su Yu had entrusted to her.
She unleashed the full force of her divine power, completely awakening the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar. Supreme imperial might swept over everyone, blotting out the heavens and covering the earth. Ten chains of dark light also emerged from her body, sealing off this stretch of heaven and earth.
The Immortal Tear Green Gold Pagoda, which had been locked in a struggle with the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar, was also suppressed by the fully awakened Supreme Dao divine power.
The presence that had spread out of Jade Lake was devoured by the chains of dark light, vanishing amid a blaze of purple.
Chapter 42: Plundering the stone kings and welcoming the Heavenly Emperor's Son home (Extra chapter for Holo Holo He!)
"What else do you have to say? If this weren't our clan's prince, how could there be such fluctuations?" Su Yu shouted, seizing the initiative and growing even more overbearing.
Under the deterrence of that imperial might, unchanged through the ages, the Jade Lake Heavenly Palace fell deathly silent. This was an Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon awakened to a profound degree, an unparalleled and terrifying thing. It was entirely different from one in the hands of a Great Power. A single strike from the former was enough to level an entire region and destroy a major sect.
The Jade Lake cultivators fell silent one after another. Then, quite a few elders began to urge the Queen Mother of the West.
"Queen Mother, why not return the stone king? It was their divine object to begin with."
"They have a Great Saint, and an Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon in hand as well. How could Jade Lake possibly withstand them?"
The Queen Mother of the West gave a faint sigh and looked somewhat helplessly at the elders. Her beautiful eyes closed in weariness, revealing the distinctive mature charm of a beautiful woman.
In the end, this honored figure waved her hand, signaling the two grand elders to hand the stone kings to Su Yu.
The other side's Great Saint had come menacingly with an Ancient Emperor Weapon. Jade Lake truly could not defeat them, and it was not in the right either. If she awakened their hidden reserves for this, she would become a sinner of Jade Lake.
Su Yu reached out and took the stone kings, storing and sealing the others inside a Saint Weapon. Then he held the divine stone in both hands. Its light made his entire figure look incomparably sacred, and his six divine wings beat slowly, stirring up whirlwinds.
Su Yu gently stroked the divine stone, pondering to himself.
Trying to send a message to the eight Ancestor Kings of Purple Mountain?
Heavenly Emperor's Son, rather than have Ye Fan and the others kill you so disgracefully, making the ancient emperor's son lose all face and bringing shame upon the Undying Heavenly Emperor, you'd be better off letting me do it.
Who but I can restore the glory of the Undying Heavenly Emperor Lineage!
The further his thoughts wandered, the more violently the divine stone reacted.
He had even worked out how to deal with Purple Mountain's family fortune: the Undying Enlightenment Tree's heart, the Undying Heavenly Emperor's forbidden weapon, and a whole series of Immortal Gold treasures...
"Boom!"
The strange stone shook, its flowing essence Qi growing even more vigorous and surging like a tsunami.
Su Yu directly activated the Great Saint Weapon in his Divine Spring. A Great Saint's presence spread out, completely suppressing the divine stone, and he then sent it into the internal space of the chaotic longsword.
The Jade Lake cultivators opposite him all looked askance. Even the Queen Mother of the West watched Su Yu's figure with some reluctance, as though those stone kings were still there.
The five generations of Source Heavenly Masters had once instructed the Jade Lake Sacred Land to hand over the strange stone containing the divine egg if primordial creatures ever came to reclaim it.
But this time, under the threat of the other side's Great Saint and Ancient Emperor Weapon, they had been forced to hand over all the strange stones. For the person at the helm of a Supreme Dao power, this was undoubtedly an extremely humiliating thing.
Yet otherwise, they would have had to awaken the dormant reserves within the Immortal Tear Green Gold Pagoda, and even then they would still have been unable to do anything to the other side.
After a Great Accomplishment Sacred Body's corpse had undergone a transformation, the Jade Lake Sacred Land's reserves had been greatly depleted. What little remained could only be used when the sacred land faced life or death; they truly could not afford to lose it over a dispute like this.
Su Yu flew back into the dark clouds. The enormous, three-headed Ancestor King glanced at him and spoke in a rough voice through divine sense:
"You really played the part well."
Su Yu bowed to her, took the divine stone out of the chaotic longsword, and handed it to the Divine Silkworm Princess. He replied respectfully:
"Ancestor King, I have fulfilled my mission. This subordinate has brought back the deity's offspring and our clan's treasures."
Su Yu's expression flickered. The divine egg had been struggling nonstop inside his chaotic longsword just now, trying to be born ahead of time. It had even given off a Supreme Dao presence.
The Divine Silkworm Princess took the divine stone. She paid the Heavenly Emperor's Son no mind, directly striking it into the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar.
Su Yu, meanwhile, had a somewhat villainous thought.
Move, then. Keep struggling. Once you're inside the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar, unless the Undying Heavenly Emperor personally descends to this world, no one can save you, whoever comes!
The Divine Silkworm Princess tore open the void. The two stepped into the space-time passage and left Jade Lake. The people of Jade Lake wore complicated expressions, but were also relieved. In the eyes of most of them, the present Jade Lake Sacred Land was far inferior to the other side. They knew nothing of their own hidden reserves.
They were merely glad that the other side had taken only a few stone kings. The Jade Lake Holy Maiden's protector also breathed a sigh of relief. She had seen the primordial creature's gaze earlier and had been very worried that he would make some excessive demand. Fortunately, the most frightening thing had not happened, and she had even seen a Great Saint.
Su Yu and the Divine Silkworm Princess returned to the Azure Flood Dragon King's small world.
Looking at Su Yu holding the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar, the Divine Silkworm Princess shook her head and ignored him. She walked straight into a palace and began contemplating the Wheel Sea Scroll of the Devouring Heaven Demon Art.
This Emperor Scripture, which focused on transformation, was very similar to the Divine Silkworm Clan's Nine Transformations. She had returned to life from the brink of death, but her cultivation had not improved. The barrier to the Great Saint realm was as hard to cross as a heavenly chasm; it was not so easy to break through.
If she could gain a glimmer of insight from the incomplete Supreme Dao scripture and transform through it, perhaps she could step into the Great Saint realm.
Of course, reaching that point was difficult. More important still was the cultivator's own sudden enlightenment...
With the dust settled, Su Yu darted forward and landed on the top floor of the Ageless Hall at the summit.
He placed the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar on the ninth floor and immersed himself in cultivation. This time, he had devoured quite a few powerful cultivators, a tremendous replenishment for him.
He spent two full months cultivating. Time here had nearly come to a standstill, showing no sign of flowing...
At last, Su Yu emerged from the Ageless Hall. Dragon Qi burst from his frontal bone, his presence was powerful, and the vertebrae along his back gleamed, having been tempered to the utmost.
After drawing down the heavenly tribulation, he once again passed through three tribulations in succession and entered the Dragon Transformation Sixth Change. It was simply divine speed.
But in Su Yu's eyes, this was still not enough. He was still a considerable distance from the Immortal Platform Secret Realm.
Time flew like a fleeing hare and a diving falcon. Even the Divine Silkworm Princess had emerged from seclusion, but Su Yu was still cultivating. Throughout this period, he had been using Dragon Marrow to cultivate, with the aid of the earth veins' Dragon Qi, and his cultivation had risen at astonishing speed.
Four months later, his presence surged, a cloud dragon protected his body, and his pressure was immense.
By then, the Divine Silkworm Princess had already gone out, saying she wanted to return to the Divine Silkworm Clan to settle a few matters.
After reading the letter she had left, Su Yu was momentarily distracted, but he said little and merely sighed softly.
After leaving the small world, he rode a cloud toward the distant sky. He wanted to find a deserted place, unwilling to let anyone see him undergo tribulation. Above all, his chaotic cloud dragon was too distinctive; anyone who saw it once would find it hard to forget.
He crossed endless mountains and lands on the way. Finally, after flying three thousand li, Su Yu arrived in an uninhabited region. It was a vast wilderness, full of lakes and swamps and shrouded in water vapor. Such a place was very rare in the Northern Region, yet no living beings were present.
He looked closely and saw that a green snake at the Immortal Platform Second Heaven was in the swamp. It had yet to take human form and was breathing mist in and out amid the wetlands, looking extremely ferocious...