Chapter 1836 — Notes on the Dao Heard in the Ancestral Court

"Though Old Man Wuyai's Dao arts and divine powers are many, none of them is especially mighty, and a way to break each can be found.

" Shen Mu had still caught the conversation between Zhu Santong and Taishi, and said, "Old Man Wuyai has crossed hands with us the most, and so has been recorded the most. Compared with the Young Masters, his divine powers and Dao arts lack subtlety; his only merit is their number. His cultivation is more vigorous than the Young Masters', but in these years, because no new Enlightened who entrust their Dao to the Void have appeared in the Ancestral Court, his cultivation has not grown at all. He is, in fact, the weakest link between the two great powers. " Lan Yutian nodded.

Three thousand years of trials between life and death had made him seem far more steady than before. He said, "Old Man Wuyai can be dealt with. The World Tree is rooted there, like a target set up that cannot move. If we can beat him, we fight; if not, we retreat. However strong Wuyai may be, we can respond at our ease.

But the Young Masters of Miluo Palace are too full of variables, and are harder to handle.

" Xu Shenghua said, "Now that the Third Young Master's Dao spear has descended, they will be even harder to deal with.

" Shen Mu was much gratified. Lan Yutian and Xu Shenghua could now stand on their own. Jingping's Enlightened would grow ever more numerous.

With Old Man Wuyai as a whetstone, more Enlightened would surely emerge in the future, even figures like Palace Lords and Young Masters, possessing means to contend with Miluo Palace!

With Jingping as their backing, the longer the situation in the Ancestral Court dragged on, the greater their chances of victory.

"More crucially, Miluo Palace will not keep Old Man Wuyai alive. " Shen Mu's injuries had been suppressed by the Alchemist. He rose to his feet and said, "If the Young Masters wish to descend, the simplest way is to eliminate Old Man Wuyai and sweep away all his power. Only then will they possess the energy needed to descend.

Killing me is impossible; killing you would yield too little energy. So they must strike at Wuyai.

" He stood at the ship's prow and looked toward the World Tree, saying, "Old Man Wuyai must not die.

So long as he lives, the Young Masters of Miluo Palace cannot descend.

If necessary, we may even join hands with Wuyai against Miluo Palace. " Suddenly the Void throbbed.

Shen Mu raised his head in surprise and looked up at the sky. From there came the aura of an Enlightened entrusting their Dao to the Void!

The faces of those on the ship changed slightly.

They could advance or retreat against Old Man Wuyai precisely because, though Wuyai was strong, he had few Enlightened under his command.

Most of those prehistoric powers had failed to attain the Dao because, on the eve of the universe's destruction, the spiritual qi and power of heaven and earth were insufficient to support their attainment, while the Ultimate Void was held in the grip of the older generation of Enlightened.

Only in a new universe was there hope. Shen Mu's sealing of the Ancestral Court had cut off their hope. And now someone had actually begun to attain the Dao and imprint upon the Void.

This showed that Shen Mu's seal had a great flaw! "The two great Chaos creatures have joined hands.

" Shen Mu's expression darkened slightly.

Hearing this, the others' hearts also sank. The two great Chaos creatures referred to Old Man Wuyai and the Second Young Master Wuji.

If the two joined hands, they could indeed break Shen Mu's seal and give the powers under Old Man Wuyai the chance to entrust their Dao to the Ultimate Void!

Shen Mu had used the Guixu Abyss to seal the thirty-six layers of the Void, so that none could entrust their Dao to the Void.

But the Second Young Master Wuji was the master of the Guixu Abyss.

If she joined hands with Old Man Wuyai, the powers under him would have the chance to entrust their Dao to the Void and become Enlightened! In this world, only three methods escaped Old Man Wuyai's control: one was the treasure palaces of Miluo Palace, another was Jingping's attainment of the Dao within, and the third was attaining the Dao in Guixu. The most widely practiced method, entrusting one's Dao to the Void to cultivate the Dao Tree and Dao Fruit, would only strengthen Old Man Wuyai's power!

The more Enlightened there were, the stronger Old Man Wuyai would become, gradually recovering to his peak state!

"It doesn't matter.

" Suddenly Shen Mu's spirits soared.

He laughed heartily, "Old Man Wuyai growing stronger in power and influence is actually a good thing for us. It will put more pressure on us, forcing us to cultivate and comprehend! " Zhu Santong said to Taishi, "Has the Seventh Young Master always been this optimistic?

" Taishi nodded and said quietly, "Always.

He has been broken only once, when Haotianzun occupied Youdu.

" "That time with Haotianzun? " Zhu Santong had not lived through the battle of Youdu, but the primary and great academies of Jingping taught history, and there were records of that battle. Yet there was no record of Shen Mu being broken, only of the wisdom and martial prowess of the Mu Heavenly Venerable. "After I return to Jingping, I must write a book recording all that happened in the Ancestral Court.

" Zhu Santong resolved, "As long as I can return alive!

" After Shen Mu's injuries healed, he studied the fruits of Jingping's reforms with the others, and exchanged knowledge of the techniques and divine powers of Old Man Wuyai and the Young Masters Lingxiao and Zixiao. Zhu Santong, Granny Zhu, and the others, being newcomers, could not get a word in, and only when the talk turned to the fruits of Jingping's reforms did they have a chance to expound to the others.

The Golden Ship of Salvation was like another holy land, where all exchanged what they had gained.

Several more months passed, and all had gained greatly. Then from the Void came seven waves of Dao attainment, showing that seven prehistoric powers beneath the World Tree had attained the Dao.

Mojiang and the others took this opportunity to help Shen Mu repair the Cosmic Bell. Shen Mu's spirits lifted.

He laughed, "Since the Ancestral Court's Yujing City holds its troops in place, let us make a move! We attack Old Man Wuyai!

" In this battle, Zhu Santong, Granny Zhu, and the others took part as well.

Shen Mu held off Old Man Wuyai's assault, and with the Cosmic Bell clearing the way, the group charged into the Great Black Mountain and fought a great slaughter against countless prehistoric powers. Because Zhu Santong was the weakest, he feared he might perish at any moment.

Fortunately, Tiangong, Shen Fengqing, Lady Tianyin, and the Alchemist had come along this time and could heal him in every way.

So long as he was not beaten into Chaos, he could be revived even if he died a thousand times! In this battle, Zhu Santong was beaten to death sixteen times. When the war ended, he returned to the Golden Ship of Salvation covered in blood, feeling as though a lifetime had passed.

On the golden ship, all healed their wounds and continued to exchange what they had gained in battle, with great enthusiasm. As time passed, Old Man Wuyai grew ever stronger, and the divine powers beneath the World Tree ever more numerous.

In his spare time, Zhu Santong recorded every campaign against the World Tree, intending to compile them into a book after he left the Ancestral Court and spread word of the Ancestral Court's wars. In merely two thousand years, Old Man Wuyai grew so powerful that Shen Mu could barely contend with him. So Shen Mu entered the Ancestral Court's Yujing City to discuss with the Third and Fourth Young Masters a joint attack on the World Tree.

This time, Zhu Santong followed Shen Mu into Yujing City and recorded the negotiations.