Chapter 493 Part 2

Chapter 493 Part 2: Meeting the Heavenly Emperor (2)

With a thought, the Ancestor of the Sword Sect held a Bright Moon Wind Body Talisman between his fingers, and his figure quickly began to fade, like blending into the mountain breeze.

Although the Tongtian Sword Sect no longer has a Mahayana cultivator, they once did, but they died in the chaos of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

The Mahayana talisman cultivator has some talismans; this Bright Moon Wind Body Talisman can hide one’s figure, making it difficult for even a Mahayana Stage cultivator to discover it.

After a moment, he saw a white-haired young man walking down the heavenly steps leading to the South Heavenly Gate, holding a Nascent Soul in his hands.

The ancestor of the Sword Sect sensed this and was immediately shocked.

The white-haired young man was clearly holding the Nascent Soul of the Soul Predicting Path Ancestor Tianshu!

As far as he knew, Ancestor Tianshu was a cultivator at the early stage of Mahayana; although he was not good at direct combat as a Soul Predicting Path cultivator, he was still a real Mahayana Stage expert.

Ancestor Tianshu was best at seeking benefits and avoiding dangers; he entered this unknown heavenly ruin, and with his divination and deduction skills, he should have had the advantage…

Who could have guessed that he would be killed so soon, leaving only his Nascent Soul?

And this young man clearly looked like the enemy from the Immortal Gate in the mortal world, a member of the Qiao family!

"A Qiao family member has already killed a Mahayana Stage cultivator! They even captured him alive; the Nascent Soul has not been completely destroyed yet?!"

The ancestor of the Sword Sect felt a strong shock in his heart, instinctively held his breath, and did not dare to let his spirit move even a little bit.

The talismans made by Mahayana talisman cultivators are not all-powerful…

Facing a martial artist who could kill even Ancestor Tianshu, the ancestor of the Sword Sect did not dare to let his spirit move, fearing to alarm this martial artist from the Qiao family…

Until the Sky Piercing Riverwater spirit disappeared below the sky steps, he finally let out a long sigh of relief.

"I was indeed bold yet cautious, stopping in time; when I saw the face of the Qiao family member, I quickly withdrew my spirit…"

"If that person had noticed me, I fear I would have been in serious trouble."

He naturally did not know that if he had not quickly withdrawn his spirit, he would have discovered that this "Qiao family member" was not a living being but merely a figure that looked exactly like Qiao Xin.

"Ancestor Tianshu actually died so easily; it seems I underestimated the strength of the Qiao family member… I must be more careful in this journey into the Heavenly Court ruins."

The ancestor of the Sword Sect originally had plans to follow from a distance and then take advantage of the situation.

But now this thought has gradually faded… it’s too dangerous.

With his peak Tao Achieving Stage strength, it is really too difficult to face a Mahayana cultivator who is a whole level above him, especially with the Qiao family members fighting amongst themselves.

……………………………..

Qiao Mu took a step forward and stood on a floating cloud beneath his feet.

The clouds below spread out like an ocean, and in the distance, clusters of palaces and towers shone brightly, but there was not much life; many areas had collapsed and become ruins.

The floating cloud beneath felt a bit soft. Qiao Mu cautiously stomped his foot a few times, but the cloud only trembled slightly, proving to be very solid.

"I can’t fly in the sky, but I can stand on the clouds; that makes sense."

Deeper within the clouds, pavilions and towers hidden in the mist appeared and disappeared like ghosts.

The nearest magnificent palace stood right in front of the sea of clouds, shining brightly, with the words "Jie Yin Hall" written on the plaque.

"Jie Yin Hall? It seems to be a place in mythology, where heavenly officials guide those who ascend from the mortal realm. If I pass through this hall and go further, could it be… the Lingxiao Treasure Hall?"

Stepping into Jie Yin Hall, the main hall is indeed golden and shining, with a soft white mist swirling around, creating a truly magical atmosphere.

But in the end, there was no sign of life, no shadow of a person.

"Hmm?"

As Qiao Mu thought of this, he suddenly paused for a moment.

In one corner of the grand hall, he saw more than ten shattered pieces of armor scattered on the ground.

"Are these the remains of heavenly soldiers?" Upon close inspection, he noticed only armor strewn about, with no bodies in sight.

These armors had many cracks, and were broken beyond use.

Only armor and weapons were present, but no bodies; the entire Jie Yin Hall felt empty.

"There are indeed living creatures within the Return Ruins, such as the previous Fangcun Mountain Di Ting. But why in this heavenly realm…"

As Qiao Mu bent down to check the scattered armor and weapons on the ground for anything useful, a flash of green light suddenly appeared three steps away in the air, aimed right at his throat.

It was a flickering green flying sword, like a cold star flashing, arriving in an instant, moving at a breathtaking speed.

With a clang, the mist swirling in the hall instantly cleared away.

Qiao Mu’s right hand suddenly swelled and grew larger, and with a powerful clap, he struck the green flying sword, causing it to tremble and fly back at an angle.

He looked up.

In one corner of the misty hall, he saw Patriarch Qingmu standing there, his brow slightly furrowed as he looked at Qiao Mu.

He was also a little surprised inside…

Before he left Jiu Province to go to Tongtian Mountain, he had already killed a Qiao family member who tried to stop him and prided himself on understanding the Qiao family members.

The blue flying sword was made from dozens of rare materials over hundreds of years, designed for attack. It had incredible speed and could hide in the void, making it hard to notice when it came and went.

The member of the Qiao family on Tongtian Mountain died by this Green Immortal Sword. Even the Mahayana cultivator Patriarch Tianshu was seriously injured when he first encountered the Green Immortal Sword.

However, this time when he attacked, the other person’s reaction was incredibly quick; as soon as the blue light appeared, he had already reacted…

"Something is off; this person can’t possibly be more familiar with the Green Immortal Sword than I am after so many battles…"

Patriarch Qingmu frowned.

He saw Qiao Mu standing still, suddenly spreading his arms, his eyes half-open and half-closed, taking deep breaths.

"Do you smell that?"

If one looked closely, they could see the hair on Qiao Mu’s arms stand up, his heart beginning to race, pumping blood quickly throughout his body.

"The smell of death and danger," Qiao Mu murmured with his eyes partly closed.

The Mahayana Stage is the last great realm before a cultivator becomes immortal, differing from the Tao Achieving Stage by one level, and its power is many times stronger.

The flesh clone that Patriarch Qingmu killed, although it was six thousand years apart from the real Qiao Mu, still shows his impressive strength.

Even after experiencing four hundred years of battle in a dream, Qiao Mu fully understands:

In a direct fight with Mahayana cultivators like Patriarch Qingmu or Patriarch Changsheng, his chances of defeat are much higher.

But what does that matter?

For over eighteen thousand years, he has challenged countless stronger opponents, from the past Yan City Lord Guo Yan to the current Mahayana cultivator Qingmu. What difference does it make?

At this moment, Qiao Mu has no chance of revival; he has only one life left.

Knowing he faces a life-threatening crisis, the instinct for survival brings forth a stronger spiritual refining intuition.

"Fooling around with tricks, not knowing what it’s about."

Patriarch Qingmu snorted softly and secretly used a spell. The blue flying sword vanished into the swirling mist in the blink of an eye.

In the next moment, the tip of the flying sword appeared just three inches away from Qiao Mu’s heart, shining coldly.

At the same time, Qiao Mu also moved.

True strength surged from within him, and as he turned, his palm struck down fiercely, causing the Green Immortal Sword to fall.

In an instant, his palm was cut by the sharp sword light, breaking the bones.

However, the Green Immortal Sword was also forced down to the ground with great force, shaking violently and letting out a mournful cry upon hitting the ground.

Beneath their feet was the Jie Yin Hall of the heavenly court. The floor was made of tiles that looked like white jade but were extremely hard.

The Green Immortal Sword, painstakingly crafted by Patriarch Qingmu, fell to the ground and only left a shallow scratch, while the previously sharp edge of the sword now had a small chip.

"Hmm?!" Patriarch Qingmu’s expression changed slightly as he summoned the flying sword back, feeling a painful twinge even in his heart.

Anger grew in his heart, and just as he was about to strike down the Qiao family member in front of him, he suddenly saw Qiao Mu raise his hand.

"Wait!"

"Ancestor Qingmu, why must we go to such extremes the moment we meet?"

"The Qiao family has a deep hatred for the Great Dao Sect; instead of fighting each other, how about we join forces to defeat the Elder of the Great Dao Sect first?"

"Oh?" Rather than doubt, Patriarch Qingmu looked surprised.

The name of the Qiao family member in the human world was well-known even to the ancestors who hid in the small world.

What Qiao Mu said earlier seemed fine, but when spoken by a Qiao family member, it became a serious issue.

"The Qiao family destroyed my Qingxuan Road sect, and now you say you want to work with me?" Patriarch Qingmu merely scoffed, a mocking smile on his lips.

"Let’s speak plainly; if Ancestor Qingmu truly valued your sect, you should have shown up when the Qingxuan Road Immortal Gate was destroyed instead of just talking now in front of me."

Qiao Mu continued:

"The ancestor of the Great Dao Sect, Lingxu, has reached the peak of the Mahayana Stage, just one step away from ascending to become an immortal."

"Now he has entered the Heavenly Court, and if he finds a safe place to meditate and cultivate, he might become an immortal in no time."

"You might want to think about it; if he becomes an immortal, will you survive?"