Chapter 165.1: Regaining Control of Heavenly Dao, Firing Squad

On the Divine Flower Society forum, a post was suddenly pushed to the top.

The Water Cloud Palace is Preparing to Move Against the Blood-Clothed Alliance. Calling Senior Blood-Clothed Sword God!

The moment it appeared, it drew widespread attention.

└What's going on? How does Water Cloud Palace dare to do this? Didn't Senior Blood-Clothed Sword God just wipe out the Bright Palace?

└Water Cloud Palace's background is stronger than Bright Palace's by quite a bit, but their actual strength isn't much different. Where do they get the guts?

Fox Den Xiao Li replied instantly.

└

Hmph

! Once the Blood-Clothed Sword God makes a move, Water Cloud Palace will surely be destroyed!

In the next moment, someone replied to her comment.

└Water Cloud Palace must be confident and fully prepared to pull this move. I bet Venerable Ye Qiong is behind this. It’s payback for Blood-Clothed Sword God’s provocation. That's why Water Cloud Palace dares to be so bold!

Fox Den Xiao Li was startled. The reasoning made sense. She became worried for the Blood-Clothed Sword God.

That can't be true, right? Is Senior going to be okay?!

At this moment, more and more people began replying.

└

Haa...

Looks like Venerable Ye Qiong is making his move!

└Blood-Clothed Sword God was a bit unwise. Destroying Bright Palace would've been enough. Why did he kill Venerable Ye Qiong's people and even provoke him? He’s getting his just deserts.

└I said long ago that Blood-Clothed Sword God would meet this kind of end. He is far too arrogant with no sense of propriety. Serves him right.

└What a pity, a mighty senior of a generation!

Fox Den Xiao Li felt indignant and directly fought back.

└Hey, the result isn't even out yet! How do you already know Blood-Clothed Sword God will lose?

└Venerable Ye Qiong strikes only when success is certain. He will use extreme methods, ensuring instant victory. Blood-Clothed Sword God is nothing more than a clown who suddenly gained great power.

└You talk about Blood-Clothed Sword God like this. Aren't you afraid that he will retaliate if he sees it?

└He can barely protect himself. You think I'm afraid of retaliation? If he has the ability, let him come!

└A demonic tyrant like Blood-Clothed Sword God is finally going to die. This is divine retribution! I'm so happy I'm eating an extra dish today!

One by one, people appeared on the forum, condemning Blood-Clothed Sword God. They had been jealous and resentful during his peak, yet dared not speak. Now that Blood-Clothed Sword God had run into trouble, they came out of the woodwork, pointing fingers and patronizing. After all, they didn’t have to fear retaliation since they were staying anonymous.

Fox Den Xiao Li's eyes reddened as she watched. "You're all finished. I'm recording every single thing you say and sending it to Blood-Clothed Sword God!"

Taking out a recording stone, she recorded all the defamatory remarks on the forum, including the IDs. She patrolled the entire forum like a devout fanatic, recording anyone who slandered her idol. Unfortunately, she was alone. If there were more people like her, she could've controlled public opinion like celebrity fanbases on Blue Planet.

***

Mountains towered high into the sky.

Venerable Yunju stood in white robes, bearing the air of an immortal sage. He opened his eyes, curiosity flashing across his face. "How rare. What brings an old friend to see me today?"

An elderly man with snow-white hair appeared before, steeped in an aura of decay.

Complicated emotions ran through Venerable Yunju as looked at the elder. He was an old friend, and his talent outshone even Venerable Yunju’s. However, a thousand years ago, in an attempt to capture a strand of the Heavenly Vein’s Breath to help his granddaughter reach Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment, he had inadvertently come into contact with a trace of a Great Calamity’s aura. This injury was known only among a few old friends.

From then on, his cultivation could no longer advance, and his lifespan steadily declined. In merely a thousand years, he had entered old age, akin to a candle with a burnt-out wick. He only had another thousand years at most. Hence why all Yin Spirits feared the Great Calamity above all. As a side note, this injury was known only to a few old friends. Not even his granddaughter knew.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"It's my granddaughter again." The old man sighed. "She insisted I come ask about Blood-Clothed Sword God. Has Venerable Ye Qiong really made a move against him?"

Venerable Yunju sighed softly. "I can't reveal that."

He had just sworn an oath of secrecy in the Heaven Earth Cave, after all.

Then, he said, as if in passing, "Even if you went, you couldn't change the outcome."

"Is that so..." The old man sighed. "Since being injured by the Great Calamity, I've become useless. I can't even fulfill a small request from my granddaughter."

In that single, brief answer, the old man learned everything he needed. Venerable Ye Qiong had made a move and was likely in action.

"Yunju, I ask you to help me once," the old man said. "I can't help Blood-Clothed Sword God, but please look after his Blood-Clothed Alliance."

Yunju chuckled lightly. "You truly dote on your granddaughter. This is a small matter. I'll send a letter to the Water Cloud Palace and stop the conflict."

The white-haired man sighed. "Many thanks, Old Friend."

Yunju looked at him, thoughts churning. "Bing Hun... your injuries..."

"I've already sought out a Great Venerable, but to no avail," Venerable Bing Hun said bleakly. "I don’t have long left. I only hope my granddaughter can step into the Yin Spirit realm before I leave."

"The Yin Spirit realm is extraordinarily difficult, especially with the Great Calamity approaching," Venerable Yunju lamented.

Venerable Bing Hun fell silent. Nowadays, to become a Yin Spirit, one had to convert spiritual energy into divine spiritual energy in Outer Heavens. An endless sea of lightning stretched out, impossible for someone of his granddaughter’s level to brave. Without a Yin Spirit to guard the path, she could never break through.

Such a task would drain even a Yin Spirit more than a battle against an equal, requiring a hundred years to recover. With the Great Calamity approaching, Yin Spirits could barely protect themselves. Who would be willing to sacrifice their divine power to guard another’s path?

Venerable Yunju said, "Bing Hun, you once saved my life. If you pass on, I'll look after your granddaughter."

Venerable Bing Hun smiled gently. "Thank you, Old Friend."

***

Snow fell heavily. Qi Yuan extended his hand, catching a snowflake.

Lord Great Wisdom stood beside him, gazing at the sky full of snow. "I once heard that no two snowflakes in the world are exactly the same. Just like people, there are no two identical individuals."

"Then why don't snowflakes speak human language?" Qi Yuan asked.

Lord Great Wisdom stared at the snowflake. "Maybe because they don't have mouths."

"Really?"

"Probably."

As they spoke, the snowfall grew heavier.

Qi Yuan's aura was quietly changing. No one noticed, not even the Yin Spirit in white robes. Only Qi Jianjun stared at Qi Yuan with a strange expression. Standing close to him, she felt her divine power steadily increasing, her rate of opening divine apertures accelerating.

After an unknown length of time, Qi Yuan held a snowflake and said softly, "Grow a mouth."

An incredibly tiny mouth appeared on that snowflake.

"Now that it has a mouth, it should be able to speak, right? Little Snow, speak!"

Not far away, Jiang Ya felt like clutching her stomach and laughing.

Blood-Clothed Sword God made a snowflake grow a mouth so it could speak?!

Unbeknownst to her, Qi Yuan hadn’t used a spell, but the power of the Heavenly Dao. Indeed, he had fully grasped it moments earlier, becoming terrifyingly powerful. Even so, the snowflake remained silent.

Lord Great Wisdom said, "Maybe it can’t talk because it has no brain."

Qi Yuan pondered. "A brain?"

A tiny pig's brain appeared inside the snowflake. It was utterly bizarre.

Seeing this, Jiang Ya was completely at a loss. "Creating living beings out of nothing. This is something even Great Venerables can't do."

"Is that so?" Qi Yuan said, somewhat disappointed.

He originally thought that the entire world would belong to him once he became the Heavenly Dao. Like a game developer, he believed he could delete saves, create characters, and rewind time. However, that wasn’t the case at all. Though he could reshape the Moonwatch Continent, his power was constrained, as if an even mightier force loomed above him.

Just then, the woman in white hurried over. "High Priestess! The Moluo army is gathering more and more people. In no more than three months, they’ll reach our gates. Please make preparations and activate the teleportation array!"

Many expressions shifted. The Moluo Army was finally coming. Only three months remained.

Qi Yuan was surprised. "Three months?"

The woman in white glanced at him, knowing the High Priestess listened closely to Blood-Clothed Sword God. "Yes. Our time is running out."

"That’s way too long," Qi Yuan sighed. "They're far too slow, no wonder they can't accomplish great things."

The Yin Spirits were dragging their feet. Clearly, the Moluo Clan wasn't cut out for greatness. Unlike Qi Yuan, who immediately drafted a hundred-day annihilation plan the moment he offended a small shrimp from Bright Palace.

The woman in white was dumbfounded.

Is he courting death?

She was worried time was too short, yet Blood-Clothed Sword God complained that the enemy was too slow.

Qi Yuan ignored her. Holding Qi Jianjun's small hand, he glanced at Lord Great Wisdom behind him. "If the enemy's slow, then I'll go find them. Band, assemble. We’ll dine on meat again."

Qi Jianjun's small face lit up. "Daddy is going to act against the Moluo Clan?"

"Yes," Qi Yuan said seriously. "It's time to pour this fertilizer into the garden."

Killing enough Yin Spirits could unlock new features in his new game. Now that he was the Heavenly Dao of the Moonwatch Continent, it was time to deal with these enemies. No more freeloading.

The woman in white exclaimed, "You're planning to attack the Yin Spirits of the Moluo Clan?!"

"Yes."

"You'll be facing at least four Yin Spirits! If you're not confident, please don't go! Especially the High Priestess!"

If the high priestess died, the Moonlight Kingdom would be finished. The teleportation array could never be activated. The woman in white wouldn't be able to leave either.

Qi Jianjun said firmly, "I trust Daddy. I'm going."

Seeing this, the woman in white knew persuasion was useless. She felt deep resentment toward Blood-Clothed Sword God.

Is this how you're behaving as a father? Completely disregarding your daughter's safety?!

The woman in white gritted her teeth, choosing to take a gamble. "If the High Priestess goes, I'll go too,"

"You're not in my band, and you're not my daughter. Why are you going?" Qi Yuan looked at her strangely. "Planning to be a shrimp head[1]?"

1. Shrimp head is a slang term that refers to someone that looks good but is utterly useless. Althoughhhhh I beg to disagree, if you fry a shrimp head, you can make a mean ass broth/bisque out of it. ☜