Chapter 1156: Devil Emperor Xia Is Overlord Wu Yuan! (1)

Within the void of the River of Universes, six silhouettes radiating an aura of eternity abruptly halted in mid-flight.

The Saints turned their gazes toward the white-robed figure at the vanguard, awaiting his command.

"Everyone," Saint Zhu Guang intoned, pivoting to survey the five figures behind him.

He spoke with measured calm. "I trust you've all heard of the fate that befell Saint Teng Chong, Overlord Yue Shan, and the others. All of them have fallen; not a single one survived. Meanwhile, the Eldritch Court suffered virtually no losses.

"They fielded very few Saints, which is why the True Saints failed to detect them beforehand. But their overall strength is undeniably formidable. In particular, Wu Yuan’s direct combat power within the River of Universes is a match for my own, perhaps even slightly superior." Saint Zhu Guang continued.

The group of Saints listened in silence.

"Most critically, he is a sempiternal lifeform. His ether body and true self are nearly equal in strength, yet he's only revealed one combat body so far. The other is likely hidden, ready to emerge at any moment," Saint Zhu Guang explained. "And then there's Overlord Ming Jian, whose ability to control the battlefield is equally fearsome.

"They may be few in number, but in a true battle, Wu Yuan's two combat bodies alone could rival ten Standard Saints within the River of Universes.

“Now, the True Saints have ordered us to engage Wu Yuan and the others in combat. The risk is extremely high. Do you wish to continue this battle?" Saint Zhu Guang asked slowly. "The True Saints cannot observe us now. Whether we fight or not is our decision alone."

Silence fell.

Not only were the five Saints present deep in thought, but so too were the dozen or more Saints concealed within their grotto-heaven artifacts.

They had received orders from the True Saints. Victory would be rewarded with high-grade Xiantian artifacts. But failure? It would be fortunate if they escaped with their lives. In the worst-case scenario, their true selves would die.

Ordinary Saints rarely dared defy the commands of True Saints, but those who had returned to the River of Universes were all extraordinary. Each was an eternal powerhouse who had emerged from the universe.

Saint Zhu Guang, for instance, had attained eternity through his own efforts, as had two other Peak Saints. Thus, this group of Saints possessed immense potential. Their future prospects of becoming True Saints were great, and their status naturally far exceeded that of ordinary Saints.

Though True Saint Xiao Yao had issued orders, if they collectively refused to fight and deliberately avoided doing battle, even the True Saints would struggle to force their hand.

After all, these were merely orders from a True Saint. As for Immortal Eminence Jiu You, though he had said they could try, he had not given any direct commands – a fact this group of Saints was unaware of.

"Even if we win, would we be able to slay Wu Yuan?" a green-robed woman suddenly asked. "Given the strength he's displayed, with his true self and ether body working in tandem, could we kill him?"

Silence reigned.

The twenty-three Saints felt confident in their ability to triumph if it came down to a direct clash of power between the two sides.

But who could say the Eldritch Court had no hidden trump cards?

For instance, they too might have concealed a large force of Saints, just like the Immortal Court. The potential gains were predictable - at best, they might slay a few Saints.

The risks, however, were staggering.

After a long pause, one of them spoke.

"There's no need to take such a risk. What's the point?" rumbled the towering, muscular man wielding a massive hammer. "Zhu Guang, as Saint Qing Yin said, the potential rewards don't justify the danger."

"Agreed. The risk is far too great, yet our chances of actually killing Wu Yuan are minuscule. His power is simply too immense," another Saint chimed in.

"The True Saints know full well how strong Wu Yuan is, yet still order us to engage him. They clearly don't value our lives," rasped another Saint shrouded in black robes.

A chorus of dissent rose up.

These Saints had no desire to risk their lives needlessly. At their level of cultivation, how much hadn't they seen? Empty platitudes about duty would not sway them.

Yes, Wu Yuan posed a grave threat to the Immortal Court. But that was a concern for the True Saints and Dao Zenithels to ponder. What did it matter to a group of mere Saints?

To put it bluntly, even if the Immortal Court fell one day, the Eldritch Court could never hope to slaughter every True Saint and Saint of the Immortal Court. They could easily join other major factions. And the Immortal Court was at the height of its power now - how could a single Wu Yuan bring about its downfall? The very notion was laughable.

If the rewards were sufficiently enticing and their odds of success high enough, they wouldn't mind risking their lives. But now? Even if they succeeded, each would only be rewarded with a single high-grade Xiantian artifact. Did the True Saints really expect them to gamble their lives for that? Naturally, they were unwilling.

Saint Zhu Guang maintained an outwardly calm demeanor, but inwardly he sighed. Then he spoke slowly, "Very well. With the majority in agreement, we shall avoid battle.

"However, we must make our deception convincing," Saint Zhu Guang continued. "We'll alter our flight path slightly, taking a wide, arcing detour to reach the site where Saint Teng Chong and the others fell.

"As long as we don't encounter Overlord Wu Yuan and his allies along the way, the True Saints will have no grounds for complaint," Saint Zhu Guang explained.

"Excellent."

"Indeed, we can trust Zhu Guang to be cautious. Haha!" The Saints broke into laughter.

Swiftly, the group adjusted their trajectory, deviating slightly from their original course. In the vast, endless void of the River of Universes, such a subtle change in angle would be difficult to detect.

But given enough time and distance, it would indeed lead to a great distance from their intended path.

...

As the Immortal Court Saints chose to avoid battle, and Wu Yuan, Saint Lei Dao, and their companions continued their journey, news of this conflict began spreading at an astonishing pace throughout the various major factions of the cosmic sea.

In truth, while True Saint Bu Xiu, True Saint Taiyuan, and many other True Saints had sensed the fluctuations of the battle from a distance, they could not perceive it in detail. They could only vaguely determine that the Eldritch Court had emerged victorious in this engagement, while the Immortal Court had lost. The specifics of the battle? That remained unclear.

The reason this information spread so rapidly was that the highest echelons of the Eldritch Court had ordered its dissemination, revealing nearly all details of the battle. Even a few snippets of battle footage were circulating. After all, their greatest enemies were already aware of Wu Yuan's true strength. What need was there for further secrecy?

On the contrary, such a resounding victory, when made public, would enhance Wu Yuan's reputation and deepen his imprints throughout the endless cosmic sea. At the same time, it would deliver a blow to the Immortal Court's prestige.

In the struggle between the Eldritch Court and the Immortal Court, neither side could hope to completely destroy the other at present. For this very reason, both factions placed extreme importance on saving face.

The end result was that news of this battle's outcome and proceedings spread throughout the cosmic sea at a terrifying speed.

"Wu Yuan displayed power at the Dao Pioneer level? He slew Overlord Yue Shan with a single saber strike? And killed three other Saints as well?"

"This is madness! Absolute madness!"

"Overlord Ming Jian is just as insane. He's from the Blood Dream Alliance, yet he participated in such a massive battle? He annihilated hundreds of Overlords with a single move, and they were all at least third-stage Overlords? How powerful must his soul secret art be?"

"In this opening of the Xuanhuang Cosmiris, all three thousand Overlords the Immortal Court prepared were wiped out? Even Overlord Yue Shan died? Is this real?"

"This news comes from the Eldritch Court, and the Immortal Court hasn't denied it. That's as good as an admission."

"They really were all killed. The Immortal Court Saints have already come forward to confirm it. Even Saint Teng Chong's token has become ownerless."

"Not a single one of the Immortal Court Saints escaped?"

"This is terrifying. Wasn't Wu Yuan's strength reported to be only at the peak third-stage Overlord level? How has he suddenly reached the peak fifth-stage in such a short time?"

"A Legend of the River!"

"Undoubtedly an invincible legend, fully comparable to the Heavenly Imperator of back then."

"Wu Yuan is far younger than the Heavenly Imperator was when he forged his legend. He's only been cultivating for a few hundred thousand years."

"The mightiest sempiternal lifeform, the number one monstrous prodigy, undisputedly first among all."

"Overlord Ming Jian has proven himself once again after Ancient Dream Mountain, truly worthy of being called a Legend of the River."

"The Immortal Court must be going rabid."

"This era is truly extraordinary."

The entire cosmic sea was left in shock, with countless True Saints and Saints sighing in amazement as they received this news.

Wu Yuan had risen to prominence at unprecedented speed, establishing himself as the true pinnacle of sempiternal lifeforms throughout history with his earth-shattering feats. He stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the Heavenly Imperator of back then, perhaps even slightly surpassing him.

Overlord Ming Jian was equally phenomenal, yet he was unique in that he had made his name through the Psyche Dream class. Throughout the entire history of the cosmic sea, no practitioner of the Psyche Dream class had ever created a Legend of the River. Normally, only an extremely small number of Saints were capable of constructing Dream Worlds.

In just a single day, the True Saints and Saints responsible for intelligence gathering in the numerous first-rate and second-rate factions throughout the cosmic sea swiftly began compiling and reporting all available information regarding this battle, as well as details about Wu Yuan and Ming Jian.

It could be said that from this day forward, Wu Yuan and Ming Jian truly became renowned throughout the cosmic sea. Even those Dao Zenithels standing at the very pinnacle of the cosmic sea would gradually come to know their names.

...

The cosmic sea, Eldritch Progenitor Hall.

Within that special, vast realm inhabited by Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu.

"Elder Brother." Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu, who had been deep in contemplation, sensed something and opened her eyes.

In the entire Eldritch Court, there was only one being whom Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu would willingly address as "Elder Brother" - Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang.

Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang was widely acknowledged as one of the highest leaders of the Eldritch Court, with a status equal to that of Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu. His strength, too, came incredibly close to hers.

"I've just received news. This Wu Yuan you chose is indeed formidable..." Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang's voice was impassive. "But are you certain Ming Jian is his qi refiner self?

"I peered into the Primordium, scrying past timelines, yet found no trace of intersection between the two." Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang mused, his voice echoing through the void.

"Even in past cycles of samsara, there seems to be no clue. Their pasts both appear utterly authentic." A note of puzzlement crept into Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang's voice. "These two... they don't seem to be the same person at all. Even you would struggle to maintain such a deception, I imagine."

At these words, Eldritch Progenitor Hou Tu allowed a faint smile to grace her lips. "Elder Brother, this is the work of myself and another being, altering the myriad traces of the past to disguise the dual identities of Wu Yuan and Ming Jian."

"Another being?" Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang's voice held a hint of surprise. He understood immediately whom Hou Tu referred to.

"The spacetime scenes, karmic threads, and timelines of Wu Yuan's two true selves have all been reshaped and reenacted by us," Hou Tu explained calmly. "Even the few sempiternal lifeforms who know the truth about Wu Yuan have had their insights obscured by our combined efforts, making it nigh impossible to divine. I simply hadn't informed you before.

"However, since you failed to notice anything amiss, the Immortal Court should also struggle to uncover the truth. It will all cease to matter once he achieves eternity, when past becomes one and illusion becomes reality."

Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang listened in silence.

"Very well. But before Wu Yuan achieves eternity, the timelines of his two true selves will continue to converge," Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang observed thoughtfully. "You and your ally may need to maintain this spacetime reenactment indefinitely.

“Such reshaping is prone to errors. Given Wu Yuan's strength, it's better that he achieves eternity as soon as possible.” Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang, though not particularly adept with Spacetime and samsara, possessed keen insight. He easily discerned the weakness in Hou Tu's methods.

"Indeed. Once Wu Yuan pioneers his Dao, we'll have him swiftly achieve eternity," Hou Tu assured. "We won't delay."

"He hasn't pioneered his Dao yet? How can his power be so formidable?" This time, it was Eldritch Progenitor Di Jiang's turn to be taken aback. "Are the scenes of him pioneering his Dao in past timelines also fabricated?"

"They are," Hou Tu replied nonchalantly.