Taiyi Dao Fruit-Chapter 1176 - 396: Tai Shi

Divine Capital, Qiong Mountain.

Imperial Historian Xiao Zhi arrived at the book tower where the Imperial College Sacrificial Officer often resided, and was greeted by the sight of the Sacrificial Officer holding a letter, watching it with a solemn expression, a lightning-like essence flickering in his four opened eyes.

"Teacher."

Xiao Zhi felt a chill in his heart and stepped forward to pay his respects.

"You've come."

The Imperial College Sacrificial Officer handed the letter to Xiao Zhi, saying, "Take a look."

After Xiao Zhi took the letter, he quickly scanned it with two glances, his expression changing drastically, "This... "

"The letter had long been hidden here, and the mark left at the end carries the aura of the Heavenly Monarch," the Sacrificial Officer said in a deep voice, "This is the Heavenly Monarch's backup plan."

In other words—

"Is it true?" Xiao Zhi unconsciously lowered his voice, "Did the Emperor truly reject the Heavenly Will... "

"Teacher, could this be a ploy to sow discord by the Heavenly Monarch!"

"So what if it is, can we confront the Emperor directly? Can we ask the Emperor if he accepted the Heavenly Will?" The Sacrificial Officer shook his head.

Whether the Emperor accepted the Heavenly Will or not, such questioning would be overstepping boundaries, and would not yield a guaranteed truthful answer.

Moreover, from the Emperor's support of the Mo School, this is not without reason.

Earlier, it seemed the Emperor was balancing the court, but now it appears he might be intending to suppress the Imperial College.

Xiao Zhi is also a clever man; he immediately grasped the deep significance of Emperor Jiang's previous actions, and his usually composed face now showed signs of change.

"Teacher, what should we do? The Emperor has already made a move, and perhaps..." Xiao Zhi gritted his teeth and said, "With the Great Sacrificial Ceremony approaching, perhaps..."

"Speak cautiously!"

The Sacrificial Officer interrupted Xiao Zhi's words, "Act prudently! The Emperor's Yi Dao has reached a realm even I cannot estimate; if one makes a move against him without a Supreme's protection, he will immediately sense it, and I would be no exception. We must do nothing."

He walked a few steps outside and gazed at the sun beyond the door, sighing heavily: "In today's Great Zhou, there is only one sun, and that is the Emperor. Any act of defiance against the Emperor will lead to complete disaster."

"Moreover, the Emperor likely already knows about us receiving the letter."

The Heavenly Monarch is no charitable great man, and sending the letter to the Sacrificial Officer was not done out of goodwill, but to provoke him to betray Jiang Li.

With that purpose in mind, he would leave no room for maneuver for the Sacrificial Officer.

He informs the Sacrificial Officer about the Emperor's affairs, and concurrently informs the Emperor that the Sacrificial Officer is aware of the secret. Thus, conflict between the two is invariably destined.

The Heavenly Monarch's calculations still leave no room for maneuver.

"Movement is inferior to stillness; as long as we remain inactive, we give the Emperor no opportunity to make difficulties, even if the Emperor wishes to move against us, he can only use the Mo School for containment." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Saying this, the Sacrificial Officer displayed an appearance of composure.

Mo School is merely a defeated opponent, it had already lost back then, and if it rises again now, it will simply lose again.

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"If Our Emperor wishes to move against the Imperial College, the task could be entrusted to me, and I would take over the College, why bother utilizing the Mo School."

Following Jiang Li and Elder Tianji, Zhu Hui'an said, "I dare not claim to oppose Mo Yi, the teacher of the Mo School, but if I have Our Emperor's support, it is not difficult to take down the Imperial College. And employing the Mo School might taint Our Emperor's reputation."

"Reputation is merely an illusion, when have I ever worried about it," Jiang Li spoke nonchalantly as he walked, "If I want to deal with the Imperial College, I can directly assign blame without concern for other aspects, and as for excuses and reasons, Great Scholars are there to debate on my behalf. Keeping the College is not because I can't act against it, but to see if there are others behind the Great Sacrificial Officer."

"If I'm not mistaken, the Heavenly Monarch similarly left a backup plan at the College, informing the Great Sacrificial Officer about me. Let's see how the Sacrificial Officer will act."

Speaking these words, Elder Tianji had already brought Jiang Li and Zhu Hui'an to the side hall of Tianshu Palace.

The palace's roof suddenly rose by more than double, majestic golden pillars stood erect, and faint spiritual mechanisms transformed into white mist, swirling back and forth.

The space here was evidently extended, with the interior space being over ten times larger than it appeared from outside, and it was connected to the Dinghu Sect's Cave Heaven Blessed Land, extracting spiritual energy to sustain the space while using arrays and restrictions to block the Five Vile Qi.

The entry foundation of Heavenly Dharma lies in the five senses, whose perception becomes extremely powerful with the completion of Heavenly Dharma, even the Five Vile Qi is vividly discernible. And for cultivators, the Five Vile Qi has never been something comfortable.

Although the Heavenly Monarch can completely endure the Five Vile Qi, if one could live better, who would want to suffer daily?

Amidst the clouds of spiritual energy, a painting came into view.

It hung at the end of the grand hall, like a curtain, covering a large portion of the wall. The two large characters occupied the space of the painting, their strokes round and harmonious, yet revealing sharpness at the ends.

——Heavenly Dao.

"The Heavenly Monarch's abode has no bed, nor furniture, only a meditation mat for him to sit and cultivate. It was before this mat that I found the Jade Slip left by the Heavenly Monarch,"

Elder Tianji said, pointing to the meditation mat before the "Heavenly Dao" and taking out a Jade Slip.

Judging from the furnishing, the Heavenly Monarch appeared to be an ascetic, with no indulgence or comfort whatsoever.

In contrast, Tianxuan's room was somewhat luxurious. The large jade couch was entirely crafted from warm jade, big enough to comfortably accommodate four people.

However, those familiar with the Heavenly Monarch knew that he was not devoid of desire; his ambitions were simply too vast. His lack of decor was both a disdain and a lack of need.

The Heavenly Monarch's body could already transform between flesh and space. His physical sensations had long surpassed human, rendering worldly pleasures utterly useless to him.

"After discovering the Jade Slip, I searched more than ten times, but found nothing else," Elder Tianji continued.

The three walked within the vast hall, as if entering the realm of giants. Their voices echoed around, gently dispersing the spiritual energy mist with a faint Qi mechanism.

The entire space inside the palace was open to their eyes, indeed empty, with everything visible at a glance.

Of course, an empty room didn't mean there were no places to hide things. Be it the golden pillars or beneath the floor, there was ample space to hide a Jade Slip or even larger items. If need be, a storage magic tool could solve all space issues.

However, Jiang Li believed Elder Tianji wouldn't overlook any possibilities and must have already searched them.

"If the Heavenly Monarch left any other information, it was certainly meant for me. He would ensure no one else could find it,"

Jiang Li said unhurriedly, looking around, and eventually fixed his gaze on the gigantic "Heavenly Dao."

His figure momentarily blurred, as if transforming from flesh into a mirage, and in an instant, Jiang Li stood before the "Heavenly Dao," hovering in mid-air.

Observing the painting up close, Jiang Li's face gradually became indistinct, as if veiled with a layer of mist, his features vanishing one by one behind it.

His silhouette also turned transparent, within which shadows of spaces could faintly be seen.

This manifestation represented one aspect of Jiang Li—the Yellow Emperor among the Three Emperors—having mastered the "Form Tomb" and possessing the Heavenly Monarch's "Yin Talisman Scripture." Though perhaps not rivaling the Heavenly Monarch's skill, he wasn't far behind.

When his features disappeared, all perception was expressed spiritually, with divine thought perception becoming extraordinarily powerful, capable of insight into the core of matter and the structure of space.

As this perception fell upon the painting, a vast and ancient aura surged into his senses, as though witnessing the scene of the world's creation, separating clarity from turbidness, where an ambiguous space emerged.

Jiang Li's guess was correct—the Heavenly Monarch indeed left something that only he, Jiang Li, could acquire.

The space ahead, shifting between reality and illusion, seemed within reach but turned ethereal in an instant.

When space became illusory, even Taixu Qi could not reach it.

Unable to touch it, naturally, one could not destroy the "body" of the space.

This space showcased the Heavenly Monarch's Daoist prowess, with its changing reality and illusion. Unless one stood shoulder to shoulder with the Heavenly Monarch in the Dao of space, it was impossible to open this space through normal means and could only be breached by force.

But by doing so, the intruder's strength and realm would be perceived by the Heavenly Monarch.

Even using the all-powerful [Emperor Emerges from Zhen] would expose one's strength. In fact, it was precisely because divine skills were used that strength was revealed, for the core of [Emperor Emerges from Zhen] was its great strength.

Evidently, even temporarily stepping away, the Heavenly Monarch did not forget to gauge Jiang Li's realm, constantly keeping tabs on Jiang Li's information.

His schemes were seamlessly interwoven, each part achieving his objectives. Unfortunately······

"Unfortunately, you're already dead."

Jiang Li said lightly, reaching towards the space within the painting, "Even if you weren't, you couldn't fathom my realm."

In terms of space Dao, Jiang Li indeed couldn't match the Heavenly Monarch. Even having fully deduced the "Yin Talisman Scripture," catching up with the Heavenly Monarch in a short time was impossible. However, that didn't mean Jiang Li had no other methods.

His hand gradually turned illusory, the flesh dissipating, causing even the sense of touch to vanish, transforming into another kind of sensation.

This was a perception beyond flesh and Primordial Qi, entirely different from divine thought perception.

When this perception······when this illusion enveloped the entire body, all five senses and even divine thought perception would disappear, and perception of space would be replaced by an entirely new feeling.

This was a glimpse of Tai Shi.

In that instant, Jiang Li's right arm lost its substance and form, becoming a purely tangible object and reaching into the space ahead.

The illusory space solidified abruptly, then began to collapse swiftly. Enormous strength was born from it, yet it did not harm Jiang Li in the slightest.

He simply withdrew his hand, gently extracting his objective from within.