On the Avenue.

Chapter 653 The Ruler of Heaven's Dao

Chen Shi didn't make things difficult for her, and said with a smile, "We're all on the same side, get up."

Feng Huixue straightened up, still feeling somewhat unhappy.

On the Xuanhuang Sea, Chen Shi was the adopted son of Empress Houtu, and she was to address him as Your Highness. Unexpectedly, after betraying the Xuanhuang Sea and arriving in the Celestial Court, her status was still below Chen Shi's.

She had already reached the twelfth level of the Dao Realm, the Great Perfection of the Golden Immortal realm. Reaching this level in the Xuanhuang Sea was truly difficult. Because Houtu Niangniang followed the path of the divine, although she was Houtu's maid, the cultivation techniques and Daoist arts Houtu could teach her were limited.

All that Houtu Niangniang could provide her was inexhaustible Xuanhuang spiritual energy, as well as countless wealth and resources.

She reached her current level through her own exploration.

She has every reason to be proud of her achievements.

For her great contribution, the Celestial Court will surely reward her with a cultivation technique at the Taiyi Golden Immortal level to help her break through to the next level.

But Chen Shi did nothing and yet climbed over her head, which inevitably made her feel somewhat resentful.

"I am already aware of what Huixue did in the Xuanhuang Sea. You did a good job."

Chen Shi said, "You have made a great contribution in eliminating the Heavenly Dao Treasure this time, and the Celestial Court will not treat you unfairly."

Feng Huixue regained her composure and said with a smile, "Thank you for your kind words, young master. You are the crown prince of the Empress Houtu and also the disciple of the current emperor. Your identity is ever-changing, which is truly amazing."

Chen Shi laughed and offered no explanation.

Wu Guanyun smiled and said, "Lord Feng, this is precisely where the young master's unfathomable nature lies. The young master moves between different forces with the grace and ease of a dragon, gathering information from all sides, which is truly admirable."

Feng Huixue felt very uncomfortable after hearing his words. Wasn't she as graceful and unrestrained as a dragon, hiding beside the Earth Goddess Houtu?

She smiled and said, "Young Master Chen is not only the current emperor's disciple and the Crown Prince Houtu, but I've also heard that he's a favorite of the Eastern King Duke and a disciple of Jin'ao Island. Even a cunning rabbit only has three burrows, yet you have four identities. But I wonder, which one is your true identity?"

Chen Shi gave her a deep look: "Hui Xue, your cultivation is still low, so it's not advisable for you to know too much. The more you know, the more trouble it will bring you."

Wu Guanyun, observing the situation, smiled and said, "Lord Feng, you may not know this, but Young Master Chen and Young Master Xi are in charge of the Heavenly Court's operations. The Heavenly Army now follows Young Master Chen's lead."

He smiled proudly: "Today, the Heavenly Army Camp has 200,000 troops, inside and out, all of them are Young Master Chen's men!"

Feng Huixue bowed her head and agreed, thinking to herself, "I was a bit rash. He is the Emperor's disciple, holding a high position and great power. I am merely a maidservant, in his eyes just an insignificant person. What right do I have to be jealous or doubt him?"

The Heavenly Army Camp has 300,000 Heavenly Soldiers and Generals. When Li Tianwang conquered the Nirvana Great World, he took 100,000 Heavenly Soldiers and Generals with him. The remaining 200,000 Heavenly Soldiers and Generals were all Chen Shi's men. This achievement alone surpasses Feng Huixue's achievements by a great margin.

Thinking of this, Feng Huixue felt much more at ease, and her speech and behavior became more composed.

Upon hearing the name "Young Master Xi," Chen Shi suddenly remembered something, and as if struck by a thunderbolt, he understood everything that he hadn't been able to figure out before.

"So Xi Muran went to Xuanhuang Sea not specifically to see me, but to see Feng Huixue."

A series of thoughts flashed through his mind like lightning. "Feng Huixue left me at the Eight Trigrams Demon Refining Well before leaving. At that time, she was ostensibly there to deal with the Xuanhuang Ancestral Qi outside the Heavenly Palace, to prevent those who came to fight for the Ancestral Qi from killing each other. In reality, she was using this opportunity to meet with Xi Muran. Xi Muran must have met with Feng Huixue to inform her about the attack and destruction of the Heavenly Dao Treasure, the Myriad Worlds Mirror, so that she could coordinate the attack from within."

His eyes flickered as he thought to himself, "It's no coincidence that Xi Muran and I met on the way back to Heaven. He must also be heading to Heaven. His purpose in going to Heaven is to contact other spies within Heaven to coordinate the attack and destruction of Yuheng Gate and Yaoguang Pool."

He thought of the thirty-two Heavenly Dao Treasures, which were located in various places in the Earthly Immortal Realm and were in the hands of powerful and boundless gods. It was necessary for someone with the most ability in the Celestial Court to go to these places to coordinate and deploy the operation to ensure that there would be no mistakes!

The timing of this operation was unified, with all attacks launched at 9 PM. The thirty-two Heavenly Dao Treasures and the thirty-two Great Luo Golden Immortals achieved their goals in one strike and immediately retreated without the slightest hesitation.

"In other words, the Emperor sent not only Xi Muran as a disciple, but also other disciples to contact spies in various places."

Chen Shi pondered that the disciples taken in by the master of the Great Wilderness Mingdao Collection were all highly skilled and capable of standing on their own.

Chen Shi glanced at her and asked, "Hui Xue, as the maid of the Earth Goddess Houtu, you hold a very high position in the Houde Guangda Heavenly Palace. Why would you betray the Xuanhuang Sea?"

Feng Huixue replied respectfully, “I am an immortal. Nowadays, immortals and gods can hardly coexist. If an immortal cannot consider the interests of their own kind, the gods will surely destroy them. Furthermore, I have cultivated to the Great Perfection of the Golden Immortal Realm, but I have been unable to break through. Among the immortals of Houde Heavenly Palace, I am already the one with the highest cultivation level. If I wish to advance further, I must make merit.”

Only by making significant contributions can one be rewarded and become a Taiyi Golden Immortal.

Feng Huixue said, "Young master, not everyone has such a good background as you."

Chen Shi looked at her with pity, as if she were a disabled dog on the side of the road.

The woman envied his good background, but Chen Shi never had a good background.
His identity as a disciple of the Immortal Emperor was obtained after he killed the Immortal Emperor's disciple, the Heavenly Venerable, and comprehended the Great Wilderness Dao Collection. His identity as the adopted son of Houtu was earned by risking his life to revive the gods of China day after day. He wouldn't even give away his identity as a disciple of Jin'ao Island.

However, Dong Wanggong's backing is clearly hiding a huge pitfall waiting for him.

Compared to that, Feng Huixue was incredibly lucky.

She ascended to the Heavenly Court, not as a celestial soldier or general under Li Tianwang who could be devoured by demons at any time, but instead followed Houtu Huangdiqi and became the most powerful immortal in the Xuanhuanghai Houde Guangda Heavenly Palace.

She controls the vastest resources in the Xuanhuang Sea, and has access to the profound Dao patterns left by the Heavenly Emperor and Houtu. She has countless female immortals helping her, and her power far surpasses that of Chen Shi.

Despite having such a good environment, she lacked ambition and failed to break through to become a Taiyi Golden Immortal.

She is ungrateful; despite receiving such excellent training, she betrayed the Celestial Court and became its spy.

"Commander Wu, let these heavenly soldiers and generals disperse."

Chen Shi said, "This place is still the Heavenly Court after all; be careful of the many eyes and ears around here."

Wu Guanyun laughed and said, "The Heavenly Army Camp is entirely composed of our people. Young Master is being too cautious."

Even so, he still left with a group of heavenly soldiers and generals.

Just then, Chen Shi suddenly sensed something and his gaze involuntarily fell on a heavenly soldier. The heavenly soldier seemed to sense his presence as well and turned around to look.

Chen Shi's heart stirred slightly, and he said, "Fellow Daoist, please wait."

The heavenly soldier was a young man, not a heavenly soldier from the Fire Battalion, and he stopped in his tracks upon hearing this.

Wu Guanyun, Feng Huixue, and the others all looked over. Wu Guanyun recognized the soldier and said, "Jin Weiran, this is Young Master Chen. We must not neglect him."

That day, soldier Jin Weiran agreed.

Wu Guanyun left with the others.

Chen Shi said, "Black pot, close the door. No one should be nearby."

The black pot responded, walked to the door, and closed it. Its domain spread out, controlling everyone within a radius of dozens of miles, creating an illusionary domain.

Chen Shi's gaze fell on Jin Weiran, scrutinizing him from head to toe. The celestial soldier had delicate features, but his eyes held a hint of world-weariness, giving him a capable and mature air. He must have been an immortal who had ascended from the mortal realm. Many immortals who ascended from the mortal realm were often like this: youthful appearance, but a world-weary heart.

In the mortal realm, they were all figures who reigned as kings or ancestors, or grandmasters of their generation. But in the celestial realm, they had to work in the heavenly army, their lives hanging by a thread. All their ideals and ambitions could only be hidden in their hearts.

Chen Shi asked, "How many years has Fellow Daoist Jin been since his ascension?"

Jin Weiran dared not hide the truth and said, "It has been eight years."

Chen Shi exclaimed in surprise, "Eight years? In two more years, you will be able to leave the Heavenly Army Camp and be free."

Jin Weiran smiled, but it was a bitter smile. He said, "I have been in the Heavenly Soldiers Camp for eight years. One batch of Heavenly Soldiers after another have died around me. The ideals and ambitions I had before my ascension have long since vanished and no longer exist. My current thought is to endure the remaining two years and then find a beautiful place to live in seclusion."

Remembering that Chen Shi was the current emperor's disciple, he became solemn and said, "Young master, I have no disloyalty to the Celestial Court! My talk of going into seclusion was just a casual remark."

Chen Shi smiled nonchalantly, "We are both ascensionists, so there's no need to be so formal. I am not one to indiscriminately kill innocent people. Is the Heavenly Dao treasure within you from the Jade Balance Sect or the Yao Guang Pool?"

Upon hearing this, Jin Weiran's body went limp, and she almost sat down on her bottom, exclaiming, "How did you know?"

He immediately perked up and said quickly, "That's right, you also have the aura of the Heavenly Dao within you, and you also have the imprint of a Heavenly Dao magic weapon!"

Chen Shi laughed and said, "The Heavenly Secrets Strategy is right here in my sea of ​​consciousness. Fellow Daoist Jin, you are, after all, an Immortal True Person. Don't you even have this much Dao heart?"

Jin Weiran was still somewhat unsettled, and said, "This is a matter of life and death, how can I be indifferent?"

He took a deep breath and exhaled a breath of stale air to calm himself down before saying, "Just now I sensed the aura of the Heavenly Dao within your body, and it felt familiar, seemingly originating from the same source as the Jade Balance Sect imprint within me. But I never expected it to be the aura of the Heavenly Secret Strategy!"

Chen Shi hadn't expected to encounter someone who also possessed the mark of a Heavenly Dao artifact. He laughed and said, "I obtained the Heavenly Secrets Strategy mark the day before it was destroyed. I inadvertently sensed my consciousness being transferred to the front of the Heavenly Secrets Strategy. How did you obtain the Jade Balance Sect mark?"

Jin Weiran said, “I had a similar experience. Two months ago, after receiving my monthly salary, I wanted to go to the South Heavenly Gate to observe the Four Heavenly Kings and comprehend a kind of immortal technique. The Four Heavenly Kings at the South Heavenly Gate are easy to talk to, but the divine generals around them are difficult to deal with. Observing the Four Heavenly Kings is possible, but it costs money. In the past few years, whenever I received my monthly salary, I spent it on this matter and gained a lot. This time, I paid the money and observed from the side. Just as I was completely absorbed, the South Heavenly Gate in front of me suddenly blurred. After I calmed my mind, I found myself floating in front of the Jade Balance Gate.”

Chen Shi felt a slight stirring in his heart; this was somewhat similar to his own experience back then.

When he was attaining the Dao, his vision suddenly blurred, and his consciousness appeared before the Heavenly Secrets Strategy.

"While I was still thinking about how to return to my physical body, I saw the Jade Balance Gate shining brightly, and countless strange Dao patterns emerged and drilled into the space between my eyebrows."

Jin Weiran said, "My ears are filled with all sorts of sounds, it's very noisy, my head feels like it's going to explode, but it's my consciousness that can't explode. If it did explode, maybe there would be less pain."

As he spoke, he shuddered, clearly still haunted by the pain he had suffered that day.

"I don't know how much time passed, but suddenly I became disoriented, all the sounds disappeared, and my head didn't hurt as much anymore. I was back in front of the South Heavenly Gate, still sitting there. A divine general told me, 'My time has come, it's time for me to go.'"

Jin Weiran said, "I was in a daze, got up and left, and went back to Tiandao Residence for a long sleep. I felt better after waking up. I focused my inner vision and found that there was a new portal in my sea of ​​consciousness, exactly the same as the Yuheng Gate. At this time, I heard people say that a master broke into the Heavenly Court last night and destroyed the Heavenly Dao treasures Yuheng Gate and Yaoguang Pool."

Chen Shi's heart stirred slightly, and he asked, "Have you sensed any other people who possess an aura similar to yours or mine?"

Jin Weiran shook his head and said, "Ever since I discovered the Jade Balance Gate imprint in my sea of ​​consciousness, I have dared not go out. How powerful is the person who broke into the Heavenly Court and shattered the Jade Balance Gate? If he knew that there was still a Jade Balance Gate in my sea of ​​consciousness, he would definitely come to kill me!"

His expression was slightly embarrassed as he whispered, "Who would have thought that it was our Celestial Court that shattered the Jade Balance Gate..."

Chen Shi paced back and forth, then suddenly said, "The day before the Jade Balance Sect was destroyed, it imprinted its Dao patterns into your sea of ​​consciousness. The one who did this should not be the Jade Balance Sect itself, but rather the one in control of the Jade Balance Sect."

Jin Weiran was stunned: "The controller? Who is the controller of the Jade Balance Sect?"

Chen Shi asked, "Has no one contacted you these past few days?"

Jin Weiran shook his head.

Chen Shi's eyes flashed: "Logically speaking, the Eastern King Duke should have made his appearance. Do you have to kill someone and go to the Heavenly Prison before the Eastern King Duke will show up to rescue you?"

Jin Weiran did not understand the meaning behind his words.

Seeing that he didn't understand, Chen Shi said to the black pot, "The Jade Balance Gate has a brand, does that mean that the Yao Guang Pool also has a brand, and that this brand is currently inside the body of some inconspicuous immortal in the Heavenly Court?"

The man with the black pot looked serious: "Woof, woof."

"Yes. Other Heavenly Dao treasures should also have an imprint prepared and hidden in the bodies of different immortals."

"Wang!"

"There is indeed something fishy about this. The Celestial Court knew the location of every Heavenly Dao Treasure through an inside agent, which is why they were able to accurately attack and destroy these Heavenly Dao Treasures. But the Celestial Court probably also has spies within its own ranks, which is why they knew about their sneak attack in advance and prepared the branding a day ahead."

"Wang Wang Wang!"

"That's what I think too. The Heavenly Court is waiting for the other side to make a mistake so they can wipe them out in one fell swoop."

Jin Weiran watched them chatting happily, unable to join in, feeling like an outsider.

"Fellow Daoist Jin, your becoming the ruler of the Heavenly Dao will surely attract many assassination attempts. Therefore, you must not tell anyone about this," Chen Shi instructed.

Jin Weiran agreed, then couldn't help but say, "Young Master Chen, we are from the Celestial Court..."

"Not anymore."

Chen Shi said, "Now, our lives are more important."

Jin Weiran nodded silently, then took his leave.

A few days later, Chen Shi received a transfer order, transferring him to Siyuan Mountain Pass in the Nili Great World for a change of garrison duty.

Chen Shi was astonished. Li Tianwang had been sending troops to Nili Dasha (the world of hell) and had never mobilized him. He never expected that today he would be specially sent a mobilization order to go to Nili Dasha.

The divine general who delivered the transfer order personally invited Chen Tianbing, saying, "Please set off as soon as possible!"

Chen Shi intended to take the blame, but the two divine generals shook their heads in unison: "The Heavenly King's decree only allows the mobilization of Chen Tianbing; no one else may be brought along."

Chen Shi was suspicious, but he still didn't bring the black pot and followed the two divine generals to the Tianhe Ferry.

He and two divine generals boarded the star raft, but before they could even sit down, two more divine generals arrived with an immortal, who also boarded the raft. That immortal was none other than Jin Weiran.

Jin Weiran opened his mouth to speak, but then two more divine generals came and brought a female immortal.

Chen Shi's gaze fell on the female immortal, and he immediately felt a sense of familiarity, thinking to himself, "She is another ruler of the Heavenly Dao! The Yao Guang Pool imprint is on her!"

(End of this chapter)