Chapter 164 Taking Yourself as a Disciple?

As these words were spoken, only the winds of time whistled past the ears of the crowd.

Meteorites floated silently in the Void Realm, the purple lightning illuminating everyone's faces with flickering light.

"Th-this... how is this possible..." The Red-robed Elder's ruddy complexion instantly drained away, and he stood frozen in place.

It was not just him.

The dozens of Divine Court elders surrounding him were also frozen as if struck by a binding spell.

"Imperial Tutor, you... you must be joking, right?"

"Indeed, Imperial Tutor, this is not a joke to be made lightly."

"If Her Majesty is merely a projection of Divine Sense, then who has been sitting in the depths of the Qiankun Hall of the Ninety-nine Heavens for the past half-epoch?"

"Exactly!"

"We have personally felt Her Majesty's imperial might; that pressure, that majesty, how could it be fake?"

The elders spoke up one after another, their voices filled with panic.

They were like drowning people trying to grasp a straw, hoping to deny the absurd truth that Jiang Wanyin had just spoken.

Jiang Wanyin did not speak.

Her plain robes brushed lightly as she swept her gaze over the crowd, offering no explanation.

Seeing the silent Imperial Tutor, the noise of the crowd gradually died down.

The Old Palace Master stood at the very front, clutching his sleeves.

His gaze fell on Jiang Wanyin's face, his lips moving several times, but he could not produce a sound.

In the silent questioning, the Old Palace Master's thoughts suddenly traveled back, passing through every single court session of the past half-epoch.

"Half an epoch..."

He suddenly remembered.

For this past half-epoch, every time they knelt in the divine hall of the Ninety-nine Heavens to pay respects to that supreme Dominator, the scene they saw was always the same.

In the deepest part of the hall, curtains hung low, and the aura of the Dao swirled like Chaos.

They could only vaguely see a blurred figure in crimson sitting upright.

Imperial might swirled around the figure.

The form was elusive, like a painting soaked in water.

"In the past... I always thought it was because Her Majesty's cultivation was too high, and our Mortal eyes were unworthy of looking directly at the imperial countenance..."

"Therefore, during every court session, I dared not even glance toward the throne with my peripheral vision. I thought that was Her Majesty's unfathomable nature, her supreme majesty, the reverence a subject should have..."

"Yet, in the end..."

He could not continue; his throat felt blocked, and breathing became difficult.

A living God Emperor versus a projected Divine Sense — the difference between the two was more than just heaven and earth.

The Dominator they had worshipped for half an epoch, the supreme Empress they had feared for half an epoch, was actually just a cold, intangible projection of Divine Sense?

Those court decisions, those imperial decrees, that imperial might that made them tremble with fear — were they all just that wisp of Divine Sense operating automatically according to Her Majesty's will before she passed?

The Old Palace Master turned stiffly. He looked at Jiang Wanyin, his knees slightly bent, his body trembling like a withered leaf in a storm.

His lips quivered for a long time before he asked in a voice bordering on pleading, "Imperial Tutor... Her Majesty, what... exactly..."

He did not finish.

But everyone knew what he wanted to ask.

Jiang Wanyin nodded slightly.

The starlight wind lifted her dark hair, swaying across her profile, covering the fleeting sorrow in her eyes.

She remained silent for a long time before speaking softly, "Her Majesty has fallen."

Boom — as these words were spoken.

The elders' eyes widened, their brains completely crashed, and countless question marks frantically popped up.

Fallen? Her Majesty has fallen?

That was a God Emperor! Beyond the Three Realms, outside the Five Elements; in all the heavens and myriad worlds, who could kill her?

Jiang Wanyin looked at this group of old men, tucked a strand of dark hair blown messy by the wind behind her ear, and added, "Fallen, but not completely fallen."

The Red-robed Elder was completely bewildered.

His old face was full of confusion and frustration. "Imperial Tutor, a fall is a fall. What does 'not completely fallen' mean? Could it be... Her Majesty buried her Physical Body in some geomantic treasure land, waiting to return as a corpse? I have heard that in ancient times there was a method of corpse-dissolution immortality—"

"Slap!" The sound of a palm interrupted him.

The Old Palace Master had appeared behind the Red-robed Elder at some point and unceremoniously slapped him on the back of the head.

"You pig-brained fool," the Old Palace Master scolded, hating that he could not make him better. "What do you think Her Majesty is? Is she one of the zombie stories you heard in the Lower Realm when you were young? Of course, it's Reincarnation! Think about it — if what Her Majesty left behind was just a projection of Divine Sense to stabilize the Divine Court's situation, her Origin and true spirit would have long entered Reincarnation, and everything would make sense!"

The Red-robed Elder rubbed the back of his head, but upon hearing the Old Palace Master's explanation, he was instantly stunned.

His grimacing expression froze on his face, and he even forgot to rub the large bump.

"Reincarnation... recultivation..." The Red-robed Elder muttered to himself, a flash of horror crossing his eyes.

"So... for this half-epoch, Her Majesty left a wisp of Divine Sense to play herself, sitting on that cold throne, maintaining the operation of the Divine Court day after day, year after year.

And she herself had long since entered Reincarnation, experiencing countless births, aging, sickness, and deaths among the myriad worlds, walking the path of cultivation again as a Mortal..."

After the shock, his brows furrowed again.

"Since that's the case... why didn't Her Majesty just create a Clone back then?" The Red-robed Elder asked the Old Palace Master, looking very puzzled.

"The Human Race Divine Court has a deep foundation and countless treasures. In the divine medicine vault, things like the Nine-turn Chaos Lotus, the Indestructible Body of Ten Thousand Tribulations, or the Primordial Dao Embryo — any one of them could carry Her Majesty's imperial might and be refined into a perfect Clone.

If she had created a Clone to sit in the Qiankun Hall, the strength would be greater — at least able to unleash fifty or sixty percent of the original's combat power — why settle for just a fragile wisp of Divine Sense?"

Before he could finish speaking, "Bang!" The Old Palace Master kicked the Red-robed Elder hard in the buttocks.

The Red-robed Elder turned into a shooting star, smashing into a small meteorite in the distance.

He flew back from the pile of rubble, face covered in dirt, his robes full of holes, looking incredibly disheveled.

"Old Palace Master! Why did you kick me for no reason!?" The Red-robed Elder rubbed his buttocks, which were burning with pain, and shouted angrily, "I was just asking a reasonable question!"

The Old Palace Master rolled his eyes at him, as if looking at an idiot.

"A Clone? Are you kidding me!"

"Although a Clone shares the same source as the original body, once successfully refined, it has an independent Physical Body and Meridians. It will develop an independent consciousness, have its own feelings, its own judgments, its own... preferences."

"If Her Majesty used a Clone to walk the heavens, what if that Clone developed Mortal feelings during the trials, or became entangled with someone? How would Her Majesty's true self handle that?"

"Do you expect Her Majesty to cuckold herself?"

The Red-robed Elder was stunned.

He opened his mouth to retort, but found that every word the Old Palace Master said was reasonable.

He coughed awkwardly twice, his ears turning slightly red, and he sheepishly looked away, not daring to continue the conversation.

"As for Divine Sense—" The Old Palace Master paused, his tone softening a little.

"Divine Sense is originally a part of one's own Divine Soul; it has no physical entity and no superfluous distracting thoughts. It is just a segment of will left behind by Her Majesty, a tool. Therefore—"

"So there are no concerns!" The Red-robed Elder realized, suddenly looking up, his eyes bursting with brilliance.

Not only was he not angry about being kicked, he excitedly slapped his thigh.

A flash of brilliance crossed his eyes, and he shouted excitedly, "Her Majesty fused her life's insights, Cultivation Techniques, and a portion of her Origin into that wisp of Divine Sense!

Then, that wisp of Divine Sense went to the Lower Realm to guide the Reincarnated body's cultivation.

In this way, the Divine Sense is equivalent to a guide, a Revered Master who understands her best — it can ensure the Reincarnated body's absolute safety, and ensure she awakens her past life's memories and returns to the Peak!"

He spoke with great enthusiasm, like someone who had finally found the answer to a problem that had troubled him for a long time.

The other elders around them also displayed expressions of sudden realization.

However—

"Wait!" The Red-robed Elder's expression froze on his face.

Everyone looked at each other, their gazes crossing rapidly.

"Her Majesty fused her own insights into Divine Sense, and the Divine Sense went to the Lower Realm to guide the Reincarnated body..."

"That means... that existence who was rumored to be the only Personal Disciple accepted by Her Majesty..."

"From beginning to end... was Her Majesty herself?"

"Ah!?"

The entire Star Domain fell into dead silence once again.

The elders subconsciously held their breath, their eyes filled with absurdity and disbelief.

What kind of situation was this?

Taking oneself as a Disciple? Being one's own Revered Master? Can Revered Master-Disciple relationships even be played like this?

Jiang Wanyin watched this group of old men with black lines on their foreheads, looking completely disheveled, and just nodded silently.

Her expression was calm, like a stagnant pool, but the slightly pursed corners of her mouth still revealed a trace of helplessness.

"Taking oneself as a Disciple, this is quite reasonable, right?"

The elders: "..."

However, after a moment of speechlessness and inner grumbling, the black lines on the elders' faces gradually faded.

Replacing them was an unprecedented gravity and terror.

Actually, what they were most worried about right now was not the harmless anecdote of "taking oneself as a Disciple."

The truly fatal thing was something else.

The Red-robed Elder and the Old Palace Master exchanged a look.

Their eyes met for an instant, as if they had thought of the same thing simultaneously, and the light in their eyes dimmed at the same time.

"It's over..." The Red-robed Elder trembled his lips.

"Old Palace Master, do you still remember... when the news of Her Majesty taking a Disciple reached the Divine Court, what did we do?"

The Old Palace Master's face turned pale, and he silently closed his eyes and nodded.

They had not known at all that the so-called "Personal Disciple" Her Majesty took was actually her own Reincarnated body.

They thought it was just a Mortal Disciple from the Lower Realm who had been lucky enough to be favored by Her Majesty.

Therefore, for this past half-epoch, the high-level officials of the Divine Court had always adopted an extremely cold and dismissive attitude toward that "Junior Sister" cultivating in the Lower Realm.

In their eyes, she was just an ant from the Lower Realm who had hit the jackpot, not worth the Divine Court using any resources.

"At the time... we even discussed this in the court."

An elder wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

"We all thought it was a Disciple from some remote Lower Realm who had hit the jackpot and happened to be favored by Her Majesty, merely accepted as a Named Disciple."

"So — a Mortal Disciple from the Lower Realm was not worth making a big fuss over — we didn't even send a single powerhouse from the God Realm.

We only issued an imperial decree and sent the head of the Law Enforcement Hall, who was responsible for managing the Immortal Domain, to receive her."

"And later, when the news came back, we only then realized—"

"The Hall Revered Master of the Law Enforcement Hall, finding the Spiritual Qi in the Lower Realm impure and the journey too long, deemed it troublesome and simply didn't go personally..."

At this point, his voice completely faded away.

"Who did he send?"

"He sent... the newly appointed Deputy Hall Master to receive her."

The Red-robed Elder closed his eyes in despair.

"And that Deputy Hall Master... after going to the Lower Realm, has been... missing ever since!"

"Missing ever since..."

The Old Palace Master took a deep breath.

He suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze sweeping across the face of every Elder present.

"That means—"

The Old Palace Master clenched his fists, "That scoundrel who refined the heaven-reaching tower—captured the Deputy Hall Master sent by the Law Enforcement Hall?"

"That's right, it must be him..."

The Red-robed Elder confirmed bitterly.

In an instant, the Void Realm storm stirred up monstrous waves.

All the Elders were struck speechless by this conclusion, looking at each other in dismay.

The thread of events became completely clear at this moment.

But the clearer it became, the colder they felt.

"No wonder..."

The Red-robed Elder slapped his thigh, "We finally understand why, before Her Majesty's Reincarnation, she casually threw a supreme treasure of the Divine Dynasty like the heaven-reaching tower into that desolate and remote Original Realm!"

Back then, we thought Her Majesty did it on a whim, or was calculating some Heavenly Secret we couldn't comprehend..."

"Her Majesty left behind her Divine Sense and threw the heaven-reaching tower into the Lower Realm—so, from the very beginning, she was waiting for herself there!"

"As long as her Reincarnation body entered the Original Realm by chance and found the heaven-reaching tower, she would be able to naturally inherit the legacy of her past life, awaken her Imperial Soul early, and ascend the Imperial Throne once more!"

What an exquisite layout, what deep foresight—but—"

"But what was the result?"

Another Elder gritted his teeth and took over, his eyes full of monstrous killing intent, "The result is that it was actually... intercepted by a scoundrel!?"

"The key is..."

The Red-robed Elder sighed and shook his head powerlessly, "After that scoundrel intercepted the heaven-reaching tower, we don't know what methods he used. The heaven-reaching tower comes with taboo shielding Laws—and that scoundrel is shrouded in an inexplicable taboo power—we can't find a single trace of him..."

"Several great experts of Heavenly Secrets in the Divine Court have joined forces to calculate this countless times. They set up the Zhou Tian Star Array, using the Karma accumulated by the Divine Dynasty over half an epoch as a catalyst, and even spared no cost in burning a million years of Lifespan. Yet every time, the result of the calculation was nothing but Chaos and void!"

"This..."

The Elders looked at each other, all seeing that deep sense of powerlessness in each other's eyes.

"Old Palace Master..."

The Red-robed Elder hesitated for a moment before leaning forward, "Do you think... Her Majesty has always been infallible in her calculations. Back in the court, every layout was interconnected and never went wrong—do you think she might have... actually calculated this step long ago?"

"Perhaps this is a test deliberately set by Her Majesty? Or... a trap made to lure out the extraterritorial mastermind behind that scoundrel?"

Hearing this, the surrounding dejected Elders saw a light of hope reignite in their eyes.

Those dimmed gazes were like lamps being relit.

That's right! What kind of person is Her Majesty? Standing at the very pinnacle of all worlds, overlooking the ages of time, how could such a person be schemed against?

If they couldn't understand, it wasn't because they were stupid, but because Her Majesty's wisdom was too high!

Everyone looked at Jiang Wanyin, waiting for this Imperial Tutor, who understood Her Majesty best, to give a reassuring answer.

Facing the expectant gazes of the crowd, Jiang Wanyin's eye twitched.

This tiny expression fell into the eyes of the Elders, making their hearts sink.

"Uh... that's not the case."

Jiang Wanyin coughed dryly, "And... when Her Majesty was undergoing her trials, she was almost... abducted by that guy who refined the heaven-reaching tower."

"Ah!?"

More than a dozen Elders exclaimed in unison, the sound wave exploding in the Void Realm.

The silence this time was even deeper than before.

Everyone seemed to have been cast with the most profound immobilization spell, unable to even blink their eyelids.

All the Elders widened their eyes.

Some people's eyeballs were almost popping out of their sockets, and their mouths were open wide enough to fit a fist.

They had lived for endless years, seen countless storms, and heard countless earth-shattering pieces of news, but at this moment, they felt as if they had heard the most absurd and incredible myth in the world.

"Ab... abducted!?"

"Imperial Tutor... are you saying that the Her Majesty, who dominated through the ages, was almost abducted to become... to become..."

He had the heart but not the courage to say the following words. He opened his mouth several times, but dared not utter that disrespectful word.

"Literally."

Jiang Wanyin spat out the four words expressionlessly.

"...How scandalous!"

The Red-robed Elder beat his chest and stamped his feet in grief, his old face turning red, "What a noble status Her Majesty has! She is the Dominator of the Human Race Divine Dynasty, the supreme existence respected by all worlds! How could she be infatuated by a scoundrel!? ...If this gets out, where will the face of the Divine Dynasty be!?"

"No! We must find him and tear that scoundrel into ten thousand pieces!" Another Elder was furious, the power of Law boiling around him.

"Right! Retrieve the heaven-reaching tower and wash away Her Majesty's stain!"

The Elders were filled with indignation, shouting to go out and find him to start a slaughter.

"Everyone shut up!"

The Old Palace Master gave a furious shout, instantly suppressing the noise.

The Old Palace Master took a deep breath, his chest heaving violently several times, and then he turned to look into the depths of the Star Domain shrouded in thunder.

In the sea of thunder, purple lightning roared and churned like long dragons.

Thunderbolts struck wildly toward the figure in the very center, appearing both red and white.

Yet, under the sky full of thunderstorms, that figure was not only not in the slightest disarray, but the aura she emitted was becoming increasingly powerful and sharp.

An Imperial Might, transcending the ten thousand Daos, was slowly Awakening.

"The urgent priority is not to go find some scoundrel to settle scores."

"But to act as Protectors! Her Majesty is at a critical moment of Awakening—this God Emperor Tribulation is not only a test from Heaven and Earth for her, but also an Opportunity to reshape her Imperial Body and fuse the Dao fruits of her two lives! The insights and power from her two lifetimes of cultivation must be completely fused under the baptism of this Heavenly Tribulation; what a dangerous and critical moment this is!"

He looked around, his gaze sweeping across every Elder's face, "If there is any mistake at this time, causing Her Majesty's Awakening to fail, her Divine Soul to be damaged, or even—we would be truly unforgivable even if we died ten thousand times! Think clearly, if anything happens to Her Majesty, even if we old fellows die ten thousand times, we cannot make up for this sin!"

Upon hearing this, the Elders' expressions became solemn.

The anger, killing intent, and excitement from just a moment ago were suppressed in an instant.

They all put away the absurdity and anger on their faces, their eyes becoming sharp and focused, and they bowed solemnly to the Old Palace Master.

"The Old Palace Master is absolutely right!"

"We almost lost the big picture over small things, many thanks to the Old Palace Master for the reminder!"

"We will form the array now to act as Protectors for Her Majesty! We will not let anything come within half a step of this Star Domain!"

Boom, boom, boom—dozens of Divine Venerable auras erupted at the same moment, lighting up the surrounding starry sky like daylight.

The Divine Dynasty Elders flashed their figures, quickly spreading out around the periphery of the thunderstorm Star Domain according to the Formation positions. Their movements were smooth and flowing.

Clearly, this Formation had been practiced countless times, and everyone's position was precise to the extreme.

Jiang Wanyin stood quietly in the very center of the barrier. Her position was the core of the entire array, and also the place where she could most intuitively see the scene deep within the thunderstorm.

She gazed at the figure in the deepest part of the thunderstorm, appearing both red and white, her hands slowly clenching. At this moment, her eyes flashed with extremely complex light—there was relief, worry, and a trace of... anxiety that even she herself couldn't explain.

"Your Majesty..." Jiang Wanyin murmured silently in her heart, "If you return to your Peak and perceive all the memories of your past and present lives... how will you handle yourself when facing that guy who almost abducted you?"

The voice dissipated in her heart.

In the center of the thunderstorm. Lin Qingyue closed her eyes, her body sitting cross-legged in the deepest part of the violent sea of thunder.

Countless thick, dragon-like purple Heavenly Tribulation thunderbolts struck down from the tribulation clouds.

However, these terrifying Heavenly Tribulations, which were enough to instantly blast ordinary Divine Venerables into powder, dissolved silently when they touched the divine radiance on her body.

The power of the thunder was slowly absorbed by the divine radiance, turning into the purest nutrients.

The essence of the purple electricity, refined by the divine radiance, became a nourishing source, constantly nourishing the ancient Imperial Soul rapidly Awakening within her body.

In the sky, the tribulation clouds rolled more violently. "Boom—" Another earth-shattering loud noise echoed.

This thunderbolt was more fierce than all the previous ones, its color changing from deep purple to purple-black.

In the sky full of thunder, Lin Qingyue's eyebrows knitted slightly.

In the deepest part of her mind, countless fragments of sealed memories were peeling off and reorganizing, accompanied by the baptism of the Heavenly Tribulation.

The fragments were like an ancient scroll, cracking open layer by layer under the impact of the Heavenly Tribulation, revealing the recorded scenes.

About the glory of the Divine Dynasty—on the Ninety-nine Heavens, ten thousand races came to pay homage, countless powerhouses kneeling at her feet, shouting "Your Majesty."

About the loneliness of the Ninety-nine Heavens—sitting alone on a cold throne, surrounded by curtains of Imperial Might and Laws, separating herself from the entire world.

About the tragic scenes when the Great Tribulation arrived—the sky collapsing and the earth splitting, countless soldiers of the Divine Dynasty falling before her, their blood staining the Star Domain red.

She stood at the very front of everyone, facing the darkness sweeping in from the depths of Chaos alone.

The memories of the Emperor flashed through her Sea of Consciousness one by one, as if quickly flipping through a heavy history book.

In this coldness, there was a scene that, like a ray of sunlight, shone into this frozen world.

It was a small courtyard full of peach blossoms. A breeze blew by, and a few pink petals swayed, drifting and swirling onto the ground.

The courtyard was kept clean, with a few emerald bamboos planted in the corner, the bamboo leaves rustling in the wind.

Under the warm sunlight, a Youth in White was holding a cup of hot tea. Looking at her with some helplessness, a faint smile hung on the corners of his mouth.

"Wangshu, if you're tired from practicing sword, take a break and come have some tea."

Lin Qingyue's eyelashes trembled slightly.