Chapter 167 Back to the Past

Divine Venerable Lietian stood where he was, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Dragon Prince Ao Qian hovered in mid-air, his foot frozen in place, the smile on his face fading bit by bit. It shifted from sycophantic to nervous.

Divine Venerable Lietian did not answer immediately.

He merely shifted his gaze slowly toward Ao Gang. There was not a hint of panic in his eyes, only the gaze that could only be cultivated after slaughtering hundreds of millions of living beings—a calmness so profound that a single glance made one's marrow run cold.

"Are you questioning my decision?" His hoarse voice sounded somewhat thin, like a candle flame in the wind.

The Spiritual Qi fluctuations of the True Immortal Realm were negligible.

Yet the burst of Origin energy and the aura that permeated the Divine Soul made Ao Gang's body tremble.

It felt as if a mountain had been pressed onto his shoulders; it was not pressing on his Physical Body, but crushing directly onto his Divine Soul.

Beads of sweat slid down his cheeks.

"This subordinate dares not!"

Ao Gang slammed one knee onto the Void Realm.

"This subordinate merely felt that the Chaos Main Hall has been abandoned for years and the Spiritual Qi is thin, making it unsuitable for Your Highness to reshape your golden body."

"Insolent!"

Dragon Prince Ao Qian stepped forward, his figure fast as lightning, and pointed a finger at Ao Gang's nose.

"Divine Venerable Lietian has his own profound reasons for acting! A mere commander like you dares to speculate wildly? Apologize at once!"

After speaking, Dragon Prince Ao Qian turned around. The fierce and menacing face he had just worn changed in an instant. His eyes curved, the corners of his mouth turned up, and his face was filled with a sycophantic smile. His back bent like a bow.

"Please calm your anger, Divine Venerable Lietian. This fellow Ao Gang is just a brute; he only knows how to wield weapons and has nothing but muscle in his brain. He was just impatient and worried about your health. He has absolutely no intention of offending you. Please, do not lower yourself to his level."

Divine Venerable Lietian cast a cold glance at Ao Gang. It lasted only a fleeting moment.

With his head lowered, Ao Gang could only see Divine Venerable Lietian turning in the Void Realm. A soft huff sounded.

Divine Venerable Lietian clasped his hands behind his back, straightened his spine slightly, and lifted his chin. He waved his hand.

"It is fine. I have undergone Reincarnation and cultivation, and having just taken human form, I am not yet accustomed to this vessel, so my mood is somewhat irritable."

Dragon Prince Ao Qian secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He lifted his head, his gaze sweeping past the chest and chin, before landing on Divine Venerable Lietian's head. A blade of tender green grass was stuck right in the center of his crown. Dragon Prince Ao Qian's mouth twitched.

He pulled at the corner of his mouth, shifted his gaze, and then turned his head to glare fiercely at Ao Gang. Ao Gang dared not speak and lowered his head even further.

"Ahem." Divine Venerable Lietian took in Dragon Prince Ao Qian's small actions. The sense of humiliation surged in his heart again. But he knew he could not show any flaws. Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the slave contract radiated a chill; his true master was right behind him, watching all of this.

"Actually, it is fine to tell you." Divine Venerable Lietian lifted his chin slightly, looking toward the rolling clouds, his pupils reflecting a hazy golden-gray. He deliberately lowered his voice, making his tone sound unfathomable.

"The reason I chose to go to the Chaos Main Hall is to..." He paused halfway through his sentence, his brow furrowing. For what? He did not even know himself.

Going to the Chaos Main Hall was Gu Heng's order. With that person's light words of "Go to the Chaos Main Hall dungeon," he became like a puppet on strings, forced to head in that direction. As for why he was going or what he was doing, not a single word was mentioned. His mind was currently blank, and he had no idea how to continue making things up.

"In order to..." His lips moved, his gaze wandering through the Void Realm, seeing only the churning Chaos. Before he could think of any wording.

"I understand!" Dragon Prince Ao Qian slapped his thigh suddenly. The Five Great Dragon Emperors in the distance were startled. Dragon Prince Ao Qian was so excited he nearly jumped, a fanatical light erupting in his dragon pupils.

Divine Venerable Lietian was startled. He looked at this junior in front of him, dazed. Dragon Prince Ao Qian looked like a shrimp just fished out of boiling water, his breathing rapid and heavy.

"What do you understand?"

"Your intentions are profound, my Lord! This subordinate has completely realized it!"

Dragon Prince Ao Qian turned around, looking as if he was disappointed by someone's failure to meet expectations, and pointed at the kneeling Ao Gang.

"Ao Gang! Divine Venerable Lietian was ambushed back then, slapped to death by Divine Marshal Pojun, and subsequently underwent Reincarnation and took human form, enduring countless hardships to return to our clan!"

"For such a major event as the return of a king, should he sneakily return to his residence to rest?"

Dragon Prince Ao Qian's voice echoed at the edge of the sky.

"My Lord wants to return to summon the Great Army! He wants to hold a grand assembly at the Chaos Main Hall! He wants to announce the return of the War God in front of all the old fogies in the Dragon God Domain!"

"Only the Chaos Main Hall is worthy of my Lord's status! Only there is my Lord the legitimate Dragon Clan War God!"

After speaking, Dragon Prince Ao Qian turned around and bowed deeply to Divine Venerable Lietian; when he lifted his head, his face was filled with confidence.

"Rest assured, my Lord! Leave the trivial matters to us! You just need to rest in your residence and adjust your state. As for summoning the old troops and announcing it to the world, this subordinate guarantees to handle it beautifully and will never tarnish your prestige!"

Divine Venerable Lietian looked at him blankly. His mouth was slightly open, and he could not utter a single word for a long time.

What on earth is this? He just wanted to delay a bit and make up a reason. He had not even finished making it up yet. This guy had already imagined the entire follow-up spectacle? Summoning an army? A grand assembly? Announcing his return?

Divine Venerable Lietian reviewed his current appearance in his mind. A swaying blade of grass on his head, True Immortal Realm cultivation. He dared not imagine the scene of returning to hold the Dragon Clan's highest assembly in this state. After a brief moment of shock, he felt secretly pleased. It was fine. It saved him the effort of making up lies. Dragon Prince Ao Qian had said everything, and he had not admitted to a single word, so if anything went wrong, it could not be blamed on him.

He nodded slightly, preparing to agree. Before he could nod, Ao Gang, who had been kneeling on the ground, suddenly fell into deep thought. His brows furrowed tighter and tighter, his lips moving slightly as if chewing on Dragon Prince Ao Qian's words. The light in his dragon pupils flickered, as if he were experiencing a brainstorming session.

A moment later, Ao Gang lifted his head, a cold light flashing in his eyes. "Your Highness, this subordinate believes that Divine Venerable Lietian's actions definitely have more meaning than this!!"

Divine Venerable Lietian's heart skipped a beat. Huh? Was he seen through? Did this reckless dragon see that he was forced to go to the Chaos Main Hall? Did he see that he had other motives?

Dragon Prince Ao Qian was stunned and frowned. "Commander Ao Gang, what nonsense are you spouting again?"

"Your Highness, think about it!" Ao Gang stood up abruptly. He stared intensely at Divine Venerable Lietian, flames burning in his eyes. Then, he sneered.

"My Lord has just taken human form and his cultivation has not recovered, so why is he so anxious to go to the Chaos Main Hall?"

"Summoning old troops? These things can wait until his cultivation is restored. By then, when my Lord descends with Peak cultivation, who would dare to question him?"

"Yet my Lord chose right now, when his cultivation is at its weakest, to go to the Chaos Main Hall!"

He took another step, closing in on Divine Venerable Lietian. Then, he took a deep breath. "Seeing my Lord so anxious, even willing to head straight to the center of power with only True Immortal Realm cultivation, it must be—to return and intimidate, to purge those old fogies of the Conservative Faction!"

Once these words were spoken, the wind stilled. The Five Great Dragon Emperors widened their eyes, their chins nearly dropping to the ground, exchanging shocked glances. Dragon Prince Ao Qian stood frozen where he was, his mouth wide enough to fit a dragon egg.

Divine Venerable Lietian's eye twitched, and in the depths of his heart, hundreds of thousands of Divine Beasts stampeded past. Purge the Conservative Faction? Intimidate the old monsters? I just took human form! I am only in the True Immortal Realm! Those old fogies could blow this vessel into ashes with a sneeze, or blast me thirty million miles away with a fart. What am I going to use to purge them? This blade of grass on my head?

He could almost imagine the scene. Walking into the Chaos Main Hall with this blade of grass on his head, those old monsters would first be stunned, then burst into hysterical laughter. It would be a stroke of luck not to be pointed at and mocked for several epochs. Intimidate? Purge?

Divine Venerable Lietian desperately suppressed the urge to curse. He chose to remain silent. However, in the eyes of Dragon Prince Ao Qian, this silence became an admission.

Dragon Prince Ao Qian looked at Divine Venerable Lietian's silent demeanor. Dragon Prince Ao Qian gasped, muttering to himself, his eye sockets turning slightly red, his eyes filled with worship.

"So that is it." "I did not expect that Divine Venerable Lietian would actually take advantage of the Conservative Faction being completely unprepared to descend upon the Chaos Main Hall with lightning speed, catching them off guard!"

"For these past few days, those old fogies of the Conservative Faction have indeed been too rampant. They suppress the Radical Faction everywhere, hold onto political power, and sideline the new generation. How much blood of young Dragon Clan members has been extinguished by their rules? How many grand plans have been rejected by their strategies!"

Dragon Prince Ao Qian clenched his fists. "That is right, it is time to bring Divine Venerable Lietian back and let them recall the fear of being dominated by the War God!"

He turned around abruptly, facing the eight hundred Golden-Armored Dragon Guards behind him, and raised his right hand high. He suddenly clenched his fist. "All troops, hear my order! Escort Divine Venerable Lietian, march to the Chaos Main Hall!"

"Yes!" The eight hundred Dragon Guards roared in unison. The roars converged, eight hundred rays of light gathered, and the edge of the sky was as bright as day.

Dragon Prince Ao Qian did not waste any more time. The space channel tore open. Under the stunned gaze of the Dragon Emperors, Dragon Prince Ao Qian and Ao Gang stood like two gate gods, flanking Divine Venerable Lietian.

At this moment, Divine Venerable Lietian was expressionless, his mouth twitching. His heart was collapsing. But no one could tell.

They marched imposingly into the space channel. With a flash of light, the void rift slowly closed; as the last ray of light vanished, the rift sealed. Only a few Dragon Clan Immortal Emperors were left on the plaza, staring at each other in bewilderment. ...

Meanwhile. Deep within Divine Venerable Lietian's Sea of Consciousness, inside the heaven-reaching tower of the Original Realm. There were green mountains and clear waters, a gentle breeze, and clouds swirling among the mountains, with waterfalls and springs vaguely visible.

"Pfft—" Gu Heng spat out a mouthful of tea. "Cough, cough, cough."

He put down the teacup, wiping the corners of his mouth while coughing. On his usually calm and indifferent face, amusement and shock intertwined in his eyes.

Di Shitian, the White Bone Demon Emperor, and the others standing on the side looked at each other. Di Shitian stepped forward. He took out a clean white silk handkerchief from his robes and presented it with both hands. "Master, what has happened in the outside world?"

Di Shitian's voice was gentle and respectful, asking the question that was in the hearts of all the Demon Emperors. The White Bone Demon Emperor stood to the side, the ghost fire in his eye sockets flickering. He had followed Gu Heng for a long time and had rarely seen his Master show such an expression.

Gu Heng took the handkerchief, wiped his hands, and then wiped the tea stains on his lapel, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "Nothing. I just discovered an interesting thing."

Gu Heng shook his head. His perception pierced through the barrier of the heaven-reaching tower, looking at the Dragon Clan army traversing the space channel outside. Dragon Prince Ao Qian and Ao Gang were on either side, guarding Divine Venerable Lietian, their faces filled with a loyalty that looked ready to face death. He muttered, "Is this Dragon Clan's reasoning ability inherited from the Dragon Ancestor?"

Meanwhile. At the center of the Human Immortal Realm, "Rumble—"

The Tribulation Cloud rolled ceaselessly, the Law of Destruction pitch-black like ink.

The clouds were stunningly thick, layering upon each other, pressing down, as if the firmament itself were collapsing.

In the deepest part of the Tribulation Cloud, grey Chaos lightning was faintly brewing.

Grey lightning flashed intermittently; each time it flickered, the entire Star Domain trembled.

At the very center of the thunderstorm, Lin Qingyue sat cross-legged.

Violent thunder washed over her body.

A strange brilliance on her body isolated the lightning.

Red and white intertwined.

Lin Qingyue closed her eyes.

Her consciousness was in the midst of Chaos.

After long memories, the fragments pieced together completely.

Each fragment found its place; the layouts of her past life, the Reincarnation of this life, all Karma became clear.

The Breakthrough had reached its final moment.

Her aura was climbing crazily, charging upwards towards the God Emperor Realm with unstoppable force.

Behind her, a blurry, crimson Divine Sense phantom was slowly overlapping with her Physical Body.

"I am Bai Wangshu."

"This is my original name."

Lin Qingyue's eyelashes trembled slightly.

Memories of both lives converged and merged like a tide.

In her past life, she was the Empress of the Divine Dynasty, ruling over all heavens and worlds; with a single command, Star Domains would topple.

In this life, she is the Sword Cultivator Lin Qingyue, cultivating in seclusion, accompanied by her sword, walking along the Dao.

The her of the past life and the her of this life were originally the same person.

Now, the memories of the past life gave this life strength and enlightenment.

"Reincarnation and recultivation. So that was it."

Her state of mind reached Great Perfection at this moment.

Obsessions and confusion vanished like smoke.

She had once been confused about whether she was Lin Qingyue or Bai Wangshu.

She had struggled with whether she still had to bear the responsibilities of her past life, and had suffered over whether she still had to face the enemies of her past life.

Now, the confusion had disappeared.

She was Lin Qingyue, who had experienced the entire life of this existence, and she was also Bai Wangshu, who had remembered all the memories of her past life.

The two were not contradictory.

Like a tree, the roots are white, and the leaves are green.

"Swish—"

Bai Wangshu opened her eyes abruptly, a white light flashing and then vanishing.

Sunlight poured down, shining on her, draping her in a layer of gold.

Bai Wangshu's gaze crossed the Tribulation Cloud, looking towards a more distant direction, the direction where the God Domain lay.

In those cold, clear eyes, a trace of complex light flashed.

"Boom—"

Between heaven and earth, the last bolt of Chaos lightning crashed down.

Bai Wangshu lifted her hand lightly.

The Heavenly Tribulation lightning, which was enough to destroy a Star Domain, was transformed into pure Spiritual Qi in the blink of an eye.

God Emperor, broken through.

Outside the thunderstorm barrier, dozens of elders of the Divine Dynasty widened their eyes, staring at the center of the storm.

Seeing that Bai Wangshu had not only broken through but her aura was still climbing, everyone held their breath.

"God Emperor cultivation. And still breaking through?"

The Red-robed Elder pointed a trembling hand at the center of the sea of thunder, "How is this possible? This violates the iron Law of cultivation!"

He turned to look at his equally stunned old companions.

"Even if it is Your Majesty's Reincarnation and recultivation, possessing the insights of the past life's Realm, the Physical Body and Divine Power still need to be accumulated bit by bit.

Without massive resources piled up, how can it be possible to continue raising cultivation after just stepping into the God Emperor Realm?"

The voice echoed in the Void Realm.

"Is this going to charge towards the Peak God Emperor, or even a half-step God Emperor?"

The elders were shocked.

In their understanding, while Reincarnation and recultivation could avoid Bottlenecks, the conservation of energy could not be broken.

Increasing cultivation required massive Spiritual Qi and time to settle; this was an iron Law that no one could violate.

And the Spiritual Qi in the Immortal Realm was barren, simply insufficient to support such a terrifying promotion.

Let alone charging towards the Peak God Emperor, even stabilizing the Early Stage of the God Emperor Realm should be stretched thin.

Jiang Wanyin shook her head slightly, "It is not as troublesome as you think."

The elders turned their heads in unison, focusing their gazes on this unfathomable Imperial Teacher.

"Don't forget, the Divine Sense left behind by Your Majesty can mobilize the power of the river of time.

What Your Majesty is doing now—"

Jiang Wanyin paused, her gaze becoming deep, piercing through time and space, seeing a certain distant past.

"Is simply taking back the cultivation that belongs to herself, which has not been lost, from the river of time."

As the voice fell, the starry ruins fell into silence.

Then.

"???"

The elders were full of question marks.

These old monsters who had lived for endless years now had expressions more bewildered than newly initiated apprentices.

"This is possible?"

The Old Palace Master gasped, "Taking back cultivation from the river of time? Doesn't that mean as much as one wants? Won't one be erased by the Great Dao of the Universe?"

He had cultivated for countless years, from a small Loose Cultivator step by step to today, knowing deeply that every bit of cultivation was hard-won.

Now the Imperial Teacher actually said that cultivation could be stored and taken out later?

It was like working hard to save money for a lifetime, only to find that a neighbor had deposited a mountain of gold in a bank in their past life, and was now going to withdraw the principal.

The Old Palace Master pondered for a moment, stepped forward, his brows locked tight.

"Imperial Teacher. If this is the case, when the Demon God Emperor was severely injured and fell from his Realm back then, why didn't he take back his past cultivation from the river of time?"

"The Demon God Emperor is a top existence in the God Domain, and in terms of cultivation Realm, he is not inferior to Your Majesty back then."

"After he fell into a deep sleep, it took him long years to barely recover.

If taking back cultivation was really that easy, why didn't he do it?"

Jiang Wanyin turned her head.

Her gaze fell on the Old Palace Master, paused for a moment, then nodded slightly.

"Old Palace Master. Your question is very good.

Being able to think to this level shows that you have a preliminary awe for the Law of Time."

Her tone had no displeasure at being offended, only the gratification of seeing a good question.

Immediately after, her expression became serious.

"However, you have overlooked the most core point of the Law of Time.

Karma is irreversible."

"The Demon God Emperor was severely injured, his cultivation was scattered; on the timeline, this is a predetermined fact."

"After that point in time, he was destined to lose that portion of power.

Therefore, it is impossible for him to cross Karma and forcibly take back what was destined to be lost from the past."

"If he dared to do so, the backlash from the river of time would instantly erase him.

All traces of him would be washed away by the river of time, and he would be as if he had never existed."

The elders all shuddered.

Jiang Wanyin's gaze fell back onto Bai Wangshu.

The thunderstorm had dissipated.

Bai Wangshu sat cross-legged in the Void Realm, gorgeous red and white light flowing on her body, her aura climbing.

"Your Majesty is different."

"When Your Majesty reincarnated back then, it was not because she was killed or severely injured and stripped by external forces.

She voluntarily abandoned her God Emperor body, taking her vast and boundless cultivation, like sealing a Treasure Trove, and temporarily storing it at a specific node in the river of time."

"This is not called changing history; this is called a closed loop of Karma."

"Furthermore."

Jiang Wanyin's gaze swept over all the elders present, finally landing on the Old Palace Master, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly.

"What the world perceives as resurrection or recultivation is merely reshaping the fallen person based on a trace of Origin left in the river of time.

As long as the Origin is not extinguished, it will not violate any Karma."

"Your Majesty's Reincarnation, her Origin is intact, and her cultivation was voluntarily deposited, not stripped by external forces.

Therefore, to her, the river of time is not a forbidden land.

It is just a storage space."

Storage space.

These three words fell into the ears of the elders, shocking them into silence for a long time.

Using the river of time as a storage space?

That is the river of time.

The supreme Law that runs through the past, present, and future.

In Your Majesty's hands, it has become a storage space?

After hearing this explanation, the elders were stunned on the spot, unable to recover for a long time.

"Temporarily storing God Emperor cultivation in the river of time."

The Red-robed Elder muttered to himself, "Your Majesty's Heaven-reaching ability is truly playing with the Laws of Heaven and Earth in the palm of her hand."

"Those so-called Prodigies are not even worthy of carrying Your Majesty's shoes."

"Following such a Your Majesty, why would the Divine Dynasty not flourish?"

Everyone's eyes were full of fanatical worship, marveling at Your Majesty's Heaven-Defying methods.

The Old Palace Master caught a detail in Jiang Wanyin's words.

There was still a flush of excitement on his face, but a shrewdness flashed in his cloudy old eyes.

He swallowed, and spoke cautiously, "Imperial Teacher.

Since Your Majesty temporarily stored her cultivation at a certain node in the river of time."

"Then how exactly is Your Majesty going to cross this half an epoch of time to retrieve that power?"

Half an epoch.

What a long period of time, a distance that Mortals cannot imagine.

Even for an Immortal Emperor, half an epoch is a concept heavy enough to crush everything.

Now, Your Majesty is going to cross this half an epoch to retrieve an item.

The Old Palace Master didn't even dare to calculate it.

Jiang Wanyin turned to look at the Old Palace Master, her expression calm, but a light faintly flowed in her eyes, and then, the corners of her mouth lifted in a faint arc.

"Of course, by returning to the past."

"Returning to the past?"

These four words were like igniting gunpowder, exploding among the elders.

Some exclaimed, some gasped, some took half a step back, as if these four words themselves carried an unbearable weight.

The Old Palace Master's voice trembled.

He had seen countless storms, but at this moment, he was like a child hearing a horror story for the first time.

"What past? Which point in time?"

To them, the river of time was the taboo among taboos.

Just looking at it would stain one with Karma, let alone stepping into it in one's true body.

Now the Imperial Teacher said Your Majesty was going to return to the past?

Returning in her true body?

Wouldn't that mean directly facing the impact of the river of time?

In the face of that power, God Emperor cultivation is nothing but an ant.

Jiang Wanyin did not keep them in suspense.

She calmly revealed the answer.

Each word seemed carefully chosen, not too many, not too few, just enough for everyone to understand, yet enough to leave everyone shocked and speechless.

"Of course, it is the Original Realm where the heaven-reaching tower existed at that time."

The heaven-reaching tower?

The elders present all shivered; the heaven-reaching tower was a taboo topic in the history of the Divine Dynasty.

The Origin of the tower, the power it carried, everything was a mystery.

Now, the Imperial Teacher said Your Majesty was going to return to that point in time?

"Furthermore."

Jiang Wanyin's gaze became somewhat grave, slowly sweeping over everyone present.

The elders touched by her gaze involuntarily held their breath, their voices lowering a few notches.

She spoke word by word.

"It is not a Divine Sense projection; Your Majesty is returning to that past node in reality, along with her Physical Body and Soul."

"Ah?"

In the starry ruins, only the sound of gasping remained.

The sounds rose and fell, gathering together like a strange symphony, echoing in the Void Realm, lingering for a long time.

Returning in reality?

What a crazy act?

Doesn't that mean that the current Your Majesty is about to have an unpredictable collision with some people from the past within the river of time?