pdf-ebookys Chapter 68 The Gods' Arrangements
Chapter 68 The Gods' Arrangements
The Heavenly Realm, Xiniu Hezhou, the Saha Heavenly Domain.
Inside the Temple of Mingde, auspicious clouds descended, and thousands of auspicious wisps of energy emanated from it. Powerful auras, capable of shaking the universe, lay dormant, causing even the rules of heaven and earth to bow in submission. At the head of the temple, Haotian sat atop a divine throne surrounded by countless auras, his imperial might vast and boundless. His gaze swept across the crowd below, landing on Mingde and the group of composed, restrained true gods of the primordial realm behind him, a hint of approval appearing in his eyes.
These gods of the primordial world were all elites trained by Mingde and his group. They had solid foundations, steadfast Dao hearts, and boundless potential, making them the fresh blood that the Heavenly Court needed most right now. Haotian naturally knew the origins and backgrounds of the gods of the primordial world and greatly appreciated Mingde's foresight in secretly planning ahead.
"Virtue and Integrity".
Haotian spoke slowly, his voice booming like the Great Dao, yet gentle and pleasing to the ear, "The Lord of the Temple of Truth previously mentioned to me his intention to appoint you as the Vice Lord of the Temple of Truth. What are your thoughts?"
Having said that, Haotian thought to himself that with Mingde's talent, combat strength, and vision, being merely the deputy temple master of the Temple of Truth was a waste of his abilities. In his heart, he had already been considering a more suitable position for Mingde.
Upon hearing this, Mingde smiled slightly, his expression calm and composed. He bowed slightly to Haotian and the Lord of the Temple of Truth beside him, saying, "I appreciate the Lord's kindness. However, the Path of Truth is not the main path I cultivate. If I were to rashly go to the Temple of Truth to serve as the Vice Lord, I fear I would be unable to fulfill my responsibilities and would instead delay the important affairs of the temple. That would be quite inappropriate."
He had his own plans. The Lord of the Temple of Truth already had a deep alliance with the Primordial Realm, and his control over the Temple of Truth was unshakeable. If he were to go, he would only be occupying a sinecure, causing unnecessary embarrassment and serving no purpose.
Upon hearing this, Haotian turned to look at the extraordinary yet enormous Lord of the Temple of Truth beside him and laughed loudly, "Lord of the Temple, you see, since Mingde is unwilling to submit, it seems that the heavy burden of the Temple of Truth will still fall on your shoulders as the backbone."
Upon hearing this, the Lord of the Temple of Truth sighed softly and gently, her voice a delicate and charming contrast to her enormous body, which blotted out the sky and resembled an ancient divine mountain. This almost caused Mingde, the Thousand Star Ancestor, and the others to lose their composure and burst out laughing.
"Since Mingde has no intention, I will not force him." The Lord of the Temple of Truth lightly flicked his sleeve, feigning helplessness. "It seems that in the end, this Temple of Truth will still have to rely on this weak woman like me to support it alone."
Haotian clapped his hands and laughed loudly: "Hahaha, the Palace Master is a heroine among women, a rare sight throughout history. I firmly believe that the Temple of Truth will flourish even more in your hands!"
Today, the Temple of Truth's influence in all realms of Heaven has quietly surpassed that of the Temple of Light. Especially on the battlefield of merit, the cultivators of the Temple of Truth have been locked in fierce battles with the Temple of Destiny of the Underworld, achieving remarkable results and making the temple's prestige soar, seemingly poised to become the number one temple in Heaven.
As the laughter subsided, Haotian's expression suddenly turned solemn, his divine might permeating the entire hall. He fixed his gaze on Mingde and said in a deep voice, "Mingde, since you are unwilling to go to the Temple of Truth, then I will personally arrange a task for you. What do you think?"
Mingde remained composed, bowing and replying, "Since Haotian has made arrangements, Mingde will naturally comply without objection." Haotian slowly rose, walked to the entrance of the main hall, stood with his hands behind his back, and gazed towards the direction of the Southern Continent. There, the Temple of Time floated above the River of Time, flowing eternally, its majesty unfathomable. He looked upon the myriad beings in the various celestial realms, a profound and unfathomable divine light flashing in his eyes, and slowly spoke:
"I wish to appoint you as the Grand Elder of the Temple of Time."
As soon as he finished speaking, Mingde's eyes suddenly flashed with a sharp light, and his heart was stirred. The Temple of Time was indeed exactly what he had thought.
He had already decided on a strategy: the Space Temple would be handed over to Zhenyu to take over, Xuandao would rely on the power of the Buddhist realm to enter the Merit Temple and take control, and he himself had already decided to step into the Time Temple.
Haotian's gaze remained fixed on the distant Temple of Time, his voice turning colder: "The Temple Master of the Temple of Time, Murong Huan, is too cunning, ambitious, and harbors treacherous intentions. I've sent you into the Temple of Time to give him a warning, and I also want to see firsthand how this Temple Master will react upon learning the news."
"Since Your Majesty is willing, then Mingde will go to the Temple of Time to meet this Murong Huan and learn from his mastery of the Way of Time." Mingde's tone was calm, but it carried an undeniable sharpness.
He knew perfectly well that stepping into the Temple of Time meant standing on the opposite side of Murong Huan. Murong Huan came from the Murong family, one of the nine great families of the universe, whose power was deeply entrenched and whose influence extended throughout the Heavenly Court and every corner of the realm. Now that they were enemies, he would eliminate the Murong family's pawns in the Heavenly Court step by step, cutting off their wings.
Haotian looked at Mingde, his eyes full of trust: "I have always trusted you."
Looking across the entire Heavenly Court, Mingde was already his most capable and trusted right-hand man, with boundless potential and incredible combat power. What was even more remarkable was that he had the big picture in mind and did not seek personal gain, making him far superior to those old-fashioned people who only knew how to fight for power and profit.
Mingde cupped his hands again: "Your Majesty, I have a few more suggestions, and I hope Your Majesty will grant them."
He intends to thoroughly integrate the gods of the Primordial World into the core forces of the Heavenly Court, rather than keeping them confined to a corner of the Primordial World. Only in this way can he spread his influence throughout the heavens and lay a solid foundation for the future.
Haotian remained calm and waved his hand, saying, "Speak freely, I will grant your request."
"I wish to place Zhenyu in the Temple of Space and Xuandao in the Temple of Merit. I request Haotian to make the final decision."
Upon hearing this, Haotian's expression shifted slightly, and he muttered to himself, "Zhenyu, Xuandao... it seems you were indeed prepared."
Due to their performance in the previous divine war, Zhenyu and Xuandao, along with Mingde, are now known as the Three Venerables of the Heavenly Court, the newly rising pillars of the Heavenly Court, and have long been the primary targets of the Hell Realm. Sending the two into the Space Temple and the Merit Temple was indeed a brilliant move.
The current masters of the Space Temple and the Merit Temple are both mediocre individuals skilled in internal strife but inept at external warfare. They cling to their strength, lack ambition, and have stagnated both temples. If it weren't for the overall interests of the Heavenly Court, Haotian would have replaced them long ago. Now, allowing Zhenyu and Xuandao, two hardliners, to take over is just the right time to stir up the stagnant waters and break with the old to establish the new.
After careful consideration, Haotian immediately nodded in agreement: "Granted."
The four dominant worlds have long controlled the vast majority of the Heavenly Court's resources, becoming too powerful to control and posing a threat to his rule. Mingde's move is exactly what he wanted.
At the same moment that Mingde and Haotian finalized the overall situation of the Heavenly Court in the Mingde Temple, deep within the Time Temple in the Southern Continent, a secret meeting with undercurrents was quietly unfolding.
Murong Huan, the master of the Temple of Time, sat in the main seat, surrounded by the light of time, his aura unfathomable. Xun Yangzi, the master of the Heavenly Power Great World, Fengxian Sect Master of the Flower Realm, Yu Dongxuan of the Temple of Light, Yan Wuque, the master of the Array Annihilation Palace, and other core figures of the Heavenly Court and the Heavenly Realm factions were all gathered here. The atmosphere inside the hall was oppressive and tense.
After a long silence, Yu Dongxuan, surrounded by holy light and majesty, broke the silence first, speaking to elicit further discussion: "Everyone, we have gathered at the Temple of Time today for one purpose: how to capture Mingde. You are all pillars of the Heavenly Court; please feel free to share your insights."
Xun Yangzi frowned, his voice trembling slightly: "Palace Master Yu, in my opinion, this matter must be carefully considered. Mingde is now powerful and has formed an alliance with Zhenyu, Xuandao, and others. Even when Palace Master Ke personally took action, he failed to defeat Xuandao. Now, Mingde has reached the level of Perfect Heaven and his combat power is overwhelming. We... are afraid we can no longer do anything to him."
Fear had already taken hold of him, the image of that battle constantly flashing through his mind. Mingde had single-handedly fought and slain two powerful figures, the Ferocious God of the Temple of Destiny and the Ancestor of the Heavenly Net Divine Kingdom. Both of them were no less powerful than Xun Yangzi, yet Mingde had swiftly and decisively cut them down. Facing such figures as enemies, he feared that the slightest misstep would lead to his demise. Although he had received orders from the Liang Organization, he was not willing to risk his life lightly.
Murong Huan glanced at Xun Yangzi sideways, his eyes full of disdain and contempt.
This person is a complete villain. Back then, he secretly colluded with foreign enemies to murder his own senior brother, the Nine Luminaries Divine Lord, and even forcibly took his senior brother's divine consort. His despicable behavior was something even Murong Huan found somewhat contemptible.
"Xun Yangzi," Murong Huan said coldly, his tone laced with blatant mockery, "If you're afraid, you can leave now. No one will stop you. After all, you couldn't even last a day under the Fierce God Venerable, so it's understandable that you fear Mingde."
Xun Yangzi flew into a rage, pointing at Murong Huan and shouting, "Murong Huan, how much stronger do you think you are than me? Back then, when facing Qing Cang, you fled without a fight, utterly disgracing the Temple of Time. And you still have the nerve to mock me here?"
One sentence struck Murong Huan's deepest wound.
His body suddenly erupted with a violent burst of light from time, causing a chaotic flow of time. He was so angry that his whole body trembled, and he was about to take action to teach this arrogant little man a lesson.
Seeing this, Yu Dongxuan quickly stepped in to stop him, his face grim: "Palace Master Murong, please calm down! We are all colleagues; it's just a verbal dispute. Why make such a fuss? For my sake, let's drop the matter for now!"
He was extremely annoyed. He had gathered everyone to discuss a grand plan to deal with Mingde, but before they could even deal with him, his own people started fighting amongst themselves. What kind of behavior was this!
Xun Yangzi saw that Murong Huan was truly enraged, yet still refused to give up. His anger was so intense that he continued to expose Murong Huan's dark past, each word piercing to the heart. Murong Huan was so angry that smoke seemed to rise from his head, and his rising anger had become tangible.
Helpless, Yu Dongxuan stepped forward and covered Xun Yangzi's mouth, angrily hissing, "Enough! Quiet down! Palace Master Murong is here to help us. If you dare to speak disrespectfully again, I will be the first to punish you!"
Xun Yangzi was filled with resentment, but he knew it was not the right time to escalate the conflict, so he could only angrily shut his mouth, but he also held a grudge against Yu Dongxuan in his heart.
Seeing this, the leader of the Fengxian Sect quickly spoke up to echo Xun Yangzi, trying to ease the tension: "Everyone, calm down. Mingde's cultivation is now unfathomable, and Zhenyu and Xuandao are also incredibly powerful. None of you here could possibly defeat them in a one-on-one fight. This matter is extremely dangerous and definitely requires careful consideration. We cannot act rashly."
"Take it a long way?" Yu Dongxuan's face turned pale with anger as he shouted sharply, "Are we just going to stand by and watch Mingde rise and divide up the resources and power that rightfully belong to us?"
He never expected that these usually high-and-mighty old giants would be so cowardly and afraid of death, not even having the courage to face Mingde directly.
"Fifty thousand years ago, when we targeted the Kunlun Realm, you weren't this cowardly! Even with the formidable power of the Ten Tribulations Heavenly Monk and the Sumeru Saint Monk, we were still able to devise a plan to overthrow them. Now, facing a newly promoted Mingde, you've all lost your nerve? It seems these fifty thousand years of peace have already devoured your courage!"
Upon hearing this, the leader of the Fengxian Sect, Xun Yangzi, and the others all lowered their heads and remained silent.
In his heart, he secretly thought: When dealing with the Venerable Monk Sumeru and the Ten Tribulations Heavenly Lord, they were merely pushing things along from behind and secretly causing trouble. How could they dare to confront them head-on? Didn't you see that the Temple of Space and the Temple of Time were defeated by the Venerable Monk Sumeru back then? How could they dare to risk their lives? Mingde's combat power is right in front of him. To fight him head-on would be tantamount to suicide.
Murong Huan saw all of this and shook his head in disappointment.
He had originally intended to use the power of the Heavenly Realm faction to capture Mingde and seize the heaven-defying opportunity and more than ten percent of the profound mysteries of time within him. However, it now seemed that Yu Dongxuan and his group were nothing but a rabble, incapable of accomplishing anything significant. He had to find another way.
Yu Dongxuan noticed Murong Huan's dejection and quickly stepped forward, whispering reassurance, "Palace Master Murong, rest assured, although Mingde is strong, he is not invincible. There will be strong individuals who will restrain him. Once he is engaged in a difficult battle, we will join forces and surely defeat him in one fell swoop."
Murong Huan calmed down a little, but his expression remained solemn: "In the Starry Sky Battle not long ago, Mingde fought against the three giants of the Underworld Clan alone, with Qingcang watching and suppressing him from the side. Even so, Qingcang and the others failed to defeat Mingde and were instead lured to Haotian's rescue. This person's strength far exceeds what you and I can imagine."
Yan Wuque, the Palace Master of the Array Annihilation Palace who had been silent until now, slowly spoke, his voice carrying the cold sternness of a grandmaster of array formations: "In my opinion, there is absolutely no chance of killing Mingde by fighting head-on. We must join forces to set up an array, a world-destroying divine array, to lure Mingde into the trap. Only by relying on the power of the divine array can we have any possibility of completely annihilating him."
Finally hearing a feasible plan, Yu Dongxuan's spirits lifted, and he nodded repeatedly: "Palace Master Yan is absolutely right. Although Mingde is strong, he is not immortal. As long as we carefully plan and set up a deadly formation, he will still not escape death! What about the Ten Tribulations Heavenly Monarch back then? He reigned supreme in the Western Universe, dared to fight against all the heavens, and challenged the patriarchs of the ten races of Hell, but in the end, he was still trapped and died in the Nine Desolate Divine Formation, suffering defeat and death!"
After Yu Dongxuan's impassioned speech, Fengxian Sect Leader and others quickly echoed his sentiments and cheered, temporarily suppressing the awkwardness of the internal strife.
Only Murong Huan remained calm, incisively asking the crucial question: "Mingde is already perfectly formed, his divine soul is powerful, and he can deduce heavenly secrets. Schemes and tricks are useless against him. If we want him to fall into our trap, we can only use an open strategy to force him to step into it willingly. But how should we arrange this open strategy? This is the most important point."
Xun Yangzi's eyes darted around, and suddenly a brilliant idea struck him. He whispered, "Why don't we emulate the war when the Hell Realm invaded the Kunlun Realm? Let's make our move in the Painting Realm or the Primordial Realm, using the beings within as bait. I'm sure Mingde will show himself!"
Yu Dongxuan immediately shook his head and categorically rejected the idea: "No! Mingde acts erratically, unlike the Venerable Monk Xumi who prioritizes righteousness. If he is heartless, this plan will be useless."
Murong Huan's expression turned cold, and he said decisively, "Everyone has weaknesses. I don't believe Mingde has no fatal flaw! Immediately dispatch elite spies to infiltrate the Painting Realm and the Primordial Realm to closely monitor Mingde's every move, gather all his information, weaknesses, and sore spots. I refuse to believe that we can't find a way to subdue him!"
Upon hearing this, Xun Yangzi immediately sneered, mocking without any mercy: "Send someone to monitor a perfect being? Palace Master Murong, I think you've gone senile! Back then, the Holy Monk Sumeru severed your head with a single sword strike. The old wound hasn't healed, and it's affected your soul, causing you to be mentally unstable now!"
This time, Murong Huan could no longer tolerate it.
This is the Temple of Time, his home turf! Even if the Undying Boundless stepped into this place, he was confident he could suppress him! Xun Yangzi had repeatedly provoked him, reopening old wounds. If he wasn't severely punished, his authority as the Temple Master would be completely destroyed!
"court death!"
With a furious roar, Murong Huan's endless light of time suddenly condensed around him, transforming into a giant hand of time that spanned the past and present, carrying a terrifying power capable of crushing nothingness, and slapped Xun Yangzi hard.
Without giving his opponent any chance to resist, Xun Yangzi didn't even have time to scream before he was directly thrown into the void deep within the River of Time, his divine blood splattering and falling into the void. Even Yu Dongxuan, who was standing nearby, couldn't stop him in time. For a moment, the entire Temple of Time was deathly silent.