The First Marquis of Daxuan

"Are you really here to kill Xu Gu?"

Du Rongcheng said with a wary look, glaring at Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng.

In his eyes, these two bastards were just there to reap the benefits.

Du Rongcheng has worked so hard here for so long, and now that he's about to reap the rewards, these two bastards have come to steal the fruits of his labor.

Tolerable or unbearable!
Du Rongcheng rolled up his sleeves, wishing he could pounce on the two men right now and beat them to a pulp.

If he hadn't known he couldn't beat those two—

"We just wanted to express our sincerity."

Jin Yi gave an ambiguous answer.

Su Mu glanced at him and said indifferently, "You may come to this world if you want, but let me make this clear beforehand: do not cause trouble here, or don't blame me for not showing any mercy."

"Then Brother Su, please rest assured, my brother and I are definitely not troublemakers."

Jin Yi said solemnly.

Sun Jifeng, standing next to him, nodded vigorously, but his eager expression was hardly convincing.

Su Mu didn't care about the two people's motives; he simply couldn't afford to deal with Yan Fuzong right now.

Having been away from the Saha world for so long, he still doesn't know the current situation of the Great Xuan Dynasty.

Having said that, Su Mu had already determined the direction, and his figure transformed into a streak of light and disappeared.

Du Rongcheng glared fiercely at Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng, and followed without hesitation.

Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng exchanged a glance. They didn't take Du Rongcheng's threat seriously at all, and they flew off in the direction where Su Mu had disappeared with smiles on their faces.

…………

The world today can be described as a tripartite balance.

One force is the Great Beginning Dynasty established by the Great Celestial Venerable, while the other two forces are the Great Xuan Dynasty and the Void Beast Royal Court.

The Great Chu Dynasty now occupies 70% of the Saha World, the Great Xuan Dynasty occupies 20%, and the Void Beast Royal Court occupies only a pitiful 10%.

Zhu Tongtian, the former ruler of the Void Beasts, had long since allied with the Great Xuan Dynasty; otherwise, the Void Beast Royal Court might not have been able to hold onto even this pitiful ten percent of its territory.

Of course, the Great Xuan Dynasty and the Void Beast Royal Court are now interdependent. Without each other, the remaining one is no match for the Great Chu Dynasty either.

In fact, if the Great Celestial Venerable hadn't gone into seclusion, the Great Beginning Dynasty would have already unified the Saha World with overwhelming force.

Because of the absence of the Great Celestial Venerable's suppression, the Great Chu Dynasty was also constantly embroiled in internal strife, which gave the Great Xuan Dynasty and the Void Beast Royal Court a chance to breathe.

Su Mu's return filled the entire Great Xuan Dynasty with excitement.

Speaking of which, although Su Mu is not the emperor of the Great Xuan Dynasty, everyone from top to bottom knows who is the backbone of the Great Xuan Dynasty.

The current Emperor Xuan had long intended to abdicate, but Su Mu had consistently refused, so he reluctantly remained on the throne.

Although he did not have the title of emperor, he certainly had the power of one.
As long as Su Mu was around, he made all the decisions for the Great Xuan Dynasty. Even when he was not around, the Great Xuan Dynasty continued to develop according to the plans he left behind.

Luo Anning, Xiang Xiaoyuan, Dongfang Liuyun, Mo Xuesong, Shi Binbin, Jin Hou, Mingyi Hou, Tushan Hanyu and many other old friends gathered together.

Everyone chimed in with their own stories about what had happened during Su Mu's absence.

“The Heavenly Venerables of the Great Beginning are all harboring their own ulterior motives, and each of them wants to seize more resources, so their internal situation is currently in complete chaos.”

Dongfang Liuyun said, "I heard that a while ago there was a visitor from another region. When he first arrived, he even fought a battle with the Heavenly Venerables of the Great Chu Dynasty, which turned the world upside down."

"If the Great Celestial Venerable hadn't suddenly emerged from seclusion, he might have crippled the Great Chu Dynasty."

There was a hint of schadenfreude in Dongfang Liuyun's tone.

"What's the current situation with that visitor from another realm?"

Su Mu asked.

He knew, of course, that the visitor from the foreign land was Xu Gu of the Hengshan Sect.

However, he did not expect that Xu Gu would actually fight against the Heavenly Venerables of the Great Chu Dynasty.

In truth, Xu Gu should have shown mercy; otherwise, with his strength, killing a few Celestial Venerables wouldn't have been a problem.

"do not know."

Dongfang Liuyun shook his head and said, "They are very low-key. Although we have sent out some spies to try to find out about them, we have gained very little."

However, based on our current information, those people seem to be looking for something.

What are you looking for?

Su Mu's face showed a thoughtful expression.

He didn't know what in this world could possibly interest Xu Gu.

He turned to look at Du Rongcheng.

Du Rongcheng shrugged. "Don't ask me, I don't know what Xu Gu and the others are looking for either."

As he spoke, he turned to look at the other two people.

The two people were none other than Elder Jin Yi and Elder Sun Jifeng of the Yanfu Sect, who had followed them all the way.

"I might know."

Jin Yi whispered.

The gazes of Dongfang Liuyun and the others also fell on the two of them.

Du Rongcheng was an old acquaintance; they all knew him, but Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng were meeting them for the first time.

Su Mu made no attempt to introduce the two, leaving Dongfang Liuyun and the others somewhat unsure of their origins.

However, since it was Su Mu who brought them back, they are one of our own.

"explain."

Su Mu said calmly.

"There is a rumor circulating outside that you rose from an ordinary martial artist to a peak Dao Source Realm expert in just a few hundred years because you obtained some kind of opportunity in the Saha World."

Jin Yi whispered, "I guess Xu Gu might have believed this rumor, and he might be looking for the legendary opportunity now."

Su Mu: "..."

Others may misunderstand, but he himself is aware of his situation.

He was neither a disciple of the Yokoyama sect nor someone who came to the Saha world for training.

He is a native of this world.

As for the so-called opportunity, it certainly exists.

The system panel is where opportunity lies.

However, this opportunity is something that others cannot obtain.

Even if Xu Gu dug the entire Saha world upside down, he wouldn't be able to find any opportunities.

Du Rongcheng blinked and secretly glanced at Su Mu.

He also knew very well what Su Mu of the Hengshan Sect was all about; that identity was something he had personally fabricated.

He knew, of course, that Su Mu was not a disciple of the Hengshan Sect who had come to the Saha World for training.

However, it's even more surprising that Su Mu isn't a disciple of the Hengshan Sect.

Without the inheritance of Hengshan Sect, Su Mu grew all the way to the Dao Source Realm, which is actually more exaggerated than outsiders' misunderstanding.

Du Rongcheng also suspected that Su Mu had some great opportunity.

He, like Xu Gu, once tried to find the reason for Su Mu's rapid advancement in the mundane world, but of course, he failed.

Having spent so many years in the Great Xuan Dynasty, Du Rongcheng had thoroughly investigated Su Mu's life from childhood to adulthood.

He eventually came to the conclusion that Su Mu might have had some fortuitous opportunities, but Su Mu's current level of cultivation was entirely due to his talent.

There's no way to reason with geniuses.

"Brother Su, is it possible that you could use this to set a trap for Xu Gu?"

Jin Yi said.

"Hey you guys surnamed Jin, don't you know your place? Su Mu already told you to bring us Xu Gu's head first. If we kill Xu Gu ourselves, what business is it of yours?"

Du Rongcheng said irritably.

He disliked Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng the most; these two guys were his pure competitors.

In some ways, they are even the real enemies.

Du Rongcheng was a man of the Daqian Dynasty, while Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng were elders of the Yanfu Sect.

The Great Qian Dynasty and the Yanfu Sect are mortal enemies. It's only because of Du Rongcheng's personality that anyone else would have already started a fight with Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng.

Of course, the main reason Du Rongcheng didn't make a move was because he knew he couldn't beat his opponent.

"We were just making a suggestion."

Jin Yi shrugged nonchalantly and said.

Just then, a soldier came in to report that Zhu Tongtian from the Ruins Beast King's Court had come to visit.

Su Mu waved for someone to bring Zhu Tongtian in.

"Su Mu, you're finally back!"

Zhu Tongtian strode in and excitedly said to Su Mu as soon as he saw him, "If you hadn't come back soon, I would have gone to look for you."

I'm telling you, we now have a chance to turn the tide!

Zhu Tongtian then caught a glimpse of Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng, two unfamiliar faces, and swallowed back the words he was about to say.

"Who are these two?"

It looked at Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng with a wary expression.

It knew everyone from the Great Xuan Dynasty, and it was also familiar with Du Rongcheng, but this was the first time it had met these two people.

Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng were also somewhat helpless. For the first time, they realized that this world was not as simple as they had imagined.

Why are all these people so wary?
In such a short time, they have already been disliked by so many people.

"You two may leave now."

Su Mu said calmly, "I'll say it again: if you want to talk to me, you'd better show some sincerity first."

Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng were somewhat helpless, but Su Mu had already spoken, so they couldn't stay there any longer.

"Brother Su, may we take a stroll around the Great Xuan Dynasty these days? Rest assured, we will absolutely not do anything that would harm the Great Xuan Dynasty."

Jin Yi said in a deep voice.

Su Mu waved his hand, indicating that they should do as they pleased.

Zhu Tongtian continued speaking only after Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng left the main hall.

"You know that a group of people from beyond the realms have come to the Saha World and are colluding with the Great Chu Dynasty, right?"

Zhu Tongtian said mysteriously.

“I know. Those people are from the Hengshan Sect of the Great Qian Dynasty. The leader was once an elder of the Hengshan Sect’s Punishment Hall, named Xu Gu, with a cultivation level at the peak of the Dao Origin Realm.”

Su Mu said calmly.

You know all of this?

Zhu Tongtian's eyes widened in surprise. "Su Mu, tell me honestly, did you do something again on this trip to the Great Qian Dynasty?"

"What are you talking about? When have I ever caused trouble?"

Su Mu said irritably.

Zhu Tongtian curled his lip, "You, Su Mu, aren't you going to cause trouble?"
Wherever you, Su Mu, go, things will be turned upside down.

It would be strange if you, Su Mu, really went to the Great Qian Dynasty and remained unknown.

"Alright, enough nonsense. Tell me, what is this chance to turn the tide?"

Su Mu said.

“It’s this group from the Hengshan Sect of the Great Qian Dynasty.” Zhu Tongtian composed himself and said, “This group is not of one mind with the Great Chu Dynasty. We can totally win them over.”

"Let me tell you, I secretly infiltrated the Great Chu Dynasty before, and I discovered that this group is very powerful. If we can bring them to our side, we will definitely be able to overthrow the Great Chu Dynasty."

“Su Mu, it would be even better if you knew those people. You can go talk to them and we can satisfy whatever benefits they want.”

Zhu Tongtian said excitedly.

“I do know them.”

Su Mu said calmly, "But they probably want to kill me now."

Zhu Tongtian: "..."

It looked at Su Mu with a resentful expression. Who was it that just said they never caused trouble?

You call this "never causing trouble"?
"These people came to this world not to kill you, but to..."

Zhu Tongtian asked somewhat nervously.

"that is not."

Su Mu shook his head.

Zhu Tongtian breathed a sigh of relief. It would have been a real problem if those people had really come to kill Su Mu.

It seems there's still room for maneuver.

"They were unable to establish themselves in the Great Qian Dynasty because of Su Mu."

Du Rongcheng said from the side, "In other words, they were forced here by Su Mu."

"Don't talk nonsense. I never intended to do anything to them."

Su Mudao.

Zhu Tongtian's eyes widened, its face full of helplessness. It knew it shouldn't have too high expectations for Su Mu.

Su Mu was born with the body to cause trouble!
"Give me a straight answer, is there any chance of winning these people over?"

Zhu Tongtian sighed and said.

It came over with great enthusiasm, thinking it would gain a few more helpers. Who would have thought that instead of helpers, it would gain a few more mortal enemies?

If it weren't for its irreconcilable enmity with the Great Celestial Venerable, it would have doubted whether forming an alliance with Su Mu was the right thing to do.

"That's not possible."

Su Mu shook his head and said.

"No, no."

Zhu Tongtian suddenly frowned and shook his head.

"You're saying that those people from beyond the borders can't establish themselves in the Great Qian Dynasty because of Su Mu?"

Zhu Tongtian tapped his head, pondering, "So, those people from beyond the realm are no match for you?"

Its eyes suddenly lit up, and it stared intently at Su Mu.

“I’ve met the leader of those people from beyond the realm. His strength is not much weaker than that of a Grand Celestial Venerable. You were able to force him to make it impossible for him to stay. Doesn’t that mean that your current strength is no less than that of a Grand Celestial Venerable?”

As soon as Zhu Tongtian said this, everyone's breathing became heavy.

After Su Mu returned, everyone was concerned about whether he was injured, but they forgot to ask about his current cultivation level.

Only after Zhu Tongtian said that did they realize what was going on.

Su Mu went to the Great Qian Dynasty to improve his strength. Now that Su Mu has returned, doesn't that mean that Su Mu is confident in dealing with the Great Celestial Venerable?
Although everyone had imagined this possibility before, when it actually became a reality, everyone felt a sense of disbelief.

That's the Great Celestial Venerable!

Su Mu has only been away from the Saha World for a few years. In such a short time, can he catch up with the Great Celestial Venerable?
"I haven't fought against the Great Celestial Venerable yet, so I don't know."

Su Mu said calmly.

"But he probably can't kill me."

Su Mu added a sentence.

After a brief silence, the crowd erupted in cheers.

The long-suppressed emotions were finally released.

Ever since the Great Celestial Venerable awoke, it has been as if a knife is hanging over everyone's head.

That knife could fall at any moment and take their lives.

This feeling of being on the brink of death had already overwhelmed them.

If it weren't for Su Mu always holding the line, giving them a glimmer of hope, they probably would have collapsed long ago.

Now they can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"You son of a bitch—"

Even Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, couldn't help but mutter, "What a freak!"

Dongfang Liuyun and the others had the same thoughts, but they couldn't say them out loud.

"Don't get too excited yet."

Su Mu said calmly, "All of this is based on the premise that the Great Celestial Venerable's cultivation has not broken through."

If his cultivation level breaks through—"

"You think everyone is as twisted as you?"

Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts, curled his lip and said, "I also followed the Great Celestial Venerable for many years back then. Although the Great Celestial Venerable is a genius, he could not break through his cultivation as easily as you."

"That was before."

Su Mu shook his head and said, "Now those traitors from Hengshan Sect have brought him martial arts techniques and cultivation resources that can help him break through."

I don't know if those things have already fallen into the hands of the Great Celestial Venerable. If so, we must find a way to stop the Great Celestial Venerable from breaking through.

Otherwise, once the Great Celestial Venerable breaks through to the Dao Limit Realm, there will be no place for us in this Saha World.”

"The Ultimate Dao Realm?"

Zhu Tongtian frowned and said, "If he breaks through to the Dao Realm, then even you won't be his match?"

"You can understand that."

Su Mu said, "I can fight below the Dao Extreme Realm, but I am not confident against the Dao Extreme Realm."

Although no one knew exactly how strong the Dao Realm was, after hearing Su Mu say that, they could roughly imagine what kind of realm it was.

"I'm going to challenge the Great Celestial Venerable."

Suddenly, someone spoke up, "I'll go test whether the Great Celestial Venerable has broken through to the Dao Extreme Realm."

Everyone looked over at the sound and saw that the speaker was none other than Lei Tianzun.

This former Second Heavenly Venerable has now chosen to stand on the side of the Great Xuan Dynasty.

The former number one supreme being in the world also went to the Great Qian Dynasty with Su Mu and Du Rongcheng, and then disappeared without a trace.

Before leaving the Great Qian Dynasty, Su Mu also entrusted Lin Nianchu and Zhang Qi to inquire about Jue Tianzun's whereabouts. As for whether they could find him, he was not sure.

"Are you crazy? Do you think you have the strength to force the Great Celestial Venerable to reveal his true abilities?"

Qi Lingyun said in a deep voice.

She is also a Celestial Venerable, and has known Lei Tianzun for many years, so she knows very well how powerful Lei Tianzun is.

Lei Tianzun's strength was roughly equal to hers, and she certainly wasn't confident she could fight against the Great Tianzun.

"I can't do it alone, so you have to come with me."

Lei Tianzun said confidently.

Qi Lingyun rolled her eyes. "You don't want to live anymore, but I want to live for two more years."

I finally managed to escape the Heavenly Venerable's mission, and now you want me to go and fight the Great Heavenly Venerable?
I'd have to be an idiot to do that.

"Don't even think about it, I want to live a few more years."

Qi Lingyun said irritably.

Lei Tianzun frowned and glanced at everyone.

Some people avoided his gaze, while others wore expressions of helplessness.

"Lord Lei, it's not that we're afraid of death, it's just that our strength is too weak."

Dongfang Liuyun said with a wry smile, "We've done our calculations before, and even if all of us attack together, we're not confident we can defeat the Great Celestial Venerable."

Taking rash action would only lead to certain death.

We are not afraid of dying, but we are afraid that even if we die, we will not be able to find out whether the Great Celestial Venerable is a Dao Extreme Realm expert..."

"We don't need your help."

Su Mu said calmly.

"You can't take the risk. You are our last resort. If anything happens to you, there will truly be no hope for this place."

Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts, said in a deep voice, "Unless you are certain that the Great Celestial Venerable has not yet broken through, you cannot make a move!"

"Who told you I was going to take action personally?"

A smile appeared on Su Mu's face.

"It's just a test of the Great Celestial Venerable's cultivation level; I don't need to take action myself."

"You mean-"

Du Rongcheng's eyes darted around.

Two figures flashed through his mind.

Aren't those two the most suitable candidates?
Their cultivation level is high enough to force out the true strength of the Great Celestial Venerable. At the same time, they are not one of our own, so it doesn't matter if they die.

"However, those two aren't stupid. Would they dare to provoke the Great Celestial Venerable?"

Du Rongcheng asked thoughtfully.

"If you just let the two of them challenge the Great Celestial Venerable like that, of course they won't do it."

Su Mu said calmly, "But don't forget, there's also Xu Gu."

Du Rongcheng was having trouble keeping up with Su Mu's train of thought.

"What does this have to do with Xu Gu? Hasn't Xu Gu already pledged allegiance to the Great Celestial Venerable?"
"You mean if Jin Yi and Sun Jifeng try to kill Xu Gu, the Great Celestial Venerable will intervene to protect Xu Gu?"

Du Rongcheng asked in confusion.

“Xu Gu was once the Grand Elder of Hengshan Sect, so he doesn’t need the protection of the Great Celestial Venerable.”

Su Mu shook his head and said, "However, if the Great Celestial Venerable thinks that Xu Gu and Yanfu Sect are in cahoots and that their goal is to occupy the Saha World, do you think the Great Celestial Venerable will let them go?"
With Xu Gu and the two elders of the Yanfu Sect, they should be able to force out the true strength of the Great Celestial Venerable.

Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, and everyone from the Great Xuan Dynasty were completely bewildered.

They had only just heard of Hengshan Sect and Yanfu Sect, and had no idea about the grudges and grievances behind them.

However, Su Mu seemed quite confident.

"Although I didn't understand, how do you want us to cooperate?"

"Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts, said in a deep voice."

Compared to Su Mu, he felt like he had wasted all these years of his life.

Now he believes whatever Su Mu says, based on past experience, following Su Mu is definitely the right thing to do.

Past experiences have proven that Su Mu has never made a mistake. Even the most impossible things become possible in Su Mu's hands.

"That's right, we'll do whatever you say."

Du Rongcheng said excitedly, "To be honest, I still have a few trump cards up my sleeve. If you need them, I can lend them to you."

"If we can find out the Grand Celestial Venerable's true strength and also trick the Yama Sect, why not?" (End of Chapter)