Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

Su Mu narrowed his eyes slightly and asked with a faint smile, "The fact that the God King specially sent you to travel thousands of miles with your protective treasure must be more than just a matter of valuing talent."

Having lived in the palace for a long time, Su Mu had long seen through people's schemes and calculations. The human god-king's unusual and all-out assistance must be because he wanted to gain benefits from him.

Song Pingchao gave a bitter smile. In front of Su Mu, he couldn't hide even a little bit of his thoughts. Compared to Su Mu, who only had a lifespan of a few decades, he had lived for tens of thousands of years, yet it felt like he had lived in vain.

Now that things have come to this, there's no need to hide anything. Song Pingchao frankly stated his conjecture: "In my opinion, the God King wants to use your connections to get to know the reclusive power behind you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Su Mu instantly understood. What Xiao Xuance valued was never him as a person, but rather the system that continuously provided him with resources and helped him break through at a rapid pace. However, Xiao Xuance never imagined that the reclusive master he had imagined didn't exist at all; everything was a gift from the system.

Su Mu guessed that Xiao Xuance must have encountered a thorny problem and needed the help of that imagined top expert. This was not a bad thing for him; the other party had something to ask for, which was why he was so dedicated to protecting him and giving him ample time to grow.

With this thought in mind, Su Mu smiled slightly and tentatively asked, "May I ask which senior would like to help you with something, Senior God King?"

Song Pingchao secretly praised him, realizing that Su Mu indeed had a powerful figure behind him. Confirming this, he stated his speculation: "The God King didn't say it explicitly, but it must be related to a secret realm with an opportunity within the Star Palace."

"The Star Palace, in alliance with two other major powers, has discovered a secret cosmic realm. This realm opens only once every ten thousand years, and its opening time has recently arrived." "The three parties made an agreement long ago to limit the cultivation level and number of cultivators entering, with only those at the God-King level allowed to enter. The Star Palace holds six entry slots. However, the Star Palace currently has fewer than six God-Kings, and any extra slots will be wasted if no God-King-level experts can be found to accompany them."

The conversation stopped there; Su Mu already understood the reason. In the treasure hunt of the secret realm, the more God-Kings one had on one's side, the greater the chance of winning the treasure and escaping unscathed. The human God-King Xiao Xuance clearly wanted to win over a top-tier God-King as an ally.

Su Mu was quite interested in this matter. A secret realm accessible only to God-Kings must contain countless treasures. However, he needed to carefully investigate the danger level of the secret realm. If the danger was too great, he would never risk his life. Waiting for the system to distribute rewards was far safer than venturing into the secret realm.

"Fellow Daoist Song, I can pass on this message, but I cannot give you a definite answer today." "Also, regarding that secret realm, could you please elaborate on the details so that I can fully inform that senior?"

After some thought, Su Mu offered a compromise. Song Pingchao, eager to cultivate a good relationship with Su Mu so that his granddaughter Song Qingmei could have more opportunities, spoke frankly and revealed all the inside information he knew.

This secret realm is the palace left behind by a fallen Saint Realm expert, permanently sealed off and inaccessible under normal circumstances. Every ten thousand years, a spectacular thunder and fire phenomenon erupts above the palace, loosening the seal and allowing a small number of cultivators to enter. Three forces discovered this secret realm, one of which was the Star Palace. A great war ensued, but none could overwhelm the other two, and continued fighting would only result in mutual destruction. Ultimately, the three forces established rules based on their own strength, allocating six palace entry slots to each.

Currently, the Star Palace only has three God-Kings stationed there, leaving three extra slots. Since no external God-Kings can be found to accompany them, these slots must be cancelled. Most importantly, if the Star Palace only sends three God-Kings inside, it will be the weakest of the three, making the treasure-hunting extremely difficult. Even if they manage to obtain the treasure, they may not be able to bring it out of the secret realm safely.

After listening to Song Pingchao's account, Su Mu quickly weighed the pros and cons in his mind. The first thing he noticed was the six-slot limit, which proved that the Star Palace once possessed at least six God-Kings. Now, only three remained, and the remaining three were highly likely to perish within this Sacred Palace. The danger far exceeded his imagination, and Su Mu immediately considered refusing. A Sacred Palace left behind by a powerful Saint, no matter how many treasures it contained, would be meaningless if one couldn't even save their life. Furthermore, he possessed the system and was never short of various treasures. Obtaining opportunities from the outside world would be best, but if that didn't work, he could simply wait for his adopted son and daughter to break through and receive the system rewards.

As Su Mu was pondering how to politely decline, Song Pingchao added, "In fact, the Star Palace currently has four God-Kings, but one of them was corrupted by the laws of reincarnation after returning from the palace and has been in seclusion ever since, his current situation unknown."

The Law of Reincarnation? Su Mu frowned. If this was true, the palace master's cultivation level in his lifetime was definitely not just that of an ordinary Saint Realm cultivator; he was very likely one foot in the Great Saint Realm. Only those who can control the complete Law of Time can be called Saints; only those who can comprehend one of the eight fundamental laws of the universe—Yin Yang, Reincarnation, or the Five Elements—can be considered Half-Saints or Half-Step Great Saints. The presence of the power of the Law of Reincarnation within the palace was enough to prove that the master had thoroughly mastered a fundamental Dao, and was only one step away from becoming a Great Saint.

If that's the case... it seems worth the risk.

"Fellow Daoist Song, I have a general understanding of the matter of the secret realm. Rest assured, I will inform that senior as soon as possible and send you a message as soon as I have a reply."

The so-called reclusive master he spoke of never existed. Su Mu's words were merely a pretext to wait until Chai Min and her disciples broke through and he saw the new system rewards before making a decision. Unless the system bestowed upon him a top-tier trump card sufficient to save his life, he would never set foot in that perilous palace.

After discussing the secret realm, Song Pingchao brought up another important matter: "Before I left Taidou Star, I received a message from a human colleague that the Three-Eyed Clan had also sent people away from the main city. Judging from the teleportation coordinates, they are most likely heading to Tianyuan Star just like me."

Song Pingchao was also unsure of the other party's intentions, and simply told Su Mu to be more cautious.

These words jolted Su Mu awake. He had originally been waiting for the Horned Scale Clan to come to him, intending to annihilate the three Celestial Gods in one fell swoop. But if he were to unleash his God-King puppet to kill Horned Futz and the other two, and happened to be witnessed by the Three-Eyed Clan... Although it was only a matter of probability, Su Mu dared not gamble. If it were confirmed that he possessed God-King level combat power, yet stood by and watched his Star Palace colleague Tusir die without offering any assistance, the Star Palace would directly strip him of his membership. Without the Star Palace's protection, the Three-Eyed Clan God-King could attack him without any scruples. Even if a Human God-King was secretly watching over him, the other party couldn't possibly be stationed on Tianyuan Star at all times.

"Fellow Daoist Song, there is something I need your help with." Su Mu's gaze fell on Song Pingchao.

"Young friend Su, there's no need for such formalities. I will do my best to help you in any way I can!" Song Pingchao was very happy that Su Mu owed him a favor, which would eventually fall on his granddaughter, Song Qingmei.

Su Mu didn't mince words and directly expressed his concerns: "Although I have the strength to kill the remaining three Horned Scale Clan Gods, I just heard that someone from the Three-Eyed Clan is heading to Tianyuan Star. If they see me using the God King Puppet, it will only create countless troubles out of thin air."

As soon as Su Mu finished speaking, Song Pingchao instantly understood the implications. He nodded thoughtfully, "Young friend, your considerations are indeed thorough, and we must be wary. The protective treasure that the God-King bestowed upon me before his departure is more than enough to deal with three Horned Scale Clan Gods."

He stopped mid-sentence, refusing to say anything more. Both men were perceptive, and Su Mu naturally understood that Song Pingchao was waiting for him to give a promise of return.

"Fellow Daoist Song, please rest assured, I guarantee that Qingmei will break through again within a month at most." Su Mu smiled confidently. With the Time Mirror's blessing and a continuous supply of pills, there was no need for a full month.

Upon receiving Su Mu's assurance, Song Pingchao immediately beamed with joy and promised, "Then I also assure you, young friend, that as long as the three Horned Scale Clan Gods appear, they will never return."

……

The day after Song Pingchao arrived on Tianyuan Star, the Three-Eyed Clan cultivator also arrived on the planet, but did not enter the imperial city, instead finding an inn outside the city to stay temporarily. On the same day, Hornfortz led two other Horned Scale Clan gods to descend upon Tianyuan Star.

"Su Mu of Tianyuan Star, come out and face your death! If you dare to delay, I will destroy the entire Tianyuan Star!" Jiao Fuci stood high in the sky above the imperial city and roared angrily.

A deafening roar swept through the entire imperial city, and everyone inside looked up at the sky.