Chapter 1367: Shocking Conspiracy

"Traitor! Don't run!" The snow-robed man's eyes flashed with hatred as he prepared to give chase.

The Heavenly Court's Great Luo, seeing this, were about to follow.

White Cloud Dao Ancestor and the dwarf elder, also filled with hatred, formed hand seals to heal their injuries, intending to follow closely.

"All of you, stop." Gu Huojin's voice came from deep within the crimson fire mass and golden light threads.

The snow-robed man and the others immediately halted in their tracks.

A cloud of golden mist surged from the depths of the crimson fire mass, spreading outward, with countless tadpole-like golden runes dancing within it.

Upon contact with the black ghost claw, crimson fire mass, and golden light threads, they rapidly decayed and turned to ashes, leaving only a rolling golden mist.

Those nearby shrank back as if from a viper, keeping far away from the golden mist, fearing even the slightest touch.

The drifting golden mist suddenly converged and quickly vanished entirely, revealing Gu Huojin's figure, his clothes pristine and un torn.

"Supreme One, are you unharmed?" White Cloud Dao Ancestor and the dwarf elder, having barely pieced their bodies back together, flew over.

"Such trivial tricks could hardly injure me," Gu Huojin said indifferently.

White Cloud Dao Ancestor's eyes flickered with excitement upon hearing this.

The Reincarnation Palace Master, Li Yuanjiu, and Chi Rong were all formidable—any one of them ranked among the top ten in the current world—yet their combined strike had not even torn Gu Huojin's clothes.

Gu Huojin formed a hand seal and pointed.

Two beams of golden light shot from his fingertips, entering the bodies of White Cloud Dao Ancestor and the dwarf elder.

Their bodies were immediately covered in a layer of golden light, and the broken areas twisted and blurred, restoring them to their original state.

Not only were their bodies restored, but their auras also returned to normal, as if they had never been in battle or injured.

"Time reversion technique!" The distant Reincarnation Palace Master frowned slightly at the sight.

"Thank you, Supreme One." White Cloud Dao Ancestor and the dwarf elder, after moving their bodies, showed joy and bowed to Gu Huojin in thanks.

Gu Huojin waved his hand, but his gaze was not on them; instead, he looked at Li Yuanjiu and Chi Rong.

"Li Yuanjiu, Chi Rong, the Heavenly Court has always treated you well, granting you positions among the Seven Lords and promising to lead you beyond the shackles of the Heavenly Dao. Why have you betrayed the Supreme One and defected to the Reincarnation Palace?" White Cloud Dao Ancestor also looked at the two, demanding.

The others in the Jade Pool also looked at Li Yuanjiu and Chi Rong, equally puzzled.

But Cangwu True Lord and the other two trembled slightly, shock flashing in their eyes.

Earlier, during the conversation between the Reincarnation Palace Master and Gu Huojin, the matter of transcending the Heavenly Dao had been mentioned. They had thought Gu Huojin was merely rebutting the Reincarnation Palace Master casually.

Hearing White Cloud Dao Ancestor's words now, it seemed Gu Huojin was indeed working on this, and had already made progress.

As Dao Ancestors, their greatest concern was resisting the erosion of the Heavenly Dao. If there was truly a way to transcend it and avoid erosion, they desperately wanted to know.

"It seems Fellow Daoist White Cloud is completely unaware. You'd better be careful, lest you be sold and still count the money for Gu Huojin," Li Yuanjiu said with a faint smile.

"How dare you slander the Supreme One!" White Cloud Dao Ancestor paused, then erupted in anger again.

"Slander or not, you'll know soon enough." Li Yuanjiu chuckled and retreated behind the Reincarnation Palace Master.

Chi Rong also stepped back, leaving the Reincarnation Palace Master at the forefront.

"Fellow Daoists from the various immortal domains of the True Immortal Realm, I have come to the Bodhi Banquet not to cause trouble, but to inform you of one thing," the Reincarnation Palace Master announced, his voice carrying far.

Gu Huojin frowned slightly, but quickly relaxed.

"This matter has been plotted by Gu Huojin for a long time—so long that some of you may not have even embarked on the path of cultivation. Gu Huojin's scheme is so great, so contrary to ethics, that he is the greatest villain of our time, deserving of death!" The Reincarnation Palace Master pointed at Gu Huojin, glaring and shouting.

"How dare you!"

"You scoundrel, spewing such vile words! You are the greatest villain!"

The Heavenly Court members were furious.

"Have you come today just to wag your tongue? You call me the greatest villain—on what grounds?" Gu Huojin was not angered, but spoke with a smile.

"This is a long story. To start from the beginning, we must trace back to a very ancient era. Fellow Daoists here surely know that when one cultivates a law to perfection and reaches the Dao Ancestor realm, though they can borrow the Heavenly Dao's laws and wield immense power, they also face the danger of being devoured by the Heavenly Dao. This is a chronic worry for all Dao Ancestors, and throughout the ages, Dao Ancestors of various laws have tirelessly sought a way to escape," the Reincarnation Palace Master said, glancing deeply at Gu Huojin before speaking freely.

"Some tried to cultivate mental fortitude techniques to resist the Heavenly Dao; some attempted to refine special immortal artifacts to ward off its erosion; others sought to imitate Earth Immortals by channeling faith power into themselves. Unfortunately, these methods had little effect. However, during the reign of the nineteenth Supreme One of the Heavenly Court, the previous Supreme One, the situation changed," the Reincarnation Palace Master continued.

Gu Huojin's eyes flickered with a strange light upon hearing this.

"The ninth Supreme One of the Heavenly Court was a prodigy. Entering the Dao through formations, he not only cultivated the law of time to the Dao Ancestor realm but also created a peerless technique that used formations to fuse laws of different attributes, shaking all realms," the Reincarnation Palace Master said with admiration.

The nearby crowd showed surprise, but dared not show it openly due to Gu Huojin's might, instead whispering among themselves via telepathy.

Fusing laws of different attributes was extremely difficult, achievable only through the arduous磨合 of two cultivators.

That someone had created a technique to fuse laws through formations was simply inconceivable.

Yet such a remarkable figure with such a peerless technique should have been renowned throughout the world long ago. How had they never heard of him?

"This Supreme One was surnamed Gu, named Daoshen. Though time has passed and outsiders may not know, Gu Huojin and the fellow Daoists of the Heavenly Court should be familiar with this name," the Reincarnation Palace Master said, looking at White Cloud Dao Ancestor and the others with a faint smile.

"Gu Daoshen…" The crowd in the Jade Pool stirred again.

Both Gu Daoshen and Gu Huojin bore the surname Gu. Was there a connection between them?

"What is the point of discussing past events? You brought people from the Demon Domain and the Barbarian Wilderness, and suborned Li Yuanjiu and Chi Rong—clearly you intend to wage war against the Heavenly Court. If so, let us fight. Why waste time with irrelevant chatter?" White Cloud Dao Ancestor glanced at Gu Huojin, then suddenly interrupted, coldly cutting off the Reincarnation Palace Master.

But by saying this, he effectively confirmed the Reincarnation Palace Master's words, causing varied expressions among the crowd.

"Since it is a true past event, what harm is there in discussing it? Unless you are feeling guilty?" the Reincarnation Palace Master said with a half-smile.

The others in the Jade Pool, hearing this, whispered among themselves via telepathy, occasionally stealing glances at Gu Huojin and the others, wondering if the Reincarnation Palace Master's words were true—was Gu Huojin and the Heavenly Court secretly plotting something they didn't know about?

Some who had intended to side with the Heavenly Court quietly held back.

White Cloud Dao Ancestor and the others frowned.

In truth, they knew little about Gu Daoshen, only that he was the previous Supreme One and that some events had occurred between Gu Huojin and Gu Daoshen during the succession of the Supreme One's position.

What exactly happened, they didn't know, but the Reincarnation Palace Master bringing it up now was clearly not in their favor.

Gu Huojin remained calm, seemingly indifferent to everything around him, and made no move to stop the Reincarnation Palace Master.

"Supreme One, though we don't know what this man intends to say, I believe we cannot let him continue spreading lies. Let us act now! Though they outnumber us, with your divine powers, I estimate at least a seventy percent chance of victory. As for these people from the various immortal domains, even if they don't help us, I doubt they would dare to side with the Reincarnation Palace," the dwarf elder said anxiously via telepathy.

"No matter, let him speak. What else do you know? Say it all," Gu Huojin said, looking at the Reincarnation Palace Master, speaking aloud rather than via telepathy.

White Cloud Dao Ancestor, the dwarf elder, and the others were deeply anxious, but since Gu Huojin had spoken publicly, they had no choice.

"Good, worthy of the Heavenly Court's Supreme One. Though a great villain, you are not lacking in bearing," the Reincarnation Palace Master said with a hint of surprise, laughing heartily.

"Gu Daoshen later discovered that using multiple laws simultaneously could resist the Heavenly Dao. Thus, he fused nine laws to create the 'Daoshen Seal' technique, which could delay the erosion of the Heavenly Dao. The reason the Bodhi Dao Fruits taken by you Dao Ancestors can delay erosion is precisely because they contain the power of the Daoshen Seal," the Reincarnation Palace Master said, taking out his own Bodhi Dao Fruit and continuing.

Hearing this, the crowd finally understood.

So the reason Bodhi Dao Fruits could delay Heavenly Dao erosion was this.

Cangwu True Lord and the others stood aside, listening as if to a fairy tale.

Cangwu True Lord now looked at the Reincarnation Palace Master's figure with mixed feelings.

He had just silently mocked the Reincarnation Palace Master for acting recklessly, only to realize that the man had long laid his plans and possessed information he had never heard of.

Compared to him, he was but a frog at the bottom of a well.

He had originally been quite eager for revenge today, but now, for some reason, he felt a sense of despondency.

"So you even know about the 'Daoshen Seal.' It seems you truly know a great deal and have prepared thoroughly," Gu Huojin said, looking at the Reincarnation Palace Master calmly.

"To Gu Daoshen, the Daoshen Seal was but a minor technique, hardly worth mentioning. What he devoted his life's effort to was the 'Three Thousand Daoshen Grand Formation.' Fellow Daoist Gu Huojin surely knows this, after all, the one who helped him complete this formation was none other than you, his self-avatar," the Reincarnation Palace Master said with a snort.

"What!" At these words, the crowd erupted in uproar, looking at Gu Huojin in disbelief.

White Cloud Dao Ancestor and the others were the same, their gazes fixed on Gu Huojin.