Essence Devouring Art

”Find a place to sit.”

Wu Dao paid the little drama no mind. He simply gave a faint nod, acknowledging Tao Chuan and putting an end to the matter.

’Tao Chuan’s trump card...’

’It’s probably on the same level as Jia Baocai’s and Liang Chen’s. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be swallowing his pride and living under another’s thumb.’

’As long as he wasn’t a Saint Master,’

’he was still within my control.’

”Thank you, Divine Envoy.”

Tao Chuan didn’t let it go to his head or forget his place. After bowing his thanks, he calmly found a spot and sat cross-legged in the void, ignoring Su Xiuqi’s frigid glare.

After that brief interlude,

Wu Dao waved his hand, condensing a throne of space-time for himself. Showing no sign of stage fright, he looked down upon the gathered Demon Saints and spoke:

”Everyone here is a powerhouse; your renowned names need no introduction. Your attendance at this Treasure Assembly does our Nirvana Valley a great honor. Please, don’t stand on ceremony. Feel free to speak your minds when the time comes.”

”You flatter us, True Lord!”

Everyone was taken aback, feeling both flattered and alarmed, and they quickly offered a humble reply.

At the same time, they couldn’t help but wonder.

’He mentioned a Treasure Assembly,’

’so where was the treasure?’

”Of course a Treasure Assembly has treasure. And this time, there’s a share for everyone.”

As if sensing their thoughts,

Wu Dao didn’t waste any time. With a wave of his hand, a projection appeared before the Saints—a scene as scarlet as blood, wreathed in a sea of black qi.

”This is...”

The moment the projection appeared,

the pupils of Su Xiuqi and the other Demon Saints from the Heaven-Burying Alliance contracted violently. Their faces turned grim to the extreme. If not for the last shred of their reason, they would have shot to their feet in a furious rage.

Because...

the scene in the projection...

was none other than the Heaven-Burying Emperor’s Tomb, the forbidden treasury that the Heaven-Burying Alliance had always controlled!

Only the core leadership of the Heaven-Burying Alliance knew its location. How could Nirvana Valley...?

But in the next moment,

Su Xiuqi and his men had their answer.

And it was an answer that nearly made them vomit blood on the spot.

On the other side of the Grand Array’s projection,

stood numerous high-ranking members of what was once the Heaven-Burying Alliance, along with their trusted followers. They were all bowing deeply. ”We pay our respects to the True Lord!”

What did this mean?

Even an idiot could figure it out!

The Heaven-Burying Alliance had long been hollowed out by Nirvana Valley, and the Nirvana True Lord knew the location of the Emperor’s Tomb!

’Could the Heaven-Burying Stele have been deciphered?’

Jia Baocai and Liang Chen instantly grasped the crux of the matter and were sick with regret. Of everyone, they had been screwed over the worst.

The Grand Thousand World Mother Liquid, an Emperor Scripture!

They had given up everything they had.

Not only had they failed to become the Alliance Leader, but they had also let the wolf into the fold. The fury in their hearts nearly made them explode on the spot.

”The treasure the Divine Envoy spoke of, could it be?”

Meanwhile, the other Demon Saints, led by the Black Mountain Demon Saint, watched the shit-eating expressions on the faces of Su Xiuqi’s group. A certain possibility dawned on them, and they began to tremble, their breathing growing ragged.

The Heaven-Burying Alliance controlled an Emperor’s Tomb!

This was a well-known fact in the Demon Saint circles of the Burial Realm.

Unfortunately, the Heaven-Burying Alliance had been too powerful back then, and only they knew the tomb’s location. Everyone else could only look on with envy.

If the forbidden area in the projection...

was truly that Emperor’s Tomb...

And they thought about the Treasure Assembly...

Didn’t that mean...

Wu Dao observed everyone’s reactions, completely unconcerned with the surging negativity from Su Xiuqi’s group. He decided to twist the knife.

”Your guesses are correct. The treasure for this assembly is indeed the Emperor’s Tomb you see before you.”

At this point,

Wu Dao glanced again at Su Xiuqi’s group and added grimly,

”Alliance Leader Su felt that the Heaven-Burying Alliance’s strength was insufficient to claim the Emperor’s Tomb alone. Therefore, he wished to bring this fortune to the entire Demon Dao of the Burial Realm.

He requested that Nirvana Valley act as an intermediary.

He asked us to hold this Nirvana Treasure Assembly to jointly discuss the tomb’s excavation and the distribution of its contents.

Alliance Leader Su.

Am I right, or am I wrong?”

VMMMM—

The moment Wu Dao finished speaking,

a vast, suffocating pressure surged from the core of Nirvana Valley. It felt as if it could swallow the All Heavens and Myriad Realms, like a billion abysses descending at once, pressing down on the Demon Saints until cold sweat beaded on their foreheads.

A Great Saint!

The power of a Great Saint, without a doubt!

Under that boundless pressure, any lingering doubts or hopes of a fluke in the minds of the Demon Saints vanished like smoke, replaced by pure, abject terror.

’A Great Saint...’

Su Xiuqi, who had been on the verge of exploding with negative emotions, instantly deflated like a popped balloon under this familiar yet terrifying pressure.

He could only force a smile uglier than a grimace and reply,

”The Divine Envoy is correct. The Heaven-Burying Alliance alone cannot open the Emperor’s Tomb. Rather than let the treasure collect dust, it is better to... to bring this fortune to the Burial Realm.”

After he finished speaking,

Su Xiuqi seemed to have aged millions of years in an instant, and a huge portion of his Essence, Qi, and Spirit drained away.

One can only imagine...

the extent of the humiliation simmering in his heart.

If he was in such a state,

as for the biggest fools of the lot, Jia Baocai and Liang Chen, they were in an even worse state. Their bodies trembled with rage, yet they didn’t dare show the slightest hint of anger, nearly suffering a cultivation deviation on the spot.

In contrast,

Tao Chuan’s reaction was far calmer.

He hadn’t invested nearly as much as Jia Baocai and Liang Chen.

Nor had he suffered devastating losses in the Emperor’s Tomb like Su Xiuqi, who was desperate to use the tomb’s Creation to restore his cultivation base.

He simply wanted a piece of the pie.

Whether it was a large slice or a small one...

would ultimately depend on his own abilities.

He could tell...

that the Nirvana True Lord didn’t seem to intend to monopolize the spoils. Otherwise, there would have been no need for this assembly.

Seeing Su Xiuqi back down,

Wu Dao retracted the ”Great Saint’s” pressure.

’Maintaining that thing for even a single moment burned through a massive amount of World Mother Liquid. Good steel should be saved for the cutting edge.’

”Since Alliance Leader Su has been so gracious,”

After withdrawing the pressure,

Wu Dao swept his gaze over the Demon Saints and announced,

”Then Nirvana Valley will take the liberty of proposing a distribution plan...”

It was called a distribution plan,

but in reality, it was just him making unilateral, empty promises. After all, Wu Dao hadn’t even confirmed if the Extreme Dao Bell Fragment was actually inside the Emperor’s Tomb.

The Demon Saints of the Burial Realm...

were also only playing along on the surface.

They weren’t idiots, after all.

There’s no such thing as a free lunch.

Few who could claim a prize for themselves would willingly share it. The Nirvana True Lord had likely convened this assembly for one reason: to find some cannon fodder to scout the way.

However,

it was a matter of the willing taking the bait.

Whether they could resist the temptation of the Emperor’s Tomb or would choose to risk everything for it was entirely up to them.

Wu Dao’s main goal...

was simply to borrow their strength to muddy the waters, preventing the Heaven-Burying Alliance from having sole dominion over the Emperor’s Tomb.

However,

the fact that the Heaven-Burying Stele was a fake...

was a detail Wu Dao didn’t smugly reveal.

He needed Su Xiuqi and the Heaven-Burying Alliance to believe they still had a chance to turn the tables. Otherwise, they might just throw in the towel.

As it turned out,

he had made the right move.

Although information about the Emperor’s Tomb was now public,

Su Xiuqi couldn’t bring himself to suppress his obsession and flip the table. He still felt he had a trump card that could turn his fortunes around.

...

「Red Dust Realm.」

「In the familiar Star Sea Hall.」

Su Xiuqi looked at the others gathered in the hall, sighed, and said,

”We’ve come to this. It’s time to temporarily set aside our grievances. Working together is the only way forward.”

”Hah! Work together? That Nirvana True Lord has the cultivation of a Great Saint! He clearly wants us to throw our lives away scouting the path for him for free!”

Liang Chen flicked his sleeve and snorted coldly. He had already lost most of his hope.

The Emperor’s Tomb has been exposed.

Not only are Nirvana Valley’s minions watching, but the other tycoons of the Demon Dao have also sent their own spies.

It will be at least a month...

before the entrance to the Emperor’s Tomb is safe to use again.

Before then,

even if they wanted to sneak past the spies and open it early, it would be impossible. They might as well just give up.

”Do you really think that Nirvana True Lord is a Great Saint?”

But Su Xiuqi just gave a cold smile.

His expression was cryptic.

”Oh? And what is your brilliant insight, Alliance Leader?”

Jia Baocai’s eyes lit up. Su Xiuqi was once a Great Saint. Though his cultivation level had fallen, his insight hadn’t. Had he seen through the facade?

”Hah, I wouldn’t call it a brilliant insight.”

Su Xiuqi let out a small breath. ”To be precise, ’He’ is indeed a Great Saint, but His Power is confined to Nirvana Valley.”

”What do you mean?”

Liang Chen frowned, sensing that something was indeed amiss.

Ever since Nirvana City first appeared,

the Nirvana True Lord has seemingly never left Nirvana Valley. On the few occasions He was provoked, despite His power, He never traced the culprits back to their source, merely making an example of the pawns.

That’s highly unusual!

”A Fierce Monster!”

Su Xiuqi’s eyes narrowed as he voiced his suspicion. ”His display of power before might have fooled others, but it couldn’t fool me—I was once a Great Saint myself.

’His’ power over rules...

has a range limited to the Nirvana Valley region. Not a single trace of it can reach the outside world. It’s remarkably similar to the domain of a Fierce Monster!”

A Fierce Monster...

Hearing this, everyone in the hall had a moment of sudden enlightenment. All their previous questions were answered.

Ever since the Celestial Tribulations began,

they had never heard of any normal Extraordinary being capable of devouring Celestial Tribulations and feeding on them.

But if it was a Fierce Monster...

...then it all made sense. Fierce Monsters are all born from Exotic Celestial Treasures, and they naturally possess all sorts of mysterious and unfathomable conceptual abilities over rules!

Confined to Nirvana Valley.

In other words, the Nirvana True Lord was a Fierce God born from some fortuitous Creation within Nirvana Valley. He was still unable to break free from the rules of the Nirvana Forbidden Area and move about as he pleased.

And those Divine Envoys...

they must be products of the Fierce Monster’s corrupting domain.

No wonder they were all so mysterious and inscrutable, reeking of an ominous aura.

With the corrupting power of a Fierce God,

hollowing out the Heaven-Burying Alliance without a sound would have been a simple matter.

As for being some ancient Great Power,

that was all just nonsense to hide His true identity!

Su Xiuqi and the others...

felt they had finally uncovered the truth.

”There’s something else that doesn’t add up.”

Tao Chuan spoke up as well, ignoring Su Xiuqi’s cold glare.

”If ’He’ truly had the ability to wield the might of a Great Saint in the outside world, why would He publicize the Emperor’s Tomb? He most likely wants to use outside forces to keep us in check, while sending His Divine Envoys to fish in the muddied waters!”

”Vile creature! I was almost completely fooled!”

Jia Baocai viciously squeezed the Treasure Bead in his hand. His earlier reverence, as if for a Divine Being, was gone, replaced by the direct curse.

’Idiot...’

Su Xiuqi shot Jia Baocai a speechless look. The man had practically been swindled out of his underpants, and he was still claiming he hadn’t been fooled.

”Heh heh... For all His schemes, He’d never guess that the Heaven-Burying Steles are the key to opening the Emperor’s Tomb. He had the key in His hands and didn’t even realize it. That is our greatest advantage.”

the Bixia Demon Saint said with a smile, his old eyes lifting slightly.

The secret of the Heaven-Burying Steles...

was known only to a select few. Tao Chuan himself had only just learned it after they had all agreed to set aside their differences.

All ninety-nine Heaven-Burying Steles...

were in their possession.

When the time came, they would use the core Grand Array to trap and kill the Divine Envoys and the other Demon Saints. In the end, the treasury would still be theirs!

”The Saint Elder is right.”

Su Xiuqi added with a cold smile, revealing another piece of information.

”Speaking of which, we should thank that Nirvana True Lord for finding us so many pathfinders.

The last time I ventured into the Emperor’s Tomb,

I triggered quite a few of the domains. Our old maps are now useless. With these pathfinders, our chances of success will be much higher.”

”Hah! You certainly are a cunning schemer!”

Hearing this, Jia Baocai and Liang Chen’s...

faces couldn’t help but twitch.

Although they had never trusted Su Xiuqi, hearing him speak so brazenly of his past manipulations still left a bad taste in their mouths.

However,

they were all locusts on the same rope now. If they wanted to claim the final prize, they would have to temporarily put aside their differences and present a united front!

Convinced they had learned the truth,

Su Xiuqi and his group swept away their earlier gloom and regained their confidence. They prepared to gather all their strength to become the final winners.

Little did they know...

that what they believed to be the truth...

was merely a sliver of hope Wu Dao had intentionally given them—a calculated advantage to keep them from giving up and doing something desperate.