Above the Great Dao

Chapter 1307 615: The Strife Between Immortal Gods

Chen Shi quietly listened to this piece of ancient history.

Little Dun Fairy and Wu Qi had both mentioned this past before, but the merchants mostly viewed it from the perspective of rulers, while Lady Houtu viewed it from the standpoint of the ruled mortals.

"This cultivation system, born from the Witch Sacrificial Dao Pattern, allows mortals to rival the gods. The three smartest individuals named this Magic Skill Qi Refinement, and those who cultivate this Magic Skill are called Qi Refiners."

Emperor Houtu recounted, "The three people who created this system were all Divine Officers of the Great Shang, responsible for managing the legacy of the Witch Sacrificial Dao Pattern; their official titles were Taoist. One was called Daoist Yuan Shi, another Daoist Spirit Treasure, and the third Daoist Dao De."

Chen Shi's heart was slightly stirred, and he murmured softly, "Daoist Spirit Treasure!"

He suddenly remembered that the Green Stele in Dao Ruins Fuluo Village was left by Daoist Spirit Treasure, entrusted to the people of Fuluo Village for safekeeping.

It was from the Green Stele that he comprehended the Green Dragon Chant, allowing him to borrow the power of East Emperor Tianqing.

He hadn't expected the origins of Daoist Spirit Treasure to be so ancient.

Emperor Houtu said, "The three of them, out of compassion for the plight of commoners, spread the method of Qi Refinement, granting mortals the power to challenge the Divines. Consequently, these three were revered as The Three Pure Ones, bearing the title of Heavenly Venerate."

Chen Shi was stunned, the owner of the Green Stele, Daoist Spirit Treasure, is one of The Three Pure Ones?

Though he had heard of The Three Pure Ones, he did not know their names, making the mention of Daoist Spirit Treasure, who left behind the Green Stele, particularly intriguing and surprisingly significant at this moment.

Emperor Houtu said, "The number of Qi Refiners with power increased dramatically, hidden among the people, and some crossed Heavenly Tribulations, achieving Immortal status. Gradually, the Great Shang discovered these Immortals possessed powers comparable to theirs, thus becoming uneasy, viewing them as evil and outer Daos, annihilating and exterminating them. The first conflict between Immortal Gods began from this."

Chen Shi was even more shocked: did the Great Shang make the first move back then?

Little Dun didn't seem to say that.

"In this conflict between Immortal Gods, the Heavenly Court had the upper hand, executing countless Immortals, yet many Heavenly Gods perished as well. Among them, the battle between Daoist Spirit Treasure and the Heavenly Emperor resulted in an emperor's downfall. This showed the common people that the Heavenly Gods of the Great Shang were not invincible, and neither was the Heavenly Emperor, prompting more people to practice Immortal Laws."

Emperor Houtu said, "The number of Immortals not only didn't decrease but increased greatly, and their powers grew stronger. By the era of Emperor Yi, the world could no longer bear the harshness of the Great Shang. Thus, The Three Pure Ones contacted us ancient Divine, deciding to overthrow the Great Shang and reorganize the Heavenly Court."

She recounted this story, "I am a Divine from the era of Heavenly Emperor Fu Xi, also suppressed by the Da Shang Heavenly Court, unrewarded. And Hao Tian, Heavenly Emperor, Changsheng, Ziwei, as well as the Yellow Emperor, Green Emperor, White Emperor, Red Emperor, Black Emperor, and others from the era of Heavenly Emperor also decided to rebel, working with various Immortals under the name of Great Zhou, to overthrow Shang and extinguish Zhou. Hao Tian was crowned the new Heavenly Emperor, known as Hao Tian Golden Palace Jade Emperor. In this campaign, fallen Immortals were all named Heavenly Gods, enjoying sacrifices. Finally, the Great Shang was extinguished, the Mysterious Bird Heavenly Court ceased to exist."

"This battle was the second conflict between Immortal Gods, yet it sowed seeds for future disputes."

She sighed, saying, "Because there was an agreement beforehand that in the new Heavenly Court, Divine would dominate, taking major positions. Immortals would continue to be free and unfettered. Later, the Divine of the Heavenly Court grew stronger, and the number of Immortals increased so much that the Ancestral Court couldn't contain the Heavenly Court. Thus The Three Pure Ones cleared the Dark Sea, establishing the Earth Immortal Realm, and the Heavenly Court was relocated here."

Emperor Houtu paused here, hesitating a bit, but continued, "Yet this relocation caused an incident. Eighteen hundred years later, Immortals experienced the first Opening Tribulation, and many Immortals died. Immortals were anxious, seeking solutions."

Chen Shi and Black Pot both perked up their ears.

Opening Tribulation again!

They were familiar with the words Opening Tribulation, but they knew nothing about what it actually meant.

Chen Shi inquired, "Lady, could Opening Tribulation have appeared only after the Heavenly Court moved to the Earth Immortal Realm? Does it have anything to do with the Earth Immortal Realm?"

Emperor Houtu answered, "That's unknown. Perhaps it's the calamity brought by Immortal Changsheng; perhaps it's a tribulation brought by the Earth Immortal Realm. The specific reason is hard to say."

She spoke about this past incident with some puzzled uncertainty, "Oddly, only Immortals died in Opening Tribulation, while Divine remained unharmed. After this Opening Tribulation, eighteen hundred years passed, and the second Opening Tribulation appeared, causing many more Immortals to die. Then rumors said the Opening Tribulation was the Heavenly Court fearing the power of Immortals, wielding Heavenly Dao Treasure to impose a tribulation on Immortals, wiping out some Immortals, preventing Immortals from threatening the rule of the Heavenly Court. This rumor caused quite a stir at the time."

Chen Shi asked, "So, is Opening Tribulation caused by the Heavenly Court?"

"Certainly not. At that time, while the tension between Gods and Immortals was beginning to emerge, The Three Pure Ones were still in the Earth Immortal Realm, and the Heavenly Dao Treasure was forged by them with the Heavenly Court."

Emperor Houtu said, "If the Heavenly Court had wielded Heavenly Dao Treasure to impose tribulation upon Immortals, how could it escape their notice? The second speculation is that Opening Tribulation is the calamity of Immortal Changsheng; it's the disaster caused by Changsheng. Some believe that Immortals' Tribulation Crossing and Ascension, thereby achieving immortality, violates the Heavenly Dao. Crossing Tribulation once doesn't ensure perpetual peace; every so often, a new tribulation must be crossed, resulting either in life or death."

Chen Shi thought over this and shook his head, "Every Immortal ascends to immortality at different times; why would they cross tribulation together? This speculation doesn't make sense."