Stealing The Heavens

Greathorns spat another glob of purple-red phlegm, causing another clump of lava to vaporize. He put away his natal artifact as he clenched his jaws and murmured while staring in the direction the gust of wind had disappeared into, “They are always like this. When they have the upper hand, they keep growling and snapping at us, but when they see the situation becoming unfavorable, they run away with their tails between their legs. Why does this happen every time?”

Yao Ling was busy wearing back her absurdly long dress. She carefully smoothened every crease, and the dress swayed lightly as her gentle magic power ran across the surface like water while countless flowers embroidered on it fluttered as if they were alive.

She rolled her eyes and gave a cold snort when she heard Greathorns’s protest. “I thought you had already gotten used to it after so many years? This is not the first time they have colluded with one another in some treacheries. Why are you still complaining?”

Greathorns grunted and stared sullenly at the divine tree with a large hole, his face twitching with pain. He clenched his palms tightly into fists and muttered under his breath with malice gleaming in his eyes, as if he was planning when he would attack his foe’s stronghold and destroy some valuable things as well.

The lion man flew over, looking somewhat embarrassed. Shaking his head, he said to Greathorns, “Master, I’m sorry for not helping you just now.”

Greathorns waved and said dryly, “It has nothing to do with you. Just find an opportunity and kill a few little ox’s noses next time.”

The lion man nodded and said earnestly, “I’ll go to Pangu Continent tomorrow and stealthily kill any men in daoist robes. I’ll come back after I’ve killed several thousands of them.”

“Remember to kill only those with higher cultivation base,” advised Yao Ling, as if she was trying to stir up trouble. “They must be at least Gold Immortals. You will disgrace your Master by killing those lesser Heaven Immortals and cultivators.”

Light and shadow flickered and shifted in the void, and in the next instant, an old man in a black robe, a burly bare-chested man, and a pretty woman riding on a huge beetle with a hundred pairs of legs, appeared at the same time. “The cultivation base of Longbrows’s clone was too strong,” said the burly man in a thick, husky voice. “I’ve failed to kill him even after beating him for so long. He managed to escape after I had broken one of his arms.”

The black-clad old man flew up into the air and landed on one of the divine tree’s branches, perched there like a big bird as he heaved a sigh. He took out a black seal and said sulkily, “I crushed the clone’s head after hitting him 108 times, but he escaped all the same. I’ve to come out with a way next time such that I’ll have him suppressed and imprisoned even if I can’t kill him.”

Everyone turned to the pretty woman riding on the beetle. Clad in a pale-green dress with hints of evilness in her eyes and brows, the woman glanced back at them and said, “Why are you looking at me like that? Well…I’ve jabbed the clone three times. The poison is now lurking in him, and will explode when he returns to his true-self. It will take Longbrows at least half a month to expel it.”

The group clapped their hands and laughed when they heard that, and Yao Ling laughed so hard that she almost fell headlong into the ocean of lava. The seven Dao Fusing experts still kept their primitive, unbridled manner; they were bold enough to do anything and accept responsibility for it, quick to love and quick to hate, clear about what to love or hate, and unable to turn a blind eye to provocation. And they cared not a fig about demeanor; they laughed the loudest when they wanted.

A faint whistle of wind came from the distance, and a breeze soon brought over eleven true self, twisting shadows. “Why are you laughing?” A deep voice rang out. “Have you killed Longbrows? If so, we’ll have one less trouble to deal with!”

Wu Divinity heaved a deep sigh as he shook his head and said, “How can he be killed? I agree with Lord Wuling. We have to find a way to suppress and imprison them or destroy their avatars, forcing them into transmigration to cultivate from scratch. The situation is growing unfavorable for us!”

A gust of wind blew across the void as the seven saints and the eleven twisting shadows formed a circle ten thousand feet in diameter. The Lord of Fire raised his hand; eighteen streams of molten gold gushed out of the lava ocean and molded into eighteen golden thrones with various shapes beneath them. Everyone, including the shadows, seated themselves on the thrones and stared blankly at some point in the void at the center of the ring.

Eighteen of the strongest thirty-five figures in Pangu World were here. Although eleven of them came with only their clones, it was the first time since the world was created that the eighteen Saints formally gathered in one place. Unlike the seven Buddhas and the nine Daoists who had founded their sects and were constantly expanding their power by recruiting disciples, the eighteen Saints had kept their primitive way of life as Chaos Fiend Gods. Except for a few of them who visited each other occasionally, the rest spent most of their time either meditating in seclusion or minding their own businesses, rarely appearing in public.

Since they had fused with the Dao, even the Apocalypse of Heaven and Earth could do nothing to them. Several of them had gone through dozens of Apocalypses and never appeared. Legends about them were circulating throughout the universe, but they were just like the legends—some people knew their names, but few people could see them in person.

Hiding under the ground, Wu Qi was too scared to even breathe. If there were only one or two Dao Fusing experts, it might not be a big deal. But, there were eighteen, or half of all the Dao Fusing experts in Pangu World, gathered here now. Given his current cultivation base, if he were discovered, he was certain that he would have to take a walk in the transmigration once again.

Worst of all, he was stealing the Origin Tree of Fire’s energy essence. If this were to be discovered by Greathorns, Wu Qi would not rest in peace even after he was sent into transmigration, for the hot-tempered Lord of Fire would surely chase into transmigration and make sure Wu Qi perished in both body and soul.

He cautiously fused all his aura with the divine tree. The tree’s vast energy essence rushed ceaselessly into him, and was refined into the Yuan Ling True Flame by him with the Heaven Refining Grand Magic. At the same time, he was carefully extracting the emperors’ divine energy, using them to constantly strengthen his magic power and cultivation base.

He dared not steal all of the newly produced divine energy in them this time. Eighteen Dao Fusing experts were in close proximity. If any one of them gave the three emperors a curious glance and found that their injuries had not recovered even a little bit, although they had been meditating for such a long time, he or she would immediately notice something was amiss, and Wu Qi would be pulled out of his hiding.

So, he slowed down the absorption and left half of the divine energy for the three emperors. As a result, color began to return to their faces, and their rapid breathing became long and deep. Meanwhile, he turned his attention to the energy of wood, fire, and metal the divine tree had extracted. No one would reject the opportunity to get more energy, so he stole half of them before they were poured into the emperors’ bodies.

Given the oddness of the escape art in Scroll of Stealing, Wu Qi’s little moves went unnoticed by the eighteen Dao Fusing experts. Or, perhaps no one believed that someone would be bold enough to play tricks under the noses of eighteen Dao Fusing experts, for even those Dao Patriarchs and Buddhist Patriarchs dared not to do this. So, the group of almighty experts just sat there nonchalantly, and none of them thought of taking a closer look at their surroundings.

They were at Greathorns’s home, a place that was absolutely safe unless attacked by someone with brute force. Why should they be too cautious?

The lion man was more vigilant. Perched atop the divine tree, he widened his eyes and glanced about every now and then. And yet, he did not pay any attention to the situation right below him.

The silence went on for three days and three night until Greathorns could no longer contain it. “Speak up…Why hide your thoughts?” he said dryly.

“The news we’ve got recently does not look good.” One of the shadows said in a deep voice. “There is no doubt that the Dao League and the Buddhist League are working together to suppress the human race. They’ve even blocked the front gate to Empress Wa’s palace, stopping her from intervening. They are going to take complete control of the human race.”

Wu Divinity said darkly, “If the human race is controlled by them like the mortals in those mortal worlds and outer heavenly realms, and if Pangu Continent falls into their hands… I’ve done a calculation. Given the power they have been secretly accumulating over the years, the overall strength of their sects will increase by a hundred-fold in less than an eon. There are many Dao Breaking experts among the disciples of Dao Patriarchs and Buddhist Patriarchs, and if they…”

He smacked his lips and did not finish his words.

Sitting cross-legged on her throne, Yao Ling frowned as she heaved a sigh and finished for him, “If several of their disciples fused with the Dao, we will be in trouble. We are not as united as them to begin with, and we could barely stand up against them only because we outnumbered them. We will be chased and beaten every day if only several of their disciples become as strong as us!”

Lord Changmu said in a deep voice, “They don’t need many. With only three of their disciples stepping into the realm of Dao Fusing, and if we are still in a state of disunity, one of us will likely be suppressed and imprisoned. And, once we lose one of us, there will be a second, third, and fourth…”

“What are we waiting for then?” bellowed Greathorns. “Are we going to just sit here and wait for them to suppress us? Draw your weapons and let’s screw them!”

Monstrous killing intent filled the small circle. It was so intense that it made the lion man shift his hooves nervously, and then fly up to perch on a higher branch.

“We have to form a league to protect ourselves,” proposed one of the shadows. “Think about it…how many of us have fallen throughout the years? How many of them were killed by their schemes? We have to form a power that is as complete as theirs and recruit as many disciples as we can!”

Wu Divinity nodded in agreement. “They have over a thousand disciples now who have stepped into the realm of Dao Reasoning, and that is only on the surface. If this group of disciples lay out a formation with the power of the Heavenly Dao they’ve comprehended, such as the power of the stars and the Six Paths of Reincarnation, they will have the strength to fight against one of us here. If we allow them to take control of Pangu Continent…”

The pretty woman riding on the beetle boomed, “We, the eighteen Saints, will form the Saint League, and will fight the Buddhist League and the Dao League together! What say you?”

Greathorns was the first to lurch to his feet. Waving his fist, he growled, “Yes! Let’s do this! If worse comes to worst, we’ll have another Apocalypse of Heaven and Earth. Since they’re sending outer heavenly realms back to Pangu Continent, we’ll dismantle Pangu Continent once again! Heh, we’ll destroy whatever they want!”

All eyes fixed at him, and the glances had the same meaning—”Idiot!”

The lion man drooped his heads and wrapped himself in his long wings, wondering what he had done to deserve such a master!