Chapter 165: Overthrowing Hongjun

A majestic divine mountain, tens of thousands of丈 in height and entirely forged from azure jade, stood magnificently. At its peak grew a colossal willow tree whose branches and leaves stretched endlessly into the boundless space and time, drawing infinite cosmic power to nourish itself.

At this moment, upon the summit of the azure jade divine mountain, beneath the canopy of the sky-covering willow tree, two figures sat facing one another, sipping tea and engaging in a game of Go.

One figure wore a crown of green leaves, a Daoist robe woven from emerald foliage, and held a whisk made of green leaves—he was the Saintly Immortal Yangmei.

The other figure possessed a shining, bald head, wore golden monastic robes, and held a string of golden Buddhist beads—he was Amitabha Buddha.

Both the Saintly Immortal Yangmei and Amitabha Buddha were supreme existences in no way inferior to the Saintly Immortal Hongjun. How could they possibly sit down to play Go without reason?

After placing a white stone, Saintly Immortal Yangmei picked up his teacup, took a light sip, and turned the conversation to the recent situation in the Primordial World. "Daoist friend Hongjun is flying into a rage!" he remarked. "That little fellow Nan Luo has truly provoked him."

Nan Luo was an outlander from beyond the heavens, the variable of the Primordial World, the Lord of Mandate, and a pawn of the hidden mastermind behind the scenes.

One could say that any single one of Nan Luo's identities was sufficient to make the various saints hold him in high regard.

The various saints, led by the Saintly Immortal Hongjun, had observed Nan Luo for a full hundred thousand years before concluding that he was merely a coward possessing power and nothing more.

It was precisely out of this contempt for Nan Luo that the saints had ignored his covert maneuvers to ally with the Five Emperors.

To their astonishment, the moment Nan Luo achieved the realm of a Semi-Saint, he instantly tore off his disguise, revealing himself as a self-centered, utterly arrogant Divine Emperor.

Only then did the saints truly see Nan Luo for who he truly was.

As it turned out, all of Nan Luo's actions over the past hundred thousand years—whether acting timid as a mouse or playing petty and deceitful political games—were merely meant to hoodwink the saints, led by the Saintly Immortal Hongjun.

Now, Nan Luo had spent a full hundred thousand years acting like a pig to eat a tiger; who could guess how bruised Saintly Immortal Hongjun's face must be from this slap?

Ever since Pangu cleaved open the heavens and earth, the Saintly Immortal Hongjun had always looked down upon all living beings in the Primordial World from on high. When had he ever been fooled and hoodwinked like this by a mortal creature?

Faced with Nan Luo's arrogance and audacity, how could the Saintly Immortal Hongjun not be consumed by boundless fury?

This was the very reason why Hongjun had issued the decree commanding the four great imperial clans to besiege the Divine Clan.

Gazing at the chessboard before him, Amitabha Buddha pinched a black stone and spoke calmly: "Daoist friend Hongjun fancied himself clever enough to see through Nan Luo, never expecting that he was merely looking at a mask Nan Luo wanted him to see."

"The true Nan Luo is someone Daoist friend Hongjun has never understood. It is only fitting that he has been slapped in the face by Nan Luo."

With these words, Amitabha Buddha placed the chess piece into the game.

As soon as the black stone was placed, it became evident that the black pieces had gained the upper hand on the board.

Saintly Immortal Yangmei narrowed his eyes at the game, set down his teacup, picked up a white stone, and asked, "Then what do you make of Daoist friend Hongjun's order for the four great imperial clans to besiege the Divine Clan?"

With that, Saintly Immortal Yangmei dropped his white stone onto the board, and instantly, the black pieces were suppressed once more by the white.

"Nothing much! Aside from his anger, Daoist friend Hongjun also wishes to make a mountain out of a molehill and exploit this issue." Amitabha Buddha did not play another piece. Instead, he fixed his gaze on Saintly Immortal Yangmei and spoke with calm composure.

"At the Assembly of the Demon God Palace, we vetoed the decision to eliminate Nan Luo, severely damaging Daoist friend Hongjun's prestige and leaving him quite dissatisfied."

"Now that he has caught hold of Nan Luo's deception and hoodwinking of the saints, how could Daoist friend Hongjun possibly miss the chance to blow this matter out of proportion?"

"Indeed!" Saintly Immortal Yangmei also raised his head, looking back at Amitabha Buddha. "It seems Daoist friend Hongjun is absolutely determined to drive Nan Luo to his death!"

Amitabha Buddha nodded in agreement. Twirling the golden Buddhist beads in his hand slightly, he slowly said, "If Nan Luo does not die, Daoist friend Hongjun will never find peace of mind."

"If he fails to kill Nan Luo, Daoist friend Hongjun will not only lose control over the Primordial Spirit Realm, but his prestige among the saints will also plummet."

"For Daoist friend Hongjun, Nan Luo must die."

"However, during the Assembly of mortal deities, we already vetoed the decision to execute Nan Luo. No matter what, Daoist friend Hongjun dares not defy the collective will of the saints, nor does he dare to slay Nan Luo on his own authority."

"Therefore, under the pretext of Nan Luo hoodwinking the saints, Daoist friend Hongjun has ordered the four great imperial clans to annihilate the Divine Clan, intending thereby to cut off Nan Luo's path to sainthood."

"Nan Luo is, after all, the Divine Emperor. If the Divine Clan is destroyed, he will inevitably suffer the backlash of karmic fortune, making it impossible for him to attain the Dao and become a saint."

"By then, a Nan Luo who cannot attain sainthood—could he possibly escape the palm of Daoist friend Hongjun?"

Saintly Immortal Yangmei suddenly stood up, walked to the edge of the azure jade mountain's summit, gazed out over the boundless expanse of the Primordial Land, and said calmly, "Yet, we have no grounds to object to Daoist friend Hongjun making an issue of this."

"After all, Nan Luo played the game of acting weak to deceive the strong for a hundred thousand years, even hoodwinking the saints. His crimes are unforgivable!"

Amitabha Buddha also rose to his feet, walked toward Saintly Immortal Yangmei, and slowly continued, "That may be so. But if Nan Luo truly fails to become a saint, we will never be able to overthrow Hongjun's control over the Primordial World."

"We cannot simply sit by and watch!"

At this point, Saintly Immortal Yangmei and Amitabha Buddha finally dropped their pretenses, revealing their true objective: to overthrow the Saintly Immortal Hongjun's control over the Primordial World.

"To break such a perilous deadlock, there is only one way." Saintly Immortal Yangmei's eyes instantly shifted from black to azure, and he stated coldly and ruthlessly, "Before the four great imperial clans destroy the Divine Clan, we must enable Nan Luo to attain the Dao and become a saint."

After pondering for a moment, Amitabha Buddha suddenly spoke: "According to intelligence from the Demon Realm, Nan Luo will enter the Yin-Yang Boundary Wall on the ninth day of the ninth month to seek the Dao and attain sainthood."

"In other words, we must ensure that the Divine Clan is destroyed only after the ninth day of the ninth month."

Hearing this, Saintly Immortal Yangmei gave Amitabha Buddha a deep, piercing look, thinking to himself: *Amitabha actually has informants within the Demon Realm. Such top-secret intelligence is known to very few demons. Just who is his informant?*

Faced with Saintly Immortal Yangmei's curious gaze, Amitabha Buddha felt a wave of helplessness in his heart. Had Nan Luo's survival not been so crucial, he would never have exposed such a trump card.

Such a vital hidden asset might have proven immensely useful at a critical juncture.

Saintly Immortal Yangmei merely lingered on him with that deep gaze before quickly looking away.

After all, for Amitabha Buddha to reveal such an important trump card meant he had already paid a heavy price.

"The ninth day of the ninth month?"

Saintly Immortal Yangmei softly murmured the date, his azure pupils radiating a wise light as if an idea had already formed in his mind.

"Since Nan Luo and Xiongsitian are set to fight a decisive battle at the Great Snow Mountain on the ninth day of the ninth month, we might as well add a few more Semi-Emperors to the fray."

Upon hearing this, a sharp glint flashed through Amitabha Buddha's golden Buddhist pupils, and he calmly said, "Does Daoist friend Yangmei mean to have the Dragon Emperor, the Phoenix Emperor, and the Qilin Emperor join this great battle as well?"

"Precisely!" Saintly Immortal Yangmei lifted his head, his azure eyes gazing down upon the Primordial Land from on high with cold ruthlessness. "How could a duel between just two emperors—Nan Luo and Xiongsitian—possibly compare to the entertainment of a chaotic melee among all five emperors?!"

"Brilliant! Brilliant! Brilliant!"

Amitabha Buddha had completely grasped Saintly Immortal Yangmei's intentions. Clapping his hands together in delight, he laughed heartily, "If on the ninth day of the ninth month, the Five Emperors engage in a chaotic brawl at the Great Snow Mountain, then even if the four great imperial clans attack the Divine Clan, lacking the command of their four emperors, they will find it difficult to breach the Divine Clan's innate supreme treasure—the Hall of Gods."

"Even better, Daoist friend Hongjun will have no grounds whatsoever to oppose this proposal!"

In the Saintly Immortal Hongjun's original design, he intended to provoke a war among the five great imperial clans to weaken their collective strength and diminish the power of any prospective Saint Emperor who might be born.

Saintly Immortal Yangmei's proposal was one that Hongjun would absolutely find impossible to refuse!

Saintly Immortal Yangmei and Amitabha Buddha exchanged a knowing smile, thinking in perfect unison: *Overthrowing Hongjun is just around the corner!*