Chapter 1844: Chapter 1790–Chapter 1791 Qing Hua and Gou Chen

“Zhu Jiuyin could no longer hold back, the trump card of the Witch Deity Teaching has finally been exposed.” The Great Emperor Qinghua’s expression remained neutral, with no hint of joy or anger, yet he seemed to have his own thoughts regarding the actions of the Zhu Jiuyin Ancestor Witch.

“It’s not just Zhu Jiuyin. Didn’t you see even Bai Qicang, the appointed Spirit Official Venerable God from the Taoist School, take action? It seems that the Taoist Monarch is not entirely unsupportive of the Five Old Lords, or perhaps he still has a trick up his sleeve.” Emperor Gouchen’s eyes flashed with a fierce glint at the sight of Bai Qicang’s intervention.

As a Venerable of the Heavenly Court, a strong presence at the level of a Taoist Monarch, the information they possess is far superior to what Pang Hong could fathom.

Perhaps Pang Hong can only speculate about the existence of Bai Qicang, as an intentional trump card left by the Ancestor Celestial Master and the Longevity Taoist Monarch, to ensure the Taoist School’s invincible presence among True Immortal combat forces.

On this point, Emperor Gouchen and the Great Emperor Qinghua are absolutely certain, as it has been proven by bloody facts.

In recent years, the development of various forces within the Heavenly Court has shown that it’s not only the Jade Emperor who refuses to remain silent. The Jade Emperor himself is unwilling to endure the joint suppression by multiple Venerables, so why would the other Venerables be content to remain mere pawns?

People’s thoughts change with time and status. Perhaps at the initial establishment of the Heavenly Court, these Venerables were willing to suppress the Jade Emperor with pleasure to gain the support of veteran Taoist Monarchs, because they were still unsteady and needed reinforcement to consolidate their authority.

But in this era, they themselves are Taoist Monarchs, with countless strong followers under their command, no less than some top immortal sects, naturally unwilling to remain mere enforcers for other Taoist Monarchs. They seek a higher position and more autonomy.

Of course, such matters are never accomplished overnight but are a result of continuous mutual probing and wrestling.

This process often manifests in covert battles that never surface in the open.

As the Spirit Official Venerable God of the Taoist School and the strongest combatant below the Taoist Monarch, Bai Qicang has thwarted countless schemes from these Venerables, causing their plans to collapse before they could materialize.

Therefore, their understanding of Bai Qicang is particularly clear. He is a sharp sword in the hands of these Taoist Monarchs, severing countless attempts by the Venerables to extend their influence, causing them significant losses.

“This Qingling Primordial Lord has quite the audacity, daring to set up an ambush against a colleague of the Heavenly Court. Aren’t they afraid of Heavenly Court sanctions?”

“What should they fear? They have the backing of a Taoist Monarch and do not regard us Venerables in their eyes.”

“Hmph, regardless of the outcome this time, I must sanction them, otherwise, where are the Heavenly Rules of the Heavenly Court?!”, Emperor Gouchen proclaimed sternly, though the corners of his mouth lifted in a smile.

The Great Emperor Qinghua, hearing this, also nodded with a smile: “Indeed, the rules of the Heavenly Court must not be violated.”

These two Venerables seemed displeased, but in truth, their hearts were already filled with joy, as this move by the opposing side presented a good opportunity for them.

This time, when Qingling Primordial Lord ambushed the Wood Virtue Star Lord, upon first receiving the news, these two Venerables were actually pleased, for was it not just internal strife within the Taoist School?

It goes without saying that Qingling Primordial Lord is a core strong presence of the Taoist School. Yet Wood Virtue Star Lord, being an Independent Practitioner from the outset, turned a blind eye to the overtures of the Venerables and leaned towards independence within the Taoist School. Naturally, this evoked some discontent amongst the Venerables. Thus, regardless of who among them sustained losses, it was beneficial to the Venerables.

Furthermore, as Venerables, they could easily capitalize on the outcome of the two’s confrontation to accuse the victor of unauthorized harm to colleagues.

Therefore, these two Venerables naturally found themselves in a position of invincibility, with nothing to lose no matter who won.

At that time, whether Qingling Primordial Lord emerged victorious and they used it to accuse and penalize, or extracted concessions from those Taoist Monarchs; or if the Wood Virtue Star Lord won, and they took advantage of the disgraced Taoist Monarchs to coerce him into their fold, it was a worthwhile gain for them.

So, when some of the Taoist Monarchs from the Taoist School communicated with them, they were naturally happy to oblige and acquiesced to the requests of the Taoist Monarchs from the Taoist School.

However, the development of this matter completely exceeded their expectations. Initially believing it to be a well-orchestrated plan by the Taoist School intended to help Qingling Primordial Lord certify the Tao, they also focused their attention on Qing Laojun.

But who could have expected the sudden appearance of Ju Mang Ancestor Witch, which revealed the involvement of the Witch Deity Teaching in all this, and showed that Wood Virtue Star Lord unconsciously collaborated with the Witch Deity Teaching?

Yet they were not angered by this, as Wood Virtue Star Lord wasn’t one of theirs, and Qingling Primordial Lord belonged to the Taoist School. Regardless of who suffered in this matter, it was of no consequence to them.

Especially with the communication from the Witch Deity Teaching and a plethora of benefits that came with it, they easily consented to the Witch Deity Teaching’s requests.

For these two Venerables, they have their own positions and interest demands. Like the Jade Emperor, they wish to expand their authority and establish their own standing. Both the Witch Deity Teaching and the Taoist School were obstacles to them enhancing their authority.