Chapter 361: Tai Wei of Shu Mountain

"This disaster is also my young son's misfortune; Heavenly Lord need not worry, my fortune is thin and my karmic ties shallow, after all I simply lack that blessing." The dragon‑clan female immortal sounded rather mournful, as if grieving for Ba Xia.

Such a fine opportunity was just muddled by the Shu Mountain Sect.

"May I ask, who are you, fellow Daoist?"

Mu Yi considered his own title; this mother of Ba Xia is a true dragon, her bloodline must be the direct line of the Four‑Sea Dragon clan, and she can sever the two‑worlds' resonance.

"Before the Heavenly Lord, I dare not presumptuously call you a fellow Daoist!"

"The little deity is the Eastern Sea Dragon King of this realm, Ao Rong!"

Mu Yi's mouth twitched; no wonder—the native Four‑Sea Dragon King of Jiuzhou may not be of high rank, but because of the dragon race's special nature, he has always been on equal footing with the Ten Courts Yama, both being Third‑rank deities.

The Four‑Sea Dragon King of this world certainly lacks the rank of the native one, yet at least he is on par with the Shu Mountain Sect founder.

To lay a trap for the Shu Mountain Sect and the Emei Sect is truly a piece of cake.

Were it not for the strict Heavenly Law, we might never have seen the Blood Demon emerge.

He surmised that the moment the Shu Mountain Sect locked Ba Xia in the Demon‑Locking Tower, the Eastern Sea Dragon King would flood Shu Mountain.

"Now that this realm's affair is settled, perhaps the Dragon King should first withdraw the Cloud‑Weaving and Rain‑Spreading Technique, so we can discuss this realm's matters with the Shu Mountain Sect founder properly!"

Honestly, Mu Yi can understand the Dragon King's actions; after all, there is a cause.

The Blood Demon's emergence is the Shu Mountain Sect's own doing; their annihilation is deserved.

But allowing the Blood Demon disaster to affect countless innocent Shu‑land civilians displeases Mu Yi; he is human after all and must consider things from the human perspective.

However, the mastermind Blood Demon has already been beheaded by him; the next reckoning must also summon the Shu Mountain Sect founder to settle accounts together.

He has little rapport with his Heavenly Court colleagues, and is even less familiar with the Shu Mountain Sect founder; at least let him descend first and gauge his attitude.

Understanding Mu Yi's stance, Ao Rong hesitated briefly, withdrew the Cloud‑Weaving and Rain‑Spreading Technique, and the dense dark clouds instantly began to recede.

A moment later, a beam of light descended from the sky, and the Shu Mountain Sect founder rushed down from the Heavenly Court.

Mu Yi and Ao Rong hovered above the firmament, awaiting the Shu Mountain Sect founder's arrival to settle the final accounts.

Yet what Mu Yi did not anticipate was that the Shu Mountain Sect founder, after some unknown exchange with Jing Wei, instantly transformed into a sword beam that surged skyward.

"Dragon demon, you audaciously claim to be the Four‑Sea Dragon King and dare to plot the destruction of my Dao tradition; today I shall slay you, you wind‑stirring, treacherous dragon!"

The Shu Mountain Sect founder, ethereal and dignified, wielded a celestial sword; with a casual swing he carved a brilliant blade of over a hundred zhang toward Ao Rong.

Mu Yi blinked, almost thinking he had misheard.

He had already hypothesized the founder's possible reactions, but he never considered this particular response.

Even though the Four‑Sea Dragon King ranks below the Heavenly Court's true deities, their ranks are equal; you, a mere unordained wandering deity, daring to strike the Four‑Sea Dragon King—truly lawless!

Ao Rong, seemingly foreseeing this, extended his hand to summon several heavenly thunders, extinguishing the sword beam, then turned his head toward Mu Yi as if asking what to do.

Mu Yi's expression darkened; he instantly realized he had been outmaneuvered by Ao Rong.

The other party never intended to back down; complying with her was merely to pull him onto the same line, intending to kill the Shu Mountain Sect founder outright.

Indeed, Ba Xia was captured today; perhaps another day her other son will also be subjected to demon‑slaying.

Mu Yi truly wanted to turn and leave, letting those two bastards fight to the death, but he feared their battle would shatter heaven and earth, again endangering innocent civilians, so he had to step in.

"Please, fellow Daoist, come up and speak!"

Mu Yi's voice rang out; the Shu Mountain Sect founder seemed to hesitate briefly, then burst through the void and flew up.

"Having met the Heavenly Lord, who rescued my Shu Mountain Dao tradition in peril, Tai Wei thanks the Heavenly Lord!" It seemed rather courteous toward Mu Yi.

"Fellow Daoist, have you already learned the full chain of events?"

Mu Yi worried that Tai Wei's misunderstanding of the facts caused his raging thunder, prompting him to slay Ao Rong.

"Heavenly Lord, I have learned the whole story; the Blood Demon's ferocity nearly destroyed my Shu Mountain Dao tradition, and this dragon demon, severing the two worlds and aiding tyrant Zhou in sin, I shall today slay to restore the righteous qi of heaven and earth!"

Tai Wei's words made Mu Yi's heart sink, and he asked in a deep voice.

"The Blood Demon grew strong because Shu Mountain seized Ba Xia from the sealed perilous land, bringing today's calamity; do you know this?"

"There is nothing wrong with slaying demons; moreover, Shu Mountain only pressed it into the Demon‑Locking Tower for observation, not killing it. Had it not been this dragon demon's mischief, a single strike from me could have exterminated the Blood Demon, and a disaster would never have arisen!"

Tai Wei, with a righteous expression, replied to Mu Yi's questioning.

Mu Yi, rubbing his forehead with a slight headache, realized from whom this Shu Mountain Sect's demon‑slaying tradition had been passed down.

"Heavenly Lord, you may not know, but that Tai Wei of Shu Mountain once wielded the Demon‑Subduing Sword, famously slaying all demons across the world, regardless of good or evil, race, or circumstance; even half‑demons were never spared," Ao Rong sneered mockingly.

"Even after ascending to become a true celestial of the Heavenly Court, he still often hunts demons in the mortal realm; my innocent young son was captured by him, like being locked in the Demon‑Locking Tower!"

"Hmph, had Ba Xia's spirit platform not been pure and without a trace of sin, I would have slain him with a single sword long ago; he wouldn't still be in the Demon‑Locking Tower."

"As for you, dragon demon, today you intend to ruin my Dao tradition and harm the people; your heart deserves execution."

The tension between the man and the dragon was unusually explosive; Mu Yi could only feel speechlessness.

Not only was he at a loss for words regarding the Dragon King, but also toward Tai Wei.

If Ao Rong can be called a somewhat reasonable shrew, then Tai Wei is a fanatic who upholds human‑supremacy as a mental illness.

One sees himself as a victim, the other believes he is entirely blameless.

"Sword, come! Today I shall slay you, dragon demon! I will report to the Heavenly Court, consign you to reincarnation, never to be reborn!"

A fiercely‑styled sword sprang up from below, landing in Tai Wei's hand.

"Hmph, wielding this Demon‑Subduing Sword, I have slain countless monsters; today I shall make you a lost soul beneath this blade!"

"Just because of you? Today I will vent my fury for my son!"

Ao Rong manifested his true form, and the man and dragon instantly clashed in the heavens.

Mu Yi felt irritated; outwardly the two showed respect for him, yet in reality they had no respect at all and fought on their own.

In the end, strength is the true authority; both of them are essentially in the Realm of Gods, while he is merely a high‑rank Legend, not even a demigod, so he cannot intervene at all.

Mu Yi turned and walked away, leaving the man and dragon to battle in the heavens.

He doesn't care about their deadly brawl, but if either of them threatens the civilians below, he'll immediately restrain the two and pin them here.

Mu Yi found Jing Wei and asked directly.

"Has the Demon‑Locking Tower been opened?"

"I report to the Supreme Deity that the Founding Patriarch has already summoned away the Demon‑Subduing Sword; opening the Demon‑Locking Tower now may provoke a demon uprising, and I seek the Supreme Deity's judgment."

"Open it; with me here, what is there to fear?"

Mu Yi forcefully ordered Jing Wei to open the Demon‑Locking Tower.

Jing Wei hesitated for a moment, but still followed Mu Yi's command, opened the Demon‑Locking Tower, and let Mu Yi go inside.

In his view, since the Founding Patriarch has already descended to the mortal world, most issues are no longer issues.

After Mu Yi entered the Demon‑Locking Tower, he found the interior filled with a chaotic swarm of demons.

"Humans? Are they humans?"

"Eat him, eat him!"

"The Demon‑Subduing Sword is gone, eat it!"

Most demons and monsters are confined in cells, yet for some reason their auras are all listless, as if they have been tormented for a long time.

Mu Yi was too lazy to tangle further with these demons, so he unleashed a Path‑Image barrage and climbed toward the tower's summit; according to Jing Wei, the relatively sinless Divine Beasts are mostly confined to the middle levels.

However, as Mu Yi ascended, after crushing a horde of demons that inexplicably emerged and dared to attack him blindly, he realized that the demons in the Demon‑Locking Tower are not sorted by good or evil, but by strength.

The closer to the tower's summit, the more demons are imprisoned.

Mu Yi squinted; this was not a normal phenomenon. Thinking of the Demon‑Subduing Sword that Tai Wei had summoned away, doubt rose in his mind.

Having just stepped into the middle tier, Mu Yi immediately sensed a difference from before.

The aura of this level is far clearer than the lower one, bearing a sense of neutrality and peace.

Passing several cells, Mu Yi stopped before one, inside which lay a giant bird of fiery feathered hue.

Just standing before the cell door, he felt a scorching fire engulf him; looking inside, the air seemed subtly warped, and the whole cell radiated intense heat.

Yet the aura was calm, with no trace of ferocity, though, like the lower levels, it was still listless.

"Are you a descendant of the Phoenix Bloodline?" Mu Yi asked proactively.

"No, I am of the Zhuque Bloodline; the phoenix is locked ahead!" the giant bird replied irritably.

"Are you here to bring him to the tower's summit?"

"No!"

Upon hearing the answer, the giant bird opened its eyes.

Seeing Mu Yi, it regained a spark of spirit.

"You don't look like those bull‑nosed Shushan Sect guardians; what, are you here to take Phoenix blood?"

His tone carried a hint of schadenfreude.

"I came for White Tiger blood, but I can release you!" Mu Yi honestly stated his purpose.

"Heh heh heh, those bull‑nosed Shushan Sect can free us? I've been locked here for thirty springs!" the Zhuque Bloodline giant bird said, clearly raging.

The giant bird's movement caused the Divine Beasts and monsters in the other cells to all open their eyes and look this way.

"May I ask why your auras are all so listless?"

Mu Yi pondered and voiced the question lingering in his mind.

"Of course, it's because the Demon‑Subduing Sword has drained our power; what do you think old man Tai Wei locked us here for?"

"Isn't it to refine that Demon‑Subduing Sword? Even after ascending to immortality, why still descend!" roared in response to Mu Yi's question.

All the Divine Beasts and monsters on the floor erupted in rebellion; mentioning Tai Wei, massive resentment surged uncontrollably from every beast.

"I understand!"

Mu Yi closed his eyes, finally grasping the source of his earlier dissonance.

He had always wondered why a Demon‑Locking Tower was built—imprisoning Divine Beasts is one thing, but why also lock in ferocious demons? Killing them outright would be simpler.

Now, all his doubts were answered.

Tai Wei founded the Shushan Sect and the Demon‑Locking Tower solely to forge his Demon‑Subduing Sword.

No wonder Tai Wei repeatedly descended to subdue demons, only to lock them inside the Demon‑Locking Tower.

It's also unsurprising that the Demon‑Locking Tower has no overseer; after all, the Demon‑Subduing Sword has drained all strength, leaving none for rebellion.

As for arranging by strength, it's simpler: the nearer to the Demon‑Subduing Sword, the greater the effect.

The demons and Divine Beasts at the summit have likely already been drained.

Hence the Zhuque Bloodline giant bird asked whether it was being taken to the summit.

Mu Yi inhaled deeply and moved toward the summit; as expected, the number of prisoners decreased with height.

The summit level held only a single Divine Beast, now barely clinging to life.

It seemed that with the Demon‑Subduing Sword taken, it had a brief respite.

"Are you here to kill me?"

Its head resembled a dragon, body like a horse, stance like a deer, tail like a bull's, five‑colored fur on its back, and yellow hair on its belly.

It turned out to be a qilin; from its aura it was unmistakably an auspicious beast.

Mu Yi fully understood the Demon‑Locking Tower's effect and let out two cold laughs.

Honestly, he almost believed Tai Wei's whole scheme.

But one must judge by deeds, not words.

The slogan of slaying demons and expelling evil is likely just the Founding Patriarch's empty chant; the true aim is to doom the Shushan Sect's demon‑slaying path.

No wonder they only slay and capture demons while letting rogue cultivators hide.

It turns out the Shushan Founding Patriarch cares not for demon eradication, only for nurturing his divine sword.

On Jiuzhou's mainland, his desire to capture so many demons and Divine Beasts is essentially a dream.

Mu Yi merely calculated that the Holy Beast White Tiger would warn him; if the White Tiger learned someone was harvesting its descendants to forge a sword, it would likely skin and muscle them outright.

However, this Demon-Sealing Tower was only built after Taiwei's ascension; I don't know where he learned this.

However, no matter what, this matter is now quite clear.

Taiwei's crime is enormous; it has reached the point where it must be dealt with. On the contrary, these disciples of the Shu Mountain Sect have become secondary.

Mu Yi directly took out the True Spirit Industry Point Array Diagram, reporting Taiwei's actions to the True God of the Thunder Department.

As a Fifth-Rank Proper God of the Heavenly Court, he naturally has the authority to report to the Thunder Department.

Just a moment later, the whole heaven and earth seemed to darken, and then the sky exploded with a tremendous thunder, countless lightning bolts dancing wildly across the firmament.

"Taiwei!" The rumbling thunder spread outward in all directions.

"You, acting on personal desire, have interfered with the development of the lower realm, violating heavenly law; do not resist—surrender now! Come back with me to the Heavenly Court for trial!"

Originally, while fighting Ao Rong, Taiwei's face turned pale; he didn't know why the Proper God of the Thunder Department had come to arrest him, but he quickly realized he was in trouble—having violated heavenly law, even the lightest punishment is to have his immortal bones removed and be cast into reincarnation.

Taiwei instinctively wanted to run.

But a bolt of heavenly lightning split the firmament, and Taiwei was instantly imprisoned by electricity, then immediately transformed into a flash of lightning that vanished into the horizon.

Mu Yi silently clasped his hands toward the Proper God of the Thunder Department above the sky, then silently turned and began preparing to clean up the mess.