Chapter 297: with translation of chapter title

297. Chapter 297 Primordial hidden secrets, tacit understanding and recklessness

"For those innate divinities who have always kept the Primordial firmly in their grasp since its birth, the Wu Clan is an anomaly, but precisely because of that, the Wu Clan instead has gained the opportunity to rise up."

"Just like the ferocious beasts of old, the Wu Clan today, to those innate divinities, is merely another round."

"The only difference is merely that the people who indulged and aided the ferocious beasts back then have been replaced by another batch; everything else is the same."

As soon as Hou Tu spoke these words, Di Jiang and the others abruptly lifted their heads, staring fixedly at Hou Tu with blazing gazes, their eyes filled with disbelief.

Zhu Jiuyin's face showed an expression of disbelief as he hurriedly asked, "What are you saying? Hou Tu sister, were the ferocious beasts of old deliberately indulged by those innate divinities? Didn't that ferocious beast catastrophe affect the entire Primordial?"

"As far as I know, everyone who experienced that catastrophe, including the innate divinities, suffered heavy losses!"

"But according to your words, how did it become that the ferocious beast catastrophe was deliberately caused by the innate divinities?"

Di Jiang also added concernedly, "Sister, please elaborate on this matter, as it concerns the entire Wu Clan and even the overall situation of the Primordial; it is absolutely not something to speak nonsense about."

Hou Tu merely gave a helpless smile, shook his head, and then said, "This matter is merely the Heavenly Court's speculation about the past; the details are unknown, but the existence of the King of Ferocious Beasts, Shen Ni, is an unavoidable topic within it."

"How could a mindless ferocious beast, without anyone's assistance, possibly devour an innate divinity not yet born, and moreover one who possesses an innate divinity accompanied by a spirit treasure like the God‑Slaying Spear?"

"You know, even for us, before we were born, there was a great formation guarding us; outsiders couldn't even hope to harm us, let alone find us."

"This can no longer be explained by mere chance; given how long the Primordial has existed, who has ever heard of an innate divinity being found by someone other than an innate divinity before its birth?"

"As of now, the only known case in the Primordial of an innate divinity being found before its birth is none other than Yunmeng Shenjun Binyi."

"And who found that person? It is the current Heavenly Court emperor, Qi Huang, His Majesty; besides that, who else has heard of it?"

"Qi Huang could find him because he is the Water God of Yunmeng Marsh; Yunmeng Marsh is originally his Dao Chang, and perhaps there are still other secrets therein."

"But besides that? The Heavenly Court has controlled the Primordial for so long that, even before the Wu Clan was born, they had already attacked and shattered the heavenly realm, completely grasping the situation of the Primordial."

"Compared to them, we have always been rather naïve; these secrets, if I had not previously been in the Heavenly Court, I couldn't even know them, let alone guess them by racking my brains."

"The gap in foundation is not something that can be made up by our twelve ancestor witches all being on par with the Mixed Unity Dao, with a few great witches comparable to a Half‑Step Saint."

Ancestor Wu

"But compared to the Heavenly Court, how have you lot handled it? Before the divine wind that would send us soaring to the azure clouds even arrived, you hastily revealed your ambitions."

"Your conduct is not only not secretive, but also clumsy; you haven't even steadied yourself before placing yourself in the spotlight, and all your actions are carried out under the other party's gaze, as expected."

"How could this possibly succeed? With strength still insufficient, you greedily covet what cannot be mastered—no, what you are not qualified to control!"

"Placing hope in the Heavenly Court not noticing, or that the Heavenly Court simply does not care."

"Moreover, consider this: as one of the strongest races under the Heavenly Court, revealed in the Primordial, how could the Heavenly Court possibly pay no attention?"

"Are the Snake Clan strong? Are the Tiger Clan strong? Even those of the water god lineage—are they strong? Could it be that they all lack ambition?"

"Back then, during the Dragon‑Serpent conflict, we ourselves witnessed it; facing the then‑strongest Dragon Clan of the Primordial, the Ancestral Serpent and the Heavenly Serpent still managed to inflict a major loss on them."

"Yet now, in dealing with the Heavenly Court, you seem to have lost your mettle, lacking any courage—could it really be that those few emperors are born with imperial destiny, making anyone who sees them willingly submit?"

"How then could it not be the same for you? Under Shaohao's control, the White Tiger Clan—do you really dare claim that the Wu Clan could regard them as nothing?"

"Besides our twelve ancestor witches, do you think the Tiger Clan could tear apart their underlings limb from limb, truly believing that the other side survives the three calamities unaffected, lacking any foundation?"

"The Heavenly Court now only has these Mixed Unity Dao and Half‑Step Saints; it's not that they lack people capable of becoming Half‑Step Saints internally, but rather that the innate divinities beneath them are mostly proud and arrogant."

"In the absence of external pressure, they are unwilling to take shortcuts, wanting to continue accumulating cultivation of life, to practice in peace, and achieve the Mixed Unity Dao."

Ferocious Beast Calamity

"And this is not only them, but also the main idea of those innate divinities in the Primordial who have never cultivated the immortal path."

"Those heavenly soldiers and generals are the same; among the million troops, any one of them, if placed in a small clan, could serve as that clan's future."

"In a large clan, they would certainly be regarded as elites, cultivated as future mainstays; only thus can a force of a million be gathered."

"As for such people, how many could the Wu Clan gather? Could they possibly number ten thousand?"

"Hou Tu's knowledge of the ferocious beast matter is also not extensive; he merely mentioned it, gave them a brief explanation, and then immediately refocused the discussion on the Primordial and the Wu Clan."

Di Jiang and the others all fell silent; the dead silence in the hall oppressed everyone, and after Di Jiang remained silent for a long time, he finally managed to ask:

Could it be that the Wu Clan can only bitterly wait, depending on others' breath, awaiting the alms of those innate deities, not knowing when such support will ever come?

Hou Tu sensed Di Jiang's unwillingness; she sadly realized that long-standing rule over the western half had already bewitched the eyes of these brothers and sisters.

The loftiness brought by power and authority corroded their former heart that revered the Father God, free and unconstrained.

According to the teachings of the divine and immortal paths, that is karmic entanglement that bewilders the mind, loses one's true nature, and leads astray.

Between her and them lay a thick barrier, arising from their differing cognitions and the amount of information they had been exposed to, making communication almost impossible.

Hou Tu glanced at Di Jiang and then spoke:

"Big brother, I have long been in the Heavenly Court; what I have seen and heard may be obscured by it, and thus cannot be taken as truth."

"Moreover, I have been separated from the clansmen for too long, and my understanding of the wilderness is limited to the information disclosed by the Heavenly Court; although it is vast, I have never personally experienced it." "You dwell within the wilderness, with all the clansmen under your control; do you know how many tribes the Wu Clan now has, and how many fighting clansmen you can muster?"

After Hou Tu finished speaking, without waiting for Di Jiang's answer, she turned to the remaining forefather Wu and said: "Since you all have the intention to oppose the Heavenly Court, do you also know how many major clans exist in the wilderness now, and among them how many are quasi-saints and combat-ready troops?"

"Those will inevitably be the enemies of the Wu Clan in its struggle for dominance over the wilderness; which could be partners for cooperation, even if only temporary—do you have any answers?"

Di Jiang and the other forefather Wu remained silent; Zhu Rong forced himself to speak a sentence, explaining: "Such matters are all managed and controlled by the clan's Wu exorcism; we merely occasionally get a rough understanding; if we wanted detailed data, I do not know."

Having said that, Zhu Rong seemed a bit embarrassed, and added another sentence, forcing himself to save face, saying: "Not only do I not know, but elder brother and second brother probably don't know either."

After Zhu Rong's words fell, the forefather Wu blushed; Hou Tu could only sigh helplessly: "No wonder since the birth of the Wu exorcism, it's rare for anyone to live over a thousand years; all clan affairs are placed on one person, exhausting heart and strength—how could there be longevity?"

Zhu Jiuyin slightly argued a sentence, saying:

"Such matters, who in the wilderness would understand them? We single-mindedly cultivate, temper our qi and blood, having no heart for other things—this is also normal."

Hou Tu merely glanced at Zhu Jiuyin, quite disappointed, and said: "Yeah, such matters, who in the wilderness would know them? But in the Heavenly Court, they have full understanding."

"Just from the information they disclose internally, they can know a lot about the Wu Clan—how many great witches there are, where they reside, and how many combat-ready troops each tribe has, all in detail."

"Moreover, not only the Wu Clan, but also the Dragon, Snake, Tiger clans and so on—the Heavenly Court has records of them all; since we take the Heavenly Court as our target, how can we be so lax?"

Di Jiang said with considerable disbelief:

"The Wu Clan members do not hold positions in the Heavenly Court, and they are quite wary of the Heavenly Court—yet they actually have detailed internal information about the Wu Clan?"

Hou Tu opened her mouth to explain:

Really none? Or are you just saying you simply don't know?

Gong Gong said with a grim expression:

Within the Wu Clan, there are actually spies and lackeys of the Heavenly Court?! I must ferret them out, otherwise there will be no peace left in the clan!

This time Hou Tu didn't speak; instead, Di Jiang waved his hand and said: "Useless, what good would capturing them do? Won't the Heavenly Court notice this information anyway? It would only scare the snake."

"As for these people, just pay a bit more attention and be careful; as long as the great witches encounter no trouble, they won't be able to dig up any information."

"If we act rashly, we'll only invite suspicion from the Heavenly Court—more loss than gain."

Hearing this, Gong Gong grew somewhat angry, but could think of no rebuttal; he could only slam the table before him in fury, then lean back in his chair and seethe.

Hou Tu glanced at Gong Gong, while the others present seemed already accustomed, paying no attention, merely asking:

"Sister Hou Tu, do you mean the remaining great clans of the Wilderness are unaware? They actually let the Heavenly Court probe them, yet no word leaks out."

Hou Tu merely replied flatly: "So what if we know? Should we tear our faces with the Heavenly Court and then suffer its deadly blow? With their swords at our throats, what use are fame and rules?"

"Moreover, the heavenly soldiers and generals, the god generals of each department, are born within a single clan—how could they truly be left unchecked?"

"Such conduct is merely a tacit understanding between the Heavenly Court and the myriad clans of the Wilderness; the clans declare they harbor no rebellious intent, leaving all information for the Heavenly Court to observe."

"The Heavenly Court declares it has no intention to act, and the information it gathers is made public; it turns a blind eye to the messages of the heavenly soldiers and generals."

"It's just that the Wu Clan has been too dull in the past—neither noticing the Heavenly Court's information gathering nor joining it to obtain these hidden rules from them."

The ancestral witches present fell silent, wishing they could bury their faces in gravel and stone, feeling utterly disgraced and unable to compose themselves.

Hou Tu's expression was strange; his calm tone held no inflection as he said: "Precisely for this reason, even I in the past did not know whether this was the Wu Clan showing its wholehearted loyalty to the Heavenly Court, or whether you truly noticed nothing at all."

"But looking at it now, I need not worry anymore; given the wisdom you've displayed, it's no wonder the Heavenly Court intends to leave the Wu Clan be."

"Such a people, utterly lacking in scheming, with every move laid bare before the opponent—aside from sheer bravery, they are good for nothing."

"If it were up to me to choose, I would also be willing to pick such an opponent; even if they were somewhat stronger, the advantages gained elsewhere would more than compensate."

Many ancestral witches covered their faces, unable to lift their heads; Di Jiang, too, could bear it no longer, hastily speaking:

"Today's meeting ends here; I must reflect on my past shortcomings, for all these matters are my fault—I am truly sorry, brothers, farewell!"

Having said that, Di Jiang turned to leave, but Hou Tu stopped him, only to hear Hou Tu say: "How can you lose face over just this? In the Heavenly Court I've heard such remarks plenty; I can still accept not fleeing, yet you, as elder brothers, would run away?"

The ancestral witches' faces darkened, and Zhu Rong blazed with fury: "Sister Hou Tu, who has wronged you in the Heavenly Court? Tell me, brother, and even if I must risk my life, I will surely slay him and show no mercy!"

Hou Tu merely shook his head at Zhu Rong's concern, feeling moved yet also sighing: "I, after all, hold a Heavenly Venerable post—though it's a sinecure with no real authority, it's still a high rank; no one would dare discuss this to my face."

"These things are merely what I overheard by relying on my hearing; it's precisely because of that that I can know these secrets."

"Brother Zhu Rong, you need not be so angry; your concern for your sister is naturally known, and I won't doubt that you would really storm the Heavenly Court."

"Yet precisely for that reason, Hou Tu dares not act rashly; with you so reckless, when can I ever feel at ease?"

In that moment, all the ancestral witches felt guilt; Hou Tu remained as a hostage in the Heavenly Court, while they never shared his burden, making them almost ashamed to face him.

PS: Tomorrow still 1000 words, now there are 300 monthly tickets total, previously over 1000, the rest will be cleared the day after tomorrow and the day after that. (End of chapter)