Chapter 275

As Wu Jin brandished his wooden shield, the tremendous force slammed into the gluttonous dove, Wu Tie and the others also arrived before the highest palace in the Three Linked Realm.

The wooden palace was a seamless natural creation; between its beams and pillars there was no trace of any craftsmanship, as if the palace had grown naturally from a single divine tree.

Countless multicolored gems were inlaid on the palace's exterior.

These gems also seemed to have grown naturally from within the palace, leaving no trace of any inlay work.

The whole palace resembled a magnificent peacock, weary and fatigued, curled up here and asleep. It does not know how many ages it has lain here, silent and tranquil, exuding an inexplicable Zen aura.

Simply standing before the palace gate, one feels both body and soul grow calm.

It seems as if all external clamor and disturbance have completely evaporated; all anxiety and unease vanish without a trace, carried away by the gentle sway of countless bodhi trees outside the palace.

Before the palace gate, two resplendent peacock statues stand, one on the left and one on the right.

Standing several dozen feet tall, the peacock statues are carved entirely from green‑blue gemstones; on their tail feathers, spread like a fan, countless gems are densely inlaid.

Both statues are also naturally formed, showing no trace of artificial carving.

On the palace's lintel, a blue‑green wooden plaque bears the bold, dragon‑soaring, phoenix‑dancing characters: 'Great Peacock Mingwang Palace'!

Wu Tie gazed at those large characters.

The strokes of the characters are light and airy, seeming carefree, indifferent, and transcendent of worldly dust.

Yet beneath the surface lies a fierce, arrogant tone; Wu Tie seemed to see a rebellious man holding a sutra, chanting 'the path of compassion and purity,' while his other hand behind him gripped a blood‑stained longsword.

Every stroke, every line, beneath that carefree exterior, harbors an arrogant and wild desire to tear through the void.

Wu Tie smiled, as if he had glimpsed the master of the Great Peacock Mingwang Palace, the founder of the Three Linked City—he imagined him clad in white fur, bearing a defiant expression, daring to face countless powerful foes without fear.

Standing before the great hall, Wu Tie halted his steps.

"Mochang Wang, I have something I want to tell you," Wu Tie said, coughing once.

Old Tie suddenly burst into violent coughing, his coughs strange and hoarse, spewing thick smoke rings from his mouth and rolling smoke from his nostrils.

He gave Wu Tie one white‑eye after another, but Wu Tie pretended not to notice.

"Lord Wu Tie, what is it?" Mochang Wang asked, smiling broadly at Wu Tie.

Along the way, the twelve heirloom treasures of the Twelve Aspects clan all fell into his hands; each is a priceless ancient rarity, possessing unmatched power, each worthy of becoming a city‑guarding weapon of the Three Linked City.

With these treasures, even a master like Huaguang at the Life‑Pool realm can directly oppose a great power of the Embryo‑Store realm.

This naturally made Mochang Wang unhappy.

"Before, whether it was the Bodhi Pure‑Heart Light, the Udumbara Myriad‑Wonder Zen Light, or the Crimson Lotus Myriad‑Kalpa Divine Light… these are the Twelve Aspects clan's bottom‑box inheritances," Wu Tie said, looking at Mochang Wang, "but the power of these inheritances seems rather small…"

Wu Tie gathered his thoughts and spoke solemnly: "How long has it been since anyone entered the Three Linked Realm to obtain these inheritances?"

Mochang Wang stared at Wu Tie in astonishment, fell silent for a moment, furrowed his brows, and slowly shook his head.

"Since the direct line of Jin Mancang was expelled, over a thousand years have passed with no one entering the Three Linked Realm. After all, the secret incantation for entering and leaving the realm is in their hands."

Spreading his hands, Mochang Wang laughed: "However, even before them, few people had ever entered the Three Linked Realm."

Flipping his palm, a Bodhi heart‑lamp appeared in his palm; Mochang Wang said softly: "Earlier, the Three Linked City was so mighty that a treasure like the Bodhi heart‑lamp was never needed; among the dozens of surrounding great domains, what threat could compel the city to use these ancestral heirlooms?"

As for each clan's supreme divine abilities, they are the 'heart‑transmission' arts; those who inherit them must still undergo austere cultivation, purify the self, penetrate the true mind, break through the soul's obscurations, light a heart‑lamp, and only then can these arts be developed to their utmost strength.

Shrugging his shoulders, Mochang Wang sneered: "But you know, Lord Wu Tie, our lofty clan members are all masters of feasting and pleasure; their souls are completely veiled by the seven emotions and six desires."

"To have them wipe the dust from their souls, light the heart‑lamp, and painstakingly cultivate these supreme ancestral arts… how could that be possible?"

Shaking his head, Mochang Wang chuckled: "So, those who truly entered the Three Linked Realm and received these heart‑transmission arts… probably only the earliest generations of the city's ancestors; later descendants… heh."

Mochang Wang gave a few cold laughs.

Huaguang also gave a few cold laughs.

Mutu also gave a few cold laughs.

They looked down on both the former Great Peacock royal clan and the Twelve Aspects clan's pampered heirs—those old useless, small useless, mediocre useless—none of them earned any respect.

If it weren't for Mochang Wang receiving Wu Tie's help, successfully activating the Three Linked City's ultimate defensive formation, fully mastering the city's supreme power, and completely abolishing all members of the Twelve Aspects clan… the Three Linked City would sooner or later be destroyed by them.

Even a demoness like Xuan Zhu became Huayan's adopted daughter.

Upon careful reflection, it is truly terrifying to contemplate.

"These past few days, my soul has had some trouble… my soul power overflowed, and my body could not bear it." Wu Tie solemnly regarded Mochang Wang: "Old Tie used some strange means, tore open the void, snatched thirteen clusters of light from somewhere inside the Three Linked City, and thrust them into my body."

Wu Tie silently exercised his magical power.

The Heavenly Lock Pagoda transformed into two dragon‑like streams of light that surged behind him.

The nine‑fold pagoda's light blazed forth; countless light filaments glittered with blinding radiance, and mighty surges of magical power continually erupted from within the Heavenly Lock Pagoda.

Wu Tie said solemnly: "In just a few days, my cultivation has broken through repeatedly; this is entirely due to those thirteen light clusters."

Wu Tie said solemnly: "I saw that in each of the twelve palaces ahead, a senior of the Three Linked City sits in meditation within."

"These light clusters are the 'heart‑transmission' seeds formed from the total power of those ancestors; they contain all their strength… this power originally belonged to your Three Linked City."

Wu Tie sincerely recounted what had happened to him.

He did not realize that the true culprit was the ancestral spirit of the Wa clan, Wa Huangshi; he simply blamed everything on Old Tie.

Old Tie rose to his feet; a several‑meter‑tall figure with a large cigarette dangling from his mouth, he clasped a staff planted on the ground, his body leaning crookedly on it, adopting the air of a market‑street elder, grinning foolishly at Mochang Wang.

"Little brat, it's true—I, Old Tie Geezer, did it… back then, this kid Wu Tie was about to burst; I had to find a way to save his life… so I had to look nearby for something lifesaving," Old Tie chuckled: "My nose is especially keen; I just sniffed left and right and found these light eggs."

"Geezer, I didn't even know what they were; I only knew they were good for Wu Tie, so I grabbed a handful and slapped them into him."

Old Tie looked sorrowfully at Mochang Wang: "Back then, geezer, I truly didn't know these belonged to your family."

Mochang Wang laughed.

He gently shook his head, looking sincerely at Wu Tie: "My life was saved by Lord Wu Tie; without him, I could never have regained power over the Three Linked City. In fact, without Lord Wu Tie, I could not even return to the Three Linked City."

"These heart‑transmission seeds left by our ancestors can aid Lord Wu Tie—this is truly wonderful."

Mochang Wang spoke candidly: "The power left by our ancestors…"

Mutu suddenly shouted angrily: "The power left by our ancestors should belong to the Three Linked City… Gomorrah, no matter what relationship you have with Lord Wu Tie, he has no right to take away the Three Linked City's power."

"Especially, this is the ancestral grace." Mu Tu glared angrily at Wu Tie: "Return the power left by our ancestors, or..."

Muteng's head full of green long hair swayed, and Muteng's eyes shot out a pressing green divine light.

Wu Tie remained silent.

Return it?

How to return it? These light clusters have already merged with his body; although not fully digested, Wu Tie simply lacks the strength to extract them from within.

Perhaps, Lao Tie can do it?

Wu Tie turned his head and glanced at Lao Tie.

Lao Tie was very listless, his body slanted crookedly hanging on the scepter, his shoulders twisting, letting the witch maiden crawl up his back and sit on his shoulder.

"Don't look at me, I only kill, don't bury; these Buddhist sect things are extremely wicked. If you can pull them out of your body, that's your skill… hey, this girl, why don't you remember Wu Tie's kindness? Without him, you could reunite with your long worm spouse."

Lao Tie smiled at Muteng.

Muteng's face was grim; she is a representative of the extreme few radicals in Triple Link City.

What is meant by radical is that she can, for the future of Triple Link City and for the future of its major families, do anything unreasonable.

So she can marry the actually not-so-highly-regarded Great Snake Yi.

So she can use her influence to let the Bodhi Clan raise a 20,000-strong expeditionary force to assist Great Snake Yi in reclaiming the Black Snake Territory.

So she can, without regard for those Bodhi clansmen, when the Demon Chapter King returned to Triple Link City and seized supreme power, she hesitated not at all, leading her followers to decisively defect to the Demon Chapter King, becoming his minister.

Likewise, for the benefit of Triple Link City, Muteng glared at Wu Tie with angry eyes.

A massive surge of magical power swept in all directions; Muteng coldly shouted at Wu Tie: "Return the ancestral legacy, or else you are my mortal enemy. Today, either you or I will die here."

The Demon Chapter King stepped sideways, blocking between Muteng and Wu Tie, and looked at Muteng rather annoyed.

"I am the lord of Triple Link City." The Demon Chapter King coldly stared at Muteng.

"The interests of Triple Link City are supreme." Muteng glared at the Demon Chapter King: "Even as the lord of Triple Link City, you have no right to bestow the ancestral legacy on outsiders."

The Demon Chapter King angrily said: "Wu Tie Sir, is not an outsider."

Muteng sneered: "To me, he is an outsider. Does he have Triple Link City blood in his veins?"

The Demon Chapter King laughed "hahaha" three times, then angrily said: "In the mine cavern, there are actually hundreds of thousands of pure-blooded Triple Link City fools… are you intending to send the ancestral legacy's power to them?"

Muteng stared blankly, opened his mouth, and the pressing aura suddenly dissipated largely.

She unwillingly turned her head and pointed at Huaguang: "Huaguang, what do you say? Those trash are indeed unworthy to inherit the ancestral legacy… but we still have some people nearby who are qualified to possess this power."

Muteng turned back and, word by word, said to the Demon Chapter King: "To take without informing is theft…"

Wu Tie coughed heavily.

Lao Tie coldly said from the side: "We didn't take without informing… when Old Man took these things earlier, we were fighting desperately with your clans' Embryo Storage realm elders. To be precise, these chaotic light eggs are Old Man's spoils of war."

Lao Tie's eyes suddenly lit up, he straightened his body, and righteously looked at Muteng: "Back then, we were hostile to Triple Link City… these light eggs are our spoils of war. Who would spit out good meat they've swallowed?"

Muteng opened his mouth, stunned.

Huaguang beside them furrowed his brow, thought for a moment, then slowly nodded: "Muteng, Lao Tie Sir makes sense; back then, Triple Link City wasn't for us to decide, so whatever Lao Tie Sir did to Triple Link City was entirely justified."

Muteng took a deep breath: "But, after all…"

The Demon Chapter King rudely interrupted Muteng: "Muteng, the reason I use you is because you are one of the few in Triple Link City who have not fallen."

"But you must understand, I am not limited to using you… nor am I obliged to use you."

"In my heart, Wu Tie Sir's status is a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand times more important than yours… in my heart, he is my teacher, my mentor, more important than my birth parents, more important than my life experiences… aside from the Corps Commander Sir, he is the most important person to me."

"I, in the name of the Lord of Triple Link City, declare: Wu Tie Sir rightfully and legitimately possesses the heart-transmitted true seed left by the ancestors of the Great Peacock King Clan and the Twelve Phenomena Families. No citizen of Triple Link City may have any objection."

"You, do you have anything else to say?"

Muteng solemnly looked at the Demon Chapter King: "These ancestral legacies, according to the ancestors' precepts, can in a very short time produce a batch of experts for our Triple Link City. We are currently short of manpower."

The Demon Chapter King also solemnly looked at Muteng: "I trust Wu Tie Sir, but now in Triple Link City, aside from Wu Tie Sir, there is no one I can trust…"

Muteng and Huaguang simultaneously narrowed their eyes.

The Demon Chapter King glanced at the two, then calmly said: "I hope that in the days to come you will show me your loyalty… I even more hope that in the years ahead I can repay your loyalty with my efforts."

"Today's matter is thus settled… remember my words, Wu Tie Sir, in Triple Link City you shall enjoy authority equal to mine."

The Demon Chapter King turned his body, gazed at the palace before him, his voice very faint yet extremely clear, saying: "Those who dissent may leave Triple Link City at any time… those who obey my will, follow me into the ancestors' palace."