The First Marquis of Daxuan

"Su Mu, it's Su Mu, and He Tianzun too!"

The Heavenly Thief was overjoyed.

Who else could be at the very front of that group of people approaching Jianmen Pass but Su Mu?
"Everyone on high alert! Su Mu and He Tianzun have defected to the Void Realm. They are leading the Void Beasts to attack the Nine Gates of our Yang Realm!"

Li Tianzun shouted loudly.

Everyone's expression changed.

"Li Tianzun, what nonsense are you spouting?"

Thief Celestial Venerable roared in fury, "Which eye of yours saw Celestial Venerable He and Su Mu defect to the Void Realm?"

"I saw it with both eyes!"

Li Tianzun said coldly, "If they hadn't submitted to the Void Realm, would these Void Beasts of the Void Realm have specifically escorted them back?"

Look, so many Void Beast Celestial Venerables are following behind them. What's going on?

Everyone was filled with surprise and uncertainty.

It certainly looks like Su Mu and He Tianzun led those Void Beast Tianzun to attack Jianmen Pass.

Given the current relationship between the Yang Realm and the Void Realm, how could Su Mu and He Tianzun possibly coexist peacefully with those Void Beast Tianzun?

They should have started fighting the moment they met.

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

Given the current situation, apart from the possibility that Su Mu and He Tianzun have betrayed them, no one can think of any other possibilities.

"Everyone prepare yourselves. If they dare to approach Jianmen Pass, kill them without mercy!"

Li Tianzun shouted loudly.

The Heavenly Thief's expression kept changing; he was now somewhat unsure of what to do.

Deep down, he didn't believe that He Tianzun would side with the Void Realm, but he wasn't sure if Su Mu would.

This situation is indeed quite bizarre.

Before he escaped back, he clearly saw Su Mu and He Tianzun being captured alive by Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts.

Could it be that they have really betrayed us?

Otherwise, how could they have escaped?
Even if they escaped, the attitude of those Void Beast Celestial Venerables is too strange. Instead of chasing after Su Mu and Celestial Venerable He, they seem to be personally escorting the two back to Jianmen Pass.

How is this possible?
It's too late, but it's soon.

Just as Dao Tianzun and the others were hesitating, Su Mu and He Tianzun had already arrived outside Jianmen Pass.

Swish!
A beam of white light shot out and struck Su Mu and He Tianzun with a soft thud.

A crack a foot deep appeared out of nowhere in front of Su Mu and He Tianzun, blocking their path.

"Whoever crosses the line, dies!"

Li Tianzun rose into the air, hovering outside Jianmen Pass, and shouted loudly.

"Li Tianzun, what do you mean by this?"

He Tianzun's face darkened, and he said coldly, "We have returned victorious, and this is how you welcome the heroes of the mortal realm?"

"A resounding victory? I think you've become lackeys of the Void Realm."

Li Tianzun sneered.

Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts, and the other Void Beast Celestial Venerables stood hundreds of feet away, watching the spectacle with an air of detached amusement, showing absolutely no intention of explaining anything to Su Mu and Celestial Venerable He.

What business is it of them if there's internal strife in the mortal realm?

They'd love for infighting to break out in the mortal realm.

It would be best if the mortal realm itself killed Su Mu and He Tianzun.

"Li Tianzun, stop making false accusations! I and Yang Zhu have risked our lives together in the Void Realm, and our fervor is as clear as the sun and moon!"

He Tianzun roared in anger, "I think you're just trying to eliminate dissidents, so you're taking this opportunity to frame us!"

"He Tianzun, it's no use what you say. We're not blind. You've just brazenly brought the Void Beast Heavenly Venerable to the outside of Jianmen Pass. Do you think we're fools?"

Li Tianzun sneered, "If we loosen our defenses and let you in, will you collude with the Void Beast Heavenly Venerable from within and without to hand over this Sword Gate Pass to the Void Realm?"

"fart!"

Even a kind-hearted man like He Tianzun was furious.

"They followed us because we made a deal with them."

He Tianzun said.

"Haha, you let it slip, didn't you? You actually made a deal with the Void Beast, and you still say you haven't become its lackeys?"

Li Tianzun sneered.

Su Mu sighed inwardly.

He Tianzun's cultivation level is very high, but his ability to argue is indeed a bit lacking.

He's far inferior to someone like Li Tianzun, who's used to scheming.

The other person has already formed a certain opinion about what kind of person you are, so what's the point of explaining to them?

The more you explain, the more you'll be led by the nose by the other party.

Who is Li Tianzun anyway? Why should we explain our actions to him?

Su Mu raised his eyelids and glanced at Li Tianzun, who was hovering outside Jianmen Pass with a powerful aura. His eyes were cold.

Then he slowly turned around.

boom!
With a wave of his hand, Su Mu sent a mountain over a hundred feet tall crashing down from the sky onto the open field outside Jianmen Pass.

The air currents surged, and the ink-wash landscape outside Jianmen Pass was rippled like waves by the surging air currents.

"Five Elements Mountain!"

Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, narrowed his eyes and instinctively tried to pounce on it.

However, as soon as it took a step, its gaze fell on Su Mu, and it saw Su Mu's ambiguous smile.

Then it stopped moving.

This is the action of Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, in accordance with the will of Heaven.

Even it didn't realize that Su Mu already held such a powerful and intimidating influence over it.

Su Mu's actions caused Li Tianzun, who was standing at Jianmen Pass, to frown.

What is Su Mu trying to do?
Is the true intention now revealed, ready to take direct action?
Li Tianzun narrowed his eyes slightly. In his heart, he didn't really believe that Su Mu and He Tianzun would be lackeys of the Void Realm.

Even if we assume that Su Mu and He Tianzun were truly in cahoots with the Void Realm, there would be no need for them to bring the Void Beast Tianzun here so openly.

Despite the various doubts, Li Tianzun didn't care at all.

He would have found a reason to deal with Su Mu even if he didn't have one, let alone now.

He took the opportunity to eliminate Su Mu and He Tianzun together.

While Lei Tianzun and the others were away!

He was already prepared to make a move, but Su Mu's action left him momentarily unsure of the situation.

Just as Li Tianzun hesitated, Su Mu's voice rang out inside and outside Jianmen Pass.

"Zhu Tongtian, the Five Elements Mountain is here. You should withdraw your troops."

Su Mu's voice rang in everyone's ears.

His tone was calm, yet carried an undeniable authority.

Everyone was stunned.

Zhu Tongtian, is that the name of the Lord of the Void Beasts?
Su Mu used a commanding tone to order the Lord of the Void Beasts to retreat.
Can Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, listen to him?
Amidst the astonished gazes of the people in the mortal realm, Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, raised his hand, and a series of military orders were issued from his side.

The Void Beast army that had been stationed outside Jianmen Pass actually began to slowly retreat.

"Where are the disciples of the Martial Sect?"

Su Mu's voice rang out again.

"Martial Sect Master Tian Cangchen is here!"

Tian Cangchen flew directly up from the top of Jianmen Pass and shouted.

"There is a mission now. Does your Martial Sect dare to accept it?"

Su Mu didn't turn his head and said calmly.

"What mission?"

Tian Cangchen said, "As long as it doesn't involve my Martial Sect disciples betraying the Yang Realm, I'll accept!"

"From this day forward, the land ten thousand miles outside Jianmen Pass is the territory of the Yang Realm. By order of the Lord of Yang, I command you, the disciples of the Martial Sect, to guard this land. Do you dare?"

Su Mudao.

Tian Cangchen was stunned for a moment. Ten thousand miles outside Jianmen Pass?

What do you mean?
Before the battle even started, they've already seized tens of thousands of miles of land from the Void Realm?

Is this a joke?
"Tian Cangchen, do you dare, or don't you dare?"

Su Mu's voice brought Tian Cangchen back to his senses. "I can tell you that this vast land was snatched from the hands of the Void Realm by me. They will definitely do everything in their power to take it back. You, a Martial Sect Master, will become the first line of defense against the Void Beasts."

If you successfully defended this vast territory, that's your achievement; if you failed, that's your fault!

"I took it!"

Tian Cangchen shouted, "I, Tian Cangchen, hereby swear that as long as there is one disciple of my Martial Sect still breathing, I will never allow the Void Beast to set foot in this place!"

"Martial Sect disciples, follow me and guard our land!"

Tian Cangchen roared.

"Disciples of the Martial Sect, we will defend our land to the death!"

One by one, martial arts disciples flew out from Jianmen Pass and stood behind Su Mu with Tian Cangchen.

Li Tianzun frowned deeply; he was dumbfounded.

In his long life, he had never encountered anything like this before.

What exactly did Su Mu do in the Void Realm?
Did he raid the lair of the Void Beasts?
A land of ten thousand miles?

The war between the Yang Realm and the Void Realm has been going on for so long, and the Yang Realm has been constantly losing territory.

The original outer realms have completely fallen into the hands of the Ruins Realm.

The Yang Realm established nine gates, but they only barely managed to stop the Void Beasts from advancing.

To be honest, the overall strength of the Void Realm is indeed superior to that of the Yang Realm.

Now, with Su Mu's single move, he has directly reclaimed ten thousand miles of land?
"Where is the Azure Sky Sect?"

Before Li Tianzun could recover, he heard Su Mu speak again.

"Ok?"

Li Tianzun hesitated slightly.

Since Fu Canglan's death, the Cangqiong Sect has not elected a new sect leader, and Li Tianzun is now in charge of almost all matters in the Cangqiong Sect.

Su Mu is the Lord of Yang in the Yang Realm, and theoretically, the Azure Sky Sect must also obey Su Mu's orders.

If the Azure Sky Sect has a sect leader, then naturally it would be the sect leader who would contact Su Mu.

After all, the Celestial Venerables are high above and will not obey the orders of the Yang Lord; they are more like feudal lords who obey orders but not proclamations.

Now that Su Mu has suddenly called out to the Azure Sky Sect, Li Tianzun is unsure whether he should respond.

"Where is the Azure Sky Sect?"

Su Mu repeated his voice.

All eyes were on Li Tianzun.

"The Azure Sky Sect is here."

Li Tianzun frowned and spoke slowly.

"I have reclaimed the original outer domain of the Yang Realm. From today onwards, the Azure Sky Sect will be responsible for guarding the original outer domain."

Su Mu declared loudly, "The Azure Sky Sect, do you dare accept the order?"

Li Tianzun was taken aback upon hearing this.

Have the former outer lands been reclaimed?

Not only did they take it back, Su Mu also wanted to hand over this outer region to the Azure Sky Sect.

Has Su Mu taken the wrong medicine?
He and our Azure Sky Sect have never gotten along.

He had just wanted to kill him. How could he possibly be willing to hand over the outer realms to the Azure Sky Sect to guard?

Territory means resources.

Whoever guards the outer lands will control their resources.

Back then, both the Azure Sky Sect and the Martial Sect tried every means to occupy the outer realms, but before they could succeed, the outer realms fell into the hands of the Void Realm.

What does "Su Mu" mean now?
You want to bribe me with the lands of the outer realms?

Do you think I, Li Tianzun, am so easily bought off?
"The Lord of Yang has given the order, and our Azure Sky Sect obeys."

Li Tianzun spoke slowly.

Everyone: "..."

Did Li Tianzun just accept it like that?
That being said, if they were Li Tianzun, they wouldn't be able to refuse either.

Su Mu gave so much.

Even the Azure Sky Sect couldn't refuse the outer realms.

He Tianzun stood beside Su Mu, his face filled with disbelief.

Li Tianzun, have you bowed your head?
Just moments ago they were at loggerheads, and now they've directly accepted Lord Yang's orders?
What was I doing just now?
He Tianzun glanced at Su Mu and witnessed for the first time Su Mu's ability to turn the world upside down with a flick of his wrist.

Even someone as powerful as Li Tianzun was manipulated by Su Mu.

A hint of worry flashed deep in He Tianzun's eyes.

Could they really keep that matter from Su Mu?

The Void Beast army of the Void Realm is retreating.

Just then, a group of Void Beasts stepped out from the crowd. They ran to a spot not far in front of Su Mu, dropped a pile of things, and then turned and left.

This scene stunned everyone at Jianmen Pass once again.

What do you mean?
The Void Realm not only returned the outer lands to the Yang Realm, but also directly ceded tens of thousands of miles of land.

That's fine, but why is there also compensation?

What exactly did Lord Yang do in the Void Realm?
Everyone at Jianmen Pass was dumbfounded.

They just couldn't understand how Su Mu had done it.

With so many people guarding Jianmen Pass, they were still worried that the Void Beasts would breach it.

As a result, Su Mu, alone with his sword, made a trip to the Void Realm, directly reclaimed the territory, and even obtained a large amount of compensation from the Void Realm.

When you compare people, the differences are just so huge.

"Zhu Tongtian, you can take Five Elements Mountain with you now."

Su Mu seemed unaware of the shock his actions had caused. He fixed his gaze on Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts, and slowly spoke.

"Su Mu, we in the Void Realm have shown our sincerity. If this Five Elements Mountain is fake, don't blame me for turning my back on you."

"Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, said coldly."

"Replacement guaranteed."

Su Mu smiled faintly and said, "Take the Five Elements Mountain and leave. Don't forget, the Void Realm cannot take the initiative to launch an attack within three years."

"I will certainly keep my word!"

Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, finally flew to the Five Elements Mountain. He carefully examined the Five Elements Mountain several times before grabbing it and leaving with the Void Beast Celestial Venerables.

It wasn't until Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts, and the Heavenly Venerable of the Void Beasts flew away that the people on Jianmen Pass accepted this fact.

Everything is true!
The Void Realm even agreed not to launch a preemptive strike for three years?!

The crowd looked at each other, their hearts filled with a mixture of shock and surprise, and for a moment they were at a loss for words.

"Lord Yang, you are mighty!"

I don’t know who shouted first.

Then everyone started shouting.

"Lord Yang, you are mighty!"

"Lord Yang, you are mighty!"

The shouts pierced the sky.

Everyone's gaze toward Su Mu became incredibly fervent, including Tian Cangchen, who had once regarded Su Mu as an enemy.

He Tianzun followed Su Mu, feeling the atmosphere of the scene, his mood was very complicated.

Unlike the people at Jianmen Pass, He Tianzun witnessed firsthand how all of this happened.

It was precisely because he had witnessed it with his own eyes that He Tianzun's feelings became even more complicated.

To be honest, even after seeing it with his own eyes, he still didn't know how Su Mu had managed to do it.

If he were to do it again, he still wouldn't be able to achieve the same level as Su Mu.

Even if he were a celestial being, even if he knew how all of this happened, he would be powerless to replicate it.

"Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, is already so powerful. If you give him the Five Elements Mountain, his power will increase even further. At that time, who will be able to defeat him? That Spirit Treasure Wutian Staff is truly terrifying."

He Tianzun spoke in a voice that only he and Su Mu could hear.

"if not?"

Su Mu said calmly.

"We just need to get away; there's no need to make a second deal with them using the Five Elements Mountain."

He Tianzun said in a low voice.

"Is that what you think?"

Su Mu glanced at He Tianzun, "You think I did something wrong?"

"I did not mean that--"

For some reason, He Tianzun felt a chill run down his spine.

How could a dignified Celestial Venerable be afraid of a mere Fate Realm martial artist?

Fortunately, Su Mu did not say anything more, but instead strode towards Jianmen Pass.

This time, no one dared to stop him.

All the martial artists of Jianmen Pass lined the road to welcome them.

Even Li Tianzun gave Su Mu a lot of face and personally led Su Mu back to the city.

There was no way around it; Su Mu had given them just too much.

Looking at the figure surrounded by the crowd, He Tianzun suddenly seemed to understand something.

If Su Mu hadn't exchanged the Five Elements Mountain for the outer realms and tens of thousands of miles of territory, he wouldn't have received such a warm welcome even if he had returned.

A foreign land directly transformed the Sky Dome Sect from its opposition to its support.

Moreover, recovering lost territory and expanding new lands is a tremendous achievement, no matter where it is placed.

After Su Mu became the Lord of Yang in the Yang Realm, he made such a great achievement in his first move. Who would dare to question him as the Lord of Yang in the future?

Anyone who wants to take his place must first surpass Su Mu in this aspect!

It's almost impossible to surpass Su Mu in this regard.

If even a Celestial Venerable cannot do it, how could an ordinary martial artist possibly do it?
"The Five Elements Mountain helped him secure his position as the Lord of Yang. It was worth it."

He Tianzun muttered to himself, "As for the fact that Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts, will become even stronger, so what?"

Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, is not Su Mu's own enemy, but the enemy of the entire Yang Realm.

In a sense, the more powerful Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, the more important Su Mu, the Yang Lord, would be, and the more stable his position would be...

That's a really deep plan!

The more He Tianzun thought about it, the more terrifying Su Mu seemed.

During his battle with Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts, how much did he think about in such a short time?

What kind of person could have such deep scheming?
He Tianzun now even felt as if he were in the dead of winter.

Just then, the Thief Celestial appeared beside him.

"Old He, what exactly happened? How did you get away? And what's going on here?"

"I can't help but whisper," the Heavenly Thief said.

At this time, Su Mu had already been welcomed back to the city, and Dao Tianzun was full of questions he wanted to ask clearly.

He personally witnessed He Tianzun and Su Mu being captured alive by Zhu Tongtian, the Lord of the Void Beasts. That Wutian Staff was truly terrifying; if he had been even a little slower, he would have been captured alive as well.

He racked his brains but couldn't figure out what happened next.

Why did He Tianzun and Su Mu return unharmed?

No, not just intact, they returned in a resounding victory.

If he had known earlier, he would have stayed.

So now, this glory also belongs to the Heavenly Thief.

"Would you believe me if I said I didn't know either?"

He Tianzun said with a wry smile.

"You don't know either?"

"The Heavenly Thief frowned."

"I really don't know."

He Tianzun said slowly, "After you escaped, I originally hoped you would bring people back to rescue us, but—"

He Tianzun briefly recounted the events and also shared his own speculations with Dao Tianzun.

The Heavenly Thief was stunned.

"No way, is Su Mu really that cunning? He even outmaneuvered Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts?"

The Celestial Thief said somewhat guiltily, "Tell me, after all that scheming we did, if he finds out we were plotting against him, what will he do—"

"I'm worried too."

He Tianzun smiled wryly.

He looked around and, finding no one else nearby, lowered his voice and continued, "I'm thinking, should we be honest with him?"

"Are you crazy?"

The Heavenly Thief was startled. "If he knew that we were the ones who disrupted the Yang Lord's Assembly and almost destroyed the Great Xuan Dynasty, do you think he would let us go?"

"Actually, the Great Xuan Dynasty did not suffer much loss, and we were not targeting them at the time."

He Tianzun said, but his tone was still somewhat uncertain.

"Come on, someone like Su Mu wouldn't suffer even the slightest loss."

Thief Celestial said, "Even if we take a step back and assume he doesn't hold a grudge about what happened back then, it won't be that easy for him to help us forge divine weapons."

"No, I think we might have been wrong from the start."

He Tianzun said, "For someone like Su Mu, we should probably be straightforward from the start. If we give him enough benefits, he might not mind helping us forge divine weapons."

Look, he even gave the Five Elements Mountain to Zhu Tongtian, the ruler of the Void Beasts—”

"That's different."

Dao Tianzun shook his head and said, "Anyway, I think things have already come to this point, and Su Mu has already agreed to refine the Heart-Reflecting Mirror, so there's no need for us to create any more trouble."

Now that he's back, and the Void Realm has agreed not to send troops for three years, he has enough time to refine the Heart-Reflecting Mirror.

Once we obtain the Mirror of the Heart, we will have achieved our goal.

If you tell him the truth now, and something unexpected happens, wouldn't all our previous plans be in vain?

"What I'm worried about now is that he has actually guessed the truth."

He Tianzun sighed and said, "Instead of waiting for him to expose us, we might as well have an open and honest talk with him now."

"No way?"

Thief Celestial said, "How could he possibly guess the truth? Even Celestial Li and the others don't know."

“Even Li Tianzun couldn’t make the Void Realm cede territory and pay reparations, but Su Mu did.”

He Tianzun said solemnly, "I have a feeling that if we underestimate Su Mu, he will definitely teach us an unimaginable lesson."

"If that's what you mean, then let's try to test him and see how much he's actually guessed?"

The Celestial Thief pondered. (End of Chapter)