Chapter 164 "Ha!" The hearts of all beings are not a single heart. ...
When Mingguang's immortal veins were completely stripped away, the "protectors" outside thought that Bitao was Dongjun transferring Mingguang's immortal veins and that they were dreaming.
In his dream, he returned to his childhood, and in the Immortal Emperor's palace he entered and exited, he was no longer alone. He... had a twin brother who looked exactly like him and was even the same age, named Mingguang.
In the dream, the Heavenly Dao of the Myriad Realms, Kunyi, still rarely returns home, but every time she does, she brings the two brothers the exact same gift and gently urges them to practice their skills and handle their official duties in the Myriad Realms.
In the dream, the Azure Emperor also sits in the sundial year-round, but he would always secretly come down at night to tell the two brothers stories of the True Lords of the Pure Realm slaying demons and monsters before they went to sleep.
Dongjun and Mingguang are like twin lotus flowers, both exceptionally talented and intellect, unparalleled in their abilities.
The two brothers had an excellent relationship, eating, living, and going out together. They often pretended to be each other and teased the servants sent by the ancient immortal clan who surrounded them.
Although their parents were busy, they were never lonely because they had each other as playmates.
They even have a telepathic connection; a single glance is enough for them to know what the other is thinking.
They "grew up" together. Dongjun was unconventional and disliked tedious public service. He preferred to travel the world and handle worldly affairs.
Mingguang was calm and composed, so he spent most of his time in the Heavenly Realm handling official duties and dealing with the messes his older brother made.
The protectors also tried to sow discord among them, allowing the most outstanding one of them to compete for the throne.
However, the two brothers always managed to see through each other's schemes and tricks. One was active, the other passive; one was internal, the other external; together they gradually wiped out the Nine Heavens.
For tens of thousands of years, although neither of the brothers ascended to the throne of emperor, they governed the nine heavens and myriad realms with peace and prosperity, and the seas were calm and the rivers were clear.
In this dream, Dongjun did not meet a master who doted on him excessively, nor did he shirk his responsibilities and leave home to follow his master to the Shangqing Realm. Nor did Mingguang have a wild fairy spirit who forced him to fall in love.
Both brothers followed their parents' wishes, inheriting the family business and marrying outstanding women from the ancient immortal clan. Occasionally, in their spare time, they would gather together to drink.
Dongjun couldn't help but ask Mingguang, "Why haven't you given birth to a little golden crow yet?"
Mingguang's demeanor became increasingly refined, yet he rolled up his sleeves and sat by the window, brewing wine. Moonlight bathed him, and he exuded elegance and extraordinary grace. He leaned over and poured Dongjun a cup of warm wine, saying, "Brother, have a little. It's a very mellow Tianxue brew."
Dongjun picked up the wine cup and drank it all in one gulp without any warning.
Then he choked and coughed until his face turned red.
He slammed his fist on the table, pointed at Mingguang, and growled, "You...you tricked me! This is wine?!"
"This is like a knife to the throat! Who would drink something like this?"
Mingguang sat upright with knees folded, his handsome features softening as he murmured, "Little Peach Branch likes it."
"What small peach branches..." Dongjun asked subconsciously.
Then came another earth-shattering cough, choking me so much I couldn't breathe, and I suddenly opened my eyes!
He fell from a beautiful dream into reality, the room filled with smoke and soot that his muscles and bones felt weak and he could not support his spine.
The aroma of burning "meat spirit mushroom" almost made Dongjun nauseous.
He turned his head and saw that the incense burner's flame and the "flesh-like spirit mushroom" had been burned away.
Is this really some rare and precious tonic?
Why is it that even the strong fragrance cannot mask the stench of blood in the lingering scent of this aura?
It was as if... as if he had just devoured a hot, raw human heart.
Dongjun, feeling dizzy and disoriented, mustered the strength from the fragrance that had weakened his limbs, and managed to get up by supporting himself on the table. He took a step forward, but stumbled, tripped over a stool leg, and fell to his knees.
He propped himself up on his arms and stood up again. The room was pitch black. He was full of abundant spiritual energy, but he couldn't use it. He had to squint to see everything in the room.
The light outside the window was dim, and dusk was settling in on the horizon.
After a while, Dongjun finally remembered who that damned little peach branch was, who liked to "swallow knives".
Dongjun then remembered that he was here, overwhelmed by the heavy, bloody aroma filling the room, wondering what it was all for.
He looked at the still-closed inner door of the spirit boat, and was about to go forward and knock when the door opened.
Bitao held a handkerchief between her hands, wiping the blood from her hands.
She had just assisted Taiji, helping him put away his knife and stitching up Mingguang's wounds.
Now that everything was finished, Bitao pushed open the cabin door and was met with Dongjun's sinister and oblivious expression.
The patriarch of the Xuanmen sect, Yu Junlang, used a trace of his own blood to create incense, which could evoke the lifelong yearning and longing of mortals—the Soul-Guiding Incense, which guides your soul to the place you desire.
Dongjun consumed an entire "meat spirit mushroom" all by himself; he must have dreamed of the most wonderful things in the world.
At the same time, at the end of the dream, he must have dreamed of the situation he hated most but was powerless to resist in his life, and the "moment" he could not bear to look back on.
After all, the hearts of all beings come from all beings, and all beings are born with both pure and impure energies, so it is impossible for them to only have goodness.
Bitao looked at him, smiled and said, "How are you, brother? Do you feel any more relaxed? 'Flesh Ganoderma' is very nourishing."
Bitao actually wanted to ask—you, the golden crow who has lived on the mountaintop since birth, and who has been a noble immortal for more than seven hundred years, how do you feel about being brought down to the "human world" for the first time and experiencing all the flavors of human life and the delusions of the masses?
Dongjun's head was throbbing with pain, and a metallic taste rose in his throat.
Not wanting to waste words with this annoying "Little Peach Branch," he simply asked Bitao, "Where's Mingguang? Has the immortal vein transfer been successful?"
"Absolutely perfect."
Bitao wrapped the blood-stained handkerchief around her hand and smiled as she said to Dongjun, "Taiji and I also took the opportunity to straighten out his somewhat blocked meridians."
“Let me see him…” Dongjun stepped forward.
He took a step, then stumbled again. He frowned deeply and said to Bitao, "There's something wrong with your 'flesh spirit mushroom,' I clearly see..."
He clearly felt that his power was still there, and the Golden Crow bloodline in his body seemed to have been activated by something, surging and swelling wildly.
His original body, which was suppressed within his humanoid consciousness, began to itch at the tips of its wings due to the frenzy of its bloodline.
But his body felt limp, and his limbs seemed to be gradually losing control.
"Brother, let's not watch it for now."
Bitao blocked the doorway from letting Dongjun in, saying to him, "I was afraid that Mingguang would be in pain when he woke up, so I gave him an extra pill to numb the pain."
"He'll probably have to get a good night's sleep. He's asleep right now, not dressed yet, so it's not convenient to look at him."
"I am his brother. What is there that I cannot see!" Dongjun's mind became increasingly muddled, his heart filled with resentment, and he even began to see double as he looked at Bitao.
Strangely, even as he realized he was losing control of his state, he couldn't muster any wariness towards Bitao.
Bitao stared intently at Dongjun, who was already on the verge of collapse, his consciousness and body gradually losing control, yet he didn't run away, and instead kept looking at Mingguang.
It's clear he's genuinely worried about his younger brother.
Bitao decided to treat him better from now on.
"You can't look," Bitao said.
"Why..." Dongjun walked up to Bitao, his breathing rapid, his brows furrowed tightly, and after asking this question, his whole body went limp and he fell to the ground.
Bitao raised an arm, caught his head, and prevented him from hitting the ground headfirst.
The Golden Crow clan truly lives up to its reputation as the powerful rulers of the Nine Heavens.
With a heart full of compassion for all living beings, he burned smoke for almost two hours, and only now did he finally succumb to the smog.
Before he collapsed, he could still argue with her, the "manipulator," for a few words.
No wonder Mingguang... was able to stay awake even after taking the numbing and sleeping pills.
Bitao slowly released her grip, and Dongjun lay on the ground, peacefully closing his eyes.
By this point, both the inner and outer Golden Crow clans had been defeated by Bitao.
Like Bitao, Taiji, who was still standing, stood behind Bitao, silent and quiet, his back straight like a pillar, his eyes wide open, but there was no swirling or color in his heterochromatic eyes.
Because Taiji sensed the aura of burning the hearts of all living beings seeping through the crack in the door, Taiji, unlike Dongjun, lacked the ability to resist and the talent of bloodline, and had long since lost its self-awareness.
Bitao stood at the door, looked at the situation before her, and then took out two immortal beads from her bosom and threw them into her mouth.
Holding it in, absorbing it.
But her complexion grew increasingly pale.
Taiji refused to let Bitao attack her earlier because he knew that if a person's heart is removed from their body, they will surely die.
Even if the fairy maiden is a banished immortal in this world, she can barely sustain herself with spiritual energy, but she won't last long.
However, Bitao forced him, saying that if he didn't do it himself, he would have to cut it himself. Taiji was afraid that she would damage other parts of her body, so he had no choice but to agree to Bitao's request to remove her heart.
Now that the hearts of all beings have burned out, Bitao lowers her eyes and looks at Dongjun.
She obtained the most powerful puppet in the world, one that was unprecedented and unparalleled.
She just doesn't know how long this puppet will belong to her.
After all, Bitao doesn't possess the skill of carving Dao bodies and imprisoning other people's souls like the Xuanmen patriarch Yu Junlang. She can't create powerful immortal positions out of thin air, so she can only use this method to control Dongjun.
As for when Dongjun will break free of control, Bitao cannot predict.
But he absorbed the hearts of all living beings by himself, so he should be able to sustain himself for at least two days, right?
Two days later, Bitao's plans will be completed smoothly, and Dongjun will not be a problem whether he regains consciousness or not.
Bitao tried to command Dongjun, who had completely lost consciousness, "Get up and stand by the door."
Dongjun, who had been lying on the ground in a daze, stood up in an instant, shifted his feet, and quickly stood by the door.
However, Bitao forgot that Taiji had also been affected. He was a step behind Dongjun and ran out from behind Bitao, causing Bitao to stumble.
He also stood by the door with Dongjun.
The two figures, one on the left and one on the right, stood as a pair of imposing "door gods".
Bitao chuckled and moved the rapidly shrinking fairy pearl in her mouth to a different position.
Inside the cabin, Mingguang was still fast asleep, but he had already dressed and the Silver Gu had been put back into operation.
Bitao walked back into the house, lay down next to Mingguang, and reached out to touch his face.
Her expression showed genuine heartache.
However, on the Silver River Net, things had already gone crazy because Bitao had revealed Mingguang's immortal veins!
They were unaware that after Bitao severed the Silver Han Net, she used Mingguang to coerce the person behind her into sending her to heaven to assume her position.
All they knew was that after Yin Han Gu was restored, Bi Tao said to Tai Ji, "Ming Guang has many followers. During the ascension ceremony, his followers will send him back to heaven."
"Tai Chi, remember this: there is no second place in competition."
"I will temporarily take out his immortal veins. You must keep them safe and sound. After I pass away, you can reconnect them for him."
The immortals on the Milky Way only knew that Bitao had betrayed Mingguang once again in order to win.
Little did they know that Taiji, who was listening to Bitao speak at that time, had already become a small puppet that could be manipulated at will.
Bitao performed two scripts today, one for the person behind her and one for Yin Hangu.
But in reality, none of them were her true plan.
The person behind this has not yet shown up, and Bitao must find a way to force them to reveal themselves.
They wanted to kill Mingguang, but were hindered by the watchful eyes of the immortals of the Milky Way in the Nine Heavens and by Mingguang's followers, so they could not openly pursue and kill him.
The method they told Mingguang about to ascend to immortality was actually a trap to lure him into death.
Five people are willing to help one person ascend to immortality, but if one person becomes unwilling halfway through, what will happen to the person who has ascended halfway?
The tribulation is inherently the most dangerous thing, and they wanted to use this method to kill Mingguang in a legitimate way.
Rather than passively waiting for them to make a move, Bitao should take action against Mingguang first.
Even if the ancient immortals possessed extraordinary abilities, they had no way to sacrifice a mortal whose immortal veins had been stripped away to ascend to immortality.
Moreover, although mortals in this world have their life force drained, they at least have a layer of protection against "karmic backlash" in front of the banished immortals.
Previously, Mingguang pretended to be a mortal due to the backlash of karma in order to lure out the ancient immortals who wanted to harm Bitao.
Now... they cast a fishing rod, but caught a Kunpeng that tried to overturn the heavens and the earth.
Bitao did not possess the extraordinary ability to kill Kunpeng with a single sword strike, so she could only make Mingguang truly become a mortal for the time being, so that he could barely protect himself.
The person behind the scenes wanted to kill him, with the aim of preventing this "future emperor" from returning to heaven.
Bitao's actions could not completely guarantee Mingguang's safety, but at least in the short term, they would not risk harming Mingguang again.
Bitao's real plan was to trick Mingguang into the "trap" they had prepared for him.
Fearing that those behind her were jealous of her immortality and the power to ward off all living beings, she refused to be fooled and instead took out her heart and burned it in front of them.
However, those who have never possessed the heart of all beings will never understand that the immortality of the heart of all beings is not because the heart itself is indestructible.
The mind of all beings is not a single mind.
It is the embodiment of the thoughts of the masses.
When a belief takes a certain form, it can be burned, crushed, turned into mud, and trampled on at will, but a belief can never be killed.
In the second competition, Yu Junlang had given up on everything more than once during the long and arduous ordeal, but his compassion for all living beings always accompanied him, which in fact forced him to crawl back from hell to the human world.
Only by forcing him to fulfill the will of all living beings can he be allowed to dissipate and his consciousness vanish.
One reason he was immortal before was that the living beings did not allow him to die.
Because apart from him, no one else can remember, care about, or receive the thoughts of all beings.
Ultimately, rather than saying that his consciousness was dissipated due to Bitao's schemes, it would be more accurate to say that the hearts of all beings found a new master, and it chose Bitao.
As long as Bitao always cares for all living beings and her faith never dies, as long as she continues to embrace the wishes of all people, no matter how many times her heart is removed, it will grow back.
Just like now, her burned heart is tearing through her veins, drawing blood and flesh, and regenerating.
Bitao hugged Mingguang, buried her face in his neck, held the fairy pearl in her mouth, and listened to the sound of her own flesh and blood growing in her chest.
But this is only part of the plan.
Only after she lures out the person behind the scenes, steps into their trap, and vanishes into thin air in front of them once more, can she truly become "invisible".
Like the Jade Gentleman who once roamed the underworld, it attaches itself to any living being or inanimate object.
To glean insights into their thoughts and plans.
Manipulate and plunder their souls and bodies.
Ultimately, it shattered their ridiculous plan to overthrow the heavens.
Those people will definitely take the bait. If Bitao only has Mingguang as a "bargaining chip," they might pretend to be dead.
But now Dongjun is also controlled by Bitao.
The power of the Eastern Lord was enough to arouse their fear.
They not only need Bitao, this clown, to keep jumping around and attract the attention of the immortals of Taiqing Realm.
They might actually want to use her to kill the two golden crows she currently controls and manipulates in this realm.
Bitao kissed Mingguang's neck, her eyes unusually closed in a weak manner.
Only in that way could she manage to protect her golden crow.
Only then can those immortals who compete in the lower realms, those who have lingered in this realm for hundreds of years but still uphold their original intentions, have the opportunity to return to heaven.
It can also prevent the people of this world, who have been plundered for thousands or even tens of thousands of years, from dying young and tragically passing away.
Bitao wants to make those "noble immortals" who hold the sustenance of countless beings in their hands but do not think about working hard for them, those scoundrels who occupy positions without doing their jobs, who are arrogant and domineering, and who poison living beings for their own selfish interests, truly understand what the power of all living beings is!
At that very moment, the peach blossom's heart, which had mostly regenerated, suddenly contracted—
"Ha!"
Like someone who had been drowning for a long time and finally surfaced, Bitao silently opened her mouth wide and spasm as she sensed a brand new heartbeat.
Meanwhile, as the long night deepened into complete darkness outside, a lurking crisis finally arrived.
With a loud "boom," the earth trembled.
That was the sound of the spirit boat's restrictions being attacked by a magical artifact!
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