Chapter 152: Whatever You Can't Figure Out Becomes Clear After a Drink

Seeing this, the fox-masked concubine behind him tore open the spatial rift. The treasured artifact she offered up began to melt slowly, its rank-four superior immortal weapon burning away gradually like a melting candle.

Before departing, the fox-masked concubine advised, "Husband, you must not act on impulse. If you exhaust too much of the star core's power, you will permanently damage your attunement and hinder the recovery of your injuries."

"Go away! Does this Star Lord need you to teach him?" Jumo sent her off to a safe place. Behind him, the spatial vortex grew increasingly vast, and the power of the star core became more distinct.

A Star Lord could rival an Immortal Emperor!

This was his foundation. Furthermore, as the star core's power spread throughout the entire planet, protective barriers materialized across the globe.

One must not underestimate this; it was the grand defensive array inherent to every planet. Had it not been for the interference of the Ten-Layer Array of the Piao Yi Planet, the Hundred Flowers Valley could never have been successfully constructed.

By then, even if an Immortal Emperor were to arrive, they would be utterly helpless.

For the astral energy would condense into a single point, repelling anyone who dared to breach the planet.

Mid-to-late stage Mystic Immortals might still manage to escape, but anyone beneath the Mystic Immortal realm would be killed with a single blow.

Such was the formidable might of a Star Lord.

Lu Huawu's Emperor Pouch appeared to be inflated by the wind—that was the force of thousands of strikes from the star core being channeled directly into the pouch.

"Withdraw!"

Lu Huawu swept out her precious cauldron, gathering everyone within its protection. Shielded by her imperial artifact, she was blasted out of the planet's atmosphere and into the void of space without sustaining a single scratch.

Only by standing here could one appreciate the full majesty of the planetary defense array: a gold-eyed, steel-furred boar baring its fangs, patrolling the entire circumference of the planet.

Unwilling to accept defeat, Lu Huawu unleashed what she believed to be her most devastating blow, attempting to cause countless thorny briars to sprout across the surface of the planet. To her astonishment, her attack was completely neutralized by the shockwaves, unable to penetrate the defenses in the least.

Even when she cast out the Emperor Pouch and unleashed imperial-grade attacks, they sank into the void like stones in the ocean, producing not a single echo.

"Truly formidable! It was this Piao Yi Planet that ruined my sect!" The more Lu Huawu thought about it, the angrier she became. Her master had commanded her sect to be established upon the Hundred Fruits Planet.

Yet, because she was unable to deploy a planet-grade grand array, she had always been halted at the borders of the Hundred Flowers Valley.

Had she known the reason beforehand, she would have begged her master to choose a different location!

However, her master...

Must have known the inside story, for when her master finally departed, he had left behind a cryptic remark:

"Only upon this planet will the sect you wish to build truly succeed."

Thinking back now, her master had known everything. But why had he never told her?

"No, that's not right. When my master failed his heavenly tribulation, there must have been a conspiracy. Only when I attain the realm of an Immortal Emperor will my master's wife reveal the truth!"

Corrupted slightly by the aura of the imperial artifact, and fueled by a haze of drunkenness, Lu Huawu lapsed into a state of semi-madness.

Things that she had previously been unable to comprehend suddenly became crystal clear under the influence of wine.

In the past, she brewed wine purely to save resources for forging her natal imperial weapon. She had always tasted it sparingly, never taking more than a tiny sip, or refining it directly in her stomach to prevent the alcohol from ascending to her spiritual consciousness and impairing her judgment.

Today, however, having drunk the newly brewed batches crafted by Long Yi and Hatu, she finally understood that wine was indeed a magnificent thing. Though excessive drinking brought discomfort, it allowed one to gain profound insights into previously baffling dilemmas amidst that very suffering.

She chugged three massive jars in succession. Given her enlarged form, those three jars amounted to nearly thirty tons of liquor.

As the drunkenness washed over her, Wuyun laughed heartily within the Emperor Pouch, exclaiming, "Splendid! How splendid! Truly marvelous!"

"Pop!"

Wuyun received a swift smack to the head, seeing stars as his mid-to-late stage Mystic Immortal cultivation was instantly dispersed by the blow.

With that single slap, a streak of dark golden light was forced out of him. As it flew past, Lu Huawu reached out, snatched it, and began chewing on it like a spicy snack.

It was merely a beam of light, yet she chewed on it with obvious relish, washing down every bite with a gulp of wine. Moreover, as she finished consuming it, her entire body grew brighter and brighter, and an aura of imperial might began to emanate from her.

This scene, witnessed by Jumo down on the planet, caused him to instantly curse his bad luck. He had already sent out a distress signal, waiting only for the Lords of other planets to arrive together and subdue this adversary.

Once Lu Huawu was stripped of the Hundred Flowers Valley, capturing her alive would allow him to establish a new Hundred Flowers Valley that could endlessly supply medicinal herbs. By then, all the sacrifices he had made would be entirely worth it.

This was Jumo's ultimate objective.

Yet, when the faint aura of imperial majesty washed over him, he realized that his opponent was already on the verge of pseudo-emperorhood. If she successfully weathered the imperial tribulation and refined her natal grade-two immortal weapon into an imperial artifact, a place would be secured for her across the entire Immortal Realm.

And he himself would become the sworn enemy of an Immortal Emperor. If she failed to become an emperor, he would be forced to hide within the planet forever.

Yet the position of Star Lord was not permanent!

A ruthless look crossed Jumo's face. The target was still within the attack range of the grand array. If he forcefully enclosed her, dragged her deep into the core of the planet, and fought her with all his might, he would undoubtedly injure her and deprive her of the chance to ascend.

As he thought, so he acted. The astral energy suddenly surged threefold, enveloping Lu Huawu and instantly dragging her down into the absolute core of the planet.

Simultaneously, the planet's generals and soldiers, led by another Immortal King, formed an illusionary grand array to sever all surrounding connections.

As the space around her was thrown into chaos, Lu Huawu became like a bird trapped in a cage, with no wings to fly away.

Once Immortal King Jumo led the various Star Lords to arrive, capturing Lu Huawu alive and forcing her to summon her disciples to settle permanently in this star system would be a certainty.

With medicinal planting and pill alchemy, immortal stones and wealth would roll in endlessly!

The more Jumo thought along these lines, the more ruthless his attacks became. Willing to risk injuring himself, he cast three consecutive blood curses and unleashed eight major immortal spells, transforming them into millions of celestial soldiers to prevent his target from breaking free.

The previously triumphant Lu Huawu could hardly believe that her opponent would resort to such desperate measures!

It was a classic case of dragging each other down in mutual destruction—burning her boats and breaking her cauldrons.

Emboldened by her drunken fury, she tried to resonate with the heavens and unleash her might, but her every effort was completely smothered and blocked by the grand array.

The only way to evade an imperial tribulation was to hide within the core of a star; this was why Left General Jumo had dared to make such a resolute decision.

In this all-or-nothing gamble, Lu Huawu was pushed entirely onto the defensive.

She wielded her imperial artifact to resist, but each clash drained vast amounts of immortal power, and each counterattack yielded zero results.

If this continued, even without waiting for reinforcements to arrive, she would completely exhaust her stamina and be captured without a fight.

Lu Huawu's frantic struggle was observed by Wuyun from within the imperial artifact. He roared with laughter, while Hatu remained clueless. However, because Long Yi's broken horn was spouting blood, Hatu too began to wear a grim, ferocious smile.

Long Yi handed Wuyun two strands of flesh—the bloody residue scraped from Left General Jumo's nose.

To ordinary outsiders, losing a limb or spilling a drop of blood meant little. But once a being reached the Immortal King realm, every single drop of blood could manifest divine sense and transform into formidable combat strength.

These two strands of blood, however, were too tiny. Though they frantically absorbed the immortal qi of heaven and earth, they failed to reach the critical mass required for condensation and transformation, unable to morph into a miniature pig demon.

Wuyun toyed with the writhing strands of blood in his hand. After feeding them a wisp of immortal qi, the mass rapidly grew, fusing together to form an ugly monster that exuded a lethal, do-or-die killing intent.

Such was the mechanism of nature, obeying the fundamental laws.

The resulting monster possessed only the cultivation of the Spirit Condensation realm. Patiently nurturing it, Wuyun scooped out a spoonful of un-digested residual immortal blood collected within the imperial artifact and poured it over the creature's entire body.

Gradually, the demon grew into an immortal physique. At a gesture from Wuyun, the ugly beast slowly took form, transforming into the exact likeness of Jumo himself—a steel-furred boar with glowing gold eyes.

This was a malevolent spirit born from a steel-iron mine that had gained sentience, its appearance resembling the creature due to living among a large clan of wild boar demons.

Long Yi burst into wild laughter. Unable to understand why he was laughing, Hatu pressed him for an answer, only to be told: "A senior's belongings must not be touched by others, and a senior must never touch what belongs to others."

Cold sweat beaded on Hatu's forehead. Though he did not fully grasp the terrifying power Wuyun had initially wielded through the Buddhist beads, seeing the wicked grins on the faces of the two instantly set his mind at ease.

Outside, after struggling for a while, Lu Huawu summoned her natal immortal weapon to hover above her head.

Jumo launched no further attacks; he was busy recovering his immortal power while awaiting the rescue of Immortal King Jumo (Note: Translator note - referring to the allied Immortal King).

Having tossed about for so long, Lu Huawu regained a sliver of sobriety. She shook Wuyun, Long Yi, and the others out from the array eye of the imperial artifact, and demanded bluntly, "Speak! How do you want to die?!"

Third Elder Xiong, watching her in this enraged state, thought she looked for all the world like an angry young maiden. Seizing the opportunity, Long Yi roared, "So long as you give me the soul of the Ten-Fox Immortal King, I guarantee you can escape this place!"

"Get lost!" Wuyun delivered a kick, sending him flying into Third Elder Xiong. Looking aggrieved, Xiong asked, "Senior, why don't you tie a string and play matchmaker for the Battle King and me? Back in the mortal world, how carefree and breezy it was—calling the wind and summoning the rain. But now, I'm all alone, not even able to warm up a blanket!"

Ignoring him, Wuyun glared right back at Lu Huawu, who was staring daggers at him, and retorted aggressively: "I gave you the imperial artifact, yet you lack any experience in real combat! Look at you now—when their reinforcements arrive, you'll be like a turtle in a jar, with nowhere to run!"

"Ha! Heh! Me, run? I am the Valley Master of the Hundred Flowers Valley! Even if I'm no match for them, I can bow my head, swear an oath, and at worst rebuild the valley and establish my sect here all over again. I'll just keep planting herbs, refining pills, and saving the Immortal Realm!"

"Such noble words about planting herbs, refining pills, and saving the realm! If you're so capable, save me right now instead of letting yourself be roasted by this pig!"

"You—you make the artifact spirit cede all control! Relying on the might of the imperial artifact, I can surely blast open a breach and escape!"

The more Lu Huawu spoke, the angrier she grew. She couldn't help but rap Wuyun on the head three times in succession. Seeing him clutch his head in pain, she pinched him up by the collar and inspected him closely. Her expression was identical to the one she wore when inspecting diseased immortal herbs and trees in her daily routine—a microscopic, clinical scrutiny.

Even when Lu Huawu's divine sense swept right through Wuyun from head to toe, she could detect no flaws or anomalies.

He had no connection whatsoever with Yue Qi's avatar. It was as if Yue Qi's avatar was the true Wuyun.

"The entire Hundred Flowers Valley is merely a pawn used to frame the Piao Yi Immortal Sect. My arrival simply exposed the plot ahead of time. You were foolish enough to remain blissfully ignorant even after your master died. Let me calculate: your master must have been ambushed by six Immortal Emperors who disrupted his heavenly tribulation, causing him to perish miserably beneath the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder!"

"Horseshit!" Lu Huawu cursed profanely, flying into a rage. Suspicious as she was, even her master's wife had not detected any anomalies.

She refused to carry this vendetta forward blindly; she wanted to investigate it herself. Once she became an Immortal Emperor, she would surely find the clues.

Wuyun shook his head with utter disdain and asked, "You could surrender, but if you do, you will never, ever become a female Immortal Emperor, nor will you ever avenge your master. Haha, I'm drunk, this is just reverse psychology—don't fall for it! If you actually became a female emperor, how could I possibly survive? You'd definitely toy with me to death!"

While he was still rambling to himself, Lu Huawu interrupted, "You said you would grant any request I made."

"That imperial artifact was given to you. Really, I'm giving it to you."

With a wave of Wuyun's hand, yet another imperial artifact materialized—the Seven-Section Traversing Heaven Imperial Staff!

This withered wooden staff looked entirely unremarkable and should have belonged to the Battle King. However, it contained far too many restrictive seals, and as a wood-attribute imperial artifact, it required a massive abundance of rare treasures just to repair. It was practically a useless piece of junk.

It demanded vast amounts of immortal power while yielding minimal combat might. Using it to fight was tantamount to torturing oneself.