Chapter 1711: Sacrifice to Heaven

Soon, Wang Wuxie led a group of disciples to welcome the emperor. Zu An carefully observed, noting that in addition to Wang Wuxie, all the peak masters of the Zheng Yang Sect were present, evidently not daring to show the slightest neglect.

However, the people from the other eight Daoist sects were absent. It was unclear if they had already departed or what had transpired, and under everyone's watchful eyes, Zu An found it difficult to inquire further.

Upon seeing Wang Wuxie, Zhao Hao greeted him quite warmly. After all, Wang Wuxie was the Imperial Advisor and the foremost figure in the Daoist world, and the two had been acquainted years ago.

Soon, Wang Wuxie led the group to the Reception Hall halfway up the mountain, where he reported that the altar and other arrangements for the Heaven Worship Ceremony had already been set up on the Golden Summit.

Zhao Hao nodded with satisfaction, then instructed the others to wait in the Reception Hall while he proceeded to the Golden Summit to conduct the Heaven Worship Ceremony.

The Heaven Worship Ceremony was a means of communicating with Heaven. Theoretically, only the Emperor and Empress were qualified to participate; other officials attending would "pollute" the ritual's sanctity.

Naturally, his primary concern was to prevent King Qi from acquiring any divine essence from the ceremony, which could lead the common people to believe he also had the mandate of Heaven.

However, Bi Qi immediately voiced his concern: "Your Majesty, this could pose a safety risk."

Zhao Hao smiled and replied, "With civil and military officials all over the mountain, what safety risks could there be? Besides, the Imperial Advisor is with me."

At this point, Zhang Zijiang and Wang Bolin from the Imperial Forest Army also stepped forward to claim credit, stating, "Your humble generals have already thoroughly inspected the Golden Summit and all other areas in advance; everything is normal."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Wang Wuxie. Given his years of respect towards the imperial court and his reputation as a master, there was little more to say.

Soon, Zhao Hao, led by Wang Wuxie, proceeded towards the Golden Summit.

Although he did not bring other ministers, he was, of course, accompanied by Eunuch Wen, a group of Embroidered Uniform Guards led by Zhu Xiechixin, and imperial bodyguards.

After they departed, Zu An finally found Xie Daoyun in a corner and quietly approached her to ask what had happened in recent days.

Seeing him return safely, Xie Daoyun visibly sighed in relief. Knowing what he wanted to ask, she quietly replied, "For some unknown reason, the Daoist secret realm did not open at the scheduled time, and the Emperor's arrival was also earlier than expected."

"Those from the Daoist sects feared their motives would be questioned if they remained on Purple Mountain, so they departed earlier. Now, only people from the Zheng Yang Sect remain on Purple Mountain."

Zu An was greatly surprised, exclaiming, "The Daoist secret realm isn't over yet?"

Generally, the flow of time in secret realms differs from that in the real world. Time usually passes much faster in secret realms; years might pass inside, while only a few months might pass outside.

Chu Chuyan and the others had already been in the secret realm for many days; by rights, they should have emerged by now.

"Don't worry, Big Brother Zu, Miss Chu and Miss Pei are both highly cultivated and have always been intelligent and resourceful; they will surely be safe," Xie Daoyun comforted him.

Zu An forced a smile, but remained somewhat worried.

Meanwhile, as Zhao Hao ascended the Golden Summit with Wang Wuxie, he chatted with him along the way. However, Wang Wuxie seemed somewhat hesitant and timid, leading Zhao Hao to sigh, "You seem to have become much more reserved. The days we fought side by side are still vivid in my memory, yet I never imagined we would become so distant now."

Wang Wuxie replied, "A sovereign is a sovereign, a subject is a subject. An emperor is destined to be solitary."

Zhao Hao was touched by these words, sighed, and said nothing more.

Soon, they arrived at the Golden Summit, where a high platform had already been constructed, with everything prepared for the Heaven Worship Ceremony.

Upon reaching the Golden Summit, Zhu Xiechixin sharply scanned the surroundings, finding the summit largely cleared. Apart from a few Zheng Yang Sect disciples responsible for the Heaven Worship Ceremony, there were no other extraneous personnel.

He breathed a sigh of relief, but still arranged for the imperial bodyguards and Embroidered Uniform Guards to occupy key positions around the Golden Summit, keeping the Emperor well-protected in the center.

Next, Wang Wuxie led Zhao Hao to a massive brazier. Zhao Hao threw a torch into it, igniting the precious elemental stones, rare medicinal herbs, high-grade minerals, and other items piled inside.

Wisps of fragrant smoke slowly rose from the brazier, lingering and ascending towards the heavens, thereby conveying humanity's reverence to the divine.

Next, Zhao Hao knelt and bowed before the spirit tablets of the Heavenly Emperor and various other deities on the high platform, expressing his profound respect.

Although he was invincible in the mortal world, he still held great reverence for celestial matters.

It was known that legends of immortals had been passed down through generations. Although no one had seen a true immortal for thousands of years, he still harbored a glimmer of hope and longing in his heart, wishing that he could one day ascend to the immortal realm.

As he knelt, none of the others on the Golden Summit dared to remain standing; they all knelt in deference.

Next, a Zheng Yang Sect disciple presented a jade basin filled with clear mountain spring water. After Zhao Hao cleansed himself and dried his hands, he took incense sticks and performed the triple incense offering to the deities on the high platform. He then accepted the precious gifts, such as jade and silk, prepared by Wang Wuxie, and ascended the high platform step by step, presenting the offerings to the spirit tablets of the various heavenly deities.

This high platform was exceptionally sacred. He was the only person in the entire world qualified to ascend it; everyone else stood guard far around the platform.

Zhu Xiechixin surveyed his surroundings. For some reason, he had a constant sense of unease today, yet he couldn't pinpoint what was wrong. He could only silently pray that no misfortune would occur.

However, what he feared most came to pass. Suddenly, a deafening explosion echoed. The entire high platform erupted in a blinding flash of fire, like a rising mushroom cloud. Explosions resounded all over the Golden Summit, and the Embroidered Uniform Guards and imperial bodyguards, caught off guard, suffered heavy casualties.

"Your Majesty!" Zhu Xiechixin was greatly alarmed, as the epicenter of the explosion was precisely the high platform where the Emperor stood. In that instant, the Emperor was engulfed by the flames, and no trace of his aura could be felt.

Although the Emperor's cultivation was profound, who could guarantee his safety amidst such a cataclysmic explosion?

Meanwhile, in the Reception Hall halfway up the mountain, the officials were ostensibly waiting respectfully. However, since the Emperor wasn't there, they were merely putting on a show, secretly chatting with each other via spiritual energy transmissions.

Suddenly, the ground shook violently, causing tiles from the Reception Hall to continuously fall and dust to fly everywhere.

Many people instinctively screamed. Zu An, meanwhile, fanned away several falling tiles and tightly shielded Xie Daoyun beside him.

After a moment, everyone rushed out of the Reception Hall and looked towards the direction of the explosion.

They saw towering flames and thick smoke billowing from the Golden Summit. Everyone's expression changed as they exclaimed, "Your Majesty!"

Led by Bi Qi and others, they all rushed towards the mountain peak.

As Zu An observed the situation on the Golden Summit, a thought suddenly struck him: Yun Jianyue had previously mentioned that Gold Medallion No. 7 was investigating a batch of missing gunpowder, which had disappeared near Purple Mountain. It was highly likely that a prominent figure from the Zheng Yang Sect had hidden it, and now it was clear it had been used here.

Zhang Zijiang and Wang Bolin, who had been cheerful moments ago, turned deathly pale, muttering to themselves, "It's over! It's over!"

They had been entrusted with the responsibility of coming to Purple Mountain in advance to eliminate hidden dangers. Such a massive blunder would surely lead to a disaster like the confiscation of property and the extermination of their clans.

At this moment, angry shouts suddenly erupted from the other side. It turned out that Bi Qi and other ministers were blocked by a formation in front of them. They furiously rebuked the Zheng Yang Sect disciples, demanding to know what they were doing.

The Zheng Yang Sect disciples remained silent. After activating the formation, they all vanished.

Xie Daoyun exclaimed, saying regretfully, "Oh no, this is the Zheng Yang Sect's mountain-protecting formation! Although I noticed it earlier, I never considered it could be used this way."

Zu An patted her hand reassuringly. Indeed, she could not be blamed for this; who would have thought that the upright and reputable Zheng Yang Sect would use its mountain-protecting formation to sever communication between the Emperor and his civil and military officials?

He looked towards the Golden Summit, realizing why he had found Wang Wuxie somewhat strange earlier; Wang Wuxie had clearly planned to make a move against the Emperor.

However, his audacity was immense. Although his cultivation was high, how could he be a match for Zhao Hao? He wondered who else was helping him this time.

And with such a massive amount of gunpowder, he wondered if it could kill that old man Zhao Hao.