Thud, thud.
The bodies of Daoist Chiyun and Daoist Shaoyuan collapsed forward. Qin Mu sheathed his sword and looked up. Long Jiaonan had already gone far, and the red serpent was fast—hard to catch up to her.
"Tonight the spirit messengers will have wandering souls to collect again. Too bad I couldn't send Long Jiaonan away. This woman is indeed sharper than the others; at the Battle of Tianbo City, she escaped as well."
Qin Mu exhaled. Long Jiaonan was now alone and powerless. If she dared to chase him again, death would be certain.
The battle had been so clean and decisive mainly because of their coordination. Daoist Chiyun's cultivation and strength were quite formidable, no weaker than Long Jiaonan's.
Daoist Chiyun carried a sword case on his back, which meant his strongest skill was the sword. The Doutian Demon King, with his eight arms blocking the sword, allowed Qin Mu to rush to Daoist Chiyun's side without hesitation.
The Demon Ape was strong in raw power, and with the Cakravartin staff and the Tathagata Mahayana Scripture, his strength was enough to stun Daoist Chiyun. After that, Qin Mu took the old Daoist's life with a single stroke.
As for Long Jiaonan, her combat strength lay mainly in the great red serpent. The serpent had already been refined by her to the verge of becoming a flood dragon, but the Dragon Qilin was its perfect match, suppressing the great red serpent and forcing Long Jiaonan to arrive too late to rescue Daoist Chiyun.
Long Jiaonan could not arrive in time, so Daoist Chiyun had only death before him.
Yet if Long Jiaonan fled, Qin Mu could not take her down either, because if he gave chase himself he would certainly die. Moreover, the Doutian Demon King, the Dragon Qilin, and the Demon Ape could not match her speed, so he could only let her go.
"Big fellow, did the Junior Tathagata of the Small Thunderclap Monastery give you any trouble?" Qin Mu asked.
The Demon Ape shook his head and pointed to himself, saying: "I. Dharma name. Kong."
Qin Mu waited for a while. The Demon Ape had given his dharma name, but how could a dharma name have only one character? Was it "Kong" followed by something, or "Something Kong"?
The Demon Ape naturally assumed that Qin Mu understood and said no more. This Demon Ape treasured his words like gold; he truly would not add even one extra word.
"It's good that you follow the Junior Tathagata in your cultivation. He also understands the Tathagata Mahayana Scripture, and since he attained the Dao as a nonhuman, he is even better suited to guide your training."
Qin Mu waved and said, "My elders are lost, and I have to go find them. I can't stay here. Come home when you have time—Ling'er misses you too!"
The two parted ways.
Qin Mu walked in the direction indicated by the spirit messenger. This time he no longer felt Long Jiaonan's gaze; presumably the woman had concluded she could not kill him and had chosen to withdraw.
"I wonder how the battle between the Junior Tathagata and Daoist Lingjing went."
Though Qin Mu was very concerned about that battle, finding the village chief and the others was more important. He sat on the Dragon Qilin's forehead and pressed on, while the Doutian Demon King stood on the Dragon Qilin's back, four faces turned toward four directions, watching for any movement.
The deeper one went into the Great Ruins, the more powerful the strange beasts became. Some were already no weaker than the Dragon Qilin or the great red serpent. Fortunately, most of them kept to their own territories.
Having grown up in the Great Ruins since childhood, Qin Mu was quite skilled at identifying beast territories. He avoided them along the way, proceeding with thrills but no real danger.
"Ahead lies the Eastern Heavenly Gate."
Qin Mu recalled the map of the Great Ruins he had once seen. There was a place called the Eastern Heavenly Gate. Besides it, three other places also bore the name "Heavenly Gate," making exactly four gates: East, South, West, and North.
Just then, the Dragon Qilin stopped, sniffed the air, and said, "There's the scent of blood."
"That fellow is a big dog, not a Dragon Qilin!" the Doutian Demon King thought.
Qin Mu's heart stirred. "The scent of blood? Let's go see."
The Dragon Qilin followed the scent forward. After a moment, Qin Mu saw an old Daoist reclining against a tree in the distance, gasping for breath.
"Daoist Lingjing!"
Qin Mu was surprised and quickly stopped the Dragon Qilin, saying, "He has laid a restriction around him. Don't step into it."
Daoist Lingjing weakly raised his head, took a breath, then suddenly coughed violently and spat out a mouthful of blood. He said, "The Sword God's disciple has a fine eye. I was injured, and to avoid being charged by strange beasts, I set up a barrier around this area."
Qin Mu said, "Daoist, I am quite skilled in medicine. Do you need any help?"
Daoist Lingjing raised his hand and withdrew the barrier. He tried to rise but could not move, panting as he said, "Come over, then."
Qin Mu had the Dragon Qilin walk forward to the tree. He jumped down from the Dragon Qilin's head and examined Daoist Lingjing's injuries. The old man's wounds were severe, apparently inflicted by the Junior Tathagata.
The key issue was that Daoist Lingjing was quite advanced in age, and his physical body was far weaker than before, making the injuries serious and hard to heal on his own.
Qin Mu considered for a moment, then took out dragon saliva to treat the external wounds, followed by a few Spirit Buddha Pills to repair the spiritual damage. He rummaged through his Taotie Bag. He had bought some medicinal herbs at the Grand Academy as an emergency reserve. Though the quantity was not large, it should be enough to refine healing pills for Daoist Lingjing.
Qin Mu immediately began refining the pills, his technique swift and masterful. Before long, a batch of healing pills was ready, and he had Daoist Lingjing take them.
Daoist Lingjing's color improved somewhat, and he said in surprise, "The Sword God's disciple actually has such remarkable attainments in medicine as well. Young friend, would you care to become my disciple? I have many enemies; having you by my side would keep me safe. Rest assured—though the old Sword God is formidable, what I can teach you is not lacking."
Qin Mu shook his head. "I am the Holy Master of the Celestial Holy Cult. I cannot become your disciple."
"So it's the Demon Lord."
Daoist Lingjing struggled to rise and bowed solemnly. "I originally thought I was a generation above you, but it turns out we are senior brothers of the same generation. Lingjing greets the Demon Lord."
Qin Mu hastily returned the bow. "Senior Brother Lingjing is too kind. Although your injuries are no longer critical, to completely eliminate the hidden ailments, you will still need further treatment."
Daoist Lingjing laughed. "I gave you two Fengdu coins, and it seems that was the right choice. The old Sword God still owes me two Fengdu coins, but that fellow probably won't pay them back. He's terribly stingy—even cut off one of my fingers back in the day."
He opened his right hand. "Look."
The ring finger of his right hand was missing, severed by a sword.
"If it weren't for this missing finger, the Junior Tathagata of the Small Thunderclap Monastery could never have injured me so severely. Still, he was hurt badly this time too. Heh—without a divine physician by his side, that brat will probably have to crawl back to the Small Thunderclap Monastery and suffer through two or three years before he recovers."
Daoist Lingjing exhaled and said, "That fellow is younger than me and has a strong constitution. He was once a disciple of the previous Tathagata, making him a junior martial brother of the current old Tathagata. When the previous Tathagata was dying, he passed the Tathagata's seat to his senior brother. The Junior Tathagata was resentful, believing the position was denied to him because he was of the demon race. So he fought his way out of the Thunderclap Monastery and founded the Small Thunderclap Monastery. By the way, why are you walking alone so deep in the Great Ruins?"
Qin Mu prepared several medicines and brewed a decoction. "The elders in my village are lost, and I've come out to find them."
"The village elders?" Daoist Lingjing was puzzled.
"They include the old Sword God and several others—the Jade-Faced Poison King, the Divine Thief, the Horse King God, and the founder of my Celestial Demon Cult. Senior Brother, have you encountered them?"
Daoist Lingjing was stunned, then suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed so hard that tears streamed from his eyes, and his just-healed wounds split open, making the old man hiss in pain. "The old Sword God and the Celestial Demon founder got themselves lost? Those two old rascals actually managed to lose themselves!"
He laughed until he could barely breathe. Qin Mu hurriedly said, "Stop laughing—your wounds have split open again. Senior Brother, have you seen them?"
"No." Daoist Lingjing shook his head.
Qin Mu took out portraits of Ma Ye, Granny Si, and the others. "What about them?"
Daoist Lingjing studied the portraits and looked thoughtful. "I've seen this blacksmith carrying the box. He was extremely fast, no weaker than me. When I met him, I even challenged him to a race. He didn't say a word—very odd temperament. Such a strong fighter is rare, yet I've never heard of such a master."
Qin Mu's spirits soared. "That's our village's Mute Grandpa! Senior Brother, do you know where he went?"
Daoist Lingjing said, "He went into a forbidden zone in the Great Ruins. It's extremely dangerous—one of the death zones in the Great Ruins. I chased him to the edge of that area and stopped; I didn't go in. He's mute? No wonder he ignored me when I tried to talk to him."
"Mute Grandpa went into a forbidden zone of the Great Ruins?"
Qin Mu grew tense again. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Senior Brother, have you ever heard of Wuyou Xiang?"
"Wuyou Xiang?"
Daoist Lingjing shook his head. "Never heard of it."
Qin Mu pondered. Daoist Lingjing often wandered the Great Ruins and knew many secrets unknown to others, yet even he did not know where Wuyou Xiang was. The chances of Qin Mu finding it were surely slim.
Qin Mu thought back and forth, then suddenly said, "Senior Brother, may I ask one more favor? I would like to visit the Realm of the Dead again."
Daoist Lingjing laughed. "That's simple. Wait until nightfall, and I'll take you there."
Qin Mu calmed himself and continued treating Daoist Lingjing's wounds. By the time night fell, the old Daoist had mostly recovered, with no serious issues remaining. He immediately led them through the darkness of the Great Ruins, saying, "The Realm of the Dead is the King of Hell's domain. This world is very mysterious and only appears at night when the two worlds overlap. To enter the Realm of the Dead, you must have Fengdu coins. I made a contract with the King of Hell—after death, I cannot enter the Underworld; I can only enter Fengdu."
He looked around, took out a token, and shone it into the darkness. "The origins of Fengdu are very strange. It has no fixed location, drifting endlessly through the Great Ruins, forming its own realm—most mysterious. I have a Fengdu token. As long as I activate it, a Fengdu messenger will come to receive us."
As he spoke, a light shone from between two great mountains in the darkness. Daoist Lingjing immediately led Qin Mu toward it. The light flickered, guiding them forward.
Before they knew it, they had crossed several mountains and approached the light, only to find it was a ghost fire that vanished in an instant.
At Qin Mu's chest, the jade pendant he had worn since childhood began to glow faintly and drifted upward, guiding the way.
Daoist Lingjing led Qin Mu and the others forward as though passing through an invisible barrier. The scenery ahead suddenly changed, and the vast, eerie Realm of the Dead appeared before them—countless mountains of white bones amid a sea of fog, and a small boat gliding slowly toward them.
Daoist Lingjing led Qin Mu and the others aboard. The skeleton on the boat poled it deep into the mist. After a long while, they reached a dock.
The stele of the Realm of the Dead lay just ahead.
Daoist Lingjing asked curiously, "Demon Lord, what are you doing here? Your cultivation is too weak—even if you sold your soul, Fengdu wouldn't take it."
Qin Mu walked forward, passed through a village now devoid of life, climbed the great mountain ahead, and gazed upon the enormous Moon Ship lying before Fengdu—like a giant three-legged toad bearing an impossibly massive hull. He said in a deep voice, "I have come to borrow a boat for my journey!"
"Borrow a boat?"
Daoist Lingjing was stunned. Qin Mu dashed forward at great speed. Before long, he soared into the air and, in a few leaps, landed atop the Moon Ship.
At his chest, the jade pendant he had worn since childhood floated up, its radiance growing brighter and brighter.
The Doutian Demon King looked around, shaken beyond words, and murmured, "Is this a divine creation?"
"A guest from Wuyou Xiang..."
On the desolate Moon Ship, remnants of stars fell from the sky as fireballs, a dangerous sight. A strange, trembling voice called out, "You're from Wuyou Xiang! What are you doing here? I'm not a traitor—I just ran away! Their deaths aren't my fault, heh heh, not my fault... I was just too cowardly..."
Qin Mu followed the voice forward and reached the heart of the Moon Ship, among several colossal pillars. A face the size of several acres was pressed against the ground, staring in terror at the jade pendant rising from Qin Mu's chest.
"Not my fault—I didn't betray my people—" the face shrieked.
Qin Mu hesitated, exhaled a turbid breath, and reached out toward one of the pillars. Daoist Lingjing frowned. "I've been here before. There's nothing else—only this madman. I've inspected these pillars too; there was nothing unusual."
"Don't touch it!" the face screamed in despair.
Qin Mu's palm touched the giant pillar. Instantly, a power of indescribable terror surged into his body, flooding frantically within. Explosive sounds crackled through his frame as his body grew taller and larger, the divine power rolling through him, transforming his flesh and blood!
He felt his tailbone growing wildly, and soon a third leg sprouted behind him, planting firmly on the ground. Under his arms, bone and flesh rapidly emerged, forming limb after limb.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Qin Mu's hands reached out one by one, gripping the other giant pillars. Everything around him seemed to be shrinking at great speed—though in truth nothing else was shrinking; he was the one growing larger and taller.
Thunderous impacts roared through his body—the divine power of the Moon Ship remaking him. The booming was the sound of one divine cache after another opening. In the blink of an eye, the Six Harmonies, Seven Stars, Heaven and Man, Life and Death, and all other divine caches burst open. Then the Divine Bridge cache opened, and a divine bridge reached straight to the other shore!
Qin Mu could not help but roar, and amid his roar, the enormous Moon Ship slowly rose to its feet. The crescent moon swept across the sky and drifted into the distance.