Chapter 100: Seven Chapters of Creation
Qin Mu returned to the inn and continued studying the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Scripture. Unbeknownst to him, it was already late at night. He had learned over a dozen spells, but without the corresponding cultivation techniques, he could only bring out a fraction of their power.
"I must find a unified cultivation technique, otherwise it will be difficult to fully unleash the power of the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Scripture."
Just as he was absorbed in his reading, he suddenly felt a warmth at his waist, something nuzzling against him. Looking down, he saw the little white fox curled up beside him, asleep, rubbing her head against him in her dreams.
Qin Mu smiled, carefully picked up the little fox spirit, and placed her on the bed, letting her rest her head on the pillow. He then returned to the table and continued pondering the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Scripture.
After a long while, he too grew drowsy. He extinguished the lamp, lay down on the bed fully clothed, and gradually fell into a deep sleep.
The next morning, Feng Xiuyun came to see Qin Mu off at the boat. "Young master, I can only accompany you this far," she said. "From here, following the river downstream, you will enter Yan Kang. Travel safely, and reach the Yan Kang capital as soon as possible. The patriarch is already waiting for you there."
Qin Mu nodded and waved goodbye.
Ahead of the fleet, at a tall dock, soldiers were turning winches, groaning as they lifted a massive iron gate. One by one, merchant ships slowly began to move, carried by the current out of Mishui Pass and down the Yong River.
Qin Mu and Hu Ling'er stood at the bow, looking around. The scenery along the banks of the Yong River gradually differed from the Great Ruins. Here, by the river, there were prosperous villages hidden among the forests and mountains, unlike the thatched huts of the Great Ruins.
The number of boats on the river also increased, mostly vessels laden with ore and cargo, sitting deep in the water. On the riverbanks, there were mines, with countless mining slaves toiling away.
"How many of these are abandoned people from the Great Ruins?" Qin Mu withdrew his gaze.
After another hundred li, there were smelting plants on the riverbank. Massive furnaces were refining ore, with many boats docked there, unloading minerals.
The furnaces belched flames dozens of zhang high, burning fiercely. As a small boat passed by, Qin Mu saw a dozen cultivators using spells to blow air, intensifying the fire and raising the temperature. Some cultivators were using spells to channel river water to cool the refined black iron and red copper. Others used white tiger energy to cut the black iron and red copper into neat blocks, easy to stack and load onto ships.
This scene was hard to see in the Great Ruins.
"In terms of manpower, resources, and wealth, Yan Kang far surpasses the Great Ruins," Qin Mu marveled.
From small details, one could discern a nation's prosperity and strength. The smelting plants along the Yong River, close to water sources and convenient for transport, could continuously supply materials to the empire, forge spirit weapons, and improve military equipment. This gave a glimpse of Yan Kang's military and national power.
"Feng Xiuyun said that some sects took advantage of the Yan Kang Imperial Preceptor's defeat in the Great Ruins to ambush him on the road, severely wounding him, and then rebelled," Qin Mu thought to himself. "Although the Imperial Preceptor suffered a loss at the edge of the Great Ruins, his army's core strength remains intact. He is surrounded by experts and is himself the strongest below the gods. How could he be ambushed and gravely injured? There's something suspicious here. If I misjudge, I fear these rebellious sects will all die without a burial place."
The merchant fleet, pulled by giant water beasts, moved swiftly. By evening, they arrived at Dijiang County.
Dijiang County was built along the river, even larger than Xianglong City. Qin Mu opened his Divine Sky Eye and looked around but found no majestic divine statues. A sense of unease crept in. Suddenly, he realized his mistake and laughed at himself. "I still think I'm in the Great Ruins..."
Having grown up in the Great Ruins, finding shelter under a divine statue's protection before nightfall had become instinct. This habit would be hard to break anytime soon.
Ahead of Dijiang County, the fleet suddenly stopped. Fishing boats were moving about ahead, with some fishermen using hooks to retrieve floating corpses from the water.
"What bad luck," a merchant muttered, shaking his head.
Qin Mu and Hu Ling'er entered the city with the merchant convoy. As soon as they entered, they saw rows of coffins lining the streets, numbering around four or five hundred.
Qin Mu was startled. Some coffins were still open, with soldiers carrying bodies and placing them inside. Others were already sealed. The city's residents kept their distance, afraid to approach.
"What happened here? How did so many people die?" Qin Mu wondered.
A merchant stepped forward to ask. A soldier replied, "They're floating corpses, washed down by the river. No one knows where they're from. Probably from an upstream flood, drowned, and carried here to Dijiang County, stopped by the dam. The county magistrate said piling up bodies would cause a plague, so we made some thin coffins to bury them. We'll inter them tomorrow."
"I see."
The merchants quickly drove their carts away, each seeking an inn. Qin Mu also found an inn to rest. After dinner, he took out the Yan Kang geography map and studied it.
Dijiang County was in central Yan Kang. Heading north, it would take about ten days to reach the capital. If he went east, about three thousand li would bring him to the sea.
The sky had darkened, and the night grew deeper. Qin Mu put down the map and looked out the window. The darkness here was different from the Great Ruins. In Yan Kang, night fell gradually, with moonlight and starlight still visible. In the Great Ruins, darkness came from the west, covering the sky in an instant, swallowing everything, leaving no light.
He cautiously reached his hand out the window. The darkness outside held no danger.
"What happened to the Great Ruins to cause such a strange darkness?"
The young man shook off his doubts, took out the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Scripture, and continued studying.
He pulled a thread from the white gloves, infusing it with his energy. The thread swelled, growing thicker, revealing countless characters.
Qin Mu read carefully. This time, he was studying the Creation chapter of the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Scripture. The Creation chapter contained many sections: the Creation Heavenly Demon Art, the Creation Heavenly God Art, the Creation Innate Art, the Creation Human King Art, the Creation Ghost God Art, the Creation Spirit Art, and the Creation Earth Origin Art.
Qin Mu had learned the Creation Heavenly Demon Art before, but Granny Si hadn't taught him the full version—only the method for sealing souls, not the complete technique.
"The Creation arts have seven chapters: Innate Art, Earth Origin Art, Heavenly God Art, Heavenly Demon Art, Human King Art, Ghost God Art, and Spirit Art. They all involve creation. Is there a connection between them?"
Qin Mu studied each chapter one by one. The skinning and clothing-making in the Creation Heavenly Demon Art was merely an external practice. The true power of this art lay in strengthening one's own soul. The Creation Heavenly God Art excelled at imitating other techniques, but as Qin Mu read deeper, he felt that the Heavenly God Art's true essence was about formlessness and shapelessness—imitating other techniques and spells was just its surface.
The Innate Art reversed the infant state, allowing one to maintain eternal youth. The young patriarch of the Heavenly Demon Sect had likely cultivated the Creation Innate Palace. The sect's Free Innate Art was probably a branch of the Creation Innate Art.
The Earth Origin Art cultivated the Yang Spirit, the Human King Art cultivated the Kingly Way, the Ghost God Art cultivated communication with the spirit world, and the Spirit Art cultivated transformation.
These seven Creation arts each had their own subtleties, but they were obscure and difficult to understand. Qin Mu was captivated, delving into their mysteries. Unbeknownst to him, it was already deep into the night. Outside, all was silent, save for the sound of the night watchman's clapper.
Just then, a chill wind blew in through the window, making the candlelight flicker. Qin Mu quickly shielded the flame. Suddenly, a faint creaking sound came from the street, clear in the silent night.
Qin Mu's heart jolted. He snuffed out the candle with one hand and darted to the window, closing the shutter, leaving only a crack.
The young man spread his fingers, and the thread from the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Scripture flew over, weaving into a paper-thin glove on his palm.
Qin Mu peered through the window. Moonlight bathed the streets of Dijiang County, where rows of coffins lined both sides. A night watchman walked from the other end of the street, beating his gong.
Suddenly, the watchman stopped, as if he had seen something.
Creak, creak.
That strange sound came again. A coffin lid was pushed open halfway, and a figure sat upright inside.
Clang.
The watchman's gong fell to the ground in shock. In a flash, the figure from the coffin moved like a ghost, appearing before the watchman. Its movements were stiff, and it thrust its hands forward, slicing the watchman's head clean off his neck.
Qin Mu's heart pounded. Creaking sounds continued as one coffin after another opened, and the floating corpses inside sat up.
Just then, a door on the street opened, and dozens of Taoists filed out.
The leader wore a yellow robe with the Eight Trigrams pattern, a horsetail whisk draped over his arm, a Taoist crown on his head, and cloud-treading shoes. The Taoists behind him wore black robes, each carrying a sword case on their back, silent.
From the yellow-robed Taoist's sleeve, sheets of yellow paper flew out, floating in the air to form a bridge.
This bridge of yellow paper stretched from the street all the way to the county magistrate's office!
Then, the floating corpses leaped up, flying out of their coffins, running stiffly through the air, stepping on the yellow paper bridge, heading straight for the county office!
Qin Mu narrowed his eyes. The corpses charged into the office. Then, more yellow paper flew from the yellow-robed Taoist's sleeve, forming bridges to the four city gates—east, south, west, and north.
Behind him, the black-robed Taoists immediately soared into the air, stepping on the yellow paper, heading for the four gates.
"Damn it!"
Qin Mu's heart leaped. He spun around, quickly packed his belongings into a bundle, woke the white fox, and said rapidly, "Don't speak. We're sneaking out of the city! Ling'er, you handle the wind!"
Hu Ling'er, confused and still half-asleep, didn't understand.
Suddenly, a deafening explosion came from the direction of the county office. A voice, both shocked and furious, roared, "Flying corpses! There are flying corpses! The Corpse Immortal Sect is attacking! Protect the magistrate!"
"Your magistrate is dead. Here's his head!"