Chapter 1040: The Sword of the Opening Emperor, the Mouth of Qin Mu
The Surging River was the Heavenly River, flowing from other heavens and falling here to the ground, its waters surging endlessly, flowing into the seas of the Primordial Realm.
The Surging River was vast, its width rivaling that of the sea. If the river were drained, one could even see countless aquatic tribes hidden within the river.
At this moment, the mountains on both banks trembled like waves. Those divine mountains, towering and majestic, moved like the crests of waves, showing how terrifying the colossal creature underground must be!
Yun Chu Xiu's face changed slightly. She quietly hid behind Qin Mu, murmuring, "Mother Earth Primordial Lord... No, wasn't she already dead?"
Shu Jun's face also changed as he watched the undulating mountains and rivers on both sides of the Surging River.
"Divine King, rest assured. With me here, Mother Earth cannot see us." Divine King Lang Wan transmitted her voice.
Shu Jun felt a little relieved.
The nine heavenly dragons also shuddered and quickly stopped in their tracks.
The river surged violently, its flow almost cut off. Clearly, a massive creature had submerged into the river from the shore, its body so enormous that it blocked the Surging River's current.
Boom!
A violent tremor came, and a huge stone coffin slowly rose from the center of the river, blocking the path of the heavenly dragon carriage.
Qin Mu put away the jade bottle, took out the Wood Core as a walking stick, and stepped out of the carriage. He looked up at the enormous stone coffin. Beneath it, colossal roots writhed like tentacles under the river's surface.
"Pastoral Celestial Venerable, the ten-year period still has five years left!"
A roar came from within the coffin, and a rolling wave of corpse qi flowed out, quite astonishing. It should be the imperial corpse of the Northern Emperor: "Have you returned now to prepare to resurrect Mother Earth Primordial Lord?"
Countless dead fish floated on the river's surface. After a moment, the corpses suddenly moved, having been infected by the corpse qi and turned into zombies.
Qin Mu laughed, "Five years remain, Northern Emperor. There's no need to rush."
"Then why are you awakening the Primordial Lord?" The imperial corpse in the stone coffin was enraged.
"I am in trouble now and need Mother Earth Primordial Lord's assistance."
Qin Mu said seriously, "Does Mother Earth know about a Celestial Venerable buried in the Primordial Realm?"
The imperial corpse in the stone coffin fell silent. From under the water came Mother Earth Primordial Lord's voice, drifting left and right, ethereal and elusive, "A Celestial Venerable buried in the Primordial Realm? You mean that Celestial Venerable buried in Celestial Venerable Ridge forty thousand years ago?"
Qin Mu smiled, "That should be him. Mother Earth, this person is the Grand Emperor, come to kill me. I ask Mother Earth to block him for me."
"He is the Grand Emperor? The Grand Emperor is still alive?"
Mother Earth Primordial Lord grunted, her voice filled with anger, "Do you know that I am already dead? Asking me to block the Grand Emperor—do you want me to die completely? No one knows the Grand Emperor's power better than I do!"
Qin Mu said patiently, "The Grand Emperor is also dead. Mother Earth, rest assured. His physical body from forty thousand years ago won't be too powerful."
"That is still far stronger than I am now!"
Qin Mu glanced at the stone coffin and smiled, "With your son's help, you should be able to block the Grand Emperor, right?"
The stone coffin trembled. Clearly, the imperial corpse of the Northern Emperor inside was terrified of the Grand Emperor, or rather, of the Celestial Venerable.
"The Grand Emperor's skills are unparalleled. Do you know how many ancient gods died to kill him back then?"
Mother Earth Primordial Lord's angry voice came from under the water: "Just stay put in the Primordial Realm and cultivate in peace. Why must you provoke him? You are doomed, beyond saving... Wait, I see him. Many skeletons are carrying his coffin, flying this way. Very fast..."
Qin Mu's heart stirred. He saw the surface of the Surging River suddenly calm, becoming like a huge mirror. In the mirror, countless skeletal divine demons carrying a giant bronze coffin flew toward them at great speed, almost as fast as the heavenly dragon carriage!
"Blocking him might truly kill me."
Mother Earth Primordial Lord said, "Back then, to eliminate the Grand Emperor, there were no fewer than ten battles. Even the final battle failed to completely slay him. The Grand Emperor has ways to prevent me from ever being reborn. I don't have the strength to fight him head-on now, unless you resurrect me..."
Qin Mu said coldly, "If I die, you will never be resurrected."
The Surging River shook violently, and water shot into the sky. Clearly, Mother Earth Primordial Lord was extremely furious.
Qin Mu remained unmoved, saying, "He is also a dead man now. I need you to block him here, right here, and never let him advance another step eastward. Mother Earth, can you do it?"
"You dare threaten me?"
Mother Earth grew even more enraged. The imperial coffin also emitted spine-chilling roars. The coffin lid opened, and foul corpse qi spread.
"My child, come with me to intercept the Grand Emperor!"
Mother Earth roared. The stone coffin closed and flew into the air. At the same time, the earth trembled as Mother Earth's roots shot through the ground, shaking the land and the Surging River.
Qin Mu turned and climbed back into the carriage. Yun Chu Xiu, trembling with fear, tugged at his sleeve, "My dear, when do we leave here?"
Divine King Shu Jun was also uneasy, especially since the Grand Emperor had seen him, and Mother Earth had also seen him before. It would be easy to expose his identity.
Divine King Lang Wan's divine sense could make Mother Earth Primordial Lord unable to see them, but it could not fool the Grand Emperor.
"Wait a little longer."
Qin Mu opened the divine eye on his forehead and looked into the distance, saying solemnly, "If the Grand Emperor does not die, my heart will not be at ease. I absolutely cannot bring him to Yan'kang."
He frowned, "Strange. Why hasn't Dawn Celestial Venerable made a move to block the Grand Emperor yet? Logically, he should have acted. He remains still, which is why I had to summon Mother Earth Primordial Lord..."
His third divine eye looked into the distant place, where the Northern Emperor's stone coffin was flying close to the ground along the Surging River, while the river's surface churned, flowing upstream.
Finally, Qin Mu saw the bronze coffin flying through the sky. A hundred skeletal divine demons, wearing tattered robes, carried the huge bronze coffin as they flew through the air!
The stone coffin and the bronze coffin were still a thousand miles apart. Just then, Qin Mu saw a middle-aged man and was startled.
"The Opening Emperor?"
The middle-aged man wore a sword at his waist, looking like an ordinary traveler who had endured a long journey, appearing very lonely.
Although the Opening Emperor Qin Ye's steps were not fast, he was much faster than the skeletal divine demons carrying the bronze coffin. He quickly approached it.
The bronze coffin and the skeletal divine demons suddenly stopped. The bronze coffin lid flew up with a whoosh, and a tall figure flew out from inside. He was richly dressed, but after so many years, his robes were tattered, fluttering in the wind, covering the sky!
This figure flew out of the coffin, becoming many times larger than the bronze coffin itself. His robes draped down, and the bronze coffin was not even one-thousandth of his size!
His aura was overwhelming. Behind him, layers of heavenly palaces flew out, stacked one upon another, astonishing!
This was the corpse of a Celestial Venerable. Having stolen earth qi and yin qi from Celestial Venerable Ridge for forty thousand years, it had long turned into a corpse demon.
His eyes were like two moons in the sky, quiet and deep, his gaze extremely cold, causing snow to fall from the sky and moisture to freeze into frost.
In an instant, Qin Mu saw all things wither, plants die, and even the Surging River freeze. The Heavenly River turned to ice, spreading rapidly into the distance.
"Qin Ye, we meet again!"
That Celestial Venerable's corpse opened its mouth and roared, its terrifying divine sense sweeping in all directions: "During the Opening Emperor era, you often entered Celestial Venerable Ridge, trying to explore my treasures. Several times, you nearly died at my hands. Now, you appear again!"
The Opening Emperor drew his sword.
Qin Mu saw the Carefree Sword transform into a flurry of sword lights, forming thirty-four layers of heavens crisscrossing each other.
"Long time no see."
The Opening Emperor Qin Ye returned his sword to its sheath. The Carefree Sword let out a sharp clang. The middle-aged man crossed his arms over his chest, as if feeling a bit cold, and continued walking forward.
Above his head, the Celestial Venerable's corpse slowly split apart, cut into countless pieces. The massive corpse collapsed and fell from the sky.
In the distance, the surging Surging River suddenly stopped, and the flying stone coffin also halted abruptly.
Qin Ye saw the stone coffin from afar, a puzzled expression on his face. He shook his head, "Pastoral Celestial Venerable boasts about how well his Yan'kang is built, but why are there so many demons and monsters in this Primordial Realm?"
He shook his head again.
The stone coffin suddenly crashed to the ground, thudding as it plunged into the earth. Countless root-like tentacles surged from the ground, quickly wrapping around the stone coffin, then retracted deep into the earth.
Qin Ye took the sword from his waist and, along with its sheath, threw it down. The Carefree Sword plunged half a foot into the ground.
A violent tremor came from underground. Ravines crisscrossed the land as sword qi penetrated deep into the earth, carving out steep cliffs and barriers!
On the cross-sections of those cliffs, thick root stumps appeared, still flowing with divine blood, turning into rivers of blood in the canyons, a shocking sight!
"Running fast."
The middle-aged man frowned, hugged his arms, and continued walking eastward. The Carefree Sword flew up and landed back at his waist.
In the distance, on the Surging River, Qin Mu closed his vertical eye on his forehead. Suddenly, the Surging River's waters surged. Countless severed roots flew out, breaking the surface. The roots intertwined, trapping the heavenly dragon carriage. The roots were still bleeding, dyeing the Surging River red!
Mother Earth Primordial Lord's voice came from under the water, furious beyond measure: "Pastoral Celestial Venerable!"
Qin Mu quickly stood up from the carriage and shouted, "That has nothing to do with me!"
"Bullshit!"
Mother Earth's voice grew even angrier, her tone fierce: "Nothing to do with you? Do you think you're fooling a three-year-old? You asked me to block the Grand Emperor, but you set up Qin Ye to ambush me! Qin Ye is your ancestor! The two of you conspired to ambush me! Today, I will make sure you die without a burial place!"
Qin Mu quickly said, "It really has nothing to do with me. If I had known Celestial Venerable Qin had arrived, I would never have asked you to act. Heaven is my witness! Mother Earth, you know me. I always say what I mean and never deceive anyone! Unless absolutely necessary, would I ask you to act?"
Mother Earth Primordial Lord grunted. Although she very much wanted to kill this brat, she indeed needed him to gather her soul. But letting him get away with this loss was not something she could accept.
Qin Mu smiled, "Mother Earth, I asked you to block the Grand Emperor for me, but you failed. Instead, you want to blame me. What kind of logic is that? Don't leave yet. I have one more thing for you to do."
He reached out, grabbed Yun Chu Xiu from the carriage, and held the young girl high, asking, "Mother Earth, do you recognize her?"
"Jue Wu Chen!"
The river churned. A large flower slowly rose, higher than the carriage. The flower bloomed slowly, revealing an eye inside. It rolled once, fixed on Yun Chu Xiu, and sneered, "Empress, it's been a long time!"
Yun Chu Xiu's face turned pale. She kicked her legs but couldn't break free from Qin Mu's grip. She turned back and glared angrily at Qin Mu, then turned her head again, smiling sweetly, "Mother Earth Primordial Lord, seeing you in such a state now, I can't help but sigh. The Mother Earth Primordial Lord who once dominated the Primordial Realm and single-handedly resisted the Heavenly Court for three hundred thousand years has now become a stray dog, easily manipulated even by Celestial Venerable Qin."
Qin Mu smiled, "Mother Earth is indeed knowledgeable. But you guessed wrong. Jue Wu Chen is not the Empress, but Madame Yuan Mu."
The river shook. Clearly, Mother Earth Primordial Lord was greatly shaken by this news.
She had always believed that Jue Wu Chen was the Empress, never expecting it to be Madame Yuan Mu.
"You failed to handle the Grand Emperor, so help me handle her."
Qin Mu smiled, "The Grand Emperor is very strong, but this Jue Wu Chen is just a small cultivator at the Divine Bridge realm. Handling her should be easy for you, right?"
A root flew over and wrapped around Yun Chu Xiu. From the flower came Mother Earth's laughter, "Handling Yuan Mu, I am naturally willing. Yuan Mu, the old scores between us..."
The large flower slowly sank into the Surging River, and Mother Earth Primordial Lord's laughter came from under the water, "...should be properly settled!"
Yun Chu Xiu struggled incessantly as she was dragged into the Surging River, shouting angrily, "Qin Mu, I won't let you off!"
Qin Mu breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to himself, "Finally, I've sent that plague away. Once she's gone, I can begin summoning the soul of Cloud Celestial Venerable..."