Chapter 1060: Microscopic Scale
"A visitor from Carefree Village?"
The Blind Man and the Mute exchanged a glance, without the enthusiasm the Open King had anticipated.
In truth, regarding Carefree Village, it had always been Qin Mu who was desperate to find that place. As for the others from the Village of Elderly Remnants, if not for Qin Mu's sake, they couldn't be bothered with where Carefree Village was.
This was especially true for the Mute. He was a descendant of the Heavenly Artifact Divine Clan, whose ancestors had built the Ark of the Other Shore, descendants of Emperor Shakra Heavenly King Buddha Li Youran. However, in the late Open King era, when the Open King led a group to flee to Carefree Village, the Heavenly Artifact Divine Clan was constructing another Ark of the Other Shore. Before they could rush to Carefree Village, they were slaughtered by the Heavenly Court's army.
The remnants of the Heavenly Artifact Divine Clan were trapped within a three-dimensional spatial seal, struggling to survive. By the Mute's generation, only he remained.
In the end, the Mute's parents, on their deathbed, sent the still-child Mute out of the seal, leaving him to face the darkness and dangers of the Great Ruins alone.
The Mute was the one who held the least regard for Carefree Village. The Ark of the Other Shore had always been in the Great Ruins, yet he had never thought to repair that great ship and journey to Carefree Village. No matter how hard his life was, he had never entertained the thought.
"You come from Carefree Village? That's a rare guest. Before the last Extension Calamity erupted, there was also a visitor from Carefree Village, a Celestial Master named Zixi. She was a master of formations, and I learned a great deal from her."
The Blind Man said, "However, when the last Extension Calamity broke out, the Open King issued a single decree, and she led all the gods of the Open King era away, leaving us to face the calamity alone. You come from Carefree Village—could it be that you're here to deliver some command from the Open King?"
The Open King shook his head. "Celestial Master Zixi has returned to Carefree Village. I heard her speak of the Extension Reforms, so I came to broaden my horizons."
The Mute pulled the Blind Man aside, his hands flying in rapid gestures.
The Blind Man said, "It's not that bad."
The Open King asked curiously, "What is this mute friend saying?"
"He's cursing the Open King. He says that Mu'er did many things for Emperor Shakra Heavenly King among the Open King's Four Heavenly Kings, pacified the twenty heavens of the Buddhist realm's Heavenly Court forces, took a huge black pot for Emperor Shakra Heavenly King, and also saved Nether Capital Heavenly King Tian Shu, resolving the grievances between Tian Shu and the Nether Realm. He even resurrected Heavenly King Di Yiyue."
The Blind Man relayed the Mute's words, saying, "Mu'er is also the second disciple of the Open King's Woodcutter Celestial Master. Among the Four Celestial Masters, Fisherman Celestial Master and Celestial Master Zixi both have old ties with him and are on good terms. Mu'er also solved the problem for Battle Celestial Master regarding the Bullfight Realm's warriors lacking divine bridges to become gods—a great favor. Even Fengdu was preserved only because of Mu'er's connections with Nether Lord and Earth Lord. Yet the Open King acted dishonorably. During the Extension Calamity, with a single decree, he transferred all the gods away, fleeing faster than a rabbit. Utterly shameless..."
The Blind Man's eyes were sharp as he watched the agitated Mute, who was still gesturing wildly. The Blind Man found it headache-inducing and advised, "A guest from afar is a guest—stop cursing... You can't curse like that. At least the Open King is Mu'er's ancestor—you're cursing Mu'er too! It's fine, it's fine, he's not cursing you; he's cursing the Open King. It's a bit harsh... By the way, guest, you're from Carefree Village, but that has nothing to do with the Open King, right? What's your esteemed name? How should I address you?"
The Open King had originally planned to take out the Carefree Sword to verify his identity to the two, but upon hearing this, he immediately abandoned the idea. "I am merely an ordinary god from Carefree Village, named Ye Kai. I usually engage in some research there. Seeing you discussing microscopic crystal structures, I came to seek advice. I didn't expect this mute friend to hold such resentment toward Carefree Village."
The Blind Man sighed in relief and smiled. "Good thing your surname isn't Qin... Mute, stop cursing!"
The Mute stopped resentfully but couldn't resist gesturing a couple more times: "Aba!"
"Yes, yes, utterly shameless." The Blind Man said helplessly.
The Open King coughed and asked, "The Mu'er you mentioned—could it be Mu Celestial Lord Qin Mu?"
The two old men immediately perked up. The Blind Man laughed, "You know Mu'er? We taught him!"
The Open King said, "You may not know this, but a few days ago, Mu Celestial Lord arrived at Carefree Village."
The Blind Man and the Mute's eyes lit up. The Blind Man quickly asked, "Did Mu'er meet the Open King? Going to Carefree Village to acknowledge his ancestors and return to his roots—that was his lifelong wish!"
The Open King nodded.
"Did they fight?"
The Blind Man asked urgently, "I mean, did Mu'er and the Open King fight?"
The Open King said helplessly, "They fought."
The two old men immediately looked smug. "Mu'er has that temperament—he'd definitely fight the Open King if they met. Ye Kai, did Mu'er beat the Open King badly?"
The Open King was caught between laughter and tears. "How do you two know it was Mu Celestial Lord beating the Open King, and not the Open King beating Mu Celestial Lord?"
The two old men were immensely proud. The Mute put down his box and put his hands on his hips, while the Blind Man leaned on his bamboo staff and swung one leg, laughing. "If it's a battle at the same cultivation level, the Open King absolutely can't beat Mu'er—that's a sure thing! How did it go? Was it bad?"
The Open King had no choice but to say, "It was very bad."
"Well done!" The Mute's voice boomed like a bell, startling the Open King.
The Blind Man was overjoyed and laughed. "Of course Mu'er did well—our years of careful teaching weren't in vain! This Open King and Carefree Village must have degenerated; they deserve a beating, a thorough beating!"
The Open King's face couldn't quite maintain its composure. He coughed and said, "You two, about the microscopic structure of this divine gold..."
"Divine gold, mystic gold, and ordinary metal—their vastly different toughness and strength are all due to differences in microscopic structure."
The Blind Man explained, "So we plan to change the fine structure, refining mystic gold into divine gold. We're currently researching this. Since you're from Carefree Village, I assume you have some knowledge in this area?"
The Open King shook his head blankly.
The Mute made a contemptuous gesture.
The Blind Man said, "Don't blame him; blame the tyrant."
The Open King's face flushed slightly. The Blind Man continued, "We discovered that divine gold, mystic gold, and ordinary gold are essentially the same substance. The performance differences are mainly due to microscopic structure. So we plan to use the Mute's forging methods to try to reorganize the microscopic structure of mystic gold and refine it into divine gold. However, although the Mute's Heavenly Origin Furnace Forging Method is very exquisite, it can't guarantee that every crystal in the most microscopic structure of mystic gold can be hammered, nor can it ensure that the crystal orientations are aligned."
The Mute gestured, and the Blind Man relayed his words. "Inscribing runes and carving crystals on a microscopic scale is extremely difficult. It also requires the forger to possess unparalleled divine eyesight, able to see every crystal at the microscopic scale."
The Open King pondered for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Have you tried using divine consciousness for microscopic forging, using divine consciousness and primordial energy to carve runic inscriptions on a microscopic level?"
The Mute and the Blind Man's eyes lit up. They exchanged a glance, and the Mute said, "Feasible!"
The Blind Man shook his head. "There's still one difficulty: the requirement for divine consciousness is extremely high. To cultivate divine consciousness to the point of seeing the microscopic scale, one must reach a very high level. Only the Three Primordial Spirits' Indestructible Divine Consciousness has this ability. But even that requires cultivating this technique to a profound level..."
The Open King smiled. "You two need not worry. Mu Celestial Lord's divine consciousness is incredibly powerful. When he returns, he will teach you techniques for divine consciousness that surpass the Three Primordial Spirits' Indestructible Divine Consciousness. This microscopic carving and microscopic inscription—I think it has great potential. You two can be said to have pioneered a divine skill in the art of forging. Whether in terms of divine gold resources or forging divine weapons, the prospects are limitless. It can increase the power of divine weapons several times over, even surpassing the strength of gods and demons themselves! But will the Heavenly Court allow such reforms?"
The Blind Man was unconcerned. "The Heavenly Court can't reach here. We have Mu'er above us to shield us. Besides, this kind of reform doesn't change the great Dao of heaven and earth—the Heavenly Court won't notice."
The Open King was stunned. Comparing this to Qin Mu's different actions, he felt a surge of emotion. He then asked, "What about the Extension Emperor? If the Extension Emperor becomes too powerful, he'll also be monitored by the Heavenly Court, even eliminated."
"You mean Extension Show Emperor?"
The Blind Man laughed. "Although Extension Show Emperor is clever and quick-witted, his cultivation isn't the strongest in Extension. He only recently cultivated to become a Venerable God. When would the Heavenly Court have time to bother with a Venerable God? A few days ago, Extension Show Emperor even went to the Heavenly Court himself, haggling with the gods and demons of the Zao Fu Palace, demanding they open more Spirit Energy Teleportation Bridges to transport resources from other heavens for forging divine weapons."
The Open King's eyes widened. After a long moment, he came back to his senses and took his leave from the two.
The Blind Man and the Mute tried their best to persuade him to stay. "You have a sharp mind—you're good forging material. Following the Open King is a waste of your talent! Stay here, and let's study this microscopic forging craft together!"
The Open King insisted on leaving. "I still need to see the results of other Extension Reforms. Carefree Village is urging me to return."
The Blind Man and the Mute had no choice but to see him off. "Don't have too high hopes for Carefree Village. If things don't work out when you go back, come to Extension. We have plenty of work here. If you return to Carefree Village, you'll just be wasting your life."
The Blind Man said, "The Mute says that if you want to see the Extension Reforms, go check out the various academies. Although they've been renamed sects now, they're still academies at heart. That's where the front line of reform is. Our village chief is teaching swordsmanship at the Grand Academy's Holy Sect. You seem to be a sword practitioner—visiting him there should be very rewarding."
The Open King hurriedly left.
The Blind Man and the Mute watched him go, sighing with mixed feelings. "Carefree Village still has talented people. It's a shame this fellow named Ye Kai is following the Open King—his talent is going to waste!"
At the Yong River Academy, the Heavenly Dragon Carriage stopped. Qin Mu summoned Huan Long Lord and asked about the academy's recent situation. Huan Long Lord said, "Reporting to Master, the Yong River Academy is no longer called an academy; it's now called the Yong River Sect. Su Yunzhi is the sect leader, Zhe Huali is the deputy leader. I've also joined as an elder. These past few days, the Yong River Sect has been very lively. Master Butcher Tu of the Heavenly Blade came, and besides the Heavenly Blade, another Divine Blade arrived. They fought several great battles with Master Tu, thrilling the Yong River Sect disciples."
"Grandpa Tu is here? The other Divine Blade—could it be Luo Wushuang?"
Qin Mu blinked. He had kicked Luo Wushuang into the Primordial Wood Heavenly Palace of the Primordial Realm. He must have fought a bloody battle to escape and ended up hiding here.
— At that time, the sound of rain, happy birthday! (Seems like it was yesterday's birthday... Whatever, happy birthday!)