Chapter 1449: The Road Ahead Is Long and Arduous (Fourth Update)
Qin Mu gazed at the Heavenly Lord’s primordial spirit within the Nine Prisons Platform, a glimmer of hope still shining in his eyes. He desperately wished the Heavenly Lord would walk out of the Nine Prisons Platform, proving that his perception of the Heavenly Dao was so profound that even the Nine Prisons Platform could not shackle his Dao heart!
Only then would the Heavenly Lord be a true Heavenly Lord with a heavenly heart, not a Hong Tianzun ruled by desire!
Only then would he exhaust all his strength, even risking his life, to protect the Heavenly Lord’s life!
Yet within the ninth level of the prison platform, the Heavenly Lord’s primordial spirit never emerged from the Nine Prisons Platform as he had hoped.
The Dao heart was not as easy to cultivate as the world imagined. To cultivate a Dao heart required not only immense magical power and perception of the Heavenly Dao of heaven and earth but also tempering through the trials of the mortal world.
The Heavenly Lord resided in the Xuan Du, too high and too distant, and he himself resisted the Heavenly Dao, causing his Dao heart to be far less powerful than Qin Mu had imagined.
The Heavenly Lord was still suppressing the consciousness of the Heavenly Dao, not allowing it to attack Qin Mu, which rekindled a sliver of hope in Qin Mu.
However, as the stabbing pain of the Nine Prisons Platform grew deeper and more intense, the Heavenly Lord’s resistance against the Heavenly Dao’s consciousness became increasingly difficult.
Tian Shu, the Butcher, Luo Wushuang, and Zhe Huali gripped their saber hilts tightly, staring at their surroundings. Sweat mixed with blood trickled down their foreheads. They no longer urged Qin Mu, because once Qin Mu made up his mind, he rarely changed it.
They were Qin Mu’s friends, his family, and they understood everything he did.
Suddenly, Qin Mu dispersed the Nine Prisons Platform, and the pressure of the Heavenly Dao around them dissipated as well.
The four of them went limp, nearly collapsing to their knees. Qin Mu had finally made a change, a compromise, refusing to stubbornly hold out to the end.
“He’s worried about our lives.”
The Butcher leaned on his Heavenly Saber to keep from falling, thinking to himself, “If it were just Mu’er alone here, he would probably gamble his own life to see if the Heavenly Lord would walk out of the Nine Prisons Platform. But with us by his side, he doesn’t dare to gamble. In his heart, our lives are just as important as the Heavenly Lord’s.”
Qin Mu closed his eyes, refusing to look at the approaching primordial spirit of the Heavenly Lord.
The Heavenly Lord’s primordial spirit came to his side, still looking like the white-bearded old man who had been chased all over the Qinzi Continent by Qin Fengqing—kind-eyed and smiling. “Mu Tianzun, the obsession in your heart runs too deep.”
Qin Mu suddenly opened his eyes and smiled.
He took out paper and a brush, spread them on the ground, bent down, and moved his brush swiftly. Soon, he had drawn a scroll of the Nine Prisons Platform. He hastily rolled it up and handed it to the Heavenly Lord.
The Heavenly Lord was momentarily stunned before accepting the scroll.
“Dao brother, do not open it now. Wait until I leave before you open it.”
Qin Mu smiled faintly. “That way, even if the Heavenly Dao wants to attack me, it won’t be able to reach me.”
The Heavenly Lord’s primordial spirit inquired, “What will happen when I open this painting?”
“The same as before.”
Qin Mu concealed nothing, saying, “You will be locked by the Nine Prisons Platform, fall into it, and feel the sting of the Dao heart.”
The Heavenly Lord asked, “What if I don’t open it and instead destroy it?”
“Then I will leave the Xuan Du and no longer stop you from seeking death.”
Qin Mu said solemnly, “I will also persuade Moon Tianzun, You Tianzun, Langhuan Divine King, and the Kai Emperor, who is about to arrive, to leave together, allowing you to get what you wish!”
The Heavenly Lord asked again, “If I open this painting, will you do everything in your power to stop me from seeking death and prevent me from breaking free of the Heavenly Dao’s shackles?”
Qin Mu shook his head. “I will do everything to stop the Ten Tianzun, but I will not stop you from seeking death. There is a difference between the two. If you open this painting, you will still be my Dao brother. I will do my utmost to help you!”
The Heavenly Lord pondered for a moment, accepted the scroll, and said, “Allow me to consider it.”
Qin Mu spread his divine storage domain, sweeping up the Butcher, Tian Shu, and the others as he flew outward.
The Heavenly Lord’s primordial spirit watched them disappear into the distance, then his gaze fell upon the rolled-up scroll. After a moment, he set the scroll aside without opening it, though his eyes kept drifting toward it from time to time.
Outside, the will of the Heavenly Dao was controlling his physical body, battling Hong Tianzun and the others. Moon Tianzun, Langhuan, and You Tianzun were desperately trying to stop them. The battle was tearing heaven and earth apart, and only this place remained relatively quiet.
He stood there silently, a cluster of heavenly fire crystals floating in his palm. The crystals grew and spun on their own, their surfaces reflecting his face from different angles.
With just a flick of his finger, he could burn the scroll to ashes, destroying Qin Mu’s divine technique. But he never made a decision.
Qin Mu carried the Butcher and the others out of the Heavenly Lord’s body, then stamped his foot. A Boat of the Other Shore materialized beneath him, carrying them through layer after layer of void, far from the battlefield.
After a long time, the Boat of the Other Shore emerged from the void and dissipated.
Qin Mu sat in a stretch of nothingness, watching the battle between the Heavenly Lord and Hong Tianzun from afar, silent.
After the time it takes to burn an incense stick, he stood up, as if free of all worries. He took out various medicinal herbs, refined elixirs, and treated the wounds of the Butcher, Tian Shu, and the others, removing their Heavenly Dao injuries.
The four exchanged glances but said nothing.
Qin Mu finished treating their injuries, carefully examined them to ensure no hidden ailments remained, and then stopped.
Zhe Huali finally couldn’t hold back and asked, “The Heavenly Lord didn’t open your painting?”
Qin Mu shook his head, his tone indifferent. “No.”
Luo Wushuang suddenly said, “The Heavenly Lord will never open that painting. Helping him will only stop him from breaking free of the Heavenly Dao’s control! He set up this very scheme to escape the Heavenly Dao’s grasp, so why would he break his own plan?”
Tian Shu nodded. “One Hand is right. The Heavenly Lord is too close to heaven and too far from earth. He doesn’t have the same mindset as us. Call Moon Tianzun, You Tianzun, and the others. We should leave. There’s no need for us to fight and die for the Heavenly Lord, especially since he doesn’t appreciate it.”
Qin Mu hesitated.
The Butcher said, “How about we wait a little longer?”
Qin Mu broke into a smile. “Then let’s wait a little longer.”
The five of them sat down quietly, regulating their breathing and waiting in silence.
Qin Mu continued to watch the battlefield. Suddenly, his eyelids twitched. He saw You Tianzun, Langhuan, and Moon Tianzun get injured one after another. He sighed, stood up, and said, “No need to wait. Let’s go inform them to withdraw from the Xuan Du.”
The Butcher and the others silently rose and followed him toward the battlefield.
At that moment, Hong Tianzun, leading the other Tianzun, was relentlessly attacking the Heavenly Lord, inflicting more and more wounds. Even with the combat power of the Great Heavenly Court, even with boundless strength, and even on the home ground of the Xuan Du, the Heavenly Lord could not escape death!
Qin Mu and his five companions approached Moon Tianzun and the others. Moon Tianzun, You Tianzun, and Langhuan Divine King were doing their utmost to stop Hong Tianzun and his group, but with little effect.
“Moon Tianzun, You Tianzun, Langhuan, stop!”
Qin Mu’s divine consciousness rippled as he transmitted his voice to the three. “There’s no point in continuing…”
Suddenly, his body trembled violently. His gaze shot toward the Heavenly Lord, and an expression of disbelief spread across his face.
He sensed that the painting had been opened—the enduring divine technique of the Nine Prisons Locking the Dao Heart had been triggered!
On the Heavenly Lord’s spiritual platform, the Heavenly Lord’s primordial spirit watched as the enduring divine technique of the Nine Prisons Locking the Dao Heart was activated. Thorns sprouted from the Nine Prisons Platform, piercing the Dao heart.
“The road ahead is long and arduous. Perhaps seeking the path through relentless exploration is the true way.”
He leaped into the Nine Prisons Platform, and a sharp pain surged through him, sealing his Dao heart!
Qin Mu let out a long, hearty laugh, his spirit soaring. He raised his long saber, carrying the Butcher and the others as he charged toward Fire Tianzun, who was attacking Moon Tianzun!