Chapter 153: I, the Overlord Body
Upon reaching the mountaintop, they saw it was extraordinarily luxurious. Towers and palaces were all gleaming with golden light. The pillars beneath the main hall alone were so thick that two people could barely encircle them with their arms. There were even more golden divine statues, with many barbarians of the grasslands standing beneath each one.
Suddenly, one of the golden divine statues moved. Qin Mu's heart leaped. Only then did he realize these were not golden statues, but great shamans!
The great shamans of this Loulan Golden Palace had actually refined their bodies as if cast from pure gold, radiating golden light!
Before the Golden Palace, beneath a towering gate, stood rows of great shamans like resplendent golden deities, majestic and solemn. At their head was an old man with golden hair and a golden body, tall and imposing, clad in golden robes, holding a staff, and wearing a feathered crown. His voice boomed like a great bell: "Martial Khan, you have roamed free for so many years. Why have you come knocking on our door today?"
"'Knocking on the door' is well said. Green Ox, set down the mountain gate!"
With a thunderous crash, Green Ox set down the mountain gate. Sacrificial Wine Overlord laughed heartily: "Shaman Venerable, I've brought your mountain gate back. These golden senior brothers here, I've beaten most of them before. Back then, I blockaded your gate for a hundred days, wounding and killing quite a few. The strong ones I couldn't hold back against, so I had to kill them. The weak ones survived under my hand. These weak ones are the very ones present today."
As soon as he spoke, the entire mountain erupted in uproar. The senior experts of Loulan Golden Palace were all furious, and the air thickened with a murderous intent.
Sacrificial Wine Overlord's tongue was too venomous. In one sentence, he had offended every expert in Loulan Golden Palace, drawing their collective wrath. Adding to that the act of carrying the mountain gate up the mountain, this matter would surely not end peacefully.
One of the great shamans, with a solemn appearance and a voice like clashing metal, said coldly: "Our wounds have long since healed. Over the years, our Golden Palace has been conserving our strength, eager to cross blows with Martial Khan once more and wash away our shame."
Sacrificial Wine Overlord smiled. "There will be a chance. But this time, I have come to blockade your gate, not to kill you all."
He led Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu forward, arriving beneath the Golden Mountain Gate. He looked up at this mountain gate, reminiscing about the past, and sighed: "Back then, I followed my master beneath this very gate and killed quite a few people..."
The great shamans, radiant as golden deities, glared at him with blazing eyes. Sacrificial Wine Overlord turned back to Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu, winking with a smile: "Now, this mountain gate is yours to handle."
Ling Yuxiu was a bit uneasy and whispered: "Teacher, the rules here seem different from those in Yan Kang."
Sacrificial Wine Overlord smiled, his voice as faint as a mosquito's hum: "When the Daoist Sect and the Great Thunderclap Temple came to the Imperial Academy to blockade the gate, it was only about winning or losing, not life and death. After the fight, everyone was cordial. But here, it's all about fighting to the death. If you want to spare someone's life, you can, but when you encounter an opponent of equal skill, you must kill them. It's hard to hold back. Back then, I met many experts of equal skill here, so quite a few died."
Ling Yuxiu's scalp went numb.
Qin Mu steadied himself, taking a deep breath. Finally, it was following the rules of the Great Ruins.
The rules of the Great Ruins were exactly the same!
The Shaman Venerable walked over, arriving beneath the Golden Mountain Gate. His gaze fell on Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu, and he said unhurriedly: "Blockading the gate follows the old rules—life and death are not a concern. But beyond that, I also need to reclaim the title of Martial Khan, regardless of life or death!"
Sacrificial Wine Overlord's expression remained unchanged, and he declared loudly: "Gentlemen, they are both at the Five Radiance realm."
"We understand the rules of gate blockade."
The Shaman Venerable's face was as calm as an ancient well. He tapped his staff and said indifferently: "Golden Palace disciples, hear my command. Engage them at the Five Radiance realm. Kill them without mercy. Anyone who exceeds the Five Radiance realm will lose their life!"
His voice was not loud, but it carried throughout the entire mountain.
As soon as the Shaman Venerable spoke, he looked at Sacrificial Wine Overlord and revealed a smile: "Martial Khan, back then, the Heavenly Khan brought you to blockade our Golden Palace gate. The Heavenly Khan's divine abilities were boundless, truly admirable. But you are not the Heavenly Khan."
Sacrificial Wine Overlord's expression turned grave. He stepped through the mountain gate, his voice piercing into Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu's minds: "Junior Brother, Princess, rest assured. As long as they haven't killed me, they will still challenge you according to the rules. If they kill me, then you will be in danger too."
Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu's hearts tightened.
Their safety hinged on Sacrificial Wine Overlord's life. If he was stripped of the title of Martial Khan and killed, then killing Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu would leave no one to leak the news. The reputation of Loulan Golden Palace would remain intact, and the outside world would never know of this challenge.
The grassland experts who had come to watch were all under the rule of Loulan Golden Palace. At the Golden Palace's command, they would not speak of it.
But if Sacrificial Wine Overlord walked out of Loulan Golden Palace alive, then this matter would be spread by Overlord's big mouth. Not only would the entire grassland know, but likely the whole world would hear of it.
Sacrificial Wine Overlord absolutely had that ability.
At that point, Loulan Golden Palace's face would be utterly lost.
Therefore, before Sacrificial Wine Overlord died, Loulan Golden Palace would absolutely not besiege Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu. They would only act according to the rules.
"Master, don't get yourself killed," Green Ox called out loudly.
Sacrificial Wine Overlord stumbled, turned back, and glared: "When we get back, I'm eating beef!"
Green Ox quickly shrank back.
"Two young brats, so audacious. Do you even know you're blockading the gate of a sacred land?"
Suddenly, a voice came from behind Qin Mu. Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu turned and looked down the mountain, seeing many oddly shaped shaman warriors approaching, blocking the path.
One of the shaman warriors stepped forward, his body faintly glowing with gold. He had horns on his head, wings on his back, and a bird's beak. This method of cultivation, transforming into something non-human, was indeed rare.
"Senior Brother," Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu greeted with a bow.
That Golden Palace shaman warrior did not return the courtesy. His voice was sharp and firm: "Formalities are something from your Yan Kingdom. Our Loulan Golden Palace has no such rules. After I kill you, I will absorb your souls to cultivate my divine abilities. People like you are far better than those slaves. Your souls are incredibly tough—perfect for refining into techniques!"
Qin Mu's eyes flickered. He said: "Sister, let me go first this time. I'll probe their techniques and divine abilities."
Ling Yuxiu nodded. Although her strength had grown rapidly along the way, she was still somewhat behind Qin Mu. Without knowing the shaman warriors' background, rushing into a fight could easily lead to loss.
Qin Mu exhaled a mouthful of turbid air and said in a deep voice: "Green Ox, bring my bundle!"
Green Ox stepped forward and took down the bundle from his back. Qin Mu first strapped on the knife pouch, placing the two butcher knives crosswise. Then he strapped the sword case behind the knife pouch, hung the large iron hammer, inserted a bamboo staff, and fastened the Shaobao Sword at his waist.
Green Ox was full of killing intent: "I heard you used to be a cowherd, but you couldn't even beat me. Can you beat them?"
Qin Mu stretched his body, his bones cracking and popping. He said calmly: "I am the Overlord Body."
Green Ox shouted: "My master never lost beneath this Golden Gate!"
Qin Mu's expression was wooden: "I am the natural-born Overlord Body. Under heaven, no one at the same realm can defeat me."
That bird-winged shaman warrior took out two golden pestles, his eyes gleaming with light, and laughed: "What nonsense Overlord Body? Never heard of it."
Qin Mu activated his primal energy using the Overlord Body Three Elixir Art. His energy exploded as it circulated, surging through his entire body in an instant.
"I, the Overlord Body!"
He lifted his foot, and the golden ground beneath him sank deeply into a footprint. With a rumble, his body shot toward the bird-winged shaman warrior. His movement was so fast that only a blur of afterimages could be seen.
"The unparalleled Overlord Body!"
The bird-winged shaman warrior's face changed drastically. He hurriedly flapped his wings to rise, but before he could lift off, Qin Mu's fist came crashing down. As the fist struck, a dragon's roar shook the air. The shaman warrior's pupils contracted sharply. What he saw was not a fist, but a ferocious, vicious dragon's head!
In the next instant, he saw two dragon heads, then three, then four!
His wings flapped, trying to dodge, but it was too late. In desperation, he could only cross the two golden pestles in front of him.
The two golden pestles suddenly bent. The force of Qin Mu's punch twisted these spirit weapons as if they were made of mud, flattening the pestles into thin sheets.
Whoosh—
The bird-winged shaman warrior flew into the air, then exploded with a bang into a cloud of blood mist. From within the mist came dragon roars and howls. The blood mist transformed into forty-five blood dragons, fierce and vicious, as if it wasn't Qin Mu's punch that had shattered the bird-winged shaman warrior, but these forty-five blood dragons bursting out from inside his body!
On the golden platform before the mountain gate, Qin Mu suddenly calmed down from his intensely violent movement. His explosive primal energy also subsided abruptly, his face serene.
"Green Ox, your master needed a hundred days to break Loulan Golden Palace."
Qin Mu turned, his gaze cold, sweeping over the shaman warriors below the golden platform: "I only need one day."
He stood beneath the gate, his voice thundering like a storm, echoing through Loulan Golden Palace: "I only need one day to shatter the will of every disciple in the Golden Palace, crush their self-respect, and trample their dignity underfoot!"
"Insolent!"
One shaman warrior flew into a rage. He charged toward Qin Mu, his body undergoing earth-shattering changes as he ran. The skin on his head flew off, revealing an elephant's head. His body grew taller and sturdier, tearing his clothes to shreds with a ripping sound. His limbs became thick as elephant legs.
Golden light overflowed from his body surface. With an elephant's head and a human body, he seemed like a resurrected deity being worshipped, radiating immense strength!
His cultivation and strength were clearly far above the previous bird-winged shaman warrior. That bird-winged warrior's body had not yet begun to turn golden, but this one's body surface was as if cast from gold!
Boom—
A fist the size of a water vat came crashing toward Qin Mu. The fist vibrated the air, producing a thunderous sound, and a white ring of air burst outward in all directions!
Behind Qin Mu, Fox Ling'er's white fur was blown backward by the wind from this punch, and Ling Yuxiu's hair also flew back.
"Die!" the elephant-headed shaman warrior roared.
Qin Mu leaped, dodging past this overwhelmingly powerful punch. He drew his knives with both hands, charging under the elephant-headed shaman warrior's massive body. The blade light flashed.
Drawing the Blade from the Forbidden!
Qin Mu's body flipped through the air, landing back on his feet. As he touched down, he sheathed both knives into the pouch behind his back. The elephant-headed shaman warrior's enormous body split in two, rolling down the mountain with a clatter, staining the golden steps crimson.
One shaman warrior, eyes bloodshot, suddenly pulled out a black banner and shook it at Qin Mu, shouting fiercely: "I'll refine your soul! Die!"
Qin Mu sealed his own soul with the Creation Demon Art. He raised his hand and pointed. The sword case behind him opened, and a flying sword shot out with a sharp whistle, piercing straight through the shaman warrior's forehead.
Qin Mu's finger lifted, and the flying sword whistled back, landing with a clink into the sword case, a trail of blood behind the sword.
—Don't go away! The second chapter will be here in ten minutes!