Chapter 1578: The Change in Netherworld, Earth Lord About to Die
Lady Yuanmu and Empress Dowager once again appeared within a single body. As the twin lotus flowers sank, they too plunged into the Great Abyss.
No matter how they struggled or resisted, they could not break free from the red rope knot. Qin Mu had only comprehended one percent of the red rope knot, but even that one percent was enough to lock them down, preventing their escape.
He did not sink them into the Chaos Sea. Even if they wished to contact the Second Young Master of Miluo Palace, they lacked the means to do so.
Moreover, the red rope knot Qin Mu left behind was unlike the one the Miluo Palace Master used to seal the Second Young Master, which left a sixth thread as a sliver of hope. Qin Mu did not grant them that hope. If someone came to rescue them and carelessly triggered the red rope knot he left behind, the full power of this seal would erupt and embed itself into their bodies!
Only if someone could break it by force or had a deep understanding of the red rope knot could they undo the seal and save Lady Yuanmu. However, that would require the rescuer’s strength to far surpass Qin Mu’s, or their comprehension of the red rope knot to exceed his.
In the current world, those whose strength surpassed Qin Mu’s were few and far between, and those whose understanding of the red rope knot exceeded his were virtually nonexistent.
Of course, Lady Yuanmu and Empress Dowager still had a chance of survival. That chance lay in the fact that Qin Mu’s comprehension of the red rope knot was only one percent of the Miluo Palace Master’s. His red rope knot lacked the myriad complex variations of the Miluo Palace Master’s, leaving them a possibility of breaking free.
Following the River of the Netherworld, Qin Mu walked out of the Return to Ruin and entered the Netherworld. The Jade Lock Pass of the Netherworld still stood. Earth Lord had nearly destroyed it, but thanks to Ugly Earth Lord and the reincarnated Heavenly Lord, it had been preserved. However, the Heavenly Court’s army stationed there had been completely annihilated, destroyed by Earth Lord’s attack.
The moment Qin Mu arrived at Jade Lock Pass, the Dao of the Netherworld detected him, and the Netherworld’s demonic energy became intensely fierce.
He smiled slightly. The Dao of Reincarnation transformed into a ring of light that spun, blocking the Netherworld’s Dao from sensing him. The restless Netherworld demonic energy immediately calmed down.
He hadn’t completely erased cause and effect. Although the Dao of Reincarnation could avert disaster, he couldn’t yet achieve the level of fully eliminating cause and effect. He only made the Dao of the Netherworld feel that this person was not Qin Mu.
If someone had profound cultivation in the Dao of the Netherworld, reaching the thirty-sixth heavenly realm in their Dao realm, they could still search through reincarnation via cause and effect and find his aura. However, the Dao of the Netherworld wouldn’t actively seek him out, so naturally, it wouldn’t find him.
“Hmm! The Netherworld has become somewhat strange… It seems many things have happened while I was filling the Sea Eye.”
Qin Mu arrived at the Forest of Karma Fire Steles within Jade Lock Pass. Looking up, he saw that although the Netherworld’s demonic energy had calmed, it was still extremely dense, vastly different from the usual Netherworld.
Normally, one could see billions of paper boats shuttling back and forth across the Netherworld, with old Yin emissaries riding those boats to guide the souls or primordial spirits of the deceased from all realms into the Netherworld for judgment.
But now, all the paper boats had vanished.
The entire Netherworld had completely ceased its operations, with no one managing the souls of the dead from all realms!
Such a situation would inevitably cause great chaos across the myriad realms!
The souls of the dead would roam the mortal world. Some, wrongfully killed or harboring grudges or ambitions, would turn into vengeful spirits. Even worse, fallen deities with immense power might seize mortal bodies, disrupting the balance between Yin and Yang. Some might even carve out territories in the mortal world, creating ghost kingdoms in the realm of the living!
If the dead did not die, it would lead to catastrophe!
At this moment, the Netherworld was filled with a killing atmosphere. The operation of the Netherworld’s Dao had become more active than before, and the demonic races within the Netherworld had grown quiet, but Qin Mu could clearly feel the power of the demonic path strengthening!
This situation was very similar to the changes in the Heavenly Dao of the Celestial Realm during the campaign against Heavenly Lord back then!
“The Netherworld has stopped functioning—something major must be happening! This means the Heavenly Court is preparing to attack Earth Lord!”
His heart tightened as he walked into the Forest of Karma Fire Steles. Soon, he found the reincarnated body of Heavenly Lord.
Heavenly Lord’s reincarnated body was still suffering under the torment of the karma fire, struggling within the flames.
“Pastoral Celestial Venerable!” Heavenly Lord noticed him, enduring the intense pain in his soul, and called out.
Qin Mu bowed in greeting and looked him over. He saw that Heavenly Lord’s Heavenly Dao had become more complete. Not only that, but Heavenly Lord also had extraordinary insights into various other Daos of the world. Submerged in the karma fire, tempered by its flames, his comprehension of the Heavenly Dao and other Daos had reached profound depths. His Dao realm had advanced rapidly, and his cultivation and strength were extraordinary.
“Heavenly Lord has shed the shackles of the ancient gods and is on the path to achieving the Dao.” Qin Mu smiled and offered his congratulations.
Heavenly Lord said, “It is thanks to Pastoral Celestial Venerable’s help that I have hope of achieving the Dao. You’ve noticed the changes in the Netherworld, haven’t you? Fellow Daoist Earth Lord is also about to be freed. I will no longer walk the path of achieving the Dao alone; we will support each other.”
Qin Mu’s heart sank. The Heavenly Court’s campaign against Earth Lord was an opportunity for Earth Lord to shed his ancient god body and become Ugly, fulfilling his long-cherished wish. Qin Mu naturally should support this.
But if Earth Lord died and the Netherworld fell into enemy hands, the Heavenly Court would control the power of the Netherworld. Combined with the Celestial Realm, neither Yankang nor the Land of No Worries would have any power to resist!
The Celestial Realm controlled the sun, moon, and stars, capable of plunging the myriad realms into darkness and unleashing all kinds of natural disasters. The great snow disaster in Yankang back then had cost the region hundreds of millions of lives!
If the Heavenly Court controlled the Celestial Realm and waged war, the disasters would be unimaginable!
If the Heavenly Court also seized the Netherworld, they could directly invade the life-and-death divine treasures of all Yankang deities and cultivators, making it all too easy to kill them!
Even more terrifying, if the Heavenly Court took control of Earth Lord’s body and mobilized the ghost armies of the Netherworld to invade the mortal world, it would be an unimaginable catastrophe!
Yankang was no longer what it used to be. It now possessed immense power, with countless times more deities than before, and had produced Celestial Venerable-level experts like Qin Mu. Yankang also had old-generation powerhouses like Lan Yutian, Xu Shenghua, and Lin Xuan, along with various factories capable of forging the most powerful divine artifacts in the world. Its civilian wealth was astonishing, making it arguably the strongest terrestrial divine kingdom among the myriad realms!
Moreover, Qin Mu had a wide network of connections, allowing him to ally Yankang with the Land of No Worries and the Crimson Emperor Floating Realm. Adding Kaihuang, Netherworld Celestial Venerable, Ling Celestial Venerable, Moon Celestial Venerable, Langhuan, and Yun Celestial Venerable, who resided in the ultimate void, their side’s combat power was not much weaker than the Heavenly Court’s.
But if the Netherworld fell under the Heavenly Court’s control, once fighting broke out, the Heavenly Court could flatten the Primordial Realm within a few years or even months!
This was because the Heavenly Court’s backbone was too numerous and too strong!
The Heavenly Court controlled the myriad realms, gathering all the talented individuals from across the realms. There were over a hundred Emperor Throne-level experts alone. Even if the Four Emperors of the Four Directions fell in battle, new ones could be appointed immediately!
When war truly erupted, if Qin Mu, Kaihuang, and others were blocked, the Heavenly Court’s backbone could wipe out the Land of No Worries, Yankang, and the Crimson Emperor Floating Realm together!
“If Earth Lord is freed, the people of the world cannot be freed.”
Qin Mu steadied himself and said, “Brother, Hao Celestial Venerable has achieved the Dao and is invincible. Add to that the Heavenly Court’s immense foundation, controlling both the Celestial Realm and the Netherworld, and the Heavenly Court remains unbeatable. If the Netherworld falls into the Heavenly Court’s hands, what’s the point of fighting? I might as well strip off my clothes, tie myself up, go to the Heavenly Court, kneel before Hao Celestial Venerable, and declare myself his subject!”
There was no small amount of resentment in his words.
Heavenly Lord hesitated, then said, “Actually, the reason the Heavenly Court decided to strike at the Netherworld this time is that Earth Lord, using the Netherworld’s Dao to capture you, killed all the Heavenly Court soldiers at Jade Lock Pass in one fell swoop. This gave the Heavenly Court an excuse. In recent days, the Heavenly Court has been notifying the myriad realms, publicizing Earth Lord’s evil deeds and raising the banner of a campaign against him. Earth Lord brought this upon himself. His Ugly Earth Lord is right here in the Forest of Karma Fire Steles. Perhaps you should go ask him…”
Qin Mu bowed and took his leave, going to find Ugly Earth Lord.
Ugly Earth Lord was bound by chains, enduring the karma fire burning from all living beings across the myriad realms. He knelt with his head bowed, as if bearing the endless suffering of the world.
Qin Mu looked at him, and after a moment, said, “Earth Lord, after you die, who will take over the Netherworld? Who will succeed you as Earth Lord?”
The chains clanked as Ugly Earth Lord slowly raised his head. “Pastoral Celestial Venerable, after I die, the Netherworld will fall into the hands of Netherworld Celestial Venerable and Qin Fengqing. Qin Fengqing will succeed me as Earth Lord. For a million years, Netherworld Celestial Venerable has served as the Sage King of Qi, managing all affairs of the Netherworld and knowing its workings well. As for Qin Fengqing, he is the Netherworld Divine Child, wielding the power of the Netherworld, though his ambitions are hard to gauge. But with Netherworld Celestial Venerable’s guidance, he can become a good Earth Lord.”
Qin Mu said coldly, “And what about Void Celestial Venerable? And the Netherworld Emperor? The Heavenly Court’s campaign against the Netherworld is aimed at seizing the entire Netherworld! To control the Netherworld is to control the lives of everyone! With our current strength, if the Heavenly Court moves the stars in the Celestial Realm, we won’t have any troops left to spare to protect the Netherworld!”
He exhaled a breath of turbid air and said patiently, “If the Heavenly Court controls the Netherworld, they control all lives. Earth Lord, you also control the Netherworld. Right now, the lives of everyone are in your hands. If you are willing, you can slaughter all the gods of the Heavenly Court in one fell swoop, wiping out their advantage! You handle slaughtering the gods, and I’ll handle eliminating the Heavenly Court’s Celestial Venerables! That way, the overall situation can be settled!”
“The Dao of the Netherworld does not allow me to harm the living, unless they have violated the Dao of the Netherworld.”
Ugly Earth Lord’s three eyes blazed with karma fire as he said, “Pastoral Celestial Venerable, rest assured, I will not let the Netherworld fall into the Heavenly Court’s hands. I will take Void Celestial Venerable into seclusion and live the life of a mortal. As for the Netherworld Emperor, he is no match for Little Earth Lord and cannot possibly control the Netherworld.”
Qin Mu laughed heartily. “Will Void Celestial Venerable be willing to go into seclusion with you? Earth Lord, although Void Celestial Venerable is your daughter, she holds no affection for you! She is one of the Ten Celestial Venerables, a weapon cultivated by Heavenly Emperor Taichu to deal with you!”
Ugly Earth Lord said calmly, “She is still my daughter.”
Qin Mu flicked his sleeve and walked through layers of karma fire until he stood before Ugly Earth Lord. The Dao of Reincarnation kept him untouched by any karma fire; no matter how fierce the flames here, they could not harm him in the slightest.
Qin Mu opened his vertical eye on his forehead, facing Ugly Earth Lord directly. The six eyes met, and both saw the stubbornness in the other’s gaze.
“She is one of the Ten Celestial Venerables,” Qin Mu said.
Ugly Earth Lord stared straight at him. “She is my daughter, and I am Ugly.”
Qin Mu clenched his fists. Ugly Earth Lord rattled his chains, leaning forward until their faces were almost touching, still staring intently at each other.
“Pastoral Celestial Venerable, you want me to violate the Dao of the Netherworld, to kill the innocent, to destroy the billions of divine demons of the Heavenly Court. If I do that, how am I any different from the Ten Celestial Venerables?” He snorted demonic fire from his nostrils, scorching Qin Mu’s face.
Qin Mu said coldly, “And if you sit idly by while the billions of divine demons of the Heavenly Court slaughter the billions of living beings of Yankang, how are you any different from the Ten Celestial Venerables?”
“Stop arguing, both of you!” Heavenly Lord, covered in flames, stumbled over and urged them.
—A fierce battle is about to come. It’s the end of the month, asking for monthly votes for The Legend of the Shepherd God! Today is double monthly votes. The Legend of the Shepherd God didn’t ask for votes last night, and it got overtaken this morning. Asking for monthly vote support!
The Legend of the Shepherd God is in its later stages, asking for monthly votes!
Double monthly votes are here, asking for monthly votes for The Legend of the Shepherd God!
Today is double monthly votes. The Legend of the Shepherd God didn’t ask for votes last night, and it got overtaken this morning. Asking for monthly vote support!
The Legend of the Shepherd God has reached its later stages, with about two to three hundred chapters left. Each day’s chapter is one less.
Actually, based on the outline and the current plot development, I could easily expand it to write another thousand chapters, but that would lose the readers’ passion and my own enthusiasm. My physical condition also won’t allow it (my health has been very poor lately). So I’ll stick to the original plan and finish it around August or September.
To ensure the quality of the later stages, I can’t have bursts of updates. I have to consider every aspect, wrap things up properly, tie up loose ends, and think about too many things. Bursting would easily lead to bugs. I hope you understand.
Even without bursts, I still shamelessly ask for monthly votes!
Throw your monthly votes over here, throw them to The Legend of the Shepherd God!