Chapter 207: Cunning as a Ghost
Qin Mu was truly terrified this time.
During the great battle outside the Great Xiang City with the Yankang National Teacher, he had stood atop a mountain peak, gazing at the battlefield from afar, but he couldn't clearly see the techniques of those powerful beings. The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian had used his eyes to observe the battle, allowing Qin Mu to see the moves of the National Teacher and Poor Master with perfect clarity, and even to grasp the profound mysteries of such terrifying existences' techniques!
At that time, Qin Mu thought he had concealed himself well and hadn't alerted the demon king.
But now it seemed that his little schemes were utterly useless. The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian had long sensed the fluctuations in his heart and even guessed his inner thoughts!
"Foolish summoner, your seemingly clever tricks before the greatest ruler of Dutian are utterly useless."
The voice of the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian continued to echo in his mind, shaking his eardrums until they buzzed: "A weak lifeform like you should not try to play mind games with me. My power is beyond your imagination! Submit to me, worship me—this is your only way out."
Qin Mu steadied himself and suddenly laughed, "Great Lord of Dutian, I am the only one left in this world who knows the Talisman Command of Summoning Ghosts and Dispelling Spirits. I am also the only one who can still perform this art."
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian fell silent.
After a moment, his voice rang out again: "Interesting little brat, daring to bargain with me. Very well, very well…"
Qin Mu felt uneasy, uncertain whether his bargaining would succeed.
If it failed, and the demon turned hostile, he would likely be in deep trouble.
If it succeeded and he saved his life, he could return to the village and ask the village chief and the others to slowly deal with the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian.
Judging by the demon king's behavior, it was possible to destroy him.
Because when Qin Mu traveled with the Yankang National Teacher, the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian had remained quiet, hiding silently within Qin Mu's body.
It was only when the National Teacher was locked in a fierce battle with Poor Master and other sect leaders that the demon king dared to use Qin Mu's eyes to observe the fight, both to gauge the National Teacher's true strength and to find his weaknesses.
But at that time, Qin Mu was surrounded by experts from the Heavenly Demon Sect, so the demon king didn't speak.
Later, when Qin Mu treated the National Teacher's injuries, the demon king remained silent.
When Qin Mu parted ways with the National Teacher and arrived at the Imperial Academy, encountering Cripple and Old Man Ma, the demon king still didn't appear.
Now that Old Man Ma and Cripple were gone, leaving Qin Mu alone, the demon king finally showed himself.
If the National Teacher, Old Man Ma, and Cripple posed no threat to him, he wouldn't have been so cautious.
In other words, he was showing fear.
That meant he could be destroyed, unlike the Li Tianxing within Granny Si's Dao heart, who was nearly impossible to erase. With enough skill, he could be eliminated.
"My Dutian is already finished, destroyed, left with nothing but endless darkness. So I need to find a new world for my people, a place where they can thrive and multiply."
The voice of the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian came through: "I went to great lengths to pass the Talisman Command of Summoning Ghosts and Dispelling Spirits to this world, to its people. Now, you are the only one who understands this art. You should know that I won't let you go easily."
Qin Mu completely relaxed, letting out a sigh of relief, and said, "So you want me to summon demons again, to call you over?"
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian coaxed, "I once had that idea, but now that I've seen some powerful beings among the natives of this world, I only want to use your hand to send some of my people here. I don't wish to provoke a war between the strong of two worlds—that would be bad for both sides. My Dutian is already finished; I just want my race to avoid extinction. I have no intention of taking over this world."
"Believe that? Like hell!" Qin Mu thought to himself.
But he couldn't say that out loud. If he did, the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian would likely kill him without much trouble.
Now, the demon's consciousness was parasitizing his body, along with a strand of magical power. The strength of gods and demons was far beyond his reach. If the demon king turned hostile, that consciousness and power could kill him without much effort.
Since the demon had use for him, he wouldn't harm him for now. But if he discovered that Qin Mu had no intention of summoning him, he would likely turn hostile and kill him.
"You don't need to summon me. You can summon a few of my ministers."
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian said, "After that, I will leave you, and you can enjoy your freedom. If you help me with this small favor, I will decipher the text on this door for you."
Qin Mu laughed, "My elders probably recognize the text on this door. No need to trouble you, Demon King…"
"Heh heh, recognize it? This is the script of the Netherworld. Even if you recognize it, can you read it?"
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian said leisurely, "The script of the Netherworld is useless if you can't read it. And this scroll—it records the spells of the Netherworld. Don't you want to know?"
Qin Mu's eyes flickered: "I still can't see the text on the scroll or the door clearly. Learning the Netherworld script now would be useless. Besides, not knowing it doesn't affect me much. Demon King, I have no need to trade with you."
"Hahaha!"
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian laughed: "It seems you still haven't truly grasped the real mystery of your current realm! Once you learn the Netherworld script on this door, you will surpass the Yankang National Teacher at this level! Didn't the National Teacher say that others are triangles while he is a straight line? Once you learn the text on the door, your straight line will be longer than his!"
His voice ran around inside Qin Mu's mind, without a fixed location, sometimes sounding in front, sometimes at the back of his head, making it impossible for Qin Mu to pinpoint where he was hiding.
"A lowly creature like you probably doesn't even know what the Netherworld is. Let me tell you what the Netherworld is!"
"The Netherworld is the ultimate destination for all mortals after death. All souls will eventually enter there, the domain of Lord Tu Bo, ruling over the afterlife of all beings in every world!"
"He is a true ancient deity, a primordial god, controlling all death. Even gods and Buddhas will be enslaved by him after death!"
"The Netherworld is not the hell that Buddhas speak of. Hell is used to scare you mortals. The Netherworld is a hundred times more cruel than hell!"
"Mastering the Netherworld script and its spells will strengthen your soul. This is the true path to becoming a god!"①
Qin Mu was greatly tempted and laughed, "Words are cheap. You can talk until the sky falls, but I won't believe you. Teach me one Netherworld spell, and then I'll trust you."
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian chuckled, "You should already know one."
Qin Mu was stunned and exclaimed, "Soul-Pulling Incantation? That's a Netherworld spell?"
"The Soul-Pulling Incantation is not a complete Netherworld spell. It's a reconstruction of a Netherworld spell by mortals of this world using mortal language, far from unleashing the true power of a Netherworld spell."
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian said, "True Netherworld spells use the Netherworld script, which is far more complex than the runes of your world. Your runes are merely simplified versions of the Netherworld script."
Qin Mu's heart trembled as he looked at the phantom scroll in his hand. Was the text on this scroll written in the Netherworld language?
The Soul-Pulling Incantation could bring back the dead. If he could master the Netherworld language and use it to cast spells, how powerful would they become?
Also, the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian hadn't lied when he said that the Netherworld script needed to be spoken aloud, requiring mastery of the language to be used. That day on the Yong River, the Nine Nether Sect Daoist who used the Soul-Pulling Incantation to summon souls had chanted a cryptic song, causing black mist to surge and a terrifying dark door to appear in the river's center.
Many of the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian's words were false, but some were true.
"Demon King, I once saw an old man by the river at night, guiding the dead. Someone told me he was an underworld messenger. What connection does that have with the Netherworld?" Qin Mu recalled something and asked.
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian said, "Just a minor god under Lord Tu Bo, responsible for maintaining order. Do you want to learn the Netherworld language or not?"
"I do!"
Qin Mu blinked and said, "Teach me quickly!"
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian chuckled, "Summon demons—summon my ministers—and I will teach you."
Qin Mu hesitated, "If I summon them and you don't keep your promise, won't I be the one losing out? How about this: I'll make a wooden puppet mechanism. You can inhabit it and summon them yourself. First, teach me the Netherworld language, and then you summon them yourself. Wouldn't that be perfect for everyone?"
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian sneered, "A good idea. But once I leave your body, you can call someone to kill me immediately. Am I that stupid? I'll stay inside your body. You will preside over the summoning ritual! After you summon them, I will teach you the Netherworld language!"
Qin Mu sneered, "What if you don't teach me after I summon your ministers? Your ministers will kill me in an instant, and you'll be free, while I'll be dead and my soul will return to the Netherworld! Don't forget, last time I summoned you, you didn't care whether I lived or died!"
The scene fell silent.
After a moment, the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian laughed, "You little brat, as cunning as a ghost, not easy to fool. How about this: I'll make a pact with you. You summon my ministers, and I'll teach you the Netherworld language. If either of us breaks the oath, Lord Tu Bo himself will come and take the soul of the oath-breaker! What do you think?"
Qin Mu calculated and said, "Agreed! But don't try to fool me. I know some demon language. Don't think you can play tricks with the oath!"
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian laughed, "Filthy little brat, as sharp as a demon. Fine, I'll be generous this time. No tricks."
In Qin Mu's mind, a cryptic and difficult demon language began to sound. The language was so twisted and hard to understand that even Qin Mu could only grasp half of it. The young man's heart pounded wildly: "Calm down, calm down. Don't let this demon king see that I'm only half-fluent…"
Soon after, the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian finished reciting the oath, and a half-formed door slowly appeared in Qin Mu's mind, like half a Netherworld gate.
"Your turn," the Heavenly Demon King of Dutian said.
Qin Mu steadied himself and carefully pondered the meaning of the other half of the demon language he hadn't understood. The demon king grew impatient and urged, "Hurry up, or the Netherworld gate will dissipate!"
Qin Mu sneered, "You're tricking me. I won't make this pact."
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian laughed, "You little bastard, you really do understand some demon language."
The half Netherworld gate dispersed, and the demon language sounded again. This time, Qin Mu understood about seventy or eighty percent, but there were still some words he couldn't be sure of, so he continued to ponder.
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian laughed, "Alright, alright, you've got some skill." He dispersed this half Netherworld gate as well and re-established the oath in demon language.
Qin Mu suddenly laughed, "Demon King, you always try to cheat. How about we make the pact in human language?"
The Heavenly Demon King of Dutian was silent for a moment, then cursed, "Cunning as a ghost! You little brat, you only half-understand demon language, and you're using this chance to learn it, aren't you?"
Note ①: The Netherworld and Lord Tu Bo originate from pre-Qin mythology, extremely ancient, with origins tracing back to primitive society. They predate the hell system by many years and are among the oldest and most primitive deities. Some records of the Netherworld and Lord Tu Bo can be found in Qu Yuan's "Summoning the Soul."
Also, I'd like to ask knowledgeable readers to recommend a few books on pre-Qin mythology research, preferably textual research works. No need for the Classic of Mountains and Seas. Thank you, everyone.