Chapter 312: The Earth Star Lord
Qin Mu’s thoughts were a tangled mess.
Qin Hanzhen? Qin Fengqing?
The genealogy he had obtained in the study recorded the figures of the Kaihuang bloodline. The last page of that genealogy read: “The one hundred and seventh generation is called Hanzhen’s son, Fengqing.”
Qin Fengqing was the son of Qin Hanzhen.
So, what exactly did that strange thing descending from the tree mean?
Who was she calling Qin Hanzhen?
And who was this Qin Fengqing she spoke of?
Qin Mu’s body trembled, his face drained of all color. He was Qin Fengqing, and the being within the tree was Qin Hanzhen!
The last person recorded in the Kaihuang Qin clan’s genealogy was him, and this being in the tree was his father!
Was this person fused with the ancient tree his father? Was this the loved one he had yearned for day and night?
His closest kin!
How had it come to this?
Qin Mu kept telling himself to stay calm. Grandpa Ma had once told him that no matter what he faced, he must remain unshaken even if the heavens collapsed. As long as reason remained, even in the face of world-ending calamity or certain death, he could find a sliver of hope.
Cripple had also told him to always keep a smile, to stay optimistic—not just to deceive enemies, but also to keep his own heart in the light. Even if a leg were cut off, he should show the most honest grin; only then would there be a chance to escape.
Granny Si had also taught him that even if darkness and demons lurked in his heart, he had to be strong. If he fell apart, everything would be lost.
But now, even knowing the danger was right before him, Qin Mu could not calm down.
His father—the closest kin he had never met—had become this. He could not do what Grandpa Ma, Cripple, and Granny Si had said.
Qin Mu struggled to steady his mind, forcing himself not to think about the being in the tree, not to care about him, suppressing the trembling of his body.
Suddenly, he felt a sting in his palms. Without realizing it, he had clenched his fists so tightly that his nails had dug deep into his flesh, and blood dripped down along the lines of his palms.
Qin Mu looked up at the mysterious being descending from the tree.
The thing coming down from the tree was half-snake, half-human, enormous in size. Though its lower half was a snake, it had no scales. Its upper half was the form of a woman—a beautiful, alluring woman—yet the voice it emitted was that of a man.
Wherever it slithered, sticky mucus dripped, much like Qin Mu’s appearance when he transformed into the Earth Star Lord form. But the difference was that her Earth Star Lord form was more primitive.
Behind her neck grew something like fleshy membranes. When she spoke, these membranes spread open like two fans inserted on either side of her neck, rising above her head, vibrating constantly to produce sound.
She seemed unable to speak with her mouth, relying instead on the membranes behind her neck to vibrate and form words, giving her voice a strange, harsh quality.
Those membranes were likely her vocal cords. At their tips grew bone spurs over two feet long, like javelins. When opened, the membranes displayed two black, eyeball-like patterns, like eerie eyes staring at you.
As far as Qin Mu knew, there were two forms of the Earth Star Lord. One was a simple Earth Star Lord form without the Gate of Bearing Heaven or the scripture scroll in hand. The other was like Qin Mu’s, with the Gate of Bearing Heaven behind him and a scroll in his hands.
But the strange creature before him had a more primitive form, as if it were not cultivated but born this way.
This was a being from the Nether Realm, possibly even a god!
She was not the same person as the owner of those two eyes spaced two hundred and sixty-four zhang apart.
“We had an agreement, Qin Hanzhen.”
She slithered to the base of the tree, coiled around the ancient trunk, and pressed her enchanting face against the face of the being in the tree, cheek to cheek. The membranes behind her head vibrated, producing sound as she laughed: “You and I made a pact under the Earth Lord. Once you found your son named Fengqing, you would let go of everything and follow me to the Nether Realm, revealing the location of Carefree Village. Now that you’ve found your son and your wish is fulfilled, it’s time to keep your promise.”
The being in the tree remained motionless, his gaze still fixed on Qin Mu. His flesh had turned to wood, and his eyes could no longer clearly see the person before him. Tears fell from those half-wooden eyes.
The strange creature’s long body coiled around the ancient tree for a full loop, then left the tree being, slithering leisurely. Her voice drifted through the branches, elusive and uncertain: “Back then, you broke into the Nether Realm, shattered the sealing barrier, and were on the verge of death. You fused with this divine tree, clinging to life, just to see your son one last time. So you did everything you could to preserve your life. I came here and stayed with you. You promised me that once you saw your son, you would let go of everything—your life, Carefree Village—all of it. You were willing to offer your soul to the Earth Lord and reveal Carefree Village’s location. I agreed and spared your life.”
Her face suddenly dropped from the divine tree, hanging right in front of Qin Mu. Her massive body slowly turned, coiling around him once. The membranes vibrated, producing a strange laugh: “Could it be that now that you’ve seen your son, you want to go back on your word? Do you want to see your son die before your eyes? Hehehe, what a delicious, youthful life. He’s only sixteen, right? He must be tender and juicy to eat…”
Cold sweat broke out on Qin Mu’s forehead. Suddenly, he activated the Tyrant Body Three Dan Art, channeling the Earth Star Lord Earth Marquis True Art, and transformed into the Earth Star Lord form. His voice hoarse, he said, “Senior, I am also…”
“Also in the Earth Star Lord form?”
The strange Nether Realm creature suddenly unfurled her snake body, swishing away from Qin Mu’s side and landing on the ground, though her long tail was still coiled around the tree, not fully descended.
She looked down from above at the tiny youth before her, a playful smile on her face: “Poor little thing. The little tricks you play are so laughable and childish before me. Don’t you know? The Earth Star Lord form is actually an imitation of me. I am…”
“The Earth Star Lord!”
She leaned down, bringing her face close to Qin Mu’s, hoping to see panic, unease, and the despair of shattered beliefs on this boy’s face.
Qin Mu struggled to stay calm, but she still saw the fear deep in his heart.
The Earth Star Lord raised her head in satisfaction, laughing: “What an amusing little person, trying so hard to act like an adult, yet revealing ignorance and cuteness. When you boarded the ship, didn’t you say a phrase in the Nether Realm language? That’s the only one you know, right? That phrase was ‘Gate of Bearing Heaven.’ You didn’t really think that hearing that would make me retreat and let you board the ship, did you?”
Qin Mu suppressed the trembling of his body. Before a deity like the Earth Star Lord, all his schemes were utterly useless!
Indeed, as she said, he had always been trying hard to act like an adult, to be someone who could shoulder everything. He learned from the villagers’ behavior, from how they did things, but at his core, he was still a big boy.
Before the Earth Star Lord, his efforts, his learning, his maturity—how laughable they were.
“Since you’re trying so hard to act like an adult, I won’t make things difficult for you.”
The Earth Star Lord returned to the tree, her snake tail coiling around the divine tree like a woman embracing her beloved man. The membranes behind her head opened, vibrating as she laughed: “Qin Hanzhen, you and your son should be happy to meet, so why do I sense such sorrow from you? Ah, I see—because from now on, you’ll be separated forever, one alive, one dead. Hehehe, you don’t have to be so sad…”
She slithered before the being in the tree, looking up at him, twisting her snake-like body as she passed by his face, speaking leisurely: “Reveal the location of Carefree Village, and then your child, your family, and your clan can all go to the Nether Realm to keep you company. How amusing—pitiful humans who dare to make deals with gods, thinking they can gain an advantage, only to lose everything, down to the last bit. And all I used as a bargaining chip was your life.”
She came to the right side of the tree being, unable to help laughing, laughing very happily. Her face pressed against the tree being’s ear, she said: “I traded your life for the lives of everyone in Carefree Village, including your son’s. And what you got was just one chance to see your son. How foolish mortals are—even when wielding the power of gods and demons, they’re still swayed by their own stupid thoughts, never reaching the divine state of mind. And because you have the Earth Lord’s pact, you can’t break your promise.”
The being in the tree calmed down. He opened his mouth, but his tongue had turned to wood, unable to make a sound.
The Earth Star Lord laughed: “What do you want to say?”
The tree being opened his mouth again, but still no words came out.
The Earth Star Lord leaned in, trying to hear more clearly, curious: “What exactly do you want to say?”
Still, the tree being could not speak.
Suddenly, Qin Mu’s heart calmed. He said, “Star Lord, a father and son share a bond. I think I can understand what he intends to say.”
The Earth Star Lord glanced at him: “He can’t make any sound at all. You can hear him?”
Qin Mu replied: “Our lives are both in your hands, Star Lord. Are you afraid we might pull some trick?”
The Earth Star Lord gave him a deep look, then sneered: “You can’t pull any tricks. Come here and see what he wants to say.”
Qin Mu stepped forward, approached the being in the tree, and tilted his head to listen. After a moment, he said: “He says his eyes can’t see, can’t make out my face, so he hasn’t truly seen me. Therefore, the Earth Lord’s pact hasn’t taken effect yet.”
The Earth Star Lord was surprised, then laughed: “Interesting. I didn’t expect you two to truly be of one mind. That does make things a bit tricky. He used a forbidden technique to fuse with the divine tree, called ‘Dead Wood Springs to Life,’ a life-borrowing forbidden art. But the backlash is severe. It doesn’t just link lives—it also fuses bodies. Your father fought those gods, exhausting them to death, but also exhausting himself. He had to use the forbidden art to prolong his life. Now, only his face hasn’t fully turned to wood. Reversing this process is difficult, but not for me. After all, I come from the Nether Realm and control life and death…”
The membranes behind her head opened, revealing the eye-like patterns. Two beams of light shot from those patterns, one left and one right, injecting into the being in the tree. Gradually, the wood on his surface began to peel away. The skin on his neck showed the texture of flesh again, no longer tree bark.
—The second update will be around 8:10!