Chapter 413: Startling the World with Change
The capital, National Teacher's residence.
Old Fu hurried in to report: "Master, His Majesty is here!"
Yankang National Teacher rose to welcome him. The two titans of Yankang gathered together, with Ling Yuxiu also following beside them. Yanfeng Emperor cast a deep glance at the National Teacher, who understood and waved for Old Fu to withdraw.
"Your Majesty has just arrived in the capital and came straight to me without even entering the palace. Something major must have happened."
The National Teacher's expression showed inquiry, his gaze falling on Ling Yuxiu. "Only the three of us are here. Your Majesty may speak freely."
"Did the National Teacher sense it?"
Yanfeng Emperor said: "The fluctuation in heaven and earth five days ago."
The National Teacher nodded. "A very peculiar fluctuation. The laws changed, the Dao altered. There was a mutation in the great Dao of heaven and earth—someone was reforming the laws. It gave me a great shock."
Yanfeng Emperor took out the male and female volumes of the Primordial Spirit Guide and handed them to him. "National Teacher, take a look."
The National Teacher carefully flipped through them, his expression growing increasingly grave. After a long while, he closed the Primordial Spirit Guide and said: "The handwriting belongs to the Princess and Cult Leader Qin. The Six Harmonies reform has altered the Seven Stars, Heaven and Man, Life and Death, and Divine Bridge. No wonder there was such a commotion. Princess Xiu has done remarkably well. Her future achievements will not be beneath yours or mine."
He was exceptionally intelligent and, without Yanfeng Emperor needing to explain, understood that Qin Mu and Ling Yuxiu were behind it, and also guessed what consequences the appearance of this Primordial Spirit Guide technique would bring.
Yanfeng Emperor nodded. "The source of the reform is these two volumes. I came to see you without stopping because the situation is serious. The current impact is still very slight—only grand masters who enter the Dao through techniques can detect it. But for beings who enter the Dao through laws, the impact is far greater. You just said it gave you a great shock. It seems you have already entered the Dao ahead of me."
The National Teacher said: "I have only entered the Dao for a short time, and it is still unclear. But that fluctuation surged like waves from all directions, and I stood amidst the waves, feeling the subtle changes in the great Dao of heaven and earth."
Yanfeng Emperor savored the meaning in his words and praised: "The Dao realm is truly wondrous. If the impact on you is already this great, then what about the impact on deities?"
"It will only be greater!"
A gleam of unreadable meaning flashed in the National Teacher's eyes. "Your Majesty has been away from the capital these past few days, and memorials from all over have been flying in like snowflakes. Please take a look."
He took out dozens of memorials from county magistrates and prefectural governors across the land.
Yanfeng Emperor opened them to read. The magistrate of Qining County reported that an earthquake had occurred at the Qiyue Grandmother Temple in Qining County, with no tremors felt elsewhere. Only the Grandmother Temple had collapsed, crushing over a dozen worshippers to death.
When the magistrate and his officers cleared the rubble, they saw the mountain temple had split open, revealing a large crack. Inside the crack was a giant divine statue, half its body exposed, faintly showing flesh-like colors, with runic light flowing all over it.
Yanfeng Emperor frowned slightly, thought for a moment, handed this memorial to Ling Yuxiu, and picked up another.
This memorial was from the governor of Quzhou Prefecture, reporting strange events at the Great Qu Lake. At midnight, strange light shot into the sky from the lake, filling its surface. A massive object rose from the lake, its eyes like lanterns, claiming to be the Qu Lake Lord, demanding that people on the shore offer young boys and girls as food. The governor ordered officers to investigate the lake, and several cultivators had already died.
Yanfeng Emperor's brows knitted tightly. He opened other memorials, all reporting strange occurrences in various prefectures and counties. Some temples had split open, revealing ancient divine statues that had toppled the originally enshrined ones. Some rivers and lakes had shaken, with divine statues appearing at the bottom, either motionless or speaking, demanding offerings from local residents—very peculiar.
Other places saw repeated strange lights, revealing odd treasures that no one could take away.
"Our Yankang has no such deities."
Ling Yuxiu read through the memorials, set them down, and pondered: "Where did these divine stone statues come from? They absolutely could not have crawled out from underground. Some of the treasures mentioned in these memorials do not seem like ancient relics; they look like divine artifacts."
"They did not come from underground."
Yanfeng Emperor said: "If they had originally existed underground, they would have been discovered long ago. These stone statues and treasures should have come from another world."
"It should be more than one world."
The National Teacher said in a deep voice: "Similar stone statues exist in the Great Ruins. There are rumors that the stone statues are the fossilized bodies of deities, sleeping deities waiting for an opportunity to transform into their true forms. If these stone statues in Yankang come from other worlds, then their timing is very strange."
"The Princess and Cult Leader Qin created the Primordial Spirit Guide, causing a mutation in the great Dao of heaven and earth, and then many stone statues and strange treasures appeared across the country. There must be a connection."
Yanfeng Emperor said: "National Teacher, the origin and purpose of these stone statues must be investigated."
The National Teacher said calmly: "I recall the incident two years ago when the Heavenly Demon of Dutian descended. Back then, the Heavenly Demon of Dutian descended through Cult Leader Qin's sacrifice. An altar was needed to summon him from another world. Moreover, only a sliver of his consciousness and a portion of his power appeared in Yankang. His true body required more death and more blood sacrifices to descend into Yankang."
Yanfeng Emperor and Ling Yuxiu listened quietly without interrupting. What the National Teacher was about to say was extremely important and demanded their full attention.
"This shows that crossing different worlds requires enormous energy. The stronger the being, the more energy needed to cross into another world."
The National Teacher continued: "Now that the great Dao of heaven and earth has changed again, these divine stone statues have descended, but they have only sent their stone bodies. Their power cannot yet cross over. They still need countless blood sacrifices before their true bodies can descend."
Yanfeng Emperor and Ling Yuxiu's hearts stirred. A terrible thought suddenly arose, and the National Teacher voiced it for them: "They need a great disaster that causes mass death among the common people before their true bodies can descend into Yankang!"
Yanfeng Emperor and Ling Yuxiu shuddered.
The last disaster had already claimed countless lives, and Yankang's vitality had yet to recover. If another disaster struck, it would surely mean the destruction of the nation and untold suffering!
"Based on my speculation, it won't be long before the gods of the High Heavens receive word and come to Yankang to bring down calamity."
The National Teacher said solemnly: "This disaster will be no less than the last snow calamity. It could be an earthquake, a volcanic eruption, a tornado, a great flood, or another snow or drought disaster. Anything that can kill tens of millions or hundreds of millions of common people is possible!"
Yanfeng Emperor's voice turned hoarse: "You mean..."
"Destroy the High Heavens."
The National Teacher said flatly: "We need to destroy the gods of the High Heavens and prevent them from bringing down calamity. If my guess is correct, the gods and demons responsible for disasters in this world are the High Heavens. Eliminate the High Heavens, and the stone statues across the country cannot transform into gods and demons, sparing the common people from death. We must strike first and eradicate all the deities in the High Heavens!"
Yanfeng Emperor felt a splitting headache. He held his forehead and gritted his teeth: "The High Heavens are in the Western Lands. Who knows how many gods and demons are inside? Where do we have the strength to destroy the High Heavens? If we could wait a few more years, many experts could cross the Divine Bridge and achieve the divine realm..."
The National Teacher's expression remained calm: "Your Majesty, they will not give you that time. If my guess is correct, the treasures mentioned in these memorials are likely weather weapons!"
Yanfeng Emperor and Ling Yuxiu shuddered.
Weather weapons—a concept proposed by Qin Mu—used natural phenomena as weapons, such as rain, snow, wind, hail, tornadoes, floods, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes. These phenomena could be collected in gourds and used in peacetime to ensure favorable weather.
If attacking an enemy country, weather weapons could even be deployed to annihilate enemy forces.
Last time, when the National Teacher attacked the grasslands, Banzongcuo ordered the great shamans to spread poison everywhere, covering the grasslands with witch toxins. The National Teacher wanted to eliminate the toxins and save the grassland herders, so he used weather weapons to bring rain for ten days, diluting, washing away, and flushing out the toxins.
However, many grassland herders had also drowned in the rain and flash floods, causing many deaths. The National Teacher was subsequently impeached and attacked by the purists, stirring up a lot of trouble.
If the National Teacher's guess was correct, these unearthed divine artifacts were all weather weapons. Once the gods of the High Heavens arrived, they could activate these treasures' power, unleashing various natural disasters that would cause countless casualties among Yankang's people!
With so many dead, the stone statues would receive ample blood sacrifices, allowing divine power to pour in like a river, transforming the statues into gods and demons that would slaughter everything and destroy this world!
"I will immediately order troops to guard these stone statues and treasures with strict security. They must not fall into the hands of the High Heavens!"
Yanfeng Emperor broke out in a cold sweat, pacing back and forth, his voice hoarse: "They must never find them... Why do this? Why can't they just let the people of this world live a little better, a little easier? I don't understand!"
"Reform touches the interests of gods and demons. Reform changes the Dao. If the Dao changes and the gods and demons cannot adapt, they will no longer be accommodated by the Dao."
The National Teacher said: "There must be deeper reasons, but we have too little information to analyze the truth. Your Majesty, I need the Human Sovereign to step forward personally."
Yanfeng Emperor looked at him.
The National Teacher gazed into the distance, murmuring: "Only with the Human Sovereign personally stepping forward can all the sacred lands and all the strong be mobilized to destroy the High Heavens! Only the Human Sovereign, revered by all sects and schools, can make them follow wholeheartedly!"
Ling Yuxiu's mind went blank. The current Human Sovereign—wasn't that Qin Mu?
Wasn't the Human Sovereign Seal in Qin Mu's hands?
That meant Qin Mu would also have to go and attack the High Heavens!
"I will go see the Human Sovereign!" The National Teacher rose and left.
Meanwhile, at the mountain villa, Qin Mu was accompanying Si Yunxiang in cultivating their primordial spirits. Their spirits roamed the world and came to a place where suddenly mountains crumbled and the earth split. A beautiful peak, somewhere unknown, was suddenly forced open, and a giant stone statue slowly rose from within the mountain.
"What is this? Is this the Great Ruins?"
The two were startled. Suddenly, they smelled a fragrance, and their hearts shook: "We just lit the Soul-returning Incense to come out and play. It can't have burned out so quickly. Someone must have blown the incense all the way to the end!"
Their primordial spirits were rapidly summoned back by the incense, returning to their physical bodies. Qin Mu opened his eyes and saw that Village Chief, Butcher, Mute, and the others were all there, and even Horse Master had arrived!
Happy 2018, 2017 Summary
Brothers, it's 2018 now, another year older. Wishing everyone a happy 2018!
Since "The Legend of the Shepherd God" was uploaded on June 20th, half a year has passed—194 days, 1.3 million words.
Zhaizhu finished "The Human Dao Supreme" on March 20th, rested for three months, and then started this book. Thanks to the love of my readers, "The Legend of the Shepherd God" has done quite well. I'm grateful for your long-term companionship and support, which made its success possible.
I'm not used to calling readers "fans"; I prefer to call you "book friends"—friends who read. Writing is a very tiring job, mentally and physically draining. But every time I see your comments, jokes, bug reports, and plot speculations in the chapter discussions after a new chapter comes out, I feel truly satisfied.
I really like you all. The book friends in the chapter discussions are all talented, and they speak well.
Writing is something I must do; I'll be writing for the rest of my life. I can't do business. Only this kind of thing can sustain my livelihood and bring me joy...
Oh, and I need to talk to you about the December burst of updates.
December had a lot going on. Both of Zhaizhu's parents were hospitalized. They're both old and like to listen to folk remedies instead of their children. My dad had hernias on his legs—two big lumps. He listened to a TV quack doctor, soaked medicinal wine, and drank it, making them bigger. This month, he had surgery to remove them.
He was discharged a few days ago. The doctor said he can walk, but slowly, and can't carry anything. He needs three months of rest.
My mom's situation is even more frustrating. She has the three highs—high blood lipids, high blood pressure, high blood sugar—and a bad stomach. Again, a TV quack doctor told her to eat aloe vera paste to help with bowel movements. She did it for over a year.
Zhaizhu hospitalized her for a few days too. Her intestines had turned black from eating it. You don't know—this kind of thing drains all my strength. I've told them countless times, but they never listen, only to those liars, making their bodies worse and worse.
In December, there were also several interview drafts. The longest one was 8,000 words, plus several phone interviews. You might have noticed that updates were sometimes off schedule, delayed by the interviews.
These days, Zhaizhu's stomach has also been bad. I don't eat on time. I'm still dragging one draft, with a headache.
On January 4th, I have to go to Changsha for recording, and again on the 18th. I need to save up drafts, buy decent clothes at the mall, prepare for facing the camera and conversations. When all these things pile up at once, you know the feeling, right?
I'm going crazy!
Zhaizhu is going crazy!
Oh my god, there's a flu outbreak in Xuzhou. The whole family is sick. Both elderly parents, who just had surgery, are also sick with the flu. Only I dare not get sick. I force down several liters of hot water every day.
Headache.
Yeah.
Zhaizhu knows double monthly votes are here—the last three days of the month with double votes. I want to ask for monthly votes, but every time I upload a chapter, I forget to ask you all. In these three days, I uploaded six chapters and forgot six times.
Too many things. I almost collapsed under the pressure.
Today, Brother Chuanchuang called me while I was eating. He said I should ask for monthly votes and compete for the rankings next year.
New year, first day, asking for monthly votes. This time, I remember.
I beg you!
Thank you, Chuanchuang. Thank you, everyone.