Chapter 527: Battlefield Divine Ability
"How could the Woodcutter Sage appear here? The altar he's using seems to have been prepared in advance—was he summoned here by someone from this world?"
Qin Mu's mind roared. The altar was buried in the center of the battlefield. The moment the two armies clashed, countless flesh and blood would trigger the altar, summoning the Woodcutter Sage over.
This was clearly premeditated!
He recalled the Clear Serene Mountain Man saying that the Woodcutter Sage had awakened over a month ago, taking up his great axe and leaving. The Woodcutter Sage had evidently received some news, which was why he had roused from his slumber, preparing to descend into this world through a sacrifice.
Qin Mu blocked his opponent's attacks as the Gate of Bearing Heaven behind him suddenly expanded. He spun around, sweeping the Gate of Bearing Heaven in a full circle. The many Heavenly Demon soldiers charging at him didn't even have time to grunt before their souls were sent straight to the Netherworld!
Whoosh—
The tiger god carrying the Woodcutter Sage leaped down from the altar, charging straight toward the enemy camp. The tiger god turned its head, glancing at Qin Mu in surprise, and a thunderous voice rang out: "Master, that person looks like your junior!"
On the tiger's back, the Woodcutter Sage turned his head, looking at Qin Mu, who was locked in battle with the surging Heavenly Demon soldiers before the Gate of Bearing Heaven. His gaze was piercingly bright, illuminating the entire area around the altar.
"Strange... how did he get to the Grand Heavenly Emperor's realm..."
The Woodcutter Sage withdrew his gaze. Wherever the tiger god passed, men and horses were thrown into chaos. The tiger god roared, unleashing rings of sonic waves that sent countless demons flying into the air.
In the midst of his haste, Qin Mu caught sight of this scene, and the image of the Dragon Qilin's portly figure suddenly flashed through his mind. He couldn't help but feel immense envy for the Woodcutter Sage: "That tiger god calls him master—it must be his mount. Truly majestic and fierce!"
On the tiger's back, the Woodcutter Sage swung his great axe, cleaving through the divine abilities of attacking demon gods. With a few bounds, the tiger god carried him straight into the heart of the enemy camp.
From the tiger god leaping off the altar to reaching the enemy camp, it was only a matter of breaths.
The Woodcutter Sage raised his great axe, and with a single swing, a four-headed demon god, who hadn't even had time to rise, had all four massive heads flying off its neck.
"Hatira!"
Demon gods from all sides charged in, circling the tiger god in a whirlwind of slaughter. The Woodcutter Sage sat on the tiger god's back, swinging his great axe as axe-light surged like tidal waves.
"The Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Sutra! No, what he's executing should be the complete version of the Dominator Body Three Dan Art!"
Qin Mu was forced back by the advancing Heavenly Demon soldiers, retreating toward the altar. Catching this scene in his haste, his heart stirred: "His comprehension of the Dominator Body Three Dan Art far surpasses mine!"
The Woodcutter Sage wasn't just swinging his axe; his other hand was unleashing various divine abilities from the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Sutra. But these weren't individual abilities from the sutra—they were combinations of different techniques, much like Li Tianxing's Grand Heavenly Star Palm Force, fusing hundreds of abilities into one.
To others, his abilities wouldn't be recognizable as the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Sutra, but Qin Mu, as the Heavenly Demon Sect Leader, immediately identified them.
Around the Woodcutter Sage, various strange force fields erupted, sending demon gods flying. The moment they were flung into the air, the great axe would strike, severing heads midair. His combat prowess was terrifying to the extreme.
Qin Mu wanted to study his abilities closely, but more and more Heavenly Demon soldiers surged in. The Woodcutter Sage, summoned here, only targeted the enemy leaders, cutting down demon gods in their camp while ignoring the rest of the demon army. Countless demons still flooded the battlefield like a tide, charging at the enemy.
Now, even more Heavenly Demon soldiers pressed in, while the divine ability practitioners of this world behind the altar pushed forward, their war cries and clashes shaking heaven and earth.
In such a large-scale battle of divine ability practitioners, individual strength was almost negligible. If he got distracted, he could be buried under an enemy attack at any moment.
Qin Mu had no time to dwell on it. He had to cast aside all thoughts and fight with all his might.
The Heavenly Demon soldiers were exceptionally strong. Their techniques and divine abilities were vastly different from those of the Eternal Peace Kingdom. While they might lack in the finesse of their moves, they excelled in raw magical power, and their combat prowess was extraordinary.
The Heavenly Demon soldiers' physiques differed from humans. The Eight Tribes of Heavenly Demons included fish-scaled, frog-webbed beings, lava giants, handsome youths, ugly hags, scorpion-tailed women, eight-armed women, eight-tentacled freaks, and snake-handed monsters. These demons had high bloodlines, born as fighting machines with immense strength. Those surrounding Qin Mu were the elite, each nearly his equal.
More and more Heavenly Demon soldiers reached the altar, over a dozen of them. Recognizing the eerie nature of the Gate of Bearing Heaven behind him, they avoided it and attacked him together.
Qin Mu fought back desperately. His Eight Thousand Swords darted back and forth, a torrent of sword-light surging. Suddenly, all the flying swords scattered like locusts, and in an instant, mountains and rivers materialized, forming Sword-Laden Landscape.
On the altar, mountain ranges stretched, waterfalls cascaded, and rivers surged. The horrific slaughter of moments ago vanished into thin air.
But the next moment, blood flowed from the landscape painting, dyeing the mountains and rivers red.
Then the landscape shattered. A lava giant leaped up from the broken scene, swinging a massive hammer down at Qin Mu.
Qin Mu retreated, raising both hands. The Carefree Sword flew to him, and the other eight thousand swords clinked against it, merging into it in the blink of an eye.
The lava giant's hammer came down, and a terrifying shockwave blasted outward, sweeping countless corpses from around the altar into the air.
Qin Mu gripped the sword with both hands and slashed down. The lava giant spun his hammer with lightning speed. With a sharp clang, Qin Mu's body shuddered violently, sent flying into the air. But the spinning lava giant was suddenly cleaved in two, hammer and all!
Before Qin Mu could land, an eight-armed woman spread her limbs, and the corpses in the air exploded with a series of bangs. Blood gathered in the air into a torrent, engulfing Qin Mu.
Qin Mu swung his sword. The Carefree Sword split apart, and the eight thousand swords clinked together, reforming into two long blades. The blades crossed, and sword-light erupted like a bright moon hanging in the sky.
Moonlight and blade-light merged, then burst forth. Beams of light shot out like shooting stars.
Whoosh—
The blood river parted. The eight-armed woman saw the starlight within the moonlight and moved all eight arms frantically, striking at the beams. A rapid series of clangs rang out as the moonlight and starlight pierced through her body, tearing her apart.
The sixth form of the Butcher's Pig-Slaughtering Blade Art: Long Blade Hangs Moon Soul, Swift Horse Startles Star Essence.
Qin Mu released his grip. The two long blades flew up, splitting into countless flying swords that spun around him, blocking thousands of incoming demon blades.
He struck out with a seal with his backhand. The demon sword expert charging at him grunted and exploded.
Boom, boom, boom! Thunder roared, blasting for over ten miles. Wherever Qin Mu's Yin-Yang Heaven-Overturning Hand passed, men and horses were thrown into chaos.
He struck out with a seal with his front hand, freezing over ten miles. Then, tapping his brow with his index finger, the flying swords spun forward along the path cleared by the Yin-Yang Heaven-Overturning Hand, carving a river of blood!
Sword-Winding Form!
Suddenly, two massive pythons coiled around his body, spinning wildly. A snake woman flew through the air, her arms transformed into snakes, binding him tightly.
Qin Mu looked up, and two beams of light shot from his eyes. The snake woman's chest was blasted open, and she was pinned in midair, but her snake arms still carried him aloft.
Below, an ugly hag slapped the gourd at her waist. The gourd's mouth opened, and with a whoosh, a stream of bloody demonic energy shot out, heading straight for Qin Mu in the air.
"True Dragon Dominator Body!"
Qin Mu roared, snapping the snake arms and striking out with a seal. Behind him, a volcano mirage suddenly appeared—a massive volcano towering, then erupting!
Magnetic Fire Palm!
He slapped down, and the bloody demonic energy burst into flames, burning the ugly hag to ashes along with it.
"Excellent divine ability! Among the Seven Star realm practitioners I've seen, you rank in the top ten!"
A harsh voice rang out. Qin Mu's heart jolted as he looked down. A Heavenly Demon general had reached the altar and was looking up at him.
The general had a row of banners on his back. He shook his body, revealing four heads and eight arms, wielding long blades. Four blades crossed as his footwork shifted unpredictably, cutting down all the divine ability practitioners who had charged onto the altar.
"Soul Projection!"
The general smacked his forehead with the back of his blade. A soul over ten zhang tall leaped out of his body, roaring at the sky. It raised a hand and struck a seal at Qin Mu. The hand seal was half an acre in size, its lines twisting, displaying various demonic patterns that flickered on and off.
Demonic patterns danced in the air. Before they even reached Qin Mu, chains of demonic runes materialized around him, binding him.
The power of this strike was something he absolutely couldn't withstand!
The Carefree Sword and other flying swords were on their way, but they were too far to save him.
Just then, Qin Mu saw the Woodcutter Sage in the distant enemy camp. The sage curled his five fingers, fusing various divine abilities from the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Sutra into one, unleashing their power to shatter a demon god. Inspiration struck, and Qin Mu curled his five fingers in the same way.
His Dominator Body Three Dan Art began to circulate in a wondrous rhythm. His spirit and soul merged, the Five Luminaries blazed, the Six Harmonies unified, the Seven Stars hung in the sky, and the Sun and Moon revolved.
Snap, snap, snap! A surging, immense force erupted from within Qin Mu, snapping the demonic rune chains around him. He raised his hand to meet the Heavenly Demon general's soul's ferocious palm strike.
Qin Mu grunted, his body launching high into the air, hurtling upward. But above him was a chaos of divine abilities from gods and demons, the power of divine weapons and demonic weapons running rampant. If he flew up there, he would surely die without a burial place!
Countless runes swirled around him, wrapping him in a clattering spin. Just as he was about to crash into the forbidden sky zone, his figure vanished.
Thud—
He landed over ten miles away. The terrifying force from the Heavenly Demon general's soul's palm strike still sent him tumbling and rolling, knocking over groups of charging divine ability practitioners.
Qin Mu rolled dozens of times before finally stabilizing himself.
Countless practitioners surged past him, raising their spirit weapons mid-charge. The weapons rained down from the air, stabbing into the ground ahead, covering the earth. Countless demons perished beneath the blades and swords.
"I'm still alive?"
Qin Mu quickly felt himself over. Though he was covered in wounds, the seemingly fatal strike from the Heavenly Demon general hadn't done serious damage. He was both shocked and delighted.
"That move from the Woodcutter Sage was incredibly powerful! Did he know I was in danger and deliberately use it so I could learn it and counter a lethal situation?"
He reached out and grasped the air. The Carefree Sword, along with the other flying swords, whistled back, condensing into a sword pellet in his palm.
Suddenly, a crisp voice came from behind him: "I think I've seen you before!"
Qin Mu turned around. A towering deity stood behind him. On the deity's shoulder, a girl with two long braids tilted her head, studying him.
—A note: The "Mu Shen Ji" paper box on Weibo is a collaboration between Yuewen and Shu Jie Paper, a peripheral product. Hope you like it.