Chapter 549: Human Words, Ghost Words, and Demon Words (Third Update!)
The sky was like a burning scroll, with Bound Sun Luo at its center, spreading outward in all directions. Where it burned, it turned to ash. Soon, nearly half the sky was consumed, reaching the top of Qin Mu’s head, and then the entire sky of the world he was in was burned away.
The demon world vanished, and another world appeared before his eyes.
Qin Mu did not look at Bound Sun Luo approaching from ahead. Instead, he looked around. Here, towers rose like a forest, pitch-black spires standing amidst a vast gray mist. Countless demons, like industrious worker ants, bustled about, crafting massive siege engines and war machines, while others practiced combat and slaughter.
Only when he saw a dim, dying sun hanging in the eastern sky did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
He was still in Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm. The demon world that Bound Sun Luo had shown him was truly terrifying, and he had no desire to stay in that world of destruction.
The sun in Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm was a man-made divine sun, its light not particularly intense, unable to dispel the demonic energy of the demon territory. The faint rays that fell on Qin Mu were cold, devoid of any warmth.
The world Bound Sun Luo had just revealed was indeed nothing more than an illusion.
“Senior Bound Sun Luo went to great lengths to bring me here. Surely it wasn’t just to show me the suffering history of your demon race?”
Qin Mu withdrew his gaze and said in a deep voice, “You should know that your suffering history has nothing to do with me. But when you invade Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm and impose that suffering on the human race, then it does concern me.”
Bound Sun Luo came to his side and said slowly, “Young friend Qin, are you so certain that you are definitely human?”
Qin Mu’s eyes flickered. “Senior Bound Sun Luo, what are you trying to say? Feel free to speak plainly.”
“You are a demon.”
One of Bound Sun Luo’s faces turned directly toward him, and that face spoke: “And a very high-ranking demon at that! Perhaps even of higher bloodline than me!”
Qin Mu was stunned for a moment, then pointed at him and burst into laughter, laughing so hard he could barely breathe.
Bound Sun Luo remained expressionless, quietly waiting for him to finish laughing, until Qin Mu could laugh no more. Then he said slowly, “Has no one ever told you that you are a demon?”
Qin Mu straightened up, took a deep breath, and said with a smile, “They have. When I was young, I encountered a sealed demon god in the Central Suppression Palace of the Great Ruins. He told me I was a demon. But he was trying to trick me into falling for his trap, wanting to seize my body to escape his imprisonment. I saw through him. I managed to trick two and a half demon clan techniques out of him. That demon god wanted to deceive me for my physical body. Senior Bound Sun Luo, what are you trying to trick me out of?”
Bound Sun Luo stepped forward and walked on, his neck turning so that the back of his head moved to the left side. He said, “I don’t want to trick you out of anything. Although half of every ten words we demons speak are false, the other half are true. That demon god who wanted to seize your body told you that you were a demon. That statement was meant to gain your trust, so it was true.”
Suddenly, Qin Mu seemed to melt, his body transforming into a shadow that skimmed across the ground.
He moved with incredible speed, and in an instant, the shadow had traveled over a hundred miles.
Qin Mu breathed a sigh of relief and materialized from his shadow state, only to hear Bound Sun Luo’s voice coming from nearby: “You might still be a bit skeptical. But don’t you feel that when you use demon clan techniques, your primordial energy flows so smoothly, without any obstruction?”
Qin Mu froze, realizing that he was still the same distance from Bound Sun Luo, only now he was on Bound Sun Luo’s left side, whereas before he had been behind him.
Bound Sun Luo laughed. “The reason you can so easily learn demon clan divine abilities and use them without hindrance is precisely because you are also a demon!”
Qin Mu leaped into the air, pushing the Sky-Thieving Leg Technique to its limit, and shot away.
After a moment, in the midst of his frantic flight, Qin Mu saw Bound Sun Luo directly in front of him. His expression changed drastically, and he quickly changed direction, dashing away.
After another moment, he saw that he had run back, now sprinting on Bound Sun Luo’s right side.
Qin Mu halted his movement, dropped from the air, and sank into the earth. After tunneling an unknown distance underground, he poked his head out and saw Bound Sun Luo’s heel.
He was still among the towering spires, and Bound Sun Luo was still walking unhurriedly ahead.
“However, you are also human, and you are equally adept at cultivating human divine abilities.”
Bound Sun Luo’s voice came from ahead. “You are half-human, half-demon, which is why you can so easily master the techniques of both races. This stirred a sense of pity for talent in me, which is why I invited you here.”
Qin Mu brushed the dirt off his clothes and said with a cold laugh, “Honored King, your method of inviting people is quite unique.”
He decided to stop trying to escape and instead matched Bound Sun Luo’s pace, following him. When Bound Sun Luo heard that Qin Mu no longer called him “senior” but had changed to “Honored King,” one of his faces broke into a smile.
Qin Mu’s shift from “senior” to “Honored King” seemed like a casual change of address, but it carried subtle implications. Calling him “senior” was meant to remind the other that he was a junior—would a senior be so shameless as to kill a junior? Calling him “Honored King” also had a hidden motive; “Honored King” was the demon race’s title for Bound Sun Luo. By placing himself in the position of a demon, Qin Mu was trying to lower Bound Sun Luo’s guard.
Of course, such petty schemes were utterly useless against Bound Sun Luo.
“The demon race is unlike the human race. Humans possess vast, fertile lands and are blessed by heaven. The demon race, on the other hand, originates from the Nether Capital.”
Bound Sun Luo gestured for him to keep close, saying, “The Nether Capital is filled with countless vengeful spirits. Their resentment, demonic nature, and evil thoughts, over a long period, gave birth to the ancestors of the demon race. They were demon gods born from the evil thoughts of heaven and earth. Through their reproduction, the demon race as a whole was born.”
Qin Mu was slightly taken aback, not understanding why he was telling him these things.
“After the demon race was born, they were not welcomed by the Nether Capital and were driven out by the Earth Lord. Thus, from the very beginning, my demon race were wanderers, forced to search everywhere for a place to live. We were also unwelcome by other races, and the places we could find were often treacherous lands. But even so, we still survived. However…”
Another of his faces turned around and said, “However, our world was still heading toward destruction. For the survival of our race, we had no choice but to invade Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm. In truth, I came to find you to seek a way for both humans and demons to coexist. The moment I saw you, an idea was born!”
This face was incredibly sincere as it proposed a tempting suggestion: “Help me unify Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm, and I will hand the human race over to your rule! That way, you govern the humans, and they are preserved, while I govern the demons, and they are also preserved! Isn’t this a perfect solution?”
His eyes were bright and intense, fixed on Qin Mu, awaiting his answer.
Qin Mu pondered for a moment, then tested the waters: “Honored King just said that half of every ten words demons speak are false, and half are true. So I’d like to ask, of all the words you’ve just spoken, which ones were false?”
Bound Sun Luo twisted his neck, changing to another face. This face was gloomy and said flatly, “What do you think?”
Qin Mu smiled slightly. “Honored King’s proposal is excellent. Let’s proceed according to your suggestion.”
Bound Sun Luo’s face froze for a moment, and Qin Mu continued, “Let’s split Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm in two. I rule the humans, you rule the demons, and we leave each other in peace. Honored King, you can now hand over all the humans within your demon territory to me.”
Bound Sun Luo’s gloomy face stared at him intently. Suddenly, with two cracking sounds, his neck slowly rotated a full circle, and a third face appeared—green-faced, fanged, ferocious and terrifying.
Qin Mu let out a long sigh and said with a smile, “Now I know how much of Honored King’s words are true and how much are false. Honored King, your goal is not Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm. Your goal is still the Great Ruins. Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm is merely a stepping stone for you. If I help you annex Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm, you will then perform a blood sacrifice on it to enter the Great Ruins!”
Bound Sun Luo snorted coldly, leading him forward to a cliff edge. His face twisted ferociously. “My disciple, Bound Feather Roc, died by your hand, didn’t he? I could set aside this grievance and offer you wealth and honor, but you treat me like a fool! Do you think the Heavenly Teacher can stop me? Do you think those few gods of your human race can stop me?”
Qin Mu stepped forward a few paces and looked down. His expression changed drastically.
Before him lay a heavenly chasm, an abyss. There, countless demons and humans were busily at work, carving massive, magnificent altars.
There were hundreds of altars there!
The Woodcutter Sage had called upon friends and allies, and twenty-four stone statues had descended from the Great Ruins. These statues had awakened, becoming gods. The twenty-four golden character altars stood in a row, a spectacular sight.
But now, the scene in this heavenly chasm abyss was far more magnificent than those twenty-four altars, beyond measure!
Hundreds of altars—this was a plan to summon hundreds of gods and demons to descend!
Qin Mu’s eyelids twitched, and his voice was hoarse. “You can’t possibly summon so many gods and demons! Even if the True Heavenly Court helps you, they couldn’t give you this much power! And you wouldn’t dare accept such a massive army of gods and demons!”
Bound Sun Luo shook his head. “I could indeed invite gods and demons from the Heavenly Court to descend, but I truly don’t dare to invite them.”
Cold sweat broke out on Qin Mu’s forehead. He then shook his head. “Your world is connected to Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm, so the ones you want to invite aren’t the demon gods from your world. They can come in directly. In two thousand years of war between the two realms, countless demon gods from your world must have died in battle. The remaining demon gods aren’t many. You don’t need so many altars…”
Bound Sun Luo stared at him coldly. “Keep guessing. If you guess right, I’ll give you a way out.”
Qin Mu’s heart twitched violently. He clenched his fists and immediately knew what Bound Sun Luo was planning to summon.
“The ancestors of the demon race—those demon gods born from the resentment, evil thoughts, and demonic nature of the Nether Capital! You’re planning to summon them!”
Bound Sun Luo laughed heartily, quite pleased with himself. “What do you think of this idea?”
Qin Mu steadied himself and shook his head. “Honored King is at his wit’s end, to actually summon them. If you call them here, given the nature of these demon gods born from demonic thoughts, it won’t just be about destroying the human race. It will be about destroying the entire Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm!”
“That’s why we need the blood sacrifice of Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm.”
Bound Sun Luo smiled slightly, and all three faces spoke in unison: “Use Grand Heavenly Emperor’s realm as a stepping stone to enter the Great Ruins! However, I have an even better idea. I’ve heard you built a Spiritual Energy Reciprocal Bridge. If you build a few such bridges for my demon race, I’ll spare your life.”
Qin Mu tested him. “Honored King truly dares to let me build bridges for your demon race? Aren’t you afraid I’ll tamper with them?”
Bound Sun Luo’s expression changed, and he said coldly, “Are you determined to refuse me?”
Qin Mu quickly said, “Senior…”
Bound Sun Luo flicked his sleeve and sneered, “Stop playing tricks! Calling me ‘senior’ is useless! I treated you with sincerity, recognizing you as a prodigious talent. Even the Heavenly Teacher couldn’t conceive of something like the Spiritual Energy Reciprocal Bridge, but you did. That’s why I spared your life out of pity for your talent! Do you really think I won’t kill you? Since when has the demon race ever kept its word?”
His demonic might erupted, and Qin Mu’s expression changed drastically. Crushed by the pressure of his demonic power, he could barely breathe. He quickly retreated a few steps and, with the last of his breath, shouted loudly, “I am actually from Carefree Village!”
Bound Sun Luo was about to strike him down but immediately stopped upon hearing this. He sneered, “You’re from Carefree Village? What proof do you have?”
Qin Mu’s face was flushed, and he couldn’t catch his breath.
Bound Sun Luo withdrew his demonic might, and Qin Mu gasped for air. He took a jade pendant from his chest and said, “I have the token of Carefree Village as proof! Honored King, you should recognize the token of Carefree Village, shouldn’t you?”
Bound Sun Luo reached out, and the jade pendant detached itself and flew into his hand.
Qin Mu’s heart pounded wildly. He quickly suppressed his heartbeat, forcing it to calm down. “The King of Hell said I must not let the pendant leave my body, or something bad would happen. Now I have to rely on this to escape. I hope it works… Huh? Why hasn’t anything bad happened yet? Could it be that I’m too close to the pendant?”
—Third update here! Six consecutive days of bursts! Asking for monthly votes once more!