Chapter 561: The Exiled Infant (Second Update!)
The Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor frowned, surveying the battlefield. Countless ghost fires dotted the land—these were the yin messengers carrying horse lanterns, with ships transporting the souls of the fallen warriors to the Nether Realm.
If he refused to let this elderly yin messenger take Qin Mu away, and a conflict erupted, so many yin messengers could likely reduce the Grand Supreme Heaven to a barren wasteland!
He looked at Qin Mu, hesitating. Qin Mu smiled and said, "I've been to the Nether Realm twice. The first time, the Heavenly Demon of All Realms harmed me, and my soul fell into the Nether Realm..."
"It was I who rescued you and sent you back to the mortal world," the old man behind the lantern said.
Qin Mu's heart jolted. He looked toward the old man behind the lantern but still couldn't see his face.
"The second time, I went with Great Venerate, Long Pang, White Bat, and the others, and we all survived."
Qin Mu steadied himself, walked out of the tower ship, and stepped onto the small boat. He waved to the crowd, speaking warmly, "The Nether Realm isn't as dangerous as you imagine. I'm going to recount the karma of those forty-eight thousand souls, and I'll return once I'm done."
Long Qilin opened his mouth as if to speak, then thought better of it and swallowed his words. He mused, "The Sect Leader is confused. How could the Nether Realm not be dangerous? It's full of bizarre monsters and that terrifying demon, Zhen Xingjun, who demands lives... But my position is precarious now, overshadowed by Brother Tiger. I'd better keep quiet, or the Sect Leader might get angry, and I'll lose my future elixir supply."
Black Tiger God stepped forward, about to speak, but the Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor raised his hand to stop him, shaking his head. "Sect Leader, will you leave your physical body behind?"
Qin Mu's heart stirred, and he immediately understood the Preceptor's intent. The Preceptor wanted to keep his body, so if Qin Mu couldn't return, he could use a soul-summoning spell to forcibly retrieve his soul.
"Preceptor, no need to worry."
Qin Mu took the little dragon hanging from his ear and set it down, waving his hand with a smile. "It's safer to bring my body along. As for this little dragon, I'll borrow it again when I return from the Nether Realm."
The Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor was momentarily puzzled, not understanding his meaning. The small boat drifted away leisurely, vanishing into the darkness, while the little dragon flew back to the ship and coiled around Qin Yu's body.
"Why didn't the Sect Leader leave his body behind?"
The Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor muttered in confusion, "If several deities simultaneously cast the soul-summoning spell, we should be able to recall his soul from the Nether Realm..."
Standing on the small boat, Qin Mu looked around. He saw countless ships laden with wandering souls appearing in the darkness, steadily sailing deeper into the Nether Realm. The lights on these ships were dim, looking from afar like moving lanterns in a pitch-black night sky.
Yan Wang had once told him that he should visit the Nether Realm if he had the chance. This time, refusing the Preceptor's proposal was also for that reason.
Yan Wang had been vague, but Qin Mu keenly sensed that his birth in the Nether Realm was no simple matter. This summons by Lord Tu Bo to be questioned was a rare opportunity that might uncover the secrets of his origins.
The small boat drifted along, moving swiftly, yet inside the boat, one couldn't feel it advancing—only the dim, indistinct world receding in the distance.
Qin Mu's heart trembled. He had boarded the boat from the Grand Supreme Heaven, and looking back, he could see it fading away.
But beyond the Grand Supreme Heaven, he also saw many other worlds—each one magnificent and unique—with small boats carrying horse lanterns sailing out from them in an endless stream.
From afar, those worlds' dark skies and faint lights stirred his imagination, making him fantasize about their scenes: what grand or sorrowful tales they held, what heroic or passionate souls they harbored.
"This is actually your fourth time in the Nether Realm."
At the bow, the elderly yin messenger hung the horse lantern on the boat's prow, turned to face Qin Mu, and said unhurriedly, "You were born in the Nether Realm, so this is the fourth time."
Qin Mu grew interested and asked, "Senior, I have no memory of my birth. Could you tell me about it?"
"Your birth caused a great commotion, shaking all realms of the Nether Realm. In the end, many major powers unanimously decided to exile you."
He scrutinized the old man's face but still couldn't make out his true features.
The yin messenger said slowly, "So you were exiled. What happened afterward, I don't know."
Qin Mu was stunned, then laughed, "When I was born, I was just a tiny infant. How could I have caused such a stir? And besides, you Nether Realm big shots exiling a baby—isn't that a bit too unscrupulous?"
"Very unscrupulous."
The yin messenger said unhurriedly, "In my view, given what you did, exiling you was already quite lenient. After exiling you, those major powers were very pleased and celebrated for many days."
"What exactly did I do?"
Qin Mu grew even more puzzled. "What could a little baby do?"
The yin messenger didn't answer. The small boat sailed into a world, moving through the darkness. After a while, they entered a smaller world within that world.
Qin Mu looked up and saw the sun, moon, and five luminaries, along with a sky full of stars, extraordinarily splendid, radiating colorful light.
In the sky, there was also a divine bridge, and on it stood a deity-like primordial spirit.
"This is the divine repository of a Divine Bridge cultivator!"
Qin Mu exclaimed in surprise. "We've entered a cultivator's divine repository."
The yin messenger took out a ledger, flipped through a few pages, found a name, and said, "Han Zhen, your lifespan is up. I'll come for you in three days. Settle your affairs."
The primordial spirit on the bridge looked down, his gaze dim, and said, "Understood. Thank you, yin messenger, for the three days' grace."
The yin messenger nodded. The small boat sailed out of this small world, re-entering the Nether Realm, and continued on. "As soon as a person is born, they make a pact with Lord Tu Bo. When their lifespan ends, their soul returns to the Nether Realm. The yin messenger sent to notify you to recount your karma also intended to enter your life-and-death divine repository to deliver Lord Tu Bo's decree, but was blocked by the treasure on you. So I had to personally come to the mortal world to find you. The longer the delay, the worse it is for you."
Qin Mu grew even more curious and laughed, "I'm still at the Six Harmonies realm, and my life-and-death divine repository hasn't opened yet. How could a yin messenger enter it?"
"To you, it's closed, but to Nether Realm yin messengers, it's always open. When we enter your life-and-death divine repository to deliver a message, it appears to you as a dream."
The yin messenger said, "But the treasure on you blocked us, preventing us from entering your dreams."
Qin Mu took out his jade pendant and asked, "Is this the treasure you're talking about? What is its origin? What curse does it contain?"
The yin messenger quickly said, "Wear it well. Don't take it off."
Qin Mu had no choice but to put it back.
After a while, the yin messenger suddenly grew alert. He took a yellow talisman paper and pasted it over Qin Mu's face, then stood up, took down the horse lantern from the boat's prow, and shone it into the surrounding darkness, saying solemnly, "Which fellow daoist is lurking nearby?"
Qin Mu poked two holes in the yellow paper to see through, looking around. The surroundings were dim, and he couldn't make out anything in the darkness.
Suddenly, the lantern light fell on a huge, slimy body. The body moved swiftly, its scales refracting various lights, and quickly disappeared.
The yin messenger pondered for a moment, then sneered, "He is the one Lord Tu Bo wants to see. Even if you have any ideas, don't act rashly, or you won't be able to bear the consequences!"
Light laughter came from around the small boat. Strange demon eyes lit up all around, enormous in size, completely surrounding the boat.
"Lord Tu Bo wants to see him; we won't stop him. After all, we live in the Nether Realm and make our living under Lord Tu Bo's name. But we also have masters and have received orders to find him."
Voices came from all directions, their laughter eerie, like worms crawling into your body, gnawing at your bones as they spoke. "Tian Qi Jun, you are the Heavenly Talisman Capital Official, a prefect of the Nether Realm. We ought to show you some respect. But you've covered his face, preventing us from seeing his features and knowing his identity. How can we report back? Remove the yellow talisman, and we'll let you take him away!"
The yin messenger sneered. Suddenly, all the eyes closed and vanished. Small boats sailed in, each with an old man holding a horse lantern at the bow, their lights shining in all directions.
In the darkness, many slimy bodies quickly retreated under the lantern light.
Qin Mu's eyes flickered. He saw the small boats sailing toward them one after another, colliding with their boat. Paper boats merged and overlapped, becoming one boat. And the yin messengers on those boats also overlapped and merged with the original yin messenger. In an instant, sixty or seventy paper boats and yin messengers merged into a single person!
The yin messenger said, "Now we don't have to fear them."
Qin Mu quickly asked, "Who was blocking us just now?"
"Deities and demons from the Heavenly Court stationed in the Nether Realm."
The yin messenger shook his head. "A bunch of squatters."
Qin Mu fell into thought. The small boat sailed onward. Finally, Qin Mu saw Lord Tu Bo again—not in his complete form, but his nine-curved horns.
Layered worlds formed Lord Tu Bo's nine-curved horns. The closer they got, the larger these horns appeared. On the enormous landmasses making up the horns, countless volcanoes erupted, connecting one continent to another.
The paper boat traveled between the volcanoes of the continents. Qin Mu saw countless wandering souls trudging painfully through a world of magma.
The small boat drifted on. After an unknown amount of time, passing through countless cross-sections of Lord Tu Bo's horns, they arrived at a continent. Here, there was no heart-stopping hellish world, only a majestic palace.
The boat descended and stopped before a palace, on which were written Nether Realm script. Qin Mu looked and immediately understood the meaning: "Tian Qi Ren Sheng Wang Mansion."
The yin messenger entered the hall and said, "This is my residence. Your body is too small for Lord Tu Bo to see you directly. Wait a moment; a clone of Lord Tu Bo will come to question you."
Qin Mu waited, examining the murals inside the Tian Qi Ren Sheng Wang Mansion. They depicted various myths and legends. Suddenly, behind him, the center of the hall's floor churned with magma, turning into rolling lava. The lava spun, and a pair of twisted horns rose, forming a Lord Tu Bo over ten zhang tall before him.
The yin messenger bowed and took out a book, saying, "Qin Fengqing has been brought. His various misdeeds are all recorded here. Please, Lord Tu Bo, review them."
Qin Mu quickly leaned in to look, only to see the book was terrifyingly thick. He hurriedly said, "The things in this book aren't my doing! I'm only eighteen. How could I have committed so many wrongs?"
The lava Lord Tu Bo took the book, flipped through it, and examined it. His fiery eyes glowed with divine light as he said, "The things in this book, of course, weren't done by you in the mortal world, but the good deeds you did in the Nether Realm. Is the jade pendant I forged for you still there? I've recently felt the seal on it loosening a bit."
—Second update is here! On the 28th of this month, it will be ten years since Zhaizhu started writing on Qidian. Zhaizhu and the moderators have discussed holding a ten-year anniversary celebration event. A separate chapter will be posted shortly with the event details. Everyone, come join the fun!
Ten-Year Anniversary Book Review Event
On March 28, 2008, Big Pig uploaded the first chapter of "Rebirth of the Westward Journey," where Tianpeng was demoted and the pig demon emerged. Now, nearly ten years have passed. On January 4, 2010, the first chapter of "Barbarian Throne," "Barbarian Hammer II," was uploaded, and the fiercest Brother Tai accompanied Big Pig in reclaiming honor after honor. On July 10, 2012, the first chapter of "Unrivaled Under Heaven," "Martial Arts Innate," was uploaded, and the reputation of "Ye Shaobao, ever eager to help, and Song Gaode, delivering coal in the snow" still circulates. After "Unrivaled," Big Pig smoothly achieved godhood. On February 10, 2013, "Emperor Zun" was uploaded, a myth of entering the Dao through martial arts slowly unfolding—"A fox demon at home," the beautiful little fox, the scholar Jiangnan Zi Zichuan. On April 9, 2015, "Humanity's Supreme" was uploaded—"A dream of thousands of autumns, what year is tonight?" A naive sect boy picked up a bronze lamp underground, and the undefeated Fuxi painted a magnificent picture. On June 20, 2017, the first chapter of "The Shepherd God's Chronicle," "Don't Go Out When It's Dark," was uploaded, and Big Pig began to explode across the internet. Currently, "Shepherd God" has over five million recommendation votes, over ten million member clicks, and has entered the top ten of Baidu's search rankings, stabilizing in the top twenty. On the platform, Qidian collections exceed 700,000, and book city collections reach 360,000. "Shepherd God" has truly made Big Pig famous, and this process took ten years.
In March 2018, "Shepherd God" is vying for the number one monthly ticket spot. Big Pig doesn't yet have a number one monthly ticket badge. With "Shepherd God" winning the Most Adaptable Potential Work award at the Yuewen Super IP Gala, all of this is inseparable from the companionship of you, the readers. Thank you very much for supporting Big Pig here.
Ten years have passed. Which book did you start with? "Barbarian"? "Unrivaled"? "Emperor Zun"? "Humanity's Supreme"? Or "Shepherd God"? And which character in Big Pig's works do you like best? Is it De Biao, Man Chui, or Brother Tai? Is it Ye Shaobao? Is it Zi Chuan or Jiang Xue? Is it the undying Ember or Zhong Yue? Is it the Overlord Body Qin Mu, Long Qilin, the Young Patriarch, or the Village Chief? Which book do you like best? Which book's world? Which book's concept? Which book's spirit? And what kind of Zhaizhu do you like best? Why not write it down? Leave your essay in the review section. This book review competition has no restrictions on style—fan fiction, spin-offs, reviews, essays—pick your choice, and there are big prizes waiting for you! Even if not for the prizes, sharing your ten-year journey with Big Pig and leaving a review for those characters that moved you—why not? Come on, fellow daoists!
Below are the specific details of the event:
[Event Time]: From March 11 to March 31
[Event Format]: The main format of this celebration is a book review event.
[Event Content]: 1. Word count requirement: 100 words or more;
2. Review content: Which character in Big Pig's books do you like best?
Which book's world do you like best? Which book's concept? Which book's spirit? What kind of Big Pig do you like best? Fan fiction, spin-offs, reviews, essays—no restrictions, as long as conditions are met.
3. Reviews participating in the event must add the fixed prefix [Ten-Year Anniversary], otherwise they will be considered not participating in this book review event.
[Event Conditions]: All book friends can participate.
[Event Platforms]: Qidian "Shepherd God" review section, Chuangshi (i.e., QQ Reading) "Shepherd God" review section, QQ Browser "Shepherd God" book friend circle, WeChat Reading "Shepherd God" discussion area.
[Reward Method]: Cash red envelope rewards
[Reward Details]: First prize: 3 reviews, Second prize: 7 reviews, Third prize: 10 reviews, and shortlisted review rewards (unlimited).
First prize: 200 yuan cash red envelope per review;
Second prize: 166.66 yuan cash red envelope per review;
Third prize: 88.88 yuan cash red envelope per review;
Shortlisted review reward: Book friends receiving this reward will share a 1000 yuan cash red envelope!
[Time Notes (Important)]:
1. Event time: From March 11 to March 28.
2. Review statistics: Review statistics and selection period is from March 29 to April 3.
3. Award list announcement: April 4 at 9:00 PM.
4. Reward distribution: April 5 at 12:00 PM. After joining the group and confirming award information, rewards will begin to be distributed.
[Reward Distribution Method]: After the award list is announced, cash red envelope rewards will be distributed to each book friend's QQ via QQ red envelopes in the event group. Book friends who do not receive rewards should consult the administrators in advance; latecomers will not be accommodated.
[Judges]: The judges for this event are (all Qidian IDs): Shenchao-Chuanchuang, Array[], Yemao kull, Feitian Cainiao Shen, Yu Xiaoqing, He Langkuan, and special judge, Zhaizhu. Competition judges are not eligible for book review rewards.
[Notes]:
1. Everyone is encouraged to write more wonderful reviews. The minimum word count is 100 words. Reviews that maliciously pad word counts are strictly prohibited;
2. Reviews must respect originality. Plagiarism is not allowed. Once discovered, participation qualifications will be revoked;
3. Winning reviews will be jointly selected by the judges. The highest interpretation right belongs to the judging panel.
4. There is no limit to the number of reviews each person can post, but within each reward tier, each person can only win one award.
5. Reviews participating in the event must add the fixed prefix [Ten-Year Anniversary], otherwise they will be considered not participating in this book review event.
Finally, thank you to the judging panel and Big Pig Zhaizhu for their strong support and sponsorship of this event!
The reasonable interpretation right of this event belongs to the "Shepherd God" management team.