Chapter 701: Nether Capital Heavenly King and the Dark Emperor
The three of them and the Kirin Dragon sat in the small boat, which turned and sailed into the endless darkness.
"Brother Tian also has the title of Heavenly King?" the Kirin Dragon asked curiously.
Tian Shu snorted, nervously looking around, but said nothing.
Qi Jiuyi was now completely sober, sitting between the Kirin Dragon and Tian Shu, fidgeting nervously like a young bride waiting for her groom in the bridal chamber. He said, "Not many people know the title of Left Assistant Minister of the Kaihuang Divine Dynasty, but many more know the title of Nether Capital Heavenly King."
Qin Mu also grew curious. "What is the origin of the title Nether Capital Heavenly King? Does it have any connection with the Nether Capital Dark Emperor?"
Qi Jiuyi's expression shifted uncertainly. He glanced at Tian Shu, who was trembling and cowering in the boat, even more timid than himself. Relieved, he said, "I once heard the Red Emperor mention this title of Nether Capital Heavenly King. At that time, the Red Emperor sent me to the Nether Capital to study and learn the spells of the Nether Capital. He told me many taboos there, especially not to mention the name Nether Capital Heavenly King."
Qin Mu glanced at Tian Shu, surprised. "Why is that?"
"The Dark Emperor has a grudge against the Nether Capital Heavenly King."
Qi Jiuyi calmed himself and continued, "The title Nether Capital Heavenly King was actually bestowed by the Earth Lord. I heard from the Red Emperor that Brother Tian had extremely high attainments in soul arts, able to freely enter and leave the Nether Realm, and had made a great name for himself there. Thus, the Earth Lord valued him and appointed him Nether Capital Heavenly King. The Red Emperor said that the Earth Lord actually had ill intentions, intending to sow discord between the Nether Capital Heavenly King and the Dark Emperor, making them fight each other."
The old underworld emissary said, "Don't think so poorly of the Earth Lord. He simply felt that the Nether Capital Heavenly King, like the Dark Emperor, was a master of the Nether Realm's divine arts system, and his future achievements would not be inferior to the Dark Emperor's. Of course, there was a bit of provocation involved."
Qi Jiuyi said, "Then the disciples of the Dark Emperor's lineage went to trouble the Nether Capital Heavenly King, and Brother Tian killed many of them."
Tian Shu couldn't hide his pride and laughed, "After all, I am a Heavenly King, equal to the Dark Emperor in fame. How could I be inferior to his disciples?"
Qin Mu's expression was strange as he studied Tian Shu. He couldn't see how this drunkard, addicted to alcohol, could be so famous, equal to the Dark Emperor.
"The Dark Emperor's disciples were almost all killed by him, even his eldest disciple died at the hands of the Nether Capital Heavenly King. So the Dark Emperor came to find him personally."
Qi Jiuyi hesitated for a moment, then said, "The Red Emperor said that Brother Tian lost, but the Dark Emperor couldn't kill him. He escaped."
Tian Shu beamed with pride, chuckling, "Although I couldn't defeat him, I am still a Heavenly King. Killing me isn't that easy."
"But then Brother Tian fell out with the Earth Lord," Qi Jiuyi continued.
Tian Shu's face turned ashen, and he collapsed weakly onto the small boat, wailing, "What could I do? The Kaihuang Emperor put the Imperial Tower Divine Blade in my hands and told me to chop the Earth Lord. How could I dare? The Kaihuang Emperor gave me a lot of fine wine, and it was indeed very good. After drinking, I dared to chop not only the Earth Lord but even the Kaihuang Emperor himself! So I excitedly took the blade and went to the Nether Realm. It wasn't until the Earth Lord caught me that I sobered up..."
Qin Mu's expression was peculiar.
Tian Shu seemed very timid, but he was addicted to alcohol. Normally timid, he became bold as a tiger after drinking. Before drinking, he was a field mouse; after drinking, he was fierce as a tiger—this was his true portrayal.
The old underworld emissary did not steer the boat toward the Heavenly Qi Benevolent Sage King's Mansion within the Earth Lord's Horn but instead went straight down, heading toward the Earth Lord's body beneath the Nine-Bend Horn.
Tian Shu's face was pale, and he kept looking nervously at Qin Mu.
Qin Mu stammered, "We might be going to see the Earth Lord's true form. Don't be afraid, don't be afraid..."
Gradually, they could see the Earth Lord's enormous eyes. The closer they flew, the larger the three eyes became, and the full view of the Earth Lord was impossible to discern.
Qin Mu also saw countless souls resting on the Earth Lord's skin, like countless continents, with countless souls living there, building magnificent cities. Some places were even at war, fighting fiercely on the Earth Lord's body, but not harming him in the slightest.
He also saw many enormous demonic beasts, carrying palaces on their backs, locked with chains, trudging forward step by step on the Earth Lord's body.
"Those palaces house powerful divine souls. The demonic beasts have been subdued by them and used as mounts."
Tian Shu said, "Anyone with a bit of status in the Nether Realm keeps one or two demonic beasts as mounts. When they visit relatives or friends, they have these beasts carry their palaces along the road, looking majestic and imposing. When I was hanging around the Nether Realm back then, I was just as impressive."
The old underworld emissary laughed, "After the Heavenly King meets the Earth Lord, you can continue to be so impressive."
Tian Shu's face fell, and he said nothing.
Qin Mu comforted him, "Don't worry, he's just scaring you. The Earth Lord is magnanimous and won't do anything to you."
The old underworld emissary sneered, "You too. Don't think the Earth Lord doesn't know. Wasn't it you who stole the Earth Lord's power some time ago? The Earth Lord has noted your misdeeds."
Qin Mu laughed, "Lord Emissary, I did that to save the Heavenly Yin Empress. The Heavenly Yin Empress governs the dead. When souls are shattered, they fall under her jurisdiction; when intact, they fall under the Earth Lord's. I couldn't let the Empress perish like that, so I took without asking, borrowing a bit of power from the Earth Lord and the Heavenly Duke. The Heavenly Duke even said I did well and was right."
"The Heavenly Duke said that?" the old underworld emissary asked curiously.
Qin Mu said solemnly, "Of course! The Heavenly Duke is deeply righteous and fully supported my actions. He also said that the Earth Lord would understand and approve of what I did. You say the Earth Lord has noted my faults—you must be mistaken. It's better if I don't disturb the Earth Lord on my return to the Nether Realm. How about you send us back first?"
"We've arrived."
The old underworld emissary remained calm, ignoring his innocent expression. The small boat drifted slowly toward the Earth Lord's third eye. Gradually, they could no longer see the eye, only boundless red light.
The boat sailed into the red light. Qin Mu looked back and felt a slight tremor. Through the Earth Lord's eye, he could see countless worlds, countless souls of countless beings in those worlds, all reflected in his sight!
"Truly vast divine powers..."
Deep within the red light was a circular platform a thousand zhang in radius, with a palace on it. The boat sailed onto the platform and stopped.
Qin Mu and the others disembarked. Tian Shu almost collapsed to the ground. Just then, a warm voice laughed, "The Earth Lord has guests. In that case, I won't disturb you. I'll visit another day. Please, stay."
Hearing this voice, Qin Mu was slightly startled, feeling it was very familiar.
The old underworld emissary docked the boat and said, "Wait for the guest to come out, then we'll go in."
After a moment, Qin Mu saw a tall, slender man walk out of the palace. The man was handsome, with an indescribable aura and bearing that made one feel as if a spring breeze had blown, instantly inspiring goodwill.
Once upon a time, Qin Mu had imagined that if the Medicine Master of the Crippled Village had his face restored, he would look this handsome.
Tian Shu's face changed slightly, and he snorted coldly.
The tall, handsome man walked toward them and greeted the old underworld emissary, "Lord Emissary."
The old underworld emissary returned the greeting but said nothing.
The handsome man glanced at Tian Shu, slightly startled, and laughed, "So it's the Heavenly King. You're still alive."
Tian Shu, who had been limp and weak, suddenly stood up straight, his goat horns glowing with cold divine light, and said coldly, "Thanks to you, I'm not dead!"
The handsome man smiled and looked around, saying, "Yan Shaoqing trapped you in the Imperial Tower Divine Blade, and you managed to escape—that's quite something. But whether you can survive after cutting off the Earth Lord's horn is another matter. By the way, I knew you loved good wine, so I told Yan Shaoqing to bring you some. How did you find it?"
Tian Shu's goat beard bristled with fury.
The handsome man smiled slightly. "This is the Nether Realm. Don't be rude. Besides, you've already been rude once. Jiuyi, why are you here too?"
Qi Jiuyi's face changed, and he stepped out from behind the Kirin Dragon, bowing, "Greetings, Master!"
The handsome man looked him up and down, frowning. "You're only left with your primordial spirit. Where is your physical body?"
Qi Jiuyi showed a look of shame. "I was sucked into the Imperial Tower Divine Blade. My physical body is still in the Great Ruins of the lower realm."
Qin Mu's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately knew who this handsome man was.
"The Nether Capital Dark Emperor, also known as the Dark Emperor!"
His aura stirred slightly, but he quickly suppressed it, thinking to himself, "The Dark Emperor has come to the Nether Realm to see the Earth Lord. What for? Could it be about the Heavenly Yin Empress's resurrection? I stole the Earth Lord's power to revive her—he must know."
The Dark Emperor seemed to sense his slight aura fluctuation and looked at him, praising, "A stable primordial spirit—truly a fine young man. Heavenly King, is this your disciple?"
Tian Shu chuckled, "None of your business."
The Dark Emperor looked at Qin Mu with a warm smile. "Following this rebel will get you nowhere. If you have the chance, you can come to the Nether Capital and pledge allegiance to me. I appreciate young people like you."
Qin Mu looked flustered, glancing at Tian Shu and then at the Dark Emperor, at a loss.
The Dark Emperor turned and walked away, laughing, "Jiuyi, since the Earth Lord wants to see you, I won't force you to come with me. After you've settled things here, return to the mortal world and retrieve your physical body. Leave that place quickly. Your senior brothers have already begun to bring down the calamity. I came here to discuss with the Earth Lord how to handle the souls of the billions who suddenly died in the lower realm."
"Yes." Qi Jiuyi bowed, not raising his head until the Dark Emperor had disappeared.
Qin Mu narrowed his eyes. The Dark Emperor's presence was overwhelming, and from start to finish, his aura had firmly suppressed Tian Shu. He was indeed an extremely formidable figure.
Qi Jiuyi glanced at him and said, "My master didn't recognize you."
"Thank you." Qin Mu bowed.
Qi Jiuyi opened his mouth, then suddenly sighed, "We were supposed to be enemies, but somehow I ended up swearing brotherhood with you. It's hard to betray you. How did this happen?"
His gaze was confused.
Tian Shu asked curiously, "Qin Mu, what did you do? Why can't you reveal your identity in front of the Dark Emperor?"
Qin Mu sighed, "It's a long story."
Tian Shu's eyes widened, even more curious.
The old underworld emissary stepped forward and said calmly, "Go in. Don't keep the Earth Lord waiting too long."
Tian Shu immediately went limp, like a dead goat monster, collapsing to the ground, unable to move. Qin Mu grabbed his goat horns and dragged him all the way into the hall.
The Earth Lord was before them, likely an incarnation, surrounded by flames, with a tiger's head, ox horns, and a human body. He was flipping through a thick stack of documents.
"Lord Emissary, regarding the theft of my power, have you added it to his record?" the Earth Lord asked without looking up.
——The adorable Earth Lord is here to ask for recommendation votes and subscriptions!