Chapter 732: The Ancient Heavenly Court
The old ox stood on the river’s surface, staring blankly at the countless ornate painted boats and towering ships shuttling back and forth. The desolate Great Ruin, which was originally shrouded in darkness, had now become as bright as day. The Surging River was also many times wider than before, and boats carved with dragons and phoenixes sailed past them.
The blue waves rippled. This great river was actually flowing through the sky!
The old ox looked down but did not see the land of the Great Ruin. Instead, he could only see stars hanging in the starry sky.
Those stars were both near and far. The nearby ones appeared very large, as if within reach, while the distant ones were like the moon, but one could still see the mountains, rivers, and buildings on them.
On both banks of the Surging River, deep palaces stood within celestial palaces. These celestial palaces were more like continents, floating on both sides of the Heavenly River. Together, these celestial palaces formed a vast and magnificent Heavenly Court!
The old ox shook his head, feeling somewhat bewildered.
He had only been carrying Qin Mu through this area—why had such a bizarre thing happened?
Also, that woman on the painted boat had just said this place was the Heavenly River. The Heavenly River? Wasn’t this the Surging River?
Where had the Great Ruin gone?
What about Yan’kang?
There wasn’t a single patch of land. Where had the world he originally belonged to gone?
The old ox flicked his tail uneasily, slapping it against his rump with a sharp crack, and cautiously surveyed his surroundings.
At the source of the Surging River, near the cliff, it was originally a place rarely visited by humans. This area was deep within the Great Ruin, but there was a massive fault line.
Because of this fault, the Eastern Great Ruin was several thousand zhang lower than the Western Great Ruin.
Originally, this barrier had made communication between the East and West difficult. It wasn’t until Qin Mu invited the Yan’kang National Teacher and the cultivators from the Western Lands to build roads and erect two flying bridges that the Eastern and Western Great Ruins were connected.
The Surging River originated from this cliff, flowing out from the precipice and rushing eastward.
Qin Mu had once carefully observed this and suspected that five worlds overlapped at the source of the Surging River, and that the water might come from the other five worlds.
Of course, this was just a guess from his youth.
When he discovered the Heavenly Yin Realm and the countless densely packed heavens surrounding it, he knew his guess was absolutely wrong.
He had guessed too few, while the actual number was far too many.
After all, the old ox had followed the Old Farmer for tens of thousands of years and had lived through the Kaihuang Era. His understanding of the Surging River surpassed even Qin Mu’s.
Qin Mu only speculated that the water of the Surging River came from other worlds, but the old ox knew that the Surging River was one of the most bizarre places in the entire Kaihuang Era!
Back when this place was still a relic of the Shanghuang Era, the young Kaihuang led a group of youths here, starting from scratch amidst the ruins, building a great foundation and creating an era that flourished for twenty thousand years.
But even then, the source of the Surging River was already a notorious place of strangeness.
Kaihuang, the Woodcutter, and other beings had all explored this place, encountering many inexplicable events.
Mist often rose from the river. When the mist surged, it would reveal many incredible people and events, and even show other worlds. Some had accidentally wandered into the mist, and when they emerged, they found that centuries or millennia had passed in the outside world.
Others had encountered lost travelers in the mist, who claimed to be people from the Shanghuang Era who had gotten lost in the fog. When the mist cleared, the travelers vanished.
The old ox remembered the most famous incident here: Kaihuang once mentioned that during his youth, he had disappeared for a few months here, accidentally entering an incredible place. When he returned, he found that several months had passed.
He later tried to find that incredible place again but could never locate it.
However, when others asked Kaihuang what he had encountered in that incredible place and who he had met, he remained silent and tight-lipped.
Later, many gods and demons came to the Surging River to search, but they found nothing, and the matter gradually faded.
The incident of the Surging River mist was forgotten, but after Kaihuang became emperor, he often came here, perhaps searching for that incredible place.
Later, the Sage Woodcutter led the Heavenly Division here to conduct an in-depth exploration of the Surging River. They discovered many secrets of the river, found many heavens buried by history, and even located the source of darkness, sending people in to investigate.
But by then, it was already the late Kaihuang Era. Before the Sage Woodcutter could find the results, the Kaihuang Calamity erupted.
"Perhaps the Great Heavenly Master knows many secrets about the Surging River, but he’s definitely not here now."
The old ox’s bovine eyes darted around cautiously. He saw that each celestial palace was guarded by extremely powerful gods and demons, which made him dare not act recklessly. He thought to himself, "The current problem is: how do I get back to the Great Ruin?"
Just then, Qin Mu’s voice came, somewhat surprised: "Senior Brother Sanduo, where is this place? How did you bring me here?"
The old ox blinked and opened his mouth to speak, but didn’t know what to say: "I..."
Qin Mu said excitedly, "Is this the Outer Realm Heavenly Court?"
The old ox hesitated for a moment before speaking: "I also..."
Qin Mu stretched his body. His cultivation was still skyrocketing, clearly surging after fusing the five divine repositories. He looked around curiously, unable to contain his excitement: "Senior Brother Sanduo truly lives up to being the strongest under the Martial Combat Heavenly Master! You’re so bold as to bring me to the Outer Realm Heavenly Court! Did the Martial Combat Heavenly Master assign you a secret mission?"
Niu Sanduo looked at the water surface, unsure how to answer.
Qin Mu asked, "Have you thought of an escape route?"
"I..."
"I can build a spiritual energy transfer bridge!"
Qin Mu said excitedly, "But we need to find a secluded place. I got a lot of divine metals and materials from the Emperor Shakya Heavenly Buddha last time, enough to build another spiritual energy transfer bridge. The National Teacher should still have an altar; he’s preparing for the campaign against the Tianyu World..."
"Junior Brother, I think I’m lost." The old ox mustered his courage and said.
"Did the Martial Combat Heavenly Master give you a mission? To rescue the Scholar Heavenly Master, right? Scholar Zixi must have been captured and suppressed by the Outer Realm Heavenly Court, right?"
Qin Mu said excitedly, "Wait a moment, I’ll open the eye on my forehead!"
"Junior Brother, I’m lost!"
The old ox couldn’t help but say, "I really am lost! I don’t even know what this damn place is! I don’t recognize this place at all! Don’t mess around and cause trouble. Let me sort out my thoughts first!"
Qin Mu’s expression froze, and he asked suspiciously, "People say an old ox knows the way. How did you get here? Just go back the way you came."
The old ox said irritably, "I don’t know how I got here either! I jumped off the cliff at the Surging River, stepped on the water surface, and then the fog came. When the fog cleared, I inexplicably ended up here. Don’t talk to me; let me think carefully about how to get back!"
Qin Mu fell silent. After a moment, he asked, "Senior Brother, have you come up with an idea?"
The old ox had completely lost his temper. He shook his head and said, "My mind is completely blank. I can’t think of a way back. What exactly is this place? I have no clue at all..."
Qin Mu looked around and analyzed, "The painted boats here are very primitive. They’re carved with the most basic Xuanwu patterns, using Xuanwu’s water-control power to make the boats float. The boats are still pulled by water beasts, not powered by furnaces. This isn’t the Outer Realm Heavenly Court; the Heavenly Court isn’t this backward..."
The old ox’s eyes lit up. He looked at the painted boats and indeed saw massive water beasts pulling them along. He hadn’t noticed these details. He quickly asked, "What else?"
Qin Mu peeled off the willow leaf from his forehead, revealing his third eye, and surveyed the surroundings. He looked at the people on the painted boats and the gods and demons in the celestial palaces. He said solemnly, "The paths of energy circulation in their divine repositories are also very simple, and the repositories themselves are very primitive, not as refined as those of Yan’kang cultivators. Moreover, their divine bridges are all intact; no one’s bridge is broken."
The old ox finally gained a bit of confidence and asked, "What else can you see?"
"I can also see people without divine repositories."
Qin Mu’s expression grew serious as he gazed at a distant celestial palace. There, a majestic deity radiated blazing light, as if shrouded by a great sun. He said solemnly, "I might be seeing the true Great Sun Star Lord, one born without a divine repository, born of heaven and earth—not the Great Sun Star Lord of the Shanghuang Era..."
The old ox was utterly bewildered, his mind empty of any thoughts or ideas. He stammered, "You mean..."
"I mean..."
Suddenly, Qin Mu’s face broke into a youthful, sunny smile. He waved at a woman on a painted boat approaching them and called out, "Sister! Over here! Over here! We’re lost. Sister, what place is this?"
The old ox’s face turned ashen. He thought to himself, "Junior Brother Qin is so careless? We’ve stumbled into this place by accident, and there are experts everywhere. If someone notices something’s wrong..."
The woman on the boat was dressed in elegant and beautiful clothes. She was enjoying the scenery at the bow. When she heard the voice and looked over, her eyes lit up, and she smiled, "Little brother, you sure have a sweet tongue. This is naturally the Heavenly Court. Come aboard."
The old ox stood there dumbfounded, still not snapping out of it.
Qin Mu leaped onto the boat and called down, "Senior Brother, come aboard too. Sister is kind-hearted and willing to give us a ride."
The old ox hurriedly stood upright, shook himself, and transformed into a bull-headed humanoid deity. He jumped onto the bow.
The woman looked Qin Mu over. The young man was dressed in splendid clothes, graceful and refined, with a natural, simple, and innocent temperament. She couldn’t help but feel fond of him. She smiled and said, "Today is a grand gathering in the Heavenly Court. Boats come and go on the Heavenly River, and many talented youths from the lower realms come up to play. Is this your first time at the Heavenly Court?"
Qin Mu nodded, blushing slightly, and said, "My ox senior brother and I are both here for the first time. We’re like country folk entering the city, dazzled by the bustling sights, and we ended up lost."
The woman laughed and said, "It’s always like this for first-timers at the Heavenly Court. His Majesty ordered the finest craftsmen in the world to build thirty-six celestial palaces and seventy-two precious halls, enfeoffing the various ancient gods. I find it a bit too elaborate. His Majesty is also discussing what name to give the Heavenly Court with the Heavenly Lord and the Earth Lord."
Niu Sanduo looked around, surveying the surroundings. Suddenly, his gaze fell on a painted boat passing by theirs. He looked as if he had seen a ghost, unable to tear his eyes away.
Qin Mu was chatting and laughing with the woman. When he noticed the old ox’s expression, he was slightly startled and asked, "Senior Brother, what’s wrong?"
"Kai... Kai... Kai..."
The old ox stammered, his gaze still fixed on that painted boat. Qin Mu followed his gaze and saw a young man talking and laughing with others.
"Kai... Kai..."
The old ox still stammered, unable to speak.
Qin Mu smiled and asked, "Senior Brother, what is it?"
"Kaihuang!"
Niu Sanduo finally blurted out the words, his voice hoarse: "I saw the young Kaihuang!"
—It’s the end of the month, asking for monthly votes! The monthly vote record for *The Record of the Shepherd God* has been broken. Let’s try to break our own record too, brothers! Do you still have monthly votes?