Chapter 772: The Peeping Maniac
Qin Mu exclaimed in surprise, "Imperial Heaven, my good brother, can you recognize these characters?"
Imperial Heaven was still in a daze. "When I see these characters, they feel familiar. I just feel that this is how they should be read."
The others were astonished. Everyone knew that Qin Mu was erudite and well-versed in various languages—divine language, demonic language, Netherworld language, and even the written languages of high antiquity and ancient times.
They never expected that even Qin Mu couldn't recognize these characters, yet this young man by his side could.
However, no one dwelled on it. Their attention was drawn to the scene before them.
The Great Void was still expanding. Many of its original mountains had already been sent to extremely distant places, yet no orogeny was occurring within the Great Void.
If it were an orogeny, there would surely be earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and magma everywhere.
But although the Great Void was expanding, it was relatively quiet. The lands, mountains, rivers, and hills seemed to emerge from space itself.
Therefore, the expansion of the Great Void did not cause much impact on the creatures living here.
However, the land that emerged was far too vast, far surpassing the original Great Void. Qin Mu searched for the nearest mountain. The mountain that had been closest to them was now forty times farther away!
In other words, the length and width of the Great Void had increased by at least forty times!
The area of the Great Void had likely increased by a factor of sixteen hundred!
The Imperial Heaven, which had been thrust into the Great Void, spanning from north to south, now looked like a wall erected within the Great Void, no longer as awe-inspiring as before.
When the Imperial Heaven had been embedded in the center of the Great Void, it had been extremely shocking. Now that the Great Void had expanded, that sense of shock had diminished.
Qin Mu looked around. The roads that the Yan Emperor's National Teacher had paved were now fragmented, broken into segments.
Even more astonishing was that the newly emerged mountains and rivers were filled with all kinds of colorful mists. Some places even spewed forth radiant light. They even saw ancient city ruins and broken giant statues standing between heaven and earth!
"This upheaval is like sealed land being released," the True God Pang Yu murmured.
The Venerable God Sang Ye asked, "Was the Great Void like this in the past?"
The True God Pang Yu was relatively ancient. He shook his head. "No. Although the Great Void of the Kaihuang Era was different from the current Great Void, it was generally the same. When the Kaihuang Heavenly Court crashed down, it pierced through the heavens and fell here, adding many ruins of the Heavenly Court to the Great Void. At that time, the Kaihuang Era hadn't completely ended, and many gods still remained here."
Granny Si asked, "What about before the Shanghuang Era? What was the Great Void like during the Shanghuang Era?"
The True God Pang Yu smiled bitterly. "How would I know about the Shanghuang Era?"
Granny Si pondered. "The land that surged out this time should be the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm, which was suppressed by the Great Void. I just used the Yuan Magnetic Divine Ability, which touched the sealed Earth Mother's Primordial Realm, causing it to be released. So why was this Earth Mother's Primordial Realm suppressed beneath the Great Void?"
Everyone looked at the True God Pang Yu, waiting for his answer. He widened his eyes—they were already large, and now they were even bigger. He said with a mix of amusement and frustration, "How would I know about these things? Don't look at me; I don't know either! The Woodcutter Heavenly Teacher knows a lot. Ask him."
"The Woodcutter Sage is over in Yan Kang, pushing for reforms across the land with the Yan Emperor's National Teacher. For them to get here, it will probably take forty times longer than usual."
Qin Mu was still staring at the distant mountains. He saw that the peak was still moving farther away. "Soon, it will be fifty times longer. The Earth Mother's Primordial Realm—is it the world where the Earth Mother Primordial Lord was born?"
No one could answer him.
Suddenly, the sound of waves came. A huge crack appeared before them, filled with blue water. Then the crack split open on both sides, and more and more water poured out. Soon, it formed a lake a hundred miles wide. But the lake continued to emerge, gradually turning into an ocean!
The ocean grew wider and larger, stretching endlessly.
Qin Mu's heart shook violently. He quickly drilled through the Imperial Heaven tunnel and came to the Eastern Great Void.
Xu Shenghua's heart stirred. He followed Qin Mu with Imperial Heaven, and the others also ran over.
Qin Mu looked eastward. The mountains stretched endlessly.
He flew upward along the ground of the Imperial Heaven, flying higher and higher, his vision growing farther and farther. Finally, Qin Mu saw a vast ocean tens of thousands of miles away.
The True God Pang Yu exclaimed, "That's the Eastern Sea from the Kaihuang Era! This Eastern Sea disappeared long ago. How has it reappeared today?"
The Eastern Sea was blue, with surging waves. So much seawater had suddenly appeared from nowhere, the sea surface spanning tens of thousands of miles.
That place had originally been a basin, not very large. To the north was the Sumeru Mountain of the Great Thunderclap Monastery, to the east was the Divine Severance Mountain Range, and to the south was the Secret Water Pass, where the Yong River flowed.
Now, clouds and mist swirled around Sumeru Mountain, and a heavenly pillar could be faintly seen piercing beyond the heavens, its top invisible!
Qin Mu looked toward the Divine Severance Mountain Range. The majestic, continuous mountain range was no longer visible.
As for the Yong River, he didn't recognize it at all now. He could only see a great river eight hundred miles wide, rolling eastward. Its length was even more unimaginable.
"Dragon Tamer Lord has gotten a huge bargain."
Qin Mu murmured, "I regret making him the Yong River Dragon King. And I made a pact with Tu Bo with him, so it's hard to go back on it..."
He peeled off the willow leaf from his brow and transmitted his divine consciousness into the sealed Qin Continent within. He asked, "Heavenly Lord, Tu Bo, can you notice the changes in the Great Void?"
The Heavenly Lord and Tu Bo looked out through his third eye. Their bodies trembled. The two ancient beings exchanged glances, their expressions grave.
The Great Sun Star Lord also looked out and exclaimed, "The Primordial Capital! The birthplace of the Earth Mother Primordial Lord!"
Qin Mu asked curiously, "Isn't it the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm? Why do you call it the Primordial Capital, Star Lord?"
"The Earth Mother's Primordial Realm is the name used after the Heavenly Court was established. Before that, it was called the Primordial Capital, the place of the Earth Mother Primordial Lord. Later, when the Heavenly Court was built, it was built above the Primordial Capital."
The Great Sun Star Lord said, "The gods mined the divine gold of the Primordial Capital to build the Heavenly Court. The Earth Mother Primordial Lord was somewhat displeased, feeling that many treasures had been taken from her. The Heavenly Court had stolen the fortune of the Primordial Capital. Later, when the Heavenly Court built the Thirty-Six Heavenly Palaces and Seventy-Two Precious Halls, they came to mine divine gold again. The Earth Mother Primordial Lord was even more unhappy, so she changed the name to the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm, saying it was her territory. Among the Nine Heavenly Lords, Cloud Heavenly Lord later rebelled and established the Xiao Han Heavenly Court, which was built here. Back then, when I was attacking the Xiao Han Heavenly Court, I was shot in the back with an arrow..."
The Heavenly Lord's avatar said, "You coordinated all the gods of the stars. No secret of the Long Han Heavenly Court could escape you. If you weren't killed, who would be?"
The Great Sun Star Lord stammered and dared not speak.
Qin Mu said, "Heavenly Lord should know many secrets about the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm, right?"
The Heavenly Lord's avatar glanced at the Lava Tu Bo. The Lava Tu Bo said, "Daoist friend, you go ahead and speak."
The Heavenly Lord said, "I know some. The Xiao Han Heavenly Court was built in the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm. Later, the Chi Ming Heavenly Court was also built here. Chi Huang, you should remember that, right?"
Chi Huang's consciousness said, "That's right. But at that time, the Primordial Realm was no longer as vast as before. I heard that during the fall of the Long Han Era, part of the Primordial Realm was annihilated by the gods in battle. What I saw back then was the Great Void, but the Long Han Great Void was far more vast than it is now."
"After you died, Ming Huang inherited your legacy and continued the fortune of the Chi Ming Era. Ming Huang also rose from the Primordial Realm."
The Heavenly Lord continued, "After the Ming Huang Heavenly Court fell, the remnants of the Chi Ming Era migrated and hid in the Chi Ming Floating Realm. But after that battle, the Primordial Realm shrank again. The Shanghuang Era was built on the ruins of the Chi Ming Great Void. At the end of the Shanghuang Era, it was destroyed again, becoming the Shanghuang Great Void. Forty thousand years ago, the Kaihuang Era rose from the Shanghuang Great Void, and now it has become the Kaihuang Great Void. Four eras can be said to have been built on the Primordial Realm."
Qin Mu was stunned. Four dynasties of Heavenly Courts had all risen from here and become Heavenly Courts here?
What kind of place was the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm, with such flourishing fortune?
"Heavenly Lord is skirting the issue. He hasn't said why the former Primordial Capital became the current Great Void, nor where the Earth Mother Primordial Lord is, and certainly not why the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm suddenly reappeared."
Qin Mu said with great pain, "Heavenly Lord seems to have said a lot, but in reality, he hasn't said as much as the Great Sun Star Lord!"
The white-bearded old man blew his beard and glared, saying angrily, "He said a lot, so he died early!"
Qin Mu said coldly, "The Earth Mother Primordial Lord is dead, isn't she? The Earth Mother Primordial Lord can die, but the Heavenly Lord cannot? Whether you speak or not, others may not let you off."
The Heavenly Lord hesitated for a moment, then looked at the Lava Tu Bo.
Tu Bo's gaze was deep. "I am not a peeping maniac. I don't constantly watch the movements of the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm. Moreover, from the Netherworld, I cannot see the affairs of the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm. Only when souls fall into the Netherworld can I perceive the changes in the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm."
The Heavenly Lord looked at the Great Sun Star Lord again. The Great Sun Star Lord shrank his bird head and said, "Don't look at me. I've already been shot dead by a hidden arrow. I peeped at too many secrets. After I died, I didn't know what happened in the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm..."
The Heavenly Lord sighed. "I am a peeping maniac. I know about the Primordial Realm."
He paused and said, "In fact, the Shanghuang Era was related to the Earth Mother Primordial Lord and also to the Heavenly Court. At that time, the Shanghuang Era split the world in two. These two Heavenly Courts represented two different forces. After the Earth Mother Primordial Lord died, the Shanghuang Era fell. I can only tell you this much. The rest, you'll have to find the answers yourself."
Qin Mu's heart shook violently. He quickly asked, "The Southern and Northern Shanghuang stood side by side. The Shanghuang Era was divided into two segments. Who supported these two forces? Also, you said the Earth Mother Primordial Lord died. Who did it?"
The Heavenly Lord remained silent.
Qin Mu continued to ask. Finally, the Heavenly Lord couldn't help it and said in exasperation, "I've already told you a lot. Why are you still bothering me? I don't know how the Earth Mother died either. I'm just guessing! There are many beings with the power to block my gaze. I can't see the Netherworld, I can't find the Netherworld Realm, and I can't see the Heavenly Court! At the end of the Shanghuang Era, I couldn't even see the Great Void anymore! The reason I hid in your eye is to see what has happened over the years!"
He said this, then slumped. "I can see other heavens and worlds, but there are more and more things I cannot see... I... I'm becoming a blind old god that people curse every day..."
The Lava Tu Bo said to Qin Mu, "The reappearance of the Earth Mother's Primordial Realm may be related to the remnant consciousness of the Earth Mother Primordial Lord. Be careful."
Qin Mu asked in confusion, "Why do I need to be careful?"
The Lava Tu Bo said, "Outside the Jade Lock Pass, you devoured the primordial spirits of many gods and demons, including the offspring of the Earth Mother Primordial Lord from the Long Han Era. You've taken the blame, and I've recorded the debt. But out of righteousness, I still need to warn you."
—Black Pot Hero Qin Mu: Carrying the blame, we're professionals! New event on Qidian, Dragon Boat Battle. I earnestly ask my brothers to vote for the Shepherd's Record! Thank you!