Chapter 807: Heavenly River Ghost Ship
"Heavenly River Dragon King?"
Dragon Tamer Lord's heart stirred as he probed cautiously, "What are the benefits of being the Heavenly River Dragon King?"
Qin Mu replied, "The benefits are the same as before, but the aquatic products in the Heavenly River won't belong to you."
Dragon Tamer Lord continued his careful probing, "This so-called Heavenly River—how wide is it, how long is it? Master, it's not that I don't trust you, but there's the precedent of White Gap God's Hundred-Year Mountain. My humble dragon body is quite large; an ordinary river of three or five li won't accommodate me."
Qin Mu chuckled, "The Heavenly River is naturally vast and broad, no smaller than the current Surging River, and it's abundant with fish and shrimp. You needn't worry about your food supply."
Dragon Tamer Lord was overjoyed, yet still uneasy, and said, "If I could become the Heavenly River Dragon King, that would be wonderful, but I always fear you're deceiving me. White Gap God's Hundred-Year Mountain..."
Qin Mu said with displeasure, "Will you do it or not?"
"I'll do it! I'll do it!"
Dragon Tamer Lord made a prompt decision and laughed, "Staying here, being bullied by the demigods of the Surging River every day, I might as well go and be the Heavenly River Dragon King. At least I can throw my weight around! But Master, how do I erase the Earth Lord's covenant?"
"No need to erase the Earth Lord's covenant; just sign a supplementary minor Earth Lord's covenant."
Qin Mu taught him how to establish the covenant, and Dragon Tamer Lord followed his instructions, setting the minor Earth Lord's covenant. Qin Mu then ignored him, letting Qi Kang Human Sovereign and Yi Shan Human Sovereign begin to comprehend the power of the Heavenly River and open their seventh divine repository.
Dragon Tamer Lord's massive head rose above the Surging River, waiting for a moment. Seeing Qin Mu bustling about without telling him where the Heavenly River was, he finally grew impatient and laughed, "Master, where is the Heavenly River?"
Qin Mu still ignored him. Dragon Qilin, being kind-hearted, said, "Dragon Lord, the Surging River is the Heavenly River. You are currently in the Heavenly River."
Dragon Tamer Lord was stunned, still not understanding.
Dragon Qilin shook his head and sighed, "You, after all, are the founder of the Dragon Taming Scripture, a master at raising dragons, but when it comes to people, you're as pure as a blank sheet of paper. The Surging River is the Heavenly River, and the Heavenly River is the Surging River after it was unsealed. The Sect Leader saw that the Surging River had become the Heavenly River and felt it was a loss to appoint you as the Surging River Dragon King. The aquatic products of the Heavenly River all belong to you. The river holds countless treasures, various dragon palaces and dragon mansions, and countless aquatic demigods, along with treasures sunk into the water over the ages. The Sect Leader has been pained by this for over a year, but he's bound by the Earth Lord's covenant and can't take it back."
Dragon Tamer Lord was dazed, his mind a blank.
The Water Qilin beside him also looked sympathetic and said to the dragon king, "Brother Pi's master is how cunning... brilliant and mighty? The reason he didn't cancel the Earth Lord's covenant with you is that the Surging River is the Heavenly River—no cancellation needed. As for the supplementary minor Earth Lord's covenant, that's used to reclaim the treasures of the Heavenly River. Heh heh, that minor Earth Lord is quite ruthless..."
Dragon Tamer Lord remained bewildered.
Qin Mu, meanwhile, was busy checking the progress of the two human sovereigns, seeing if they could sense the power of the Heavenly River. This was crucial.
Human sovereigns were outstanding individuals, strong figures who had dominated their eras for centuries. If they couldn't sense the power of the Heavenly River, then other cultivators would certainly find it even harder.
Fortunately, Qi Kang Human Sovereign and Yi Shan Human Sovereign quickly sensed the Heavenly River's power, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
"If Grandmaster and Great Grandmaster can sense the Heavenly River's power, opening the Heavenly River divine repository is only a matter of time. But for other cultivators to reach their level will still be difficult. The number of people who can open the Heavenly River divine repository shouldn't be too many."
Qin Mu calculated. Based on the current educational standards of Yan Kang, there should be several tens of thousands of cultivators with solid foundations and high enough talent and comprehension.
Several tens of thousands was already a lot, but compared to Yan Kang's total population, it was still too few.
Completely replacing the Divine Bridge divine repository with the Heavenly River divine repository would likely take hundreds or even thousands of years!
This would require the descendants of those who opened the Heavenly River divine repository to multiply, and more cultivators in the future to open it.
Moreover, Yan Kang's cultivation techniques would all need reform and improvement. The old techniques followed the Divine Bridge divine repository for cultivation, but the future path would need to shift to the Heavenly River divine repository.
"Modifying the techniques is an immensely vast project."
Qin Mu sighed inwardly. Yan Kang had too many techniques, and modifying them required people of exceptional intelligence.
The Heavenly River divine repository connected the Heavenly Palace cultivation system with the divine repository cultivation system, making them a whole. Cultivators knew little about the Heavenly Palace, while deities had experience cultivating in the Heavenly Palace. Therefore, modifying the techniques would also require the help of deities.
"In the coming years, decades, and centuries, there will surely be great masters who shake the ages."
As evening fell, Qin Mu's eyes flickered in the darkness, gazing at the surging river surface. His gaze seemed profound: "But how many years can Yan Kang hold on? Time waits for no one..."
Suddenly, light shone from beneath the water, growing stronger and brighter, illuminating the riverbed as if it were daylight.
Dragon Tamer Lord, startled like a frightened bird, quickly flew up, transforming into a dragon-headed, human-bodied deity, hovering nervously over the river surface, staring at the light below.
Qin Mu called him over and asked, "What is that in the river?"
"A ghost ship!"
Dragon Tamer Lord's scales bristled, each one razor-sharp, and he foamed at the mouth, saying, "It's a ghost ship! Those ships have appeared again!"
Qin Mu was taken aback and said, "Ghost ship?"
The group quickly rushed to the riverbank and looked down. Beneath the surface, an ancient, massive warship was slowly rising from the riverbed, surrounded by thick black qi like chains.
The ship was enormous, comparable to colossal vessels like the Sun Ship or Moon Ship, moving slowly through the water. The light came from lanterns hanging on the ship.
The entire ancient warship was submerged, yet the lanterns remained lit, a curious sight.
The ship passed by an underwater dragon palace, illuminating it. The group vaguely saw several demigods swimming out from the palace, looking up at the strange ship.
Yu Yuan Chu Yu said, "I've seen this ship a few times with Sacrificial Wine Su and others, always at dusk, but I never went to investigate. Since the Surging River widened, many demigods have appeared, and the people of Li Prefecture have been displaced, living in misery. Handling government affairs has left me overwhelmed."
Dragon Tamer Lord showed fear, trembling as he said, "The prefect hasn't had time to investigate, but I live here and have encountered this ghost ship far more often than the prefect. After the Surging River widened, this ship appeared. I didn't dare go near it, but many demigods in the water went to explore. They were far stronger than me, yet none returned from the ship. I heard that people saw them turn to bones once they boarded... Master, since the Surging River became the Heavenly River, strange occurrences have been endless. This Heavenly River Dragon King..."
Qin Mu gazed into the water. The ancient warship moved along the riverbed, its deck shadowy and indistinct, as if thousands of troops were guarding it, though their faces were invisible.
"The Heavenly River connects to the Great Ruins. Its history is too ancient, burying too many things."
He had no intention of investigating further. This ghost ship was just one of the Heavenly River's many anomalies; there was no need to take risks.
Just then, he saw the ship's sail break the river surface. The tattered flag dripped water, and as the water fell, the wind caught the bloodstained banner, making it flutter.
In the sky, the moon looked like a dried flower, wrinkled, but moonlight still shone down.
Qin Mu looked up at the strange moon, frowned, and by the moonlight, he could faintly make out the characters "Yu Lin" on the ship's flag.
"This ship is called Yu Lin."
Qin Mu smiled, "A ship with a name must have a significant origin..."
Suddenly, he froze, quickly examining the characters "Yu Lin." The more he looked, the more puzzled he became.
The characters on the flag were very familiar. He quickly took out Senior Brother Wei Sui Feng's military tally, which also bore the characters "Yu Lin"!
The characters on the flag were embroidered, while those on the tally were carved in intaglio, but the handwriting was identical!
Qin Mu looked at the flag, then at the tally, his confusion deepening.
"First Ancestor, Village Chief, stay here. I'll go check the ship!"
He suddenly leaped into the air, stepping on the river surface, and sprinted toward the ghost ship, shouting, "Dragon Tamer Lord, you're good in water, come with me!"
Village Chief hesitated for a moment, then said to First Ancestor, "First Ancestor, keep an eye on these human sovereigns and don't let them cause trouble. I'll go watch that boy Mu!"
First Ancestor frowned and grumbled, "Why am I always the one being ordered around..."
Dragon Tamer Lord hesitated, unwilling to go forward. Village Chief glanced at him, and Dragon Tamer Lord had no choice but to steel himself and follow, thinking, "If the master dies on the ghost ship, then my Earth Lord's covenant and minor Earth Lord's covenant might be nullified, right?"
Just as he thought this, darkness suddenly enveloped him, and a large-headed demon god appeared before him.
"No licking." A deep voice came from the darkness, seemingly the Earth Lord's voice.
"I won't lick. I'll just look at the food first." The large-headed demon god grinned sinisterly and slowly faded into the darkness.
Dragon Tamer Lord's vision returned to normal, and he shivered several times, silently lamenting, "Is that the minor Earth Lord? The other voice was the major Earth Lord? Even stranger than the ghost ship..."
Qin Mu approached the ghost ship. The ship moved beneath the river, with only its sail above water, cutting through the surface like white blades.
Qin Mu stopped at a distance, suddenly thrust his sword out. A red sun appeared on the river surface, half-sunk in the water, its sword light illuminating the river.
"The Sunset Sword Technique of my Yu Yuan family!"
On the riverbank, Yu Yuan Chu Yu exclaimed happily, "Brother Qin hasn't forgotten the Sunset Sword Technique!"
The sword light reached the edge of the ghost ship but suddenly dimmed, erased by the black chains surrounding the ship, losing all its power.
Qin Mu frowned. Shadows flickered as Village Chief and Dragon Tamer Lord arrived.
"Village Chief, why did you come?"
Qin Mu frowned and shook his head, "I can't protect you."
Village Chief was furious and punched him hard on the head, "Protect us? It's me protecting you. Brat, you've been out in the world for a few years and gotten quite cocky!"
Qin Mu clutched his head, nearly knocked into the river by the punch.
Village Chief looked at the ghost ship in the river and mused, "The chains outside the ship are formed from black qi, very dangerous. Follow me and don't wander off!"
Qin Mu patted Dragon Tamer Lord, who transformed into a giant dragon. Qin Mu stood on the dragon's head, and Dragon Tamer Lord plunged into the water first.
Village Chief quickly followed, swimming to the dragon's head, and shouted, "Mu, I said follow me, not the other way around. You're getting bolder..."
Suddenly, he landed in Qin Mu's hand. A jade pendant in Qin Mu's hand began to glow, its light dispelling the black qi chains around the ghost ship.
"So it's indeed the Yu Lin Army of the old Heavenly Court!"
Qin Mu muttered, "Could it be that this ship is the Yu Lin Army time-travel incident that Great Sun Star Lord mentioned? Strange, how did a Yu Lin Army warship end up here? Weren't they the Yu Lin Army of the Dragon Han Heavenly Court from a million years ago? Why does Senior Brother have a military tally of the Dragon Han Heavenly Court's Yu Lin Army? Could Senior Brother be on this ghost ship..."
As he spoke, he was hit on the head again. Village Chief stared at him with bright eyes.
"Mu, what do you know?"
Village Chief's face turned serious, then suddenly shifted to a curious expression, smiling, "What is that jade pendant in your hand? What's this Yu Lin Army time-travel incident?"
Qin Mu was about to speak when suddenly the underwater currents surged. A massive Kun fish swam by, carrying many strange-looking demigods on its back.
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