Chapter 925: The Plague God Arrives (Third Update!)
The new palace maids in the Jade Pool had replaced the old ones. These new maids were even more attentive and eager to please, even more so than Yan'er. They were all smiles, delicate in form, diligent, and willing to fulfill any request.
Qin Mu knew these maids had seen the deaths of their predecessors and feared for their own lives, which was why they were so cautious. But for now, he was powerless to change the Heavenly Court.
After the shocking upheaval of the previous night, the Heavenly Court remained peaceful and serene. Although the incident had caused a tremendous commotion, no one in the Heavenly Court discussed it, as if nothing had happened at all.
The Jade Pool incident was too massive to be completely concealed. People refrained from speaking about it simply because they dared not.
However, those with discerning eyes in the Heavenly Court could still perceive the situation.
The Heavenly Court appeared unbreakable, but the Jade Pool incident the night before revealed that this behemoth had long been riddled with holes, on the verge of splitting at any moment.
The arrival of Celestial Venerable Mu had only accelerated the process of division, sharpening the hidden contradictions to the point of irreconcilability.
Most eyes were still fixed on the Jade Pool incident, the first major event triggered by Celestial Venerable Mu's arrival in the Heavenly Court. Yet, his very first act had split the Heavenly Court!
The Jade Pool incident last night was the first eruption of the undercurrents within the Heavenly Court.
If there was a first, there would be a second, a third. The internal conflicts of the Heavenly Court would grow increasingly acute until they became utterly uncontrollable!
The Jade Pool fell silent. Two days later, the Grand Ancestral Mother of the Yun family led the widows of the Yun family to the Jade Pool, claiming they had come to visit Yun Jianli.
This Grand Ancestral Mother was the beloved wife of Celestial Venerable Yun and had been the Empress of the Xiao Han Heavenly Court during the Dragon Han era. After the Xiao Han Heavenly Court was defeated, its members were either killed, surrendered, or fled. Only this Grand Ancestral Mother of the Yun family escaped, pregnant with a son at the time.
Because of Celestial Venerable Yun's status, the Dragon Han Heavenly Court did not trouble her. The Heavenly Emperor took her and her son into the Heavenly Court, established the Yun Manor, and bestowed upon her the title Lady Yunxiao.
However, the bloodline curse of the Yun family appeared, and generation after generation, the eldest sons of the Yun family died suddenly upon reaching adulthood, leaving behind a household of widows.
Although many widows remarried, quite a few remained, resulting in the Yun Manor being filled with strong-willed women who were particularly protective of their own. No one dared to provoke the sons of the Yun family lightly.
Accompanying Lady Yunxiao and the others was the Heavenly Court's historiographer, who recorded this meeting. Celestial Venerable Mu personally received Lady Yunxiao, and the two sides held a cordial meeting in the Manhui Corridor Pavilion, engaging in friendly exchanges and sharing their views on the current prosperity and flourishing age of the Heavenly Court.
In reality, however, Lady Yunxiao had come in a fury, leading her group to demand an explanation. She immediately wanted to seize Yun Jianli and lock him up, and she reproached Qin Mu for placing Yun Jianli in danger. Yun Jianli's wife even attacked Qin Mu, intending to give this Celestial Venerable Mu a thorough beating as a warning to others.
This was what the historiographer called a "cordial meeting and friendly exchange."
The historiographer, plagued by a headache from the women's clamor and invited by Qi Jiuyi for a drink, actually recorded very little.
These fierce women only turned their anger to joy after hearing that Qin Mu had completely lifted the Yun family's hereditary bloodline curse. They repeatedly apologized to Qin Mu.
As for the exchange of views on the Heavenly Court's flourishing age, it involved Qin Mu inquiring about the major powers of the Heavenly Court from Lady Yunxiao. The Yun family's widows, young and old, chattered endlessly, spilling all the big and small matters of every palace and hall in the Heavenly Court, including all sorts of trivial, outdated affairs.
The Heavenly Court's historiographer, thoroughly drunk from being plied with wine by Qi Jiuyi and Long Qilin, could only record it using a euphemistic style.
Lady Yunxiao then led the grandmothers and grand ancestral mothers of the Yun family in a swarm back to the Yun Manor, bringing Yun Jianli's son with them. Qin Mu removed the bloodline curse from the little one, bringing joy to the entire Yun family.
However, the Creator hidden in the Heavenly Court did not appear this time.
"Celestial Venerable Mu, my husband always wanted to see you again."
Lady Yunxiao still looked young but deliberately acted old, wearing a phoenix-tail golden crown, leaning on a dragon-head staff, and dyeing the hair at her temples white to appear as aged as possible. She cast a meaningful glance at the women, and the Yun family widows understood, surrounding the historiographer tightly.
The historiographer wanted to step forward to hear what Lady Yunxiao and Qin Mu were saying, but he was trapped by the Yun Manor widows and couldn't break free, growing increasingly anxious.
Lady Yunxiao walked and talked with Qin Mu, saying, "My husband spent his whole life waiting for Celestial Venerable Mu to reappear. He often said that the Heavenly Alliance needed a set of rules: not to be too kind to the wicked, nor too harsh to the good. To be kinder to the good and harsher to the wicked. But he said he failed to achieve this. On his deathbed, he realized that the Heavenly Alliance had become too kind to the wicked and too harsh to the good."
Qin Mu looked down at the path, then raised his head. "That saying is simple, but incredibly difficult to achieve. People are always too critical of the good and too tolerant of the wicked."
"He actually left something for me to pass on to you."
Lady Yunxiao said, "But at the time, I was pregnant and barely escaped the Xiao Han Heavenly Court, unable to even protect myself. Even if I survived, I couldn't keep that item safe. So I entrusted it to the Dao Ancestor. The Dao Ancestor was my husband's closest friend, and that item was safest with him."
"The Dao Ancestor?"
Qin Mu stopped in his tracks, puzzled. "Sister-in-law entrusted that item to the Dao Ancestor? Then, what was it that Celestial Venerable Yun left behind?"
Lady Yunxiao said, "It was a box. I don't know what was inside; I never opened it."
Qin Mu nodded slightly. "Celestial Venerable Yun was far-sighted and resourceful, far beyond my reach. What he left behind must have deep meaning. It's a pity that when I visited the Dragon Han Heavenly Court back then, I came and went in haste and never had a chance to speak with him in detail. Who would have thought that parting would be forever?"
Lady Yunxiao said, "Just now, Jianli said he plans to descend to the mortal realm. I disagree. The mortal realm is too dangerous; it's utter nonsense! He's only just gotten rid of the bloodline curse, and now he wants to go down there and court death? Wouldn't that cut off the Yun family's bloodline? Celestial Venerable Mu, you have a good relationship with him. Please help me persuade him."
Qin Mu smiled. "Sister-in-law, do you think the Heavenly Court is safer, or the mortal realm?"
"Naturally, the Heav—"
Lady Yunxiao paused, suddenly enlightened, and laughed. "Serving the emperor is like lying with a tiger, and with ten Celestial Venerables in the Heavenly Court, the danger is ten times greater. But the mortal realm is also fraught with peril and has no future. If the Heavenly Court decides to bring down another calamity, he'll only be caught in the crossfire if he goes down there."
Qin Mu glanced at her. "Wouldn't it be safe to overthrow this Heavenly Court? A fledgling always has to leave the nest. And in my opinion, Yun Jianli is no fledgling; his ambitions are considerable. He also handled himself with great tact when dealing with the Empress, showing remarkable skill. Sister-in-law, I think you shouldn't hold him back."
"You know that Yun Chuxiu is the Empress?"
Lady Yunxiao's scalp tingled. She suddenly bowed gracefully and sighed. "I truly don't want Yun Jianli to follow the path of his ancestor. The Yun family finally has a child who can live a long life. But Celestial Venerable, you are the Yun family's benefactor, so I entrust Jianli's life to you!"
Qin Mu quickly returned the bow. "Sister-in-law, please don't do this! You honor me too much!"
They both straightened up, and Qin Mu smiled. "Yun Jianli is a remarkable talent of this era. Once he descends to the mortal realm, he will soar to great heights, achieving far more than you can imagine. Sister-in-law need not worry about him."
Lady Yunxiao said, "I hope he can revive the Yun family and restore our ancestors' glory, but I also don't want him to die. Celestial Venerable Mu, you men always have all sorts of ideals and ambitions. I simply don't understand them; I can only silently support you from behind. Farewell."
Qin Mu saw her off.
The women of the Yun family departed, while Yun Jianli and Yun Chuxiu remained in the Jade Pool.
Qin Mu fell into thought. "Celestial Venerable Yun left me a box? The box is with the Dao Ancestor? Is the Dao Ancestor still the same slovenly Daoist from the Jade Pool banquet? Is he still Celestial Venerable Yun's friend? Has he been lost in the power and luxury of the Heavenly Court?"
He pondered for a long time before finally making up his mind.
He had to go see this slovenly old Daoist, no matter what!
"But going directly to the Heavenly Court's Dao Sect to see the Dao Ancestor would be too conspicuous and could easily bring trouble to him." Qin Mu mused for a moment, then settled on a plan.
"After the Jade Pool incident, you still dare to go out? Aren't you afraid of being beaten to death?"
Qi Jiuyi was very displeased and scolded Qin Mu harshly. "If you want to go out, go by yourself! I, Second Brother, and Sister Yan'er will stay here and watch you go to your death alone!"
Long Qilin walked behind Qin Mu, and Yan'er also turned into a little fat bird perched on Long Qilin's forehead, looking back at Qi Jiuyi.
Qi Jiuyi flew into a rage, stormed over, and stood there with a dark face, silent.
Yun Jianli watched him curiously, thinking, "Is Qi Jiuyi not Celestial Venerable Mu's attendant? How dare he speak to the Celestial Venerable like that?"
He didn't know that Qi Jiuyi and Qin Mu had never gotten along; it was already a great favor to Long Qilin, their Second Brother, that they hadn't come to blows.
Yun Chuxiu said softly, "Ninth Brother, going out for a stroll is a good thing. The scenery of the Jade Pool is beautiful, but after seeing it too much, it gets boring. Ninth Brother, come with me for a walk."
Qi Jiuyi's bones turned to jelly at her calling him "Ninth Brother," his soul soaring, his heart sweet. "This enchantress is truly formidable! My Dao heart... To hell with the Dao heart!"
Yun Jianli followed them and asked, "Celestial Venerable, where do you intend to go?"
Qin Mu's eyes flickered, and he smiled. "So many powerful figures came to visit me during the Jade Pool incident. If I don't return the courtesy, wouldn't I be considered rude?"
Yun Jianli was startled. Qi Jiuyi and Yan'er also felt a chill run down their spines. Qin Mu actually planned to visit those who had come to assassinate him—truly audacious!
Only Yun Chuxiu, who loved chaos, cheered joyfully.
"Among the experts who attacked the Jade Pool that night, whose residence is closest to the Jade Pool?" Qin Mu asked.
Yun Jianli and Qi Jiuyi exchanged glances and said nothing. Yun Chuxiu quickly spoke up, "I know, I know! The closest to the Jade Pool is Celestial Venerable Lang's Langxuan Divine Palace! Celestial Venerable Lang, the Langxuan Divine Emperor, has disciples all over the world, and the Langxuan Divine Palace is also a major landmark of the Heavenly Court, truly magnificent!"
Qi Jiuyi's face changed drastically, and he quickly said, "We can't go to the Langxuan Divine Palace..."
"Ninth Brother..." Yun Chuxiu blinked her dark, glossy eyes at him, her beautiful eyes glistening with tears.
Qi Jiuyi's mind went blank, and he said without thinking, "Then let's go to the Langxuan Divine Palace."
They left the Jade Pool and soon arrived at the Heavenly Street. The markets of the Heavenly Court were extremely lively, part of the Heavenly Market. Although the Heavenly Court was high above, the gods couldn't be entirely self-sufficient; they needed to support their families, so the market was very important.
Many of those coming and going on the Heavenly Street were demigods, along with various races, including some humans, though fewer in number than the demigods.
The place was spacious, bustling with traffic, and business was booming. But when Qin Mu and his group arrived, the bustling crowd seemed to freeze in time, all stopping and turning their heads to look.
The next moment, all sorts of clamorous sounds erupted. Wheels rolled, horses neighed, beams of divine light shot off in all directions, and the Heavenly Street was instantly empty—not a single person left on the entire street!
Qin Mu looked around in surprise at the shops lining the Heavenly Street. They had all closed their doors, tightly shut.
A short, stocky god was a step too slow and got locked out of a shop. He was pounding desperately on the door, wailing and begging for help.
Qin Mu walked over and said with concern, "Friend..."
"Save me—"
The short god saw him approaching and burst into loud sobs. He leaned against the shop door, kicking his legs frantically, trying to get inside. "I don't want to die here!"
Qin Mu was even more astonished. Suddenly, the shop door opened a crack, and the short god tumbled inside. The door immediately slammed shut again, and the windows were locked tight.
"Thank you for saving my life!"
The short god's voice came from inside. "Your life-saving grace is like being reborn; I will never forget it!"
Someone inside the shop scolded him, "You god, how reckless! Seeing the Plague God coming and not running, just standing outside crying, you almost got us all killed!"
The short god said, "I was scared stiff, my legs went weak, I couldn't run..."
"Shh, quiet! What if someone tries to assassinate this Plague God? The whole street would be silenced!"
—Third update here! In the evening, well, there will be another update around midnight!