Chapter 1010: The Village Chief's Sword, the Cripple's Leg

Chapter 1010: The Village Chief's Sword, the Cripple's Leg

Lang Woan and Thu Quân exchanged a glance, suppressing the shock in their hearts. In haste, they couldn't think too much and dove into the Gate of Heaven's Ascension.

Tần Mục told Đô Thiên, Yên Nhi, Long Kỳ Lân and the others to drive the Thiên Long bảo liễn into the Gate of Heaven's Ascension. He was just about to enter as well when suddenly a paper boat sailed over. The yin messenger elder on board said, "Mục tôn giả, please wait."

Tần Mục stopped in his tracks and asked, "U tôn giả has some instruction?"

The yin messenger elder said, "Thổ Bá sent me to ask Mục tôn giả why you are mingling with the Creator race? Thổ Bá said the Creator race is vicious and evil, having committed countless atrocities, and in ancient times they once plagued the universe, doing every kind of evil. If you collude with them, you are aiding the wicked, and you will lose the support of the ancient gods."

Tần Mục stammered, "Tell Thổ Bá for U tôn giả that I was able to obtain the title of Vạn Kiếp Bất Diệt Đại Pháp Sư entirely thanks to the full support of Thổ Bá and Thiên Công. Naturally, I would not act recklessly. Regarding the Creator race, I am merely borrowing their power to deal with Thái Đế—it's mutual exploitation, nothing more. I have no intention of using their strength to oppose the ancient gods. I humbly submit to Thổ Bá's wise judgment, and I am filled with trepidation."

The yin messenger elder stared at him with wide eyes. After a moment, he said, "That last sentence was a bit much, wasn't it? Thổ Bá isn't the Heavenly Emperor, so why all this cowering and trembling?"

Tần Mục said solemnly, "After all, Thổ Bá watched me grow up. As a junior, I naturally must be respectful and deferential, filled with awe and trepidation."

The yin messenger elder still looked at him, then shook his head. "You go on. I'll speak with Thổ Bá."

Tần Mục thanked him, then asked, "Is Ngự tôn giả doing well?"

He shouldn't have brought it up. The moment he mentioned Ngự tôn giả, the yin messenger elder's anger flared. He fumed, "He was stolen!"

Tần Mục was startled and blurted out, "Ngự tôn giả was stolen? Who would be so bold as to sneak into U Đô and kidnap Ngự tôn giả? Didn't you keep a good watch over him?"

"I have to go around harvesting souls and ferrying the dead, splitting into countless avatars. Where would I find the time to watch him constantly?"

The yin messenger elder said irritably, "He's my elder brother, not my son. I could only have an avatar watch him and let him wander around U Đô. Who would have thought a thief would sneak in, and with a mix of stealing and coaxing, take him away?"

Tần Mục was suspicious. "Where did the thief who stole Ngự tôn giả come from?"

"Where from? From your household, of course!"

The yin messenger elder sneered. "You keep your elders in line! Absolutely audacious, daring to come to U Đô and commit crimes! I won't pursue this matter—staying in U Đô was indeed delaying Ngự tôn giả's growth. But your elder taking Ngự tôn giả around to steal things is hardly a good thing. Be careful they don't get caught by the Heavenly Court."

Tần Mục acknowledged, "I will certainly discipline Cripple Grandpa properly and not let him run amok. U tôn giả can rest assured."

The yin messenger elder saw him off, then sailed back to the third eye on Thổ Bá's brow and relayed Tần Mục's words to Thổ Bá's primordial spirit.

Thổ Bá was surprised. "'I humbly submit to Thổ Bá's wise judgment, and I am filled with trepidation'? That's what he said?"

The yin messenger elder nodded. "His attitude was very sincere."

"Rare for him to be so polite. Let today's matter pass, but keep a record of it."

The yin messenger elder acknowledged, then asked, "Now that Mục tôn giả and the U Đô Divine Son have separated, should we keep separate records?"

Thổ Bá said, "In the past, he and the U Đô Divine Son were one body. The sins the U Đô Divine Son committed are also his sins. We must be fair—just because they have now separated doesn't mean we should forget the mistakes he made before."

The yin messenger elder praised, "Thổ Bá is just and impartial."

Tần Mục returned to the mortal world and saw the Thiên Long bảo liễn parked not far away. Lang Woan thần vương and the others were waiting there. Lang Woan thần vương and Thu Quân still had somewhat pale faces.

"Thần vương sister, you don't fear Tần tôn giả, you don't fear any other tôn giả, so why are you specifically afraid of Thổ Bá?" Tần Mục asked, puzzled.

"Thổ Bá is the natural enemy of the Creator race."

Lang Woan thần vương shook her head. "Just your elder brother, the Little Thổ Bá, already routed my Creator race and sent them fleeing in disarray. So what about Thổ Bá himself?"

Tần Mục was stunned. In the other shore world, Vô Ưu Hương had always been on the defensive until Tần Phụng Thanh arrived and changed the situation. Although the Creators of the other shore world had unmatched divine consciousness, they suffered heavy casualties against the U Đô Divine Son Tần Phụng Thanh, with many being devoured by the big-headed doll.

The U Đô Great Dao did indeed seem capable of restraining the Creators.

Thu Quân said, "We are strong in divine consciousness but weak in primordial spirit. If the primordial spirit is weak, then the soul is weak, making it easy for Tần Phụng Thanh to directly strip away our souls and devour them. Tần Phụng Thanh is only the Little Thổ Bá. When facing the true Thổ Bá, the Creators' weakness becomes even more apparent. For Thổ Bá, killing Creators is far too simple. In the great war of the ancient era, more Creators died at Thổ Bá's hands than those killed by the Heavenly Emperor, Thiên Công, and Địa Mẫu Nguyên Quân combined!"

Lang Woan thần vương said, "I never witnessed the great war of the ancient era, but I have heard the ancestral spirits speak of Thổ Bá's fearsome reputation. When I led the Creators of the other shore world in reform, drawing from the Thần Tàng Thiên Cung system and beginning to cultivate primordial spirits, it was also an effort to eliminate the Creators' weakness. But even so, when facing the Little Thổ Bá Tần Phụng Thanh, there is still an enormous gap."

Tần Mục laughed. "What you've learned is only the primordial spirit cultivation methods of Vô Ưu Hương, which have already fallen far behind those of Diên Khang. At the same cultivation level, the primordial spirits of Diên Khang's supernatural power users and gods are stronger. For example, between me and Khai Hoàng, at the same level, my primordial spirit can beat his primordial spirit by this much!"

He held out one hand and gestured.

Both Lang Woan and Thu Quân didn't believe it.

Thu Quân in particular had seen the battle between Tần Mục and Khai Hoàng. Although Tần Mục was a bit stronger, it was only a little—not by much.

What they didn't know was that this time Tần Mục wasn't exaggerating.

Khai Hoàng's strength lay in combat power. The offensive power of Kiếm Nhị Thập and the thirty-fourth level of the Sword Dao was simply too strong, compensating for his insufficient cultivation.

Tần Mục, on the other hand, excelled in primordial spirit and magical power. His primordial spirit cultivation was incredibly profound—the magical power of a single Linh Thai thần tàng and primordial spirit could rival a heavenly god at the Dao Platform realm. After cultivating to the revered god realm, his magical power even approached the level of experts at the Execution Platform realm.

The reason his battle with Khai Hoàng seemed so close was mainly because Khai Hoàng's Sword Dao was too powerful, surpassing his by a great margin.

But when it came purely to primordial spirit, Khai Hoàng was far inferior to Tần Mục.

Tần Mục looked around and frowned slightly. He had originally planned to travel from the Fallen God Valley to Giang Lăng, but now that he had entered U Đô and come back out, the geography had changed drastically. This place was farther from Giang Lăng but very close to Bá Châu.

"In that case, let's go to Thiên Thánh Học Cung first to see Tư bà bà and the others."

He sat down with Lang Woan thần vương and Thu Quân, instructing Đô Thiên ma vương to set off for Thiên Thánh Học Cung. Inside the carriage, Tần Mục took out the jade bottle sealing Thái Đế's divine consciousness and said, "When refining Thái Đế's divine consciousness, I don't want his cultivation—I only want his memories, to obtain his Đại La Vô Thượng Thần Thức. His divine consciousness belongs to the two thần vươngs."

Lang Woan thần vương hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "A large portion of Thái Đế's divine consciousness was not obtained through cultivation but through sacrifices offered by the Creators of the ancient era. His divine consciousness is impure, which limited his achievements. There is a rumor among the ancestral spirits of the Thái Hư Creators that the reason Thái Đế lost in the war against the ancient gods was precisely because he relied on sacrifices to boost his cultivation, which gave him a weakness. Had his cultivation all been hard-earned through his own efforts, defeating the ancient god Heavenly Emperor and sweeping away all the ancient gods would not have been difficult."

Thu Quân's eyes lit up, and he laughed. "You don't want Thái Đế's divine consciousness? I'll take it. Lang Woan thần vương, do you want Thái Đế's divine consciousness?"

Lang Woan thần vương hesitated for a moment, then said, "The thần vương and I will each take half. I have cultivated to my current state, and taking another step forward is already extremely difficult. Even if Thái Đế's divine consciousness is impure, I have no choice but to try. However, I suggest dividing the divine consciousness into three parts—each of us takes one, and we leave a third for the Holy Infant."

Tần Mục didn't understand her meaning.

Lang Woan thần vương said softly, "In the future, if you reach a bottleneck and can no longer advance, you can refine Thái Đế's divine consciousness then to boost your cultivation. My Creator race can also collectively sacrifice to you to help increase your power."

Tần Mục thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

The three of them immediately activated their divine consciousness refining techniques and immersed themselves in cultivation. The Thiên Long bảo liễn continued on its way toward Thiên Thánh Học Cung.

In the capital of Diên Khang, Khai Hoàng bowed and asked Kiếm Thần Tô Mạc Triệt to stop. "After such a long exchange, Diệp Khai has gained much. Elder, no need to see me off further."

The village chief insisted on escorting him. "What I have learned from you is a hundred times what you have learned from me. Brother Diệp's talent is one of only two sword dao geniuses I have ever seen. I must see you off."

Khai Hoàng was surprised. "Elder has seen another person whose sword dao talent can rival mine? Dare I ask if it is Mục tôn giả?"

The village chief shook his head and laughed. "Mục Nhi's sword dao is certainly very profound, but his personality is too restless—he can't sit still and devote himself to studying the sword. His sword heart is impure. The sword dao master whose sword heart can rival yours is the former national preceptor of Diên Khang, Giang Lăng's Giang Bạch Khuê."

Khai Hoàng was visibly moved. "May I ask where this national preceptor is?"

"He was captured and suppressed by the Heavenly Court, imprisoned together with the Thái Thượng Hoàng."

The village chief said, "Giang Bạch Khuê's sword heart is incomparably pure. His sword dao possesses the marvelous quality of the universe's creation giving birth to all paths. He uses sword dao to evolve all paths, and his sword heart is transparent and profound—the finest I have ever seen. He is also the creator of the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth forms of the sword. If you meet him, you will surely have a wonderful and lengthy conversation."

Khai Hoàng pondered for a moment, then sighed. "It's a pity he is in prison. I don't know when I will see him again. I still need to visit other academies to witness Diên Khang's reforms, so I have no time to go to the prison to find him. If fate allows in the future, I will meet him then! Farewell, please stay."

The village chief watched him go, and after a long time still did not return to the Thái Học Viện.

The Blind Man and the Mute Man came looking for him. The Mute Man's voice boomed, "Village chief, you met that man called Diệp Khai? What a genius! Such talent is exactly what Diên Khang needs. Why didn't you keep him?"

The village chief shook his head. "Khai Hoàng is certainly a genius, but how could I possibly keep him?"

The Blind Man and the Mute Man were startled and exchanged glances.

"When he came to see me, I did not look at him, only sensed his aura. I felt a sword dao sovereign standing above the thirty-fourth heaven. At that moment, I knew the number one figure in sword dao had arrived."

The village chief said calmly, "Those who cultivate the sword, after achieving some accomplishment in sword dao, will all feel that there is a peak before them that they cannot climb or surpass. That peak is Khai Hoàng, forever standing ahead of them. This time he came to give the twentieth form of the sword to Diên Khang."

—Trại heo is thirty-six years old this year, and he's actually growing wisdom teeth. It's been hurting for days, his cheeks are swollen, and he's frustrated—they still haven't come through. Counting them, there are still three or four wisdom teeth that haven't emerged...