Chapter 1043: Five Luminaries Calamity Stars
In the year 1401 of the Long Han era, the Yuan Realm suffered great mourning. Calamity stars appeared in the world, traveling across the heavens.
The Yuan Realm was home to ten thousand races, some dwelling in the myriad worlds surrounding the World Tree, others living among the great mountains and rivers of the Yuan Realm itself. On this day, all races across the myriad worlds witnessed five-colored light tearing through the sky of the Yuan Realm. Five great calamity ancient gods led thousands upon thousands of troops flying across the heavens above the Yuan Realm.
Wherever this light passed, rivers and seas dried up, vegetation withered, crops would not grow, fire rained from the sky, war broke out everywhere, bandits ran rampant, and corpses littered the ground.
When night fell, some people saw lantern light approaching from the darkness. Following the light, they beheld a young man riding a paper boat, gathering the wandering vengeful spirits that drifted through the world.
For a time, many people across the Yuan Realm saw this strange young man, as if he had ten thousand avatars. There were rumors that he was a messenger from the Netherworld come to harvest souls.
The five-colored flowing light flew toward the Heavenly River, drifting farther and farther from the continent of the Yuan Realm. Yet the disasters caused by the calamity stars' descent could not be dispelled in a single moment—indeed, their poison lingered for a hundred years before the turmoil finally subsided.
On the Heavenly River, a Celestial Dragon Treasure Chariot was making its way at a leisurely pace, six celestial dragons pulling this magnificent carriage across the river's surface.
The Heavenly Court still hung above the Yuan Realm. Even on clear days, mortals with the naked eye could see the lofty Heavenly Court, though it appeared hazy and indistinct, as if suspended upside down in the sky.
If one cultivated divine eyes, one could even see the celestial markets in the sky, and the Southern Heaven Gate guarded by divine beings.
Of course, this was something rarely seen in later ages.
But though the Heavenly Court looked close, it was in truth very far away. Originally, the Heavenly Court had been positioned above the World Tree. If one had enough endurance, even an ordinary mortal could climb the World Tree and sneak into the Heavenly Court. Later, it was said that Earth Mother Yuanjun grew disgusted with the Heavenly Court pressing down upon the World Tree, and so they were separated.
After that, the only road to the Heavenly Court was the Heavenly River.
The Heavenly River flowed through the sky, and there were many ships upon its surface, but only demigod races could navigate its waters.
Qin Mu's Celestial Dragon Treasure Chariot raced across the river's surface, and he had to avoid these vessels, lest he shatter them. Of course, more often than not, those ships would see the Celestial Dragon Treasure Chariot from afar and steer clear on their own—after all, those who could possess such a treasure chariot were usually beings of immense background. In this era, being run down by such an existence meant no one would care.
On the chariot, Luo Xiao gazed out the window at the Heavenly River, his eyes deep and distant. Yan'er, meanwhile, had become somewhat cheerful, fetching dried fruits to offer him. Luo Xiao initially declined, but soon grew accustomed to it, eating absentmindedly. Yet even a Creator could become full. So Yan'er went outside the chariot to feed Long Qilin.
Qin Mu saw that she had regained some spark, and he was happy too.
Yan'er was a simple girl, and living in this cruel world was not easy for her. When she was sad, Qin Mu was sad as well.
"Luo Xiao, what exactly do you want to do at the Heavenly Court?" Qin Mu asked, looking at this young Creator.
Luo Xiao snapped back to attention and said, "I came here on the orders of my clan chief, to see if any of my people still live in this world. Moreover, our clan chief asked me to seek the Ancestral Court, to ask some questions of the ancestors there."
He did not reveal that he was a Creator, and his words were cautious. If one did not know his identity, one would not know what the "Ancestral Court" he spoke of truly was.
"The Ancestral Court?"
Qin Mu's heart shook violently. Suddenly he remembered that the Creator Xiu Chong had once said that a million years ago, Luo Xiao had left the Great Void, traveled to the Ancestral Court, and wandered there for a considerable time, receiving from the divine consciousness of the ancestors there three prophecies concerning the fate of the Creator race!
That is to say, the Creator ancestral spirit Luo Xiao's true purpose on this journey was the same as Lang Wan Divine King's—to seek the Ancestral Court!
He had probably come from the Great Void to the Yuan Realm, discovered that the Yuan Realm was not the Ancestral Court, and so planned to visit the Heavenly Court to see whether it might be the Ancestral Court.
But from what Qin Mu knew, neither the Yuan Realm nor the Heavenly Court, nor the Netherworld, nor the Mystic Capital, nor the Four Extremes Heaven—none of these were the Ancestral Court. The true Ancestral Court was sealed behind the backsides of all the great worlds!
Luo Xiao's journey was destined to fail in finding where the Ancestral Court lay!
Luo Xiao's gaze was deep and distant as he looked outside. This was a brave young Creator, knowing full well this journey might be one of no return, yet still he left the Great Void without hesitation.
"Have you found any of your people?" Qin Mu asked.
Luo Xiao shook his head. "For one moment, I thought you were one of my people. For another moment, I thought Lang Xuan Divine Emperor seemed like one of my people. But in the end, I discovered neither was true."
He forced a smile and explained, "The people of my race have a strange eye on their foreheads. You have one too, but I observed you carefully—you are not one of us. I also sensed that Lang Xuan Divine Emperor carries the blood of my people, but he is not one of us either. Perhaps there might be one of my people in the Heavenly Court. If there is, perhaps I can find our race's Ancestral Court through him."
Qin Mu thought for a moment, then said, "If there is one of your people in the Heavenly Court, they would be your enemy."
Luo Xiao's body trembled slightly. He was about to ask what he meant by that, when suddenly five-colored flowing light came into their view. The Heavenly River shook violently, and nearly all the ships were sent flying by the hurricane stirred up by the five-colored light!
A few ships were not sent flying, but the demigods aboard them let out miserable screams. They were aging at a visible rate, quickly turning into white-haired, wrinkled old men and women!
"Zhen Xingjun, if you spread your Dao might so wantonly, it affects the flavor!"
A voice came from above, and then the five-colored flowing light descended with a whoosh, landing in front of the Celestial Dragon Treasure Chariot, about ten li away. One mighty ancient god after another descended, with thousands upon thousands of divine and demonic troops behind them.
The leading ancient god, with crimson hair and a serpent's body, reached out his hand toward the few surviving ships, grabbing them, and laughed: "Sui Xingjun, you have great skill—make them more palatable."
Another ancient god, with a bird's head, human body, and bird's feet, shot light from his eyes. The aged demigods on those ships seemed to experience time flowing backward, rapidly becoming young again. Soon the old women became lovely maidens, and the old men became handsome youths.
"This way they'll taste better!"
The crimson-haired serpent-bodied ancient god laughed heartily, sucked up all the demigods from those ships in one breath, and swallowed them. Then he looked toward the Celestial Dragon Treasure Chariot, which had come to a stop, and chuckled: "Mu Tianzun, your crimes have caught up with you! Why don't you come down and accept your death?"
Luo Xiao's face changed dramatically, and he was extremely tense.
Qin Mu glanced at him and said, "Just petty gods. Brother Luo, there's no need to be so nervous."
Luo Xiao's voice was hoarse as he said, "These five evil gods are the bane of my race. I cannot face them, or they will surely recognize me."
In front of the chariot, the six celestial dragons trembled in fear, staring in terror at the Five Luminaries ancient gods, whispering among themselves: "It's over! The ancient gods have come—we're all going to die!"
"They seem to be the Five Luminaries Star Lords!"
"I said we should have stayed in Yankang, following that black-faced demon king Dutian to attack the Tianyu World, but you wouldn't listen. Now the big brothers are probably beating up Dutian Demon King. Well, now we're all going to die!"
One celestial dragon looked simple and dull-witted, and said, "The Five Luminaries Star Lords don't look all that powerful to me. Not like the ancient gods I imagined. The ancient gods I imagined should be stalwart men like Tu Bo..."
"Mah! Mah!"
The other five celestial dragons all shouted in rebuke: "Shut up! The ancient gods of antiquity are certainly more powerful!"
Long Qilin was furious, rose to his feet, and roared: "Mah!"
The six celestial dragons immediately stopped their whispering and said with fawning smiles: "Brother Pi is right, we shouldn't talk too much. If the sky falls, the Tianzun will hold it up."
Long Qilin slowly nodded, quite satisfied. He turned around and said into the chariot: "Jiaozhu, there are some ancient gods outside who don't know their place and are blocking the road. Please decide what to do."
Yan'er lifted the pearl curtain. Qin Mu ducked his head and slowly stepped out, looking up ahead with a half-smile: "So it's the Five Luminaries Star Lords. You block my path—for what reason?"
He looked at the Five Luminaries Star Lords, his gaze falling on Zhen Xingjun, and was briefly startled. In his memory, the Zhen Xingjun of the Netherworld was a seductive woman with a human head and serpent body, with a feminine face but masculine voice, thick hair covering her chest, strange and alluring.
But the Zhen Xingjun before him was also human-headed and serpent-bodied, yet male, with disheveled long hair and bare chest. In one hand he held a white banner, in the other a bright mirror, and from his mouth flicked a serpent's tongue—long and forked.
"Could it be that the Zhen Xingjun of later ages was a post-heaven being who cultivated into a divine demon?"
Qin Mu pondered: "That is to say, the true ancient god Zhen Xingjun has already died, just like the Great Sun Star Lord, and post-heaven divine demons replaced them. It seems the Five Luminaries Star Lords will die in some future battle. I wonder who killed them?"
Zhen Xingjun was the leader of the Five Luminaries Star Lords, wielding the most powerful strength. He swayed his tail and swam forward, his long tongue extending with a light sweep. A ship downstream was coiled by his tongue, and he tilted his head back, swallowing ship and people together. He laughed: "Mu Tianzun, you offended Lang Xuan Divine Emperor, attacked Lang Xuan Divine Palace, and slaughtered the innocent. Lang Xuan has filed charges against you. Will you surrender and await death, or shall we personally strike you down?"
Qin Mu laughed: "Five Luminaries, you are also ancient gods of name and renown, avatars of the Great Dao. How can you listen only to Lang Xuan's one-sided story and come to kill me without distinguishing right from wrong? I am, after all, a Tianzun appointed by His Majesty the Heavenly Emperor! Where is Lang Xuan? Bring him out, and I will confront him face to face."
Sui Xingjun flapped his bird wings and cackled: "Mu Tianzun, do you really think you're somebody? You struck Hao Tianzun, and Hao Tianzun is the son of the Heavenly Emperor. The Heavenly Emperor has long wanted to eliminate you—this time he's just going with the flow!"
In the chariot, Luo Xiao let out a muffled groan, his heart pounding with terror, almost wanting to flee: "I originally thought when Mu Tianzun said he had many enemies, they were just minor ones—if he couldn't handle them, I could help. I never imagined even the Heavenly Emperor is his enemy! If I keep following him, I'm dead! Setting aside whether he can get past the Five Luminaries ancient gods, even if he does, going to the Heavenly Court is suicide, and I'll be buried with him!"
But now he was hiding in the chariot, not daring to show his face. If the Five Luminaries ancient gods saw his true form, he too would not escape death.
Now he regretted it deeply, regretting that he had hitched a ride with Qin Mu to save some effort. Who would have thought this ride was not a ride, but a pirate ship!
Qin Mu laughed: "Five Luminaries, ever since the method of becoming a god was spread, the era of the ancient gods has come to an end. The ducks in the spring river know the water's warmth first—are you even worse than ducks? Do you remember Jinwu Langjiang Niu Ben? Back then, he beat you quite badly."
The Five Luminaries Star Lords flew into a rage. Zhen Xingjun, without another word, raised his mirror and shone it at Qin Mu. Qin Mu stood unmoved, laughing: "You command death, but I have the art of creation, which can avoid death. Your Great Dao is useless against me."
Yinghuo Xingjun took the great bottle from his back and uncorked it. The plague energy within came howling out, surging toward Qin Mu.
Qin Mu remained unmoved, laughing: "My medical arts are peerless—I can revive the dead and regrow bones from flesh. Such petty tricks, what can they do to me?"
Yinghuo Xingjun's face changed dramatically.
Taibai Xingjun struck the great drum, and the drumbeats thundered like rolling thunder, sending down calamities to strip away Qin Mu's fortune.
Qin Mu remained unmoved, laughing: "You five are ancient gods after all. If you leave now, I can still spare you some dignity. Otherwise, don't blame me for being merciless."
Chen Xingjun shook his trident, and the Heavenly River churned. He shouted fiercely: "Enough talk with him! Children, attack! Seize this rebel!"
Whoosh—
Behind the Five Luminaries Star Lords, countless descendants of the Five Luminaries surged into the air, charging madly forward!
Qin Mu frowned, and with a gentle rotation of his palm, a sword pellet appeared in his hand.
He flicked his finger, and the sword pellet split into two, two into four, four into eight. In an instant, the sky was filled with spinning sword pellets!
These sword pellets spun as they shot out beams of sword light, the light coiling and soaring like dragons, falling like a rain of swords upon the army of the Five Luminaries Star Lords!
Those divine demons rose up one after another, shouting fiercely as they advanced against the sword light. The next moment, their shouts ceased.
Countless corpses stained the Heavenly River red.
In front of the chariot, that dull-witted celestial dragon broke the silence with his voice: "I told you, they're weak, but you wouldn't believe me! These Five Luminaries ancient gods must be fakes—in my eyes, they're not that strong! The six of us brothers together could take on one or two!"
"Mah!" The other five dragons roared in fury, telling him to shut up.
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Ding Jingxi emerged from the shadows, breathing slightly heavily, revealing the turmoil in his heart. The killing sword never leaves its sheath without reason—whenever his sword is drawn, it must see blood. But this time he drew his sword, truly without confidence.
Rou Xue's face had a hint of a mysterious blush, but her attitude remained cold. To put it plainly... isn't this tsundere?
Sun·Shiren was not surprised by this strange card, and You Jian did not notice the peculiar curve at the corner of his mouth.
But when they reached the balcony, Long Rui looked at the door locked from the outside and couldn't help but curse. Yet he had to admire his father for sealing off all his escape routes so tightly—it was absolutely ruthless.
Wei Xian frequently practiced feints, and though his acting could not win a Best Actor award, it was still exquisite. Ma Zhongming naturally didn't know Wei Xian, but Wei Xian was well-dressed and acted familiar, so Ma Zhongming couldn't help but smile and rise to embrace Wei Xian, successfully stealing "Chen Weisi's soul."
The captain of the plane that Qin Junxi and the others were on made up his mind and immediately banked the aircraft into a sharp turn.
It turned out that on that night, after Ding Jingxi subdued Yun Xi and let her go, the person who appeared to check was Ning Guangyi.
"Of course, you should look at who this princess is—naturally not something a mortal like you could understand." Lin Qingqing was not modest at all, proudly lifting her chin.
"He must be hiding somewhere, continuously providing power to the bamboo fan!" Ao Xingchu shouted.
The volcano under immense pressure, upon finding its true vent, could only result in a complete eruption.
"Madam, you want to know how the previous madam died, don't you? No rush—when I take you to a place, I'll tell you everything." Zhang Ma's expression was faint, her eyes murky, full of stories.
"Madman! What exactly do you want!" Shangguan Hongyan raised her sword, horizontally blocking in front of Su Chenyang, her phoenix eyes blazing with anger at the speaker.
"Really?" Excitement immediately appeared on everyone's faces. Although they had accepted the mission earlier, they had only planned to waste time there, returning to the academy to report once the mission period ended. Now hearing Xia Mu say this, they suddenly gained motivation and intended to carry out the mission seriously.
When the dumplings came out of the pot and the milk was warmed, Xiao Yue went back inside to check on the triplets. Yang Changfa had also returned, so she had him quickly perform the ancestor worship, and then everyone could eat the dumplings.
Ji Manrou thought she was being meddlesome, gave a cold look, and turned to leave. I looked carefully at Ji Manrou's shoes—not a speck of mud on them, as if she'd been to the garden? Hah, but the dust on her shoulders and the flashlight hidden behind her back told me she'd gone to the abandoned building.
Going out so obediently means there's definitely a backup plan. Do you think I don't know what you're thinking? Too naive.
Alice shook her head helplessly—the battle plan was already in her head, right? If everything could go according to plan, no one would be standing on the stage freezing in the wind.
It turned out that on the stage, Zhong Li, Ling Wu, Liu Yu, and Fan Meng had all made their moves. No one had provoked them, but to end things quickly, no one wanted to stand on the stage in the cold wind.
Hua Xuanji gritted her teeth, but Ye Linglong's strength had indeed been considerable just now—her wrist throbbed with pain, and she couldn't lift it no matter what.