Chapter 1433: Masked, No One Knows Who We Are (Fourth Update)
Above Qin Mu's head, the sea of qi and blood boiled open, the demonic energy of the Netherworld dyeing the blood sea pitch black. The skin on the surface of his physical body even cracked and burst with popping sounds, barely able to contain his own primordial spirit.
The two bowed once more, each bearing even heavier injuries!
"Receive my bow!"
"Receive my bow!"
...
Boom!
A deafening, earth-shattering roar erupted as Qin Mu was shaken so violently that the Heaven and Earth Gate behind him exploded with a thunderous blast. His physical body could no longer withstand it, and streams of black soul-sand sprayed from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth!
Meanwhile, the Netherworld Emperor facing him across the formation suddenly had his physical body explode, bowed into a mass of chaotic energy. Even the Nether Capital Heavenly Gate behind him was bowed into dust along with him, massive fragments of divine artifacts dragging trails of chaotic energy as they plunged into the Nether Sea.
Qin Mu's body swayed unsteadily but he stood firm. He suddenly activated the Soul-Guiding Art, restraining his scattering black soul-sand, and channeled his divine powers to reshape his soul!
The Butcher was about to support him, but saw that he had already recovered. Though his aura was weakened, he was no longer in danger, so the Butcher withdrew his hand.
"Is the Netherworld Emperor dead or not?"
The Butcher raised his Heaven-Slaying Saber, examining the blade as he swept his gaze around, searching for the Netherworld Emperor's whereabouts.
Tian Shu also raised his Imperial Tower Divine Saber, staring at the blade surface, searching for the Netherworld Emperor's primordial spirit.
Luo Wushuang also raised his divine saber, scanning in all directions.
Zhe Huali raised the demonic saber Dragon Fang, but Dragon Fang was made from the tooth of the Eastern Emperor Azure Dragon, and its blade surface was not bright, unable to illuminate the depths of the void.
However, on the hilt of Dragon Fang grew a demonic eye, which rolled around busily, also searching for the Netherworld Emperor.
Although the Netherworld Emperor was not a Heavenly Venerable, his abilities were truly bizarre and uncanny, reaching the pinnacle of mastery, making him impossible to guard against.
They had originally thought that killing the Netherworld Emperor would be a trivial matter, but indeed, cutting at the Netherworld Emperor was trivial—it was taking his life that was the difficult part.
Not only that, the Netherworld Emperor's Netherworld divine powers and the Path of Reincarnation also left them with lingering fear.
"Is he dead or did he flee?" The Butcher searched for a long while without finding any trace of the Netherworld Emperor, and couldn't help asking.
Qin Mu opened the vertical eye on his forehead, sweeping his gaze around. His vision suddenly pierced through the void, and from afar he saw the Nether Sea surging violently. A head was drifting in the sea, rushing toward the Nether Capital. He said, "He's not dead yet, he's returned to the Nether Capital. He is also an existence who cultivates the Path of Heavenly Yin, and is proficient in the Great Dao of the Netherworld. Killing him is not easy. No need to bother with him—the Netherworld Emperor is merely a tool for us to test our blades, nothing more. He doesn't even deserve a place on the stage."
He raised his head and saw the divine demon army of the Northern Heaven Nether Capital facing them as if facing a great enemy. Countless mighty divine demons stood at the prows of their ships, silent as death, watching them with extreme tension.
The Butcher, Tian Shu, Luo Wushuang and the others each stepped forward. Luo Wushuang shook his single-arm divine saber and said calmly, "Should we kill them all?"
The several divine generals leading the Northern Heaven Nether Capital forces changed expression drastically, each activating their divine weapons to protect their bodies first.
"No need."
Qin Mu suddenly revealed a smile and waved to the tens of thousands of Northern Heaven Nether Capital troops, saying, "Disperse, all of you disperse. Your Netherworld Emperor has already returned to the Nether Sea. You should all disperse too, go back to your own homes."
Those generals felt as if they had received a pardon. Zhe Huali frowned and said, "They've seen our faces. What if they report it up the chain..."
Qin Mu smiled broadly, took out a black silk scarf and covered his face, saying, "Now they can't see our faces, right?"
Luo Wushuang and Zhe Huali were dumbfounded.
Not covering their faces beforehand, but covering them afterward—wasn't that just plugging their ears while stealing a bell?
The Butcher also took out a black scarf and covered his face, clearly well-versed in this practice. After all, Qin Mu had learned from a prestigious school, and the Butcher was that very school. He said, "As long as we aren't caught in the act, we simply refuse to admit it. Who can do anything to us?"
"Covering one's face is just a fig leaf. Wearing it or not makes no difference—who can it actually fool?"
Qin Mu was prepared for all contingencies. He took out three black scarves and handed them to Tian Shu, Zhe Huali, and Luo Wushuang, saying, "As long as we aren't caught in the act, we simply refuse to acknowledge it. If it comes to a legal dispute, then there's plenty to argue about—we can twist black into white, and turn the dead back into the living. You all cover your faces first."
The three silently took the black scarves and covered their faces.
Qin Mu suddenly remembered something, pulled off his scarf, and called out to the Northern Heaven Nether Capital army that was about to withdraw: "I am Heavenly Venerable Mu, on my way to Xuan Capital to oversee the battle. I encountered bandits on the road who damaged my treasure ship, so I am requisitioning one of your fast vessels."
The generals of the Northern Heaven Nether Capital were all stunned. They had already been shocked by seeing them brazenly cover their faces after the fact, but now Qin Mu didn't even bother covering his face, directly using his identity as Heavenly Venerable Mu to requisition their ships. This thickness of skin—even the Heavenly Emperor's sword probably couldn't pierce it!
The generals exchanged glances. Suddenly one of them came to his senses and hastily ordered a fast ship to be cleared, personally delivering it over. The few of them trembled with fear, not daring to speak.
Qin Mu looked at them with a half-smile and said calmly, "Still not leaving? I'm about to cover my face. Once I cover it, I am no longer Heavenly Venerable Mu, but a bandit who dares to kill even the Netherworld Emperor."
Those generals scrambled away in panic.
The five boarded the fast ship. The Butcher watched the retreating army of the Northern Heaven Nether Capital and noticed that although these Nether Capital troops were retreating, their formation remained perfectly orderly, with proper discipline. Even in retreat, they displayed the changing dynamics of attack and defense. He couldn't help frowning.
"The Netherworld Emperor has profound mastery of military tactics and formation arts."
His expression was grave as he said in a deep voice: "If the Netherworld Emperor had not been provoked into a rage and come at us furiously, but instead mobilized his Nether Capital army and activated his formation to trap us, we would have been lambs waiting for slaughter."
Tian Shu, Zhe Huali, and Luo Wushuang were all generals who commanded armies. Luo Wushuang had originally been the leader of the Lingxiu Army, Zhe Huali had been heavily relied upon by Emperor Yanxiu Ling Yuxiu and served as a general in the Western Frontier, and Tian Shu was even one of the Four Heavenly Kings under Emperor Kaihuang, commanding the great armies of the Kaihuang Era.
They too could see the Netherworld Emperor's formidable skill in military command, and each furrowed their brows.
An individual Nether Capital divine demon's combat power was negligible to them—even the commanding generals among them had at most reached the Yujing or Lingxiao realms.
But when these divine demons gathered into an army and were unified by formation arts, the power they could unleash was terrifying!
Grains of sand piling up into a tower—a united strike would be something even an existence at the Imperial Throne realm wouldn't dare face head-on.
In large-scale divine demon warfare, the power of formations absolutely could not be underestimated!
"In the future, if Yankang goes to war with the Heavenly Court, the Blind Man with his Heart's Eye will become a pillar of strength."
The Butcher stood at the prow of the ship, watching the surging Heavenly River flowing beneath them, and said unhurriedly: "The Heavenly Court has the Four Heavenly Kings, the Four Heavenly Masters, and the Four Directional Emperors—the Netherworld Emperor is merely one of the Four Emperors. If the Blind Man wants to contend with such existences in formation arts, he must be severely pushed and spurred on, allowing him to go deeper into the Dao of formations. That is the proper path."
Qin Mu came to his side, feeling the same sentiment, and nodded: "Whether it's Grandpa Blind or Grandpa Mute, I have been severely pushing and spurring them on, making them work even harder."
"That's just you shamelessly leeching off your elders."
The Butcher glanced at him, scolded him, then asked with concern: "How are your injuries? Will they affect the battle at Xuan Capital?"
"I have cultivated the Ancestral Court Yaochi and Yaotai realm. My body itself is a vast Yaochi and Yaohai, with Hongmeng primordial liquid within. Any injury, as long as it's not a Dao wound, can heal naturally."
Qin Mu laughed: "Even if my cultivation is damaged, I can recover quickly."
The Butcher saw that his aura was indeed continuously recovering, at an astonishingly fast rate, and couldn't help marveling: "We've already witnessed the Ancestral Court Execution Platform realm—it can refine killing intent for one's own use. Does the Ancestral Court Yaotai realm also have its own marvelous qualities?"