Chapter 489: Human Life Is Greater Than Heaven
The people at the banquet were also knocked around and left dizzy and disoriented. This impact was so violent that buildings collapsed and houses toppled. The eaves of the palace behind them were torn off entirely and sent flying backward.
Flying out together with the eaves was the entire banquet—those plates, bowls, wine, and jade tables were all blasted into midair by the terrifying shockwave!
Whoosh—
A large tree was snapped in half at the trunk, spinning as it flew into the air. Then several people outside the estate were swept up by the gale, flailing their arms and legs. In their haste, they grabbed onto the tree, only to be sent flying out of sight by another, even more terrifying wave of force.
Qin Mu and the others, after all, had considerable cultivation, and each managed to steady themselves.
Bai Qingfu raised his hand, and pearl after pearl floated in the air. He shouted sternly, "Hold!"
Above the Bai estate, the people and objects that had been swept into the air were all frozen in place. But outside the estate, houses and trees were being uprooted one after another, surging toward them, and the pressure soon became too much for Bai Qingfu to bear.
Bai Qingfu's face flushed red. He suddenly stomped his foot, and his true dragon primordial spirit manifested behind him, causing the many dragon pearls to blaze with brilliant light. But he still couldn't withstand the pressure.
"Qingfu!"
A woman holding a child hurried over, leading many experts of the Bai estate. Everyone activated their dragon pearls, and the pressure on Bai Qingfu immediately lightened. He quickly said, "Mother, uncles, aunts, and granduncle—why have you all come?"
"I received word that Beiluo Shimen has already been breached!"
The woman said rapidly, "What's attacking is the vanguard force of the outer-realm demons. Bailong City cannot be held. You must withdraw from the city immediately and go to the Heavenly Court! We older ones will hold the line here! You follow the city's civilians and leave first—we'll catch up shortly!"
The other young men and women were stunned for a moment, then quickly said, "Beiluo Shimen has been breached? What do we do? Let's hurry back to our own estates and inform the adults!"
"No need!"
The woman shouted loudly, silencing the panicked crowd. She stuffed the little boy in her arms into Bai Qu'er's embrace, then pressed a dragon pearl into her hand, saying sternly, "Your family elders already know—you don't need to inform them! You leave the city right now and head to the Heavenly Court! No need to pack anything—go immediately! The Dragon God Pearl in Qu'er's hand can help you repel the darkness!"
Bai Qingfu also realized the gravity of the situation and quickly looked at Qin Mu. "Brother Qin, you come with us too!"
Qin Mu's heart stirred. The box clattered as it stood up. Ban Gongcuo quickly jumped onto the box, and the dragon qilin, full of spirit, also leaped onto it.
They headed straight for the back gate. When they arrived, suddenly there was a deafening boom. Qin Mu looked back and saw a massive deity of Bailong City who had been guarding the southern city gate—his enormous body flew high into the air and came crashing down toward them.
At the same moment the deity was sent flying, a giant with an ox head and a human body, wrapped in chains, appeared outside the city gate. His massive frame was taller than the city wall itself. He pulled at the chains, and at the end of them was a black iron ball as large as a mountain, which slammed into that deity with a thunderous impact!
Qin Mu's hair stood on end. If that black iron ball struck the deity, it would inevitably land here—where would that leave any chance of survival for them?
Just then, a melodious dragon's roar came from within the Bai estate. The woman from before and the many experts of the Bai estate revealed their true forms, transforming into giant dragons that soared into the air to meet the falling iron ball.
At the same time, experts from other estates throughout Bailong City also charged out, surging toward the southern city gate.
Outside the southern city wall, towering half-human, half-beast giants were battering the city wall. The tall wall collapsed with a thunderous crash, and then countless "outer-realm demons" poured into the city like a tidal wave, quickly flooding over house after house and clashing with the resistance forces!
"Go now!"
Qin Mu, Bai Qingfu, and the others rushed toward the northern city gate. It was already packed with people fleeing for their lives. The entire gate was jammed so tightly that no one could move—people crushed against people, trampling each other. There was no way out.
Atop the city tower, the deity guarding the city used his divine power, manifesting giant hands that reached down and lifted people out of the crush, moving them outside. He called out loudly, "Stand in the light outside the city! Do not step out of the light!"
Qin Mu and the others flew out of the city. They saw that many of the people who had been moved outside were shouting and charging into the darkness, only to turn into skeletons in an instant—flesh and bone gone entirely.
That deity moved tens of thousands of people, but countless more were still surging toward the northern gate, crying and wailing, while the army of "outer-realm demons" had already arrived.
The deity gritted his teeth, flew out of the city, and shouted, "Gather around me, all of you! I'll take you to the Heavenly Court! Follow me! The young and strong stay in the back and hold off the outer-realm demons!"
As for the people still rushing out of the city, he couldn't attend to them—he could only protect those already with him.
Qin Mu and the others landed. Bai Qingfu quickly led the group to follow that deity into the darkness. Ban Gongcuo shouted angrily, "Come back! If you want to live, don't follow that deity!"
Bai Qingfu was taken aback, looking at this man who had no legs. Bai Qu'er held the child in one arm and raised the dragon pearl with the other to light the way, confused. "Why shouldn't we follow them?"
The child started crying. Her sister-in-law took the child and quietly comforted him.
That was Bai Qingfu's son, still unweaned.
Qin Mu said in a deep voice, "That deity is protecting tens of thousands of people—too big a target. He'll definitely be attacked! Everyone, listening to him is the right call. Great Venerable is the best escape artist I've ever seen—his talent for fleeing is unmatched in the world! Great Venerable, you have the most experience. Tell us how to go!"
Ban Gongcuo quickly asked, "Which direction is the Heavenly Court?"
Bai Qingfu raised his hand and pointed west of Beiluo Shimen. Ban Gongcuo immediately said, "Then we head east! Quickly!"
That deity had already disappeared into the darkness with the fleeing crowd. Qin Mu and the others had light around them, and about a hundred or so refugees had gathered near them, with more people constantly drawn by the glow.
Ban Gongcuo said viciously, "Move fast—kill all these dead weights!"
"How can we kill our own people?" The crowd was furious. Bai Qu'er also stopped, preparing to bring more people along.
Ban Gongcuo's forehead broke out in streams of cold sweat. He shouted harshly, "Does everyone want to die here? Don't you want to live? With this foolish compassion, not a single one of you will escape!"
The "outer-realm demons" burst out of the northern city gate and charged into the fleeing crowd, slaughtering in all directions.
Bai Qingfu gritted his teeth. "No need to wait for the others—let's go!"
They hurried into the darkness. The box also emitted a faint glow, which normally would have drawn surprise from others, but now no one had the heart to ask about such things.
Behind them, the outer-realm demons were like sharks that had caught the scent of blood, constantly closing in. Bai Qingfu and the others brought up the rear, fighting while retreating.
"With these burdens, we're moving too slowly!"
Ban Gongcuo gnashed his teeth, looking at the civilians of Bailong City around him with a fierce, savage expression. He sneered, "These worthless commoners are just wasting air. Better to kill them all—then we might actually escape! Sect Master Qin, you agree with me, right?"
Qin Mu looked at Bai Qu'er and said in a deep voice, "Qu'er, give the Dragon God Pearl to these people. The others can follow my box—I'll lead you out, and there's still a chance to live. Otherwise, we really will be dragged down by these civilians!"
Bai Qu'er shook her head. "How can we abandon the people for the sake of our own lives? The Bai family has no such people! Brother Mu, the Shanghuang Heavenly Court was established for the people, and the gods serve the people. The Shanghuang said: human life is greater than heaven!"
Her voice was soft, but it rang like thunder: "If we cannot protect the people, what use are the gods? The Shanghuang said that in the face of human life, all gods must step aside."
Qin Mu's heart shook violently. "Human life is greater than heaven?"
Ban Gongcuo laughed bitterly. "Every man for himself, and the devil take the hindmost! Human life greater than heaven? I think when faced with this situation, even the Shanghuang would save his own skin first!"
Bai Qu'er shook her head. "The Shanghuang would never do such a thing."
More and more outer-realm demons surged from behind. Qin Mu also moved to the rear of the group, engaging those outer-realm demons to cover the group's retreat eastward.
Qin Mu finally got a clear look at those "outer-realm demons." They were human, just like them—no different at all. He couldn't help but wonder, "They're human too?"
Neither side hesitated for even a moment. The moment they met, it was the most lethal killing moves, a fight to the death. Qin Mu's primordial energy erupted as he activated his sword pellet and sent it at the surging "outer-realm demons." Sword after sword flew out from the pellet, their forms shifting unpredictably, cutting down enemy after enemy.
"Kill these rebels and traitors!"
Those "outer-realm demons" shouted loudly: "Win merit and glory, and return to the Heavenly Court soon!"
The two sides fought in bloody battle. Bai Qingfu and the others killed as many as they could, but more outer-realm demons kept flooding in. Everyone was wounded to some degree.
Suddenly, someone was knocked into the darkness and devoured by the monsters lurking there, reduced to a skeleton in an instant. A wave of grief surged through Qin Mu—it was the girl who had fought him at the Bai estate.
They fought and retreated, and finally cut down the last outer-realm demon. Suddenly, all around them fell silent, leaving only the whispers of the monsters in the darkness.
Qin Mu treated everyone's wounds. Bai Qingfu grinned and said, "Brother Qin knows medicine too? Truly versatile."
His left arm had been severed, and he could still smile—admirable.
"No need to treat me."
Qin Mu went to the young man who had challenged him, the one with the Overlord Body, earlier. The youth's chest had a huge hole torn through it, and he was barely breathing. He looked up and smiled. "I can't be saved. I can feel my soul shattering. I was greedy for glory and wanted to kill my opponent, but I took his strike instead. Don't carry my corpse with you—leave me here. Don't let me drag you down..."
Qin Mu examined him, but before he could finish, the youth had already stopped breathing.
Qin Mu stood there in a daze, then rose to treat the others.
The group continued forward. The night was unbearably long. From the darkness around them came the sounds of battle—other fleeing groups being ambushed and slaughtered.
They also encountered pursuers in the darkness, like a pack of wolves trailing behind them, striking from time to time.
The number of people around them dwindled. Ban Gongcuo was forced into battle as well, and even the dragon qilin joined the fight.
Qin Mu finished bandaging Bai Qingfu's severed arm. Bai Qingfu held his son with his remaining arm, soothing the child to sleep, then handed him to his wife and whispered, "A little further ahead, there's a relay station. It houses a deity, and that god will protect you. Brother Qin, can I borrow the box?"
From behind came the sounds of shouting and killing—another group of pursuers was about to arrive.
Qin Mu said, "I'll go with you."
"No need."
Bai Qingfu grinned, his expression relaxed. "You're only at the Six Harmonies realm. I'm at the Heavenly Human realm. I can make it back—you can't. Just wait here with the others. Take care of my son..."
He turned around, and the box stayed by his side.
Qin Mu embraced him, then turned and moved on with the group. Bai Qu'er and her sister-in-law looked back and saw Bai Qingfu and the box disappear into the darkness.
Before long, the box came sprinting back to catch up with them. It was covered in blood.
Bai Qingfu's wife soothed the child who had woken up, and as she soothed him, the child fell back asleep.
"Brother Qin, there aren't many left here who can fight."
Bai Qingfu's wife handed the sleeping child to Bai Qu'er, smoothed down her hanging hair, and revealed a smile. "Someone still needs to hold off the pursuers. I'll borrow your box—I may not be able to return it."
"Sister-in-law Bai, we'll go with you." Several young men and women, missing arms and legs, stood up.
Qin Mu nodded and left the box behind. Bai Qu'er opened her mouth but said nothing.
The group continued forward.
Not long after, the box caught up with them again. From behind came more shouts of battle.
Qin Mu broke into a smile, standing on the box. He laughed, "Long Pang, come on—it's our turn. Great Venerable, you go with them."
"Damn you!"
Ban Gongcuo crawled on his hands to the box, cursing, "I came here with you—if you die, how am I supposed to go back? I've never done a good deed in my life, so consider this an exception... Damn you!"
"Don't..." Bai Qu'er watched them, sobbing aloud.