Chapter 889: The Sacrifice of Reform
The cripple hesitated for a moment, not stepping forward, but gazing from afar.
That place was simply too dangerous. He saw many heavenly court deities and demons charge into the darkness and fall, their primordial spirits utterly gone. Some heavenly court deities were far more powerful than him, yet they still could not withstand the dark invasion.
"This dark power is even stronger than the darkness that shrouds the Great Ruins!"
The cripple was startled, thinking to himself: "Wei Suifeng probably won't die anytime soon, right?"
In the sky, the star river drifted—not actual stars, but the heavenly court's Circumambient Star Host army, forming a heavenly net like a great canopy overturned, precisely trapping the wok-black darkness beneath it.
The sky and earth were completely illuminated. The starlight was so intense, and with millions of stars, light shone from every direction, leaving no shadow to be found anywhere.
The heavenly net contracted, compressing the pitch-black Netherworld demonic energy inward, compressing it further, and soon the small Netherworld within that Primordial Realm had shrunk by more than half.
"Mu'er is being suppressed!" The cripple's heart jolted.
Countless mountain gods came rushing over. The cripple quickly shifted his form, following these mountain gods as they charged toward the darkness, blending in among them.
He was proficient in the arts of creation and transformation, and at this moment his appearance was also that of a mountain god.
He saw the mountain gods with towering bodies, tall as mountains, encircling the heavenly net in a full ring.
Each mountain god took out a pillar and slammed it into the ground. Standing beside their pillars, they cast their spells, chanting incantations under their breath.
The pillars, once planted, expanded wildly, growing taller and taller. They spun, and countless runes on their surfaces lit up, flowing from the top to the bottom, drilling into the earth.
The ground was rapidly solidifying.
A mountain god beside the cripple noticed him and shouted: "Where's your treasure pillar? Why haven't you taken it out?"
Before the cripple could answer, suddenly a terrifying light blazed from within the darkness. Seeing the light in the darkness, the cripple hurriedly threw himself flat on the ground, his body rapidly shrinking.
The mountain god not far from him hadn't even reacted when an immensely thick beam of light swept across him with a *hum*, cutting him in half at the waist. That massive pillar was also severed, toppling over.
The light swept horizontally, causing space to tremble, emitting a low, rumbling hum.
Yet this was not a single beam of light—there were as many as six.
Six brilliant beams swept in all directions—horizontal cuts, vertical slashes, diagonal cleaves—sweeping across the heavenly net and earthly web. The Circumambient Star Host army's heavenly net was already complete, and each heavenly god had a cluster of stars shining brilliantly behind their heads, blocking the six beams of light.
However, the earthly web had not yet been fully formed. One massive pillar after another was cut in half at the waist, some sliced into six or seven segments. Those mountain gods dodged the beams shooting from the darkness. They were powerful, and the light was so bright, so naturally they could evade it.
The cripple lay flat on the ground, glancing at the mountain gods around him. These mountain gods were powerful, reacting in an instant. Aside from the one who had been caught off guard while speaking to the cripple and was slain by the light, all the other mountain gods managed to dodge the six terrifying beams.
But strangely enough, when these mountain gods leaped into the air to avoid the six beams, the height they jumped to was all on the same plane.
"Idiots!"
The cripple dared not move, cold sweat pouring down his forehead, thinking: "Mu'er has three eyes. The divine light from his two eyes is bright light, and the light from his middle eye is dark light. He's now in his three-headed, six-armed form—six beams of bright light, three beams of dark light. He's forcing them to jump to the same height so he can kill them with the three dark beams..."
He had seen the terrifying sight when Qin Mu broke the seal in the Supreme Emperor Heaven and transformed into the Netherworld Divine Son. Back then, Tubo had rushed over to save the situation, preventing a major catastrophe.
The cripple was deeply terrified of Qin Mu's sinister third eye.
He saw a mountain god leaping mid-air, and suddenly it was as if three invisible blades sliced through his body, cutting him into four neat segments.
The cripple looked elsewhere. In the air, nearly all the mountain gods had been sliced into four neat pieces, perfectly uniform, almost without the slightest difference.
"Mu'er isn't being controlled by the demonic nature—he's controlling it. Otherwise, the Netherworld Divine Son wouldn't fight this way."
The cripple thought: "The Netherworld Divine Son fights on instinct, but he fights with reason."
In the sky, the heavenly net suddenly twisted, as if grabbed by some terrifying monster and dragged downward. The Circumambient Star Host army, wrapped up in the net, was pulled helplessly downward, letting out shrill screams.
The Circumambient Star Host army served under the heavenly court's Circumambient Star God. The Star God was an ancient god, but the star host army was composed of demigods and other races who had cultivated to a certain level and joined the military.
The Circumambient Star Host army, along with the heavenly net, fell madly into the darkness. What awaited them was a great cauldron. The entire heavenly net, together with this army of deities and demons, fell into the cauldron, and all sound ceased instantly.
After devouring so many deities and demons, the great cauldron suddenly erupted outward. Countless faces floated in the darkness, crying out in unison: "Ugly—"
The cripple had just relaxed when he saw the dark sky light up again. Countless heavenly beings in the sky activated treasures one after another, forming the face of the Heavenly Duke with white brows and white eyes!
That was the form of the Heavenly Duke composed of countless rare treasures—the Heavenly Duke rune great path constructed by the heavenly court's Daoist sect through numerological architecture, the reconstructed head of the Heavenly Duke.
The Heavenly Duke's head shone its eyes downward, and the incomparably brilliant light evaporated the Netherworld demonic energy, quickly revealing Qin Mu's true form!
The cripple saw that one of Qin Mu's three heads was that of a big-headed doll, and under the gaze of the Heavenly Duke's light, its face twisted in pain as the head kept shrinking back into Qin Mu's body.
The cripple's heart sank: "The great paths of Mystic Capital and Netherworld counteract each other. Mu'er can't hold on..."
Qin Mu leaped up and sped away. Countless heavenly beings in the sky followed his movement, their formation forming the Heavenly Duke's head remaining unbroken, but Qin Mu was too fast—they couldn't catch up.
The cripple also hurriedly rose and gave chase, but even he couldn't catch up to Qin Mu.
Just then, the cripple saw that to the west, where Qin Mu was fleeing, a white light shot into the sky. A vast, majestic imperial might surged forth, blocking his path. A heavenly palace materialized, layer upon layer of halls stacked high. A great emperor's primordial spirit sat in the Lingxiao Hall of the Jade Capital City, suddenly rising to his feet.
At almost the same moment, to the north, darkness spread, and another imperial might surged into the sky. A heavenly palace unfurled like a scroll. The Netherworld Son's primordial spirit sat on the imperial throne, with the Nether Sea surging behind him.
To the south, flames blazed fiercely. Within the fire, a vast heavenly palace emerged, the Lingxiao Hall standing amid sacred flames. A nine-headed phoenix spread its wings, crying out shrilly in the fire.
The cripple was struck dizzy by the impact of imperial might. He turned to look back and saw green light shooting into the sky. A heavenly palace appeared within the green light, and countless halls and towers had actually grown dragon scales, looking utterly ancient.
White Emperor, Black Emperor, Red Emperor, Green Emperor—the four great emperors of the heavenly court's postnatal beings—had all arrived.
The cripple's heart sank, and despair grew within him, swelling larger and larger.
Qin Mu charged toward the White Emperor in the west. Terrifying fluctuations erupted, and he was forced back by the White Emperor, unable to flee westward.
He faced the Netherworld Son, who fought him within the Nether Sea. After a few exchanges, he was forced to retreat. The northern path was also cut off.
Qin Mu turned south. The sound of a zither rang out, and the Red Emperor Qi Xiayu, transformed into a nine-headed phoenix, forced him back.
The cripple saw Qin Mu rush past him, charging toward the Green Emperor arriving from the east. Before long, he saw Qin Mu stumble back, tumbling and rolling past him before crashing down.
"Mu'er..."
He reached out with trembling hands but couldn't grasp Qin Mu. He saw Qin Mu charge forward again, only to be beaten back again.
"Do not harm the Netherworld Divine Son's life. Capture him."
A voice came from beyond the heavens, indifferent, devoid of any emotion: "He is of utmost importance—a weapon to use against Tubo."
The cripple watched as Qin Mu charged out again and again, was beaten back again and again, his injuries growing heavier and heavier, harder and harder to rise from.
"Mu'er!"
The cripple rushed toward Qin Mu. There, Qin Mu's six arms supported him on the ground as he panted heavily, his breath carrying bloody mist and fragments of his internal organs.
The cripple strained toward him. Qin Mu seemed to see him, turned his head, and smiled.
"Crippled Grandpa..."
The cripple saw Qin Mu raise a single finger, pointing it at him. Countless teleportation runes lit up around the finger.
"No—" the cripple roared, but he was swept up by the teleportation runes, his form vanishing.
The world spun around him. When his body steadied, he had been sent who knew how many thousands of miles away.
The cripple was both furious and alarmed, desperately rushing back toward that battlefield, but it was too far. Even the world's greatest thief couldn't make it back in time.
"Brother, you should go."
Qin Mu struggled to his feet, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, looking at the four emperors closing in from all sides, and chuckled: "You can still return to the Netherworld. You are too important—the heavenly court must not get their hands on you. If they capture you, Tubo will be in danger. I'll send you back."
Qin Fengqing shook his head, driving the body toward the Red Emperor Qi Xiayu: "You're more important!"
Qi Xiayu plucked her zither strings, and he tumbled backward. He immediately flipped over and charged at Qi Xiayu again.
Qin Mu activated his indestructible divine consciousness, trying to suppress him and send him back to the Qin Continent, shouting: "Go back! Return to the Netherworld!"
Qin Fengqing was beaten back again, staggered to his feet, then suddenly his demonic nature erupted. He forcibly resisted Qin Mu's suppression and shouted fiercely: "You go back!"
"Stubborn fool!"
Qin Mu gritted his teeth, straining to suppress him, and roared: "They can't have you! I'm not the Netherworld Divine Son—I'm just a consciousness born in this body after you were sealed away! I have no soul—the soul is yours! Go back!"
Qin Fengqing, pressed down like a baby, crawled on the ground, whimpering and crawling toward Qi Xiayu: "You're more important... the bad little brother is more important... Mother doesn't like me, Mother is afraid of me... Mother likes you more. If you live, Mother is happy..."
He stood up again, fighting for control of the body.
Qin Mu sighed, closed his eyes, and whispered: "Heavenly Duke, Tubo, lend me your strength..."
A surge of power erupted from within his body, pulling Qin Fengqing back into the Qin Continent.
"Bad little brother—" Qin Fengqing screamed miserably, but still fell into the Qin Continent.
Qin Mu pressed down on the Life-Slaying Cauldron. Faces floated up from within the cauldron, staring at him.
Qin Mu raised his hand, reached into his brow, and tore out his third eye with his own hand.
A Gate of Heaven's Succession appeared behind him. He cast the eye into the Netherworld beyond the gate.
The faces in the Life-Slaying Cauldron looked at the youth who no longer had his third eye, and whispered softly: "Ugly."
"Yes, I am Ugly." Qin Mu wiped the blood from his forehead and grinned.
He staggered to his feet, looking at the four great emperors of the heavenly court approaching.