Chapter 975: The Ancestral Spirits (Second Update!)
In the sky, the diamond-shaped giant eye slowly closed, leaving only a slit stretching from north to south, like the eyelid of a sleeping beauty, occasionally twitching slightly.
The light spilling out from the Ancestral Spirit Realm resembled the beauty's eyelashes, though they were not black but shimmered with various colors.
If Qin Mu were here, he would certainly be extremely astonished.
Unfortunately, he was not here now, for he had already entered the Ancestral Spirit Realm.
Qin Mu found it difficult to describe his current sensation.
He stood in the palm of Lang Wan, the Divine King, floating amidst the boundless radiance of thought. Those flickering streams of consciousness resembled the light-wave signals of a brain.
As they traveled through them, from those brain-like thoughts, they heard grand sounds like the long cries of great kun fish swimming freely in the sea—profound and incomprehensible—and witnessed magnificent mountains and rivers rapidly receding before their eyes.
He also saw starry skies, the footprints of giants appearing within the river of stars, roaming through the universe.
He witnessed the birth of worlds both great and small. Those worlds appeared before him so vast and enchanting, spinning and swallowing him whole.
He then saw the destruction of worlds, which also possessed a breathtaking beauty.
These were the memories of the ancestral spirits of the Creator race. He and Lang Wan, the Divine King, were passing through the thoughts and consciousness of these Creators, glimpsing certain scenes from their memories.
He heard many grand sounds—some whispering in his mind, others like battles raging, with the rumble of war drums and the roar of slaughter shaking the heavens. He also heard wondrous chants, as if countless people had gathered in solemn reverence to offer sacrifices to something.
Within these sounds were also insights into nature and understandings of the world.
These too were the memories of the ancestral spirits of the Creators. Memories were not merely images; they were also sounds.
After a moment, Lang Wan, the Divine King, brought Qin Mu to the center of the Ancestral Spirit Realm.
Here, Qin Mu saw the ancient beings who had sacrificed themselves, merging with the Primal Chaos Origin Stone to create the Ancestral Spirit Realm.
They were towering figures, hazy and indistinct, standing within crimson light like colossal giants supporting heaven and earth.
There were twenty-seven of them. These twenty-seven Creators were the leaders who had guided the final remnants of the Creator race through countless perils, blazing a trail to forge the Other Shore World.
Every race has heroes who contributed their wisdom and sacrificed their lives for their people, and the Creators were no exception.
At the most critical juncture for the Creators, a group of heroic Creators emerged, willingly shouldering the burden, battling the Great Emperor Tai with their very lives, trapping him within the Supreme Divine Sense Domain.
After that, another group of heroes among the Creators appeared, leading the surviving clansmen to evade pursuit, crossing the great desert to reach the end of the Primordial Void.
It was there that they constructed the Void Bridge, crafted the wondrous three rooms, and led the remaining clansmen to open up the Other Shore.
It was also they who, knowing death was inevitable when their power was exhausted, merged themselves with the Primal Chaos Origin Stone, transforming into the Ancestral Spirit Realm, determined to protect their people even after death.
Whether gifted with extraordinary talent, exceptional wisdom, or boundless combat prowess, they were able to devise such ingenious mechanisms as the Void Bridge and the three rooms, capable of trapping even Void Heavenly Venerable and Fire Heavenly Venerable.
"People worthy of respect." Qin Mu felt a surge of reverence.
Lang Wan, the Divine King, set him down and sent out ripples of divine sense, awakening these ancient Creators and informing them of the matter concerning the Holy Infant.
The twenty-seven Creators awoke, their obscure divine senses interweaving and colliding as they exchanged their views.
Qin Mu stood in the void, feeling somewhat uneasy.
He even began to wonder—if these ancient thoughts and divine senses wished to kill him, could Lang Wan, the Divine King, withstand them?
Would these twenty-seven Creator leaders heed Lang Wan, the Divine King's words?
A grand thought gently rippled, transforming into a voice that resonated throughout the Ancestral Spirit Realm. In that instant, Qin Mu felt as though countless gazes fell upon him, seeing through everything about him, leaving him with no secrets at all.
"An outsider becoming the Holy Infant of our Creator race—this matter is somewhat absurd. However, prophecies are not without basis. The divine senses of our ancestors in the Ancestral Court did not specify that the Holy Infant must be a Creator."
That grand thought spoke unhurriedly: "Since the Divine King and the clansmen have sent you here, you must possess something extraordinary that can convince them."
Another grand thought said: "However, the Holy Infant is one who bears the wisdom of our race. Not only must you face our enemies, but you must also lead our race toward revival. We have some questions we wish for you to answer, to see whether you possess such wisdom."
Qin Mu acknowledged.
A deep, weighty thought spoke: "A man named Qin Ye came to the Other Shore World. He had ties to our benefactor, Cloud Heavenly Venerable, and came seeking a place for a single sword. In the end, he cut away nearly half of the Other Shore World's territory with one strike, establishing the Land of No Worries. The enmity between the Creators and the Land of No Worries has persisted for nearly twenty thousand years. How would you eliminate Qin Ye and the Land of No Worries, restoring peace to the Other Shore World?"
Qin Mu said: "I can restore peace to the Other Shore World, but I will not eliminate the Land of No Worries."
"Pray, elaborate."
Qin Mu said: "I am the one hundred and seventh generation descendant of Kai Huang, Qin Ye. Upon becoming the Holy Infant, I can preside over the peace between the Creator race and the Land of No Worries."
The towering figures trembled, causing the Ancestral Spirit Realm to shake violently. A terrifying storm of thought erupted within the realm, divine sense sweeping and surging without end.
Lang Wan, the Divine King, furrowed her brow slightly, inwardly chiding Qin Mu for revealing his identity so soon.
If he had slowly won over the ancestral spirits first, then revealed his identity, even if they wished to act, they would hesitate.
Qin Mu revealing his connection to Kai Huang, Qin Ye, right now was somewhat rash.
"You are an outsider, and a descendant of Qin Ye at that—are you not a spy?"
Another vast thought vibrated, saying: "We will give you a chance to explain. If you cannot satisfy us, then we shall forgo this Holy Infant."
Qin Mu said: "May I ask you, ancestral spirits, what is a Creator? What is the Creator race?"
The towering figures each paused in surprise.
Qin Mu said: "I now possess the Primal Chaos Origin Stone, with vast divine sense capable of creation. Am I a Creator?"
One ancestral spirit's divine sense rippled: "You may be called a Creator."
"Since even an outsider like me can become a Creator, becoming one of your kin, then why must you reject Kai Huang and insist on the destruction of the Land of No Worries?" Qin Mu asked, puzzled.
Another ancestral spirit's divine sense said: "Qin Ye led the people of the Land of No Worries, occupying the space and land of our Other Shore World, killing our clansmen. This is a deep blood feud, irreconcilable."
Qin Mu asked: "I have seen the history of the Creators. In the ancient era, the Creators were divided into different tribes and clans, warring against one another, even committing acts of genocide and extermination. How does their conduct compare to Kai Huang's?"
The ancestral spirits fell silent. One of them said: "They were worse, far worse."
Qin Mu said: "So-called Creators were originally ordinary people who merely obtained the Primal Chaos Divine Stone, gaining the ability to create from the void. Over time, based on identity recognition, the Creator race was formed. Kai Huang, Qin Ye, sought only a place for his people to survive and thus used a few tricks, but he never actively attacked the Creators of the Other Shore, did he? The reason the two sides became enemies is that the Creators wished to reclaim their territory, leading to endless wars. The Land of No Worries suffered heavier casualties than the Creator race."
Another ancestral spirit said: "They are invaders; we are the victims of aggression. Driving them out and reclaiming our territory is only natural. Not long ago, another big-headed monstrous infant descended, killing many of our clansmen. Your explanation is unsatisfactory. Lang Wan, you should just create another Holy Infant!"
Waves of terrifying thought surged, about to strike Qin Mu dead, when suddenly Qin Mu said: "Then what if the Land of No Worries could restore vitality to the Primordial Void?"
Those waves of thought came to a halt.
Qin Mu said: "The big-headed monstrous infant, Qin Fengqing, is my elder brother. He was born in the Netherworld, is the Netherworld Divine Son, a deity who governs death. He can establish a Netherworld within the Primordial Void and the Other Shore World, allowing souls to enter the Netherworld for reincarnation! He can resurrect the souls of the ancestors who died fighting in the Primordial Void, can sweep away all the demons and monsters there, preventing its order from collapsing further. He can also eliminate the danger of the Other Shore World becoming another Primordial Void."
He paused, then said: "The more Creators die in the Other Shore World, the more scattered divine sense accumulates, the greater the trend toward becoming another Primordial Void. That is why you ancestral spirits established the Ancestral Spirit Realm, is it not?"
One by one, the ancestral spirits fell silent.
"However, the divine sense that the Primal Chaos Origin Stone can contain is ultimately limited. One day, the scattered divine sense of the Other Shore World will exceed the limit the Ancestral Spirit Realm can hold. The Ancestral Spirit Realm will collapse, and the Other Shore World will become another Primordial Void."
Qin Mu said: "The great enemy of the Creators of the Other Shore, the big-headed monstrous infant Qin Fengqing, is precisely the one who can establish order for the Other Shore World, and the one who can make the Primordial Void safe and habitable again. The Creators gifted Kai Huang a place for a single sword to establish the Land of No Worries. The descendants of Kai Huang return to the Creators a world without hidden worries, and also make the Primordial Void livable. Why not?"
The twenty-seven ancestral spirits' thoughts collided with one another as they exchanged views.
After a moment, one ancestral spirit said: "The conflict between the Creator race and the Land of No Worries can be resolved. However, even if order is established in the Primordial Void, enemies will still go there, leaving our race with the worry of extinction."
Qin Mu smiled and said: "May I ask you, ancestral spirits, comparing the Creators of today with those of twenty thousand years ago, which are stronger?"
The ancestral spirits were taken aback.
One ancestral spirit said: "The Creators of today are stronger."
Qin Mu smiled: "To isolate oneself from the world is to cut oneself off from the world. The Creator race fled into the void and established the Primordial Void, believing themselves safe. Yet the moment Great Emperor Tai arrived, the Primordial Void collapsed and crumbled, rendering you helpless. Cloud Heavenly Venerable came, bringing knowledge from the outside world, helping you eliminate Great Emperor Tai. But the Creator race hid in the Other Shore again, isolating themselves. Kai Huang came and established the Land of No Worries, bringing knowledge from the outside world. It was through your contact with the Land of No Worries that your Dao techniques and divine powers advanced by leaps and bounds, surpassing the past."
His voice resounded like a thunderclap: "I observe your people—barely a million in number. If Kai Huang had never come here, how many tens of thousands of years would the Creator race have lasted before extinction? Settled here without internal strife or external threats, you would only slowly wither away, not thrive and multiply. The Other Shore World is your habitat, and the Primordial Void is your window to the outside world. With this window, the Creator race will gradually prosper and grow strong."
The thoughts of the many ancestral spirits interwove and collided, clearly engaged in intense discussion.
Qin Mu said no more.
After a long while, the wills of the ancestral spirits unified.
An aged voice came forth: "We have not yet asked the Holy Infant's name. May we know how to address the Holy Infant?"
"Yan Kang, Qin Mu."
Qin Mu smiled: "You may not have heard this name, but you must have heard my title from Cloud Heavenly Venerable. I am the Shepherd Heavenly Venerable of the Long Han Heavenly Court, one of the Five Founding Elders of the Heavenly Alliance!"
The ancestral spirits fell silent. After a moment, one said: "We have never heard Cloud Heavenly Venerable mention it."
Qin Mu's face darkened, feeling somewhat embarrassed and humiliated, as if he had lost face.
Lang Wan, the Divine King, had remained expressionless and unmoved throughout, but now she could not help but secretly laugh.
Qin Mu's face turned from dark to red as he stammered to her: "The title of Shepherd Heavenly Venerable is quite renowned! The Long Han Bá Thể of the Long Han era, the Upper Emperor Bá Thể of the Upper Emperor era, and in the Yan Kang era, I am also the Yan Kang Bá Thể. I am very formidable..."
Lang Wan, the Divine King, could not suppress her laughter and turned her head away.
"Holy Infant, are you prepared to receive the wisdom of our Creator race, accumulated over billions of years?" Countless divine senses in the Ancestral Spirit Realm vibrated, converging into a single voice.
Qin Mu's heart tightened. He steadied himself and said in a deep voice: "I am ready!"
The entire Ancestral Spirit Realm trembled. Countless streams of light formed from divine sense surged forth, engulfing him!
—The third update will be around ten o'clock or later!