Tales of Herding Gods

One god stood on the river and the other stood on Hundred Years Mountain, looking speechlessly at each other in dismay.

The river breeze whistled and the mountain wind howled. In early spring, both of them were bone-chilling.

After a moment, Dragon Rearing Sovereign gradually sunk into the water as he said, “Tidy your Hundred Years Mountain first, then build a mountain god temple. I will hold a banquet later to welcome you. Your mountain is too quiet, people will only go there during Pure Brightness Festival or Ghost Festival. The incense is very little. If you can’t survive on it, I’ll share some with you.”

God Bai Xi felt desolate. Dragon Rearing Sovereign ate meat so what he would share with him would also be people who had committed suicide in the river. Yet he was a vegetarian who had no fruit or trees on his mountain. There were quite a number of corpses though.

‘I think I should first construct a temple. Once it is done, there might be believers who will bring me some fruits when they come to offer incense. As long as they are not spoiled, I can eat them…’

In Purple Chaste City, Qin Mu looked at the fifteen yards tall Five Thunder Pot in front of him and his head started to ache slightly. Such a huge bottle gourd contained energy to wipe out the world. If the five great thunderclouds were accidentally released, it would be a huge disaster which would wipe the world!

“Cult Master, what about this Five Thunder Pot? Should we hide it?”

Everyone in Heavenly Devil Cult surrounded this bottle gourd and examined it, their hearts filled with terror. Qin Mu shook his head. “This bottle gourd isn’t safe anywhere. Any carelessness, and the power inside will be activated. The heavenly lightning will strike, killing I don’t know how many people.”

He circled around the bottle gourd, finding it a thorny problem. The worst part was that Eternal Peace Empire didn’t simply have a Five Thunder Pot—there were over a dozen more meteorological weapons like it which could destroy Eternal Peace Empire ten times over.

Qin Mu suddenly flicked a finger against Five Thunder Pot, and everyone felt their hair stand on ends. In an instant, heavenly thunderclouds gathered over an area of dozens of yards, and five directions divine lightning struck down!

After the wave of lightning, everyone was charred on the outside and their faces were black like charcoal. The courtyard in which they had been standing was destroyed by lightning in its entirety. In an instant, thousand bolts of lightning had struck down and the buildings collapsed, and even the land had melted!

Qin Mu spewed out a mouthful of black smoke while pondering over it.’This thing is not bad for tempering the corporeal body. Borrowing the power of the five great thunderclouds to cultivate can allow one to quickly cultivate the corporeal body. Let us carry it back home… back to the sacred cult.”

“Cult Master!” Everyone’s expressions changed drastically, and Elder Si Gong nearly cried out, “If we carried it back to the sacred cult, it would be finished if the gourd accidentally exploded!”

Qin Mu was troubled. “If this treasure can’t be used by the sacred cult, won’t it be wasted?”

“Not at all, not at all!” Elder Si Gong immediately said.

Qin Mu frowned and sighed ruefully. “This thing has many uses yet you guys don’t know how good it is. Oh well, I’ll just keep it. You guys can transfer it into my true dragon’s nest. I have a use for it.”

Everyone looked at one another in dismay. Five Thunder Pot was clearly an extremely dangerous thing, so how was it useful? It was clearly a ticking time bomb that could take one’s life anytime!

If he put it in the dragon’s nest, lightning would be unable to discharge in such a huge space, so if the power of Five Thunder Pot burst forth, even gods would be struck to death by the five great thunderclouds!

‘Other than using Five Thunder Pot to refine the body, it can also be used to wipe out a sect. If I meet anyone I can’t defeat, I can just give it a slap and drag them down with me!’ Qin Mu thought to himself.

Everyone worked together to execute Five Demons Transfer Technique, sending Five Thunder Pot into the true dragon’s nest. As they did, not one of them considered that their cult master might have such a dangerous idea.

Qin Mu thanked everyone and summoned the divine flood dragon king and the dragon qilin. They were about to hurry to God Broken Mountain Range to check on the situation when Si Yunxiang said, “Cult Master, the emperor is currently on his way here and will reach Purple Chaste City in seven days. Aren’t you going to wait for him?”

Qin Mu stared at her with his eyes wide-open. He cried out, “You didn’t tell him not to come?”

Si Yunxiang shook her head. “You only said there’s no need to wait for him and didn’t say to tell him to turn back. The emperor is driving Sunshot Divine Cannon over, and the exhaustion of medicinal stones is staggering as they hurry over with desperation…”

Qin Mu’s scalp crawled and he could almost see Emperor Yanfeng sharpening his knife in preparation to chop off his head.

“Quickly inform him that he doesn’t have to come anymore!” Qin Mu turned and jumped on the back of the divine flood dragon king.

“The emperor won’t execute you, but he will definitely dare to execute me!” Si Yunxiang immediately complained.

“Don’t you know how to praise a bad thing?” Qin Mu rode the dragon into the distance, and his voice came from afar. “Change the way to break the news to him, and he will even reward you!”

“Praise a bad thing?”

Si Yunxiang was first stunned, then came to a realization. She immediately asked Elder Si Gong to bring her to find Emperor Yanfeng who was on the cannon battery with the civil and military officials following him. They were surrounded by imperial guards that had an awe-inspiring presence. The fifty-six furnaces on the huge cannon burned non-stop, using up countless medicinal stones. They were still hurrying to Purple Chaste City.

When Si Yunxiang reached them, Emperor Yanfeng was ordering his people to fetch the medicinal stones from the city in front of them. The medicinal stones on the cannon battery had long run out so he could only replenish them from the cities on the way.

“Congratulations, Your Majesty!” Si Yunxiang came forth to report. “God Bai Xi of High Heavens remembered Your Majesty’s broad and powerful might so he didn’t dare to create a ruckus and submitted. Now, he will belong to Eternal Peace and be the mountain god of Deer County’s Hundred Years Mountain. He will guard Your Majesty’s empire so it would last through the ages!”

Emperor Yanfeng was pleased when he looked around at the civil and military officials on his left and right while laughing loudly. “That rebellious God Bai Xi actually knew when to fall back. He knew that I’m coming personally and he wouldn’t be a match for me, so he might as well surrender. This is truly making me punch the air.”

“How would he dare to offend Your Majesty’s heavenly might? He could only surrender or else he would die a miserable death!” Lord Yan immediately said.

All the ministers congratulated Emperor Yanfeng, and he smiled from ear to ear. “All of you have followed me so you gain the credit as well. Everyone will be rewarded.”

All the ministers were delighted.

After the commotion, Sunshot Divine Cannon stopped for a moment as they prepared to return to the capital. Emperor Yanfeng summoned Si Yunxiang then, his face instantly sinking. He sneered at her, “Little Saintess of Si Family, your cult master told you to say that? Why doesn’t he dare to come to meet me?”

“Cult Master used Human Emperor’s Seal to summon the heroes from all parts of the country to defend against the invasion of High Heavens, holding them outside God Broken Mountain Range, preventing the enemies from invading, protecting the safety of Eternal Peace…”

“Alright, alright, no need to talk officiously!” Emperor Yanfeng sighed. “I know he put in much effort and has high achievements. It’s also because of him this time that Eternal Peace wasn’t wipe out and all of its people killed. I don’t have any intention to blame him. Furthermore, he also saved my face by letting you come here. How did he subdue Bai Xi of High Heavens?”

“By making threats and promises, showing the enemy he’s weak, using hundreds of different methods.”

Si Yunxiang told him how Qin Mu had subdued God Bai Xi, and Emperor Yanfeng was stunned. “Minister Qin helped Eternal Peace subdue two gods at such a young age, forcing them to guard mountains and rivers. With these kinds of things, even I am inferior. I was worried about the battle at God Broken Mountain Range so I had ordered people to head to investigate, and there is already news.”

Si Yunxiang’s heart tightened when Emperor Yanfeng said, “General of the Borders said that there are continuous earthquakes along some twenty thousand miles of God Broken Mountain Range. All the mountains had sunk, and the earthquakes have raised fog and darkness which is invading the God Broken Mountains. Ghost gods can be seen in the fog, but no traces of Imperial Preceptor and the rest could be found.

“I want to go over to see it personally, but the politics can’t be messed up. The empire also can’t be messed up… General of the Borders said that the place has signs of becoming part of Great Ruins. They are currently invading Eternal Peace…”

A private worry took root in Si Yunxiang, and she looked toward the west. ‘Cult Master is currently heading there! What exactly is happening there for Great Ruins to start expanding?”

Qin Mu rode the dragon until it was evening and they finally came to the surroundings of God Broken Mountain Range. He raised his head to look at it, and his heart suddenly jumped. He could only see gray fog covering the place in layer after layer. When the sun set in the west, it was soon drowned out.

“Something is wrong…”

God Broken Mountain Range was very long and the width of the mountains was also very great. The mountain range separated Great Ruins and Eternal Peace, taking up a hundred miles. Now it had sunk down, what replaced it was thick gray fog. Dull tremors came from it from time to time.

“Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor activated Earthquake Cauldron and broke this piece of mountain range, sinking the mountains down into the ground!”

Qin Mu could sense the tremors from the gray fog and a bad feeling arose in his heart. Since Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor had used Earthquake Cauldron, it showed that he’d felt powerless to defend himself. He then didn’t hesitate to take all of them down with him just to block them from crossing over God Broken Mountains!

When the sun set, darkness invaded from the west, and it was like a black flood had covered the sky, swallowing everything on the way. Every place it passed by vanished without a trace.

The darkness seemed to have substance and actually came to God Broken Mountain Range, drowning it. The darkness flooded to the front of Qin Mu’s face before suddenly stopping!

Qin Mu raised his head and saw that the darkness was like a straight cliff whose top couldn’t be seen. It separated the night of Eternal Peace from that of his home!

“Great Ruins has swallowed God Broken Mountain Range and spread toward Eternal Peace Empire. The darkness just swallowed up a hundred miles.”

Qin Mu bent over and took out a flag to stab it where the darkness of Great Ruins touched the night of Eternal Peace. He said in a low voice, “In a few more days, we will know if the darkness is truly spreading or it has stopped. If the darkness of Great Ruins is expanding, it would probably be a catastrophic disaster to Eternal Peace Empire. Divine flood dragon king, let’s go in!”

Divine flood dragon king acknowledged and transformed into the youth. Divine light shone around his body, and he brought Qin Mu and the dragon qilin into the ruins of God Broken Mountain Range.

“Flood dragons, come onto me!”

Qin Mu gave a low shout and executed Secrets of Dragon Control. The flood dragons flew toward him and coiled around his body. Two of them hung themselves from his ears like earrings.

Instantly, the magic power of the flood dragons fused with his, causing Qin Mu’s abilities to soar frantically.

“Nine Heavens, awaken!”

Formation markings swirled in Qin Mu’s eyes, and he opened his Nine Heavens Eyes. Divine lights shot out from his eyes and through the darkness. Wherever his gaze passed, it was like a light hole had pierced the darkness and the gray fog.

The divine flood dragon king didn’t have such an ability and was pretty envious.

Qin Mu let him follow close to him as they slowly went deeper into the ruins of God Broken Mountains. Suddenly, Qin Mu stopped, and the divine flood dragon king also did so. What they saw in front of them were pieces of a tattered painting floating past silently.

It was Deaf’s painting, but the things within it had already shattered. Something seemed to have jumped out of it, tearing it apart. However, there was still a remnant of terrifying power within it. If they accidentally touched it, they would face great danger.

Qin Mu avoided the painting and started walking again. He then suddenly stopped once more, for he saw hundreds of tattered paintings of all sizes floating silently in the gray fog. There were also chunks of large mountain rocks mixed among them.

Qin Mu frowned. They should be in Deaf’s battlefield, since he was skilled in painting. His world in painting had thousands of different sights that were grand and magnificent. Even experts like Xing An would be sealed if they weren’t careful and find it difficult to break free.

For Deaf to have so many tattered paintings at this place, one could imagine how fierce the battle had been!

“Your Majesty, be careful!”

The divine flood dragon hurriedly jumped in front of Qin Mu, defending him. “Don’t touch these rocks. They contain a god’s aura and has their divine arts left inside!”

Qin Mu hurriedly pulled away, but then he saw a huge body slowly moving in the darkness and gray fog. It was walking over to them.

They saw that the body was indomitable when it got closer to them. They could only see an incomparably thick leg obstructing their vision, but no upper body. Qin Mu raised his head and shone the divine light from his eyes upwards to gradually see a wide chest high above them. Looking upwards some more, he saw an imposing face of a god.

‘A stone statue!’

Qin Mu’s scalp crawled. A stone statue was walking in the darkness and the gray fog!

The divine flood dragon king also felt his blood running cold. In front of them was an incomparably tall and sturdy stone statue whose size was beyond their imagination!

Not only that, that stone statue was even walking in the darkness!

Ma ha… The flood dragons on Qin Mu’s body were frightened and pulled back their heads.

“Don’t cry.”The dragon qilin’s face was ashen as he spoke softly. “If you wake him up, he will ride you to kill people. I was ridden the whole night…”

Suddenly, the stone statue bent down as if having heard something. A huge face pushed through the darkness and appeared in front of Qin Mu and the rest.

Hu ling’er rolled her eyes and collapsed on the floor as though she had fainted. Her legs were held upwards stiffly while her tail was straight.

When the flood dragons and the dragon qilin saw the situation, they immediately learned from her example and lay down on the ground to play dead.

“Young master…” Hu Ling’er squinted her eyes and poked Qin Mu.

Qin Mu hesitated for a moment before collapsing on his back and sticking out his tongue. His body was stiff, his face black, making it look like he had died very miserably.