Tales of Herding Gods

“Divine Knife Luo Wushuang? He’s going to the Great Void too?”

Qin Mu frowned slightly. Luo Wushuang had a deep hatred towards him. If he went to the Great Void too, Qin Mu would be in great danger.

“What kind of place is the Great Void?”

Qin Mu perfectly took out his arm from her embrace and asked, “I have heard of that place since I came to the celestial heavens. It’s very mysterious. Why do we need to explore that place?”

“Isn’t it because of Carefree Village?”

Yun Chuxiu replied, “Celestial Venerable Qin established Carefree Village and moved the Founding Emperor Celestial Heavens there. Although the Founding Emperor Era was obliterated, the Founding Emperor Celestial Heavens’ main pillar still exists. Why would this attempt by the celestial heavens to suppress the Primordial Realm’s rebellion not impact Fengdu at all? It’s because they haven’t found Carefree Village yet.”

Qin Mu’s heart moved slightly.

Yun Chuxiu continued, “Founding Emperor was, after all, Celestial Venerable Qin. Although he betrayed the Heaven Alliance, he was still one of its five Founding Elders. As long as he’s not dead, a lot of people won’t be at ease since he refuses to submit himself. Those who went to suppress the rebellion in the Primordial Realm heard that he was giving orders from Carefree Village, telling Fengdu to avoid fighting and wait for a chance to launch an ambush. Fengdu is a minor objective, with the major problem for the celestial heavens being Carefree Village.”

She carefully examined Qin Mu’s expression but found nothing unusual about it. She vaguely commented, “Celestial Venerable Mu seems very calm. Celestial Venerable Qin, Qin Ye, is your ancestor. Are you not curious about him at all?”

“I toured the celestial heavens during the first year of the Dragon Han Era with him. He was indecisive and not straightforward. In addition, he was rebellious. He poisoned Celestial Venerable Hao and dared to kill people at the Jade Pool in disobedience to Mistress Yuanmu! I knew then that he was destined to be a traitor and despised him and the way he did things. My body comes from his bloodline, but my soul is unrelated to Founding Emperor’s bloodline.”

Qin Mu righteously proclaimed, “Today, he’s a traitor while I’m celestial heavens’ Celestial Venerable Mu. Naturally, I would cut clean my ties with him! If I see him in the Great Void, I’ll spurn him harshly! Empress, have Celestial Venerable Huo and Celestial Venerable Xu found this traitor?”

Yun Chuxiu carefully observed his minute expressions and found nothing wrong with them. It seemed that cutting ties with Founding Emperor was a true desire of Qin Mu’s.

She shook her head and said, “There’s news that claims that Carefree Village is in the Great Void. Hence, the celestial heavens explored that place recently in an attempt to find Carefree Village and remove this concern. When Celestial Venerable Huo and Celestial Venerable Xu reached the Great Void, they separated and found many weird places there. The Great Void is full of peculiarities… To go there, only a small party is allowed, because the larger the party, the more dangerous it is. The party that you will be leading there will contain 300 people.”

Qin Mu’s heart moved slightly, and he asked, “Have you been there, Empress?”

Yun Chuxiu’s expression changed slightly, a clear indication of her recalling the past. She changed the topic, saying, “Celestial Emperor’s decree will arrive here soon. Wait for it and prepare to die in the Great Void.”

Qin Mu’s eyes flashed as he smiled. “Don’t you want to go, Empress?”

Yun Chuxiu laughed. “Why would I go to that sort of place? It’s filled with danger. I won’t go to such a terrifying place.”

Qin Mu curiously asked, “So, Empress, what is it that caused you to find me in such a hurried manner? Your aim can’t simply be to tell me this, right?”

Yun Chuxiu’s expression wavered, and she suddenly sighed. “I want to go, but I don’t dare to go with my true form.”

Qin Mu wanted to inquire further when the dragon qilin reminded him, “Cult Master, it’s time to eat.”

Qin Mu walked forward and forged some spirit pills for the dragon qilin. The dragon qilin stared at his rice bowl and seriously looked at the spirit pills before laughing heartily all of a sudden. “Cult Master, I heard a very funny story from Qi Jiuyi. I can recite it for you.”

Qin Mu acknowledged him and asked, “What interesting story did Qi Jiuyi tell you?”

The dragon qilin said, “Once upon a time, there was a lustful pervert who died. The end. Isn’t it funny? Hahahaha!”

Qin Mu stared at him, and the dragon qilin stopped laughing and continued to consume the spirit pills seriously.

Qin Mu rose and plainly said, “Well said. I, too, have a story. One of the spirit pills in the bowl is poisonous. The end.”

The dragon qilin immediately stopped and stared at the pills in the bowl, cold sweat bursting from his forehead.

Not long after, a god official came with a decree ordering Qin Mu to lead 300 gods and devils into the Great Void to rendezvous with Celestial Venerable Huo and Celestial Venerable Xu.

Qin Mu accepted the decree and saw that Luo Wushuang was leading the 300 gods and devils behind the official. Beside him was a disciple of the Spirit Elite Guards with a severed arm. The other gods and devils varied in cultivation levels and were likely the disciples of Celestial Venerables.

That god official, who was the one that cleaned up the Jade Sea prior, said, “Celestial Venerable Mu, the boat is ready. Please prepare yourself, Celestial Venerable, and proceed quickly.”

Qin Mu looked at the sea and saw a boat. He asked, “Are the supplies ready? Where is the topographic map of the Great Void?”

That god official shook his head. “One has no need for supplies in the Great Void. There is no topographic map of the place either. You will understand once you get there.”

Luo Wushuang and the others had already boarded the boat, and Qin Mu frowned. He said to Yan’er and the dragon qilin, “This journey is treacherous. Stay behind, there’s no need to accompany me. After I leave, Yan’er, you will take Fatty Dragon to see South Deity Zhu Que. She will protect both of you.”

Yan’er hesitated before saying, “Master, amongst these 300 gods and devils, at least 200 wish to kill you. If I follow you, I can protect you…”

“There’s no need for that.”

Qin Mu smiled and said, “If Carefree Village really is in the Great Void, then my brother is there too. With him there, no one will dare to lay a finger on me!”

Yan’er thought about it before retrieving a lantern and saying, “Please carry this artifact with you, it was a gift from Celestial Venerable Yue for self-protection.”

Qin Mu accepted the lantern and boarded the boat, only to see Yun Chuxiu there. He was slightly stunned when he asked, “Didn’t you say that you didn’t want to go, Empress?”

Yun Chuxiu sighed and was clearly worried and lacking vigor. She said, “I really don’t want to go, but I also want to find out the Great Void’s real nature.”

The boat slowly floated and moved towards the north of the celestial heavens. Qin Mu probed her, “Is the Great Void really as terrifying as everyone says? If you have been there, why not tell us about the pitfalls there so that we can be prepared, Empress.”

Yun Chuxiu hesitated and said, “I have been there. I led the celestial heavens’ Divine Warrior Guards there, which numbered a hundred thousand. Two out of the four heavenly masters of the celestial heavens also went along on top of my proud students to explore the Great Void.”

Qin Mu’s heart jumped. The Divine Warrior Guards were one of the celestial heavens’ ten guards, along with the Feathered Forest Guards. Those who were selected for it were the strongest gods and devils who had experienced hundreds of battles!

He saw the warriors of the Feathered Forest Guards on the ghost ship. Each one of them was a being that had at least reached the Jade Capital Realm!

The Divine Warrior Guards that Celestial Empress led to explore the Great Void probably planned to occupy it on top of exploring it!

“The Great Void is a ruin in the universe. It’s a Halo Zone. When one enters, one will discover that it’s a unique place full of new things.”

Yun Chuxiu rested against his shoulder, recalled what happened, and whispered, “Then, weird things happened as soon as we entered the Halo Zone. All sorts of weird things. There were all kinds of imaginary creatures there.”

She frowned and said, “We were struck by all sorts of peculiar events and suffered heavy casualties. Only one out of ten people in the Divine Warrior Guards survived. Even I and the other two heavenly masters were heavily injured. It was only then that Heavenly Master Yue suddenly comprehended the secrets of the Great Void. What one imagines becomes reality.”

Qin Mu’s heart shuddered. “What one imagines becomes reality? The meaning of this Heavenly Master Yue was…”

“His meaning was that what killed the soldiers of the Divine Warrior Guards were the terrors and fears we imagined in our hearts. They became reality in the Great Void.”

Yun Chuxiu continued, “Somebody imagined being killed by lightning, so terrifying lightning struck. Somebody imagined a devil with a thousand heads and ten thousand hands killing him, so such a devil appeared. Somebody feared that the sky would collapse, so a planet fell from the sky. All sorts of terrors struck, which crushed the celestial heavens’ strongest army. We had to leave before we found out the Great Void’s true nature. Ultimately, it’s only I who walked out of it alive but heavily injured. The other two heavenly masters, however…”

She sighed and said, “The two heavenly masters were extremely wise and intelligent beings and also great warriors endowed with the Emperor’s Throne. Unfortunately, neither of them survived.”

Qin Mu closed his eyes.

Yun Chuxiu’s tale was truly horrifying. Was the Great Void really such a terrifying place?

“What was the terror that heavily injured you, Empress?” Qin Mu asked.

“Celestial Emperor, the real one.”

Yun Chuxiu’s face was filled with horror as she said with a hoarse voice, “I killed him, but I fear him the most! In the Great Void, he reappeared and charged towards us. I was scared…”

She shivered repeatedly in fear.

Qin Mu suddenly asked, “So how did the two heavenly masters and other lucky survivors die? If Heavenly Master Yue had already comprehended the Great Void’s secret and knew that what one imagines becomes reality, he would have certainly restrained people to not think, right? It should be easy for beings of their class, right? Why, then, did they all die in the Great Void while only you survived?”

Yun Chuxiu revealed a pure smile whose beauty touched people’s hearts. She even lifted her chest. The shirt was tight at her collar, and the beauty within was close to being unleashed. She said, “What are you trying to say, Celestial Venerable Mu?”

Qin Mu ignored her seduction and smiled. “What I’m trying to say is that in that big terror, the surviving warriors of the Divine Warrior Guards had already lost their rationality and were panicking. Meanwhile, you didn’t know others’ thoughts, and the best way to survive was to kill the others so they could no longer think. What was imagined became reality, so as long as they were dead, they could no longer think.”

His gaze was focused on this young lady’s delicate features as he slowly said, “Thus, you killed them. You killed everyone, including the two heavenly masters, because you couldn’t trust them. It was by this method that you survived to leave the Great Void.”

Yun Chuxiu laughed, and her breasts jiggled as she said, “We are of the same kind, Celestial Venerable Mu! You guessed the method I used to leave the Great Void immediately! You and I might be the real one true pairing!”

Qin Mu ignored her allures and plainly said, “Empress, we aren’t a pairing, and we will never be of the same kind. I would never abandon my companions, let alone kill them! I’m just used to the darkness and was thus able to figure out your malicious nature.”

Yun Chuxiu coldly smiled. “Celestial Venerable Mu, you are too idealistic! They weren’t my companions, they were just my slaves and servants. Either they died, or I died, so of course, they were the ones who died! If you were in the same situation as me, your choice would be the same! You and I are of the same kind! Maybe not now, but for sure in the future!”

Qin Mu frowned.

The boat exited the Northern Heavenly Gate. They went above the celestial river, and beneath them were the celestial heavens’ barracks, Fomalhaut. There were countless gods, devils, and fleets that were stationed there as heavens orbited the Fomalhaut. These heavens supplied the Fomalhaut with rations and other supplies.

Qin Mu looked at this barracks, whose divine light beamed into the skies for millions of miles.

The celestial heavens was too powerful. Without even talking about the ten guards of the celestial heavens, even Fomalhaut was enough to annihilate Eternal Peace thousands of times over!

“Ever since I revealed the secret of the Great Void, the celestial heavens began to come up with various techniques to prevent one from thinking. Amongst those, the most famous one is Buddhism’s Neither Thought nor No Thought.”

Yun Chuxiu said, “Neither Thought nor No Thought allows one’s thoughts to exist in limbo and prevents the Great Void from turning it into reality. This was a technique created by Brahma. Have you learned it?”

Qin Mu shook his head.

Yun Chuxiu revealed an enthralling smile and saw a halo appear in the night sky.

Luo Wushuang walked towards them and solemnly asked, “So, what does Celestial Venerable fear the most?”

Qin Mu turned around and replied with a smile, “I am Overlord Body Qin, I have no fears. What is your greatest fear, Divine Knife Luo?”

“With my divine knife in my hands, I have nothing to fear,” Luo Wushuang plainly replied.