Translator: Ninetales Editor: DarkGem
Qin Mu's thoughts went into disorder.
Qin Hanzhen, Qin Fengqing?
The family register that he had found in the study room had recorded the people of Founding Emperor's bloodline, and on the last page of the family register was the sentence, 'One hundred and seventh generation, Son of Hanzhen, Fengqing.'
Qing Fengqing was the son of Qin Hanzhen.
So what did the words from the weird thing that slithered down from the tree mean?
Who was she calling Qin Hanzhen?
And who was the Qin Fengqing that she mentioned?
Qin Mu's body trembled, and his face turned pale, bloodless. He was Qin Fengqing, and the man in the tree was Qin Hanzhen!
The last person in the family register of Founding Emperor was none other than him, and the man in the tree was his father!
This person who had fused with this ancient tree was his father? Was he the kin that he had been longing for every day?
His closest kin!
Why had he become like this?
Qin Mu repeatedly told himself to stay calm, since Old Ma had once told him to never lose his composure no matter what he encountered. He needed to stay level-headed. Even if came face to face with an apocalypse, he could find a way to survive in a sure death situation if only he kept his calm.
Cripple had also once told him to always maintain his smile and stay positive. It was not only to numb the enemies but to also keep his own spirits up. Even if a leg was chopped off, he always had to show his most sincere smile. Only then would he have a chance to escape.
Granny Si had also once said that no matter if his heart was plagued by darkness or a devil, he needed to stay strong. Once he was messed up, everything would be over.
However, even if danger was close to Qin Mu, he couldn't compose himself.
When his father, his closest kin that he had never met before, had entered such a state, he couldn't do what Old Ma, Granny Si, and Cripple had told him.
Qin Mu tried his best to compose himself and not think about the man in the tree or even care about him. He suppressed the trembling of his body.
Suddenly, he felt a slight pain in his palms. He had subconsciously gripped his fists so tight that his nails stabbed into his palms, bringing out blood.
Qin Mu raised his head and looked at the mysterious entity that was slithering down.
It was half a snake and half a human that had an extremely huge body. Even though the lower half was was that of a snake, it had no scales. The upper half of the body was that of a woman. She was very beautiful and alluring, but the voice that came from her mouth belonged to a man.
Her body left a trail of the sticky liquid. She looked like the form of Saturn Sovereign that Qin Mu transformed into, but her form was much more primitive.
There seemed to be something like two flesh membranes growing on the back of her neck, and when she spoke, they would open up like two fans stabbing on the sides of her neck, going over her head and trembling continuously to create the sounds.
She seemed to not be able to open her mouth to speak. Instead, she relied on the trembling of the flesh membranes to make noise. Because of that, her voice was very weird and cryptic.
The flesh membranes had to be her vocal cords, and on their tips were bone spikes that were two feet long and looked like javelins. When the membranes opened, two pictures of black eyeballs would be revealed, which seemed like two strange eyes.
According to what Qin Mu knew, there were two forms of Saturn Sovereign. The first kind was a simple Saturn Sovereign's form that didn't have Gate of Heaven Influence or the scripture in hand. The other kind was Qin Mu's one, which had Gate of Heaven Influence behind him and a scripture in his hand.
However, the strange life form in front of him had a form that was even more primitive. It didn't look like she had cultivated this form but was born in it.
This was a life form of Youdu that might even be a god!
She and the owner of the eyes that were nine hundred yards apart were two different people.
"You and I made a promise, Qin Hanzhen."
She slithered to the bottom of the tree and coiled around it. Her alluring face closed in on the face of the man in the tree and rubbed her head against his. The flesh membranes behind her neck trembled and gave off a sound as she laughed. "You and I made the Pact of Earth Count that as long as you find your son named Qin Fengqing, you will let go of everything and follow me to Youdu, handing over the location of Carefree Village. Now that you have found him, your wish is achieved and it's time to fulfill your promise."
The man in the tree didn't move, his gaze still on Qin Mu's body. His corporeal body had already turned into wood, and his eyes could no longer see the person in front of him clearly. Yet tears were still flowing out from them.
The strange life form surrounded the body of the ancient tree and left the man alone for a moment. As she slithered around leisurely, her voice floated over erratically. "When you barged into Youdu world and broke the sealing barrier, you were left only with a last breath, so you merged with this divine tree. This was for no other reason than to meet with your son, so you exhausted all you could to preserve your life. I came here and accompanied you. In time, you promised me that as long as you meet your son, you will be able to let go of everything, no matter if it's your life or Carefree Village. You'd be willing to hand over your soul to Earth Count as well as the location of Carefree Village. I agreed to your terms, which was why I didn't take your life."
Her face suddenly hung down from the divine tree and landed in front of Qin Mu's face. Her huge body circled around him, and she released a strange laugh. "Could you be thinking of going back on your word after seeing your son? Do you want to see your son die in front of you? Hehehe, such a delicious body, such a young life. He's only sixteen years old, am I right? He must be tender and juicy…"
Cold sweats broke out on Qin Mu's forehead, and he suddenly executed Overlord Body Three Elixir Technique to operate Saturn Sovereign's Earth Marquis True Technique, transforming into the form of Saturn Sovereign. With a hoarse voice, he said, "This senior, I'm also…"
"You also have a Saturn Sovereign's form?"
The strange Youdu life form suddenly stretched her snake body and slithered away from the body of the towering tree, landing back on the ground. Yet her long tail was still coiled around the tree and not completely off.
Looking down at this miniature youth in front of her, she let out a playful smile. "What a pitiful little thing, how laughable and immature you are to show off this trick in front of me. Don't you know? Saturn Sovereign's form is merely imitating me. I am none other than… Saturn Sovereign!"
She bent her body down to Qin Mu's face, expecting to see fear on the face of this youth. She wanted to see uneasiness and despair after his knowledge has been destroyed.
Qin Mu tried his best to stay composed, but she still saw the fear deep in his heart.
Saturn Sovereign raised her head in satisfaction and smiled. "What an interesting little man, trying his best to be like an adult yet looking so cute from not knowing anything. Didn't you say a Youdu phrase when you boarded the ship? You only know that single Youdu phrase, right? That phrase is Gate of Heaven Influence. Did you really think I would have retreated just because of hearing this phrase and allow you to board the ship?"
Qin Mu suppressed the trembling of his body. In front of a god like Saturn Sovereign, all his schemes were useless!
Like what she had said, he had always tried his best to be like an adult, a person that could shoulder everything. He learned how the people of the village handled things and learned from what they did, yet in nature, he was still a big boy.
In front of Saturn Sovereign, his hard work, his studies, his maturity all seemed laughable.
"Looking at how you are trying your best to act like an adult, I won't make things difficult for you."
Saturn Sovereign returned to the tree, and her tail coiled around the divine tree like a woman clinging to the man she loved. The flesh membranes behind her head opened up and trembled as she smiled. "Qin Hanzhen, you should be happy that you, father and son, have reunited, so why am I feeling such sorrow from you? That's right, that's because from today onwards, both of you will be separated forever, one living and one dying. Shi, shi, shi, there's no need for you to be like this…"
She slithered to the man in the tree and looked up at him while talking leisurely. "If you say the location of Carefree Village, all your children and clansmen will be free to go to Youdu to accompany you. Truly interesting, a pitiful human dared to make a deal with a god and thought to have struck a bargain, not knowing that he had lost everything! Meanwhile, the chips I had used for the deal were merely your life."
She came to the right side of the man in the tree and couldn't resist smiling. Her expression was filled with happiness, and she whispered beside his ear, "I used your life in exchange for the lives of everyone in Carefree Village, as well as the life of your son. And you merely got a chance to meet your son for a moment. What a foolish mortal, even if you mastered the power of gods and devils, you were still affected by your foolish thoughts. Like this, you will never achieve the mental state of gods. And because you are bounded by the Pact of Earth Count, you can't go against your oath."
The man in the tree regained his composure and opened his mouth. However, since his tongue had already turned into wood, he couldn't make any sound.
Saturn Sovereign smiled. "What are you trying to say?"
The man in the tree moved his mouth again, but nothing came out..
Saturn Sovereign came closer, wishing to know what he was speaking. She asked curiously, "What are you trying to say?"
The man in the tree still couldn't utter a sound.
Qin Mu's mental state suddenly calmed down, and he said, "Saturn Sovereign, the hearts of father and son are one. I think I know what's he is trying to say."
Saturn Sovereign took a look at him. "He certainly didn't make any sound, yet you could hear?"
"The life of us father and son are in Saturn Sovereign's hand. With this, is Saturn Sovereign still afraid of us playing any tricks?"Qin Mu said.
Saturn Sovereign looked at him deeply and chuckled. "You guys can't play any tricks. Come over, let's see what he wants to say."
Qin Mu went forward and came to the face of the man in the tree. Tilting his head to listen, he said after a moment, "He is saying that his eyes are almost blind so he can't see my face clearly, therefore this doesn't count as seeing me, which is why the Pact of Earth Count is still not in effect."
Saturn Sovereign was astonished and smiled. "Interesting, I would have never expected you, father and son, to indeed have interlinked intentions. This is troublesome, the forbidden technique he executed fused him with the divine tree and it is called Spring Comes Upon a Withered Tree, a forbidden technique that borrows lifeforce from others. However, its drawback is also very strong. Not only are the lives interconnected, the same happens even to the corporeal bodies. When your father fought with those gods, he exhausted them to death, but he also exhausted himself to death, thus he had no choice but to extend his life with a forbidden technique. Now, only his face is yet to completely turn into wood, so reversing this process is very difficult, but not for me. After all, I'm from Youdu and control life…"
The flesh membranes behind Saturn Sovereign's head opened up and revealed the pictures of the eyes. Two beams shot out from them and hit the body of the man in the tree. Gradually, the wood on the surface started to shed off, and the vein lines on the skin of his neck no longer looked like grains of a tree.