Translator: Ninetales Editor: DarkGem
The directions of the clouds and wind were different. One was heading left, while the other was heading right. And in the sky where the two clouds were, the direction of the wind was completely different. It was unexpectedly blowing downwards.
The only reason behind such a situation could be that the two clouds and the wind existed in a different space. From the clouds and wind, there were at least three layers of it!
If the skies of Youdu, which was always in the darkness, or the hazy Fengdu had appeared, they would definitely be black or gray.
Even though they weren't such, Qin Mu was certain that those two worlds were close by!
This meant that the source of Surging River might have five worlds overlapping one another!
When night fell, darkness would invade, and the worlds would appear one after another, coming onto the bustling stage!
'When I have time, I will definitely need to go to the place where West Earth connects to Great Ruins. The darkness comes from there, so I might discover more secrets in that place.'
Qin Mu came down from the sky with his head aching. What exactly were those echoes of history? What were the worlds that were connected to the source of Surging River? Where were the connecting points?
There were many secrets in Great Ruins, and there also seemed to be quite a number of them in Surging River.
'Some secrets are something I can't touch or solve. If I tried to do it by force, our lives would be put in danger. Let's go back to the village first.'
As they headed down the river, Xiong Xiyu couldn't help sizing Qin Mu up. She couldn't resist asking curiously, "Cult Master Qin, did you really grow up in Great Ruins?"
Qin Mu nodded and asked with puzzlement, "Why are you asking this?"
"How did you survive in such a dangerous place? There are all kinds of strange beasts in Great Ruins, all kinds of strange things, dangers, and even the invasion of darkness at night, when devils and monsters wreak havoc. There are even other worlds overlapping with Great Ruins frequently. It's truly unimaginable for you to have survived up until now!"
Qin Mu smiled. "Big Sister Palace Master, you're mistaken! Great Ruins are actually very safe, much safer than the outside. The real danger lies outside. When I first walked out of Great Ruins and came to Eternal Peace, I stayed in an inn beside the river, and an incident happened that very night. That place was called Dyke River County, and the people in the entire county died. Only me and Ling'er managed to escape. I had never met with such an incident in Great Ruins."
Xiong Xiyu didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "You can't say that Eternal Peace is more dangerous than Great Ruins just because of that. It was only a coincidence."
"Ever since I entered Eternal Peace, I've suffered murderous intents and killings, as well as assassination attempts. In comparison, Great Ruins are much safer. The greatest danger I encountered in Great Ruins was also caused by the outside people barging in. Thus, Great Ruins is the safest place," Qin Mu explained with a calm expression
Xiong Xiyu was puzzled. She didn't understand how he could feel that Great Ruins were safer than the outside world.
The dragon qilin chuckled. "Palace Master might not know, but when Cult Master goes out, he doesn't even dare to use his real name. This is because the moment he used his real name, people rushing to kill him would line up all the way from Eternal Peace Empire to Disabled Elderly Village. The righteous practitioners are all itching to kill him."
Qin Mu gave him a stare and immediately explained to Xiong Xiyu, "Our Heavenly Saint Cult is actually very righteous, so don't be misled. That's right, once we reach the village, I'll be able to get rid of your poison. What do you plan to do after that?"
Xiong Xiyu was in a daze. Return to True Heaven Palace?
Now that only her daughter was left, she didn't have the confidence to return to True Heaven Palace to seize the power and the position of the palace master back. On top of that, she was worried about Xiong Qi'er's life.
However, she couldn't accept giving up the foundation of her ancestor.
Qin Mu caught the expression she made and smiled. "Even though I can get rid of your Coiling Poison, your cultivation won't recover straight away, I'll still need to help you recuperate and assist you in recovering your vital qi. If you can't make a decision, I have a suggestion. Why don't you follow me to Eternal Peace Empire for some time? I'm the academician of Imperial College so I can recommend you to teach at Imperial College."
Xiong Xiyu's beautiful gaze was like clear water as she looked deeply into his eyes, subconsciously giving off the aura of a mistress of a sacred ground. "I'm the mistress of True Heaven Palace, and you are asking me to teach in Imperial College?"
Qin Mu thought for a moment and said, "Then why don't you come to our Heavenly Saint Cult's School Hall to teach?"
Xiong Xiyu didn't know whether to laugh or cry and said, "Let me go to Imperial College first."
Five days later, they finally reached Disabled Elderly Village. Qin Mu first went to find Hu Ling'er, and a few white foxes came out of her room, speaking the human language. "Young Master, Big Sister has gone to Eternal Peace Empire to look for you, and she has been gone for a few months!"
Qin Mu inquired about the details, and the white fox in the lead said, "Great Demon King came to force Big Sister to marry him, so she beat him up. Great Demon King then called his dad over who Big Sister couldn't defeat, so she ran away, saying she would find Young Master in Eternal Peace Empire.
Qin Mu bade farewell and brought everyone toward Disabled Elderly Village. When it came in sight, Qin Mu became excited and shouted out loudly, "Grandpa Village Chief, Grandpa Apothecary, I'm back!"
Xiong Xiyu looked at this small village and saw an old man with a scraggly beard sitting on a recliner at the village entrance. He had no arms or legs, and the beard on his face was very unkempt. His hair was messy as well.
There was a flock of chickens patrolling in the village, looking very awe-inspiring.
"Oh, Mu'er is back? You've grown taller again." The messy old man swayed in his recliner, looking at Xiong Xiyu and the two white bats while basking in the sun. After a moment, his expression changed to that of astonishment. "This girl is very pretty and her cultivation is also very strong. A pity she's poisoned. The two white bats are a little interesting."
The two white bats went to hang upside down from the tree above his head and sized Village Chief with interest. "You're very strong as well!"
Qin Mu couldn't help frowning upon examining Village Chief. He then ran into the village to fetch a Pig Slaughtering Knife before going into Granny Si's room to find a white cloth and coming back. In a basin of hot water, he wetted the towel, then covered Village Chief's face.
/After a while, Qin Mu uncovered the towel and used a Pig Slaughtering Knife to help him shave his beard. "Village Chief, where are the people from the village? Grandpa Apothecary? He's not in the village? Take a look, your beard is almost dragging on the floor."
"Apothecary had ran away." Village Chief sighed and said, "A few women found their way here and scared him off, leaving me here alone. I don't have any limbs so I can't crawl back into the room."
Qin Mu jumped in shock and cried out, "Village Chief, how long have you stayed here at the village entrance?"
"Almost two months."
Qin Mu was speechless. This old man had actually not moved for two months, staying at the village entrance motionlessly, allowing himself to be windswept and battered by rain, even letting the darkness surround him!
This should be considered as having achieved a new realm in laziness!
Xiong Xiyu also jumped in shock. From the layout of the stone statues in the village, the rays from them wouldn't have shone until here. Then this messy old man who had lain here for two months without dying, was he a god?
Or were the strange things in the darkness not interested in him?
Qin Mu shaved off Village Chief's beard and washed his face for him. He then cut off his messy white hair and groomed him before carrying the old man into his room, changing the clothes on his body into a new set before going to wash the old ones.
He then carried the old man out to place him back on the recliner, pouring a pot of tea for him before asking, "Grandpa Ma and the rest haven't returned?"
"Old Ma came back once. Dao Master and Old Rulai had also found their way over. The latter said he wasn't Rulai anymore and severed one of his arms. He told me that he couldn't return Old Ma his children, but he could still return him an arm."
Qin Mu cried out, "Old Rulai severed his own arm?"
"That's right. Old Rulai's arm was pecked at by the hen dragons. It's in the chicken coop, though, since the hen dragon couldn't eat it."
Village Chief sighed. "Old Ma may look cold and hate the world, but when Old Rulai severed his arm to give it to him, he was still moved and cried. He went to Great Thunderclap Monastery to oversee it, saying that he would return once a new rulai came. I reckon he won't be coming back. He plans to wait for the new rulai, but once he will sit down on the seat of Rulai, he will discover that he's Rulai."
In a daze, Qin Mu said, "I'm going to Ghost Valley, so I can find him on the way there. Where's Grandpa Cripple? Isn't he always inseparable from Grandpa Ma?"
"They are inseparable, so he naturally went to be a guest at Great Thunderclap Monastery. He said he was afraid that Old Ma would be at a disadvantage." Village Chief revealed a worried expression. "I'm afraid that after Old Ma becomes Rulai, he will discover that his entire mountain is an illusion."
Qin Mu also didn't see Butcher, Blind, and Mute so he asked about them as well. Blind and Butcher had run off with Old Dao Master and Old Rulai, saying that they wanted to take a look at Little Jade Capital. Mute didn't seem to have had any plans to leave the village, but just before the day Apothecary escaped, Mute suddenly went crazy, picking up his belongings and rushing into the darkness, chasing after something. He had yet to return.
Granny Si hadn't yet returned. She had to still be at Eternal Peace Empire, suppressing her heart devil and sharpening her nature.
Qin Mu tidied up the village and put all treasures and things that looked like treasures into his two taotie sacks. He then came to the herb garden at the village entrance and stretched his hand out. Flying swords stabbed into the surroundings and tunneled underground, slicing something underneath the soil.
Qin Mu raised both his hands as if lifting something, then the entire herb garden flew upwards and was put into Pangong Tso's taotie sack.
It was much better than Qin Mu's own, and the space inside could even store a piece of land.
Qin Mu picked Apothecary's herb basket and placed Village Chief inside it. Village Chief was instantly angered. "Rascal, what are you doing? Put me down!"
"I can't let you stay here." Qin Mu tightened the herb basket to his back while saying, "What if something happens to you, who will know? From now on, Grandpa Village Chief will follow me wherever I go!"
Village Chief was silent for a moment, slightly moved in his heart. He smiled. "Put me down. Silly child, I'm old, I can't move around anymore. I even promised Yama to go to his living realm of the dead after death. When I die, a bird god will come and fetch me."
Qin Mu instantly felt the herb basket becoming incomparably heavy as though he was carrying a mountain. He knew Village Chief wasn't willing to leave Great Ruins and blinked before saying, "Doesn't Grandpa Village Chief want to meet Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor? Does the old sword god not want to meet the new sword god? Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor is being acclaimed as the saint that appears once every five hundred years, so he is definitely worth meeting."
The herb basket on Qin Mu's back instantly became lighter, and Village Chief's tone seemed to gain a hint of heroism. "The new sword god? Oh well, it's also a good thing to meet him before I die. Go, let us meet Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor!"