Tales of Herding Gods

The core of the Primordial Tree flew back silently. The guard had planned to observe carefully, but he couldn’t tell where Qin Mu had hidden the core of the Primordial Tree.

After some time, he led Qin Mu and the rest to the front of White Bone Throne Hall and said, “If you wish to visit Jiang Baigui, you need to file a record with Judge Yan.”

Right at this moment, a god walked out of the White Bone Throne Hall, his face full of smiles. “Celestial Venerable Mu is a Celestial Venerable, why does he need to file a record? You may fall back now. Celestial Venerable, the great prison is full of dangers, let me guide you down personally.”

Qin Mu expressed his thanks.

“Celestial Venerable, there is no need to be so polite, I am undeserving of this.”

Judge Yan hurriedly returned the courtesy and smiled. “You are a Celestial Venerable. From the past to the present, there are only nine who deserved the title of Celestial Venerable. I don’t deserve such courteousness. Celestial Venerable, this way, please!”

Qin Mu followed him as Judge Yan brought them to the entrance of the great prison, which was built under the roots of the Primordial Tree. In one of the roots that looked as big as a mountain, there was an opening—a door made from wood carved from the Primordial Tree. Security was tight, the door heavily guarded by many soldiers.

After entering the door, they saw a wooden staircase meandering downwards. Hanging on both sides of the walls were the skeletons of gods and devils, providing illumination. However, the god light and devil light emitted by these skeletons were too dim.

“Judge Yan, how do I address you?” Qin Mu examined his surroundings and asked.

“Junior is called Yan Shaoqing.”

Judge Yan smiled. “Junior is just a nobody in the celestial heavens. Celestial Venerable Mu is likely not to have heard of me before.”

Qin Mu’s heart jumped. He then laughed. “Left Assistant Minister Yan Shaoqing of the celestial heavens, skilled in mental divine arts. The one who tricked and trapped Founding Emperor’s Mingdu Heavenly King Tian Shu in the Imperial Gate Divine Knife for seven million years.”

Judge Yan was shocked. “Celestial Venerable has actually heard of me before?”

Qin Mu said, “I was also trapped in the Imperial Gate Divine Knife for quite a few years before escaping through great effort. Within the Imperial Gate Divine Knife, I saw the beautiful wine that Left Assistant Minister used to trick King Tian Shu. Left Assistant Minister is the first I have seen who is proficient in mental divine arts, incomparable!”

The dragon qilin said, “I drank your wine before and became sworn brother with Tian Shu.”

Yan Shaoqing laughed. “Celestial Venerable has overpraised me. I don’t think I can be considered as number one. What Celestial Venerable considers spirit, I consider consciousness. The top practitioner of consciousness divine arts is actually Crimson Light Era’s Crimson Emperor.”

Qin Mu’s heart moved slightly.

Although Crimson Emperor had imparted the Three Primordial Spirit Undying God Consciousness to him, he didn’t impart his Emperor’s Throne divine art techniques.

Crimson Emperor was, after all, a figure of the early ancient times. His Undying God Consciousness placed emphasis on cultivating the three primordial spirits, hence strengthening one’s primordial spirit. However, in the development of consciousness divine arts, he was far behind the talents of the new generation like Yan Shaoqing.

Yan Shaoqing could be considered the celestial heavens’ most powerful existence for consciousness divine arts.

The official positions of Yan Shaoqing and Tian Shu were the same. One was the Left Assistant Minister of the extraterritorial celestial heavens, while the other was Founding Emperor Celestial Heavens’ Left Assistant Minister. Tian Shu was proficient in Youdu divine arts, his talent and attainments in Youdu Devil Dao were extremely high, and he was on par with Son of Heaven Yin.

On the other hand, Yan Shaoqing was proficient in consciousness divine arts. Him being able to blindside Tian Shu was as easy as blowing away a speck of dust. Tian Shu also treated him as an old rival, implying that his abilities were extremely high and that he had fought Tian Shu more than once.

Both of them should have cultivated the system of the Great Dao of Youdu, except that their approaches to cultivation were different.

“The celestial heavens have always been short an Emperor’s Throne level consciousness technique. It’s a pity that Crimson Emperor has been dead for 400,000 years and that his Three Primordial Spirit Undying God Consciousness is long lost.”

Yan Shaoqing said, “The celestial heavens have placed their hopes on me, expecting me to create an Emperor’s Throne consciousness technique. However, I have failed repeatedly and was punished by being sent to this great prison to be a judge. Only when I arrived at the lower bound did I realize it was silly of the celestial heavens to search high and low for the Three Primordial Spirit Undying God Consciousness. It’s as though every divine arts practitioner has learned that before, with the difference lying in the level of attainment.”

Qin Mu smiled.

Yan Shaoqing said, “Since Jiang Baigui imparted this technique to me, I took good care of him and didn’t let him suffer. I have spent this period comprehending the Three Primordial Spirit Undying God Consciousness and have benefited greatly. Celestial Venerable is able to survive without a soul, which should be the effect of the Undying God Consciousness, right?”

Qin Mu laughed. “This is the technique I imparted, so of course I know it.”

Yan Shaoqing laughed heartily. “In that case, I shouldn’t show off in front of a master.”

There was a warning in his words, telling Qin Mu not to show off his lesser skills in front of him.

It became darker and wetter as they ventured deeper underground, and there was a strong stench in the air. A blood river flowed down from the outside world, meandering forward as it went past the cages.

The roots of the Primordial Tree were intricate and complex, entangling to form cages and trapping the prisoners inside. The slender roots were like chains, locking up the gods and devils, piercing their corporeal bodies and primordial spirits.

These prisoners were wailing miserably in the cages as the blood on their bodies flowed down along the roots and into the blood river.

The blood river was filthy and foul, and from it, many demonic creatures were born. They looked like strange gigantic worms with numerous hands and legs, and they were attaching themselves to the bodies of the prisoners, sucking and feasting on their blood.

When the prison guards were around, these demonic creatures hid behind the backs of the prisoners in the shadows. After the guards left, they popped out their heads and crawled back over, continuing to suck blood.

The security in the great prison was very tight, with guards constantly patrolling back and forth.

Qin Mu examined the roots of the Primordial Tree carefully, and he saw that they were incomparably strong. This Primordial Tree was Mother Earth’s true body, and the hardness and sturdiness of the corporeal body of such an ancient god were comparable to an Emperor’s Throne divine weapon. Only a treasure like the Imperial Gate Divine Knife would be able to chop it into two.

Also, the runes on the surface of the roots were Mother Earth’s true body’s runes of the Great Dao. Hence, there was no chance one could escape from this place!

Those that were trapped inside the prison included many existences of the Jade Capital Realm and the Numinous Sky Realm. They were the leaders of the various races under Mother Earth, ruling over the different heavens of the Primordial Realm. Now, however, they were prisoners.

The guards took good care of them, using a big basin to collect the god blood and devil blood that flowed down from their bodies. After the basin was fully filled, they carefully transported it outside.

“Their blood is very useful, the best coloring.”

Yan Shaoqing, who was leading the way, said, “When building a god city, runes are imprinted on the city walls to stabilize them. For that, blood from ordinary gods and devils can be used. Only the palaces of rulers are qualified to use the treasured blood of strong practitioners at the Numinous Sky Realm and the Jade Capital Realm. The blood pigments of the various races are different, and when using the treasured blood of strong practitioners to color the walls, it will never fade and will remain fresh forever. Hence, this is very popular. Also, there are some gods in the celestial heavens that like to drink blood. However, they don’t like ordinary blood, so they look towards my great prison for supply.”

Qin Mu narrowed his eyes. Among the guards in the great prison were gods skilled in the art of healing. They were treating the wounds of these prisoners, preventing them from dying so that they could continue to produce this so-called “coloring”.

“Yan Shaoqing, I’m going to kill you!”

A prisoner with a qilin head and human body gave off a few furious roars and shouted, “If I manage to escape, I’ll have you chopped into a thousand pieces!”

Yan Shaoqing laughed loudly. Suddenly, an eye appeared at the heart of his brows, and a lotus flower flew out of it, entering the mind of the leader of the qilin race.

The leader of the qilin race instantly seemed dazed. Then, a gentle expression appeared on his face, and he stopped making a din.

“Consciousness divine arts can make him forever be entranced in a blissful and mesmerizing dream state.”

Yan Shaoqing explained to Qin Mu, “I used my divine art to create a realistic-looking fantasy world within his consciousness. In that world, he gets whatever he wants, so he will never escape out of it. Through great struggles and effort, he can even become the celestial emperor in the fantasy world I have given him, making him very happy. Through this, his pain will be lessened, allowing him to happily produce the coloring.”

The dragon qilin shuddered. He could recognize the leader of the qilin race. Previously, at Mother Earth’s earthly palace, the leader of the qilin race had guided him on cultivation.

Never did he expect such a powerful existence would end up in such a state.

In name, this place was a great prison. However, this was actually a production factory for god blood and devil blood!

“The cages of Jiang Baigui and Emperor Yanfeng are right in front.”

Yan Shaoqing led them to two cages. Qin Mu peered inside and saw Emperor Yanfeng and Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor. They were trapped in the cages but hadn’t been pierced by the roots.

Emperor Yanfeng held a monster that was screeching noisily. He opened his mouth and was about to eat it when he saw Qin Mu outside the cage and was stunned. He quickly stuffed the monster behind his back and sat upright.

In the other cage, Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor was executing his flame divine art, roasting a monster until it was half-cooked. He, however, was calm when he saw Qin Mu and didn’t hide the monster.

“Left Assistant Minister, could you allow me some private time?”

Qin Mu smiled. “I have some words that aren’t convenient to say in front of outsiders.”

Yan Shaoqing didn’t move, smiling faintly. “Celestial Venerable has the title of Great Wizard, so I’ll be worried if I leave you alone here. I’m not sure whether others would dare to release my prisoners, but Celestial Venerable would have the courage to. Celestial Venerable was brave enough to cause chaos at the Jade Pool Meeting, much less at this tiny prison of mine.”

Qin Mu had no choice, so he turned towards Emperor Yanfeng and Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor and asked, “How are the two of you getting on here?”

Emperor Yanfeng said angrily, “Why don’t you try staying here for a few days and see if it’s good!”

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor, on the other hand, was indifferent towards the hardship and appeared calm. He said, “Senior Brother, why are you here?”

“I’m here to report that I am safe and sound.”

Qin Mu smiled. “All is well with Eternal Peace, so there’s no need for you to worry. I plan to leave the Primordial Realm and head towards the celestial heavens. I’m not sure if I will survive this trip, so I decided to see you beforehand.”

Emperor Yanfeng was quiet for a while before replying with a choked voice, “Head towards the celestial heavens? To be their hostage?”

Qin Mu laughed loudly. “I’m a Celestial Venerable, so how can I be a hostage of the celestial heavens? Your Majesty must be joking. No, I’m going to the celestial heavens to visit an old friend.”

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor’s gaze sparkled. “It’s a good idea for Senior Brother to head towards the celestial heavens. One will fight fiercely in a desperate situation, and this may be the only path of survival. Except, your body…”

Qin Mu yawned and said, “My body is deteriorating with each passing day. Without a soul, my cultivation abilities are decreasing every day. I can barely hang on to my life and not die. Often, I pass out when I’m walking, with each coma lasting three to four days.”

Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor frowned. “Given your condition, isn’t heading towards the celestial heavens courting death?”

Qin Mu’s spirit was becoming poor, and he became sleepy-eyed. “I plan to…”

He suddenly started snoring, falling asleep just like that.

Yan Shaoqing was smiling by the side. He didn’t speak a word, and neither did he support Qin Mu. Instead, he allowed him to lie down.

The dragon qilin and Yan’er looked as though they had grown used to this sight and weren’t alarmed.

Emperor Yanfeng was choked with tears. “Looks like Cult Master Qin is unable to hold on much longer…”

Yan Shaoqing waited around three to four days until Qin Mu gradually woke up. He cried out, “I fell asleep again? How long did I sleep?”

Yan Shaoqing said, “Celestial Venerable slept for 3 days and 10 hours.”

Qin Mu said apologetically, “I actually slept for so long, holding up Left Assistant Minister’s matters. Oh well, this is the end of my visit, I should be leaving. Your Majesty, Junior Brother, farewell!”

Emperor Yanfeng and Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor rose and bid farewell to him.

Yan Shaoqing sent Qin Mu out of the great prison. As the wooden door closed, sealing up the great prison underground, Yan Shaoqing meticulously checked the runic lock on the door. Only then was he satisfied.

He then sent Qin Mu out of White Bone City. Qin Mu turned and said, “Left Assistant Minister, there’s no need to send me further.”

Yan Shaoqing bowed. “Farewell, Celestial Venerable.”

He looked on as Qin Mu flew off on the head of the dragon qilin, disappearing over the horizon. He then returned to the Judgment Throne Hall, wanting to write down the details of Qin Mu’s visit. Suddenly, he got a shock.

Yan Shaoqing’s expression changed slightly. He put down his pen and quickly flipped open his booklet, only to see that the rest of the pages were blank!

Yan Shaoqing broke into a cold sweat. This official booklet should have contained records of his writings, detailing down all sorts of matters of the great prison. Now, they were all gone!

“Celestial Venerable Mu, my consciousness divine art has already reached its peak, attaining Three Primordial Spirit Undying God Consciousness, and it is only half a step away from the Emperor’s Throne Realm. You dare to show off your skills in front of me, the master?”

Yan Shaoqing’s consciousness surged forth from the heart of his brows, and he shouted, “Break!”

His consciousness divine art trembled and burst out in four directions. In the next instant, heaven and earth abruptly changed. It was as though the surroundings had lost color, going from a colorful picture to just black and white!

Following this, the black and white faded away. Then, Yan Shaoqing found himself not within the Judgment Throne Hall but still standing in the great prison, in front of Emperor Yanfeng and Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor’s cages!