Tales of Herding Gods

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

The time of Great Ruins hadn’t matched that of Supreme Emperor Heaven, and because its algebra was too bad, the suns’ cycles didn’t even consist of twenty-four hours. Because of that, the day and night times of Supreme Emperor Heaven weren’t accurate.

After Qin Mu had destroyed one of the suns, Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor forged a sun which used the twenty-four-hour cycle of Eternal Peace Empire.

However, Imperial Preceptor had an obsessive-compulsive disorder, so he tried to perfect everything. The moment the sun lit up, it matched the sun of Eternal Peace. This meant that the moment the darkness descended on Great Ruins was also matched without a second’s difference.

It was night time in Great Ruins at that moment.

There were only two ways to travel in the darkness of Great Ruins. Otherwise, the person would die miserably from either a curse or being eaten by monsters in the darkness.

The first way to not fear such fate was to have abilities akin to those of a god.

The second way was to have been born in Youdu, like Qin Mu had done.

The first method required for a strong practitioner to use their god’s aura to force back the darkness. The second method, however, required to have an unusual birth, like that of Qin Mu’s, so when he entered the darkness, the curse and the monsters weren’t able to hurt him.

With the first method, the strong practitioners that entered the darkness of Great Ruins wouldn’t be able to see Supreme Emperor Heaven, and the people in Supreme Emperor Heaven wouldn’t be able to see them either.

But with the latter, they would be able to walk through Supreme Emperor Heaven and the people there would be able to see them as a shadow, something made of black sand. Qin Mu had gotten to know Sang Hua through this method.

However, even though the latter could allow one to see people of Supreme Emperor Heaven, they couldn’t communicate or pass any useful information.

Still, upon seeing another person that could walk through the darkness of Great Ruins, Qin Mu couldn’t help becoming shocked.

‘King Yama and Earth Count said that I’m the first lifeform that was born in Youdu, so could it be that there were other people born in Youdu after me? Why didn’t Earth Count mention that?’

Puzzled, he examined the shadow while being examined by the other as well. The person seemed to be thinking of something.

The two of them circled each other, trying to find some clues.

Qin Mu stopped and that shadow also stopped. It then turned it head around to say something, but the words weren’t clear.

‘He should have someone beside him!’ Qin Mu’s heart trembled slightly. ‘But that person isn’t walking in the darkness. He’s forcing the darkness back, so I can’t see them.’

The shadow suddenly turned and leaped as though he was flying before vanishing.

Qin Mu didn’t give chase since the other party was in Great Ruins. If he wanted to hide, there were many ways, and he could just vanish by entering a ruin.

‘Overlord body of the devil race… How did he appear in Great Ruins? Impossible. He definitely has a devil god level existence beside him, but if a devil god wanted to pass through Spirit Energy Mutual Shift Bridge, they would have definitely been discovered.’

He was confused and muttered, “Could there be other ways to enter Great Ruins?”

There were many secrets in Great Ruins; Qin Mu had once even entered High Emperor Era. He had also gone to Youdu from Ghost Valley and even visited Fengu thrice. This showed that Great Ruins indeed link to other worlds.

‘God Sang Ye and the rest referred to Great Ruins as Founding Emperor Celestial Heavens, so there are still numerous secrets waiting for me to be discovered… En, I can ask Official Sovereign of Youdu!’

Qin Mu roused his spirit, and his body trembled. A Gate of Heaven Influence appeared behind him, and the door slowly opened. The devil qi of Youdu poured out, making the darkness darker.

Blind frowned slightly, but after thinking about it, he didn’t stop Qin Mu. ‘Mu’er is always full of ideas. Might as well not bother him and see what he plans to do.’

Qin Mu composed himself, and the drawn-out cadence of Youdu devil language came from his mouth. He only chanted it and didn’t execute Soul Guide.

After a moment, a lamp shone from within Gate of Heaven Influence. When Blind looked into the gate, he saw a small boat sailing over from the darkness. The light had come from the lantern at the bow of the boat.

“Messenger of death!” Blind was astonished, and Divine Spear Long Tuo behind him gave a low dragon roar as it became incomparably nervous.

“Grandpa Blind, Senior Long Tuo, there’s no need to be nervous. This is Benevolent Saintly King Equal to Heaven of Youdu, a big shot in Youdu. He is referred to as Youdu Official Sovereign,” Qin Mu explained.

Blind stared with his eyes wide open and his heart trembling violently. ‘Mu’er has even hooked up with Youdu? And even the official sovereign of Youdu? Just a few days of not seeing him, and this brat has become so much more capable!”

Even so, he still didn’t dare to relax. Long Tuo changed into his spear form and coiled around him, ready to strike at any time.

“You again…”

A paper boat sailed out from Gate of Heaven Influence, and the lantern was taken down. The elder on the boat was expressionless as he hid behind the light which he shone on Qin Mu’s face. The elder’s voice was emotionless when he spoke. “Don’t create trouble and use Youdu language for no reason; it’s not good for you. Be careful of touching the seal or one day it will be too late for you to regret.”

Qin Mu hurriedly gave an apologetic smile and said, “Official Sovereign, I have invited you this time…”

Elder Messenger of Death shook his head and said, “You didn’t invite me, your words forced me to come without giving me a choice. Did you create more trouble again? What is it? Speak your mind. As long as it doesn’t touch the rules of Youdu, I can help you solve whatever you want, but if it’s too difficult, then farewell.”

Blind’s eyes lit up, and he looked at the face of the elder behind the lantern. But no matter what, he couldn’t see the appearance of the official sovereign, making him astonished.

His cultivation had already improved by a lot, and he had also crossed the divine bridge to stand outside Southern Heavenly Gate. The power of his divine eyes had also naturally increased, yet he was still unable to see the face of the official sovereign. This showed that his abilities were immeasurable.

‘Mu’er is actually friends with Benevolent Saintly King Equal to Heaven!’ Blind exclaimed to himself in admiration. ‘Mu’er is indeed like me, with friends everywhere in the world. He didn’t forget my many years of teaching.’

Qin Mu voiced his two guesses. “May I ask Official Sovereign, after I was born, was there a second lifeform that was born in Youdu? And was that person also born from the womb?”

Elder Messenger of Death sneered. “After one Qin Fengqing, how would we dare to let a second Qin Fengqing be born? One such a fiendish and mischievous fellow is already tormenting us more than enough. After you were born, Earth Count examined all realms of Youdu so there would be no second one!”

Qin Mu was puzzled. “In that case, why could this shadow enter the darkness of Great Ruins like me?”

“You mentioned two guesses, but you don’t know about the third possibility,” Elder Messenger of Death said. “The darkness in Great Ruins is a curse and also a seal. It wasn’t born from nothing, but was created by someone. The maker of the darkness in Great Ruins can naturally walk through it.”

Qin Mu’s body trembled and his mind was blown!

Elder Messenger of Death was right. The maker of the darkness in Great Ruins could certainly enter the darkness without being harmed by it!

Just then, he’d had the misconception of meeting his own kind so he’d guessed it was an overlord body from Youdu and didn’t consider other options. But now that he thought about it, the shadow should have been a youth. His speed wasn’t very fast, making it obvious that his cultivation hadn’t reached the god realm yet.

If the shadow youth was related to the maker of the darkness in Great Ruins—maybe was his successor—and was proficient in the curse and seal if the darkness, he would definitely have a method to not be harmed by the darkness after entering it!

“I’ve solved your question for you.” Elder Messenger of Death boarded his paper boat and hung the lantern on the bow. He turned the boat and said coldly, “Don’t speak Youdu language for no reason! I was doing a job, collecting Huo Chaluo’s soul, when I heard your voice. My own soul was almost scared out by you! If you create any more trouble, just wait for your comeuppance after dying!” After he said that, he pushed the little boat to sail back into Gate of Heaven Influence.

Qin Mu hurriedly waved his hand and said with a smile, “Official Sovereign, after I die, I’ll bring good food and toys for you!”

“I don’t need them!” a stiff voice said from within Gate of Heaven Influence.

“Mu’er, you sure have a knack for making friends. They’re all around the world, even in Youdu,” Blind praised sincerely. “I can see this Benevolent Saintly King Equal to Heaven likes you very much.”

“This is all thanks to Grandpa Blind’s teachings. I have listened to them and upheld myself as a humble person, only then was I able to receive the favor of Official Sovereign,” Qin Mu said humbly.

“You don’t have it!” The voice of Elder Messenger of Death came from far away and sounded very faint.

Qin Mu and Blind pretended they had never heard anything and flattered each other. At this moment, they were both glowing with vigor, and Qin Mu shut the Gate of Heaven Influence before pondering. ‘Why would the disciple of the maker of darkness appear in Great Ruins? For what matter would they enter it?’

Blind put away his Divine Spear Long Tuo back and walked in the direction of Granny Si and the rest. He said calmly, “Because of Eternal Peace’s reform, all kinds of monsters are coming out. Numerous stone statues and meteorological weapons have popped up everywhere, even if they show no signs of activity for now.

“The divine weapons have been taken away by Imperial Preceptor to be sealed up, so it’s natural that there are people coming out to take a look. You don’t have to worry too much. Great Ruins are safe and won’t be in any danger. On the other hand, Eternal Peace needs to be more careful.”

Qin Mu placed this matter aside temporarily.

Beside the disciple of the maker of the darkness should have been a god. It was just that Qin Mu didn’t know if it was a god or a devil. The two were a danger, whatever the case.

However, Eternal Peace was no longer what it was in the past. It had numerous experts, and there were a few gods that stayed behind to guard it. Emperor Yanfeng was also in the capital, so there shouldn’t be too many problems.

…

“The two figures we saw were very strange.” In the darkness of Great Ruins, a youth similar in age to Qin Mu stopped and said to a towering god beside him. “That youth examined me, seemingly astonished by my appearance, but he didn’t find it weird, as though he had seen such a thing before. Sun Sovereign, that person is somewhat suspicious.”

Beside him, a god with three legs blazed with fire. The wings behind his back made him look like a moving sun. His voice rumbled when he said, “Young Master Qi is overthinking. I have come down from the sun to assist you in finding that youth called Qin Mu, but may I ask what has this person done?”

“News from Youdu say that he is a devil born in Youdu who was later exiled to Eternal Peace. The higher-ups view this as important, but they can’t send the celestial troops and generals down to the lower bound, so they sent me to seize him.

“The higher-ups don’t trust the devils, and Lu Li certainly has her own plans. She wants to seize this Qin Mu and become one of the overlords in Youdu. The other reason the higher-ups sent me is to activate the meteorological weapons and plunge Eternal Peace into disaster as soon as possible.”

The three-legged Sun Sovereign frowned. “The meteorological divine weapons were all taken by Eternal Peace Imperial Preceptor and no one knows where they were hidden.”

Young Master Qi was unconcerned and just smiled leisurely. “Isn’t this Qin Mu that’s born in Youdu the biggest meteorological divine weapon? Once we break his seal, he will destroy Eternal Peace by himself. This task couldn’t be more simple.”

Sun Sovereign’s body trembled violently, and he praised with heartfelt emotion, “Young Master Qi is wise!”