Chapter 1013: Micro Scale

"A guest from Wuyou Township?"

The blind man and the mute exchanged glances, not displaying the warmth that Emperor Kai was expecting.

In truth, Wuyou Township had always been a place Qin Mu desperately wanted to find. For the other residents of Crippled Camp, they wouldn't have bothered about its whereabouts if not for Qin Mu.

The mute, in particular, was a survivor of the Heavenly Craftsmen tribe. His ancestors built the Ark of the Other Shore and were descendants of Emperor Shakra, Li Youran. However, near the end of Emperor Kai's era, Emperor Kai led a group of people to Wuyou Township. The Heavenly Craftsmen tribe, still building another Ark of the Other Shore, were massacred by the Heavenly Court's army before they could reach Wuyou Township.

The surviving Heavenly Craftsmen were trapped in a three-dimensional spatial seal, struggling to survive. By the mute's generation, he was the sole remaining member.

Ultimately, before their deaths, the mute's parents sent him, then a child, out of the seal, leaving him to face the darkness and dangers of the Great Ruins alone.

The mute harbored the most resentment towards Wuyou Township. The Ark of the Other Shore had always been in the Great Ruins, and he never contemplated repairing the vast vessel to travel there. Even enduring the harshest life, the thought never crossed his mind.

"You're from Wuyou Township? That's a rare guest. Before the Yankang Catastrophe, there was also a visitor from Wuyou Township named Grand Master Zixi, who was an expert in formations. I learned a lot from her."

The blind man continued, "However, when the last Yankang Catastrophe erupted, Emperor Kai issued an order, and she fled with all the gods from Emperor Kai's era, leaving us to face the calamity alone. Since you're from Wuyou Township, have you come to deliver some command from Emperor Kai?"

Emperor Kai shook his head. "Grand Master Zixi returned to Wuyou Township. I heard her speak of the Yankang reforms, so I came to broaden my horizons."

The mute pulled the blind man aside, his hands flying as he gestured wildly.

The blind man said, "It's not that bad."

Emperor Kai asked curiously, "What is our mute friend saying?"

"He's cursing Emperor Kai," the blind man relayed the mute's words. "He says that Mu'er did many things for Emperor Shakra, one of Emperor Kai's Four Heavenly Kings. He suppressed the Heavenly Court's influence in the twenty heavens of the Buddhist Realm, taking the blame for Emperor Shakra. He also rescued Heavenly King Tian Shu of the Underworld and resolved the grudges between Tian Shu and Youdu. Furthermore, he resurrected Heavenly King Di Yiyue."

The blind man continued, "Mu'er is also the second disciple of Emperor Kai's Grand Master Qiaofu. Grand Master Yeweng and Grand Master Zixi, two of the Four Grand Masters, are old acquaintances and have a good relationship with him. Mu'er also helped Grand Master Wudou solve the problem of martial artists in the Dou Niu Realm being unable to become gods without a divine bridge—a huge favor. Even Fengdu was saved largely due to Mu'er's connections with Heavenly Venerate You and Earth Count. Yet, Emperor Kai acted dishonorably; during the Yankang Catastrophe, he issued an order to transfer all the gods away, fleeing faster than a rabbit, completely irresponsible..."

The blind man's eyes gleamed as he watched the agitated mute, who continued to gesticulate. The blind man felt a headache coming on and urged, "A guest has come from afar, don't curse... You can't curse like that! After all, Emperor Kai is Mu'er's ancestor; you're cursing Mu'er too! Never mind, never mind, he's not cursing you, he's cursing Emperor Kai. It's a bit harsh... By the way, honored guest, you're from Wuyou Township, so you have no relation to Emperor Kai, do you? What is your esteemed surname, and how should we address you?"

Emperor Kai, who had intended to retrieve his Wuyou Sword to verify his identity, immediately abandoned the idea upon hearing this. He said, "I am merely an ordinary god from Wuyou Township, surnamed Ye, given name Kai. I usually conduct research in Wuyou Township. Seeing you discussing microscopic crystal structures, I came to seek guidance. I didn't realize this mute friend harbored such deep resentment towards Wuyou Township."

The blind man breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "It's good that your surname isn't Qin... Mute, stop cursing!"

The mute angrily stopped, but then couldn't resist gesturing twice more, uttering, "Ah-ba!"

"Yes, yes, irresponsible," the blind man said helplessly.

Emperor Kai coughed and asked, "The Mu'er you speak of, could it be Heavenly Venerate Qin Mu?"

The two old men instantly perked up. The blind man chuckled, "You know Mu'er too? We're the ones who taught him!"

Emperor Kai said, "You two may not know, but Heavenly Venerate Mu arrived in Wuyou Township a few days ago."

The blind man's and the mute's eyes immediately lit up. The blind man eagerly asked, "Did Mu'er meet Emperor Kai? Going to Wuyou Township and returning to his ancestors is his lifelong aspiration!"

Emperor Kai nodded.

"Did they fight?"

The blind man hastily clarified, "I mean, did Mu'er and Emperor Kai fight?"

Emperor Kai said, helplessly, "They did fight."

The two old men immediately looked smug. "Mu'er has that temperament; he was bound to fight Emperor Kai. Ye Kai, did Mu'er beat Emperor Kai badly?"

Emperor Kai was torn between laughter and tears. "How do you two know that Heavenly Venerate Mu beat Emperor Kai, and not the other way around?"

The two old men were exceptionally pleased. The mute put down his box and put his hands on his hips, while the blind man leaned on his bamboo staff, swinging one leg, and chuckled, "If it were a fight between equals, Emperor Kai absolutely couldn't win against Mu'er, that's a certainty! How was the fight? Was it brutal?"

Emperor Kai could only reply, "It was a very brutal fight."

"Excellent!" The mute's voice boomed like a great bell, startling Emperor Kai.

The blind man was overjoyed and chuckled, "Mu'er naturally fought well; our years of careful teaching weren't in vain! Emperor Kai and Wuyou Township must have fallen into decay, so they deserved to be beaten, beaten severely!"

Emperor Kai's expression became a little awkward. He coughed and said, "Gentlemen, regarding the microscopic structure of divine gold..."

"Divine gold, profound gold, and ordinary metals differ vastly in toughness and strength due to their distinct microscopic structures."

The blind man explained, "So we intend to alter their minute structures to refine profound gold into divine gold. We are currently researching this. Since you are from Wuyou Township, I presume you have some expertise in this area?"

Emperor Kai shook his head, looking bewildered.

The mute made a dismissive gesture.

The blind man said, "Don't blame him; blame the tyrannical ruler."

Emperor Kai's face flushed slightly. The blind man continued, "We've discovered that divine gold, profound gold, and ordinary gold are essentially the same substance; their differing properties stem from their distinct microscopic structures. Therefore, we plan to use the mute's forging method to try and rearrange profound gold's microscopic structure, refining it into divine gold. However, while the mute's Primordial Great Furnace forging method is exquisite, it cannot guarantee that every crystal in profound gold's most microscopic structure can be forged, nor can it align the orientation of the profound gold crystals."

The mute gestured, and the blind man relayed his words: "Imprinting runes and carving crystals at a microscopic scale is extremely difficult. It also requires the blacksmith to possess unparalleled divine eyes, capable of seeing every crystal at the microscopic level."

Emperor Kai pondered for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Have you ever tried using divine sense for micro-forging, using divine sense and vital qi to microscopically engrave rune imprints?"

The mute's and blind man's eyes lit up. They exchanged a glance, and the mute exclaimed, "Feasible!"

The blind man shook his head. "There's still one difficulty: it demands an extremely high level of divine sense. To cultivate divine sense to the point where one can discern microscopic scales, it must reach a very advanced stage—only the Three Primordial Immortal Divine Sense possesses this ability. However, that cultivation method also needs to be practiced to a profound level..."

Emperor Kai chuckled. "You two needn't worry. Heavenly Venerate Mu's divine sense is incredibly powerful. When he returns, he will teach you methods of divine sense even stronger than the Three Primordial Immortal Divine Sense. I believe this micro-engraving and micro-imprinting has immense potential. You two could be said to have pioneered a divine technique in the art of forging. Whether for divine gold resources or crafting divine weapons, the future is boundless; it could increase the power of divine weapons severalfold, perhaps even surpassing the strength of the gods and devils themselves! But will the Heavenly Court permit such reforms from you?"

The blind man dismissed the concern. "The Heavenly Court cannot reach here. We have Mu'er protecting us. Besides, this kind of reform doesn't alter the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, so the Heavenly Court won't discover it."

Emperor Kai was stunned. Comparing his own actions with Qin Mu's different approach, he was filled with emotion. He then asked, "What about the Yankang Emperor? If the Yankang Emperor becomes too powerful, he would also be monitored, or even eliminated, by the Heavenly Court."

"Are you referring to Emperor Yanxiu?"

The blind man chuckled, "Although Emperor Yanxiu is intelligent and clever, his cultivation isn't the strongest in Yankang. He only recently became a Venerable God. Where would the Heavenly Court find time to question a Venerable God? Just recently, Emperor Yanxiu even went to the Heavenly Court himself, personally negotiating with the gods and devils at Zao Fu Palace to open more spirit energy migration bridges to transport resources from other heavens to better forge divine weapons and artifacts."

Emperor Kai's eyes widened. It took him a while to recover, after which he excused himself from the two men.

The blind man and the mute tried their best to persuade him to stay, saying, "You're quick-witted and excellent material for blacksmithing. Following Emperor Kai will bury your talents! Why don't you stay here, and we can research this micro-forging technique together!"

Emperor Kai insisted on departing, saying, "I still need to see the results of other Yankang reforms, and I'm being urged to return to Wuyou Township."

The blind man and the mute could only see him off, saying, "Don't have too much hope for Wuyou Township. If things aren't to your liking when you return, then come to Yankang. We have too much work to do here; back in Wuyou Township, you'd only be loafing around, waiting to die."

The blind man added, "The mute says that if you want to see the Yankang reforms, you should visit the various Grand Academies. Although they're now called sects, they are essentially still academies. That's where the reforms are truly happening. Our village chief is teaching swordplay at the Imperial College, and since you seem to study swords, you should visit him there; you'll surely gain a lot."

Emperor Kai hastily departed.

The blind man and the mute watched him leave, filled with emotion. "Wuyou Township still has talented individuals. What a pity; this 'Ye Kai' is following Emperor Kai, completely wasting his talent!"

At Yongjiang Academy, the Celestial Dragon Chariot stopped. Qin Mu summoned the Dragon Herder and inquired about the academy's recent situation. The Dragon Herder replied, "To answer, my lord, Yongjiang Academy is no longer called an academy; it's now known as the Yongjiang Sect. Su Yunzhi is the sect leader, and Zhelie Huari is the deputy sect leader. I've also registered my name and become an elder of the Yongjiang Sect. These past few days, the Yongjiang Sect has been quite lively. Old Master Tu, the Heavenly Blade, came by, and besides him, another Divine Blade arrived and fought Old Master Tu several times, greatly exciting the disciples of the Yongjiang Sect."

"Grandpa Tu is here? The other Divine Blade, could it be Luo Wushuang?"

Qin Mu blinked. He had kicked Luo Wushuang into the Primordial Wood Heavenly Palace in the Primordial World; Luo Wushuang must have fought fiercely to escape with his life, and now he was hiding here.