Chapter 1324: Refined into a Treasure

The Great Emperor's head was struggling to escape when suddenly the surrounding ground began to rise, accompanied by loud rumbling sounds. The earth continuously swelled, forming five mineral veins.

One vein glowed with the primordial essence of the Grand Beginning. Another contained the entangled forces of yin and yang. A third displayed the shifting forms and qualities of the Grand Prime. A fourth, imbued with the Grand Initial, saw its mountains transform into tangible yet formless ethereal peaks.

Only the last of these rising mountain ranges, despite its prominence, lacked any discernible Grand Dao aura.

Four of these five mineral veins pressed down on the Great Emperor's head. Four distinct Grand Daos invaded his body, suppressing his divine consciousness and imprinting four seals of primordial Grand Daos onto his mind.

The Great Emperor's divine consciousness was instantly locked, rendering him unable to mobilize it. Yet, he burst into laughter, "Heavenly Venerable Mu, did Martial Combat Heavenly Master teach you your numerical arts? There are clearly only four mineral veins, but you insist on calling them five!"

Qin Mu's face darkened.

He had never comprehended the Grand Change Dao, and therefore, he couldn't use it to seal the Great Emperor.

The reason he spoke of a "Five Vein Great Seal" was simply a slip of the tongue, as there were indeed five major mineral veins in the ancestral court.

Suddenly, he groaned. Blood gushed from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, and wounds erupted all over his body, also spraying blood.

The Great Emperor struggled, trying desperately to gather his scattered divine consciousness to break Qin Mu's seal. Seeing Qin Mu's condition, he couldn't help but laugh mockingly, "Heavenly Venerable Mu, you've sealed me, but what good does that do? Your injuries are even more severe than mine!"

Qin Mu's expression grew even gloomier. He trembled, pulling out a small basket containing spiritual elixirs refined by the Apothecary.

On the night when the powerhouses from the previous epoch invaded, the Apothecary had specifically refined a basket of spiritual elixirs. Qin Mu and the others hadn't used them all, so he kept the remaining ones for emergencies.

The Great Emperor's divine consciousness was completely unable to coalesce. His head darted around, attempting to escape, but the Four Vein Seal refined it, making it progressively smaller. The pressure from all sides intensified, preventing his escape, yet he continued to laugh, "Qin, it's impressive you've come this far, but unfortunately, you can't kill me; you can only suppress me. As long as I wear you down until you die, I'll still be the winner!"

Qin Mu continued to refine the medicinal power, remaining silent.

The Great Emperor chuckled, "What if Heavenly Venerable Yun killed me? After his death, his primordial spirit was still cast into the ultimate void and suppressed in the Grand Completion of Divine Consciousness. What if Heavenly Venerable Ling restrained me? Wasn't she still killed by me, only to seal herself within the Heavenly River? Heavenly Venerable Mu, you will meet the same fate."

Qin Mu accelerated the medicinal effects, suppressing his injuries, and only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

The Great Emperor's head had been refined by the Four Vein Seal to the size of a bushel basket, and the four mineral veins themselves were also shrinking.

Qin Mu activated his broken sword, cutting the ground into a circular disc. He then inscribed some Grand Initial runes, altering the physical structure of the primordial earth and refining the Four Vein Seal into a large, square seal, about a *zhang* in size.

This precious seal bore four dragon-shaped mountain ranges, with the Great Emperor's head at their center, appearing like a pearl trapped within the mouths of four dragons.

Of course, the "pearl" was not perfectly round.

This precious seal was still too large. Qin Mu attempted to use his magic power to refine it further, making it smaller, but his injuries were too severe, forcing him to give up.

By allowing the Four Vein Seal to continue its refinement, the precious seal should gradually shrink.

The Great Emperor's head, trapped at the center of the precious seal, could not escape. He laughed, "You know I possess the identity of Concubine Qiang, and I have the Divine Consciousness Dao Fruit imprint from Grand Completion. You should realize that sealing me is utterly useless. Do you think Concubine Qiang won't kill you? Do you think my Dao Fruit imprint will spare you? You are merely another trophy I am about to claim!"

Qin Mu straightened his clothes, took out a mirror, and looked at his face. He carefully wiped away the bloodstains and then inspected his wounds to ensure they wouldn't leave scars.

The Great Emperor watched him, sneering, "I won't kill you directly. I will slowly torture you, making you experience every agony in this world, leaving you unable to live or die."

Qin Mu took out a comb and, facing the mirror, tidied his messy hair. After grooming himself neatly, he repeatedly scrutinized his reflection, finding no flaws, before putting away both the mirror and the comb.

The Great Emperor said nothing more, watching Qin Mu rinse his mouth, clearing away the bloodstains.

Only then did Qin Mu turn to face him. He reached out and clasped the Great Emperor's head, which was at the center of the precious seal. The Great Emperor's expression darkened, and he said coldly, "Heavenly Venerable Mu, are you sure you want to do this?"

Qin Mu, holding the Great Emperor's head, lifted the precious seal. The Great Emperor snorted angrily, "You can refine my head into a divine weapon, but you must first erase my divine consciousness. A scholar can be killed but not humiliated. If you erase my divine consciousness, you can do whatever you want with my corpse!"

Qin Mu burst into laughter and set the precious seal down. The Great Emperor's head rolled once within the Four Vein Seal, his long hair coiling around him again. He sneered, "You're sensible enough. Heavenly Venerable Mu, tell me, what do you want?"

Qin Mu said pleasantly, "Heavenly Venerable Yun's soul. As long as you give me his soul, I will let you go, and you won't have to endure this humiliation."

"Impossible!"

The Great Emperor's head declared firmly, "Heavenly Venerable Yun's soul was sent by me into the ultimate void, trapped in the Grand Completion. If I were to release him, and you possess his physical body, wouldn't he be resurrected? One of you is already a headache; I absolutely cannot release Heavenly Venerable Yun. Besides, my head is not worth as much as Heavenly Venerable Yun. Name another condition!"

Qin Mu slightly frowned, pondered for a moment, and then tentatively suggested, "Great Emperor, your head is still very valuable. You are revered as having the strongest physical body in prehistoric times. I've heard many Creation Spirits say that even the Grand Beginning Heavenly Emperor's body couldn't compare to yours. Now, only this head remains of your physical body. If you keep this head and find the Grand Beginning Primordial Stone, you can still recast your body. Won't you consider it?"

The Great Emperor shook his head. "Even if I find the Grand Beginning Primordial Stone and recast my body, it will never be as strong as my original one. I can't possibly find hundreds of millions of Creation Spirits to sacrifice to me again, so I'll never return to my peak state. Heh heh, if Heavenly Venerable Hao hadn't ground down my head and severed an arm, how could the Four Heavenly Venerables have injured me to this extent?"

This head of his was formed by contemplating creation using the Grand Beginning Primordial Stone; it was not his original physical head.

His original head had been ground down and refined by Heavenly Venerable Hao's great Return to the Ruins divine ability during the Battle of the Grand Void.

His new head was indeed inferior to his original one.

The Great Emperor continued, "Furthermore, even if I could return to my peak state, I still wouldn't have the strongest physical body. The Grand Beginning Heavenly Emperor's body has always been superior to mine."

Qin Mu's heart stirred slightly.

Both the Grand Beginning Heavenly Emperor and the Great Emperor were reputed to have the strongest physical bodies, but there had never been a definitive conclusion as to who was stronger.

While the Creation Spirits gnashed their teeth in hatred for the Great Emperor, they were unanimous in their opinion that his physical body was the strongest in history.

The Grand Beginning Heavenly Emperor's body, on the other hand, was universally acknowledged by all Heavenly Venerables since the Dragon Han Era as the strongest.

It was difficult to judge which of these two divine bodies was stronger.

Now, with the Great Emperor himself admitting that the Grand Beginning Heavenly Emperor's body was superior, a long-standing mystery was finally solved.

"Since you won't release Heavenly Venerable Yun's soul, let's switch to Heavenly Venerable Ling."

Qin Mu said with a smile, "When I rescue Heavenly Venerable Ling, you must let me take her away."

The Great Emperor's head burst into laughter. "Heavenly Venerable Yun is dead, at least. Even if you revive him, it would take years for him to cultivate to a level where he could contend with the Ten Heavenly Venerables. But if Heavenly Venerable Ling is rescued by you, her combat power would be enough to contend with the Ten Heavenly Venerables immediately! Heavenly Venerable Mu, your scheme is too clever, but I am not foolish!"

Qin Mu, enraged, grabbed the Great Emperor's head, lifted the large seal, and activated it, preparing to strike.

"Qin, you humiliate me, you are dead!"