Chapter 1587: Change in the Ghost Capital, Tubi Will Die

Madam Yuanmu and the Empress reappeared within a single body, and as the twin lotuses descended, they too plunged into the Great Abyss.

No matter how they struggled or resisted, they could not break free from the Red Rope Knot. Qin Mu had only deciphered one percent of the Red Rope Knot, but even that one percent possessed enough power to bind them, making escape impossible.

Qin Mu did not sink them into the Chaos Sea; even if they wanted to contact the Second Young Master of Miluo Palace, they lacked the means to do so.

Furthermore, the Red Rope Knot left by Qin Mu was unlike the one used by the Miluo Palace Master to seal the Second Young Master, which had a sixth thread, offering the Second Young Master a glimmer of survival.

Qin Mu did not leave them this glimmer of survival. If someone came to rescue them and recklessly activated the Red Rope Knot he left behind, the full power of this imprint would erupt and strike their bodies!

Only if someone could forcibly break it or was proficient in the Red Rope Knot could this imprint be undone and Madam Yuanmu be rescued.

However, that would require the rescuer's power to far exceed Qin Mu's, or their understanding of the Red Rope Knot to be superior to his.

In the present world, there were very few individuals whose power surpassed Qin Mu's, and those whose understanding of the Red Rope Knot exceeded his were virtually nonexistent.

Of course, Madam Yuanmu and the Empress still had a possibility of survival: Qin Mu's understanding of the Red Rope Knot was only one percent of the Miluo Palace Master's.

Qin Mu's Red Rope Knot did not contain as many complex variations as the Miluo Palace Master's, thus leaving them a possibility of breaking it.

Following the River of the Dead, Qin Mu walked out of the Return to Ruin and arrived in Youdu. The Jade Lock Pass of Youdu was still there. Earth Count had nearly destroyed it, but thanks to Earth Count A'Chou and the reincarnated Heavenly Duke, it had been preserved. However, the Heavenly Court army guarding the pass had been completely annihilated, destroyed by Earth Count's attacks.

As soon as Qin Mu arrived at the Jade Lock Pass, he was immediately detected by the Great Dao of Youdu. The demonic qi of Youdu became intensely thick.

He smiled slightly, and the Path of Reincarnation transformed into a spinning light wheel. As the wheel turned, it completely blocked the Great Dao of Youdu's perception of him, and the restless demonic qi of Youdu immediately quieted down.

He had not completely eliminated his karma. Although the Path of Reincarnation could avert disaster, he currently couldn't fully erase karma to that extent. He merely made the Great Dao of Youdu perceive him as someone other than Qin Mu.

If someone had profound cultivation in the Great Dao of Youdu, reaching the thirty-sixth Heavenly Layer of Dao Realm, they could still search through reincarnation via karma and find his aura from within it.

However, the Great Dao of Youdu would not actively search for him, so it naturally wouldn't find him.

"Hmm! Youdu has become a bit strange," he mused. "It seems a lot has happened while I was filling the sea eye..."

Qin Mu arrived at the Karma Fire Stele Forest within the Jade Lock Pass and looked up. He saw that although the demonic qi of Youdu was no longer restless, it was still extremely dense, vastly different from Youdu on ordinary days.

Ordinarily, billions of paper boats could be seen shuttling back and forth across Youdu, with old Netherworld Messengers aboard them, collecting the souls or primordial spirits of the deceased from various places and bringing them into Youdu for judgment.

But now, all the paper boats had disappeared.

The entire Youdu had completely ceased operation; no one was managing the souls of the deceased from various realms!

If this continued, it would inevitably cause great chaos across all heavens and myriad worlds!

The souls of the dead would run rampant in the mortal realm. Some who died unjustly or were murdered, or those holding grudges or ambitions, would turn into vengeful spirits.

Furthermore, fallen deities, possessing immense power, would seize control of living beings and disrupt the balance of Yin and Yang.

Even worse, they might carve out territories in the mortal realm, creating ghost kingdoms in the land of the living!

If the dead do not die, great disaster will ensue!

At this moment, Youdu was filled with a chilling solemnity. The operation of the Great Dao of Youdu had become more active than before, and the demon race in Youdu had also quieted down. However, Qin Mu could clearly feel the power of the demonic path strengthening!

This situation was very similar to the changes in Xuandu's Heavenly Dao during the campaign against Heavenly Duke back then!

"Youdu has ceased operation, so something big must have happened!" he thought. "This means the Heavenly Court is preparing to attack Earth Count!"

A chill ran through him. He entered the Karma Fire Stele Forest and soon found the reincarnated Heavenly Duke.

The Heavenly Duke's reincarnated body was still suffering from the torment of karma fire, struggling within it.

"Heavenly Venerate Mu!" Heavenly Duke spotted him, and enduring the intense pain in his soul, he called out.

Qin Mu greeted him and looked him up and down. He saw that Heavenly Duke's Heavenly Dao was even more perfect. Not only was his Heavenly Dao complete, but Heavenly Duke also had extraordinary comprehension and understanding of various Great Daos in the world. Immersed in and forged by the karma fire, he had instead achieved a profound level of understanding in the Heavenly Dao and other Great Daos.

His Dao Realm had advanced by leaps and bounds, and his cultivation and power were extraordinary.

"Heavenly Duke has broken free from the ancient gods' shackles, and achieving Dao is within reach," Qin Mu said with a smile, congratulating him.

Heavenly Duke replied, "It is thanks to Heavenly Venerate Mu's help that I have hope of achieving Dao. Heavenly Venerate Mu, you've noticed the changes in Youdu, haven't you? Fellow Daoist Earth Count is also about to be liberated. My path to Dao will no longer be lonely; we will support each other."

Qin Mu's heart sank slightly. The Heavenly Court's campaign against Earth Count provided Earth Count with an opportunity to shed his ancient god body and become A'Chou. This was Earth Count's long-held wish, and Qin Mu naturally should help fulfill it.

But if Earth Count were to die and Youdu fell into enemy hands, with the Heavenly Court controlling Youdu's power in addition to Xuandu, neither Yan Kang nor Carefree Village would have any power to resist!

Xuandu controlled the sun, moon, and stars, capable of plunging all heavens and myriad worlds into darkness. All sorts of natural disasters would arise. The great snow disaster in Yan Kang previously caused the loss of hundreds of millions of lives!

If the Heavenly Court controlled Xuandu and waged war, the natural disasters would be unimaginably vast!

If the Heavenly Court were to control Youdu as well, it could directly invade the life-and-death divine treasures of all Yan Kang deities and divine arts practitioners, making the slaughter of gods, demons, and divine arts practitioners incredibly easy!

Even more terrifying, if the Heavenly Court controlled Earth Count's body and mobilized Youdu's ghost army to invade the mortal realm, it would be an unimaginable catastrophe!

Yan Kang was no longer what it used to be; it now wielded great power. The number of deities was countless times greater than before, and Heavenly Venerate-level experts like Qin Mu had also emerged.

Yan Kang also had senior powerhouses like Lan Yutian, Xu Shenghua, and Lin Xuan, whose strength was immense. Its various manufacturing facilities could forge the most powerful divine artifacts in the world, and its civilian wealth was astonishing. It was implicitly the strongest terrestrial divine kingdom among all heavens!

Furthermore, Qin Mu had extensive connections, allowing him to help Yan Kang unite with Carefree Village and the Chiming Realm.

Coupled with Kai Huang, Heavenly Venerate You, Heavenly Venerate Ling, Heavenly Venerate Yue, and Lang Wo, as well as Heavenly Venerate Yun, who was high in the ultimate void, their side's combat power was not much weaker than the Heavenly Court's.

However, if Youdu fell under Heavenly Court's control, and a real war began, the Heavenly Court could flatten the Primordial Realm in a few years, or even a few months!

This was because the Heavenly Court's core strength was simply too vast and too powerful!

The Heavenly Court controlled all heavens and myriad worlds. Talented individuals from across all realms were recruited into the Heavenly Court. There were hundreds of Emperor's Throne realm experts alone. Even if beings like the Four Deities of the Four Directions died in battle, new ones could be replaced at any time!

When war truly broke out, as long as Qin Mu, Kai Huang, and others were held back, the Heavenly Court's core forces could flatten Carefree Village along with Yan Kang and the Suspended Realm!

"Earth Count may be liberated, but the people of the world will not be," he stated.

Qin Mu composed himself and said, "Brother Dao, now that Heavenly Venerate Haotian has achieved Dao, he is unrivaled. Coupled with the Heavenly Court's vast foundation and control over Xuandu and Youdu, the Heavenly Court remains unrivaled. If Youdu falls into the Heavenly Court's hands, what's the point of fighting? I might as well just take off my clothes, tie myself up, go to the Heavenly Court, and kneel before Heavenly Venerate Haotian to declare my submission!"

His words carried a hint of resentment.

Heavenly Duke hesitated, saying, "Actually, the Heavenly Court's plan to attack Youdu this time is because Earth Count, using the Great Dao of Youdu to capture you, simultaneously killed the Heavenly Court soldiers at the Jade Lock Pass. This gave the Heavenly Court its pretext. Lately, the Heavenly Court has been notifying all heavens, publicizing Earth Count's 'evil deeds,' and raising the banner to conquer Earth Count. Earth Count is bringing this upon himself. His other form, Earth Count A'Chou, is right here in the Karma Fire Stele Forest. Perhaps you should ask him..."

Qin Mu bowed and took his leave, going to find Earth Count A'Chou.

Earth Count A'Chou was entwined with chains, enduring the burning karma fire from all living beings across all heavens and myriad worlds. He knelt with his head bowed, as if bearing the endless suffering of humanity.

Qin Mu looked at him and, after a moment, said, "Earth Count, after your death, into whose hands will Youdu fall? Who will succeed you as Earth Count?"

The chains rattled. Earth Count A'Chou slowly raised his head: "Heavenly Venerate Mu, after my death, Youdu will fall into the hands of Heavenly Venerate You and Qin Fengqing. Qin Fengqing will succeed me as Earth Count. For millions of years, Heavenly Venerate You, as King Ren Sheng of Tianqi, has managed all Youdu affairs and is familiar with them. Qin Fengqing is Youdu's divine son, controlling Youdu's power, but his ambition is hard to discern. However, with Heavenly Venerate You's assistance, he can be a good Earth Count."

Qin Mu said coldly, "What about Heavenly Venerate Xu? What about Yin Tianzi? The Heavenly Court is waging war on Youdu precisely for the entire Youdu world! To control Youdu is to control everyone's lives! With our current strength, if the Heavenly Court merely moves the stars in Xuandu, we won't have any troops to spare to protect Youdu!"

He exhaled a murky breath and patiently said, "If the Heavenly Court controls Youdu, it controls all lives. Earth Count, you also control Youdu, and now everyone's lives are in your hands. As long as you are willing, you can slaughter all the Heavenly Court deities in one fell swoop, eradicating their advantage! You handle slaughtering all the deities, and I'll take care of eliminating the Heavenly Venerates of the Heavenly Court! That way, the overall situation can be settled!"

"The Great Dao of Youdu does not permit me to harm the living, unless they have violated the Great Dao of Youdu," Earth Count A'Chou replied.

Karma fire blazed in Earth Count A'Chou's three eyes as he said, "Heavenly Venerate Mu, rest assured, I will not let Youdu fall into the Heavenly Court's hands. I will take Heavenly Venerate Xu into seclusion, living a mortal life. As for Yin Tianzi, he is no match for the junior Earth Count, let alone capable of controlling Youdu."

Qin Mu burst into laughter: "Do you think Heavenly Venerate Xu would willingly go into seclusion with you? Earth Count, though Heavenly Venerate Xu is your daughter, she holds no familial affection for you! She is one of the Ten Heavenly Venerates! She was cultivated by Heavenly Emperor Taichu to be a weapon against you!"

Earth Count A'Chou said calmly, "She is always my daughter."

Qin Mu swept his sleeve, passing through layers of karma fire, and stood before Earth Count A'Chou. The Path of Reincarnation prevented him from being affected by any karma fire; no matter how fierce it was, it couldn't harm him in the slightest.

Qin Mu's vertical eye between his brows opened. Face to face with Earth Count A'Chou, their six eyes met, and both saw stubbornness in the other's gaze.

"She is one of the Ten Heavenly Venerates," Qin Mu stated.

Earth Count A'Chou looked directly at him: "She is my daughter, and I am A'Chou."

Qin Mu clenched his fists. Earth Count A'Chou rattled his chains taut, leaning forward. They were almost face to face, still staring intently at each other.

"Heavenly Venerate Mu, you ask me to violate the Great Dao of Youdu, to indiscriminately kill the innocent, and to bury billions of Heavenly Court gods and demons. If I do that, how am I any different from the Ten Heavenly Venerates?" Demonic fire jetted from his nostrils, scorching Qin Mu's face.

Qin Mu said coldly, "In the future, when you stand by and watch billions of Heavenly Court gods and demons slaughter billions of Yan Kang's living beings, how will you be any different from the Ten Heavenly Venerates?"

"Stop arguing, both of you!" Heavenly Duke, still aflame, staggered over and pleaded.