Chapter 317: No Heroes

"This isn't the Underworld Valley." Fu Yuchun looked around. The two white bats seemed a bit reserved; it was their first time leaving the Underworld Valley, and they wanted to hang upside down but felt a little shy.

Qin Mu looked up at the dilapidated hall and eaves. "Hang under the eaves and rest for the night," he said. "Don't disturb anyone else. Tomorrow, I'll take you back to the Underworld Valley, and once we're there, I'll give you the antidote."

The two white bats both sighed in relief, flying up silently to hang under the eaves, their arms crossed over their chests.

Fu Yuchun opened one eye and whispered, "This kid tricked us; we were never poisoned."

Fu Yuqiu was startled. "Not poisoned? That's impossible! We were clearly in a lot of pain when the poison acted up!"

Fu Yuchun rolled his eye. "Maybe the poison was neutralized a long time ago. He probably cured us the first time he gave us an antidote; everything else was just to scare us. Otherwise, we would have died of poisoning months ago."

Fu Yuqiu was furious. "This kid tricked us into risking our lives for him! Let's roast him three-quarters done and eat him!"

"Oh, well," said Fu Yuchun. "Even if we hadn't allied with him, that little brat Ban Gungcuo would have hunted us down and not spared us. By allying with him, we actually saved our lives, so it's not a loss. Thanks to him, we also learned that our ancestors are still alive. Now our White Bat Divine Clan isn't going extinct. Once we return, we'll wake up our two ancestors and have them produce some female offspring."

Fu Yuqiu exclaimed excitedly, "Let's have two females! No, no, a whole litter of females! I want to embrace them on both sides... Wait! Brother, we're descendants from who knows how many generations removed from our ancestors. Even if our ancestors have two female offspring, by seniority, they would be our great-great-great-grandmothers. This seniority..."

The two white bats were filled with worry and couldn't sleep anymore.

In the ruins, Qin Mu sat down and leaned against the Dragon Qilin to rest. This area was guarded by over a dozen divine statues, their light illuminating the site. He still didn't know where they were in the Great Ruins; he would have to wait until dawn to fly high and observe the surrounding geography to confirm their location.

Ban Gungcuo glanced at him and also sat down. The dozen or so surviving Grand Shamans, Shaman Kings, and a few scattered barbarian soldiers surrounded him.

Qin Mu looked around; there were many exotic beasts in these ruins, including powerful beings that were very large in size, much bigger than the Dragon Qilin in its full form.

"Oh, these people are interesting..."

His pupils contracted slightly as his gaze fell upon the people in the ruins. These people were divided into three groups. One group consisted of three large monks with stern faces but gentle eyes, yet they carried a strong demonic aura.

"Monks from Little Thunderclap Temple!"

Qin Mu sensed the demonic aura on them and understood. Little Thunderclap Temple was also a sacred ground, but it was a sacred ground for demonkind. Their leader was revered as the 'Lesser Buddha,' a martial brother to the 'Elder Buddha,' possessing exceptional skill and having reached the Buddha's realm.

Little Thunderclap Temple was also known as Lesser Western Paradise. It was located further west than the Great Thunderclap Temple on Mount Sumeru, situated at the westernmost edge of the Great Ruins.

"We can see demon monks from Little Thunderclap Temple here. Does that mean we're in the western part of the Great Ruins?"

Qin Mu's heart sank slightly. It was his first time traveling so far. The Great Ruins were vast, and this place was probably even further than the Loulan Golden Palace.

The second group consisted of only two people, a man and a woman. Both appeared very young, like a young couple, and there was nothing outwardly dangerous about them.

They were also dressed in exotic attire. The man wore a white cloth wrapped around his head, with his black hair showing on top. The woman was adorned with gold and silver, wearing many small ornaments made of gold, silver, and jade. Her hair was tied with a black scarf, which, along with her beautiful hair, draped down to her slightly swelled chest. A small red flower was tied into her hair.

Her hands were very fair. Her sleeves were somewhat short, revealing most of her forearms. Her arms weren't thick, but her wrists bore about a dozen bracelets made of gold, silver, and jade, varying in thickness.

They were guarding a precious, fragrant chariot. The vehicle had a very peculiar shape.

Qin Mu had seen several such precious chariots before; most were quite square. Some had dome-shaped tops, others had octagonal square tops. The dome-shaped tops symbolized the heavens being round and the earth square, while the octagonal tops represented the eight directions. Both were symbols of status.

This particular fragrant chariot, however, was circular. It had a round base and a round top, and the decorations hanging around it also had a distinctly exotic feel.

The third group comprised over a hundred divine arts practitioners. Their appearance and clothing were also exotic, and they had blue eyes. However, Qin Mu couldn't discern what country they were from.

These divine arts practitioners had murderous intent in their eyes, and their gazes periodically shifted towards the young couple and the chariot.

"Cult Master, the atmosphere feels off."

The Dragon Qilin secretly opened its eyes and said to Qin Mu, "That woman has too many spirit weapons on her, and those divine arts practitioners are also very powerful!"

Qin Mu raised an eyebrow. The Dragon Qilin's eyesight was indeed excellent. The gold and silver necklaces, ornaments, and jade items hanging on the woman were all spirit weapons.

Qin Mu had just scanned them with his Azure Heavens Divine Eye. The spiritual light emanating from each spirit weapon was dazzling, clearly indicating considerable power.

With so many spirit weapons on her, her own strength was likely quite formidable.

On the other side, Ban Gungcuo also noticed these people. He whispered a few words to two Grand Shamans. One of the Grand Shamans immediately rose and approached the young couple, greeting them and asking a few questions. He then returned and reported, "They say they are from the True Heaven Palace in the Western Lands. They asked if we could help them."

"True Heaven Palace of the Western Lands?" Ban Gungcuo said, "Since they are qi practitioners from the True Heaven Palace of the Western Lands, they have no connection to us, and there's no need to be wary of them. As for their situation, we won't help."

Another Grand Shaman also returned from inquiring. He said, "Those divine arts practitioners are also from True Heaven Palace and hope we won't get involved in their conflict."

"They're all from True Heaven Palace?" Ban Gungcuo was surprised and chuckled, "It's probably an internal conflict, so no need to bother with it. Those three demon monks are from Little Thunderclap Temple. Our Loulan Golden Palace has a grudge with them, so we need to be wary."

The Loulan Golden Palace often captured humans and demons for cultivation. They had many conflicts with Little Thunderclap Temple. The Golden Palace had also captured many demon monks from Little Thunderclap Temple to use their souls for cultivation.

The three monks also recognized Ban Gungcuo and his group. They exchanged glances but did not react.

Ban Gungcuo whispered, "Encountering people from Little Thunderclap Temple and the Western Lands here indicates that this is the western part of the Great Ruins. It's probably very close to Little Thunderclap Temple. These three monks cannot be allowed to remain. Eliminate them immediately after sunrise!"

The others quietly affirmed.

"As for Cult Master Qin..."

He looked towards Qin Mu. Qin Mu was currently sifting through a gluttonous bag. Sensing his gaze, he looked up and gave him a brilliant smile, appearing like a very bright and sunny young man.

The gluttonous bag Qin Mu was holding belonged to Ban Gungcuo. He took out items one by one, examining them repeatedly and toying with each one for a while.

"What a huge hammer!"

He pulled out a large white bone hammer from the gluttonous bag. With a gentle shake, countless small skull heads flew out from the large skull at the hammer's top, spewing soul fire in all directions.

Qin Mu shook it again. The large skull's mouth opened, sucking the smaller skull heads back inside.

"There's even a sword pellet!"

Qin Mu put the white bone hammer back into the gluttonous bag. He then took out a sword pellet and gently activated it, sending countless hair-thin swords swirling around his palm.

"To refine it to such a minute state, the effort put in must be profound! Is this how Daoist sect's Dao Sword is practiced? It doesn't quite look like it."

Qin Mu shook his head. "For the Dao Sword, only one sword is needed. Brother Ban, your cultivation is lacking. No wonder your Dao Sword is just so-so, not as good as the Dao Master's."

Ban Gungcuo grunted and sneered, "That gluttonous bag you stole is merely a drop in the ocean of my accumulated wealth over many lifetimes."

He lowered his voice and instructed those around him: "Tomorrow, a few of you Shaman Kings will eliminate the two white bats and that fat cat. Everyone else will attack together and kill Qin!"

Qin Mu finished looking through the items in the gluttonous bag. He then stood up and walked directly towards the three demon monks, greeting them, "Senior Brothers."

The three demon monks were meditating. They quickly rose and returned the greeting, "Senior Brother!"

These three monks wore loose robes with wide sleeves. Although their robes were large, they couldn't conceal their legs and feet, revealing sharp claws and thick, feathered bird legs.

"Are you three from Little Thunderclap Temple?" Qin Mu asked. "Is the Lesser Buddha's disciple a demon ape with the Dharma name Kong?"

The three demon monks were surprised and quickly nodded. They said, "Senior Brother, the Buddha bestowed upon him the Dharma name Zhan Kong. He is indeed a disciple of the Buddha. May we ask how you know Zhan Kong?"

Qin Mu chuckled, "I am the Cult Master of Heavenly Saint. He is my sworn brother, so of course I know him."

"So that's how it is." The three demon monks lowered their guard and smiled. "My Dharma name is Ding Jue. These are my secular brothers, Ding Zhi and Ding Ming. We greet the Cult Master of Heavenly Saint."

Qin Mu glanced at Ban Gungcuo. "That young man is the Great Venerable of the Loulan Golden Palace," he said. "The three Shaman Kings beside him: two are at the Celestial Being realm, and one is at the Life and Death realm."

The three monks were startled, their faces turning ashen. "What should we do?" they exclaimed. "We haven't reached the Celestial Being realm; we can't defeat them!"

Qin Mu chuckled, "Don't worry, you have me. Tomorrow, I'll lead you out. Follow me and rest over there."

The three monks felt relieved. They followed him to the Dragon Qilin's side and quickly bowed to the Dragon Qilin, saying, "Senior Brother."

The Dragon Qilin was already asleep and paid them no mind.

These three demon monks were quite good-tempered. They didn't take it to heart and bowed to the two white bats hanging upside down under the eaves, saying, "Senior Brothers."

The two white bats, arms crossed over their chests, returned the greeting: "Senior Brothers."

Only then did the three demon monks resume their meditation.

Seeing this, Ban Gungcuo's face turned a little green, and he snorted.

Qin Mu asked kindly, "Have you three heard of the Heavenly Saint Cult?"

Ding Jue shook his head. "We only operate within the Great Ruins; we haven't heard of it."

Qin Mu was about to speak when suddenly, the turbaned male divine arts practitioner guarding the precious chariot walked forward. He bowed and said, "Senior Brother..."

Qin Mu rose and returned the bow. He shook his head and said, "Please don't ask."

The exotic divine arts practitioner was surprised. "Senior Brother, why do you say that?"

"You're being pursued by these powerful individuals and have fled to the Great Ruins," Qin Mu said. "I won't ally with you."

Qin Mu shook his head. "They are too many, and each is quite powerful. It's already difficult enough for me to protect myself; allying with you would be seeking my own death. Please go back."

The man showed a look of disappointment. He returned to the side of the fragrant chariot and whispered something to it.

From inside the fragrant chariot, a little girl's voice came. She said, "Mom, that big brother doesn't want to help us?"

Then a very pleasant voice came from inside the chariot. She sighed, "There are no righteous warriors in the Great Ruins; they can't save my daughter and me..."

Qin Mu raised an eyebrow. "Righteous warrior? I'm no righteous warrior," he thought. "I am the Cult Master of the Heavenly Devil Cult; people are overjoyed if I simply don't do bad things. Would I ever be a righteous warrior? Hmph, I only did good deeds on a whim when I was a child. Now I'm grown up..."

The night seemed to pass very slowly. Everyone in the ruins harbored their own thoughts. After an unknown period, a Cockatrice among the exotic beasts flapped its wings and flew up. It landed on the roof of a dilapidated hall and crowed loudly towards the sky.

Immediately, the darkness rapidly receded. A ray of sunlight shone from the east, falling upon a hillside outside the ruins and illuminating it.