Chapter 574: Lu Li Arrives

As soon as he finished speaking, Qing Yan's hand suddenly felt empty. Ban Gungong's body pressed against the ground, transforming into a shadow.

Qing Yan's heart jolted in surprise. He reached out to grab the shadow on the ground, but saw it dissipate with a soft pop, turning into a wisp of smoke and leaving his hand empty.

The wisp of smoke split into dozens of strands, spreading close to the ground. The other young masters from Dragon Village leaped into the air, darting in different directions, each pursuing a strand of smoke and dispelling them one by one. But there was no trace of Ban Gungong within the smoke.

Suddenly, Qin Mu raised his hand, and a sword light shot forth. A flash of blood appeared, and a leg materialized out of thin air, landing on the ground, stained with blood.

Qin Mu controlled his sword with qi, its light shimmering, but it struck empty air.

More wisps of smoke spread in all directions, filling streets large and small. From within the smoke came Ban Gungong's voice, filled with shock and fury: "Qin! I will not rest until I have my revenge on you!"

This place was already bustling with people, and now that smoke filled the streets, many pedestrians exclaimed in surprise.

The numerous Dragon Tribe masters searched frantically through the crowd, making it even harder to find Ban Gungong's trace.

Qing Yan's face alternated between green and pale. He was a Dragon God, yet Ban Gungong had escaped from under his nose; he felt his reputation was ruined. Moreover, Ban Gungong was a cripple, with one leg long and the other short—the short one being a deer leg. That he had escaped was truly shameful.

However, he couldn't be blamed. He hadn't harbored any hostility earlier, merely patting Ban Gungong's shoulder and not intending to capture him. By the time Qin Mu spoke to warn him, it was already too late to restrain Ban Gungong.

Ban Gungong's escaping ability was unparalleled in the world; even Qin Mu admitted his own inferiority. Even if Xing Han wanted to capture Qin Mu, he would have to corner him in a dead end, let alone Ban Gungong.

Qin Mu saw that the people from Dragon Village were somewhat dispirited. He said, "You don't need to be discouraged. Ban Gungong's escaping ability makes even me feel inferior. I've fought him several times at the same cultivation level, and I couldn't capture him; I could only cut off one of his legs. Now he's a whole realm higher than me, a grand master of the Celestial Human realm, and his abilities have improved greatly. The escape divine arts he couldn't use before he can now, making it even harder to stop him. The fact that I was able to cut off another one of his legs with your help is already a remarkable achievement."

"To have such desperate escaping abilities in the Celestial Human realm, that's truly impressive," the people of Dragon Village exclaimed in admiration.

However, everyone felt even more uneasy. Ban Gungong now only had one deer leg, yet he still managed to escape from them. This escaping ability was indeed terrifying!

This time, they left the village with the intention of making a name for themselves through battle. They didn't expect to encounter such a bizarre individual as Ban Gungong right after leaving, experiencing a slight setback.

Qing Ya excitedly said, "On our very first day out of the village, we met such an interesting person. The world outside the village is even more exciting than I imagined!"

The others from Dragon Village were not as excited as she was.

Qin Mu saw this and smiled. "You haven't been in contact with the outside world for a long time," he said. "Your Daoist arts and divine abilities are somewhat outdated. Don't rush back to the village yet. Why not come with me to Supreme Emperor Heaven to gain more experience and familiarize yourselves with the Daoist arts and divine abilities of the current world?"

Everyone agreed.

Qing Yan hesitated for a moment, then said, "This time, when we left the village, the Old Ancestor instructed us not to get too close to you..."

Qin Mu picked up Ban Gungong's severed leg, sealed the wound on the stump, refined some medicinal liquid, and placed the severed leg in the liquid. He smiled and said, "Senior Qing Huang is still too cautious. You can see for yourselves that I am not a bad person. When you get to Supreme Emperor Heaven, feel free to inquire about Qin Mu, the Heavenly Saint Cult Master. I guarantee you'll hear nothing but praise; my reputation is excellent!"

Qing Ya asked curiously, "Uncle Yan once visited Yan Kang and spoke of the Heavenly Saint Cult, calling it the Heavenly Demon Cult, which has a very bad reputation."

Qin Mu, full of smiles, said, "Those were all misunderstandings, and now they have been cleared up. Our Heavenly Saint Cult's reputation in Yan Kang now, I assure you, is absolutely exemplary!"

Qin, the Great Cult Master, turned and walked into the Spirit Energy Translocation Bridge with a grim expression. He thought to himself, "Those who called our Heavenly Saint Cult a demonic cult have basically been crippled by me. But it's hard to guarantee that no one will still badmouth me behind my back. So it's better to go to Supreme Emperor Heaven; the Heavenly Saint Cult and I have an excellent reputation there. As soon as they inquire, they'll be not far from joining the cult..."

Qing Yan, leading the young men and women of Dragon Village, followed him into the Spirit Energy Translocation Bridge. Immediately, the world spun around them, and they felt time and space flying by. When their feet landed on solid ground and they stepped out of the Spirit Energy Translocation Bridge, a vast and magnificent alien world instantly appeared before their eyes!

Everyone marveled.

Qin Mu, however, looked into the distance, and his expression grew solemn.

In the sky, craftsmen from Yan Kang were assembling a second sun. Most of it was already built, but even with two suns shining, Supreme Emperor Heaven was not fully illuminated.

In the extremely distant lands, the sky was dim, and demonic energy, like mist, enveloped the heavens and earth.

That sky covered the territory of the devil race, where enormous altars, like mountains, were emitting intense black light. The black light, like smoke, shot straight into the sky!

Each beam of black light was like a pillar standing between heaven and earth, and from time to time, a massive figure descended from the sky within the black light!

"The devil race is performing blood sacrifices. Could they have summoned their devil ancestors from the Netherworld, those devil gods born from accumulated demonic resentment?"

Qin Mu composed himself. He had been abducted by Ba Ri Luo and had once seen magnificent, giant altars in the devil race's lair. He learned from Ba Ri Luo that these altars were used to summon devil gods from the Netherworld!

At that time, Ba Ri Luo had triggered a curse in Qin Mu's jade pendant and was struck by it, suffering severe injuries, and many altars were destroyed.

Now, it seemed the devil race had rebuilt the altars!

Now, these altars had been activated, and devil gods from the Netherworld were continuously breaking through the barrier between the Netherworld and Supreme Emperor Heaven, descending into this world!

"The situation is serious..."

Qin Mu composed himself, summoned the Supreme Emperor Heaven guards who oversaw the Spirit Energy Translocation Bridge, drew a picture, and said, "If a young man with a deer leg comes out of the bridge, cut him down. Don't give him a chance to explain!"

The guard took the drawing, passed it around for other guards to see, and said, "Cult Master Qin, rest assured. If this deer-legged youth truly enters the Spirit Energy Translocation Bridge, he will certainly not escape death!"

"I hope you can eliminate him..."

Qin Mu quickly departed with the others, heading towards Licheng.

Licheng was on high alert, preparing its forces. The Imperial Preceptor of Yan Kang and deities like Pang Yu stood on the city wall, watching thousands of soldiers below changing formations. Qin Mu arrived on the city wall with Qing Yan, Qing Ya, and the others, as he had been living there originally.

"Cult Master Qin, who are these people?" the Imperial Preceptor of Yan Kang asked in surprise, scrutinizing Qing Yan, Qing Ya, and the others, feeling a great shock in his heart.

He could tell that the thirty-seven people behind Qin Mu were of extraordinary origin. Apart from Jiang Miao, the cultivation of the others was incredibly profound, and two of them might even be deities. He wondered where Qin Mu had managed to invite such a group of grand masters.

"Imperial Preceptor," Qin Mu explained, "they are from Dragon Village in the Great Ruins, quite far from our Crippled Elders Village. It took me great effort to invite them."

Qin Mu then introduced them, saying, "Senior Brother Qing Yan, Senior Sister Qing He, this is the Imperial Preceptor of Yan Kang, a sage who appears once every five hundred years."

"How can a sage who appears once every five hundred years compare to a rare Hegemon Body?" the Imperial Preceptor chuckled. "Cult Master Qin, your villages in the Great Ruins truly harbor hidden dragons and crouching tigers. First there were the Nine Elders of Crippled Elders Village, and now the thirty-six heroes of Dragon Village. It's truly unfathomable."

The Imperial Preceptor of Yan Kang bowed to Qing Yan, Qing He, and the others, smiling. "You have arrived at a perfect time," he said. "I was just pondering how to fight this battle, and with your assistance, the pressure will be considerably lighter."

Qing Yan quickly returned the bow, saying, "I have long heard of the Imperial Preceptor's name, and today I finally have the honor of meeting you. The legend of a sage appearing once every five hundred years is very ancient; I heard of it back in the Founding Emperor Era. And Senior Brother Qin is a Hegemon Body?"

He looked at Qin Mu and smiled. "To be honest," he said, "I've heard legends about the Hegemon Body from Old Ancestor Qing Huang!"

The Imperial Preceptor of Yan Kang was stunned, thinking to himself, "Is there truly a Hegemon Body in this world? I originally had some doubts..."

He composed himself and said, "Everyone, the devil race has received many reinforcements. The Heavenly Teacher went to the devil world and hasn't returned yet; I don't know what happened. Although Supreme Emperor Heaven has support from Yan Kang, the number of deities in Yan Kang is not large, far fewer than the devil gods summoned by the devil race this time..."

True God Pang Yu and the others looked grim. Venerable God Sang Ye said, "These devil gods from the Netherworld are the ancestors of the devil race; they only know slaughter and are even more bloodthirsty and brutal than the devil race themselves. They have brought numerous devil creatures, which are extremely terrifying, stronger than even high-level devils, and their numbers are immense! Supreme Emperor Heaven, I fear, might not be able to hold out..."

Everyone fell silent.

Qin Mu gazed into the distance, where devil gods from the Netherworld were still continuously being summoned through the black beams of light. He thought to himself, "The woman named Lu Li in Xing Han's Life and Death Divine Treasure is from the Netherworld. Why is she looking for me? I wonder if she is among the devil gods Ba Ri Luo summoned this time..."

The Devil Capital.

Ba Ri Luo rubbed his chest, looking at the altar before him. A demonic light swirled wildly on the altar as numerous devil soldiers continuously slaughtered humans and low-level devils, offering them as flesh and blood sacrifices.

This sacrifice consumed too many offerings, indicating that the Netherworld devil god answering the summons was extremely powerful.

Otherwise, Ba Ri Luo would not have been alarmed.

After a moment, the demonic light in the air suddenly contracted, falling rapidly. When the demonic light completely dispersed, a peerlessly beautiful woman stood alone in the center of the altar.

Ba Ri Luo's face changed drastically when he saw the beautiful woman. He twisted his neck, changing to a smiling face, and laughed loudly, "Lu Li, one of the four commanders of the Netherworld, why would you answer my summons and descend in person?"

The beautiful woman took graceful, lotus-like steps, descending the altar's steps one by one. She looked around, and a man's voice came from her, laughing, "I've come to find someone, an eighteen-year-old youth with a jade pendant inscribed with the character 'Qin' hanging on his chest."

Ba Ri Luo grunted, feeling the wound on his chest throb faintly. It was a wound Qin Mu had inflicted on him.

"Lu Li, I have met the youth you are looking for."

Ba Ri Luo said indifferently, "His jade pendant is very strange, and he is even stranger."

"You must have taken off his jade pendant, and even tried to break the seal within it."

Lu Li said with a smile, "Your injuries haven't healed yet, so he must have been the one to injure you, right? Foolish."

Ba Ri Luo's face turned ashen. Lu Li laughed, "If you can capture this youth named Qin, I could help you annex Supreme Emperor Heaven."

Ba Ri Luo changed to a smiling face again and laughed heartily, "Commander Lu Li's esteemed presence brings immense glory to our devil race!"