Chapter 600: Divine Powers

Qin Mu's face, previously covered by the white silk scarf, remained still for a moment. Then, a radiant smile spread across his face, and he quickly caught up with Grandma Si.

His third eye, located between his brows, looked at Grandma Si. He could see her soul, but this time, he no longer had any desire to devour it.

A deep tranquility filled his heart. Perhaps there were other faces as beautiful as Grandma Si's in the world, but not every beautiful face harbored a soul as kind and lovely as hers. In fact, Qin Mu was deeply grateful to Grandma Si for finding him and bringing him back to the village, raising him with immense hardship. His kindness was precisely inherited from her. This woman, despite being known as the Saintess of the Heavenly Devil Cult and bearing the infamous reputation of a husband-killer, was actually the kindest person in Crippled Creek Village.

Everyone in Crippled Creek Village harbored their own inner evil, having retreated into the Great Ruins for various reasons to escape the world. Only Grandma Si believed her own beauty to be a curse, a bringer of misfortune. She had forced herself into the Great Ruins, preferring to disguise herself as an old woman rather than allow people to fight and kill over her appearance. While others strove to enhance their beauty, using it as a weapon, she actively tried to make herself appear less attractive.

"I can now control the urges this eye brings," Qin Mu mused with delight. He looked around; though he could still see many remnants of demonic souls wandering, he could now calmly accept what he saw, completely free from the urge to devour them.

Grandma Si turned to look at him, smiling sweetly. "Mu'er, your aura seems to have changed. What happened?"

"Something truly marvelous!" Qin Mu replied, his spirits high, and chuckled. "Something that makes me feel very happy."

Grandma Si asked curiously, "What marvelous thing? Tell me about it."

Qin Mu declared loudly, "I think Grandma is the most beautiful woman in the world, and the kindest woman in the world!"

Grandma Si shook her head, the pearl earrings on her earlobes swaying gently. "How can a deviless of the Heavenly Devil Cult be the kindest person? I am not. Mu'er, you are the kindest one."

Qin Mu laughed, "The Cult Master of the Heavenly Devil Cult isn't the kindest person either!" Grandma Si's mood also brightened, and the two walked towards the nearest altar, chatting and laughing.

Suddenly, Qin Mu and Grandma Si stopped simultaneously and gazed towards it. In the distance, the altar stood as tall as a mountain, with layers upon layers of stairs on all four sides. These stairs seemed like paths to the heavens, leading to the clouds. The altar was so immense, like a magnificent mountain rising majestically, and countless runes flickered on and off on its numerous steps. These were the very runes used for the Blood Sacrifice to Luofu Heaven.

The Woodcutter Sage had built this altar using the demonic path's blood sacrifice method. However, since he intended to sacrifice an entire world, a single altar would not suffice. He needed to use many altars to tear Luofu Heaven into fragments and convert it into pure energy! This act surely carried unknown repercussions, and the Woodcutter Sage would not readily employ it. He was only resorting to it because Grand Emperor Heaven truly had no chance of victory.

Grand Emperor Heaven had no chance of victory not because the demon race was inherently too strong, but because Grand Emperor Heaven *had* to be destroyed. Only by its destruction could the demon race perform a blood sacrifice on it to invade Yan Kang! The demon race itself wasn't strong; what was strong was the power required to destroy Grand Emperor Heaven.

At that moment, at the very top of the altar, a divine being stood, holding a battle halberd, his aura surging skyward. Below the altar, tens of thousands of demonic warriors swarmed upwards like an insect horde, rushing towards the altar's peak! The divine being at the summit wielded his battle halberd, cleaving down with blindingly bright lights that swept across the area, sending countless limbs flying through the air. A single person with a single halberd held off tens of thousands of demonic warriors, slaying them until blood flowed like rivers, staining the altar red, and gore dripped down the steps, stair by stair.

Buzz, buzz, buzz—the sounds of the battle halberd cutting through the air echoed one after another. Bodies already piled up on every layer of steps, yet the other demons, fearless of death, continued to surge forward like a tide, frantically climbing towards the altar's summit, intent on killing the divine being.

"Grandma, these demons are merely ordinary divine arts practitioners. They are absolutely no match for that divine being," Qin Mu observed, a question forming in his mind. "Why are they sacrificing their lives in vain like this?"

Grandma Si was also puzzled. These demons were indeed just throwing their lives away. Even if there were powerful cultivators at the Divine Bridge realm among them, they were still far from being a match for that divine being. That divine being was one of the twenty-four gods invited by the Woodcutter Sage, incredibly powerful. Although not as formidable as the Woodcutter Sage or Brahma, he was still an extraordinary powerhouse among deities. Even if more demonic divine arts practitioners swarmed him, they couldn't possibly kill him! "Brahma couldn't possibly be this foolish," Grandma Si mused. "So, what is the purpose of these demons relentlessly throwing themselves to their deaths? These demons can't deplete much of this divine being's power... Could there be a demon god hidden among them?"

Qin Mu focused his gaze, his third eye clearly seeing the divine treasures of all the demons rushing there, and found no demon god hidden among them. "This is... a blood sacrifice!" he suddenly realized, exclaiming in a low voice, "Brahma intends to use a blood sacrifice to summon a terrifying existence! There must be a demon god nearby preparing to cast the sacrificial spell!"

No sooner had he spoken than the blood on the altar stopped flowing. All the corpses and living demonic bodies stiffened, involuntarily floating into the air. Then, in an instant, whether dead or alive, their physical bodies disintegrated. Their flesh, bones, and even their souls were shattered into the finest particles, transforming into a river of blood that revolved around the altar and the divine being! The divine being at the altar's summit wielded his battle halberd, unleashing terrifying divine might. His halberd techniques were exquisite, and the power of the divine arts he cast was astonishing, yet he could not break free from this sacrifice!

Qin Mu immediately looked around, searching for a more distant position, trying to find the demon god who was sacrificing his own people! That demon god, presiding over this blood and flesh sacrifice, had to be personally present and thus must be nearby. Grandma Si also realized this and scanned her surroundings. She had already established her own human vital qi network, which included Cripple's Divine Eye, making her eye-based divine arts identical to Cripple's Nine Heavenly Opening Eye Method, though not as refined. Even so, with her cultivation at the divine realm, her eyesight was terrifying. Yet, after searching for a while, she couldn't find where the demon god conducting the sacrifice was hiding.

"I should have called Cripple earlier!" Grandma Si muttered, a hint of impatience in her voice. Just then, Qin Mu, beside her, exclaimed, "Grandma, I found him!" Grandma Si was slightly startled, and without thinking, quickly asked, "Where?" Qin Mu raised his hand, pointing above the altar. Grandma Si quickly looked, only to see the river of blood above the altar spinning in a circle, swirling around the altar with a whooshing sound, but she still couldn't see where the demon god was.

"Mu'er's eye is truly extraordinary, to be able to find that demon god," she mused with a touch of perplexity. "What is the origin of this eye? Why did even Earth Warden seal it?"

Although Qin Mu could only open his third eye, its vision was remarkably peculiar, allowing him to see things other divine eyes could not. The demon god was hidden extremely cleverly, clearly possessing a unique stealth divine art. He was performing the ritual from within a spatial rift above the altar, sometimes upside down, sometimes with disheveled hair, his steps erratic, as if in a frenzy. Qin Mu said gravely, "Grandma, follow the direction of my vital qi thread! I will use it to pinpoint his location for you. You must kill him!"

Grandma Si commanded, "Do not use the Three Divine Elixir Body Technique! Only use your vital qi thread to point the way! Give me the Great Education Demonic Scripture!"

With a slight thought, Qin Mu sent a ball of threads flying out. Instantly, vital qi transformed into a thread, extending rapidly towards the space above the altar. This vital qi thread pointed directly to the hiding place of the demon god who was performing the sacrifice. At the same time, Grandma Si manipulated the scriptures of the Great Education Demonic Scripture, and countless characters swirled and flew, forming a thread-like entity. This scripture-thread clung tightly to Qin Mu's vital qi thread, extending at great speed.

All of Grandma Si's magical power flowed into the scriptures of the Great Education Demonic Scripture. These scriptures were passed down by the founding patriarch of the Heavenly Saint Cult, who had refined them into a treasure. When not unfolded, the scriptures were a small ball of thread, but when expanded with vital qi, they transformed into countless characters. Moreover, the scriptures could also be used as a spirit weapon, possessing formidable power and might. Grandma Si had once used the scriptures to battle many strong cultivators in Jade Dragon City. When Qin Mu first entered the darkness of the Great Ruins with the Village Chief, the scriptures were also one of the protective treasures he carried. However, once Qin Mu acquired his own spirit weapons, he rarely used the Great Education Demonic Scripture. The scriptures simply weren't convenient for him. Yet, for Grandma Si, the scriptures were the most suitable spirit weapon, perfectly aligning with her cultivation technique and disposition. She could even use the Great Education Demonic Scripture to perform transformations that typically required divine arts. However, since Qin Mu was the Heavenly Saint Cult Master, the Great Education Demonic Scripture rightfully belonged to him, so she had never asked him for it.

Qin Mu's vital qi thread extended fifty miles, nearly reaching the demon god's hiding place. However, his vital qi intensity had reached its limit. If he were to activate the Three Divine Elixir Body Technique, he could increase the extension distance of his vital qi by six times. Without activating that technique, the vital qi thread could only stretch fifty miles. "Mu'er, absolutely do not activate your technique! With your vital qi thread to determine the direction, I can ambush and kill him!" Grandma Si cautioned him again, her voice tense. Immediately, a divine bridge manifested behind her, spanning the sky. Her soul appeared, crossing the bridge, soaring directly to the Heavenly Palace at the bridge's end!

Grandma Si let out a sharp cry, and divine power erupted from within her. Outside the Southern Heaven Gate of her Heavenly Palace, light illuminated the nine heavens. The scriptures of the Great Education Demonic Scripture, like the thinnest spirit snake, shot with a 'whoosh' and drilled into the demon god's hiding place! The demon god was at the most crucial stage of his ritual, the blood river sacrifice, when suddenly a brilliant light shot skyward. At that exact moment, a silver thread pierced his glabella with a 'whoosh' sound! The demon god was startled. He quickly reached for his glabella, pinching a thread end. He was slightly taken aback: "What is this?"

Beside Qin Mu, Grandma Si's beautiful hair swirled, a vision of elegance like a butterfly, her robes fluttering as she rapidly unleashed one divine art after another. The demon god's face changed drastically. Just as he tried to pull the thread from his body, the Great Education Demonic Scripture within him suddenly expanded, transforming into hundreds of divine arts that burst forth. *Boom, boom, boom, boom*—countless tremors emanated from the spatial rift. Then, demon god blood began to pour out of the spatial rift like a wound in the sky, flowing like a waterfall.

Grandma Si sighed in relief and retrieved the Great Education Demonic Scripture. She looked up and saw that the blood sacrifice had not yet stopped. Although the demon god was dead, the blood sacrifice had already been completed.