Chapter 699: Emperor's Gate Divine Blade

Qi Jiuyi slid down the wall, the shock still evident on his face as he stared blankly at the large head peering out from the portal.

It was a strange head with a human face but two goat horns and a goatee, reeking of alcohol and burping as it curiously gazed at them.

Qin Mu politely said, "Senior, we are from Eternal Peace. We inadvertently entered this place and apologize for disturbing you. May I ask how we can leave?"

The goat-horned man adjusted his clothes and stepped out of the portal. He was much taller than Qin Mu and Qi Jiuyi, even exceeding Dragon Rearing Sovereign in height. With a serious expression, he looked them over, his gaze lingering on Dragon Rearing Sovereign. He swallowed, then mumbled, "It's been a long time since I've eaten meat. Too bad you're all primordial spirits, no flesh... You're from Eternal Peace? What is Eternal Peace?"

Judging by his attire, he was dressed in ancient fashion, not resembling a contemporary figure.

His body was lean and muscular; though not as brawny as a green ox, he conveyed a sense of capability and a formidable threat.

Furthermore, he wasn't a goat spirit. Judging by the various swirling patterns on his body, he appeared to be the materialized primordial spirit of a deity. It was unclear if he was the primordial spirit guarding this blade.

To have materialized his primordial spirit was no small feat, indicating exceptionally high cultivation.

Qin Mu asked, puzzled, "Senior, are you from the Founding Emperor Era? Do you know about the Great Ruins?"

"The Great Ruins? Of course, I know it," he replied. "Founding Emperor ordered me to use the Divine Blade Emperor's Might to sever a corner of Youdu and create Fengdu. He said to carve out a Fengdu world roughly the same size as the Great Ruins."

Still reeking of alcohol, the goat-horned man asked, "Where is Eternal Peace? What era is this?"

"Senior, are you the creator of Fengdu?"

Qin Mu was greatly shaken and quickly said, "Eternal Peace is to the east of the Great Ruins. The Founding Emperor Era ended twenty thousand years ago. Eternal Peace was founded eight hundred years ago, and we are now in an era of reform. Senior, you were under the command of the Founding Emperor..."

Muddled by drink, the goat-horned man mumbled, "The Founding Emperor Era ended twenty thousand years ago? Has it really been that long? Heh, no wonder. It feels like I've been here for seven or eight million years... I am Tian Shu, Left Imperial Grand Tutor of the Heavenly Emperor Constellations, under the Founding Emperor. But you probably wouldn't know me."

He turned and went back into the room, emerging with a large wine jar, which he tilted back and gulped down.

Only then did Qin Mu notice that his legs were not human but curved goat legs with large hooves, proportionate to his tall stature.

"Founding Emperor's Celestial Heavens? Left Imperial Grand Tutor of the Heavenly Emperor Constellations?"

Qi Jiuyi's expression subtly changed as he thought, "A remnant of the false dynasty!"

Qin Mu asked, puzzled, "Senior, you're also in primordial spirit form, aren't you? Are you living here? If so, where is your physical body?"

Tian Shu drained the large jar of fine wine in one go, then casually smashed it. Qin Mu immediately noticed that after the jar shattered, it quickly reformed, still full of fragrant wine.

The wine jar floated into the air and returned to the room.

"It's a long story," Tian Shu said.

Tian Shu's expression darkened. He stumbled back into the room for more wine, drunkenly saying, "You're a descendant of the Founding Emperor, aren't you? I sense the aura of the Founding Emperor's lineage on you, and your appearance is somewhat similar to his. And that little chick beside you should be from the Nine Phoenix lineage of the so-called Celestial Heavens, heh heh. Empress Chi, Qi Xiayu, of the Nine Phoenix lineage, is truly remarkable, but she fell for that scoundrel Li Youran..."

He tilted his head back for another drink, then smashed the empty jar before continuing, "Back then, Founding Emperor forged the Divine Blade Emperor's Might and appointed me as its wielder. I could freely enter and exit Youdu, so he had me sever a portion of Youdu to create Fengdu. So I cut off a small piece of Earth Count's horn. When Founding Emperor was going to Carefree Village, he ordered me to guard Emperor's Might, preventing the darkness of the Great Ruins from invading other places, which is the place you call Eternal Peace."

Qin Mu blinked and glanced at Qi Jiuyi.

Qi Jiuyi was bewildered and uncertain; clearly, he was unaware of this secret.

"Should I kill Brother Qi to silence him?" Qin Mu thought to himself, a smile on his face.

Left Imperial Grand Tutor Tian Shu sighed, "But I have a weakness: I love to drink; I'm unhappy without wine. Guarding this place, I was constantly craving, always wanting to drink, but it wasn't good for me to leave and find wine. Then one day, an old rival of mine, the Left Imperial Grand Tutor of the Celestial Heavens, a scoundrel named Yan Shaoqing, found me and challenged me to a wager: inexhaustible wine. That fellow was always difficult to deal with, but he lost to me this time. That scoundrel was so devious; he somehow hid all that fine wine inside the Divine Blade Emperor's Might, then left with a grin. I knew it was a trick, but I just couldn't control my mouth. And when my mouth is out of control, my mind follows."

Qin Mu glanced at Dragon Rearing Sovereign and said, "Senior, I deeply understand that feeling."

"You're also greedy for wine?" Tian Shu asked.

Tian Shu shook his head, "You probably aren't greedy for wine; you don't react to it at all. I couldn't rest, always wanting to enter the Divine Blade Emperor's Might to get those wines and have a good, satisfying drink. But I also knew that the Divine Blade Emperor's Might was incredibly powerful and could swallow primordial spirits. I was merely the blade's wielder, not its creator. If I wasn't careful, my primordial spirit could get trapped inside and be unable to escape. However, I truly couldn't resist. I thought to myself, I've controlled this blade for quite some time, perhaps I can retrieve the wine and then exit, returning to my physical body..."

Dragon Rearing Sovereign couldn't help but ask, "And then?"

Tian Shu sighed, "Then I couldn't go back. That scoundrel Yan Shaoqing was indeed right; this wine can never be finished..."

The shattered empty jar on the ground restored itself, still full of fine wine.

"I've been drinking here for tens of millions of years," Tian Shu said. "The wine is never finished, and I still can't get out."

"The three of you came at just the right time," Tian Shu said. "We can drink together."

Qin Mu and Qi Jiuyi felt despair. If Tian Shu had been stuck in the Divine Blade Emperor's Might for tens of millions of years and couldn't get out, they naturally wouldn't be able to escape either!

Would they all be trapped within this divine blade, forever unable to escape?

Qi Jiuyi tremblingly opened a room door, only to see it filled with wine jars. He opened another, and it too was filled with wine jars. He opened door after door, and every single room was astonishingly filled with fine wine!

Qi Jiuyi ran frantically forward. He ran for an unknown period, yet the corridor still seemed to have no end!

On both sides of the long corridor, countless rooms were all stacked high with wine jars!

After a long while, he slumped against a wall and remained silent for a period. Then he silently got up, opened a room door, pulled out a jar of fine wine, and drank it deeply. Before long, he was completely drunk.

The wine in the jar he held never diminished, no matter how much he drank.

"Senior," Qin Mu said, "someone once accidentally entered the Divine Blade Emperor's Might with their primordial spirit, yet managed to escape."

Qin Mu's eyes gleamed as he asked, "Do you know about this, Senior?"

"You're talking about something that happened two thousand years ago," Tian Shu replied.

Tian Shu tilted his head back for a drink, wiping away wine beads from his goatee, and said, "At that time, I felt the Divine Blade Emperor's Might connect with the outside world. It's a pity I was completely drunk then. By the time I sobered up and wanted to escape, it was too late."

Qin Mu was startled. "Two thousand years ago? Granny Si and the others had their primordial spirits trapped in the divine blade just over five years ago. So, one day outside is one year in here. This means my and Qi Jiuyi's primordial spirits have only been swallowed by the Divine Blade Emperor's Might for just over two days, and our physical bodies are not yet dead."

He was greatly encouraged. He and Qi Jiuyi had been moving within the blade's space for two and a half years, and even Qin Mu had believed his physical body was dead. He never expected only two and a half days had passed.

"As long as our physical bodies are alive," Qin Mu exclaimed, "there's still hope!"

Qin Mu's eyes lit up, and he said in a deep voice, "Senior, you've controlled Emperor's Might for so long, you must know how to activate the Divine Blade Emperor's Might, right? Then you should also be very familiar with its internal formation structure and rune configuration. As long as we know the internal formation structure, we can try to unravel it..."

"No!"

Tian Shu shook his head, "You've guessed wrong. Although I can control this divine blade, I know nothing about its internal rune structure and formation. The reason I could be its wielder is because of my special physique, which allows me to enter Youdu. This divine blade was personally designed by Founding Emperor to chop off Earth Count's horns. How immense and powerful are Earth Count's horns? Founding Emperor personally designed it specifically to chop off his horns, which shows how profound this blade is."

Qin Mu frowned.

Tian Shu continued, "And the one who forged this blade was the most skilled Celestial Artisan in the Founding Emperor Divine Dynasty. It was Li Youran, the one I just mentioned to you, who had an affair with Empress Chi, Qi Xiayu. That fellow was handsome, loved by everyone..."

"You mean, the one who forged the Divine Blade Emperor's Might is the Heavenly King Buddha of Sakra?" Qin Mu asked, surprised and delighted.

"It's Li Youran. Who is the Heavenly King Buddha of Sakra?" Tian Shu asked, puzzled.

Qin Mu was overjoyed, pacing the corridor and laughing. "The Heavenly King Buddha of Sakra is Li Youran! Li Youran is his secular name; he later became a monk to escape karmic debts of love! Since he forged the Divine Blade Emperor's Might, perhaps we still have a chance. I've learned his cultivation method..."

Tian Shu, who had initially shown a glimmer of hope, now looked somewhat desperate again. "So that's what you're thinking. I advise you to save your efforts. Here, even if you possess immense divine abilities, you can't use them. The runes here were designed by Founding Emperor; no one can escape. Otherwise, how could it have severed Earth Count's horn?"

He then showed excitement. "Of course, I was the one who wielded this blade, charged into Youdu, and with one slice, chopped off a section of Earth Count's horn! You didn't see Earth Count's small, furious eyes, tsk tsk tsk... My life was worth it, truly worth it!"

Qin Mu paced back and forth, recalling the Heavenly King Buddha of Sakra Sutra that the Heavenly King Buddha of Sakra had taught him. This cultivation method indeed contained many non-Buddhist elements. Previously, Qin Mu had only studied its combat techniques and hadn't gained much insight into the other aspects. Now, upon close examination, he discovered many forging mysteries hidden within the Heavenly King Buddha of Sakra's cultivation method.

He immersed himself in comprehension, and unknowingly, another half a year passed.

Tian Shu found Qi Jiuyi, dragging the drunken young man back by his leg. The two sat on the ground, drinking heavily until they were completely drunk. Dragon Rearing Sovereign also joined the drinking session, laughing and crying, loudly insisting on becoming sworn brothers with Qi Jiuyi and Tian Shu.

When Qin Mu had comprehended what he needed, he heard loud thumping sounds of kowtowing. Dragon Rearing Sovereign, Qi Jiuyi, and Tian Shu were kneeling there, seriously kowtowing to the wine jars, becoming sworn brothers of different surnames and species.

"Though we may not be born on the same day, month, or year, we vow to die on the same day, month, and year!" the three proclaimed in unison.

Qin Mu shook his head, coughed once, and said, "I've figured out a way to leave."

The three turned their heads to look at him.

Qin Mu said, "From the Heavenly King Buddha of Sakra's cultivation method, I found a loophole in his technique. From this loophole, we can find a flaw in the divine weapon he forged. This Divine Blade Emperor's Might is not flawless. As long as we find the right spot, we can activate the Gate of Heaven's Will, escape into Youdu, and then return from Youdu to the living world, back to our physical bodies!"

Tian Shu tugged at his goatee and exclaimed, "Escape into Youdu? Wouldn't that mean facing Earth Count? I'm not going! Earth Count will eat me, I'm not going!"

Qin Mu patiently said, "Senior Tian, I still have some standing with Earth Count. If I intervene, I can certainly help you resolve any conflicts. Senior, please rest assured and put your mind at ease..."