Chapter 863: Evil Aura Intense

After a long silence, a bull-headed, human-bodied deity from the Northern Heavens spoke in a deep voice, “Is the Overlord Body of Eternal Peace a god? That old fox from Heavenly Revelation Pavilion never mentioned that the Overlord Body had cultivated to the divine realm! If you are a god, then we shall naturally choose a powerful expert from the divine realm to challenge you!”

Qin Mu’s aura erupted, and his divine treasures opened, clearly visible to everyone. He shook his head and said, “I only opened my seventh divine treasure not long ago.”

An invisible aura, like dark clouds pressing upon a city, enveloped Jiangling Academy. At that moment, everyone felt a suffocating pressure. It was as if a god was wantonly unleashing their aura; even from thousands of miles away, one would likely feel its terrifying might! Fortunately, Qin Mu did not overdo it. After a brief burst of aura, he quickly reined it in. The Village Chief and the villagers often taught him to act discreetly, and unless there were special circumstances, he would not immediately reveal his full strength.

“Revealing forty percent of my cultivation should still count as being low-key,” Qin Mu thought to himself, smiling as he scanned his surroundings. “I’ve kept two tricks hidden: I haven’t unveiled the willow leaf on my brow, nor have I displayed my demonic divine treasure.”

The various gods and devils from the Northern Heavens frowned, their eyes twitching as they looked at the illusory divine treasures manifesting behind Qin Mu. This person was too strong, unnaturally strong, not like a human, not like a divine ability practitioner! This immense power wasn't a display of powerful divine arts and techniques, but rather a pure, overwhelming magical force. His magical power was comparable to, or even stronger than, that of a venerated god who had ascended to the Celestial Palace and stood before the Southern Gate of Heaven! With such formidable magical power, one might even suspect that if he were to walk through the Southern Gate of Heaven, he could withstand its immense pressure and instantly become a true god! Of course, the stronger one’s cultivation, the greater the pressure upon entering the Southern Gate of Heaven, leading them to also suspect that Qin Mu would be crushed to dust the moment he stepped through! Even more terrifying was that Qin Mu’s divine treasures were unlike any other; they were linked together as a single entity, without any divine treasure barriers! His seventh divine treasure was particularly inscrutable, leaving them wondering if it was the towering ancient tree of the continent or the Celestial River flowing from the Celestial Palace.

“What kind of monster is this?” Several gods and devils exchanged glances, thinking simultaneously, “Could this be the Overlord Body?”

“Even though the young experts from the Northern Heavens this time are all hand-picked and exceptionally talented, facing such a terrifying individual, they are simply no match!”

Duke Wei, however, understood Qin Mu well. When Qin Mu arrived at Jiangling Academy, he had already demonstrated extraordinary skill by simply levitating the Golden River with his magical power. Based on Duke Wei's understanding of Qin Mu, he wasn't merely trying to establish his own authority as the Overlord Body, but rather wanted to scare away some challengers beforehand, to avoid engaging with those of meager skill. Although Qin Mu was usually kind and approachable, he was inwardly very proud. If an opponent's cultivation was too low, he wouldn't even be interested in fighting them.

“But it seems the Cult Master isn't just trying to scare away some challengers; he intends to scare away all the young experts from the Northern Heavens,” Duke Wei glanced around, thinking, “Though the young experts from the Northern Heavens are strong, they aren’t ridiculously so. Even if they all attacked together, they would likely be slaughtered by the Cult Master in a mere moment.”

“Hahahaha! The Overlord Body of Eternal Peace truly lives up to its reputation!” Suddenly, the bull-headed deity burst into laughter and proclaimed loudly, “Qin Overlord Body’s strength is exceptional, and we, the envoys, have witnessed it. You are indeed worthy of competing with our Northern Heavens. We did not come to challenge Qin Overlord Body; we came to deliver a challenge letter.”

At his words, the other gods and devils from the Northern Heavens looked puzzled. They had clearly thought Eternal Peace was a soft target, easy to bully and exploit, with the added benefit of seizing Eternal Peace. The bull-headed deity, however, maintained a composed and righteous demeanor. “When we previously saw the strength of Eternal Peace’s divine ability practitioners, we worried that the Overlord Body might be nothing special. But now that we have witnessed your capabilities, we believe you are qualified to accept the challenge letter from our Northern Heavens!” The other gods and devils suddenly understood. “So that’s it. Our brought divine ability practitioners are no match for this formidable individual, so framing it as delivering a challenge letter allows us to save face.”

The bull-headed deity’s expression turned serious, and he said in a deep voice, “My Northern Heavens are unified under the Great Black Heaven. Since Qin Overlord Body possesses such strength, we invite Qin Overlord Body to journey to the Northern Heavens, where we shall respectfully await your arrival!” The other gods and devils nodded in agreement, saying, “We respectfully await your arrival!”

Duke Wei asked curiously, “Where is your challenge letter?”

The bull-headed deity’s expression remained unchanged. “Eternal Peace is but a small, insignificant state. Why would we need to send a challenge letter? It is merely a verbal message.” Duke Wei sneered.

With an incredibly thick skin, the bull-headed deity stated, “The challenge has been delivered. We shall now return to the Northern Heavens. Please, Qin Overlord Body, arrive early. Let us go—” He turned, intending to lead the divine ability practitioners of the Northern Heavens away.

“Wait,” Qin Mu’s voice came from behind them. The muscles on the bull-headed deity’s back stiffened slightly, and he hastily turned around to avoid a sneak attack from Qin Mu. Qin Mu smiled gently. “The esteemed seniors from the Northern Heavens are rather ill-mannered, claiming to deliver a challenge letter but not doing so. However, Eternal Peace cannot be impolite. I must send a reply in the form of a challenge letter. When you return, let the heroes of the Northern Heavens have a look.”

The bull-headed deity relaxed and smiled. “Qin Overlord Body, please proceed!”

*Zheng—*

From Qin Mu’s Taotie Pouch, the Wuyou Sword flew out. Qin Mu pointed his fingers, and the Wuyou Sword pierced the air with a *chi* sound. He moved his feet, changing his sword-fingers, dotting continuously. The Wuyou Sword moved constantly, drawing in the air the figure of a spirited young man with a long sword on his back. Soon, Qin Mu finished this sword-wielding portrait with the Wuyou Sword. He had mimicked Deaf’s drawing of the Sword God, but the figure in the drawing was not the Village Chief in his youth, but Qin Mu himself.

“This is my challenge letter.” Qin Mu gripped the Wuyou Sword, gently shook his hand, and sliced the aerial drawing down. He pressed it with his hand, and the sword-wielding portrait shrank to about half a foot in length. Duke Wei ordered someone to bring a formal visiting card. Qin Mu placed the sword-wielding portrait inside the card and said, “After you gentlemen return, select your young powerful experts, and then open my challenge letter. Also, those with low cultivation, do not look at this visiting card. When I sense that the sword-wielding portrait in the challenge letter has been destroyed, I will personally journey to the Northern Heavens and pay you all a visit, one by one.”

He hesitated for a moment, then added with utmost sincerity, “For your lives’ sake, you absolutely must not open and look at this challenge letter. Only your realm’s strongest divine ability practitioners may open it. Furthermore, outsiders must not see the contents of the challenge letter; it is extremely dangerous! Remember this, remember this! Gentlemen, please proceed.”

The bull-headed deity's expression turned solemn as he took the visiting card. He then commanded, "Let's go!" One by one, the gods and devils led the divine ability practitioners of the Northern Heavens away at high speed.

Once they were far from Jiangling Academy, one divine ability practitioner asked, “Teacher, is this challenge letter really that powerful? Can we open it and take a look?” The bull-headed deity shook his head. “It cannot be opened lightly. The sword-wielding portrait within the challenge letter contains his divine ability. If opened, his divine ability will be triggered.”

Another god smiled. “Are you exaggerating? He drew a sword-wielding portrait. Although it contains a divine ability, if opening it even once causes the ability to erupt, wouldn’t the challenge letter be destroyed? In my opinion, as long as we don’t use vital qi, it won’t trigger his divine ability, and it wouldn’t hurt to open it and take a look.” Other gods laughed and agreed, “Knowing yourself and your enemy ensures victory in every battle!”

The bull-headed deity hesitated, then took out the challenge letter. “You can take a look, but absolutely no vital qi fluctuations, lest his divine ability is triggered. I still need to use this visiting card to see the Great Black Heaven. We have no such terrifying experts in our realms; only under the Great Black Heaven are there strong enough to contend with him.” He cautiously opened the challenge letter. Indeed, Qin Mu’s divine ability did not erupt, and he breathed a sigh of relief. “You can come forward and look now.”

Everyone gathered closer and looked at the sword-wielding portrait within the challenge letter. Qin Mu had used the Wuyou Sword as his brush, drawing in space and imprinting his sword techniques into it. To achieve this, one needed the strength of a venerated god, as only a venerated god could imprint a divine ability into space, enduring indefinitely. As they observed the sword-wielding portrait, they saw Qin Mu’s figure in the drawing appeared remarkably lifelike and three-dimensional, as if he were a real person.

“This Overlord Body of Eternal Peace is truly multi-talented! If he went to the streets to sell paintings, he’d surely be a master!” everyone commented with amusement.

The bull-headed deity hastily reprimanded them, “I told you to look, not to judge his painting skill, but to observe the movements of his sword technique, to understand his depth! Perhaps we can deduce his divine ability from this drawing and find a way to counter him.” Everyone immediately sobered up and looked closer.

Suddenly, a demigod cried out, their aura erupting. A series of rumbling sounds of divine treasures opening came from within their body. Their hands moved as if to block, and they cried out, “He’s striking at me with his sword!” The bull-headed deity’s face changed drastically. He was about to block the demigod to prevent vital qi fluctuations from affecting the challenge letter, when suddenly, the demigod’s brow split open. Their primordial spirit was severed by an invisible force, their soul immediately scattered, and they died a violent death!

The bull-headed deity was startled and went forward to examine the body. He saw that the demigod’s brow had a sword-shaped wound, but the force was not external; it had come from within. “What kind of divine ability is this?” He had just thought this when suddenly, several more demigod divine ability practitioners panicked, frantically unleashing their spirit weapons to attack in all directions. They shrieked, “He’s attacking me!” Before their words finished, sizzling sounds burst from their bodies. Countless blood arrows erupted from everywhere on their bodies, their entire frames shook violently, and then their primordial spirits were annihilated, and they collapsed!

“Don’t look at the challenge letter!” The bull-headed deity realized what was happening and hastily closed the challenge letter, putting it away. However, it was too late. Those divine ability practitioners who had followed them to Eternal Peace to challenge the Overlord Body seemed to fall into a frenzy, their divine abilities and spirit weapons attacking in all directions, as if locked in a death struggle with an invisible enemy! The other gods and devils rushed forward, trying to control them, but even when these demigods were suppressed, their bodies were still riddled with wounds, their primordial spirits severed, and their lives extinguished!

The bull-headed deity and the other gods and devils felt a chill in their hearts, staring blankly at their surroundings. At their feet lay a pile of corpses. “Evil!” one god shrieked. “This is truly damn evil!” The other gods and devils were pale-faced. Qin Mu had never once attacked these challengers. He had merely displayed a single magical technique in front of Jiangling Academy, intimidating the divine ability practitioners of the heavens. Yet, though Qin Mu had not made a move, his challenge letter had caused these divine ability practitioners to lose their lives!

“What caused this? What kind of divine ability?” one god stammered.

“Sword technique,” the bull-headed deity said hoarsely. “An enlightened sword technique! When one sees this sword technique, his sword technique will be imprinted in one’s mind. This sword technique is too sinister; it attacks the spiritual will. When the spiritual will collapses, it will hijack your magical power and use your own magical power to unleash the power of the sword technique within your body. Their spiritual will was no match for the sword dao will contained within the sword-wielding portrait, which is why they died. We are beings of the divine realm, so the sword dao will in the sword-wielding portrait has no effect on us.”

The many gods and devils were aghast. The bull-headed deity sharply commanded, “Go! To see the Great Black Heaven!” Everyone hastily followed him. One deity couldn’t help but ask, “How could his sword drawing contain such terrifying sword dao will? Is there such a powerful will in this world?”

“This is not a will, but immortal consciousness.”

In Black Heaven Palace, darkness overflowed from the legendary edifice, shrouding an area of ten thousand miles, yet inside, the hall was brightly lit. The Great Black Heaven, with a black sun behind his head, sat on his throne, unfolded Qin Mu’s challenge letter, examining it carefully. He spoke leisurely, “This immortal consciousness originated from the Red Emperor era; it is the cultivation method of Red Sovereign, the first pseudo-emperor of the Red Emperor era. It is natural that you do not recognize it. Even the Celestial Court does not possess Red Sovereign’s cultivation method. This sword-wielding portrait is not sinister at all; on the contrary, it is grand and magnificent.”