Chapter 918: Meeting Like First Love

Qin Mu's mind was in turmoil. On the ghost ship, Empress Dowager and Jie Wuchen were both buried in the same coffin, guarded by eight dragons. He had seen it with his own eyes; there was no way he could be mistaken!

Yet, the woman before him, named Yun Chuxiu, looked almost identical to Jie Wuchen, without the slightest difference!

Could someone in this world truly be born looking exactly like Jie Wuchen?

"That's impossible!"

"Jie Wuchen was a perfect body created by Ancestor Ling to be a weapon to deceive the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor. The Ancient God Heavenly Emperor, astute throughout his life, died because of her beauty! No one could look like her!"

"So, is this woman named Yun Chuxiu actually Jie Wuchen from the ghost ship?"

Various thoughts flooded Qin Mu's mind, constantly emerging: "I escaped from the ghost ship because I have studied Ancestor Ling's divine abilities extensively. I've mastered a small part of the 'Easy-Difficult' divine ability, and then, by borrowing the power of the Four Emperors and all the soldiers of the Feathered Forest Army, I managed to escape from that ancient ship alive! Besides me, who else has that capability?"

His heart pounded, but he maintained a calm demeanor as he looked at Yun Jianli, who was kneeling below.

Could it be that Yun Jianli possessed unfathomable abilities, entered the ghost ship, and brought Jie Wuchen out?

However, there seemed to be not enough time.

Currently, his senior disciple, Wei Suifeng, was on the ghost ship, and Qin Mu had tried to rescue him before coming to the Heavenly Court. If Yun Jianli had boarded the ghost ship after that, he couldn't possibly be a match for Wei Suifeng on the ghost ship.

Moreover, even if he could escape the ghost ship with Jie Wuchen, he couldn't have returned to the Heavenly Court in such a short time.

After all, the Phoenix Ship Qin Mu was on was the fastest Imperial Weapon in the world!

Yun Jianli was not yet a deity. Even if he possessed such a fast ship, he couldn't possibly have the profound and mighty magic power to activate such a treasure.

"Could it be that he arrived at the ghost ship before Wei Suifeng and took Jie Wuchen away? Ancestor Yun and Ancestor Ling had a very good relationship back then, so it's likely the Yun family has records concerning Ancestor Ling's Easy-Difficult divine ability."

Qin Mu's gaze shifted from Yun Jianli: "However, even if Yun Jianli took Jie Wuchen, he couldn't bring her back to life. Jie Wuchen was merely a physical vessel for the Empress Dowager, and rescuing a vessel would be useless to him. Could it be the Empress Dowager herself?"

He looked at Yun Chuxiu, who was gracefully bowing, his eye twitching. He reached out to help both of them up, smiling, "Please rise. We are of similar age; there's no need for such formalities."

His heart remained in turmoil: "If it were the Empress Dowager, then it's still possible. I once performed a soul-calling ritual on the Empress Dowager's corpse on the ghost ship and discovered that she wasn't dead; she also sensed my presence. It's highly probable that upon hearing of my journey to the Heavenly Court, she conceived a plan to retrieve Jie Wuchen from the ship. If so, then this woman's body contains the Empress Dowager herself! She is the Empress Dowager's puppet! However..."

More and more thoughts crowded his mind: "But why did the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor order the Azure Emperor of the Eastern Heaven to drown Wei Suifeng in the river? He wanted to exchange Wei Suifeng for the ghost ship, clearly intending to acquire the Empress Dowager's and Jie Wuchen's physical bodies from it to use against the current Empress Dowager. Could it be the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor inside Jie Wuchen's body?"

His head felt like it was about to explode; there were too many possibilities, making it impossible to deduce the truth.

Yun Jianli and Yun Chuxiu rose. Qin Mu, smiling, invited them to sit, saying, "I've just arrived here and have no property in the Heavenly Court, so I'm staying as a guest. Please excuse my oversight."

Yan'er curiously observed the back of Qin Mu's neck. She noticed goosebumps appearing more and more, and drops of cold sweat trickling down his neck, indicating that Qin Mu was clearly becoming more nervous.

"The Young Master doesn't sweat on his forehead, but he sweats on the back of his neck. Who taught him this skill?" Yan'er grew increasingly curious.

Yun Jianli quickly replied, "Heavenly Venerable is too kind. Heavenly Venerable imparted knowledge to all beings, giving them hope of becoming gods, and his merits are unparalleled. This junior has come here according to his ancestors' dying wishes to ask for forgiveness from Heavenly Venerable."

Qin Mu, surprised, asked, "Ancestor Yun's dying wishes? What sin did he commit?"

"My ancestor, to save the common people from suffering, was compelled to impersonate Heavenly Venerable Mu and Heavenly Venerable Qin on several occasions. By using their names to gather support, he was able to establish the Sky River Heavenly Court and secure a glimmer of hope for the populace. Therefore, before his death, my ancestor left instructions that if any future descendants were fortunate enough to meet Heavenly Venerable Mu again, they should kneel and beg forgiveness from Heavenly Venerable Mu and Heavenly Venerable Qin!"

Yun Jianli stood up and bowed once more, saying, "My ancestor had already met Emperor Kai and sought his forgiveness, but he could never find Heavenly Venerable Mu. Today, Yun Jianli is fortunate enough to finally meet Heavenly Venerable Mu. This unworthy descendant of the Yun family begs forgiveness on behalf of my ancestor from Heavenly Venerable Mu!"

Qin Mu was moved. He rose and said, "What sin did Ancestor Yun commit? There's no need for such excessive formality; please rise quickly."

Yun Jianli continued to kowtow, saying, "Even though Heavenly Venerable doesn't blame him, Jianli bears the ancestral dying wishes and must complete this bow."

He insisted on completing the bow before finally standing up.

Qin Mu invited him to sit, smiling, "I've met your ancestor, Heavenly Venerable Yun, here, but I didn't have the chance to speak with him in detail. What is the background of this sister Yun Chuxiu? I just heard Brother Qi say that the Yun family has been single-line descendants for generations, with only one male heir in each generation."

Yun Jianli had an elegant bearing, the demeanor of a noble scion. Though a sickly young master, he possessed an extraordinary charm. He said, "Chuxiu is a younger sister I recently recognized. She also bears the surname Yun, but she is not a member of the Yun family. I found her intelligent, exceptionally capable, and alone, so I adopted her as my sister to better look after her."

Yun Chuxiu chuckled, "I heard my brother say he was coming to pay respects to Heavenly Venerable Mu, so I pestered him to let me come along. I never expected Heavenly Venerable Mu to be so young."

Every frown and smile of hers was so captivating that it couldn't help but ignite all sorts of fantasies in others.

Her smile evoked two different reactions in Qin Mu and Qi Jiuyi. Qin Mu, due to his strong divine sense, was mentally prepared and had also been influenced by Granny Si, so he didn't feel much.

Qi Jiuyi, however, saw more in her smile. His mind involuntarily conjured scenes of meeting, knowing, falling in love, and spending a lifetime with this woman.

He even faintly heard a beautiful, moving melody by his ear. In that instant of imagination, he even saw their future children running around them, playing at their knees.

Only when Yun Chuxiu's words ceased did his fantasy come to an end.

His heart pounded like a first crush, and his face flushed red.

Qin Mu glanced at him and let out a cough.

The cough, to Qi Jiuyi, was like a thunderclap on a clear day, shattering his romantic reveries.

Qi Jiuyi was startled: "The first time I met this woman, my Dao Heart was already affected by her! This woman is too beautiful, and she doesn't know how to restrain herself."

Qin Mu chuckled, "Sister Chuxiu and Brother Jianli would make a perfect couple; it's a pity they are siblings."

Yun Chuxiu's face turned slightly red, showing a maiden's shyness, as she glanced at Yun Jianli.

Yun Jianli said solemnly, "Heavenly Venerable jests. How could a dying man dare to delay Sister Chuxiu's future? I already have a family and a son. Has Heavenly Venerable married?"

Qin Mu, though weak, chuckled spiritedly, "Brother Jianli, I am also a dying man. If you don't mind, you can call me Cult Master Qin, like Brother Qi, instead of Heavenly Venerable. To be honest, I only just turned thirty-three recently."

Yun Chuxiu was surprised and covered her mouth, chuckling, "Heavenly Venerable is even a few years younger than me."

As Qi Jiuyi observed her graceful demeanor, a beautiful and moving song unconsciously resonated in his ears again, and the imagined scenes of affectionate love reappeared.

Qin Mu's cough startled him awake. Cold sweat beaded on Qi Jiuyi's forehead: "It's over! My Dao Heart is ruined! Although Si Youyou from the Primordial Realm is also beautiful, she never tempts others, whereas this woman uses her beauty and charm as weapons!"

Qin Mu looked at Yun Jianli and asked, "I've heard that members of the Yun family suddenly die violently when they cultivate to the Divine Bridge realm and attempt to enter the divine realm. Heavenly Venerable Yun was the one who pioneered the Divine Bridge Divine Treasure, so why do his descendants suffer such misfortune?"

Yun Jianli said despondently, "I don't know either. Generations of the Yun family have invited countless renowned doctors and divine beings to examine the ailment, but none could find its cause. In fact, I reached the Divine Bridge realm five years ago and haven't dared to take the final step since."

Qin Mu's curiosity was piqued. He said, "I'm quite skilled in medicine. Could you open your divine treasures for me to examine?"

Yun Jianli candidly opened his divine treasures. Qin Mu examined them closely, observing that all of Yun Jianli's divine treasures appeared normal. The Divine Bridge Divine Treasure was larger than others, but otherwise, there was nothing unusual.

Qin Mu's gaze fell upon his primordial spirit.

Yun Jianli's primordial spirit was exceptionally powerful, standing majestically and gracefully on the divine bridge. Qin Mu meticulously scrutinized Yun Jianli's primordial spirit but couldn't find any issues.

His gaze deepened further, looking towards Yun Jianli's Celestial Palace.

Suddenly, flames blazed behind Qin Mu's head, forming a fiery wheel. Within the wheel was a gigantic fiery eye, gazing directly into the deepest part of Yun Jianli's Celestial Palace!

Yun Jianli was startled. The fiery wheel behind Qin Mu's head felt like a blessing from an ancient god, yet it was also different.

"As expected of a Heavenly Venerable, even I cannot comprehend such a divine ability."

He couldn't help but feel a sense of reverence: "Heavenly Venerable Mu is thirty-three years old; it's truly terrifying to have achieved so much at such a young age."

A moment later, the fiery wheel behind Qin Mu gradually vanished.

His third eye on his brow slowly opened, continuing to observe where Yun Jianli's problem truly lay. This eye was unique; it was a divine eye that had only recently been born.

Although Qin Mu hadn't yet fully discovered the extent of this divine eye's uses, it had grown by absorbing his vital blood, primal qi, and divine sense. Moreover, it had absorbed the Horn of Earth count and the Primordial Stone as part of its structure, suggesting that this divine eye was undoubtedly extraordinary.

As Qin Mu's divine eye opened, he immediately saw the source of Yun Jianli's black aura.

The black aura on Yun Jianli's brow originated from his divine sense, permeating every part of his body, including his primordial spirit, divine treasures, and primal qi. However, this was merely the superficial manifestation.

Qin Mu examined it closely with his third divine eye and saw an even more terrifying sight.

Countless wisps of black aura were entwined within Yun Jianli's bloodline. This appeared in Qin Mu's third eye, allowing him to trace the history of this bloodline.

Qin Mu's third eye saw the memories embedded in the bloodline.

Bloodline memories were unique; they were passed down from generation to generation through direct blood relatives. However, discerning the hidden memories within a bloodline was not easy.

It was the first time Qin Mu had discovered this particular use for his third eye.

He immediately saw the figure of another man within the black aura, presumably Yun Jianli's father. Then, enveloped in the black aura surrounding Yun Jianli's father, he saw his grandfather.

He traced back through the history of the bloodline, and figures of young men emerged one by one. These were the ancestors of the Yun family, from Heavenly Venerable Yun up to the present. Countless ancestors, all enveloped in the black aura, had died young, their souls scattered!

From Heavenly Venerable Yun to the present, over a million years and countless generations, not a single person had lived long enough to reach godhood!

Qin Mu traced the source of the black aura within the bloodline and finally witnessed the scene just before Heavenly Venerable Yun collapsed.

He saw a figure enveloped in black mist, which must have been the origin of the Yun family's single-line descent, where every generation died before achieving godhood!

Suddenly, Ancestor Shu Jun's voice echoed from the depths of his mind: "This young man has been cursed. The curse runs deep within his bloodline, and anyone possessing his bloodline will develop the same curse. This is a curse placed upon him by a Creator. The curse will strengthen as his cultivation improves, and once his divine sense reaches a certain level, it will claim his life."

Qin Mu's divine sense fluctuated: "How can it be broken?"

"Give me more vital blood and divine sense, and I will teach you how to use the Primordial Stone to break this formidable bloodline curse!" Ancestor Shu Jun's voice replied.

Qin Mu sneered, "Ancestor Shu Jun, whether Yun Jianli lives or dies is of no concern to me. I don't even know his purpose or stance for coming here; I won't save him just because he's a descendant of Heavenly Venerable Yun."

Ancestor Shu Jun was silent for a moment, then said, "The Creator who cast that curse is very likely one of the so-called Ten Heavenly Venerables."

Qin Mu said indifferently, "Does that concern me?"

Ancestor Shu Jun fell silent again. After a long pause, he finally said, "If you help me find this Creator, I will teach you how to use the Primordial Stone to cultivate your divine sense."

Qin Mu considered it for a moment, then said, "First, teach me the method to cultivate divine sense, then teach me how to use the Primordial Stone to break the Yun family's bloodline curse. After that, I will help you find that person!"

"You!"

Ancestor Shu Jun was angered, but then suddenly chuckled, "Deal!"