Tales of Herding Gods

How many years?

Qin Mu didn’t understand this too much either. The Crimson Light Era had been eradicated three hundred and fifty thousand years ago, and it had only existed for a hundred thousand years, so the Dragon Han Era had ended four hundred and fifty thousand years ago.

How long did the Dragon Han Era last?

There was no way for him to calculate that.

The endless time, to disregard every day and every month, did that shut off youth wearing the mask just wait in Youdu all this time for Qin Mu’s arrival?

Was he always there keeping watch beside Celestial Venerable Yu’s coffin?

Qin Mu couldn’t imagine that Celestial Venerable You, who was so bored that he threw divine arts to bomb fish on the floating bridge in the Jade Pool—that youth who would curl up and twitch uncontrollably whenever he was sad and blamed himself—would stay in the dark Youdu and wait all that time because of a promise.

Back then, he was still a youth with a sickly pale face, and now he was already an elder. Only him, who was shut off, would cultivate so many clones of himself and spread himself throughout the worlds to guide the souls of the dead towards Youdu.

Only a person that was shut off like him would talk to himself and be able to stay beside Earth Count, that solemn and serious ancient god, for hundreds of thousands or even a million years.

All because of a promise.

God knows how many years ago, Qin Mu didn’t even personally make the promise with him, and instead, he got Celestial Venerable Ling to bring the promise to him.

I understand now, I’m back.

For these words, he had gone to Youdu and guarded Celestial Venerable Yu’s coffin from a youth to an elder.

He and Celestial Venerable Yu had no blood relations, and Celestial Venerable Yu had merely gone to visit him when his mother was gravely ill. Celestial Venerable Yu had merely treated him well and took great care of him.

Just a little kindness was enough to let the shut off him offer his entire life.

Qin Mu jumped down from the bridge and landed on the paper boat. The old bull saw this situation and also hurriedly jumped down the bridge, only to land in the River of Helplessness. That boat had already ferried Elder Messenger of Death and Qin Mu into Youdu. It didn’t catch him.

“Little rascal, have you forgotten me?”

The old bull was jumping in fury and grumbled, “Back then, when I wreaked havoc in the celestial heavens…”

Lu Li, Jue Huang, Xuan Ming, and Han Lei, the four great provincial governors, looked at one another in dismay. Elder Messenger of Death had attacked Youdu earlier, and his influence was so huge and terrifying. Yet now, he had just sailed off with his small boat and left them here!

If Son of Heaven Yin and Elder Messenger of Death didn’t say they wanted to attack Fengdu, they would have never charged their way into Fengdu.

It was exactly because Son of Heaven Yin had headed to Youdu and used the celestial heavens’ name to convince Earth Count. He promised to open up the world barrier of Fengdu personally, and only then did Earth Count get Elder Messenger of Death to settle the grudge once and for all. That was also the reason why Lu Li and the rest decided to attack Fengdu.

And now, Son of Heaven Yin got scared off by Di Yiyue, and Elder Messenger of Death received a mask and also ran away for some weird reason. With only them left behind to deal with the remaining survivors of the Founding Emperor Era, how were they supposed to fight this battle?

The four provincial governors of Youdu looked one another in the eyes and instantly made their decision by rising into the sky before diving into the River of Helplessness with a plop.

When the other Youdu devil gods saw the situation, they hurriedly rushed towards the River of Helplessness.

King Yama raised his sword and said coldly, “Kill!”

“Lockdown the River of Helplessness and kill them to the last one!”

Warcries instantly sounded out, and countless heads fell to the ground on both sides of the River of Helplessness. The River of Helplessness was dyed red by the flowing blood.

Tian Shu, Di Yiyue, and the rest were at a loss. However, they didn’t have time to think much and joined the encirclement.

‘Benevolent Saintly King Equal to Heaven is such a fierce and terrifying individual, why would he put down his grudges when he saw that mask?’

Di Yiyue wiped out a bunch of Youdu devil gods and continued to think to herself, ‘How did Brother Mu do it? What did that sentence mean again?’

Tian Shu thought to himself, ‘Official Sovereign of Youdu has become savage by nature, and he is the most unreasonable person in Youdu. Many worlds have been destroyed under his hands. If I knew he would retreat after seeing a mask, I would have given him an entire basket of masks!’

In regards to this Official Sovereign, there were too many legends about him.

Tian Shu and Di Yiyue were both heavenly kings of the Founding Emperor Era, so they naturally knew a lot of stories and rumors.

According to the rumors, Earth Count wasn’t the most terrifying being in Youdu and instead, it was Youdu Official Sovereign who was known as Benevolent Saintly King Equal to Heaven. There was already no way to know when this Official Sovereign had come to Youdu. Some people said he was originally an ordinary human who got invited by Earth Count to become the official sovereign of Youdu. Some people said he was Earth Count’s younger brother and that he was a natural-born sacred god as well.

Earth Count carried out the rules of Youdu strictly, and as long as the rules of Youdu weren’t broken, he would rarely interfere with any matters regarding the world of the living. And even if one broke the rules of Youdu, as long as they escaped back to the world of the living, Earth Count wouldn’t pursue the matter. He would just record it down and deal the punishment after death.

Yet Youdu Official Sovereign would rarely be like strict like Earth Count and not interfere with the rules of the living world.

In countless rumors, Youdu Official Sovereign was a fellow that possessed incomparably terrifying battle power. He was so strong that he wasn’t human at all. With his billions of clones, he rode on his small boats to guide the souls in every world towards Youdu.

If met with the obstruction from a close friend of the dead, a disaster would arise!

In history, numerous worlds had exploded with astonishing news of being wiped out. That was because when Elder Messenger of Death went to collect the souls, he got stopped by the gods there.

When the gods and Elder Messenger of Death fought, the result was also incomparably terrifying.

The power of just one Elder Messenger of Death wasn’t invincible, and many gods could defeat him. However, when billions of Elder Messenger of Death came, it was a world-ending disaster!

This was also the reason why Heavenly King Tian Shu was trembling and afraid to move when he followed Qin Mu to Youdu.

He chopped off the horn of Earth Count, and Earth Count had personally chased him. When he escaped back into the world of the living, Earth Count caught his corporeal body at that instant, but because he was already in the world of the living, Earth Count didn’t kill him.

If it were Youdu Official Sovereign who had given chase, it would be a different situation. Youdu Official Sovereign would definitely kill him, no matter where he escaped to!

After Youdu Sovereign got rid of him, he would even take his soul in for interrogation; there will be no second outcome!

“Only Qin Mu isn’t afraid of Youdu Official Sovereign. Why does this brat have such a big face?”

Heavenly King Tian Shu also had a weird expression. Back then, when they escaped from Imperial Gate Divine Knife, Elder Messenger of Death didn’t have a pleasant face for him, but he was very courteous to Qin Mu, and they even chatted happily.

It was also Qin Mu pleading in front of Earth Count that allowed them to break free from Youdu.

Qin Mu didn’t know how terrifying Official Sovereign was, as he had never seen the scary side of Youdu Official Sovereign.

On the little boat, Elder Messenger of Death wore a mask on the back of his head. He hung the lantern on the bow of the boat, and suddenly, small boats began to split off from this boat to fly off in all directions.

The elder sat down and took down his mask, examining it over and over again. After a moment, he wore it on the back of his head again.

“I’m old.”

His face suddenly became clearer and allowed Qin Mu to see his face clearly. Deep wrinkles filled his face.

From his face, Qin Mu could no longer see those features of Celestial Venerable You. He could only see marks left behind by time.

“Celestial Venerable Mu, long time no see. I’m already old, and I’m no longer suitable to wear this kind of mask. A million years have passed, but you are still young.”

His old eyes flashed with a ripple in his spirit, but it quieted down again.

Qin Mu bowed and said, “Thank you for taking care of me all this while.”

Elder Messenger of Death shook his head and said, “I didn’t recognize you until the willow leaf seal appeared on the heart of your brows. Only then did I think it could be you. Afterward, when Heaven Duke’s seal appeared, I could only confirm. However, I couldn’t interfere with your life, as if I did, you might not be you anymore.

Qin Mu nodded.

Even though his words were hard to understand, Qin Mu still understood.

“Celestial Venerable Mu, let us go meet Celestial Venerable Yu.”

After he met with Qin Mu, the familiarity from the past was gone. Instead, he had become that weird Celestial Venerable You from the past again. He had a calm expression as he said, “For this day, I have waited a million years.”

Qin Mu stayed silent.

A million years to fulfill a promise. Who could do it?

He did it. From a person who was admired by all, from Celestial Venerable You, a greenhorn youth that had boundless prospects, into unsmiling Elder Messenger of Death who everyone was afraid of. Too many things had happened during the past million years, and he had no one he could complain to. He could only complain to himself.

Thus, Elder Messenger of Death increased in number.

Every messenger of death carried his troubles, and every messenger of death couldn’t open up his heart to others.

Qin Mu looked at Earth Count who was closing in. The majestic Earth Count was incomparably vast, and he stood upright in the darkness. The huge horns were immensely massive. He suddenly said, “You have gone this time to take back the horn of Earth Count, now that you are returning empty-handed, how are you going to answer to him?”

Elder Messenger of Death’s face regained its calmness, and his face was indifferent. “I got stopped by someone and couldn’t complete my mission. It will be on your head as usual.”

Qin Mu’s face turned black, and he snorted. “I have a ton of things on my head anyway.”

Elder Messenger of Death nodded his head and said, “There are indeed tons.”

Qin Mu said again, “How did you become the messenger of death in Youdu, and how did you become the official sovereign of Youdu?”

Elder Messenger of Death seemed to be saying something that didn’t concern him. “After you left, I brought the coffin towards Youdu to meet Earth Count. Earth Count said it was okay for me to place Lan Yutian’s corpse with him, but that I had to work for him, so I remained. Because if I remained here, not only could I protect my brother, I could also see my mother. In this way, I could feel that I’m alive.”

Qin Mu was stunned.

The paper boat came to the horn of Earth Count, and it sailed past worlds that were in destruction. Not long later, they finally arrived at the manor of Benevolent Saintly King Equal to Heaven.

“Earth Count is very nice. He is actually very similar to me, very shut off as well.”

Elder Messenger of Death rarely said a lot. “However, I’m better than him. He only has me to talk to, but I have many of myself. I also have mother and brother, who is in the coffin, who would listen to me.”

Qin Mu stood up and jumped down from the boat. He stepped on solid land and said, “Today, Celestial Venerable Yu will be able to come back to life.”

Elder Messenger of Death kept the paper boat and brought him into the manor. The first time Qin Mu came here, he was waiting in the hall for Earth Count’s punishment, and this time, Elder Messenger of Death just brought him straight to his backyard.

There was a middle-aged woman, and she had a sickly look on her face. She was currently lifting up a bucket of blue flames, which was water, with difficulty. She was watering the paramita flowers in the garden.

The paramita flowers bloomed and were like stalks of gorgeous flames blooming in the garden.

“Mother.”

Elder Messenger of Death revealed a rare smile and walked forward. He helped the woman lift up her bucket and said, “Why aren’t you resting? Just leave these menial tasks to me.”

The woman wiped her forehead and said with a smile, “I always feel like finding things to do. Who is this little brother?”

She looked at Qin Mu, and Qin Mu saw that this woman had no corporeal body. She was a frail soul, but that bucket of water probably had no weight at all, which was why she could lift it.

“My friend.”

Elder Messenger of Death said with a smile, “He’s here to visit older brother and us.”

The woman said in delight, “You don’t have many friends, and no one ever comes to visit you to play. It’s rare to have a friend, so let me cook up some dishes! You two can chat first, I will be done very soon.”

She hurriedly went off to start cooking.

Qin Mu bowed. “Much thanks, auntie.”

Elder Messenger of Death invited Qin Mu in to take a seat, and Qin Mu looked around. The house was poor and empty. He asked, “Why don’t you catch some monster to take care of auntie? Or let the primordial spirits of the dead come help as well. With your status, there will definitely be a lot of ghosts willing to help.”

Elder Messenger of Death shook his head. “Mother doesn’t like the monsters, and she doesn’t like the dead either. Earth Count is very nice. After agreeing to his terms, he allowed us to reunite and live here.”

After a moment, the woman finished a few dishes and brought them up. However, the dishes were all emptiness. There was no taste.

Qin Mu gave his thanks and invited the woman to sit down and eat. The woman shook her head with a smile. “I’ll look at you two eat.”

Qin Mu sat down and started to eat with a delicious look. He kept praising her cooking.

The woman was also very happy, and when they finish eating, she cleared the bowls and chopsticks to wash.

“Much thanks,” Elder Messenger of Death said.

“I did what I was supposed to do,” Qin Mu replied.

“You are actually a very good person.”

Elder Messenger of Death got up and walked towards the back of the hall. “Brother is also here. Earth Count used his magic power to preserve his corporeal body as well. Not long ago, I sensed the change in the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. Goddess of Heavenly Yin was revived, and I knew this day wouldn’t be far.”

Qin Mu followed him, and his heart trembled. He finally saw the coffin he had made with Buddha Vitality Crimson Chromium!

Celestial Venerable Yu’s heartbeat came from the coffin!