Tales of Herding Gods

Superior Emperor Wen Chang chanted an ancient Dao language, then picked up his brush and wrote something in his scroll.

Superior Emperor Wen Chang’s words contained power. His Dao language could transform into the divine arts of this world, and he could have anything he desired. He could summon wind, clouds, thunder, or lightning just by chanting the Dao language.

He could also create anything simply by painting with his brush. If he painted a dragon, the dragon would rise and fly. If he painted a rope, the rope would tighten and bind. If he painted Mount Meru, there would be Mount Meru crashing down!

Even though Yun Jianli had transformed into Superior Emperor Wen Chang, he was unable to counter Qin Mu. Qin Mu’s spirit of fists repeatedly broke through all of Superior Emperor Wen Chang’s divine arts. It seemed as easy as breaking a dead branch from a tree.

Qin Mu was peerless in close combat!

Another flag rose, wrapping around the retreating Yun Jianli. It then exploded as three-legged golden crows rose, carrying a giant sun, and charged towards Qin Mu.

Yun Jianli repeatedly transformed, from the Great Sun Sovereign to the Five Elements Star Sovereigns, and from Seven Kills Star Sovereign to heavenly spirits and earthly fiends. He went through the 360 gods at will, it was dazzling to the eyes.

At the time of Celestial Venerable Yun’s death, the Purple Heavens Blue Skies technique could be considered as just taking shape. However, this technique evolved over time and was continuously improved by the Yun family.

Only now could the Purple Heavens Blue Skies technique be considered complete, displaying a level of beauty different from other techniques.

This technique finally matured after over ten thousand years. Although Celestial Venerable Yun had died, his technique was now equal to those of the other Celestial Venerables.

This was exactly where the beauty of Celestial Venerable Yun lay.

Qin Mu continued to use the divine art of Martial Dao to battle Yun Jianli, infusing the spirit of Eternal Peace’s reform into his divine art. Whatever ancient god he faced, he repeatedly used his fists and palms to smash and kill, appearing incomparably valiant.

No matter how intricate Yun Jianli’s divine art was or how real his transformations were, in Qin Mu’s eyes, they were filled with flaws.

Qin Mu was the founder of the Computational Canon of Supreme Molecule, so Yun Jianli’s runes of the ancient gods’ Great Dao, which were based on Dao Ancestor’s calculation of classic algebra, hadn’t yet reached the level of perfection.

Suddenly, flags rose into the air, merging together in succession. The figure of Yun Jianli then flew up, merging with the flags into one body.

The sky was filled with radiance as the body of a majestic-looking ancient god materialized. It looked as though it was made from pure light. He had white brows, white eyes, and a white beard. Even his eyes were snow-white, glowing brilliantly.

Heaven Duke.

Behind Yun Jianli, 49 strange treasures filled up the sky, formed by 49 types of Heavenly Dao.

The Purple Heavens Blue Skies technique displayed by Yun Jianli had reached the level of perfection. If Qin Mu didn’t have the reform of Eternal Peace, he would be unable to discover the flaws in this technique.

Qin Mu exclaimed in admiration as the third eye at the heart of his brows finally opened, a halo appearing behind his head. It was swallowing up all sorts of light, like a black hole.

His corporeal body began to transform as his third eye glowed brighter, looking as though it contained the blazing divine fire of Youdu.

Flames surged out of his forehead as it grew a pair of cow horns that had nine bends and eighteen curves. His face turned into that of a tiger as his corporeal body expanded, looking more and more imposing.

Terrifying devil qi of Youdu suddenly rose from the Jade Sea, turning the surroundings within a radius of a hundred miles into Youdu.

In front of the Slow Winding Pavilion, a tiny Earth Count burrowed out of the dragon qilin’s ear. He stared at Qin Mu with wide-open eyes and cried out, “Scared…”

Before the dragon qilin could say anything, Yan’er had spotted this little creature. She was delighted and gave it a spirit pill.

The tiny Earth Count struggled to carry the spirit pill, and he solemnly asked Yan’er, “Scared?”

“Yes, exactly the same as you.”

Yan’er laughed. “Fatty Dragon, you brought this little creature along?”

The dragon qilin nodded and said softly, “I don’t know when he crawled on my body, but I find him quite pitiful, so I kept him by my side, taking care of him. If this little fellow was out there on his own, he would have died of hunger by the second day.”

As they were talking, Qin Mu had turned into Earth Count and was battling the Heaven Duke that Yun Jianli had transformed into over the Jade Sea. Heaven Duke and Earth Count hadn’t fought each other before, so no one knew who was stronger between these two leaders of the ancient gods. Most likely, many people would be keen to find out.

Although this wasn’t a battle between the real Earth Count and Heaven Duke, rather transformations of Qin Mu and Yun Jianli, people were beyond excited.

Terrifying waves rippled in all directions, instantly striking the people standing in front of the Slow Winding Pavilion. First came the tremors and contortion of space, carrying along with it the power of their divine arts and changes in their situation!

The mountain ranges on the island were being stretched—some became ten times longer, while some had peaks that suddenly became extremely tiny.

Upon seeing this, Yan’er immediately spread her wings to shield the Slow Winding Pavilion, protecting everybody.

The second wave of impact was the waves of the Jade Sea. The towering waves almost flipped the Jade Sea on its back, its gushing water covering everything. Even the divine turtles that were flying in the sky earlier were struck until they lost their footing. They wriggled their limbs weakly in the air as they carried islands and divine mountains on their backs.

In the sea, the gigantic golden lotuses were swaying unsteadily due to the impact. They released waves and waves of golden light, shielding themselves from the attacks, hence they weren’t destroyed.

The third wave of impact was a hurricane. Its wind speed exceeded the speed of sound many times over, uprooting and swallowing everything as it produced a sound that was incomparably terrifying.

This level of power was something many gods were unable to control, yet it was being executed by Qin Mu and Yun Jianli, two sickly-looking divine arts practitioners. It was truly astonishing!

Only when things became calm did Yan’er fold up her wings. Qi Jiuyi, the dragon qilin, and the rest looked over and saw Qin Mu and Yun Jianli standing on the sea surface, not proceeding with their battle.

Qi Jiuyi was truly impressed. “Yun Jianli is worthy of being number one among the younger generation, truly a descendant of Celestial Venerable Yun. Cult Master Qin is also impressive, considering he could actually match up to him. If Cult Master Qin is able to survive, it may not be impossible to live up to the title of Celestial Venerable.”

The dragon qilin laughed. “Third Brother, you still don’t understand Cult Master. He’s a humble man, always giving chances in whatever he does.”

Qi Jiuyi was slightly stunned as he broke out into laughter. “Humble? Since when is Cult Master Qin humble? Second Brother, please don’t joke around.”

“Cult Master has been humble all along, except that it’s to the point where you feel like punching him.”

The dragon qilin said, “Look, when he was fighting with Yun Jianli, he didn’t utilize his primordial spirit at all. Also, he didn’t use the sword skills which he is most proficient in.”

Qi Jiuyi shook his head, not thinking much of the dragon qilin’s words. “How would Cult Master Qin have a primordial spirit? He doesn’t have a soul, so naturally, he’s unable to utilize his primordial spirit. As for his sword skills, what good would it do in a situation where even the Heavenly Dao and Great Dao of Youdu were used?”

Above the Jade Sea, Yun Jianli’s breathing gradually became steadier. He then coughed violently with his face flushed. “Celestial Venerable Mu, what do you think of my ancestor’s Purple Heavens Blue Skies technique?”

Qin Mu gasped in admiration and said, “It’s a good technique, a thing of beauty. Celestial Venerable Yun lived up to the title of Celestial Venerable. Brother Yun, you aren’t bad either. With your current abilities, you should be able to battle a few rounds with a young Celestial Venerable.”

Yun Jianli’s eyes flickered, and he said, “In that case, Celestial Venerable, are you implying that my ancestor’s technique is outdated?”

“This is natural.”

Qin Mu said with great sincerity, “You don’t have to feel inferior. Even within the lower bound, not many people could defeat you, probably just two who are in the same realm as you. To achieve this degree of accomplishment without the reform of Eternal Peace, you haven’t let Celestial Venerable Yun down.”

Yun Jianli broke out into laughter. “There are two people in the Primordial Realm whose abilities can surpass me? Are they stronger than Celestial Venerables?”

Qin Mu shook his head. “Their abilities are inferior to mine by a little and stronger than yours by a little. After all, I’m the Overlord Body. Even so, compared to all of you, I’m just a line better.”

Yun Jianli laughed until he started coughing violently. He recovered after panting a few heavy breaths and said, “In that case, Celestial Venerable didn’t display his full power earlier. I heard that Celestial Venerable has the title of Overlord Body in the lower bound and is also an expert in sword skills. That year, at the Jade Pool meeting, the projection of Mistress Yuanmu was unable to solve even one of your sword skills. I would like to witness Celestial Venerable’s sword skills!”

Qin Mu revealed a pained expression. “Brother Yun, you’re a genius. I wouldn’t want to cause you to have setbacks and affect your Dao heart…”

Yun Jianli replied with a serious expression, “My ancestor held Celestial Venerable’s sword skills in high regard. Celestial Venerable, you don’t have to hold back. If my family’s ultimate art loses to Celestial Venerable, that isn’t a defeat to me, it’s a fortunate thing.”

He was full of confidence and pride as he said sincerely, “Only when I’m defeated will I realize that my Yun family isn’t yet perfect and has room for improvement. If I’m not defeated, then there’s simply no joy in living anymore! Truth be told, I have an unfinished move which I have yet to display. I would like Celestial Venerable to meet my move with your sword skills, allowing me to be defeated convincingly!”

His power exploded once again.

At this moment, Qi Jiuyi looked around the nearby area and saw many young men and women sailing on a ship across the sea towards them.

The dragon qilin looked around and said, “Third Brother, who are these people?”

Qi Jiuyi looked at the people on the ship, his expression grim. “These are people on the Splendid Youths List and Divine Talents List. There are many young people in the celestial heavens. In order to motivate these young people, the celestial heavens created the Spirit Talents List, Splendid Youths List, and Divine Talents List. The Divine Talents List is meant to rank the disciples of Celestial Venerables, ancient gods, heavenly kings, the four deities, and princes. The Splendid Youths List is meant for disciples of influential families, while the Spirit Talents List is meant for commoners and ordinary folks. The people on this ship are people from the Divine Talents List and Splendid Youths List.”

He shook his head and said, “These people come with unkind intentions. I knew nothing good would come of Cult Master Qin’s trip to the celestial heavens. It’s a joke that he thought that no one would dare touch or kill him. If the celestial heavens want to kill, not to mention a Celestial Venerable, they would even kill the heavenly king!”

These people were approaching. Their ship came to a stop as they prepared to disembark.

Qi Jiuyi whispered, “It’s certain they are here to create trouble, looking for an excuse to kill Cult Master Qin. Second Brother, don’t interfere. Let me receive them. They are bound to give some face to the disciple of Red Deity and Black Deity. However, I’m only able to protect you, not Cult Master Qin…”

He also turned to Yan’er and said solemnly, “If Cult Master Qin encounters any danger, you are not to react either. After all, we’re in the celestial heavens. They may have some apprehension killing Cult Master Qin, but not you!”

He didn’t wait for the dragon qilin or Yan’er to answer and went forward by himself, laughing heartily. “Everyone, it has been a long time since we last met. What brings you to the Jade Pool?”

“Oh, its Brother Jiuyi.”

A man in yellow standing at the front laughed. “I heard that Brother Jiuyi hadn’t returned for a long time after descending to the lower bound. Because of this, I thought that you’d been killed. I didn’t expect you to still be alive. Truly, heaven is blind.”

Qi Jiuyi laughed coldy. “Thanks to your blessings. A good man will receive heaven’s aid. I’m truly blessed, so needless to say, I’m still alive.”

A delicate and elegant-looking girl with wings on her back looked towards the Jade Sea, where Qin Mu and Yun Jianli were. She said with interest, “That was Celestial Venerable Mu and Yun Jianli exchanging blows earlier, right? Indeed, it was powerful. Their divine arts are boundless. It almost made me too afraid to come here.”

“A Celestial Venerable naturally has such abilities.”

Another Daoist laughed. “Celestial Venerable Mu came from a tiny little place in the lower bound, so it’s remarkable that his abilities can match up to Yun Jianli.”

Everybody nodded their heads and smiled. “No wonder the country bumpkins of the lower bound refer to him as Overlord Body of Eternal Peace. He indeed has some talent!”

Suddenly, Yun Jianli’s power exploded forth once more, giving everybody a shock. “They want to continue fighting?”

However, this was different from before. Yun Jianli raised his palm as runes flew around madly, forming an apparition of the Heaven Han Celestial Heavens.

Many stars formed as throne halls and god cities appeared one after another. His toughened runes constructed many ancient-looking gods, each with their apparition.

The number of gods increased as the celestial palace neared completion. Once finished, the Heaven Han Celestial Heavens looked as though it had materialized from the past into reality. Within the Numinous Sky Hall of the Heaven Han Celestial Heavens, a celestial emperor seemed to be brought back to life.

A loud and clear Dao sound suddenly rang throughout the Jade Sea, truly deafening!

Even the expressions of the reputable people of the Splendid Youths List and Divine Talents List instantly changed. Yun Jianli hadn’t displayed this ultimate art in front of anyone before, meaning it must be a great divine art that he had recently created!

His qi and blood were extremely intense, and his aura was incomparably overbearing, striking fear and dread in the hearts of people!

Right at this moment, Yun Jianli completely unleashed the power of this great divine art. This mudra allowed Yun Jianli to break through to a realm that he had never been able to reach in the past, making his inner heart clear and bright.

In the past, he was unable to fully unleash the power of this move. However, when facing a strong enemy like Qin Mu, he could finally put down his restraints and worries, displaying his aspirations and ideals without hesitation!

In his heart, this move was already perfect!

A moment later, a sword flew out, full of Heaven Han.

Qin Mu’s sword light was extraordinarily sharp. It pierced through the Heaven Han Celestial Heavens and killed the celestial emperor in the Numinous Sky Hall. Its sword light then stabbed into Yun Jianli’s body.

Yun Jianli heard a loud explosion, and his divine bridge was unexpectedly broken by Qin Mu’s sword, his Divine Bridge Divine Treasure crumbling and collapsing!