Langwo and Shu Jun exchanged a glance, suppressing their shock. With no time to think, they hurried through the Gate of Bearing Heaven.
Quinn Shepherd had Dutian, Annie, Dragon-Qilin, and the others board the Heavenly Dragon Imperial Palanquin and drive it through the Gate of Bearing Heaven. He was just about to step in himself when suddenly a paper boat sailed over. On board, the Elder Underworld Courier called out, "Shepherd Heavenly Venerable, wait."
Quinn stopped and asked, "Does Nether-Venerable have any advice?"
[Translator's Note: Nether-Venerable is the ruler of the Netherworld.]
The Elder Underworld Courier said, "Tu Bo sent me to ask Shepherd Heavenly Venerable why you're mixing with the Creators. Tu Bo says the Creators are a vicious race, notorious for their crimes and evildoing; in the past, they brought disaster to the cosmos and committed every atrocity. By associating with them, you're helping a tyrant and will lose the support of the ancient gods."
Quinn replied deferentially, "Please tell Tu Bo that I was able to earn the title of Grand Archmage only thanks to his and Heaven Duke's support, so I would never act recklessly. As for the Creators, I'm merely borrowing their strength to deal with Supreme Emperor; we're using each other, nothing more. I have no intention of turning against the ancient gods with their help. I await Earth Sovereign's sacred judgment, trembling with fear."
The Elder Underworld Courier stared at him for a moment, then said, "That last line was a bit much, wasn't it? Tu Bo isn't the Heavenly Emperor, you don't need to be that terrified."
Quinn replied solemnly, "After all, Tu Bo basically raised me. As a junior, I should be properly respectful and sincerely humble."
The Elder Underworld Courier kept staring at him, then shook his head and said, "Go on, I'll report to Tu Bo."
Quinn thanked him and asked, "How is Heaven-Guide Venerable—the one overseeing the Heaven-Guide Divine War-Body—lately?"
He wouldn't have brought it up, but as soon as Heaven-Guide Venerable was mentioned, the Elder Underworld Courier flew into a rage and snapped, "He was stolen!"
[Translator's Note: Heaven-Guide Venerable here refers to the Heaven-Guide Divine War-Body, a powerful living artifact.]
Quinn jumped in surprise and blurted out, "Heaven-Guide Venerable was stolen? Who would dare? Someone actually snuck into Youdu and stole Heaven-Guide Venerable? Weren't you watching him?"
"I have to harvest souls everywhere and ferry the dead, with a billion avatars. How could I possibly keep an eye on him all the time?"
The Elder Underworld Courier grumbled, "He's my brother, not my son. I could only spare a few avatars to watch him and let him wander Youdu. I never expected a thief would sneak in and steal him away right under my nose."
Quinn asked suspiciously, "Where did the thief who stole Heaven-Guide Venerable come from?"
"Where else? From your household, of course!"
The Elder Underworld Courier sneered, "You'd better keep your elders in line! Truly outrageous, sneaking into Youdu to cause trouble! I'll let it go this time; Heaven-Guide Venerable staying in Youdu did slow his growth. But your elder running around with Heaven-Guide Venerable, stealing things everywhere, is no good—watch out, or Heavenly Court will catch you."
Quinn agreed, "I'll make sure to discipline Grandpa Crippled and keep him from causing trouble. Nether-Venerable, you can rest assured."
The Elder Underworld Courier saw him off, then sailed his boat back to Tu Bo's brow-eye, repeating Quinn's words to Tu Bo's true spirit.
Tu Bo was surprised. "He said, 'I await Earth Sovereign's sacred judgment, trembling with fear'?"
The Elder Underworld Courier nodded. "He was very sincere."
"Such rare courtesy—let's just drop the matter for today and put it on the ledger."
The Elder Underworld Courier agreed, then asked, "Now that Shepherd Heavenly Venerable and the Netherworld Divine Son are separated, do they need separate ledgers?"
Tu Bo replied, "In the past, he and the Netherworld Divine Son were one. The Divine Son's crimes are also his crimes. Justice must be fair; just because they're separated now doesn't mean we don't count his past mistakes."
The Elder Underworld Courier praised, "Earth Sovereign is truly impartial and just."
Quinn returned to the living world and saw the Heavenly Dragon Imperial Palanquin parked nearby, with God-Queen Langwo and the others waiting for him. Langwo and Shu Jun still looked a bit pale.
"Sister God-Queen, you don't fear Pioneer Heavenly Venerable, nor any other Heavenly Venerables. Why are you afraid of Tu Bo?" Quinn asked, puzzled.
"Tu Bo is the natural nemesis of the Creators."
Langwo shook her head. "Even your brother, Little Earth Sovereign, slaughtered the Creators so badly we were routed. Let alone Tu Bo himself."
Quinn paused, recalling that in the Beyond-Shore World, Carefree Haven was always on the defensive until Fenix arrived and changed everything.
The Creators in the Beyond-Shore World had unmatched divine sense, but when faced with the Netherworld Divine Son Fenix, they suffered heavy casualties—many were eaten by the big-headed baby.
The Dao of Youdu really does seem to counter the Creators.
Shu Jun said, "We're strong in divine sense but weak in Primordial Spirit. With a weak Primordial Spirit, our souls are fragile—easy for Fenix to strip and devour. Fenix is the Little Earth Sovereign, but before the true Earth Sovereign, the Creators' flaws are even more NB: Tu Bo can kill Creators with ease. In the primordial war, more Creators died at Tu Bo's hands than at the hands of the Heavenly Emperor, Heaven Duke, and Earth Mother combined!"
Langwo said, "I never saw the primordial wars myself, but I've heard from the Ancestor-Spirits about Tu Bo's fearsome reputation. When I led the Creators of the Beyond-Shore World in Reform, we adopted the Divine Treasury-Heaven Palace system and began cultivating Primordial Spirit, hoping to eliminate our weaknesses. Even so, when facing Little Earth Sovereign Fenix, the gap was still huge."
Quinn laughed, "What you learned is just the Carefree Haven method for cultivating Primordial Spirit, but that's already far behind Everpeace's. At the same realm, Everpeace cultivators and gods have much stronger Primordial Spirits. For example, at the same level, my Primordial Spirit can beat Kaihuang's by this much!"
He stretched out his hand, indicating a large gap.
Langwo and Shu Jun were both skeptical.
Especially Shu Jun, who'd seen Quinn fight Kaihuang—Quinn was only a bit stronger, not by much.
But they didn't know that this time, Quinn wasn't exaggerating.
Kaihuang's strength lies in combat power—Sword Twenty and the Thirty-Four-Heaven Sword Dao are so powerful, they more than make up for his lack of cultivation.
Quinn's advantage is in Primordial Spirit and mana. His Primordial Spirit is so deep that just his Spirit Embryo Treasury and Primordial Spirit mana can match a Jade Terrace god; after reaching Revered God, his mana nearly rivals Execution Platform experts.
The reason his fight with Kaihuang looked even was because Kaihuang's sword Dao was so overwhelming.
But in terms of Primordial Spirit alone, Kaihuang is far inferior to Quinn.
Quinn looked around and frowned. He'd originally planned to head to Goldenridge from Fallen-God Valley, but now that he'd entered and exited Youdu, the geography had changed—he was farther from Goldenridge and much closer to Bazhou.
"In that case, let's go to Heavenly Saint Academy to see Granny Sue and the others first."
He sat down with Langwo and Shu Jun and told the Nethervault Demon King to head for Heavenly Saint Academy. In the carriage, Quinn took out the jade bottle containing Supreme Emperor's sealed divine sense and said, "Let's refine Supreme Emperor's divine sense. I don't want his cultivation, just his memories and the Grand-Luo Supreme Divine Sense. The rest of his divine sense is yours."
Langwo hesitated, then nodded. "A large part of Supreme Emperor's divine sense wasn't cultivated, but built up through sacrificial rites in the primordial era. That made his divine sense impure, limiting his achievements. The Ancestor-Spirits say the reason Supreme Emperor lost to the ancient gods was because he relied on sacrifices to advance, which gave him a fatal flaw. If he'd cultivated all his power himself, defeating the ancient gods and sweeping the field would have been easy."
Shu Jun's eyes lit up and he grinned. "If you don't want Supreme Emperor's divine sense, I'll take it. Langwo, do you want any?"
Langwo hesitated, then said, "Let's split it in half. At our level, it's hard to improve further, but even if Supreme Emperor's divine sense isn't pure, it's worth a try. Actually, let's split it three ways—one part for each of us, and save a third for the Saint Baby."
Quinn didn't understand her reasoning.
Langwo said gently, "If you ever reach a bottleneck and can't advance further, you can refine Supreme Emperor's divine sense to boost your cultivation. My Creator clan could even hold a collective rite to help you grow stronger."
Quinn thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
The three immediately activated their divine sense and focused on refining it, while the Heavenly Dragon Imperial Palanquin rolled on toward Heavenly Saint Academy.
In Everpeace's capital, Kaihuang bowed and said, "I've learned much from your teaching, Sword God Su Mu Zhe. Elder, no need to see me off."
Village Chief insisted, "What I've learned from you is a hundred times what you've learned from me. Brother Ye, your talent is one of only two sword Dao prodigies I've ever seen—how could I not see you off?"
Kaihuang was surprised. "You've seen another with sword Dao talent equal to mine? Is it Shepherd Heavenly Venerable?"
Village Chief shook his head and smiled. "Quinn's sword Dao is brilliant, but his restless nature keeps him from truly delving into it—his sword heart isn't pure. The one whose sword heart matches yours is Everpeace's former National Preceptor, Jiang Bai Gui of Goldenridge."
Kaihuang was moved. "Where is this National Preceptor now?"
"He was captured and imprisoned by Heavenly Court, along with the Supreme Emperor."
Village Chief said, "Jiang Bai Gui's sword heart is utterly pure. His sword Dao is like the birth of the cosmos, nurturing all things. He uses sword Dao to evolve all Daos, and his sword heart is the clearest I've ever seen. He created the Fifteenth, Sixteenth, and Seventeenth Sword Forms. If you ever meet him, you'll talk for ages and never tire."
Kaihuang pondered, then sighed, "Sadly, he's imprisoned, and I don't know when I'll see him again. I still need to visit other academies and witness Everpeace's Reform, so I can't go to the prison. If fate allows, I'll meet him someday. Farewell."
Village Chief watched him go and didn't return to the Grand Academy for a long time.
Blind and Mute came looking for him. Mute's voice boomed, "Village Chief, did you meet that Ye Kai fellow? He's a true prodigy! Everpeace needs people like him—why didn't you keep him here?"
Village Chief shook his head. "Kaihuang is a prodigy, but I couldn't keep him."
Blind and Mute were startled, exchanging glances.
"When he came to see me, I didn't even look at him—just sensed his aura and felt a sword king standing atop the Thirty-Fourth Heaven. Then I knew the greatest swordsman had arrived."
Village Chief said quietly, "Anyone who practices sword Dao and achieves anything will eventually feel there's a peak they can't climb. That peak is Kaihuang, always ahead. He came this time to give Everpeace Sword Twenty."