The surging earth suddenly fell silent. Then, the Imperial Gate Divine Saber—planted deep in the ground—sliced open the earth and shot westward. Tanner Shue gripped the hilt, trying to steady the saber, but the force below was so strong that even he was dragged along, pulled toward the west.
The Imperial Gate Divine Saber was incomparably sharp. As it passed through a mountain, the mountain was cleanly sliced in two, split right down the middle!
Seeing this, the Old Farmer let out a thunderous shout and smashed his fist into the ground. From below came a series of cracking booms, as if something vast was being shattered segment by segment.
At last, Tanner Shue managed to wrench free the Imperial Gate Divine Saber. He leaped up, his body flickering as he transformed into his ram-headed god form, complete with a pair of curved horns, and brought the saber down in a mighty slash!
He poured every ounce of his skill into that slash. Though he struck only once, countless saber-lights drilled into the depths of the earth.
His saber technique was exquisite—he was the highest achiever of saber-into-Dao cultivation in the Kaihuang era. Otherwise, Kaihuang would never have entrusted him with the task of wielding Imperial Gate to cut down Tu Bo.
As the saber fell, the ground split open in all directions. Deep below, saber-lights darted wildly, while enormous root-tentacles writhed amid the flashes. The swelling earth surged rapidly westward; in the distance, mountain chains rippled like waves, fleeing at astonishing speed.
On the surface, lakes of divine blood pooled together into marshes, their surfaces glowing with radiant mist.
Tanner Shue drew his saber and slung it over his shoulder, puzzled. "I clearly struck her—so why can't the Imperial Gate Divine Saber capture her soul?"
"If you cut Tu Bo with one blow, could you capture the Earth Sovereign's soul?"
Behind him, the Old Farmer's voice called out: "Let's go. Back to the capital."
Tanner Shue turned and walked back to the capital alongside him.
Inside a residence in the capital, Aurora Yates and the Scholar joined forces to break the Earth Mother blessing behind Qin Mu's head. As the blessing was torn away, the shock left Qin Mu dazed and nauseous; he had to steady himself against the wall, retching for a moment before he recovered slightly, though his face remained pale.
The Celestial Teachers and Heavenly Kings exchanged uneasy glances. "We only broke the Earth Mother blessing, and Shepherd is already in this state. Heaven-Guide Venerable has hundreds of halos behind his head, and he's only in the Spirit Embryo Realm—can he possibly withstand it?"
Qin Mu shook his head, still feeling dizzy and disoriented.
When the Woodcutter Sage removed the Earth-Origin Dao Fruit, he barely felt a thing. The Dao Fruit was linked to his soul, so the Woodcutter simply blasted his soul into Youdu, severing the connection and letting the Dao Fruit fall away on its own.
But the Earth Mother blessing was different—far more complex. It could continuously draw strength from the earth, regenerate itself, and was linked to both his flesh and Primordial Spirit. Even if Qin Mu died, the halo would remain.
Aurora Yates and the Scholar used the most brutal method, forcibly cracking each rune that made up the Earth Mother blessing one by one.
Over the past days, they had studied those runes thoroughly and each devised a way to break them. When they did, the shockwaves battered Qin Mu's body and Primordial Spirit, making it an agonizing ordeal.
"Heaven-Guide Venerable can't withstand it."
The Woodcutter Sage shook his head. "If we want to remove all these blessings, we'll need Emperor's-Throne–level experts to shield his Primordial Spirit and flesh. And we have to guard against live ancient gods attacking. Heaven-Guide Venerable is a major concern—if he revives, we can't hide it from the ancient gods who once blessed him. If we try to break the god-blessings, it's not just Earth Mother Primordial Lady who'll react. We need to move fast and erase the blessings before those gods can respond!"
The Scholar shook her head. "My wisdom isn't enough—I can't fully break all the blessings behind his head."
Aurora Yates also shook her head. "These blessings are deeply interwoven. I can easily handle the Four-Emperors' and Heaven Duke's blessings, but some I can't even comprehend."
King Buddha, the Old Farmer, Fisher, and the others all shook their heads as well.
The Woodcutter Sage said, "Then I'll work with my youngest disciple to break them. The rest of you stand guard and watch for ancient gods. White Jasper, come here!"
The Imperial Preceptor of the Everpeace Empire arrived and said, "Teacher."
The Woodcutter Sage said, "Let's join forces to break all the god-blessings behind Heaven-Guide Venerable's head. Are you confident?"
The Imperial Preceptor pondered for a moment. "The Heavenly-Emperor Blessing will be difficult. Its structure is extremely complex, containing an enormous variety of Daos. Breaking it will take a long time—I've never seen such a strange Dao before. But if I work with you, we have an eighty or ninety percent chance."
The Woodcutter Sage said, "I'll work with White Jasper. First Heavenly King, you stabilize Heaven-Guide Venerable's body and Primordial Spirit. The rest of you, be ready to guard against ancient gods."
Everyone voiced their agreement.