The elders of Oldridge Village who raised Qin Mu had never had children themselves, and so they never taught him anything about this subject or shared any experience.
The Village Chief was the Human Emperor, devoted every day to overthrowing High Heaven and never dared start a family.
Butcher was a saber maniac and a great poet, wild and unrestrained, and never gave a second thought to trivialities like marriage or having children.
Crippled Joe was infamous—either thieving, escaping, or being hunted, but never settling down.
Grandpa Blind never spoke of his family, and the Mute Smith was only known for being cruelly deceived.
On her wedding night, Granny Sue killed her husband, Tyson Li.
Deaf was obsessed with painting and calligraphy; after his country fell and his family was destroyed, he wandered, half-mad and never mentioned his household again. He once had a wife and child, but they died when the country collapsed.
Grandpa Mark was the same. His wife and children were killed by monks from Great Thunderclap Temple.
The only one with any real experience was Apothecary, but the villagers always used him as a cautionary tale, warning Qin Mu that women were dangerous.
The Village Chief said, 'How can one have a family before High Heaven is destroyed?' Granny Sue said all women outside were fox spirits. Butcher's poems and blades were full of wild horses, strong wine, and sharp knives—never women.
Only now did Quinn Shepherd realize that if he wanted to have children, he could only ask the Imperial Preceptor of the Everpeace Empire—someone who actually had kids.
As for his companions, Dragon-Qilin and the water kirin were out of the question, Heaven-Guide Venerable was too simple-minded to ask, and Grace Gongsun was still just a little sapling—she wouldn’t understand even if he tried.
Better head back to Everpeace.
Quinn Shepherd sat atop Dragon-Qilin, looking back at the battlefield where the two Earth Mothers were still fighting. The terrifying tremors occasionally reached them—he couldn’t tell if it was aftershocks from divine arts or if the battle was still raging.
Grace Gongsun also gazed that way, deeply worried. "I wonder how Earth Mother is doing. I don’t know if Autumn Cloud Phoenix is alive or dead—she took the Earth-Primordial Sword, so she shouldn’t die…"
She looked a bit lost.
For tens of thousands of years, she’d quietly farmed outside the Earth Mother Primordial Lady’s shrine, tending fields and caring for the fragmented soul of Earth Mother. This upheaval had completely disrupted her life, leaving this simple girl bewildered.
She couldn’t return to the Earth Mother Primordial Lady’s shrine, and now she felt directionless about her future. In truth, she was more like a tree—she liked to put down roots and stay in one place.
Drifting everywhere, she just wasn’t used to it.
Beside her, Quinn Shepherd was still holding her hand. The energy of the Earth-Origin Dao Fruit flowed steadily through his palm into her body. The warmth from his hand calmed her, and the tiny Origin-Root sapling in her halo perked up, its branches stretching and slowly growing.
Still couldn’t talk to Queena White.
Quinn Shepherd withdrew his gaze, feeling a little melancholic: "I wonder how she’s fared over these forty thousand years. She should have escaped… As for the Earth Mother battle, no matter who wins or loses, it’s bad news for Everpeace. If both Earth Mothers perish together, that would be ideal—but the odds are slim. The next best thing is if they both end up gravely wounded and split the Earth-Mother Origin World between them. That way, Everpeace and the Great Ruins would be under the least pressure. Too bad I’m not strong enough for that."
Even if he wanted to find Queena White, it would be nearly impossible. The Earth-Mother Origin World was now many times larger than in the Great Ruins era—finding one person was just too hard.
Meanwhile, on the battlefield of the North Sovereign Heavenly Court, the two Earth Mother Primordial Ladies were still fighting. Though not as terrifying as at first, the clash was still earth-shattering—even Emperor’s Throne powerhouses would be afraid.
One Earth Mother Primordial Lady was above ground, the other below, but the land seemed almost nonexistent—only the radiance of Dao rules filled the air, turning the earth golden as countless mountains rose and fell in waves.
Primordial magnetism divine power tugged at the stars, sun, and moon in the sky. Every so often, a burst of primordial magnetism would erupt from those celestial bodies, turning into soul-shaking blades of light that slashed down from the heavens at the opponent.
With my current strength, it’s hard to slay both Earth Mother Primordial Ladies. After all, I’m still only at the Lingxiao Realm, not yet an Emperor’s Throne. Right, Luther the Donkey?
At the edge of the battlefield, the scholar sat sideways on his donkey, watching the epic clash and saying to the donkey, "The best I can do is severely injure both Earth Mothers, forcing them to divide the Earth-Mother Origin World so Everpeace won’t be threatened too much."
The donkey replied, "Eee-aw!"
The scholar opened his small bundle with a smile: "It’s lucky both Earth Mothers were wounded in the fight and aren’t at their peak anymore. Otherwise, I’d have to reach Emperor’s Throne myself to hurt them."