During the late Kaihuang Era, the celestial omens turned ominous. The gods of that age forged Solar Arks and Lunar Arks to drive away darkness, let all things flourish, and allow the common folk to survive.
But these two types of ships were also supreme weapons of war. The Sun Wardens of the Solar Arks and the Moon Wardens of the Lunar Arks could channel the vast power of their vessels, raising their own might to the level of heavenly gods—capable of reshaping worlds.
Quinn Shepherd has used both a Solar Ark and borrowed a Lunar Ark before, so he knows well how formidable and extraordinary these ships can be.
By using the Dragon-Raising Codex’s Dragon Command, he could borrow the power of the Flood Dragon King and its herd, opening his Divine Bridge and sending his Primordial Spirit straight to the Heavenly Court—but only reaching the South Heaven Gate, unable to enter the deeper court. Yet by channeling the Solar and Lunar Arks’ power, he could go straight to the Jade Terrace, standing beside the Jade Pool!
However, the Solar and Lunar Arks have a natural nemesis: True Heaven Palace’s All-Gods Natural Art.
The Solar Ark lends its power to the Sun Warden, and the Lunar Ark to the Moon Warden, but this strength comes from the ships themselves—not the wardens personally. Both vessels contain immense, terrifying energy, powered by divine creations—the sun and moon themselves—which is how they can dispel darkness.
All-Gods Natural Art, on the other hand, is founded on the belief that everything has a spirit and a god. By sensing nature, its adepts create primal spirits and awaken all things, bringing the world itself to life to fight for them.
What if a deity who practiced All-Gods Natural Art could awaken the spirits of the Solar and Lunar Arks, making them fight for her instead?
Then, for the Sun Wardens, Moon Wardens, and the Sun-Herders and Moon-Herders aboard, only massacre and death would await—even the wardens themselves would be unable to escape!
“Many years ago, there must have been a terrible battle here. The Solar and Lunar Arks met a deity skilled in All-Gods Natural Art—and were all annihilated. And this...”
Quinn looked west, his gaze flickering like a candle in the wind: "This must be deeply connected to True Heaven Palace in the Western Lands."
He had always assumed that True Heaven Palace in the west was just another holy land like Great Thunderclap Temple or Dao Gate. Its Palace Master might have extraordinary powers and techniques, but was still trapped at the Divine Bridge Realm, no different from other sanctuaries.
But now, it seems True Heaven Palace is hiding many secrets—perhaps even something truly terrifying.
Not only that, the name 'True Heaven Palace' itself is worth pondering.
Heavenly Saint Cult is named for the Woodcutter Sage who passed down the scriptures; Great Thunderclap Temple is named for Mount Sumeru, which sits high among thunderclouds where thunder and Buddha's chants roar together. That's how those places got their names.
Dao Gate is named for the Dao Sword and the gate of Mount Kunlun; Little Jade Capital itself is a fragment of Jade Capital from the Kaihuang Era. The names of these holy lands all hint at their origins.
So what is the origin of True Heaven Palace?
Why did the gods of True Heaven Palace want to destroy the Solar and Lunar Arks?
The god-temple ruins in the desert and those eerie dune-giants must be the work of True Heaven Palace’s deities. And the strange fire covering the desert—branding Great Ruins cast-outs with flame marks that eventually kill them—could that be related to True Heaven Palace too?
Why do Great Ruins cast-outs show flame marks when they set foot here? Why are only they burned to death by the strange fire, while others remain unharmed?
How many secrets are hidden in the Western Lands?
The desert flames blazed fiercely, unbearably hot for him. Suddenly, another ruin appeared ahead. Before Bruno the Dragon-Qilin could approach, wild sand began to swirl and gather within the ruins—a dune-giant slowly took shape, then another and another, each one rising with whirling sand at their feet.
Bruno was about to detour, but Quinn shook his head: "No need, keep going."
Bruno had no choice but to charge straight toward the murderous dune-giants. Quinn’s eyes spun with layers of formation patterns as he observed the ruins from afar.
The dune-giants rushed at them, closing in fast. Suddenly, a sword rang out—the Worryless Sword howled forth, skimming across the desert and kicking up whirlwinds of sand!
The giants were still a hundred yards from Bruno when, all at once, they collapsed. The rolling sand surged forward, and Bruno roared, scattering the collapsing dunes.
Quinn retrieved the Worryless Sword. Bruno carried him into the ruins, where they saw a shrine covered in shattered fragments of god-statues, all hacked to pieces.
Bruno strode away, leaving the scene behind.
"By noon tomorrow, we should reach the Western Lands."
On a battered Solar Ark, Quinn lit a campfire so Bruno and Kira Bear could rest. He could keep going himself, but Bruno needed a break after running so far, and Kira was too young to endure such a long trek.
The boy looked west, his gaze piercing the desert filled with strange fire. Amid the flames, a distorted silhouette appeared in the distance.
Quinn smiled and waved. The figure startled and quickly fled.
"Grand Venerable's courage is getting smaller and smaller," Quinn said, shaking his head with a wry grin.
Ben Coates withdrew from the battered Solar Ark, his expression shifting. His severed arm was reattached and his wounds mostly healed, but he still hadn’t found a chance to ambush Quinn.
He had considered a direct ambush, even a frontal clash with Quinn, but knowing his odds of winning were slim, he dismissed the idea.
He was about to leave when, suddenly, the sand around him began to flow silently. His heart stirred, and he quickly peered into the firelight.
The desert night wasn’t completely dark—the fire illuminated the sands, though not far. In its glow, Ben saw a strange figure approaching, puppet-like, joints twisted, walking in an eerie posture.
The desert’s flowing sand followed the puppet’s steps, but oddly, the sand made no sound as it moved.
Ben’s heart skipped—he saw another puppet-like figure, then a third, then a fourth...
As they drew closer, he realized these strange shapes were wooden god-statues, each with real, living eyes—not wood—silently approaching the Solar Ark.
Ben’s heart pounded wildly. One of the wooden god-statues suddenly turned its head toward him, flashed a twisted smile, and raised a wooden finger to its lips in a shushing gesture.
Ben blinked, remaining motionless, watching as the statues arrived beneath the Solar Ark.
The flowing sand surged, lifting the statues higher and higher as the dunes grew.
Ben grew tense, his excitement mounting as he clenched his fists. Around the Solar Ark, giant dune-giants blocked every escape; they raised their colossal fists, ready to smash Quinn!
"That brat Quinn is finished!" Ben was so excited he nearly shouted aloud.
At that moment, a silver sword light shrieked through the air, piercing one statue’s head—the wooden skull exploded with a crack, then a second, a third, a fourth, each blast ringing out in quick succession.
After several sharp cracks, the dune-giants’ raised arms froze in midair. Then the sand slowly collapsed and slid down, burying most of the Solar Ark.
"Compete with me?" came a light laugh from the ship.
Ben no longer hesitated—he turned and left. "Trying to ambush that kid is nearly impossible! But as a cast-out, what’s he doing heading to the Western Lands? Isn’t that suicide? As for the owner of those god-statues, I’ve met her once—though she’s hard to find. Heh, Quinn, I don’t need to kill you myself."
He grinned. "Even if I can’t borrow her power, I’ve got a few old friends in the Western Lands—killing you will be all too easy! You’ve crossed me too many times, brat. When you’re dead, I’ll use your corpse to spell out a giant ‘submit’!"
By noon the next day, Bruno finally carried them out of the desert. The flame patterns on Quinn’s skin gradually faded and disappeared.
They arrived at a border town in the Western Lands, where the streets were filled with men and women in turbans. Their clothes were gorgeous, adorned with gold and silver. High-status women wore silver coronets shaped like phoenixes and Vermilion Birds, and their dresses were bright red or black—striking and beautiful.
There were many pretty girls here, though the men looked more plain.
As soon as they reached the town, Kira Bear clamored for sour fish soup, chili-spiced bone stew, rice noodles, and insect tea. After half a year away from home, she could finally eat her favorite foods again, cheering with joy and wanting to try everything.
The Western Lands used gold and silver for payment, and Quinn had brought some, so he let her eat and drink to her heart’s content.
Quinn tried some dishes too—the food here was spicy and sour, with a unique flavor. Only the insect tea made him hesitate. It was brewed from the droppings of bugs that had eaten tea leaves; though the aroma was enticing, he still felt uneasy about it.
“Apothecary Grandpa loves tea. I’ll bring some back for him to try,” Quinn thought.
He looked around—the architecture here was very different from Everpeace, with distinct customs. The strangest thing was the houses: round, wooden buildings, many with plaques above the doors holding god-statues.
After asking around, Quinn learned that these statues were meant to prevent someone from using spells to awaken the house’s spirit.
Western sorcery also follows the path that everything has a spirit and a god. If a spellcaster worked their magic, a house might suddenly stand up and run away—leaving the whole family out in the cold!
As long as a house has a god-statue on offer, it won’t be summoned away by a spellcaster.
Quinn blinked, imagining a whole crowd of houses standing up and brawling—what a novel sight that would be.
But can god-statues really guarantee a house won’t be taken by a spellcaster?
An old man explained, "There are plenty of temples on the mountains to pin down the mountain spirits. Every river has an altar, so spellcasters can’t carry them off. But all these mountains and waters are owned by someone."
Quinn looked around in wonder. He’d thought the mountains of the Western Lands would have been flattened by spellcasters, but they were still lush and beautiful.
"Why is every mountain and river owned by someone here?"
Quinn asked, "Who owns them?"
"Of course, the lady lords of True Heaven Palace, plus some local spellcasters and sects," the old man replied.
The old man added, "Not just mountains and rivers—even the flowers, trees, and grass are owned. You can’t touch them lightly. Otherwise, you couldn’t pay the compensation even if you sold yourself!"
Just then, the ground trembled slightly; the crowd panicked and scattered. Quinn looked over and saw a colossal tree-man striding by, a woman standing on its branches holding a scroll. She unfurled it and proclaimed loudly: "A Great Ruins fugitive has entered the Western Lands! By order of True Heaven Palace, this cast-out is now wanted! Hang up the portrait!"
Ps: Is Bruno really dumb? Not at all! Someone shared a set of pictures on the official WeChat account—they look just like him and are really cool. Everyone, check out the account '宅猪' and reply '龙胖' or view the message history to see!