Tales of Herding Gods

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

That old man looked at him and coldly laughed. “In the past, righteous people died to advise elders and carried coffins to court when the emperor was muddle-headed. Why can’t I burn paper money for him? I want to! I have been burning it for 20,000 years. It’s to the point where he can be the richest man in Youdu after he dies!”

Shu Jun laughed and humored him. “If you want to be a righteous volunteer and burn paper money for him, why do you not do it in front of him, why do it in this god-forsaken place with so few people? Who are you burning it for? You aren’t a righteous person.”

The old man became disappointed and sat on the ground. He mumbled, “You’re right, I’m not a righteous volunteer. If I was, I would have carried a coffin to court and died to advise the elders. I even made my coffin. However, I got timid and backed out…”

He waved his sleeves, and a black coffin flew out. It was likely the coffin he built back then, which he had intended to carry and die in to advise the elders.

Shu Jun sized up the coffin and saw that it was glistening. It was likely constantly caressed. He couldn’t help but laugh. “You old man, you touched it so much that there’s oil on the coffin. You are clearly an overly cautious person with little conviction.”

The old man was furious and wanted to attack, but upon further thought, he agreed with Shu Jun.

He didn’t dare to carry his coffin to court. Instead, he spent his days looking at it, touching it, remaining undecided, and causing the coffin to glisten with oil.

Shu Jun was going to taunt him again, but he was stopped by Qin Mu.

“How do I address you, elder?” Qin Mu asked.

The old man depressingly said, “One of the four assisting junior protectors of the Founding Emperor Celestial Heavens, Fang Youji. Today, I am the guardian of the cemetery of Pure Brightness Heavens.”

Qin Mu asked, “A junior protector makes you a first ranking high official. How did you end up here?”

Fang Youji rose and said, “You are Celestial Venerable Mu, so you are always right. However, I know little about the path of the sword. I only know divine arts, so I used it to mimic sword skills. This sword is called the Pure Bright Sword of Stealing Hearts!”

He used his divine arts to deploy the sword skill, and instantly, it drizzled. The entire area became barren. Qin Mu could see the Sword Dao mood beneath this sword.

Founding Emperor opened this path to train himself in stealing hearts by mourning comrades’ deaths, worshipping his ancestor’s death, and using the past to shape the present. It was also used to test opponents’ Dao hearts.

This sword required a lot out of one’s Dao heart to fight it. If one’s Dao heart wasn’t secure, they would lose to him.

Junior Protector Fang Youji deployed it, saying, “I used divine arts to mimic his third blade. However, it’s a divine art, which means it can’t fully recreate the marvels of his Sword Dao. If Celestial Venerable Mu didn’t see the marvel within, I can deploy it again.”

Qin Mu closed his eyes before opening them and replying, “There’s no need for that.”

Fang Youji squatted again, burning paper money for that nameless tomb. He told Qin Mu, “Celestial Venerable Mu can go to Dark Embryo Heaven. The sentry there is the second assistant out of the four assistants, Junior Assistant Gao Baixun.”

Qin Mu thanked him and left with Shu Jun. They chose not to seek guidance at Pure Brightness Heaven’s academy.

Shu Jun looked back and saw that old man burning paper money still. He no longer cried about how brutally Qin Ye died. Instead, he had a smile on his red face that was grilled by the flames.

“This junior protector of Founding Emperor seems to wish for you to beat Founding Emperor dearly.”

Shu Jun was puzzled. “This old man bit the hand that fed him. Not only that, but he did it in such a happy manner. Holy infant, now I know why you must walk around. There are so many people under Founding Emperor willing to feed you moves!”

Qin Mu smiled. “Some people still have ambitions despite being old. Meanwhile, brave heroes have their ambitions reduced. Parts of the army didn’t willingly choose to hide at Carefree Village. Those with ambition wish not for me to defeat Founding Emperor, but for me to excite the ambition of this washed-up leader.”

He continued, “They also want to excite their own ambitions. They are like divine dragons who could rebuke the heavens and earth that are stuck in a tiny swamp. They curl their bodies up and look up into the sky, wishing they were twisting and turning in the clouds and not rolling around in the mud.”

“I feel like you are talking about me.”

Shu Jun laughed. “I am the divine dragon in your story!”

Qin Mu laughed in return as they ascended into Dark Embryo Heaven. In front of them, the forest was dense, and someone was teaching within it. His voice was loud as he hollered, “To universally love is to be altruistic. To carry it out is to be righteous. To perform this righteous altruism through one’s own strength is Dao. What is this supposed to mean?”

“Universal love constitutes altruism. Materializing this quality makes one righteous. Going on this path is Dao. This quote means finding out about the underlying principles of things and sticking to them, carrying them out even if it’s hard.”

“If one walks the talk despite it being hard, one achieves Dao. The person who doesn’t do so is Founding Emperor!”

…

Qin Mu and Shu Jun walked forward and saw a teacher, who was dressed like a scholar, holding some books in one hand and a ruler in the other. He was explaining scriptures in an excited manner.

His students were a bunch of monkeys with clothes. Some were scratching themselves while squatting on the ground, while some were grooming other monkeys in trees. They were very lively and very rarely stopped moving.

The monkeys saw Qin Mu and Shu Jun and immediately took off their clothes and ran away, throwing the clothes everywhere.

The teacher was furious as he hollered, “Unflinching righteousness! Where did it all go? You degenerates, running away when you see an enemy! Tai!”

He jumped towards Qin Mu. He was visibly furious as the ruler in his hands flew. He deployed a marvelous sword skill, the Dark Embryo Sword of Calm Heavens, and directly pressed towards Qin Mu!

“Others may be scared of you, but I’m not!”

Shu Jun was going to block him, but Qin Mu stopped him. The teacher, Gao Baixun, danced with his ruler and deployed his Dark Embryo Sword of Calm Heavens before turning around and walking away. He hollered, “The enemy is too powerful! I didn’t actively engage you, I merely learned to run away like Founding Emperor!” After he finished, he escaped into the woods while stepping on wood.

Shu Jun was startled.

Gao Baixun poked his head out again, saying, “I’m not your opponent. I won’t tell you that Grand Tutor Zhou Jingmeng is waiting for you in Primordial Bright Heaven to avenge me!”

Qin Mu hurriedly asked, “How does one go there?”

Gao Baixun lifted his finger and righteously said, “Over my dead body. I will never tell you that the road there is that way!”

“Many thanks.” Qin Mu bowed and thanked him before walking the way Gao Baixun pointed with Shu Jun.

Shu Jun followed him in an uneven fashion as he looked back. He saw the junior assistant of Founding Emperor, Gao Baixun, call the monkeys out from the woods again. They unwillingly put on their clothes and hats to listen to him teach.”

“How weird.” Shu Jun shook his head.

“It’s to be expected. With their ambitions not realized, and their Dao path blocked, their Dao hearts are dispersed when little generosity is dispersed.”

Qin Mu said, “One ought to find out the underlying principles of things and act accordingly, applying their knowledge. Now they can’t do any of that, and their Dao hearts are clearly severely affected.”

They arrived at Primordial Bright Heaven and encountered Grand Tutor Zhou Jingmeng. He was obviously waiting for them with murderous intent as he vowed to avenge Junior Assistant Gao Baixun. He refused to let Celestial Venerable Mu enter.

“If you want to, you have to step on my corpse!” The old Grand Tutor, Zhou Jingmeng, righteously called out.

After he displayed his Primordial Bright Sword of Literature, he laid down, and Shu Jun stepped on his “corpse”. The old man furiously scolded him, “Is he for real?”

Qin Mu bowed and thanked him as he walked around him.

The primordial spirit within Zhou Jingmeng’s “corpse” emerged and hollered, “My big brother, Zhou Xunfang, will avenge me at the Seven Shine Heaven. Wait for it!”

Shu Jun didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as he turned around and asked, “How do we get there?”

“That way!”

Zhou Jingmeng’s primordial spirit lifted a finger and taunted them, “Go there if you dare!”

Qin Mu and Shu Jun reached Seven Shine Heaven and greeted Zhou Xunfang, who wanted to die in honor of Founding Emperor. He used his “death” to prove his loyalty, as he “died” in a more brutal manner than Zhou Jingmeng. Before he “died”, he told them that the three councilors of the Founding Emperor Celestial Heavens would be waiting for them in the latter heavens.

On their journey, two months flew by. Qin Mu and Shu Jun unknowingly passed through heavens like Complete Nothingness Heaven, Taiji Heaven, Crimson Light Heaven, Black Light Heaven, and Shiny Brightness Heaven. They were close to the top of the 33 heavens.

Today, they reached the Supreme Heaven, and upon entry, Qin Mu heard laughter. He saw a donkey rushing towards him. A fishing rod was tied to its head, and on it was a carrot. It abruptly stopped when it was at Qin Mu’s side. “Hehe, isn’t this Celestial Venerable Mu? Can you not recognize me?”

That donkey stood up and put one of its strong forearms on Qin Mu’s shoulder. The other forearm was on Shu Jun’s shoulder, squeezing them together and causing them to have goosebumps everywhere. He smiled. “I am Lü Zheng! We suffered together! Let me tell you a secret, this Supreme Heaven is the realm of my master, Heavenly Teacher Zi Xi! She’s been waiting for both of you for a long time!”

The donkey held them and moved forward as he effusively said, “Master told us that peace has been achieved between Carefree Village and the masters of creation. This is a good thing that should be celebrated. These days, we brought some beautiful girls along to train their song and dance. They sure had a great deal of spirit of peace. It looked good, it sure looked good…”

Shu Jun’s head was held tightly by him to the point where his feet couldn’t touch the ground. He struggled but couldn’t escape, which caused him to feel fearful.

He utilized his consciousness divine art, but his consciousness couldn’t invade the donkey’s mind at all. He naturally felt more fearful. “This donkey is terrifyingly powerful!”

Qin Mu whispered, “Don’t resist. This donkey is a strong practitioner of the Numinous Sky Realm. He’s just as strong as the heavenly lords we saw previously!”

Shu Jun had to give up resisting. He wanted to speak, but the donkey was garrulous. Sometimes, he would even bray loudly, preventing him from interrupting.

Qin Mu was used to Lü Zheng’s temper and knew that he was used to being effusive. If one talked to him, one would suffocate to death. So he stopped talking and let him talk on.

Lü Zheng brought them to the city in Supreme Heaven. It was extravagant, and countless entertainers danced excitedly. Skirts flew everywhere while sleeves fluttered. It appeared extremely luxurious. On the left, hundreds of gods blew flutes, while on the right, another several hundred gods played their string instruments. Above them, hundreds of gods hit drums, while beneath them, hundreds of gods played even more instruments.

The girls flew in the sky, danced on the ground, and crisscrossed. Their demeanor was enchanting and charming, and their voices were even more so. They sang to Founding Emperor’s greatness, wisdom, and strength.

Yan Yunxi was dressed like a man as she observed the occasion from a city tower. She was also dancing, and she constantly applauded the entertainers. The officials with her also sang along, licking Founding Emperor’s boots.

Lü Zheng brought them upstairs and put them down.

Yan Yunxi looked around, smiled, and asked, “What do you think about this performance, Celestial Venerable Mu? Is it grand? After we establish the Paramita Youdu, I intend to take them to the Founding Emperor Celestial Heavens and practice with the officers there to sing along to Founding Emperor’s impressive achievements.”

Qin Mu smiled. “The dance moves are beautiful and mesmerizing, and the singing is marvelous and moving.”

Yan Yunxi applauded, laughed, and glanced at him, saying, “Unfortunately, you don’t seem to understand the immensity of heaven and earth, considering how you challenged Founding Emperor. You seem to not understand how Founding Emperor is number one in the path of the sword and how high his accomplishments in the sword are! If I told you, you would probably be scared to death. He is already beginning to comprehend the twentieth sword form after I displayed your nineteenth sword form in front of him.”

She rose and proudly said, “Founding Emperor is such an unrivaled and naturally wise man! Thus, you should cancel this rebellious thought of yours. However, you are unwilling, right? Therefore, allow me to defeat you with Founding Emperor’s sword skill!”

She swept her sleeves back and hollered, “Back off, I will now use Founding Emperor’s sword skill to let Celestial Venerable Mu experience the immensity of heaven and earth!”

The entertainment stopped, and the entertainers backed off.

Yan Yunxi pulled out her sword and looked at Qin Mu.

Qin Mu was stunned as he said, “Even you…”