Chapter 86: Realm of the Deceased

Qin Mu sat under the lantern, and the jade pendant on his chest emitted a faint fluorescence. The pendant seemed to want to float up and fly into the distance.

"Is this place the Town of No Worries? If not, then where exactly is it?"

The flat boat moved leisurely, yet its speed was not slow. After boarding the boat, Qin Mu noticed that the skeletons paid no attention to them, as if they couldn't see them at all.

The skeletal mountains returned to normal, and the skeletons seemed to have returned to death, sinking into silence.

Qin Mu shook his head, feeling that the encounters along this journey were unimaginable. Things that he wouldn't dare to think of before were actually happening, and each event was more peculiar than the last.

The monsters in the darkness, the sinister incidents in the riverside villages, the world within the gray mist, and now the boat they were riding in, steered by the skeletal boatman—all of it seemed so incredible, yet it had undeniably happened.

Moreover, the dark world in the Great Ruins was not as simple as the village chief had imagined. The village chief had initially believed in the existence of a dark realm, but now it seemed that a single dark realm couldn't explain everything they had seen and encountered.

The dark realm might exist, but it could also be more than just a dark realm. Perhaps other worlds existed within this darkness.

"Village chief, who was that person who gave us the Wen coins just now?" Qin Mu turned to look at the boatman and asked quietly.

"An old acquaintance."

The village chief's expression remained calm as he said, "I haven't seen him in a long time and haven't heard any news about him. I thought he had died, but I didn't expect him to still be alive. Those of us from our era who can still live to this day are remarkable individuals."

Qin Mu daydreamed for a moment. The village chief's era must have been an age of heroes, a time when brilliant stars emerged. It must have given birth to many extraordinary figures, just like the village chief, who was astonishingly remarkable.

However, it was regrettable that time ages everyone, and even the most exceptional figures of their youth would grow old in their later years, their lives nearing their end.

"I never expected him to still be so active, always running around. I wonder how he ended up here this time."

The village chief smiled and said, "He is more cunning than me and has encountered more mysteries. Honestly, I envy his carefree life and find it easier than mine. Qin Mu, you might come across him. This fellow has no fixed abode and likes to be wherever the action is. His name is Ling, and he has a black mole below his left eye and is missing his ring finger on his right hand. I was the one who severed it."

"Village chief, where is this boat taking us?" Qin Mu looked around. They were already far from the entrance to this strange world, and they couldn't see the path they had taken. If they continued drifting like this, they had no idea where they would end up.

Moreover, who knew if this place was really the Great Ruins?

It was even possible that this wasn't the world where the Great Ruins existed!

The village chief furrowed his brow slightly. Qin Mu's jade pendant had brought them here, and after living in the Great Ruins for so many years, this was the first time he had encountered something so peculiar and arrived at such a strange place. However, it was likely that their arrival here was related to the source of the jade pendant.

Now they had no idea where they were, unable to disembark from the boat. They could only let the boat and the peculiar boatman take them toward the unknown.

"Qin Mu, if I hadn't brought you out, I might have never discovered this place."

As he spoke, the dense mist ahead gradually dissipated, revealing vast land, towering mountains, and ranges that were no longer skeletal. Near the edge of the fog sea, a wooden pier appeared, suitable for docking ships.

The flat boat gently paused and approached the pier.

Qin Mu quickly took out a Wen coin, intending to pay the fare, and the boatman raised two white bones.

Qin Mu took out another Wen coin, and the boatman nodded. The two of them disembarked and walked towards the land. Qin Mu turned to look back and saw the flat boat and the skeletal boatman disappearing into the mist. Only the lantern at the bow still emitted a feeble light in the fog.

"What a strange place..."

His jade pendant gently floated up, pointing ahead.

Qin Mu followed the village chief, and not long after, they came across a boundary stele with several seal characters inscribed on it.

"Realm of the Deceased, halt for the living, proceed for the dead."

Qin Mu read the characters on the stele aloud, and both of them were taken aback. Qin Mu hesitated and asked, "Village chief, should we continue walking forward?"

The village chief looked ahead, faintly seeing many villages, and smiled, "Since we're here, how can we not continue and see what lies ahead? Let's keep going."

Qin Mu followed him, and they crossed over the boundary stele. Suddenly, Qin Mu exclaimed and raised his hands, only to see that his hands had turned into skeletal bones without him realizing it!

He hastily pulled open his clothes, revealing that his flesh and blood had disappeared, leaving behind only white bones!

He looked at the village chief, who had also transformed into a floating skeleton. Strangely, the village chief had grown arms and legs!

His chest and head were bones, but his legs and arms had flesh and blood!

However, the village chief clearly had no arms or legs, so how did he suddenly grow arms and legs?

"Realm of the Deceased, Realm of the Deceased... Qin Mu, let's go back," the village chief suddenly said.

Qin Mu retreated to the boundary stele and looked down. He saw that his flesh and blood had returned, while the village chief's arms and legs had disappeared, but his chest and head had returned to normal.

"So that's how it is. Such a marvelous world exists..."

The village chief smiled faintly and walked back into the Realm of the Deceased, saying, "Let's go inside and take a look."

Qin Mu suppressed his shock and followed him into this strange world. The village chief's legs touched the ground, and he took steps, suddenly stopping to look at his own hands, filled with a mix of emotions, seemingly reminiscing about his lost limbs.

Ahead, mountains stood tall, temples were numerous, and a sizable village appeared before them.

The two of them arrived at the village and saw that it was filled with the sounds of birds and the fragrance of flowers, peaceful and serene. The villagers lived contentedly, raising chickens, ducks, cows, and sheep. As they reached the village entrance, a plump white pig walked past them, oinking.

Qin Mu and the village chief stood at the village entrance without entering. Several villagers turned their heads to look at them with strange gazes. After a moment, an elderly man tremblingly walked out of the village. Wrinkles covered his face, but he smiled and said, "Greetings, esteemed travelers. What brings you here?"

Qin Mu and the village chief bowed in respect, and Qin Mu asked, "Sir, may I ask how to get to Wuyou Township?"

the old man raised his hand and pointed towards the mountains, saying, "Cross a few mountains and pass through a gateway, and you will reach Wuyou Township."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Qin Mu and the village chief proceeded up the mountain. Qin Mu looked back and saw that the villagers in the village were still staring at them with strange gazes.

The village chief said, "In their eyes, we are dead. That's why they look at us like this."

Qin Mu turned around and said, "Village chief, I sense something strange... Blind Master bestowed me with the Heavenly Eye Nine Heavens, and even though my eyes are gone, I can still vaguely see certain things..."

The village chief halted and asked, "What did you see?"

Qin Mu replied, "There's a demonic aura emanating from them."

The village chief contemplated and said, "The Realm of the Deceased should alter the rules of life and death, and this involves the power of gods and demons. When we enter here, it appears that we have lost our flesh and blood. However, as soon as we exit the Realm of the Deceased, our flesh and blood immediately reappear. It indicates that our flesh and blood still exist, but they are distorted and cannot be seen or touched due to the rules. Qin Mu, your Heavenly Eye Nine Heavens is still present, and you can still mobilize your vitality to activate the Heavenly Eye Nine Heavens in your eyes. Can you do that?"

Qin Mu immediately attempted to do so and quickly felt his eyes, followed by his vitality entering his eyes, activating the Heavenly Eye Nine Heavens pattern imprinted by Blind Master. Suddenly, everything in front of him became incredibly clear.

He turned around and looked back, seeing that everyone in the village had transformed. They were no longer humans but a collection of skeletal remains. Even the chickens, ducks, cows, sheep, and even the fat pig had all turned into skeletons!

The skeletons of the villagers were different from human skeletons, grotesque and obviously not human.

Qin Mu described what he saw, and the village chief pondered for a moment before saying, "They are the Demonic Horde."

"The Demonic Horde?" Qin Mu was startled.

"The Demonic Horde belongs to the Demon race. Although your Tianmo Sect carries the word 'Tianmo' (Heavenly Demon), in reality, you are all still humans, just bearing the name of the Tianmo Sect. However, the Demonic Horde is different. They are a race from the legendary foreign realm, extremely aggressive. As for where they come from, it is unknown. There are some legends..."

The village chief paused, not continuing his words, and looked ahead, saying, "Could this be the world of the Demonic Horde? But it doesn't quite seem like it. Let's continue forward, and if it turns out to be the world of the Demonic Horde, we'll immediately retreat!"

They crossed several mountains and finally arrived at the gateway the old man at the village entrance had mentioned.

There were two mountain gates, and on the gates were stone bridges like crossbeams. The words "Fengdu" were inscribed on the mountain walls.

Qin Mu's heart skipped a beat. He had a foreboding feeling. Fengdu was known as the Ghost Gate, the entrance to the underworld. Could this be the world of hell?

However, the village chief seemed oblivious and walked past it. Qin Mu hurriedly followed, and when they looked ahead, both of them were taken aback.

In front of them, at the center of each square-shaped city, stood towering temples that reached into the clouds. The cities were grand, majestic, with countless cities, countless palaces, and countless temples stretching as far as the eye could see, without end!

This was the world beyond the Fengdu gateway, vast, magnificent, and spectacular!

"This should be the capital city of Fengdu."

Just as Qin Mu thought of this, he suddenly saw a dilapidated ship. It was a ship formed by the mountains, and chains floated in the air like kite strings, each one tethered to a gray sphere at the end.

A gigantic sphere, but half of it was shattered.

It was a moon.