OBS Chapter 1004: A Place That Might Not Exist
Chapter 1004: A Place That Might Not Exist
Chapter 1004: A Place That Might Not Exist
In the world inside Timeruins, Xu Qing and Erniu looked up at the rift in the dome of heaven, a thousand thoughts running through their minds.
To Xu Qing, this experience in the outer sea had been both freakish and phenomenal. That included the gruish entities they had encountered, and this human old man. All of them were deeply thought-provoking. The words the old man spoke before leaving had truly opened Xu Qing’s eyes to the world, and left him feeling deeply shaken.
Thirty-six star rings... and the Primeval Sea.... There were some things that Xu Qing had come to vaguely sense upon acquiring this body created from Eminent Desolation’s flesh. For instance, he did have a vague impression that there were thirty-six star rings out there. However, this was his first time hearing about the Primeval Sea. I can’t rule out that what he told me is false. But in all likelihood, it seems true....
Off to the side, Erniu slapped his thigh. “Little Ah Qing,” he said in a serious tone, “I’ve finally figured it out!”
Xu Qing looked over. He was curious to hear his Eldest Brother’s thoughts. After all, this elderly human who proclaimed himself to be from the Immortal Capital in the Fifth Star Ring was too shocking, both in terms of his cultivation base and his manner of speaking. ‘Outrageous’ was a perfectly acceptable word to use to describe him.
With a grave facial expression, Erniu looked at Xu Qing and said, “Up on the surface of the sea, all I had to do was say the word ‘safe,’ and we would instantly encounter some really freakish things.... Now that I think about it, it was obviously the doings of that old man! He did it all on purpose!”
Erniu looked a bit disappointed, as if he really had believed that everything which happened was a direct result of the words that left his mouth. Apparently, his thoughts had been focused elsewhere. Unlike Xu Qing, he hadn’t been paying close attention to the old man’s final words, and their astonishing implications. Xu Qing was of course used to the way that his Eldest Brother’s way of thinking differed from that of normal people.
That venerable Senior said that humans rule the Fifth Star Ring. It’s a world of immortals.... Of course, I can’t just automatically trust everything he says.
Xu Qing looked at the distant rift in the dome of heaven. It was hard to say if Erniu had really missed that last bit of information, or if he just wasn’t shocked by it.
As Xu Qing stared up into the sky, Erniu looked over at the spot where the old man had dropped his sandal onto the ground. Leaping over to that spot, he squatted down and started searching the area. Before long, he managed to locate four strips of woven hemp.
Erniu’s eyes gleamed with mad joy as he picked them up, handling them as if they were precious treasures. He immediately put them into his mouth and bit down with his teeth. A moment later, he frowned, as he realized that biting the hemp wasn’t doing anything. As he kept trying in different ways, he noticed that Xu Qing seemed to be lost in thought. He blinked a few times.
“Don’t waste your brainpower, little Ah Qing. Those things aren’t even relevant to us. Besides, we have no way of knowing if that old fellow had good intentions or malicious ones. If you ask me, he didn’t just want to have a look at you. He was probably interested in forming some karmic bonds with us! Otherwise, why would he offer us that skewered meat?”
Xu Qing nodded. “Eldest Brother, just now you said we had no way of knowing if that human Senior had good intentions or malicious ones. You clearly don’t suspect the accuracy of the things he said....” Xu Qing’s eyes glittered. “I guess that means... you already knew about all that stuff he told us?”
Erniu cleared his throat. Little Ah Qing just keeps getting more and more wily. It’s really hard to fool him nowadays.
Erniu laughed heartily, glanced left and right, and then looked at Xu Qing with shining eyes. “There’s no need to get into all of that. Say, did it occur to you that we also have a golden rat like that one we just saw? Remember, Little Jianjian is incubating those eggs. In fact, I wonder if they’ve hatched already. Wait, hold on. This won’t do. Considering how incredible that golden rat was, I’d say we have to get back to the imperial capital post haste. We need to get those little rats back from Wu Jianwu!”[1]
Xu Qing didn’t reply, but he kept his eyes on Erniu.
Seeing that, Erniu again tried to change the topic. Waving the four hemp threads in Xu Qing’s direction, he said, “Look at these hemp threads! Considering that golden rat was so interested in them, they must be treasures! I just tried to take a bite, but these thingies are just too tough! I couldn’t even leave a dent!” Erniu looked down at the hemp threads. “Of course, that old rat was a complete idiot. Just because you can’t bite them doesn’t mean you can’t eat them!”
Erniu suddenly looked very proud. “It’s not like I’ve never encountered unbitable things before. In situations like this, I know exactly what to do!”
He gritted his teeth. Considering that he really wanted to distract Xu Qing, he decided to throw caution to the wind.
As Xu Qing watched, Erniu placed his hand on his belly, then shoved violently. Unexpectedly, blood sprayed everywhere as he ripped his abdomen open. Then, he placed two of the hemp threads directly into his stomach. Having done that, he pulled the flaps of ripped belly flesh closed like a garment. Then he used the black fur growing off his skin to tie the pieces together. He tossed the other two hemp threads to Xu Qing.
“I might not know what they taste like, but as you can see, I still managed to get them into my stomach.” Looking very pleased with himself, the Captain patted his belly.
Xu Qing sighed. His Eldest Brother hadn’t directly answered the questions, but his actions gave Xu Qing the information he sought. And he was confident that there was a good reason for his Eldest Brother not wanting to say such things out loud....
Meanwhile, an indescribable feeling built up in Xu Qing. He wasn’t sure exactly what it was, but it felt bitter and painful.
Erniu noticed Xu Qing’s facial expression, and for a brief moment, a look of pride flashed across his face. Little Ah Qing, oh, little Ah Qing. No matter how wily you are, I’m always going to be your Eldest Brother. I can pull a fast one on you without any effort at all. Now, to wrap things up all neat and tidy.
With that thought in mind, Erniu cleared his throat and said, “Let’s not talk about such painful things. Don’t be too sad, little Junior Brother. Just remember that, whatever amazing things you come across in the future, you should always save a portion for me. For example, the flesh of gods, cultivator authority, godly authority, et cetera. And of course, spirit stones and other mundane items count as well. Naturally, the more you set aside for me the better. It’s not that I’m greedy! No! Rather, the more things you give me, the more deeply my memories will be rooted.”
Xu Qing nodded, rummaged around his bag of holding, and took out a spirit stone which he handed to Erniu.
Erniu quickly took it. However, he didn’t sound very pleased when he said, “Just one?”
Xu Qing’s expression became one of bitterness. “Eldest Brother, in the past when you ate spirit stones, you would always eat one stone at a time. You... forgot that habit already?”
Stunned, Erniu looked at Xu Qing. Xu Qing looked back at him very sincerely.
Erniu hesitated, glanced at the spirit stone, and gave another look at Xu Qing. Suddenly feeling very ferocious, he put the spirit stone in his mouth, crunched it to pieces, and swallowed it.
Then, just as he was about to say something, Xu Qing pulled out a sword and performed a quick bit of magic. Rust instantly covered the sword.
“Huh?” Erniu said suspiciously.
“Eldest brother, whenever you eat spirit stones, you always say that they lack flavor. So you follow them up with a rusty sword....”
After a moment of silence, Erniu laughed heartily. “Oh, you! I was just joking around, little Junior Brother! How could I lose my memories! I’m completely fine!”
Eyes glittering, Xu Qing looked at Erniu and softly said, “Eldest Brother, I’m not sure how much of what you said just now was true, and how much was false. But I can tell that you care very much about that certain name.... Therefore, I have something I need to tell you. I’m going to work hard so that, in the future, nothing bad happens to you or anyone else I care about. If I can’t do that... then I’ll suffer with you.”
Xu Qing’s words entered Erniu’s ears and resonated in his heart. Looking at Xu Qing, he suddenly felt the impulse to throw caution to the wind and tell him everything. He opened his mouth to speak.
Xu Qing shook his head. “You have your secrets, Eldest Brother. I have mine. Master has his.... When an appropriate time comes, then you can tell me. Okay?”
Erniu thought about it, then laughed and nodded vigorously. “Sure!”
***
Almost there....
Beyond the world of Revered Ancient, out in the starry sky, a host of holy lands had stirred up a starry tempest. A terrifying aura pulsed around them as they sped toward Revered Ancient. Behind all those holy lands was a statue with eight arms. The area around the statue’s head was full of oscillating distortions. It was just barely possible to see a figure seated cross-legged there.
My home. My apprentice. And also... the Primeval Sea.
1. Xu Qing and Erniu gave the eggs to Wu Jianwu in chapter 932. ☜
2. The term god bastard came up previously in chapters 621, 629.1, 630, and 686. ☜