Chapter 1256 — The Greater the Power, the Deeper the Harm

Heavenly Lord Fire had come to this divine city at some unknown hour, appearing behind them; plainly he had heard their conversation just now! What shook Shen Mu even more was that Heavenly Lord Fire had known long ago that Bai Yuqiong was the reincarnation of the Southern Emperor, the Vermilion Bird.

Heavenly Lord Fire raised a hand, gesturing for Bai Yuqiong to rise, yet he did not look at her; his gaze came to rest upon Shen Mu, his manner rather cold and detached. Shen Mu's expression turned cold.

"Heavenly Master Bai Yuqiong is the reincarnation of the Southern Emperor's soul; I know it. But because she is of the human race, I do not hold it against her.

" Heavenly Lord Fire said indifferently, "I killed the Southern Emperor, and her soul is likewise imprisoned within the Puxiang Hall.

Heavenly Lord Mu, your conduct grows more contemptible to me by the day. I could have killed Bai Yuqiong on account of the Southern Emperor's soul, yet I did not; and you, for the sake of one ancient god steeped in wickedness, would take the life of a powerhouse of the Imperial Throne of my human race!

" Shen Mu stepped away, saying coldly, "I am not Heavenly Lord Yun, nor Heavenly Lord Yue, nor Heavenly Lord Ling. They trusted you, and so they died. Those whose paths differ cannot take counsel together. " Heavenly Lord Fire said coldly, "Stop! " Shen Mu turned a deaf ear and kept walking.

Heavenly Lord Fire's voice came from behind him, with a sneer: "Do you know how many times I warned Heavenly Lord Yun? Not fewer than a hundred times!

I warned him not to defy Heaven, not to oppose the great tide, not to disregard the lives of the human race for the sake of his own ambition!

" "And what did he do?

" "He went his own way! He would resist, he would make the human race the sovereign of all races! And yet he also agreed with me! " "When I went to kill him, he told me that he understood what I did!

" Shen Mu halted, tilted his head, and said with something between a smile and a sneer, "And what of the Crimson Emperor, and the Ming Emperor?

What of Heavenly Lord Yue and Heavenly Lord Ling? When Heavenly Lord Yun was killed, you were at the very front; when the Crimson Emperor and the Ming Emperor were killed, when Heavenly Lord Yue and Heavenly Lord Ling were killed, you were at the very front then too.

" Heavenly Lord Fire gave a cold snort: "I did not kill the Crimson Emperor; the Ming Emperor overreached himself!

After the upheaval of Heavenly Lord Yun, the human race in the Primal World had already been greatly weakened. With much difficulty they had begun to recover and recuperate, and yet the Ming Emperor would still foment rebellion—such a crime deserved ten thousand deaths! It was I who spied out his flaw and had the Yin Son of Heaven kill him. As for Heavenly Lord Yue and Heavenly Lord Ling.

. . " His face darkened, and he shook his head: "Though they were my comrades in the Dao, they too committed the same error as Heavenly Lord Yun—they wished to overturn Heaven, a crime deserving ten thousand deaths! Even so, I spared Heavenly Lord Yue's life. As for Heavenly Lord Ling's death, that was an accident; I never meant to kill her.

" Shen Mu laughed aloud, a laugh that was more like weeping: "Spared Heavenly Lord Yue's life—what a fine deed, truly a paragon of virtue with a heart full of compassion! When you went to Heavenly Lord Yue to discuss dealing with the Earth Mother Yuanjun, I was there! That stratagem of yours with Heavenly Lord Xiao came at Heavenly Lord Hao's behest, did it not? When the Earth Mother Yuanjun was to be done away with, you struck in the same instant to do away with Heavenly Lord Yue and Heavenly Lord Ling!

" His face went cold as frost and snow, and he said icily, "That Heavenly Lord Yue and Heavenly Lord Ling survived at all is because I entered the Dao in dreams time after time to simulate it, and only thus chose out the single road to life! And you dare to gild your own face before me, claiming the credit as your own! " He fell silent, and after a moment said hoarsely, "You are no longer the Heavenly Lord Fire you once were. " Heavenly Lord Fire's face was blank, and he said woodenly, "You do not understand me. Heavenly Lord Yue, Heavenly Lord Ling—they did not understand me either.

Heh heh, only Heavenly Lord Yun understood me, knew that I acted for the human race. . . " "If Heavenly Lord Yun could see your Southern Heaven World, the state of the human race there, he would be angered back to life.

" Shen Mu raised his head, his manner bleak: "You are wrong.

He did not understand you. From first to last he never saw it—that your so-called doing it for the human race was in truth only for your own standing, your own life. " The wheel of fire behind Heavenly Lord Fire's head swayed; his mind was somewhat disordered, and suddenly he laughed: "It matters not that Heavenly Lord Yun did not understand me; I have no need of his understanding.

In all this world there is but one who understands me, and that is Heavenly Lord Yu.

" Shen Mu cast him a cold glance and turned to go. "Only Heavenly Lord Yu understands me! " Heavenly Lord Fire's voice came from behind him: "Only he, a great hero of the human race, the most outstanding being of our people, understands me!

Were he not dead, he would be the one who supported me most! I have no need of the understanding of you selfish creatures; so long as he understands me, that is enough! " Shen Mu gave a derisive laugh and strode away.

Heavenly Lord Fire watched him go, and sneered, "Only Heavenly Lord Yu is my comrade in the Dao.

.

. Bai Yuqiong, rest easy. With me here, Heavenly Lord Mu will not dare act rashly. " With his hands clasped behind his back, he said in a low voice, "Let him run wild as he pleases; in his deeds he yet keeps some measure.

It is best that he does not touch you; if he dares to touch you, I will surely put him to death!

" Bai Yuqiong frowned slightly and said softly, "Heavenly Lord Fire, for a small figure like me, to put a Heavenly Lord of the human race to death—is it worth it? " "Naturally it is worth it.

" Heavenly Lord Fire turned to look at her and said gravely, "Heavenly Lord Mu is indeed talented and capable, but the more a man is so, the greater the harm when he turns to evil. You are different.

Though your soul is that of the Southern Emperor, you set your heart on being human, and you are moreover a Heavenly Master of the Heavenly Court—you are more reassuring than he. " Bai Yuqiong smiled placidly: "Because I will not reform the laws, nor plot rebellion and chaos?

" Heavenly Lord Fire nodded and said without haste, "So long as Heavenly Lord Mu does not move against you, I have no reason to move against him.

But from what I observe of his conduct, this man will surely rebel in the future and plunge the human race into a great crisis of life and death. I cannot let him do so, and therefore I must seek a reason to rid myself of him. " Bai Yuqiong nodded: "So his attempt to awaken the Southern Emperor's soul within me would be the reason for the Heavenly Lord to strike him down. " Heavenly Lord Fire broke into a smile: "Worthy indeed of a Heavenly Master, to grasp it at a word.

" He strode off.

Bai Yuqiong shuddered. Heavenly Lord Fire seemed forthright, but in truth he was deeply calculating; he had known all along that she was the reincarnation of the Southern Emperor, yet he had kept her alive all this time precisely in order to deal with Shen Mu! He kept her alive so as to give Shen Mu the chance to 'err', to give himself a reason to kill Shen Mu! "For the sake of his ideals, Heavenly Lord Fire killed Heavenly Lord Yun, killed the Ming Emperor, killed Heavenly Lord Yue and Heavenly Lord Ling, and this time he means to kill Heavenly Lord Mu.

Can it be. .

.

" Her gaze grew complicated.