Chapter 1290 — Whatever the Heart Wills Shall Come True

Shen Mu and Heavenly Venerable Hao fought their way into the great camp of the Heavenly Court, and in a moment the whole camp fell into chaos on every side, gods and generals scattering in flight, the commanders of the various camps at a loss, watching helplessly as Shen Mu unleashed his vast powers and smashed whole stretches of encampments to ruin. And Heavenly Venerable Hao was fleeing, fleeing toward the Azure Emperor, the White Emperor and their party.

The Azure Emperor, the White Emperor and the Celestial Masters and Heavenly Kings felt their heads swell as big as bushels, and the Fourth Celestial Master Zhu Shaoping sighed: "Where is Yin Tianzi?

" "How cunning is Yin Tianzi, even if he knows he will not come, he will only thrust this scalding burden upon us.

" Meng Yungui gritted his teeth: "My lords, Heavenly Venerable Hao is now rushing toward us, no matter what we must intervene.

" A chill went through each heart, and all nodded in silence.

Hao had plainly seen them, and so ran this way, and if they refused to rescue him their crime would be immense.

For Hao was, together with Heavenly Venerable Mu, the being who taught all living things the art of becoming gods, and who would dare openly to slay such beings?

If they watched him die without aid, they could not even pass the test of their duty to the Court.

All living beings under heaven would curse them, and beside a stench that would last ten thousand ages, death and the ruin of the Dao would be a small thing.

They were about to act when suddenly, with a thunderous boom, Heavenly Venerable Hao and Shen Mu vanished together.

Alarm seized them, and Meng Yungui woke at once and cried aloud: "Heavenly Venerable Mu has dragged Heavenly Venerable Hao into the Grand Void Youdu!

" None knew what to do, and the Northern Heavenly King Yiluo laughed: "Below should be not far from Yin Tianzi's garrison, now Yin Tianzi will have to act whether he wills it or not.

" In Youdu, Yin Tianzi had long since received the report and knew of Shen Mu hunting Hao, and his face turned ashen and he could neither sit nor stand. What troubled him was not that Shen Mu's strength had truly reached the point of slaying Hao, for he had heard of Hao's grievous wounds in battle with the Grand Emperor, only he had never thought Hao could be wounded so heavily.

The acknowledged foremost Heavenly Venerable of the Court, reduced to being hunted by Shen Mu and fleeing in panic.

He had little wish to rescue Hao, and for the same reason Meng Yungui and the others were unwilling to act, for Hao had this time been slain by Shen Mu up to the Ninth Heaven and down into the Nine Springs, how wretched, how miserable. If Hao lived on, he would surely purge all who knew of it, to preserve his image of brightness, greatness and justice.

The more one knew, the faster one died, a truth none understood better than Yin Tianzi.

After all, he had with his own eyes seen Hao shoot dead the Great Sun Star Lord. "Yet Shen Mu slaying Hao has now slain his way to the front of my Youdu camp, and if I do not rescue him.

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" Yin Tianzi gazed afar and saw Shen Mu pressing Hao with all but crushing force, every kind of divine art flying across the sky, while Hao strained to hold him off even as he fled toward the Youdu camp.

Yet he was plainly at the end of his oil and lamp, and could hardly hold out much longer.

Even as Hao fled for his life he was scattering the disordered cultivation within his body. Shen Mu held the upper hand, beating him from heaven to earth, from Youdu to the land of the Grand Void, from one battle line to another, and in that time Hao had already scattered twenty-six celestial palaces, and now only nine remained.

Yet still he could not suppress his wounds.

If he went on scattering them, sooner or later he would scatter all his cultivation and die at last by Shen Mu's hand.

Wretched though it was, though he lost all face before the soldiers of the Heavenly Court camp, he had to endure. On the other side, Yin Tianzi paced back and forth upon the city tower, his face shifting between dark and bright: "Shen Mu and I have the hatred of a slain son and a murdered wife, a debt I must repay, yet if I act, in days to come I may well become a second Great Sun Star Lord.

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" His heart was truly torn, for Hao was his patron, and that he had held firm the throne of the Black Emperor for so many years owed much to Hao's support.

If Shen Mu truly killed Hao and his patron fell, execution might not follow, but his power and place could hardly be preserved. On one side his life, on the other his authority, and neither could he bear to cast away. While he hesitated, suddenly drums thundered like peals, and a general came to report: "Your Majesty the Nether Emperor, the rebels Shen Fengqing and Yama invade!

" "Truly straw to save my life!

" Yin Tianzi's spirits lifted, and he cried sternly: "Order the army and march out of the city to meet them! Slay every rebel!

" A northern general hesitated: "Your Majesty, Heavenly Venerable Hao.

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" Yin Tianzi cast him a glance, and the general felt as if plunged into ice, silent as a winter cicada, daring to speak no more.

The Worry-Free Village and the Other Shore Void also received word that Shen Mu was hunting Hao, having chased him tens of thousands of miles and thrown the Court lines into great disorder.

The high ranks of the Worry-Free Village looked at one another, while the Creators of the Other Shore Void rejoiced and praised in chorus: "The Holy Infant is invincible!

" The Woodcutter, Yan Yunxi, the Martial Celestial Master, Xiu Zhong, the Silkworm Maiden and the others fled back to camp, and hearing the news were shaken beyond words, staring wide-eyed and speechless.

The Woodcutter sighed: "Shen Mu beating Hao into the Heavenly Court camp is to erase his name and ruin his form, to destroy in one stroke Hao's image of invincibility and Hao's renown.

If he could kill Hao, there would be no need for this. " He knew it in his heart.

That Shen Mu pared away Hao's fame and ruined his image was because he had no sure grip on killing him, and so sought the greatest gain instead, sowing the seed of his own invincibility before the gods of the Court, and planting a vast shadow in Hao's Dao heart. Sage Woodcutter roused himself again: "Yet now is the finest hour to strike the Heavenly Court camp! " He was about to give the order when he saw the god and demon armies of the Worry-Free Village and the Other Shore Void already moving, vast and mighty, driving at the Court lines.

Sage Woodcutter started, and looked up to see a monk and a Daoist directing the hosts of the Worry-Free Village and the Creators of the Other Shore, with the former First Celestial Master of the Court Yue Tingge assisting at their side.

Sage Woodcutter smiled: "My two disciples have both made fine vessels. Only the eldest lacks striving. .

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but to have two who strive is already excellent.

" With a crash Hao tumbled head over heels and smashed into Yin Tianzi's Youdu camp, into Nether City, Yin Tianzi's mustering ground, yet what made Hao's eyes split with rage was that at this moment there was not a single soldier in the city. Yin Tianzi had actually ordered all his armies out of the city to meet the Worry-Free Village.

"Yin Chaojin. .

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" Hao gritted his teeth and staggered to his feet, when suddenly his knees softened and he fell heavily to his knees, unable ever to rise again. His head sank, his hands braced the ground, yet the strength in his hands also drained away.

His body pitched forward, his face grinding against the ground and sliding across the cold earth until he lay prone upon it.

Blood welled gurgling from his mouth.

He strained to lift his head to see where Shen Mu had reached, yet could not lift it.

He still held one last desperate card, to abolish all his other celestial palaces and keep only one sovereign palace, and then he could master his own power.