Chapter 1462 — A Long Sword Hangs Across the Sky, Slaying the God Emperor

This army of gods and demons was charged with escorting supplies and provisions and guarding divine weapons and great treasures. Among those treasures were the Four Emperors' artifacts—the Vermilion Bird, the Black Tortoise, the Azure Dragon and the White Tiger—two of each, and they must have come from the hand of Zaifu's Heavenly Palace. As for the other great treasures, such as Divine Cities, God-Slaying Terraces, giant seals, great formation diagrams, great cauldrons, formation banners and pill furnaces, each was immense beyond measure; a single artifact could fill an entire giant tower ship.

The supplies consisted of all manner of divine weapons and spirit medicines, and there were even several hundred ships packed with slaves, no doubt meant for the gods and demons at the front to enjoy. Now the Heavenly River surged with great waves, and the tower ships' progress slowed greatly; ahead, two great Heavenly Venerables pursued and battled each other, making it difficult for this supply army to advance. Shen Mu piloted his swift boat speeding through the air above.

Just as he passed over this fleet, he saw Shi Qiluo come flying back. Seeing him on the boat, she was startled and halted.

Shen Mu saluted; Shi Qiluo returned the salute, her voice like thunder: "Mu Heavenly Venerable, are you going to your death? " Shen Mu smiled.

"As Alliance Master of the Heavenly Alliance, to eradicate the Heavenly Duke, I must go in person to oversee it. " Shi Qiluo sighed.

"There is something about you that commands admiration.

On the battlefield of Xuandu, if you had blocked my way, I would not have shown mercy.

" Shen Mu smiled. "Madam.

.

. " Shi Qiluo glared at him, and Shen Mu corrected himself: "Shi Heavenly Venerable, I hope you will remember our past ties and show a little mercy.

.

. " Shi Qiluo spat at him and skipped away.

Zaifu and the others stared wide-eyed, dumbly watching this Heavenly Venerable depart in the form of a young girl, for a long while unable to speak. Shen Mu said, "This is Lady Yuanmu, the Goddess of Destruction of Guixu, the birth mother of Hao Heavenly Venerable. Because she was killed by Ling Heavenly Venerable, her three souls clung to a stone and over time became a spirit, yet she took the form of a man.

" Zaifu was silent for a while, then let out a turbid breath: "A true hero.

" Zhe Huali, Luo Wushuang and Tian Shu nodded again and again.

They continued on. The small boat flew for several days, and again they heard the sound of a zither.

Ahead were the Ten Guards of the Heavenly Court, each one the elite of the elite, their spirit piercing the rainbow.

The lowest of their cultivation was the Jade Capital realm, and among them were no few at Lingxiao Perfection.

All Ten Guards deployed—such was the importance placed on Xuandu.

"The Ten Guards of the Heavenly Court are going to deal with the Sun Guardian and Moon Guardian. " Shen Mu's gaze flickered.

The Ten Guards' strength was unmatched; even the Moon Heavenly Venerable's zither music blocking their way posed little threat to them. But the Ten Guards were escorting a treasure, blazing with fire—it was none other than the Ancestral Land of Dao Fire of the Southern Pole Heaven, the Ninefold Altar of Dao Fire where the Vermilion Bird, the Southern Emperor, was born.

Shen Mu's pupils contracted sharply.

Looking ahead, he saw that the one battling the Moon Heavenly Venerable was none other than the Fire Heavenly Venerable. The battle between Moon and Fire was far more vicious than Shi Qiluo's battle. Shi Qiluo had not wanted to fight the Moon Heavenly Venerable to mutual destruction, and so had not used her full strength, nor deployed her divine artifact, the Imperial Heavenly Venerable.

But the Fire Heavenly Venerable was different. He brought out nearly every means at his disposal, his attacks ferocious beyond measure; even his divine artifact, the Imperial Heavenly Venerable, was mobilized, joining him to besiege the Moon Heavenly Venerable.

Suddenly, the zither music swelled. The Moon Heavenly Venerable plucked the strings, making the Heavenly River tremble violently—one note, three folds, splitting the starry sky—and the Moon Heavenly Venerable vanished.

The Fire Heavenly Venerable roared in fury, torrents of fire spewing from his mouth, burning through layer upon layer of void, yet he could not catch the Moon Heavenly Venerable and had no choice but to turn back. Shen Mu's small boat brushed past him; neither looked at the other, like strangers.

The small boat traveled on for another dozen days or so and encountered another army led by Divine Emperor Langxuan.

This army was Divine Emperor Langxuan's direct-line force, all of them heads of demigods from various races, but they too were held up by the Moon Heavenly Venerable. Divine Emperor Langxuan was utterly composed, contending with the Moon Heavenly Venerable. The Ancestral Court, Jade Pool and Jade Terrace had been restored to their original state; Divine Emperor Langxuan had obtained the Dao fruit of a powerhouse from the previous cosmic era, and his abilities were all the more transcendent.

Shen Mu's pupils narrowed slightly. The present Divine Emperor Langxuan, whether in the Dao of Divine Consciousness or Innate Primordial Qi, had refined them all to perfection; even the Dao of the Primordial Beginning—he had comprehended only the One Finger of Divine Origin.

Shen Mu saw that in dealing with the Moon Heavenly Venerable, he had displayed at least four different Primordial divine abilities. Clearly, he had gained immense benefit from that shriveled Dao fruit.

Facing him, the Moon Heavenly Venerable was in even greater peril than facing the Fire Heavenly Venerable; Divine Emperor Langxuan's Dao of the Primordial Beginning could use divine consciousness to interfere with her divine abilities and could threaten her life.

Shen Mu drew near and called out loudly, "Divine Emperor, do you need a hand to eradicate the Moon traitor together?

" Divine Emperor Langxuan's heart tightened, the muscles of his back tensed, and at once the Moon Heavenly Venerable found her chance to flee and departed. Shen Mu hurried forward and angrily said, "Why did the Divine Emperor let her go?

" Divine Emperor Langxuan turned around, with a half-smile: "If you had not locked onto me with your saber qi, how could she have escaped?

Mu Heavenly Venerable, you have grown bold.

" Shen Mu laughed heartily and said smugly, "I have indeed grown bold.

Divine Emperor, that Dao fruit. .

.

" Divine Emperor Langxuan glanced at him and gave a cold snort: "If you dare spread this around, I will make you regret being born into this world. .

.

" "Your Majesty. " Hearing this "Your Majesty," Divine Emperor Langxuan could not help but beam with delight. "No need to be so ostentatious.

Very well, I will not hold it against you. Do not go any further—Yin Son of Heaven awaits you ahead. I do not wish to lose a treacherous minister. " Shen Mu thanked him and departed by boat, musing silently: "It seems that Dao fruit, while it enhanced Divine Emperor Langxuan's strength, still affected his temperament, even his mind. Strange.

He clearly comprehended a deeper level of the Dao of the Primordial Beginning, which shows his Dao realm cultivation has risen; by rights his Dao heart should only grow clearer—why then was he still affected by a single 'Your Majesty' from me?

" He pondered in confusion. When Dao heart cultivation rises, whether in wisdom or thought, one should be higher; yet Divine Emperor Langxuan's wisdom seemed to have diminished—this was what perplexed him.

"Mu Heavenly Venerable, I finally know how you managed to survive in the Heavenly Court!

" Zhe Huali spoke bluntly, sneering: "You have entered the Dao through flattery and cultivated a Palace of Flattery!

" Shen Mu spat. Luo Wushuang said coldly, "Speak human to humans and ghost to ghosts—Mu Heavenly Venerable is quite the expert.