Chapter 1468 — Her Father Appears Here

Tianfang was the eleventh of the Forty-Nine Heavens of the Heavenly Dao, and Tianfang City was one of the Forty-Nine Divine Cities of Xuandu, where tremendous power gathered and the breath of the Heavenly Dao lay thickest. By the time they reached Tianfang City, they saw that the Heavenly Dao blessed the whole divine city, so dense above it that it had taken on substance; and gathered there were countless Sun Wardens, Moon Wardens, and Star Lords.

The divine city was encompassed by thousands upon thousands of suns and moons and stars and constellations, as though it floated at the heart of a vast galaxy, blazing so bright the eye could scarce bear to look. At that moment Tianfang City was under siege by the armies of the Ancestral God King, led by Dan Fenglai, Great Sun Star Lord under his command; numberless Golden Crows dragged sun after sun, and from those suns flew out countless Fire Crow troops to assault the city.

Yet against Tianfang City's rampart-like defenses, Dan Fenglai could not force his way in at all. Dan Fenglai had once been charged with surveying the Heavenly Dao in Xuandu and charting the heavens there, but the Lord of Heaven had indulged the Earth Mother Yuanjun, who swept away every force the Heavenly Court had left in Xuandu; the several million gods and demons of his personal guard all perished at her hands.

The army he held now was newly assembled, Golden Crow god-race conscripted from the myriad heavens and worlds, and it could not match his old guard. He was a being of the Emperor Throne realm, and he led from the front, charging into the fray. When Shen Mu and the others arrived, the fighting was at its fiercest, and Dan Fenglai was about to break into the divine city when suddenly the Heavenly Dao within the city quaked; Sun Warden after Sun Warden, Moon Warden after Moon Warden, and the Star Lords roared in unison, their powers linked as one, and in the sky the Heavenly Dao condensed and became a great Heaven Seal that came crashing down.

Before the Heaven Seal had fully fallen, Dan Fenglai's eye corners twitched violently and his body grew as if bound by chains of the Heavenly Dao, unable to move; boundless pressure bore down from above, and before the Seal reached the crown of his head his bones were already cracking and popping, his skin bursting open, his divine blood steaming.

Dan Fenglai screeched again and again; suddenly he shook himself and became a fire phoenix, and three heavenly palaces soared up into the sky. His primordial spirit and powers unleashed to the full, he dragged one forged divine sun after another up to meet the Heaven Seal; nine divine suns, strung like nine stars in a row, hammered into the Seal in succession, and the violent explosions held the Seal up a moment. At once the fire phoenix beat its wings and fled. A deafening boom!

The Heaven Seal ground the nine divine suns to powder and came down with a crash; at once severed limbs and broken arms flew through the battlefield, the bodies and primordial spirits of countless divine soldiers and generals under Dan Fenglai shattered, numberless limbs whirling through the air before the searing hurricane blew them into ashes.

This dread shockwave rolled to where Shen Mu and the others stood, shaking them off their feet, so that even the tower ship could not draw near Tianfang City. After the shock of the Heaven Seal passed, a heavenly well suddenly surfaced from the battlefield; unlike the wells of common sight, this well joined the heavens above and reached the earth below, its shaft like the body of a dragon. The moment the heavenly well appeared on the battlefield, the whole well was like a monster that devours all things, sucking in Dan Fenglai's great army; numberless divine soldiers and generals danced and flailed in the air, grasping at anything, but there was nothing to grasp, and they were drawn into the well one after another, turning to flying ash.

"The might of the Heavenly Dao — is it not too strong? " Tian Shu murmured. Beaten, Dan Fenglai at once sounded the gong and called his remnant troops to a frantic retreat, while from Tianfang City countless burly Sun Wardens charged out in hot pursuit.

Shen Mu waited a moment outside the battlefield, then set the swift ship moving and sailed for Tianfang City. The defenders of Tianfang City sensed the Heavenly Dao's aura upon them, did not bar their way, and opened the gates to let them in. They had scarce entered the city when they heard voices crying, "Shoot the villain! Shoot the villain!

" Shen Mu looked toward the sound and saw a band of mischievous children — surely the sons of Xuandu's Sun and Moon Wardens — with bows on their backs, shooting arrows at straw effigies.

One of the effigies was the Ancestral God King, another was the Fire Heavenly Venerable, and another was Shen Mu himself. One child loosed several arrows in a row and cheered, "I've hit Shen Mu, the villain Shen! " "I hit him too!

" The other children who had missed Shen Mu's effigy came up and spat at it again and again. Shen Mu was silent, and touched the black cloth over his face.

Zaifu came to his side, clapped him on the shoulder, and said in a low voice, "Not everyone can understand what you have done. " "I know.

They are only children — what should I fear? " Shen Mu gave a sneering laugh and strode on into the city. "Have I not borne curses enough?

I care nothing for this.

" Zaifu watched his back, shook his head, and followed. Tian Shu pulled the black cloth from his face.

"The leader of Xuandu who holds Tianfang City — I may know him.

Most likely he is Di Qing, Di Yiyue's father, said to be a descendant of the Lord of Heaven.

In Kaihuang's day he was a Sun Warden of the Yuan Realm, and came down to aid Kaihuang at the Lord of Heaven's command.

Later, when Di Yiyue was born and showed a terrifying talent, he entrusted her to Kaihuang. One of you is Lord Mu, two are of the Heavenly Court's Lingxiu Army, and one is Lord Mu's teacher — none of you can well show your faces.

He and I have old ties; come with me to see him.

" The others agreed and followed him.

"They say Di Qing and Di Yiyue do not get along," Luo Wushuang said suddenly.

Tian Shu said, "That is an old matter.

Di Yiyue's mother was of the human race; Di Qing is of the god race, bearing the blood of the Lord of Heaven.

When her mother was with child he abandoned her. Later she gave birth to Di Yiyue, and mother and daughter lived depending on each other; but the mother's fate was bitter, illness plagued her whole body, and she died.

Di Yiyue met Di Qing by chance, and he recognized the child as his own and took her in; but thinking a child of the human race a stain upon him, he gave her to Kaihuang.

His first plan was to make her Kaihuang's child bride.

.

. " He was one of the Heavenly Kings under Kaihuang, and his coming to seek out Di Qing caused a great stir at once; his arrival stood for Kaihuang's own stance, and Di Qing hurriedly led the many defending generals of Tianfang City out to meet him. "When Kaihuang saw Di Yiyue's talent he was astonished, as at a being of heaven, and sent her to study in many places. For this Di Yiyue hated Di Qing to the bone and never spoke a word when she saw him; afterward, when the Kaihuang Tribulation broke out, Di Qing simply abandoned Kaihuang and left, which made her despise him the more. . .

" Seeing Di Qing and the rest coming to welcome them, Tian Shu hastily broke off and laughed aloud, "Brother Di Qing!

How long has it been?

" Di Qing was tall and powerfully built, with white hair and silver eyes, bearing much of the Lord of Heaven's strange aspect. He laughed. "Kaihuang has not forgotten the friendship of former days. That he sent you here sets my heart at ease! " The two embraced heartily, and Di Qing said with a laugh, "Now the Heavenly Dao flourishes, and we guard Xuandu. Even if you had not come, the Heavenly Court could do nothing to Xuandu!