Chapter 1577 — The Moment the Heavenly Venerable Was Attacked

At the same time, Ling's Immutable Art erupted, severing the Heavenly River and sweeping Ming Fangyu into the Art. Even in that situation, Heavenly Venerable Ling remained extremely restrained, refusing to draw the Shanghuang Heavenly Emperor, Yi Shisheng, or the others within the Southern Heavenly Gate into the Art.

"Did you not say that once your body moved, the immutable matter would undergo corresponding changes?

" the Grand Emperor asked, greatly bewildered.

"Why am I not changing then?

" "You are different. " Shen Mu explained patiently: "You were not turned into immutable matter by Ling's Immutable Art.

You are indeed immutable matter now — but you were made immutable matter by my Immutable Art.

" He smiled faintly, without looking at the spectacle of Ming Fangyu slaying Heavenly Venerable Ling, and went on: "You fell into my Immutable Art and became the immutable matter within my Art. " He walked up beside the Vermilion Bird, looked up at that ancient god's nearly perfect body, and said with a composed expression: "You pursued me the whole way here.

You saw those phantoms I left behind on the Heavenly River, didn't you?

And you passed through them, didn't you?

" The Grand Emperor stood rigid on the river, the Vermilion Bird's wings still held wide, flames blazing fiercely.

"Those were the Immutable Arts I left behind. " Shen Mu appeared very patient: "As long as you passed through the first phantom, you had already fallen into my Immutable Art.

My cultivation is inferior to yours, so the first Art would hardly have been able to assimilate you. But you must have passed through more than one phantom; with my present strength, three phantoms are enough to assimilate you completely.

" He raised his hand and, slowly, pressed it on the Vermilion Bird's brow, drawing the Grand Emperor's divine consciousness out of the bird's body bit by bit, most carefully: "You passed through twenty-six thousand, four hundred and twenty-three times in all. That many was really not necessary. " More of the Grand Emperor's divine consciousness was peeled away, and gradually it took form before him, becoming the Grand Emperor's figure — a figure made of divine consciousness, not true flesh.

"The reason I left so many Immutable Arts behind was not entirely to deal with you, but to deal with Taichu and to deal with the other Heavenly Venerables who entered this place.

" Shen Mu stretched out one finger and slowly pressed it to the brow of the Grand Emperor of divine consciousness, smiling: "When your divine consciousness descended to the lower realm, that was not your prime state.

The Grand Emperor in his prime has long ceased to exist. Your fleshly body is dead, Qiang Tianfei is dead, and Ming Fangyu has turned to ashes. But you still have one strongest state — the Grand Emperor of divine consciousness imprinted in the Great Luo Heaven of divine consciousness.

" His finger looked gentle, but as it pressed down, the bodily structure of the Grand Emperor of divine consciousness underwent an inconceivable transformation. Beginning at the forehead, the Grand Emperor of divine consciousness was turned by that finger into primordial qi, and the primordial qi was in turn absorbed by Shen Mu. Shen Mu said, unhurried: "My target is not the you of now, but the you in the Great Luo Heaven.

And the one I mean to rescue is not only Heavenly Venerable Ling, but also the primordial spirit of Heavenly Venerable Yun, who is imprisoned there. " By now, most of the Grand Emperor of divine consciousness's head had been assimilated into primordial qi.

He struggled with all his might, tried to resist, but could not break free, could not fight back. Of his head only the mouth remained, and soon even the mouth was gone.

"In addition, I have one more aim — to take this opportunity to rid the world of Heavenly Venerable Xiao and Heavenly Venerable Hao. " Shen Mu said: "I left so many Arts behind that as long as Heavenly Venerable Xiao and Heavenly Venerable Hao pass through those Immutable Arts, they will end up exactly as you have. Grand Emperor — I, Mu the Heavenly Venerable, having founded my Dao on divine consciousness, am I worthy to be your opponent now? " The Grand Emperor could no longer answer.

He had completely turned into primordial qi, absorbed by Shen Mu — he was no more!

The Grand Emperor, wielding the body of the Vermilion Bird, had been enormously powerful, a figure who could be counted among the Heavenly Venerables.

Yet Shen Mu, who could summon clouds with one turn of his hand and rain with the next, slew him with ease, leaving him not even a chance to resist! Having lived through the death of the Lame Elder, Shen Mu had changed greatly, imperceptibly — both in his way of handling affairs and in his very temperament.

"This is the Immutable Art.

Even if you are dead, the Grand Emperor of divine consciousness within the Great Luo Heaven of divine consciousness cannot possibly know what happened here.

" Shen Mu put away the body of the Vermilion Bird, the Southern Emperor, then turned and walked forward, taking in the changes all around him as he murmured to himself: "Still, I will give you a chance — a chance to discover this place and to discover me.

And when you strike, I will find your Great Luo Heaven of divine consciousness and fight my way up there.

I'll bring a few good friends along — Second Brother, for instance, or Kaihuang, or perhaps Heavenly Venerable Hao. . .

"