Chapter 1610 — The Price of Curiosity

Beneath the Chaos Sea, the woman looked up and watched Shen Mu and the Empress climb swiftly, drawing farther and farther from her, sinking ever deeper into the great abyss of Guixu in the Sixteenth Universe. "At last the day of my release has come, Teacher.

" She murmured softly, "You said I was too extreme in my ways, and so you sealed me here.

But you never imagined, did you, that in the end it would be Old Seven who set me free. Heh heh heh.

. . " She laughed low. "You have grown old.

I can feel the rot in your dao heart. For a being like you, when the dao heart ages, death is not far off.

The moment your dao heart dies is the moment you die. Teacher, I will weep for you — and I will laugh for my own release!

" "You always said my methods were too cruel.

You were so merciful, wanting to save everyone, and yet you failed every single time! Perhaps only someone like me can accomplish what you never could! " Her gaze followed Shen Mu and the Empress closely; gradually they sank into the darkness and could no longer be seen.

"Even if Old Seven and the Goddess of Guixu cannot save me this time, I have another road to walk. " She laughed softly.

"You know it well — I have many means. You said yourself that I am ruthless, that my deeds offend heaven and violate nature. Heh heh.

So long as that Goddess of Guixu cultivates my Mirror of Guixu, what does it matter if I am not released? " Her face beneath the sea looked very happy.

"I will still live again. You know it — when the Goddess of Guixu awakens, that is my awakening.

. .

" On the stem of the twin lotus, Shen Mu and the Empress climbed swiftly; all around them the history of the Sixteenth Universe flashed past like a revolving lantern, rapidly recounting the six hundred million years of the Sixteenth Universe's history.

The Sixteenth Epoch of the universe had lasted far less time than other universes.

At the very birth of this universe, countless dao-attainers had smuggled themselves across, crowding out and occupying its mass and energy.

The Sixteenth Universe was far, far smaller than Shen Mu and the others had imagined, and the coming of its formation, abiding, decay, and emptiness was far, far swifter than they had imagined. For so many dao-attainers to smuggle themselves across required an exchange of mass and energy: the mass and energy of the Sixteenth Universe was exchanged into the destruction kalpa of the Fifteenth Universe, and the dao-attainers exchanged themselves in — hence the Sixteenth Universe was so small.

An universe so small, holding so many dao-attainers, made the formation, abiding, decay, and emptiness of this universe extremely swift!

In the end, after only six hundred million years, the Sixteenth Universe collapsed completely, and all became emptiness! "Six hundred million years.

. .

" Shen Mu's eye twitched.

Their universe was the Seventeenth Epoch.

Taiyi had said the Seventeenth Epoch had already passed six billion years — ten times the lifespan of the Sixteenth.

Even so, the present universe was still in the formation phase of formation, abiding, decay, and emptiness, and had not yet reached the abiding phase. Yet as the number of dao-attainers in the Seventeenth Epoch increased, the universe would cease to grow and expand, and it ought to reach the abiding phase.

"If we let these prehistoric dao-attainers cross over as they please, I fear our universe will not hold out until it has fully grown before it is utterly annihilated.

" Shen Mu stopped climbing and fell into thought. "My dear! " The Empress halted as well, and Lady Yuanmu lowered her voice and called out, "What do you intend to do? " Shen Mu's eyes flickered.

"The two of you — since you have obtained the method of the Mirror of Guixu, why not cultivate it, and spare yourselves madness? " The Empress said indifferently, "Heavenly Venerable Mu should know the reason. " Lady Yuanmu laughed.

"Though we have fought all our lives, each wanting to kill the other, we have never once thought of dragging each other down together. Besides, if I cultivate her Mirror of Guixu, then my sister and I — the little slut — will have to submit to this so-called Goddess of Guixu, a life worse than death.

Naturally we cannot cultivate it!

" The Empress said, "By comparison, Heavenly Venerable Mu's dao of reincarnation is at least fair.

Teach us the dao of reincarnation, and we shall each rely on our own abilities; whether I refine her to death or she refines me to death, it is our own fate. " Shen Mu smiled faintly. "Since the two of you do not intend to use the method of the Mirror of Guixu, why not pass it to me, and I will teach you the dao of reincarnation. " The Empress and Yuanmu pondered for a moment, and each transmitted to him the method of the Mirror of Guixu she had obtained. "These two methods are quite different from each other.

" Shen Mu sorted through them, astonished, and mused, "Strange! By rights, the one she gave Yuanmu and the one she gave the Empress should be the same method.

For though you appear to be two people, in truth you are two different minds of the Goddess of Guixu.

So one method should serve you both.

Yet she divided it into two — that is unreasonable. .

.

" He examined the Mirror of Guixu closely.

By now his comprehension and understanding of the dao of Guixu was no less than the Empress's or Yuanmu's, and in certain respects surpassed them both.

Thus he grasped the Second Young Master's Mirror of Guixu extremely quickly, and could penetrate every subtlety of it.

The more he pondered, the tighter his brows knit; the more he felt that some hidden malice lurked within the Mirror of Guixu.

Though Shen Mu and the Empress and Yuanmu were enemies, it was plain that these two were far less dangerous than the Second Young Master of Miluo Palace. And in the present circumstances, he needed to join hands with them. "This divine art of the Mirror of Guixu — I fear there is a ghost in it!

" Shen Mu said suddenly. "You two, guard me.

I will test this Mirror of Guixu! " He entered the dream straightaway, and in the dream tiny Shen Mus emerged one after another, chattering maha maha in a hubbub. The Empress and Yuanmu hastened to resist the might of the great abyss of Guixu and protect him, watching him with anxious faces. They and Shen Mu were enemies unto death, yet now they had not the slightest thought of harming him, and Shen Mu held not the least guard against them, entering the dream before their very eyes and asking them to protect him!

Had they wished to kill Shen Mu now, it would have taken no effort at all, yet at such a fine chance they could not bring themselves to strike; instead they had no choice but to protect him.

In the dream, the many Shen Mus all cultivated the dao of Guixu. Their cultivation fell roughly into three kinds: one cultivated the dao of destruction of Guixu, like Lady Yuanmu; one cultivated the dao of creation of Guixu, like the Empress; and the last cultivated the dao of reincarnation that Shen Mu had comprehended.

After a long while, when the Empress and Lady Yuanmu could scarcely endure the power of the great abyss of Guixu, a sudden change arose.

In the dream, those tiny Shen Mus merged together, fusing two by two into Shen Mus with two faces, monstrous of form, much like the Empress's present state.

The Empress and Yuanmu exclaimed in wonder. The remaining tiny Shen Mus then wielded the dao of reincarnation, guarding those who had become one.

And lo, these tiny Shen Mus exercised the method of the Mirror of Guixu, and mirrors shaped like great abysses floated before each little figure.

These were the Mirrors of Guixu refined according to the method of the Mirror of Guixu!

In the dream, these tiny Shen Mus gazed into the mirrors, and once their eyes fell upon them, they could not look away.