Chapter 1615 — The Little Demons of Qilin Mansion

Shen Mu and Achou, Earl of Earth, fell silent. Since Duke of Heaven had stepped forward, the two of them were still willing to listen, though how much of it they would actually take in remained in doubt.

Duke of Heaven stood there, wanting to say something, but after a while he still could not think of the words.

Shen Mu and Earl of Earth were both frightfully stubborn creatures, and persuading them to change their minds was a thing all but impossible to accomplish. And Duke of Heaven himself was none too clean either: in those years past, for the sake of his own selfish desires, he had given not the slightest thought to the circumstances of Shen Mu and Jingping, and had let Hong Tianzun and the other Tianzun march against him.

Shen Mu had been his ally, and he had never once weighed his ally's plight; yet Shen Mu had still done all he could, relying on his own reputation to summon many a master, from Kaihuang and Langwan to You Tianzun, and had even taken the field himself, and in the end had saved him, resurrected him, and given him hope of attaining the Dao. Otherwise there would have been no chance at all for Duke of Heaven to survive that time!

And this time, Gong Tianzun had taken the road through the Nether Capital to Guixu to suppress Shen Mu, while Earl of Earth had seized the chance to slaughter the Heavenly Court troops at Jade Lock Pass, drawing down the Heavenly Court's punitive expedition, exactly as Duke of Heaven had done in years past. Nor was he thinking of Shen Mu and Jingping, but only of his own selfish gain. As allies, these two ancient gods both fell short. Before them the Southern Emperor, the Vermilion Bird, who had acted on his own authority, had been the same: without notifying Shen Mu, he had rebelled outright and drawn down Fire Tianzun, hoping to use Fire Tianzun's hand to free himself from the shackles of the ancient gods, only to be suppressed by Fire Tianzun in Pixiang Hall.

Even so, Shen Mu had done all he could, searching for a way to break Pixiang Hall and resurrecting the Southern Emperor, the Vermilion Bird.

In this regard, Duke of Heaven, Earl of Earth, and the Southern Emperor all owed Shen Mu a great deal. After a long while, Shen Mu said bleakly: "Earl of Earth, no matter what, the Nether Capital must not fall into the Heavenly Court's hands.

If it does, even I will be powerless to turn the tide.

I hope you are utterly certain of yourself.

This is the last time your camp of ancient gods will act on its own authority. If, after you free yourself from the shackles of the ancient gods, other ancient gods follow suit, forgive me for standing by and watching you die. " He said indifferently: "When that time comes, I will watch you court death.

" Achou, Earl of Earth, was silent for a moment, then said: "Thank you.

" Shen Mu gave a cold snort, flicked his sleeve, and departed; his voice came back from afar, saying: "When the Heavenly Court comes to kill you, they will not send the Heavenly Court's great army.

A few Tianzun will suffice. I will do all I can to invite Kaihuang and the others to lend aid. But if the Nether Capital falls into the Heavenly Court's hands, heh heh. .

.

I, your daddy, will kneel right before Hao Tianzun and surrender!

" His figure passed through the karma fire and vanished without a trace. Duke of Heaven watched him go and praised him: "Mu Tianzun's craft grows more and more miraculous with each passing day. He does not fear even karma fire in the slightest. It is only his temper that is too fiery, calling himself 'your daddy' right in front of us.

His cultivation strength has already reached the level of a Tianzun; among the ten Tianzun, he would not rank as weak.

As for his craft, I can no longer quite understand it. " Achou, Earl of Earth, said: "This time he truly is enraged.

I can sense the fury ignited within his heart of Dao. Had you not come running over just now, he would most likely have raised his fist and squared off with me, and given me a thorough beating.

" Duke of Heaven laughed: "How would he dare? " Achou, Earl of Earth, said nothing. Duke of Heaven asked curiously: "How did he evade the perception of the Great Dao of the Nether Capital?

" Achou, Earl of Earth, shook his head: "I do not know.

But I sensed within his body a strange Great Dao.

This Great Dao allows him to deeply conceal the karma brought about by resurrecting the dead.

I can detect this, and yet the Great Dao of the Nether Capital cannot. " Duke of Heaven laughed: "Your realm has grown deeper still. I did not see that Great Dao. Tell me, my friend, do you think Xu Tianzun will still acknowledge you as Achou?

" Achou, Earl of Earth, was silent for a moment, and on his incomparably hideous face there appeared a trace of a smile: "She will acknowledge me. The very purpose of her becoming one of the ten Tianzun was to kill Earl of Earth and free her father, Achou, was it not?

" Duke of Heaven frowned slightly, a trace of worry in his heart. He looked up.

The Nether Capital was now a scene of grim desolation; many Nether Capital demons and monsters had already slipped away while You Tianzun was absent, intending to flee to the mortal realm to hide from the coming disaster.

Shen Mu walked out of the Nether Capital and came to the place where the Heavenly River and the Nether River met. It was here that the Heavenly River entered the Nether Capital and became the Nether River, and it was from here that countless Nether Capital demons and demonfolk had smuggled themselves into the world of the living.

When he reached this place, he saw that in the surging waters countless monsters swam and slipped along beneath the surface, until even the Heavenly River had been dyed ink-black! The Nether Capital was not like Xuandu: the people of Xuandu deeply loved Duke of Heaven, and so when the calamity of Xuandu descended, few of them fled; instead they fought to the death against the Heavenly Court. But the monsters and demonfolk of the Nether Capital were born of the various negative emotions of Heaven and Earth, and the demon gods of the Nether Capital cultivated the demonic path as well; faced with the calamity of the Nether Capital, their first thought was to flee for their lives.

"Mu Tianzun! " someone suddenly called out, stopping him.

Shen Mu looked toward the sound and saw Xu Tianzun standing upon the surface of the Heavenly River, the murky water beneath her feet, countless monsters swarming toward her, surging up behind her, growing more and more numerous, forming a demon army that blotted out the sky and the sun. Shen Mu halted, his gaze falling upon Xu Tianzun's face.

He said indifferently: "What instruction does Xu Tianzun have for me? " "I would not presume to give instruction.

By seniority, I should address you as Uncle.

" Xu Tianzun bowed slightly and said: "Gong Tianzun escorted Uncle to Guixu, preparing to use Uncle to fill the sea eye. Yet she has not returned for so long, while Mu Tianzun has come back alive. Could it be that Gong Tianzun has already met with misfortune?

" Shen Mu said with a half-smile: "You have planted so many eyes and ears in Jingping.

Do you really not know whether Gong Tianzun is dead or not?

" Xu Tianzun said: "Gong Tianzun has indeed met with misfortune. Someone saw her scatter into flying ash in the Primordial Realm, and Uncle's mount went to kill Gong Tianzun's reincarnated body; someone found the corpse of Gong Tianzun's reincarnation washed up on the shore. I imagine that in the future, if I die, Uncle will likewise send men to kill my reincarnated body in Jingping, without the slightest mercy.

" Shen Mu laughed aloud, then the smile on his face vanished completely: "Xu Tianzun, you seem to be in fine spirits. Since I first came to know you, this is the longest conversation we have ever had.