Chapter 1664 — Boundless Magic Power
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 5
The Earth Lord too had made his arrangements in the early years of Longhan, choosing Achou as his point of breakthrough; by all reason, the karmic fire of a million years of living beings should have sufficed to let him attain the Dao, and yet when the Earth Lord revived and became Achou, he did not attain the Dao, but halted at the thirty-fifth stage of the karmic-fire Dao Realm. "Thank you, Shepherd Heavenly Venerable," said Achou, rising and saluting.
The Lord of Heaven bowed as well. "Thank you, Shepherd Heavenly Venerable, for your righteous rescue. " Shen Mu said with a half-smile, "Brother Daoist Achou, Brother Daoist Lord of Heaven, by resurrecting the two of you, have I not likewise offended the great Dao of Youdu and transgressed the heavenly statutes of Xuandu, a criminal of the deepest dye?
" He was referring to an old case. In those days, when Shen Mu wished to resurrect mortals, the Lord of Heaven forbade it, and the two had quarreled; Shen Mu thought the Lord of Heaven willing to revive only the ancient gods and never mortals, out of pure selfishness.
Later, to comprehend the Dao of the Saber, Shen Mu went to the battlefield of the Southern Wastelands and used his art of resurrection to bring back the heroic spirits of the slain, thereby offending the Dao of Youdu. The Youdu Heavenly Venerable, on the Earth Lord's command, came in person to stop him.
Shen Mu paid him no heed and went his own way, so that he could no longer set foot in Youdu; only much later, when his mastery of the Dao of Reincarnation had grown ever deeper, was he able to enter Youdu again.
In raising the old matter once more, he was venting a measure of his dissatisfaction and taking the occasion to mock the Lord of Heaven and the Earth Lord. The Lord of Heaven and Achou exchanged a glance.
Achou said nothing; the Lord of Heaven argued in his defense: "The moral order of the heavenly Dao: those who act in accord with Heaven flourish; those who act against Heaven perish. .
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" Shen Mu waved a hand and laughed. "Every acquired Dao in this world is a going against Heaven. Take first the art of medicine.
That men are born, grow old, sicken, and die, that is the moral order of the heavenly Dao.
Yet the physician treats sickness and pain and holds death back; is that not acting against Heaven and defying the Dao of Youdu?
Must every physician, after death, be judged in Youdu? Nonsense! " The Lord of Heaven opened his mouth, but found nothing to say.
Shen Mu went on: "When there is no road, men build bridges and lay roads; is that acting against Heaven? Having no wings, men build flying chariots and flying ships; is that acting against Heaven? When it is hot there are ice mirrors, when it is cold there are heating stoves; when the rains are heavy, gods and demons scatter the dark clouds; when drought comes, the Rain Master rides the clouds and spreads the rain.
All of this must surely count as acting against Heaven. Lord of Heaven, the art of medicine is the Dao of Creation. With Jingping's medicine as it stands today, in less than a hundred years it will cure the aging of mortals.
By then, the day when every man lives long and endures will not be far off. " At last the Lord of Heaven found a point to rebut, and said with a half-smile, "Then the whole universe will be nothing but people, and the Great Destruction will not be far behind.
" Shen Mu laughed heartily.
"Man will conquer Heaven; that is inevitable. If one cannot advance, one can only perish, whether by an outside force or by one's own hand.
Lord of Heaven, I will not contend with you over this. Brother Daoist Achou, now that you have come back to life, let the two of us agree on three rules. " The Lord of Heaven still wished to debate him further, but Shen Mu gave him no chance, raising one finger and saying, "Before the Heavenly Court and Jingping fight their decisive battle, you are not to appear before others. " Achou nodded. "As you say.