Chapter 1857 — The Skull of the Third-Ranked One
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 4
Young Master Lingxiao was panting hoarsely, dragging his dao spear behind him, his face dark, his steps heavy as he trod upon the surface of the sea, walking toward Shen Mu one step at a time.
He had still come one step too late.
When the might of Zixiao's sword dao had erupted, he too had sensed that world-shaking sword force, and had even heard the zither notes of Zixiao's Dao-Attainment Melody.
It was by following that music that he had come here.
Zixiao's sword dao power had left him both shaken and delighted; he had thought Shen Mu could never withstand Zixiao's sword, that victory was already in his grasp. Yet when he arrived, what he saw was Zixiao's figure sinking into the river.
Zixiao had, just as he had feared, suffered the collapse of his dao heart, cast aside everything, and returned to the Calamity of Destruction to keep his dead wife company.
"Third Senior Brother."
Shen Mu saluted him. Though his wounds were grave beyond measure, he did not fail in courtesy. "Fourth Senior Brother has gotten what he wished for. What wish does Third Senior Brother have? Your foolish junior will do his utmost to satisfy it."
The fury in Young Master Lingxiao's heart gradually subsided. He too bore many sword wounds, inflicted by Zixiao's blade, but compared with Shen Mu his injuries were far lighter. He said indifferently, "Old Seven, I am not like Old Four. His dao heart had a flaw, and so you could take advantage of it. But my dao heart has no weakness at all; it is whole and transparent. Had you met me at the very beginning, you would have lost without question."
Shen Mu smiled faintly, retreating step by step. His dao blood dripped into the long river of chaos; the dao wounds Young Master Zixiao had left on him were truly too heavy, and even he could not recover from them in a short time.
"In a contest against Fourth Senior Brother, I truly had no chance of victory. When Fourth Senior Brother's strength erupted in full, it was dazzling beyond compare, and I could only marvel. I imagine Third Senior Brother possesses the same ability. Therefore, I have prepared another duel for you, Senior Brother."
The long river of chaos beneath their feet became a vast ring. Shen Mu walked upon the inner surface of the river, and Young Master Lingxiao, dragging his long spear, followed close upon his steps.
Suddenly, with a whoosh, another long river of chaos threaded through. Shen Mu's foot came down upon that river of chaos, and Young Master Lingxiao's foot came down upon it at the same instant, giving him no chance to flee.
Whoosh —
Another long river swept in. Shen Mu shifted his steps and stepped onto that river, and Young Master Lingxiao still followed him, his will to fight rising ever higher, his killing intent growing ever stronger.
He meant to strike with his strongest blow and slay Shen Mu outright, giving him no opportunity at all!
"Even in my prime, I would not dare claim I could defeat you, Senior Brother — much less now, when I am a spent arrow at the end of its flight."
Shen Mu moved his steps, so that Young Master Lingxiao's qi could never quite lock onto him. "The seven young masters of Miluo Palace all have the strength to pass through the Calamity of Destruction, but only three can pass through the Calamity of Creation. The First Young Master, Taishang; the Second Young Master, Wuji; and myself."
The moment his words fell, Young Master Lingxiao's expression shifted slightly. As he moved with Shen Mu's steps, all unknowing, what surrounded them was no longer the long river of chaos but a sea of chaos.
He looked around, and saw that the long rivers of chaos from before had vanished without a trace; he could not see at all where they had gone.
He looked up, and saw countless universes of the Sixteenth Epoch!
Those universes were like countless cross-sections of time, and these cross-sections formed the history of the Sixteenth Epoch universe!