Chapter 842 — Who Comes Forth to Die?

The Daoist Palace was sunk in utter silence.

Those Heavenly Court envoys likewise knit their brows. They had heard of the Overlord Body before—idle talk in the Heavenly Court had spoken of a tiny place in the lower realm called Jingping, which had produced a Jingping Overlord Body, one said to be unmatched through all ages. The gods of the Heavenly Court laughed whenever the matter came up, saying that folk from a backwater bragged so loud their boasting flew up to the Heavenly Court itself; it was taken as a joke, rarely discussed in earnest.

When they heard Shen Mu declare himself an Overlord Body just now, they could not help laughing aloud—yet the response of the Dao Ancestor's statue had truly exceeded all their expectations. The Dao Ancestor would rather destroy his own statue and his own Three Treasures than receive a single bow from Shen Mu. Plainly this Overlord Body was not so simple as the gods of the Heavenly Court imagined.

Suddenly the youngest of the Heavenly Court envoys, a young Daoist priest, clapped his hands and burst out laughing, and the sharp slap of his palms startled everyone awake. "Impressive, truly impressive!

" the young Daoist said with a laugh. "Shen the Overlord Body of Jingping dares to destroy the Dao Ancestor's statue in Azure Cloud Heaven, and wrecks the sect-guarding Three Treasures before the Sect Master's very eyes.

He is indeed worthy of the name Overlord Body! " The Daoists came to their senses.

An old Daoist raised a finger at Shen Mu and cried fiercely: "You wretch! You have ruined the Dao Ancestor's statue of our Azure Cloud Heaven, and by some treacherous scheme shattered the Three Treasures of our Daoist sect! Our sect will not live under the same sky as you!

" The other Daoists were about to add their own denunciations when the Azure Cloud Sect Master suddenly barked: "Silence—" The Daoist Palace fell silent once more. The Azure Cloud Sect Master was in a wretched state. Within him there was nothing but shock upon shock, and not a trace of fury—because he did not dare.

He had thought one layer deeper than the other Daoists.

Shen Mu's cultivation was by no means weak; he ranked among the very finest experts below the Divine Realm.

But he could not have damaged the Dao Ancestor's statue, nor the Three Treasures. The Three Treasures of the Azure Cloud Sect belonged to the Dao Ancestor, and the Dao Ancestor was an existence of the Imperial Throne realm.

Though those three treasures were mere everyday articles to him, the everyday articles of an Imperial Throne expert were no small matter; there was no way Shen Mu could have used some uncanny divine art to destroy them.

And besides, had Shen Mu tampered with them, he could not have hidden it from the eyes of the experts present.

The one that had destroyed the Three Treasures was the Three Treasures themselves. These three treasures had in truth destroyed themselves!

The Dao Ancestor's statue was no different. That is to say, the Dao Ancestor truly believed himself unworthy of a single bow from Shen Mu, and so destroyed his own statue and his Three Treasures! "Pay your respects! " the Azure Cloud Sect Master said abruptly.

The many Daoists in the Daoist Palace were taken aback, but with the Sect Master speaking, there was no room for them to object.

They rose one by one, formed two rows, and bowed to Shen Mu.

Shen Mu glanced at the Heavenly Court envoys.

The youngest of them, the one who had spoken, frowned and murmured a few words to the young men and women beside him—what he said, no one could tell.

"This one, who looks the youngest, is their leader. " Shen Mu took it all in, waved his hand, and said with a smile: "Rise.

Where is my seat?

" The Azure Cloud Sect Master hesitated, then ordered another seat brought and placed before the burnt wreck of the statue, a little higher than the seats of the Heavenly Court envoys. Shen Mu sat down, looked around, and said with a smile: "Dao Lord Lin Xuan is a fellow Daoist of my own generation; he too should have a seat of honor.

" The Azure Cloud Sect Master frowned and ordered yet another seat brought. Dao Lord Lin Xuan sat down beside Shen Mu, and Shen Mu said with a smile: "Please, everyone, be seated. " The Azure Cloud Sect Master bowed in thanks, and he and the assembled Daoists took their seats.

Shen Mu breathed a sigh of relief and thought: "It seems the Dao Ancestor is still in this world, not dead.

I only do not know whether he has fallen into the hands of the Outer Heavenly Court, or into the hands of the ancient god Heavenly Emperor, who is already dead.

This old Daoist is beyond comprehension. .

. " He did not know whether the Dao Ancestor of today would still remember old ties.

In the Longhan Era he had given guidance to the Dao Ancestor and to the Great Brahma Heavenly King Buddha, leaving behind a measure of friendship; and when Heavenly Venerable Yu was ambushed and killed, it was Shen Mu who transmitted the Dharma in his stead, teaching the way of longevity—the Dao Ancestor had been among those who listened.

But whether such friendship could withstand the erosion of interest and the long passage of time, Shen Mu in his heart truly could not be sure.

Fortunately the Dao Ancestor had not dared to receive his bow, sparing him from being set upon by the Azure Cloud Sect.

Shen Mu looked at the Heavenly Court envoys and said with a smile: "Fellow Daoists of the Outer Heavenly Court, please be seated. " Those young men and women frowned. The youngest young Daoist said with a laugh: "No need to worry.

We will sit first.

Before me, he cannot stir up much of a wave. " They had scarcely taken their seats when several Daoists came rushing in, panic on their faces, shouting at the top of their voices before they had even arrived: "Disaster! The disciples of the Lords of the Zhou Tian Stars are all dead in the Daoist Academy!

" "What? " The Daoist Palace erupted in uproar. The old Daoists who had just sat down rose to their feet, horror on their faces.

The Heavenly Court envoys were aghast, striking the table and shouting in fury. The Azure Cloud Sect Master shot to his feet, fists clenched, veins standing out on his forehead, cold sweat soon soaking him through.

The young Daoist from the Heavenly Court remained seated on his throne and said coldly: "Fu Yuntian, what is the meaning of this? The disciples of the Heavenly Court's Lords of the Zhou Tian Stars died in Azure Cloud Heaven.

What guilt do you bear? " Cold sweat rolled down the Azure Cloud Sect Master's forehead. He bowed and said: "Be patient a moment, Envoy.

This disciple speaks muddled; I will first question him clearly!

" His voice was hoarse. He reached out and seized the Daoists, demanding: "The disciples of the Lords of the Zhou Tian Stars died in the Daoist Academy—is it true or false?

Are all of them dead? Did any escape?

What were the people of the Academy doing, that they let a murderer sneak in there? Where are they now? " Flustered and confused, he fired off question after question like a string of firecrackers, giving the young Daoists no time to answer.

Only then did the Azure Cloud Sect Master come to his senses. He hastily released the Daoists and softened his tone: "Since it has already happened, tell it bit by bit, and clearly.

" One of the Daoists said hurriedly: "Replying to the Sect Master: first several Uncle-Masters came to the Daoist Academy. One of them was Uncle-Master Tianhong. He made a circuit of the Academy and told us that Azure Ram Palace had been robbed, plundered by a thief, and that they had come to see whether the thief had slipped into the Academy. " The Azure Cloud Sect Master nodded: "They were sent by me to inform you.