Chapter 980 — The Lure of the Swimming Fish

Lian Huahun and Yun Chuxiu were thrown into a torment of doubt and alarm.

True, only a single realm lay between them and Shen Mu, but the gulf was far too vast.

These bodies of theirs were still at the Spirit Bridge realm, never having crossed the Southern Heavenly Gate, whereas Shen Mu was already an Exalted God, a full realm above them.

In the past, to say nothing of Exalted Gods one realm above them, they had slain no small number of True Gods two realms above them.

Lian Huahun, for instance, to preserve the Eighteen Slaughter-Mu Arts, had butchered to the very last every disciple the Hao Heavenly Venerable had sent into the Great Void, and those disciples had all been at the True God realm. They were Heavenly Venerables; both Lian Huahun and Yun Chuxiu were but incarnations these women used to sport among mortals.

Even so, they were not beings Exalted Gods or True Gods could match, for their vision and understanding were there. Yet before Shen Mu, a single realm above them was as good as a single heaven above: Shen Mu stood beyond the heavens and they upon the ground, and even the Eighteen Slaughter-Mu Arts could not be delivered — could not be made to show their might.

From the moment Lian Huahun struck to the capture of the two sisters, not one move of theirs had so much as touched Shen Mu. He had not dodged, nor had he broken their techniques and divine abilities; with nothing but the bloom of his primal energy he had blocked their attacks.

Shen Mu slammed the two women to the ground, then closed the eye at the center of his brow once more, and his dream went on: countless tiny Shen Mus still burrowed to and fro across Lady Yuanmu's flesh, charting that flesh and recording the Guixu runes. With their cultivation sealed by him, Lian Huahun and Yun Chuxiu lay on the ground unable to move. Yun Chuxiu blinked and suddenly cried, "Divine Blade Luo, what are you standing there dazed for?

Come here at once, put the rebel Shen Mu to death, and help this palace to her feet!

" Luo Wushuang turned a deaf ear, though his heart was somewhat uneasy. Both of these women were figures among the Ten Heavenly Venerables; in defying their orders outright, he had firmly set the cap of rebel upon his own head and would never in his life take it off.

"I wonder how Shen Mu will deal with the incarnations of the Empress and Yuanmu?

" Luo Wushuang was ill at ease. "Shen the Overlord Body seems to harbor other, ambiguous designs upon these two women; in all likelihood he will spare their lives for the sake of their beauty.

Just now, the way he looked at them was not quite right!

These two must die. Otherwise, once they leave the Great Void, their true bodies will learn everything that has happened here! " The Great Void and the Heavenly Court were two worlds; what Lian Huahun and Yun Chuxiu experienced here would not be sensed by the true bodies of the Empress and Yuanmu, but once they were within one and the same world, they would gain the memories of Lian Huahun and Yun Chuxiu. And then the Empress and Yuanmu would never let Shen Mu and Luo Wushuang off; one way or another they would do away with them!

"If Shen the Overlord Body is too tenderhearted to kill two peerless beauties, then I will wield the blade myself and take off their heads! " Blade-light flickered in Luo Wushuang's eyes.

Yun Chuxiu was a beauty without peer; every frown and smile, every gesture, was unbearably alluring.

And Lian Huahun too was a rare beauty; few ordinary men could withstand the seduction of these two women.

That Shen Mu should have been bewitched by them was only to be expected. Luo Wushuang, however, was different.

He was drunk on the blade, and in his eyes the blade was the fairest of beauties.

In the past his blade arts had been square and upright, every stroke measured, never overstepping the rule; only a dao heart as powerful as his could disregard the looks of these two beauties and strike them down without mercy.

Shen Mu had entered his dream, and those tiny Shen Mus were jabbering away in his dreamland, exchanging what they had found; their study of Yuanmu's flesh proceeded quickly. What he was doing differed from the charting done by the Heavenly Court's Daoists. When the Heavenly Court's Daoists charted an ancient god, they had to chart every rune of that ancient god's great dao, and chart the structure of its flesh as well, recording every aspect of the ancient god's great dao without reservation and analyzing each secret within it.

He, by contrast, was merely sorting out the basic runes upon the surface of Lady Yuanmu's body; those basic runes were all he needed to arrange.

Much as he was interested in the great dao of Guixu, charting out the complete Guixu dao would take far too long; working alone, even in a dream, he would need a thousand years to accomplish it.

Shen Mu's aim was simply to evolve Guixu within his own Primal Embryo Divine Treasury, and understanding the basic runes of Guixu was enough to achieve that. Of course, if he could obtain detailed data on Yuanmu's flesh and the rune arrays of the Guixu great dao, it would greatly benefit his perfecting of Guixu within the Primal Embryo Divine Treasury.

Therefore the detailed charting of Yuanmu's flesh and the Guixu great dao he intended to leave to the divination-skilled divine power users and god-demons of Jingping.

After a long while, Shen Mu woke from his dream, and the dream world shattered. He returned Lady Yuanmu's crystal coffin to his third eye as before, then looked toward Yun Chuxiu and Lian Huahun.

The two girls lay on the ground, their figures exquisite, alluring beyond words.

Lian Huahun was cold as ice; sensing his gaze, her body went rigid, yet her beauty was lovely still. Yun Chuxiu was more uninhibited, even deliberately striking all manner of alluring, wanton poses; biting her lower lip, she giggled, "Heavenly Venerable, my sister and I cannot stir a muscle now — how does the Heavenly Venerable mean to deal with us?

" Shen Mu's heart swayed; he smiled and said, "The Empress and Lady Yuanmu are so naughty — naturally I shall lay you over my knee and spank you soundly.

" Lian Huahun's face went pale, while Yun Chuxiu twisted her body on the ground and giggled, "Come on then, come and spank me!

" She was like a fish cast up on shore, making one want to pounce and catch her. Though Shen Mu knew it was unseemly, he could not help wanting to pounce and catch her, and in his heart he hesitated: "The Empress and Yuanmu cannot be spared.

.

. " Yet when it came to striking the killing blow, he could not help hesitating as well.

Just then a blade-light flashed, and with a single stroke Luo Wushuang cut Yun Chuxiu in two!

Shen Mu was startled.

Luo Wushuang raised his blade again and slew Lian Huahun as well; lifting his hand, he wiped the blood from the blade and said darkly, "The Heavenly Venerable Mu is not yet two years old, and these two fiends dared to seduce him.

Death is too light for them.

" Shen Mu looked at the beauties' corpses on the ground, the corner of his eye twitching, and shot Luo Wushuang a glance.

Luo Wushuang said without expression, "The Heavenly Venerable's dao heart is firm; he would certainly not be seduced by two witches.

I have overstepped.

But these two witches slighted the Heavenly Venerable, and I could not help drawing my blade to vindicate him. I ask the Heavenly Venerable's pardon.

" Shen Mu said haltingly, "Brother Luo need not be so.

Just call me Cult Master Shen. You are right — these two witches dared to tempt me.

. .

I am well versed in the arts of creation; if I were to rejoin their bodies, perhaps they might yet live. . .