Chapter 982 — The Stubborn Elder Brother

The Life-Slaying Cauldron, A Chou, Tubo's reincarnated body.

This experience was stored in the Life-Slaying Cauldron's memories; Shen Mu had once "lived through" that arduous period of Tubo's life in an extraordinary way. In that "experience," he became A Chou, setting the little girl with ox horns on his shoulder, dragging chains of incomparable weight that had been transformed from the Great Way of the Nether Capital, and fighting all the way up to the Heavenly Court to plunge it into darkness. Because it was the Life-Slaying Cauldron's memory, Shen Mu had almost lived that life anew as A Chou, and so the experience had left a deep mark on him. Heaven Venerable Xu looked at the Life-Slaying Cauldron; some hazy memories surged into her mind, then gradually blurred again. Her expression returned to normal as she cast a cold glance at Shen Mu.

"Heaven Venerable Mu, Fire Heavenly Venerable, the three of us should be enough to cross the Void Bridge and reach the other shore directly. " She turned a blind eye to the cauldron and looked to Fire Heavenly Venerable, who was maintaining the Ark of the Other Shore, and proposed, "So long as we work in sincere cooperation, the mystery of Carefree Village can be solved!

" Fire Heavenly Venerable's voice came: "I have long wanted to cooperate with you; it was you who would not agree. " Heaven Venerable Xu looked at Shen Mu and asked, "What does Heaven Venerable Mu think?

" Shen Mu put away the Life-Slaying Cauldron and smiled.

"I too have long planned to find Carefree Village. " Heaven Venerable Xu nodded.

She had crossed the Void Bridge alone, and her injuries were severe; at once she sat down and quietly healed.

Shen Mu frowned slightly.

Heaven Venerable Xu's attitude made him suspicious.

By rights, Heaven Venerable Xu should recognize the Life-Slaying Cauldron, but judging by her manner, although she remembered it, she did not seem greatly stirred.

"Could Heaven Venerable Xu be like the Ancestral God King? The Ancestral God King, though he was the son of Heaven Duke, had only one desire: to kill Heaven Duke and take his place. Can it be that Heaven Venerable Xu harbors the same intention, meaning to kill Tubo and take his place?

" Heaven Venerable Xu was the daughter of A Chou, Tubo's reincarnated body. She had fallen into the hands of the ancient god, the Heavenly Emperor, and had become the handle that the Heavenly Emperor held over Tubo. The Heavenly Emperor used her as a hostage to control Tubo.

What Heaven Venerable Xu had experienced over the years, and what sort of education she had received, Shen Mu had no idea. At that time, Heaven Venerable Xu had been a little girl who had only just come into the world, no more than a blank sheet of paper.

Her notions of good and evil, of right and wrong, had all been formed in the Heavenly Court.

What kind of person she would grow into depended entirely on what the Heavenly Court had instilled in her. "Fire Heavenly Venerable told me to be wary of her," he said to himself. "It seems I must indeed be wary of her.

" With Heaven Venerable Xu and Fire Heavenly Venerable, along with the Ark of the Other Shore that Shen Mu had visualized, the journey proceeded much more smoothly.

At last they arrived at the three houses at the end of the Void Bridge.

Shen Mu took down the star chart and, taking the lead, leaped from the Ark of the Other Shore together with Luo Wushuang, landing on the terrace of the three houses. Fire Heavenly Venerable and Heaven Venerable Xu also jumped down. The moment the two landed, the Ark of the Other Shore shattered in the void storm and was swept into the void as surging divine consciousness.

All three houses glowed with brilliant lamplight. Even though they stood in the void, they had not been destroyed by the void storm; their flames did not so much as flicker, which could not but astonish one.

After all, even beings like Fire Heavenly Venerable and Heaven Venerable Xu could not cross the Void Bridge on their own, yet this modest house could stand firmly here—truly strange. Fire Heavenly Venerable and Heaven Venerable Xu exchanged a glance and walked into the central room. Shen Mu's heart stirred; rather than follow them in, he reached out to sense Shen Fengqing.

He and Shen Fengqing were bound by blood; they had once shared a single body and a single soul, and a most wondrous connection existed between them. In the Land of the Great Void, he had been unable to sense Shen Fengqing, so he had deduced that Carefree Village was not in the Land of the Great Void. But once here, the moment he reached out, he received a response!

Within his Divine Treasury, butterfly-winged light suddenly burst forth, parting to both sides and growing ever larger, its reach growing ever wider.

Before long, the butterfly-winged light split apart, and with a gurgle, a huge, demonic eye was revealed.

It rolled twice, then fixed its gaze on Shen Mu's primordial spirit and said joyfully, "Naughty little brother, how did you get here? " Then two more eyes appeared, and Shen Fengqing's chubby face squeezed out of the void, followed by his body.

Shen Fengqing's projection sat in the void, arms crossed over his chest. His earlier joy vanished without a trace; he turned his head away and snorted, "What are you doing here?

Don't think that because it's been so long, I've forgiven you. You dug me out and dumped me in the Nether Capital, and you gave me your soul, which made me cry for ages! I'm doing wonderfully well now—I have fights every day and gods to eat every day! I'm telling you, you will never coax me back! " Shen Mu looked up and laughed.

"Brother, I missed you. " Shen Fengqing's face lit up in a beaming smile, and he turned around.

"I missed you too! Have you come to Carefree Village? Where are you? I'll go find you! " Shen Mu told him his position. "I only wanted to make sure you were in Carefree Village.

There are two Heavenly Venerables right beside me, so I won't lead them to Carefree Village.

You don't need to come over. I only needed to know that Carefree Village is here; then I'll go back.

" Shen Fengqing looked a little disappointed. After a moment, he said, "You mean the three houses? Those are extremely dangerous inside—traps left by the big fellows. Don't go in.

" Shen Mu was stunned and blurted, "Those three houses are traps left by the Creators? " He could not help but shudder.

The Creators had left traps at the end of the Void Bridge.

Anyone who crossed the bridge, having endured countless dangers and escaped death by a hair, would certainly go into the three houses to have a look! Once inside, he would fall into the Creators' traps, with no possibility of evasion! If Shen Mu had not been cautious by nature and first contacted Shen Fengqing, he would certainly have walked into those three houses as well!

"They are the Creators?

" Shen Fengqing was also stunned; he clearly had no idea who the big fellows were.

He scratched his big head and said, "Their taste is pretty good, though.

. . Those big fellows are wicked. They come attacking us every day.

Carefree Village is not carefree at all; we fight every day, and a lot of people have died. Since I came here, I've at least gotten to eat my fill. . .

" At that very moment, a violent shock burst out from the central house in front of Shen Mu, and a terribly dreadful aura exploded—it was Fire Heavenly Venerable and Heaven Venerable Xu, who had encountered danger and were fighting fiercely inside the room, struggling against some enemy unknown! The strength of the two Heavenly Venerables was unmatched in the world; even ancient gods like Earth Mother, Tubo, and Heaven Duke would not dare claim they could defeat them. Yet their opponent seemed dreadfully powerful, actually able to withstand the attacks of both Heavenly Venerables!