Chapter 986 — The Divine King Appears

The chieftains of the Creator clans—Zili, Zhuqiu, Yanlong, Xiatai, and the rest—pressed forward one after another, all but lying prone across the Grand Emperor's Seal as they studied it, and the Grand Emperor's Altar they likewise examined with the most meticulous care. Only after a long while did these chieftains straighten their backs, exchange glances, and fall into animated, head-bent discussion.

"Can it be that the third prophecy of the ancestors has truly been fulfilled?

" "But looking at this fellow, he hardly seems to be a Creator—why, he even has an Adam's apple, like a grown man among the malefactors.

" "His brow and eyes look like Shen the Traitor's as well! " "Now that you mention it, the Holy Infant does resemble Shen the Traitor somewhat, and the more you look, the more alike they seem.

.

.

" "Yet he has the Seal of Authority, and the Altar, and the Origin Stone set in his brow. Shen the Traitor cannot be crafty to such a degree, surely? Even if his cunning went that far, he would have nowhere to lay his hands on a Seal of Authority or an Altar; and as for obtaining an Origin Stone—that would be even less possible. " "Shen the Traitor is sly; we must be on our guard.

Back then, who among you could have imagined that the Land of One Sword would be so vast?

" .

. . Within the Origin Stone, Shu Jun was in a frenzy of anxiety and could not resist reminding these Creator chieftains: "He was not born clutching a Seal of Authority, nor was he born upon an altar! The Grand Emperor's Seal and the Grand Emperor's Altar were both given to him by others!

As for the Primeval Origin Stone—he robbed it from me! Hey, use your heads, will you! " The chieftains deliberated among themselves for a while, and the white-haired chieftain of the Xiatai clan said: "The Holy Infant is a matter of the gravest weight; we must first verify his true identity, lest he be a spy sent by Shen the Traitor. If we acknowledge him as the Holy Infant in a muddle-headed fashion, would not Shen the Traitor be laughing his head off behind our backs?

" Xiu Chong nodded: "The descent of the Holy Infant must indeed be handled with the utmost caution. Since I myself dare not be certain that he is the Holy Infant, I invited you all here. What means do you have by which to judge whether he is the Holy Infant?

" "Anything else may be counterfeited—only the soul cannot be counterfeited!

" Can Nu, the female Creator of the Zili clan, said: "The treasure of my Zili clan is the Seven-Soul Grass, a sacred object which my people called into being through contemplation over the course of millions upon millions of years. Besides devouring souls, it can also discern them. Last time we brought it out against that big-headed monster infant of the Shen family, who gnawed away a good half of it; fortunately, some roots and stalks yet remain. " She carefully produced a plant—purple roots, purple stems, with the roots and stems several times larger than the leaves, like a cluster of purple yams sprouting from the roots. But the roots and stems bore the marks of gnawing, and had been bitten most miserably.

This plant was a sacred object which the Creators of the Zili clan had brought into being through countless ages of contemplation. It was supremely formidable, skilled at devouring souls—it had simply suffered a great loss when it faced Shen Fengqing. At that time, Shen Fengqing had been running rampant, slaughtering his way out of the Carefree Land and butchering the Creators.

Can Nu and her clansfolk had raised this treasure aloft, intending to ambush him with the Seven-Soul Grass, but in the end he seized it and took a bite. Can Nu and her people hastily called it back, but Shen Fengqing had already devoured more than half—and this was, indeed, partly because the Seven-Soul Grass was not at all tasty.

Ever since it had been recovered, the plant had been somewhat listless and dejected; even with the joint offerings of Can Nu and her clan, the Seven-Soul Grass could not be restored to its prime. Fortunately, this time it was to be used only to discern the age of Shen Mu's soul, which was well within its power.

Can Nu raised the Seven-Soul Grass aloft, and this dispirited sacred object wobbled unsteadily up to the altar, came before Shen Mu, and sent purple aura swirling into his body, where it made a circuit. The Seven-Soul Grass wearily lifted two roots as thick as a thumb—one stood bolt upright, the other drooped.

"The Seven-Soul Grass says he is not yet two years old! " Can Nu retrieved the Seven-Soul Grass and said: "Then he is assuredly of our Creator race.

I have seen human infants—at one or two years old, they are mere little beans.

" Shu Jun was beside himself with fury; his huge head bounced about upon the altar of the Origin Stone as he shouted: "That foolish grass of yours is useless! A foolish grass cannot discern his flesh—this brat's body is more than thirty years old!

" Dongming, the chieftain of the Zhuqiu clan, said: "Since the soul is genuine, then there should be no falsehood in him. However, the prophecy holds that the Holy Infant possesses immense divine powers and penetrating wisdom—might the Holy Infant allow us to put him to the test?

" Shen Mu said helplessly: "Please, do as you wish.

" Even had he raised objections, these Creators would not have permitted him to argue, so he might as well let them test him to their hearts' content. "After all, Xiu Chong has said more than once that there is no danger," Shen Mu thought.

Xiu Chong conferred with the chieftains and settled upon the procedure for testing. Xiu Chong said: "The Divine King has not yet arrived. By all rights, with her speed, she should be here very soon.

Could she have been waylaid by something? Let us wait a while longer. When the Divine King arrives, she can preside over the matter.

" Dongming, Can Nu, and the others nodded.

And at that very moment, the cry of phoenixes sounded. Everyone looked up and saw heavenly flowers raining down in wild profusion, scattering like a waterfall of petals descending from the sky.

Brilliant phoenixes wheeled and flapped, drawing an incomparably resplendent jeweled carriage of fragrance slowly down from the cascade of blossoms, and in the place where this carriage passed, a river of flowers lingered, stretching through the void for no one knew how far.

The river of flowers dissipated, and the jeweled carriage descended straight to the ground. "The Divine King has arrived! " The chieftains and elders who had gathered at the Xiumin clan bowed one and all, and said in unison: "We welcome Divine King Langwan! " "There is no need for ceremony.

" A woman's voice came from within the carriage.

Shen Mu looked toward it, but could not see the woman within. And, unlike the mounts of the other Creator chieftains, those phoenixes did not dissolve into divine consciousness when they landed.

The mounts of the Creator chieftains were all formed by divine consciousness through contemplation, and upon landing would turn back into drifting divine consciousness to be taken back by their masters—but the mount of this Divine King Langwan seemed to be made of true phoenixes. "Could these phoenixes be deities created through contemplation? " Shen Mu's heart stirred.

"From contemplation into reality—surely these phoenixes are no different from ancient gods!

What manner of being is this Divine King Langwan?

Divine King Shu Jun, have you heard of this woman? " "Never heard of her.

" Shu Jun was likewise somewhat astonished: "In the age of the Three Kings, the Three Kings were all beings as ancient as myself—Shu Jun, Boyang, and Xinfu—known together as the Three Divine Kings, second only to the Grand Emperor in rank.

Boyang and Xinfu both died in the final battle and did not survive. This Divine King Langwan, however, I have never heard of. Could she be a Divine King invested by the Creators of later generations?