Chapter 1026 — The Holy Emperor's Sword, the Youth's Tongue

His aura blazed to the heavens; behind him, layer upon layer of heavenly palaces flew out, palace upon palace, terrifying beyond measure! It was the corpse of a Heavenly Venerable, who had stolen earth qi and yin qi at Heavenly Venerable Ridge, feeding on earth qi and yin qi for forty thousand years, long since transformed into a corpse demon.

His eyes were like two moons in the sky, serene and spectral; his gaze was incomparably cold, making snow drift from the sky and moisture condense into frost. For a moment Shen Mu saw all things wither, grass and trees blighted; even the Yong River froze, the Heavenly River turning to ice, spreading swiftly into the distance.

"Shen Ye, we meet again! " The Heavenly Venerable's corpse opened its mouth and roared, its dreadful spiritual consciousness sweeping in all directions: "In the days of Kaihuang, you entered Heavenly Venerable Ridge time and again, seeking my treasures, and several times nearly died at my hands.

Now you have appeared again!

" Kaihuang drew his sword. Shen Mu saw the Wuyou Sword become a sky full of sword light darting about, forming thirty-four heavens crisscrossing in all directions. "Long time no see. " Kaihuang Shen Ye returned the sword to its sheath; the Wuyou Sword gave a light ring.

The middle-aged man crossed his arms over his chest, as if feeling a little cold, and continued on.

Above him, the Heavenly Venerable's corpse slowly split apart, cut into countless pieces; the massive corpse collapsed and fell from the sky.

In the distance, the surging Yong River suddenly halted, and the flying stone coffin abruptly stopped.

Shen Ye saw the stone coffin from afar and looked puzzled, shaking his head. "Heavenly Venerable Mu boasts of how well he has built Jingping, so why is the Yuan Realm so full of demons and monsters?

" He could not help shaking his head. The stone coffin suddenly fell to the ground and with a thud thrust into the earth; from the earth countless tentacle-like roots surged out, swiftly wrapping the coffin and then withdrawing deep into the ground.

Shen Ye took the sword from his waist and flung it down together with its sheath; the Wuyou Sword sank half a chi into the ground.

Violent tremors came from underground; ravines crisscrossed, for the sword qi had pierced deep into the earth, carving out sheer cliffs and ramparts! On the faces of those cliffs, cross-sections of enormous roots appeared, still flowing with divine blood, turning into rivers of blood in the ravines—a sight to strike terror into the heart! "A fast runner.

" The middle-aged man frowned, hugged his arms, and continued east; the Wuyou Sword flew up and returned to his waist.

In the distance on the Yong River, Shen Mu closed the vertical eye in his brow. Suddenly the Yong River's waters spread wide, and countless severed roots flew out, bursting from the surface; the roots interwove and trapped the Heavenly Dragon Treasure Carriage within.

Those roots still flowed with fresh blood, dyeing the Yong River red!

The Earth Mother Primordial Sovereign's voice came from beneath the water, in uncontrollable fury: "Heavenly Venerable Mu! " Shen Mu hastily stood up in the carriage and called out loudly, "It has nothing to do with me!

" "Bullshit! " The Earth Mother's voice grew angrier still, sharp and fierce: "Nothing to do with you? Do you take me for a three-year-old child?

Sending me to block the Great Emperor was one thing, but you laid an ambush with Shen Ye waiting for me!

Shen Ye is your ancestor—you two, father and son, conspired to stab me in the back! Today I will leave you with no grave to be buried in!

" Shen Mu said hastily, "It really has nothing to do with me. Had I known Heavenly Venerable Shen had arrived, I would never have asked you to act. Heaven is my witness! Earth Mother, you know me—I always say what I mean and never deceive anyone!

Would I have asked you to act unless it were absolutely necessary?

" The Earth Mother Primordial Sovereign gave a muffled snort.

Much as she wished to do away with this brat, she truly needed him to gather her soul for her; yet she was not willing to swallow this loss so easily.

Shen Mu smiled. "Earth Mother, I asked you to block the Great Emperor for me, but you failed to do it, and now you want to vent your anger on me—what sort of reasoning is that? Do not leave yet; there is one more thing I need you to do. " He reached out and plucked Yun Chuxiu from the carriage, holding the girl high, and asked, "Earth Mother, do you recognize her?

" "Jue Wuchen! " The river waters churned; a great flower rose slowly, taller than the carriage; the flower slowly bloomed, revealing an eye within that rolled once and fixed on Yun Chuxiu. It sneered, "Empress, it has been a long time! " Yun Chuxiu's face was pale; she kicked her legs but could not break free from Shen Mu's grip.

She turned her head and glared furiously at Shen Mu, then turned back and smiled sweetly. "Earth Mother Primordial Sovereign, seeing you reduced to such a state truly makes me sigh. The Earth Mother Primordial Sovereign who once dominated the Yuan Realm and stood alone against the Heavenly Court for three hundred thousand years has now become a stray dog, one even Heavenly Venerable Shen can handle with ease.

" Shen Mu smiled. "The Earth Mother is indeed knowledgeable. But you have guessed wrong—Jue Wuchen is not Her Highness the Empress, but Lady Yuanmu.

" The river waters shook—clearly the Earth Mother Primordial Sovereign was greatly shaken by this news. She had always thought Jue Wuchen was the Empress, never expecting her to be Lady Yuanmu.

"You failed to deal with the Great Emperor, so help me deal with her.

" Shen Mu smiled. "The Great Emperor is strong, but this Jue Wuchen is merely a small cultivator of the Divine Bridge realm. Dealing with her should not be difficult for you.

" A root flew over and wrapped around Yun Chuxiu; from the flower came the Earth Mother's laughter: "Dealing with Yuanmu—I am only too glad. Yuanmu, the old scores between us. . . " The great flower slowly sank into the Yong River, and the Earth Mother Primordial Sovereign's laughter came from beneath the water: ". .

. it is time to settle them properly!

" Yun Chuxiu struggled without cease as she was dragged into the Yong River, crying furiously, "Shen Mu, this old lady will not let you off!

" Shen Mu let out a breath and thought, "At last I have seen off this plague god.

Once she leaves, I can summon the soul of Heavenly Venerable Yun.

. .

"