Chapter 1084 — An Upheaval Unseen Since Time Immemorial

"Since I left Jingping for the Heavenly Court, five years have passed, and I have not had a single fruit of reform."

Shen Mu sighed. "And when I return to the past, that tendency grows ever more pronounced."

Ever since he had left the Yuan Realm and come to the Heavenly Court, he had created fewer and fewer arts of the Way and divine powers; yet every time he went back to Jingping, he always learned something new.

Such is the work of soil.

The Jingping reforms were still going on, and he had torn himself away from that soil of reform; every return was a replenishing of nutrients.

If it was so even in the Heavenly Court, what if he had stayed in the past? That age was still benighted and ignorant to him, its arts of the Way and divine powers still in the making. Any single divine power of a later age, brought into this era, would shock the world. On what, then, would Shen Mu grow?

His purpose was to surpass the ancients, not to become one of them.

The Heavenly Court drew nearer and nearer.

And the ancient gods of the Twenty-Seven Constellations took the God-Slaying Platform and the God-Slaying Mystic Blade and set out for the heavens where Achou was. Kuimu Lang said, "This time it is inconvenient for us to show ourselves. Take this divine blade and strike him down. We will hide in the shadows against any mischance. Do it well, and Crown Prince Qi will reward you richly!"

In that heaven, Achou had come to the end of his road. Many demigods stood upon a high cliff, holding Achou's child, and said down to Achou below, "Kneel!"

Meanwhile, in the Heavenly Court's imperial garden, Yun Tianzun followed at the heels of the ancient god Heavenly Emperor. On this visit to the Heavenly Court he had impeached Hao Tianzun before the whole court; after the court dispersed, the Heavenly Emperor kept him back to stroll the imperial garden and exchange a few intimate words.

"Yun, you govern the human clans, and you should know that it is no easy thing to be an emperor. Yet what I govern is the whole of the cosmos, the heavens and the ten thousand worlds."

The Heavenly Emperor had a headache. He rubbed his temples and sighed, "The human clans are only one among countless races in the heavens and ten thousand worlds, and look at the foul mess they make. And just now you and Hao'er quarreled yourselves hoarse in the court. I am truly caught in a hard place. I must indulge the feelings of my old brothers, hold fast the loyalty of the demigods, and still bear the worries and troubles of you later-born living things. The seat of the Heavenly Emperor is not an easy one to hold."

Yun Tianzun smiled. "This subject knows Your Majesty's difficulty. After all, Hao Tianzun is..."

The Heavenly Emperor glanced at him. Yun Tianzun understood, and said no more.

Suddenly the Great Sun Star Lord came striding up, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, a great calamity has come!"

The Heavenly Emperor frowned and rebuked him. "What great calamity? The world today flourishes, all under heaven is at peace, the living dwell in contentment. Where is there any evil?"

The Great Sun Star Lord said hurriedly, "The ancient gods of the Twenty-Eight Constellations have come; they came to the Heavenly Court and borrowed the God-Slaying Platform. I fear great trouble will follow! By Your Majesty's command I keep watch over the heavens, and now I have found the demigods stirring strangely; it seems they have some dealings with the Twenty-Eight Constellations. And in this matter, in this matter..."

He gritted his teeth and, summoning his courage, said, "I fear Crown Prince Qi is involved as well!"

The Heavenly Emperor's face darkened. The Great Sun Star Lord could not help but shiver, sensing an inexplicable killing intent radiating from him.

"Your Majesty trusts this subject and laid a heavy charge upon me; I had no choice but to speak. I beg Your Majesty's pardon!"

The Great Sun Star Lord went on, "Tubo has been reborn into a new life. This subject suspects Crown Prince Qi of conspiring with the Twenty-Eight Constellations and joining with a band of ancient demigods, planning to do away with Tubo and seize the power of Youdu! Crown Prince Qi stops at nothing. Should he succeed, he will surely be unable to contain his ambition, and one day he will reach for the throne and threaten Your Majesty!"

"Insolence!"

The Heavenly Emperor roared, then said coldly, "Great Sun Star Lord, you sow discord between father and son. You go too far!"

Trembling, the Great Sun Star Lord protested, "This subject speaks for the sake of Your Majesty's realm! Tubo is Your Majesty's great servant; near half of Your Majesty's realm was won by Tubo's merit! If Crown Prince Qi seeks to remove Tubo, it is to clip Your Majesty's wings!"

"Out!"

The Heavenly Emperor pointed a raised hand and said coldly, "Get out of my sight! Yun, you too, withdraw!"

Yun Tianzun bowed and withdrew together with the Great Sun Star Lord.

Still seething, the Great Sun Star Lord said, "His Majesty does not believe me. One day, I fear, great disaster will arise from within the inner palace!"

Yun Tianzun glanced at him and smiled. "How could His Majesty not believe you? Star Lord, the reason His Majesty is angry is that he is angry you know too much."

Puzzled, the Great Sun Star Lord humbly asked, "I beg Yun Tianzun to enlighten me."

Yun Tianzun said, "You are charged with watching over the heavens, Star Lord, and reporting all great matters to the Heavenly Emperor. But some matters need only be reported; you need not speak your own conjectures. If you only look, and do not rashly conjecture, you may live. If you rashly conjecture, I fear you will die for no reason at all."

He walked on. "In this Heavenly Court, the more one knows, the more perilous it is. You sit in the most perilous seat of all. Take care of yourself."

The Great Sun Star Lord stood dazed. Then he lifted a bird's leg, scratched his chin, and laughed. "This Yun Tianzun is a muddleheaded fellow too, talking in riddles. I am utterly loyal to His Majesty. Who would dare plot against me?"

The Heavenly Dragon Treasure Chariot came at last to the Southern Heavenly Gate. Just then a world-shaking tremor came, and in an instant darkness shrouded the sky of the Yuan Realm.

Shen Mu's heart lurched. He turned quickly to look, and saw one of the heavens split open, and a giant with an ox's head, a man's body, and a tiger's face roaring at the sky in boundless fury.

On that day the Great Way of Youdu invaded the Yuan Realm, turning into chain after chain that bound the ox-headed giant, and bound the ruined heaven along with him.

At the same time the great azure bird took flight, bearing that palace toward Youdu.

The man bound to the pillar laughed grimly. "Yes, just so. We go to Youdu, to try to seize Tubo's body! Once Tubo is in our grasp, we hold the lives of every later-born creature and every demigod!"

"Shut your mouth! Say one more word and I will tear you apart!"

At the same moment the Heavenly Dragon Treasure Chariot dashed toward the Southern Heavenly Gate. The Heavenly Court's army guarding the gate had no time to stop it, for more gods and demons were pouring toward the Heavenly Court together, and all around was panic, and everywhere the sound of weeping and screaming.

The Heavenly Court's army stared blankly out at the Yuan Realm.

Their gaze rose slowly from below, and they stared, dumbstruck, as Tubo's body, treading a heaven of immense scale underfoot, ascended slowly, his frame growing larger and larger.

A vast cauldron revolved beneath his feet: the Heavenly Court's God-Slaying Platform, refined with countless lives into a cauldron.

The cauldron had a name, and that name was Slaughter.

Countless demigods fled madly, weeping and howling to the heavens, fleeing toward the Heavenly Court.

The ancient gods of the Twenty-Seven Constellations at last could hold back no longer and showed themselves, going out to meet Tubo. "Tubo, they were only joking with you. Why take it so seriously?"