Chapter 221 — Even Firm Armor Cannot Claim Supremacy
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 4
Every other place is frozen just the same," Shen Mu said. "They won't listen. " The Dark Demon Sect disciple pushed up the mask that covered his cheeks against the wind, showing a face chapped dark red with cold, and shouted into the howling gale to their young sect master and holy teacher: "Once these people stop, they have no hope left. As long as they keep walking, there is hope in their hearts.
Maybe they will find a warm place. " Shen Mu was struck silent. He unloaded some of the New Year goods from the ship, the things that could give warmth and hold off the cold, and handed them to the Dark Demon Sect disciples to distribute among the refugees.
"In this bitter cold," he said, "demons and monsters will come out too, hunting for food.
Be careful, all of you. " He did not linger in Jingzhou. The treasure ship rose into the air and sped on toward the Wasteland.
The winter in Jingping was cold beyond all reason, and as time went on it grew colder still. Shen Mu's treasure ship was hung with icicles and its speed had fallen greatly, and it burned more and more medicine stones. Every few thousand li they had to bring the ship down and knock the ice off before the speed could be raised again.
Snow Fox sat beside the pill furnace, feeding medicine stones into it from time to time, while Shen Mu held the ship on course.
The treasure ship flew very low; Shen Mu turned his vital essence into the vital essence of the Vermilion Bird, flames blazing all around him, keeping his body from freezing stiff. The farther west they went, the more desolate it became, and the more refugees there were, and the more frozen dead lay along the roadside.
And in these out-of-the-way places the divine-power wielders were few, and more places still had no sun, wrapped in thick dark clouds, where the cold bit deeper. The power of this snow disaster was far greater than he had imagined, the number of dead far beyond his estimate, and the cold wave was growing stronger all the time.
Then all at once flames rolled across the sky, and out of the cloud layer thrust a vast serpent, breathing fire in every direction, driving the cold back around it.
The great snake trailed demonic vapor as it coiled its way out of the clouds.
Shen Mu's heart lurched.
He hurriedly drove the treasure ship upward, into the cloud layer. The great serpent cast a glance around, and on its head stood a bewitching man, who said suspiciously, "I saw the boy's ship just now, plain as day.
Where has it gone? Sister Qiu, send out the insects!
" Countless insects came flying out of the clouds. A woman stood amid the swarm; she pointed, and the insect tide scattered in all directions, boring into the cloud layer.
Shen Mu's treasure ship wove through the clouds, and suddenly a golden insect came flying straight at it.
The insect was startled to see the ship and quickly halted.
Shen Mu thrust out his sword-fingers; his vital essence became sword qi, and struck the insect with a ding. But the insect did not die.
Instead it swelled with a shriek, more than a zhang long, and came squealing and gibbering at him! Shen Mu's vital essence poured into the Taotie Bag; the Chubao Sword flew out with a ringing cry and cut the great insect in two.
Then a voice laughed, chuckling: "So the sect master of the Dark Demon Sect is here after all!
" Shen Mu looked toward the sound and saw the clouds behind him suddenly turn red. He knew it boded ill.
"Ling'er," he shouted, "open all three furnaces! " Boom — a huge burst of firelight rolled out of the clouds and struck the stern of the treasure ship. Shen Mu flung himself at the helm to keep from being thrown clear.
The treasure ship pitched and reeled, nearly dashed down by that one divine art; then the bronze beasts beneath it spat fire, and the two bronze beasts at the stern opened up with all their force, and the tower ship surged forward.