Chapter 225 — Hanging the Portrait to Quell Evil
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 3 of 5
The dragon qilin sensed something was wrong as well, and ran with all its strength. Several hundred li on, they came upon a dozen or more such villages along the way, every arrangement identical! And the Divine Severance Mountains ahead still looked just as far away.
They had run several hundred li; by rights they should long since have reached the foot of the range, yet the distance between them and those mountains seemed never to have changed at all! "This person's abilities are no small matter.
He has folded space.
" The Dutian Demon King was sunk in utter despair, and shook his head. "Brat, there is no escape for you. " "We are going into the village!
" Shen Mu said viciously. The dragon qilin and Xue Hu'er were startled.
Shen Mu, angered, lowered his voice. "Whoever dares block my way home for the New Year, I will kill him! Into the village!
" The dragon qilin descended, shrank its body, and returned to its usual size.
Shen Mu jumped down from its back; Xue Hu'er coiled about his neck like a fox-fur scarf; the Dutian Demon King followed behind him, his four faces turning this way and that, warily scanning all around.
Shen Mu walked toward the village entrance.
The village looked quite ordinary: a flagpole at the entrance, and beneath it a dismounting stone and a hitching post. All was quiet within, and a dog was barking furiously at them, baring its teeth, very fierce.
The fox at Shen Mu's neck quietly opened her eyes, which gave the dog such a fright that the wicker gate opened and an old man came out from behind it holding an oil lamp. The dog hastily fled behind the old man, took courage again, and went on barking furiously at Shen Mu. Shen Mu's face was mild. He saluted and said, "A traveler passing through your honored parts, the sky is dark and there is nowhere to rest for miles around.
Heaven has taken pity on me and let me meet you, Elder. Might Elder be accommodating and grant me a place to rest? " "The Nether Demon Sect Master is too courteous.
" The old man had long, narrow brows and eyes and drooping white eyebrows. He said, "The village is small, and most of the guest rooms are still empty. If the Sect Master does not disdain them, he may find himself a room and rest. " The fox's fur on Shen Mu's neck all stood on end, and she trembled and shivered.
The Dutian Demon King and the dragon qilin were chilled in their hearts as well. This white-browed elder made no concealment whatever, calling Shen Mu the Nether Demon Sect Master outright; plainly he had no intention of hiding it, and disdained to hide it. And that they had been circling in the same place was likely this old man's doing as well!
Shen Mu gave thanks and said, "How many people are there in Elder's village?
" The white-browed elder said, "At present, only one man and one dog. But I have already hung lamps in every room, and before long the villagers will come. There will be a revelry then, and it will likely be very noisy; the Nether Demon Sect Master must not take offense.
We are all laborers, men who sell their strength and their lives, and we know nothing of courtesy.
If we give offense anywhere, I beg the Nether Demon Sect Master to forgive it. " "Very well, very well. " Shen Mu took leave of the white-browed elder, came to the center of the village, and chose the largest courtyard.
"Elder, please go back.
We will stay here.
" The white-browed elder said with a smile, "May the Nether Demon Sect Master sleep well. " "I thank you for the kind words. " Shen Mu pushed the door open and walked in; the smile on his face vanished at once, and he said rapidly, "None of you speak. Go into the main hall. Sleep. And no one opens his eyes!
" The dragon qilin and Xue Hu'er were baffled by this.
The Dutian Demon King said, "That old thing means no good. .
.
" Shen Mu flicked a hand, and the Dutian Demon King could not move.