Chapter 234 — Taking a Life on a Night of Wind and Snow
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 4
Shen Mu's frown deepened. He simply did not have the strength to cross the darkness, and apart from the village headman, the others in the village would likely find it hard to get through as well — unless they could carry the stone statue on their backs.
He grew quiet. No other sound remained in the village save the snoring of the Dragon Qilin; it had fallen asleep.
A long while passed. No more corpses came walking out of the river, and the old man rose, sat down in his little boat, and vanished into the darkness.
Everything in the village returned to normal, and it was no longer as cold as before. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Only three Daoists remained in the village, and on Shen Mu's side there were the Dutian Demon King and the Dragon Qilin.
The battered stone statue gave off a faint, dim glow, holding the darkness at bay on every side. Something stirred in Shen Mu's heart; he looked at the woman Daoist, smiled slightly, and said to the other two, "You two Daoist masters have faces I do not know. From what immortal land do you come?"
The elder of the two said, "The Sect Master of the Youmo Sect asks, and we dare not conceal it. This mountain man and his disciple come from the Xingdou Tianluo Sect. I am Daoist Chiyun, and this is my unworthy disciple, Shao Yuan. Those two just now were my disciples as well; alas, their fortune was poor, and they met the yin courier's gaze and had their souls hooked away."
Shen Mu's manner turned solemn with respect. "So you are masters of the Xingdou Tianluo Sect. The sect master of the Xingdou Tianluo Sect — he is called Luo Xinghe, is he not?"
"Sect Master Luo was my master. He has passed away."
Daoist Chiyun said bleakly, "That day, when the Youmo Sect carried off the mountain within Daxiang City, my master died at the hands of the Imperial Preceptor of Jingping."
"I see." Shen Mu nodded.
Beyond the village the cold wind howled in the darkness, moaning and wailing. The few in the village fell quiet again, saying not a word. The two Daoists took the sword cases from their backs and began carefully wiping them down. Long Jiaonan smiled, lightly stroking the earring beneath her earlobe.
Shen Mu reached into the Taotie Pouch, but did not draw his hand out; the smile still hung on his face.
A few crystalline snowflakes drifted past in the sky and settled among them.
The night was not a quiet one; without their noticing, it had begun to snow.
The Dutian Demon King sensed that something in the air was amiss and quietly kicked the Dragon Qilin. The Dragon Qilin woke, looked around, found nothing out of the ordinary, and buried its head to sleep again.
The Dutian Demon King was furious. "Lazy wretch! What is the use of keeping him?"
The snow fell harder and harder, and soon everyone had a dusting of white upon them.
Just then a sudden Buddha's name rang out, and every heart in the village tightened. The invocation had come from the darkness. Shen Mu drew his hand from the Taotie Pouch; Long Jiaonan let her hand fall from her earring; the two Daoists set down their sword cases.
Light came out of the darkness, and a big-headed, fat-eared monk walked out of it. He glanced around, pressed his palms together, and said, "Forgive the intrusion, benefactors."
Shen Mu did not dare be remiss; he rose hastily and said, "We are travelers here ourselves. It is no intrusion."
Behind the great monk came a sturdy fellow, black-haired all over, his body knotted with muscle, sixteen feet tall, reeking of demonic qi, like a man-shaped ape, holding a monk's staff. He said in surprise, "Little Bean!"
Shen Mu was astonished beyond measure. He looked at the staff and recognized it as the Ximilo he had given to the Xuanliao Demon Ape. "Big Fellow!" he blurted. "What are you doing here? You have taken human form?"
The demon-ape, both startled and delighted, came forward to greet Shen Mu, and pointing at the fat monk said, "Bald, little!"