Chapter 300 — The Uncanny Thing
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 4 of 4
The two great white bats separated, flying to the two giant statues on either side of the gorge, and hung head-down from the statues' nostrils. One of them said with a giggle, "This silly ox still does not know a great host has come up behind him—several hundred masters have entered.
. . " "Silence! " From the nostril of the other statue, the other white bat complained, "Why remind him?
" "A great host? Several hundred masters? " Shen Mu's heart went cold.
Those who had come in could not be the army of the Jingping Kingdom; the garrison at Qingmen Pass could hold the defense well enough, but it could not spare more troops to enter the Nether Valley.
"It is the army of the Mandi Kingdom! " Shen Mu hesitated no longer, and at once walked into the forest, heading for the heart of the Nether Valley.
To clash with the great army of the Mandi Kingdom would be to seek certain death.
The soldiers of Mandi were wild and domineering by nature, and their armies worked well together, supported by battle formations. When Shen Mu had followed Bashan the Libationer to the Golden Palace of Loulan, he had encountered the armies of the grasslands; their strength was extreme—eight hundred men could hold their own against an existence of the Hierarch level, such as Bashan. From what the two white bats said, several hundred masters had come from the Mandi Kingdom.
Shen Mu could only avoid their edge for now.
"The silly ox is going to die!
" The two bats in the statues laughed together.
"Fall! Fall!
" Buddha-light wreathed Shen Mu, guarding him and the Dragon Qilin, and still he did not fall.
The two white bats were astonished.
Suddenly one of them flew out from the statue's nostril, caught a branch in its claws, and hung upside down before Shen Mu. Doubtfully it said, "Why do those things not attack you? " Shen Mu raised his head. "Fellow Daoist, what is the thing underground?
" The white bat was about to answer when it suddenly flew up without a sound, toward the nostril of the Bat God statue.
Several hundred soldiers of the Mandi Kingdom and several dozen Great Shamans and Shaman Kings glittering with golden light walked out of the gorge and came to the entrance of the Nether Valley, their ranks orderly.
"Prince Bangong Cuo, please!
" A Shaman King bowed, and Bangong Cuo walked slowly out from the rear, his gaze sharp as lightning, sweeping toward the Nether Valley.
Then he saw Shen Mu on the Dragon Qilin's back, and could not help starting slightly, a playful smile appearing on his face. "Hierarch Shen, I trust you have been well? " His voice, still somewhat boyish, carried extremely far, displaying a cultivation of immense power.
Hearing that voice, Shen Mu's heart gave a slight shock: "He cultivates faster than I do!
When we crossed swords outside the capital, we had both entered the Six Harmonies realm, but at that time his cultivation was not as deep as mine—and now he has caught up with me! " "Well enough. " Shen Mu laughed heartily.
"Very well indeed!
The young prince looks very well too. I was worried those few cuts of mine had killed you underground; seeing you alive sets my mind at ease. " Bangong Cuo smiled faintly.
"The Hierarch was well enough before.
Now, perhaps not.
" "Prince, there are two bat monsters up above. " A Shaman King looked up at the Bat God statues and said. Bangong Cuo said lightly, as if of wind and clouds, "Kill them.
"