Chapter 320 — A Family Matter
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 3 of 4
Shen Mu jumped down from the Dragon Qilin's back and took the lead himself. He had, after all, lived in the Wasteland since childhood and knew the habits of strange beasts well; if the Dragon Qilin or the two white bats led the way, they would surely stir up some trouble. They went deeper into the basin, and suddenly Shen Mu frowned at the wheel tracks on the ground. The tracks must have been left by that treasure carriage of the True Heaven Palace of the Western Land, and there were also some jumbled footprints, surely left by the divine-ability wielders pursuing the carriage. They had clearly blundered in here, but judging by the path they took, these people also knew the rules of the Wasteland well and had not gone astray. Yet the divine abilities of the True Heaven Palace of the Western Land were quite peculiar, their scale and commotion alarming; if they came to blows here, they would easily enrage the beast lords.
"To take the same road as them — I fear we would be dragged in.
" Shen Mu meant to look for another road, but the only safe passage through the basin nearby was this one; to go around, they would have to cross a great marsh. He looked toward the marsh, and suddenly the waters churned: a colossal crocodile rose upright, standing upon the surface, smoke jetting from its nostrils as it picked at its nails, sharp as knives.
This beast lord was not to be trifled with; to go around by that way would be to seek death.
On the other side lay the ruins of a city, with towering temples beyond counting, where many cranes with vermilion crowns and black necks flew to and fro, dancing gracefully, and all looked serene. But within the city a pair of great cranes, one male and one female, were refining swords; a single beat of their wings filled the sky with countless sword-lights, ringing as they arrayed themselves into a circle — and from the speed with which those sword-lights moved, Shen Mu judged these two crane chieftains more dangerous still than the giant crocodile lord.
"There is only this one road!
" Shen Mu let out a foul breath and said in a low voice, "The family affairs of the True Heaven Palace of the Western Land are none of our concern; I am not a man who loves fighting and killing or poking his nose into others' business. We will slip past in a moment. .
. " The basin was noisy and bustling. Four rhinos came over, clad in heavy bone armor, white all over without a trace of another color, their small eyes warily eyeing Shen Mu, the Dragon Qilin behind him, and the white bats that flew about and kept hanging upside down from the trees.
One of the females spoke in human tongue: "That big dog's grown as fat as a pig, and it can still walk. " The rhino chieftain at their head went ashen, hastily rolled on the ground, and transformed into a small giant with a rhino's head and a man's body, all knots of muscle beneath his bone armor; he clasped his two forehooves in salute and said to Shen Mu, "Fellow cultivator, my old woman loves to wag her tongue; take no offense!
" Shen Mu laughed. "No offense taken.
Dragon Fatty has indeed put on a bit of weight.
" The rhino chieftain breathed a sigh of relief and hurried off with the three females, grumbling, "Couldn't you see? These creatures are all vicious characters, every one of them a fiend; especially that human and those two white bats — heaven knows how many wronged ghosts cling to them.
" Shen Mu was surprised. The Dragon Qilin said, "They say white rhinos are spirit-sensitive and can see the netherworld and wronged ghosts — impressive indeed.
But they still misjudged: I am no big dog, and I am not fat, I am sturdy.
. .