Chapter 612 — The Deduction of Starry Fate
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 4
Shen Mu, Qi Jiuyi, and Zhe Huali alighted before the divine mountain. It stood solemn and austere, steeped in an extraordinary aura; rays of golden light drifted gently around its peak, inspiring such awe that none dared fly straight up. They chose to walk. The mountain's stairway led all the way to the golden-roofed hall at its summit.
A battle of extreme savagery must once have taken place here, for the stone steps were mottled with bloodstains.
The blood had flowed down from above. The blood of gods and demons dried with difficulty; even after ten or twenty thousand years it would still give off a terrifying pulse.
Yet the divine and demonic blood here had lost all its essence, reduced to patches of startling brown. Strangely, there were no traces of battle. Shen Mu channeled the Carefree Sword and struck fiercely at the divine mountain. Sparks flew, his hands went numb from the shock, yet not a single mark was left.
Some inexplicable force seemed to flow through the mountain's body, guarding it.
"The former Venerable King of Luofu Heaven and many demon gods fought their way here, and even they could not leave a mark on this mountain. What is the origin of this divine mountain?
" Shen Mu was deeply puzzled.
Zhe Huali and Qi Jiuyi exchanged a glance, each understanding the other, and said nothing. Zhe Huali's eyes flickered. He thought, 'Even the Venerable King could not leave a mark on this divine mountain.
Is this mountain really a counterfeit?
It doesn't quite seem so. .
. ' They continued onward. Ahead appeared the fallen skeleton of a god-demon, its flesh and blood long gone.
Shen Mu hurried over. The garments on the skeleton had rotted away, and the flesh and blood had rotted as well.
The skeleton had three neck bones and three heads, facing three different directions.
It had six arms, each hand gripping a divine weapon. "A god who died in battle!
" Shen Mu's eyes lit up. He reached at once for one of the tiger-shaped wine vessels, but the instant his palm touched it, the divine weapon crumbled to ash. Shen Mu was stunned.
The skeleton holding the wine vessel was also disintegrating into dust; soon the entire skeleton had crumbled, and along with the other divine weapons it shattered across the ground, too fine even to sweep up.
Zhe Huali stepped forward and said doubtfully, "Could his opponent have shattered him into powder? " Qi Jiuyi shook his head. He suddenly cut his finger, and a drop of golden blood fell onto the stone step.
The drop dried with astonishing speed, as if the step had absorbed all its essence. Qi Jiuyi's expression turned grave.
"It was this divine mountain that drained away all his essence," he said solemnly. "Even the essence within the divine weapons could not be preserved. " Shen Mu said earnestly, "Brother Qi, we have all been drawn into this alien star together.
If you know anything, you might as well speak of it. Let us share what we know - perhaps together we can find a way out. " The wound on Qi Jiuyi's fingertip was healing on its own.
He shook his head and laughed. "This is my first time descending to the mortal realm. What could I possibly know of this world?
Brother Shen, don't joke. " Shen Mu looked at the wound on his fingertip, and his heart grew wary. The wound healed on its own, with no need for pills or medicine.
Was this the work of his cultivation method, or of some special constitution? Zhe Huali was startled as well.
In their battle before the Divine City in the Painting, Qi Jiuyi had been the most gravely wounded - beaten half to death by Shen Mu and himself, then run through by Shen Mu's sword, nearly losing both body and soul. Yet in only a few days, Qi Jiuyi had recovered completely, his cultivation undiminished - indeed, stronger than before!
The three walked on, each nursing his own thoughts. On the stone steps lay the fallen skeletons of gods and demons, great and small - some demon gods from the demon race, others deities.