Chapter 621 — Deep Hatred Hard to Dissolve
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 4
The Way of the Sage.
There are always those who hold to ideals and convictions that their peers and even their age cannot share; those who carry a passion and a will no one of their generation possesses, who speak words their peers cannot speak, who do deeds their peers cannot do.
To the eyes of their peers, their contemporaries, or those who come after, such people may look a little foolish, devoting a lifetime, devoting life itself, to a conviction that seems impossible.
And yet it is precisely these people, with their unshakable convictions and seemingly laughable ideals, who drive history forward, who drive the ages forward.
When the Imperial Teacher of Jingping bowed upon the altar to take a master, the Woodcutter Sage reached out with both hands, cupped him beneath the elbows, and raised him up, saying with a smile, "Perhaps one day your achievements will surpass mine, greater and higher still. When you look back then upon the me of today, you will be my teacher."
Shen Mu climbed onto the altar and saw the Imperial Teacher of Jingping standing beside the Woodcutter Sage, observing the rites of a disciple. He smiled and said, "Master, junior brother, I have come a step late."
The Imperial Teacher of Jingping was startled, then his face broke into a smile. "Second senior brother."
Shen Mu's expression darkened at once. "Heavenly King, just call me Sect Master Shen. 'Second senior brother' sounds rather awkward."
The Imperial Teacher of Jingping laughed heartily.
Shen Mu was taken aback, then he too broke into a smile.
He had not known the Imperial Teacher of Jingping for very long. He had first laid eyes on him only after entering the Taixue Academy, and only later had the two of them spoken.
The Imperial Teacher of Jingping of old had been a man who never smiled, a man of firm conviction and an unwavering Dao heart, who to achieve his ends would stop at nothing and use any means. His thoughts ran deep as the sea; his face was like an ancient well that knows no waves, upon which no ripple of emotion ever surfaced.
He was like a flawless god, devoid of human warmth, devoid of human breath.
But after so long in his company, Shen Mu had gradually come to discover the human warmth and breath in the Imperial Teacher of Jingping. Silently, imperceptibly, the man was transforming, from god to human.
And with this one hearty laugh, Shen Mu felt that his Dao heart had suddenly crossed into another realm, a realm he himself could not comprehend, neither god nor human, and yet both.
He stood within the seven emotions and six desires of man, and yet beyond them; within the absolute reason of the gods, and yet beyond that as well.
Such a man Shen Mu could no longer read.
"The Imperial Teacher of Jingping's natural gifts and comprehension truly surpass mine. In the mere moments since he met Master Woodcutter, his state of mind has risen to a terrifying new height. No wonder he is a sage of the kind that appears once in five hundred years."
Shen Mu consoled himself inwardly, "But fortunately, I have the Overlord Body. So long as I work hard enough, I can awaken all of its latent power, and still surpass him!"
The Woodcutter Sage said, "Shen Mu, you may return to Taihuang Heaven. I wish to speak with your junior brother at length."
Shen Mu hesitated, then said, "What of the Tiger Venerable and Granny? Have their battles with the Jade Rakshasa and Mutuluo reached any conclusion?"
The Woodcutter Sage said, "Mutuluo put on that woman's clothes, and so the Black Tiger struck him dead. The Jade Rakshasa was rescued by Furiluo. Both the woman and the Black Tiger have returned to Taihuang Heaven."
"Just as I thought." Shen Mu broke into a smile.