Chapter 666 — The Crimson Emperor's Brain
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 4
The Divine Son Chiming turned back, his face breaking into a smile. "My inviting you into the holy hall is no offense.
Please. " Shen Mu hesitated, and looked back at the First Ancestor.
The First Ancestor looked sickly and listless, shuffling forward with no life in him.
"His wounds should be more or less healed by now. Why is he still so spiritless? " Shen Mu was puzzled.
The First Ancestor had always been cold and aloof, caring to speak to no one, yet his bearing was ever restrained and inward. But ever since this journey to the Void Realm began, he had been somewhat dispirited, and clearly it was not his injuries. He and the First Ancestor followed the Divine Son Chiming toward the holy hall.
The Divine Son Chiming said with a smile, "This friend of yours has protected you all along, yet he does not protect Princess Jingping. Clearly, in his heart you are far more important than Princess Jingping.
" Shen Mu was about to speak when the Divine Son Chiming went on: "In truth, in my heart too, you are not only more important than Princess Jingping, but far more important than Emperor Yanfeng.
" Shen Mu was slightly taken aback, then smiled. "Why does Your Highness say such a thing? " The Divine Son Chiming did not answer, but walked into the hall and said, "Since this holy hall was first built, no outsider has ever been able to enter. Outsiders aside, even among my own people there are few qualified to come in and pay homage to the Crimson Emperor's Brain.
" Shen Mu said, "That the Divine Son should let us enter leaves me overwhelmed by the honor.
" The Divine Son Chiming turned back and studied his face closely, as if to see whether he truly was overwhelmed by the honor. Shen Mu was overwhelmed by the honor.
The Divine Son Chiming shook his head.
"Your expression is exquisitely done, but it is only pretense, not from the heart. You are merely curious; there is not the least trace of feeling overwhelmed. If you could feign it to the point of sincerity, you would be able to deceive me. " Shen Mu flushed with embarrassment.
"Still false.
" The Divine Son Chiming walked on.
"You may not know this, but I am in fact not a descendant of the Crimson Emperor or Emperor Ming. I have not the slightest blood relation to either. " Shen Mu was astonished, and even the First Ancestor, the Human Sovereign, could not help his curiosity; he asked of his own accord, "Brother of the Dao, if you are not their descendant, why are you honored as the Divine Son Chiming?
" The Divine Son Chiming seemed to sink into memory. "Before the Cataclysm, Emperor Ming had already had a premonition. He gathered the young talents of the world and held a Grand Martial Convocation.
After round upon round of selection, a thousand were finally chosen to come before Emperor Ming, and I was among them. Emperor Ming expounded the Dao and preached the dharma, and it greatly enlightened us thousand youths. I was not the most outstanding among them; in aptitude, in comprehension, in divine powers and dharma arts, I could not rank in the top ten. Yet in the end Emperor Ming chose me. He told me that what the Chiming era needed was not the one with the highest and finest aptitude and comprehension, but the one who could bind the people together, who could let the people walk out from failure. He told me the path to the Void Realm, and then the Cataclysm came. " The Divine Son Chiming's expression darkened. After a moment it returned to what it had been. "For a long time I did not understand why he had chosen me, until the Cataclysm broke out and I understood. Emperor Ming proclaimed to the world that I was the heaven-ordained Divine Son of the Chiming era, so that when the end came I had many followers; they believed deeply that I was the heaven-ordained Divine Son, that I could bring them hope. And so I led the remnant of our people, the last hope of the Chiming era, into the starry void, seeking the Void Realm, and settled there. " His face was calm.