Chapter 695 — A Bow Brings Death
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 4
Eight thousand swords flew in, clashing with a ringing of steel, and before Shen Mu they coalesced into a great shield. The shield was a curve of consummate perfection, able to hold back a shockwave on impact and withstand the mightiest force with the least pressure. Shen Mu turned side-on, one knee to the ground, one arm braced behind the shield—the most powerful defensive stance for meeting a shockwave head-on. Behind him, his primal spirit poured countless strands of vital essence into the great shield, reinforcing its structure.
The flying swords of its face were interlocked in a chain-lock formation, ring clasping ring, so that the structure itself might bear the strongest impact. Beyond that, defensive runes surfaced across the shield—Xuanwu runes, turtle and serpent joined; the face bore the pattern of a turtle's shell, the rim the pattern of a soaring serpent.
Weng—the shockwave of the Heaven-Mourning Bell came crashing in. No bell's chime, only a violent quaking of space.
Shen Mu felt no terrifying force, yet behind him his primal spirit took the blow as if struck by a hammer, lurching violently and blasted out of existence. "This Heaven-Mourning Bell—it is a divine art aimed at the primal spirit or the soul!
" Shen Mu was startled. His primal spirit raced back.
The speed of a primal spirit is the fastest thing in the world; though blasted ten thousand li away, it needed but an instant to return.
The problem was that Shen Mu did not know whether his primal spirit could withstand the Heaven-Mourning Bell's assault. He knew little of the Gloom Capital's divine arts. He had seen them only in Lou Qianchong—and Lou Qianchong had managed but one technique before Shen Mu killed him, so there had been no chance to witness more of the Gloom Capital's cultivation arts and divine powers. His primal spirit had scarce returned when the second shockwave of the Heaven-Mourning Bell followed close behind, and with another weng it blasted his primal spirit even farther.
Yet Shen Mu's physical body still felt little of the impact.
"The Heaven-Mourning Bell is powerful indeed, but it works only against the primal spirit or the soul! In that case. . .
" Shen Mu's mind commanded his body. Suddenly the great shield disintegrated. In the instant it shattered, Shen Mu had already transformed into three heads and six arms.
Six arms seized and grasped, eight thousand swords became six divine sabers, and he leapt, charging straight to the Heaven-Mourning Bell. Like a fierce tiger plunging into a flock of sheep, six divine sabers, their blades flashing high and low, heads and severed limbs flying in every direction—slaughter as if mowing grass—he unleashed the Nine Techniques of the Heavenly Saber with exhilarating, unimpeded ferocity.
The Nine Techniques of the Heavenly Saber—from Night Slashes a Thousand Cities of Wind and Rain, Sun Blazes the East Sea's Thousand-Layered Waves, to Long Saber Hangs the Moon's Soul, Swift Horse Startles the Star-Spirit—every technique was exquisite and profound, and at once grand and majestic.
The saber light was like wind and rain, sea and wave—truly, a long saber hanging the moon, a swift horse startling the stars! Add to that the supreme creation divine art of the Crimson Bright Era, three heads and six arms—three heads watching all eight directions, six arms attacking with no blind spot, as though three Shen Mus fought as one, slaying into the flock of sheep!
Suddenly, the saber light snapped shut. Shen Mu raised his six arms high, the six sabers clashed together and became one long saber, and all six arms swung down as one! Chi—the saber light was stunning; one stroke split open the great hall's doors.
The doors sundered and flew apart to either side, and the great hall lay open! And before him and behind, to left and right, corpse after corpse toppled down, falling into pools of blood. Not one remained who could stand.