Chapter 805 — The Fall of the Lord of the Heavenly Court
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 4 of 5
The Heavenly Duke said, "With humans and demigods fighting each other, his children not daring to rebel, and every ancient god held by leverage in his hand, his reign was secure. In that era, none could oppose him. None in the past, none in the present, and none in the future."
"And yet he died," Shen Mu said, his gaze flickering.
The Heavenly Duke was silent a moment, then said, "Little Bird said just now that he died young, but that is not right. The Heavenly Emperor actually died before you."
Every feather on the Great Sun Star Lord's body stood on end, and he blurted out, "Impossible! I was sent by the Heavenly Emperor's command to suppress the Yun Heavenly Emperor, and then I took an arrow in the back. I have the Heavenly Emperor's handwritten edict. It is impossible!"
The Heavenly Duke gave a long sigh. "In truth, your death came later. When demigods and humans were locked in a fight to the death, a beauty appeared in Yuandu. She was so beautiful that even I could not help but cast my gaze upon her. Her name was Jue Wuchen, flawless without a single blemish, unstained by the slightest dust. Her beauty stirred even my mortal heart..."
Shen Mu's expression turned strange.
The Old Buddha and the Crimson Emperor also wore strange expressions.
The Heavenly Duke paused, then said, "And then the Heavenly Emperor reincarnated. Of course he dared to reincarnate, but this time it was a furtive reincarnation. No one knew whom he reincarnated as, where he reincarnated, or what race he became. Until one day, a Tianzun of the human race came to Xuandu and found me..."
Shen Mu grew anxious. "Which Tianzun?"
The Heavenly Duke fell silent, but still went on. "Yun Tianzun. By then he was already the Yun Heavenly Emperor of the Xiaohan Heavenly Court, and moreover, he was the leader of the Heaven Alliance."
Shen Mu's body trembled violently, his gaze blank.
"Yun Tianzun came to me and said he could free me from the deadlock in which the Heavenly Emperor held me, so long as on a certain day of a certain month of a certain year, I merely watched and did not intervene."
The Heavenly Duke said, "I did not know what he intended to do, but I agreed. And at that very time, another Tianzun came to Youdu and found the Earthlord."
He looked at the Earthlord. "Fellow Daoist, do you still remember which Tianzun came to call on you?"
The Earthlord said, "Of course I remember. Hao Tianzun, leader of the demigods, came to me and said that on a certain day of a certain month of a certain year, I need only watch what happened in Yuandu, without intervening, and the troubles of Youdu would be resolved. I agreed."
The Heavenly Duke said, "At that time, Hao Tianzun was the Hao Heavenly Emperor of the Longxiao Heavenly Court."
Shen Mu was bewildered, murmuring, "Hao Tianzun, Yun Tianzun, how could they be together? Were they not mortal enemies? One represented the demigods, the other the postnatal beings, and were they not locked in a fight to the death?"
"This is precisely what I can never understand, and what I find terrifying."
The Heavenly Duke's face showed bewilderment and dread as he said in a low voice, "Then that day truly came. The slaughter began. The first to strike was Jue Wuchen, and then the mighty ones of every race, led by Yun Tianzun and Hao Tianzun. Only then did I realize that the one they meant to kill was the Heavenly Emperor. Bound by my oath, I did not move to stop them. And besides, I felt a certain dread of the Heavenly Emperor, and in my heart I also wished him dead. Fellow Daoist Earthlord did not act either..."
Shen Mu shook his head, his hands and feet cold as ice, and said in a low voice, "And the Earth Mother Yuanjun. The Earth Mother Yuanjun, she..."
"She also watched, and did not act."