Chapter 833 — March With Me
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 4
When the laughter died, little strength remained to either of them, and they helped each other into the corridor.
A moment later, Shen Mu's astonished voice floated out from within. "Your demon blade eats too? Is that still a blade?"
"This demon blade of mine is actually a creature of the Heavenly Court called a dragon tooth. I went to the Eastern Heaven to train under Teacher Luo and obtained this blade on Mount Lingbao... Mm, that smells good! Teacher Luo said the Eastern Heaven is the domain of the Azure Dragon Emperor. The Emperor's vitality is so exuberant that his teeth grow fast and constantly need grinding, so he grinds them on Mount Lingbao. The mountain is extraordinarily hard, and sometimes it snaps his teeth clean off—which is how the creature known as the Lingbao Mountain dragon tooth came to be. Many blade students of the Heavenly Court go there seeking treasures, hoping to find a tooth of their own, though few are blessed with such fortune."
"Mount Lingbao? A mountain that can chip the Azure Dragon Emperor's teeth—that is the real treasure! When I get to the Eastern Heaven, I'll carry the whole mountain off and refine it into a treasure!"
"You couldn't lift it—that mountain is not much smaller than Mount Sumeru... This is dragon liver. Don't eat it yet; it's a bit gamey. I have some scallion and ginger here—we'll pan-fry it... Do you have anything like pickled sour beans or sour chilies over there?"
"Zhe Huali, your cooking is truly not bad!"
"I practiced my way into it. I trained under Fu Riluo, and the devil race's food is nothing like the human race's—I had to cook for myself."
...
A long while later, the two of them waddled out of the corridor with round, bulging bellies, propping each other up, and plopped down on the ground, so stuffed they were wheezing for breath.
Midway through the meal they had passed through another cycle of reincarnation; the great hall where the Emperor and Empress's coffins rested had been restored to its original state. Shen Mu and Zhe Huali sat with bellies round and full, and even Zhe Huali's demon blade had grown a ring fatter—though whether the edge itself had plumped up too, who could say.
Shen Mu staggered out of the great hall, leaned against a pillar, and squinted at the world outside.
The Celestial River rushed onward. The sun was setting now, and the westering light made the great river streaming through the sky a wondrous sight: the red glow upon the water was like a maiden's rouge, and the color of the setting sun like a girl's red lips.
"I wonder what era it is out there now."
Zhe Huali, so stuffed that walking was a struggle, came over and sat down on the stone steps. "Sect Master Shen, if we cannot tell which cycle is the first cycle, are you still confident you can break Celestial Venerable Ling's divine ability?"
"The boarding of the Four Emperors—that is the first cycle."
Shen Mu's face was calm. "When the Four Emperors board the ship is also when the Feathered Forest Army turns to void. When we see figures on this ship emerging one after another from void into substance, appearing all of a sudden, that will be the first cycle. And at that time, the four great Emperors among the ancient gods will appear as well."
Zhe Huali's heart tightened. "You said before that you had a way to borrow the power of the Four Emperors to break Celestial Venerable Ling's divine ability. How mighty are the Four Emperors, exactly? Are you certain you can do it?"
Shen Mu smiled, unhurried. "The Four Emperors were never trapped on this ship. Later on they even sent tribulations down upon us, and Di Yiyue went to study under them. Which means—we succeeded."