Chapter 834 — Seizing the Might of the Four Emperors
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 5
One after another, towering gods and demons rose to their feet, gazing at the youth who walked toward them.
The tally was a symbol of identity, a warrant for mustering troops; the Ten Guards of Heaven recognized the tally, not the man.
The Ten Guards answered only to the Celestial Emperor—without the tally, not even a commander could move their armies.
To command the Ten Guards of Heaven, there were only two ways: the tally, or the Celestial Emperor in person.
With the tally in hand, Shen Mu became the Right General of the Yulin Army, and held the power to command their forces.
The tally had been taken away by the founding patriarch Wei Suifeng and entrusted to the Old Man of Qinghuang, who in turn gave it to Shen Mu. Shen Mu had boarded the ship with the tally in hand but could never command these mightiest gods and demons—until he came to the source of the ghost ship's cycle of reincarnation. As the Yulin Army turned from illusion to substance, Shen Mu could at last wield the tally and command this terrible power.
Before the ranked lines of the Yulin Army, Shen Mu's features gradually changed, returning to the countenance of Mu Tianzun.
Mu Qing of the Nine Tianzuns, Mu Tianzun.
The Yulin Army's divine warriors watched his face change, and though a trace of surprise flickered in their eyes, not one of them asked.
In the Longhan era, the Nine Tianzuns each had their own strengths and marvels, each with extraordinary achievements; yet the most mysterious and unfathomable were Shen Tianzun and this Mu Tianzun before them—their comings and goings as elusive as the dragon's head appearing but never the tail. Whoever held the tally was their leader, and that was the end of it.
Shen Mu raised his hand; a sword flew out, slicing through the pillar on which Ling Tianzun had left her verse. As the pillar flew toward him, his body swelled section by section; he reached out, seized the pillar in his hand, and walked on, with tens of thousands of Yulin Army gods and demons following close behind. Zhe Huali, mustering his courage, followed close behind Shen Mu, only to realize that Shen Mu was leading these gods and demons straight toward the great hall where the Empress's coffin rested.
Before the hall, a dragon god of immense power was bound among chains, glaring viciously at Shen Mu as he approached.
"Heaven and earth can change, yet the thirty-six constants do not!
" he shouted. "What does it mean?
Tell me, what does it mean? " Shen Mu halted, his mind ringing.
Zhe Huali said hastily, "Sect Master Shen, why have you stopped? This dragon has been raving the same words all along, mad and babbling. . .
" Shen Mu shook his head, coming back to himself, and pointed at the King of Longbo with a sudden laugh.
"When I boarded this ship, that was the very thing you said. I always thought you were mad, spouting nonsense.
I never imagined you weren't questioning the others—you were questioning me! " He felt a sense of absurdity. The old dragon's expression turned wild, and he snarled, "Say it, what does it mean! " Shen Mu smiled faintly.
"Only by unraveling the immutable constants can one leave.
" With that, he turned and led the Yulin Army warriors into the great hall.
"Unravel the immutable constants? " The old dragon was taken aback, then cried out, "How?
Don't go!
Come back and tell me, how do I unravel the immutable constants? " Shen Mu entered the hall, where eight colossal dragons stood guard over the Empress's coffin, all bound in chains.
This time, the eight dragons had not been turned to stone.
He opened the passage once more and led the Yulin Army warriors into the ship's interior, then sealed the passage behind them.
In a low voice, he asked, "Did General Wei teach you to set the Four Phases Tribulation Array? " Tens of thousands of gods and demons immediately took their positions, forming the Four Phases Tribulation Array spread neatly around the ship's bottom, awaiting inspection.