Chapter 1020 — Metamorphosing Into Fish and Dragon, Leaving No Trace
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 3 of 5
"This man is no ordinary person. None who can master the Heavenly Lord's fleshly body are weaklings.
If you go tracking him, you may bring danger upon yourself instead — come to my arms. " The handsome general in silver armor and white robes sprang toward her bosom, turning into a white cat as he fell into her embrace; he nuzzled about her a moment, then dozed off again in lazy contentment. The maids beside Heavenly Concubine Yan seemed long used to such wonders; they followed her back to the Palace of Lasting Joy.
Shen Mu returned to the Hall of Nourishing Glory, and no sooner had he stepped inside than he saw Heavenly Venerable Hao, hands clasped behind his back, waiting there within the hall. Shen Mu's heart gave a jolt; he walked straight past the man as if he did not exist, and though he appeared fully composed, his heart very nearly leapt up into his throat. Shen Mu sat down calmly, as steady as a rock, and said, "What business brings Heavenly Venerable Hao here?
" Heavenly Venerable Hao raised his head and said, unmoved, "Mingya came to see you, and you escorted him into the ancestral land. You lingered there so long before emerging — what exactly were you plotting?
" "Mingya?
" Shen Mu was momentarily taken aback and broke into a smile.
*Mingya must be the name of the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace — now at last I know. * He sat unmoving and said in a leisurely tone, "Crown Prince Mingya is a descendant of the Heavenly Lord after all; a trip to the ancestral land does no harm.
Heavenly Venerable Hao, you and I are both Venerables — why should I need to report my doings to you?
" Heavenly Venerable Hao snorted. "Do not forget — without me, would you hold the seats you hold now?
Which of you could have stood against Cloud Heavenly Venerable, Ling Heavenly Venerable, and Moon Heavenly Venerable?
It is precisely because I have been here that you could climb onto your Venerable thrones and wield the power you wield now! " Shen Mu laughed heartily.
"And it is precisely because you have been here that the Grand Emperor could slip in among the Ten Heavenly Venerables and become a lurking calamity of the first order. Heavenly Venerable Hao, your influence is indeed vast, but mine is not small either — do not keep speaking to me from that height! " Heavenly Venerable Hao clenched his fists and stared at him; Shen Mu forced down his fright with all his might and met his gaze.
Heavenly Venerable Hao opened his fists and said flatly, "That whelp Shen Mu says the Grand Emperor is hidden among us, and you believe him? He does no more than sow division, wanting the Ten Heavenly Venerables to war among themselves. That he came out of the Grand Void alive did indeed take me by surprise, but his words are a patchwork of truth and lies; he has tucked away much more than he told. " Shen Mu leaned back upon the Heavenly Lord's throne and said lazily, "His words are woven of truth and falsehood — but Fire Heavenly Venerable and Void Heavenly Venerable should soon return, should they not?
Once they are here, whether that whelp Shen Mu's words hold true or false will declare itself. " Heavenly Venerable Hao's gaze fell upon the wounds on his legs, and his pupils narrowed. "You took Crown Prince Mingya into the ancestral land — were you counting on his bloodline to strip away the treasures there?
Those treasures are the patrimony of my house; you will never take them!