Chapter 1383 — The Peerless Divine Eye
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 3
The Lord of Heaven and the Lord of Earth exchanged a glance, and each of them frowned.
Both were men of uncommon intelligence, and both understood why Shen Mu looked so utterly desolate. Tai Yi had not answered Shen Mu's question. To be sure, that silence admitted of two readings—success, or failure—but judging by Tai Yi's manner, failure was far the likelier of the two.
For when the Lord of Heaven and the Lord of Earth had put their own questions to him, Tai Yi had answered each of them with success.
Had Shen Mu's endeavor been destined for success as well, then Tai Yi would have had no cause to choose silence.
They knew that Shen Mu had guessed the reason behind that silence too, and that this was why his spirit had sunk so low.
Nor did they know how to comfort this Heavenly Venerable Mu; this, after all, was the goal for which Shen Mu had striven his whole life. From the moment the boy came to Hidden Remnant Village, from the moment he and the Blind Elder pissed on the divine statue together, he had begun to shatter the god within his heart. From the moment he left the Desolate Ruins and entered Jingping, from the moment he came to understand the ideals of Jingping's Imperial Preceptor and of Emperor Yanfeng, and the ideals of the Heavenly Sage Cult, he had chosen the goal of his life.
Everything he had done in all his years had been for the sake of reaching that goal. Tai Yi's refusal to answer struck him a heavy blow, one that all but shattered his dao heart.
Had it been anyone other than Tai Yi, he would not have been so utterly unmanned; it was precisely because the one who kept silent was Tai Yi that his dao heart had come to harm.
Shen Mu's eyes stirred faintly, as though a measure of their light had returned, and a trace of a smile touched his lips.
"Brothers of the Way, I am fine. You may begin.
" The Lord of Heaven and the Lord of Earth exchanged another glance, and the Lord of Earth brought out a horn of origin he had already refined.
This horn of origin was likewise one of the Lord of Earth's own horns, long tempered and refined by him with the Great Way of the Dark Capital. The Shen-character continent Shen Mu had obtained the last time had also been a horn of the Lord of Earth's; yet the Lord of Earth had refined that continent not to serve Shen Mu as an eye, but to seal away his demonic nature.
And that horn had been no more than an ordinary horn of the Lord of Earth. This time, however, the Lord of Earth had used his own horn of origin, refining an iris for Shen Mu with his own hands—a thing far more formidable indeed.
The Lord of Heaven, in turn, brought out the Heavenly Way crystal from his own divine pupil. This crystal was no jade; on the contrary, it was exceedingly soft and transparent, almost as limpid as the blue sky itself.
When the two had each made their preparations, Shen Mu opened the vertical eye at the center of his brow and took out the Egg of Taichu, though his expression was somewhat dazed.
He said softly, "Man proposes, does he not?
If one knew the ending was already fixed, what pleasure would there be in striving. .
. I possess the Overlord Body; I never concede defeat! " The Lord of Earth barked, "Heavenly Venerable Mu, this is the critical moment—do not let your thoughts wander, or you may well ruin that eye of yours!
" A faint smile appeared on Shen Mu's face, as though a great stone had suddenly been lifted from him, and after a moment's hesitation he set the Egg of Taichu aside.
After all, the Egg of Taichu was where the Heavenly Emperor Taichu had been born; if he should encounter Heavenly Venerable Xiao again, would he not have to gouge out his own eyeball once more to seal that one away? "If I am to do this, then let it be done in a grand way!