Chapter 1442 — The Firmament's Young Master Xu, Peerless Under Heaven
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 4
Xu Shenghua did not pause once along the way, heading straight for Consort Yan's domain. His dao heart was firm and his mind free of distractions; though the lure of the Taiji essence liquid was immense, he had not tasted a single drop.
Shen Mu often boasted of the strength of his own dao heart, yet his nature was flighty, and a sudden notion would seize him and he could not keep his hands still. Xu Shenghua was not like that.
The Firmament's Young Master Xu, unmatched in his excellence.
He was steadier than Shen Mu, more reserved, and at the same time modest and cautious, possessing virtues Shen Mu had never had.
His ideas, though fewer than Shen Mu's and less fantastical, were of a cleverness before which Shen Mu bowed his head. Yet what made him was also what undid him: precisely because he was too steady, too reserved, too modest and cautious, he fell far short of Shen Mu in pioneering spirit. But that was only when he had no rival.
If Xu Shenghua met his match, if he encountered a fellow daoist or a formidable foe, he would be stirred to a formidable creativity — the Surging River Divine Treasury, for instance, was opened by him after a wager with Shen Mu. The Surging River Divine Treasury is also called the Heavenly River Divine Treasury; without knowing that the Surging River was the Heavenly River, Xu Shenghua had opened this treasury before Shen Mu, and that feat alone was enough to rank him among the Heavenly Venerables. His other achievement was planting the Innate Jianmu within the treasury, using the beauty of the arts of number to link the seven great divine treasuries and unify the seven into one.
That too was a Heavenly Venerable-caliber achievement. With rivals and fellow daoists about him, Xu Shenghua blazed, dazzling and radiant.
Yet because he was too modest and reserved, his name was far less renowned than Shen Mu's, and less than Emperor Yanfeng's or that of the former Imperial Preceptor of Jingping, Jiang Baigui. Xu Shenghua traveled all the way to Consort Yan's domain, and suddenly another violent tremor came — the Heavenly Court's third great spiritual-energy translocation bridge was completed and opened, its radiance shooting into the sky and illuminating the night.
It was night now.
Xu Shenghua glanced around, came to the divine city in Consort Yan's domain to rest for the night, and waited until the sun was high before entering the gate of the Taishi mineral vein, presenting Heavenly Venerable Mu's card of introduction and requesting an audience with Consort Yan. Of course, Shen Mu had given him no such card; the so-called card of Heavenly Venerable Mu had been written by Xu Shenghua's own hand the night before.
After a moment, Xiu Hongsu came out to receive him, and saw a handsome young master standing quietly outside the gate, a sight to set the heart fluttering, so that one felt only that the years were fair. Xiu Hongsu's heart beat two beats faster without her knowing it.
She stepped forward and greeted him: "How shall I address the envoy? " "Xu Shenghua of the Shangcang Divine Sect of Jingping, come at the command of Heavenly Venerable Mu to pay his respects. " Xu Shenghua returned the greeting, and every motion of his courtesy was flawless.
Xiu Hongsu could not help but be enchanted; she felt a deep fondness for him, and said, "Her Highness already knows. Please, Young Master Xu, come this way.
" Only after the words left her mouth did she start inwardly. As an existence of the Imperial Throne realm, Consort Yan's eldest disciple, of high position and great authority, she had unconsciously lowered herself and addressed Xu Shenghua as Young Master Xu!
This had never happened before!