Chapter 156 — A Dangerous Notion Stirs
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 3
"A strange ward.
" Danbaro looked at those vicious little figures, and his heart gave a leap; each of them seemed to have been refined from the soul of a mighty being, immensely strong, knowing nothing but slaughter. And these bizarre cubes together formed a lock of incomparable complexity, runes mirrored upon them; only when the forms of the runes were right could the lock be opened — otherwise it would release these little figures!
The translucent cubes were beyond counting, vast in number; when the runes cast forth by the talisman treasure fell upon a cube, that cube would retreat of itself and vanish. "The steps to unseal it are so complex — without this talisman treasure, it would be near impossible!
" The talisman treasure spun without cease, and the runes reflected from its fourteen faces shifted through endless variation, so that the cubes before them kept retreating. The talisman treasure drifted forward; the Turtle-Back Guardian strode on, and Danbaro hurried to follow him step by step.
They passed down a long passage, and suddenly the view before them opened wide.
The interior of the golden hall was a world of its own; seen from outside, the hall was not large, but viewed from within it was at least ten times larger, with pillars standing in row upon row, and beyond them golden altars great and small, each altar bearing treasures of strange form.
The Turtle-Back Guardian led Chu Baojian onward and laughed, saying, "A treasure of such weight must be placed in the deepest, most honored place. My magic power is not enough to seal it; only when the Shaman Venerable comes may he seal it himself.
Danbaro, you have won great merit — even I am most envious! " Danbaro hastily laughed: "I took more than one treasure from that Jingping man, and also a small jade bottle; most likely a sacred medicine lies within. I took a sniff of its scent, and it was wonderfully sweet, as though I were about to become an immortal.
. . " He drew a small jade bottle from his sleeve.
At the sight of it the Turtle-Back Guardian's eyes lit up; he snatched it from his hand and laughed: "Danbaro, you have won great merit, and the Shaman Venerable will surely reward you richly. I brought you here ahead of time to choose treasures — how could you not show me a little filial respect?
The sacred medicine in this jade bottle is mine! " A look of agonized reluctance crossed Danbaro's face. Seeing that look, the Turtle-Back Guardian laughed: "So stingy.
" With that he unscrewed the bottle, held it beneath his nose, and took a sniff.
"So swee—ee—ah—nnngh—eet.
.
.
fra—grance. . .
" The satisfied smile still hung on the Turtle-Back Guardian's face as he toppled straight backward.
Holding his breath, Danbaro hastily snatched the jade bottle from his hand and stoppered it, not daring to draw a single breath.
After thinking a moment, he took out another jade bottle, gathered the surrounding air into it, then prised open the Turtle-Back Guardian's mouth and set the open bottle between his lips, letting him hold it there.
"This way he will not wake for a while yet. Phew—" Danbaro exhaled a breath of foul air, then began to shed his skin; from Danbaro's husk another person burrowed out — none other than Shen Mu.
"Now I suppose I too have used the methods of the demonic path. " Shen Mu glanced at the skin bag on the ground and shook his head.
Granny Zhu could wear another's skin and change into a thousand forms, but he still felt a certain shadow in his heart over it.
Shen Mu took back the Chu Bao Sword, then searched the Turtle-Back Guardian's person, found the talisman treasure and tucked it into his breast, and gathered up a few odds and ends besides.
He rummaged about but found nothing else of use, and had to give it up. "Lingxiao Heaven Eye, open!