Chapter 209 — The Gate of Kunyuan

"Why did you not summon the other four demon gods? " came the voice of the Demon King of Dutian in Shen Mu's mind, demanding an answer. Shen Mu shook his head: "I have kept my word and summoned your subject; now it is your turn to teach me the Youdu tongue. " The Demon King of Dutian was taken aback: "But there are four other statues.

. .

" "Demon King, my half of our covenant is fulfilled.

Summoning one is summoning; summoning five is summoning. " Shen Mu said, "If you do not keep your word, Tubo will seize you and drag you off to Youdu forthwith!

" The Demon King of Dutian laughed in his fury, then suddenly laughed despite himself: "A cunning little devil indeed, lying in wait for me here.

Very well, very well - luckily I too kept something in reserve. I will teach you the Youdu tongue, yes, but only one sentence of it; when I swore my oath, I never said I would teach you the whole of the Youdu tongue.

" Shen Mu's eyes went wide.

The Demon King of Dutian said smugly, "I will tell you only the writing on this gate; as for the writing in that scroll of yours, you may give up all hope of knowing it. If you would master the whole of the Youdu tongue, go down to Youdu yourself and ask! " These past days, as Shen Mu's spirit took the form of the Zhen Star Lord, the phantom gate behind him had gradually grown clear, and the writing upon it had come into view and could now be read; only the writing in the book had not yet grown clear. Shen Mu probed: "If I summon the other four statues as well, will you teach me the Youdu script in the book?

" "No!

" said the Demon King of Dutian flatly. Shen Mu let out a breath and smiled: "Then teach me the sentence upon the gate. " The Demon King of Dutian uttered a strange cadence, a sound that seemed to issue from the soul itself, like the uncanny chorus of a billion twisted ghosts.

Shen Mu made an attempt, only to find that a human being could not produce this strange language at all, and he was left dumbfounded. The Demon King of Dutian chuckled: "There are languages your lowly kind can never learn. Your voices come from the throat, but the Youdu tongue is not voiced from the throat.

.

.

" He had barely spoken when Shen Mu suddenly made the sound - and not from the throat, but from his soul, in a cadence very like the one the Demon King had just produced!

The Demon King of Dutian was stunned, and alarm stirred in his heart: "This little devil is so sharp that in a single instant he guessed the sound comes not from the throat but from the soul. If he is allowed to grow, I may truly not be able to best him. .

. A little devil this sharp is better killed early! " Shen Mu practiced soul-voicing again and again, and after a long while he had learned the sentence entire: "What does this sentence mean?

" The Demon King of Dutian did not answer. Shen Mu was about to ask again when the Demon King said, "This sentence means the Gate of Kunyuan.

" Shen Mu started: "The Gate of Kunyuan? You are not deceiving me? " The Demon King of Dutian laughed: "Deceive you? How could I deceive you?

It means the Gate of Kunyuan, that much is certain. " Shen Mu half believed and half doubted.

For the Demon King of Dutian to be so generous all at once, there must be something wrong with this Gate of Kunyuan.

Shen Mu's gaze flickered, and he smiled: "Demon King of Dutian, you may now leave my body.

I have forged you an idol-automaton out of dark iron and cold crystal, and you may take up residence within it. Thereafter, summon demons when you wish to summon demons, and do whatever you wish to do.

" The Demon King of Dutian laughed: "You mean to coax me out so that one-armed, white-browed monk can do me to death?

I am not so foolish. " Shen Mu shook his head and said to Lord Huo and the Lame Elder, "Grandfathers both, I will now reattach your arm and your leg for you. " Lord Huo said, "When you reattach our limbs, that demon god will most likely seize the chance to flee.

Better to refine him to death while we can. " Shen Mu said gravely, "I cannot go back on my word.

I said I would forge him an idol-automaton and let him take up residence in it, and I cannot break that promise. " Lord Huo said no more.

Shen Mu cleared the bed and had Lord Huo lie down, then took Lord Huo's arm from the medicine cauldron and set about reattaching it. He was deep in that work when suddenly a bolt of lightning flashed out from his brow and, with a crackle, fell upon the eight-armed, four-faced idol standing at the door.

The Lame Elder lifted an eyebrow and said with a smile, "This confounded Demon King - I will let you run eight hundred li first. " The Demon King of Dutian worked the idol, found it moved freely, and took to his heels, running outside.

He had barely run out of Shen Mu's courtyard and taken a dozen paces when, with a sudden crack, the joints of both his legs locked fast. Then the joints all over his body gave off a crack-crack of sound, as though lock after lock had snapped shut.

The Demon King of Dutian stood with his eight arms raised high and one foot lifted, unable to come down, his whole body rigid, unable to move an inch. "You rotten bastard, you laid a trap for me!

" came a furious, sputtering voice from within the idol.

Snow Fox poked a head out of Shen Mu's courtyard, glanced at the demon god statue frozen there, and said with a curl of the lip, "Did the Young Master not tell you long ago?

He was making you an idol-automaton - see, you have fallen foul of the mechanism, have you not?

By the way, would you say the Young Master is a male fox that has cultivated into a spirit? I rather think he might be. .

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"