Chapter 292 — The Intoxicating Long Night at Sea

The physician examined the village head and grumbled, "When a man is old, he can't rely on his bones and sinews. And you've practically no bones or sinews left—yet still you had to show off. Feel good now?"

The village head panted, "He is hurt worse than I am. Almost all the experts of the Upper Realm, I have fought them."

"Aren't you something."

The physician first steadied his wounds with needles, then shook his head. "And still someone cut off your hands and feet with a sword?"

"The day I passed the throne of the Human Sovereign to Shen'er, I knew this day would come, and that someone from the Upper Realm would come looking for Shen'er."

The village head's gaze was dim. "The Upper Realm won't tolerate a Human Sovereign living among the world. I'm old, crippled, and useless, so they don't care. But a new Human Sovereign—they will surely root him out. Star Lord Qiao is one of the best in the Upper Realm. This time I stopped him and made him back down. That way, the one who goes seeking Shen'er won't be an expert like him. They have to follow the rules; if they won't, then we force them to follow the rules."

The physician made up his medicine and said, "And after you die? Will they still follow the rules?"

The village head was silent a moment, then suddenly broke into a smile. "Alive, I am the Human Sovereign; dead, I am a hero among ghosts. This life may perish, but my will to fight is evergreen. Perhaps you should get out and take a stroll too."

The physician shuddered and shook his head. "I'm not going out. Whoever wants to can go."

Sacred mountain of the Western Lands.

Star Lord Qiao's carriage reached the summit. The star lord strained to rouse his cultivation, preparing to return to the Upper Realm, when suddenly he spat a mouthful of blood and collapsed in the carriage. His wounds burst open. With difficulty, he raised a hand to the four women. "Burn incense..."

The four women were shocked. The girl in green hastily took out three incense sticks and lit them on the altar. The smoke rose in wisps. After a while, a face appeared in the vault of heaven and looked down.

"I met the old Human Sovereign."

Star Lord Qiao gasped, "He is old and crippled, but still not dead. His strength has grown far greater. I am wounded by him. What he meant is—if the older generation goes after the new Human Sovereign, he will certainly interfere, but if the younger generation goes, he will not care."

"He is still alive?" The face showed astonishment. A faint, distant voice came from beyond the sky: "Star Lord, whom do you intend to send from the Upper Realm to kill the new Human Sovereign?"

Star Lord Qiao said, "Xu Shenghua, Young Master Xu."

The face in the sky turned grave. "Is it necessary to dispatch Young Master Xu?"

Star Lord Qiao nodded. "The old man is old and dying; the new Human Sovereign is young and not yet grown. If we kill the new Human Sovereign, we can end the trouble once and for all."

A light fell from the sky and landed on Star Lord Qiao, forming a road made of light. The face in the sky said, "Young Master Xu may not be willing to leave his mountain. You must go and ask him yourself."

Star Lord Qiao said to the four women, "Yu, Qing, Yao, Jing—stay here. Take these four treasures of mine and help Young Master Xu kill the new Human Sovereign. I will return to the Upper Realm; Young Master Xu will come down before long."

The four women acknowledged and got down from the carriage. Two suanni pulled the battered treasure carriage up the road of light and back to the Upper Realm.

When the light vanished, the four women exchanged glances. Jade Willow said, "The master ordered us to follow Young Master Xu and kill the new Human Sovereign, but we still don't know who he is."

Capital Swallow said, "The news came from the Golden Palace of Loulan this time. We'll need to go there. Green Oriole, Jasper Flower, you two go to the Golden Palace. Jade Willow and I will wait here for Young Master Xu to come down."

The other two girls nodded and went down the mountain. They did not pass through the Wasteland Ruins, but crossed the Western Lands, the Flame Desert, and the snowy highlands straight toward the Golden Palace of Loulan.

Without Star Lord Qiao, they did not dare set foot directly into the Wasteland Ruins.

The Eastern Sea.

Shen Mu drifted across the great sea with Si Yunxiang and Ling Yuxiu. At nightfall, the sea suddenly shimmered—countless luminous fish surfaced, painting the ocean like a gem.

Shen Mu rode the waves onward. The luminous fish leapt from his billows one after another. The waves pressed forward, and the fish pressed along with them—great fun to watch.

Some fish had a pair of barbels on their foreheads, each tipped with a transparent ball of flesh the size of a fist, like a lantern. At night they gave off a faint glow, so they were called lanternfish.

Lanternfish also had fins like wings. When they burst from the waves, they would vibrate all four fins and fly dozens of zhang in the air before splashing back down.

Sometimes these odd fish would keep pace with them, fluttering their fins as they floated alongside, lighting the path across the sea.

Now and then larger fish appeared, one or two zhang long, beating their fins and watching them with curiosity.

Si Yunxiang was still playful at heart. Seeing that the big lanternfish had developed intelligence, she wanted to tease them, so she taught them to speak, word by word. To everyone's surprise, a big fish actually learned a phrase or two and spoke in human tongue.

They also passed through the territory of the sea folk. Many sea-folk maidens rose up from the water, tails swimming, following their waves and swimming around them, singing beautiful love songs. They sang of two girls who loved a young man, the various feelings and fancies of girlish hearts. Beside them, several giant clams and other shellfish that had become spirits thumped and clattered their shells in accompaniment.

Ling Yuxiu and Si Yunxiang, on the wave, were made shy by the sea maidens' singing. They stole glimpses at the youth beside them and couldn't help but feel irked.

They realized Shen Mu was not fully concentrating on the journey but was lost in thought. His mind was not on the road, nor on the sea maidens' beautiful singing—it had sunk into his own meditation.

He was contemplating something unknown. Though a smile was on his face, his thoughts were neither on the beautiful scene before him nor on the girls at his side.

All the way, Shen Mu had been trying to comprehend the Great Unification Art of the Six Harmonies realm, and in the last few days he had reached a crucial stage.

"The bastard! He deserves to be alone his whole life!" The two girls cursed in unison within their hearts.

The Dao Lord had allowed Shen Mu fourteen days of contemplation on the Dao Sword, from which he had gained much. Although the Dao Sword was a sword art, the mathematical principles hidden in its sword logic seemed capable of being integrated into many arts—well worth borrowing.

After another half hour, Shen Mu's vital energy gradually waned; the wave slowed and kept shrinking. Ling Yuxiu promptly took over, cast a spell, and a water dragon carried all three of them ahead.

Shen Mu relaxed, standing on the water dragon and letting Ling Yuxiu take him along.

The Six Void Divine Storehouses gave a huge improvement to a cultivator. Whether spells, sword arts, or battle skills, all were elevated to the rank of divine powers, their might doubled.

At this realm, a cultivation art must connect the three great divine storehouses—Spirit Embryo, Five Luminaries, and Six Harmonies—and fully summon the energies of all three. Shen Mu's Mystic Body Three-Elixir Art had power but no method; the Woodcutter's Transmitted Scripture had method but no gate; the Great Nurturing Dark Demon Sutra contained all things but lacked unity. Nevertheless, the three could entirely form one whole.