Chapter 345 — Heaven Collapses, Earth Splits

A roar went off in Shen Mu's mind.

Thoughts came crowding in from every direction, a chaotic jumble, and a buzzing hum filled his ears. What Sage Qingyou had revealed was truly terrifying — and more than that, the information bound up in it was staggering!

Little Jade Capital, the Heavenly Sage Cult, and the Human Emperor Hall had all sprung from one source, created by people who had walked out of the same age, the same place; and more than that, all three holy lands were fragments of one and the same place! He turned and looked at Li Zheng. Li Zheng's expression was as usual, his emotions utterly unruffled; it seemed that though Sage Qingyou's words shook heaven and earth, they still could not stir his heart.

Or perhaps he had long known of the bond between the three holy lands, and so it was hard to shock him. Old Tathagata and the Old Dao Lord, however, wore faces of utter shock — clearly the former masters of these two holy lands had not known the story behind it all. The origins of these two holy lands were more ancient still, but some histories had never been written down.

Sage Qingyou drew his gaze back from Li Zheng and looked at Shen Mu.

He paused slightly, then smiled. "It seems the Old Human Emperor did not tell you the inside story.

Nor have you ever been to the Human Emperor Hall.

Young Human Emperor, you ought to make the journey there — it will reveal many secrets to you. " Shen Mu steadied himself and said in a low voice, "I beg Immortal Qingyou to speak plainly! " Sage Qingyou looked again at Li Zheng, whose face was as calm as an ancient well without a ripple. Sage Qingyou laughed.

"If you will not speak, then I must overstep my place and do it for you.

Human Emperor, please follow me.

" He walked down the mountain.

Shen Mu followed, and Li Zheng too rose silently into the air, floating along behind the two of them. Xiong Xiyu hesitated, then caught hold of Xiong Qi'er and shook her head. "The affairs of the Central Plains are not something we should involve ourselves in too deeply.

" Xiong Qi'er was rather puzzled, but Xiong Xiyu had her own misgivings: the affairs of the Western Lands' True Heaven Palace already gave her enough of a headache, and the affairs of the Central Plains were more terrifying still. She had keenly sensed that there were some secrets it was better for her not to know. The Old Dao Lord and Old Tathagata exchanged a glance.

The Old Dao Lord smiled. "Free of burdens, light of body — we are already immortals of Little Jade Capital. Best not to learn more secrets, lest they spoil our state of mind.

" Old Tathagata glanced at him. "What is recorded in that Golden Book and Precious Scroll is the method for connecting to the Divine Bridge.

Does it not stir your heart, my friend?

" "And what of it?

" The Old Dao Lord said unhurriedly, "The one who created the method for connecting to the Divine Bridge — where is he now? " Old Tathagata was taken aback, then burst out laughing, and gave up any thought of following.

"Every generation of Human Emperor has failed.

There is no need for us to join in the clamor.

" As for the dragon qilin, it did not follow either; it lay sprawled to one side, asleep, snoring like thunder. "You'll be eaten," Xiong Qi'er leaned close to its ear and whispered.

The dragon qilin hastily raised its head and warily looked around.

Finding that Shen Mu was not there, it said to the little girl, "I'll sleep a little longer, then get up to train. " Xiong Qi'er believed it.

Shen Mu followed Sage Qingyou across a long rope bridge, around several immortal mountains, until they came to an immortal mountain floating in the air. Sage Qingyou led them to the great hall at the mountain's summit. The hall was exceedingly ancient, and seemed to have fallen into disrepair with the passage of years: its walls were broken, and several pillars no longer propped up the roof, as though it had been ravaged by war.

The hall was called the Hall of Annals. The characters on the plaque were somewhat blurred, yet one could still see that whoever had written those three characters had attained the very heights of calligraphy and the way of painting. The words "Hall of Annals" carried a weight of history; from between the strokes a deep, weathered antiquity swept over the face. "In the Kaihuang Era, the Hall of Annals was a place of great renown.

" Sage Qingyou walked into the hall.

There were no books left inside — only row upon row of ancient shelves. The inner hall was a circular space, exceedingly vast, and Shen Mu saw that many of the shelves were set into the domed walls, so that one had to walk upon the walls to reach them and read. It was a pity that all the books here were gone. "Many of the books in this place were destroyed in the wars; the surviving volumes were moved by us to other halls for safekeeping.

The immortals who opened up Little Jade Capital originally intended to tear down the Hall of Annals, but then felt it was meaningful to leave it standing, and so they did not touch this hall.

" Sage Qingyou stepped onto the wall and walked among the rows of empty shelves, his palm stroking these ancient bookcases. Shen Mu followed him onto the wall, and started slightly: the wall gave off a geomagnetic yuan force that seized his body and held it fast, letting them walk freely upon the wall. "Those immortals who opened up Little Jade Capital — in the Kaihuang Era, they were the ones charged with recording history. " Sage Qingyou said, "Not only did they record the history of the Kaihuang Era, they also recorded the history of the ages before Kaihuang.

Precisely because they recorded history, they witnessed failure after failure and knew well the peril. So after the Kaihuang Era was destroyed, they moved the Hall of Annals here and created the holy land of Little Jade Capital.

Little Jade Capital keeps far from the mortal world and takes no part in its quarrels; it merely floats quietly beyond the world, recording the rise and fall of all things. Does the Human Emperor know where the Hall of Annals originally stood in the Kaihuang Era?

" Shen Mu shook his head.

Sage Qingyou walked up onto the dome, head downward and feet upward, and said, "Then the Human Emperor must know the meaning of the word Jade Capital? " "Jade Capital — the capital city where the Heavenly Emperor dwells," Shen Mu said. Sage Qingyou sighed. "Yes — the capital where the Heavenly Emperor dwells. Jade Capital is the Heavenly Court. The name Little Jade Capital was meant to commemorate the capital of the Heavenly Emperor. The history recorded in the Hall of Annals was, in truth, written for the Heavenly Emperor to read.

" Shen Mu was deeply shaken.

He stared at him blankly and murmured, "Little Jade Capital comes from Jade Capital? " "That's right.

Little Jade Capital comes from Jade Capital!

" Sage Qingyou turned around and looked at him and Li Zheng, and said in a low voice, "Little Jade Capital comes from Jade Capital, the capital city of the Kaihuang Era! The Human Emperor Hall comes from there too! Holy Advent Mountain comes from there too!

They are all fragments of Jade Capital!

Those who created the three holy lands — whether the immortals of Little Jade Capital, or the first Human Emperor of the Human Emperor Hall, or the Woodcutter Sage of the Heavenly Sage Cult — all came from Jade Capital of the Kaihuang Era!

" A gleam flickered in Li Zheng's eyes. "Since they spring from the same source, why can Little Jade Capital not lend aid? The Human Emperor Shen is the cult master of the Heavenly Sage Cult and the reigning Human Emperor of the Human Emperor Hall. By both sentiment and reason, you of Little Jade Capital ought to give him your fullest support! " Sage Qingyou came down from the dome and shook his head. "Old Human Emperor, your grand ambitions still will not fade, and you are as stubborn as ever — obstinate, hidebound, unable to digest the old ways.