Chapter 553 — The Sun-Binder in the Flames

Upon the marsh floated corpse after corpse—the bodies of demons. There were far too many, densely packed. Demon fire burned upon the corpses, and broken timbers and thatch floated on the water—the remains of collapsed houses. There was no sun in the sky either, only those broken planets. Suddenly, fire serpents streaked across the sky.

Hundreds of them hurtled toward this place—fragments falling from the broken planets.

Each fragment was as large as a mountain, and they were crashing down upon him! Shen Mu was about to dodge, but it was already too late. Boom! Great explosions rang out.

Terrifying flames rushed at him like an enormous tidal wave bearing an indescribably dreadful hurricane, swallowing and submerging him.

Shen Mu stood amid the flames and hurricane, yet remained unharmed.

The dreadful waves of force came one after another, but upon reaching him they were repelled by a strange power. The corpses in the marsh, however, were utterly destroyed in the collision of heaven and earth, reduced to ash and smoke. The twisted bodies in midair turned to flying ash and were scattered by the wind.

In an instant, the marsh became parched and cracked. Before Shen Mu could recover his senses, he stared blankly ahead. A broken planet had moved overhead, stirring up a terrifying tide. Amid thunderous roars, a great wave taller than Mount Sumeru was rolling and crushing toward him. The earth was torn apart again and again by the alien star in the sky. Great volcanoes appeared upon the ground, erupting and spewing columns of magma that connected heaven and earth.

Lightning flashed and thunder roared in the sky. Then Shen Mu saw thousands of volcanic fire columns swept flat by the great wave, countless bolts of lightning and thunder swallowed by it. The wave rolled over—this was a mighty force of heaven and earth that he could not possibly resist! Shen Mu resigned himself to death.

But strangely, when that earth-shaking wave reached him, it was repelled by a strange power. The wave split apart and did not harm him in the slightest. The planets in the sky shifted. After the great wave passed, all returned to silence, and once more a vast marsh formed. From somewhere, many shattered demon corpses appeared, floating upon the water.

"A strange place. . . " Shen Mu steadied himself and walked forward.

He was certain he had been abducted by the Sun-Binder, yet the Sun-Binder had not killed him. Instead, he had cast him into this place. There must be some purpose to it.

He moved with incredible speed, walking forward faster than ever before. Along the way he encountered several more terrifying celestial phenomena—tides, earthquakes, thunderstorms, volcanoes, planetary fragments—wantonly ravaging this world. "Honored King!

" Suddenly, a demon god descended from the sky and bowed.

"Honored King, the altar has been completed. Please give the order. " Shen Mu was startled, but he saw that the demon god was utterly respectful toward him, seemingly unable to tell that he was of the human race.

"Mm. " Shen Mu answered vaguely, "Lead the way. " The demon god led the way ahead. Before long, they arrived at a vast cluster of cities.

Thousands of great golden pyramid altars rose high like mountains, demon gods standing upon them, while countless demons knelt upon the stone steps of the altars, awaiting sacrifice.

"Honored King, our world cannot hold out much longer. Please give the order!

" Demon gods looked toward him, their gazes fervent. Shen Mu nodded blankly.

The countless demons kneeling upon the stone steps raised their blades and cut off their own heads.

In an instant, blood splattered across the altars.

Resounding voices rose—the demon tongue. Shen Mu had studied the demon tongue and could understand what the demons and demon gods were saying. They were performing a sacrifice, praying, offering up their very selves, seeking a way of survival for the descendants of the demon race in this dying world—a world where they could live. Amid the resounding, drawn-out sacrificial chants, the towering golden pyramid altars blazed with incomparable brilliance. Beams of light shot into the sky, splitting it open, tearing apart the barrier between this world and another.

The sky was like a burning membrane.

The membrane peeled away irregularly, and the other world gradually revealed its true face.

Shen Mu looked up. That place was.

. .

Taihuang Heaven. He lowered his head and looked at the water beneath his feet. The water was like a mirror, reflecting his face.

The reflection showed him with three faces, ears set at the back of his head, revealing sharp, pointed tips. He was the sovereign of this dying world, the Honored King of the demon race. The Sun-Binder. Shen Mu raised his head.

The scene before him—so magnificent and vast, yet tinged with sorrow and tragedy—was yellowing like a painting, burning.

The illusion was vanishing.

In the flames, the three-faced Sun-Binder walked toward him, bathed in fire.

Second update! I recommend this book, "Contention of the Great Dao," by Wu Dao Zhe—it ranks very high on the charts!