Chapter 601 — A Seemingly Harmless Smile

Had Qi Jiuyi not been so carried away by his own heroic ardor that he insisted on striking at Shen Mu and Zhe Huali at the same time, he would have beaten Zhe Huali cleanly, and would never have come to this pass. Both Shen Mu and Zhe Huali knew how terrifying his great divine power was, and so, the moment he attacked them both at once, they struck first and wounded him gravely; after that Qi Jiuyi was reduced to a mere garnish in their duel, and it was Shen Mu and Zhe Huali alone who fought, eight thousand flying swords and countless blades of saber-light clashing and ringing like a downpour beating upon pear blossoms.

Qi Jiuyi stood at the very center of the battlefield where the two men clashed; everywhere were the flash of Shen Mu's and Zhe Huali's blades and swords, and the instant he made ready to erupt, both of them would strike him at once. Such a scene was the last thing he had ever expected. Shen Mu and Zhe Huali moved with flying steps, now near, now far; the two contended chiefly with blade and sword, aided by spells and divine powers, and now and then their very bodies clashed in the exercise of those powers. Zhe Huali gradually gained the worse of it.

Qi Jiuyi saw his advantage, and all at once, at the instant Shen Mu attacked Zhe Huali, he struck at Zhe Huali as well, hoping to join forces with Shen Mu and finish Zhe Huali off first. Just then a chill came over his chest. He looked down and saw a sword tip protruding from his own breast.

At the same moment, Zhe Huali, struck by both him and Shen Mu, was sent flying, tumbling and rolling more than ten li before he came to a stop, gravely wounded as well. Qi Jiuyi's nine heads all turned at once, and saw on Shen Mu's face a smile that seemed harmless to man and beast alike.

Shen Mu struck out with one palm, his five fingers splayed: it was the Yin-Yang Heaven-Overturning Hand he had learned from the Third Ancestor, the Human Emperor, and between his five fingers was clasped the Five-Thunder Heaven-Supporting Bell of the Fifth Ancestor, the Human Emperor. More than ten li away, Zhe Huali had just steadied himself when the force of Shen Mu's palm came hard upon him.

His body flew up like a torn burlap sack, frozen into an ice sculpture by the pure yin force of the yin hand, and at the same time a great Five-Thunder Bell appeared above his head; a single toll of that bell would shatter him to powder where he stood frozen.

Shen Mu's other hand gripped the keen sword that the sword core had transformed into; the blade was formed of eight thousand swords, and now his mana poured into all eight thousand, each tiny flying sword brewing its own sword move. Inside Qi Jiuyi's body, the sword light even surged into his spirit treasury!

Second Form of the Sword Diagram: One Sword Opens the Sovereign, a Bloody Ocean!

Blood-colored light spread all around Shen Mu, drowning him as in a vast ocean of blood. The smile on the youth's face, lit by that crimson glow, seemed to turn uncanny and evil, enough to make one's blood run cold.

"In a group brawl, I have never lost. . . " Hearing his voice, Qi Jiuyi felt a chill run through him.

At last the power of One Sword Opens the Sovereign, a Bloody Ocean burst forth, and the Five-Thunder Heaven-Supporting Bell closed over Zhe Huali; the bell tolled! Both of these two young masters were about to die at his hands! Just then the great bell crumbled.

Vajra's mana came surging in vast waves, and one palm shattered the Five-Thunder Heaven-Supporting Bell; on the other side, Lu Li touched a single finger to the sword tip that pierced Qi Jiuyi's chest, and one flying sword after another came flying back out of his wound!

The Butcher drew his blade, the Blind Elder gripped his spear, fire blazed skyward behind the Silent Craftsman, and each stepped forward; the Lame Elder scooped up Shen Mu and retreated at speed, flickering in and out of sight, to reappear behind the Butcher and the others! Vajra and Lu Li each rescued Zhe Huali and Qi Jiuyi, but made no further move.

Lu Li laughed: "Young friend Qi, you have dwelt in the Heavenly Court too long, and know nothing of the treachery of hearts in the lower realm.

You have learned your lesson now, have you not? " Qi Jiuyi was silent a moment, then said, "Jiuyi is willing to join hands with the Military Commissioner.

" Vajra's thought stirred slightly, and the pure yin energy on Zhe Huali, ten li away, dissolved, freeing him from his frozen state.

Zhe Huali had scarcely recovered his shaken spirit when he saw the earth suddenly fold; the next moment, without taking a single step, he had come from ten li away to Vajra's side—plainly Vajra's folding of space. The Butcher and the others felt their hearts turn cold; Vajra's strength was far deeper than they had expected. Such power was likely more than that of a mere True Devil!

Vajra's left face looked at Zhe Huali and said calmly, "Victory and defeat are common matters for a soldier. True victory and true defeat are life and death; so long as one does not die, one has not wholly lost.

Do you understand? " Zhe Huali put away his demon blade, thrusting it behind his back as before, and bowed: "Your disciple understands. " Vajra was well pleased, and said, "With your Dao heart tempered thus, your future attainments will surely surpass Luo Wushuang.

" Behind the Butcher and the others, the Lame Elder was beside himself with delight.

He clapped Shen Mu heavily on the shoulder: "Little Shen, you have not shamed your crippled grandpa! That move just now was vicious indeed—a blade hidden in a smile, a secret arrow to wound a man.

Worthy of my teaching! When I saw that smile of yours, I could not help but shiver several times!

" Shen Mu hastily made a modest reply: "It is all because crippled grandpa taught me well. Without crippled grandpa, I could never have beaten them.

As for hiding a blade in a smile and wounding a man with a secret arrow, I could at best rank second; crippled grandpa is still the first man under heaven! " The Lame Elder stroked his goatee and roared with laughter, greatly pleased with himself.

The Deaf Elder sneered: "The hearts of men are not what they were.

.

. " Lu Li paid no heed to the Butcher and the others, whose faces were full of alarm. Gazing far off at the divine city the Deaf Elder had painted, she suddenly laughed: "Vajra, can you see now what is real and what is not? " Vajra turned his head left and right, his three faces each gazing at the divine city, and after a moment said, "I cannot see it.

Pray enlighten me. " Lu Li laughed: "Look at the souls of the gods and demons upon the divine city. " Vajra was startled, and asked humbly, "How does one observe souls?

" The Butcher, the Silent Craftsman, the Blind Elder and the rest knew that things boded ill, and slowly began to retreat.

The Deaf Elder's face changed slightly; he too realized at once that Lu Li had seen through his illusion, and cold sweat broke out on his brow.

His paintings could indeed pass false for true, could recreate a world within the painting, could even join the painted world to reality so that no flaw could be seen at all. But he could not recreate a soul!

This Lu Li must be a powerful figure from Youdu, deeply accomplished in the arts of the soul; she could perceive the secret of the Deaf Elder's painting. Palms slick with sweat, the crowd pressed around Shen Mu and kept retreating toward the divine city behind them, their unease growing ever stronger.

Yet Vajra and Lu Li seemed not to see, and let them retreat as they would.

Lu Li turned, raised a slender jade hand, and drew a circle in the air.

Light spilled from its circumference and joined into a mirror, becoming a great shining mirror that floated in the air: "Revered King, look at what the mirror shows.