Chapter 713 — City of Doom

"If this demon-god statue has revived, I fear the other statues will revive as well! This one was unlucky: it turned its fleshly body to stone and teleported here, and its head struck the Imperial Gate Divine Blade. But most of the other statues in Jingping are perfectly intact!

" A chill gripped Shen Mu's heart. Apart from this statue's ill fortune, there was also the statue beneath Mount Sumeru at the Great Tingming Temple, which was likewise unlucky.

That statue had risen from underground, only to plunge headfirst into Mount Sumeru. Mount Sumeru of the Great Tingming Temple and Mount Sumeru of the Buddhist Realm were in essence the same mountain; to crash into the Great Tingming Temple's Mount Sumeru was no different from crashing headlong into the Buddhist Realm, and the consequences could well be imagined. But the other statues had met no such fate; they had emerged perfectly intact from every corner of the world. These statues were unimaginably solid, all but impossible to move, and so Emperor Yanfeng had decreed that every one of them be ringed about with heavy troops.

Yet having lived through this statue's revival, Shen Mu knew all too well how terrifying these statues were. If they revived, even without any tribulation-descending divine weapon, it would still be a catastrophe of utter annihilation for Jingping! "If Tian Shu does not come soon, I shall have to go alone.

. . " He had scarcely formed the thought when divine light abruptly filled the heavens and poured down from the sky.

Within that radiance a towering deity reached out a hand, grasping for the Imperial Gate Divine Blade in the depths below!

"The Heavenly King of the Dark Capital has arrived! " Shen Mu was overjoyed and looked up.

He saw Tian Shu grasping the Imperial Gate Divine Blade, murmuring incantations; the blade shrank smaller and smaller, until in no time it had become a great saber several dozen zhang long.

Tian Shu put the divine saber away, taking care not to touch its edge, and said, "You stay here. I am going to have a word with the disciples of the Dark Capital! " With that he soared into the air; rosy clouds filled the sky, and he and the blade vanished from sight.

Shen Mu was about to call him back, but he was already far away. Shen Mu frowned, rose into the air, and flew out of that subterranean space. Gazing into the distance, he saw a single streak of rosy light speeding straight toward the east.

Suddenly his Taotie Pouch trembled, and peals of thunder rolled from within it.

Startled, Shen Mu hastily emptied the pouch, and saw lightning crackling and writhing around the Five Thunders Pot. This celestial-phenomenon divine weapon was on the verge of running out of control!

"The Five Great Cloud Thunders are about to be triggered. " Qi Jiuyi's expression was grave. He sighed and said, "Brother Shen, Jingping is no longer a place where one can put down roots. When the Five Thunders rise into the air, Jingping will become a sea of thunder, with the Fire Bell divine weapon darting wild through it.

And besides the Five Thunders Pot, there are also the Zhen Cauldron, the Xun Wind Gourd, and other celestial-phenomenon divine weapons.

When their might erupts all at once, Jingping will be more terrible than hell! I intend to take refuge in the Heavens Above. Second Brother, will you come with me? I can carry you out of this world to the Heavens Above. No tribulation will fall there. " Long Qilin hesitated, glanced at Shen Mu, and shook his head. "Wherever the Cult Leader goes, I go.

I have followed the Cult Leader for so many years and scrounged so many meals off him; when the time comes that he needs me, I cannot simply walk away. " Qi Jiuyi's expression turned complicated. He heaved a sigh, and flames scattered from his whole body, transforming into a nine-headed phoenix that rose on beating wings and headed west.

His shrill cry carried back: "Take care of yourselves! Second Brother, whatever you do, do not die! This is the waist token of my Southern Heaven Crimson Emperor lineage; it may yet save your life! " A waist token flew over and landed in Shen Mu's hand.

Shen Mu was briefly taken aback, then handed the jade token, carved with a nine-headed phoenix, to Long Qilin.

Qi Jiuyi's waist token had not been meant for him, but for Long Qilin.

"Fat Dragon, Qi Jiuyi has treated you rather well.

" Shen Mu smiled.

"Let us set off.

Back to Jingping! " Long Qilin trod fiery clouds and bore Shen Mu up into the air.

Shen Mu glanced at the Sword Pellet on his body, hesitated, and did not tell Long Qilin to cast it aside. There was no telling what the situation in Jingping was now.

He had no suitable weapon at hand, and discarding a Sword Pellet that had not yet been refined would bring him no great gain in speed.

"What can truly increase one's speed is the primordial spirit! " Astride Long Qilin's back, Shen Mu sent his primordial spirit out of his body and performed the Three Primordial Spirits Convergence Art. Before long he had summoned the heroes of Jingping from every corner of the land to a gathering; the primordial spirits of Daoist Master Lin Xuan, Wang Muran, Xu Shenghua, Ling Yuxiu, and the rest assembled in the Grand Academy Hall of the Grand Academy.

"Has there been any large-scale loss of life in Jingping of late?

" Shen Mu asked.

"In Yuzhi Commandery in the southeast, the common folk were wiped out overnight. " Ling Yuxiu said, "In Yuzhi Commandery, from the provincial capital down to the rural villages, everyone died at the same moment, including the Deputy Governor of Yuzhi Commandery. The Deputy Governor was a powerhouse of the Divine Bridge realm, not far from the Deity realm. My Imperial Father has already sent men to investigate. The scouts report that everyone in Yuzhi Commandery looks as though they are still alive: many stand in the streets in the posture of walking, and old farmers are still at work in the fields. But they are all dead, without the slightest breath of life. Imperial Father has already suppressed the news, to keep the people from panicking.

" Shen Mu frowned.

"And the livestock?

" "Not one head of livestock or wild beast was spared," Ling Yuxiu said. Daoist Master Lin Xuan, Wang Muran, and the others had not known that such a grave matter had come to pass, and for a time there was an uproar of discussion; all manner of voices clamored within the Grand Academy Hall.

Ling Yuxiu said, "The Imperial Preceptor of Jingping, the First Ancestor, the Sage Master, and the others have already gathered the experts of Crimson Brightness and the Demon Race to search out the enemy's whereabouts. This enemy must be Lou Yunqu and his people. " Shen Mu looked at Si Yunxiang and said in a low voice, "Holy Maiden Xiang, issue the order at once: contact the disciples of the Holy Cult, and have the disciples in every region keep watch on all the statues.

If there is any change at all, report it to me immediately! " Si Yunxiang nodded. "Reports have come in from every region of late: those statues have already begun to revive, and some have taken on the color of flesh and blood.

I have also learned that the Imperial Preceptor of Jingping suppressed the celestial-phenomenon divine weapons in the national treasury. Not long ago the divine weapons actually began to emit their might and shook the treasury down. Today the capital has quaked fifteen times, and the dragon vein has split. " Everyone's heart skipped a beat, and the hall fell instantly silent. "Also keep watch for large-scale deaths in the other commanderies and counties.

If any occur, notify me at once!

" Shen Mu said rapidly, "Sister Xiu, notify the Emperor at once. Ask the Emperor to issue an order summoning all scholars versed in the Soul-Pulling Invocation to take fast ships to Yuzhi Commandery without delay.