Chapter 722 — The Good Man and the World-Destroying Fiend

Shen Mu was turning over in his mind how to devise a precise Creation divine ability that could heal Di Yiyue's wounds without harming her brain, while the Woodcutter climbed the Heaven-Gazing Terrace of the Yong River Academy and made ready to work his arts and draw back the souls of the people of Li Zhou, saying, "If the people of Li Zhou are left too long with their souls parted from their bodies, their flesh will suffer for it; better that I draw their souls, or their primordial spirits, back. " The First Ancestor Human Emperor's face showed worry. "To snatch souls from Youdu and bring the dead back to the living costs one's allotted span. The Celestial Master is a god, it is true, and has life without end, but if you anger the Yin Couriers, the Yin Couriers will come for you and seize your soul.

If you cannot escape this tribulation, you will go down to Youdu and suffer, and if your sins are heavy enough, you may even be eaten by Tu Bo. And even if you slip past this calamity, when you die hereafter you will still go down to Youdu to suffer, and be eaten by Tu Bo. Li Zhou is so vast, and its people so many; the punishment will surely be the heavier! " The Woodcutter shook his head. "This time it was I who laid the plan, using the lives of the people of Li Zhou as bait to lure Lou Yunqu and the rest here, and then using Shen Mu to draw out the Yin Son of Heaven, so that the people of Li Zhou lost their lives. The root of this matter lies with me; how could I begrudge my own body?

Let everything wait until after I am dead. " He had also made a deep study of the Youdu tongue and of Youdu arts, so it was no great difficulty for him to perform the Soul-Pulling Art. Words of the Youdu tongue issued from his mouth, and by degrees a gate turned from illusion into substance and rose before him.

He had not, like Shen Mu, refined the Heaven-Bearing Gate, nor could he refine divine abilities such as the God-Slaying Mystic Gate or the Netherworld Heavenly Gate; instead he struck out on a path of his own, using magic runes to construct a gate that joined with Youdu.

This method was akin to the primitive Soul-Pulling Art, and was not the same as the Soul-Pulling Art Shen Mu had remade.

The Soul-Pulling Art Shen Mu had remade was exceedingly direct: once the ability was stirred, the Heaven-Bearing Gate appeared at once, and the souls of the dead could be summoned back from Youdu with little effort. The Woodcutter Sage's Soul-Pulling Art was more time-consuming and drained more dharma power, yet its effect was much the same. He stood upon the Heaven-Gazing Terrace, and behind him the demonic qi of Youdu rolled and churned, the darkness thickening by the moment.

It was daytime, and though the sun in the sky swayed and lurched, its light was fierce; yet invaded by the demonic qi of Youdu, the sunlight could not reach the ground at all. Within that dark demonic qi stood a gate, and souls flew out from it without cease, scattering in every direction; finding their own bodies, they burrowed in, and after a moment the owners of those bodies quietly woke. As the Woodcutter Sage worked his arts, the reach of the Youdu demonic qi spread wider and wider, stretching out from the Yong River Academy, covering the Yong River, creeping into Dijiang County, and from Dijiang County into several other county towns.

More and more souls flew out of that gate, and more and more people awoke; just then, in the darkness a lamp glimmered faintly, and a small boat drifted out of the dark, drifting toward that gate.

"The Yin Couriers have come. Most likely they have come to seize my soul. " The Woodcutter Sage was bleak at heart, yet his face was calm, and he thought: 'So long as I do not drag others down with me, it is well.

To trade my life for the lives of the people of Li Zhou — even if I die, it will have been worth it. And besides, I have gravely wounded the Yin Son of Heaven, saved the Heavenly King Di Yiyue, and halted the descent of the great calamity; it is worth it.

I have three disciples, and they. .

. are all very good; without me, they can still walk on.

' The bleakness in his heart faded, and he waited to meet his final fate.

The boat sailed up to the gate in the darkness, and the old man at the bow rose, took down the storm lantern, and shone it at the Woodcutter Sage. Under the lamplight the Woodcutter Sage's primordial spirit grew unsteady, yet he went on chanting the Youdu tongue, not daring to slacken in the least, hoping only that before the Yin Courier made his move he might summon back every soul of the people of Li Zhou who had died unjustly. The boat moved outward, and the old Yin Courier, lantern in hand, was about to pass from Youdu into the world of the living; the Woodcutter Sage's heart went cold, and he halted his arts and said, "Lord Prefect of Youdu, might you grant me a moment's grace, until I have fulfilled my wish? " The old Yin Courier was about to speak when suddenly Shen Mu poked his head through the gate to look around; seeing him, he was overjoyed and laughed, "So it is the Prefect Lord! " The old Yin Courier's face darkened.

"I took you for the one summoning souls, so I meant to come and have a look; but it was not you, and I thought to myself, whoever dares to summon souls has no small nerve.

These past two days many have been summoning souls, kicking up a foul mess of it, and Tu Bo is most displeased! " Shen Mu laughed, "Pray forgive me, Prefect Lord; it was I who told them to summon souls.

You have not done anything to them, I hope? " The old Yin Courier's face was grim, and he gave a snort. Shen Mu said hastily, "The one summoning souls this time is my teacher.

I am busy and have no leisure for summoning souls, so I had him do it. He does not understand it, he muddles through, and he has disturbed you, Prefect Lord — I beg your pardon. Or else, shall I do the soul-summoning myself?

" The old Yin Courier was silent a moment, then said stiffly, "No need. Though the seal is firm enough, you must still act with care, lest every soul you summon end up feeding your elder brother.

" Shen Mu laughed, "Rest easy, Prefect Lord. The willow leaf on my brow is stuck fast; I never peel it off, and my brother cannot get out. " The old Yin Courier's expression eased a little, and he instructed, "Best that you never peel it off.

Let your brother out and the disaster that follows will still be Tu Bo wiping your backside for you.

This time I will not pursue the matter of the soul-summoning.

There is a rule in Youdu: within the first seven days the dead are not yet reckoned dead, and may still return to the living. So it is not that Youdu fears you, nor that I am doing you a favor; the rule truly exists. Watch yourself.

" Shen Mu assented again and again, "I respectfully see you off. " The old Yin Courier took his little boat and withdrew into Youdu, vanishing into the darkness.

Shen Mu trotted back again, leaving the dumbstruck Woodcutter Sage hanging upon the Heaven-Gazing Terrace, unable to collect himself for a long while. "Daoist brother, I truly envy you such a remarkable disciple — he can even thrive in Youdu.

" Vajra sighed with endless feeling and boundless envy. "How did you cultivate him to such excellence? Might you teach me too? " The god Chixi hurriedly pricked up his ears, not daring to miss a single word. The Woodcutter Sage opened his mouth.

"I.

.

.

" and could say no more.

"This fellow! He shames the name of a Sage, hoarding his secrets before us!

" Chixi seethed inwardly.

He had thought little enough of the Woodcutter to begin with, and now he thought even less.

The Woodcutter could not explain, and could only go on summoning souls, thinking gloomily, 'What did I ever teach him?

How is it I do not know.

. .

' Shen Mu ran back to Di Yiyue's side.