Chapter 5 — The Five Elders of the Lan River Come Treading the Wastes
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 1 of 3
The voice rang out abruptly, full-lunged; though it came from afar, it seemed to sound right beside their ears, setting the ears of Shen Mu—already transformed into an elk—buzzing. He followed the sound with his eyes. On a distant cliff stood several figures.
From the foot of the mountain to the cliff was a distance of some six or seven li; Shen Mu could no longer make out their faces clearly, but to carry a voice so far and still so distinct—these could not be ordinary people. Granny Zhu, basket on her arm, laughed. "Heavenly Demon? What Heavenly Demon?
This old woman is nothing but an ordinary person from beside the river, and this little deer is an ordinary deer, one I raised myself. . .
" "Shen'er, run!
" Hearing Granny Zhu's voice, Shen Mu's heart jolted. He wanted to speak but no sound came.
He did not want to leave; he feared Granny Zhu would meet with danger. "An ordinary person from beside the river?
With lungs that strong, able to send your voice to our ears so clearly—no ordinary old woman could do that. " On the cliff, an aged yet resonant voice sneered. "Moreover, we Five Elders of the Lan River would never mistake the Nether Demon Metamorphosis. Skinning a body to make clothing, a thousand transformations—we have seen such vicious arts with our own eyes.
Do you still hope to quibble? " Another elder on the cliff said in a low voice, "The Nether Demon Metamorphosis turns people into cattle and sheep, then drags them to market to be slaughtered and sold. You have done no small amount of that, have you? Many of our Orthodox Path's elders were even turned into cattle and sheep by you fiends, to plow and graze for a lifetime! Your arts cannot deceive us!
" Yet another elder spoke with compassion in his voice. "A deer is also a life. You refined its hide and its soul alike into an evil thing. If you are not slain, who knows how many more lives will be buried by your hand?
If not you, then who should be killed? " Granny Zhu pinched at the brow of Shen Mu, now transformed into a deer, and drew out a silver needle. "These old codgers cannot do anything to Granny, but with you at my side, Granny must divide her attention to look after you. Run—run back to the village!
" Shen Mu hesitated no longer. He turned at once and sprinted. He had been turned into a deer and had thought he would be clumsy, but once he ran he knew he had worried for nothing. His transformation from man to deer brought him no discomfort at all; on the contrary, he ran with astonishing speed, as though he had been born a deer.
"The little spawn still hopes to flee? If you let him escape, will he not bring calamity upon the world? Lan River Five, I brought you out this time for training—that deer before you is your trial.
Cut him down and bring me his head!
" "Yes! " Five clear voices, male and female mingled, answered in unison. The figures on the cliff flickered. They leaped from the precipice and ran down the cliff face, faster than galloping horses. At the bottom, where mountain waterfalls and streams had scoured out a deep pool, the five actually ran across the water, their feet treading the surface as they raced toward the elk that Shen Mu had become.
Granny Zhu's heart sank. "Spirit Bodies!
Their attainment in the Primal Embryo Spirit Treasury is not weak. Shen'er's speed cannot match theirs—they will surely catch him! " She was about to block them when four figures came treading the void from the cliff, in an instant alighting around her.
One man still stood on the cliff, standing proud and aloof, and did not come.
"The Five Elders of the Lan River are famous figures of the Southern Wilderness. What brings you to the Wastes? " Granny Zhu's eyes darted about.
Seeing the four elders had surrounded her on all sides, she chuckled. "The Wastes are perilous indeed. Are you not afraid of losing your lives here?