Chapter 87 — A Trap of Hidden Killing Intent
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 3
"Now, as I come in thought, the snow falls thick and chill. "The road is long and slow; I bear both thirst and hunger.
"My heart is full of grief, and none knows my sorrow…
"
Shen Mu heard it, and felt an urge to weep; yet his present body had no flesh or blood, and no tears to shed.
The song that came from that vast Soul Boat was vague and drifting, holding a measure of loneliness, a measure of sorrow; the longing for a child had turned into low, deep melody.
He looked toward the Soul Boat.
In the grey mist a woman stood at its prow, graceful and commanding, gazing back from afar.
Their eyes seemed to meet across the void, and in that gaze lay boundless yearning.
Shen Mu wanted to shut his eyes, but could not; after a moment of silence he said to the Village Head, "Village Head, let us go back. "
The Village Head was slightly taken aback, and said in a low voice, "You will not go up and acknowledge her?
"
Shen Mu shook his head and said woodenly, "She is not my kin, and this is not the Land of No Sorrow.
"
The Village Head's heart gave a slight jolt. "The Blind Elder opened the Ninefold Heaven Sacred Pupil for you — what did you see?
"
Strong as he was, in the matter of eyes the Blind Elder far surpassed him.
The Blind Elder had opened the Ninefold Heaven Sacred Pupil for Shen Mu, and what Shen Mu could see, he might not be able to see. "What I saw was not a woman, but a demon god.
"
Shen Mu's gaze rested upon the woman on the Soul Boat, and what he saw was not a mother yearning for her child, but a monstrous, hideous demon god wreathed in black vapour, its whole body cloaked in black light, round disc-like bone spurs jutting from its back!
That demon god was singing softly, as though luring him to come nearer! This was no scene of reunion, but a trap.
From the moment the jade pendant on Shen Mu's chest first began to shine on the dragon pillar of Crimson Dragon City, it had all been a trap, meant to lure Shen Mu, to make Shen Mu enter this place! "A fine fellow — even an old hand like me nearly fell for it!
"
The Village Head drew a long breath, divine light blooming from him, and bore Shen Mu swiftly drifting backward; and the woman on the Soul Boat suddenly lashed her wild hair, rose from the prow into the air, and came flying madly toward them!
In midair the woman spun like a top, her body growing ever larger, her face ever more hideous, until at last she burst free of her skin and revealed her true form: a demon god with eight long legs, two heads and five tails! Her legs were like human arms, and her feet were shaped like palms; she raced through the air with flying speed, howling in pursuit!
Before the Village Head, lotus flowers bloomed one after another, carpeting the sky, carpeting the earth as well, and phantom images of demon buddhas sat within the flowers, each raising a palm to press its seal upon the Village Head! These demon buddhas were all phantoms, yet they seemed to turn from illusion into reality, as though they had true bodies; each demon buddha's move was different, and they attacked the Village Head and Shen Mu from every direction.
The Buddha is holy, yet this demon god had refined her demonic powers into demon buddhas — a betrayal of scripture and a defiance of the Way.
The Village Head's expression did not change; still composed, he sent a gleam of sword light flying from between his fingers, flashing and darting among the lotus flowers. The sword light was so swift that even Shen Mu's eyesight could not catch it; he could see only a snowy brightness winding around all the lotuses and demon buddhas. The next moment, the lotus flowers shattered one by one, the demon buddhas were severed body from head, and then burst apart with a bang, turning into surging demonic vital essence that struck out in all directions.