Chapter 1531 — The Peerless Divine Artisan
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 5
Shen Mu raised his brows and said gravely, "The Founding Emperor Shen Ye, peerless in the sword Dao; the village head Su Muzhe, a sword god incarnate; Jingping's Imperial Teacher Jiang Baigui, whose sword heart is clear and penetrating, and add to that King Yama's Fengdu Asura Sword, my father Qin Hanzhen's sword Dao, and the Yuming Sword of the First Ancestor Human Sovereign Shen Wu. Is that enough?"
The Silent Artisan shook his head. "The First Ancestor Human Sovereign's swordsmanship is mediocre; he has not comprehended the sword Dao, and is merely padding the ranks. I need every being in Jingping who has attained the sword Dao to come together."
Shen Mu said in a deep voice, "I will have Emperor Yanxiu help me seek out these sword Dao prodigies. Surely they can be found!"
The Silent Artisan set down the forging furnace he carried on his back, then lifted the Dao Fire Ancestral Ground onto his shoulders. Barefoot, carrying his box, he said in a voice like a great bell, "You may go and make preparations. I must walk, bearing this holy land on my back, so that my blood and qi and my Dao may connect and become one with it."
Shen Mu turned and left at once to make preparations.
The Blind Elder came over and walked alongside the Silent Artisan.
The Silent Artisan said, "This is the last thing I will say before the divine sword is forged. In the days to come, I must remain silent, striving to commune with the Dao of the Dao Fire Ancestral Ground, seeking to make man, fire, and ground one. Do not deliberately provoke me to speak, or all will be ruined! From now on, I am the Blind Elder; you lead me to the Heaven Yin Realm."
The Blind Elder nodded hastily, with great solemnity.
The Silent Artisan closed his eyes, let the Blind Elder lead him forward, and entrusted himself wholly to him.
As the Blind Elder guided him along the road, he saw that the Silent Artisan's Dao heart had already come into resonance with the Dao of the Dao Fire Ancestral Ground. Layer upon layer of Dao fire formed howling, spinning wheels of flame behind him, terrifying beyond measure.
"He has the Blind Elder lead the way, and is not afraid of being led into a ditch..." the Blind Elder grumbled inwardly.
He had always been a loose-tongued, talkative man, and the Silent Artisan was likewise never able to keep his mouth still, and full of devious schemes to boot. That was why the Blind Elder had always gotten along so well with him.
Now the Silent Artisan said not a word. For the first few days the Blind Elder could bear it, but afterward he grew wilted and listless from holding everything in.
Meanwhile, Shen Mu and Granny Zhu came to the Heavenly Court above the Ancestral Court. The Ten Heavenly Venerables had not yet returned, and when the Heavenly Court's guards saw Shen Mu, they dared not be negligent; they bowed one after another, addressing him as Heavenly Venerable.
In the Battle of Xuandu, though Shen Mu had covered his face, most people knew it was Venerable Mu muddying the waters there, and no few Heavenly Court soldiers had died because of him.
Shen Mu did not mind. Under heaven there were many who could deal with him, but in the Heavenly Court as it now stood, no one could.
He went straight to his own Venerable's Residence and contacted Jingping, asking Jingping's deities to come through the spirit-energy translocation bridge to Zaofu Palace, and from Zaofu Heavenly Palace to take the translocation bridges leading to the North Pole Heaven and the West Pole Heaven, to invite the Western Emperor and the Northern Emperor.
When Ling Yuxiu received his message, she at once gathered all of Jingping's Heavenly Artisans, formation masters, and sword Dao experts, and hurried to the Heaven Yin Realm.