Chapter 762 — A Promise Weighs More Than the Ages

How many years had it been? Shen Mu did not know the answer either. The Crimson Bright era had fallen three hundred and fifty thousand years ago, and the Crimson Bright era had endured seventy thousand years; four hundred and twenty thousand years ago, the Longhan era had ended. And how long had the Longhan era lasted? That was beyond any reckoning. Through ages without end, with no count kept of days or months, could that masked, withdrawn youth truly have waited in Youdu all this time for Shen Mu to come? Could he have stayed there the whole while, keeping watch over Heavenly Venerable Yu's coffin? Shen Mu could not imagine it: that Heavenly Venerable You who, bored on the floating bridge over the Jade Pool, had idly tossed Youdu divine arts into the water to blast fish; that youth who, when grief and self-reproach took him, would curl up and twitch — that for the sake of a single promise he would remain in the darkness of Youdu and wait on and on. Back then he had been a youth with a somewhat pale face; now he was an old man. Only one so withdrawn could have cultivated so many clones and incarnations, spending his days drawing the souls of the dead from world after world toward Youdu. Only someone as withdrawn as he would talk to himself, could keep watch for hundreds of thousands, even a million years without change over that grim ancient god, the Lord of Earth. All for a single promise. Countless ages ago, Shen Mu had not even made that promise to him in person; he had entrusted Heavenly Venerable Ling to carry the words to him. I understand. I have returned. For those words he had gone to Youdu, kept watch over Heavenly Venerable Yu's coffin, and grown from youth into old age. And he shared no blood tie with Heavenly Venerable Yu at all; only because, when his mother lay gravely ill, Heavenly Venerable Yu had come to visit him, had been kind to him, had looked after him well. That small kindness was enough to make one so withdrawn give his whole life in return. Shen Mu leaped from the bridge and landed on the paper boat. Old Ox, seeing this, hurriedly jumped down too, but with a splash he fell into the Nai River where water and fire mingled; the boat had already carried the old Yin Courier and Shen Mu into Youdu, and did not catch him. "Little villain, don't you recognize me?" Old Ox stamped and raged. "In the days when I wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Court..." Lu Li, Juehuang, Xuanming, and Hanlei, the four Youdu Military Commissioners, stared at one another. The old Yin Courier's assault on Fengdu had been so mighty, so terrifying — and now he had suddenly rowed off in his little boat and left them here! Had the Yin Son of Heaven and the old Yin Courier not declared their intent to attack Fengdu, they would never have dared to charge recklessly into Fengdu. It was precisely because the Yin Son of Heaven had gone to Youdu and, in the name of the Heavenly Court, persuaded the Lord of Earth; because the Yin Son of Heaven had promised to open Fengdu's world barrier with his own hands; and because the Lord of Earth had let the old Yin Courier settle old scores — that Lu Li and the others had made their decision and boldly sent troops against Fengdu. And now the Yin Son of Heaven had been frightened off by Di Yiyue, and the old Yin Courier, having taken a mask, had also inexplicably fled, leaving them here to face the remnants of Kaihuang. How were they supposed to fight this battle? The four Youdu Military Commissioners exchanged a glance, and without hesitation soared into the air; with four splashes they plunged into the Nai River. Seeing this, the other Youdu demon-gods hurriedly surged toward the Nai River as well. King Yama raised his sword and said coldly, "Kill! Seal off the Nai River — slaughter them all!" The din of slaughter rose at once. On both banks of the Nai River, countless heads fell in every instant; the river of water and fire was dyed red, and the blood flowed till shields floated on it. Tian Shu, Di Yiyue, and the others were bewildered too, but they had no time to think it over and joined the encirclement. "The Benevolent Sage King of Heavenly Parity is such a savage, terrifying being — why would he lay down his arms at the sight of that mask?" Di Yiyue destroyed a host of Youdu demon-gods and thought, "How did little brother Mu manage it? And what did those words mean?" Tian Shu thought, "The Lord of Youdu is savage by nature, the most unreasonable being in all Youdu; how many worlds have been destroyed at his hands? Had I known he would retreat at the sight of a mask, I should have given him a whole basket of masks!" About this Lord, there were far too many legends. Tian Shu and Di Yiyue were both Heavenly Kings of the Kaihuang era, and naturally knew many tales and rumors. Legend had it that the most terrifying being in Youdu was not the Lord of Earth, but the Lord of Youdu, who bore the title Benevolent Sage King of Heavenly Parity. When this Lord had come to Youdu could no longer be verified. Some said he had originally been a mortal, later invited by the Lord of Earth to serve as Youdu's Lord; others said he was the Lord of Earth's younger brother, a god born divine. The Lord of Earth enforced Youdu's rules with severity, yet so long as they were not violated, he seldom interfered in anything in the world of the living. And even if one did violate Youdu's rules, so long as one fled back to the world of the living, the Lord of Earth would not pursue it; he would merely record it and deal with it after death. The Lord of Youdu, however, rarely upheld the rule of non-interference in the world of the living with such rigor. In countless accounts, the Lord of Youdu was a fellow of unimaginably dreadful fighting power, an existence so mighty as to be inhuman. He had a hundred million incarnations, crossing among the worlds in little boats to guide the souls of the dead to Youdu. If he met with obstruction from the friends or kin of the dead, it would bring about calamity beyond measure! In history, many worlds had suffered appalling extinctions simply because, when the old Yin Courier came to collect souls, he was obstructed by the gods and demons of that place. When gods and demons went to war with the Yin Couriers, the consequences were likewise unspeakably terrible. A single old Yin Courier was not invincible; many gods and demons could defeat him. But when a hundred million Yin Couriers came sailing from Youdu in paper boats, that was a world-ending disaster! This was the chief reason Heavenly King Tian Shu had trembled and dared not move when he accompanied Shen Mu to Youdu last time. He had cut off the Lord of Earth's horn, and the Lord of Earth had pursued him in person; in the instant he fled into the world of the living, the Lord of Earth seized his body — yet because he had already reached the world of the living, the Lord of Earth did not kill him. Had it been the Lord of Youdu in pursuit, the situation would have been entirely different; the Lord of Youdu would certainly have finished him off, no matter where he fled! And after finishing him off, this Lord of Youdu would seize his soul and drag it into Youdu for judgment; there would be no other outcome! "I'm afraid Shen Mu alone does not fear the Lord of Youdu. Where did that boy get such standing?" Heavenly King Tian Shu's expression turned strange. Last time, when they escaped from the Imperial Gate Divine Blade, the old Yin Courier had shown him no warmth at all, yet to Shen Mu he was courteous, and the two had talked happily together. It was also Shen Mu's pleading before the Lord of Earth that had let them escape Youdu. Shen Mu, however, was wholly unaware of how terrifying the Lord of Youdu was; he had never seen that fearsome side of him. On the little boat, the old Yin Courier wore the mask on the back of his head and hung the storm lantern at the bow. Suddenly boat after boat split off from this one, flying off in all directions. The old man sat down,