The Divine Martial Stars

It had been a long time since Li Mu came to that world. He had seen and experienced a lot. Since the day he wiped out the Shennong Faction on the spur of rage, Li Mu no longer found killing particularly repulsive.

The most important reason for that was that in a world not civilized and ruled by law like the Earth, in a world still adhering to the law of the jungle, basically, violence was the only means he could use to serve justice.

Therefore, having heard the spite scheme of those Taoists and the shamelessness of those military men outside Green Hornet Gorge, Li Mu decided to not let any of them off the hook.

Leaving those people alive was equivalent to leaving a group of scourges and devils in the world.

They possessed impressive martial cultivation and sublime social status but no benignity.

Such kind of men could no longer be addressed as men.

Leaving those guys in the world was an act of irresponsibility to those good-hearted men. They were just like the weed growing in a patch of fertile land. Now that Li Mu had the ability to uproot the weed, why not just do it?

“Woof! I’ll go have a look, too!” Seeing Yuan Hou head out, the Huskie could not contain its curiosity anymore and galloped after Yuan Hou.

Watching a scene was what it was best at and its favorite hobby.

Shortly, painful howls carried over from outside the county.

The folks in Green Hornet Gorge all shook in their boots at the howls.

After a moment of hesitation, Dao Zhen led the others towards Li Mu and made to make an obeisance and express their gratitude.

“Thank you so much, Taoist Zhang.” Dao Zhen said in a Taoist tone and bowed. “It’s just that those people outside may be innocent. I venture to ask if you can just kill their leader and let go of those forced into the evildoing…”

Li Mu fixed his eyes on Dao Zhen and sized him up for quite a while until Dao Zhen himself felt rather uneasy under his stare. Then, Li Mu remarked, “I suppose your master didn’t treat you well when he was alive.”

At that, Dao Zhen was dazed. He hurriedly denied, “On what ground does Taoist Zhang’s question base? No, no, no. My master had treated me like his birth son. I could hardly pay him back for his bringing me up even if I sacrificed myself for him.”

Li Mu laughed sardonically and said, “If that’s the case, why did you sit back and watch Mount Qingcheng be taken by the vile?”

“Em…” Dao Zhen was surprised to see Li Mu, a total stranger, give him such a dress-down on their first encounter.

Curiously, in a fleeting moment, Dao Zhen felt like time had flowed backward and he was sitting opposite his deceased master. The young man named Zhang Sanfeng appeared to have the majestic bearing only his master had.

Dao Zhen sputtered, “I… don’t want Mount Qingcheng to fall apart because of me. I…”

“How foolish!” Li Mu gushed, “You think the fight of the Holy Clans is a children’s play, don’t you? You believe Mount Qingcheng won’t fall apart if you back off, don’t you? But look at the bodies around you. Think about those disciples who have died for you. And take a look at those badly wounded followers of yours… You did back off. But haven’t you noticed that Mount Qingcheng has already fallen apart? Haven’t you seen in whose hands has it fallen?”

Subconsciously, Dao Zhen darted his eyes at his companies.

He saw scarlet blood, white bones, and pairs of furious eyes scorching the enemies.

Dao Zhen was instantly gripped by a surge of guilt.

Since his master died, Dao Zhen had lived in a muddle. His followers around him had done everything to protect him. Given his prestigious status, no one ever dared speak harsh words to him. So, when Li Mu reviled him, the words literally hammered his heart, making it throb in alarm.

“But… But I’m not eligible to be a Head. I…” Dao Zhen stuttered, his face confused.

Li Mu gave a louder sneer and said, “No one is born to be Head of a faction, is any? Your master had spent so many years fostering you. Hadn’t he been teaching you how to be a qualified Head all along? With all the knowledge he imparted those years, the subject of his teaching should be enlightened even if it were a dog. Yet, you shoved all the responsibility you should have assumed to others with a few casual words? If you don’t know how to be a Head, couldn’t you learn to be one?”

Dao Zhen’s face was suffused with a dark flush at once. He had no idea how to explain that.

His heavily injured companies all fixed Dao Zhen with complex looks.

Those days, they had indeed wailed for Dao Zhen’s fate and snarled for his cowardice, hadn’t they?

If Dao Zhen had decided to fight Dao Ling and his followers, he might have a chance to win and take Mount Qingcheng in his own hands. However, even though Dao Zhen had learned Dao Chongyang’s skills and inherited his mantle, but he did not grasp the old Head’s means and character. Growing up like the flower seedlings in the greenhouse, Dao Zhen almost collapsed under the heavy pressure. Many loyal members who endorsed Dao Zhen to be their official Head out of reverence for the old Head were killed or exiled. All they were left with was despondency.

Glaring at Dao Zhen, Li Mu remarked again, “Do you want to avenge your master or not?”

“Huh?” Dao Zhen was stunned.

“I’m asking, do you want to avenge Dao Chongyang or not?” Repeated Li Mu.

Dao Zhen answered without thinking, “Seeking revenge? I… But, my master was mutilated in the fair duel with Li Poyue, the Guanshan Master, and later killed in the surprise attack of the Extra-terrestrial Devils. The Guanshan Master was a respectable figure. He was honest and upright in his lifetime. And before he was killed, he joined hands with my master and fought by his side. Certainly, I can’t seek revenge on his successor. As for those Extra-terrestrial Devils, they were killed right on the scene. So how… how can I seek revenge? It’s…”

Li Mu cut him off without hesitation. “How stupid! You are thick as a pig!”

Dao Zhen looked a little embarrassed. But due to his guileless disposition, he did not feel offended. Instead, he bowed low to Li Mu and said, “I’m really dull-witted. Could Taoist Zhang explain it to me, please?”

Li Mu was glad to see his humble attitude. “He is not a good-for-nothing after all. It’s just that his temper is… too good.”

Not caring to spare Dao Zhen’s feelings, Li Mu continued, “Have you ever wondered why Li Poyue and Dao Chongyang, two phenomenal figures in the martial arts society, got to have a duel at this juncture after living in peace for a millennium? Did the two simply get bored? Think! Who has the power and influence to launch an attack in the middle of the duel of two Superbs? In addition to the Extra-terrestrial Devils, a wide range of sects, noble families, rogue cultivators have participated in the sneak attack. If there was no one pulling strings behind the scene, how could those forces stand on the same side all at once? Further, could those deemed righteous men who teamed up and killed all the Extra-terrestrial Devils and attackers on the scene commit the slaughter for an unrighteous reason? Silencing them, perhaps… Think harder about the potentials in that incident. Then, you may come to the conclusion that the death of your master, as well as the murder of Li Poyue, is a scheme. There was no fair duel in the first place. The two were tricked since the very beginning. Otherwise, how come both Guanshan Pasture and Mount Qingcheng are plagued by revolts after the two were killed? Huh?”

“Em…” Dao Zhen’s expression altered dramatically.

He faltered backward, looking appalled. With both eyes riveted on Li Mu, he mumbled, “You… You are saying… saying…” He was shaking badly.

“If what he said is true, then everything… It’s too horrible!”

Li Mu took a step forward and glowered at him unblinkingly. Then, with no intention to be considerate at all, he began, “Take a deeper look. Didn’t someone in Mount Qingcheng betray Dao Chongyang first so that the attackers later cracked his Cultivation Method without effort and achieved their goal? Right? Well, your master could be said to be the hero of the age. But how come he had brought up an idiot like you?”

“I… I, I, I…” Dao Zhen’s face stiffened. He was shaking from head to foot.

In his mind, a beam of light suddenly flashed through and scattered the dark clouds, allowing him to see some details he had neglected before.

Then, gradually, Dao Zhen’s face turned ferocious.

His body started sending forth the smell of hatred.

His fists were tightly clenched. His eyes quietly took on the shade of a faint red. His aura that embodied a streak of cowardice slowly became tough as steel.

In light of his appearance and aura, it felt like Dao Zhen had changed into another person in an instant.

He was still his old self.

But, to some extent, he was not his old self anymore.

His companies who had been staring at him also registered the distinct difference.

Their eyes were full of surprise, because that change was undoubtedly what they had longed for but failed to bring about for a long time. But on that day, thanks to the speech given by a young man named Zhang Sanfeng, that wish was realized.

Li Mu also noticed that change. “This buddy is practically on the verge of losing it!”

His tactic goading was almost done.

In truth, Li Mu should not take full credit for the change.

Because aside from Li Mu’s speech, the experience, musing, despair, confusion, and grief Dao Zhen endured last year had also reached a bursting point. Quantitative change leads to qualitative change. Sure enough, what Li Mu just said was the last straw that broke the camel’s back, which finally made Dao Zhen’s fury… erupt!

“Thank you, Taoist Zhang.” Standing bolt up like a spear, Dao Zhen marched over and bowed at Li Mu. “Boundless Master, I know what I should do now.”

“Well, it’s never too late to repair the broken fence.” Li Mu nodded and went on. “There are only two things that your master was most proud of in his life. One is the Mount Qingcheng, the other is you, Dao Zhen. Though you have drifted off the road for a long while, now you are finally back on the right track… Okay, here you go.”

Li Mu figured now that his work as the temporary psychologist was basically completed, he should probably continue his journey.

As to whether Dao Zhen could really slay his way back to Mount Qingcheng and set things right before taking the number one Taoist faction to embark on a new journey, that was beyond Li Mu’s control.

Everyone had his own fate.

If Dao Zhen was defeated in the fight against the rebellious Dao Ling and lost his life in the process of counterattacking Mount Qingcheng, then he could only blame himself for his lack of competence. If Li Mu didn’t save him that day, he would be killed all the same. It was only a matter of time. But dying in a battle with the full knowledge of the truth was always better than dying in hiding with a muddled head.

What Li Mu told Dao Zhen was not nonsense at all.

Those were some conclusions Li Mu had drawn from his musing.

Dao Chongyang and Li Poyue had been killed. The Guanshan Pasture and the Mount Qingcheng had fallen apart. Emperor Qin Ming had suddenly risen to power. The three great empires on the Divine Land had been in chaos… With all those events occur at the same time, no one would be so naive as to believe that there were no unknown force or plot behind all that.

“I’m wondering if you could tell me your real name?” Dao Zhen reverentially made a Taoist obeisance. He gradually recovered his benign countenance, but his eyes were still firm and clear. “No matter whether I can reach the height my master expected me to reach when he was alive, I won’t forget the lesson you taught me today. If we happen to cross path again, I will certainly repay your great grace.”