Where Immortals Once Walked

The more Li Qingge listened, the more promising everything sounded. She nodded again and again, a faint flush rising across her cheeks.

She had always presented herself with the poise of a great noble house, rarely letting herself lose composure like this.

He Lingchuan gave her a bright, toothy smile. “There is one issue, though. As someone connected to the elixir of youth case, I can’t be seen having any relationship with State Preceptor Shuang Ye. In other words, I can’t personally go to Nian Zanli and make this exchange.”

Li Qingge understood the twists and turns of officialdom perfectly well. She immediately said, “Leave that to me. So long as the token given by State Preceptor Shuang Ye can truly mobilize troops, I doubt Nian Zanli will care who makes the trade with him.” Her voice turned firm as she said, “If you can obtain the military credentials from State Preceptor Shuang Ye, you have already done more than enough for me. I can complete the rest of the transaction myself.”

He Lingchuan nodded and took out a token and two letters from his chest.

The token was dark red and made of an unknown material. It felt slightly soft to the touch, and on its surface was a raised carving of a maple leaf.

The letters were the same color. The wax seals bore the same maple-leaf emblem.

These were the special items from State Preceptor Shuang Ye that he had just retrieved from the place Xi Yunhe had instructed him to visit.

For some reason, he felt the emblem looked faintly familiar, but he could not remember where he had seen it.

“In a few days, Beijia will hold an event at the Grass Sea, hosted by the Zhongsun Family. State Preceptor Shuang Ye will definitely attend.” He Lingchuan pointed at the three items. “Nian Zanli can go directly to State Preceptor Shuang Ye and verify whether they’re real.”

No matter how genuine the token appeared, it could not compare with State Preceptor Shuang Ye personally standing behind it. Only then would Nian Zanli be certain beyond doubt.

Li Qingge put the three items away and took a deep breath. She then suddenly rose from her seat, stepped out, and bowed gracefully to He Lingchuan. “Thank you, Eldest Young Master.”

“Your Lordship, what are you doing?” He Lingchuan leaned forward and supported her elbow with just the right amount of force, preventing her from bowing any lower. “Thank me after you get the bamboo tube back. Nian Zanli may not necessarily be that honest.”

“I’ve thought of many methods, but I’ve always lacked an equal bargaining chip. Nor did I dare press too close to Nian Zanli.” Li Qingge lifted the maple-leaf token from the table. “Now that I have this in hand, when it comes to negotiation and tactics in business, the Provincial Governor of Xun Province is no match for me.” A confident smile bloomed on her lips as she added, “Eldest Young Master, just wait for my good news.” But then, she immediately had another concern. “However, once Nian Zanli borrows troops, that will be a terrible disaster for Yuan, especially Xia Province, which will bear the first blow.”

“Yes. That’s why you must complete this transaction as soon as possible, then move on to the next step.”

Li Qingge’s expression shifted. “You mean...”

She did not say the rest, but raised a hand and made a throat-cutting gesture.

Such a ruthless motion looked oddly playful when she did it.

He Lingchuan shook his head. “We can’t touch him. This is Lingxu City. We can’t create too much commotion.”

Li Qingge also said, “Poisoning, curses, I’ve considered them all. However, he is a grand general with command of troops, after all. Even away from his army, he still carries some origin energy on him. Those methods would be too ineffective against him and would easily alert him.”

He Lingchuan nodded and leaned forward slightly. “Does Nian Zanli have any enemies or rivals in Lingxu City?”

“Enemies or rivals? He’s an outsider. He doesn’t have any real conflicts with Lingxu City’s nobles.” Li Qingge bit her lip and thought carefully. “But... when State Preceptor Shuang Ye allocated origin energy to Nian Zanli, several elders criticized it especially fiercely. Two of them are senior ministers left behind by the previous ruler. Though they’ve already retired, the Lord Emperor still seems to consider their opinions. This time, when Nian Zanli came to Lingxu City to borrow troops, they also submitted memorials to the Lord Emperor, saying it absolutely must not be allowed. Does that count?”

“If that doesn’t count, then nothing does,” said He Lingchuan with a chuckle. “Then does Nian Zanli own any property in Lingxu City?”

“He has two residences, one large and one small, seven shops, one tavern...”

He Lingchuan shook his head and interrupted her, “Has he sold anything recently?”

“Yes.” Li Qingge had always paid attention to Nian Zanli’s movements and knew quite a bit about his commercial dealings. “In Lingxu City, he’s been hiring people to lobby the Lord Emperor, and the money has been flowing out like water. What he extorted from me was nowhere near enough. He originally had three residences. One month ago, he sold one. He also sold several hectares of farmland in the distant suburbs, a teahouse, and a merchant guild.”

“Where was the residence he sold?”

“Also in the Main City District.” Otherwise, it would not have been valuable, and Nian Zanli would not have bothered selling it.

“Who bought it?”

“A wealthy merchant from out of town. He bought it as the front office for his merchant guild and also lives there himself. I’ve visited. Many people come and go from the place.” Li Qingge looked at him with keen interest. “Do you already have a plan?”

“More or less, but I’ll need you to cooperate.”

“I’ll do everything I can.” Li Qingge poured him another cup of tea, her long lashes fluttering. “What do you need me to do?”

Those few words came out soft and charming.

He Lingchuan, however, said solemnly, “Plant evidence!”

“Hm?”

But He Lingchuan did not explain in detail. Instead, he changed the subject. “Well, have you ever heard of glazed gold?”

“Of course.” The moment the topic entered her field of expertise, Li Qingge’s posture unconsciously grew more proper. “It’s a transparent material. When hard, it is like refined gold; when soft, like mercury. It is a high-grade material. Ancient immortals used it to refine magical artifacts. However, the materials needed to make it are now extremely rare. Songyang Mansion once tried to reproduce it, but we failed.”

“If you encountered a magical artifact, device, or structure made from it, would there be any way to break it?”

“Break it?” Li Qingge’s brow furrowed. “Can you be more specific?”

“The glazed gold is only an outer shell. I want to remove what’s inside.” He asked this, of course, because of the array eye of the Grand Spirit-Gathering Array.

“An outer shell? How thick?”

“A palm’s width,” He Lingchuan said. “It can freely switch between liquid and solid form.”

“That is one of glazed gold’s properties.” Li Qingge thought for a moment. “It also depends on who made it, what techniques they favored, and what ratio was used in the glazed gold.”

He Lingchuan smiled bitterly. “Is there no direct way to break it?”

Li Qingge gave him a sidelong glance. “Why do you think immortals used it to make magical artifacts? It’s precisely because of its extraordinary properties that it was so favored, yet you want to simply break it?”

“Yes.” He Lingchuan rubbed his hands. “Can you think of a way?”

With He Lingchuan having just given her hope of recovering the bamboo tube, how could she refuse him? “Give me some time to think.”

He Lingchuan was delighted. If she needed time to think, that meant there was at least a sliver of hope.

“Let’s stay in contact and plan carefully.” He picked up the cup and drained it in one go. “The Fleeting Thoughts Manor where I live is being watched very closely lately. Be extremely careful with any communication.”

The two left one after another, with more than fifteen minutes between them.

But when He Lingchuan went downstairs and left, someone behind the stairway entrance in the teahouse hall raised his head and looked at his departing back, seemingly deep in thought.

It was an interesting seat. The staircase blocked it from view, so people entering and leaving would not usually notice it. Yet the person seated behind it could observe every guest clearly.

If He Lingchuan had turned back and seen him clearly, he would have discovered that this person was none other than Fang Canran.

* * *

The next day, Fushan Yue dragged He Lingchuan along to visit the Ke Family.

When Fushan Yue had moved into Fleeting Thoughts Manor, the Ke Family had sent a gift and invited them to visit. Was it not only proper that he return the courtesy?

Of course, the Ke Family lived in the sky, specifically on Tiantong Island. This was the floating island closest to the Lord Emperor, second only to Tianxin Island, and represented the very peak of residences for ministers and subjects.

To ascend into the sky, one first had to go to Chiqian Peak in the very center of the lower city and use Startled Swan Crossing to teleport.

Chiqian Peak was also a small mountain, only about three hundred meters high. Halfway up the mountain was a naturally formed giant plaza, the so-called crossing point. Its entrance was relatively narrow, with garrisons and strict security. Troops were stationed there directly.

There were sentries every three steps and guards every five. Only those holding special tokens could enter. Commoners were not to disturb the place.

That was because the seven islands in the sky and Chiqian Peak on the ground formed a complete magical artifact. They had their own teleportation method, which was called Startled Swan Crossing.

Unlike the teleportation array He Lingchuan had taken on Tianshu Peak, the plaza on Chiqian Peak had seven stone gates standing in neat order.

Strictly speaking, they were seven gateframes over sixteen meters tall. Instead of gate panels, pale blue, translucent water rippled within them. This was He Lingchuan’s first time seeing water waves suspended vertically to the ground.

Fushan Yue said to him, “Each gate corresponds to one floating island.”

The island names were written atop the gateframes.

Just then, a group of people had their identities verified and walked into the plaza. After they passed through one of the gates, the carriage and attendants vanished together.

Fushan Yue had already presented his crown prince token. “Let’s go.”

Passing through the blue ripples, He Lingchuan felt only a slight coolness across his body. Afterward, the scene before his eyes changed completely.

It was convenient and quick, without any discomfort, unlike the teleportation array on Tianshu Peak that had left him dizzy.

After all, this place was essentially inside a magical artifact, where the rules differed from the outside world.

With this being his first time setting foot on the island, He Lingchuan naturally looked around as soon as he arrived.

It was deep autumn. In Lower Lingxu City, the autumn wind was bleak, and the plants were beginning to yellow. Though the suburbs were full of gold and red mountainsides, the world already carried the austere breath of the season. Yet when He Lingchuan stepped onto Tiantong Island, he felt not the slightest chill. Even the breeze brushing his face carried faint moisture and a light fragrance of flowers.

It was the breath of spring.

He turned his head and, sure enough, saw winter jasmine blooming vividly beside the plaza, draping down from the low wall like a flowing waterfall.

But when he walked out of Tiantong Island’s Startled Swan Crossing exit, he saw true waterfalls and running springs pouring down from the peaks, with brilliant mountain flowers on either side and the cries of kites and swallows in the air.

Every time He Lingchuan showed that country-bumpkin expression, Fushan Yue felt extremely pleased. “Tiantong Island is also called the Island of Flowers. Here, there is only spring. Whether the lower city is freezing cold or blazing hot, up here, it’s always warm.”

The streets here were even cleaner and smoother than in the lower city. Evenly sized pebbles had been used to pave the roads, so carriages barely felt any jolting at all.

Everywhere, plants grew lushly. Everywhere, clusters of flowers had been carefully trimmed and arranged.

Here, the roadside itself was a garden, full of precious tree species. There was no need to visit a wealthy household to see them.

From Startled Swan Crossing, they had to cross a hundred-meter-long stone bridge to reach the main body of Tiantong Island.

He Lingchuan walked along the edge of the stone bridge. Looking down, he could see Lower Lingxu City below.

Through the drifting clouds, he saw winding streets, rows upon rows of rooftops, and rivers like belts of jade.