Where Immortals Once Walked

The divine artifact in Star-Plucking Tower was He Lingchuan’s main target in this operation. He could not afford to have Juju lose too quickly.

Easy for you to say after the fact! Juju got irritated just looking at him now. “The past is the past, and now is now!”

“You people have no idea what really happened!” it said, full of confidence. “Last time, even after True Monarch Tongming descended, it found it couldn’t beat me. In the end, that old thief Lingxu had no choice but to act! Heh, otherwise, among the so-called orthodox gods under him, how many could match me after descending?”

Dong Rui was moved. “So there were actually two back-to-back divine descents back then?”

Outsiders like them had only heard rumors. They knew a god had acted to suppress the culprit behind Lingxu City’s great earthquake, but they had not known the twists and turns within.

So even the legendary Divine Majesty Lingxu had personally acted?

Lingxu City itself was named after his divine title, showcasing just how high his status was in the divine realm.

But thinking about it now, Juju was a giant creature that the Grand Return Sect and Lingxu City had spent lavishly to raise, feeding it profound crystals by the handful with one hand and secret ores by the handful with the other. How could its combat strength be compared to that of the many greater monsters who were now merely clinging to life?

More fundamentally, Juju was the spirit of Mount Xu. It could directly seize power from endless earthfire. If it came down to endurance and sustained fighting, it was naturally in an invincible position.

One could say Heaven itself had favored it.

On its own territory, very few things could defeat it.

Most monster immortals who had survived from the Ancient Era were probably struggling along in the world like Zhu Erniang. Only the one before them was a unique existence.

So when the Heavenly Palace lifted a stone only to drop it on its own foot, that blow must have hurt especially badly.

That said, He Lingchuan had once heard from Sun Fuping that, according to historical records, divine descent had occurred only five times. It seemed the truth was far more than that. At the very least, more than ten years ago, when Juju was suppressed, two divine descents had happened one after another.

As expected, the truth was always hard to find.

“Exactly!” Juju laughed. “As far as I know, that old thief Lingxu overexerted himself last time and ruined his vessel. Even after all these years, he still hasn’t found a new replacement.”

“Oh?” He Lingchuan paused. “Is one that hard to find?”

With the capabilities of a vast empire like Beijia, they had not managed to find a vessel a god wanted in over ten years?

“Nonsense!” Juju snorted. “Ordinary humans can’t withstand divine descent. Some collapse the instant the god descends. The stronger the god, the higher the requirements for the vessel. Some even have special conditions... Hm, I heard the best vessels have to be reserved far in advance. They’re not something you can throw together in a hurry!”

So that’s how it is? The best vessels have to be custom-prepared in advance?

The first thing He Lingchuan thought of was Zhong Shengguang’s beloved daughter.

The more secrets he learned, the more doubts gathered in his heart. The Red General had been able to bear Mitian’s power perfectly. Did that also prove Zhong Shengguang’s rite of divine recompense had not been an impulse, but something planned long before?

He Lingchuan even thought of himself. When heavenly gods had invaded his spiritual sea, they had mentioned that the glowing mark belonged to another god, someone called “Naluotian.”

When was that mark planted? If it had been long ago, does that mean that the original body had also...?

His thoughts were interrupted by Juju. The giant rock-fire aberrant creature had already grown impatient. “I’ve said everything that needs saying. Why haven’t you left yet?” Do they think they’re on a night tour of Mount Xu?

“Oh, right.” He Lingchuan took out spirit-surging ore from his storage ring and poured it all into Juju’s palm. “Your midnight snack.”

He had bought 180 kilograms of spirit-surging ore from Fang Canran. Last time, baiting Juju with the puppet had used less than 60 kilograms. For pleasant cooperation, he gave it all the rest.

“Oh, thank you.” So stingy. Among all the hidden factions that have contacted me, this boy is the stingiest! Juju grabbed the ore and swallowed it in one bite.

“See you in a couple of days.” He Lingchuan waved at it and strode away from Mount Xu’s territory. This time, nothing strange happened.

While the earth qi was still damp, he and Dong Rui left the mountains and once again rode the snail toad back to Fleeting Thoughts Manor.

He Lingchuan kept one extra precaution in mind. From beginning to end, Juju had never seen the snail toad.

* * *

The next day, lightning flashed and thunder boomed.

The entire world seemed to quiet down. Between heaven and earth, only the roar of the rain remained.

Even the little squirrel that came to deliver a message to He Lingchuan had a forehead covered in water droplets.

He Lingchuan quickly brought it over to warm itself by the fire. The little thing chattered and demanded overtime pay for running errands on a rainy day.

After all, it was not the only one delivering messages. There was an entire team behind it.

He Lingchuan had no choice but to generously loosen his purse, taking out an additional ten taels of silver, along with three kilograms of golden pine nuts.

These came from golden pines unique to the northern coast. Their yield was small, and their flavor was especially fragrant. In Lingxu City, they were popular not only among humans but also among rodent monsters, who loved them dearly. Their only drawback was that they were expensive. The money that could buy five bags of ordinary pine nuts was only enough for about three hundred grams of golden pine nuts.

The little squirrel ran to the fire and shook out its fur, then began nibbling as it warmed itself.

“The message?” This little thing’s acting more and more like a lord.

“Oh, he said everything has been arranged.”

He Lingchuan confirmed again, “The quantity is correct?”

“The quantity is correct, and there are 180 extra kilograms.”

Only then did He Lingchuan reveal a satisfied smile. “Excellent. Chief Steward Fang is reliable after all.” Fang Canran really does have considerable reach. It should have been far from easy to have done all this on such short notice.

* * *

Another four hours passed before the heavy rain covering Lingxu City finally stopped.

Merchants in the markets came out one after another to solicit business, trying to snatch a few more orders before dark. Land in Lingxu City was worth its weight in gold, and the rent was frighteningly expensive. Since the torrential rain had delayed them for most of the day, they could not waste the remaining time too.

Wu’s Meat Pie Shop in South Xinzhuang was run by a husband and wife. Water had flooded the shop, so the wife bent over to scoop it out while the husband busied himself arranging freshly baked pies at the front.

Their shop had been converted from a street-facing residence. The wooden window opened outward and lay flat, becoming a table that did not touch the ground. South Xinzhuang had rules forbidding businesses from occupying the road, with heavy penalties for violators. A counter that extended outward in midair like this did not count as occupying the road, so every household and shop did the same, turning it into a local feature.

“Freshly baked meat pies! Custard-stuffed buns, sweet wintermelon with salted pork-stuffed pies, rose malt candy—”

The steaming three-grain pies were set out neatly on the counter, and their fragrance drifted quite a distance.

Without genuine skill and the approval of the neighbors, how could Wu’s Meat Pies have survived in fiercely competitive Lingxu City?

Pedestrians on the street gradually increased, but for some reason, no one seemed interested in buying pies. So many people came and went in front of the shop, yet not one stopped.

Old Wu had no choice but to send his wife onto the street to call for customers.

His wife carried a plate piled with cut pieces of pie for customers to sample.

Four or five children ran over from the opposite side, chattering noisily.

She invited them to eat a couple pieces of pie, and the children accepted without hesitation, all while continuing to argue.

One chubby boy said, “Such a big snail! So big, so big!”

“What snail? That was a slug!”

The chubby boy refused to accept it. “Its shell on its back was clearly as big as a house! Didn’t you see it? My dad said if it has a shell, it’s a snail!”

The wife was surprised. “What are you talking about?”

“There’s a huge snail over there, bigger than a little house!” The child pointed toward the White Pine Warehouse across the street, gesturing wildly. “We saw it through the crack in the door!”

“Slug!”

The chubby boy’s eyes rolled. He looked sincerely at the woman. “Aunt Liu, I’ll buy three malt biscuits. Can you come with us and take a look, then tell us who’s right?”

A snail bigger than a house? Aunt Liu agreed without thinking much. In the end, was it not just taking a few steps and taking a look?

She turned and told her husband, then followed the children away.

Wu’s Meat Pies had been open in South Xinzhuang for eighteen years, and they had watched the warehouse across the street change owners four times. Warehouses and cargo yards were places for storing goods. Only a few watchmen lived there, and they were not carefully maintained most of the time. The warehouse’s courtyard facing the alley entrance had a wooden plank that had been broken for a few days. Now only half of it remained, and anyone passing by who glanced that way could see what was happening inside the yard.

Once the children reached this spot, their voices actually grew quieter. They kept shushing each other, afraid of startling the thing inside.

When they reached the wooden plank, the chubby boy whispered, “Aunt Liu, look!”

Aunt Liu leaned over to peer inside. At first glance, she saw no snail and was feeling puzzled when she suddenly noticed that a house moved.

Huh?

Huh?!

That’s not a house. That’s a snail shell!

It was brown, like wood with peeling paint.

And the owner of this snail shell seemed to be an enormous soft-bodied creature. She saw no hind limbs, but it stretched out two strong, muscular forelegs and lay sprawled inside a warehouse.

Rustling sounds came without end. It seemed to be eating something.

Aunt Liu was not as fearless and ignorant as children. She immediately thought of several rumors recently spreading through Lingxu City.

Chiyan’s Baishajue, the elixir of youth, the Spring Palace...

She grew very nervous and, without realizing it, pressed a little too hard against the wooden plank. With a loud clack, the plank suddenly collapsed inward.

The alley entrance was not quiet, but when the wooden plank hit the stone, the sound was still very loud.

The aberrant creature froze, then abruptly turned its head.

It seemed to have no neck, but it actually did have a very long one, allowing it to twist a full 180 degrees.

From Aunt Liu to the children, not one of them could describe that eerie sight.

But the strangest thing was the aberrant creature’s face.

Its face was frighteningly large, with two feelers like antennae, and when its mouth split open, it stretched all the way to the back of its ears. It was not quite a toad, and not quite a snail. In that instant, the thought that flashed through Aunt Liu’s mind was actually:

None of the children had gotten it right!

It’s neither a snail nor a slug!

This damn thing was, was... what was it again?

She and Old Wu had argued about it just the night before!

Of course, her body’s instincts reacted faster than her mind. She staggered back two steps and screamed at the top of her lungs.

“An aberrant creature!”

The children were first startled by the aberrant creature as it turned its head, then again by Aunt Liu as she screamed. They froze for a beat, then screamed with her and ran away together.

By now, the flow of people on the street had increased. One adult and several children screaming and running immediately drew the attention of many people.

Those who came over out of curiosity to watch also placed a hand over their mouth, backed away, and hurried off.

Like that, more and more people gathered.

The aberrant creature itself remained calm and unruffled. It seemed to know that all the people and monsters coming and going were ordinary, so it did not take them seriously. It simply turned its head back and continued with what it had been doing.