Chapter 2081: The Last Intelligence

She looked at the Demon King, her smile bright and warm. Then, she bowed to him, turned, and walked into the clouds and mist, never looking back.

Her slender figure vanished, and the white mist remained just white mist, unable to transform back into Lu Wushuang. Even Nie Xiaolou, standing nearby, could deeply feel his sorrow.

The royal family is heartless. This side of the Emperor had never been shown to anyone else.

Seeing the Demon King lost in thought, gazing at the direction where the figure had vanished, Nie Xiaolou hesitated before venturing, "The Great Emperor Jiuyou buried the former Imperial Advisor Qingyang by the Fallen Phoenix Pond and erected a large monument inscribed with 'Imperial Advisor Peerless.' Emperor, should we bring the former Imperial Advisor Qingyang back from that foreign land to Beijia to comfort your heart?"

Just then, a palace attendant ascended the steps into the hall and reported softly while prostrating.

"Imperial Advisor Frost Leaf requests an audience."

Frost Leaf, now?

The figure coiled around the dragon column made no sound, and the attendant dared not move. After a long while, the Demon King said in a deep voice, "Tell him to wait below the dais."

"Yes." The attendant acknowledged and withdrew.

For a moment, the Demon King had considered moving the tomb, but it was only for a moment. Distracted by Frost Leaf's request for an audience, he immediately regained his composure.

"There's no need to move the tomb. Fallen Phoenix Pond suits her well!" he snorted. "If she were brought back and buried here, there'd be no way to erect such a monument for her. 'Imperial Advisor Peerless'? Hmph, wouldn't those fellows in court be furious?"

Qingyang had dedicated her life to Beijia in the Blazing Gold Plains, yet in Beijia, she bore a reputation of infamy, with the entire nation branding her a traitor. Naturally, she couldn't have a glorious burial there. On the contrary, her enemy He Xiao had accorded her full respect after her death. If she knew in the afterlife, she probably wouldn't wish to return, would she?

Nie Xiaolou nodded. "The geomancy there is excellent; it truly is a peaceful place."

The Demon King grunted. "Leave the lotus and the wax pill, then withdraw."

"Please take care, Emperor." Knowing he needed solitude, Nie Xiaolou quickly bowed and withdrew.

The temperature in the hall dropped quickly, indicating the Emperor's displeasure. As Nie Xiaolou took his last look while exiting Chonghua Hall, he saw the hall shrouded in clouds and mist, with the shadowy figure of the azure dragon coiled around a pillar, appearing and disappearing, as if it had solidified into a sculpture once more.

Only after Nie Xiaolou left did the Demon King exhale a puff of white mist towards the blood-red lotus on the ground. Imbued with this dragon's breath, the lotus quickly withered. After its petals fell, the lotus pod remained full, and a clear, round pearl formed in its center.

This pearl was five or six times larger than a normal lotus seed, entirely silvery-white and almost transparent. Upon closer inspection, a long, shadowy figure seemed to drift within it.

Seeing it, the Demon King's breathing grew faint. A dragon egg!

Qingyang had actually found this dragon egg for him. In fact, he had sent Qingyang to the Blazing Gold Plains for only two reasons: first, to have her oversee the military and political affairs of Yaoguo; second, to allow her to escape Beijia's turmoil and live out her days peacefully in Yaoguo. As for this dragon egg, it only existed in legends, and the Demon King had merely mentioned it casually many years ago, not taking it seriously himself.

After the Black Dragon God Lord impacted Planet Tianluo, the true dragon clan remained active for a long time, only gradually disappearing during the Middle Ages. Those born from spiritual energy ultimately departed with it. True dragons have largely vanished, but flood dragons (Jiao) still survive with difficulty, and their numbers are extremely scarce. Unlike adult individuals, dragon eggs require very little spiritual energy once they enter a dormant state, allowing them to be preserved until now. Legend had it that it was left behind in the Blazing Gold Plains. He hadn't expected Qingyang to actually find such a treasure for him.

The Demon King sighed with emotion, then picked up the dragon egg with his mouth and swallowed it directly!

Before human fetuses are born, they contain a trace of innate vital energy, which dissipates immediately after birth; dragon eggs are similar, possessing true dragon energy before hatching, which reaches its peak when the dragon embryo is mature but still unhatched. The current spiritual energy environment is the best in three hundred years, and this dragon egg was on the verge of hatching. Thus, the blooming time of the red lotus Qingyang sent actually corresponded to its maturity. This trace of true dragon energy offered the greatest benefit to the Demon King, surpassing even imperial dew. He would need a long time to refine it.

Then, the Demon King picked up the wax pill. The seal on the wax pill was still intact. He gently squeezed it, and the wax pill crumbled, revealing several insects inside. Some were already dead, but two were still alive. Their forms had changed from when they were sealed; they were no longer slug-shaped, but rather one-third resembled a grasshopper and one-third a beetle. During the long journey from the Blazing Gold Plains to Lingxu City, they had formed cocoons and transformed into their next stage.

"'Echo Bugs?'" The Demon King lifted a claw, and the two insects buzzed their wings and flew up. In an instant, the buzzing sound transformed into human voices:

"Guardian Qingyang, you have been defeated."

A male voice, sounding very young.

"Heh, might makes right." This was Qingyang's voice.

The moment she spoke, the Demon King knew who she was conversing with: The Great Emperor Jiuyou, He Xiao.

Deep within the palace, shrouded in clouds and mist, the Demon King listened alone to the conversation between Qingyang and He Xiao. He knew this was top-secret intelligence Qingyang had exchanged for, using the last vestiges of her lifespan.

Although the Great Square Cauldron was in the Panlong Desert, it had always been closely connected to He Xiao in some way, even giving rise to mutated variants of the Dao-Seeking Tree and the Guluo Wood, helping He Xiao resolve the crisis of the Wood King Cauldron. All of He Xiao's past anomalies, such as possessing unique primal energy, being able to deceive Miaozhantian's Eye of Truth, and even escaping the Inverted Sea alive, might all be the work of the Great Square Cauldron behind the scenes! It seemed this magical artifact could do far more than during the era of King Yuan or the Panlong City period.

Why was this the case? Ancient immortals had long certified that the Great Square Cauldron had no artifact spirit, nor did it need one, as it was one of the vast existences itself. Could those immortals have been mistaken? No, he knew what great powers they were; they wouldn't be so unreliable. This meant that the Great Square Cauldron itself was constantly evolving, changing, and could even proactively provide assistance to He Xiao.

Furthermore, Qingyang had specifically asked about General Hong, inquiring if He Xiao had seen her inside the Great Square Cauldron. Asking this way was quite skillful. And how did He Xiao reply? "Yes, I have." This indicated that General Hong existed within the Great Square Cauldron! And He Xiao said, "If one is not among the mortal world, one cannot be truly alive." This resolved a long-standing mystery for Beijia and the Heavenly Gods: After the fall of Panlong City, General Hong did not escape to live in seclusion but was drawn into the Great Square Cauldron. This also aligned with He Xiao's description of her as "not truly alive." Therefore, whether alive or dead, she never gave up her struggle against Beijia.

Regarding the primal energy He Xiao could use at any time and independently, he himself said: "Even the Great Square Cauldron must abide by the laws of primal energy; where would a 'special gift' come from?" This meant that the primal energy on He Xiao originated from an extremely powerful force, more likely from a mighty army, neither the Black Armored Army nor the Dragon God Army. And he was very close to this army. During the Havoc in Heaven and the Battle of the Wood King Cauldron, the Demon King was certain there were no other armies near him, yet he still used primal energy. Hmm, very close? Could it be that army was right...

If General Hong still existed within the Great Square Cauldron, would her iron-blooded elite army also exist there? This might be the only explanation for He Xiao's ability to possess formidable primal energy. But if they were an army of the dead, how could they transmit true primal energy to He Xiao? The word "exist" is quite debatable. Miaozhantian, who controlled the divinity of "Truth," once spoke of how the transition or barrier between illusion and reality, fantasy and truth, was not as distinct as humans believed; it primarily depended on where the boundary lay. What if this "boundary" was the Great Square Cauldron itself? Explaining He Xiao's primal energy this way seemed to make a little more sense.

The Demon King didn't know how the Great Square Cauldron chose people, but every person it found managed to cause significant trouble for both the Celestial Demons and Beijia. However, this time, He Xiao was different from King Yuan and Zhong Shengguang. He opposed the Heavenly Gods but didn't refuse to cooperate with Beijia. He cooperated with Ling Shan but wasn't afraid to put Mouguo in its place or show them who's boss. So, what exactly was this person rebelling against? Qingyang had probably seen through this long ago, which was why she presented the top-secret intelligence about the Heavenly God Descent experiment, effectively asking him for "a favor" on Beijia's behalf. Only he could appreciate her painstaking efforts.

Having swallowed the dragon egg, the Demon King lowered his head, gazing at Qingyang's final letter, and murmured sadly, "You, at least, are free." From then on, he had one fewer significant old friend in the world.

The Demon King looked towards the rising sun, his dragon eyes now tinged with two points of golden light.

"Cangyan Nation?" He let out a low chuckle. "Let's see what you're capable of!"

*Blazing Gold (Part Two)* concludes, and the middle section of this book finishes together!

As you all know, this book is divided into three parts: upper, middle, and lower.

Fengxing Shuiyun Jian / Jiufang Ye(End of this chapter)