Chapter 2123: The Most Needed Gift for He Lingchuan

Dong Rui brought He Yue here alone. Smiling, he pointed forward and silently mouthed two words: "Go on."

But he didn't leave; he couldn't wait to watch the drama unfold between the brothers.

The Great Emperor of Nine Hells, clad in battle armor, was gazing absently at the pond. Only when He Yue approached did he turn around.

The dim lights illuminated his sharp brows and handsome eyes. The contours were the same; it was still his elder brother.

Yet, as he stood with his hands behind his back by the serene pond, he exuded an air of disdain, as if on the Golden Imperial Hall. This made He Yue feel estranged.

The skin was still his brother's, but inside, it felt like a different person, filling He Yue with both reverence and fear.

He Lingchuan also looked at him.

Seeing him again after five years, He Yue was taller, almost as tall as himself.

His features had shed their youthful rawness, becoming more defined, more like He Chunhua.

In this foreign land, thousands of miles away, the brothers gazed at each other in silence for a few moments, both overwhelmed with emotion.

Dong Rui stood by, glancing between them, barely daring to breathe.

The Ghost Ape extended a hand and offered him a peanut. He took it but didn't crack it open.

He Yue composed himself, took three large steps forward, and bowed deeply.

"He Yue, envoy of the State of Shen, greets the Great Emperor of Nine Hells!"

He remembered his father's words: no matter his inner turmoil, he must observe full etiquette when facing the Great Emperor of Nine Hells.

He Lingchuan did not stop him. Only when He Yue's hands reached the ground did he smile and say, "You may rise."

After completing his bow, He Yue took a document from his robe and held it above his head with both hands.

"By order of my sovereign, I present this ceremonial document to the Great Emperor, hoping that our two nations will become allies and exchange resources."

He was still too emotional; his hands trembled slightly.

He Lingchuan watched his hands for two seconds before taking the document and unfolding it to read.

It was a congratulatory message from King Shen, felicitating the Great Emperor of Nine Hells on becoming the Lord of Blazing Gold. The wording was sincere and the etiquette flawless, making it a model for diplomatic language.

There was no personal mention throughout the text.

Because He Yue had traveled across the ocean, the gift he brought was very simple: only a jade *jue*.

And its quality was mediocre, with blemishes.

Even Dong Rui, standing nearby, found the gift too simple.

Did King Shen truly have the sincerity to establish diplomatic relations?

He Lingchuan also looked at the jade *jue* in the brocade box. "What is this?"

Something seemed to flash within the jade *jue*.

A living thing?

"My fath—... My king says this is the treasure the Great Emperor needs most. You'll know when you pick it up."

To be honest, He Yue didn't understand it either. But He Chunhua had entrusted the brocade box with great solemnity, saying that He Lingchuan would certainly grasp the State of Shen's sincerity once he received it.

"The thing I need most?" He Lingchuan raised an eyebrow and casually picked up the jade *jue*.

He was now bold due to his great skill and protected by his primordial energy, so he wasn't afraid of any tricks He Chunhua might have played with the jade *jue*.

The moment he touched the jade *jue*, it vibrated lightly in his hand, and a subtle throb resonated simultaneously in He Lingchuan's mind.

He was a little moved. He Chunhua's message was indeed correct; he seemed to know what this object was.

He Lingchuan raised the jade *jue* above his eyes, and it suddenly struck his glabella with great force!

Dong Rui, standing nearby, was startled and couldn't help but exclaim, "Hey!"

Did He Chunhua intend to harm his own son with this object?

He Lingchuan, however, raised a hand to stop him from making a move, while pulling the jade *jue* away.

He still had to use some force; his body seemed to possess a magnetic pull, firmly attracting the jade *jue*.

Immediately after, several pairs of eyes watched as a faint green light emerged from his forehead, flowed down his face, neck, arms, and fingertips, finally entering the jade *jue*!

Under everyone's gaze, the green light coiled continuously like a small snake within the jade *jue*. Finally, its head and tail met, slowly settling into a complex azure symbol, shimmering with a soft glow.

"Is this the Demon Script?" The symbol looked like Demon Script, but Dong Rui didn't recognize its meaning; it must have been a special character.

"Indeed," He Lingchuan said, gazing at the jade *jue* in his palm, filled with emotion. "This is the solidified character for 'Naraku' in Demon Script, meaning 'fate.' It's the mark that Naraku Heaven planted in my sea of consciousness a very long time ago!"

With a forceful squeeze, the jade *jue* shattered.

The mark of Naraku Heaven, naturally, also fragmented along with the jade *jue*.

When he opened his palm again, powder flowed from between his fingers, devoid of any light.

The last bit of restraint was gone; he was free!

From this moment on, his destiny was finally and completely in his own hands!

He Lingchuan closed his eyes and looked inward. Sure enough, his sea of consciousness was pristine; the Naraku Heaven mark had been completely erased, leaving no trace.

His sea of consciousness simultaneously surged with tumultuous waves.

Previously, the Naraku Heaven mark embedded at the bottom of his sea of consciousness had more or less suppressed the growth of his spiritual consciousness. Otherwise, for someone like He Lingchuan, whose body and mind had experienced countless trials in the mundane world, his spirit should have been far more powerful than it currently was.

Now that the obstruction was gone, his long-suppressed divine consciousness surged dramatically!

The ground suddenly trembled slightly. He Yue looked down and saw tiny pebbles at his feet swirling and moving towards his brother.

Dong Rui immediately sensed that something was wrong. To him, the surrounding air suddenly became heavy, and He Lingchuan seemed to transform into the eye of a brewing storm.

It was no longer safe to stand there.

"Fall back!" He grabbed He Yue and darted back, moving more than fifteen meters away.

At the same time, he took out a gleaming brass bell and held it high in front of him.

Just as they retreated, a whirlwind suddenly swept up by the pond.

The wind carried countless black mists, which expanded outwards in circles along with the whirlwind. With each rotation, the area increased by over thirty meters.

In an instant, the black mist nearly enveloped the entire Sacred Spring Valley.

Strangely, the soldiers were not panicked; they simply put down their work, straightened up, and looked around.

The black mist moved among them, making the place resemble a realm of ghosts on earth.

As a few wisps of black smoke drew closer, He Yue could finally discern that they were actually roaring ghostly figures, grotesque and vicious, as if they held a deep grudge against him.

But at that moment, the wind rang the bell in Dong Rui's hand.

"Ding-a-ling-a-ling—"

The bell's chime was clear, pleasant, and calming, and it miraculously spread throughout the entire Sacred Spring Valley.

After the bell had rung eighteen times consecutively, the black smoke that had enveloped the area began to gather again, growing from sparse to dense, finally coiling into the shape of a colossal dragon!

It circled slowly and deliberately above the camp exactly three times, then leaped skyward and vanished.

The mist receded, and the moon reappeared, once again illuminating the land.

No one knew what had happened, but He Lingchuan's voice came from ahead, very calmly:

"Come in."

Only then did Dong Rui put away his bell and walk back to the spring with He Yue.

This bell was the Soul-Capturing Bell, also known as the Spirit-Warning Bell, given to him by Fu Liushan. Originally capable of capturing lonely spirits and wild ghosts, it had been specially enhanced and refined by Elder Liu Qingdao, granting it the added effects of calming the mind and warding off evil.

He Yue walked in and saw his elder brother still standing in the same spot, not having moved at all. He had simply put away his profound gold battle armor and changed into casual clothes.