Chapter 556: Old man, I'm leaving

**Chapter 552: Here I Go!**

Mi Tian herself admitted that for the world's spiritual energy to recover quickly, only the demise of deities would suffice.

Evidently, she was referring to Imperial Dew.

After the two annual occurrences of Imperial Dew, He Lingchuan could clearly feel the surrounding spiritual energy was denser than before.

This confirmed the Soul-Sealing Mirror's conclusion, which it had heard from Tian Shengzi: the mortal realm and the so-called divine realm have always existed in an inverse relationship, where one's gain is the other's loss. During the three millennia since the gods departed, the world's spiritual energy never recovered to the level of the immortal era because the gods, through some means, siphoned off the world's spiritual energy for their own use.

Mi Tian also mentioned this method: "Heaven's Net" would absorb the realm's nightmare energy.

The last time He Lingchuan heard this term was from Fu Shanyue. When the second illusion appeared in the ruins of Thousand Stars City on Twilight Plain, the Heaven's Net star in the east shone brilliantly.

Evidently, this star could be seen as the gods' lifeline—no, their umbilical cord. Through the Heaven's Net star, the mortal realm's nightmare energy was continuously delivered to the deities.

Previously, nightmare energy primarily came from the Heaven's Net star. Gods couldn't acquire much of it privately and were forced to accept what they got.

However, Mi Tian, unwilling to remain idle, suddenly emerged to disrupt the situation.

Previously, she had mobilized the Panlong Army to attack Xiji, acquiring still-active divine remains from the Xiji royal palace. Then, using the power of the Grand Alms Bowl, she created over a thousand Dragon Punishment Pillars!

The primary function of these objects was to collect the freshest nightmare energy from battlefields.

To put it plainly, it was siphoning off energy right under the Heaven's Net star's nose.

Since the mortal realm provides a limited amount of nightmare energy within a given period, every bit diverted by the Dragon Punishment Pillars meant one bit less collected by the Heaven's Net star.

In the future, the more frequently Dragon Punishment Pillars were used in the mortal realm, or the more gods used them, the less nightmare energy the Heaven's Net star would correspondingly collect.

It was tantamount to smuggling.

Self-interest is the instinct of every living being. With such a powerful tool, how could the gods resist using it?

If they used it, their peers would receive less; how could they stand by idly?

In essence, nightmare energy was the most crucial resource in the divine realm. Furthermore, gods were hierarchical. How would those in power and authority treat peers who undermined them and stole their resources, and how would they treat the Dragon Punishment Pillars?

Just as Mi Tian said, these 1,200 Dragon Punishment Pillars were 1,200 seeds of instigation and division; once sown, they would yield a harvest sooner or later.

When gods in heaven perished, their essence, bones, and blood would transform into Imperial Dew, returning to the mortal realm.

Understanding this cycle, He Lingchuan realized Mi Tian's cunning plan: to widely distribute the Dragon Punishment Pillars to various minor deities and lesser gods, hoping to incite internal strife and disputes within the divine realm over the distribution of nightmare energy.

The mortal realm and the divine realm were in a zero-sum game: the more people/gods died on one side, the more the other side would benefit.

Did Mi Tian's actions have any effect?

Just one point: the Dragon Punishment Pillar He Lingchuan seized in reality came from the apprentice of Frostleaf Imperial Advisor of the Beijia Kingdom.

So, where did the Imperial Advisor get his Dragon Punishment Pillar?

Undoubtedly, it came from followers of other countries or other deities.

The process of acquiring the Dragon Punishment Pillars was likely not pleasant. This proved Mi Tian right: many of the scattered Dragon Punishment Pillars would eventually fall into Beijia's hands.

Moreover, He Lingchuan noticed that if even the Beijia Imperial Advisor used a Dragon Punishment Pillar, it meant there was likely a deity behind him as well.

A deity unwilling to be an ordinary one, who wanted to acquire nightmare energy for themselves.

If even Beijia's Imperial Advisor dared to do this, how many conflicts would arise in the divine realm over nightmare energy?

Mi Tian's strategy was an open scheme: once the Dragon Punishment Pillars were disseminated, this chain of cause and effect would begin, largely independent of the will of gods or humans.

The poisoned waters she stirred over a century ago still had lingering repercussions.

Outside the window, a skylark was singing a complex melody, practicing a difficult piece before autumn arrived.

He Lingchuan, woken by its song, recalled his dream and subconsciously sighed.

Mi Tian herself was a god. Why did she insist on opposing her own kind and eagerly plotting against other gods?

That was another unsolved mystery.

And why did the Heaven's Net star in the eastern sky react to the second illusion in the ruins of Thousand Stars City?

Was it related to the Grand Alms Bowl?

Since the Heaven's Net star was closely linked to the gods, did the gods notice the anomaly at Thousand Stars City's ruins and send Bai Ziqi to investigate?

Where there was one, there might be two; where there were two, there might be three. Would Bai Ziqi eventually track him, He Lingchuan?

With Cen Boqing arrested and Zhongsun Mou dead, He Lingchuan's original adversaries in the Courier Case no longer posed a threat. However, Bai Ziqi, who represented the will of the gods, immediately became his biggest problem.

He Lingchuan could feel Bai Ziqi's extra attention on him.

He believed Bai Ziqi had no evidence, otherwise, he would have been arrested long ago, even with Fu Shanyue obstructing. But Bai Ziqi's intuition was too strong. If he allowed himself to remain under Bai Ziqi's constant scrutiny, He Lingchuan worried he would eventually reveal something.

Did Panlong City's sudden revelation of the Dragon Punishment Pillars' origin serve as a reminder that he could try to create a Dragon Punishment Pillar to divert Bai Ziqi's attention, shifting the blame elsewhere? After all, Mi Tian had clearly stated that some Dragon Punishment Pillars, tainted with the Grand Alms Bowl's aura, would alarm the gods and attract unnecessary attention.

After all, the divine bone was around his neck, and the Grand Alms Bowl was constantly monitoring his whereabouts. It should have a clear understanding of his current situation, right?

The problem was, where would he get a divine bone to create a Dragon Punishment Pillar? The necklace around his neck certainly wouldn't work.

Just then, a scratching sound came from outside the door.

Jiao Yu had arrived:

"Chief Inspector Bai has finished his official duties in Chiyan. Tomorrow, he will escort the prisoners back to Lingxu, and His Highness the Crown Prince and we will all accompany him."

He Lingchuan was surprised: "Has Chief Inspector Bai's other case also been concluded?"

"That's unclear," the tiger said, unconcerned. "His Highness the Crown Prince speculates that perhaps other demon kings jointly petitioned the Emperor to investigate the Elixir of Immortality case, prompting the Emperor to urgently recall Chief Inspector Bai for a report. I hear this case is widely known in Lingxu City, and the royal court might be feeling immense pressure."

Lawbreakers hunting demons for their pearls agitated the nerves of the demon populace and army.

The illegal refining and trading of the Elixir of Immortality further agitated the nerves of the gods.

Lingxu City likely found it difficult to handle, which is why they wanted Bai Ziqi, the primary person in charge of the case, to return quickly to address various questions.

Moreover, with more and more factions involved in the Elixir of Immortality case, Lingxu City also found it tricky.

He Lingchuan stroked his chin, thinking the news was mixed.

First, the good news: since Bai Ziqi was ordered back to the capital, he wouldn't be able to stay in northern Chiyan to continue the investigation. He Lingchuan believed Bai Ziqi would leave someone behind to continue inquiries, but that wouldn't be Bai Ziqi himself.

As for the bad news, He Lingchuan was about to leave Chiyan's borders. Afterward, the Chiyan monarch and his son's ability to protect him would significantly decrease. Once in Lingxu City, if Bai Ziqi remained interested in him, well...

Now, he needed to find a way to reduce Bai Ziqi's interest in him.

He Lingchuan patted the large tiger head: "Before we leave, I want to buy a dozen sesame seed cakes for dry rations. And how about twenty catties of black-haired beef leg for you? My treat."

The tiger licked its lips, flicked its whip-like tail, and agreed.

Baisha Jue had abundant water, and the local black-haired cattle swam and grazed on water plants year-round, resulting in their lean physique and excellent meat quality. Jiao Yu particularly liked them.

He Lingchuan then summoned the hawk outside the window: "Do me a favor on a trip, and the reward will be a hundred catties of rabbit meat. How does that sound?"

Fu Shanyue had arrived in Baisha Jue, and He Lingchuan's career as a special envoy was over. Technically, the avian guards no longer needed to obey his commands. However, the hawk found him quite good to deal with, as it had never suffered any loss in food or enjoyment throughout their journey. So, without much thought, it asked, "Where to?"

"Deliver a letter for me to Lingxu City," He Lingchuan said with a smile. "Payment on delivery, since we'll meet up in Lingxu City anyway."

"Just going ahead, then?" the hawk, straightforward in nature, said. "The letter."

He Lingchuan handed over the written letter and gave the address. The hawk spread its wings and immediately set off.

Watching its figure turn into a small black dot and vanish on the horizon, He Lingchuan exhaled softly.

The explanation he had given Bai Ziqi had a significant loophole. If he could fill it, it might alleviate much of Bai Ziqi's suspicion. It all depended on the hawk's success this trip. He hoped everything would go smoothly.

Not long after, passing Tide Lake Tower, He Lingchuan was moved by the sight and suddenly thought of Mai Xuewen.

He wondered where that fellow was now.

Before fleeing, he had given He Lingchuan a warning to pull back to avoid utter destruction.

However, He Lingchuan went against that advice and now planned to leap into the heart of the vortex.

Ha, it was too late to run now. He could only push forward, diving headfirst into these murky waters and swimming back and forth.

Completing the commission and recovering Zhu Erniang's remains were minor goals, which he hoped to accomplish along the way.

On this trip to Lingxu City, He Lingchuan had to resolve a major concern:

He needed to find a way to obstruct the gods and the Emperor from tracking the Grand Alms Bowl.

As the wearer of the divine bone necklace, he could feel the Grand Alms Bowl growing stronger and more active.

It's hard for a giant whale to swim in shallow waters, and an elephant cannot hide behind a monkey.

The Grand Alms Bowl would eventually be impossible to conceal. If it leaked its aura again, he would face endless pursuit from the gods.

How long could he hide?

Xiang Yan, the retired official, had been fond of saying one thing during their recent conversations: "Don't rush, plan carefully and slowly."

But He Lingchuan didn't know how much time he had; "slowly" wasn't an option.

He best strike first to avoid the tragedy of Yuan Kingdom and Panlong City's downfall befalling him.

This was like knowingly heading into a tiger's den.

What others saw as the world's most prosperous place was, to him, a dragon's pool and a tiger's den, fraught with perilous rapids.

And yet, he had no choice but to go.

But he also had an advantage. He was alone, free to advance or retreat, and could act flexibly.

Beijia harbored animosity towards Yuan Kingdom and cared about Panlong City, but they wouldn't pay attention to a mere nobody like him.

The wind in Baisha Jue began to turn cool, feeling refreshing against his skin and easing his agitation. He Lingchuan cracked his knuckles twice.

The foremost city in the world, here I come.

This concludes "The Ideal Realm of Demons (Volume One)." Starting tomorrow, this book will begin a new chapter: "The Ideal Realm of Demons (Volume Two)."