Chapter 639: Information Reconciliation

Juju lowered its head towards the puppet, its searing hot nose tip curling the puppet’s hair. “If you dare to mock me…”

“Do you think I’m so idle I came here to play with you?” He Lingchuan interrupted. “Even if I fail, I’m the one who suffers the misfortune. What loss could you possibly incur? The worst-case scenario is you continue playing in the mud here, perhaps missing a couple of meals at most. How is that any different from your usual situation?”

Juju’s body erupted in a cloud of white steam, though it was unclear if this was due to anger. But in the end, it extracted a small piece of solid rock from its chest, kneaded it in its claws for a long time, and then took a deep breath over it.

With a dull thud, the object landed in front of the puppet. “Here, take it.” Noticing the puppet attempting to wrap it in its clothes, Juju added, “It’s not hot.”

The flames and heat had been absorbed, leaving only a dark, lumpy stone sphere at the puppet’s feet. He picked up the stone sphere; it was merely warm to the touch, like a hand warmer. However, faint red light occasionally emanated from the cracks on its surface.

“This is an Earth-fire Seed, and also a part of me,” Juju said. It walked back to the magma pool, submerged itself, and vanished, only its voice echoing: “Keep it with you. As long as you don’t leave Lingxu City’s territory, I can speak with you.”

The puppet quickly walked back to the surface. As he left the stone cave, clear water rapidly gurgled back in. Within a few dozen breaths, the pool was again filled with warm spring water. The cave dwelling’s entrance then closed.

The puppet ascended the mountain along the same path, finally crossing the stone bridge and arriving at Tianji Peak. With his will under control and no fear, he effortlessly navigated the perilous ‘Crucian Carp’s Back’ path. He stood there blankly, surrounded by passing tourists, still clutching the Earth-fire Seed. But it now appeared as a dull gray, unremarkable stone, drawing no attention.

Suddenly, someone bumped into the puppet from behind, and the stone vanished. The puppet jolted, suddenly coming to its senses.

What happened? He only remembered a strange young man blocking his path and asking for help. How was it that the very next moment, he found himself on Tianji Peak? He scratched his head, bewildered, only to find several strands of his hair singed and curled. How strange! Could a hot spring really scorch hair?

Regardless, he was safe for now. The man clenched his fists; he had to descend the mountain quickly and confront that unscrupulous couple who had tried to harm him for their own gain!

A few yards ahead, He Lingchuan strolled leisurely with his hands clasped behind his back, moving with the crowd. Just as he approached the puppet, the Divine Bone Necklace grew warm. Had this gluttonous artifact taken a liking to the Earth-fire Seed again? However, as soon as He Lingchuan snatched the round stone from the puppet’s hand, he immediately tucked it into the Soul-capturing Mirror.

Indeed, after several significant replenishments, the Soul-capturing Mirror’s inner world had been partially restored. He could now store small items within it without affecting its functionality. He Lingchuan didn’t give the stone egg to the Divine Bone Necklace, fearing the Grand Alchemist’s Cauldron would simply consume and digest it. The Soul-capturing Mirror lacked that capacity, and most importantly, it was obedient; He Lingchuan could store and retrieve items at will.

Soon after, he heard Juju’s voice emanating from the mirror. Of course, only he could hear it.

“This is… the soul-land?” Juju sounded surprised. “You kid, you don’t even show your face?” Juju had initially paid little heed to this “collaborator” sending a puppet into its cave. Its true body lay hidden underground, and the Earth-fire Seed given to He Lingchuan served as its eyes and ears. Juju assumed that by keeping the seed nearby and conversing with it, it would naturally discern He Lingchuan’s appearance and location. However, this mastermind was hiding on Tianji Peak and had instantly cast the stone into the soul-land. This inexplicable realm was filled with flying paper figures, and Juju couldn't perceive a single living being. Yet, it could still converse with He Lingchuan through the mirror.

The soul-land’s existence also severed Juju’s locational sense. It only knew the Earth-fire Seed had last appeared on Tianji Peak, but with so many tourists bustling about, who could have taken it?

“My apologies,” He Lingchuan said softly. “You are suppressed by the Spirit-Gathering Array and forced to guard the Heavenly God’s gate. I presume there are times you act against your will. It’s better for me to be cautious.” This was a subtle way of saying, “I’m afraid you might betray me.”

Juju snorted but didn’t seem particularly offended. The more cautious a partner was, the greater the likelihood of success. The Heavenly Palace had taken every conceivable precaution to prevent it from contacting the outside world. But look, they couldn’t prevent it after all, could they?

Later that evening, He Lingchuan declined Fushan Yue’s banquet and Jiao Yu’s invitation to play, using cultivation as an excuse, and locked himself in his room. With the door tightly shut, he casually set up a barrier before speaking to the mirror: “I need to have a word with Juju.”

A moment later, the muddled voice of the Lord of Xushan echoed from the mirror: “I was sleeping. You’d better have something important to say.”

“Let’s verify the information concerning the Great Array,” He Lingchuan said softly. “The plan needs refining.” When he first arrived in Lingxu City, he had only two goals in mind. As more intelligence came to light, his plan slowly began to take shape. He called this the Xushan Plan.

Juju yawned widely. “Speak.”

“The Spirit-Gathering Array wasn’t an original creation of the Heavenly Palace; the concept of the Big Dipper Array was first proposed by the Grand Revival Sect. During the medieval period, spiritual energy continuously declined, and the Grand Revival Sect sought to gather all spiritual energy within a five-hundred-mile radius for their own use. Unfortunately, despite numerous attempts, their Big Dipper Array never succeeded.”

“To harness the power of the stars, ground arrays must resonate and synchronize with the celestial bodies,” Juju, as an elder of the Grand Revival Sect, had the most authority on this subject. “In ancient times, the Grand Revival Sect used the Spirit-Gathering Array. However, after the Cataclysm, the constellations became disordered. Most notably, the Big Dipper, originally nine stars, became ten, with the addition of the invisible Tianluo Star. If the array couldn’t achieve a celestial-terrestrial correspondence, it wouldn’t be effective.”

“But the Heavenly Palace successfully created the Spirit-Gathering Array because its core aligns with the Tianluo Star. They placed the remains of an ancient spider demon into the core, serving as an intermediary to connect heaven and earth.” He Lingchuan pondered. “The spider remains naturally bear a star map on their abdomen, which corresponds perfectly to the celestial stars in real-time. With it anchoring the array, the Heavenly Palace no longer needs to predict stellar changes when constructing formations.”

Before coming to Lingxu City, he had wondered why the foremost city in the world, which already possessed countless treasures, would insist on seizing Zhu Erniang’s remains. Were the powerful figures here truly so covetous that they would snatch anything valuable regardless of the consequences? Now, he understood the ingenious purpose of the spider remains.

“How do you know that?” Juju asked, surprised. *This kid isn’t just talking nonsense, is he?* “Very few people know the origin of the spider remains. Even the officials responsible for constructing the array core back then only knew it was an ancient marvel; fewer than two supervising officials could accurately describe the 'spider remains’' function.”

“Then I was lucky enough to ask those two,” He Lingchuan said, breathing a sigh of relief. Juju had confirmed his deduction: Zhu Erniang’s remains were indeed in the array core. With a clear target, the next step would be much simpler.

Juju shook its head. “In the past ten years, one of them died of illness, and the other official died suddenly. Seven days after his death, someone was caught trying to sneak onto Xushan Mountain.”

“So, an intruder tortured and killed the informed officials to extract array information, then infiltrated Xushan?” He Lingchuan’s heart stirred. “Do you know the intruder’s origin?”

Juju didn’t answer, instead asking, “Are you working with him?”

“No, I am not,” He Lingchuan sighed. “To be honest, my information comes from the victim—the owner of those remains.” If he wanted to cooperate effectively with Juju, he needed to show sincerity, not just make empty claims. For example, by telling part of the truth.

Juju was highly surprised. “Huh? That female spider is still alive?” Clearly, it had heard of Zhu Erniang before. Considering both were ancient great demons, it wasn’t impossible that they shared some past acquaintance.

“It’s living quite well, free and with its own territory,” He Lingchuan said, touching his nose. “However, it has always been concerned about its stolen remains. Since it’s a wanted entity and cannot easily enter Beijia, it entrusted me to find a way to retrieve them.”

“First the Wood Spirit Venerable, now this female spider… your voice sounds young, yet you’re already helping so many old-timers, aren’t you?” Juju grunted. “In that case, you must know the difficulty in breaking the array, don’t you?”

“The location of the array core?” He Lingchuan asked. “I heard it’s usually concealed by the array, only revealing itself when the Tianluo Star shines brightly. So, even you can’t find it?”

“The Heavenly Palace is wary of me,” Juju sneered. “If I could shatter the array core, how would they suppress me? Not being able to find it is secondary; the Heavenly Palace must ensure I cannot touch the array core, even though I’m already bound by the array!” Those scions of the Heavenly Palace were truly cautious.

He Lingchuan sighed. “So, the array core is in the sky?” Indeed, he had been very surprised by this detail when he heard the Nightmare recount Zai Fuqua’s intelligence. Few in this world likely knew that while the main body of the Spirit-Gathering Array rested on the ground, formed by nine peaks including Tianshu Peak, its array core floated unpredictably in the air!

“That’s right. The Tianluo Star is a hidden star, and its corresponding array core has always been concealed within the void,” Juju stated. “Only when the Tianluo Star illuminates does the array core become visible.” If it were on the ground, Juju could find the array core even if it had to dig three hundred feet deep! “Unless the Tianluo Star illuminates, you won’t be able to find the array core above Xushan Mountain.”

“I recall the Tianluo Star shines brightly every autumn and winter,” He Lingchuan asked. “What about the array core then? Does it just hang openly in the sky?”

“How could that be?” Juju scoffed. “It’s invisible.”

“Why?” He Lingchuan pressed further. “Is it still hidden in the void, or has it ascended into the sky but is merely invisible to the naked eye?”

Juju fell silent. He Lingchuan would not let it evade such a crucial question and asked again. Only then did Juju reluctantly reply, “Anyway, in the more than ten years since the Spirit-Gathering Array was built, I’ve only seen it twice.”

“Both recently?”

“Within the last four months.”

He Lingchuan understood: those were the two instances when the Grand Alchemist’s Cauldron’s aura had leaked. In other words, Juju was unsure of the array core’s exact state during the autumn and winter seasons.