Chapter 646: Harbor

The air in the Otherworld is poisonous; all teams entering must keep a breath pearl in their mouths," Fu Shan-yue said. "But strangely, when monsters from the Otherworld mistakenly enter our realm and breathe our air, they become unusually agitated. Even the most docile Danau beasts become aggressive upon entering our world."

"A breath pearl?" He Ling-chuan had been thinking about the Otherworld's special product, the "frost pill." "Is it a pearl that allows one to breathe?"

"The Otherworld produces these breath pearls. We collect them and place them under our tongues to breathe freely; no other self-refined charms work," Fu Shan-yue explained to him. "However, typically, one breath pearl only lasts for a quarter of an hour. You'd best have a supply to replace it, otherwise you'll need to quickly gather new ones. Without it, a person will suffocate within thirty breaths, fall unconscious within fifty, and then die. Monsters can resist longer, but they too cannot escape this fate. The annoying thing is that once harvested, the breath pearls only last for twelve hours; they vaporize on their own after expiring."

"So, breath pearls cannot be harvested for long-term storage."

"Absolutely not. Rationally allocating the number of breath pearls is quite a specialized skill."

He Ling-chuan mused, "Each breath pearl only supports breathing for a quarter of an hour?"

"Strictly speaking, everyone's breathing rate is different, and the breathing rates of demons and humans also differ. There's also a difference between breathing during normal activity and during combat. A giant elephant using a breath pearl to sustain itself would certainly have a much shorter duration than a human. That's why large-bodied demons rarely participate in the Grass Sea hunts. On average, however, a breath pearl generally lasts for a quarter of an hour."

Fu Shan-yue added, "Spirit Void City has organized hunts in the Otherworld hundreds of times, so they're very experienced. These teams will assign specific personnel to collect breath pearls for the entire group's use."

"Is it dangerous in the Otherworld?" He Ling-chuan asked. "If it were as safe as the beaches of the Grass Sea, ordinary people would have gone there long ago."

"Of course. Hundreds of years ago, when Spirit Void City first began exploring the Otherworld, they discovered a harsh environment and dangerous exotic beasts. Out of dozens who entered, it was good if half returned alive. I heard the most terrifying year saw the vanguard encounter a large beast tide; thirty people went in, and only two came out. However, the more times they entered, the more experience they gained. Now there's a complete set of training materials for Otherworld hunting, so the danger is nothing like it used to be."

He chuckled, "The flow of time is different between the two realms. Two years here equate to perhaps seven or eight years in the Otherworld, so new Danau beasts have already matured. Furthermore, there are powerful lord-level beings deep within the Otherworld, which Spirit Void City's teams generally don't provoke."

"Thirty years ago, a colossal beast crossed the eye of the storm and charged into the Grass Sea," Fu Shan-yue said languidly. "Now that was a battle worth seeing. Nearly a hundred Imperial Guards died, but fortunately, it didn't affect the civilians further back."

"How large a levistone did it yield?"

"Four hundred units," Fu Shan-yue explained, providing context. "That's measured by taking the levistone produced by an ordinary Danau beast as one unit, which is roughly a purple stone the size of a goose egg."

The spoils from slaying that colossal beast were equivalent to killing four hundred ordinary Danau beasts.

Of course, the difficulty was considerable.

"But fortunately, even more powerful Danau beasts cannot cross," Fu Shan-yue said, pointing to the gigantic storm over the Grass Sea. "They're intercepted by the spatiotemporal barrier."

He Ling-chuan suddenly asked, "I see many powerful individuals present today. Why haven't they entered the Otherworld to hunt?"

"Those with ranks higher than Rover General are not permitted to fight in the Otherworld," Fu Shan-yue chuckled. "The Otherworld is too dangerous. Spirit Void City added this rule for fairness."

He Ling-chuan nodded.

If not for this rule, he might have found a way to deal with Nian Zan-li in the Otherworld, saving himself a lot of future trouble.

Fu Shan-yue added, "Oh, by the way, I just heard a piece of news, though I haven't verified its truthfulness yet."

The Grass Sea event had gathered almost all the city's nobility and wealthy, and all sorts of news was flying around like stray bullets.

"Lu Qing-zhou died suddenly," Fu Shan-yue said softly. "He was Grand Tutor Qingyang's direct disciple and one of her most loyal confidants."

Something happened at Green Palace again? He Ling-chuan's expression changed. "How did he die?"

"He went home seven or eight days ago to visit his wife and children and didn't wake up the next morning. When his wife nudged him, she found he had already passed away." A noble passed by, and Fu Shan-yue greeted him before continuing, "That night, no one in the family heard any unusual sound, not even the dog outside the gate barked."

He Ling-chuan gave a thumbs-up. "What a skillful method! Were no clues found?"

Just by looking at Xi Yun-he, one can tell that these Grand Tutors have excellent judgment in selecting disciples. Lu Qing-zhou was a student personally trained by Grand Tutor Qingyang and considered a trusted confidant, so his intellect, cultivation, and adaptability must have far surpassed ordinary people.

Yet he still died, silently.

To dare to lay hands on Grand Tutor Qingyang's disciple and execute it so flawlessly, He Ling-chuan had only one person in mind.

"I heard Green Palace examined him, and Lu Qing-zhou had no injuries whatsoever on his body."

He Ling-chuan inwardly thought, 'As expected.'

But Grand Tutor Frostleaf's scheme was already close to success, so why risk killing Lu Qing-zhou at this critical juncture?

Did this person possess some secret?

Or was he a stumbling block in Grand Tutor Frostleaf's plans?

No wonder Grand Tutor Qingyang looked so grim; in her recent confrontations with Grand Tutor Frostleaf, she's been consistently on the defensive.

The more He Ling-chuan delved into the elixir of immortality case, the more profound he realized its complexities were.

"Your guess is probably the same as mine, isn't it? But since there's no evidence anyway, we might as well just enjoy the spectacle." Fu Shan-yue stood up and stretched. "Leave a few people here, and assign two doctors as well. I'm heading back first. Are you coming?"

"The Gate of Storms will be open for thirty days; there's so much more to discuss later."

"Let's go."

He Ling-chuan was woken by a cold gust of wind.

He Ling-chuan opened his eyes to find the window ajar. Night was falling, and the evening breeze was quite harsh.

The charcoal brazier in the corner had long gone out. He stood up, stretched his limbs, and pushed the door open.

There were no flowers in the small courtyard; even the flower pots were gone. The surface of the water vat seemed to have frozen. He Ling-chuan was startled and broke the thin ice, only to find the goldfish beneath the water were still alive, just settled at the bottom, unwilling to move.

It had been many days since he returned to Panlong City.

The Great Square Pot seemed to know he was lately surrounded by peril and burdened by trivial matters, so it hadn't dragged him into the dream realm, allowing him to rest well at night.

After all, human energy is limited; if one constantly worries, their mind won't be as nimble.

However, he hadn't dared to sleep soundly these nights.

On the other side of the courtyard wall, there was light.

Sun Fu-ling was home?

He tried calling out, and a creaking sound of a door opening came from next door. Sun Fu-ling emerged, holding a lantern. "You're back? You've been gone for quite a while this time."

He Ling-chuan leaned over the wall and grinned at her. "My apologies."

He didn't know how long it had been since they last met, but the young woman was still as beautiful, her skin glowing white in the dim light when illuminated by the lantern.

"Are you going out?"

Sun Fu-ling was wearing a light blue jacket over a pure white cloak, looking charming and sprightly, clearly dressed to go out.

"To the academy, and I'll grab some food while I'm there." She yawned and hung the lantern on the wall. "I knocked on your door at noon, but you weren't home either."

"Right, this young lady doesn't cook," He Ling-chuan said with a smile. "Shall I treat you?"

"Alright, but you'll have to accompany me to the academy first."

He Ling-chuan returned to his room to fetch his cloak, then left with her.

Looking out from the donkey cart, the streets of Panlong City felt reassuringly familiar.

In the past few days, he had experienced so many turbulent waves and evaded so many schemes in Spirit Void City, his nerves constantly taut. He even had to set up barrier formations before falling asleep.

Only upon entering Panlong City did his body and mind truly relax.

That familiar sense of everything being under control finally returned.

This was his home.

"What's wrong?" Sun Fu-ling noticed his expression. "You look very tired. Was your recent mission difficult?"

"Yes, very difficult," He Ling-chuan stretched. "But it's fine now that I'm home."

Sun Fu-ling smiled softly. "Yes, it's good to be back here."

They were sitting close together. Her almond-shaped eyes reflected the light from the roadside, shimmering with fragmented brilliance, like golden ripples of sunlight on spring water.

He Ling-chuan reached out and brushed away the stray hairs from her delicate brows.

The gesture was unthinking; even He Ling-chuan himself froze. Sun Fu-ling raised an eyebrow, seemingly a little surprised too.

He said hoarsely, "There was a leaf."

How strange. When facing a stunning beauty like Li Qing-ge, he was always silver-tongued.

But in front of Sun Fu-ling, he was inexplicably flustered.

Sun Fu-ling also looked at him, saying nothing.

Their eyes met, and the atmosphere gradually grew strange.

After an unknown duration, the cart driver finally broke the awkward silence. "Young master, where did you say you were going?"

"The intersection is up ahead; let's not go the wrong way."

The spell in the cart was broken the moment he spoke.

Sun Fu-ling averted her gaze, smiled silently, and then said, "Shuming Academy."

He Ling-chuan cleared his throat. "It's almost dark. Are you going back to the academy at this hour?"

Riding slowly toward the academy in a cart with Instructor Sun, his ears registered the din of the market, the children's playful shouts, and the distant sound of firecrackers.

Especially the crackling of firecrackers—he hadn't heard them in a long time and wondered whose family was celebrating.

The Bega did not allow firecrackers, so there was no such lively atmosphere.

In that moment, the danger and urgency of Spirit Void City receded from him. Time seemed to slow down, and He Ling-chuan became unhurried once more.

This relaxed and tranquil state of mind was truly long overdue.

Sun Fu-ling's voice remained clear and pleasant. "Another instructor left today, so I have to substitute for the evening class."

"Left? Where did she go?"

"She was transferred to Jade Pivot City. I heard that recently, the number of Xiluo people enrolling in schools in the former Xiji lands has greatly increased, and there aren't enough instructors. Commander Zhong and the Dean discussed it and want to transfer more people there. Those students will also become residents of Panlong in the future."

"That's great news." He Ling-chuan knew all of this.

"It's just that three or four instructors suddenly left, making staffing at the academy tight all at once," Sun Fu-ling said, smiling. "Jade Pivot City is undergoing expansion, and it's bustling with activity there now. I've seen many people volunteering to go."