Chapter 668: One Word Comes True

Chapter 662: A Prophecy Comes True

He Lingchuan dared not waste a moment. He quickly took out his grappling hook, secured it to a large boulder, and then swung down into the crevice using the spider silk rope.

The crevice was narrow, but he was agile.

"Will there be any? Will there be any?" the Soul-Devouring Mirror incessantly nagged, its voice filled with tension. "Huh? You tell me, will there be any?"

"Shut up," He Lingchuan said, reaching into his robe to replace another cleansing pearl.

Only three were left. The recent battle and his desperate escape had depleted them too quickly. Without replenishment, he would only have three quarters of an hour left to live. Three quarters of an hour was nowhere near enough time for him to escape the mountains and the sandstorm's reach.

The spider silk rope was long enough, allowing He Lingchuan to descend all the way to the bottom of the crevice. The deeper he went, the narrower the crevice became. The rock walls were uneven, and in some spots, he had to use both his hands and feet to climb down. However, the steeper and narrower the terrain, the greater He Lingchuan's hope grew.

He brushed his hand over a protruding rock, noting, "Only a few grains of sand." After a sandstorm, most places would be covered in thick layers of sand and soil. Yet, down here, there were only a few grains.

The mirror's voice trembled with excitement: "There's hope, significant hope!" If its master were to die in the spiritless Fushi realm, it would effectively be a death sentence for the mirror itself, merely with a reprieve. Its yearning for He Lingchuan to escape with his life was even more intense than his own.

He Lingchuan reached the bottom of the crevice and began to search around. It was utterly dark down there, so he took out a glowing spore to illuminate the area. A squishing sound came from under his foot. He Lingchuan brought the glowing spore closer to the ground and exclaimed, "Water?"

At the bottom of the crevice, there was surprisingly a shallow stream of water. This was likely groundwater that had accumulated over many years. The mirror exclaimed repeatedly, "Good, good, water is even better!"

However, He Lingchuan's good fortune seemed to have run out. After searching for over fifteen minutes in the crevice, he found nothing. There were only rocks here, rocks everywhere. Monotonously, unending rocks. Wait, there seemed to be small creatures in the stream, scattering in alarm at his presence. None of these were what He Lingchuan was looking for. He continued onward, his hand tracing the rock wall.

"Slow your breathing, don't get agitated!" the mirror repeatedly urged him. "There's still time!"

He Lingchuan reached into a crevice in the rock wall, feeling around, and then suddenly froze.

"Hmm?" He withdrew his hand, slowly opening his palm. Two perfectly round objects gleamed with a pearly luster under the glowing spore's light.

The mirror whistled like a person, then erupted into loud cheers: "Finally!" "We can live! We can live!" They had finally found cleansing pearls, in this utterly dark and sunless place! The preceding sandstorm had swept across the plains and mountains, leaving almost nothing untouched. Only in such a deep gully, where the sandstorm couldn't rampage, could there be hope for He Lingchuan to survive and escape the Fushi realm!

He Lingchuan carefully put away these two life-saving treasures and continued searching forward. From that point on, things went much more smoothly. Half an hour later, he had successfully collected over thirty cleansing pearls, enough to sustain him for four hours. With these small items, he now had ample time to travel south, to areas untouched by the sandstorm, and gather more cleansing pearls.

He Lingchuan sat down in the pitch-black gully, disregardful of his soaked clothes. He could finally relax, no longer needing to worry about his survival. He was alive. He also felt a subtle wave of exhaustion.

Only then did the mirror have the presence of mind to ask, "How did Hu Bin know your real name?" Hu Bin had clearly shouted "He Lingchuan" moments ago, and the mirror had heard it perfectly.

"In all of Lingxu City, no more than three people know my real name," He Lingchuan said, rubbing his eyes. "Wait, the second boss of the Stone Gate Merchant Association has left, so that leaves only two."

One was Li Qingge, and the other was—

The mirror was stunned: "Hong Chenglüe? You mean he was Hong Chenglüe?!" It had seen Hong Chenglüe before; that was clearly not his face!

"When I first saw him, I asked you if he was wearing a mask or was disguised," He Lingchuan said, closing his eyes to rest. "You said you didn't detect anything." This mirror can reveal a person's true appearance — theoretically, that is.

"Uh," the mirror stammered, "But... but..." There are always exceptions, after all.

"The way he looked at me, it truly seemed like deep-seated hatred," He Lingchuan said slowly. "Who would venture deep into the post-sandstorm mountains to hunt me down for no reason? That's a near-certain death." A paid assassin wouldn't undertake such a task.

The mirror pondered, "Did he simply disguise himself, or did he actually change his face?"

"Do you remember Xi Yunhe?" He Lingchuan's mind hadn't been idle while he was searching for cleansing pearls earlier. "He was clearly a disciple of the Azure Palace, yet he later managed to change his face and identity, infiltrating under Cen Boqing without anyone recognizing him." He paused, "Both Hong Chenglüe and Xi Yunhe are connected to Grand Master Frostleaf."

The mirror understood. "Are you saying Grand Master Frostleaf has the ability to help people change their appearance?"

"Ordinary disguise techniques are ineffective against primal force. If this is Grand Master Frostleaf's secret art, I wouldn't be surprised at all," He Lingchuan nodded. "Of course, visitors from the human realm can't use primal force in the Fushi realm. It's possible Hong Chenglüe simply used ordinary disguise, as no one here would be able to see through it anyway."

"If it truly was him, how would you—" The mirror stopped mid-sentence, then suddenly realized, "Oh, he's probably already dead by now." Either bitten to death by a Spiritless Beast, or he ran out of cleansing pearls and perished. Chasing He Lingchuan was no easy feat; one misstep, and you'd be the one gone first.

He Lingchuan didn't reply. He stood up and stretched his wrists. "I've rested enough. It's time to go back." This place was too narrow; he couldn't even properly stretch!

He used the spider silk rope to climb back to the surface. Sitting cross-legged, he took out two Spiritless Beast heads from his storage ring and dissected them on the spot. It was time for the eagerly anticipated "blind box" reveal! Inside each beast head, there was a fist-sized, pale red pumice stone, and— several opaque, perfectly round spheres, about the size of a longan fruit. Some were black, some white, and others as transparent as glazed glass.

He Lingchuan picked up a white sphere, wiped off the brain matter, and found it was so icy cold that he couldn't hold it for long. When placed on the ground, a layer of white frost quickly formed on it. He had originally sought the "frost pellets" from the Frostsilver Beasts, but now— "Perhaps these could also be useful?" He hoped his journey to the Fushi realm wouldn't be in vain.

Ten hours later, He Lingchuan was comfortably soaking in a large wooden tub at Pianxiang Villa, enjoying a hot bath. It felt like a lifetime ago. Only upon returning from the Fushi realm did he truly appreciate the value of unconstrained breathing. Every breath of air now felt so sweet.

The Chiyan team had already returned from the Fushi realm. This year's hunting activity was too challenging. After careful consideration, the Chiyan leader decided to withdraw early. The Chiyan team participated in the activity for a total of eleven days. Including mid-event replacements, thirty-one members were sent in, and twenty-three returned alive. Fu Shanyue was somewhat satisfied with this casualty rate, especially after receiving reports from his subordinates about a massive beast tide, a phenomenon unseen in a century, occurring within the Fushi realm. He himself had entered the Fushi realm three times and was well aware of the terrifying nature of beast tides. Moreover, a sandstorm then swept through, followed by a territorial conflict between the leaders of the Danube beasts. Truth be told, after this upheaval, many teams withdrew directly. The Thunder Giant Beast lord's rampage had caused the Danube beasts within its territory to become agitated and extremely aggressive.

After changing his clothes, He Lingchuan headed out. A Tongxin Guard from Pianxiang Villa glanced at him. He Lingchuan smiled and waved, and the guard made no move to follow.

After descending the mountain, he neither rode a goat nor hailed a carriage. He walked over a hundred *zhang* before turning into an alley. Only after confirming he wasn't being tailed did he turn into a silk shop. This establishment also featured a shopfront and a back courtyard; fabrics were displayed and business conducted in the front, tailoring was done in the back, and the attic above served as living quarters for the assistants and tailors.

It was afternoon, and with no customers in the shop, a drowsy assistant leaned against a counter. He Lingchuan walked up to him and lightly coughed. "I'd like seven feet two inches of pearlescent satin, and half a bolt of cloud brocade."

The assistant rubbed his eyes, "Oh?" But he quickly snapped to attention. "Oh!" He remembered—this was the secret code!

A few moments later, He Lingchuan ascended to the silk shop's attic. All three small rooms were empty, yet they exuded a strong sense of being lived in, with clutter everywhere. One room, notably, was littered with greasy paper, suggesting the occupant had a fondness for steamed buns. The attic had both front and back windows. From the front, one could observe people entering the main hall, while the back window offered a view overlooking the entire courtyard. The person who chose this meeting place was clearly very cautious.

He Lingchuan waited for over half an hour before someone entered the front hall. Soon, the stairs creaked. The person was dressed in plain, unadorned cloth, with a veil covering their face. Upon seeing only He Lingchuan in the attic, the veil was removed, revealing a captivatingly beautiful face.

"Young Master," Li Qingge gracefully curtsied upon seeing him.

"Marquis," He Lingchuan said, a wave of his hand producing an invisible force that held her arms, preventing her from bowing further. "You aided me first; there's no need for such formality." On the surface, Li Qingge had merely sent someone to the Myriad Ge Swamps to activate an artifact. While it was a simple gesture for her, it was an immense favor for He Lingchuan. Had the attention of the Heavenly Palace and the Demon Emperor not been diverted, his subsequent plans would have been fraught with difficulty and virtually impossible to execute.

"Assistance is not judged by its timing, nor is gratitude measured by the size of the favor. Without your strong support, Young Master, how could I have ever regained my freedom!" Li Qingge's eyes glistened with profound gratitude. "From this day forward, Qingge will go through fire and water for you, Young Master, without hesitation."

"Marquis, you are too kind; there's no need, truly no need," He Lingchuan replied. This woman had just regained her freedom; was she really going to go through fire and water for him? He Lingchuan heard such words but never took them truly to heart.

Li Qingge immediately continued, "Songyang Prefecture always repays kindness. How about this: I invite Young Master to serve as an Honored Elder of Songyang Prefecture, with a share in its profits."

"Uh..." Songyang Prefecture was a Daoist sect; that it would have shares was something He Lingchuan hadn't expected. Merchant associations and various guilds already had the concept of shareholder ownership at this time. Songyang Prefecture's business was thriving; investing would be a sound decision. He was currently in need of a source of liquid funds. He had, however, joked with Fang Canran last time that Li Qingge wanted to recruit him as an elder. Had that jest now come true?

"Don't be so quick to refuse," Li Qingge interrupted, a hint of urgency in her voice. "Being an Honored Elder of my Songyang Prefecture offers many advantages: you'll receive free repairs and maintenance for artifacts at all Songyang Prefecture branch offices, and you'll be among the first to try out all new products."

(End of Chapter)