Seeing He Lingchuan's face turn instantly pale, the royal master craftsman of the Chiyan Kingdom patted his shoulder in well-meaning comfort. "You get what you pay for. Fifteen times the manufacturing cost corresponds to at least triple the power!"
"Only triple?" He Lingchuan felt shortchanged.
"Triple is already quite a lot!"
The artisan offered an explanation. Both gold-armored bronze automatons and sentinels required their master's focused mental control. Otherwise, they would either stand motionless or run amok.
How many people were capable of dividing their minds between two tasks, especially in the heat of battle?
What about dividing it among three, or four?
Thus, the number of gold-armored constructs an individual could direct was strictly limited. Naturally, quality trumped quantity—having one that could match three was ideal.
It saved both worry and mental strain.
Furthermore, a divine general possessed a degree of autonomy and could carry out relatively ambiguous orders. If commanded to move bricks, it would do so tirelessly, hauling nearby ones before distant ones, and taking level ground along the way to conserve energy.
He Lingchuan recalled the gold-armored divine generals he had seen in the illusion of the Yuan Kingdom; their fighting style had indeed been bold and sweeping, their might terrifying. Even when facing a horde of greater demons, they had shown no fear whatsoever.
Just how much energy did such a thing consume? He hardly dared imagine.
"With that kind of utility, can you really call fifteen times the cost expensive?"
"...Yes." He suspected this spittle-spraying craftsman was actually an unscrupulous merchant disguised behind an honest face.
Of course, the artisan's final words dealt the crushing blow:
"This kind of construct costs a fortune to build and consumes massive resources. Usually, they're only deployed in warfare. It isn't something an ordinary person should be playing with."
Fair enough.
Regardless, the golden-armored bronze guard was finished. Young Master He optimistically reasoned that against ordinary... opponents, this would likely be a strike from a higher dimension. There was nothing bad about that.
***
In the Jeweled Tree Kingdom, atop Mount Baiyun.
Tonight, mist and rain hung heavy over the secluded mountains and woods, perfectly echoing the old verse:
*Deep within the white clouds lie human dwellings.*
The lakeside was as quiet as ever. Chancellor Tang stood alone within a covered walkway bridge, having dismissed the guards to over a hundred yards away.
No place was safer than beside the Jeweled Tree King.
An aged voice resonated in Chancellor Tang's mind. "Still no word on the spirit seed's whereabouts?"
"This official is incompetent. I could only determine that on the day the escort team was lost, the spirit seed transformed into a root sphere to bind the Wind Demon, but broke after the demon devoured the Meridian Divine Wind. We found fragments of the root sphere in Wind Demon Mountain, but none contained the spirit seed. It cannot be ruled out that it fell into the fissures of Wind Demon Mountain. That... that is the vent for the Meridian Divine Wind."
Who would dare descend there? Who even could?
"No witnesses?"
Chancellor Tang shook his head. "There were some bare bones at the scene, likely flayed by the Meridian Divine Wind. However, in the middle of the terraced fields, several bodies were found intact with broken necks. Perhaps they were silenced."
"Someone has already taken the spirit seed. I fear you will not find it," the Jeweled Tree King said with certainty. "I summoned you here today for another matter of grave importance."
Chancellor Tang bowed his head. "My King, pray command."
"The Chiyan King sent an urgent missive to the Xiangzhou tree guard, stating that a storm has broken out in Lingxu City over the illicit concoction of the elixir of immortality."
The missing spirit seed had originally been intended to grow into the Northern Border tree guard, only to be intercepted en route. Thus, the closest tree guard to the Chiyan Kingdom was the fully grown Xiangzhou tree guard.
These mature tree guards were avatars of the Jeweled Tree King, closely connected to the prime body and capable of mutual perception and communication. When subjects or soldiers offered pious petitions to a tree guard, the Jeweled Tree King would almost certainly receive them.
The Chiyan King's dispatch had gone directly to the Xiangzhou tree guard, saving the most time.
"The elixir of immortality?" Chancellor Tang started, alarm washing over him. "Has that matter surfaced once again?"
The Jeweled Tree King said indifferently, "Too much time has passed since that last bloody storm. Aside from an old fellow like me, everyone else has long forgotten."
"It began with the disappearance of an eastern imperial eagle courier dispatched from Lingxu City to the front lines. The Chiyan Crown Prince took charge of the investigation and discovered that someone within their realm had been hunting demons to extract beads for years. The trail finally led to Cen Boqing, the eldest son-in-law of Yao Mao, the Minister of Agriculture in Beijia. I expect there will be further developments."
"Extracting beads?" Chancellor Tang murmured. "So those pulp beads were indeed used to brew the elixir of immortality."
Chancellor Tang had not attained his high office by chance; the more he thought about it, the more shaken he became. "If it touches both the face of Beijia and the elixir of immortality, I fear the Demon Emperor will fly into a towering rage."
"This cannot end quietly." The Jeweled Tree King asked him, "In your view, has the Chiyan King lost his composure, or is he deliberately making a stand?"
Chancellor Tang pondered for a long time before replying, "In this official's humble opinion, both. However, the Chiyan King sent word to you because he refuses to let this matter blow over lightly and seeks my King's support."
Among all demon kingdoms, only the Jeweled Tree Kingdom had stood unbroken; among all demon kings, only the Jeweled Tree King had remained ever-green for eight hundred years.
If the Chiyan King wished to stir up waves in Lingxu City, clapping with one hand alone would make no sound.
The Jeweled Tree King chuckled softly, causing tens of thousands of leaves and branches to rustle in the rain. "How do you think I should reply?"
"It depends entirely on my King's will," Chancellor Tang said. "If you wish to aid him, you could use the occasion to smooth over the minor frictions between Chiyan and our realm. If not, there is no need to reply at all—simply stall for a month or two."
The Jeweled Tree King let out a prolonged hum. "Were Grand Preceptor Sha here, he would already have offered me an idea."
Chancellor Tang lowered his head, pressing his lips together tightly.
"The time is nearly ripe. Compile the cases of demon slaughters for beads that occurred within our borders, selecting the most recent ones," the Jeweled Tree King said, having made up his mind. "Draft a memorial yourself and send it by express dispatch to Lingxu City, and inform the Chiyan King as well. Those with watchful eyes are waiting attentively; we must not keep them waiting too long."
He exhaled a breath. "Strike while the iron is hot. Dragging out great matters only makes them vanish into nothing."
Chancellor Tang bowed in compliance. He should have withdrawn, but hesitated.
"Is there something else?"
"Just seven days ago, the Grand Astrologer observed an abnormal flare from the Tianluo Star in the east," Chancellor Tang said. "You instructed that any anomaly among the ten stars of the Northern Dipper must be reported, but at the time, you were in short seclusion..."
The wind and rain atop Mount Baiyun seemed to freeze instantly.
A full ten-odd breaths passed before the Jeweled Tree King asked, "An abnormal flare?"
"The Tianluo Star, which sits opposite the Tianshu Star, is usually invisible to the naked eye at this time of year. Yet that night, it suddenly flashed twice, extraordinarily bright," Chancellor Tang said. "Then it faded back into darkness and did not light up again."
"Is that so?" the Jeweled Tree King murmured to himself, as if sighing. "The Tianluo lights again, and calamity shall arise. No wonder a mere courier's disappearance has unraveled into something larger and larger."
Chancellor Tang did not understand. "My King, the Tianluo Star shines steadily every year from autumn to early spring. This year it was merely a month early—how can that be a herald of disaster?"
"The Tianluo Star shining according to its season is the natural order of heaven. But an unexpected flash foretells military strife and upheaval. Your lifespan is too short; you have never witnessed the turmoil it brings," the Jeweled Tree King said coldly. "The last time it began flashing erratically was a hundred and sixty or seventy years ago."
A hundred and sixty or seventy years ago—what warfare had Beijia encountered back then? Chancellor Tang was widely read, and upon a moment's reflection, his eyes widened with shock. "The rise of Panlong City?"
"And over a decade before that, the rebellion of the Yuan Kingdom," the Jeweled Tree King said. "To say nothing of two hundred years ago."
"If disaster approaches, how should our realm respond?"
"Instruct the Grand Astrologer to monitor it closely and see whether the Tianluo Star flashes again, then determine our course based on Lingxu City's reaction," the Jeweled Tree King said solemnly. "Our kingdom must also prepare for the rainy day. Relay my command: starting today, strictly audit tax revenues, streamline governance to expand our troops, and inspect the granaries. From the royal court down to the localities, eliminate redundant posts and promote capable military talent. As for the procurement of weapons and warhorses..."
Chancellor Tang interjected tactfully, "My King, those two matters are not urgent, lest Lingxu City misunderstand."
"...Mm, you speak truly. Leave those two untouched for now. As for the rest, it was high time we did them anyway."
***
In the night sky above Baishaqu, the moon was bright and the stars few, though He Lingchuan was in no mood to admire them.
Having calculated the time, he shut the doors and windows tight, then summoned Fu Shanyue's guards to stand watch outside the door, forbidding anyone from entering or leaving.
The beechwood doors and windows sealed exceptionally well. He lit an incense stick to test them; the column of smoke rose straight up, the room virtually windless.
Splendid.
Next, He Lingchuan took out a twig roughly the thickness of a chopstick and tossed it onto the table. Then he lit two more sticks of incense, muttering incantations under his breath.
When all three incense sticks had burned down, the smoke lingered within the room without dispersing, gradually taking the shape of a human head.
This was the tiny avatar left behind after the Hundred Faces Nightmare fell to his hand—or rather, fell to Panlong City.
"You're out?" He Lingchuan frowned at it. "Why have you shrunk again?"
His attitude toward the nightmare was nowhere near as pious as Cheng Yu's had been, with all his begging, pleading, and obsequious flattery.
Facts had proven that the nightmare could emerge just fine without any of that.
"I told you, I am a nightmare—I can only survive in a sealed dreamscape! Staying in your realm of souls gives me no nourishment at all, and I'll only grow weaker and weaker!" the grotesque head of the nightmare complained. "Lately you keep making me hunt down people, which drains far too much energy!"
Power went out and none came in; it would be a wonder if it didn't grow weak!
He Lingchuan acted as though he hadn't heard. From an oiled-paper packet, he took a strand of short hair and burned it to ash in the candle flame.
Then he produced a slip of paper with a name and Eight Characters of birth written on it, burning that to ash as well.
The grotesque head drifted close and took a deep sniff, appearing to discern the scent carefully before saying, "A seven-year-old boy? Have your tastes changed? How are you planning to deal with him this time?"
"No harming him—just find him," He Lingchuan said. "Someone gave him a concealment array to block tracking arts. Find his hiding spot for me."
"That's simple enough. I'll go take a look in his dreams." The grotesque head shook itself and prepared to float away, but suddenly blurted out, "Hey, let go of me!"
Half of its tail was still caught in the twig.
This was a branch from the Juluo tree sapling, the only thing besides the Fusheng sabre that He Lingchuan had managed to bring out of the Panlong dreamscape so far.
The seabed wood carving originally associated with the nightmare had been destroyed, so He Lingchuan had casually snapped off a branch for it to dwell in. In any case, the Juluo tree was a variety of seabed wood, far more precious and far more powerful.
"Let it go." He Lingchuan gave the small twig a shake, and only then did it reluctantly release the nightmare's tail.
He Lingchuan had no fear that the nightmare wouldn't return; the Three Corpse Worms were keeping watch over it.
Afterward, the nightmare slipped through the crack beneath the door and vanished in a flash.
Its form was visible only to He Lingchuan, who had summoned it; the guards standing watch outside noticed nothing at all.
With a long night ahead of him, He Lingchuan simply sat down cross-legged to regulate his breathing.
Chapter 517