Only the Living Have Everything

She smiled faintly. "Of course, if used properly, these things can divert the celestial gods' attention." Shao Jian noted this carefully. He Lingchuan, however, caught her use of the word "some." Looked at from the other angle, the Dragon-Torture Pillars that would alert celestial gods were only a minority; most would do their work without leaving a trace. Mitian's schemes were vicious indeed. Her instructions finished, she rose and departed. The furrow between Zhong Shengguang's brows had smoothed. Clapping a hand on Shao Jian's shoulder, he said, "I have to head out right away and won't be back for a few days. When I return, come to my house for drinks—none of us leave until we're drunk!" "Sounds good. In that case, I'll take a stroll around the city first." Shao Jian did not stand on ceremony. "I have urgent business with you on this visit anyway, but it can wait a few days." With a hearty laugh, the two walked out of Gange Hall side by side. Zhong Shengguang was busy after all, and after only a few more words he took his leave and returned to his government office. He Lingchuan had been assigned as Shao Jian's personal bodyguard, tasked with remaining at his side from this moment on. That suited him just fine; after all, He Lingchuan hoped to draw out answers from Shao Jian regarding the many mysteries behind the Yuan Kingdom. Even in Panlong City, Shao Jian dressed like an ordinary traveling merchant—his clothes neither lavish nor shabby, his lodging neither luxurious nor cheap, his conduct entirely unremarkable. Standing on Wanglin Avenue, he blended seamlessly into the bustling flow of the crowd. Looking out over the throng, Shao Jian was filled with novelty. "It's so much more prosperous here than before. Three years ago, the foot traffic on Wanglin Avenue wasn't even half of what it is today. You see that clothing shop over there? It used to sell steamed buns." "Panlong City opened up external and internal trade five years ago," He Lingchuan said. "Over time, money and goods began to circulate." "That's the truth of it." Shao Jian nodded repeatedly. "I told Zhong Liyao long ago that Panlong City had to communicate with the outside world, or it would become water without a source. For more than a decade before, the city had to fight wars on one hand while sustaining its people on the other. Everyone lived such a hard life simply because the city had shut itself away." Yet He Lingchuan could actually understand Zhong Shengguang's past decisions. Before making the deity blood sacrifice, the commander had been terrified of Panlong City being infiltrated by spies and rebel forces, leaving him no choice but to bar the gates. As the master of a city surrounded by enemies on all sides, he had far too many long-term factors to weigh. Only when the Dafang Pot could release Three Corpse Worms did Panlong City dare to throw its gates wide and take that first step toward external commerce. Between opening up and actively encouraging trade, very little time had actually passed. While strolling the streets, Shao Jian did not forget to purchase souvenirs for business partners far away. He not only asked He Lingchuan for advice, but even laid out price ranges for the gifts. Watching from the side, He Lingchuan realized this man had turned his disguise into a way of life. In addition to a mountain of local specialties, He Lingchuan recommended fluorescent spores from the Ghost Needle Stone Forest and aphid sugar from Zhu Erniang's ranch. The fluorescent spores went without saying—a portable cold light source used even in the Jeweled Tree Kingdom back in the real world. As for the so-called aphid sugar, it was actually the honeydew produced by the aphid cattle herded by the burrow spiders. Its sugar content was remarkably high and its purity impressive. Shao Jian stared in astonishment. "Honeydew? Isn't that... isn't that just...?" He Lingchuan coughed lightly. "Yes. Don't sweat the details." Not only did the burrow spiders love aphid sugar, but the residents of Panlong City were also full of praise after trying it, claiming its sweetness rivaled honey while its unique flavor was even better. Both adults and children adored it. "This one has a slight roasted aroma." Shao Jian sampled another variety of aphid sugar. "Huh, this one is even stranger. How is it sweet with a hint of spice?" "The flavor of the aphid sugar varies depending on the feed given to the aphid cattle," He Lingchuan said with a chuckle. "Zhu Erniang is constantly experimenting with the proportions." "That prehistoric arch-demon?" Shao Jian clicked his tongue in wonder. That such a brutal spider demon could produce such sweet flavors was truly marvelous. Outside of Beijia, sweet syrup and honey were luxuries everywhere. Now that aphid sugar served as an affordable substitute for honey, visiting merchants had caught the scent of opportunity, and sales had skyrocketed over recent months. Of course, Panlong City had secured exclusive agency rights for Zhu Erniang's products, and the yield of her ranch had become one of the city's flagship exports. After tasting the aphid sugar, Shao Jian was deeply intrigued and considered promoting it elsewhere. After all, during his previous visit to the Panlong Wasteland, Zhu Erniang had still been the unruly mistress of the Ghost Needle Stone Forest, and these products had not entered the Panlong market at all. Yet now, all sorts of sweet soups and pastries made with aphid sugar had begun appearing across Panlong City. Taking seats in a riverside sweet shop, the two looked through the wooden window at the small boats drifting on the river. In late autumn, the lotus flowers had withered, but the seedpods were plump and full. Local fishermen rowed over to harvest them while clearing away the decaying stalks and tidying up the waterscape. In the past, when would Panlong City ever have had the leisure to attend to such trifles? Refined leisure had to take a back seat to filling bellies. Shao Jian sighed from the bottom of his heart. "It's wonderful. Truly, today's Panlong City has exceeded all my expectations." His homeland had fallen, yet the seeds of hope had taken root and sprouted in a foreign land, visibly flourishing. Only He Lingchuan, who had witnessed his conversation with the King of Yuan, could truly appreciate this subtle emotion. Shao Jian's feeling of having his expectations exceeded likely stemmed from his original disagreement with Zhong Shengguang using the Dafang Pot to summon the celestial god Mitian, and his disbelief that such a move could bring any good to Panlong City. After all, "no deity blood sacrifice ends well, except in Beijia" was the core conviction of the Shao family, represented by the King of Yuan. Thus, He Lingchuan could sense that beneath his joy lay a trace of bewilderment. Seeing Shao Jian in high spirits, He Lingchuan seized the chance to broach a topic. "Mr. Wu, as an old friend of Commander Zhong, do you know the origin of the black flood dragon carvings on the walls?" "The black flood dragon?" Shao Jian collected himself and looked over to the high wall outside a temple across Wanglin Avenue. A brick relief of a flood dragon head was carved there—five feet across, nine feet off the ground, its eyes touched with vermilion paint. Beneath the head stood an offering table bearing three kinds of fruit, while curling smoke rose from an incense burner. Except at night, the incense here rarely died out. He Lingchuan knew that in the former Yuan capital of Thousand Stars City, these dragon head motifs were visible in many places as well. From the King of Yuan to Zhong Shengguang, their ideals had passed unbroken down the same line, and both cities worshiped the black flood dragon. "Behind the South Gate is an even larger one—a full-body statue of the black flood dragon. I've asked many people, but they all worship it blindly, assuming it's the guardian beast of the city." Shao Jian smiled. "How do you know it isn't?" "Our homeland of Xiluo has the Golden Bull, but that's a genuine arch-demon; the common folk in the capital could often hear its roars," He Lingchuan replied. "Yet the people of Panlong City have never seen a black flood dragon, never heard its cry, and no one has ever mentioned where it resides." Shao Jian asked, "Do you know what a flood dragon is?" He Lingchuan pondered for a moment. "A lesser dragon?" "Correct. A flood dragon cultivates in the depths of lakes and abysses, waiting for wind and rain to transform into a true dragon," Shao Jian said. "Before humanity arose, true dragons were heaven's most favored creatures, known as the 'sons of heaven'—the chosen favorites of the heavens. But dragons were born of spiritual energy. Even those that did not perish in the ancient wars went extinct in the middle antiquity. Today, no true dragons remain in the world; only flood dragons are left." He Lingchuan was still puzzled. "Then what about this motif?" "Creatures of the dragon kind are the most sensitive to fluctuations in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Thus, by observing this dragon head, one can tell whether spiritual energy is thin or abundant." Shao Jian smiled. "When the flood dragon's head grows into that of a true dragon, the golden days of the ancient era will have truly returned." He Lingchuan was stunned. "So it's just for observing changes in spiritual energy? That's all?" If that was all, why had Zhong Shengguang spent so much manpower erecting a massive sculpture behind the South Gate? "Every one of these dragon head emblems faces east," He Lingchuan pressed, unwilling to give up. "Is there no significance to that?" He had long noticed that all the flood dragon head designs in both Panlong City and Thousand Stars City were built facing east, toward the rising sun. Shao Jian asked, "What do you think?" He Lingchuan's gaze shifted slightly. "Could this be the symbol of some immortal sect?" Shao Jian chuckled. "What makes you think that?" "Three thousand years ago, during the Great War of Gods and Immortals, the so-called gods were driven from this world. I imagined that at least some immortals must have survived to this day, still watching over the mortal realm." This was far from merely He Lingchuan's idle guess. If Zhu Erniang could survive to the present day by molting her carapaces, how could anyone know for certain that no immortals remained in this vast world? "Even if immortals still linger on, what could they possibly do?" Shao Jian gave a dry chuckle. "This is no longer the world of immortals. Even if they re-emerged, what could they accomplish?" His expression turned complicated, perhaps stirred by memories of his fallen homeland. The Yuan Kingdom had resisted unyieldingly for three years before succumbing to defeat. If immortals existed in this world, where had they been? "Besides, with the world's spiritual energy decayed to such a state, are the immortals entirely blameless?" Seeing his indignation, He Lingchuan raised his bowl of sweet soup like wine, toasted him with half a bowl, and swiftly steered the topic elsewhere. "Aside from indicating the concentration of spiritual energy, does this black flood dragon motif have any other purpose?" Shao Jian glanced at him. "So young, and already so utilitarian?" "Pragmatic," He Lingchuan said solemnly. "Panlong City's survival amid enemies on all sides also relies on pragmatism." "There is truth in that. Only the living have everything." Shao Jian set down his bowl. "In truth, Panlong City is not the only place with the black flood dragon motif, but its secret is held exclusively in the hands of rulers. I can only surmise that any city or state that venerates it benefits from it; otherwise, how could they prove so unyielding? Furthermore, this dragon motif won't take effect just because anyone paints it on a wall." He Lingchuan let out a soft exclamation. "Could it be that it requires consecration?" "What a coincidence. Many years ago, I asked Zhong Liyao the very same question." "How did the Commander answer?" He Lingchuan listened intently. "He said: one must first establish the heart of heaven and earth." Having spoken, Shao Jian stood up to pay the shopkeeper, bringing their conversation to an end. Even though He Lingchuan was the bodyguard appointed by Zhong Shengguang, Shao Jian had not lowered his guard completely, nor had he shared everything. Who would be foolish enough to pour their heart out to a stranger they had met only that day? Moreover, to have lived in exile for more than twenty years after the fall of the Yuan Kingdom without ever being captured by Beijia, he had to be cautious and meticulous, governed by his own survival rules. He Lingchuan was not discouraged. Keeping close beside his honored guest, he followed step for step. Since he would be around Shao Jian day and night from now on, if he built rapport over the next few days, he might just extract more intelligence regarding Beijia. What he had witnessed earlier in Gange Hall was momentous, and He Lingchuan was still working hard to digest it all.