Ke Shouyi chimed in from the side, "Something strictly banned by the royal court—as law-abiding protectors of the law, we certainly wouldn't dare touch it. We only knew Qingfu Temple was bustling with incense offerings; who would have thought there was so much filth hidden behind it? Our hearts truly ache for the demon folk who lost their lives."
Ke Yanjing said solemnly, "Your Highness, our Ke family would also like to do our humble part for the victimized demon folk..."
Fu Shanyue raised a hand to cut him off. "Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. How could we ask the Ke family to pay? Chiyan can well afford such a modest sum for bereavement relief."
Seeing how they skirted past the topic in just a few words, He Lingchuan thought to himself how slick they were.
The Ke family was closely associated with National Preceptor Qingyang, so how could they know nothing about the case of the elixir of immortality? But with Qingyang already falling under the Heavenly Palace's suspicion, the Ke family likely wanted to draw a line between themselves and her as well.
They just suffered from having no way to pull it off.
He simply picked up the conversation: "Lord Ke, I heard that the mountain spirit of Mount Xu has been venerated exclusively by the Ke family for over a century?"
"Indeed," Ke Shouyi smiled. "Thanks to Lord Juju's grace in not rejecting us, all its food and provisions have been provided by the Ke family."
He Lingchuan asked out of curiosity, "The mountain spirit isn't human. I wonder what it usually eats and how its appetite is?"
What would a rock-and-fire monster like to eat? Could it even have a sense of taste?
Fu Shanyue glared at him. "Is that something you can just ask casually?" *Come on, hurry up and tell us.*
Ke Shouyi said magnanimously, "Ah, there is nothing that cannot be spoken of. The Ke family has made offerings to Lord Juju for many years; this has long ceased to be a secret, and everyone knows about it."
Fu Shanyue's smile didn't waver, but inside he cursed under his breath.
During his early years drifting around Lingxu City, he had been thoroughly ostracized; he genuinely didn't know these details!
"Lord Juju loves eating exotic ores—the rarer, the better. Unusual metals refined from extraterrestrial meteorites are first-class delicacies to it," Ke Yanjing explained on his father's behalf. "If ores are its staple food, then various aged spirit woods serve as snacks. In addition, it also likes things like blood of mountain ranges and stone blood as condiments."
"Sounds like collecting these things isn't easy?"
"As long as Lord Juju likes them, members of the Ke family travel across the length and breadth of the realm just to find them," Ke Shouyi sighed. "Take the azure spirit gold acquired from the east ten years ago. Lord Juju ate it once and never forgot it, constantly tasking us to find more. But that was a treasure refined from a fallen meteorite—something that can only be stumbled upon by chance, not sought out. All these years have passed, and not a second piece has been found."
He Lingchuan understood clearly: the rock-and-fire monster had picky tastes, and aside from the Ke family, it was difficult for anyone else to find food to its satisfaction.
This difficulty served as a moat, squeezing other nobles out of the competition.
This was indeed one of the reasons the Ke family maintained such a solid standing in Lingxu City.
"For rare ores like frost-pattern iron or bairu silver, several hundred jin must be offered at a time. If it's ordinary ore, several thousand jin are required each time."
He continued curiously, "Then does Lord Juju not eat humans?"
In fact, many monsters still retained the habit of eating humans, for a very simple reason:
Practically hairless, thin-skinned, and easy to chew through.
The Ke father and son burst into laughter. "To Lord Juju, what benefit could human flesh possibly offer?"
"Then Lord Juju must be very fond of the Dao-Seeking Tree on Tianji Peak, or the Jeweled Tree King?"
"That Dao-Seeking Tree is an old friend of its, bound by deep ties. It's said to have existed long before Lord Juju awakened its sentience," Ke Yanjing continued. "Lord Juju lost its taste for the Dao-Seeking Tree's branches and leaves long ago."
A rabbit doesn't eat the grass around its burrow?
"As for the Jeweled Tree King's branches and foliage, we really did go ask for them," Ke Yanjing said with a chuckle. "The Jeweled Tree King was generous and actually gave some."
He Lingchuan asked again, "Does Lord Ke make offerings at home, or do you take them to Zhaixing Tower?"
A flicker of displeasure flashed across Ke Shouyi's face; clearly his self-restraint was not on par with National Preceptor Qingyang's, letting his feelings show.
Ke Yanjing, however, said, "You must be joking, He Xiao. The Heavenly Palace has always required us to make offerings to Lord Juju at Zhaixing Tower. How would our family dare overstep the boundaries?"
Fu Shanyue gave a light cough. "He Xiao is from a foreign country and doesn't know Lingxu City's rules."
"The Heavenly Palace is built upon Mount Xu, and Lord Juju is both the mountain spirit of Mount Xu and the guardian of the Heavenly Palace, holding a very special status," Ke Yanjing explained. "That is why the Heavenly Palace specifically entrusted our family with handling Lord Juju's food and upkeep."
"I see," He Lingchuan said with disappointment. "I've visited Zhaixing Tower before, but I never saw Lord Juju appear."
"It often slumbers deep within Mount Xu, only emerging when consuming offerings."
He Lingchuan sighed. "Can we only see it at the lava pool? Is there any chance of catching a glimpse by waiting elsewhere?"
Ke Shouyi smiled. "Lord Juju dislikes dealing with humans and generally will not show itself before people." More accurately, the mountain spirit paid ordinary mortals no mind at all, not even bothering to surface for a look.
Yet Ke Yanjing said, "Legends say there is a cavern dwelling on Tianji Peak leading straight down into the molten caverns below the mountain. Maybe..." He shrugged. "Though over the past several hundred years, everyone has scoured every inch around Tianji Peak—dirt pits, ponds, rock fissures, not a single spot overlooked—and turned up nothing."
Fu Shanyue let out an "oh." "Right, the hollow of the tree on Tianji Peak holds a hot spring."
Hot springs were formed by geothermal heat.
In truth, He Lingchuan understood in his heart: the Heavenly Palace simply didn't want the rock-and-fire monster to have much contact with the outside world, lest outsiders take advantage of it. Juju itself had plenty of cunning, unlike ordinary elementals who were honest and simple. If it ever conspired with outsiders to plot against the Heavenly Palace, Lingxu City would truly have hell to pay.
Yet such things could not be prevented entirely. Fortunately, the Heavenly Palace had the Spirit Gathering Grand Formation, so Juju couldn't overturn the heavens.
Ke Yanjing did not wish to pursue this topic further, so he turned to Fu Shanyue. "Our family can have plenty of cooperation with Chiyan down the line. Shall we discuss it?"
Fu Shanyue readily agreed.
By the time they left the Ke Residence, darkness had already fallen.
Sitting in the carriage, Fu Shanyue secretly circulated his true power to expel the alcohol vapors. The flush on his face quickly receded, though the scent of liquor inside the carriage grew thick.
He Lingchuan drew back the curtains, letting the night breeze carry away the alcoholic smell.
"So the Ke family wanted to marry a daughter off to you." Earlier in the Plum Garden, the two had "accidentally run into" four or five young women of the Ke family, all sixteen or seventeen years old, immaculately made up and stunningly beautiful. Seeing Fu Shanyue, they had smiled before speaking, their bashful and shy demeanor enough to melt anyone's heart.
Only later did Ke Shouyi drop subtle hints about wanting to become in-laws with the Ruler of Chiyan.
Fu Shanyue was already the crown prince. Barring unforeseen circumstances, he would inherit the throne, which would make the Ke family's standing in Lingxu City even more secure.
"It's not out of the question, but they must bring the Ke family's money as dowry," Fu Shanyue chuckled. "I can free up a consort position for one."
Logically speaking, the Ke family's wealth was second to none in Lingxu City, and they enjoyed the favor of the celestial gods; they should have held great power. Yet they did not. The old aristocracy of Lingxu City still looked down on the Ke family from the bottom of their hearts.
In their eyes, the Ke family was merely an upstart clan that had betrayed its former master, even after being steeped in Lingxu City's culture for over a century.
Because their family's wealth and prestige had been bought by betraying their master and their country; its roots were rotten.
This was what was known as original sin.
The aristocratic pedigree and refinement cultivated in Lingxu City over six hundred years was something even the Ke family could not integrate into.
Thus, forging a marital alliance with a vassal demon king would provide a significant boost to the Ke family's standing.
This was the classic union of power and money.
Fu Shanyue teased again, "Back in the Plum Garden, I saw that Ke Yanjing's younger sister kept stealing glances at you. Are you interested?"
Wealthy families could out-breed pigs. The Ke family was originally a prominent clan in the Yuan Kingdom and had preserved its vitality in Lingxu City; through more than a century of prosperity, it had grown into a massive family of nearly three thousand people, not even counting collateral and distant branches.
So many lovely young maidens in the prime of their youth, brimming with springtime vitality, complemented the flourishing garden splendidly—truly an alluring sight.
Those Ke family daughters also had eyes for the two youths. Though both were handsome and strapping, Fu Shanyue's exalted status as the Crown Prince of Chiyan naturally garnered far more attention.
He Lingchuan shook his head. "Far out of my league."
"I could bring myself to play matchmaker."
"Really, there's no need." Perhaps because of the history of the Yuan Kingdom, He Lingchuan naturally felt no fondness for the Ke family. "Daughters of wealthy houses are difficult to please. What little money I earn wouldn't even catch their eye."
He immediately asked Fu Shanyue, "When I asked about the offerings earlier, why did the Ke father and son look so displeased?"
"For all these years, there has always been a rumor in Lingxu City claiming the Ke family makes private offerings to the mountain spirit of Mount Xu," Fu Shanyue smiled. "The Ke family came forward to clarify multiple times and even asked the Heavenly Palace to send people to search and prove their innocence. Yet the rumor still lingers faintly to this day. When you brought it up, it naturally annoyed them."
Running one's legs off just to dispel rumors—heh. "So, did they make private offerings to Juju or not?"
The two exchanged a look and burst into laughter.
"I don't think it's worth the risk for them. Isn't it enough to obediently make offerings up on Mount Xu? Only by faithfully obeying the celestial gods can the Ke family keep their foundation evergreen." Fu Shanyue took some tea to rinse his mouth. "It's just that the Ke family is obscenely rich and has made plenty of enemies in Lingxu City, so gossip is inevitable. Hmm, why do you care so much about Mount Xu's mountain spirit anyway?"
"Curiosity," He Lingchuan said leisurely. "Lingxu City enjoyed favorable weather and peace for centuries, yet an earthquake suddenly struck over a decade ago. I heard it had something to do with this mountain spirit of Mount Xu."
"Mm-hmm," Fu Shanyue nodded. "I was in Lingxu City back then. I remember the Demon Emperor was thunderously furious; the Ke family was severely reprimanded, and their mining rights for the profound crystal vein were nearly revoked. It was only thanks to the celestial gods stepping in to mediate that they kept them. From then on, life wasn't quite as carefree for the Ke family as before."
"With so much at stake, how could the Ke family have been so careless?"
"Who knows?" Fu Shanyue shrugged. "Because of that incident, several of the Ke family's suppliers were thrown into prison and executed."
That night, stars filled the sky, but there was no moon.
In his courtyard, He Lingchuan practiced his saber wholeheartedly for half an hour. When he finally lowered his blade, four horizontal lines had been carved into the trunk of a peach tree.
The mirror asked curiously, "What does this mean?"
"Four things I need to do." Pianxiang Villa now had other people's eyes and ears, so he did not state it explicitly.
When he first arrived in Lingxu City, his eyes had been dazzled by the dizzying complexities. But after weathering so many twists and turns, the tasks He Lingchuan needed to tackle next had gradually become clear:
The primary task, and the most important one: he had to retrieve the lid of the Dafang Pot from Zhaixing Tower.
Chapter 614