Longhao said nothing.
For centuries past, the yin hui had treated humans who wandered into the depths of the archipelago as food. If "food" came to visit them, what would the yin hui do?
Naturally, they would accept it with a smile, at most patting their bellies with a "thank you for the feast."
As for the king of the yin hui, such a terrifying monster naturally held ordinary humans in contempt.
Only when He Lingchuan demonstrated his power—directly alarming Longhao in its seclusion on Longji Island—did both sides earn the chance to speak as equals.
Thus, faced with He Lingchuan's brazen assertions, Longhao was momentarily at a loss for words.
It could only cut straight to the core issue: "What do you want to negotiate?"
"The Yangshan Archipelago belongs to me now. Where do you intend to go?"
"What do you mean!" The king of the yin hui laughed in sheer fury. "This archipelago was created by Heaven and Earth. How did it become your private property?"
"Blessed lands belong to the virtuous." He Lingchuan had heard Zhu Daniang mention that this was a favorite catchphrase of ancient immortals when seizing natural treasures. Finding it delightful, he readily borrowed it. "Why fuss over who came first?"
Each pointed to a different pretext, but both were arguing the exact same logic.
He Lingchuan did not mince his words: "As master of the archipelago, I have the authority to eradicate all scourges that prey on merchant voyages and disrupt shipping routes—such as pirates, or such as you. At present, the pirates of these waters have submitted to me. As for you..."
With every few words he spoke, the king of the yin hui slithered several feet closer. Its massive form grew broader and heavier in his field of view, its oppressive aura mounting.
A faint gray mist even drifted from its mouth and nostrils, meant to envelop its entire body, only to be drawn directly into the divine bone necklace around He Lingchuan's neck.
*So this old fellow can emit and absorb yin fiend energy too.* He Lingchuan's mind stirred. No wonder some of the yin hui had managed to survive.
Zhu Daniang started to step forward to intercept it, but He Lingchuan raised a hand to hold her back.
The king of the yin hui glided forward until it was twenty feet before He Lingchuan, then came to a halt, looking down on him from above. "Eradicate us? With just you?"
It released its full pressure, and even He Lingchuan felt his ears ring and his vision blur for a moment. This giant's strength seemed to surpass his estimate.
Ordinary men would likely have trembled in their boots and dropped straight to their knees. But He Lingchuan had seen plenty of ancient spirits, and even Juju was bulkier than Longhao. Consequently, he merely smiled at the beast and said:
"Still, Heaven favors the living, and I have no desire to drive you to extinction. If you can restrain the yin hui from harming people any longer, I can consider assigning the karst cave region at the southwestern end of Longji Island for your dwelling."
He had originally hoped the yin hui clan could relocate to another island, but seeing the white bone chains bound around Longhao, the plan had to be adapted.
The king of the yin hui was taken aback. Compared to total extermination, He Lingchuan's condition was not too harsh, but far too generous.
Originally, any territory veiled in yin fiend energy was the domain of the yin hui. But because Longhao was trapped on Longji Island, the yin hui's stronghold was naturally centered here. Though its offspring usually ranged far and wide, most still dwelled on this island.
Longji Island was vast. Even the southwestern corner could easily accommodate tens of thousands of yin hui. Moreover, vast numbers of its brood had already perished; those that remained were the strong, but few in number.
The southwestern karst cave system had always been the most suitable terrain for yin hui life.
He Lingchuan continued, "I can draw off all the yin fiend energy from the other islands. Frankly speaking, you don't have much room for choice."
Without yin fiend energy, there would naturally be no yin hui.
Longhao said sinisterly, "Humans cannot absorb yin fiend energy. You must be relying on some magic artifact! If I kill you and take it, the disaster facing the yin hui will resolve itself!"
"Even if I rely on magic artifacts, I have more than one. If you kill me, my companions will naturally drain all the yin fiend energy from Longji Island to avenge me!" He Lingchuan dared to come precisely because he had weighed all the stakes.
"Then I will hunt down your companions and slaughter every last one who comes!"
"Is that so?" He Lingchuan had long seen through its fierce facade hiding inner weakness. If the king of the yin hui had no intention of conceding, why ask to negotiate with him in the first place?
At this negotiating table, the chips in their hands were nowhere near equal. "Do you want to wager the extinction of your entire race to test how many companions I have and how many artifacts I possess? To see whether your clan is wiped out first, or my companions are killed off first?"
No matter how powerful the king of the yin hui was, it remained bound by bone chains. All it could order about were the few yin hui that had struggled to survive.
If He Lingchuan had harbored any misgivings before descending into the sinkhole, his mind was now completely at ease.
The king of the yin hui glared at him, breath whistling in its throat like a giant bellows. Its neck swelled and pulsed, as if flames might erupt from it at any second.
Whatever it might spit, Zhu Daniang did not believe He Lingchuan could easily withstand it.
She instinctively moved to step forward, but the moment her hooked claws shifted, He Lingchuan's hand behind his back signaled to her:
*Don't move!*
"If I truly wanted to uproot and exterminate the yin hui, I would only need to come collect the yin fiend energy the day after the leyline surges. Repeating that a few times, how many of your brood would be left? How long could you hold out on your own?"
In truth, that was exactly what He Lingchuan had calculated from the start. What harm was there in eliminating monsters born from earth fiend turbid energy? Only when Min Tianxi produced the Heavenly Order Precious Scroll, proving that the yin hui possessed sentience and could communicate with humans, did he alter his plan.
If they could communicate, there was room for negotiation.
His words were earnest and calm: "I am offering you a chance at survival, but it is fleeting. Take hold of it, and do not mistake my mercy for weakness."
The king of the yin hui stared at him unblinkingly, as if striving to see through his innermost thoughts.
No matter how mighty it was, if it could only absorb yin fiend energy one day out of seven and had to suffer through the remaining six, how could such an existence endure?
Had not countless immortals across heaven and earth, capable of moving mountains and turning seas, faded away precisely because spiritual energy declined?
Deprived of the nourishment of yin fiend energy, how could the king of the yin hui fare any better than they had?
Even if it managed to eke out a living, what of its brood? Would it truly dwell alone in isolation until death?
This human was right about one thing: if he wanted to wipe out the yin hui, he only had to come collect the yin fiend energy the day after the leyline surged. There was no need to take the risk of coming to the island to meet it.
Yet one could never read another's heart. Had he truly come in good faith?
He Lingchuan reached into his robes, drew out a brocade box, and opened it.
By the daylight descending from above, both could see the box filled with white sand, in which chestnut-sized, grayish-black crystals were neatly arranged in rows—at least thirty or forty of them.
The king of the yin hui's pupils dilated instantly. Could that be...?
He Lingchuan set the box on the ground. Another small yin hui slithered over, picked up the box, and held it up before the king of the yin hui.
The king of the yin hui scooped up a handful of the black crystals into its palm, fine sand slipping through its fingers.
It scrutinized them without blinking.
The objects bore an uncanny resemblance to black colored glaze, yet at their core lay a dense blot of ink, utterly impenetrable to sight.
"Fiend beads?" The king of the yin hui's voice was filled with shock. "These were condensed from fiend energy? What divine artifact could possibly achieve this?"
Chapter 920