No End to Flight

Connected as sisters, Zhu Daniang felt her gaze as well and chimed in immediately, "He Lingchuan is right! There's nothing difficult about this. If that fellow surnamed Yu shows up, we'll join forces and do him in!" "..." Unfortunately, spiders couldn't roll their eyes. Zhu Erniang simply ignored her and turned back to He Lingchuan. "How do you plan to deal with the people Beijia sends?" "Don't rush, let me ask you first." Noticing her irritable tone, He Lingchuan spoke soothingly. "When that Beijia squad found you earlier, why didn't they make a direct move against you?" "They'd need the ability first," Zhu Erniang retorted curtly. "A dozen-odd people storming into my home—wouldn't that just be serving themselves up on a platter?" That leader surnamed Yu had led his squad in guerrilla tactics against her, even inciting surrounding demons and local authorities, precisely because he didn't dare face her head-on. Just as He Lingchuan had said, it was a pack-of-wolves war of attrition. The Beijia squad's most vital mission was surveillance: keeping tight watch on Zhu Erniang and creating endless trouble for her. "Let me ask you another question. If that squad discovers you've moved to the Yangshan Archipelago, what will their next move be?" "Surveillance, investigation." It wasn't easy to put herself in human shoes, and Zhu Erniang racked her brain. "Looking for another chance to harass me." "The prerequisite for them doing that was that you were isolated and without aid," He Lingchuan pointed out directly. "But here, you have Daniang." Zhu Daniang puffed out her chest. "That's right! Sister, don't be afraid, you have me!" In single combat, she could beat her younger sister black and blue. If that fellow Yu didn't even dare attack her sister directly, wouldn't dealing with him be child's play for her? He Lingchuan smiled at them. "And you have me." Zhu Erniang fell silent. Was it really that simple? "First, Pansi Island is an offshore island, surrounded by water and far from the mainland. It's difficult for people from Beijia to advance or retreat unless they travel by air." He Lingchuan held up a finger. "On the island, you reign supreme. Even if they want to play their trick of ganging up on you, they won't find other demons to hire. "Second, Pansi Island is very close to Longji Island, and yin hui patrol the surrounding waters. Anyone trying to land without authorization will have to get past the yin hui first. "Third, neither Dong Rui nor I will sit by and watch," He Lingchuan said earnestly. "I won't, my men won't, and the entire Yangshan Archipelago won't! Erniang, from the moment you moved onto Pansi Island, you ceased to be alone." "Well said! That's exactly what I was thinking." Zhu Daniang extended a leg to scratch her belly. "Sister, what are you afraid of!" Zhu Erniang was somewhat moved, though a spider's face could show no expression. Was this kid named He trying to take her under his wing? After all these years, had she finally joined an organization? "Big talk," she murmured. "Aren't you afraid Beijia will reach out a finger and snap you in two with a crack?" He Lingchuan laced his fingers behind his back and stretched forward, his joints letting out two loud cracks. "Like this?" "Be serious," Zhu Erniang snapped. "If you shelter me, aren't you afraid of exposing yourself?" "Of course I am." Speaking of himself, He Lingchuan leaned back against the large rock, resuming his relaxed posture. "Should fear stop me from doing what needs to be done?" He still had goals, visions, and grand ambitions—how could he stop here? He said to Zhu Erniang, "Didn't that fellow Yu say that when Beijia hunts someone, running to the ends of the earth won't help? Even after you hid behind Mou Kingdom, they still tracked you down." "They were tracking me only to force out your whereabouts," Zhu Erniang said with concern. "By moving here, won't you fall under Beijia's suspicion?" He Lingchuan chuckled. "What if they do suspect me? Can they find concrete proof?" Zhu Daniang chimed in, "Wait, this isn't a courtroom trial. Does Beijia need evidence to suspect you?" "They don't." He Lingchuan shrugged. "Let's follow the thought through: if Beijia suspects me, what will they do?" The spider sisters spoke in unison: "Go after you!" "And specifically, how would they do that?" Both spiders fell into deep thought. A superpower of such magnitude pitted against an individual was indeed a crushing, terrifying pressure, like the sky collapsing. Even ancient greater demons like them felt deep dread; an ordinary person's first reaction would surely be, 'It's over, I'm a dead man.' Yet He Lingchuan was far away from Beijia, situated behind Mou Kingdom. If Beijia truly wanted to move against him, how could they execute it in practice? "I am now the lord of the Yangshan Archipelago, with territory and an organization." Regardless of whether his power had grown massive yet, having it was having it; the line between 'having' and 'not having' was night and day. "If Beijia wants to act against me, their methods boil down to three options: a sneak attack, dispatching an army, or stirring up surrounding powers. "Looking at our geographic location, 'dispatching an army' can be crossed off immediately. It's virtually impossible." The spider sisters both hummed in agreement. There was no land connection between Beijia and the Yangshan Archipelago. To reach this place, they would have to deploy a fleet. More importantly, this was Mou Kingdom's deep rear. If Beijia sailed an army here, it would be equivalent to declaring full-scale war against Mou Kingdom. At present, the fighting between the two nations could only be called skirmishes and low-level conflicts, sporadic and half-hearted. How much of their strength had they actually committed? Would Beijia escalate to full-scale war over a single He Lingchuan? Dropping the watermelon to pick up sesame seeds—the Demon Emperor of Beijia didn't seem that senile. "That leaves only sneak attacks and inciting surrounding powers, just like what they did to Erniang before," He Lingchuan continued. "First, regarding the neighbors: the only powers near the archipelago are Bailie and Qing Kingdom, plus Ya Kingdom at most. But Ya Kingdom is separated from us by Bailie. "We sit isolated out at sea, sharing no borders with them at all. None of the three powers can reach us. Furthermore, regarding the Yangshan waters—heh, they all know that in a place rife with fiendish energy and yin hui, anyone would think twice before encroaching." "Then that leaves only the final option: sneak attacks." Zhu Daniang answered first, brimming with confidence. "We're not afraid of that!" "Indeed, we aren't afraid of that." He Lingchuan smiled. "Even a mighty dragon cannot suppress the local snake. This is our home turf. If they want to come here and muscle in, they'll have to think long and hard. Even if they resort to divine descent, the two of you together have nothing to fear—not to mention I have an army of yin hui at my disposal, ready to be called at any moment. "Besides, is divine descent something so casual?" He Lingchuan understood divine descent far better than ordinary cultivators. "Every divine descent consumes an immense amount of divine power. Which god would willingly foot the bill for mere 'suspicion'?" When he set his trap in the Panlong Desert, the Heavenly Palace had dispatched a Duyun Emissary, which showed how seriously they took it. Yet He Jing had failed to summon down a single celestial god avatar. In his post-battle review, did He Jing simply refuse to invite a deity at death's door? Of course not. The only explanation was that no celestial god was willing to descend! In the past, when Nian Songyu summoned a celestial god avatar in the Panlong Desert, that avatar had been swallowed whole by the Dafang Pot. That was a precedent and a cautionary tale. Even when vying for a supreme treasure like the Dafang Pot, the celestial gods were still unwilling to send down avatars; would they now casually expend their own power just because 'Lingxu City suspects He Lingchuan'? He Lingchuan had personally experienced the selfishness of the celestial gods. "That's why I said Beijia merely suspects me without concrete evidence—this distinction is critical!" He Lingchuan understood the mindset of those in power far better than the two spiders. "If there were irrefutable evidence and the supreme celestial gods ordered my capture, Lingxu City might have no choice but to obey. But if it's mere suspicion, and Beijia doesn't want to pay a steep price, they will naturally dream up plenty of excuses on my behalf to brush off the gods." The art of weighing options came down to cost in the end. It boiled down to whether it was worth it. "For instance: I am merely the island lord who kindly took you in, with no knowledge of what you did in the past—just as Mou Kingdom had kindly taken you in before. Could it be that Mou Kingdom was the one that wreaked havoc on the Heavenly Palace and Lingxu City? "I shelter many other demons on this island as well, simply treating you the same as the rest. How does that make me the mastermind behind wreaking havoc on the Heavenly Palace?" He smiled. "Repeat an excuse enough times, and they might even believe it themselves." "Just like that?" Zhu Erniang was still somewhat uneasy. "You're ranked number one on Beijia's Heaven Ranking bounty list. Would Lingxu City just let it drop?" "They won't make a big show of it openly, but they might make endless moves in the shadows," He Lingchuan smiled. "It doesn't matter. As long as Beijia doesn't come at me with fanfare and an open army, I have no reason to fear them." There was one thing he hadn't stated aloud: if Beijia wanted to ambush him, the best opportunity would be on the mainland. Going forward, whenever he went to Blade Harbor, he would need to exercise extreme caution. "For Beijia to discover you, investigate me, spy on me, and move against me—all of that takes time and effort," He Lingchuan added. "In other words, we still have time to develop and grow. A few months will be enough to completely transform the Yangshan Archipelago and establish its foundation! Not to mention a measly dozen-odd men from Beijia—even if hundreds come, we won't need to fear them. "Fundamentally, to confront Beijia's threat, we need to grow stronger rapidly," he said, weighing every word. "When we call the shots, Beijia won't be able to touch us. "There is no end to running. If your only thought is to flee, you will inevitably be run down in the end." He kicked a rock by his feet. "Why was my first step to secure the Yangshan Archipelago? Only with our own territory and our own army can we protect ourselves and protect our companions. "Our secret cannot be kept forever," he said slowly. "When the truth finally comes to light, I hope we are already strong enough." For that, He Lingchuan would have to pour in endless effort. Both spider sisters quietly pondered these words. This kid really always had a plan, and was always optimistic. "Right, the Yangshan Archipelago is vast and can accommodate quite a few more demons," He Lingchuan asked the pair. "Can you introduce a few strong, battle-hardened demons to join us?" Right now, the fastest way to bolster their strength was to recruit demonic enforcers. Training an army was painstaking work that required time; results wouldn't come overnight. Zhu Daniang said, "I've slept for so many years, I don't know if the old friends I knew have all died off. I'll give it some thought later." Zhu Erniang said, "If King Siwen in the Demon Nest Swamp isn't dead yet, we could try persuading him again. If you want to bring him over, there are a few independent demons in the swamp who might be brought to the archipelago along with him."