Where Immortals Once Walked

Chapter 629: Shao Jian’s End

Fang Canran said solemnly, “Only once we have a foundation of mutual non-harm can we continue speaking in depth. Besides—” He paused before adding, “Keeping and maintaining an ancient treasure like this isn’t easy. The sooner I use it, the sooner I lighten the burden.”

He was still afraid that He Lingchuan would report him to the Heavenly Palace. That was why he wanted this kind of insurance for both of them.

He Lingchuan stared at him for a long while. “If you had something this useful, why did you attack me earlier?”

Fang Canran chuckled, offering no explanation.

Even taking several steps back, whether they were friend or foe, he still had to test the other party’s strength first.

That would determine how they interacted afterward.

Dragons consorted with dragons, phoenixes with phoenixes, and the friends of rats knew how to dig holes. People of each rank made friends of the same rank.

Even among one’s own side, there were still upper, middle, and lower tiers.

He Lingchuan had only jabbed at him once. Immediately afterward, he agreed. “Fine.”

Even though he had verbally promised earlier and had even untied Fang Canran first, this great steward still did not feel at ease. A promise depending entirely on self-discipline could never compare to an oath overseen by inner demons.

Clearly, he understood perfectly well that human words were the least trustworthy thing in the world.

Fang Canran picked up one of the cuffs and snapped it onto his own wrist first.

He Lingchuan took the other and put it on.

Then both of them recited the oath. The shackles and chains began to glow red, and runes floated to the surface, flying up and down.

When the recitation ended, the chain slowly vanished. The cuffs on their wrists transformed into plain, ordinary silver bracelets.

“It’s done.” Fang Canran’s expression visibly relaxed. “From this moment onward, neither of us can break the oath, or the consequences will be miserable.”

The oath did not say that they had to be completely honest with each other. Neither of them was willing to do that. They both carried far too many secrets.

It was best to leave each other some room.

Fang Canran brewed tea and handed a cup to He Lingchuan. “Why did you say Shao Jian is connected to imperial nectar?”

He Lingchuan dipped a finger in water and swiftly wrote a word on the table.

Fang Canran looked at it, and his pupils contracted. He Lingchuan also noticed the vein at his temple jump sharply.

That word was, of course—

Punishment.

The “Punishment” in Dragon Punishment Pillar.

The next instant, He Lingchuan wiped it away and raised his cup for a sip. “Did I write it correctly?”

Now that the Chains of Oath had taken effect and the two could not harm each other, he no longer worried about Fang Canran putting poison in the water.

The expression on Fang Canran’s face shifted again and again. His gaze could not conceal his shock. “You...?”

This man surnamed He actually knows even this!

Such a detail. Such a...

Naturally, no one in Lingxu City knew about this matter, or Fang Canran would never have survived until now.

He had never expected that a secret his family had guarded carefully for more than a hundred years would suddenly be uncovered by a stranger, an outsider of unknown origin.

It was like living in a sturdy old house for over a century, only for the roof to suddenly collapse. The feeling was not pleasant.

If He Lingchuan had not already bound himself with the Chains of Oath, making it impossible for either side to harm the other, Fang Canran would have killed him no matter what to silence him.

“You learned this secret from that ancient city’s illusion as well?”

He Lingchuan nodded.

Fang Canran stared at him intently. “Then did you see who gave those things to Shao Jian?”

“Of course.” He Lingchuan silently mouthed the name—

Mitian.

Those two syllables were not difficult to read from the shape of his lips.

Fang Canran slowly leaned back against the chair and let out a long breath. “As expected.”

“You didn’t know?”

“Shao Jian was always extremely secretive about it. He never told anyone where those things came from, but I inferred they most likely came from that ancient god.”

After the Chains of Oath took effect, both men spoke much more directly. They no longer circled around everything or denied every word to the death.

Fang Canran fixed his eyes on He Lingchuan. “The ancient city you mentioned. Could it be... Panlong City?”

“You know Panlong City?”

“How could I not?” Fang Canran gave a faint smile. “Shao Jian often went there. Besides, I also investigated that city’s history. The reason Panlong City was destroyed in the end was the same as the State of Yuān’s.” He sighed softly. “Young Master He, did you really come to Lingxu City only because of the elixir of youth case?”

He cared deeply about this point and had asked it several times.

“I had long admired Lingxu City and wanted to broaden my horizons here. I also wanted to fulfill a friend’s request along the way. As for the elixir of youth case, at first, it was only a simple case of a missing messenger. When Crown Prince Yue entrusted it to me, I had no idea it was tied to Lingxu City’s powerful nobles.” He Lingchuan told the truth. “The waters in this case turned out far too deep. Later, Deputy Cloud Envoy Bai demanded that I come to Lingxu City to assist with the investigation.”

“You should have had many chances to withdraw in the middle, yes?” Fang Canran drank his tea. “Most people do not do such thankless things, like striking a stone with an egg.”

“Someone had to do it.” He Lingchuan looked at him and said, word by word, “If everyone only cares for small gains, then there can be no great righteousness left in the world.”

“What was your friend’s request?” Fang Canran immediately seized the key point. So, investigating the case was merely incidental, and fulfilling the friend’s request is his true purpose here?

He Lingchuan smiled. “Just helping them with a small matter.”

“What matter?”

He Lingchuan looked at him for a long while, then asked instead, “With Mr. Fang’s background and identity, you could have gone anywhere. Why did you choose to remain in Lingxu City?”

Fang Canran was Shao Jian’s descendant. If that identity alone were discovered, the gods could make him die a horrible death. So by remaining in Lingxu City, he was actually carrying an enormous risk.

Fang Canran did not answer.

Both men fell silent.

Their relationship was still too shallow to speak too deeply.

After a while, Fang Canran changed the subject, “Then once these matters are over, where will you go?”

“Of course I’ll run as far away as possible.”

“Oh?” Fang Canran was curious. “With so many aristocratic families beckoning to you, not one tempts you?”

“Lingxu City and I are incompatible. On the surface, it is prosperous; underneath, it is deeply ominous. It is not a place for me to stay long.” He Lingchuan bore the secret of the Generous Pot. He had no desire to linger beneath the heavenly gods’ eyes. “Besides, I’ve offended too many important people. I should not stay here and irritate them.” Then he asked, “By the way, I very much want to know what happened to Mr. Shao Jian in the end.”

Fang Canran was stunned.

“I also want to know why you have always worn this ring. Its material is ordinary, with only a little refined iron added. It does not even have a storage function. As Dun Garden’s chief steward, surely you have plenty of better treasure rings to wear?”

Fang Canran looked down at the ring. “When it comes to something passed down from one’s ancestors, the material is not important.”

“Then what is important?” He Lingchuan asked him. “Their will?”

Fang Canran was silent for a long while before finally saying, “When Mr. Shao was fifty-seven, he disbanded the Red Snail Merchant Guild. Three years later, after his sixtieth birthday, he left home. He left a letter telling them not to look for him, and from then on, his whereabouts were unknown. Three more years passed, then a bird monster flew over with news. He had been abducted, beheaded, skinned, and stuffed with straw. His crime was blaspheming the gods in secret. However, after he was captured, he took poison first and killed himself, so his descendants were not implicated.”

He Lingchuan closed his eyes and could not help but sigh.

Earthen jars were bound to break beside the well. In the end, Shao Jian had indeed achieved the fate he had chosen.

Though He Lingchuan had long imagined such an ending, and though Shao Jian had already died more than a century ago, hearing Fang Canran say it still left his heart heavy.

After all, not long ago, he had still been drinking wine and eating meat with Shao Jian on the Panlong Wasteland, talking about the past and the present.

Though Shao Jian had never forgotten his national hatred, he had remained optimistic about resistance, about battle, and even about the future.

If he had not been optimistic, how could he have faced such powerful enemies? How could he have carried such a burden for decades as if it were a single day?

Shao Jian’s latter half of life had almost been a one-man war.

But those who stood on Panlong City’s side all seemed to meet bad ends. In the end, Shao Jian had not escaped that fate either.

Fang Canran had been watching He Lingchuan’s expression all along. Now he asked, “Why are you sad for him?”

He had been a merchant for a long time and was very good at reading expressions. The youth’s sorrow and sigh had lasted only an instant, but they had arisen naturally.

Besides, they were discussing a man from more than a hundred years ago. What need was there for him to pretend?

He Lingchuan composed his expression and said gravely, “A hero may remain nameless. Mr. Shao was never known to the world, but his merit reached the heavens. I deeply admire him.” He raised his cup. “A toast to Mr. Shao.”

Fang Canran drank with him, then listened as He Lingchuan continued, “There is one more matter I would like to ask Mr. Fang about.”

“What is it?”

“Very few greater monsters from the Ancient Era have survived until today. I hear Mount Xu’s guardian spirit is one of them. I deliberately went to Star-Plucking Tower several times to observe it, but it never appeared.” He Lingchuan then smiled and asked, “Is there any way to meet it?”

What kind of question is that? Fang Canran was taken aback. After thinking about it, he said, “The lava pool at Star-Plucking Tower is only its open-air bath. The guardian spirit may usually stay anywhere. If you want to see it immediately, you’ll probably have to present offerings.”

“What offerings specifically?”

Fang Canran’s gaze flickered. “Why do you think I would know?”

He Lingchuan shrugged. “The Ke Family often orders strange ores and rare stones from Dun Garden. I assume they’re offerings for Juju.”

“That’s true.” Fang Canran then recited a long list of assorted items, some ores, some spirit woods, more than a dozen in total.

With He Lingchuan’s memory, he did not need to write them down, but the more he listened, the more bitter his expression became. “It needs that much?” And every item sounds expensive!

“The guardian spirit’s taste is refined and very particular.” Fang Canran instructed him, “You don’t need to feed it full. Choosing two or three kinds as offerings will be enough.”

He Lingchuan looked curious. “What happens when Juju eats its fill? Does it get sleepy like a person?”

“Of course. People need to digest food after eating their fill, and the guardian spirit needs to digest minerals. It will need a short sleep.” Fang Canran smiled. “But as far as I know, if you want it to eat enough to fall asleep, you only need a sufficient amount of boundless gold.”

“Boundless gold?” He Lingchuan blurted. “You mean something like the sword tip of Immortal Shou’an that the Ke Family bought at Dun Garden?”

Fang Canran nodded. “But that amount was definitely not enough. At minimum, you would need more than twice that.”

That sword tip had sold for 870,000 taels of silver. More than twice that would be over 1.7 million taels!

And boundless gold was a priceless treasure that had a price but no market. It could be found only by chance, not by searching. Under normal circumstances, even if you held money in your hands, there was nowhere to buy it.

It actually costs such an outrageous amount just to feed Juju until it’s full in one sitting?