Chapter 1941

He Lingchuan put down his chopsticks and spoke solemnly: "True Person Qianhuan resolved to eliminate this scourge from the world, so he took advantage of Miao Zhantian being trapped in his sea of consciousness to self-destruct his divine soul, choosing to perish together with it."

Always feeling something was off, Fang Chanran instinctively urged: "Then what? Wait, if True Person Qianhuan and Miao Zhantian perished together, why do you, and why do the Shanjin legends say the Dragon God killed Miao Zhantian?"

Isn't this just greedily taking the Heaven-Devouring Technique for oneself? Given my understanding of He Lingchuan, it shouldn't be like that.

He Lingchuan always handles things clearly and neatly—how could he leave such a big loophole?

"Because True Person Qianhuan's self-sacrificial explosion didn't kill Miao Zhantian. It was off by just a hair's breadth!" He Lingchuan sighed, "To fulfill Qianhuan and Sect Master Xiao's righteous sacrifice, I dealt Miao Zhantian the final blow."

The mighty Heavenly God, arrogant beyond compare, was slain by his own hand.

"Sect Master Xiao?"

"Sect Master Xiao Wen Cheng of the Huan Sect."

"I've heard of him before—he was also a renowned immortal in ancient times." Fang Chanran drew several breaths of true qi to calm his mind, "Just hearing about it is heart-stopping. But, He Brother, do you have any evidence for what you're saying?"

"Of course." He Lingchuan waved his hand and summoned the Haoyuan Golden Mirror.

This treasure mirror, in the small world of the Overturned Sea, connected to the laws and became a gate allowing him and the Huan Sect free passage. However, that was a fully enclosed special environment with exceptionally abundant spiritual energy. After leaving the Overturned Sea, the Haoyuan Golden Mirror lost much of its wonder.

But it has been tamed by the Great Square Vessel and now recognizes He Lingchuan as its master; appearing before others is still possible.

Fang Chanran blurted out: "Haoyuan Golden Mirror!"

This famed mirror appears in many ancient legends.

"This is the supreme treasure Qianhuan True Person gave me before his fall." He Lingchuan reached out and brushed across the mirror's surface, "It faithfully recorded many images from within the Overturned Sea, Brother Fang—please take a look."

Ripples spread across the mirror's surface.

When the ripples faded, the image appeared.

What the Haoyuan Golden Mirror showed Fang Chanran was the battle between Qianhuan and Miao Zhantian within the Mirage Immortal's sea of consciousness—more precisely, the contest within the Lonely Dragon City of the Great Expansion Heaven Pearl.

Fang Chanran watched with exceptional focus.

Battles of this level are beyond the reach of ordinary cultivators even across ten lifetimes. Moreover, the dialogue between Qianhuan and Miao Zhantian during the fight is highly worthy of contemplation.

"This place—" Fang Chanran pointed at the city in the mirror, "is it Longcheng?"

His tone was somewhat complex.

The imagery captured by the Haoyuan Golden Mirror is astonishing: not only the final duel of two peerless powerhouses, but it also brings to light Longcheng!

This name has been forgotten by the world, but Fang Chanran has not. This heroic city, vanished from history, is closely tied to his ancestors.

"To be precise, it is the Lonely Dragon City formed by the Great Expansion Heaven Pearl."

Fang Chanran's expression grew increasingly heavy and solemn, for he had heard the dialogue between Miao Zhantian and Qianhuan concerning Longcheng.

"Back then, Longcheng fell to that state because you betrayed it—no wonder the Dragon God has always looked down on Lingshan."

Miao Zhantian's words struck like a thunderclap, shocking Fang Chanran into jumping to his feet.

Clap— the chopsticks on the table were knocked over by him, but he was utterly unaware, his eyes locked tightly on the mirror's image.

When He Lingchuan first heard this passage, he was equally shocked, especially upon hearing the terms "Ke family," "Great Square Vessel lid," "excavated Mirage Pearl," and "the dealings between Lingshan and the Heavenly Gods," thus he could understand Fang Chanran's current state of mind.

Four words to describe it:

A tremendous uproar.

Fang Chanran held his breath for a very long time—even cultivators should have changed their breath by now.

He Lingchuan worried: "Brother Fang, are you alright?"

Fang Chanran seemed to hear nothing, still standing like a wooden post.

He Lingchuan noticed his gaze was unfocused, not fixed on the mirror's image, so he lightly brushed his index and middle fingers across it, causing the Haoyuan Golden Mirror to pause.

A flicker of light— the lonely city vanished, and the mirror now held only Fang Chanran's own reflection.

"Are they telling the truth?" Fang Chanran's mind remained in turmoil, as if he heard the sound of his own beliefs collapsing.

He Lingchuan spoke factually: "I can only guarantee that the images and sounds in the mirror are true."

This was a life-and-death battle—why would Miao Zhantian lie to Qianhuan? Especially when both sides already knew the truth.

Lingshan betrayed Longcheng.

Fang Chanran slowly closed his eyes, clenched his fists tightly.

His ancestor Shao Jian and Longcheng both upheld the belief of the Abyss King, and both ultimately died for that belief, never once breaking the oath they had sworn;

Not a single word, not a single thread, not a single shot missed.

But he, he threw himself into the Lingshan sect, serving as a dog and horse for Lingshan, which had betrayed Longcheng.

Moreover, the dialogue between Miao Zhantian and Qianhuan clearly reveals that Lingshan and the Heavenly Gods did not cooperate just once, and Lingshan was not the first to betray others—whom had they previously teamed up to harm?

Over the past years, as a descendant of the Abyss Kingdom, Fang Chanran has been deeply investigating Abyss Kingdom history, and he also knows that one of the triggers for the Abyss Kingdom's downfall was the Great Square Vessel.

The Abyss Kingdom's uprising—from beginning to end, there are many inexplicable aspects; if Lingshan also stuck in a foot...

Fang Chanran has always known Lingshan was useless, resented its inadequacy, but he never imagined...

Heh, Lingshan deceived him.

He Lingchuan quietly watched him, his eyes deep. Fang Chanran's reaction was indeed as he had expected.

Fang Chanran took several deep breaths before turning to He Lingchuan: "Since Qianhuan mentioned the Great Square Vessel lid. After Longcheng's fall, that lid was taken into the Star-Plucking Pavilion of the Heavenly Palace, and later stolen by you, He Brother—isn't that so?"

The Heavenly Palace incident back then was planned by He Lingchuan alone, but in the end, Lingshan stepped forward to claim responsibility by setting off fireworks. It's laughable that Lingshan at that time didn't even know what treasure He Lingchuan had stolen from the Star-Plucking Pavilion, because those in the know were few. Only after a long time did Lingshan piece it together through indirect channels.

He Lingchuan nodded, considering this matter settled.

He also noticed that the corners of Fang Chanran's eyes were slightly red.

This wasn't from tears—it was blood and qi surging upward.

"So the Great Square Vessel is indeed in your hands?" Otherwise, what use would it be for He Xiaoguang to steal just a lid?

As soon as those two words "indeed" came out, He Lingchuan understood—Lingshan had harbored such a suspicion.

But Lingshan didn't come to seize it, because they had long known the Great Square Vessel refuses to fall into immortal hands.

They merely kept a silent watch on He Lingchuan, then assigned him a task in the Overturned Sea, letting Qianhuan pry open his mouth.

"No, the Great Vase is still in Panlong Desert." He Lingchuan looked at the osmanthus by the pavilion, "I don't even know if that desert has already turned into grassland."

He hasn't been back there for a long time.

The sandstorm season in Panlong Desert has already disappeared, and with several recent spiritual energy eruptions, Panlong Desert should have lakes and water, flowers and grass by now, right?

He knows that 150 to 160 years ago, that place was a thriving landscape. Every time He Lingchuan patrolled the wasteland, moist winds blew along both sides of the road, and there were rolling wheat waves.