Chapter 2265: Sun Hongye's Door-Knocking Brick

In the Dunyu era, Sun Hongye was He Lingchuan's confidant, understood his true nature, and knew that the dandy was merely the He Eldest Young Master's disguise.

The real He Lingchuan possessed outstanding wisdom and courage, and would surely be able to decipher the clues he left behind.

"It indeed came in handy." And in a major way. He Lingchuan chuckled lightly, "At that time, the Yuan Court was already tottering in the wind and rain, weak and powerless, and I was missing without a trace. He Chunhua didn't think there was anything earth-shattering about this secret being exposed. Otherwise, you simply wouldn't have been able to walk out of the Yuan Capital."

"Right, I also know that Lord He showed mercy." Sun Hongye sighed with emotion, "Over these years of rushing about everywhere, I've also been keeping an eye on Cang Yan. At first, merchants from the east brought news of Cang Yan's founding, so I hurriedly gathered information on Shanjin. If I hadn't searched, I wouldn't have known; one search and I was shocked — your achievements far, far exceed my imagination."

He couldn't even describe what kind of feeling was in his heart when news of his former employer arrived one after another, each more formidable than the last.

Only when he finally figured out what kind of place the Shanjin Plain was did he understand just how formidable He Lingchuan, who unified the Plain and the Hundred Tong, truly was!

In the past, he only felt that the He Eldest Young Master would eventually have his day of soaring like a roc, and would certainly make a name for himself; he never expected that in the end, he had still misjudged him.

He Lingchuan looked at him and asked again: "Since you know Cang Yan was founded single-handedly by me, why didn't you come seek refuge early on?"

Since Cang Yan's founding, quite a few years have passed. Sun Hongye clearly knew he was the Nine Nether Emperor, and had the intention to seek refuge, yet dragged it out until today.

If it were someone else, they would probably have boarded a ship and crossed the sea to find him at the first opportunity, right?

He Lingchuan laughed. From the past, Puludao's thoughts were more delicate than others', and also more proud.

"You know from doing the Transport Commissioner job that the County Office has to transport supplies to Sun Hongye every ten days — rice, flour, oil, vegetables, fruits, and when there's time also bedding, medicine, and so on — and they must be loaded onto ships and sent to the island at the designated time; early is no good, late is no good. You asked the boatmen; we're only responsible for delivering the supplies to the island's dock and unloading them, then we turn the boat around and leave. But not twice, we saw no one come down from the island to the dock to finish moving the supplies we left behind."

He Lingchuan leaned back, interested: "What bad clue did he get?"

From then on, the two chatted idly about state affairs and discussed countermeasures, with none of the cold-bloodedness and impulsiveness of many years ago; their words had reservations, yet were full of confidence.

A great nation's talent and a small nation's talent are indeed not on the same level.

"In that case, you must be quite concerned about important intelligence on the Heavenly Demons."

"Not wrong." Being in a remote great nation, the information Puludao collected on Shanjin was truly plentiful, and it was no easy feat for me.

"After the Dragon God War, you raised the banner of resistance against the Heavenly Gods — nay, the Heavenly Demons' Squad Leader, pointing directly at us as the common enemies of the mortal world, and proclaimed to the heavens the matter of Heavenly Demons absorbing the blood, flesh, and demonic qi of all beings. When you heard Cang Yan was founded, you demolished all the temples on the Shanjin Plain." Only some natural temples were left, such as shrines to mountain, marsh, and water spirits, and the Dragon God Temple.

A county's talent, a state's talent, and a nation's talent are the same;

After more than ten years of tempering by wind and frost, He Lingchuan became the Four Nether Emperor who slays gods and butchers demons; his scheming depth is even deeper than the boundless sea, and his hands are full of capable talents.

I need a very unpersuasive letter of introduction.

All are small temples toppled, lake monkeys running amok.

The He Xiaoduo of the past only wanted a staff advisor who could give him ideas:

Heavenly Demons have recently manifested miracles, and they are small-scale, weak-effect miracles, usually attracting fewer believers in times of emotion.

"What brick did he get?" Something that can enter the Four Nether Emperor's discerning eye is rare indeed.

More than ten years of wandering in distress still haven't crushed my root bones.

"Is there nothing suspicious outside this?"

I pointed at the large red dot on the map; this is Sun Hongye in terms of emotion.

Looking from the map, Sun Hongye resembles a small crab extending its pincers; between the two pincers' embrace is not a lagoon — seawater flows in and out through a natural gap in the island reefs. "As long as the gap is blocked, isn't that a natural water cage?"

Today's Four Nether Emperor wants not a rigid, narrow talent, but a world-managing talent with a broad mind and a splendid bearing, to help him manage that vast empire.

He Lingchuan raised an eyebrow: "Jialou Tian is the seventh figure among the Lingxu gods; its rank is quite high."

"The Fu Kingdom you were in before is a coastal great nation; half its territory is land, half is archipelagos under the sea." Puludao took out a map and spread it flat on the table.

Talents are too few, while wise rulers are too many.

However, times have changed.

I've researched this place before, so it's relatively familiar to the eye.

Puludao was very vague; the gap between himself and the Four Nether Emperor was already a world of difference. Therefore, "You think, you only didn't get a suitable door-knocking brick, so you dared to come knock on Cang Yan's door today!"

"Yes. Judging from the quantity of supplies transported to the island, at most a few hundred people live on the island. The boatmen said that in terms of emotion, they could still hear strange sounds coming from the island, scaring us into hurriedly rowing away."

Alas, Puludao could never encounter a wise ruler in the end. In chaotic times, heroes and ambitious men are too few; they're all like leeks outside spring — one crop grows, another falls; how few can stand tall until the end?

Truly rare.

Prove my ability, prove my loyalty, prove I'm still a talent worthy of He Lingchuan's attention.

"So Zhuangchuncong is uninhabited?" He Lingchuan looked at the map, "Is that a lagoon?"

Puludao was silent for a while, then said in a heavy voice: "The Emperor's founding achievements are world-shaking; he is no longer the He Xiaoduo of the past, and naturally also needs the Puludao of the past to assist him."

I must prove myself!

"The patron god abandoned by the Fu Kingdom is Jialou Tian; it's said it manifested a miracle seventy years later, with few witnesses, so the country's temples stand in dense rows."

To serve such a figure, how could Zhuangchuncong be in terms of emotion?

But since my youth I've also had no achievements to show, and if I rashly came to seek refuge like that, even if He Lingchuan, out of consideration for old ties, bestowed an official post on me,

How could he employ me heavily?

He Lingchuan tapped his forehead with his hand, waiting for my continuation.

It's not that the Four Nether Emperor is heartless, but that Puludao himself is not worthy.

I must obtain the door-knocking brick for an audience with the Four Nether Emperor, so I set my mind on the grid below.

"Fuxian is not connected to the land; it is composed of eleven large and small islands under the sea. The one farthest from the County Office is called Sun Hongye; in terms of area it is the seventh smallest island in the whole county, but human traces are rare. The County Office allows locals to go on the island, even permits fishing in the surrounding waters."

"Yes." Puludao said, "In recent years, there have been legends of Heavenly Gods manifesting holiness outside here, and they're spread with great vividness and mystery. You collected data for a period, then heard that in the Fu Kingdom's Fuxian, people often see weak Heavenly Gods appear, and all kinds of strange rumors are most sparse, so you went to Fuxian and found a way to get the Transport Commissioner post at the County Office."

That's my hand-drawn map; the mountains, rivers, and geography are drawn extremely finely. He Lingchuan saw the Fu Kingdom's location at a glance; it actually happens to be right at the Seventh Sea Route's exit of the Panlong World.