Chapter 2319: I Trust You

"But the mortal realm lies in ruins; even with Shou'an's abilities, finding traces of living beings is difficult. Those who survived by luck were already hiding in remote nooks and crannies — alive at the time, but hard to find later." He paused. "Fate and fortune — it just so happened that Immortal Shou'an had refined a magic artifact at that very moment. Its most basic ability is to search for the living amidst the vast dust and haze; whether the body remains intact or only the divine soul persists, it can keenly capture them!"

"Relying on this artifact, Immortal Shou'an truly helped many living beings survive. Therefore, he named this artifact that has saved countless lives 'Yangguan Dao'."

"Using it to search for the nascent consciousness of the Hidden God Lord — wouldn't that be one search, one hit?" He Lingchuan's lips curved slightly, with a hint of mockery. "A treasure Immortal Shou'an used to save people and souls, yet the Heavenly Gods want to use it to exterminate divine consciousness?"

"Exactly."

Hearing this, He Lingchuan finally understood:

"The two Heavenly Demons who successfully descended on Pulu Island — they came to the lower realm to handle this matter?"

"Correct." Frost Leaf gave him an affirmative answer. "Legend has it the 'Yangguan Dao' is most likely in Shao City right now; the two of them are going to attempt to retrieve it."

"Does the Heavenly Palace have no other experts who can retrieve it?"

"The Heavenly Palace has expended much effort on intelligence regarding the 'Yangguan Dao'; after all, it is an ancient rumor, extremely difficult to verify. Only half a year ago was it confirmed. Moreover, these two Heavenly Gods also need to continue testing their descended bodies; this should be their mission." So this trip to Shaoguan kills two birds with one stone.

"Attempt to retrieve?" He Lingchuan still caught this detail. "Both of them personally descended to the lower realm, yet they have no certainty of obtaining the Yangguan Dao?"

"If you knew who the holder of the 'Yangguan Dao' is, you would know this trip of theirs is no easy feat." Frost Leaf smiled. "Have you ever heard the great name of the 'Earth Mother'?"

"I seem to have heard of her." He Lingchuan felt as if he had heard it somewhere, but the impression was not deep.

"She is a cunning and greedy giant demon." Frost Leaf stopped there. "For more specific intelligence, you will have to investigate yourself."

Hearing this, He Lingchuan asked him: "How am I to verify the intelligence you speak of?"

"You cannot verify it." Frost Leaf's face was calm. "These pieces of intelligence are all top secret; those who know them are few and far between, and you couldn't ask them even if you tried. I can swear on my divine soul to guarantee their truth."

"No need." He Lingchuan shook his head. "I trust you."

Frost Leaf was instead slightly surprised. "You trust the National Preceptor of Biega?"

"Didn't we deal with each other before? Frost Leaf the National Preceptor may be ruthless, but he is a man of his word." He Lingchuan smiled. "This intelligence is very valuable; it is indeed worth a Golden Core."

To the Nine Nether Great Emperor, a Golden Core, no matter how precious, is merely a rare curio; keeping it in hand only lets one fiddle with it, no different from a walnut — after all, Cang Yan lacks no supreme treasures. Using it to exchange for the Heavenly Demons' classified intelligence could not be more profitable.

He Lingchuan thought for a moment, then asked Frost Leaf again:

"Can the Hidden God Lord's body truly produce over ten thousand descended bodies?"

"You also received this rumor?" Frost Leaf chuckled. "I have not seen the Hidden God Lord myself, but you have seen True Person Qianhuan's true form."

"Right, a super-large clam shell that can envelop the entire Inverted Sea." To date, True Person Qianhuan's true body is still the largest monster He Lingchuan has ever seen.

"Then in your opinion, how many descended bodies could True Person Qianhuan's body produce?"

"External incarnations?" True Person Qianhuan has the ability to turn the illusory into reality, and personally refined several external incarnations, each of peerless power. He Lingchuan thought for a moment. "It depends on their power. If at the Immortal level, I think there should be no fewer than several dozen to a hundred; if below Immortal, then perhaps more."

True Person Qianhuan's body is, after all, that special.

"Even if True Person Qianhuan does not possess the extraordinary talent of the Hidden God Lord, do you think the descended bodies manufactured by the Hidden God Lord could be several dozen times more than True Person Qianhuan's?"

He Lingchuan thought for a moment, then laughed: "I see."

As expected, painting big pies is a high-end skill every leader must master; the human world and the demon realm are no exception.

It's not that no Heavenly Demons questioned it, but as long as this imaginary number isn't nailed down with hard proof, the Heavenly Demons will continue to harbor illusions.

Human nature — or rather, the deepest depths of divine nature — always holds a share of clear, pure foolishness.

He Lingchuan leaned forward slightly and whispered: "Oh right, you wouldn't happen to know where the Hidden God Lord's body is hidden, would you?"

"This secret is known by no more than three people in all the world; unfortunately I am not among them." Frost Leaf also leaned over, bowing his head and speaking in a low voice. "If I knew, I would directly use this intelligence to exchange for the Golden Core from you; the odds of success would be even greater."

The Hidden God Lord's safety directly determines whether the Heavenly Gods' descent plan can be implemented.

He Lingchuan gave a slight cold smile: "It seems the Heavenly Gods don't trust you all that much either."

Frost Leaf spoke a sentence rich with deep meaning: "The Heavenly Gods trust no one."

"The Heavenly Gods deliberately hid it from you; looks like that decision was correct." He Lingchuan was also curious. "Why did you sell out the Hidden God Lord's intelligence?"

What he actually meant was: as a "Divine Son", why would Frost Leaf betray the Heavenly Gods, and why would he dare to betray them?

"Mingling in the turbid mortal world, one inevitably becomes entangled in karmic obstacles." Frost Leaf showed not a shred of guilt. "The situation within Biega is actually more complex than you imagine."

"Even in Biega, not everyone welcomes the Heavenly Gods' descent?"

"You ask knowing the answer."

He Lingchuan stood up and said casually: "Alright, the Golden Core is yours."

Frost Leaf stretched lazily, looking completely relaxed, and suddenly asked an off-topic question: "I heard you obtained the Fate Godhead?"

"Your intelligence network is quite well-informed." He Lingchuan had once displayed the Fate Godhead in front of Mugu's National Preceptor Wang Xingyi; the latter, upon returning to his country, would certainly have reported it upward.

It's just unknown from which high-ranking figure in Mugu Frost Leaf obtained this intelligence.

"I also heard a legend: a person who has just obtained the Fate Godhead has one and only one chance to glimpse their own fate." Frost Leaf rubbed his hands. "I want to ask you — did you truly see your own future?"

He Lingchuan did not deny it: "More or less. But a future revealed in advance may not necessarily still come to pass."

"Is it good, or bad?"

He Lingchuan shrugged: "One can only say it's a bit unexpected."

"Since you have the Fate Godhead, you should know — can fate be reversed?"

He Lingchuan gave a noncommittal answer: "Why do you ask this?"

Frost Leaf chuckled: "Who would have no interest in defying heaven and changing fate?"

"I only believe that things depend on human effort." He Lingchuan said indifferently. "I believed it in the past and now; I will believe it in the future as well."

Frost Leaf's smile slowly faded; he was silent for a while, then said: "I still have one thing to beseech the Great Emperor for."