Chapter 2363: Threading the Needle, Guiding the Thread: The Great Shaman

In his impression, the Great Shaman came and went like the wind, with no fixed abode; ten years ago in Heishuicheng, he had no permanent residence, only renting a small courtyard in the outskirts, not far from Hongya Road.

By the time He Lingchuan encountered the sand leopard, fell off the cliff, and recovered from his injuries, the Great Shaman had already wandered off.

"Someone even saw him at the market just over ten days ago," Liu Baobao said. "He bought two strings of pork and several jin of good wine."

In the local market, when selling meat, they always pierce a small hole in the meat and tie it with dried mare's tail grass rope, called a "string," basically three taels in weight; after paying, the buyer can take it away directly.

Liu Baobao, being considerate, said: "Young Master, do you want to go find him? Every time the Great Shaman appears, people looking for him come in an endless stream, so he set a rule for everyone: after the Wei hour until before dark, one can go to Tiaoma Alley to find him, only one person at a time; too early or too late, and he won't receive them."

He Lingchuan glanced at the sky—the sun was already slanting westward; wasn't the Wei hour almost over?

He then urgently asked:

"Has the appearance of the strange city on Hongya Road affected your merchant guild's business?"

"Of course!" Upon mentioning this, Liu Baobao's face fell bitterly. "We have two groups of people and goods worth several thousand, originally scheduled to be transported to Pingcheng these two days; delays would incur a huge penalty. Now, the strange city blocks the Hongya merchant route, not letting anyone pass, and monsters have come out to eat people—who would dare go there?"

He paused again and continued: "We're actually lucky—next door, the Yangdu Firm had over two hundred people go on a trading trip and never return, losing both personnel and goods. Now Yangdu Firm has to compensate for both goods and lives, being besieged by creditors and relatives, already having to pawn even their undershirts."

"Have the officials gone to check it out?"

"They have. The two batches sent for negotiation never returned; now they're preparing to mobilize the army." Liu Baobao pointed to himself, then to his two companions in the distance. "Today, the prefect even came to discuss logistics with us, saying reinforcements will arrive soon."

He sighed: "These past two days, everyone in the city has been worried, not knowing whether the monsters will attack Heishuicheng."

"In past beast invasions, the officials handled things quite well, right?" He Lingchuan, having flown here from the northwest, observed the people's livelihood along the way; compared to other places, it was still far inferior to Shen State.

"Quite well, indeed quite well—several routes frequently used by the Liu Merchant Guild rarely encounter monsters or bandits, much better than the former Yuanzhou State." Liu Baobao sighed. "But I heard this batch of monsters is especially fierce; I don't know if the officials can handle them."

Upon saying this, he suddenly realized:

"Ah, Young Master, could it be that you came for this monster? These past two days, cultivators have increased in the city; I've overheard several discussions, all about that strange city."

He Lingchuan looked at him, smiling falsely: "You know too much."

Having often heard him say this before, Liu Baobao felt no fear, only warmth: "Fine, fine, I won't ask anymore."

He Lingchuan asked again: "Have there been any abnormalities recently on Hongya Road and Pangu Ancient City?"

The desert turned into grassland; the originally raging fierce winds also disappeared, and ordinary human activity zones are now getting closer and closer to the Pangu ruins.

"What abnormalities could these two have…… oh!" Liu Baobao suddenly recalled something. "At the gate of the Pangu ruins, where the stone bridge naturally formed meets the plain, it suddenly broke a long time ago."

The Pangu ruins are located at the pass of the Chipa Plateau; their only connection to the plain is that stone bridge.

He Lingchuan let out an "oh": "Then the only way in is by flying?"

"Even avian beasts and demonic birds can't get in." Liu Baobao muttered. "I heard people say the ruins somehow developed a barrier; flying birds find it hard to enter."

He Lingchuan nodded slightly. Liu Baobao looked at him, wanting to speak but hesitating.

Actually, He Lingchuan's connection with him only went as far as the previous incident when He Chunhua and Naluotian were schemed against and they re-entered Pangu Ancient City. After that, He Lingchuan went far away to the Shanjin Plains, He Chunhua returned to Ducheng to activate the Heaven-Reversing Mode, and both father and son were so busy they had no time to attend to old acquaintances in Heishuicheng. Thus, Liu Baobao's life returned to tranquility.

Later, He Chunhua established a state and proclaimed himself king; the whole country knew the king had only one son—He Chunhua's second son, He Yue.

So, what about He Lingchuan?

According to the official announcement, the Eldest Young Master He died in battle during his trip to Pangu Ancient City; Liu Baobao had no reason to doubt it—only regrettable that he had thin fortune; if the Eldest Young Master hadn't died, he might have become the Crown Prince.

Who would have thought he would actually see He Lingchuan today!

A person dead for over ten years suddenly revived—this visual and psychological impact on Liu Baobao was no small matter.

He Lingchuan seemed to hear his inner thoughts; at that moment, he smiled and said:

"I see your friend has been waiting upstairs for a while—you go attend to your business first; when you're free, we'll have drinks again."

"Alright, alright." Liu Baobao was just turning around when his vision suddenly darkened, and a clamor arose in his ears.

He had a moment of daze, rubbed his eyes, and lifted his head—only to find himself slumped on the wine table, with those few drinking merchants beside him.

So he had just been asleep, having a strange dream?

"Awake?" his friend laughed. "You only drank two cups and passed out—you scared us half to death."

"Suddenly felt drowsy. No problem, come on, let's add two more dishes!" Liu Baobao waved his hand boldly, but inside he muttered: "How did I inexplicably dream of the Eldest Young Master? He's long been an old acquaintance from years ago?"

……

Soon after, He Lingchuan and the other two walked out of the small wine shop.

Dong Rui reminded from behind: "Hey, the Wei hour has passed. Want to first go check out that Youhua Old Shop?"

"No need—the most valuable contract papers inside have already been taken by Sun Hongye."

Although that's the case, when they passed Youhua Old Street, He Lingchuan still unconsciously glanced into the shop.

Plain and unremarkable, the shopkeeper was dozing behind the counter.

He also specifically glanced at the attic—the paper-pasted door had no holes.

Back then, Sun Hongye discovered special paper on this door—the blade-edge port contract forced upon Bailie by the Qing State.

That is, the very contract he left for He Lingchuan; after scheming against Naluotian and having nowhere to go, He Lingchuan conceived the idea of crossing a thousand miles eastward.

Then came the operation of the Yangshan Islands, wandering the Shanjin Plains, and other subsequent events.

Then came the Nine Abysses Great Emperor and his Cangyan Empire.

For He Lingchuan, this opportunity, this major turning point in fate, had once been pasted as window paper in an inconspicuous little shop in a border town.

At that time, he still lamented the unpredictability of worldly affairs, but after talking with Liu Baobao, He Lingchuan understood.

Under heaven, what coincidences are there?

Before Sun Hongye arrived, the Satisfied Full Great Shaman might have already entered this shop.

So—

He Lingchuan sighed:

"Let's go, to Tiaoma Alley."

I don't know if, carrying so many doubts, he can find answers in Tiaoma Alley.

Tiaoma Alley is also an old alley that existed before Heishuicheng's expansion; He Lingchuan's original self used to play hide-and-seek here as a child, but he had never seen such lush green moss at the alley's end.

The changes in environment are truly deeply embedded in every corner of this world.