Chapter 2439

He Lingchuan nodded again. Seeing that he understood, the Blood Demon said nothing more.

If delay is no longer possible, there's no need to prolong it; it's time to move to the next stage. The construction of the Panlong New Secret Realm is about to enter its most critical phase.

At this moment, Dong Rui asked him: "Nothing else—do you have anything else to report?"

He Lingchuan suddenly spoke, asking the Spider Queen:

"Second Mistress, can you reach Ling Jinbao?"

"No." Zhu Xiuer regretted, "This Secret Realm has cut off our communication with the outside world."

"What a pity. Otherwise, having Ling Jinbao gather more outside intelligence for us would help us judge Shangguan Biao's intentions. I always feel he's dug a pit here, waiting for us to jump in."

He Lingchuan's words were crystal clear; Zhu Xiuer hadn't even replied when Dong Rui already understood:

"Got it!"

……

Ling Jinbao, hiding in the crack of the ancient wall, suddenly shuddered, his shoulder twitching.

Bao Chihai wondered: "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing, there's just a huge mushroom!" Ling Jinbao pointed to the corner, his tone slightly exaggerated.

There grew a cluster of colorful mushrooms, the smallest of which had a cap larger than a washbasin.

Ling Jinbao knew this wasn't the mushroom growing large—it was himself shrinking.

Here, the ground vapors were damp; even the corners untouched by sunlight had sprouted mushrooms.

Bao Chihai: "..."

What's so surprising? He'd once seen mushrooms taller than a person in the outside world.

Ling Jinbao looked around, stroking his chin: "Your place is a bit messy."

Bao Chihai: "This is a forgotten corner. What it was like before I moved in is exactly what you see now—I'm too lazy to change anything."

"I thought you'd make them a bit more comfortable." Ling Jinbao crouched to examine a set of jars on the floor; indeed, the grain and style carried a strong sense of age—nothing but old and ancient, clearly antiques at a glance. "You've stolen so many rare treasures before—don't you enjoy luxurious pleasures?"

Bao Chihai has been imprisoned here for a long time, daily huddled in a tiny wall crack—doesn't he feel stifled?

Even ordinary people would actively improve their living conditions, right? Besides, he has nothing else to do.

"If I could fix it, I would!" Bao Chihai rolled his eyes, "I tried as soon as I was locked in—today's renovations, tomorrow morning everything's back to original! Look, I can't do as I please here."

Ling Jinbao suddenly smiled: "Since you call yourself the 'Immortal Thief,' have you ever wandered the city at night?"

"Of course, but not at night." Bao Chihai shook his leg, "This ghost city becomes lively at night—all kinds of demons and monsters appear, and there are plenty of lonely souls like me. Well, I know what you're going to ask—I've never been to the white house underground, nor have I returned to Duzhi Mountain; these are forbidden zones—once approached, even lonely souls will have their souls scattered and spirits destroyed!"

Ling Jinbao sighed regretfully and shrugged his shoulders.

In fact, just now he suddenly heard voices in his ears, startling him greatly, and he thought He Lingchuan and the others had emerged from the Secret Realm.

But it wasn't.

This unfamiliar voice said to him:

"Elder Ling, I am a companion of the Tiger Wing General. The Pak Chohai before you might be a disguise by Shangguan Biao—please proceed with cautious probing."

Tiger Wing General's companion? Ling Jinbao blinked, immediately recalling what Master Mingyao Zun had said: he used withered-leaf butterflies to monitor the Panlong Ruins and discovered two people and one spider entering the Panlong Secret Realm.

But later, when they appeared and collaborated with Ling Mountain to infiltrate Yujing City secretly, only one person and one spider were involved.

So where is the other person?

Now he knows—this person has been hiding, monitoring the entire scene.

The Tiger Wing General indeed needs a companion capable of internal-external coordination and wind-borne communication.

Dong Rui's next sentence is also key: "I have a way to transmit your conversation content to the Tiger Wing General."

Ling Jinbao couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. This is like sending a pillow when one is drowsy—he's been worried about how to get outside intelligence into the Secret Realm.

Pak Chohai happened to be asking:

"Alright, now it's my turn to ask you. That relic the Earth Mother is attacking—does it also have a particularly special Secret Realm, right? Ordinary relics, the Earth Mother wouldn't bother to consume."

"That's certain." Ling Jinbao nodded, "I've entered it before and even conversed with those inside."

After saying that, he recounted his previous experience entering the Panlong Secret Realm in full.

Pak Chohai listened especially attentively: "Really? There's still someone who can communicate with you?"

"Yes, why not? Quite fluent and natural, like a living person. They even fight each other." Ling Jinbao recalled, "Back then I had no concept, but now I think I probably entered a certain historical period of Panlong City."

"What's the connection between Ling Mountain and this Panlong Ruins? Why go to such great lengths?"

Ling Jinbao shook his head: "Ling Mountain doesn't care about the Panlong Ruins—it cares about the Earth Mother's wanton provocation. Whether the Earth Mother attacks the Panlong Ruins or the Pan Snake Ruins, Ling Mountain must give it a hard lesson. You've stayed in the sect before—you know face is substance."

Well, Pak Chohai changed his approach: "Now that you're fighting over this Secret Realm, do you know whether its owner—or rather, its guardian spirit—is formed from a dead person's obsession, or is a natural spirit born from ancient times?"

Ling Jinbao glanced at him: "What's the difference between these two?"

"Naturally, there is." Pak Chohai said naturally, "I've visited many relics—guardian spirits formed from dead souls usually don't last long."

"Why?"

"Limited power—output without input—will eventually be exhausted." Pak Chohai said, "Many relics in this world have generated guardian spirits, only to vanish silently in the end."

"How to avoid vanishing?"

"I think perhaps one must replenish power—and that's very hard for lonely souls to do." Pak Chohai shook his head, "Your relic being targeted by the Earth Mother means it's not far from being drained and captured."

"Unless new power is infused?"

"Just a guess." Pak Chohai sighed, "The number of relic guardian spirits is too small for proper study, and besides, I've been captured and brought here."

Ling Jinbao paused for a few breaths, then nodded:

"Actually, I've also considered these questions."

Actually, someone had prompted these questions in his ear.

"But the Earth Mother can, right?"

"Can……what?"

The earth mother can replenish its power to maintain the existence of the Secret Realm.

"Huh?" Bao Chihai glanced at him, a little surprised by the angle of his question, "The earth mother has a physical form, it's not a guardian spirit."

"But as for Yujing City, it is equivalent to the greatest guardian spirit, isn't it?" Ling Jinbao added, "Otherwise, why would it need to devour so many Secret Realms? Isn't it just to draw power to replenish itself?"

"Oh..." Bao Chihai thought for a moment, "If you put it that way, I suppose it's not wrong."