Chapter 2539

When the Cloud Gate stabilized, Steward Wang said to the two: "Follow me."

He stepped into the Cloud Gate, and his figure instantly vanished.

He Lingchuan and Xiao An exchanged a glance, then hurriedly followed.

After passing through the Cloud Gate, the scenery changed once again.

Before them lay endless, rolling mountains, one after another, majestic and vast. Just the mountain they stood on had a lake at its summit covering over a hundred hectares.

Yet the entire mountain had been transformed into terraced fields, and the three stood by the lakeside at the peak. One side shimmered with rippling lake water, the other showed layer upon layer of terraces, chaotic yet orderly.

Many farmers worked in the fields, including humanoid monsters.

Tao Zhi said the Heavenly Palace had brought in many people from outside, still feeling short-staffed, so they had also transferred some night demons away.

It seemed all the manpower was being used here.

He Lingchuan was certain of one thing: whatever was planted in the fields was definitely not crops.

Xiao An lowered his head for a glance, then suddenly raised his wrist: "Oh no, the mark isn't glowing!"

The rune Steward Wang had previously branded on their wrists would glow green; now the rune remained, but it no longer shone, merely resembling a tattoo.

"That was just a one-time rune. Once you reach your destination, it's of no further use." Steward Wang warned the two: "Behave yourselves working in the Million Mountains, and you may live long."

At that moment, a sculpture by the roadside suddenly came to life, lurching toward the three.

It had been lurking in the grass, half-concealed by tall weeds, looking like a discarded stone statue, lifeless. Had it not moved, no one would have known it was still a gate guardian beast.

But once it emerged, it was sizable—about a zhang tall, resembling both a dog and a toad, with a wide, flat mouth, yet covered in hair, bulging eyes, and a flat nose.

It seemed to recognize Steward Wang, swaying twice beside him before approaching the two newcomers to sniff them closely.

Steward Wang then said: "Show it the rune on your wrists."

They did so; the gate guardian beast saw the rune, then retreated back into the grass, resuming its form as a stone statue.

Clearly, if the two were black-market stowaways without the rune as a pass, this beast would surely activate and simultaneously alert the Heavenly Palace administration.

The Cloud Terrace already had a very strict access control system, capable of keeping nine-tenths of ill-intentioned individuals outside, but the Spirit Essence Palace still felt uneasy, so they had to place another layer of surveillance here.

Steward Wang then said: "Alright, follow me."

He led the two to the shady side of the mountain, pointing downward: "Your task is to build up the embankments of the newly opened terraced fields. Simply put, do whatever others do."

The two beside him said nothing, seeming dazed.

Steward Wang grew impatient, raising his voice: "Did you hear that?"

Xiao An quickly replied: "I heard, I heard. Steward Wang, what exactly are we supposed to plant here?"

What the two had seen earlier on the sunny side were existing terraces, already filled with water; now, upon reaching the shady side, they found terraces being cleared, the mountain surface turned upside down, red mud everywhere.

The number of workers here was more than double that on the sunny side; looking from the mountain top down, heads swarmed like a dark mass, impossible to estimate at a glance, each with their backs to the sky, faces to the red earth, working until covered in dust and grime.

Overseers were present on site, waving whips to urge the laborers.

Compared to flatland farming, terrace construction is difficult and hard to maintain water and soil; I don't know why the Heavenly Palace insists on doing this.

Xiao An suddenly pointed into the distance: "That mountain, that mountain still has more!"

He Lingchuan followed the river's direction and saw that, indeed, at the winding end of the riverbed stood several more mountains, also carved into terraces, with countless people toiling hard.

But looking at these mountains, the soil was clearly fresh—evidently the terraces had only recently been opened.

Just as the mirror in He Lingchuan's bosom finished its complaint, Steward Wang summoned an overseer, pointing at the two and saying:

"These two are fugitives brought in from outside; hand them over to you."

"Yes, yes." The overseer bowed to Steward Wang, then turned to the two, his face changing: "You two, go to the Red House to get a set of tools, then start working in the fields right now!"

So, a quarter of an hour later, He Lingchuan and Xiao An rolled up their sleeves and trouser legs, began stacking the field embankments.

The main body of the terraces was excavated by giant puppets; this thing was equivalent to the Gold Armor Bronze General He Lingchuan once possessed—strong, tough, durable, but a huge energy consumer.

Long ago, he had to tighten his belt just to barely maintain one Gold Armor Bronze General; unexpectedly, the Spirit Essence Palace had deployed this siege weapon to open terraces.

Recalling how hard it had been to gather his black crystals, he now watched several Gold Armor Bronze Generals stride back and forth, and He Lingchuan silently cursed: "Wasteful plaything."

But handling the excavated earth, managing the terrace elevation differences, hardening the embankments, retaining water and soil, pre-burying fertilizer—all required manual labor; divine arts and techniques could not accomplish these.

They were newcomers, and the overseer walked back and forth behind them, ready to lash them if they slacked.

Who would have thought these two were so nimble, stacking stones and building embankments more skillfully than many veterans; the overseer watched for half a quarter-hour and found no fault, then left.

With a "swish" sound, someone nearby was whipped, their cries mingling with the overseer's shouts:

"If you slack again, I'll tear you apart and bury you in the fields as fertilizer!"

After saying that, his bloodshot eyes swept viciously over the surroundings; seeing the fear on the laborers' faces, he finally felt satisfied.

That's more like it.

He didn't turn around, unaware that Xiao An behind him was watching him, licking his lips.

The mirror on He Lingchuan's body sneered: "Truly imposing—wait till it gets its comeuppance… Has the Blood Demon returned yet?"

Just as Steward Wang left, He Lingchuan released the Blood Demon, sending it into the terraces to gather information. On this Ji Mountain, magical arts flew about chaotically, especially where the giant puppets passed, kicking up dust and haze; when the wind blew, it drifted everywhere. The Blood Demon was like a wisp of pale red smoke, nearly indistinguishable from the earth's base color, flying low and unobtrusive.

It arrived at the edge of the sunny-side terraces, making a discreet turn.

The laborers here bent over, backs turned to it, and did not notice its presence—even if they had, they might not have taken it seriously.

Which slave works enthusiastically?

The Blood Demon slipped over the mountain ridge, evaded the overseer's gaze, returned to the dusty construction site, and finally retreated into He Lingchuan's sleeve.

The mirror impatiently asked it: "Did you get anything?"

"I went myself—what could I fail to obtain?" The Blood Demon smirked, pressing something into He Lingchuan's hand: "Mission accomplished!"

He Lingchuan had just finished laying two stones, took a moment to lower his head and glance.

The mirror had already cried out: "Isn't this a sea dial?!"

What the Blood Demon brought back from the terraces was indeed several sea stars!

Only, the sea stars He Lingchuan had seen on the Yangshan Sea were mostly five-pointed, varying only in size, but these sea stars were of diverse forms.

(End of Chapter)