Chapter 2625: A Massive Variable

He Lingchuan gave a slight nod and strode quickly toward the Nancheng Gate.

He was the master of the Secret Realm, and here he possessed the ability to shrink the earth to an inch, which was far faster than riding a horse.

But during the journey, the Secret Realm suddenly shuddered violently once more.

This time it was even more violent than the last, but He Lingchuan was prepared and did not stagger. However, the corner of the eaves on the seventh floor of the Gao Ta beside him was shaken loose, falling with a clang right at He Lingchuan's feet and shattering all over the ground.

He Lingchuan lowered his head to look; among the fragments on the ground there was also a wind chime from the eaves, which had been smashed flat.

Even as he examined them, the fragments slowly vanished, and the ground became clean and spotless again, leaving nothing behind.

At the same time, the corner of the eaves on the seventh floor of the tower grew back anew, exactly the same as before.

In merely ten-odd breaths, it had completely self-repaired.

The Panlong Secret Realm that He Lingchuan had reshaped three years ago possessed powerful self-healing ability; once damaged, it could quickly repair itself.

After that, He Lingchuan rushed to the Nancheng Plaza.

This place had the most expansive lake surface in the entire city, its waters shimmering with ripples, and waterways connected to other bodies of water in the city.

The water lilies on the lake surface were in full bloom, and there was even a two-colored lotus flower, half peach-red and half pink-purple, with dewdrops clinging to its petals.

He Lingchuan had just arrived at the lakeside when he heard a loud splash from the center of the lake.

A giant whale breached!

This was a colossal creature; the front half of its body that emerged from the water occupied half the lake surface.

When it crashed back into the water, the waves it splashed up struck the shore in layer upon layer, surging directly onto the road.

The effect was comparable to a Category 12 hurricane striking the city.

He Lingchuan could also see clearly: the troublemaker's color was a red so deep it turned purple, its whole body round and smooth like a torpedo, but it was dragging several massive chains.

And as it leaped out, it also let out a long, clear, and far-reaching cry.

The source of that strange sound was indeed it!

It was common knowledge that as long as he, the master of the Secret Realm, did not allow outside things to enter, there could be no living creatures inside the Panlong Secret Realm.

But this...

"Chaos!" the little stone man said at once, "After I left Yada Island, it began appearing in the Secret Realm, sometimes in this lake, sometimes in other waters."

He Lingchuan's gaze fixed tightly on the lake surface: "Other waters, for instance?"

"For instance, the pool behind the Pengcheng Bureau."

He Lingchuan raised an eyebrow; in the past that was Mr. Zhang's residence and workplace. Mr. Zhang was a giant octopus yaoguai who specialized in testing the bone structure of the Panlong Army's new recruits — he had tested He Lingchuan too.

That body of water wasn't spacious, twenty-odd square units at most; the octopus liked such cramped places.

Could Chaos show its head there too?

"Does this fellow's size fluctuate between large and small?"

"Yes, it can be big or small. Depending on the body of water it emerges from." The little stone man complained, "I've chased it many times, but it simply ignores me."

The Earth Mother recognized Chaos. In the great battle of Yujing City three years ago, the Great Fanghu swallowed its essence and soul, and afterward she had seen Chaos's figure in the Red Sea.

But this monster never communicated with her.

He Lingchuan gazed at the rippling water at the shore, pondering for a long while.

In the past he could also see Chaos's figure underwater through the Secret Realm's waters. But Chaos had never surfaced, much less jumped out like this!

One must know that Chaos breaching the surface represented it "invading" the space of the Panlong Secret Realm, even if only for those brief one or two breaths.

In his understanding, this water surface was actually equivalent to a barrier existing between the Red Sea and the Secret Realm; therefore the Red Sea's waters could not pour in, and things inside the Secret Realm could not cross over — except for He Lingchuan and whatever he wanted to stuff inside.

But now, Chaos seemed to be attempting to break through this barrier.

Or perhaps the barrier itself was becoming blurred?

Also, why had Chaos's color changed? It used to be dark red, now it was turning purple. This fellow seemed to be changing as well.

Did Chaos represent a massive variable?

He Lingchuan reached his hand into the water and gave a gentle stir; the ripples on the water surface quickly calmed.

The lake water became calm and clear again, like translucent crystal.

The Earth Mother stood on He Lingchuan's shoulder looking down at the water surface, and could still see the purple figure underwater.

"What do you want to tell me?" He Lingchuan said softly, "Come out, at least give me a hint."

Who knew that not saying those words would have been better; after he finished speaking, the purple figure instead flicked its tail and dived straight into the deep water, disappearing.

"..."

The Earth Mother was puzzled: "Didn't it call and ram specifically to attract you here? Now that you've come, why did it leave instead?"

The mode of communication between Chaos and the Nine Nether, she could not understand even if she broke her stone head.

He Lingchuan scratched his head; this time Chaos had not communicated with him at all!

But the Earth Mother was right; Chaos's behavior carried a hint of rudeness.

He was still pondering when the ground shuddered violently again.

The pagoda shook several times; on the main street not far away, several shopfronts were directly shaken down, bricks and tiles scattering everywhere, the main street cracking into a "Z" shape; even the lakeside was split open with a gap, and lake water surged in.

Was Chaos ramming the Secret Realm again?

After ten-odd breaths, another one came.

He Lingchuan estimated that after ramming, it turned around in the water and charged a second time.

What on earth is this fellow up to?

After several dozen breaths, the shops on the street repaired themselves, the ground became level again, the gap in the Nancheng Plaza was fully repaired, and the lake water receded.

The Great Expansion Heavenly Pearl that constituted the Panlong Secret Realm, which had taken two hundred years to accumulate enough energy, was truly not to be underestimated.

The stability of this Secret Realm could not be mentioned in the same breath as the Zhong Shengguang era.

He Lingchuan simply jumped into the lake, walking step by step into the deep water.

This lake isn't deep; the bottom is just a little over a zhang. He reached the bottom in an instant and walked back and forth on the lakebed several times, but he didn't see the shadow of Hundun at all.

He Lingchuan climbed back onto the lakeshore, wiped the water from his face, and sighed: "No good, I can't go down."

That layer of barrier is still there, at least for him.

"How can I communicate with Hundun?" he muttered to himself.

As soon as he finished speaking, the divine bone necklace warmed slightly.

This is the Panlong Secret Realm; there's nothing for the divine bone necklace to devour, so this should be the Great Square Vessel responding to his words.

He Lingchuan's spirits lifted, and he began to move following the guidance of the divine bone necklace.

The little stone man saw him turn on his toes and stride toward the Blessing Pool, and hurriedly asked: "Did it contact you?"

"I suppose so." He Lingchuan was also helpless; his communication with the Great Square Vessel relied entirely on inference.

This secret realm has no Boundless Divine Temple, replaced instead by a tall tower, and similarly there is a beautiful large pool in front of the tower. Because He Lingchuan had already grown accustomed to its existence, his first-ever entry into the Panlong Secret Realm was through this pool.

The Blessing Pool is shaped like a three-petaled lotus, very regular, and currently has no water.

The entire water network of the Panlong Secret Realm is very smooth, but several months ago, the Blessing Pool dried up. No matter how much clear water He Lingchuan brought from elsewhere and poured in, he couldn't fill the pool bottom.

(End of Chapter)