Chapter 3121

Who says a master must be broad-minded? Some hold grudges to the death.

"All the trouble you've caused the Heavenly Demon over these years, it will surely repay you double. By then, He Lingchuan will say, word for word: 'No one can help you anymore.'"

Yujù raised his hand, pressing down on the massive rock beside He Lingchuan: "Then what advice do you want from me?"

The fiery red magma on its body dripped onto the ground, hissing and crackling.

At such close range, even steel would melt, yet He Lingchuan remained unfazed, not even a speck of soot on his battle armor: "It's simple—stick to your old trade. But this time, you must help me secure the rear base of the War Alliance on Mount Xushan!"

"Your people are hammering and building everywhere on Mount Xushan, clearly intending to make this your main base?" Yujù looked somewhat surprised, "You're attacking Lingxu City—haven't you already gained the upper hand?"

It is neither deaf nor blind; the War Alliance's outstanding performance on the Bekka battlefield shows Lingxu City won't hold out much longer. Otherwise, Yujù wouldn't have refused to aid the Heavenly Palace.

"War differs from your imagination—it's rarely a swift, decisive blow." He Lingchuan said calmly, "Misfortune may lurk beneath blessing. Moreover, if this war were easy to fight, would I need you?"

Yujù stroked his chin: "What's your chance of victory?"

"I say ten out of ten—do you believe me?"

"I don't." The opponent is none other than the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu.

He Lingchuan laughed: "Then what probability would make you believe me?"

Even Zhao Man, who usually pretends to be mystical, dared not utter a mantra this time.

"————" Yujù spat out a mouthful of saliva, of course, carrying sparks, "Alright, no beating around the bush. Since you want my help, you must show sincerity."

He Lingchuan then took out two Punishing Dragon Pillars from his bosom.

Both were glowing—one emitted purple light, the other green light—clearly, they did not contain nightmare energy.

"Extend your hand."

Yujù stretched his large palm before He Lingchuan, who then poured the contents of the green Punishing Dragon Pillar into it:

A mass of green fire, the size of a grinding stone.

Though its volume was negligible compared to Yujù's size, Yujù still jumped in shock: "This is————the Essence of Fire!"

"This Essence of Fire is taken from Fallen Dragon Mountain." He Lingchuan introduced, "Three thousand years ago, the Black Dragon Sovereign struck the Heavenly Luo Xing, then fell onto the Shimmering Gold Plains—hence the name Fallen Dragon Mountain. Thus, the Essence of Fire in your hand contains both the quintessence of earth fire from the Shimmering Gold Plains and the dragon's flame seed fused with the Dragon God, and even harbors fragments of meteoric iron from the Heavenly Luo Xing. Its value to you should far surpass the total offerings the Heavenly Palace has given you over the past decades."

As mentioned before, Yujù is a fire spirit native to Bekka and cannot travel long distances to the Shimmering Gold Plains for work. Thus, foreign Essence of Fire greatly aids its cultivation, let alone the two massive bonuses that follow.

Over the past six hundred years, spiritual energy in heaven and earth has been scarce, so the Heavenly Palace's offerings were vital—earth fire could sustain its life, and the Palace's provisions could nourish it. But now that spiritual energy is abundant, even the imperial nectar dripping from the heavens could let Yujù drink its fill, making the Heavenly Palace's offerings seem unappealing by comparison.

"No wonder it's the Nine Nether Great Emperor—just a flick of the wrist yields fine things." Yujù happily accepted it, then immediately added a "but": "Just this single spark of fire seed would make me sell my life to fight the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu—honestly, it's still a bit————"

Not enough—could Yujù really be bought off with just a spark of fire seed?

It must not lose value.

He Lingchuan raised the other Punishing Dragon Pillar: "So I've also prepared this. Do you know the Eternal Volcano?"

Yujù shook his head: "Never heard of it."

"The Eternal Volcano is not in the mortal realm but in the heavens. There, the Three Ancient Saints forged the World Heart Core, and the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu refined his natal magic artifact, for the Eternal Volcano is the oldest volcano in heaven, its depths surging with precious World Heart Fire." He Lingchuan shook the Punishing Dragon Pillar, "Namely, this."

"The primordial volcano is not in the human realm, but in the celestial realm. There, the Three Ancient Saints refined the World Heart Core, and the Spirit Void Sacred Venerable refined his natal magic artifact, for the primordial volcano is the oldest volcano in the celestial realm, its depths surging with precious World Heart Fire." He Lingchuan shook the Punishing Dragon Pillar, "That is this."

"It's the spoils from our slaying of the Great Heavenly Demon." He Lingchuan laughed, "You help me guard Mount Xushan as our rear base, and afterward, you'll receive this Pillar of Eternal Heart Fire."

"This is our spoil from slaying the Great Heavenly Demon." He Lingchuan smiled, "You guard the Mount Xushan base for me, and afterward you will obtain this primordial heart fire."

"Your cultivation is but one step away from the True Immortal realm, is it not?" He Lingchuan urged, "Perhaps, you only need this Pillar of Eternal Heart Fire to break through another layer. From now on, no earthly realm can confine you—you may roam the world freely."

"Your cultivation is but a step away from the True Immortal realm, is it not?" He Lingchuan urged it, "Perhaps you need only this primordial heart fire to ascend another layer. From now on, no stratum of this earth can confine you, and you may roam freely throughout the world."

Having lingered long enough in Bekka, it now wishes to see more of the vast world.

Most importantly, the Nine Nether Great Emperor spoke truly—whether or not you aid the War Alliance, the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu will not spare you upon descending to the mortal realm.

"Very well. One word, and it's settled."

As the Great Fire Spirit nodded, He Lingchuan produced the pre-prepared contract and handed it over.

This contract clearly delineates the rights and duties of both parties. Under the Nine Nether Great Emperor, there are plenty of capable individuals; the drafted terms nearly eliminate any room for Yujù to slip through loopholes.

He Lingchuan knows this fire spirit's nature too well—since he intends to use it, he must leverage the contract's binding force to prevent this fellow from defecting midway and selling out the War Alliance to the Holy Sovereign of Lingxu.

Yujù examined the contract clause by clause, word by word, found no loopholes, and reluctantly signed it.

The agreement exists in two copies; He Lingchuan kept his, then smiled at the Great Fire Spirit: "Come, let's get to work."

The entire territory of Mount Xushan can be regarded as Yujù's body. Once it took charge, the War Alliance's logistical efficiency suddenly increased severalfold. With a mere crook of its finger, small mountains rose from the ground; the once peaceful thoroughfares instantly turned into mountain goat trails, and even the towering, rugged Chongshanjunling could be flattened by a single sweep of its hand, becoming deep valleys and flatlands.

Twenty years ago, the Great Fire Spirit could achieve this, but with great effort; now, its energy is extraordinarily abundant, making such tasks effortless.

Volcanic eruptions and surges have always shaped terrain.

As for setting up formations, transporting supplies, building fortresses, and so on—these are trivial for the Great Fire Spirit, which can dispatch hundreds or thousands of tiny fire spirits to accomplish them.

With Yujù's aid, the War Alliance's operational efficiency has increased unknownfold. Tasks that originally took seven or eight days now must be completed within two days.

From this, it's clear Yujù wasn't boasting—if it had sincerely aided the Heavenly Palace earlier, capturing Mount Xushan would have cost the War Alliance dearly.

Conversely, it has truly offended the Heavenly Demon to the core.

Liu Yidao, who came to report progress, felt relieved: "Looks like our main base can be completed before the Divine Initiation arrives."

He Lingchuan sighed: "Pity the Grand Vase has another use. Otherwise, we wouldn't need to trouble ourselves with reshaping Mount Xushan."

He also wished to leverage the current advantage to swiftly capture Lingxu City, but after years of commanding troops, he knows well that haste makes waste.

He also wanted to take advantage of the current superiority to quickly capture Spirit Void City, but after so many years of leading troops in war, he deeply understood the principle that haste makes waste.