Chapter 936: Lingchi Once More

This was Dong Rui's first time venturing deep into the archipelago, and he looked left and right, finding everything quite novel.

Setting aside the deadly Earthly Yin Qi, the scenery of the islands was picturesque: white sands, green trees, exotic flowers, and precipitous cliffs—and, of course, the surf crashing against the beaches and cliffs, curling like snowflakes.

This scenery was truly inexhaustible, leaving one's heart expansive and relaxed.

Mount Qilin was already in sight, and the two ships parted ways.

He Lingchuan and Zhu Xiuer went to the main island, while Qiu Hu and the other Rongshan disciples escorted Dong Rui to Alfalfa Island, the island Dong Rui had reserved for himself.

When the Divine Bone Necklace absorbed the Earthly Yin Qi on Mount Qilin, the roar of the Yin Serpent King once again resounded through the heavens, and deep tremors even emanated from the depths of Mount Qilin.

Without needing to hold the treasure scroll, Qiu Hu could hear its irrepressible rage.

Yet He Lingchuan still ignored it, to the point that even Zhu Xiuer was baffled:

"Are you trying to subject it to Lingchi?"

Do not underestimate He Lingchuan; merely extracting the Earthly Yin Qi was, for the Yin Serpent clan, a ruthless act. A few more times, and he could dig up their very roots.

"Last time, that fellow was still roaring and threatening me, saying that once it caught me, it would grind my bones to dust and scatter them, then bury my remains in a fish's belly." Hearing Zhu Xiuer's displeasure, He Lingchuan said with a solemn face, "The time isn't right; it's still in a fit of rage. I must return in a few days."

"What are you trying to do?" Zhu Xiuer asked him. "If the Yin Serpent King is a relic of the ancient era, it cannot submit to you!"

"I know." He Lingchuan rubbed his face. When he successfully ambushed Zhu Erniang in the Demon Nest, it also refused to surrender even in death.

These great ancient monsters were mostly filled with pride. Even if he won by trickery, he could not force them to bow their heads in submission.

"I must let it calm down so we can talk properly."

The mirror felt disdain; do you really want to talk properly? As soon as the words fell, a Yin Serpent suddenly emerged from beneath the cliff ahead.

The cliff blocked the blinding sunlight, and it curled in the shadows, roaring at He Lingchuan's ship.

This Yin Serpent was four zhang long, with a thick, sturdy body. Zhu Xiuer twitched her front claws, for this fellow was standing right by the water; one step forward into the sea, and it could ambush the ship.

But the Yin Serpent held its upper body straight, showing no intention of entering the sea, only continuing to call out at the ship.

The treasure scroll in He Lingchuan's hand glowed faintly, and Qiu Hu and Zhu Xiuer, within two zhang of it, understood the Yin Serpent's cry: "My King wishes to have a word with you."

As the ship approached the cliff, He Lingchuan said to the Yin Serpent: "Let it come to talk itself; that would show sincerity."

With the treasure known as the Heaven-Revering Scroll, their human voices are automatically converted into a tone the Earthly Yin Qi can understand when they reach its ears.

The Yin Serpent relayed: "Then, please come ashore."

He Lingchuan smiled: "Ashore? Do we look like fools to you?"

"To see my King, you must come ashore."

"Do you still not understand who is begging whom right now?" He Lingchuan insisted. "If it doesn't come out, there is nothing to talk about."

The Yin Serpent was silent for a long while, then asked: "My King wants to know, what exactly are you doing, and what will it take for you to stop?"

"The Yangshan Archipelago already belongs to me, including Mount Qilin beneath your feet. If your Yin Serpent clan is willing to submit to my command, I will spare your clan's life."

The Yin Serpent on the shore roared several times, exceptionally angry.

"You heard it too; it says I'm delusional, that just by relying on us ant-like humans, blah blah." He Lingchuan shrugged and waved at the Yin Serpent again. "I'm not the only one who can absorb Earthly Yin Qi. My companion is currently on Alfalfa Island, doing the same thing as me; you might as well send your subordinates to verify."

The Yin Serpent on the shore fell silent upon hearing this.

He Lingchuan ordered the ship to continue forward: "I will come again in a few days; I hope you will have thought it through by then."

The ship circled the island, deliberately slowing its speed to absorb all the baleful energy on the island and in the nearby waters.

It took over an hour in total.

He Lingchuan also saw Yin Serpents emerging from the sea, but they did not attack the ship, as if they did not want to provoke He Lingchuan further.

Seeing this, he became even more confident: "It will compromise sooner or later. Alright, let's go back."

The ship sailed with the wind toward Blade Harbor.

Midway, they rendezvoused with Dong Rui's ship and returned together.

Qiu Hu reported: "As you requested, we anchored the ship at the northwest corner of Alfalfa Island, no more than five zhang from the shore. Indeed, Yin Serpents swam over from the direction of Mount Qilin, but they didn't attack us; they just circled the ship to observe, then returned."

"At that time, was Dong Rui absorbing the Earthly Yin Qi?"

Dong Rui said leisurely: "Of course, mastering the rhythm has always been my forte."

"Excellent. Those Yin Serpents were likely sent by the leader to check if you could also absorb the baleful energy." He Lingchuan laughed. "Once seeing is believing, the Yin Serpent King won't dare to deal with me casually."

Dong Rui took a Punishment Dragon Pillar from his bosom and handed it to He Lingchuan: "This thing is truly powerful; it can even absorb Earthly Yin Qi."

The Punishment Dragon Pillar was hollow; He Lingchuan took it and looked, seeing nothing at first. Only upon careful inspection did he find a wisp of black smoke, thinner than a hair, flickering and dissipating at the bottom of the tube.

"Absorbing all the Earthly Yin Qi from the three nearby islands only yielded this much." Dong Rui yawned. "It's quite fun, actually."

This indicated that this version of the Punishment Dragon Pillar had a large capacity and should be able to meet He Lingchuan's requirements.

Yes, the Punishment Dragon Pillar in Dong Rui's hand was the new version He Lingchuan had just commissioned the Great Fanghu to create. The style was simpler, the relief head removed, and it was the same length as a middle finger, looking a bit like a test tube from another world.

Because the materials were sufficient this time, the Punishment Dragon Pillar created by the Great Fanghu had a large capacity. But their primary purpose was to collect Earthly Yin Qi.

Dong Rui had just tested it near Alfalfa Island, and as a derivative of the Great Fanghu, it also had the effect of a whale drinking water regarding baleful energy.

Confirming this, He Lingchuan let out a long sigh of relief.

This was the foundation of all his subsequent plans; fortunately, everything went as expected.

"The Yin Serpent clan is at a life-or-death juncture; why won't their boss come out to negotiate?" He Lingchuan asked Zhu Xiuer. "Big Sister, you might have really hit the mark."

Ancient great monsters understood ancient great monsters best, even if that was a monster grown in Earthly Yin Qi.

Zhu Xiuer snorted: "Something is abnormal. I don't think it doesn't want to come out; it can't come out."

She continued: "The Yin Serpent that relayed the message had a strange reaction. You insisted on meeting to negotiate, yet it hesitated for a long time; you said there were people on Alfalfa Island absorbing Earthly Yin Qi, and it had nothing more to say."

A mouthpiece is only responsible for delivering messages; what was there to hesitate about? "It was thinking of countermeasures. Hmm, then it wasn't just a mouthpiece."

The mirror in his bosom wondered: "If it's not a mouthpiece, what could it be? A vice-leader?"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 937 =====