Chapter 973: Fang Canran's Revenge

But Fang Canran’s appearance had already changed; it was completely different from how it had been in Lingxu City, and there was even a slight indentation in the middle of his chin, making him look more resolute. Even his voice had become deeper.

Only his mannerisms and movements still made He Lingchuan feel a sense of familiarity.

If the two of them had just brushed past each other, He Lingchuan would never have recognized him.

"Are you wearing a mask?" After causing such massive destruction in Lingxu City, it was indeed necessary to hide one's identity and change one's face to ensure peace of mind once and for all.

"No, this was done by an elder in Lingshan using the Art of the Blade and Seal." Fang Canran patted his own face. "No divine ability or spell can see through it, because this is my real skin and real face."

The Art of the Blade and Seal? It’s just plastic surgery.

He Lingchuan subconsciously looked at Dong Rui; there was someone here who had also had their face altered, but the methods of the Frost Leaf National Preceptor did not seem so complicated.

"For this past year, you have been completely out of touch. Only by observing the orders from Beijia did I feel you were still alive." Fang Canran also looked at Dong Rui. "Who is this?"

"His surname is Dong. He had a hand in the bad things we did, too."

Fang Canran understood, and his attitude toward Dong Rui immediately became cordial: "So you are also a good friend! Let’s sit down and have a chat."

When they were in Lingxu City, although he and He Lingchuan had cooperated, they were guarded against each other, and there was a deep rift between them;

But because they had jointly committed a world-shaking, unspeakable act, meeting again in a foreign land made them feel exceptionally close.

Both had used their actions to prove their hearts, and also to prove that they shared a common enemy—Beijia.

Having carried a rifle together, the bond is different.

Fang Canran led the two into a small pavilion in the garden to be seated. It was a small gazebo by the pond, but it had walls on all four sides with lattice windows, blocking the wind while remaining quiet, suitable for hosts and guests to enjoy the scenery, dine, and negotiate.

After all, this was an island; the architecture was not exquisite, but it had plenty of character.

Dong Rui looked at the pond through the lattice window and suddenly said, "There is a golden lotus in the pond."

Lotuses bloom in midsummer, yet it was late autumn, and the pond should have been full of withered leaves. But there were still three or four green lotus leaves in the pond, with a golden water lily bud floating among them, ready to bloom.

"That is a small lotus demon. With it here, we can talk without worry; we don't have to fear being overheard." Fang Canran lifted a silver basin from the stove, the hot water inside just beginning to bubble like fish eyes.

He immersed the wine cups into it.

The weather has turned cold, so let's warm up some wine to drink.

He Lingchuan asked him, "Are you a disciple of the Taihang Sect?"

"Please, sit." Fang Canran casually opened the eight-treasure cabinet beside him and took out a set of exquisite square dishes containing four types of snacks to accompany the wine. "Yes, I have been in the Taihang Sect since I was young, and only went to Lingxu City later. After taking my revenge, I returned to the Taihang Sect, and feeling that Platinum Island was a nice place, I came here. The two sea travelers entrusted to me by Brother He arrived just in time; if they had been a day later, I would have gone out again."

He Lingchuan had sailed to Blade Harbor and met two sea travelers along the way. The two sides hit it off, so the sea travelers had delivered the letter to Fang Canran on their way.

Of course, Fang Canran had other aliases and secret codes in foreign lands.

"Congratulations to Mr. Fang for avenging your great grudge." He Lingchuan picked up a small piece of dried squid and tore it to eat. Hmm, it was salty, fresh, sweet, and had a good chew. "What was the fate of the Ke family?"

More than one hundred and eighty years ago, the ancestors of the Ke family reported the Yuan Kingdom to Lingxu City, forcing the Yuan Kingdom to act in haste; after resisting for a thousand days, they ultimately failed. The officials and people of Thousand Stars City were slaughtered, and the descendants of the Yuan Kingdom were demoted to lowly slaves, never to rise again.

But the Ke family, by virtue of their merit in reporting and finding the Seal-Spirit Treasure Canopy, had enjoyed nearly two hundred years of glory and wealth. Their extravagance was so great that even the powerful and noble of Lingxu were green with envy.

As a descendant of Shao Jian and the Yuan Kingdom, Fang Canran held a national and family grudge against these descendants of traitors.

He had lurked in Lingxu City for nearly twenty years, first to carry out Lingshan's orders, and second to wait for an opportunity to avenge his country and family. When He Lingchuan had spoken with him before, he had already concluded that the Ke family's suffering was the cycle of heaven and retribution made manifest.

During the chaos in Lingxu City, Fang Canran devised a plan to lure the Thunder-Shattering Giant Beast through the Jinghong Crossing teleportation array to charge into Tiantongdao, trampling the Ke family severely. This was him taking care of his own private vendetta after finishing his official duties.

He Lingchuan had already heard the follow-up from Elder Rongshan Dao, but Fang Canran was undoubtedly the source of the first-hand news.

Fang Canran laughed: "In the attack by the Thunder-Shattering Giant Beast, the Ke family's initial losses exceeded ten million taels, including garden buildings, art sculptures, rare treasures, and so on."

He Lingchuan immediately thought of the Ke family's incredibly luxurious ancestral mansion, a worldly wealth piled up by over a hundred years of imperial favor. Every generation of the Ke family had meticulously refined it based on their predecessors; every brick and tile had its own significance.

Corals as tall as a person used as trees, golden branches and jade leaves—these were just ordinary decorations in the corners of the garden. Just speaking of the tiles on the Hall of Clear Sounds, they sounded like flutes when the wind blew, and like the clanging of a zither when it rained, ethereal and immortal. Those were tiles selected from eight hundred firings by famous craftsmen and kilns, spanning over seventy years, costing at least twenty thousand silver; they were both labor-intensive and time-consuming.

The Thunder-Shattering Giant Beast charging into the Ke residence was like an elephant in a china shop; there was no telling how many antiques and treasures were smashed.

"But money is a small matter. More than forty members of the Ke family died, and over twenty went missing. Although the head of the family, Ke Shouyi, only suffered minor injuries, his favorite fifth son, Ke Yanjing, died. The third and fourth sons were seriously injured, and the fourth son had half his body trampled into paralysis; I'm afraid he won't be able to stand up for the rest of his life. Furthermore, he had nine grandchildren in total, and as luck would have it, six grandsons were trampled to death that night; the three who survived were all granddaughters."

A large, prosperous family suddenly suffered a devastating blow to its vitality.

"That miserable?" Dong Rui, having nothing better to do, fished out two pieces of peppercorn rice crust and crunched on them loudly.

"After this turmoil, Ke Shouyi fell into a great illness and nearly died, only barely hanging on after taking medicine bestowed by the Heavenly Gods. Among all the nobles on the floating islands, only the Ke family suffered the heaviest losses. The officials and people of Lingxu are all analyzing that the Ke family was targeted for revenge. But the Ke family has made too many enemies and rivals over these two hundred years; the list alone would take half a year just to investigate."

Fang Canran was full of satisfaction: "After the Ke family suffered such a blow, the Mountain Spirit Zuoju of Xushan also accused their family of withholding offerings, claiming that it was only because it was hungry all day that it grew resentful and caused such a scene in the Heavenly Palace. The Demon Emperor and the Heavenly Palace both reached an agreement with Zuoju, raising the standard of offerings for the mountain spirit and ordering the Ke family to strictly implement it from now on."

"In other words, the Ke family has to provide more offerings to Zuoju from now on?"

Zuoju had broken free from the shackles of the Xushan Great Array and could enter and exit the earth's core freely; even the Heavenly Gods could do nothing about it. If the Heavenly Palace didn't want its backside to be on fire all the time, it had to be a bit nicer to this great fire spirit.

He Lingchuan immediately thought of the King of Yin-Serpents deep within Dragon Spine Island. Compared to the insatiable Zuoju, Long Hao was truly an honest and simple great demon, and the offerings he asked for were the least valuable of all: Sha Pearls.

As for whether the Heavenly Palace had any way to restrain Zuoju again, that was a matter for another day.

(End of chapter)