Scourge Messenger

Chapter 476 Gift Giving (Third Update)

According to the game records, shortly after Jiang Shi passed through the western mortal barrier, two immortal lords arrived together.

They were going to take Jiang Shi to Loulan City, and Jiang Shi had no reason to refuse, because Yan Qing had set Loulan City as her goal.

Yan Qing glanced at the chat history. Deng Guanjian and Gai Qingyun had only asked Jiang Shi if she was going to Loulan City to exchange for the auction promise. After receiving an affirmative answer, they invited her onto the ship. There wasn't much conversation during the journey, but this was also related to Jiang Shi's aloof demeanor. Without Yan Qing's actual control, Jiang Shi would exude an aura of 'I don't want to talk' from the inside out.

Deng Guanjian and Gai Qingyun were both shrewd people who had lived for hundreds of years, so naturally they wouldn't make a fool of themselves.

But aren't Deng Guanjian and Gai Qingyun enemies? The Longshi clan split into two factions, fighting fiercely under their command. How come they seem to be on the same side now?

As the forest appeared on the horizon, the sand barges suddenly unfurled their sails and soared into the air. Jiang Shi looked down, and a magnificent oasis unfolded before her eyes like a scroll painting. Most striking was the towering forest that encircled the entire city at the outermost edge of the oasis. Beyond the forest lay the yellow sands of the Gobi Desert, while within it stood rows of houses with blue bricks and white jade, dotted with rivers and lakes, bustling with people and thriving prosperity. Moreover, every so often, a new ring of forest would appear around the city, ten in total, dividing the entire city into ten rings from the outside in.

This is Loulan, the Pearl of Western Xia, an infinite oasis with a population of over ten million. It can no longer be considered a city because it is so large, equivalent to a collection of dozens of cities. Ordinary people living at the westernmost end may never have been to the easternmost end in their entire lives.

Only secret realms can support such a giant city; otherwise, with the productivity of ordinary people, a city of a million people would be the limit.

"Isn't it spectacular?"

Deng Guanjian appeared behind Jiang Shi and said, "The last expansion was three hundred years ago. The Dragon Sparrow Summer Palace sent seventy Foundation Establishment cultivators to plant trees and thirty Foundation Establishment cultivators to dig canals and divert water. I reshaped the soil and then moved in hundreds of thousands of civilians. After so many years, the Ten Rings are almost full now."

"But this was not Loulan's peak period. It is said that in ancient times, the Dragon Lord turned the entire desert into an oasis. At that time, Loulan was equal to Xixia, and Xixia was equal to Loulan. One world was forged into one city, and one city was forged into one world. It was a first-class fairyland and holy land in the world, far more livable than the frozen northern border, the island-isolated East China Sea, and the mountainous and forested Nanyue. People all regarded settling in Xixia as their lifelong ideal."

"After the Dragon Lord died, his modifications became ineffective?" Jiang Shi asked.

Deng Guanjian didn't care about her disrespect towards the Dragon Lord and shook his head: "No, how can the power of the Nine Revolutions be eroded by time? It's just that... the descendants are unworthy."

"After the Dragon Lord passed away, the lineage he left behind was controlled by his bloodline. The bloodline includes not only the Dragon Lord's descendants, but also the disciples and relatives of the Dragon Lord's faction, because the Dragon Lord possessed the Eighth-Rank Imperial Edict [Motherly Line], which allowed him to share his bloodline with others in order to gain his supernatural powers and authority."

"The Nine Revolutions Dao Lineage is coveted by countless outsiders. At this time, the Bloodline should have stood together and helped each other. However, the Bloodline also split up, and the first and largest Dragon Poetry War broke out." Deng Guanjian said, "Loulan was destroyed as a result, the oasis turned into a desert, and the Bloodline split into many groups. Now, only twelve major clans remain."

"This is not the original Loulan. In history, Loulan was destroyed a total of seven times, but each time the descendants of Long Shi would rebuild Loulan, hoping to reproduce the glory of the ancient times, turn Loulan into Western Xia, and turn the desert into an oasis."

“But it’s just a naive fantasy,” Gai Qingyun said.

His voice was high-pitched and loud, reminiscent of the cold wind blowing from a cave, or a crow swallowing a canary.

"Without sufficient power, what is destined to be destroyed will still be destroyed. The paradise you painstakingly built will be reduced to ruins once war breaks out. This world is far too small and too fragile for the messenger. You are just wasting your time."

“But if we waste a little time, we can build a peaceful and joyful paradise for generations of ordinary people. Isn’t that good enough? After all, our lives are so long.” Deng Guanjian pointed to the forest in the Ninth Ring Road and said, “I remember you planted trees there back then. Now that you see that area thriving and children playing in the shade, you must feel a great sense of accomplishment, right?”

"It's nothing but fleeting smoke," Gai Qingyun said calmly.

“I don’t know about other places, but many of us in the Dragon Poetry Clan are ashamed to accept praise from others, especially praise for our kindness. Many people feel that exposing their kindness will make them seem weak.” Deng Guanjian said to Jiang Shi, “One of the reasons I’ve been involved in education is to try to change this trend, but unfortunately, the results have been minimal.”

“No need to change,” Jiang Shi said. “Just do good deeds and don’t worry about the future.”

"Well said," Deng Guanjian said.

Gai Qingyun ignored their boycott. Having known Deng Guanjian for so many years, he was already used to Deng Guanjian's hot violence without swearing.

"Deng Jin, why did you hide your identity in the secret realm?" Jiang Shi asked.

“Because I was really interested in experiencing being drafted,” Deng Guanjian laughed. “I was worried that if my identity was exposed, you might send me back, or it would restrict your actions. Of course, there was also a small reason: I was looking forward to seeing your surprised expression when my identity was exposed—unfortunately, you didn’t give me that opportunity.”

Who is Wei Bai?

"The Lord of the Longevity Heaven's Seeking Netherworld, Immortal Lord Wangbai, may look young, but he is actually two hundred years older than me."

"Do you know who Ning Xiaoxiao is?"

"You noticed?" Deng Guanjian asked, somewhat surprised.

"All I know is that she is a Golden Core Tribulation Master."

"If I'm not mistaken, she is probably the Lord of Regression and Dependence in Heaven, and the Calamity Master of the [Eternal Flow]."

"【Eternal Flow】, the water level of the calamity?"

Deng Guanjian glanced at her. "Exactly."

"We've arrived," Gai Qingyun said.

The sand barge landed slowly on the first ring of Loulan. Many people were already waiting below, clearly divided into two factions. Their eyes were filled with disgust and hatred as they looked at each other, and the atmosphere was visibly tense.

"Chancellor!" "My lord!"

"Disperse, you're frightening our distinguished guests," Deng Guanjian said to Bai Chuanliu and the others.

"Go back and await my orders." Gai Qingyun looked at Fei Chengying and the others and said coldly, "Don't act on your own."

After everyone dispersed, Jiang Shi said, "Seeing you all appear together, I thought you had reconciled."

"People can reconcile, but interests cannot be compromised," Gai Qingyun said. "If two people share one bowl of rice, only one can be full. Whether their relationship is good or bad, it won't stop them from fighting tooth and nail." "Can't the two immortal lords conjure up more rice?"

"You underestimate the appetite of the twelve clans of the Dragon Poetry." Deng Guanjian said with a wry smile, "We did this before, and the result was that we gained more than a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators, which only made the situation more tense... The Dragon Poetry clan made us, and the Dragon Poetry clan destroyed us. The descendants of the Dragon Poetry bloodline are all born strongmen. If there were no Immortal Lords in this world, the descendants of the Dragon Poetry bloodline could produce a massive number of Foundation Establishment messengers to unify the world. But there are no 'ifs' in this world, so the twelve clans of the Dragon Poetry clan can only fight endlessly in Xixia. We must suppress the number of Foundation Establishment messengers."

Why not leave Western Xia? The answer came quickly after a moment's thought in Yan Qing's mind—the immortal lords of other realms would not accept the infiltration of the Dragon Poetry bloodline.

Deng Guanjian manifested as a golden crow, carrying them to a heavily guarded area within the inner ring. It was protected by three outer walls and an innermost barrier. The golden crow passed through the barrier without hesitation. The messenger guarding the area was astonished to see Deng Guanjian and Gai Qingyun, exclaiming, "Golden Crow Immortal Lord, they…!"

"Please notify them to make room for three people inside. We need to go in." Deng Guanjian explained to Jiang Shi as he spoke, "We're going to enter Loulan's warehouse. The warehouse is located in a secret realm, and it's always kept at full capacity. Anyone entering or leaving will trigger an alarm. You might not know this, but anything that enters the secret realm will be locked in its current state. It won't rot or get moldy. Even if you take it out a hundred years later, it will still look exactly the same as it did a hundred years ago. And as long as it's full, no thief can get in. It's the ideal storage facility—provided that there are always people inside. Otherwise, once it's reset, everything will be frozen solid (completely ruined)."

This approach is similar to Yan Qing and his group's plan to cultivate in seclusion in the secret realm. Both methods utilize the maximum number of people allowed in the secret realm to achieve a near-impenetrable security effect.

"A very powerful technique for using secret realms," Jiang Shi said.

As they were talking, three people came out of the small house and were immediately invited to the next room for a thorough examination, including inside their abdomens.

Deng Guanjian reached out to the vortex gate: "Fairy of Treasure Gathering, please."

Jiang Shi didn't ask them what their purpose was. He calmly walked into the secret realm, as if he were returning home. Deng Guanjian and Gai Qingyun exchanged a glance. Deng Guanjian shook his head slightly, while Gai Qingyun remained indifferent.

Upon entering the secret realm, a towering structure stretching as far as the eye could see, with at least thirty stories high. Only a messenger could have built such a tower within a secret realm with a limited number of people.

“Our destination is the seventh floor,” Deng Guanjian said, stepping over Jiang Shi from behind. “I’m sorry to trouble you to continue, but I believe you will be satisfied when you get there.”

"To enter a completely unknown secret realm with such confidence, it seems the legendary 'Return Order' truly has an all-encompassing effect. You are very confident that you can be safe and sound no matter where you are," Gai Qingyun said. "But supernatural powers are all-encompassing and ever-changing, with countless soul-shaking and mind-controlling abilities. Aren't you afraid that you won't even have time to activate the Return Order?"

Gai Qingyun's voice was calm and posed no threat whatsoever. However, dark clouds loomed over the secret realm, and a fierce wind howled. In the blink of an eye, it seemed as if the end of the world had arrived. Malice filled every corner of the secret realm like air itself. The messengers waiting in front of the tower felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave, their legs trembling and almost kneeling down!
Jiang Shi issued the order to return several months ago, so it's not surprising that the Western Xia were able to find out.

Jiang Shi's expression remained unchanged as he glanced at Gai Qingyun.

"Not afraid."

She only replied with those two words before turning to follow Deng Guanjian.

Gai Qingyun looked at Jiang Shi's flowing long hair, his expression shifting between light and dark.

Deng Guanjian shared his experiences at the Blissful Immortal Palace with him, and told him that when Jiang Shi was coming to Xixia, Gai Qingyun's first reaction was to control Jiang Shi and squeeze her out of her value.

A mere fourth-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator has no right to negotiate with a seventh-stage Immortal Lord.

Although Deng Guanjian eventually persuaded him, there was no evidence to prove that Jiang Shi's secrets of "Jubaoge Trading" and "Summoning" could be passed on to others. On the contrary, it was more likely that Jiang Shi was the only isolated case. Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why no messenger had been able to discover the secrets of "Jubaoge" and "Summoning" for tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of years.

If Jiang Shi is an isolated case, then unless she can be completely brainwashed, taking action against her would be the most foolish choice.

In a world where secret realms are equivalent to unlimited resources, the relationship between messengers is never a zero-sum game. Why tear each other apart when the benefits can be obtained through normal cooperation?

More importantly, Gai Qingyun was very certain that if he dared to make a move, Deng Guanjian would fight him to the death.

Deng Guanjian usually seemed like a kind and agreeable person, but once he made up his mind, only death could change it. Therefore, Deng Guanjian completely ignored Jiang Shi's probing and walked into the tower without looking back.

However, Gai Qingyun has now truly restrained his thoughts.

Jiang Shi was simply too calm, too confident, and too fearless. This wasn't an act; Gai Qingyun was nearly seven hundred years old, and he was absolutely certain that Jiang Shi truly wasn't afraid of him. This peerless beauty's eyes were filled with indifference towards life and death.

Whether they are genuinely confident or simply insane, Jiang Shi has no choice but to cooperate, because if he fails to control them, he will absolutely perish together with them.

Arriving at one of the storage rooms on the seventh floor, which contained three walls of cabinets, Deng Guanjian gestured to the tower messenger: "Open all the cabinets and empty them out."

"Pour it out?" The tower messenger was stunned. "But—"

"Don't worry, the secret realm items aren't that fragile. Pour them over."

Despite this, the tower messengers dared not act recklessly, or perhaps Deng Guanjian wasn't a very strict superior. Therefore, they manually placed the items from the cabinet onto the table. Soon, the table was piled high with tokens, stones, scrolls, and other unknown objects.

Gai Qingyun waved his hand, signaling the tower messenger to leave.

“Fairy of Treasures,” Deng Guanjian asked, “do you need to consume specific items to summon messengers from all over the world?”

"Yes."

"Whether the specific item you need is among these items."

Jiang Shi glanced at the hundred strange items on the table and nodded: "Here."

"Do you know the specific usage of these things?" Deng Guanjian asked again.

"Yes."

“Alright.” Deng Guanjian nodded. “Then you can take these strange items; they are all yours.”

(End of this chapter)