Chapter 336: The Second Negotiation between the Human Race and the Underworld Emperor
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
After having listened to the talk between Gu Qing and her son for a while, Royal Concubine Hu couldnât stand it anymore and demanded, âWhy are you talking about all this at such a critical moment?â
Gu Qing had been aware that she was listening to their conversation secretly, and said, âThe prince will rule this country, and he of course needs to know these things.â
He knew that his Maser had already fled the Fiend Prison, so his countenance was a lot calmer, looking more like the teacher of the Prince.
Royal Concubine Hu laughed heartily, for she was pleased to hear this; so she didnât say anything more.
âThe Fruit Formation Temple and the Water-Moon Nunnery were among the seven major Cultivation sects at the initial Plum Meeting. But these two sects are practicing the otherworldly Dao, as they follow mostly the path of the mortals. They should be considered as the neutral sects.â
Gu Qing turned to the Prince Jing Yao and continued his lecture, âThough the Windy-Broadsword Sect and the West Ocean Sword Sect are two new powers, they are quite popular because of the Broadsword King and the Godly Swordsman of West Ocean. But of course, the latter has been damaged to some extent due to the battle of the Cloud Platform and wonât be able to recover for a few decades. The Hanging-Bell Sect, the Great Marsh, and the Mirror Sect all have outstanding magic methods, but their sects have never had anybody who had successfully ascended, and they lack the figures in the Heavenly Arrival State; so they should be considered as the sects of lower level.â
The Prince Jing Yao said while looking at the sky, âIâm a Green Mountain disciple, and I will be on good terms with Green Mountain, naturally; however, this wonât be enough. Teacher said that I can trust the One-Cottage House, but the old maidservant told me that all of those scholars donât like me. Whom should I seek out then?â
The morning sunlight shone on his small face, making him appear soft and naĂŻve.
Gu Qing felt a bit taken aback before saying, âThe relationship between the Royal Family and the Fruit Formation Temple has been always close.â
Jing Yao felt baffled as he asked, âArenât those at the Fruit Formation Temple a bunch of monks?â
âI donât know the reason,â Gu Qing said. âYou should ask the Emperor when you grow up. But I guess that itâs because the influence the Center Sect has on the imperial court is simply too much.â
Jing Yao seemed to understand it a bit, as he asked, âI have become a Green Mountain discipleâŚIs it true that the Center Sect is not pleased with the arrangement?â
âWhat the Emperor did is to make all the sects feel unpleased,â Gu Qing remarked.
This remark had a deep meaning to it. It might even reveal the true intention of the Plum Meeting back then.
Jing Yao sighed like an adult, and commented, âThatâs right. As I will contend with my royal brother for the throne of the emperor, the Center Sect will definitely be displeased with me no matter what.â
The conversation couldnât continue at this point.
Royal Concubine Hu had no patience to listen to anymore, and she pulled Gu Qing inside the room from the window. âCome here. Iâll show you something wonderful,â she said in a mysterious tone.
As she was about to show Gu Qing the Jade-Egg of Rosefinch, she found that he was looking at her quietly.
âWhat are you thinking?â
Royal Concubine Hu said this angrily after she had come back to her senses from the initial stupor.
âWhat was Your Highness thinking? What I intended to say is that you donât have to beat that old maidservant as a staged show for meâŚâ Gu Qing said while looking at her eyes. âIf you cherish your friendship with her, just send her back to her hometown. She will have a better life there than in the Royal Palace, and she will be taken care of by the local officials. Itâs better than to stay here and not even know how she dies.â
Royal Concubine Hu said softly after a moment of silence, âI see.â
They could talk about these trivial matters of the palace at the moment, indicating that they felt relief like everybody else.
Though there were dozens of minor earthquakes occurring in Zhaoge City, the strongest swordsmen of the human race had arrived; there was no need for worry.
âŚ
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âAll of them are here.â
The old man transformed by the spiritual soul of the Old Dragon said while looking at the Underworld Emperorâs eyes, âThere are more swordsmen of the Heavenly Arrival State today than the day when they captured you. To say nothing of your current Cultivation state, even your father at his height of the Cultivation state would be captured easily by them.â
Sensing the energies outside the Fiend Prison, the Underworld Emperor said sentimentally, âIn just six hundred years, the human race has added a few more swordsmen of the Heavenly Arrival State. It is a marvelous achievement.â
The old man said, âThe fact is sad, but you have to accept it. Any of your escape attempts will give the humans an adequate excuse to kill you.â
âIt is true,â said the Underworld Emperor.
Having said that, the soul fires in the cracks everywhere in the Fiend Prison drifted out from them, turning back into little emperors hovering quietly in midair.
This showed the Underworld Emperorâs intention, or perhaps attitude.
âWhat do you want?â the old man asked.
The Underworld Emperor replied, âNo more mosquitoes.â
The old man said, âIf you were willing to cut off a piece of your Soul-Fire and send it to the Underworld to prove you are still alive, the mosquitoes were not needed in the first place.â
âI also want a patch of green valley,â the Underworld Emperor said. âAnd it needs to be real. And I want to talk to someone, and itâd better be someone of my own race.â
These were the specifics of the negotiation.
If the old man didnât agree to the requests, the soul fires would enter the cracks inside the Old Dragonâs body again and put him in unbearable pain.
The old man said after a long moment of silence, âIâm not authorized to accept these requests; you have to talk to those people outside.â
The Underworld Emperor laughed and said, âIf I went outside, how could I threaten you? And they would kill me right away without negotiating with me.â
The old man said, âWhat can we do then? The Chaotic Wind is too strong here, so the spiritual awareness canât reach them.â
âYou can ask those people to select a representative to come here,â the Underworld Emperor suggested. âWellâŚI donât want to talk to anyone from the Cloud-Dream Mountain. Iâd like to talk to anyone from the Green Mountain, if there is one.â
The old man exclaimed helplessly, âDo you think itâs possible?â
The passageway was filled with the filthy and bloody chaotic winds.
It was impossible for the Immortal Sect Master of Green Mountain to come here.
The Underworld Emperor thought it was indeed the case, and said, âI will not go out for sure. You have to think of something.â
Those soul fires resembling the Underworld Emperor were merely a few feet away from the wounds inside the Old Dragonâs body, ready to re-enter them at any time.
Thinking of the pain those soul fires had inflicted earlier, the old manâs face grew paler. âYou come with me to the upper level,â he said in a trembling voice.
The Underworld Emperor could still threaten the Old Dragon there, and the spiritual awareness of the swordsmen of the human race in the sky over Zhaoge City could reach that level; as such, both sides could negotiate there.
The Underworld Emperor accepted the old manâs suggestion and drifted to the destination with his hands behind him.
The expression on the old manâs face became a lot more relaxed. He followed the Underworld Emperor close behind.
They had passed the long passageway and arrived at the intersection of the second level of the Fiend Prison and the lowest level, where the messy rocks were hovering above, with the purple flowers hiding among them.
The Taichang Prison was to the left side of the intersection, and they could reach the Green Pond by passing through the crack between the messy rocks.
The Underworld Emperor drifted into the crack like a flowing cloud with his hands on his back; and soon he arrived at the bottom of the pond, which was a transparent light green and shapeless barrier.
Pah!!!
The Underworld Emperor broke through the barrier and entered the Green Pond.
A band of the Soul-Fire formed in his eyes, and the Soul-Fire turned into a thin membrane to cover his whole body so his clothes and hair were not eroded by the pond water.
The greenish pond water dripped down from his body as he stood up.
The old man had already arrived by the edge of the pond in advance, and looked at him quietly with a peculiar smile.
âYour smile looks terrible. It gives an impression that you might have a bad intent and would mount a sneak attack at any moment.â
The Underworld Emperor halted his steps at a place thirty feet from the edge of the pond. âIâm certain that your spiritual soul isnât a match for me; otherwise, I would believe that you might actually do that,â he said with a smile.
Even though he said that he didnât believe it, the Underworld Emperor was actually quite alert at the moment; otherwise, he wouldnât have halted his steps.
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The smile on the old manâs face grew wider, and his mouth opened wider as well; and he looked even uglier.
Countless rocks suddenly rolled out from the steep cliff thousands of feet high. Soon after, the cliff collapsed abruptly.
It seemed that the dark sky had suddenly lost its support and collapsed toward the ground; and in the meantime the bottom of the pond and the surrounding ground had abruptly risen up.
In the brink of an eye, the expansive space in the Fiend Prison had grown narrower.
This wasnât due to the switch of heaven and earth. The switch of heaven and earth was the simple change of spatial positions; but instead, the old man had directly reduced the size of heaven and earth!