Chapter 1488 - 548: Crisis in Hong Meng Heaven
Looking at the grain warehouse filled to the brim, and the intact Ah County, these are ironclad facts that completely prevent City Lord Ma from framing.
As for the supposed collusion with the demon clan, the letter used as evidence has long since disappeared.
City Lord Ma feels as if he’s been slapped across the face multiple times, unable to retaliate or respond.
Is it possible that everything Captain An said earlier was a lie?
Otherwise, how did Ye Lingyue miraculously produce so much grain?
City Lord Ma is full of doubts, wishing he could pull out the already deceased Master Chen to get a clear explanation.
City Lord Ma naturally did not know.
After opening the warehouse for disaster relief, Ye Lingyue irrigated the farmland of various villages with the spiritual spring from Hong Meng Heaven.
The crops in the eighteen villages were harvested ahead of schedule, not only alleviating the disaster, but also leaving surplus grain.
Before City Lord Ma entered the city, Ye Lingyue had organized the villagers to repay the grain tax they owed, resulting in the scene before him where his face was fiercely slapped.
"Captain Ye, you did an excellent job this time. Your achievements, I will certainly report to the Jiu Provinces Alliance. With your talents, staying in Ah County is underutilizing you. Someday, I will assign you new tasks."
Elder Jing was full of praise for Ye Lingyue and the others.
He praised Ye Lingyue on the spot and paid no attention to City Lord Ma.
After Ah County underwent this upheaval, the higher-ups of the Jiu Provinces Alliance have taken note, and Elder Jing will reorganize the troops to be stationed in Ah County. In addition, the representative teams responsible for intelligence in the Central Plains region have already been closely monitoring the activities of the demon clan.
Ye Lingyue and the members of Huangquan Team were overjoyed upon hearing this.
Finally, they could leave Ah County!
While waiting for the orders from the Jiu Provinces Alliance, Ye Lingyue and the members of Huangquan Team received the opportunity for a long-awaited rest.
After all, ever since they arrived in Ah County, they had been living in a thrilling manner.
Qin Xiaochuan even joked that none of the representative teams in the Central Plains region had lived as excitingly as they did.
On this day, Ye Lingyue entered Hong Meng Heaven as usual.
But upon entering, Ye Lingyue noticed something strange.
She first paid attention to the Vermilion Fruit Trees planted next to the thatched huts.
In Ye Lingyue’s Hong Meng Heaven, most of the areas are open for the Three-legged Birdmen to cultivate freely.
Only a small area is forbidden to enter without permission, which is the original ground of Hong Meng Heaven, including the two thatched huts and the half-acre area nearby initially discovered by Ye Lingyue when she first entered Hong Meng Heaven.
Inside the thatched huts are the authentic works of Hong Meng Fang Immortal and Jade Hand Poison Master, which Ye Lingyue doesn’t allow others to view without permission.
After acquiring the Vermilion Fruit Trees during the Chaos Heaven and Earth Array, Ye Lingyue planted them near the thatched huts.
The earliest anomaly noticed is reflected in the Vermilion Fruit Trees.
The originally fruitful Vermilion Fruit Trees have smaller fruit that is both green and sour, quite different from their previous quality.
"Boss, there are dead fish in the Rainbow River!"
Little Zhiyo and Little Wuya also came running, after they transformed into human form, they became inseparable. Upon entering Hong Meng Heaven, they immediately went to find Little Evil Rabbit to play.
As soon as the three reached the riverbank, they found some dead fish floating on the river.
More than that, some spirit plants in Hong Meng Heaven are not growing as well as before.
Ye Lingyue heard this and felt her heart skip a beat.
Since acquiring Hong Meng Heaven, she had never encountered this situation.
Ye Lingyue hurried to the Rainbow Riverbank and found the color of the water in the Rainbow River had dimmed significantly.
Some of the Spiritual Carp were floating on the water surface.
"Report to the Queen, the spirit stone mine near the mountain range has already been depleted."
The bad news was yet to come.
A Three-legged Birdman responsible for mining the spirit stone vein came to report shortly after.
"How could this happen?"
Ye Lingyue pondered, then summoned the Cauldron Spirit.
"Actually, I’ve felt it for a while now; the spiritual energy in Hong Meng Heaven seems to be getting thinner. If this continues, Hong Meng Heaven is likely to collapse."
Cauldron Spirit considered this for a moment and informed Ye Lingyue.
Hong Meng Heaven may collapse?
Ye Lingyue was shocked. To her, Hong Meng Heaven is like a safe haven. Ever since she regained her divine sense, Hong Meng Heaven has helped her countless times.
She never thought Hong Meng Heaven would face a day when it might vanish.
"Master, Hong Meng Heaven has expanded significantly compared to before. Although you absorbed the Five Elements Spirit, making it a Five Spirits Treasure Land, the number of living spirits, as well as various spirit plants residing here, have greatly increased. For Hong Meng Heaven, this is a form of depletion. Over time, it will inevitably run dry and burn out. The depleted spirit stone vein and the Vermilion Fruit are signs."
Cauldron Spirit sighed.
"Is there any way to improve this? Hong Meng Heaven can’t collapse."
Ye Lingyue had never faced such a difficult situation.
"Unless you can find the other fragments of the Jiu Provinces Cauldron and refine Hong Meng Heaven anew. In fact, as long as the cauldron pieces are incomplete, Hong Meng Heaven is a defective product. Back then, Hong Meng Fang Immortal sealed it inside the Cauldron Soul partly to slow its decline. Additionally, I must remind you, once Hong Meng Heaven collapses, all living spirits related to it could face catastrophic destruction."
The Cauldron Spirit’s tone also became serious.
All living spirits?!
Doesn’t that mean even Little Zhiyo, who came from Hong Meng Heaven, could suffer?
"I won’t let Hong Meng Heaven collapse. I will think of ways to collect the fragments of the Jiu Provinces Cauldron as soon as possible. How much longer can Hong Meng Heaven last?"
Ye Lingyue urgently asked.
"You must find a piece of the Jiu Provinces Cauldron within three months. Each piece found can extend the duration by about three months. If spiritual energy depletion in Hong Meng Heaven can be reduced during this period, this time can be extended by another three months. In other words, you have at most six months."
Six months may sound long, but it’s actually very limited.
Especially since Ye Lingyue has no clues regarding the remaining pieces of the Jiu Provinces Cauldron.
Ye Lingyue currently possesses four cauldron pieces, which means she must collect the remaining five.
Back then, Jade Hand Poison Master spent a hundred years but couldn’t even find a single cauldron piece.
Ye Lingyue initially held a hopeful mindset, getting one piece was better than none. But this time, it’s about the survival of Hong Meng Heaven, especially concerning Little Zhiyo’s fate, making it exceedingly urgent.
"Cauldron Spirit, can you sense the presence of the other Jiu Provinces Cauldron fragments?"
"Master, I’m sorry, I currently have no perception. The Jiu Provinces Cauldron fragments are very precious, especially those who know the origin of these fragments will definitely hide them carefully, possibly using methods to conceal the aura from the fragments. If I discover anything, I will definitely alert you."
Cauldron Spirit regrettably said.