Where Immortals Once Walked-Chapter 342: Outsiders

Would revealing it stir up even greater storms and ignite even more wars?

At the very least, it would probably push Panlong City, which is already surrounded by enemies on all sides, into an even harsher position.

If his inference was correct, then Wen Daolun had truly paid a tremendous price for that one piece of “certainty.”

Thinking that through, He Lingchuan could not help but feel a complicated admiration and an even more complicated chill. Mitian’s relationship with the other gods really did just seem terrible.

Anyway, back to Demon Nest Swamp. In the end, did that ravenous devourer manage to seize the treasure it came for?

He Lingchuan had no way of knowing. But if the Moon God was very likely Panlong City’s Mitian, then whatever the ravenous devourer obtained, it was not the Generous Pot.

Still, if it did get the treasure, what would it do with it?

He Lingchuan thought of all the strangeness inside the Demon Nest, and especially that small mound like a grave in the “heart chamber.”

Just then, faintly, there seemed to be human voices in the distance.

He Lingchuan froze. He was deep inside Demon Nest Swamp, the territory of greater monsters, and yet he could unmistakably hear humans talking. He also caught the sounds of horses snorting, and the creak-and-grind of cart wheels rolling over gravel.

Then he saw spiders, in dense groups, ambling over from the water’s edge, their legs moving in a hurry, all converging toward the sound.

Well, there’s no reason to wait.

He Lingchuan followed close behind.

The Han River’s floodwaters had long since receded, and the swamp level had slowly dropped with it. Large stretches of ground had re-emerged, though the mud was still treacherous underfoot.

Ahead, a human merchant caravan was dragging its cargo toward the Jiana Tribe ruins, the largest open area within Zhu Erniang’s domain.

Two spiders were leading the way. The rest swarmed around the caravan in a loose ring, as if watching a spectacle. However, none of them approached to attack, bite, or eat anyone.

The caravan was enormous, composed of over forty large wagons. Behind them trailed another thirty or forty sheep. And yet the people were surprisingly few, numbering only around thirty.

He Lingchuan saw the deep ruts and immediately knew the wagons were heavily loaded. Sometimes the wheels sank into the mire and could not be pulled out at all, and then spider guards would even trot around behind to help shove the carts free.

How attentive.

Clearly, this caravan’s ability to pass through the Demon Nest Swamp was not just because the mirage monster let them through. It clearly also had Zhu Erniang’s permission.

He Lingchuan also noticed something else. Both the first and last wagons had thick spiderwebs stretched over the roof covers. The woven patterns were unusual, too, looking like unfinished balls of yarn. He could not make out the meaning, but to spider eyes it might well be a travel token or entry permit.

The Jiana Tribe ruins lay close to the Demon Nest. When the convoy arrived, Zhu Erniang also shifted out from within the Demon Nest itself, descending the slope with heavy, unhurried steps until she reached the front of the wagons.

“What’s going on? Why did you change people?”

Two men came forward. One was a sturdy man around thirty, dressed in the finest cloth of anyone in the group, and he was clearly the leader. The other was in his fifties, weather-beaten and dusty, looking like an experienced steward who had been on the road too many times to count.

The older man stepped up and bowed. “Honored Spider Queen, my master is gravely ill this year and cannot come personally. This time, the transaction is handled by his nephew, Tu Zhongli.”

This steward was a familiar face. He was someone who had accompanied caravans into and out of the Demon Nest Swamp many times, certainly more than seven or eight. Zhu Erniang recognized him at a glance.

A known face was its own guarantee.

However, Steward Zhao still held up a small flag high. “This is the token you bestowed upon us. Please examine it!”

The flag shimmered with flowing light. It was a cloud brocade woven by Zhu Erniang herself. She recognized it instantly.

Tu Zhongli was all smiles as he bowed deeply and said, “Spider Queen, please forgive us. My uncle has developed a tumor in his belly. He can’t even rise from bed, much less travel across mountains and rivers. Thus, I came in his place to show you proper respect!”

He waved behind him.

The others hurriedly pulled the oilcloth off the first five wagons, revealing rows of black jars. Every single one of these black jars was waist-high, with narrow mouths sealed shut with red cloth.

“All of it is fine wine brewed from Mount Xiyao spring water. I assure you that these are of much better quality than the last batch.”

Zhu Erniang walked to the first wagon. Without bothering to break any seal, she simply stabbed her feeding mouthpart into one of the jars and drank for a long while.

The sight nearly scared Tu Zhongli out of his skin. He had not expected Zhu Erniang to just drink from the wine they had brought without saying so much as a word.

“Hm, passable,” she said at last.

She flicked one of her legs. A group of huge spiders hurried over, hoisted the jars onto their backs, and carried them into the Demon Nest. If they worried about the jars shifting, all they had to do was spray a few clumps of webbing, which were stronger than any glue.

As Zhu Erniang was fond of wine, the Demon Nest had a dedicated wine cellar.

She took two steps, then abruptly asked, “Why do your wagons and your bodies smell of human blood?”

Everyone jolted.

Tu Zhongli forced a laugh. “You may not know, Spider Queen, but things outside the swamp aren’t peaceful lately. Before we came in, we ran into a band of bandits. We barely managed to drive them off. Otherwise, this trip would’ve been wasted.”

Then the oilcloth on the remaining wagons was pulled back as well. There were various trinkets and assorted goods, but what caught He Lingchuan’s eye most were countless coarse cloth sacks.

He had hauled grain before. Those sacks sealed badly, so badly that you could barely use them even for grain. But here, thirty wagons were loaded with the stuff. Each sack looked large enough to stuff two people inside, and every one was bulging, filled to bursting.

What in the world’s inside them?

Zhu Erniang answered the question for him almost immediately.

With a casual swipe, she ripped a sack open, revealing—

“Yellow earth?”

The sacks were filled with the most ordinary yellow earth. Some came in clods, some loose, with bits of grass root mixed in. It really did look like common dried mud.

Zhu Erniang even stirred it with a claw, scooped up a little, and tasted it. “This batch has a bit too many impurities.”

“You know how saline clay is,” Steward Zhao hurried to say, after Tu Zhongli nudged him with a heel. “It’s not much different from what we delivered before. We dug from the same area, but quality fluctuates... maybe because it’s been raining more lately.”

“That’s your problem.” Zhu Erniang’s tone did not soften in the slightest. “Lower quality, lower price.”

The steward opened his mouth to argue, but Tu Zhongli cut him off with a smile. “No problem, no problem. This time it’s our fault. We’ll accept your price. And as for those sheep behind, consider them a gift to the Spider Queen as compensation.”

Zhu Erniang snorted. Another flick of its claw, and its underlings surged forward, unloading the wagons completely and herding the sheep away.

The swamp’s native prey had grown boring to them. A chance at plump lamb was a rare change of flavor.

Coldly, Zhu Erniang said, “Same rules as always. Tonight you sleep at the Jiana ruins. Don’t wander. Otherwise—”

Steward Zhao nodded quickly and said, “We understand. The swamp is dangerous. We completely understand!”

He Lingchuan tugged at a spider guard beside him. “What’s this saline clay for?”

If it was for growing fungus mats, it seemed like too little.

“It’s one of the aphid-cattle feeds,” the spider guard rumbled. He Lingchuan had been roaming the camp for over half a month and often tried to chat them up; the spider answered on instinct. Besides, it did not even understand the concept of lying. “They only lay eggs after eating saline clay.”

He Lingchuan drew out a long “Ohhh.”

He had heard that birds and beasts sometimes gnawed certain soils to supplement nutrients. He had not expected the insects here to need it too.

These burrow spiders really are master ranchers. They’re so thorough that they even have aphid-cattle maternity care down to a system.

Now he also understood why even though the swamp’s warm, lush forest seemed even better suited for burrow spiders, Zhu Erniang’s brood here was not as numerous as in the Guizhen Stone Forest.

Saline clay output was likely a key factor.

In the Panlong Wasteland, the yield was abundant. They could sustain more aphid-cattle, which meant richer food supplies and bigger spider populations.

However, the Demon Nest Swamp probably produced very little saline clay. The burrow spiders had to buy it from humans outside, so the size of the swarm was constrained.

The sky had darkened. By habit, the human caravan would camp in the swamp for the night, then load up and leave in the morning.

He Lingchuan, who was an actual living human and standing alone among the spiders, stood out like lamplight in the night. There was no way the merchants would not notice him with a casual glance.

So once the caravan dispersed to set up camp, Tu Zhongli walked over, confusion written all over his face as he asked, “Brother, what should I call you?”

“My surname is He,” answered He Lingchuan.

“How are you inside a burrow spider’s lair?” Tu Zhongli demanded, turning to the steward. “Steward Zhao, didn’t you say outsiders don’t enter the Demon Nest Swamp?”

“Uh... Well, in principle, yes,” Steward Zhao answered carefully. “But...”

“The Han River flooded, and I got washed in. The burrow spiders have too much food these days, so they haven’t eaten me. However, I can’t get out.” He Lingchuan studied Tu Zhongli before asking, “What line of work are you in, Brother Tu?”

“Me?” Tu Zhongli chuckled. “I just follow my uncle, doing a bit of trade.”

“I thought...” Tu Zhongli’s build was solid. He was nearly as broad as He Lingchuan, and he looked like he could punch a cow dead. He Lingchuan continued, “With that physique, being a merchant seems like a waste.”

He Lingchuan had trained year after year to earn his taut, capable frame. But this man?

Watching Tu Zhongli’s gait, He Lingchuan could tell he was at least a practiced fighter. And there was something rough in him, something wild.

After what he had been through in Immortal Spirit Village, He Lingchuan had grown especially sensitive to the scent of violent bandits.

Tu Zhongli just smiled and said, “People say that a lot. What about you? What do you do?”

“I’m a mercenary. Pay me, and I’ll work for you,” answered He Lingchuan. Then, he asked the question he cared about the most, “I heard that the Demon Nest Swamp is wrapped in mirage fog. How do you come and go so freely?”

Tu Zhongli jerked his chin toward Steward Zhao. The older man immediately explained. “A few years ago, my master rescued several burrow spiders at the marketplace. They were huge. A hunter claimed that he had caught them in traps set outside Demon Nest Swamp and planned to kill them and strip the materials to sell. My master heard those giant spiders could speak. He couldn’t bear it, so he bought them and released them. A few days later, the Spider Queen sent a giant spider to find us, saying it wanted to do business with our household. She had originally sent giant spiders out of the swamp to search for a specific saline clay. If we could supply it long-term, it would guarantee us and only our household freedom of passage in and out of the swamp. Any other outsiders who enter would be courting death.”

“I see. A good deed rewarded.” He Lingchuan nodded. However, he also knew that Steward Zhao had glossed over a great deal, like why Tu Zhongli’s uncle had specifically released those giant spiders outside Demon Nest Swamp, and how the Spider Queen had managed to find them so quickly afterward.

It was obvious that old fox had smelled profit the moment he saw those spiders. His actions were not purely out of having a soft heart.

By now, the caravan had gathered dead branches and leaves, building fires to cook.

Under Zhu Erniang’s orders, the spiders were even generous enough to send over large farmed swamp fish.