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Whoosh!
The air shook, and a figure appeared out of nowhere in the landscape devastated by Su Yi and Ran Tianfeng’s battle.
This new arrival looked entirely unexceptional, and his thin figure was dressed in gray. This was none other than the “Uncle Huai” who’d appeared beside Qu Ming, the scion of an ancient clan.
He swept his gaze across the area, his expression gradually becoming increasingly solemn.
He’d already picked up quite a few worthwhile clues from the aftermath of the battle.
Suddenly, he shot forth in a flash, then picked a broken black scale out of the rubble.
It was severely damaged, and it had lost its former spirituality, but after examining it briefly, Uncle Huai was visibly shaken.
This was the scale of a Netherblood Bird!
“It seems Ran Tianfeng of the Netherworld Sky Sect beat me to the punch…” Uncle Huai muttered. He found this a bit of a pity.
He’d arrived late.
However, although he hadn’t witnessed the battle, he realized that Ran Tianfeng had encountered a mighty foe in the process of capturing that Ghost Lantern Sarcophagus Bearer!
Furthermore, Ran Tianfeng, an Imperial body refiner, had been injured!
Who was it who stepped in to stop Ran Tianfeng? Could it be that an Emperor of the Cui Family was protecting their young mistress from the shadows?
That’s most likely the case. The founder of the Ghost Lantern Sarcophagus Bearers, Old Ghost Coffin-Bearer has been missing for tens of thousands of years. Pi Mo killed his disciple, Five Burials, the Master of the Blood Coffin, several hundred years ago. Now, only the old blind man remains in this world.
Here, Uncle Huai recalled that young man in blue, Su Yi. That boy might be strong, but he’s ultimately just a Spiritual Incarnation cultivator. He’s nowhere near qualified to get mixed up in this
“That means that, aside from the Cui Family, I doubt anyone would dare protect the old blind man.”
“This is a bit troublesome.” Uncle Huai furrowed his brow.
If the Cui Family wanted to protect the disciple of the Ghost Lantern Sarcophagus Bearers, few factions in the Six Paths Royal Territory would dare take action.
“I’ll just have to see how the family head decides to handle it.”
After a while, Uncle Huai shook his head, turned, and left.
…..
Two days later.
Midnight.
Outside Ziluo City.
The enormous black city gates were fully one thousand feet tall, and the ancient walls coiled around the city like a massive dragon extending on both sides as far as the eye could see.
Two stone guardians crouched beside the gates, one on each side.
One was a Xiezhi. They could discern good and evil, and they detested the wicked.
The other was a Bi’an. They could differentiate between right and wrong and judge impartially.
Both statues had stood there for countless years. The power of their surroundings nourished them day or night, much like the frequently visited and worshiped statues of Buddhist temples. This gave them a definite spirituality.
Never mind ordinary people; even cultivators felt an indescribable pressure in the face of these statues to the point that they dared not look at them head-on.
Rumor had it that both statues’ origins could be traced back to antiquity, when the ancestors of the Cui Family invited a master artisan to carve statues, using real True Spirit Divine Beasts, a living Xiezhi and Bi’an, as reference.
The stone of the statues was a rare divine material to begin with, so they’d endured the wear and tear of countless years to remain standing even now.
People flowed in and out of the gates. Waves of noise emanated from within the city; it seemed truly lively and prosperous.
Su Yi glanced at the Xiezhi, then at the Bi’an. He couldn’t help but smile. “Those are quite the treasures. They’ve maintained the good fortune of the city throughout the ages, and they’ve brought your Cui Family untold prosperity.”
“You know about the true wondrous purpose of the statues too?” exclaimed Cui Jingyan.
Su Yi didn’t explain.
He naturally couldn’t tell her that he’d taken a shine to both statues in his past life. If Cui Longxiang hadn’t thwarted him at every turn, so desperate it was almost pitiful, Su Yi might well have run off with them!
It was then that a tall, stalwart figure walked over, surprise and delight written all over his face. “Young Mistress, you’re finally back! The family head and your mother have been waiting for you!”
This was a middle-aged man with the air of a martial artist. He dressed in warrior’s robes, and he had an imposing majesty about him.
As he spoke, he clasped his fist and greeted Cui Jingyan respectfully.
She inclined her head. “Go back and tell my parents that I’ll be bringing two friends to see them soon.”
She suddenly seemed like a different person. She was as calm as a stagnant pool, and her every gesture emanated a noble air, making it difficult to look directly at her.
“Yes, ma’am!” The middle-aged warrior solemnly assented, then waved to the city gates. “Don’t just stand there! Hurry up and receive our young mistress!”
His voice boomed like thunder.
There was a commotion amongst the nearby crowd, and everyone cleared a path.
Shortly after, a group rode in on the backs of Inkscale Beasts.
Inkscale Beasts were a variant species of vicious beast unique to the netherworld. They could soar through the mist and cloud, fly through the heavens and into the earth. Each was the size of a house, and they resembled elephants, except they were covered in pitch-black scales.
When thirty cultivators rode in on the backs of the enormous Inkscale Beasts, it was an extremely grand spectacle.
Behind this procession was an exquisitely crafted, ornate carriage.
“Greetings, Young Mistress!”
All thirty cultivators leaped from the backs of their Inkscale Beasts and bowed to Cui Jingyan.
The commotion and waves of noise instantly died down. The atmosphere was still and austere as all eyes converged on Cui Jingyan.
Even the old blind man couldn’t help but feel stunned. How ostentatious!
“Brother Su, if you please.” Cui Jingyan laughed and gestured to Su Yi.
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There was no way Su Yi would hold back; he led the way over.
This left the Cui Family experts who’d come here to welcome them stunned. Who is this guy? Doesn’t he have any manners?
But when they saw that even Cui Jingyan was going along with it, none of them said anything. They considerately chose to keep their thoughts to themselves.
“Yah!” Someone bellowed, and the grand procession proceeded into the city, the experts flanking the carriage on both sides.
It was only after the group disappeared from view that the deathly silence near the gates broke, and everyone launched into discussion.
“Is that the pearl of the Cui Family?”
“Who but the Cui Family’s young mistress could possibly be worthy of the Inkscale Guards personally coming to receive her?”
“Tch! She really is the most gorgeous woman in Ziluo City, an unmatched immortal beauty and the center of attention amongst the Six Paths Royal Territory’s younger generation!”
“Who was that young man in blue? What’s his relationship with the daughter of the Cui Family?”
“He’s got to be someone impressive. Otherwise, how could he possibly walk shoulder-to-shoulder with her?”
…Everyone had something to say.
Ziluo City had always been one of the Six Paths Royal Territory’s largest and most prosperous cities, while the Cui Family were its unquestioned hegemons!
The Six Paths Royal Territory was utterly enormous, significantly bigger than even the River of Forgetfulness and Yellow Springs Territories. It was like a major world in its own right!
Yet throughout this vast world, only a select few factions could contend with the ancient Cui Family!
And Cui Jingyan was the most beloved daughter of the head of the Cui Family; she was naturally one of the most attention-grabbing figures in Ziluo City.
Meanwhile, as the carriage and Inkscale Guards rode through the city, they drew countless gazes.
Waves of discussion followed.
Even Su Yi couldn’t help but arch his eyebrows and tease, “I wouldn’t have guessed it, but you’re quite famous.”
Cui Jingyan stretched lazily and sighed. “But what is fame, if not a burden? No matter what I do, I’m worried I’m not doing it well enough and that I’ll bring shame upon the Cui Family. It’s not pleasant at all.”
Su Yi couldn’t help but laugh dryly. “This is called not knowing how good you have it. How many people in this world would long to ‘endure’ this so-called burden?”
He was looking out through the curtains, taking in the scenery along the way. Suddenly, his eyebrows shot up, and he muttered, “Strange. What are they doing here?”
“Who?” Cui Jingyan immediately popped in, her fair, beautiful face practically pressed against Su Yi’s as her bright eyes scanned the scenery outside. However, she didn’t find anything.
Su Yi lowered the curtain, then knocked Cui Jingyan on the forehead. “Sit properly.”
Cui Jingyan rubbed her forehead and snapped, “If you have something to say, just say it! Why hit me? Right, you still haven’t told me who you saw just now.”
Su Yi slumped back into his seat and said, “Do you remember that master and apprentice who returned to the Netherworld with us?”
“Of course I do,” said Cui Jingyan.
A moment later, she froze. “Are you saying they’re in Ziluo City?”
Su Yi nodded. The old blind man couldn’t help but be stunned, too.
He remembered it clearly: Su Yi had told them that this master and apprentice duo had mysterious origins and that they were shrouded in heavy karma. He said that it was best not to get overly involved with them.
Who’d have thought that, after leaving Meng Po Palace, the two of them would appear in Ziluo City?
“Your Excellency Su, what exactly are they here for?” the old blind man couldn’t help but ask.
Su Yi mulled it over, but in the end, he didn’t hide it. “That old-timer wants to use a forbidden technique to help his disciple prove his Dao and become an Emperor. If he succeeds, his disciple will defy the heavens and change his fate, stepping on a rare, almost unheard-of path within the Profound Dao. However, if he fails, his disciple will perish, and as his master, the old man will face calamity too.”
Both the old blind man and Cui Jingyan were stunned.
What kind of path to the Profound Dao is this, to involve a forbidden technique, defying the heavens, and changing his fate?
Cui Jingyan couldn’t help but ask, “Although all of that sounds quite scary, they’re ultimately just pursuing the Dao. Why is it that we can’t afford to let their karma stain us?”
Su Yi shook his head. “It’s not that we can’t afford to risk it, but that there’s no need to get involved. The path to the Profound Dao they seek will inevitably invite numerous powerful foes. If we get close to them, their troubles are highly likely to influence us. Why make trouble for ourselves?”
Cui Jingyan was stunned. “In that case, we really shouldn’t get involved.”
Who was so bored as to invite additional trouble?
They were neither friends nor foes, nor had they interacted much. It really was best to avoid getting mixed up in this.
“Strange. Why are they in Ziluo City? Don’t tell me they’ve found leads, and that they think that madwoman’s Pawnshop of the Heavens will appear here?” Su Yi stroked his jaw and sank into thought.
He was well aware that if they were to succeed in their plans, that master and apprentice would need to retrieve a certain something from the pawnshop first. Only then would they have an opportunity!