Chapter 367: Chapter 367: 368: Return to the City

A few hours later.

Cai Kunxu and Xiong Da lay limp on a clearing, their eyes dull and their faces expressionless.

In just a few hours, they had lost count of how many times they had been sent out, only to kneel and crawl back each time. Whenever they resigned themselves and no longer wished to flee, Li Xiaobai would drive them forward with some indescribable special methods.

This cycle repeated over and over until they were completely devoid of the will to live.

Now, not only was their Spiritual Power completely drained, but their backsides also throbbed with pain.

Thinking back on their recent experiences sent shivers down their spines. If possible, they never wanted to see Li Xiaobai again in their lives.

This man instilled fear in them!

Watching the continuously climbing numbers on the System panel, Li Xiaobai couldn’t help but smile.

[Hellfire… current coverage range two hundred and one meters…]

[Current coverage range two hundred and ten meters…]

[Current coverage range two hundred and thirty meters…]

[…]

[Hellfire (Divine Level skill) current coverage range: three hundred meters.]

The cultivation level of Great Crossing Realm Cultivators was nothing to scoff at; recycling them for a few hours yielded such substantial benefits.

An additional hundred meters in the initial distance was equivalent to saving several million high-quality Spirit Stones in immense wealth.

However, seeing the state of these two now, they were no longer up to the task of helping with leveling up anymore; any further attempts, and there likely wouldn’t be anything left of them to recycle.

Still, a bit of restraint was necessary. With his experience, next time he could capture more Great Crossing Realm Cultivators in one go to settle things once and for all.

With a wave of his hand, Li Xiaobai put his sword back into the Space Ring and said cheerfully, “All right, you can go now. I won’t catch you guys this time.”

“No need, Boss. I can hold on a little longer; my Spiritual Power is more than half restored. Just go ahead.”

Cai Kunxu struggled to stand up from the ground, his voice trembling as he spoke.

“You can really go now, it’s the truth this time, it really is the truth!”

Li Xiaobai was somewhat helpless. Why couldn’t they understand what was good for them?

“Senior, honestly, we have become very proficient at this. We can skip the preliminaries and go straight to the main point. Just do it.”

Xiong Da also spoke slowly, his legs shaking slightly.

Li Xiaobai was speechless. With a gesture of his hand, the pitch-black flames that covered the entire wilderness vanished without a trace in an instant.

The sky around them brightened considerably, leaving behind nothing but patches of scorched and devastated earth.

At that sight, Cai Kunxu’s pupils shrank dramatically, and even his heart twitched.

Suddenly, he realized he had severely underestimated the terrifying man before him.

“This black flame… it was you who released it?”

“So you mean, all of this… was a trap? The Immortal Spirit Daily by Elder Tianji, all those false reports, everything was to trap me and Xiong Da?”

“There were no treasures in the black flames at all!”

Cai Kunxu lost his composure, having never imagined that from the very beginning, he had fallen into a trap laid by others; pride had led him to think he was clever enough to kill Li Xiaobai, unaware that he had been calculated against from the start in the Holy City!

“You’re not worth that much trouble. I simply started a fire on the mountaintop and wrote a few words in the Immortal Spirit Daily. Every decision and action was entirely your own doing.”

Li Xiaobai spoke slowly, asserting that he wasn’t that devious.

Well, all of this was conjured up by these folks’ wild imaginations; he was just honestly reporting the facts.

“I understand now. You truly are remarkable, Senior; the older, the wiser. We are convinced!”

Cai Kunxu admitted defeat. He was now genuinely convinced, having been outmaneuvered from the very start, utterly defeated with nothing left to say.

“There’s still one thing the juniors do not understand, why has the predecessor come here? What is it in this border region that could possibly attract the predecessor’s attention?”

“Hehe, I’m concerned about the safety of the human race. Naturally, my visit here is to encounter the Flesh Mountain. You mustn’t use such narrow thinking to measure my intentions,” Li Xiaobai said indifferently.

“Understood,” Cai Kunxu nodded. He couldn’t see through the person in front of him, but as long as he meant no harm to the border region, that was all that mattered. If Li Xiaobai were to cause chaos in the border region, cultivators would probably not be able to stop the invasion of Flesh Mountain.

As the City Lord of the border, although infighting was common, the idea of unity against external threats was an unchanging mindset for everyone.

“If that’s the case, let’s head back to the mansion. From now on, you two will be under my command. Any objections?” Li Xiaobai spoke lightly.

“None, we will follow the predecessor’s decisions!” Cai Kunxu said, knowing the times well.

…

Half an hour later, the warship returned to the fourth city.

At the city gate, Li Xiaobai saw Yang Chen, Ling Feng, and others waiting because without Cai Kunxu’s orders, the city guards prohibited cultivators from the Holy City from entering.

Yang Chen and the others were unfamiliar with the fourth city and did not have a place to stay. Moreover, they were waiting for Li Xiaobai’s return, so they did not make much of it and lingered at the city gate.

When they saw the warship returning, they were overjoyed. After waiting for several hours, it finally returned.

However, upon seeing Li Xiaobai disembark first, with the two City Lords respectfully following behind, they were stunned.

When they left, there was a large group, so why were there only three people upon return? And judging by the situation, had the positions of the two sides switched, with the two City Lords regarding Li Xiaobai as the leader?

The amount of information here was a bit overwhelming. Just a few hours passed, so how did everything change so drastically?

Yang Huan had given up on trying to figure it out. Seeing Li Xiaobai return safely, he ran forward with joy and said, “Boss, is it all taken care of?”

“Yes, it’s settled. Fellow disciples, let’s talk more once we are inside the city,” Li Xiaobai said with a cheerful smile, leading the group towards the city.

The city guards hesitated; Cai Kunxu hadn’t given the order yet, and making decisions on their own seemed inappropriate. But if they didn’t let them pass, their own City Lord was right behind them, which made it difficult for them!

“What are you waiting for, make way at once!”

“If you offend Young Master Li, you won’t be able to bear the consequences!” Cai Kunxu said sternly, scolding the city guards fiercely.

“Please forgive us, City Lord, we will open the gates now!” the guards said in panic, also feeling puzzled. They had the impression that their City Lord and Li Xiaobai had been incompatible, so why had their relationship changed so much upon return?

The thoughts of these exalted individuals were truly unfathomable to their subordinates.

Perhaps this was the world of the mighty?

“What’s the current situation in the city?” Li Xiaobai asked with a smile.

“Reporting to Young Master Li, both the third and fourth cities are currently under City Lord Yang’s control. At this moment, City Lord Yang is in the City Lord’s Mansion,” the guard replied promptly.

Li Xiaobai nodded. That saved trouble, with Yang Guang already in the City Lord’s Mansion; they could immediately discuss the next plan of action.

After several hours of passing, the clump of Hellfire he had left on the western side of the battlefield should have taken root and sprouted thoroughly.

“Understood, let’s head to the City Lord’s Mansion first!”

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Chapter 368: Chapter 369 Visitors from Central Province

Inside the City Lord’s Mansion.

Yang Guang paced anxiously in the room with furrowed brows, repeatedly reading a letter in his hand as if worried about something.

“City Lord Yang, why the long face?”

Li Xiaobai chuckled as he, followed by several people, slowly walked into the hall.

“Young Master Li, you’ve returned so quickly. Could it be that you’ve already obtained the treasure within the Black Flame?”

Yang Guang’s expression shifted as he glanced at Cai Kun, Xu He, and Xiong Da behind him, a hint of astonishment flickering in his eyes. Not even a full day had passed; how could he have returned so soon?

He hadn’t even started on his little schemes for the two cities yet, which made things difficult for him.

“Heh, Black Flame, you mean this?”

Li Xiaobai casually gestured, and streaks of ink-black flames danced about, dimming the light in the entire hall significantly.

“This…”

Yang Guang’s pupils suddenly contracted as he stared at the black flame, rendered speechless.

“You released this flame, Young Master Li!”

“Was all of this a trap?”

“I wouldn’t put it that way. Initially, I merely set a fire in the wastelands. I didn’t expect all the City Lords to rush over. But City Lord Yang can rest assured, I’ve already reclaimed the flame, and my coming here harbors no ill will,”

Li Xiaobai said calmly.

Hearing this, Yang Guang remembered the presence of the two other City Lords. But when his gaze shifted to them, he was stunned.

At this moment, the two City Lords appeared completely submissive, looking very much like children being scolded by their teacher in school.

What exactly had happened for the two City Lords, who were intent on killing Li Xiaobai, to suddenly start regarding him with such deference?

What had he missed?

“Lord Cai, Lord Xiong, what is the meaning of this?”

Yang Guang asked.

“Enough with the nonsense. From now on, Young Master Li is the master of the third and fourth battlefields. You’d best keep your mouth shut and listen well!”

“Why all the chatter? If you displease Young Master Li, be careful you don’t get cut down with one sword strike!”

At the mention of the sword, Cai Kun’s body involuntarily shivered.

He recalled the sight of being dominated by that sword just now, and just the mention of it made him uneasy.

“Who exactly are you?”

“Being able to make Cai Kun and Xiong Da bow their heads in obedience, you certainly aren’t someone obscure!”

“Hiding your identity, getting close to Huann’er, what exactly are your intentions!”

“Senior Sky Blade!”

At that moment, Yang Guang’s complexion changed completely. Although he didn’t know what had happened, he understood that Cai Kun and Xiong Da had been subdued by Li Xiaobai. And judging by the looks of it, subdued through force.

This was not something a young genius could accomplish; the opponent must have at least a Mahayana Realm cultivation level!

He had to call Senior Sky Blade over!

Yang Chen and Ling Feng, who had been coldly observing from the side, also wore expressions of shock and uncertainty. They had heeded Li Xiaobai’s arrangements and retreated early, not witnessing what exactly had happened.

But from the expressions of the two City Lords, it wasn’t hard to see their immense fear of Li Xiaobai.

It seemed their junior brother Xiaobai had been keeping his true capabilities hidden; unbeknownst to them, he had already surpassed his senior brothers and sisters.

However, at the same time, they were also very puzzled. The situation inside their junior brother was entirely different from theirs; it seemed as if he didn’t feel the constant need to cultivate, which made them wonder what kind of extraordinary encounter he had had to cultivate even faster than they did.

It was simply astonishing!

“Father, I’ve been telling you since the early morning, Senior Li is definitely a big shot, but you just wouldn’t believe it!”

“All along the way, the big shot has been helping us; Father, there’s no need to be on guard.”

“Although the big shot sometimes likes to use cultivators as nourishment, he’s actually a good person!”

Yang Huan said anxiously, her own father was just an old-fashioned man who acted solely based on his judgment, completely disregarding what others thought.

Li Xiaobai was speechless, actually receiving a good guy card.

And it was given by such a girl with a peculiar way of thinking, who thought she had a romantic interest in dragons and Yang energy.

The feeling was somewhat odd.

“Huann’er, things aren’t as simple as you think. This person has even deceived the old ancestors of all tribes in Central Province; he’s definitely not an ordinary cultivator, I fear he might be some ancient being who has changed his appearance!”

“Let Senior Sky Blade try his hand first!”

Yang Guang’s expression turned solemn as he spoke in a deep voice.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Cai Kunxu, Xu He, and Xiong Da nodded in agreement from behind; Yang Guang’s thoughts coincided with theirs. Li Xiaobai was surely some reclusive old monster, too terrifying!

“Cough, cough, Yang Guang, no need to panic. Days ago, I already sparred with Young Master Li, and those who can withstand a strike from me and remain unscathed are a rare few in this world. I have great respect for Young Master Li’s cultivation level,” Song Que said as he walked into the hall with a smile.

He had become good friends with Li Xiaobai despite the age difference. Although Song Que didn’t understand how this young man cultivated, he didn’t want to pry. Doesn’t everyone have their secrets?

Meeting a counterpart of the same level and having a great conversation wasn’t an easy feat.

“Ah this…”

“Senior Sky Blade, you know Young Master Li well and have even sparred with him?”

Yang Guang’s shock had not ceased since Li Xiaobai entered; not only had he subjugated two City Lords, but he’d also sparred with Sky Blade and came out unscathed?

This level of power is enough to rival even the City Lords of the second or perhaps even the first battlefield, right?

“Yes, rest assured, Young Master Li won’t do anything reckless. He is here for the matter of Flesh Mountain,” Song Que said with a chuckle, and everyone then noticed the letter in Yang Guang’s hand.

Yang Guang’s expression became extremely complicated, from the moment Li Xiaobai entered until now, with revelations bombarding him one after another, he struggled to digest this overwhelming amount of information.

He mechanically tossed the letter in his hand in front of everyone.

The expressions of the others varied as they looked down.

Li Xiaobai’s expression was quite animated; the letter turned out to be from Fire Qilin Cave.

“The Fire Qilin Competitions are about to start. After a unanimous decision by the high-level officials of the Fire Qilin Cave, the four Saint Heirs of the Fire Qilin Cave will be sent to the four frontier battlefields, aiding the border cultivators in resisting Flesh Mountain for three months. The most outstanding performer will win the competition.”

“This has been approved by the old ancestors of Central Province’s tribes. The four Saint Heirs will arrive tomorrow; City Lord Yang is expected to receive them in time.”

“Fire Qilin Cave, do not forget.”

Hiss!

So it’s the start of the Fire Qilin Competitions, and the four Saint Heirs of Fire Qilin Cave will compete. On the surface, it’s about achievements, but in reality, it’s a matter of life and death. For the borderlands, this was a mess, no wonder Yang Guang was so troubled.

However, Ergouzi is now also one of the Saint Heirs of Fire Qilin Cave, and it seemed to be going well; perhaps this time there would be a chance for engagement.

“City Lord Yang, what do you think of this?”