Stranger Danger

"It's the City of No Return!"

Jin Wanliang declared loudly before Ye Qing could finish.

Ye Qing asked for confirmation, "You're saying that the place I described is the City of No Return?"

"That's right!" Jin Wanliang confirmed with certainty. "You were describing a place that looks so beautiful and phantasmal that it is like a celestial realm. It has floating buildings and a colorful sky as well. That all matches the description of the City of No Return perfectly."

"Not only that, my parents often visit the City of No Return. They go there every year, and they often stay there for a period of time."

"Well, damn. As expected of the island lord of Gold Island."

Ye Qing rubbed his nose. He once heard that it cost ten thousand gold pearls to stay a single night in the City of No Return. It was hardly a couple of coppers. An ordinary person could work several lifetimes and still not earn that amount of money, and yet Jin Manshan and Ming Yueying not only went there every year, they even stayed there for a bit before returning.

If he had to guess, the duo must have spent a hundred thousand, maybe even a couple hundred thousand gold pearls every time they went there.

Rich people have it good, don't they?

"Yes, it has to be them. The last time they went to the City of No Return was a month ago. They've been acting weird since they returned from that trip."

Jin Wanliang was talking to himself, "Now that I think about it, that was probably the time the Mud Morphs replaced them."

"I never thought that the city lord of the City of No Return would dare to do such a thing. I will make them pay for this!"

Jin Wanliang's eyes were furious and stormy by the time he finished his sentence.

"You seem very certain that this is committed by the city lord, not someone else. Why's that?" Ye Qing asked curiously.

Jin Wanliang replied without hesitation, "No one could do this besides them. No one else would dare."

"Rumors claim that the city lord controls everything that goes in the City of No Return. Literally, everything. From something as minor as the life of a clump of grass, to something as grand as the lives of everyone and everything that resides within the City of No Return, they could change it all at a whim if they wanted to. Supposedly omnipotent and omniscient within their domain, they called them the god of the City of No Return."

"The city lord is the first to find out anything that happens in the City of No Return. Nothing can happen without their express permission either."

"Therefore, this kidnapping can only have been committed by the city lord. They are the mastermind."

"I see." Ye Qing did not suspect Jin Wanliang's deduction. The scion was many times more familiar with the City of No Return than him, an outsider who had never even been to the place before.

"It sounds like you've visited the city before. Have you met its city lord then? Who are they?"

"I haven't met them. Not even my parents have seen them before."

Jin Wanliang shook his head. "The city lord of the City of No Return is an impenetrable fog. The number of times they have appeared in public could be counted on one hand, and they leave it to their subordinates to carry out all of their tasks. Their subordinates are also absolutely loyal to them, never revealing even a hint of information to outsiders."

"Therefore, forget their name, their surname, their background, or their strength, no outsider even knows if they are male or female; old or young."

"All we know is that the City of No Return is ruled by a city lord who is nigh omniscient and omnipotent in their domain."

"Are they that mysterious? How interesting!"

Ye Qing rubbed his nose curiously. "I guess I should ask someone who's in the know then. She should know something."

"What?" Jin Wanliang was caught off guard by Ye Qing's sudden remark. What was he talking about?

Before he could ask, Ye Qing took a step forward and disappeared abruptly as if he had flowed into the six places. It was immediately followed by a clash of spirits and energies, though it lasted as quickly as it happened.

The space in front of Jin Wanliang blurred, and Ye Qing reappeared in front of him once more. He wasn't alone though. He was holding what looked like an ordinary woman in her forties in his hand. Her appearance was nothing special, and her aura was perfectly ordinary. She was as inconspicuous as anyone could get.

The only thing Jin Wanliang found strange was that she was wearing a servant's outfit. So, he asked, "Who is this woman, senior?"

Technically, he knew that this woman was a common servant of the Jin Clan. However, The Jin Clan had hundreds, even thousands of common servants. He could tell from her outfit that this woman was the lowest rank servant in the clan, so forget recognizing her, it was very possible he had never even seen her before.

"This woman is a sweeper," Ye Qing replied, "but of course, that is not all she is. She is also the one responsible for supervising and managing the two Mud Morphs, meaning that she most likely hails from the City of No Return."

"She's a member of the City of No Return?" Jin Wanliang subconsciously blurted. "You mean... she's a spy?!"

"It's possible," Ye Qing replied. "What I can tell you for certain is that she's the one supervising the Mud Morphs."

"Considering someone is scheming to take over Gold Island; considering that they are going so far as to replace your parents with the Mud Morphs, they must be plotting something huge. Therefore, there is no way they wouldn't send someone to supervise the Mud Morphs and make sure that the deception goes undetected."

"I knew that there would be one such person from the beginning, but she is even more well-hidden than I thought. Her skill in hiding her energies is good enough to deceive even my senses. That is why I killed the Mud Morphs on purpose to bait her out."

"The Mud Morphs are the key to the mastermind's success. If they die, I am certain that the supervisor would either rush over to find out what's going on, or escape from Gold Island to report back to the mastermind. One slip-up is all I needed to capture her, and she did slip up."

"Just now, this woman was trying to leave the city lord residence and send a message. So, I captured her."

Jin Wanliang was fully impressed by the time Ye Qing had reached the end of his explanation. From the beginning, he had plotted everything and executed his plan perfectly. What else could he do besides being impressed?

"Your wisdom and intelligence know no bounds, senior! This junior is impressed!"

"Quit it. Let's listen to what she has to say."

Ye Qing placed his right hand on the woman's skull. His eyes slowly turned black as a pair of demonic lotuses floated behind his pupils.

When Jin Wanliang instinctively looked into Ye Qing's eyes, he immediately felt an indescribable weight pressing down on his skull. Feeling as if he was sucked into an eternal dream of mysteries, he forgot whatever he was doing and plummeted irreversibly toward the void.

"Wake up."

It was at this moment a melodious voice erupted inside Jin Wanliang's head, loud as thunder and bright as the sun. It scared away the infinite haze and dispelled the borderless darkness, jolting Jin Wanliang back to reality.

"You're not strong enough. You should avoid looking into Joyless' eyes from now on."

Feng Qingyou's gentle voice passed through Jin Wanliang's ears.

"Y-yes! Thank you for saving me, senior."

Although Feng Qingyou's blunt statement was hurtful, Jin Wanliang had zero qualms with it. How could he, when something terrible and irreversible might have happened to him if she hadn't woken him up in time?

About a teatime later, the darkness in Ye Qing's eyes receded. He let out a long sigh of relief and said smilingly, "It's done."

Just now, he had used the Paranirmita Boundless Heavenly Demon Dependent to convert the woman into his Heavenly Demon Dependent.

The woman was a Great Trueman, but at his current strength, barring special circumstances such as a mind-shielding art or Strange Artifact, one thought was all he needed to convert anyone into his Heavenly Demon Dependent.