Stranger Danger

Of course, that wasn't all the Residence of Gods offered. Legend had it that the Residence of Gods was as beautiful, stunning, and phantasmal like a true celestial realm or blessed land. Those residing in the Residence of Gods high above the nine heavens could both enjoy the sensation of looking down on the mortal coil and enjoy the greatest luxuries that humanity had to offer.

Everything a mortal might enjoy on the ground, the Residence of Gods had them. This included the intangible things such as red dust.

Those who entered the Residence of Gods would know the pleasures of gods.

That was why the Residence of Gods was the place everyone residing in the City of No Return was aiming for.

The city lord of the City of No Return spent most of his time living in the Residence of Gods like a true god or celestial. He was always looking down on the mundane masses of the City of No Return and basking in their adulation and worship.

But today, the everlasting tranquility of the Residence of Gods was broken.

It was because a bunch of uninvited guests had intruded into it.

They did not climb the Heaven's Stairs or pass through the Celestial Rising Path. Instead, they punched a hole in the great arrays protecting the Residence of Gods and barged inside.

There were seven of them in total.The leader was a muscular, bald-headed man with vigor that shot through the firmaments with insulting ease. He was a Half-Sage.

The six people following behind him were all Truemen or Grandmasters[1].

"I did not know that you are visiting today, Islet Lord Wei. I apologize for not welcoming you in person sooner."

A woman stood in their way as soon as they passed through the entrance.

The woman was wearing a silver robe and a veil to cover her face. Her long hair looked like snow, and she was shrouded by a sheen of blurry, dreamy moonlight. She looked like a celestial who just walked out of a moon palace.

She was none other than the Moon Deputy Lord of the City of No Return, the Moon Princess.

"Tell your city lord to come out now, Moon Princess."

The bald-headed man showed no respect or even goodwill toward the lofty deputy lord whatsoever. In fact, his tone was positively unkind.

Many people were afraid of the City of No Return, but not him.

It was because his name was Wei Duanliu, the Flow Severer. His other identity was the lord of the Floating Light Celestial Islet. He was one of the four deputy lords—Fall, Flower, Flow, and Water—of the Floating Light Celestial Island.

Moon Princess did not get angry despite his rude tone. Or rather, her expression and behavior had not changed one bit from the moment she revealed herself. "What business do you have with our city lord, Islet Lord Wei?"

"Don't you already know?"

Wei Duanliu replied in a cold voice, "Tell them to show themselves now, or don't blame me for what happens next."

The word "Celestial" might exist in the name "Floating Light Celestial Island", but the large majority of their martial arts were related to body-tempering. Because of this, most of their members were hot-tempered, straightforward people whose image largely contradicted the word.

Of course, that did not mean that the Floating Light Celestial Island wasn't strong. In fact, they were so strong that even the City of No Return did not want to provoke these madmen if possible.

Moon Princess voiced her doubts, "Did the City of No Return offend your island somehow? Please speak frankly, Islet Lord Wei."

"As if a girl like you can do anything even if I air my grievances to you." Wei Duanliu took a step forward, and his vigor rushed out here and there like rivers, scattering all of the magnificent spectacles and sights in the Residence of Gods. In fact, the entire place was shaking violently.

"Tell your city lord to come out, now!"

Moon Princess' brow furrowed imperceptibly. A moon slowly rose from her back.

"A moon appears above the sea, heaven and horizon share this moment together"

Ice filled the sky when the moon rose to the sky. It froze and dispelled Wei Duanliu's barbaric rivers of vigor.

"This is the City of No Return, Islet Lord Wei. I would advise you not to succumb to your baser impulses."

"Heh. You're not half-bad, girl."

Wei Duanliu paid no attention to her warning. A hint of interest peeking out of his features, he lifted his foot half an inch and stomped. "But you are not enough."

Thump!

It was a stomp that could shake the nine provinces. As if a celestial was striking the gong of heaven, a dull thump echoed throughout the entire City of No Return. The weaker ones instantly felt an onset of dizziness and pain from their eardrums.

The sound was still echoing when tyrannical red blasted the moon ice until it was on the brink of collapse. At first, it was only the Residence of Gods that was shaking violently. Now, the entire City of No Return was shaking as well. Houses began collapsing here and there like an earthquake, and chaos filled the streets.

Inside the residence, the Moon Princess let out a muffled groan before taking a step backward. Her expression looked grave and wary.

"You simply need to message me if you wish to see me. There is no need for such anger, is there?"

It was at this moment a gentle voice spoke up.

It sounded as soft and welcoming as a gust of spring wind.

In fact, a gust of spring wind was blowing. It scattered the sky of murderous red without a sound, quelled the earthquake threatening the City of No Return, and even restored the collapsed buildings bit by bit.

Not only that, auspicious phenomena appeared everywhere such as purple qi rising from the east, dragons and phoenixes soaring through the sky, and more. Despite their panic, the terrified residents quickly regained their cool.

"Scree!"

It was at this moment a loud, crisp cry appeared from somewhere. Then, a white celestial crane flew over from the sky.

The celestial crane was pure white in color and extremely handsome, but even more conspicuous than the celestial crane was the man standing on top of it.

The man looked to be in his thirties. He was quite handsome and wearing a white robe. His aura was ephemeral like a breeze, a ray of moonlight, or a god.

It was as if the man was the only sun and moon of this world. He instantly drew everyone's attention.

"You are the city lord of the City of No Return?"

A hint of astonishment flashed in Wei Duanliu's eyes, though his mind was as strong as it was tenacious. He could not lose himself in the newcomer's appearance like most others.

"It is I."

The man stepped off the celestial crane and trod the air like it was ground. He did not stop until he was in front of Wei Duanliu. "This humble man's name is Xuan Youxuan (Profound Beyond Profound). A pleasure to meet you, Islet Lord Wei."

"Xuan Youxuan? What kind of name is that? It's obviously fake."

Wei Duanliu was an honest, straightforward guy. He said whatever that came to his mind immediately.

To be honest, he had never visited the City of No Return, much less met the fabled city lord himself. This was their first meeting. However, for whatever reason, he felt no goodwill or affection toward this handsome, godlike man whatsoever.

"True and false, false and true. Is that not how the world is? Why must you know the truth, Islet Lord Wei?"

Xuan Youxuan did not fall for Wei Duanliu's taunt. He said warmly, "The important thing is that you asked to see me, and I came."

"So, why have you asked for me, Islet Lord Wei?"

Wei Duanliu replied coldly, "Surrender Yuan Budong."

"Yuan Budong?" Xuan Youxuan looked puzzled. "Who's that?"

"Yuan Budong is a traitor of the Floating Light Celestial Island. The people called him the Immovable Nether King," someone beside Wei Duanliu answered.

"I see, you mean the Immovable Nether King from sixty years ago!" Xuan Youxuan exclaimed in realization. "But isn't he already dead? I don't understand why you came to me for a man who is long dead, Islet Lord Wei."

"Hmph! Stop pretending already. You should know better than I do if he's alive or not."

Wei Duanliu could not be bothered to play word games with Xuan Youxuan. "I'm talking about your deputy lord, Xing Luan. Surrender him to us, now!"

1. The power level of this oversea is super skewed and anomalous isn't it? ☜