Chapter 354 Underworld Palace Outer Disciple Registration

— Thousand Treasure City —

Thousand Treasure City had never been short of visitors.

As the largest business hub in the region and a neutral trading ground shared by cultivators of both the Righteous Path and the Demonic Path, the city welcomed an endless stream of merchants, wandering cultivators, sect disciples, rogue experts, and all manner of peculiar individuals.

Every day, countless flying swords streaked across the skies, flying arks descended toward designated landing platforms, sky docks bustled with activity, and caravans laden with treasures passed through the city gates.

The streets were perpetually crowded, filled with people of all kinds.

Merchants shouted to attract customers, their voices competing with the clamor of cultivators haggling over prices. Shops displayed dazzling arrays of spiritual artifacts, medicinal pills, cultivation manuals, rare ores, and materials harvested from dangerous secret realms.

The fragrant aromas of spirit wine and exotic delicacies drifted from restaurants, taverns, and stellar inns built like immortal palaces. Meanwhile, the occasional burst of laughter and excitement from the various auction houses suggested that another fortune had just changed hands.

Righteous cultivators walked alongside demonic cultivators, sometimes even stopping to negotiate business with one another.

Of course, this did not mean that the two sides had suddenly abandoned their grudges and prejudices.

Rather, they had learned to keep their hatred to themselves while within the city. Those who still had unresolved grudges could settle their differences outside the city or enter the arenas that Thousand Treasure City had established specifically for such confrontations.

Thousand Treasure City was neutral ground, and its rules applied to everyone.

Anyone foolish enough to start a fight in the streets would soon discover just how seriously the city took that principle.

The moment a cultivator violated the city’s rules, the Enforcers would arrive. Each Enforcer carried a portable formation capable of suppressing a cultivator’s cultivation and redistributing the suppressed power to the Enforcer within its effective range.

This allowed the city’s Enforcers to enforce its laws with overwhelming effectiveness, ensuring that few cultivators dared to challenge their authority.

Of course, there were exceptions. The formation was not perfect, after all. It was a mass-produced tool, and even the most sophisticated formation had its limitations.

Only cultivators who had reached the peak of the Void Refining Realm possessed a realistic chance of resisting its suppressive power. Such experts were exceedingly rare, and even they had to think carefully before challenging the city’s authority.

After all, resisting the formation was one thing. Escaping the wrath of the Underworld Palace was another.

If anyone dared to incur the Underworld Palace’s displeasure, countless experts would gladly step forward to help the Enforcers bring the offender to justice in exchange for the opportunity to earn favor with the Underworld Palace.

For everyone else, the outcome was practically predetermined.

It did not matter whether the troublemaker was a righteous sect elder, a notorious demonic cultivator, or a wandering expert who had spent centuries cultivating in seclusion. Within Thousand Treasure City, their cultivation and reputation offered little protection once the Enforcers decided to act.

This was one of the reasons Thousand Treasure City had earned the respect and fear of cultivators across the region in recent times.

It was also one of the measures Mo Xingyao had established to maintain control over the city’s enormous and ever-growing population.

Without strict regulations, a city that brought together the Righteous and Demonic Paths would inevitably descend into chaos. A minor dispute over a treasure could escalate into a blood feud. A disagreement between two merchants could turn into a battle involving their respective sects. Before long, the entire city might become a battlefield.

Mo Xingyao had no intention of allowing that to happen.

Under her administration, Thousand Treasure City remained a place where even sworn enemies could sit across the same table, exchange goods, and conduct business without constantly worrying that someone would suddenly draw a weapon.

With the portable suppression formations in place, the city’s rules had become even more ironclad, leaving troublemakers with far fewer opportunities to defy the law.

Naturally, the city was not entirely free of trouble. There were always a few idiots who believed themselves powerful enough to ignore the rules.

They rarely got the chance to make the same mistake twice.

Today, however, the bustling streets of Thousand Treasure City were even more crowded than usual.

The reason was simple.

The Underworld Palace was recruiting new outer disciples.

The streets surrounding the registration areas were packed with cultivators who had come from far and wide. They stood in long queues, all hoping to participate in the selection competition for one of the Underworld Palace’s one hundred outer disciple positions.

One hundred positions.

Thousands upon thousands of cultivators had gathered to compete for them.

That single announcement from Wei Chen had sent ripples throughout the surrounding region, attracting cultivators from countless sects, clans, and independent factions.

Even those who had never considered joining the Underworld Palace found themselves wondering whether they should seize this opportunity.

After all, the Underworld Palace was no ordinary faction.

It was a long-uncrowned overlord of the Lower Realm, an existence that had dominated the region for countless years. According to legend, the Underworld Palace possessed immense power and held countless powerful cultivation techniques that outsiders could only dream of obtaining.

A single position as an outer disciple could open doors that most cultivators would spend their entire lives struggling to approach.

For cultivators from smaller sects and unaffiliated backgrounds, such an opportunity was especially precious.

They might spend decades struggling to obtain a single cultivation resource that an established faction could distribute to its disciples as a routine benefit. Their cultivation techniques might be incomplete, their access to secret realms limited, and their prospects for advancement painfully narrow.

Joining the Underworld Palace could change everything.

Even if they began as outer disciples, they would at least have a foot inside the door.

And there were only one hundred positions available.

As a result, the registration areas designated for the recruitment had become the busiest locations in the entire city.

Long queues stretched across the surrounding streets. Cultivators stood shoulder to shoulder, some wearing the robes of prominent sects, others dressed in plain travel garments that revealed little about their origins. A few had brought attendants carrying gifts and personal belongings, while others had traveled alone, their faces weathered by years of hardship.

Some appeared calm and confident, convinced that their strength would guarantee them a position.

Others looked nervous, repeatedly checking their registration tokens or discussing the upcoming tests with fellow cultivators.

There were also those who remained silent, their eyes constantly scanning the crowd as they tried to assess their competitors.

After all, one hundred positions might sound like a generous number.

But when thousands upon thousands of cultivators gathered to compete for them, those positions suddenly seemed pitifully few.

"Have you heard? The test is only the first stage. Those who pass will have to compete in a tournament to determine the final one hundred candidates!" one cultivator said.

"Of course I have. Do you think I traveled all this way without gathering information? The Underworld Palace isn’t interested in accepting just anyone. If you think a little cultivation and a decent background will be enough, you might as well go home now."

"Hmph! That’s easy for you to say. What matters is whether you can pass the test. I heard that even some cultivators from major sects have come to compete."

"Major sects? You’re behind the times. I heard that several young experts who have already made a name for themselves are coming as well!"

"Then what chance do ordinary cultivators like us have?"

"That’s why you should stop wasting time complaining and register!"

"What!? And give the spot to you!? Never!"

Conversations like these could be heard everywhere.

The atmosphere was filled with excitement, apprehension, and barely concealed ambition.

For some, this was a chance to change their fate.

For others, it was an opportunity to prove their superiority.

And for a few particularly ambitious individuals, entering the Underworld Palace was merely the first step toward a much greater goal.

Domination, ruling over the masses, influence, and becoming the number one expert under Heaven! These were among the common ambitions shared by the participants.

Regardless of their motives, they had all gathered in Thousand Treasure City for the same reason.

They wanted one of those one hundred positions.

And none of them intended to give up without a fight.

One of the participants was a very familiar face. If Wei Chen had been here, he would have recognized the man immediately.

It was none other than Yun Feng, who was queuing up alongside the other cultivators.

"Ah Feng~ Are you sure you’re not going to tell Mr. Wei first? He could arrange a better spot in the queue for you," Xiao Mei, Yun Feng’s girlfriend who had come along with him, asked.

"No! I would never use my connection with Brother Wei! I wouldn’t want it to reflect badly on him! I’d rather queue up like everyone else!" Yun Feng declared righteously.

"Ugh... You’re so stubborn." Xiao Mei let out an exasperated sigh.