Chapter 528 - 527: Gathering

Chapter 528: Chapter 527: Gathering

In the great hall...

A middle-aged man in a gray robe sat on a Grandmaster’s Chair, his gaze flickering as he glanced toward the door every so often. He was growing impatient.

More than half a month ago, the Divine Thought Mark he had planted on Dongmen Yu suddenly shattered. The information transmitted told him that Dongmen Yu had met with a fatal end.

This sent him into a rage!

After all, Dongmen Yu was one of the Dongmen Family’s prodigies, a talent who could rank in the top thirty on the Amor List. Yet he had died so inexplicably!

How could he possibly accept that?

After reporting the matter to his family, he immediately began an investigation. He soon discovered that three months prior, Dongmen Yu had passed the Venerable Mansion’s assessment to become a Messenger, tasked with delivering an Imperial Decree Document. His destination had been none other than Qingkong Giant City.

And so, he had been waiting day after day for Qingkong City to arrive.

Upon inquiring today, he learned they had finally arrived.

Now, sitting in the hall and waiting, his impatience grew. ’The nerve of a mere Qingkong City Lord, making me wait this long.’

Just as he was about to lose his temper, several figures walked into the great hall.

He looked up and snorted.

"I presume you are the representatives from Qingkong City. You certainly have some nerve, making this Elder wait for so long. Hmph."

The moment they entered, they heard Dongmen Lie’s complaint.

When Qin Ya saw him, he felt a sudden heat on his face. Immediately, a cool sensation spread from his mask, suppressing the effect of the Ghost Blood Commandment Pattern. Mo Bokong shot him an imperceptible glance, and seeing that nothing was out of the ordinary, breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing Dongmen Lie’s displeasure, Mo Bokong stepped forward and said apologetically, "My sincere apologies. I was in a meeting just now, which caused a slight delay. I am sorry to have kept Elder Dongmen waiting. Someone, serve tea."

Dongmen Lie waved his hand dismissively. "That won’t be necessary," he said with a cold snort.

Then he stated coldly, "I’ve come this time to clarify one thing. The Messenger sent from the main city to Qingkong City was a prodigy of the Dongmen Family, Dongmen Yu!"

"Have you seen him?"

A trace of confusion appeared on Mo Bokong’s face as he said, "Elder Dongmen, what is the meaning of this? The Imperial Decree Document was handed to us personally by Young Master Dongmen. Of course we saw him. There was also an Elder accompanying him."

Dongmen Lie’s eyes stared intently at Mo Bokong as he said in a cold voice, "You saw him. Did he stay in Qingkong City? Did he make any enemies?"

"Elder Dongmen, what exactly has happened?"

"Don’t ask so many questions. Just answer me."

Upon hearing this, Mo Bokong’s face showed a hint of displeasure. Then, with a somewhat indifferent tone, he said, "Young Master Dongmen stayed in Qingkong City for nearly two months before departing. During that time, we treated him with the utmost hospitality. There were no conflicts."

Dongmen Lie pondered for a moment. The timeline matched, and from Mo Bokong’s expression, it didn’t seem like he was intentionally hiding anything. ’This is probably the truth.’ Immediately, a cold light flickered in his eyes as he swept his gaze across the group, secretly activating the Ghost Blood Commandment Pattern.

Based on the last residual information from the Divine Thought and his knowledge of Dongmen Yu’s personality, he was certain that Dongmen Yu had used the Ghost Blood Commandment Pattern to mark his killer. As long as the murderer was someone from Qingkong City, he could fish them out. This was the source of his confidence.

Among the group, Qin Ya’s eyes flickered slightly.

He felt a burning heat developing from the Ghost Blood Commandment Pattern on his right cheek. At this moment, his mask trembled slightly, releasing a cool sensation that quickly suppressed the heat, leaving no further trace of activity.

’Hm, no fluctuations from the Ghost Pattern.’

’Looks like it wasn’t someone from Qingkong City after all.’

’Hmph. They wouldn’t have dared to do such a thing even if they had ten times the nerve.’

Thoughts flowed through Dongmen Lie’s mind. He then snorted coldly and said, "This Elder is finished with his questions. I will not disturb you all from Qingkong City any longer. Farewell."

"I won’t see you out."

After seeing Dongmen Lie off, Mo Bokong looked at Qin Ya and asked, "How was it?"

"The Ghost Blood Commandment Pattern stirred just now. It seems Dongmen Lie was activating it, but the mask suppressed it in the end. Don’t worry, there’s no need to fear being exposed for now."

"That’s good."

Time passed, and the day of the Slaughter Ruins’ opening drew ever closer. Qin Ya noticed that more and more flying ships were hovering in the main city. There were now over fifty of them, and on each ship, there was at least one Era-Defining expert!

In comparison, Qingkong City’s strength seemed rather weak.

"Every Slaughter Ruins Great Hunt is a grand occasion, a true clash of titans."

Outside the palace gates, Qin Ya and Mo Bokong gazed at the flying ships hovering high in the sky, their expressions thoughtful. Suddenly, Mo Bokong remarked with a sigh, "It’s been nearly four hundred years since the Slaughter Ruins were discovered. They open once every sixty years. Our Qingkong City’s strength is relatively weak, so every generation of our city lords has failed to secure a good ranking in the Slaughter Ruins Great Hunt. Apart from a few powerful cities like Feiling and Langyun that can squeeze into the top ten, the rest of us simply can’t compete with the native powers like the Dongmen Family."

"Rankings?"

"Yes. After every Slaughter Ruins Great Hunt, there’s a ranking. The higher a faction’s rank, the greater their reward. I remember sixty years ago, the faction with the most kills was the Sima Family. They received a full one hundred Spirit Pills, ten Spiritual Artifacts, one billion jin of Primordial Stones, and various other things. All told, it was enough to cover a decade of expenses for one of the super Noble Families."

As he spoke of this, Mo Bokong’s eyes couldn’t help but reveal a look of envy.

’If I could obtain those resources, I could definitely increase Qingkong City’s strength several times over.’ At this thought, he suddenly looked toward Qin Ya, his resolve wavering slightly. He then remembered—the young man before him was a Pill King!

His value was not the least bit less than those rewards—in fact, it was even greater.

Just as they were talking, a woman’s voice spread throughout the entire main city.

"All participants in the Slaughter Ruins Great Hunt, gather at the Central Plaza!!"

Her voice was like a vast, surging wave, shaking the very air. In just a few breaths, it had spread across the thousand-li-wide Meiying Main City, echoing long after, never fading.

"Tsk, the strength of the person who spoke is likely above the Era-Defining level."

"If I’m not mistaken, this person is one of the two Mansion Masters of the Venerable Mansion... Jii Xingyue! Rumor has it she is a powerhouse with a Half-Venerable Cultivation."

"Gasp! A Half-Venerable! A true peak expert in the Divine Country!"

"I heard the other Mansion Master also has a Half-Venerable Cultivation."

"The depths of the Venerable Mansion are truly unimaginable."

Countless discussions arose from all over. Immediately, dozens of flying ships turned their bows and sped toward the center of Meiying Main City. Qin Ya and the others were no exception.

Soon, dozens of flying ships arrived above the main city’s Central Plaza. Then, streaks of Flowing Light shot down from the ships, forming groups of two and three and occupying various spots.

Qin Ya, Mo Bokong, and the others went to a more secluded area of the plaza. After a short while, a woman descended slowly from the sky. She wore a purple robe embroidered with the sun, moon, and stars, and her beautiful hair fell to her waist like the Milky Way.

She was one of the two Mansion Masters of the Venerable Mansion... Jii Xingyue.