Chapter 893: Traveling to Profound City

"You've been in seclusion all this time, so you won't have heard of him, Brother Yi. His name is Li Feiyu, and he only recently joined the arena a few years ago. Even though he's only" opened fewer than fifty profound acupoints, he's quite a strong fighter and has even defeated Fellow Daoist Toxic Dragon in the past.

“On top of that, he's a human, so he's earned quite a reputation for himself. However, it seems like he was granted some special privileges starting from five years ago, allowing him to remain in seclusion the entire time, and it appears that he's only just come out," Tu Gang said.

"Do you have to bring that up again? I only lost to him that one time because I was too complacent!" Toxic Dragon harrumphed coldly.

"A human? That's certainly not something that you see every day. Is he planning to take part in the martial gathering as well?" the golden-haired young man asked with a derisive sneer.

"Perhaps. Otherwise, why would he have gone into seclusion for all these years? Tu Gang mused."

As soon as Han Li sat down, he was immediately offered a cup of tea by a maidservant, and accepted the teacup before taking a sip.

"Long time no see, Fellow Daoist Li," Gu Qianxun greeted as she approached Han Li with a smile on her face.

Yao Li was walking along beside him, displaying her usual disdainful expression to Han Li.

"Indeed, long time no see, Fellow Daoist Gu," Han Li replied, paying no heed to Yao Li.

"I knew that with your powers, Fellow Daoist Chen would definitely invite you. I've heard that you've been cultivating in seclusion these past five years, and I can see that you've made some significant strides in your cultivation," Gu Qianxun remarked.

"You're far too kind, Fellow Daoist Gu. I can see that you've also made an important breakthrough. Congratulations," Han Li said with a smile, and Gu Qianxun's smile stiffened slightly upon hearing this.

She had indeed broken through a bottleneck using the two treasures that she had taken from Du Qingyang's vault, but she had never mentioned this to anyone and had tried to keep this a secret this entire time, yet Han Li was able to see through her right away!

Unbeknownst to her, Han Li's senses had become far sharper thanks to the rapid progress that he had made in his own bodily cultivation, and that, coupled with his tremendous spiritual sense, was what had allowed him to see right through Gu Qianxun at a single glance.

Gu Qianxun regained her composure as she sat down beside Han Li and remarked, "What a pair of sharp eyes you possess, Fellow Daoist Li."

The golden-haired young man's expression darkened significantly upon seeing this.

"Let's stop exchanging pointless praise, Fellow Daoist Gu. You've been in Green Goat City far longer than I have, so I'm sure you know more about the Five City Martial Gathering than I do. Would you be able to tell me about it?" Han Li asked with a smile.

Gu Qianxun was just about to reply when Chen Yang entered the hall in his city lord attire, then sat down onto the main chair as he said, "Sorry to keep you all waiting, everyone."

As usual, Daoist Xie was trailing along silently behind him.

Han Li cast his gaze toward Daoist Xie, but the latter paid no heed to him, and Han Li's brows furrowed slightly upon seeing this.

"We pay our respects to City Lord Du!" everyone collectively greeted as they rose to their feet before extending respectful salutes.

"No need for such formalities. All of you are pillars of our Green Goat City, so I'll be counting on you for the upcoming martial gathering. Take a seat, everyone," Chen Yang said with a smile.

Everyone sat back down, and the entire hall descended into complete silence.

"I'm sure all of you are aware of why I have gathered you here today. The Five City Martial Gathering is coming up soon, and it'll take us quite some time to get to Profound City, so we'll be setting off shortly. However, before that, there are some things that I must discuss with all of you," Chen Yang declared.

"Has there been some change to the martial gathering, City Lord Du?" the golden-haired young man asked.

"Who's that?" Han Li asked as he took a glance at the golden-haired young man.

"He's Yi Liya. He's been in seclusion for quite a few years, so you won't have seen him before," Gu Qianxun replied.

Yi Liya was a name that Han Li was quite familiar with. He was the leader of the arena's second area, and he was widely recognized as the second-most powerful arena gladiator behind only Gu Qianxun.

"There's been no change, but I've been informed that City Lord E Kuai is taking this martial gathering very seriously and is offering unprecedentedly handsome rewards, so this will perhaps be the most hotly contested martial gathering we've ever had," Chen Yang declared with a smile.

Han Li raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. Was there a reason why City Lord E Kuai was taking this particular martial gathering so seriously?

"Our Green Goat City must present itself in a good light to the other four cities, so please give it your all and make our city proud!" Chen Yang implored in a serious voice.

"Rest assured, City Lord Du, we'll be sure to do our Green Goat City proud!"

"We're going to show the other cities exactly what we're made of!"

A wide smile appeared on Chen Yang's face upon hearing this, and he declared, "Thank you, everyone. Now, let's prepare for departure."

With that, everyone made their way out of the hall and quickly arrived outside Green Goat City.

It was a bright and sunny day, but very windy, as usual. Yellow sand was sweeping through the air as far as the eyes could see, and at this moment, there were close to twenty enormous scaled beasts waiting outside with saddles on their backs.

Chen Yang made his way onto the back of the Black Scaled Elephant at the forefront of the group, and Daoist Xie got on with him.

There were quite a few scaled beasts to choose from, and some people were choosing to travel together on the same beast, so there was a surplus.

Han Li was just about to make his way onto the back of a vacant horse-like scaled beast when Chen Yang suddenly turned to him and offered, "If you don't mind, you can ride with me, Fellow Daoist Li."

Han Li took a glance at Daoist Xie, then smiled as he replied, "That would be my honor."

After that, he sprang up into the air and drifted down onto the Black Scaled Elephant's back.

"Why don't you join us as well, Fellow Daoist Gu? It's going to be a long trip, wouldn't it be nice to have some company?" Chen Yang invited.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt," Gu Qianxun replied with a smile, then leaped onto the elephant's back as well.

With a sweep of his sleeve, the Black Scaled Elephant set off, while Yi Liya was looking on with a displeased expression from the ground below.

He gave a cold harrumphed before leaping onto the back of a deer-like scaled beast, and it didn't take long before the entire line of scaled beasts had vanished into the distance.

......

Over two years flew by in a flash.

An enormous mountain range that resembled a resting giant had appeared on the horizon at the end of a dusty plain.

Close to a hundred kilometers away from the mountain range was a procession of around a dozen scaled beasts, and on the back of the Black Scaled Elephant at the forefront of the procession sat none other than Han Li, Chen Yang, and Gu Qianxun.

At this moment, Han Li was peering at his surroundings through narrowed eyes, and as he cast his gaze toward the mountain range up ahead, he spotted a large city concealed within the mountain range's shadow.

"That city up ahead is Profound City, right, City Lord Chen?" Han Li asked.

"That's right. This mountain range is called the Myriad Profound Mountain Range, and Profound City was built into one side of the mountain range, shielding it from the elements while also making it easier to defend. Our Green Goat City was constructed on the same principles, but the scales of the two cities are downright incomparable," Chen Yang confirmed with a smile.

"I'm sure Green Goat City will soar to greater heights under your leadership, City Lord Chen. I wouldn't dare to proclaim that it could outstrip Profound City someday, but I certainly look forward to the day that it rises to the top among the four subsidiary cities," Gu Qianxun said with a smile of her own.

"I certainly hope such a day will come," Chen Yang replied with a pleased expression.

Before long, the procession of scaled beasts arrived at the foot of the city.

Up close, the city was even more grand and majestic in appearance.

The city walls were constructed from a black stone material with large white scaled beast star bones embedded into them, giving off a faint white glow.

Han Li knew that these star bones weren't just there for decorative purposes. Instead, the starpower that they contained could enhance the city's defenses, and this feat of construction alone was already something that was out of reach for Green Goat City.

The city had a total of three gates, the central one of which was several hundred feet tall, while the other two gates on either side of it were slightly shorter.

Even though all three gates were open, no one was passing through the central one, and only some people were occasionally making their way in and out of the two side gates.

Chen Yang led Han Li and the others to the main gate, then displayed his token to verify his identity as the lord of Green Goat City, upon which he was immediately approached by a black-robed young man.

"Welcome, City Lord Chen. Please forgive me for not coming out to greet you sooner. My name is Tong Song, and I'll be guiding you and your entourage to the city lord's manor," the young man said.

"You're far too kind, Fellow Daoist Tong. May I ask if the people from the other three cities have already arrived?" Chen Yang asked.

"The guests from the other three cities have already arrived, so once I've taken you to the city lord's manor, City Lord E Kuai will meet with all of you," Tong Song replied.

"Sorry to keep everyone waiting," Chen Yang said.

"You've arrived in a timely fashion, so there's no need to apologize, City Lord Chen," Tong Song hurriedly replied with a wave of his hands.

"Alright, please take us to the city lord's manor, Fellow Daoist Tong," Chen Yang said with a nod.

Tong Song gave an affirmative response, then sent one of his subordinates to go ahead and report Chen Yang's arrival to the city lord's manor before leading everyone from Green Goat City into Profound City through the main gate.