Chapter 124.2: The Canary Must Be Far Prettier Than My Ugly Self

Three years later.

Yun He, who was heading for the City of No Return, finally arrived at Great Sorrow City. His white-crane robe was bloody, while his aura was unstable. On his way, he had encountered the North's first general under the Supreme One, Demon Crocodile. The two fought for years but neither won, sustaining heavy injuries.

Yun He sat pale as paper in the great hall. "Where is my junior sister?"

An early-stage Supreme respectfully stepped forward. "Reporting to Supreme Yun He... Huang Mengling left five years ago to handle urgent matters."

"And the city guardian?"

"The guardian has gone to the City of No Return."

Yun He's eyes flickered with unease. "How is the City of No Return now?"

The Supreme hesitated for a moment before saying, "I've been in cultivation seclusion for years and don't know much about what's happening in the City of No Return. It should still be the same as before, guarded by several Supremes."

Yun He's expression didn't change. After a pause, he said calmly, "You may go."

The Supreme lowered his head and left the hall.

In the empty palace, only Yun He remained. A hint of worry flickered in his eyes. "Something about this feels wrong... If I remember correctly, the Guardian of Great Sorrow City is Supreme Mi Luo, and his father is Great Supreme Mi Kong."

His unease only grew stronger upon arriving in Great Sorrow City. A few terrifying auras could faintly be felt lurking inside, all of them seemingly belonging to Great Supremes. They were hiding, making no attempt to see him. That was a huge red flag.

Yun He's face darkened."Don't tell me, all the news about the City of No Return was fake? Could this be a trap meant for me?"

If that were true, then it meant that Great Supreme Mi Kong had likely already betrayed the South and defected to the North. The situation in the South would become even direr. After all, more than half of the 108,000 Cities had fallen, and barely a tenth remained intact. The betrayal of one Great Supreme was enough to shake the entire landscape.

And if Yun He were killed here, another arm of his master, the White Supreme, would be cut off. The South would sink even deeper into danger.

"I need to leave." Yun He felt a massive danger looming over him. Still, no matter how much he wanted to leave, if this was a setup, getting out alive would be nearly impossible. His face was full of worry.

***

Meanwhile, deep within Great Sorrow City.

Several Great Supremes were whispering among themselves.

"Now that Yun He is here, what about our plan?"

"Continue. If he dares to ruin our work, he'll stay here forever."

"He's just one Great Supreme, he won't change anything."

***

In the City of No Return.

Qi Yuan was lazily sprawled on a grand throne, his broken sword harvesting the demons rolling down the conveyor belt. He had stepped into mid-stage Supreme realm.

Qi Yuan sighed. "Having more underlings really is great."

The Blood Palace now had nearly two thousand Supremes. Every day, waves of them went out to hunt down demons, and bring them back for Qi Yuan to slaughter. His XP shot up like crazy.

"It's just a pity that leveling up is easy, but understanding the Origin is slow."

The Supremes could only step into mid stage when their Origin Divine Technique's comprehension deepened. As much as Qi Yuan wanted to level up, his Origin Divine Technique didn't scale with his XP gain. He had to comprehend them himself.

Thankfully, with endless Demonic Origin piled up, Qi Yuan's Inner Demon Lure had reached a terrifying level, the Subtle stage. There was simply too much material. He could only channel so much Demonic Origin, and even after pouring it out, the excess remained.

Meanwhile, the Great Forgetfulness Sutra still stagnated at the Limited stage.

Qi Yuan was disappointed. "Looks like my talent really is garbage. Without the game, I'd just be a tiny shrimp in Canglan World. I probably can't even get through the gate of Divine Radiance Sect."

He tried to comprehend the Great Forgetfulness Sutra often, but every time the next morning came, he forgot everything he realized the day before. How was he supposed to comprehend anything like that?

"Too hard. Way too hard. This game is impossible!" Qi Yuan groaned.

The Great Forgetfulness Sutra wasn't meant for humans to learn. If reaching the Subtle stage was already this hard, then what about the Engraving stage?

If he carved it onto his flesh and soul, he suspected he would become mentally disabled.

Just then, Chen Huan rushed into the underground hall in a panic. "Big Brother! Supreme Mi Luo of Great Sorrow City is here to see you!”

Qi Yuan waved lazily. "Can't you see I'm tightening screws? I am not meeting anyone."

Whoever this Supreme Mi Luo was, he didn't care.

"Big Brother, Mi Luo's father is Great Supreme Mi Kong. A Great Supreme!"

That made Qi Yuan's lips curl into a smile. "

Ah...

finally, a high-level NPC."

A sudden appearance of a high-level NPC could be a blessing or a disaster. Well, it didn't matter either way to Qi Yuan. It was just a game.

Qi Yuan changed his mind. "Let him in."

Might as well see what this Mi Luo is up to, and whether he'd become an enemy. If he does, that would be fun.

A few dozen breaths later, footsteps echoed in the dim underground palace, and candle flames flickered. A man in a blue robe walked in, exuding the proud air of an exalted clan all over.

Supreme Mi Luo stepped forward. Reverence filled his eyes when he saw the blood-robed figure. "Mi Luo greets the Blood Master."

Qi Yuan didn't take his eyes off the adorable little demon spawns on the conveyor belt. "Be quick with it. I'm busy."

Mi Luo showed no displeasure at the cold treatment. "I came to deliver a tremendous opportunity to the Blood Master."

"

Oh

?" Qi Yuan's interest lit up, and he finally glanced at him. "You'd better not be exaggerating."

He was only interested in big things. Without some enormous things to refine into his Golden Core, how was he supposed to defeat the Bright Palace?

Mi Luo explained with practiced eloquence. "Blood Master, not only are you born sacred, you’ve also raised thousands of Supremes. It is a feat that shocks the world. My father, Great Supreme Mi Kong, is one of the strongest in the South. He has long admired you. Sadly, he is stationed at Snow Dragon City and cannot come to the City of No Return."

"Get to the point[1]," Qi Yuan said impatiently.

"My father has gathered several like-minded allies. Together, they wish to acknowledge you as their leader and pledge themselves to you as rulers of the world." Excitement shone in Mi Luo's eyes. "Anyone who can help others break through into Supreme is destined to be ruler of the world. Not even the White Supreme or the so-called Supreme One can compare to you."

Qi Yuan couldn't help but smile.

An NPC wants to crown me a ruler?

Mi Luo then said with utmost respect, "Although the Blood Palace is strong, it lacks mid-stage Supremes and Great Supremes. My father is willing to lead the Great Supremes and submit to the Blood Master."

"Anything else?" Qi Yuan asked.

"I have a younger sister who is three hundred years old. She is young and beautiful. [2]She has always admired you. My father intends to offer her to the Blood Palace as one of your consorts."

Qi Yuan's expression turned amused.

Even offering his sister as tribute... This NPC really knows how to play.

Still, Qi Yuan vehemently denied him, "I'm not interested in becoming any so-called ruler of the world at the moment. As for your sister, I haven't even seen her."

Mi Luo was visibly disappointed, as if he had been cast down from heaven. Still, he said, "In half a month, it will be time to carry out your sermon, Blood Master. I wonder if I could stay in the City of No Return to witness your dao?"

Qi Yuan gave him a glance and said calmly, "Sure. Now leave."

Mi Luo left without hesitation. "Thank you, Blood Master."

The vast underground palace was quiet again, leaving only Qi Yuan and the conveyor belt of demon spawns.

"We're all old foxes, who's fooling who?" he muttered. Then, he stared at the demon spawns and smiled, adding two unrelated lines. "When the pig grows fat, its wings harden."

1. E/N: “Shorten it into 20 words or so.” ☜

2. E/N: >300 yo >young. :| in sea turtle years maybe ☜