Desolate Devouring Art

Once the group entered the City Lord Mansion, Ye Guhai welcomed them with a lavish banquet. Every guest elder treated Liu Wuxie with unmistakable respect and impeccable courtesy.

Ye Linghan had changed into an elegant new outfit that lent her a noble air. Delicate makeup adorned her face, and color brightened her lips, making her resemble a fairy who had stepped straight out of a painting.

From the moment she appeared, she stayed beside Liu Wuxie, and together, they looked like the perfect couple. Even Elder Wu teased them for being a match made in heaven.

Ye Linghan did not attempt to deny it, while Liu Wuxie merely answered with a faint smile and allowed the matter to pass.

As the wine flowed, the guest elders gradually took their leave. Ye Guhai swept a hand through the air, dismissing every maid and guard until only Liu Wuxie, Ye Linghan, and he remained in the main hall.

"Linghan, you've only just returned, so you must be tired. Get some rest. There are a few things I'd like to discuss with Wuxie in private," Ye Guhai said.

Ye Linghan fixed Liu Wuxie with a meaningful look. Only after he answered with a nod did she turn and leave the main hall.

The hall fell silent. Liu Wuxie lowered his cup and met Ye Guhai's gaze, confronting its full weight without the slightest hesitation.

Anyone else standing before a Divine Immortal would have buckled beneath the immense pressure. Yet Liu Wuxie's expression remained calm.

"Linghan has strong feelings for you," Ye Guhai said.

The words caught Liu Wuxie completely off guard. He had never expected Ye Guhai to open their conversation so directly.

Being a City lord was only one of Ye Guhai's identities. Before anything else, he was a father, and caring about his daughter came naturally to him. No one knew a daughter better than her father, and from the moment Ye Linghan had returned, Ye Guhai had seen that her eyes held room for no one but Liu Wuxie.

Liu Wuxie offered no answer, choosing silence instead.

"You don't feel the same way about her?" Ye Guhai asked.

Liu Wuxie slowly shook his head, deepening Ye Guhai's confusion. If he had feelings for Ye Linghan, why did he insist on treating her with such coldness?

"I still have a blood debt to settle. Until I've taken my revenge, how can I think about romance?" Liu Wuxie asked with a bitter smile.

He had no intention of revealing anything about the mortal realm yet. Doing so would be no different from exposing his identity.

"When you speak of hatred, do you mean the Wen Clan?" Ye Guhai asked.

He had already ordered a thorough investigation into Liu Wuxie's background, only to find that the young man's past was completely unknown. Someone of Liu Wuxie's caliber would become an invaluable asset if he joined the City Lord Mansion.

"You could put it that way," Liu Wuxie replied.

For the moment, the Wen Clan truly was his greatest enemy. If he told Ye Guhai that his real enemies were Immortal Emperors, the man would probably be frightened enough to spring out of his chair.

"Do you have a plan for dealing with the Wen Clan?" Ye Guhai inquired.

Ye Guhai had no desire to interfere too deeply in the relationship between his daughter and Liu Wuxie. Some matters were better left to follow their natural course.

Since Liu Wuxie held Ye Linghan in his heart and merely refused to consider romance for the time being, there was no reason to pressure him. They could discuss the matter again after destroying the Wen Clan.

"The Wen Clan will soon receive an important shipment from Fourfold City. I intend to intercept it," Liu Wuxie explained.

Wen Qiong's memories had revealed a wealth of information concerning the Wen Clan.

"Could it be...?" Ye Guhai asked as he shot to his feet.

"City Lord, do you know what they're transporting?" Liu Wuxie asked, curiously.

Wen Qiong's memories had only shown him that the Wen Clan's patriarch had purchased something of tremendous importance. The object would influence the Wen Clan's development for the next few centuries, but even Wen Qiong hadn't known exactly what it was.

"A Sumeru Stone," Ye Guhai answered.

His brows furrowed as he paced across the main hall. For years, he had known that the Wen Clan was searching everywhere for a Sumeru Stone, yet he had never imagined they would actually find one.

The Wen Clan had strictly concealed the transportation plan, allowing only a handful of its members to learn about it. Had Liu Wuxie not killed Wen Qiong, even Ye Guhai would have remained unaware.

"A Sumeru Stone? Is the Wen Clan planning to forge an artifact at the level of the Golden Immortal Realm?" Liu Wuxie asked with a frown.

A Sumeru Stone was a forging material, but it could hardly be considered an exceptionally rare treasure.

Within Fourfold City, however, a Sumeru Stone still ranked among the finest treasures anyone could obtain.

"You know about the Sumeru Stone?" Ye Guhai asked, his eyes suddenly blazing with interest.

He hadn't expected Liu Wuxie to recognize the Sumeru Stone, much less know that Golden Immortals used it to forge their artifacts.

The Wen Clan and the City Lord Mansion possessed roughly equal strength, leaving neither side capable of completely suppressing the other. However, if the Wen Clan forged an artifact comparable to the Golden Immortal Realm, that balance would collapse, and the City Lord Mansion would undoubtedly be overwhelmed.

"That's exactly why we must seize it before it reaches the Wen Clan. We can't allow them to forge that artifact," Liu Wuxie said.

He did not explain how he knew about the Sumeru Stone and jumped straight to the heart of the matter.

Forging an artifact at the level of the Golden Immortal Realm was no simple undertaking. The Wen Clan wasn't attempting to create a genuine Golden Immortal Realm artifact. Instead, they intended to forge something comparable to the Quasi-Golden Immortal Realm. Restraining Ye Guhai was their primary objective.

"If they're transporting a Sumeru Stone, they will certainly send experts to protect it. Seizing it by force won't be easy," Ye Guhai said, worry clouding his eyes as he halted his pacing.

He had only survived the Nine-Tailed Heptabane Serpent's poison because of Liu Wuxie. If the Wen Clan continued expanding without restraint, the City Lord Mansion would eventually face disaster.

Liu Wuxie had already considered that problem and intended to borrow the City Lord Mansion's strength. Attempting to seize the Sumeru Stone alone would be as difficult as ascending the heavens.

"The Sumeru Stone will enter Fourfold City in another three days. We still have enough time to prepare," Liu Wuxie replied with a faint smile.

Since the Wen Clan wanted to play this game, he would play until he had crippled them completely.

The two men began weaving their plan, and Ye Guhai's hearty laughter occasionally rolled through the hall. Ye Linghan had never truly left. Fearing that her father might make things difficult for Liu Wuxie, she had remained outside and listened. Only after hearing Ye Guhai laugh did she finally depart.

The latter half of the night had already arrived when Liu Wuxie and Ye Guhai emerged from the main hall. They walked shoulder to shoulder, carrying themselves like friends who had known each other for years.

"Get some rest, Wuxie!" Ye Guhai said after they stepped out of the main hall.

He still had several arrangements to make.

"Farewell!" Liu Wuxie said, cupping his fists together.

The steward then escorted him to the finest courtyard in the City Lord Mansion.

Ye Guhai didn't retire for the night. The instant he entered his study room, his expression underwent a complete transformation.

"Go. Summon Elder Wu and the others," he commanded.

A sonic boom erupted beyond the study room as a shadow vanished into the darkness.

Roughly fifteen minutes later, Elder Wu and several of Ye Guhai's most trusted aides entered the study room. Two of them still looked half-asleep, as though they had only just crawled out of bed.

"City Lord, why did you call us here in the middle of the night? Has something happened?" Elder Wu asked.

His bond with Ye Guhai ran deeper than most. From the City Lord Mansion's earliest days, Elder Wu had always led the charge, and Ye Guhai trusted no one more.

"I need several of you to assist Liu Wuxie."

The matter demanded absolute secrecy. To prevent any information from leaking, Ye Guhai could only entrust it to his closest aides.

The five elders exchanged guarded looks, each believing that Ye Guhai intended to launch an attack against the Wen Clan.

"City Lord, what exactly do you need us to do?" Elder Wu asked.

Ye Guhai had only ordered them to assist Liu Wuxie, leaving them without any further instructions.

"When the time comes, Liu Wuxie will make every arrangement. Treat every command he gives as though it came directly from me, and carry it out to the letter," Ye Guhai said.

These men were all dignified Origin Immortals, and Ye Guhai knew they would naturally resent taking commands from a mere True Immortal.

For that reason, he laid down a stern order from the very beginning. Anyone who dared defy it would face his ruthlessness.

Elder Wu visibly trembled. Never before had Ye Guhai addressed them in such an uncompromising tone, and they immediately grasped the gravity of the situation.

"You have our word, City Lord. We will follow every order to the letter," Elder Wu said, striking his chest in assurance.

Liu Wuxie's killing of Wen Qiong had already convinced them of his ability.

Success or failure alone couldn't define a hero, just as cultivation alone couldn't measure strength. Liu Wuxie might be neither a hero nor a powerful cultivator, but the feats he had accomplished were enough to shake heaven and earth.

The other four elders nodded, their eyes reflecting the same firm assurance.

Once all arrangements fell into place, Ye Guhai dismissed them. They would secretly leave the City Lord Mansion alongside Liu Wuxie the next day. They couldn't risk alerting the enemy, and they wouldn't need to return and report to Ye Guhai.

After returning to his room, Liu Wuxie did not attempt to sleep. He sat cross-legged and reconstructed the entire plan within his mind, examining every detail until he was certain no lapse remained. Even the smallest flaw could cost him his life.

Only after confirming that the plan was foolproof did Liu Wuxie close his eyes and begin cultivating.

The night slipped away swiftly. By morning, Ye Linghan arrived carrying freshly prepared food.

"What did my father discuss with you last night?" she asked curiously as she set the food on the table.

"Matters between men," Liu Wuxie replied, reaching for a pastry.

It was Ye Linghan's favorite lotus cake. The moment it touched his tongue, it melted away, leaving a pleasant aftertaste lingering between his teeth.

Ye Linghan rolled her eyes at him but abandoned her questions.

Once Liu Wuxie had eaten his fill, she packed everything away and departed. He stepped out of his room afterward and fixed his gaze on the towering tree within the courtyard.

At that exact moment, Elder Wu and the others arrived.

"Young Master Liu, we've come to await your orders," Elder Wu said.

He lowered himself completely, assuming the bearing of an ordinary guard waiting to carry out Liu Wuxie's commands.

"Thank you for going to the trouble, Elders," Liu Wuxie replied.

He understood that their courtesy came solely from Ye Guhai's command. None of them had truly submitted to him.

Killing Wen Qiong had shocked them, but it hadn't inspired genuine fear. In their eyes, the talisman Liu Wuxie had unleashed in Moon Reverence City owed much to fortune, and forging another one would be no easy feat.

"Young Master Liu, what would you have us do?" another elder asked.

His name was Yuan Jiang, and his tone remained fairly courteous.

"Disguise yourselves," Liu Wuxie replied, producing several masks for everyone to wear.

The disguising technique he had learned from He Yingwu had proven useful once again in the celestial realm. Unless they encountered a formidable expert, no one would uncover their true identities.

Liu Wuxie transformed himself into a young master, while the five elders took on the appearances of middle-aged men. Each of them restrained their aura until they seemed no different from ordinary people.

Liu Wuxie inspected them several times, eliminating every possible flaw before leading them out of the City Lord Mansion.

They avoided the main gate and slipped out through the rear entrance instead. No one witnessed their departure, and the only thing anyone knew was that Ye Guhai had transferred every guard away from the rear gate.

After they entered the streets, Liu Wuxie rented a beast carriage for the group, with Elder Wu taking the reins.

Not far from the City Lord Mansion's main gate, scouts from the Wen Clan had kept watch for an entire day and night. News of Liu Wuxie's arrival in Fourfold City had already reached the Wen Clan, prompting them to station spies outside the mansion ever since.

"Is Liu Wuxie really planning to spend the rest of his life hiding inside the City Lord Mansion?" a scout grumbled from within a teahouse.

"The patriarch's orders are clear. The moment Liu Wuxie leaves the City Lord Mansion, we activate the assassination plan," a beggar sitting at the corner of the street said.

He, too, was a spy planted by the Wen Clan. A steamed bun rested in his hand, and he slowly raised it toward his mouth.