Prodigal System in the Flourishing City

Silent flames of war ignited across the whole of Gourd Island, plunging it into a chaos not seen for many years.

And it wasn’t just the City States that fell into chaos; even many sects were dragged into it.

Every power, big or small, joined in either willingly or unwillingly, and everything became a complete mess.

In a small courtyard in Nanshan City that wasn’t particularly luxurious, a man sat dealing with the endless stream of matters being reported to him.

This man was Xin Lifeng!

He had arrived in Nanshan City yesterday. Part of the reason was to monitor Lu Xiaobu, but the bigger reason was still the God Slaying Alliance’s grand plan.

The natural barrier at the Gourd Waist split the north and south in two. Stationed here, he could not only quickly digest and relay information from both sides, but also rapidly transfer manpower through this place, and more importantly, cut off communications between the two sides for a time, preventing either from discovering the God Slaying Alliance’s colossal plan.

This was why Xin Lifeng’s first reaction earlier had been to rope in Lu Xiaobu.

Although afterward he’d never managed to take advantage while dealing with Lu Xiaobu, he had still reached a cooperation with him, allowing him to work here.

While working, he continuously swept his Divine Thought—something only an Out-of-Body Stage cultivator possessed—through the courtyard.

He was guarding against Lu Xiaobu playing any tricks.

After several rounds of clashes, he was now extremely wary of Lu Xiaobu. Especially that cellphone Lu Xiaobu had used to threaten him before; it made him intensely cautious of anything that showed no Spiritual Energy reaction.

He had even, upon just arriving at this courtyard, ground everything inside the walls to dust, leaving only the surrounding wall intact.

He had done all this purely to avoid being monitored by Lu Xiaobu.

After all, all the information being gathered now was top secret. Whether it was the people the God Slaying Alliance was recruiting or those they were targeting, if any of this were to be known by Lu Xiaobu, the consequences would be unimaginable.

However, after scanning for so long, he had actually relaxed. It seemed this Lu Xiaobu could see the bigger picture and hadn’t done anything sneaky or sordid.

However.

What he didn’t know was that, at this very moment, Lu Xiaobu sitting in the City Lord Mansion was also cursing under his breath.

How could he possibly not have tried to set up surveillance?

He had considered using both micro-cameras and satellites, but with Xin Lifeng’s rigorous precautions, he was completely helpless!

In the end, he could only give up!

Still, he had sent people out to gather information!

Originally, the two of them were minding their own business, planning to just wait until everything was handled.

Yet not long after, the two of them still ended up meeting!

In a restaurant not far from the City Lord Mansion, Lu Xiaobu, who had come upon invitation, saw Xin Lifeng already waiting for him.

After they both sat down, the two locked eyes for a long time!

"City Lord Lu, impressive methods." Xin Lifeng narrowed his eyes; it was impossible to tell if his words carried anger or appreciation.

"No, no, it’s the God Slaying Alliance that has impressive methods. Such a massive plan, yet executed so methodically. Those ’nails’ you planted are truly exquisite." Lu Xiaobu replied as well.

The reason the two of them were meeting like this now was not for anything else, but because of Hengqin City and Yuchi City!

These two great cities that divided the Southwest Huludao between them were naturally also targets of the God Slaying Alliance.

In fact, they were even primary targets, since the strength of these two cities was slightly greater than that of the five cities in the Northwest Gourd Island!

But the God Slaying Alliance did not know that all the Nascent Soul Stage cultivators in these two great cities were Lu Xiaobu’s people. On the surface, the two cities still appeared to govern themselves, but in reality they had long since taken Lu’s surname!

Thus!

When the God Slaying Alliance’s claws reached toward them, Lu Xiaobu knew about it at once.

Not only did Lu Xiaobu instantly identify the moles within the two cities, he also followed the trail back and uncovered quite a few of the God Slaying Alliance’s plans!

The one that impressed him the most was this—among the many sects that had remained aloof within the City State powers, quite a few were actually entirely controlled by the God Slaying Alliance!

The arrangement was terrifying!

These sects had long since taken root within the City States’ spheres of influence like nails, and the City States had grown used to their existence!

So when the God Slaying Alliance quietly inserted their pre-arranged personnel into these sects, no one noticed a thing!

Then, with a single order, those people kicked viciously at the City States’ weak spots, causing these City States to fall before they even had time to react!

This maneuver was something Lu Xiaobu truly hadn’t expected. The God Slaying Alliance’s centuries-long layout was indeed vicious enough!

Of course!

Lu Xiaobu was no pushover either; there was no way he would let these nails remain inside his sphere of influence.

He directly ordered the two cities to join forces and wipe them out!

In an instant, the entire Southwest Huludao was drenched in blood, heads rolling everywhere!

This news also reached Xin Lifeng at the first possible moment.

Hence, this meeting between the two!

"As far as I know, City Lord Lu was still at the Golden Core Stage before entering the core area this time, right?" Xin Lifeng said slowly, seemingly hinting at something.

But then, after thinking for a moment, he simply laid it bare: "And yet, a mere Golden Core Stage cultivator managed to bring both Hengqin City and Yuchi City under your control, and even make those Nascent Soul Stage cultivators willingly obey you, not hesitating to offend my God Slaying Alliance in the process. Impressive methods!"

Lu Xiaobu simply listened quietly without offering any rebuttal.

The two once again fell into silence.

A moment later, Xin Lifeng spoke again, narrowing his eyes: "Say it—how do we settle this?"

This matter had to be resolved. The slaughter currently sweeping across the Southwest Huludao was completely different from the arrangements he had made in each city before.

If those cities suffered internal rebellions, even if word got out, very few people would respond quickly. Most would just assume it was a routine uprising.

But this large-scale conflict—especially a war between City States and sects—would absolutely draw the attention of those who were still in the dark.

That was something he absolutely did not want to see!

"Nothing complicated. Just pull all your people out of the Southwest Huludao." Lu Xiaobu said calmly.

"That’s impossible!"

Xin Lifeng’s face immediately darkened. "Aren’t you asking for a bit too much?"

Pull all his people out of the Southwest Huludao?

That was tantamount to handing the entire Southwest Huludao over to Lu Xiaobu, who already controlled Hengqin City and Yuchi City!

The God Slaying Alliance had plotted for centuries for the sake of unification!

And now Lu Xiaobu opened his mouth and demanded a full quarter of the territory?!

How could he possibly agree!

"My appetite really isn’t that big. But, I don’t like spitting out what I’ve already got in my mouth. That’s bad for the stomach." Lu Xiaobu spread his hands and smiled, his tone flat, even faintly teasing.

Yet the atmosphere in the entire restaurant instantly dropped to freezing point, killing intent sparking in the air!