After leaving the tavern, Bamboo Mistress, ensuring she wasn't being followed, sped towards the city's outskirts.
Once clear of Flame City, she arrived at a secluded mountain forest, looked around, and after confirming her solitude, she performed a profound hand seal towards the void, chanting incantations.
"Boom!"
A sound echoed as Bamboo Mistress completed the seal. She looked up to see a formation platform materialize before her, engraved with intricate array patterns. If Duan Fei were here, he would immediately recognize its purpose.
It was a teleportation array!
As the platform fully appeared, Bamboo Mistress leaped onto it, then placed a supreme-grade source crystal into the platform's slot. Divine light emanated from the array, enveloping Bamboo Mistress. The next moment, she transformed into a streak of light and vanished, the platform re-concealing itself in the void.
Meanwhile, on the opposite side of Firecloud Ancient Star, another city stood, smaller than Flame City, named Azure City.
Suddenly, a teleportation array within Azure City emitted a powerful divine light, and Bamboo Mistress appeared.
"Elder Bamboo, what brings you back?"
The guard of the teleportation array was a middle-aged man with peculiar features—humanoid but covered in scales, his aura chilling like a cold-blooded animal.
"I've secured two exceptional seedlings," Bamboo Mistress replied with a smile.
"Really?" The man's face lit up. "The Clan Leader will be delighted to hear this."
Bamboo Mistress nodded and departed.
Leaving the teleportation array, Bamboo Mistress headed towards the most lavish mansion in the city. Those she passed resembled the middle-aged man—humanoid but with scales, feathers, or beaks, a bizarre mix, not human at all.
Above Azure City, Gu Changsheng observed these beings, his brow furrowed, his eyes unusually filled with anger.
...
"Where is the Clan Leader?" Bamboo Mistress asked the mansion's steward at the entrance.
The steward replied, "The Clan Leader is in the main hall. He instructed you to go directly to him upon your return."
Bamboo Mistress entered the luxurious mansion and went straight to the central hall. A middle-aged man sat cross-legged, his blood energy vigorous, his aura overwhelming, capable of crushing the surrounding space.
He was a Saint King at his peak.
However, he bore obvious non-human traits—an upward-curving horn on his forehead, a terrifying sight.
He was the City Lord of Azure City, their so-called Clan Leader, known throughout Firecloud Ancient Star as Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King.
Bamboo Mistress approached Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King, intending to bow, but he pulled her into his arms.
"Ah!" Bamboo Mistress exclaimed, then giggled, "My Lord, you're so naughty! I've just returned, and you're already treating me like this!"
Bamboo Mistress playfully punched Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King's solid chest, her voice seductive, her breath fragrant, stirring wicked thoughts in his mind as he tightened his embrace.
He said, "Your waist is still so slender, so soft to the touch."
Bamboo Mistress chuckled. "Has my Lord forgotten what I am? I'm a snake, so my waist is naturally slender and soft."
"You've been gone too long; I almost forgot what you are. I must quickly rediscover what you are."
With that, Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King picked up Bamboo Mistress and headed inside.
"Oh, my Lord, don't be so hasty! I've brought you two excellent seedlings, including a stunning beauty. How about I wake her up, and we can all enjoy ourselves together?"
Bamboo Mistress smirked.
"Really?" Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King's eyes lit up. Constrained by his bloodline, he sought to absorb the bloodlines of top human geniuses to mitigate its effects and break through to the next realm. He had absorbed many human geniuses over the years, feeling closer to the Great Saint realm. Absorbing one or two with rare special physiques might enable his breakthrough.
"Yes, and not only is she as beautiful as a fairy, but her physique seems extraordinary. The humans say she's a legendary Innate Dao Body," Bamboo Mistress said with a smile.
"What? Innate Dao Body?" Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King was shocked. He quickly put Bamboo Mistress down and said, "Quick... quick, let me see."
"My Lord, you're so impatient!" Bamboo Mistress rolled her eyes.
"Haha, don't worry; I'll make you feel good later." Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King slapped Bamboo Mistress's plump buttocks, sending shivers through her as she gazed at him with desire.
"You little vixen." Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King suppressed his lust, reason prevailing over desire. The Innate Dao Body was paramount.
Bamboo Mistress tried to retrieve the human-containing pouch but found it missing.
"How can it be gone?" Bamboo Mistress panicked.
"Gone? What happened?" Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King's expression changed.
"Impossible! I always carry it with me. I checked it before entering to see you. How can it be gone?" Bamboo Mistress was perplexed. She had checked before entering. Had she seen a ghost?
Bamboo Mistress shook her head. They were powerful cultivators; ghosts would scatter at their sight. Could it have been taken by a deity?
"If not for my timely visit, you would be in danger today."
A voice echoed, instantly drawing the attention of Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King and Bamboo Mistress.
Gu Changsheng stood beside Ye Hongyi and the Heavenly Peng Ancient Royal Prince. Ye Hongyi looked relieved. She didn't fear Bamboo Mistress, but facing Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King alone, she would need Little Ten's help to boost her cultivation, or she would be in trouble.
Thinking of this, Ye Hongyi glared at Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King. The ugly creature dared to have designs on her; unforgivable.
"Master, destroy him!"
Ye Hongyi said to Gu Changsheng.
"Not yet. I have questions for him. I'll destroy him after," Gu Changsheng chuckled.
Listening to Gu Changsheng's arrogant words about destroying him, Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King laughed.
"Such arrogant humans, you..."
"Bang!"
Before Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King could finish, Bamboo Mistress's body exploded, splattering him with blood.
Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King was terrified. He hadn't seen Gu Changsheng's move, indicating Gu Changsheng was much stronger.
"Why aren't you continuing? What if we humans are arrogant?" Gu Changsheng said calmly. An invisible pressure filled the hall, and Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King trembled, kneeling on the ground.
"S...Sir, I...I was blind and offended you. Please spare my life," Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King pleaded.
Gu Changsheng ignored his pleas and asked, "How did you...beings come to be? Do you know?"
Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King's face changed. Fearful eyes flashed with anger.
"Know? How could I not know? It's all because of the Flame City Lord, all because of him! I wasn't like this before. I didn't have this ugly horn. I was a normal human. I shouldn't be here... It's all because of the Flame City Lord, all his fault... Ah..."
Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King roared, his eyes filled with hatred, surpassing his fear of Gu Changsheng. Gu Changsheng's question was like a switch, driving him mad. He was like a humanoid beast, his eyes red, filled with violence. He struggled against Gu Changsheng's pressure, but he couldn't move.
"Master, what's wrong with him?" Ye Hongyi frowned.
"His beast nature is awakening, his humanity completely consumed. He has become a beast," Gu Changsheng said calmly, his eyes indifferent. If he hadn't targeted Hongyi, he might have shown pity. But daring to target Hongyi and desiring to harm her, his restraint was already a great mercy.
"Master, kill him!" Ye Hongyi said.
"Mm." Gu Changsheng waved his hand, and Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King turned to dust.
"Roar!"
"Ah!"
"Awooo!"
...
As Rhinoceros-Gaze Saint King died, countless beastly roars echoed within Azure City, filled with pain and boundless hatred.
"Master, what are they...?" Hearing the roars, Ye Hongyi felt like she was surrounded by countless beasts, feeling uncomfortable.
"They were all human once, but no longer! Rhinoceros-Gaze's existence also served to suppress their bestial nature."
Gu Changsheng's voice was calm, so calm that even Ye Hongyi sensed his inner anger. She had felt this anger before, when she was pursued upon entering the Starry Sky Ancient Road, and the pursuers were killed, attracting a Saint-level expert. Master had appeared in time to save her, and that was the first time she had sensed his anger.
Later, she learned the truth from Little Five: An ancestor of the Violet Micro Holy Land had not only colluded with the local ancient race but had also devoured countless newborns. That was the cause of Master's anger.
That time, a holy land that had contributed greatly to the human race fell.
What about this time?
Ye Hongyi shook her head. Now she only felt that the people in this city had suffered inhuman treatment, turning them into these inhuman, ghostly beings.
"Master, what will you do?" Ye Hongyi asked.
"Send them to reincarnation!"
With that, Gu Changsheng waved his hand, and the entire city fell silent. Then, countless beams of light emerged from the city, shooting into the sky, piercing through the fiery red nebula, and leaving.
Each beam represented a soul, and there were billions of beings in this city.
The sudden anomaly in Azure City naturally attracted the attention of the Firecloud Ancient Star's powerhouses.
The divine senses of many powerhouses descended upon Azure City, wanting to investigate, but they were shocked by what they saw.
"This is..."
"Alas, they can be considered liberated."
"What a sin!"
...
