Chapter 2511: The Dispute Begins

Lu Ye had been somewhat puzzled why Huan Qing didn't leave Yuanxi City immediately. Anyone else, once free, would surely have gone wherever they pleased, especially since Huan Qing was a Hedao.

Now he knew there was a reason for her staying.

Lu Ye wasn't sure what possibilities she had seen when activating the Brahma Eye, but judging from the current outcome, the Brahma Eye of the Brahma clan was indeed remarkable. No wonder even the Mirage's divine ability domain had been suppressed.

Now that she was relying on Lu Ye to help her resolve the blood curse, she wouldn't leave Yuanxi City anytime soon and would certainly not do anything detrimental to Lu Ye and his companions.

Huan Qing returned, and Lu Ye stood pondering for a moment before also flying towards Yuanxi City.

The period that followed passed peacefully.

One day, Lu Ye suddenly rushed out of his Grand Commandant's Residence again, arrived at a certain spot in the void, raised his hand, and drew in a Hedao Pearl.

Over this period, he had intercepted several Hedao Pearls using this method. Although the number wasn't large and was merely a drop in the bucket for the current Yuanxi City, this situation was clearly somewhat unusual.

Such a thing had never happened before.

"My Lord!" Lu Ye turned his head, looking at Yuan Xi, who had followed him out.

Yuan Xi nodded, glanced at the Hedao Pearl in his hand, and showed a look of understanding. "Were those previous Hedao Pearls obtained this way?"

"Yes," Lu Ye nodded. "Have many Hedao cities been destroyed recently?"

Only when Hedao cities are frequently destroyed will fragments of Hedao Pearls continuously escape into the ethereal realm. Although Lu Ye only intercepted a few, this indicates that countless fragments must have scattered throughout the Inner Realm.

Yuan Xi's expression was unfathomable. "The conflict has begun!"

"What conflict?" Lu Ye asked, puzzled.

Yuan Xi's lips curved into a smile. "Haven't you noticed we've been traveling rapidly recently?"

Lu Ye had indeed noticed this. Ever since Yuan Xi returned, Yuanxi City had been speeding in one direction. However, it had previously been wandering, so Lu Ye hadn't paid much attention even when he noticed. Furthermore, major city affairs were always decided by Yuan Xi; he only needed to cooperate.

"We are going to participate in a grand event!" Yuan Xi said, looking very excited. "If we do well this time, our city will surely soar."

Lu Ye couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Please enlighten me, My Lord."

Yuan Xi said, "Simply put, in a certain area of the Inner Realm, a large number of Hedao cities, big and small, have already gathered, and more Hedao cities are hurrying towards that direction. Numerous skirmishes have already broken out, and it's highly likely to erupt into a shocking war. The Inner Realm hasn't seen such a major event in many years, so this is our chance!"

Hearing her say this, a domineering and imposing figure immediately appeared in Lu Ye's mind.

After participating in the struggle for the attributed treasure earlier, Kun Li had said that the Inner Realm was about to change, and it would become very chaotic in the coming period.

However, Yuanxi City had always remained in a secluded corner and had been trapped in the Mirage's divine ability domain for several months, so it hadn't felt any of these changes.

"Is this related to Ba Qiu?" Lu Ye asked.

"Oh?" Yuan Xi smiled, looking at him. "It seems you've also heard about that old scoundrel's affairs. No wonder, his matters have been widely discussed recently, so it's not surprising you've heard."

Yuan Xi didn't know about Lu Ye's recent experiences, nor had Lu Ye ever told her. Naturally, she didn't know that Lu Ye not only knew Ba Qiu but had also had direct contact with him, and now even had a way to directly travel to the famous Yifu City!

She continued, "For many, this is a once-in-a-millennium opportunity. But how should I put it? It might be related to him, but sometimes events just happen to coincide. The main cause of this grand event is still that person from the Battlefield."

"Master Qin?" Lu Ye asked, puzzled.

The person from the Battlefield mentioned by Yuan Xi must undoubtedly be Qin Feng. But how could this grand event be related to Qin Feng? Lu Ye was completely bewildered.

"Precisely!" Yuan Xi nodded. "That fellow surnamed Qin had his 'reverse scale' touched a while ago, which sparked this conflict. He has extensive connections but also many enemies, so when he stirred things up, the scale of the event naturally wouldn't be small."

Reverse scale...

Lu Ye immediately recalled his previous experience with Qin Feng traveling to the Outer Realm. He didn't know what was hidden behind that crimson curtain of light, nor was he interested in prying into others' privacy. But judging only from some information revealed by Kun Li, Qin Feng's 'reverse scale' was definitely a woman!

That time, many powerful individuals gathered, attempting to ambush Qin Feng. While the attackers were heavily wounded and Qin Feng himself was unharmed, he clearly suffered a setback.

So Qin Feng did not let the matter rest. He rallied his forces, and followers gathered like clouds; a conflict thus began.

Although there were many skirmishes and conflicts in the Inner Realm on a daily basis, those were all small-scale events. A scene like this, with countless Hedao cities gathering from all over the Inner Realm in a large-scale convergence, had not occurred for a very long time.

So for some people, like Yuan Xi, this was a grand event!

Because in such a conflict, as long as one had enough strength, one could gain many benefits. There was no need to laboriously search for Hedao cities to attack; on that battlefield, one might encounter targets just by casually walking around.

Her ambition was to forge Yuanxi City into the peak of the Inner Realm, looking down on the Ten Greats. How could she miss such a heaven-sent opportunity?

Lu Ye's eyes also lit up as he listened.

Yuan Xi had her ambitions, and how could he not have his own goals?

Currently, he urgently needed to collect Star Abyss Coins to exchange for attributed treasures, so he had to constantly slay enemies. He was now at the eighth level of Fusion Dao cultivation. If he hadn't seized Perlin's blessing, his chances of obtaining Star Abyss Coins after slaying other Fusion Dao cultivators would likely have declined further.

In such a chaotic place, there would be enemies to slay everywhere; not to mention Fusion Dao cultivators, even Hedao cultivators would be countless...

It could be said that Yuan Xi's and Lu Ye's goals were very consistent and non-conflicting.

"My Lord, while we are certainly going to fish in troubled waters, we must have a stance, right? Which side should we stand on?"

It's impossible not to take a side; if we actually do that, there will definitely be no good outcome. Therefore, any Hedao city wishing to participate in this conflict must have its own stance.

Yuan Xi showed a troubled expression. "I haven't decided yet. Behind this conflict are two of the Ten Greats."

"Which two?" Lu Ye asked.

"Blood Drink City and Everlasting City."

Blood Drink City again... Lu Ye felt that the Blood Race was truly active. It was so in the Starry Sky, so in the Outer Realm, and still so in the Inner Realm. Of course, this was related to the Blood Race being a large clan.

"Of these two Ten Greats, which one is related to Master Qin?"

"The City Lord of Everlasting City has an inseparable friendship with that fellow surnamed Qin, so I want to stand with Blood Drink City!"

Lu Ye swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue and couldn't help but ask, "My Lord, what grievances do you have with that person from the Battlefield?"

Their own City Lord repeatedly called him "that fellow surnamed Qin," which indeed sounded like there were some grievances.

Yuan Xi said, "I don't have any grievances with him. Lian has some entanglements with him."

"Romantic ones?" Lu Ye asked, very interested.

A man and a woman, both prominent figures in the Hedao Realm; besides romance, there should be no other entanglements.

Yuan Xi lowered her voice. "Lian has liked that fellow surnamed Qin for countless years. She never admitted it, only secretly gave, but that fellow surnamed Qin never appreciated it. Love turning into hate, you should understand."

"Your subordinate understands." Lu Ye also lowered his voice, looking sneaky. "But My Lord, if that's the case, then we cannot side with Blood Drink City."

"Why?" Yuan Xi asked, puzzled. "I still want to help Lian get some revenge."

Lu Ye knew that his Lord was occasionally not so clever, so he gently persuaded, "My Lord, does Grand Mistress Lian often complain to you and speak ill of Master Qin?"

"Indeed," Yuan Xi replied. "My ears have grown calluses from listening over the years. You tell me what's so good about men that she keeps thinking about him."

Lu Ye thought to himself, 'You probably won't get an answer asking that in front of a man.' Aloud, he said, "My Lord, you only think Grand Mistress Lian is hating him out of love, but have you not considered that Master Qin is also Grand Mistress Lian's 'reverse scale'? If you side with Blood Drink City this time and become an enemy of Master Qin, Grand Mistress Lian might not say anything on the surface — because this conflict, no matter what, won't threaten Master Qin's life — but it could very well affect your friendship."

"It's not that serious!" Yuan Xi waved her hand. "Lian won't care about such things."

"Then, looking at it from another perspective, if we side with Everlasting City, this should be what Grand Mistress Lian hopes to see."

"No, that's not true," Yuan Xi countered. "I just asked her a few days ago, and she also told me to side with Blood Drink City and to teach that fellow surnamed Qin a lesson."

"A woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea," Lu Ye said. "Someone like Grand Mistress Lian often says one thing but means another when it comes to matters of the heart. My Lord, if you trust me, let's side with Everlasting City. Then you can observe Grand Mistress Lian's reaction; you surely won't have chosen wrong."

Yuan Xi tilted her head, looking at Lu Ye. "Grand Commandant, do you have some personal connection with that fellow surnamed Qin?"

Hmm, she was still a little bit clever, but not much.

Lu Ye quickly clasped his fists. "My Lord, please be clear. Although I have a personal connection with Master Qin and he treats me like a brother, your subordinate is first and foremost Yuanxi City's Grand Commandant of Defense, and only then Master Qin's brother. My loyalty to this city is as clear as the sun and moon, and I am willing to serve Your Lord with all my might until death. Whatever Your Lord commands, your subordinate dares not disobey!"

"Hahaha!" Yuan Xi was greatly pleased, continuously patting Lu Ye's shoulder. "Excellent, excellent, excellent! You truly are this City Lord's most important left and right arm. Then I'll listen to you. When we get there, we'll side with Everlasting City!"

Lu Ye sighed in relief inwardly.

And couldn't help but worry and ask, "My Lord, will Everlasting City and Blood Drink City both personally enter the fray this time?"

If so, that would still be very dangerous. Lu Ye had never personally experienced how powerful the foundations of the Ten Great Hedao Cities were, but just looking at Ba Qiu, he knew they were definitely not something one could casually contend with.

"No, they won't!" Yuan Xi shook her head. "The Ten Greats haven't had a direct conflict in many years. Although they are behind this conflict, they won't actually step onto the field."

Lu Ye's heart immediately settled.