Chapter 2540: Consider It Even For Now

"How dare you!" Yuan Xi bellowed. "Who allowed you to attack my subordinate?"

City Lord Zhao said calmly, "How should I address you?"

"Yuan Xi."

City Lord Zhao nodded. "May I ask, Fellow Daoist Yuan, do you know exactly what happened earlier? It seems you weren't in the city before; you must have just returned, correct?"

Yuan Xi adopted an unreasonable stance. "I don't care what happened before. Even if the sky fell, that wouldn't be a reason for you to attack Xiao Die."

City Lord Zhao snorted coldly. "It seems your valued subordinate didn't explain clearly to you. Do you know that your subordinate killed the inspector from Dudu City?"

"Don't even mention that bloody inspector!" It was fine until that topic came up; the mere mention of it infuriated Yuan Xi. "If it weren't for that idiot, how could this city's location have been exposed?"

City Lord Zhao was stunned. He thought You Die and the others hadn't reported the full truth, but now, hearing this, Yuan Xi clearly knew the whole story. What was wrong with this woman? An inspector from Dudu City had just been killed by her subordinate. Wasn't she flustered at all? If he were in her shoes, even he would probably be at a loss, because his Desolate-level city genuinely couldn't withstand the scrutiny if Dudu City held them accountable.

"If this city's location hadn't been exposed, how could we have faced subsequent danger? Therefore, he deserved to die!" Another astonishing statement jumped out of Yuan Xi's mouth.

City Lord Zhao's mood was inexplicable. He finally understood why the soldier cultivators who broke into the city were so crazy: it turned out they had an even crazier city lord backing them. This was simply a group of ignorant fools!

"Grand Commander, aren't you coming back yet?" Yuan Xi couldn't be bothered to waste any more words on City Lord Zhao and called out to Lu Ye.

Lu Ye glanced at City Lord Zhao, who said calmly, "He can't leave!"

If Yuan Xi City hadn't returned, threatened by Lu Ye, he might have already compromised. But now that Yuan Xi City was back, it wasn't Lu Ye's turn to threaten him anymore.

Yuan Xi raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to be my enemy?"

City Lord Zhao replied nonchalantly, "Not really, but your subordinate just displayed considerable arrogance in this city, even daring to threaten this city lord. Don't you think you should offer an explanation, Fellow Daoist?"

"What kind of explanation do you want?"

City Lord Zhao pondered for a moment, then said, "The death of Dudu City's inspector is no small matter, so I'm afraid I must ask Fellow Daoist to accompany me to Dudu City."

"I'm not going."

City Lord Zhao said calmly, "I'm afraid that's not up to you, Fellow Daoist."

He had probably figured out Yuan Xi City's overall strength: only two or three Integration Realm cultivators, the rest being Fusion Realm, and not many of them. Taking such a small city wouldn't be difficult for them. As for Lu Ye's previous threat... soldier cultivators seemed to value loyalty and righteousness highly; alone, he might risk everything, but with companions, they would become his restraint.

Yuan Xi smiled, "It seems you haven't understood the situation."

"Then I must ask, Fellow Daoist, what is the situation now?"

Yuan Xi did not answer. Instead, her figure moved, flying out from atop the high tower and aggressively rushing forward to attack.

City Lord Zhao snorted coldly and similarly flashed forward to meet her. Both intended to probe each other, so neither conjured their Dao soldiers. Their figures rapidly approached, Dao power surging around them, and they each thrust a palm forward. After a brief exchange, they each retreated back into the city.

Yuan Xi remained calm and composed, while City Lord Zhao's expression was grim. Though it was just a simple exchange, he had already sensed the terrifying power of Yuan Xi from that single palm strike. It was a level far beyond his reach.

The cultivator surnamed Wu finally realized it at this moment and quickly approached City Lord Zhao, saying, "My Lord, they are a Grand-level city!"

City Lord Zhao abruptly turned his head to look at the cultivator surnamed Wu. "How is that possible?"

Such a small city would at most be a Celestial-level, most likely an Earth-level. Now, the cultivator surnamed Wu was telling him it was a Grand-level city, which he found truly hard to accept.

The cultivator surnamed Wu said, "It truly is a Grand-level city; I only sensed it after entering the city."

City Lord Zhao wore an expression of disbelief. What did such a powerful Integration Realm cultivator and a Grand-level city imply?

"Did that damned inspector claim this city was committing an act of rebellion?" Yuan Xi's voice came again. "I advise you to honestly release my Grand Commander, otherwise, I will first unite with these two cities and destroy you, truly committing that act of rebellion!"

In the enemy Desolate-level city that had been watching the spectacle, the Integration Realm cultivator who had just spoken immediately brightened, exclaiming, "Fellow Daoist, you don't need to have any concerns! Do whatever you wish, and later, this city lord can vouch for you, allowing your city to switch allegiance to our faction and ensuring your city is given important roles."

"Then I'll have to properly thank Fellow Daoist at that time!" Yuan Xi replied casually.

"There's no time to lose, shall we join forces now?" That city lord seemed somewhat impatient.

Yuan Xi smiled faintly, her gaze fixed on City Lord Zhao, the threat in her eyes palpable.

Seeing this, Lu Ye directly sheathed his long saber and stepped out from the front of the Central Great Hall. He knew that with Yuan Xi's words, City Lord Zhao and the others would absolutely not dare to make any further rash moves, otherwise, Yuan Xi truly would unite with their enemies. She had originally intended to join another faction, and only because of his persuasion did she take her current stance. Therefore, switching factions truly carried no psychological burden for her at all.

As expected, even after Lu Ye sheathed his saber, City Lord Zhao and the others merely watched calmly, making no move to make things difficult for him.

Without looking sideways, as he passed in front of City Lord Zhao and the others, Yuan Xi's low voice came again: "Grand Commander, injuring Xiao Die cannot be simply overlooked."

Almost the instant her words fell, the long saber at Lu Ye's waist was unsheathed again. Without holding back any Dao power, he fiercely slashed towards City Lord Zhao. No one had expected Lu Ye to suddenly launch an attack from such close range, nor had they imagined he would dare to strike. City Lord Zhao was completely unprepared for this; he only managed to hastily defend himself when Lu Ye's attack arrived.

With a muffled groan, City Lord Zhao stumbled back several steps, blood seeping from his body. Even though his defense was hasty, the difference in their strengths was too great. Thus, this saber strike only lightly injured him. If it weren't for the unique power of the Fang, such an injury would likely heal instantly. However, in his own Integration Realm city, to be wounded by a saber under the eyes of everyone, this caused his face to darken with shame. The many Integration Realm cultivators around him glared angrily at Lu Ye.

Lu Ye, however, paid them no mind. He simply sheathed his saber, took a step, and darted away. From beginning to end, no one stopped him, nor did anyone dare to.

"Let's consider us even, then, City Lord. Do you have any objections?" Yuan Xi asked calmly.

City Lord Zhao suppressed the anger in his heart and slowly shook his head. "Fellow Daoist acts very justly; this city lord has no objections!"