Chapter 2170: Library Turmoil

"Tian Fei, Zhao Meng, you are going too far..." The Lin Clan Leader could no longer restrain himself. He had never imagined that the top genius of his own clan would be savagely beaten by the clan leader, who was of similar strength.

*Thud, thud, thud!*

After a series of slaps, he, too, sat on the ground, utterly bewildered and stunned.

Previously, as the leader of the number one clan, he wasn't Lin Xie's match, but he could easily defeat people like Tian Fei and Zhao Meng. When did they become so formidable?

It was as if these individuals could anticipate his moves. No matter what martial art he used, it crumbled before them, easily defeated!

"Challenge all the disciples of the Lin Clan, one by one!"

Just as he was wondering what was happening, Tian Fei snorted.

Immediately, a limping youth walked out from behind him.

The Lin Clan Leader recognized him. He was a well-known good-for-nothing from the Tian Clan who had become disheartened after an injury, and whose cultivation was the weakest among his peers.

The limping youth quickly approached the Lin Clan disciples. With a sword in hand, he moved swiftly, engaging them one by one. In less than ten minutes, dozens of Lin Clan disciples of similar age were all defeated by him!

"..." The Lin Clan Leader was losing his mind.

When did this good-for-nothing become so powerful?

What on earth happened to the Tian Clan members...?

Half an hour later, all the experts in the Lin Clan had been challenged by their peers. Not a single one won; all suffered crushing defeats.

"Go investigate quickly! How did they suddenly become so strong...?"

The three major clans often competed, both openly and secretly. Normally, the Lin Clan was always superior, unrivaled by anyone. When did they become so easily crushed, unable to put up any resistance?

"Yes..." The butler rushed out. Not long after, he returned, his face bruised and swollen.

"What happened? Don't tell me they're still blocking the entrance?" The Lin Clan Leader gritted his teeth.

He had only said a few bad things about the City Lord, hadn't he? Was it really necessary for the two clans to block the entrance and cause trouble?

"No, I encountered a few beggars on the way. I could have easily dealt with them, but suddenly they all became masters and beat me up..." The butler was on the verge of tears.

"Beggars?" The Lin Clan Leader trembled.

Could the mighty Lin Clan be bullied by beggars now?

"I heard they all attended the City Lord's lecture, which is why they became so powerful. Both their cultivation and combat abilities improved dramatically..." the butler reported.

"Attended the City Lord's lecture? Are there any recorded images of the course?" Lin Xie quickly asked.

"I spent a fortune and finally managed to find one..."

The butler nodded, took out a recording jade crystal, and handed it over.

Divine power surged into it, and he hastily looked. He then saw a young man sitting on a stone tablet, his voice resonating clearly.

After listening for only a short while, both Lin Xie and the Lin Clan Leader felt their bodies go limp, collapsing to the ground.

Only then did they finally understand why the Tian Clan and Zhao Clan had suddenly become so powerful. They were no longer a match for them; it was all because they had attended the new City Lord's lecture!

"The recorded images can only capture sound and are no longer very effective for cultivation improvement... Our Lin Clan has lost its best opportunity. From now on, we will be removed from the list of the three major clans and become a second-rate force..."

With bitter expressions on their faces, the Lin Clan Leader and Lin Xie finally understood.

Although the recording jade crystal could capture images, its effect was far inferior to listening in person. They had lost the best opportunity, and their clan's decline was now a certainty.

"If only I had known how powerful this was, I would have listened to Ming Laixiang..."

Tears streamed down Lin Xie's face.

No wonder Ming Laixiang was so formidable, willingly obeying and helping him ascend to the position of City Lord. Such ability was truly defying the heavens!

If he had set aside his pride and attended the lecture back then, he would probably still be the second most powerful in Night Glow City. Unfortunately, there were no "ifs." He had wasted the power of the eight grand elders, yet couldn't even defeat Tian Fei and the others...

It was destined that Lin Xie, and even the entire Lin Clan, would become the biggest laughingstock of Night Glow City!

"This is the very core of the Ethereal Heaven, Ethereal Imperial City!"

Unaware of what had transpired in Night Glow City, or that its most powerful clan was now in decline, Qi Ling'er looked at the dizzy crowd and spoke.

Zhang Xuan looked around.

The group was standing in a massive circular teleportation array. The formation had just finished operating, and intense spatial fluctuations still permeated the surroundings.

Last night, he had lectured for two hours. Countless low-grade deities broke through to mid-grade, and mid-grade deities broke through to high-grade. The number of experts who achieved breakthroughs in Night Glow City overnight surpassed the total for the past thirty years combined.

At one point, a spiritual energy vacuum appeared above the city.

Most importantly, whether it was humans, divine beasts, or sentient weapons, anyone who attended the lecture was greatly inspired and made further progress in their cultivation.

For a time, the entire Night Glow City was utterly prostrated in admiration for their new City Lord.

Of course, for Zhang Xuan, none of this was unusual or noteworthy.

Leaving the teleportation array, he looked towards the Imperial City before them. It was many times larger than Night Glow City, with more inhabitants, yet it didn't feel as crowded.

The city was clean and tidy, with well-planned architecture. Various divine beasts flew through the air, and towering mountains floated above, shrouded in clouds and mist, making it hard to tell where one was at times.

"Those who can reside on the floating divine mountains in the Imperial City are all from major clans and powerful forces. The weakest among their leaders are high-grade Celestial Deities!"

Seeing his expression, Qi Ling'er explained.

"High-grade Celestial Deities... As expected of the Imperial City, it's truly formidable!"

Zhang Jia muttered to himself.

With its previous strength as a high-grade deity, it could throw its weight around in Night Underworld City, even ignoring the City Lord... But here, there were simply too many experts.

Without even looking closely, it spotted at least five divine beasts whose cultivation was significantly higher than its own.

Its previously proud heart immediately shrank back, daring not to speak further.

It was like a millionaire suddenly arriving on Wall Street, who initially felt wealthy, but upon seeing the people there, realized they weren't even dust.

"What's there to be afraid of? With Brother Qiang here, I'll help you conquer the Ethereal Imperial City!" Sun Qiang smiled slightly, full of confidence.

Zhang Xuan's eyebrows twitched.

Your talent is so weak... what are you so confident about?!

Zhang Jia said nothing, but swatted Sun Qiang's hand off his shoulder, then looked with a fawning smile at the little yellow chicken nearby: "Boss, what can I do for you?"

The little yellow chicken was expressionless: "I want to die... how about you die first and show me?"

Zhang Xuan covered his forehead.

What kind of weirdos are these...?

"Let's find a place to stay first. Do you have any lodgings here?"

Ignoring these odd characters, Zhang Xuan looked at Qi Ling'er.

If he were alone, lodging wouldn't matter, but his parents had traveled all this way with him and needed a place to rest.

Although teleportation arrays were fast, their strength was far from sufficient, so forceful use would still cause some damage to their bodies.

"I used to live with my clan, but I left the Imperial City after I came of age..." Qi Ling'er said awkwardly.

"Then let's just find any place!"

Zhang Xuan waved his hand.

He knew on the way that even in the Imperial City, her clan was quite prominent. As an outsider, he certainly couldn't stay there, and such places had many rules, making it very troublesome. It would be better to stay outside and gather information more easily.

Since there were many outsiders in the Imperial City, lodging was easy to find. In less than an hour, they found a satisfactory courtyard, though its price was incomparably higher than in Night Underworld City.

However, for the current Zhang Xuan, that was nothing.

"Here are fifty Beauty Pills. Find a way to sell them, and also help me inquire about the Spirit God." He took out several bottles of Divine Origin Pills and handed them over.

On the way, he had used the money from previous sales to buy many more low-grade Divine Origin Pills.

For him, it was just a matter of a breath of true qi, requiring little cost.

"Alright!" Qi Ling'er turned and walked out of the courtyard.

"Go inquire about the layout of the Ethereal Imperial City and its various forces. Also, ask about Lu Chong. If you can't find him, then ask where the genius that the Qiankun Demon Lord recently brought went..." After a moment of thought, Zhang Xuan sent a telepathic message to Sun Qiang.

Lu Chong had broken through on the divine mountain and was taken away by the Qiankun Demon Lord of Ethereal Heaven. Unless something unexpected happened, he should be in this Ethereal Imperial City.

As for his exact location, he genuinely had no idea.

"Yes!" Sun Qiang nodded and withdrew.

After the two left and he had settled his parents, Zhang Xuan took out the pendant from his embrace, his expression somber.

Where exactly was Luo Ruoxi?

And what was her true identity in the God Realm...? He knew nothing!

However, from the snippets of time he had spent with her, it was clear that her status must be high; otherwise, she wouldn't have been so cautious.

"Perhaps... I can start with this drop of blood!"

Looking at the deep red liquid within the pendant, Zhang Xuan's heart stirred.

The pendant was given by Luo Ruoxi. He didn't know if the blood sealed within it was hers, but even if it wasn't, it definitely had a connection to her.

He couldn't ascertain her identity through other means, but perhaps this item could!

If the blood was used correctly, it could reveal many things, even her exact location!

"I'll try!"

Previously, his strength had been too weak to approach it. Now, with his physical body, soul, and divine power all at the peak of a high-grade deity, he should be able to make contact.

He set up a formation around himself, then with a touch of his finger, the pendant immediately floated in the air.

With a mental command, a wave of his consciousness spread directly towards it.

The outer wall of the pendant, condensed from some unknown crystal, was exceptionally sturdy. His current physical strength couldn't break it, but his consciousness could extend through it.

Contact was soon made.

The blood lay quietly within the pendant, seemingly devoid of any energy, yet also like a dense rock, unmoving.

Full of doubt, his consciousness extended into it.

The moment it made contact, his body trembled. A familiar aura once again surged through him, and the ancient, vast voice that he had heard shortly after his rebirth boomed in his mind once more.

"Heaven and Earth are impartial, treating all beings as straw dogs..."

"The sun and moon wax and wane, Heaven and Earth are flawed..."

"All laws of the universe, the Heavenly Dao is orderly..."

"When the Great Dao prevails, the world is shared by all..."

Upon hearing this voice, the Library of Heaven's Path in his mind violently trembled. Zhang Xuan felt his eyes go dizzy, and everything went black.

He fell from the bed to the ground, instantly passing out.