Chapter 119: Old City Lord

That separation was a parting of life and death.

Wang Yu's relationship with his father was not particularly harmonious; politeness outweighed intimacy. The root cause was the death of Wang Yu's birth mother, which became a lingering sorrow in his father's heart. Wang Yu understood this, and their father-son relationship thus remained unremarkable and not particularly deep. Moreover, he was a reincarnated person with memories of a past life.

Having become independent, he didn't feel lonely. Instead, he found that maintaining a certain distance was a comfortable way for both of them to interact. However, how could a human be emotionless like a plant? After years of coexisting, the family bond, though seemingly precarious in its establishment, was fundamentally very solid.

Upon hearing the news of his father's death, he still felt immense sadness. Now, standing before the tombstone, a thousand words of longing emerged, but as they were about to be uttered, they vanished into silence. Wang Yu knelt and kowtowed three times, then turned and left the spot.

It was time for revenge.

Following the address Old Man Ning had provided, Wang Yu set out alone. In less than half a day, he arrived at the former Lord of Stone Lake City's retirement residence. It was located on a small hill over 700 meters outside the city. This place seemed to have an unformed spiritual vein, with thin spiritual energy in the environment, barely enough to sustain early-stage Qi Cultivation.

This person, like Duan Ping, had also failed to break through to Foundation Establishment. However, unlike "Fatty Duan," he lacked the necessary foundation. After his failure, his cultivation not only plummeted to the fifth level of Qi Cultivation but also brought him to the end of his life. He had gambled his entire fortune on one desperate attempt, and he had failed, just like most people in the cultivation world. He was not even 120 years old, yet his body was filled with the aura of decay. He was dying, with at most two years left to live.

"Creak—"

"Who's there?"

Wang Yu deliberately made the bamboo floor of the hut creak. The former City Lord, who was sitting on a stool winding fishing line, suddenly turned his head. He spotted Wang Yu. Despite the close proximity, he hadn't sensed any aura, making his face tense for a moment before relaxing again.

"Fellow Daoist, do you seek this old man for something?"

"Yes."

Wang Yu pulled over a stool and sat opposite the former City Lord. He gazed at the seemingly benevolent old man before him, realizing it was this very person who had sold him to the Inverse Spirit Blood Sect.

"Fellow Daoist, please speak freely. This old man was the previous City Lord of Stone Lake City. Anything within my knowledge, I will certainly disclose without reservation."

Wang Yu nodded noncommittally and quipped, "You're dying, yet you seem to be very afraid of me. Why?"

The former City Lord chuckled wryly. "Fellow Daoist's cultivation is unfathomable. To arrive beside this old man without a sound, I am certainly no match for you. I may be dying... but I still have a few years left to live, after all."

"Is that so? Well, that's good news." It was true that clinging to life was better than a swift death. So, he asked, "I want to know about the spiritual slave trade. Did you contact the Inverse Spirit Blood Sect, or did the old man named Ning contact you?"

The former City Lord was startled, then laughed indifferently. "So it's about this. This matter is no secret among the higher-ups. The three Nascent Soul forces near the Boundary Mountain Range are all involved. They transport many young people with no cultivation potential to the Demon Domain and also earn spiritual stones from it. Initially, only Core Formation cultivators were doing this, but when the scale grew, it alarmed the Nascent Soul Patriarchs and even triggered the Righteous-Demonic War three hundred years ago. After that war, this trade was preserved. Stone Lake City is small and joined late, only a little over a decade ago. Since Fellow Daoist knows Old Man Ning, you should also know his way of doing things. As a mere Qi Cultivation realm cultivator, how could I be qualified to contact him? He came to me. During the first transaction, they even prepared the lists themselves. After all, I didn't know about this matter back then and wasn't prepared."

Wang Yu's brows furrowed. "That batch sixteen years ago was the first?"

"Sixteen years ago... Yes, that's right." The former City Lord was slightly surprised. Before he could ponder further, Wang Yu's second question came.

"What does the Spirit Vulture Sect need so many young maidens for? And they are all mortals, with few cultivation talents." This question silenced the former City Lord. He opened his mouth with a troubled look in his eyes and placed his hand over his heart. "This matter... Fellow Daoist, it's better not to investigate it. This old man is under a restriction. If I speak of it, I will surely die. I still want to live for another two years, to fish for two more years."

"Heh—" Wang Yu's expression turned cold. "Speak, and live. Don't speak, and die now."

Changing his demeanor so abruptly, the former City Lord truly hadn't expected Wang Yu to still want to kill him even after his cooperation. It seemed there was an old grudge, and Wang Yu had specifically come for him, not merely to inquire about information due to his former position as City Lord.

This is bad! An ominous premonition flashed in his mind. The former City Lord forced a smile and took a few steps back, saying, "Fellow Daoist, it's not that I don't want to, but the waters are too deep. Even Foundation Establishment cultivators are just pawns. This old man doesn't know much. All these years, I've merely been sending some mortal women to the Spirit Vulture Sect. If you insist on investigating, not only will I die, but you won't escape either. This is a disaster..."

*Boom—*

Suddenly, a talisman exploded behind Wang Yu. A deep red molten fireball ignited the entire bamboo hut. The former City Lord escaped from the sea of fire. As he quickly took out his flying magical artifact and tried to ascend, a faint voice whispered in his ear.

"Where are you going?"

Wang Yu, clad in black armor, stood unharmed beside the former City Lord. His hand was already gripping the back of the old man's neck, exerting a cold, irresistible force that nearly froze the blood in his veins.

The former City Lord, with a distraught face, said in a pleading tone, "Fellow Daoist, it's not that I don't want to; I truly cannot speak of it!"

"Then I'll borrow your soul for a moment."

When the Soul Devour effect activated, the former City Lord's expression drastically changed. "I'll tell you! I'll tell you!"

"It's the Lust—"

*Squish.*

Just as he uttered a single word, the former City Lord's head suddenly exploded in front of Wang Yu, leaving only a few remnant souls to be absorbed by the Black Fiend Armor.

"Lust? Lust what..." Wang Yu felt a pang of regret. It seemed the old man was indeed under a strict restriction, so rigorously enforced. It was a pity he wasn't a Core Formation cultivator and didn't know soul-searching secret techniques. Looking at the extra ghostly face on the Black Fiend Armor, his thoughts drifted. "I wonder if these remnant souls can be extracted again for soul-searching."

Unfortunately, it was too late now. Regardless of his actions, the former City Lord was doomed to die. The matters involved were far greater than he had imagined, and it seemed truly unwise to get too deeply entangled. Wang Wu must also know about this matter. After all, he was the one who proposed sacrificing young maidens and even offered his own sister. Over five years, Stone Lake City had suffered considerably. It was just unclear whether Old Man Ning's mission was related to this.

"Lust... perhaps it's someone's title or name."

Deciding, he confiscated all of the former City Lord's assets. There weren't many spiritual stones, as his savings had all been used to buy that Reverse Blood Pill. It was far less than Wang Yu's fortune, who was the richest person in the Qi Cultivation stage.