Just as Qin Yun pushed open the doors to the city lord's chambers, he felt a suffocating pressure assault him. His eyes narrowed as he saw a middle-aged man quietly seated on an ordinary wooden chair, slowly sipping a cup of tea.

Contrary to the imposing sight he had witnessed days prior, the man before him looked akin to a middle-aged scholar teaching the neighbourhood kids. While clean and well-adjusted, his clothes were much too ordinary compared to the splendour Qin Yun had witnessed in the throne room. If not for his aura, Qin Yun could have believed this man to be a mortal.

Qin Yun couldn’t help but gulp nervously as he entered the room. After all, the man before him was the strongest being found within Jin City. His presence alone could crush Qin Yun where he stood.

The room was filled to the brim with thick, pure Qi, constantly revolving around the man. Qin Yun could feel the world's natural laws bend and weave whenever the man drew breath. Furthermore, he could see a thin golden film shimmer around the man's body, pulsing with power. This was this man's domain, constantly protecting his body from any foreign substance.

Yet, despite the depths of this man's cultivation, Qin Yun couldn't help but feel his vitality was lacking. In fact, the man's face was much paler than Qin Yun anticipated. While the Qi permeating the room was abundant, he still felt it was lacking. After all, if not for the domain enveloping him, Qin Yun would think this man was in the Nascent Soul realm at best. Something was wrong.

“Greetings to the city lord," Qin Yun said as he bowed deeply. While he rarely showed such respect, Qin Yun knew this man deserved it. After all, not many cultivators could reach the Soul Formation realm at such a young age.

“I’ve heard about you,” the man replied, yet his voice was much weaker than Qin Yun expected. “Since you are acquainted with my daughter, you can call me Sun Yang.”

“I wouldn’t dare,” Qin Yun replied, bowing even deeper, yet Sun Yang only waved his sleeve.

“There’s no need to express what you don’t mean.”

Hearing this, Qin Yun's slightly flustered expression returned to a deep calm. This man before him was much more challenging to deal with, and playing games here would be pointless. Qin Yun could only be straightforward.

"Then you should know why I am here," Qin Yun replied as he took a seat facing Sun Yang after being invited while Sun Yu sat behind her father. Her expression was complicated, ranging from shame to concern. Obviously, Qin Yun wouldn't believe this concern was aimed at himself. "I don’t care what your son-in-law is up to, but I want no part of it.”

“Are you asking me to control him?" Sun Yang asked but then shook his head. "You have something he wants. This alone will make you his enemy."

“I don’t care. I’ve been lenient for long enough. If you won’t stop him, then I will.”

“Is that a threat, young man?” Sun Yang’s eyebrows rose slightly.

The golden film enveloping Sun Yang's body grew larger, propagating to the edge of the room and passing through Qin Yun. Qin Yun felt as if he had entered another dimension where Sun Yang was king. Anything within this realm was within his grasp, even Qin Yun's life and death.

This was the reason for the massive gap between the Nascent Soul and Soul Formation realm. Within their own domains, cultivators were invincible. Only an equal or stronger domain could fight against one. As such, Qin Yun had no hope of resisting, yet his calm and peaceful demeanour didn't change. He only took the tea he was offered and slowly sipped on it, which couldn’t help but make Sun Yang smile.

“You are only the second young man to not be overwhelmed by my domain,” he said, slightly amused.

“I would assume Liao Cheng to be the first,” Qin Yun replied as he put down his cup.

In the back, Sun Yu felt slightly suffocated by this confrontation. While she was used to her father being domineering, she hadn’t expected the events to turn this way. It seemed her father had taken an interest in Qin Yun and wished to test him.

Qin Yun, too, concluded the same. Still, this was within what he expected. After all, the old generation rarely bothered to take action against their junior—unless they were part of the Ma clan. Obviously, the city lord was no exception. He knew full well what would happen to his reputation if he were to act personally against someone like Qin Yun. Therefore, Qin Yun chose to exploit this.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

"Is your favour toward Liao Cheng related to his origins, or are you simply a doting father?" Qin Yun asked, probing the man's reaction. Hearing those words, Sun Yu stiffened, fearing her father would feel insulted, yet the man laughed instead, making her slightly dumbfounded. Even Qin Yun couldn't help but be surprised.

“Lihua did tell me that you were audacious, yet even she underestimated you,” Sun Yang replied. “Careful, young man. Not many are as understanding as I am. Someday, you might offend someone you shouldn’t.”

“I don't go out of my way to offend people," Qin Yun replied, shrugging slightly. "I just have too many things people want from me."

Then, Qin Yun retrieved his black crystal sword from his storage and showed it to Sun Yang. As expected, Qin Yun saw a hint of greed on the man's face, which turned into surprise. Then, he frowned deeply. Qin Yun couldn't help but smile.

"I can't hide anything from you, it seems," Qin Yun said before taking another sip of tea and placing the sword on the table between them.

Sun Yang carefully tried to pick up the weapon, yet it proved much too heavy to do so casually. He could only utilize the full strength of his domain to aid him in this endeavour, yet this was barely enough for him to hold it with two hands. As for swinging it, Sun Yang couldn't even conceive such a thing.

"What an unwieldy weapon," Sun Yang muttered before placing it back on the table. Yet, he couldn't help but frown as he did so. After all, even if he could barely hold it, how could this ordinary wooden table hold its weight? He tried to probe the inside of the weapon's crystal structure using his domain, yet he felt a strong sense of rejection.

The deeper he probed, the stronger the rejection became until he could finally no longer sustain it. The black crystal repelled the invader, flinging the domain outward. While this rejection wouldn’t be enough to injure someone of Sun Yang’s calibre, it nevertheless left him stunned and bewildered. He remained silent for a while, observing the peculiar object.

“It’s no wonder the heavens would reject its existence,” he finally said. “After all, how could it tolerate this foreign entity? Yet, what puzzles me even more is you.” Sun Yang raised his gaze toward Qin Yun. “Lian Qian did tell me of your relationship, yet I was reluctant to believe it.”

“What made you change your mind?” Qin Yun replied, his gaze calm and peaceful despite what he knew would be coming.

“How can I not when you showed me a thing that shouldn't exist?" he sighed, but his breath turned to a cough.

Qin Yun couldn't help but frown as he looked at the man who was supposed to be a god among men, coughing as if he were but a mortal. Sun Yang's complexion became as white as a sheet, and his lips turned bluish. The radiant film around his body dimmed slightly before flickering each time he coughed.

After more than a minute of unending coughs, calm finally returned as Sun Yu brought a handkerchief for her father to wipe the slight traces of blood that had pooled at the corner of his mouth. Qin Yun could see the worry on Sun Yu's face, yet her father seemed unaffected, as if he already knew his condition and had already accepted its outcome. Qin Yun, too, had an inkling of what had happened.

“So you were corrupted, after all,” Qin Yun said, showing some compassion for the man’s situation. After all, the advent of those creatures in this world was tied to him, whether he wanted it or not.

“You realized?" Sun Yang replied, smiling helplessly. "This is one of the reasons I agreed to this meeting."

“Let me stop you right there. There is only one thing that can completely cure you of their corruption," Qin Yun replied, pointing upwards.

“I suspected as much,” the city lord replied, shaking his head. “However, one cannot force the heavens to do anything.”

“You're lucky that you have reached the Soul Formation realm; otherwise, you would be doomed," Qin Yun said after a moment of silence.

“Indeed,” Sun Yang replied.

Seated next to her father, Sun Yu couldn’t help but ask, “What do you mean? Is my father going to be okay? Ever since he was attacked by those things, his condition only became worse!”

"He'll be fine," Qin Yun replied dryly. "It might take him a long time, but he'll get through it. After all, domains are granted by understanding the heavens. As such, they possess a sliver of its power. He can slowly force out the corruption by infusing his domain into his body. However, such a process will be lengthy and difficult. He can only persevere through it. I imagine the other five are going through the same thing as we speak."

“Their conditions are much less severe than mine,” Sun Yang said.

“That would explain the uneasy atmosphere I felt within your clan. I expect some are eager to take advantage of your moment of weakness. Is that why you let Liao Cheng do as he pleases?”

Sun Yang smiled, giving confirmation to Qin Yun's assumptions. While Qin Yun wasn't aware of the details, he knew Liao Cheng wasn't as simple as he seemed. His earlier display of devouring those crystals with his vortex explained much of Qin Yun's suspicions. Those mysterious disappearances all over Jin City were most definitely related to him. Either directly or not.

Qin Yun doubted that the city lord was unaware of such a connection. Yet, this begged the question: why would he let him do so for so long if he knew? After all, the city lord's job was to ensure that peace reigned within the city. Liao Cheng should have been dealt with as an unstable factor long ago, yet Sun Yang seemed to embrace his existence.

The most reasonable conclusion was that the two had reached an agreement. As for the terms, Qin Yun couldn't help but think this had something to do with Paradise. After all, what else would a Soul Formation cultivator want other than furthering his own cultivation? Paradise would precisely offer that opportunity.

“Going back to the matter at hand, what do you want from me, and what can you offer in return?" Sun Yang asked sternly.

Qin Yun could feel the room's atmosphere drop a few degrees as a slight pressure hung over him. While his counterpart was injured, he knew he had no means to fight back if the city lord wished to harm him. Still, Qin Yun remained calm and composed, as if the situation had always been in his hands.

"There's no need for all that coercion," Qin Yun replied, hiding his uneasiness behind a slight smile. "I want the same thing I offered Liao Cheng. To be left alone. I have no interest in what happens within this city, yet people cannot help but involve me against my will. To be truthful, this is nothing but a bother.

“And what can you offer me in return?” Sun Yang asked, a slight glint in his eyes.

“The same thing I offered Liao Cheng, yet he refused me. The key to Paradise."

“The girl, you mean? You know where she is?”

“Don't play dumb," Qin Yun scoffed. "We both know you were always aware of her location. After all, how could she hide from the city's main formation? In this city, no one can hide from your eyes. No, you never sought her out because you knew it was useless to do so. After all, you knew the girl could only open the door to Paradise, not lead you to it. What I propose is the means to know its location."

Sun Yu gasped; she had been unaware of this information. However, her father showed a satisfied smile.