Joining Forces

Chen Fan slowly peeled open a Fire Spirit Fruit and said calmly, "There are quite a few spirit stones and inner cores in the treasury. Which one are you referring to, City Lord?"

The Giant Spirit City Lord took a deep breath and squeezed out two weighty words through gritted teeth:

"Guixu!"

The moment those two words were uttered, even the rolling sea of clouds around the Mountain-Viewing Terrace seemed to freeze for a moment.

However, Chen Fan didn't even raise an eyebrow; he simply put the fruit into his mouth and chewed it slowly.

Seeing that Chen Fan remained calm, the Giant Spirit City Lord knew that without presenting something substantial, it would be impossible to get the young man to talk.

He said in a deep voice.

"Brother Chen, do you know just how vast this Great Wilderness is? And is the Ninth-Tier Peak truly the end of Martial Dao?"

Chen Fan didn't answer, but just looked at him quietly.

The Giant Spirit City Lord asked and answered himself, his eyes blazing with unprecedented fervor and desire.

"This world is incomplete! It is Great Wilderness, but also a prison! Since the Primordial God-Demon War, the Heavenly Dao has shattered, and the path forward has been severed. Even if we are as talented as you and I, and cultivate to the Ninth Tier, our lifespan is no more than a thousand years. In the end, we cannot escape the fate of turning into dust!"

"The only path to Transcendence is to Guixu!"

"That place is the only place in the Great Wilderness that connects to the heavens, burying the Creations of ancient gods and demons, and containing the true inheritance to break through the Ninth Tier shackles and step into the God-Demon Domain!"

As the Giant Spirit City Lord spoke, he slightly raised his right hand, and a flash of light appeared in his palm, revealing an ancient fragment with broken edges.

It is engraved with the pattern of half a majestic Divine Mountain, which is exactly the same mountain imprint as the totem of Giant Spirit City!

"To unlock the Guixu Secret Realm, you need to collect Guixu Remnant Map passed down from the first ancestors of the thirty-six major cities!"

The Lord of Giant Spirit City Lord stared intently at Chen Fan.

"The fragment of the map of Red Rock City is inside that Beast-Skin Scroll. And my Giant Spirit City possesses a second one!"

Chen Fan's gaze fell on the fragment in the palm of the Giant Spirit City Lord, and in an instant, he perfectly pieced together the Missing-Peak Ancient Seal with it in his mind.

Really.

The fragmented map of Red Rock City is real, and so is the secret of the Guixu.

But the next moment, Chen Fan's eyes narrowed slightly, and a deep, cold killing intent flashed through the depths of his Sea of Consciousness.

Thirty-six main cities, passed down through generations.

Xuanming City, also one of the main cities in the Northern Border with a history spanning hundreds of years, did not mention a single word about the Guixu Fragment when the Xuanming Old Monster knelt down to beg for mercy, handed over the City Lord's Seal, and paid tribute to the emperor.

Even though that old man acted subserviently in front of him, he secretly kept this precious treasure, which was related to Transcendence, hidden away in the shadows.

That's not loyalty, that's a venomous snake ready to turn the tables and bite back at any moment!

"Old servant?"

Chen Fan sneered inwardly; his killing intent was already set.

On the Mountain-Viewing Terrace, the Giant Spirit City Lord was unaware of the chilling look in Chen Fan's eyes. He simply put away the fragments and solemnly said...

"Brother Chen, the Guixu Secret Realm opens only once every ten thousand years. Now, with the Blood Moon approaching, the entrance to the secret realm is faintly visible in the God-Burial Abyss in the far north of the Great Wilderness. Deep within the Great Wilderness, there are also some city lords of major cities who are at the Ninth Tier, and they too possess fragments!"

The Giant Spirit City Lord abruptly stood up, extended his right hand, and declared passionately, "Let's join forces, combine the strength of our two cities, and first storm into the Guixu! Let's seize the God-Demon Dao Fruit and share the world! What do you say?!"

A long wind howls, and those dressed in white are even more pristine than snow.

Chen Fan lowered his head, his fingertips gently stroking the yellowed animal hide scroll in his sleeve, a playful smile slowly curving his lips.

Chen Fan spoke casually, his fingertips lightly tapping his knee.

"Lord City Lord, I am but a ten-year-old junior who has just crawled out of the mire. Besides a bunch of barbarians, I don't have even half Ninth Tier warrior under my command. Which of those old monsters who have been entrenched in the depths of the Great Wilderness for thousands of years is not stronger and more powerful than me? Why do you ignore them and choose to come after a greenhorn like me to share the spoils?"

The Giant Spirit City Lord's expression stiffened slightly.

On that broad, chiseled face, the bold smile seemed to have been blown away by the cold wind, hanging stiffly at the corners of his mouth.

The hand under the stone table clenched unconsciously, and even the Ninth-Tier Domain rippled with a sense of disorder.

"What, did the city lord receive some special care from the seniors deep in the Great Wilderness, forcing him to retreat to this Northern Border and seek refuge with a barbarian like me?"

Chen Fan leaned slightly forward, and with each word, he tore away the facade that this Ninth Tier giant had been trying to maintain.

"..."

A deathly silence Mountain-Viewing Terrace; even the roaring sea of clouds seemed to freeze in that instant.

After a long while, the Giant Spirit City Lord sighed, his burly body slightly hunched, and an indelible sense of unease and embarrassment appeared on his face.

"Brother Chen... your eyesight is sharper than a teenager's."

He gave a bitter smile, grabbed the wine jar, and took a big gulp, tearing away his pretense and completely giving up.

"Since we've come this far, I won't hide anything from you."

"I have only been at the Ninth Tier for one hundred and twenty years."

The Giant Spirit City Lord gritted his teeth, his eyes blazing with humiliation and rage.

"One hundred and twenty years! In the mortal world, that's the span of several generations, but in the eyes of those immortal beings who have lived for eight or nine hundred years, I'm just a greenhorn who's only just learned to put on pants!"

"The alliance circles deep within the Great Wilderness don't even include me! Last time at the Heavenly Abyss Council, the Red-Haired Ancestor and his gang even openly declared that if the Guixu Secret Realm opened, I would only be fit to guard the gate for them on the outside!"

"They not only ostracized me, but also secretly instructed their spies to infiltrate the spiritual veins of Giant Spirit City. If it weren't for their fear that my self-destruction would take two people down with me, they would have already seized the remains of Giant Spirit City!"

The Giant Spirit City Lord's chest heaved violently, and his eyes reddened.

Everyone thought that the Ninth Tier giants looked down on the Great Wilderness and were the only ones who mattered. Who would have thought that the Ninth Tier circle was just as strict and cruel in its hierarchy?

Newcomers are the lowest level of resources.

You are different.

The Giant Spirit City Lord stared intently at Chen Fan, lowering his voice.

"Although you are only Half-Step Ninth Tier, I have personally witnessed your Life and Life-and-Death Blade Aura and your physique. Your killing power is enough to rival a true Ninth Tier! More importantly, you don't have the formalities of those sects and aristocratic families. You are ruthless and merciless!"

"Those old fogies deep in the Great Wilderness want to steal our fragmented map? Why should we join forces? You have strong killing power, and I have a powerful Law Domain. Let's storm into the Guixu and each take what we need!"

Chen Fan listened without expression.

This frank statement, though made out of necessity, is in line with the logic of self-interest.

When faced with naked self-interest, vicious dogs banding together for warmth are often more effective than hypocrites spouting platitudes.

"Joining forces is an option."

Chen Fan stood up, brushed the dust off his white clothes, and said in an icy tone, "But the rules must be clearly established."

"First, before the Guixu open, Giant Spirit City must not extend its reach even half a step into Red Rock and Xuanming. If it dares to touch a single blade of grass or tree, I, Chen, will flatten your Mountain-Viewing Terrace first."

"Secondly, once you enter the Guixu, opportunities depend on your own abilities. If you dare to play tricks on me behind my back, I guarantee I'll make sure to put a hole in your neck."

The Giant Spirit City Lord's expression turned solemn. Instead of getting angry, he let out a long sigh of relief and abruptly stood up.

"Make a deal!"