Before long, news that Longqing City would open its gates spread through the city like a spring breeze.
In an instant, the city seemed to boil over. Upon hearing the news, the people were initially struck dumb with shock, rooted to the spot, their eyes full of disbelief.
Soon afterward, ecstatic smiles blossomed across many faces.
After all, the opening of the city gates meant they were about to break free from the confinement of this tiny patch of heaven and earth and glimpse the vast, boundless, unknown world beyond.
Immediately afterward, the crowd surged toward the city gates like a tide, everyone wanting to see for themselves whether the news was true.
Sure enough, the guards at the gates had already received strict orders from the City Lord's Mansion and were steadily pushing open the incomparably heavy gates, engraved with the weathered marks of time.
As the gates slowly opened, a dazzling beam of light shot in like a sharp sword, instantly illuminating the expectant, yearning faces of the cultivators before the gates.
Their eyes gleamed with curiosity and longing for the world beyond the city, as though they were about to embark on a breathtaking adventure.
However, upon hearing the news, those Lineages with deep roots and immense influence in Longqing City—
did not rush out of the city as Lin Xiaoqing and the others had expected. Instead, they gathered together once more.
Inside the spacious council hall, the atmosphere was heavy and stifling, and everyone's expressions shifted between light and shadow.
Liu Gaoyuan sat at the head of the hall with a gloomy face. In a low voice, he said, "The city gates have suddenly opened. What exactly is the City Lord's Mansion plotting?"
"Hmph! No matter what sinister schemes they have, you and I have now