Heaven Dou City had undergone tremendous changes during his time away.
The bloodstains on the ground had already dried, their color gradually deepening. It had not rained these past few days, and the people of Spirit Hall had no interest in cleaning up the blood, allowing it to slowly leave scar-like patches across the ground.
There were almost no pedestrians on the streets. The city was frighteningly quiet, with only Spirit Hall personnel standing guard in numerous dark corners.
Shen Hanyu made his way to the former imperial palace, slowly descended, and stepped inside.
The palace maids had suffered few casualties. At this moment, they were diligently cleaning away the remaining bloodstains throughout the grounds, clearly having accepted their fate.
It was not their fault. In their eyes, no matter how the times changed, they would always remain lowly people meant to serve those so-called nobles. In that case, who exactly they served—what difference did it make? The end result would be the same anyway...
Amid countless shocked and suspicious gazes, Shen Hanyu calmly headed deeper into the palace. In the end, he found Qian Renxue sitting cross-legged in cultivation atop a pavilion.
Not far behind Qian Renxue, an elderly man in armor with a tall, muscular frame slowly opened his eyes as Shen Hanyu arrived. Golden Soul Power erupted from his body, and dark clouds swiftly filled the sky. A gigantic, brilliant-gold beast flickered amid the clouds, its enormous and savage tail lashing toward Shen Hanyu the next instant, carrying terrifying Soul Power fluctuations.
Shen Hanyu raised an eyebrow, blocked the attack, then directly threw the savage beast aside. The terrifying force destroyed countless buildings around them, while several timid maids nearby fainted on the spot from fright. For a moment, the entire imperial palace seemed to descend into