Yet their faces showed little joy. Instead, they looked troubled.
The scene fell silent, and the awkwardness dragged on for quite some time.
At last, guards from Azure Underworld Cloud City heard the commotion and hurried over.
When they saw the Heavenly Star Sect Steward robe Hou Yue'er wore, they bowed respectfully. "Senior, might you be Steward Hou of the Heavenly Star Sect?"
"You know me?"
Although Hou Yue'er had accepted a mission from her sect to reinforce Azure Underworld Cloud City, she had never revealed her whereabouts along the way.
Yet before she had even officially entered Azure Underworld Cloud City, a patrolling guard from Azure Underworld Cloud City had recognized her.
For some reason, a powerful sense of unease suddenly rose within her.
But the moment she nodded and confirmed her identity,
The Azure Underworld Cloud City Patrol Guards standing opposite her, along with the onlookers nearby, turned deathly pale.
"Steward Hou, please go back the way you came. The City Lord's Mansion has announced that it has canceled the distress message sent to the Nine Sons of the Endless Sea."
"We were told to remind any Deacons who came to help."
The guards waved their hands repeatedly, looking as though they could not get away from the two of them fast enough.
"Well, that's strange!"
Demons had been causing trouble near Azure Underworld Cloud City in broad daylight just moments ago, yet now its patrolling guards were saying the request for aid had been canceled.
Hou Yue'er had completed more sect missions than she could count, but this was the first time she had encountered anything like it.
She flashed forward and blocked the guard just as he finished his warning and turned to leave. Her gaze carried authority without anger.
"Explain yourself. What do you mean