Dark Emperor City

Ning Xiaochuan asked curiously, "What kind of place is Dark Emperor City?"

Although Gou Sheng's cultivation wasn't high, he was a know-it-all. He said, "Dark Emperor City is right beneath our feet, but ordinary people can't see or touch it. It's an extremely mysterious place."

Ning Xiaochuan was still quite puzzled. Wasn't this the Imperial City of the Yulan Empire? Could there be another city underground?

Yu Yan's lips moved slightly. After a moment of hesitation, she said, "About that... I know a little."

Both Ning Xiaochuan and Gou Sheng's gazes were fixed on her.

Yu Yan said somewhat timidly, "Actually, the Imperial City we see is just the surface. But this Imperial City has another side, a dark side. There are many unknown places, many unknown transactions – pleasure houses, underground casinos, assassin guilds, underground auction houses, underground martial arenas. Those swindlers, thieves, great thieves, prostitutes, criminals... and so on, who walk the streets, are more or less connected to a mysterious dark organization."

"It's like the sunlight in the heavens shining on the earth. The places illuminated by the sunlight are the world we can see. The places not illuminated by the sunlight are the dark world, the world we cannot see."

"This dark organization rules everything underground in the Imperial City. It has a history of several hundred years, and even some Royal Marquis's Mansions have deep connections with this dark organization. This massive dark organization is called - Dark Emperor City."

"So, Dark Emperor City is not actually a city; it refers to a vast and mysterious dark organization."

"The power of Dark Emperor City is extremely vast, even capable of influencing the will of the Imperial Court through their hidden strength. The Imperial Court has always wanted to eliminate them, but Dark Emperor City is deeply rooted, with a history of several hundred years. Almost at the time the Yulan Empire was founded, Dark Emperor City was already established. Even the power of the Imperial Court finds it difficult to uproot them."

"The Imperial Court even dispatched armies to clear out the industries under Dark Emperor City, but after every major cleanup, Dark Emperor City would make a comeback within a few years, becoming the ruler of the dark world of the Imperial City. One could even say they are sharing the rule of the land with the Imperial Court, only their methods are clandestine and unknown to ordinary people."

Ning Xiaochuan said, "Then why doesn't the Imperial Court directly exterminate the lair of Dark Emperor City and kill the rulers of Dark Emperor City? Wouldn't Dark Emperor City collapse on its own?"

Yu Yan gently shook her head and said, "It's difficult! The headquarters of Dark Emperor City are extremely secretive and constantly changing. Those important figures in the Imperial Court probably don't even know who the Undead City Lord of Dark Emperor City is, let alone finding the headquarters of Dark Emperor City."

Especially when she mentioned the name "Undead City Lord," a look of fear appeared in her eyes, and she lowered her voice, as if speaking too loudly would be heard by the Undead City Lord and bring misfortune upon herself.

Although it was the first time Ning Xiaochuan had heard of the legend of Dark Emperor City, he could feel the vast power of that mysterious dark organization. Looking in the direction the army had departed, he said, "This time, the Imperial Court has mobilized the Dragon Elephant Divine Martial and the Divine Dragon Warrior. Perhaps they have truly found the lair of Dark Emperor City, and there will inevitably be an earth-shattering battle."

Three-Fingered Lin had been listening to them silently. At this moment, he let out a slight snort and said, "I don't think so. The Dragon Elephant Divine Martial and the Scarlet Armor Battalion are making such a big fuss to encircle and suppress the lair of Dark Emperor City. If I were the Big Boss of Dark Emperor City, I would have already slipped away."

"The Imperial Court's army is strong, yes, but unfortunately, after hundreds of years of comfortable living, they are already thoroughly corrupt. I dare say there are definitely people from Dark Emperor City within the army currently carrying out the encirclement. With such a superficial display, they still want to encircle and suppress Dark Emperor City? They can wait to eat dirt!"

To call the Dragon Elephant Divine Martial and the Divine Dragon Warrior a superficial display, this fortune-telling blind man had quite the nerve.

Gou Sheng said, "Tch, ignore him. Three-Fingered Lin just likes to brag. Noble one, let's go find the tree!"

Ning Xiaochuan didn't think there was anything wrong with what Three-Fingered Lin said. On the contrary, he felt he made a lot of sense and might be an extraordinary person.

However, at this moment, he only wanted to find the Blood Toad Wood quickly, so he didn't ask any more questions. He followed behind Gou Sheng and walked out of the market.

"Gou Sheng, where are you going? I see your forehead is darkened, which indicates a bad omen. Don't stumble into places you shouldn't!" Three-Fingered Lin called out from behind.

"Ignore him. This Three-Fingered Lin has no other skill besides bragging. He also said my forehead was darkened yesterday, but nothing happened," Gou Sheng said.

Ning Xiaochuan, Gou Sheng, and Yu Yan had already left Nanshan Village.

Ning Xiaochuan asked, "It seems you are quite familiar with this Master Huang. Who is he?"

"A neighbor. This old fellow is very familiar with my grandfather and often comes to my house to swindle food and drinks. I heard that he was in the military camp some years ago, but he suffered a major defeat, lost his eyesight, and broke seven fingers. Then he left the military camp and came to Nanshan Village to cheat and deceive, claiming to tell fortunes, but in reality, he's just swindling money," Gou Sheng said.

Yu Yan said, "Little Brother Gou Sheng, then earlier you said you found him to calculate an auspicious day for the transaction before coming to my young master to sell leaves. Since he is swindling money, aren't you also swindling us?"

Gou Sheng's expression immediately became somewhat unnatural and very awkward. He said, "This young lady... can you please not call me Gou Sheng? That's just my nickname. My real name is 'Murong Wushuang.' If you don't mind, you can call me 'Young Master Wushuang.'"

Yu Yan looked at Gou Sheng's disheveled appearance and messy hair, completely unable to associate him with the name "Murong Wushuang." She stared at him with her beautiful eyes for a long time, then burst out laughing.

Ning Xiaochuan already knew that Murong Wushuang was deceiving him, but he didn't take it to heart at all. If he didn't deceive him, how could he get him to obediently take him to find the Blood Toad Wood?

"Where is the destination we're heading to?" Ning Xiaochuan asked.

"Nanyue Mountain," Murong Wushuang replied.

"I have an Azure Deer Carriage. You can drive it. It should be much faster by carriage."

Ning Xiaochuan and Yu Yan boarded the Azure Deer Carriage and sat inside.

Murong Wushuang sat outside, picked up the driving whip, and lashed it on the Azure Deer Horse's rear. The Azure Deer Horse bolted out like an arrow shot from a bow.

Inside the carriage, Ning Xiaochuan sat on a soft couch made of snow-white silk chiffon, while Yu Yan knelt below, warming tea for him. Her slender, fair fingers held the glazed tea cup, wiping it clean with a silk scarf before pouring a cup of steaming hot tea. Only when the tea had cooled down by three or four parts did she hand it to Ning Xiaochuan.

Ning Xiaochuan held the fragrant Cattail Leaf Tea but didn't drink it immediately. He said, "Yu Yan, you're so familiar with Dark Emperor City. Is it because Jade Viewing Pavilion is an industry of Dark Emperor City?"

Yu Yan was still very young, a year or two younger than Ning Xiaochuan. Her skin was delicate, and her figure was slender. Although she wasn't as ethereal and otherworldly as Yu Ningsheng, she had a fresh charm like a girl next door.

She gently pursed her rosy lips, hesitated for a moment, and said, "For Jade Viewing Pavilion to establish itself in the Imperial City, it naturally has powerful forces supporting it from behind. As for whether it's Dark Emperor City, it's hard to say, but it definitely has a significant connection to Dark Emperor City. To be precise, any pleasure house in the Imperial City must have a connection with Dark Emperor City, otherwise, it wouldn't be able to establish itself in the Imperial City."

Ning Xiaochuan nodded slightly. He didn't dare to provoke a colossal organization like Dark Emperor City at the moment and was just asking casually.

Nanshan Village was named so because this border district was close to Nanyue Mountain.

As the saying goes, those who live by the mountain live off the mountain, and those who live by the water live off the water.

Nanyue Mountain had dense forests, many dangerous peaks, and deep valleys, giving birth to many rare Profound Medicines.

The poor people living in Nanshan Village would go into Nanyue Mountain to search for Profound Medicines. If they could find one stalk of Profound Medicine, they could eat for a year.

Of course, the terrain of Nanyue Mountain was treacherous, and fierce wild beasts and Mystic Beasts often roamed there. Ordinary people truly didn't dare to go deep into the mountains, otherwise, their lives would be in danger.

At the foot of Nanyue Mountain, the Azure Deer Carriage stopped. There was no longer a main road, so they could only enter the mountain on foot. The carriage was left in a village at the foot of the mountain.

"The roads in Nanyue Mountain are difficult to walk, and the place we're going is already close to the depths of Nanyue Mountain. It's estimated to be a two-day journey, so we'll have to spend the night in the mountains tonight and tomorrow night," Murong Wushuang said, carrying a large bag of food he had just bought from the village. He held a wood-splitting blade and walked through the jungle, cutting through thorns and clearing the way for Ning Xiaochuan.

Ning Xiaochuan also carried a bag and followed at a leisurely pace.

As for Yu Yan, because Ning Xiaochuan was afraid of encountering danger in Nanyue Mountain, he had her stay in the village first.

Because the trees in the mountains were too dense, Ning Xiaochuan didn't know how far they had walked. He only knew that they had passed through a jungle, climbed a cliff wall, and also passed by a lake. By the time it was dark, they had probably only walked a little over sixty li.

This was also because both he and Murong Wushuang had strong physiques, allowing them to move so quickly. If they had brought Yu Yan into the mountain, they would probably have only walked seven or eight li at most by now.

Martial Practitioners had much higher physical endurance than ordinary people, so their speed was naturally much faster.

Along the way, Ning Xiaochuan had figured out that this young man named Murong Wushuang was actually a hidden Martial Dao Expert. His cultivation was no lower than his own.

Ning Xiaochuan began to be cautious, knowing the wickedness of people's hearts in this world. If he were killed by him in the deep mountains, all the silver coins on him would definitely be plundered.