Beyond a Hundred Thousand Years

Yu Xiaogang struggled desperately, but he had long since been forcibly silenced. He could only glare wide-eyed as he watched the knights drag him out through the gates of Spirit Hall.

"Bang!!"

The gates slammed shut, and Chrysanthemum Douluo immediately walked up to Ning Yao.

"My lord, rest assured. I will make proper arrangements for this guest of Spirit Hall."

He chuckled and bowed slightly to Ning Yao.

Ning Yao glanced at him. Though he did not know exactly how they intended to deal with the Pope's old lover, he could more or less guess that Yu Xiaogang was about to suffer.

"Mm, go on. You won't need to accompany me for the rest of the way. I'll take a stroll around Spirit City."

"Of course, I don't want anyone else following me either. I don't like the feeling of being watched."

Hearing this, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo exchanged a glance, then hurriedly nodded.

"As you command, my lord."

They no longer dared to say a single word of refusal to Ning Yao.

Thus, under Ning Yao's gaze, the two cupped their hands and left Pope Hall one after the other.

Only after they had left did Ning Yao walk out through the gates.

Yu Xiaogang was nowhere to be seen outside. There were only two rows of Spirit Hall knights on either side, all of whom saluted him when they saw him.

"Better not to see him. Saves me the eyesore."

Shaking his head slightly, he stopped thinking about it. His figure flickered, and he vanished from where he stood.

There were too many people and too many watchful eyes around Pope Hall. Moreover, thanks to Chrysanthemum Douluo's arrangements, most people there recognized him. He did not want to wander around there for long.

So, he chose to leave the grounds of Pope Hall directly.

Only after entering the bustling commercial district of Spirit City did Ning Yao reappear.

Though it was still early morning, Spirit City remained noisy and lively.

The shops lining both sides of the streets had long since opened for business.

The pedestrians coming and going were all Soul Grand Masters above Rank 20, truly deserving of Spirit Master Holy Land's reputation.

Walking amid the crowd, Ning Yao continued to leisurely make his way toward the places he had not yet visited yesterday.

After all, he had come here to have fun. Since he was already here, he might as well enjoy himself properly and relax.

Without Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo by his side this time, Ning Yao instead felt far more at ease.

The two were simply too famous throughout the continent. Wherever they went yesterday, they drew attention and reverence. With them beside him, everyone treated Ning Yao with utmost respect no matter where he went.

Even the respectful words were all the same, making it exceedingly dull.

Now that he was alone, those scenes had disappeared. Only then did it truly feel like he was sightseeing rather than conducting an inspection.

He wandered happily for a long while, feeling the endless bustle of life around him. Just as Ning Yao felt that everything was so pleasant, he suddenly sensed a familiar aura.

"Hmm?"

Ning Yao paused, slightly startled.

Turning around, his gaze settled behind him, on a small stall that seemed to be selling books related to soul beasts.

There, he sensed an aura that shared the same origin as his own.

"This is..."

Curiously, Ning Yao walked over. Passing through several people blocking his way, he saw a male figure wearing a hat, mask, and sunglasses.

The man appeared terrified of anyone seeing his face, wrapping himself up tightly without exposing even a sliver of skin.

At first, Ning Yao was somewhat puzzled.

But now, as he sensed that familiar aura, he already knew the man's identity.

"I didn't expect him to be so hard to kill."

The person before him was none other than one of the two Soul Sages who had once surrounded him.

Four-Eyed Cat Eagle Flender.

Zhao Wuji had died on the spot back then, while Flender had escaped with grave injuries. Ning Yao had assumed that Flender would die before long as well.

He had not expected to encounter him in Spirit City today.

Yet it was obvious that Flender was already nearing the end of his rope.

Nothing could be seen on the surface, but the Abundance had already eroded most of his body.

If Ning Yao was not mistaken, the first thing exposed after taking off his mask would not be skin, but rather a pile of leaves or a mass of flesh.

Thinking of the master from Pope Hall earlier, Ning Yao could roughly guess what had happened.

Other than Tang San, Yu Xiaogang's early arrival was likely related to Flender as well.

After all, before Tang San grew strong, Yu Xiaogang probably still did not want anything to happen to Flender, who was one of his sources of strength.

Shaking his head and no longer dwelling on it, Ning Yao walked over.

He was rather curious about what had caught the attention of Flender, who had come to Spirit City seeking treatment.

Quietly passing several figures, Ning Yao arrived in front of Flender.

Perhaps Ning Yao's movements were too light, or perhaps Flender was too absorbed to notice. He did not realize at all that Ning Yao had come to stand beside him.

At that moment, the stall owner was tirelessly introducing his wares.

Ning Yao began listening from the side as well.

The owner seemed to be introducing a newly published booklet. It was very thin; calling it a book was more like calling it a piece of intelligence.

The moment Ning Yao saw what was written in the intelligence report, his attention was captured.

"A terrifying existence suspected to be a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast has appeared in the mixed zone of the Star Dou Great Forest."

Ning Yao raised an eyebrow slightly.

He thought of something he had casually done shortly after arriving in this world.

Skipping past some irrelevant filler, he continued reading.

It was suspected to be a plant-type Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. Every attack caused strange leaves to sprout from a soul master's wounds.

It was extremely powerful. A Titled Douluo had already fallen within the mixed zone.

Ning Yao seemed to understand why Flender had stopped here.

And if he had not mistaken it, this description referred to the withered tree trunk he had casually enlightened back then.

He had just arrived on this continent at the time and had not yet fully controlled his strength. Inadvertently, he had created such a monstrous being.

By Ning Yao's current estimation, after absorbing his power, that withered tree trunk's strength had likely surpassed the realm of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

And by a great margin.

"Looks like I'll have to find time to go manage it."

He nodded inwardly. If that thing remained there, then before long, there would probably be few people left on the entire continent who could deal with it.

Ning Yao still had to make it behave. For now, he did not want to see too much chaos erupt across the continent.

Besides, he was also somewhat curious about how much intelligence the withered tree had awakened after developing for so long.

Ning Yao reached out, intending to take a copy of the intelligence report back to read at his leisure.

But the instant he extended his hand, another hand beside him reached down as well.

It was a gloved hand, wrapped up tightly, and it happened to brush against the back of Ning Yao's hand.