A Game of Power

"Oh? Brother, what do you mean?"

Lian Yunhe's expression turned serious as he looked at Lian Yunfeng.

Lian Yunfeng set down his teacup and sighed. "The Li and Shang families from Azure City's Inner City are currently negotiating with Black City's lords. They speak of 'seeking common ground,' but even we can see the wolfish ambition in their hearts. They clearly want to carve off a piece of Black City before they are satisfied!"

"Hmph, a pack of homeless dogs, and they dare make such demands?!"

Lian Yunhe snorted, his tone dripping with disdain. "Azure City at its peak was no match for Black City. Now they have come fleeing here in disgrace—where did they get the nerve to open their mouths like lions? Taking them in already gives them more than enough face!"

"That brings us to the Heaven-Breaking Sect!"

Lian Yunfeng stroked his beard. "Brother, think about it. A minor sect that rose to prominence in the Outer City actually managed to breach Azure City's Inner City all the way through! However useless Azure City's great lineages might have been, they still had heavy armor, powerful bows and crossbows, private troops in the Azure-Armored Army, and Fourth-Rank Martial Artists standing guard. And yet? They lost this badly. We want to know why, and Black City's lords want to know even more, so they can guard against the Heaven-Breaking Sect coming for them one day!"

"What?!"

Lian Yunhe suddenly sat upright, his eyes widening. "The Heaven-Breaking Sect has its eyes on Black City too?"

If the Heaven-Breaking Sect truly came, then the world really would descend into chaos!

The first to suffer would be their Outer City!

"Eight or nine times out of ten!"

Lian Yunfeng nodded. "My guess is that Black City's lords intend to accept Azure City's remaining forces and settle most of them in the Outer City, using them as a buffer against the Heaven-Breaking Sect. At the same time, they will pry the Heaven-Breaking Sect's true situation out of those Azure City lineages, so they can plan countermeasures as soon as possible."

"But what does that have to do with Xiao Fei?"

"If the news I heard last night is accurate, Black City's lords have already made their decision: they will take in the refugees from Azure City. The Li and Shang families' elites and their relatives will be settled directly in the Inner City. All the other affiliated great lineages and martial academies will be assigned to the Outer City. And I heard that our Outer City Lord has been transferred. The vacant position will be offered for someone from Azure City to choose and take."

Lian Yunhe's pupils constricted!

His heart seemed to miss a beat!

Sweat even surfaced across his brow!

Better than anyone, he understood what a change of city lord signified!

The Outer City had always been jointly administered by the Outer City Lord and the Four-Family Alliance.

Yet Black City had directly carved out such enormous benefits from the Outer City. Such a grand gesture showed that the intelligence about the Heaven-Breaking Sect carried far more weight than they had imagined—heavy enough that the Inner City's lords were willing to bleed profusely!

It seemed Azure City's situation was far graver than they had thought!

"Once this new city lord takes office, our skies will change." Lian Yunfeng's voice grew heavy. "Azure City's lineages have fallen into such a sorry state that they will surely be in desperate need of vast sums of money, provisions, and top-tier Martial Warriors to hold the fort! Nine times out of ten, the talented Martial Warriors in the city will be recruited by them. Xiao Fei is likely among them!"

He paused and looked at Lian Yunhe. "Do you think we should pledge allegiance to this new city lord?"

Lian Yunhe had been in business for many years and understood the ways of the world at the slightest hint. After pondering briefly, he shook his head. "If we do not pledge allegiance, then once the new city lord takes office, we certainly will not be able to hold on to our existing interests and resources. But if we do, who can say whether this city lord from Azure City can sit firmly in that chair? The Four-Family Alliance has controlled the Outer City for so many years. They definitely will not hand over their interests for nothing. Not to mention that the Inner City's lords have suffered such a tremendous loss—they certainly will not let him live comfortably. They will surely think of every possible way to help the Four-Family Alliance stir up all kinds of trouble. If this city lord collapses after only a year or two, then lineages like ours that pledged allegiance to him may well be purged alongside him in the end..."

By the time he finished, a thin layer of cold sweat had seeped across Lian Yunhe's back.

On the surface, Black City was still calm and peaceful, but beneath the ground, dark currents had long been surging.

"Brother, do you have an idea?" Lian Yunhe raised his eyes toward his elder brother.

Lian Yunfeng remained silent for a long while before slowly shaking his head. "No. The situation is in turmoil. Lineages like ours, with nothing but wealth and no truly top-tier Martial Warriors to hold the fort, are merely duckweed drifting on the water. Xiao Ze believes that as long as we spend our wealth generously and make friends far and wide, we will surely meet loyal and righteous people who might lend the Lian Household a hand in times of danger. But in such troubled times, where could people like that possibly be found?"

He sighed softly, and the knuckles of the fingers stroking his beard turned faintly white. "For now, we can only take one step and see the next. There will certainly be a struggle between the Four-Family Alliance and this new city lord. No matter what the other lineages think, the Lian Household absolutely cannot rush to declare its stance. If we make one wrong move, what awaits us will be a calamity that blots out the sky. We must tread with the utmost caution."

Zhou Chen was walking back to the warehouse when he suddenly heard a burst of urgent hoofbeats in the distance, pounding like drumbeats. They drew nearer and denser, until the stone slabs along the entire street began to tremble.

"Move! All of you, move!"

"Trying to die? You worthless rabble, are you blind?!"

A harsh voice cleaved through the street's clamor, accompanied by the sharp crack of whips snapping through the air.

Zhou Chen looked up and saw a vast procession of carriages and horses galloping in from the city gate. Muddy water splashed beneath the horses' hooves, while carriage wheels rolled over the pitted road and flung pooled water high into the air.

Several riders at the front waved their whips, lashing left and right as they drove pedestrians from the road. People scattered like chickens and dogs; cries, curses, and the sounds of those too slow to dodge falling to the ground blended into a single uproar.

The banners hanging high above the procession snapped in the wind. Embroidered upon them were the two enormous characters, "Li" and "Shang," strokes like iron and silver hooks, especially glaring beneath the gray, dim sky.

When the Outer City residents around them saw those banners, their faces went pale. One after another, they lowered their heads and retreated, not daring to let their gazes linger for even a moment.

Even those splashed from head to toe with mud or knocked staggering by the horses merely gritted their teeth and silently moved aside. Not one dared reveal the slightest trace of anger.

Leaving everything else aside, the riders leading the way were genuine Second-Rank Martial Artists! Within the Outer City's lineages, they could serve as Attendants, yet here they were merely mounted riders clearing the path.

Zhou Chen stepped two paces aside with the flow of the crowd, but the procession was too fast. A carriage rolled through a puddle, and filthy black water surged up with a splash, dousing him from head to toe. Foul mud dripped from his chin.

He frowned, thoroughly displeased. Just as he was about to wipe his face, he caught sight of something ahead from the corner of his eye—a white-haired old woman was leading a girl of four or five along the roadside. Apparently stunned by the hoofbeats, she stood blankly in the middle of the road, not knowing where to flee.

The fast horse at the front not only failed to slow down, but accelerated toward them. The man on horseback wore an expression of utter contempt, as though he had not seen anyone in the road at all.

If they were hit, even if they did not die, they would be severely injured.

People around them cried out in alarm, but not a single one dared step forward to pull them away.

The anger Zhou Chen had been suppressing suddenly surged up in that instant. He pushed off the ground and shot forward like an arrow. His right hand seized the old woman's arm, while his left arm swept the little girl into his embrace. Then he jerked them both fiercely toward the side and back.

The fast horse brushed past his shoulder, its hooves nearly trampling the hem of the old woman's skirt. The gust it kicked up sent her white hair flying.

The old woman staggered and fell while clutching the child, landing hard in the mud with a pained cry. The little girl in her arms was so frightened that she began wailing.

Yet the man on horseback did not even turn his head. He merely threw back, "Blind dog!" before riding off in a cloud of dust.

Splash—!!!

Another massive spray of filthy water flew from beneath the carriage wheels and doused Zhou Chen squarely over the head. His newly changed gray clothes were completely stained the color of mud, and foul-smelling droplets splattered across his face.

The old woman sat trembling on the ground. Only after coming back to herself did she realize she had just walked through the gates of hell. She hurriedly hugged the child and kowtowed to Zhou Chen, her voice choked with tears. "Thank you! Thank you, benefactor! If not for you, my granddaughter and I would have..."

"Elder, please get up." Zhou Chen bent down to help her to her feet, brushing the dust from her shoulder. "Take the child home quickly. The streets have been chaotic these past few days, so go out less."

With tears filling her eyes, the old woman nodded repeatedly. Holding the child, she retreated to the side of the street and vanished into the crowd.

Zhou Chen rose and was about to turn away when his gaze was suddenly drawn to a carriage.