Chapter 134: All Acquaintances

Amidst laughter, playful banter, and friendly scuffles along the way, the group soon arrived at the grand viewing platform of the City of Nameless. It had now been converted into a referee stage, where the ten city lords sat serenely, conversing with one another and occasionally pointing down at various figures in the crowd with analytical discussions.

At Ye Zihan’s explicit arrangement, Mo Wuhuan arrived a short moment after him. Even so, this subtle delay caused a ripple of astonishment among the ten city lords. In past trials for the position of city lord, the guardian of the City of Nameless had never once made an appearance from start to beginning. It was only at the very end—after the trial survivors had undergone their ultimate decisive battle and earned the approval of the ten city lords—that the guardian would finally manifest. The guardian would then either grant or withhold recognition of the newly crowned champion. Should they refuse to acknowledge or support the victor, the seat of the City of Nameless would remain indefinitely vacant.

For hundreds, if not thousands of years, the guardian had never once endorsed or upheld anyone for the title of city lord. While the hidden intricacies behind this were obscure to others, Ye Zihan now understood them with absolute clarity. However, those matters belonged strictly to the past. Right now, all he needed to do was defeat the surviving elites of the trials and claim first place, making his ascension to the throne a natural and inevitable progression.

Even if Ye Zihan failed to secure first place, the position of city lord would still not fall to anyone else. Mo Wuhuan's unwavering stance dictated everything; not even a joint alliance of the other ten city lords could alter that outcome, to say nothing of the deep-seated rivalries already existing among those lords themselves.

"Ye Zihan!"

Just as Ye Zihan and his companions stepped into the arena grounds, a familiar voice called out to him. Turning toward the source of the sound, a gracefully proportioned and stunningly beautiful young woman was walking toward him with a poised, unhurried gait. Flanked by several formidable subordinates, it was none other than Su Zi, accompanied by her elite female bodyguards, Su Wu and Su Die.

"Lady Su Zi, we meet again." Ye Zihan greeted her with a warm smile. Meanwhile, upon catching sight of Su Zi, Yan Chen and Chen Yiyan first exchanged a pair of ambiguous, sweeping glances over Ye Zihan and Su Zi, before their gazes shifted to Su Wu and Su Die, their eyes instantly igniting with a sharp, combative fighting spirit.

Back then, these two women had subjected them to no small amount of humiliation. To suffer defeat at the hands of women was a bitter pill to swallow for individuals possessing such towering pride. After all, both men hailed from prominent, prestigious clans and held highly esteemed positions within their respective households. To be bullied by a few women—if word of such an incident were ever to leak out, neither of them would likely have the face to continue traveling alongside Ye Zihan.

Therefore, they desperately needed to reclaim their honor, fight these women once more, and emerge victorious.

"What's this? The two previous losers, still wishing to make a move and court your own humiliation?" Su Wu and Su Die fixed the two men with gazes brimful of provocation and undisguised contempt, completely discounting Chen Yiyan and Yan Chen. Although they could vaguely perceive that both men had successfully broken through to the Universe Realm, prompting a momentary flicker of internal surprise, the two female bodyguards had attained the early stage of the Universe Realm quite some time ago. They arrogantly assumed that these two fresh breakthroughs could never possibly compare to them.

"You stinking wenches, outnumbering people with sheer force that day was hardly any display of skill! If you have the guts, face me in single combat today and let this grandlord teach you both a proper lesson." Yan Chen possessed zero patience for the pair, every word he uttered dripping with thorns. His remarks instantly flushed the delicate faces of Su Wu and Su Die a furious shade of crimson. Their pretty features hardened into masks of murderous fury, the wrath burning within their eyes seemingly fierce enough to consume Yan Chen whole.

"A fight it is, then! Who's afraid of who?" Su Wu snapped angrily, stepping forward with an overwhelming urge to strike immediately.

"Stand down." Su Zi's expression chilled as she frowned and issued a stern reprimand.

"Young Mistress..." Su Wu cast a grievance-laden glance at Su Zi, yet ultimately complied and stepped back. Even so, the fire in her heart burned only hotter, and she gritted her teeth, glaring malevolently at Yan Chen.

Seeing their thwarted expressions, Yan Chen felt an immense sense of vindication. He rolled his eyes at them and playfully stuck out his tongue.

"You!" Faced with such blatant provocation, Su Wu and Su Die could scarcely contain themselves, but upon seeing that Su Zi was still watching them, they bit their lips and forcefully reined in their temper.

"As expected of the outstanding disciples of the Scorching Heaven Phoenix Clan and the Secluded Yan Family. I never imagined that in just a single day apart, the two of you would actually break through to the Universe Realm. My congratulations." Su Zi offered a slight smile to Ye Zihan before turning her attention to Yan Chen and Chen Yiyan. Arrogant though she was, she was by no means blind. Previously, the strength of Chen Yiyan and Yan Chen had lingered in the Five Elements Realm, lagging a full major realm behind her, so she naturally hadn't taken them seriously. Coupled with the fierce competition between major factions, she had naturally subjected them to biting sarcasm.

However, the current strength of the two men was more than enough to command her respect. Consequently, Su Zi adjusted her attitude toward them accordingly.

"Lady Su Zi is far too polite. Any strength we possess today is entirely thanks to the 'generous contributions' of Lady Su Zi and her subordinates," Yan Chen retorted with a flat, indifferent tone. Though it superficially sounded like an expression of gratitude, no matter how one listened to it, it carried an unmistakable edge of mockery.

Knowing that the duo had not entirely relinquished their hostility toward her, Su Zi chose not to take offense. She possessed her own pride; the words she had spoken just moments ago were purely out of respect for Ye Zihan. Since the two men responded with such remarks, she couldn't be bothered to argue. Shifting her gaze back to Ye Zihan, she said, "Ye Zihan, your cultivation has broken through as well. It seems you experienced quite a fierce and bloody battle within the Abyss of Demonic Desolation."

"Heh, it was somewhat perilous, but fortunately, we finally managed to emerge successfully," Ye Zihan replied calmly, unwilling to elaborate.

"That reminds me, you were among the very first group to emerge from the Abyss of Demonic Desolation, yet somehow I never caught sight of you. If you hadn't shown up just now, I honestly would have thought you intended to skip the final decisive battle altogether," Su Zi asked with a hint of perplexity. Ever since they stepped out of the abyss, she had actively inquired about Ye Zihan’s whereabouts. The impression he had left upon her was simply too profound. Aside from his extraordinary personal strength, the genuine loyalty and camaraderie he displayed toward his friends had deeply moved her, forcing her to view him in an entirely new light.

"As the vanguard group emerging from the Abyss of Demonic Desolation, we naturally commanded immense attention and importance. The moment we stepped out, the guardian personally dispatched messengers to invite us to the grand hall for tea and conversation," Yan Chen piped up first, striking a posture of lofty arrogance as if every word were absolute truth.

Faced with Yan Chen's unshakable self-absorption, the corners of Su Zi's mouth twitched slightly, but she refrained from launching a verbal counterattack, choosing instead to decisively ignore him and look straight at Ye Zihan. Seeing Yan Chen speak with such casual confidence, Ye Zihan simply let the matter slide by offering a tacit agreement.

"Ye Zihan, the final showdown is about to begin. I truly hope to cross swords with you once again. I, too, gained quite a bit from this trial, so when the time comes, you had better not lack the qualifications to even stand as my opponent." Su Zi steered the conversation back to the battle for the city lord position. "Moreover, the number of people who passed this trial is far from negligible. Many among them are descendants of major superpowers, and there are quite a few powerhouses at the Universe Realm as well. Exercise caution and make sure you don't stumble and fail even the very first hurdle."

With those words, Su Zi turned on her heel, leading Su Wu and Su Die away.

"Sigh, tell me, Zihan, why do I get the distinct impression that young lady's parting words sounded an awful lot like genuine concern for you?" Yan Chen sidled up, slinging an arm familiarly over Ye Zihan's shoulder while wearing a profoundly philosophical expression, as though contemplating a matter of utmost gravity.

"If I didn't know your background, I'd honestly take you for a gossip-mongering expert, you're that much of a busybody." Ye Zihan rolled his eyes, electing to ignore the fellow entirely. Anything could be twisted into something scandalous the moment it passed through Yan Chen's lips. Ye Zihan silently swore that his own internal state of mind was nothing if not utterly pristine.

"Oh?" At that precise moment, Yan Chen let out a sudden cry of surprise.

"Hm? What is it?" Ye Zihan asked, pausing in confusion.

"Look over toward the opposite side of the arena." Yan Chen pointed across the hundreds of meters of open combat stage to the far side, where another distinct gathering of people was currently conversing.

"It's actually them." When Ye Zihan's gaze fell upon the figures on the opposite side, a brief wave of astonishment washed over him. He hadn't expected to run into old acquaintances here of all places.

"What? You recognize those people?" Chen Yiyan also looked over, spotting a handful of formidable experts possessing impressive cultivation bases, a few of whom even he found unfathomably deep.

"I crossed paths with them during the Five Elements Convergence in the mortal realm years ago, though we never actually traded blows," Ye Zihan stated calmly. A flicker of lingering curiosity followed; the group across the way consisted predominantly of elite disciples from various sects and clans he had encountered during that convergence. Among them were Night Moon Tian of the Night Moon Clan—now standing at the peak of the Five Elements Realm—alongside Qi Qianduan, known as the 'Blood Vulture' of the Qi Clan, the twin phoenixes Yun Han and Meng Qingruo of the Phoenix Academy, and Senfeng Jue of the Senfeng Clan. All of them had made an appearance during the previous convergence, at which point their strength had already reached the late stage of the Three Talents Realm. Now, nearly two years later, they had resurfaced, their cultivation levels having surged into the late stage or peak of the Five Elements Realm.

Gazing at these individuals, Ye Zihan couldn't help but feel a profound sense of temporal displacement. In the span of less than two years, he had steadily left behind these proud sons of heaven who had once towered far above him.

Yet none of this was of any real concern to Ye Zihan. Given his current strength and the formidable forces under his absolute control, he simply no longer regarded these people as peers. Even Mo Wuhuan, a peak Eight Trigrams Realm expert, was nothing more than his loyal subordinate; only the supreme leaders of those major clans and sects possessed the qualification to engage in dialogue with Ye Zihan on equal footing.

What truly caught Ye Zihan's attention was that one person among the opposing group clearly held a dominant position. Ye Zihan retained an exceptionally deep impression of this individual: Yu Ming, the Young Master of the Misty Rain Pavilion, who had made his dramatic entrance back during the Five Elements Convergence.

Back then, Yu Ming had already possessed the strength of the Four Elephants Realm, leaving Ye Zihan far behind in the dust. Now, Yu Ming had likewise broken through to the Universe Realm, though he remained stuck at the early stage of the Universe Realm—slightly inferior to Ye Zihan himself.

"Yan Chen, what's going on here?" Ye Zihan frowned and asked Yan Chen. "How many Young Masters does the Misty Rain Pavilion actually have? This Yu Ming is a Young Master of the Misty Rain Pavilion, but Su Zi is one as well. What is the meaning of this?"

"Oh, that?" Upon hearing the question, Yan Chen immediately adopted the scholarly posture of someone well-versed in both heaven and earth, shaking his head and swaying side to side. Only after sensing Ye Zihan's growing impatience did he leisurely begin to explain.