Lu Chen’s voice rang out like a thunderclap, tearing through the chaotic sky.
At that moment, high above, everyone froze.
Even the flames blazing around Yu Feng seemed to stutter for a beat.
When he spotted Lu Chen standing above the green mist, his expression was instantly overtaken by sheer, overwhelming shock.
“It’s you?!” Yu Feng could hardly believe his eyes.
“It is this junior, sir! Please stay your hand, Lord Yu!”
The three of them had arrived in the nick of time.
Yu Feng’s gaze unconsciously fell upon Zeng Rou.
When he saw her face clearly, his heart felt as if it had been slammed with a heavy hammer.
“Zeng Rou?!”
Boom—
He couldn’t believe his eyes.
This woman—she was standing right beside Lu Chen.
“Lord Yu, it’s been a while.”
Zeng Rou gave a slight bow, her composure perfectly intact.
Meanwhile, Sun Yourong flashed over to her father, Sun Qingcang.
And Sun Qingcang’s shock was no less than Yu Feng’s.
“Yourong, what… what on earth is going on here?”
“You’d better hear it from him yourself.”
Sun Yourong pointed toward Lu Chen.
In an instant, hundreds of eyes swiveled and locked onto Lu Chen.
“Lord City Lord, who is this young man?”
Behind him, the three heads of the Zhao, He, and Qin families exchanged baffled looks, struggling to hide their astonishment.
“Hold your horses. Let’s hear him out first.”
Yu Feng had no mind to explain. His piercing gaze remained fixed on Lu Chen.
“Uh… how about we head back and discuss this in detail, Lord City Lord?” Lu Chen ventured cautiously.
“Say it right here. Now. Immediately.” Yu Feng’s tone brooked no argument.
“Alright, then~” Lu Chen cleared his throat. “It’s actually quite simple. Three days ago, someone came to me in a dream and told me that a group would be coming to pledge themselves to me, and instructed me to take them in without fail. I figured it was just a dream and didn’t take it seriously. But then today, Elder Zeng of the Rakshasa Cult actually showed up, insisting on leading the entire cult to submit to me. That’s the whole story.”
Lu Chen spun the tale with a perfectly straight face.
Believe it or not—his only goal right now was to stop Yu Feng, and that would be a win.
Sure enough, Yu Feng let out a cold snort. “You little brat, do you take me for a three-year-old?”
“If you don’t believe me, feel free to ask Elder Zeng whether I’m telling the truth.”
Lu Chen shot Zeng Rou a meaningful look.
She caught on instantly and nodded with grave solemnity. “Every word Mr. Lu has said is true. Three days ago, I was ordered by Venerable Xuan Gu to come to Jiangdu in search of the new cult leader. The Venerable made it clear that only Mr. Lu can guide our cult to break out of its cocoon, turn over a new leaf, and step into the light!”
Yu Feng’s face still bore unmistakable skepticism. His sharp eyes swept over the three thousand Rakshasa followers below.
“That’s right! It was all arranged by the Venerable!” The followers chorused in unison.
This scene left the four great families of Jiangcheng and the top ten rising elites utterly dumbfounded. Their faces looked as if they’d been struck by lightning.
Wh—what?!
The Rakshasa Cult was actually going to pledge allegiance to this unknown young man?
That meant, from now on, this kid would have three thousand elite Rakshasa fighters at his command?!
Was this a joke?!
Which of Jiangdu’s top ten rising elites had the resources to field three thousand private soldiers?
And these weren’t just any soldiers—these were three thousand bloodthirsty, death-defying cultivators of the dark path!
This was a force that required the combined might of the entire city just to counter, and it was about to fall under this young man’s control?
Just who in the world was he?
Sure, Lu Chen had been making waves lately, but these busy family heads didn’t all know him personally.
Most of them were still completely unfamiliar with him.
And that was precisely why they were even more stunned—an ordinary civilian suddenly holding the reins of three thousand elite troops? To them, that was a massive threat.
“Xiao Feng!”
At that moment, Zheng Changguo’s voice came through the phone again.
“Sir!” Yu Feng quickly picked up.
“I know you still have your doubts, but the surrender is now a done deal. I’ve had the Jiang Provincial Office draft the official documents—they’ll be sent to you shortly. Stand down. No more fighting.”
“Yes, sir! Understood!”
Although Yu Feng was certain that Lu Chen’s connection to the Rakshasa Cult was far from as simple as it appeared, there was no denying the kid’s extraordinary abilities.
He’d even managed to turn a hopeless situation like the Heavenly Killing Intent around and save Lady Zheng.
That enormous debt of gratitude was more than enough for Old Zheng to step in personally.
“Sigh. I know you’re frustrated—you’ve wanted to wipe out the Rakshasa Cult and rid the people of this scourge. But you have to understand: since Young Friend Lu has achieved the same outcome, you should take comfort in that. Don’t let the desire to kill become an end in itself.”
“Rest assured, sir. I know what’s important.”
“Good. With that assurance, I’m at ease.”
After the call ended, Yu Feng eyed Lu Chen coldly for a long moment. Finally, he drew a deep breath and said in a low voice, “Kid, clean up this mess as fast as you can, then report to the City Lord’s Mansion. I’ll be waiting.”
With that, he waved toward the family heads behind him: “Everyone, follow me to the mansion!”
Before the words had even faded, he had transformed into a streak of flaming light and shot into the distance. The dozen or so family heads exchanged glances before transforming into rainbow lights and following suit.
Nearby, Sun Qingcang looked at Lu Chen with a mix of exasperation and amusement: “Xiao Chen, you really are… giving your Uncle Sun yet another huge shock!”
Lu Chen grinned. “Uncle Sun, you’ve weathered all kinds of storms. This little thing can’t be that shocking, can it?”
“This little thing? This is the Rakshasa Cult! Even I, Uncle Chen, haven’t seen many spectacles like this!” Sun Qingcang let out a sharp breath, still reeling inside. “Alright, you get things settled here first. I’ll be waiting for you at the City Lord’s Mansion.”
“Will do. Take care, Uncle Sun!”
Sun Yourong left with her father, deeply impressed that Lu Chen had managed to get away with such a flimsy excuse.
In the blink of an eye, only Lu Chen and the Rakshasa followers remained.
Lu Chen and Zeng Rou exchanged a glance, and he brought his cloud down.
“Cult Leader!!!!!”
Wang Zhidong was the first to stumble forward, dropping to his knees before Lu Chen.
“Thank you, Cult Leader, for saving our lives!!!”
Three thousand followers roared in unison, their voices shaking the very skies.
Lu Chen took one look at their outfits and couldn’t help but roll his eyes—they might as well have been wearing a neon sign saying “We’re a Dark Cult.”
He didn’t waste time. Standing with his hands behind his back in front of the crowd, he said solemnly, “Hold on with that ‘Cult Leader’ business. Listen to what I have to say first. If you still want to call me that afterward, go ahead.”
“Please instruct us, Cult Leader!” Zeng Rou knelt as well.
Lu Chen paused in thought, then said, “I’ll keep it short. You have two choices.”
“First: If you don’t want to keep skulking around like rats in the gutter for the rest of your lives, forget your identities as Rakshasa disciples and turn over a new leaf, starting now. I, Lu Chen, promise that every single one of you will walk with your head held high and carve out a bright future.”
“Second: If any of you still pine for the old days of killing, looting, and burning, and are dead set on staying on the dark path—sorry, but I don’t have room for you here. I’ll let you walk away today. But if we cross paths again, it’s good versus evil, and don’t blame me for showing no mercy.”
His gaze swept the crowd like lightning.
“I’ll give you five seconds to decide. Those who want to stay, stay; those who don’t, leave now.”
“5!”
“4!”
Before he could even count to “3,” Zeng Rou was the first to drop to both knees, pressing her forehead to the ground: “This subordinate swears to serve the Cult Leader with her life!”
With her taking the lead, Wang Zhidong and dozens of other high-ranking elders and guardians knelt in succession: “This subordinate swears to serve the Cult Leader with his life!”
Then came a tidal wave of echoes, one after another.
Lu Chen frowned slightly. “Have you thought this through clearly? Once you step through the gates of Jiangcheng, if anyone goes back on their word later, I will mobilize the full force of the cult to hunt them down and show no mercy!”
“We will never go back on our word, Cult Leader!” Three thousand voices rang out as one.
“Very well.” Lu Chen turned to Zeng Rou. “Then take them in through the west city gate. But before you enter, everyone loses this getup! What era do you think this is, still wearing black robes—are you trying to announce to everyone that you’re a dark cult? Especially you!”
Lu Chen pointed at the ritual implement in Wang Zhidong’s hand: “Think that skull staff makes you look impressive? Put it away!”
“Yes, Cult Leader!”
Wang Zhidong’s form flickered—his black robe and staff vanished in an instant, replaced by ordinary middle-aged attire.
“Mm. That’s more like it.”
Lu Chen nodded in satisfaction. “I’ll leave the rest to you. Once I’m back from the City Lord’s Mansion, we’ll meet at Nanshan Estate!”
Zeng Rou nodded solemnly. “As the Cult Leader commands!”
Lu Chen turned to leave, but then suddenly realized an awkward problem.
He was only at the Third Grade level right now and couldn’t yet perform the Rainbow Flight technique—that was a skill only available after reaching Fourth Grade.
At the moment, he could barely hover in midair.
With all those eyes watching, he couldn’t exactly tiptoe away like a martial arts hero, could he?
“Right—the Plague Emperor Banner! That’s a magical treasure—I can ride it to fly!”
With a thought, Lu Chen summoned the Plague Emperor Banner.
In an instant, a wave of pure, immense green miasma surged out from the banner, its sheer power making the three thousand followers shudder with fear.
Lu Chen lightly tapped his foot, stepped onto the green mist, and rode the wind away.
Behind him, Wang Zhidong had seen that terrifying Plague Emperor Banner up close, and his face had gone pale as ash.
He instinctively pulled out his own skull staff for comparison, only to realize that this artifact he’d once been so proud of now looked like scrap metal next to the Cult Leader’s treasure.
“As expected of the Cult Leader! His every move is extraordinary—to possess such a fearsome magical treasure!”
Even Zeng Rou was shaken by the banner’s might. After a dazed moment, she said with genuine admiration: “The Holy Ancestor has descended among mortals—truly extraordinary!”
She knelt again in reverence: “Farewell, Cult Leader!”
“Farewell, Cult Leader!!!”
Three thousand voices swelled into a mighty wave that soared into the heavens.
…
About twenty minutes later, outside the City Lord’s Mansion.
Lu Chen parked his vehicle and, holding the City Lord’s Token, passed through without any hindrance.
Inside the main hall, the atmosphere was tense and grim.
Yu Feng sat in the seat of honor, imposing and commanding without needing to raise his voice.
Below, the four great families occupied the primary seats on each side.
Behind them, the top ten rising elites sat in succession, subtly forming a configuration of rival powers.
Lu Chen instinctively looked toward Sun Qingcang—Sun Yourong stood quietly by her father’s side, and only two of the rising elite family heads sat behind the Sun family.
“Attendant, bring a seat!” Yu Feng ordered.
A servant immediately brought a chair and placed it in front of the hall.
A murmur rippled through the hall.
“Lord City Lord, according to protocol, only families of rising-elite rank and above may participate in this meeting. This young brother’s presence already breaks the rules—and now offering him a seat as well? That’s—”
“Yes, this is highly irregular…”
Two of the rising elite family heads couldn’t help but voice their objections.
“Mm?”
Yu Feng shot them a single glance, and they immediately fell silent.
The chair sat right at the front, directly facing Yu Feng’s main seat.
Lu Chen caught the implication—this seat was reserved only for rising-elite families. He didn’t stand on ceremony and sat himself down with an authoritative air!
After all, becoming a rising elite was only a matter of time.
This seat—I’m claiming it today, no doubt about it!
