The man's name was Di Gaoli, a resident of Azure Leaf City, the largest city in the vicinity. Di Gaoli was supposed to protect his two juniors as they searched for resources, but who knew that they would meet three demons that had formed their cores? In the end, had it not been for Tianyi noticing him, he would have died as well.
The demons most likely targeted Di Gaoli, and his two companions suffered by association. For many demons, cultivators were akin to extremely nourishing pills, devouring one would save them decades worth of effort.
Having developed more than curiosity for the humans of the Demon Cage Realm, Tianyi, Daoyi, and Xi Ri followed Di Gaoli back to Azure Leaf City. Along the way, Di Gaoli explained the legends of the Demon Cage Realm, or as the humans inside called it, the Demon Heaven Realm.
Long before the human race had begun to record history, demons were the overlords of the world. The humans were helpless, living like rats in the dark. Eventually, they managed to emigrate into desolate lands, too poor to catch any demons' eye, but even so, if a wandering demon passed, they were at the mercy of the demon's whims. However, that all changed one day.
It was a day that they later called the Descent of Immortals. Immortals from the immortal world descended and unleashed devastation upon the overlords of the Demon Heaven Realm. Afterward, the immortals had disappeared after slaughtering the demons without even giving the humans a chance to interact, but what they left was a gift greater than any other.
It was the precious time for humans to develop.
No longer did they have to endure the demons' tyranny, no longer did they have to live on barren lands, and no longer did parents have to sacrifice their children to the demons. With the time given to them, humanity began to develop and cultivate with their strength. Just as it seemed that they would become the overlords of the realm, reality proved to be a cruel mistress.
The demons crushed the human's growing arrogance.
Demons far stronger than the human race's top experts besieged and eliminated them all, once again proving the demons' superiority. Almost everything the humans had accomplished was wiped out, forcing them to regress to a lifestyle similar to before the immortal's descent. But as if on some sick joke, the immortals descended again, one thousand years later, and eliminated the strongest demons once more.
Since then, the humans and demons noticed that the immortals would descend and clean up the demons once every thousand years. To the humans of the Demon Cage Realm, the immortals were heavenly gods sent to protect them.To the demons, the humans were reapers sent to exterminate them like pests.
And now, the immortals have descended once more.
Di Gaoli wasn't exaggerating when he said that Tianyi, Daoyi, and Xi Ri were like gods to them. Once the group entered Azure Leaf City, they were welcomed personally by City Lord Azure Leaf, the creator and protector of Azure Leaf City.
As Tianyi was welcomed into the City Lord Azure Leaf's manor, he scanned the city with his spiritual sense. Compared to the cities he had seen in the Huang Realm, there was less space, and everything was more compact. Although the city walls were taller and thicker than the ones in the Huang Realm, their strength wasn't from any formations but the quality of the materials. Despite being a city helmed by a cultivator, the roads weren't lined with stone but bare dirt. All in all, rather than a city, it looked closer to a fortress town. But Tianyi wasn't interested in Azure Leaf City's infrastructure.
When Tianyi retracted his spiritual sense, he had counted all the humans inside Azure Leaf City. What was strange was that cultivators and mortals mingled alike within the city. Usually, cultivators and mortals did not live together. It would not be wrong to call cultivators and ordinary mortals two different species. Would a human live with a monkey? Obviously not.
Furthermore, he could not sense a single spiritual cultivator within the city. All of the cultivators were martial cultivators, and nearly all of them were in the Body Transformation Realm. Tianyi only sensed two acupoint opening masters in the city, one was the City Lord Azure Leaf, and the other was hidden under City Lord Azure Leaf's mansion.
"Welcome, great immortals." City Lord Azure Leaf placed his bearing very low as he welcomed Tianyi into the main hall of his mansion and gave the seat of honor to Tianyi.
Along the way, Tianyi had already been lambasted by the city's reverence towards them. Word had already spread of Tianyi and his group's arrival, almost like a forest fire. Almost all the citizens had lined up against the road to catch a glimpse of Tianyi and co, but despite this, hints of fear could be seen in the depths of the citizen's eyes.
Tianyi didn't reject City Lord Azure Leaf's request. This was a world where strength ruled. If he rejected, City Lord Azure Leaf might think of him as a pushover. Plus, Tianyi felt that City Lord Azure Leaf was too strange, too groveling. This gave him a feeling that City Lord Azure Leaf was planning something. And he could tell that City Lord Azure Leaf's cultivation method was subpar. Xi Ri could easily defeat ten of him despite not having fully adjusted to the Demon Cage Realm.
"We can't be called great immortals yet." Tianyi lightly said towards City Lord Azure Leaf, but he conversed with Daoyi and Xi Ri simultaneously using his spiritual sense.
"This acupoint opening master looks a bit too shifty to me. What do you think?"
"I don't think he is just nervous, although he seems to be sweating a lot," Daoyi said as she also sat down.
"City Lord Azure Leaf reminds me of tyrants from the official families of the Xi Dynasty. They've gotten used to being the boss, but then someone appears who is far more powerful than they ever thought and made them realize that they are a frog in a well. The way I see it, City Lord Azure Leaf should be the strongest cultivator in the area, or perhaps the peak of humanity in the Demon Cage Realm, so when he sees us, he doesn't know how to handle us."
Tianyi inwardly nodded at Xi Ri's words. According to Di Gaoli's words, since the human race was fearful of the demons, it wouldn't be strange for City Lord Azure Leaf to want to better the relationship between himself and the "immortals." He had already linked the thousand-year appearance of the immortals with the Demon Slaying Expedition that occurred once every hundred years.
"Ah? My apologies, how should I address... seniors?" City Lord Azure Leaf asked as he smiled ingratiatingly while rubbing his hand together. Tianyi glanced away, he could detect the overflowing sweat between City Lord Azure Leaf's palms.
"You can address us as Grandmaster Xi, Master Jiang, and Master Xi," Tianyi explained as he pointed at himself, Daoyi, and then Xi Ri.
"Grandmaster Xi, Master Jiang, Master Xi," City Lord Azure Leaf addressed the trio as he bowed to each one. "But... What do these titles mean? Are they representative of your positions?"
Tianyi inwardly rolled his eyes. It was too obvious how City Lord Azure Leaf was trying to gather information about them, but the information was practically public knowledge, so Tianyi didn't mind sharing.
"Thank you for enlightening me," City Lord Azure Leaf said after Tianyi explained it to him. After learning that both Daoyi and Xi Ri were in the realm equivalent to his, City Lord Azure Leaf couldn't help but give the two a few more glances.
He could discern that they were not old at all, practically a baby compared to him. Yet, the aura of power clad around them was far greater than his, highlighting the stark difference between the two sides. One was like the sky, high above, while the other wasn't even the dirt on the ground.
In the Demon Cage Realm, the strongest humans experts were only around his level. Most were immediately killed by the demons after ascending. He was one of the few that managed to survive and establish a city that existed for more than a hundred years.
City Lord Azure Leaf had thought that all three of them were above his realm, the illusionary next step that many had failed to grasp, but it turned out that only one of them was actually a realm above him, and the other two were only in an equivalent realm. Despite it being so, City Lord Azure Leaf could already tell without battling that he would lose to the two of them.
They were truly blessed to be born in the legendary immortal world. Legend said that the immortal world was a paradise for humanity, and demons were long exterminated. Envy appeared within City Lord Azure Leaf's heart, but he quickly suppressed it. He could be considered one of the more fortunate ones, enough to cause others to envy him. Just that, it was a pity for all the sacrifices he had made in order to ensure peace for his city.
"Seniors, it is late. How about spending the night? I will do everything in my power to ensure your stay is pleasant." City Lord Azure Leaf asked after conversing with the trio.
Tianyi glanced at Daoyi and Xi Ri. "Do you guys want to stay? I don't personally mind. We still have a lot of time before the ten years is up."
"I have no plans either, right now. From what we gathered earlier, this place should have quite a frequent scuffle with the demons. It's a good place to temper myself." Daoyi said.
"I want to stay. I want to see what life is like for these people who are constantly under the threat of demons is like." Xi Ri said. He had stated his goal was to create a utopia for people, so the civilization of the humans within the Demon Cage Realm held great interest to him.
"Alright." Tianyi lightly said towards City Lord Azure Leaf after quickly communicating with Daoyi and Xi Ri.
City Lord Azure Leaf showed visible joy as he called out. "Ziye, show our honored guests to their rooms."
After City Lord Azure Leaf's words were heard, a woman who appeared to be in her late teens or early twenties walked into the main hall. She wore a purple dress with orchids embroidered atop. Her beauty wasn't head-turning, but the more you looked, the more pleasant you would find it.
"This girl is Ziye, my daughter. In all of Azure Leaf City, she is one of the top geniuses. Although it can't compare to Seniors' talent, she is one of the most qualified guides for Seniors."
The corners of Tianyi's lips had already started to twitch when he saw the Ziye appear. Now, the twitch was about to spread all over his face. So that's what that old man is aiming for—setting a honey trap for us, or most likely me.
Tianyi was obviously the leader of the trio, and if City Lord Azure Leaf wanted to rope anyone in, then it would be him. Although, Tianyi pondered why he didn't just aim for all three. Tianyi glanced at Ziyi. Or perhaps, he only has this daughter, and he doesn't trust outsiders.
In the end, Tianyi didn't say anything and followed Ziye to their rooms. Ziye was a beauty, but Tianyi had grown up in the Buzhou Immortal Sect. What manners of beauty had he not seen? Plus, his mother was the number one beauty of the Huang Realm, so using a beautiful woman to lure Tianyi really wasn't effective at all.
Furthermore, Ziye radiated a distant aura, her intent on not associating with Tianyi apparent. All her words were perfunctory, with minimal contact at all times. Tianyi shrugged. He never expected to be popular with everyone, not that he wanted to accept women people sent him just to cozy up to him. Well, that and being forced to seduce a stranger wasn't pleasant to say the least.
That night, Tianyi once again spread his spiritual sense out, this time to observe City Lord Azure Leaf. City Lord Azure Leaf had entered the deepest part of his mansion, the area where the second acupoint opening master resided. To Tianyi's surprise, his spiritual sense became hazy when he tried to focus on the room.
The corner of Tianyi's lips quirked upwards as he discovered this. His interest was awakened. He originally only planned to stay a few days, but now, it seemed that he wouldn't leave until he discovered this city's secret. Maybe he could discover some great treasure or inheritance? After all, don't protagonists usually discover that the local lord had some heaven-defying secret? Maybe a fragment of an immortal artifact from the first Demon Slaying Expedition?
Tianyi didn't consider himself a protagonist, but that didn't prevent him from investigating. It wasn't like the Leviathan Clan would move away even if he stayed a few months.
City Lord Azure Leaf glanced behind him for the umpteenth time, he just couldn't shake off the feeling that someone was spying on him. Instantly, City Lord Azure Leaf's thought turned towards Grandmaster Xi.
Recalling the moment he first glanced at him, City Lord Azure Leaf couldn't help but break out in cold sweat. Just a single glance caused City Lord Azure Leaf to feel as if the heavens themselves were crushing him. Afterward, even when he wasn't looking at Grandmaster Xi, he constantly felt his presence next to him.
City Lord Azure Leaf knew that Grandmaster Xi wasn't doing this on purpose. If he had to make an analogy on it, then Ciy Lord Azure Leaf would describe Grandmaster Xi as a ferocious beast lying next to him, a mere rodent. Even if the beast wasn't interested in the rat, the rat could not help but feel fearful.
Entering his secret chambers full of formations and mechanisms from his sponsor, City Lord Azure Leaf glared at the man chained up within. "Gaoli, why did you have to come back?"
The man chained up was indeed Di Gaoli. His body was hung from the air by chains, and his body was riddled with wounds. "City Lord, I'm wrong! But I couldn't complete your mission. Demons attacked me! They even killed Taolan and Luyun! City Lord, you have to avenge them!"
City Lord Azure Leaf released a heavy pressure that silenced Di Gaoli. "Silence! All three of you were supposed to have never come back. Do you realize what trouble you brought to the city because of your selfishness!"
Di Gaoli became stunned at City Lord Azure Leaf's words. After he processed the meaning behind those words, he couldn't help but question City Lord Azure Leaf. "What do you mean by this City Lord! You raised us since we were young. You said we would be the future protectors of humans! How could you watch us die? How could you say such words? Taolan, Luyun, and I have always treated you as our father!"
City Lord Azure Leaf didn't say anything and turned around. "How much longer are you going to stay silent, Dushe?
A man walked out from the shadows. His body was thin to the point of being just skin on bones and gave others the impression of a poisonous snake. "My, my, it seems that your little cattle brought back a troublesome person."
"Enough!" City Lord Azure Leaf cut off the man's sentence. "You better not leave this place, otherwise your identity might be discovered. Even coming down here, I could feel someone spying on me until I entered. Can these so-called formations really hide from Grandmaster Xi's senses?"
"Hmpf, he's just a single human. This formation was created personally by the general. How can a mere human see through it?" Dushe said, completely confident.
"If he discovers-"
"He won't," Dushe confidently said, cutting City Lord Azure Leaf's words off. "You're a partner that we've worked with for over a hundred years. We won't let anything disrupt our relationship. Besides, the general has only heard of these immortals. He has yet to personally taste one himself. Keep him here for us."
City Lord Azure Leaf stood there petrified as he processed what Dushe just said. "You mean to attack Azure Leaf City!?"