Xuanwu War Sovereign

With a flash of his blade, a Six Yang Leader’s head was sent flying.

Poor Yan Qi. A king among assassins, his first failure was also his last, ending his life at Qin Feng’s hands.

The very moment Yan Qi died...

In the Star Sect, within a great hall, a Soul Lamp dimmed and went out.

Inside the great hall, the expressions of many Elders shifted. One of them cried out in shock.

"It’s Yan Qi! That’s Yan Qi’s Soul Lamp! Yan Qi has fallen!"

Jin Min’s face twisted in horror.

"Didn’t Yan Qi go after Qin Feng? How could he have fallen?"

An Elder said in a grim voice, "I’m afraid he must have died at Qin Feng’s hands!"

Silence!

The entire hall fell deathly quiet.

It was too incredible to believe.

Everyone present knew Yan Qi had an impressive record that included assassinating a Martial Arts Giant. To think he had actually died at the hands of Qin Feng.

Even someone as proud as Zhi Yao was silent.

’To be frank, even I would have to be extremely cautious when facing Yan Qi. To think Qin Feng was actually able to kill him.’

Ye Long was dazed. "Qin Feng has grown so fast!"

Ye Long’s expression soured. He had, after all, caused quite a bit of trouble for Qin Feng not long ago.

Ye Long’s face filled with resentment. "Are we just going to let Qin Feng take control of Yunhu City?!"

Across from him, a handsome youth in water-blue, tight-sleeved robes raised his wine cup and sneered. "Of course, it won’t be that simple. Have you all forgotten? The Sea Demon Clan’s Cyan Forest Banquet seems to be taking place next month!"

Zhi Yao’s expression flickered. "You want to use the Cyan Forest Banquet to get those hotheads to deal with Qin Feng!"

Ye Long slammed the table and shot to his feet. "Brilliant! What an ingenious plan! The Cyan Forest Banquet is incredibly influential, drawing heroes from all corners every time it’s held. Using those hotheads to deal with Qin Feng kills two birds with one stone!"

"Indeed, an excellent plan!"

The group of Elders’ eyes lit up.

Zhi Yao sat in a corner with a dark expression, thinking to himself, ’This fellow surnamed Dongfang is truly insidious. This plan is clearly meant to make enemies for Qin Feng. The Cyan Forest Banquet always invites the top geniuses of the younger generation from various sects. If they kill Qin Feng, that would be for the best. But if Qin Feng kills them, their sects certainly won’t let the matter rest. Whether it succeeds or fails, Qin Feng is bound to be in deep trouble!’

And yet, seeing this, he only grew more jealous.

Even though they all served under the same person, competition still existed within the great hall.

...

After killing Yan Qi and the others, Qin Feng took the opportunity to loot the entire group.

Aside from some Low Grade Willpower Pearls, he also found several Secret Manuals.

One was a True Martial Level, Low-Tier Saber Technique, the "Asura Arrogant Moon Slash," and another was a Spirit Martial Level, High-tier Body Technique, the "Formless Wandering Dragon Step."

The rest were some relatively Low-Tier Martial Skills and techniques. Qin Feng didn’t think much of them and tossed them into the Chaos Celestial Secret Realm.

In addition, there were some Low-Level Elixirs, most of which were looted from the Condensing Vein Realm Martial Artists.

The Sea of Reincarnation Realm Martial Artists, on the other hand, were completely broke.

Qin Feng felt a tinge of regret. ’I haven’t yet fully comprehended the Void Origin. Otherwise, I could have directly seized the personal Space of these Sea Reincarnation Martial Artists and plucked all their Treasures from the unseen Void.’

After cleaning up the battlefield...

「The next day」

Qin Feng headed toward Yunhu City.

Yunhu City stood on the shores of Cloud Lake. It was a magnificent, colossal city, like a great beast crouching by the water. Its towering walls, which exuded an ancient charm, resembled a lofty mountain range.

This was a newly-built giant city, even larger and more formidable than Mountain and River City.

At the city gates, the members of the Qin Family were overcome with emotion, their faces flushed with a joy they couldn’t contain.

"This massive city... from now on, will it belong to our Qin Family?"

Three Elders stood at the gate, their faces alight with excitement.

"To possess a city like this... this is a foundation that could last ten thousand years!"

The three elderly Qin Family members trembled with excitement.

If they could help Qin Feng establish a foundation here, they would become the founding patriarchs of the Yunhu City Qin Family.

Watching the excited members of the Qin Family, Qin Feng gave a faint smile. ’Becoming the founding patriarchs of the Yunhu City Qin Family won’t be that easy.’

’I wonder how many of them will even survive to the end.’

However, if this group managed to make it through, Qin Feng wouldn’t mind showing his generosity.

Reaching Yunhu City was just the beginning.

Upon entering Yunhu City, Qin Feng didn’t go to the City Lord’s Mansion to handle the transition of power immediately. Instead, he first had the Qin Family members investigate the various powers in and around the city.

Half a day later, Qin Feng had a general understanding of Yunhu City.

Yunhu City was a new, rising metropolis.

Its surroundings included Gao Family Town and a dozen other major towns.

Many families resided in Yunhu City, but only five could be considered true overlords: the Li Family and Qi Family in the east, and the Lin Family, Wang Family, and Chi Family in the south.

Yunhu City was divided into an inner city and an outer city.

The inner city, centered around the City Lord’s Mansion, was where the wealthy merchants and tycoons lived.

The outer city was comprised of four districts.

The East and South City were the most prosperous parts of Yunhu City. The South City, in particular, was known as the wealthy district, where rich merchants and tycoons gathered, and many families had established their roots.

The East City was where the markets were concentrated.

In contrast to the East City, the West City was where the commoners lived. It contained the famous Yunhu West Market, a place where people from all walks of life converged.

Yunhu City was immense, and disciples of the Star Sect were also stationed here.

The four districts—east, south, west, and north—each housed a Star Palace.

Before arriving in Yunhu City, Qin Feng already knew that it was under the jurisdiction of Qingcheng Mountain.

Every year, the four Star Palaces had to hand over a certain amount of Wish Power Pearls to the Mountain Lord of Qingcheng Mountain.

Of course, the Mountain Lord of Qingcheng Mountain had more than just Yunhu City under his command; he also controlled several other cities.

The Mountain Lord of Qingcheng Mountain, in turn, was subordinate to the Cloud Realm Mansion.

The intricacies of these relationships were all clear in Qin Feng’s mind.

However, as the exclusive fiefdom of a Sealed Marquis Genius, Yunhu City was now considered separate from the jurisdiction of Cloud Realm Mansion and Qingcheng Mountain.

As the City Lord of Yunhu City, Qin Feng would receive half of the annual Wish Power Pearl income from the four Star Palaces, only needing to pay the other half to Qingcheng Mountain.

This was an incredibly exaggerated ratio.

Generally speaking, an ordinary City Lord who was a regular disciple of the Star Sect would only receive an extra share of one percent.

"Venerable Lord, as it stands, nearly all power in Yunhu City is in the hands of the Five Great Families. They have deep, tangled roots here, having operated for centuries. Their foundations are so profound that even our Qin Family from Mountain and River City cannot compare!"

Inside the inn, Qin Qingyun said with a bitter smile, his head lowered. "Furthermore, there are several wealthy and powerful merchant families that require special attention. Their strength cannot be underestimated!"

"There are also some smaller sects, with all sorts of characters, both masters and ruffians, hidden among them!"

"In short, these sects, families, and wealthy merchants are all tangled together, turning Yunhu City into a chaotic mess. The whole place is corrupt, the people’s livelihoods are in ruins, and everything is waiting to be rebuilt from the ground up!"

Hearing this, the other two Elders wore worried frowns.

Yunhu City was massive, true, but the situation was far too complex—even more so than in Mountain and River City.

"And that’s not all. The most worrying part is that several extremely powerful tribes live in Cloud Lake just outside the city. They are incredibly strong and raid us from time to time. If they weren’t wary of the Star Sect, I’m afraid Yunhu City would have been conquered long ago!"

"So, the Star Sect basically handed me a complete mess?"