54: Chapter 54 Beneath the walls of Tianji City, even scavengers are treated like royalty!

Those eyes were real.

It was not an illusion, but a Divine Soul lock spanning a hundred miles.

The towering gates of Tianji City were right before him. The hundred-zhang high walls were built from solid obsidian, covered in dense defensive array patterns.

A massive bronze mirror hung at the city gate, its surface rippling like water. Every person who passed by would be illuminated by a red or white beam of light.

Those with red light were detained; those with white light were allowed to pass.

That was the treasure of the Zhuge family—the Heaven-Peering Mirror.

It was said to be able to reveal the Karma of a Mortal over three lifetimes, but in the cultivation world, its greatest use was to verify bone age and destiny.

"If it were me from half an hour ago, I would likely have triggered the killing array by now."

Ye Feng blended into the line of Loose Cultivators waiting to enter the city, lowering his head to tidy up his tattered robe, which was covered in scorch marks.

Chaos Devouring Sword Body, reverse.

The frantically spinning Sword Core within his body suddenly halted. The Sword Intent, originally sharp enough to pierce the firmament, was forcibly "eaten" back into the depths of his Dantian.

Replacing it was the vast amount of waste Qi and fire poison he had just devoured in the underground palace.

At this moment, his aura was chaotic and messy, and his body emitted a nauseating, burnt smell, just like an unlucky fire cultivator who had just blown up his furnace during Alchemy and barely escaped with his life.

People like this were a dime a dozen in the cultivation world.

The line moved slowly.

It was Ye Feng's turn.

The beam from the Heaven-Peering Mirror swept over his entire body without ceremony.

Atop the city tower, a young man wearing an Eight-Trigrams Daoist robe was idly toying with a compass in his hand.

Divine Calculator Zhuge, the Young City Lord of Tianji City.

"Hmm?"

The moment the beam enveloped Ye Feng, the needle on the compass in Divine Calculator Zhuge's hand suddenly spun wildly, as if it were drunk. Finally, it became stuck firmly between the "Kan" and "Li" positions, emitting a harsh, screeching sound.

The divination result: Chaos and disorder.

"What kind of hellish destiny is this?" Divine Calculator Zhuge frowned, his gaze as sharp as an eagle's, staring fixedly at the "beggar" below.

In the mirror, the person's Dantian was indeed a mess of chaotic fire Spiritual Qi, his Meridians were blocked, and his Aptitude was mediocre; he was just a Loose Cultivator who had stumbled into Foundation Establishment through sheer luck.

Could the compass be broken?

Just then, a fragrant breeze swept past.

The Saintess of the Myriad Flower Valley, Mo Qianxue, dressed in white as pristine as snow, was passing through the city gate with several female Disciples.

She seemed to sense something. Her cold gaze swept across the crowd, finally resting on the "beggar" who was hunched over with a fawning smile.

Something was wrong.

Although this person looked disheveled, the distance of every step he took was precisely controlled to two feet and three inches.

This was an instinct that only an expert who had practiced their movement technique into their very bones, forming muscle memory, would possess.

Mo Qianxue narrowed her beautiful eyes, and just as she was about to speak, a thunderous beast roar erupted from the distance.

"Get out of the way! You blind things!"

The ground shook violently.

A two-headed fire lion, standing as tall as a two-story building and carrying rolling waves of heat, violently plowed through the crowd, charging toward the city gate.

On the lion's back, a burly man clad in golden armor held a dragon spear, his Face full of arrogance.

It was the number one on the Prodigy List, Battle Heaven Dragon.

Facing this Foundation Establishment Late Stage Vicious Beast, the queuing Loose Cultivators were terrified out of their wits and scrambled to escape to the sides.

Only Ye Feng, seemingly frozen in terror, stood motionless in place.

To be precise, it was the piece of unknown "scrap iron" in his hand, which he had just swiped from the ruins of the underground palace, that had caught the beast's attention.

A trace of extremely faint True Dragon Qi lingered on that scrap iron.

Roar—!

Greed flared in the eyes of the two-headed fire lion. It smelled a chance for evolution and, ignoring its master's control, opened its bloody maw and bit toward Ye Feng.

"It's over, that kid is dead for sure!"

The onlookers exclaimed.

However, the instant the lion's jaws were about to crush Ye Feng's skull, Ye Feng "slipped," and his entire body fell backward in a disheveled manner.

This fall happened to dodge the fangs.

His left hand "panicked" and grabbed forward, landing right on the lion's softest abdomen.

Devouring Domain, activate!

The moment they made contact, a suction force that only he could perceive erupted from Ye Feng's palm.

The violent fire poison that had accumulated for a hundred years within the two-headed fire lion's spine, along with half of its demonic power, was instantly drained clean by Ye Feng like a burst dam.

"Whimper..."

The fire lion, which had previously been ferociously imposing, instantly lost the fierce gleam in its eyes, replaced by terror.

The sensation was as if its body had been hollowed out in an instant.

Thump!

The massive beast's body slammed heavily into the ground from the momentum of its charge, its limbs twitching and foam spilling from its mouth. It slid for over ten meters like a dead dog, coming to a stop right at Ye Feng's feet.

The entire scene went dead silent.

Then, a roar of laughter erupted.

"Is this the Divine Beast of the Battle family? Why is it such a soft-legged shrimp?"

"It collapsed from exhaustion after running two steps? Could it be that it used up all its strength on a lioness last night?"

Battle Heaven Dragon's Face instantly turned the color of a pig's liver.

He had entered the city with high fanfare on the eve of the Myriad Nations Grand Assembly to establish his prestige, but his mount had embarrassed him in public. He had lost Face to the point of no return!

"You're courting death!"

Battle Heaven Dragon was enraged by shame. He flicked his dragon spear, and with a killing Protective Aura, stabbed directly at the throat of the "beggar" on the ground.

Since he had lost Face, he would wash it away with blood!

Before the tip of the spear arrived, the sharp wind had already sliced through Ye Feng's collar.

Deep within Ye Feng's lowered eyes, a flash of cold light flickered.

Want to kill him? That was perfect; he hadn't finished digesting the fire lion's demonic power yet, and adding the essence blood of a Prodigy wouldn't hurt.

Clang—!

Just as the Sword Qi at Ye Feng's fingertips was about to erupt, an Eight-Trigrams copper coin flew through the air, precisely deflecting the dragon spear.

"Private fights are prohibited within Tianji City."

Divine Calculator Zhuge leaped down from the city tower, blocking the space between the two.

Although he wore a smile, the Eight-Trigrams compass in his hand faintly radiated killing intent.

"Brother Battle, this beast is just unaccustomed to the local climate. Why bother arguing with a beggar? If blood were to be spilled, I fear it would ruin the mood of tonight's 'Prodigy Banquet'."

Battle Heaven Dragon glared at Divine Calculator Zhuge. A moment later, he let out a cold snort and retracted his dragon spear.

"Consider yourself lucky."

He kicked the still-shivering fire lion awake and, amid a chorus of boos, stormed into the city gate with a dark Face.

Divine Calculator Zhuge turned around, his eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through the human heart, lingering meaningfully on Ye Feng for three seconds.

In that instant just now, he had smelled a scent on this beggar that was even more dangerous than the fire lion.

"You go in too, don't block the way," Divine Calculator Zhuge said indifferently.

Ye Feng fawningly thanked him, clutched the scrap iron in his hand, and scrambled into the city gate passageway.

Turning the street corner, Ye Feng's previously hunched back instantly straightened.

He did not go to the inn, but instead, familiar with the route, ducked into a greasy back alley and walked into a general store with a sign that read "Scrap Collection."

This was the place where Loose Cultivators from all over the city fenced their stolen goods.

The broken swords and damaged armor scattered on the floor were just scrap metal in the eyes of others, but in Ye Feng's eyes, this was an all-you-can-eat buffet.

"Boss, I want this whole pile of trash."

Ye Feng casually tossed a bag of Low-Grade Spirit Stones, not caring at all about the look the boss gave him, as if he were a fool.

He crouched down and lightly traced his fingertips over the notched weapons.

Devouring Domain, micro-manipulation mode.

The metallic essence, invisible to the naked eye, transformed into wisps of silver-white Qi, drilling into his Meridians through his fingertips.

Crack, crack.

The weapons on the ground lost their luster at a speed visible to the naked eye, becoming as brittle as ash.

Meanwhile, along Ye Feng's spine, as this Geng Metal Qi poured in, his bones emitted a teeth-grinding series of pops.

The damaged Chaos Devouring Sword Body not only recovered, but a phantom rectangular outline faintly condensed along his spine.

That was the embryo of a Sword Case.

Once formed, his body would be able to nourish ten thousand swords; when that time came, he could unleash them all at once and kill those of higher ranks as easily as slaughtering dogs.

"Hoo..."

Ye Feng exhaled a breath of turbid air. Feeling the surging power within his body, he cast his gaze toward the brightly lit City Lord's Mansion in the center of the city.

Night had fallen.

Countless powerful auras were gathering in that direction.

Tonight's meal was likely the true "Hongmen Banquet."