"Lord City Master, Qingyang City has never relaxed its guard against Puppet City, whether in the past or now. Please rest assured on this matter." Chenyang ignored Sun Tu and directly addressed E Kuai with a cupped fist.

"It's nothing, it's nothing, I just suddenly remembered this matter and mentioned it... Now let's get back to the main topic and talk about the situation of the Five Cities Martial Arts Tournament." E Kuai waved his hand and said.

Upon hearing this, everyone quieted down, waiting for him to speak again.

"The specific rules are not much different from the past. Each of your four cities recommends twelve candidates, whether they are the city captains or the chief profound gladiators, they can all participate. The main city, Xuan City, will send sixteen people, a total of sixty-four people, who will compete against each other in pairs to determine the winners. As long as you can eventually enter the top three, you will receive a reward, and those who can pass multiple rounds of competition and win the first place will receive an unexpected major reward." E Kuai smiled and said.

"Ahem... an unexpected major reward, what is it exactly? Why is Lord City Master also playing coy now?" Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile.

"There are still three months before the official tournament. Please allow me to keep this suspense for a while. It will be revealed when the tournament officially opens. In short, it will definitely not disappoint you." The smile on E Kuai's face deepened.

Upon hearing this, everyone naturally had no objections.

"During these three months, you can temporarily reside and cultivate in my Xuan City Villa. If you want to practice beforehand, you can also go to the Xuan Gladiator arenas in the city to participate in free profound combat." E Kuai said.

After saying that, he exchanged greetings with everyone for a while and then left first.

After the short meeting, the people from the four affiliated cities all had their own thoughts, and they no longer had the mood to compete with each other. Qin Yuan, Fu Jian, and others each led their teams and left first.

Chenyang and the others were the last to walk out of the main hall, and they saw the man named Tong Song still waiting outside the hall.

"Distinguished guests from Qingyang City, do you want to stroll around the city now, or would you like me to take you to Xuan City Villa to settle down first?" Tong Song took the initiative to greet them and asked.

"We have been traveling for a long time and are quite tired. We would be grateful if Fellow Taoist Tong could take us to the villa first." Chenyang exchanged glances with Gu Qianxun and Han Li before speaking.

"Alright. Please follow me." Tong Song nodded and said.

Thus, everyone followed him out of the City Lord's Mansion and headed west all the way, eventually arriving at a complex of buildings that occupied a larger area than the City Lord's Mansion.

"I'm really sorry. The people from the other three cities arrived a little earlier and have already chosen some of the better locations and environments in the villa. The remaining two places, Liangfeng Xiaozhu and Baishi Yuan, are not bad in terms of environment, but the guest houses are distributed sparsely, and the distance between them is relatively far, so you may have to live a little more scattered." As soon as they entered the villa gate, Tong Song said apologetically.

"It doesn't matter. It's good to be a little more scattered. It's more quiet." Chenyang's mind was a little absent, and he said indifferently.

"That's good." Tong Song smiled.

Everyone then followed him and settled down in the Liangfeng Xiaozhu in the southwest corner of the villa.

The rooms here were built side by side like an inn, quite simple. The materials used were all black stones that could isolate divine sense, which reassured everyone a lot.

There were many rooms, and Han Li and the others each occupied one.

Han Li checked all parts of the room and found no signs of tampering before sitting down cross-legged in peace.

Time passed quickly, and it was soon late at night.

Han Li suddenly opened his eyes, opened the door, and walked out.

Outside was a scene of tranquility. A bright moon hung high in the sky, casting a bright, clear light, which further accentuated the quietness of the place.

Han Li glanced at the round moon in the sky, frowned slightly, then withdrew his gaze and walked forward, soon arriving in front of a room and gently knocking on the door.

"Fellow Taoist Li?" After a few breaths, a voice came from inside the door, and then the door slowly opened, revealing the figure of Xie Daoren.

"Fellow Taoist Chenyang, sorry to disturb you so late." Han Li glanced at Xie Daoren, his eyes flickering slightly, and stepped inside.

This was Chenyang's room, and Chenyang was not resting at the moment, but sitting cross-legged in the room.

"Not at all, Fellow Taoist Li, please sit down. I wonder why you are visiting so late?" Chenyang asked with a smile.

"Before, I agreed with Fellow Taoist Chen that if I couldn't find a way to get rid of the Black Tribulation Insects, I would change my request, right? I'm here now to discuss this matter with Fellow Taoist Chen." Han Li said directly after sitting down.

"That's right. I wonder what Fellow Taoist Li's request is? As long as I can do it, I will do my best and will not disappoint Fellow Taoist Li again." Chenyang nodded.

"I would like to ask Fellow Taoist Chen to help me investigate two people, one is Shi Kong, and the other is called Zi Ling, a female cultivator who was thrown into the Accumulated Scale Void Realm within the last hundred years. Please give me a clear answer before the martial arts tournament begins." Han Li said slowly.

Chenyang was slightly stunned upon hearing this, and then showed a look of embarrassment.

"I can help you investigate the Zi Ling you mentioned. Since she is a female cultivator and has just entered the Accumulated Scale Void Realm decades ago, it should not be difficult to find her if she comes to Xuan City. However, Shi Kong is currently in E Kuai's hands, so it will be difficult to investigate him." Chenyang said with a wry smile.

"If it were easy, why would I ask Fellow Taoist Chen for help?" Han Li chuckled lightly.

"Alright... I have already broken my word once, and I will never break my word a second time. Fellow Taoist Li, rest assured, I will definitely give you an answer before the martial arts tournament begins." Chenyang was silent for a moment, then said solemnly.

"In that case, I will have to trouble Fellow Taoist Chen." Han Li smiled slightly, and without lingering any longer, he soon took his leave and returned to his residence.

Nothing happened overnight.

Early the next morning, Han Li washed up and was about to go out when he heard a knock on the door. It was a young servant from Qingyang City.

This time, when they came to Xuan City, Chenyang also brought some servants with him to handle some miscellaneous matters.

"Senior Li, the City Lord invites you to his residence." The young servant said respectfully.

"Do you know why the City Lord is calling me?" Han Li asked calmly.

"This junior doesn't know." The young servant shook his head.

"Lead the way." Han Li frowned slightly and said.

The young servant led Han Li to Chenyang's residence.

A look of surprise flashed in Han Li's eyes. He had originally thought that Chenyang had called him over to discuss something with him, but Chenyang's residence was full of people, including Gu Qianxun, Yi Liya, and Xiong Pi.

Seeing Han Li come in, Gu Qianxun smiled and nodded in greeting.

Han Li also nodded in response. At that moment, he suddenly felt a hostile gaze looking over, and when he turned his head to look, it was Yi Liya.

Seeing that Han Li had sensed his gaze, Yi Liya did not flinch in the slightest, glared at Han Li, and then averted his gaze.

Han Li frowned slightly, full of doubts.

On the way to Xuan City, he had sensed that this Yi Liya was somewhat hostile towards him.

However, he had only just met this person, and had not even spoken to him, so he really couldn't understand why Yi Liya was hostile towards him.

After a while, a few more people came in, and all the people from Qingyang City had gathered.

"I called you here because I have some things to tell you." Chenyang looked at everyone and said.

Everyone listened attentively.

"There is still some time before the martial arts tournament begins. The various forces in the city are gathered here, and the situation is complicated. If you have no important matters, try to stay in your residences to conserve your energy. If you really need to go out, remember not to cause trouble or clash with people from other cities, otherwise it will be difficult for me to speak up." Chenyang said.

"Yes."

Everyone had personally witnessed the attitude of the other cities towards Qingyang City yesterday, more bad than good, so they all nodded in agreement.

Chenyang nodded with satisfaction when he saw everyone nodding.

"Lord City Master, yesterday the person from Xuan City said that for this martial arts tournament, each of our four affiliated cities will send twelve people. There are obviously more than that number of people here now. May I ask which twelve people the City Lord plans to send to the competition?" Yi Liya suddenly asked.

Hearing this, everyone present lit up and looked towards Chenyang.

This question had been in their hearts for a long time. Being able to participate in the Five Cities Martial Arts Tournament was a great honor, not to mention the generous rewards.

Everyone was very confident in their strength, so they were all eager to be able to compete on stage.

"There's no rush for this matter. I will announce the list of participants before the martial arts tournament begins. Alright, you can all go back now." A light flashed in Chenyang's eyes, and he said slowly.

Hearing this, everyone showed disappointment on their faces and said goodbye and left.

Han Li walked out of Chenyang's residence, his mind racing, and was about to walk outside.

Although Chenyang had said that they should try not to go out, he had important matters to attend to.

"Fellow Taoist Li, are you going out?" A voice came from behind, it was Gu Qianxun.

"That's right, I'm new to Xuan City and I plan to go out and take a look." Han Li stopped.

"Fellow Taoist Li, could it be that you want to find Madam Liuhua to inquire about the Black Tribulation Insects?" Gu Qianxun moved her lips slightly and transmitted her voice.

"Exactly." Han Li did not hide anything from Gu Qianxun.

The Black Tribulation Insects were a thorn in his heart, and he would not be at peace until he removed them.

"I am also going to investigate this matter. Why don't we go together? Madam Liuhua is the number one refining master in Xuan City, and she is not someone who is easy to meet." Gu Qianxun said with a rather solemn expression.

"Alright." Han Li was slightly stunned upon hearing this and nodded.

Thus, the two of them quickly walked towards the outside, their figures soon disappearing into the distance.

Several figures walked out from under the trees not far away, it was Yi Liya, Du Long, Tu Gang and others.

Yi Liya looked at the direction in which the two of them had gone, his face extremely gloomy.

Han Li and the others soon left the villa and, led by Gu Qianxun, headed towards the city.

Affected by the Five Academies Martial Arts Tournament, the city was bustling with people. The shops on both sides of the street were decorated with lanterns and colored streamers, and the quality of the goods sold in the shops was obviously higher than that of Qingyang City.

The area within Xuan City was also extremely large, with one prosperous district connected to another. Compared to this place, Qingyang City was simply dirty and dilapidated, lagging behind by more than just one level.