"Hurry up!"
"Quick!"
With her neck gripped, feeling the icy temperature of Little Nuo Yi's ghost fire, the captain of the guard yelled hysterically, his voice hoarse by the end.
He was terrified!
Necromancers were notoriously unpredictable. Even though the little girl in front of him looked harmless, who could guarantee that behind that innocent facade wasn't a centuries-old ancient demon?
It was entirely possible.
Compared to other mages, necromancers had a more masterful control over souls.
As their physical bodies gradually decayed, many necromancers would seek new vessels to achieve immortality.
The captain suspected that the girl holding him was precisely such a necromancer.
Seemingly young,
She was actually an old hag of unknown age.
Otherwise, how could such a sunny and adorable girl utter such cold and ruthless words, and even want to pull out his soul for amusement?
Was this something a human could do?
The guards flusteredly searched for higher-ranking officials, while Little Nuo Yi quietly held the captain's neck with her necromantic power, waiting.
"Ahem, senior."
The captain, his neck still held, cautiously tried to engage Nuo Yi, glancing at the ghost fire in her hand.
"Hm?!" Little Nuo Yi's eyes remained cold, and the blue and white ghost fire made her appear even more chilling.
The captain flinched, retracting his neck, but still attempted a smile.
"Senior, are you visiting Tatu Royal City..."
"None of your business." Nuo Yi snorted impatiently. The captain chuckled awkwardly for a moment, then his gaze darted around and landed on the little devil's pointed horns.
In an instant, he seemed to understand something and whispered.
"Senior, are you with that demon?"
"Then isn't that obvious?" Little Nuo Yi scoffed. "Why else would I be beating you? Do you think I have nothing better to do?"
"Damn it!"
The captain couldn't help but curse inwardly.
So they were together all along!
Those ignorant fools deserved to die. Why did they have to blabber about a demon? If they hadn't caused such a stir, would he have had to be on duty?
If he hadn't been on duty, none of this would have happened.
"Senior, look at how this has escalated." The captain pleaded with a mournful face, trying his best to extricate himself. "I didn't know you were together. If I had known, even if you gave me ten thousand times the courage, I wouldn't have dared to offend you and your group. Don't you agree? Since I acted in ignorance, could you perhaps forgive me this once? I'll take my men and leave immediately. You can do whatever you want, and I'll pretend I didn't see anything."
"Is the captain of the Tatu Royal City guards such a spineless coward?"
Chen Yu walked over slowly, arms crossed, his eyes narrowed.
The captain was naturally indignant at being insulted, but upon seeing Chen Yu's position, he knew he was of the same ilk as the demons and necromancers.
How could someone who traveled with demons and necromancers be a good person?
What rotten luck.
How could he have run into such a group of malevolent spirits?
"Senior, you can't say that."
Unsure of Chen Yu's depth, the captain kept addressing him as 'senior'.
"Although I am a guard of the Royal City, in the end, I'm just a subordinate serving under the Sky-Suspended City. My salary isn't much; I'm just doing this to make ends meet. If I were from the Sky-Suspended City itself, then my cowardice now would indeed be true spinelessness. I'm just an auxiliary staff member under the Sky-Suspended City. Is it worth risking my life for this?"
"Hearing you say that, is there a big difference between the Sky-Suspended City and the area below?"
"A huge difference!" The captain scoffed. "Only those who live above the Sky-Suspended City are true Royal City citizens. We below are merely beggars who survive on their alms. Perhaps you think I'm demeaning ourselves, but everyone who lives here knows that the people of the Sky-Suspended City truly think that way."
Chen Yu narrowed his eyes slightly, listening to the captain's words.
Beggars!
For the common folk below to openly call themselves beggars indicated that this was no longer a secret to be hidden, but a universally known and unchangeable fact.
Their speaking this way was more like a helpless self-deprecation.
From this, it seemed that the class conflict within the Tatu Kingdom was indeed significant, and the title 'beggars' was a clear indicator.
With such intense class contradictions, internal strife within the kingdom was somewhat understandable.
"I heard that your Tatu Kingdom is quite fractured internally. Since you resent the royalty, why haven't you ever considered a rebellion?" Chen Yu murmured.
"Who would dare?"
The captain let out a wry smile, full of helplessness.
"The other cities are thousands of miles away from the Royal City. Even if they were to split from the Royal City, the influence of the capital wouldn't reach them. We are right beneath the Sky-Suspended City. If we dared to cause any trouble here, the Royal City could easily suppress us with just a few people. We might have the desire, but we lack the means."
A heavy sense of powerlessness permeated the captain's words, and Chen Yu lowered his brows, arms crossed.
The Sky-Suspended City and the area below,
Simply put, they could be considered the Upper City and the Lower City.
The people of the Upper City stood in the clouds, enjoying the kingdom's finest treatment and all resources, while the citizens of the Lower City, though belonging to the Royal City's jurisdiction, lived a more arduous life than the surrounding cities, towns, and city-states.
The prolonged unequal exploitation had created intense conflict between the Upper City and the Lower City.
Perhaps this could become an opportunity for infiltration.
In the future, there would inevitably be a conflict with the Tatu Kingdom. If the Tatu Kingdom wisely accepted his certification application, Chen Yu might be able to stay under its rule for a while. But if they refused, Hurricane City would be turned into a blade pressed against the Tatu Kingdom's face by Chen Yu.
However—
To truly deliver a fatal blow, the Lower City would be more direct than Hurricane City.
"If you were given the chance, would you want to overthrow this city?" Chen Yu suddenly asked with a smile. Without even half a second's hesitation, the captain sneered, "Ever since I was young, I've wished for this city to fall from the sky, so that those lords above could also taste the dust of this world."
Silently tucking away his thoughts,
Chen Yu also smiled and gave Nuo Yi a knowing glance. Receiving Chen Yu's signal, Nuo Yi released the captain.
"What's your name?"
"Samwell."
"Very good, I've remembered you." Chen Yu nodded with a smile. "Perhaps I'll seek you out again in the future, and I hope you won't disappoint me then."
"You..."
Samwell's expression faltered, but Chen Yu didn't give him time to overthink.
"Who will your subordinates be looking for?"
"Probably that young master." Samwell's face suddenly darkened. "That young master sent down from the Sky-Suspended City, with no real skill, yet holds the position of Captain. That position should be mine, but what can be done? He's from the Sky-Suspended City."
"A young master from the Sky-Suspended City?"
Chen Yu murmured softly, a smile in his eyes.
This was truly excellent!