Sword City had risen.
"Go," Chen Fan said. "Cultivate more when you have time. The rules and dao rhymes haven't dispersed yet, so consider it an opportunity."
Indeed, anything governed by rules was an opportunity.
As everyone dispersed, the Angler walked over. He had been there from the start of the battle, yet he hadn't made a move.
The Angler remained silent, but Chen Fan understood his intent. He spoke directly, "I need to wait for some news. Once the news arrives, I'll decide whether to help you summon the spirits."
"..."
The Angler didn't reply, which Chen Fan took as tacit agreement. After all, one couldn't force someone to do them a favor.
The night passed without incident.
The next day, the sun rose. Overnight, all the damaged buildings in Sword City had been restored.
"It's still like this," the Angler remarked, basking in the sunlight. "I've always felt this city was unusual."
Drip, drip. The Angler was perpetually like this, as if he had just returned from a swim, water continuously dripping from him.
Chen Fan remained silent.
The Angler spoke to himself, "I used to think it was because an Emperor's corpse was suppressed beneath it. But I later learned that this city was like this even before the Emperor's corpse arrived."
Chen Fan finally came back to his senses. "When does the earliest history of this city date back to?"
"It should be..." The Angler paused to think before each utterance. "It should have existed in the era of the Immortal Lords."
Immortal Lords. That name again.
Chen Fan fell silent once more before asking, "Who exactly are the Immortal Lords?"
"The Immortal Lords..." The Angler fell into a reverie. "Before the Five Emperors, the Immortal Lords already existed. According to ancient texts, when the lower realm was polluted, the Immortal Lords, on their own, created the Immortal Realm."
Chen Fan listened quietly.
"It is said that the Immortal Realm was merely a half-formed ruin. It was the Immortal Lords who opened up the Immortal Realm, securing a pure land for the human race."
"Anything else?" These bits of gossip were quite interesting.
"Since then, the Immortal Lords created several passages connecting to the lower realm. As time passed, these passages gradually collapsed and eventually disappeared completely..."
"Right." Chen Fan recalled something. "It seems everyone in the Immortal Realm wanted to find passages to the lower realm. Why?"
The Angler shook his head. "It's said to be in search of divine artifacts..." He glanced at Chen Fan. Chen Fan possessed several divine artifacts. He added, "You need to be careful. Although no one has openly attacked you, many are undoubtedly coveting the divine artifacts behind your back."
Chen Fan understood this without him saying.
The Angler continued, "Returning to our previous topic, the former Immortal Realm was said to be very peaceful. But later, for some reason, the Immortal Lords disappeared, and then... came the era of warring factions. Afterward, the Five Emperors emerged and stabilized the Five Continents, bringing about millennia of peace."
"Have the Five Emperors been in power for over ten thousand years?"
"Yes." The Angler nodded. "Among the Five Emperors, the Azure Emperor of the Eastern Continent and the White Emperor of the Northern Continent both served as City Lords of Sword City in their time, achieving the Heavenly Emperor fruit status."
"If that's the case," Chen Fan mused, "counting the Emperor's corpse, that's only three. Did no one else become Emperor in between?"
"Yes." The Angler nodded with certainty. "In the last ten thousand years, well over ten individuals have achieved Heavenly Emperor status, but none of them became Emperors in Sword City."
This made things interesting. "Becoming an Emperor in Sword City must also come with risks, right?" Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense. The Azure Emperor and White Emperor, having become Emperors in the same era, couldn't possibly have lacked purple stellar energy. This suggested the risks were the issue. Becoming an Emperor in Sword City was not that simple.
He pondered for a moment, then looked at the Angler. "So, you're not too concerned about the opportunity to become an Emperor."
"Correct." The Angler nodded affirmatively. That was indeed the case. The opportunity to become an Emperor in Sword City was accompanied by danger. Besides, not everyone wanted to achieve emperorship through sheer fortune. True prodigies wanted to forge their own path to Heavenly Emperor through their own abilities.
They talked for a long time.
Finally...
Bang.
From the direction of the East City Gate, a figure stumbled and fell outside the gate.
"City Lord..." A weak whisper reached Chen Fan's ears. Sword City was entirely under his control, and such a sound could not escape his notice. The Angler also heard it.
Swish. The figures of both men vanished instantly from above Sword City.
Outside the East City Gate lay a figure on the verge of death. Chen Fan recognized him. He was among the rogue cultivators who had been suppressed in the frigid pool. A day prior, he had gone out with Da Kui to search for Huo Xing's whereabouts. Now, everyone else had not returned, and only he had returned, in a severely wounded and dying state.
"Life." Chen Fan raised his hand and mobilized the Great Dao of Life. With a roar, the river of rules opened.
The Angler looked up at Chen Fan's Great Dao of Rules, remaining silent for a long time. Chen Fan, meanwhile, was frantically injecting vitality into the dying man's body.
"Huh?" However, a strange aura within the man's body was madly devouring the vitality. That power was incredibly bizarre, seemingly not wanting the man to live.
"Scram." A hint of killing intent flashed across Chen Fan's face. Vitality surged, and with a bang, it shattered the strange aura.
However... the moment that aura dissipated, it felt as if a pair of eyes had looked at Chen Fan from an immeasurable distance.
The next moment, the eyes closed. The strange aura vanished completely.
"Who?" Chen Fan was startled. In those eyes, it seemed as if a universe of the Great Dao was gestured. Great stars rotated within them, and the phenomenon of gods and demons falling occurred.
So strong. This was Chen Fan's most genuine feeling. Just the gaze imbued with a mere wisp of power made him feel the presence of death.
There was no time for awe. Saving the man was paramount.
Hum. The strange aura dispersed, and vitality finally took effect. The man, who had been on the verge of death, was saved by Chen Fan. His aura slowly strengthened.
Wu Xiu opened his eyes and immediately saw Chen Fan.
"City Lord," Wu Xiu said, a hint of anxiety on his face. "Quick, quick, save them. Huo Xing, Da Kui, they... they are in danger."
"What happened? Tell me." Although he felt a sense of urgency, Chen Fan maintained his composure. Rushing was useless at this point. He needed to understand the course of events, or where to rescue them; he knew none of this.
Wu Xiu seemed to understand that haste was futile, and his anxious expression gradually calmed. Knowing what the City Lord wanted to hear, Wu Xiu spoke directly. "Yesterday, we followed Da Kui to search for Huo Xing's tracks. Eventually, we found a notification mark left by Huo Xing. Following the mark, we pursued it."
"Eventually..."
"Eventually, what?"
"We saw an abandoned Emperor's Palace."
Terror filled Wu Xiu's eyes.