Chapter 275: Chapter Seven: The Customs of Lancheng

The cave dwelling rented by Di Qing was located within the inner city of Lancheng; from outside, it appeared ordinary, but once inside, the space expanded more than ten thousandfold.

Luo Feng and the other three entered together.

“I’ll divide the space first,” Di Qing said, and the vast interior naturally split: two small chambers emerged in the corners, a shared courtyard remained in the center, and the rest was evenly divided into two halves.

“You decide how to arrange the interior,” Di Qing said.

“I’ll take the left side.”

“Then I’ll take the right,” Di Ming and Di Fu said without hesitation, voluntarily choosing the two small chambers in the corners.

No fees were required, they could accompany Di Qing and Luo He, and thus gain protection—what more could they ask for? They knew well: without Di Qing and Luo He, their survival in the city would be a hundred or a thousand times harder.

“I’ll send you a detailed dossier on Lancheng—study it carefully,” Di Qing said, then walked alone toward his own section of space.

Di Ming, Di Fu, and Luo Feng each entered their respective spaces.

“The living space isn’t bad,” Di Ming sensed the energy absorption rate. “This rate reaches thirty percent of my maximum—good enough. My cultivation is stuck in a bottleneck; I don’t need much energy anyway.”

Only during rapid growth phases do cultivators absorb energy at maximum capacity. Once they reach their limit, they only take in minimal energy to sustain life.

…

“The space is quite large,” Luo Feng said, gazing at the empty expanse. With a thought, energy gathered and naturally formed pavilions, meditation chambers, reception halls, and other palace-like structures.

He stepped forward at once, ascending to the highest point of the pavilions, happily pulled out a flask of wine, sipped as he studied the dossier on Lancheng.

“Lancheng is self-governed by cultivators.”

“Lancheng is ruled by the Elder Hall, which currently has three Hall Masters and 327 Elders.”

“Anyone who reaches the ‘Late Divine Emperor Dao Awakened’ realm or possesses ‘Half-Huanyuan-level combat power’ may apply to become an Elder. Once able to activate part of Lancheng’s defense system, they become an Elder. If they can activate it to an extreme degree, they may become a Hall Master.”

Luo Feng read the dossier.

Every Elder must enhance Lancheng’s defensive capabilities!

“The Elder Hall truly contributes,” Luo Feng studied the details closely.

Once becoming a member of the Elder Hall, one must reside permanently within Lancheng—only then can the city’s defenses be guaranteed. They cannot leave Lancheng even a single step.

Moreover, those who become Elder Hall members all possess the strength to reach the Dark Sacred Realm!

Every Half-Huanyuan cultivator yearns above all to escape the cage; only in the Dark Sacred Realm are there more chances to break free. Yet the Elder Hall members remain in the Nine Rivers Sacred Realm, never stepping beyond Lancheng.

“So those who join the Elder Hall usually have avatars,” Luo Feng speculated. “They leave only one avatar here; the others have already gone to the Dark Sacred Realm.”

“The ability to have avatars also suggests one thing: the ruling core of Lancheng—the Elder Hall—must all originate from the Source World.”

Luo Feng deduced many details.

Cultivators from countless worlds lack avatars; once powerful enough, few are willing to remain indefinitely in the Nine Rivers Sacred Realm.

“Within Lancheng, cultivators must pay one Huanyuan Crystal per eon for living expenses. They also require housing—all residences within the city… are rented only,” Luo Feng understood.

These fees constitute Lancheng’s official income.

They must support a corps of enforcer cultivators! Maintain the city’s defense system! Only after these costs are covered can the remaining income be distributed among the three Hall Masters and 327 Elders. This income must be immense to attract such powerful beings to leave their avatars here long-term.

“Within Lancheng, Divine Emperors below the peak are the majority, numbering hundreds of millions.”

“Divine Emperors number in the millions.”

Luo Feng studied the dossier.

Dao Awakeners, if they can fully comprehend a complete Dao, face little difficulty becoming Divine Emperors.

But those relying on bloodline seem to grow easily—yet their ceiling depends entirely on their bloodline. If their bloodline is insufficient, they may remain trapped at the Ultimate Divine King level.

“Lancheng has an intelligence network selling detailed dossiers on every Divine Emperor. This dossier costs ten thousand Huanyuan Crystals?” Luo Feng’s expression darkened—he couldn’t afford it.

Moreover, the intelligence gathered on Divine Emperors could never be truly comprehensive.

For instance, Luo Feng had just arrived in Lancheng; the outside world naturally had no detailed information on him.

“Luo He,” Di Qing’s voice echoed from afar—he stood at the entrance to Luo Feng’s space.

“Di Qing,” Luo Feng immediately opened the entrance.

“The dossier on all Divine Emperors in Lancheng is expensive, isn’t it?” Di Qing walked over, smiling. “But even this only collects information on about ninety percent of them. Some Divine Emperors slip through unnoticed, avoiding exposure—hard to gather any details on them.”

“Even the intelligence sold only records what can be observed. Many Divine Emperors conceal hidden techniques,” Di Qing said. “Still, for now, you don’t need to buy. But over time, you’d better get one.”

“Buying a dossier reveals how many terrifying beings lurk in Lancheng—and who you must never provoke,” Di Qing said.

Luo Feng understood.

“This dossier is expensive and contains a forbidden mind incantation—strictly prohibited from being copied,” Di Qing said. “So I can’t transmit it to you.”

Luo Feng understood: gathering intelligence on so many Divine Emperors across the entire city was unimaginably difficult. If only a few copies were sold and spread throughout the city, the intelligence network would go bankrupt. “Lancheng has abundant trade and resources,” Di Qing said. “Here, everything requires Huanyuan Crystals.”

“I’ll lend you one hundred thousand Huanyuan Crystals. Repay me after our hunting expedition,” Di Qing said, waving his hand—ten thousand Huanyuan Crystals landed beside them, gleaming like a pile of radiant jade.

Luo Feng, seeing this, felt genuine emotion.

He let him live rent-free in the cave dwelling, even split half the space with him. If calculated by price, half the rent for a thousand eons was fifty thousand Huanyuan Crystals—he’d essentially gifted it to him.

Now he lent him even more! Luo Feng had just arrived in Lancheng—he was at his poorest.

“Di Qing, thank you,” Luo Feng said simply.

“We’ve just arrived in the Nine Rivers Sacred Realm—we all need Huanyuan Crystals most right now. With Huanyuan Crystals, we can buy enough resources to strengthen ourselves,” Di Qing smiled.

“By the way, when you go out to buy resources, remember this,” Di Qing suddenly said seriously. “Carry only a small amount of Huanyuan Crystals at a time. In Lancheng, with enough temptation, murder, robbery, theft—all kinds of crimes can happen. Even if you have ways to save yourself, losing your treasures is still a massive loss.”

“I understand,” Luo Feng nodded.

Di Qing’s earlier dossier had detailed this.

Every word, every line, every detail was accurate!

Murder and robbery occurred occasionally, but theft and fraud—since they didn’t involve death—were punished less severely and thus far more common.

“Carry less. If stolen, it’s just tuition,” Di Qing sighed. “Lancheng’s theft techniques are varied—many cultivation systems and methods you’ve never even seen.”

Luo Feng nodded slightly.

…

After familiarizing himself with the dossier, Luo Feng left the cave dwelling alone, beginning to truly explore the city where he would settle for countless eons. Following Di Qing’s warning, he was cautious—carrying only five thousand Huanyuan Crystals.

“I have five avatars fully prepared—I won’t let these five thousand Huanyuan Crystals be taken,” Luo Feng moved carefully, carrying no secret treasures—his most valuable possession was these five thousand Huanyuan Crystals.

For this journey to the Nine Rivers Sacred Realm, Luo Feng brought energy reserves equivalent to 1,200 times a Perfect Divine Body. His reserves back home on the Origin Continent were minimal—but there, he was already invincible, and the energy left in his avatars was more than sufficient.

Of this 1,200-times Perfect Divine Body reserve, his five avatars carried a combined 200 times the Perfect Divine Body’s energy—enough to reach his maximum combat power in normal state.

“Hum.”

The moment Luo Feng left the cave dwelling—

Lancheng’s entire inner city was enveloped in multicolored defense systems, all controlled by the three Hall Masters and 327 Elders. Invisible, colorless waves periodically swept across the entire city—and now passed over Luo Feng.

In the innermost core of the inner city stood a vast cave dwelling.

Deep within the dwelling.

A figure bathed in light sat motionless, his body seemingly forged from radiance, expressionless.

At his forehead, a red rhombus gemstone pulsed.

Inside the rhombus, vast streams of data were processed at incredible speed.

Countless pieces of information on Divine Emperors throughout the city were being gathered.

“New arrival: Luo Feng. Residence: Inner City, Tian Shui District, Cave 99179. Power: Suspected Late Divine Emperor. Resides with Di Qing—likely from the same Source World.” One such entry was among them.

As this information was collected, it was simultaneously transmitted to another mysterious entity.

…

Within a vast cave dwelling in Lancheng’s inner city, a massive spherical creature coiled.

Its surface occasionally manifested faces—some screaming, some sleeping, some filled with hatred, some laughing. The sphere’s surface was also riddled with countless holes.

Through these countless holes, countless figures entered and exited.

“Luo Feng, a new Divine Emperor? If he shares a dwelling with Di Qing, he’s probably not poor.”

“Let this newcomer experience Lancheng’s customs.”

“He’s likely a Dao Awakener—let him test the power of other systems. Mo Ya Da, handle it.”

An order was swiftly issued.

Whoosh.

A short figure flew out from one of the sphere’s countless holes.

“Newly arrived Late Divine Emperor?” The short figure chuckled wickedly. His organization had already locked onto Luo Feng—within the city’s public zones, Luo Feng could not hide.

Whoosh—the short figure sped toward Luo Feng’s location.

(End of Chapter)