Ch. 1452 - The Heavenly Court’s Secret Manipulation

“Not bad,” Xu Zimo said with a nod.

He glanced down at the dueling stage, the competition was nearing its end. Only three or four contestants remained, and it would probably all be over in a few more minutes.

“I’m afraid none of them are worthy of Young Master Xu’s attention,” the City Lord said with a light laugh.

“In this world,” Xu Zimo replied bluntly, “how many people do you think can truly catch my eye?”

“I used to think that among the younger generation of Ocean Sage City, the most outstanding talents were the heirs of the Zhuo, Lu, and Wang Imperial Clans,” the City Lord said meaningfully, smiling. “But ironically, none of those three families have made it to the final round.”

“That only shows Ocean Sage City is full of hidden talents,” Xu Zimo said with a faint smile. “That’s a good thing, it means Ocean Sage will prosper.”

“The problem,” the City Lord said suddenly, his tone turning thoughtful, “is that none of those few left are actually from Ocean Sage City.”

He looked at the remaining contestants on the platform, his expression difficult to read.

Xu Zimo paused for a moment. “With hundreds of millions of people in Ocean Sage City, it’s normal that some might live quietly and go unnoticed by you, City Lord.”

“No,” the City Lord said firmly. “You can trust my memory. These people definitely don’t belong to Ocean Sage City.

My strength may not be great, but I have an excellent memory. Every person in this city is recorded in my mind.”

“So what you mean,” Xu Zimo said, frowning slightly, “is that something… or someone… has infiltrated the city?”

“Exactly,” the City Lord said with a small smile. “But it’s fine, there are people who will take care of them. It’s just a shame that such a good martial contest for marriage had to be ruined.”

Though Xu Zimo was still confused, he could tell that something was definitely wrong with those contestants. So he waited quietly to see what would happen next.

The City Lord, meanwhile, looked as though he had everything under control.

Sure enough, when the contest reached its final moments, soldiers from Ocean Sage City suddenly stormed onto the stage, attempting to arrest the remaining fighters.

Chaos broke out instantly.

The contestants who had seemed human moments before suddenly went berserk, their bodies twisted and transformed into monstrous beasts, ferocious and demonic.

Their forms resembled the Water Beasts, but not quite.

Xu Zimo’s brows furrowed slightly, while the City Lord sighed beside him. “Ah… it seems even Ocean Sage City is no longer safe.”

“What’s going on?” Xu Zimo asked.

“You’ll understand once they bring those things up here,” the City Lord said.

Xu Zimo waited in silence, still puzzled.

Not long after, a squad of soldiers dragged the captured monsters into the hall.

Their bodies glowed with an eerie blue light, similar to the Water Beasts, but beneath that blue hue, faint tendrils of black energy seeped out.

Even captured, they remained wild and savage, thrashing violently as if they might break free at any moment.

“Show them to Young Master Xu,” the City Lord ordered.

Xu Zimo grabbed one of the monsters with one hand, channeling his immense spirit energy into its body to investigate.

The moment his energy entered, his consciousness was pulled into a world of utter darkness, a place where even his mind seemed on the verge of being devoured.

Within that darkness churned endless waves of infernal energy, raging and domineering.

Xu Zimo frowned. As the Infernal Lord himself, he recognized it instantly, this was indeed infernal energy, and a powerful one at that.

Ordinary demons could never possess such concentrated energy.

Even so, to him, it still fell short of true power.

He steadied his mind and searched the dark world for some clue, but found nothing.

At last, he withdrew his consciousness.

The City Lord stood beside him, smiling slightly. “Did Young Master Xu discover anything?”

“One word, demon,” Xu Zimo said flatly.

“Indeed,” the City Lord replied. “To be precise, these creatures are fusions, a mix of demon and Water Beast.”

“How so?” Xu Zimo asked, frowning again.

“A long time ago,” the City Lord explained, “Water Beasts were just as we’ve always known them, mindless creatures that relied on sheer numbers to besiege cities. But as the world evolved, these beasts began to change. Just like the ones you saw today, they can now assume human form.”

“I see,” Xu Zimo said slowly. “So this so-called martial contest for marriage was really just a trap, meant to lure these things out and capture them all at once.”

“But how did you know the Water Beasts would show up at all?”

“They want to get close to me,” the City Lord said calmly. “So they’ll try every means to approach, even if they suspect it’s a trap, they’ll take the risk.”

“Now that the city is secure again,” he continued, “if Young Master Xu has any questions, about the Departure Fire God Realm or the Water Beasts, I’ll answer them. But before that, may I ask you one question?”

“Go ahead,” Xu Zimo said.

“What is your goal in all this?”

It was the same question that Shangguan Xian had asked before, but the City Lord asked it from a different place.

Unlike her, he still cared deeply for the Departure Fire God Realm.

He dreamed of rebuilding it, of restoring its glory. Ocean Sage City, to him, was the spark that could ignite that flame.

“I want to find the source of the Water Beasts,” Xu Zimo said simply. “It might be useful to me.”

He didn’t mention the Ancient Gods. The fewer who knew about that, the better.

“I actually witnessed the fall of the Departure Fire God Realm myself,” the City Lord said with a heavy sigh.

“How so?” Xu Zimo asked, feeling a spark of interest.

“If you truly want to know,” the City Lord said quietly, “then be warned, the truth may shock you.”

“The more shocking it is,” Xu Zimo said with a faint smile, “the more interested I’ll be. A dull truth would only disappoint me.”

“With the Departure Fire God Realm’s strength,” the City Lord began, “the Water Beasts alone should never have been able to destroy it. But during that war, another power became involved.”

“Another power?” Xu Zimo’s mind suddenly flashed with a name. He said it aloud without thinking. “The Heavenly Court?”

The City Lord’s entire body trembled at those words.

Xu Zimo instantly knew he’d guessed right.

Whenever something terrible happened, the Heavenly Court’s shadow always seemed to linger behind it.

Sometimes, Xu Zimo even wondered, just how many events in this world had the Heavenly Court manipulated from behind the scenes?

“How did you know?” the City Lord asked quietly.

“Because I can’t think of any other force capable of doing such a thing,” Xu Zimo said with a faint grin.

“We saw people from the Heavenly Court,” the City Lord admitted. “But I can’t say for certain that they orchestrated everything. The matter was too enormous to be sure. I’ve told this to no one else but you, Young Master Xu. If the Heavenly Court ever learned that I knew, Ocean Sage City would be wiped out in an instant.”

“And you’re not afraid I’ll report you to them?” Xu Zimo asked lightly.

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