Chapter 494: The Death of Mu Yi

For a moment, absolute silence reigned over the area.

Mu Yi's eyes went wide. As if anticipating what was about to happen, he screamed at Yan Jing in sheer disbelief: "Are you insane?! Didn't you hear what he just said? He said you can't kill me!"

"I heard him."

Yan Jing smiled faintly. "But this is Yueyin."

"Yueyin's affairs require no interference from outsiders."

"As the new domain lord of Yueyin, I have the right—and the obligation—to guarantee the safety of our residents."

As he spoke, Yan Jing turned slightly to the side.

Before the reporters could even react, a figure in a beret darted out of the crowd, shoving aside the person with the video camera at the very front.

"Move! Do you even know how to film?!"

Lin Xiaoran gripped the video camera, focusing the lens on Yan Jing's practically flawless profile. Between his black trench coat, its pressed linen collar, and the chilling gaze his messy bangs couldn't quite conceal, she was absolutely certain this footage would win her this year's Rising Star Photography Grand Prize.

Mu Yi immediately caught on. Realizing Yan Jing was using this to build momentum, he hurriedly shouted, "You're making a mistake! A massive mistake! That man is at the half-step Tenth Tier! Yueyin will pay for your blunder, and all of us will suffer his wrath because of you!"

"Is that so? Then let me ask you—how did he end up in Yueyin?"

"And how did he know my name?"

Yan Jing's gaze abruptly turned fierce.

"What did he mean just now when he said 'it really is'? Who brought him here? And who brought his wrath down upon us?" Yan Jing demanded. "Mu Yi, I will say it again. I suspect you have been secretly contacting the Central Region! Am I right or wrong?!"

"No... no... it wasn't me... it's not like that..." Mu Yi was sweating profusely. His panic didn't stem from Yan Jing's aggressive questioning, but from the ever-intensifying killing intent radiating from the man.

Nian wouldn't arrive for another four or five hours.

And there was no way he would survive those four or five hours.

In the next instant, he whirled around and shoved his way through the crowd. The shoes on his feet erupted with blinding light, launching him hundreds of meters away in a split second.

He actually fled on the spot!

Lin Xiaoran raised the video camera, aiming it at the afterimages Mu Yi left behind.

"Head of the Third Ring Domain's Mu Family, Mu Yi, was questioned by Domain Lord Yan under suspicion of secretly contacting an external region and endangering Yueyin's safety. Ultimately unable to bear the pressure, he has fled the scene. Let's see if he can evade capture—"

Before she could finish her sentence, she stopped and rubbed her eyes.

Staring at Mu Yi, who was now somehow dangling from Yan Jing's grip, she gulped and amended, "It seems Mu Yi cannot escape the judgment of the law after all. With his lightning-fast methods, Domain Lord Yan has successfully captured him."

"You can't kill me. You really can't."

Mu Yi coughed up a mouthful of blood. He raised his head to look at Yan Jing, his face twisted in terror.

"He really will kill you. I made a deal with him through the Peace Tablet, and he cannot violate the trading principles of the Peace Tablet."

"Perhaps."

Yan Jing's expression remained perfectly indifferent.

On a vast, boundless grayish-white plain.

The wind swept through the vegetation, producing an unexpected metallic clatter, while light skipped across the ground, reflecting in strange, unnatural arcs.

This was the most barren region in the entire Surface World.

It was also the "shiniest" place in the entire Surface World.

Because all the plants and trees on this plain were made of metal.

In winter, it was far colder here than anywhere else. In summer, it was far hotter.

Aside from ascetic monks, the only inhabitants were a group of natives—the Iron Clan.

At this moment, by the entrance of a village.

Two old men were squatting on a large iron stump beneath a tree, gazing off in a certain direction.

"Village Chief, looks like that fellow is heading to Yueyin."

One of the old men, wearing ragged cotton clothes, sniffled and looked at the other, whose garments were even more tattered.

"Nizi is still over there, isn't she? Won't there be trouble?"

"Everyone has their own fate."

The Village Chief snorted coldly.

"Besides, just because that guy didn't know the way, does that mean you don't know it either?"

"That's the fucking road to the Beast Lord."

"Oh! You tricked him, Village Chief!" The old man suddenly understood, but then he frowned.

"Then what if he comes back looking for trouble?"

The Village Chief's eyes were icy.

"He's not coming back."

"Who knows where Yueyin managed to invite three deities from, but the path has long been severed."

"Nizi sent a message. If she hadn't given the name of that wealthy patron Yan, she wouldn't have been able to enter Yueyin at all. She would've died under the sword of one of those deities."

"Why do you think those bald donkeys have been moving their territory closer and closer to us lately?"

Hearing this, the old man next to him gave a thumbs-up. "Brilliant! Simply brilliant, Village Chief! Borrowing a knife to kill a chicken! Brilliant!"

The Village Chief was speechless.

"Read a book once in a while."

Dozens of kilometers away from them.

An old man wearing a skullcap was walking between heaven and earth with his hands clasped behind his back.

His pace wasn't fast, and he appeared utterly leisurely, yet every step he took left several mountain ranges behind him.

This was precisely Nian.

At this moment, he was frowning, his two white whiskers trembling slightly.

Anyone who knew him would understand that this reaction meant he was furious to the extreme.

Some trash genius from the Desolate Realms had actually dared to attack him.

Violating Universal Principles! Beneath One's Dignity!

In order to travel even faster, he had just hopped off the train and opted to walk.

He was determined to teach that person a lesson.

With that thought, he sped up his pace even more.

But just as he rounded a bend, a figure appeared in front of him.

It was a child.

He looked like he had been freezing out here for a long time. His nose was bright red, and he was clutching a piece of bread.

His clothes, however, were quite extravagant. He wore a purple cloak fringed entirely with gemstones.

Nian furrowed his brows.

He didn't lower his guard just because the other party was a child. Instead, his instincts told him that something was off.

Logically speaking, with his speed, no one should have been able to catch sight of him.

But this child across from him was clearly looking at him.

The child really was looking at him. Scanning Nian from head to toe, the boy frowned.

"Upon seeing Us, why do you not bow?"

Nian laughed out of sheer anger.

Just what was wrong with today?

It was one thing for some Desolate Realm trash to dare throw a punch at his phantom, but now some brat dared to speak to him like this?

This Yueyin really was a little bizarre.

Did they really think he had no temper?

He reached out a hand. An illusory giant hand instantly formed around the boy and ruthlessly squeezed.

To his surprise, the child neither dodged nor showed any fear.

He merely raised his eyes, conjured a sword in his hand, and gently flicked his wrist.

Like a hot knife slicing through butter, the illusory giant hand was instantly severed in two.

"To dare attack Us."

The child's expression was icy cold.

"Execution is in order."

Having said that, he raised his hand.

Nian's hair stood on end. Sensing something, he looked up and was horrified to discover a blade as vast as the sky itself chopping down toward his neck.

He wanted to run, but the blade was far too massive.

He sprinted as fast as his legs could carry him, but in the end, he couldn't outrun the sky. He was one step too slow.

Slash.

A massive chunk of flesh was shorn from the back of his neck, and blood sprayed wildly.

Seeing this, the boy only frowned. He looked down at his own small hands.

"This 'Real World' is ultimately unsuited for Us."

"Even so, execution is still in order!"

He reached out his hand, and countless pitch-black figures materialized around him.

"Drag him back! Just in time—We are in need of nourishment!!"

Looking at those figures, each radiating an aura of at least the Ninth Tier, Nian's old face turned deathly pale from terror. He scrambled up from the ground and sprinted madly off into the distance.

The entity before him was at least a Divine Envoy!

And a Divine Envoy with a complete path of his own!

Something was wrong! Something was very, very wrong!

Was this really the Twelve Desolate Realms?! Had he taken a wrong turn?!

"I'll give you one last chance."

Yan Jing said indifferently:

"If you admit to the incident from all those years ago—"

"I admit it, I admit that I did it!" Mu Yi hurriedly babbled out.

"I worked together with Liu Xiaoyue to send Yin Tianhuang away! I was the one who used the Peace Tablet to contact the people from the Central Region to take him away! It was me—"

As long as he could stall for enough time until the person from the other side arrived, he could explain everything away.

Naturally, Mu Yi couldn't care less about losing face.

But...

Bang!!!

Like an exploding watermelon, red pulp splattered all over the ground.

Mu Yi's head shattered into pieces, his facial features obscured by the bloody gore. Only his eyes remained, locked in a death stare on Yan Jing, filled with pure incomprehension.

Yan Jing's expression was icy cold.

"Even now, you are still slandering Domain Lord Liu. Execution is in order."

He turned around, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.

Every person his eyes fell upon couldn't help but shiver.

Long Qiancheng, in particular, tried to steady his imposing aura on his old legs, but they simply wouldn't stop trembling.

The video camera in Lin Xiaoran's hands was pointed squarely at Yan Jing's face. Whether they were inside or outside the screen, everyone was waiting for Yan Jing to speak.

"Domain Lord Liu's contributions are tremendous. The memorial service will continue."

Yan Jing spoke softly:

"As for the matters concerning the Mu Family, the Long Family, the Xue Family, and the Shen Family from back then—they will be held accountable another day."

Seeing the atmosphere drop to the freezing point, Lin Xiaoran seized the moment to respond.

The people nearby immediately chimed in as well:

"Yes!"

"Understood!"

"Yes, sir!!!"

Yan Jing turned around coldly and led Shen Youran out of the alley.

The two of them walked out of the Mu Family's estate, passed by the Long Family's territory, bypassed the Xue Family, and finally arrived at a wide open clearing.

Neither of them spoke a word along the way.

The clearing covered roughly several dozen mu. It was paved entirely with White Stone bricks, and the remnants of wooden foundations that hadn't been demolished years ago were still scattered across the ground.

"Xiao Yanzi... what are you going to do now?"

Shen Youran finally spoke up. She grabbed Yan Jing's wrist, her palms completely slick with sweat.

"What on earth are you going to do now?!"

She asked it again.

Her fox-like eyes were brimming with tears. Even if her face wasn't completely scrunched up in distress, it was very close.

"I thought you would talk about what happened to the Shen Family back then, Teacher Shen."

Yan Jing chuckled.

"Tell me, tell me what you're actually going to do! Say something... talk to me..."

The tears welling in her eyes burst their banks, and her quiet sobs morphed into a full-blown wail.

Watching Shen Youran cry her lungs out, Yan Jing smiled and said, "I'll either enter the Inner World—I happen to have a Double Experience Voucher left."

"Or I'll use that guy's Peace Pendant to contact some other people in the Central Region. Liu Xiaoyue also left behind some of her own contacts for the Central Region."

"Or maybe... I'll take your train ticket, Teacher Shen, and just go anywhere."

"Two years? A year? It's not like he can chase me for the rest of my life, right?"

"Or perhaps... he won't even show up at all."

Yan Jing spoke with a gentle smile.

He didn't actually need to explain himself, but seeing Shen Youran crying like this, he felt it was fine to tell her a little.

"..." Shen Youran still couldn't stop crying; in fact, she only cried harder. She looked up at Yan Jing and opened her mouth, but she couldn't utter a single word.

"Alright, Teacher Shen. Cheer up."

"There are a lot of things to be happy about today, aren't there? For example, I'm planning to hire you as the head of my Dungeon Analysis Department."

Yan Jing said with a smile: "I'll give you the details for the next Dungeon soon. I hope you'll be able to help me out."

"...Okay, okay."

Shen Youran wiped her eyes and nodded.

"Good."

Yan Jing smiled.

"Our great reporter Lin is here. She can accompany you for a walk. I have some business to take care of."

With that, Yan Jing turned and left.

A few seconds later, Lin Xiaoran ran out from a corner.

"Oh my god! What are you doing, Big Sister Shen?! Why didn't you go up and hug him?! You should have just kissed him! Why didn't you?!"

"I even had the background music ready! I arranged all the people! Kiss today, get engaged tomorrow, get married the day after—I organized at least eighty-eight wedding cars!"

Shen Youran glared at Lin Xiaoran, a faint trace of anger in her eyes.

"Didn't you see that Nian is coming?"

"Even if you're going to die, you should at least leave an heir behind! That's how it's always written in the books!"

Lin Xiaoran threw her hands up.

"Besides, Tongtong is in on this too."

"Moreover, don't change the subject. Why didn't you make a move?"

"I... I... I'm not good enough for Xiao Yanzi..." Shen Youran muttered softly, her face reflecting a deep sense of melancholy.

"He helped me only because he promised me he would."

"He always does what he promises."

"If I don't say anything, at least we can still stay together."

Lin Xiaoran had no idea what to say to that.

She completely failed to understand the romantic views of older women.

As a passionate and proactive woman herself, if she liked someone, she would get him into her bed within a month.

What a shame.

Meanwhile, in some unknown location.

"Why?!"

Fear Bird didn't even bother cracking the sunflower seeds in her hands as she grumbled indignantly.

"Why didn't he say something more romantic?! Swear an oath! Say something that brings people to tears! This isn't how it goes in the books at all!"

"It's already come to this, so just snatch her up, you bastard!!!"

Looking at the perfectly calm Fei Yu across from her, she choked back her words for a moment, then chuckled.

"Of course, we're talking about this from a purely objective standpoint, okay? Don't insert yourself into it."

Fei Yu's tone remained aloof.

"Whoever the young master seeks out, it's that person's good fortune. I'm just a maid, it's none of my business."

"Besides, if I recall correctly, ten minutes ago you were loudly cursing the young master as a scumbag, saying that if he made a move on her now, it would be doing Miss Mantou dirty."

Fear Bird said sheepishly, "Doesn't a different perspective call for a different self-insertion? When you watch a TV show, you don't just put yourself in the shoes of a single character, right? Don't tell me you never flip-flop on these things! I don't believe it. Furthermore—"

Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly paused. Her eyes widened as she stared at Yan Jing's perspective.

"Wait a minute... holy shit! Why did this guy enter the Inner World again?!"

"Is this guy a fucking workaholic?!"

"No wait, don't tell me his kidneys are shot?!"

Watching Yan Jing's perspective, Fei Yu gave a faint smile.

"What's wrong with working?"