Chapter 1036: Southern Phoenix City
The Southern Phoenix Clan was located at the Southern Region of the immortal realms. This clan was an ancient power that had lasted for countless eras.
The Southern Phoenix Clan possessed the high-grade bloodline of the undying divine beast—the phoenix. Only females were appointed as the successors of the Southern Phoenix Clan and throughout the eras, their titles had always been the same: the Southern Phoenix Matriarch.
The foundations of the Southern Phoenix Clan far surpassed the Eastern Sage Immortal Emperor and Thousand Transformations Emperor Lord. Their land was considered an ancient holy ground of the immortal realms. In the southern region, the Southern Phoenix Clan had immense influence. Although they didn’t rule over the entire southern region completely, their authority was extremely vast. Their every move could cause the people living in the southern region to tremble.
Southern Phoenix City naturally was the immortal city where the Southern Phoenix Clan resided. This city was the base of operations for the Southern Phoenix Clan and they governed it fully. Their clan businesses were situated throughout the city, and their army was responsible for the city’s discipline and law enforcement.
Hence, this immortal city could be considered one of the safest main cities in the entire immortal realms.
In the place where teleportation arrays of the Southern Phoenix City were situated, many guards could be seen patrolling the area. The teleportation arrays here would frequently light up as people arrived. There were two types of people who could enter the city using the arrays; the first would be someone with an extraordinary identity and could use a private teleportation array of great power; the second type would be extremely wealthy stellar martial cultivators. Using a teleportation array required a great deal of expense. These wealthy cultivators would have to decide and pay the required rates to use arrays of great powers.
At this moment, a certain teleportation array flared with light as spatial fluctuations rocked the area. Several guards turned their attention over. The intensity of spatial fluctuations determined the length of the journey. From the light’s resplendence, these newcomers must have come from a place extremely far away.
A moment later, the silhouettes of two young men appeared. They glanced at their surroundings before they walked forward.
"Where did the two of you come from?" A guard questioned them. Qin Wentian waved his hand as an invitation card floated before the guard. The guard’s eyes gleamed when he saw the invitation. After which he bowed low and said, "Young Lord Qin, please feel free to enter the city."
"I heard that there are some rules in the Southern Phoenix City. Could you tell me more about them?" Qin Wentian asked.
"There are indeed some rules. In the Southern Phoenix City, one cannot commit an act slaughter here, bully the weak because you are strong, or engage in robbery and theft. The Southern Phoenix Army won’t interfere in small-scale conflicts but if someone is heavily injured, or there is damage to city property, you will be liable to answer for your actions," the guard explained. "That’s the majority of the rules. Also, there’s an arena where parties can settle any large-scale disputes if they wanted to. In any case, since you are a friend of the holy maiden, you can seek her out for help if you run into trouble."
"Okay. Many thanks." Qin Wentian smiled and nodded. After that, he and Jun Mengchen stepped into the Southern Phoenix City together. This city was ancient and majestic, with several constructed buildings clustered within, yet did not give the impression that the city was cramped. In this place, the experts were as common as clouds. Immortal foundation experts could be seen everywhere.
"They are friends of the holy maiden. But which holy maiden? And what status does that guy have?" the other guards curiously asked when Qin Wentian left.
"Holy Maiden Yunxi. She has established her immortal foundation and invited them to the celebratory banquet. It seems that their relationship is quite close as well. As for his name, I’ve never heard of it before. His name is Qin Wentian, but there doesn’t seem to be any immortal emperors in the immortal realms with the surname of Qin," that guard continued in a low voice.
"To think that his friend would actually be Holy Maiden Yunxi, this fellow truly has luck with the ladies. Not only is Holy Maiden Yunxi extremely talented, she’s also a supreme beauty." The guards around him laughed.
"You guys, shut up!" commanded someone beside them.
"Yes, captain." Everyone had a faint smile on their faces as they went back to their duties.
Qin Wentian and Jun Mengchen walked about the city, and when they saw the countless number of majestic buildings before them, they understood why the rules here were so strict.
"Southern Phoenix City is truly a prosperous place. Immortal-ranked treasures can be seen everywhere and are readily available for transaction. How many treasures does this place have exactly? With such wealth, one would no longer need to worry about cultivation resources." Jun Mengchen sighed in admiration.
"It’s all relative. For powerful stellar martial cultivators, it’s easier for them to obtain rare and valuable treasures. For weaker cultivators, they can only depend on others or risk their lives in adventures. Seeing the prosperity of Southern Phoenix City, it naturally derives benefits from its imposed rules. For cultivators who enter this city, they have no need to worry about their safety." Qin Wentian understood the law of the jungle in the immortal realms. If you are weak, you wouldn’t even dare to take out a rare treasure to do business with. This is the reason why the Southern Phoenix Clan wanted a place like this to exist; a place governed by its fair laws. Having a lawful location would only serve to make businesses in the city prosper.
"Mhm, as expected of an ancient grand clan. For those cultivators with families, they would naturally prefer to stay inside such a city where the safety of their family members are guaranteed. Only then could they continue roaming the immortal realms with peace in their hearts," Jun Mengchen added.
"You are right. But there are countless people living in the immortal realms. Who wouldn’t want to stay in such a city? Most probably, only descendants from the Southern Phoenix Clan would be able to own land here. Also, the guards said that it is prohibited to cause damage to properties. Most probably, the value of such a prosperous city constructed by the Southern Phoenix Clan far exceeds our imaginations." Qin Wentian laughed.
"Mhm, what’s that?" Jun Mengchen pointed ahead. Over there, a faint shadow of a phoenix could be seen shimmering in the air.
"Let’s take a look." Both of their silhouettes flickered, as they moved towards that location. Not long after, they saw two combatants fighting in a phoenix-shaped battle platform.
"The Phoenix Arena." Qin Wentian and Jun Mengchen spoke at the same time, instantly understanding that this must be the phoenix arena the guard had referred to earlier. Only when both parties willingly stepped up onto the arena, could a life-and-death battle be held. There would always be cultivators with immense grudges and hatred for each other. The city needed a place like this arena for them to vent their emotions.
"Let’s go." After watching for a moment, victory was decided. One of the combatants had been killed. Once two parties headed up onto the Phoenix Arena, this was an indication of the depth of their mutual grudge. Why would anyone show mercy?
Qin Wentian and Jun Mengchen made discreet enquiries and used immortal-ranked treasures to speed towards the Southern Phoenix Clan. However, it still took them a long while before they reached the outer perimeter of the Southern Phoenix Clan’s location. At that location, there was an impossibly gigantic life-like statue of an ancient phoenix. The statue was posed to ride the wind as it soared through the sky. This was the symbol of the Southern Phoenix Clan, and even though it was just a statue, it radiated a clear aura of tyranny and power.
"Senior, should we head in now to look for Nanfeng Yunxi?" Jun Mengchen asked.
"No hurry. It’s fine that we found the place. Anyway, the immortal banquet starts two days from now, so we can meet her directly when we attend the banquet. If we enter now, Nanfeng Yunxi might feel pressured to accompany us to tour this city." Qin Wentian laughed as he shook his head. Jun Mengchen started for a moment, before he recovered and continued, "Nanfeng Yunxi is such a beauty, but only you, Senior, are able to remain unmoved in the face of her peerless looks. But then again, both my sister-in-laws are supreme beauties who can topple empires of this generation. They don’t lose out to Nanfeng Yunxi in the slightest."
"Why? Are you interested in Nanfeng Yunxi?" Qin Wentian laughed.
"Hahaha! Even if I’m interested, Nanfeng Yunxi has no interest in me. The invitation card only had your name on it," said Jun Mengchen. He then continued, "Oh yeah, Senior Brother. You left Little Rascal back in the Thousand Transformations Immortal Sect to accompany Sister-in-Law. What about Purgatory? Why haven’t I seen her?"
"Purgatory is living in my bloodstream. Since you wish to see her, I shall ask her to come out." Qin Wentian smiled. His blood surged as a crimson glow flashed through the air. An instant later, Purgatory’s silhouette appeared, taking on the form of a beautiful young lady.
"Purgatory is actually a female, and she’s so beautiful too. Senior Brother, I submit to you." Jun Mengchen laughed. Even he was a little jealous of his senior brother. Why were there so many beauties around Qin Wentian?
At this moment, the sound of something swishing through the air rang out as four figures soared over. The one in the lead was extremely young. When his gaze landed on Purgatory, his eyes gleamed with a brilliant light.
"Fairy, is your true forma vermillion bird?" the young man asked. Purgatory frowned, radiating a cold intent.
"Is there something the matter?" asked Qin Wentian.
"What is your relationship with her?" The young man turned his attention onto Qin Wentian as he inquired.
"She’s my companion," Qin Wentian replied.
"A demonic beast companion? You must have subdued her, right?" That young man laughed. In the immortal realms, the luck of some individuals wasn’t bad. There were cases of people subduing the offspring of powerful demonic beasts. And this happened quite often.
"He is my master, but what has this got to do with you?" Purgatory stared at the young man.
"As expected of a Purgatory Vermillion Bird. What an explosive and fiery temper while also having such beauty." That young man laughed. "Anyway, sir your luck is good. I want to propose a trade for your demonic beast. As for the price, just name whatever you want."
"No, thanks. You can leave us alone now." Qin Wentian furrowed his brows, his tone filled with disapproval. How could he trade Purgatory away as if she were some commodity?
"This demonic beast is of great use to me. Brother, just feel free to state your price," the young man continued, his gaze had become heated. Such a beautiful vermillion bird was truly a rare sight. If he could tame her, how awesome would that be?
"Don’t you understand human speech?" Jun Mengchen asked impolitely. He loathed this young man. However, as the sound of his voice faded, an expert behind the young man stepped out as an overwhelming pressure instantly enveloped Qin Wentian and the rest.
"The rules of the Southern Phoenix City. Are you guys prepared to oppose them?" Qin Wentian coldly laughed.
"The rules are dead while humans are alive. Let me give you a word of advice. You’d best wise up. My young master is a guest of the Southern Phoenix Clan and even if we don’t act against you guys now, it won’t be too difficult for us to do something to you in the future." Another person beside the young man wore an icy expression as he threatened.