Chapter 779: The City in the Sky, Can It Really Be Summoned by Human Power?

Dammit!

Even Shou Ye, who was normally quite composed, found himself constrained at every turn by the identity of a Ban Sheng successor and couldn't help but curse inwardly.

This was just too damn annoying!

If it weren't for the fact that everyone from the Sheng Shen Dian Tang had been deployed elsewhere...

If it weren't for the person sitting across from him being a Ban Sheng successor...

Shou Ye would have truly wanted to keep this Xu Shao locked up in this domain until he could send people to investigate whether there really was a Xu Shao from the Bei Yu Tai Xiang Xu Jia who had arrived in Dong Tian Wang Cheng. Only then would he allow the person before him to leave.

But that was clearly unrealistic.

He had no grounds to arbitrarily detain a Ban Sheng successor for long.

No one could bear that responsibility.

The current situation was a closed loop, a vicious cycle!

If the person sitting opposite was indeed Xu Xiao Shou, then his thinking was far too thorough and far-sighted!

Had all this been planned since the moment he entered the city?

At one point, Shou Ye even considered giving up.

He thought everything might just be a coincidence, and he had obviously asked the wrong person.

On the other side of the square table, Xu Shao, who had been forcibly acted against by Shou Ye and felt his face was lost, now flung his sleeve in anger and snapped:

"You're looking at me, a Ban Sheng successor, as just another target for your heavy-handed ways, aren't you, you red-robed seniors?"

"But if you can't produce any solid evidence today, I'm afraid I can't continue to entertain you. Gentlemen, please leave!"

Turning his head, Xu Xiao Shou barked at Xiao Wanfeng in fury: "See them out!"

Xiao Wanfeng felt incredibly wronged.

Why are you yelling at me?

I only handle pouring the tea!

But when he glanced back at the red-robed group looking like a bunch of demons, his face turned green in an instant.

Caught between a rock and a hard place...

Xu Shao was his master, and with the master giving the order, he had no choice but to obey.

So, he braced one foot against the leg of the long chair, stepped forward with the other, making it look like he had advanced half a step—though in reality, he hadn't moved an inch.

Then, steeling himself, Xiao Wanfeng extended his hand and said:

"Gentlemen, please leave. My master, Xu Shao, is tired and needs to rest."

Shou Ye completely ignored this ordinary person and turned back to Xu Shao, saying: "Apologies, but this old man still has one matter to confirm. Xu Shao, please sit."

He gestured for Xu Shao to sit and continue the conversation amicably.

Xu Xiao Shou stood there, fuming.

Now he wouldn't sit, wouldn't speak—a picture of arrogant defiance, as if to say, "If you've got something to say, spit it out, then I'm leaving."

Shou Ye sighed, waved his hand to take the teapot from Xiao Wanfeng, personally poured a cup for Xu Shao, and pushed it over: "Xu Shao, I was rash just now. Please, sit."

With the face of a red-robed Zhan Dao senior extended to this degree, Xu Xiao Shou could only sigh inwardly and sit back down.

Once the person was seated but remained silent, Shou Ye shook his head soundlessly, then asked curiously: "Where are the others from Tian Shang Di Yi Lou, Xu Shao? Why aren't they here? Come, have some tea first and calm down."

Xu Xiao Shou's heart skipped a beat as he looked at the teacup pushed toward him, like it was a hot potato.

Meanwhile, Shou Ye cheerfully picked up the cup that Xu Xiao Shou had originally given him and sipped it on his own.

"Good tea!"

Xu Xiao Shou feigned anger as he picked up the cup, his heartbeat quickening slightly.

Shou Ye's words had made him realize a fatal flaw in his own story.

A Ban Sheng successor traveling would typically have at least Wang Zuo-level guards around, maybe even Zhan Dao ones.

But he had no strong experts by his side, only the ordinary Xiao Wanfeng.

To claim that Xiao Wanfeng was some kind of returning Tai Xu master... even Xu Xiao Shou didn't believe that!

With such weak protection, how could it possibly befit a Ban Sheng successor's travels?

In that moment, Xu Xiao Shou realized he was too used to traveling alone.

Normally, he had a Wang Zuo-level Xin Gu Gu out in the open to stir up trouble and muddy the waters.

But because Xin Gu Gu had met Shou Ye before, he had sent him away in advance.

Under this subjective oversight, he now had not even a basic Wang Zuo guard around him!

This was bad...

As expected, Shou Ye was no ordinary person.

After taking a sip of tea, Shou Ye teased: "Are you that confident, Xu Shao? You travel without any guards—what if you run into trouble?"

Xu Xiao Shou's mind was in turmoil, but he forced himself to stay calm.

He maintained his expression of indignation and replied without any respect in his tone: "My safety is taken care of by others. I don't need you seniors to worry about it!"

"Oh?" Shou Ye's smile grew wider. "From what you're saying, Xu Shao, the guards you have must be at the Tai Xu level?"

That was indeed the implication of Xu Xiao Shou's words.

Shou Ye wasn't foolish; he could read between the lines.

And only a Tai Xu could remain completely undetected in the presence of a Zhan Dao like Shou Ye.

Xu Xiao Shou gave a cold laugh and met his gaze, not responding: "Shou Ye senior, what else do you want to ask?"

Shou Ye's eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint flickering in them: "This old man is quite curious, Xu Shao—before we red-robed ones arrived, where did you send everyone around you?"

Xu Xiao Shou remained unfazed: "I chose to receive the red-robed ones out of respect, but that doesn't mean I have to be completely open, laying all my cards on the table for you—just as I don't like people touching my body!"

These petulant words sounded just like what a young person would say.

But Shou Ye wasn't distracted by the surface; instead, he fell into thought.

It could be interpreted this way... either Xu Shao had Tai Xu guards around, or no one at all.

From the moment Shou Ye arrived, he had locked his aura onto the entire group from Tian Shang Di Yi Lou.

Though they were far away, the sudden disappearance of those people wasn't them scattering—it was them being teleported away by some spatial force.

Where had they gone?

What was he hiding?

Shou Ye was puzzled.

He was certain that even if Xu Shao himself had no issues, those hidden people did.

And if Tian Shang Di Yi Lou had problems...

The world couldn't have that many coincidences. If Xu Shao's forces were involved, then he himself must be too.

And if Xu Shao had issues...

Ultimately, his intuition was probably right.

Xu Shao was Xu Xiao Shou!

Shou Ye suddenly felt like he had overlooked something.

He held his teacup, deep in thought, but couldn't pinpoint what detail he had missed in this interrogation.

"Wait!"

Then, Shou Ye recalled the time in Tian Sang Cheng's city lord's mansion when he had questioned Xu Xiao Shou. It all felt as fresh as yesterday.

He suddenly realized what he had overlooked.

Perhaps it wasn't exactly "overlooked."

It was just another astonishing "similarity."

Xu Shao's responses were too flawless!

It was as if every question Shou Ye asked had been rehearsed in his mind countless times beforehand.

From the innocent, angry expression, to the by-the-book words without any rough edges, the cooperation that was selective...

What Xu Shao was showing was exactly like Xu Xiao Shou's performance that day in Tian Sang Cheng when asked if he was a ghost beast.

Identically flawless!

Shou Ye's eyes lit up.

He knew that even Xu Xiao Shou himself might not realize that being too flawless was one of his most obvious traits.

Because an ordinary young person couldn't pull this off.

And someone from a Ban Sheng successor background would never, in such close-quarters conversation, make people feel the absence of that deep-seated arrogance.

Yes, arrogance.

It was a common flaw among heirs of great powers.

But this Xu Shao was desperately trying to project an image of "I'm also arrogant."

Unfortunately, it was just an act.

When Shou Ye substituted Xu Xiao Shou's identity onto the Xu Shao in front of him, what he felt was exactly the same atmosphere as when he had interacted with Xu Xiao Shou before.

Even the now by-the-book way of speaking was probably ninety-nine percent an act!

Yes...

Once one thing clicked, everything did!

Shou Ye thought again: Now, the person opposite was just pretending to be someone else, so how could he use his usual way of talking with Shou Ye?

It all made sense in an instant!

At that moment, Shou Ye felt everything fall into place.

His intuition was correct.

Xu Shao was indeed Xu Xiao Shou!

"Hahaha..."

After figuring it out, Shou Ye threw his head back in laughter, laughing until tears nearly came out.

What a talent!

This young man was simply one of a kind.

He always managed to stay above it all with an innocent identity.

Even now, Shou Ye still couldn't figure out how Xu Xiao Shou had pulled off being in Dong Tian Wang Cheng during the explosion while also maintaining the Xu Shao identity of Tian Shang Di Yi Lou, with the two completely unrelated.

But he knew that even if he asked now, the other side would give a perfect answer.

That answer would be so flawless that even if he brought in people like Lan Ling or Rao Yao Yao, they couldn't find a crack in it.

Xu Xiao Shou's ability to manipulate hearts was unique!

Shou Ye's sudden burst of wild laughter left everyone stunned.

The red-robed ones behind him didn't know what had come over their leader.

Xiao Wanfeng thought the red-robed man had gone mad.

Xu Xiao Shou had no idea where he had slipped up to make Shou Ye's gaze toward him change so drastically.

It had turned into that look of disappointment and frustration—the kind reserved for Xu Xiao Shou—and it shouldn't be directed at Xu Shao!

"Xu... Shao ah."

Shou Ye finally reined in his laughter, shaking his head with a sigh: "You know, in this old man's life, I've only met one rare genius who could stay as composed as you in any situation."

Xu Xiao Shou: "..."

In that moment, he finally realized where he had messed up.

Shou Ye had confirmed his identity as Xu Xiao Shou based on him being the "only one."

Should this be pleasing or heartbreaking?

Xu Xiao Shou knew that with this "uniqueness" argument, even if Shou Ye wasn't completely sure, the odds were high enough—maybe seventy or eighty percent—for him to take the risk and make a move.

Xu Xiao Shou wanted to leave.

But he couldn't.

He wanted to teleport or vanish.

But that wasn't possible either.

Because now, it wasn't just about him—there was an entire Tian Shang Di Yi Lou behind him.

Just then!

As Shou Ye's gaze shifted from disappointment to dangerously menacing, and Xu Xiao Shou racked his brain with no way out...

Boom—

Suddenly, a massive roar echoed from above.

Shou Ye's domain, shrouded in black mist and not yet fully turning the world to night, was shattered by the roar.

At the same time, everyone present—including the red-robed ones, Xiao Wanfeng, and Xu Xiao Shou—felt their bodies sink under immense pressure.

This oppressive force was something Xu Xiao Shou had only felt before under the sacred power in Tian Qi Lin.

"What's happening?"

The red-robed ones behind were shocked and looked up.

Shou Ye also abandoned his intent to act and gazed up in surprise.

Xiao Wanfeng and Xu Xiao Shou did the same.

With the domain shattered, the people on the street did too, all turning their eyes upward in unison.

The difference was that those with weaker cultivation were pressed to the ground by the force, still struggling to look up.

Everyone wanted to know what this sudden, city-enveloping terrifying pressure was!

"This is..."

Xu Xiao Shou was the first to look up, his pupils shaking, quickly followed by a look of utter shock.

It wasn't just him—even Shou Ye reacted the same way.

Above the sky, where the sun had been rising brightly, a booming sound accompanied what seemed like a heavenly dog eclipsing the sun.

The sunlight began to be swallowed up.

Rumble, rumble, rumble—

Then, amid apocalyptic booms and the continuous shattering of the heavens, the sky turned completely gray-black in moments.

This vast gray-black covered the entire sky over Dong Tian Wang Cheng.

In that instant, a line from a poem flashed in Xu Xiao Shou's mind: "Black clouds press down on the city, as if it's about to crumble!"

Immediately after, from the fractured heavens, a corner of a gray city truly appeared.

"A city!"

Xu Xiao Shou was horrified.

Xiao Wanfeng beside him cried out in terror: "A city? How is that possible—a city in the sky?"

That corner of the city emerged from the black void in the shattered sky.

It was just the tip of the iceberg, yet its presence in the void made one imagine how enormous the whole hidden within must be.

"The Sky City!"

In that moment, Xu Xiao Shou suddenly understood.

A city nearly as large as Dong Tian Wang Cheng, yet still floating in the void—what else could it be but the Sky City?

In the blink of an eye, as Xu Xiao Shou watched that corner of the city wall drift north and reveal more of its structure, he realized something.

"Void Island, Ba Zun An!"

To the north.

North of the north district, in the Yun Lun mountain range.

That was where Ba Zun An was located!

It was the place where Ba Zun An, who had disappeared for a night—and whom Xu Xiao Shou had even criticized for achieving nothing overnight—was carrying out his mission.

As for his mission...

Thinking of Ba Zun An's task, Xu Xiao Shou felt his very soul tremble.

He stared blankly at this ancient city, which revealed only a corner yet exuded an endless majestic aura, and his mind recalled the joking words from his communication with Ba Zun An.

Back then, Xu Xiao Shou hadn't known how massive Void Island was and had said something like: "Go to the Yun Lun mountain range and summon Void Island—won't that settle the Wang Cheng matter once and for all?"

Ba Zun An: "Do you think I'm a god?"

At the time, Xu Xiao Shou had thought Void Island was just a small island, like a vacation spot.

After all, how big could a prison be?

Ba Zun An had the title of Eighth Sword Immortal; splitting mountains and seas was child's play for him, so summoning a small island should be easy.

But now, seeing this ancient city that revealed just a corner of its walls and already overshadowed all of Dong Tian Wang Cheng, he understood why Ba Zun An had retorted like that.

However!

When such an ancient behemoth...

When something truly named "Sky City" and not just in jest—a real Sky City—could still be summoned by human effort...

Others might think it was just Void Island descending early.

But Xu Xiao Shou knew this could only be the work of Ba Zun An, who had vanished in the Yun Lun mountain range for a night.

Back then, he had taken Ba Zun An's "Do you think I'm a god?" at face value, assuming he was powerless.

Now it seemed... the man was just being modest.

And I actually believed it?

Looking at this city...

Dammit, how is he not a god?!

Summoning a true Sky City in just one night...

Ba Zun An, you're basically a god yourself!