Library of Heaven’s Path

Zhang Xuan turned to Qi Ling-er and asked, “Is it the same for other cities? Do other cities have City Lord Monuments that city lords infuse their will into?”

Since she was a city lord, she should be familiar with the processes.

“Each city has a City Lord Monument, and it’s indeed used as a record of the city rules. However, I have never heard of a city lord infusing his will into it. That would be equivalent to enchanting the City Lord Monument, turning it into an artifact. It would cause the Anima of Yearning of the entire city to be focused on the monument,” Qi Ling-er replied.

She was also a little bewildered after hearing the story.

She would have never thought that anyone would do such a thing.

The City Lord Monument represented the laws of the city. Infusing one’s will into it would cause the Anima of Yearning to flow into the will, nourishing it. For the city lord, this was not necessarily a good thing.

For one, there was no guarantee that the sliver of will would remain under his control even after it had been nourished. It was a highly dangerous move to make.

Zhang Xuan turned to Ming Laixiang and asked, “What was Celestial God Yeyu’s personality like?”

Celestial God Yeyu was the previous city lord of Dusklight City who had passed away during the Flood of the Spiritual Energy.

“He was a righteous and impartial man. The citizens often sing his praises,” Ming Laixiang replied. “It’s because none of us can match his character that we aren’t able to assimilate the monument. This is also why Dusklight City has remained without a city lord for so many years.”

Zhang Xuan nodded in realization.

That explained things.

Just the convenience of being able to use the Teleportation Formations made it worth it for one to become a city lord. There were bound to be many experts vying for the spot. So, it was bizarre how Dusklight City had remained without one for almost a decade.

From the looks of it, it was not that easy to become a city lord.

This was probably why Ming Laixiang did not seem particularly concerned that she had lost to him. This was because she knew that one would have to first overcome the City Lord Monument in order to become the city lord, or else he would just be nothing more than another contender in the running, just like her.

Since I can’t destroy the will inside, I should just try to assimilate it just like an ordinary weapon!

While it might take years for others to tame an artifact spirit, Zhang Xuan was able to circumvent the lengthy process with his abilities.

So, he walked up to the black monument once more and tapped it a few times. Then, he whispered silently to it.

Weng!

The City Lord Monument shook a little, but it refused to submit to him.

Zhang Xuan’s usual method was to employ both the carrot and the stick. He would offer the artifact two choices— submit to him and rise to greater heights or continue refusing and be destroyed.

However, such a trick would not work on the City Lord Monument. This was because it knew that the young man before it would not dare destroy it.

Seeing this, Zhang Xuan chuckled softly and whispered to the monument, “I know what you are thinking. You knew that you would meet with danger, so you infused your will into the monument ahead of time, hoping that you could revive from the Anima of Yearning supplied by the entire city.

“I can’t say that it’s a bad plan, but you made a miscalculation—the amount of time it will take for you to succeed. Dusklight City has been without a city lord for nearly a decade now, so there has been no one to enforce the rules you have implemented. As a result, the amount of Anima of Yearning you are receiving has decreased tremendously. You won’t succeed at this rate. I’m sure you know that deep down.

“I don’t have much desire to become the city lord. All I want is to obtain the City Lord Token so that I can make use of the Teleportation Formations. If I become the city lord, I’ll have the city continue enforcing the rules you have set and even allow your will to remain inside the monument. Only the rise of a new city lord will bring order back to this city, and only then will you continue receiving a steady supply of Anima of Yearning.”

Zhang Xuan’s voice was infused with the Impartation of Heaven’s Will, allowing him to sway the emotions of the will within the monument. The indignant and hostile intent that was within the monument a moment ago slowly cooled down.

He had no interest in being a city lord at all.

Even if he, just like Kong shi, needed Anima of Yearning in the future, the amount he required would likely be far more than what the entire Dusklight City could offer him.

So, he had no qualms allowing most of the Anima of Yearning to go to the previous city lord. It was also better for him that the rules did not change. He had no spare time to care about that anyway.

“Make up your mind quickly; I am not a person with a lot of patience. You should be able to tell that I’m an outsider, and I have no attachments to Dusklight City. I don’t mind not becoming the city lord, but I’ll have this monument destroyed before leaving this place. I’ll give you ten breaths to think it through.”

It was those who had nothing to lose that should be feared the most. They would not hesitate to do the unthinkable, and there was nothing that could scare them.

After saying his piece, Zhang Xuan took two steps back and waited patiently for the monument’s response.

“How did it go? Are you able to assimilate it?” Ming Laixiang asked with a slight smile.

Even though she posed it as a question, she already knew that the young man had failed. On the inside, she was greatly relieved that the monument was not responding to the young man.

You might be stronger and more talented than me, but that doesn’t mean a thing before the City Lord Monument…

Ming Laixiang was expecting to see a frustrated look on the young man’s face, but what she saw instead was the young man calmly opening his mouth and counting, “Ten, nine, eight, seven…”

“Hmm?” Ming Laixiang was confused. I am asking you whether you were able to assimilate it, so why are you counting down instead?

“…Three, two, one!”

Having counted down to zero, Zhang Xuan looked at the monument before him and said, “Make your choice.”

As he said those words, he quietly gathered a surge of sword qi at the tip of his finger and pointed it at the monument calmly. His relaxed demeanor showed that he had no particular deference toward the monument at all.

Sensing that the young man would really carry out his threat if it did not agree to it, a crisp buzz echoed from the monument as it began shaking intensely.

“That’s more like it,” Zhang Xuan said with a satisfied smile.

He dripped a droplet of blood harnessing his will onto the monument, and it was absorbed right away. This was a sign that the monument had accepted him as its master.

“This…” Ming Laixiang was stunned.

She had tried everything that she could think of to convince the monument to accept her, but from the start to the end, it had never reacted to her. On the other hand, all the young man did was count down from ten, and the monument submitted to him just like that…

What was with this discrimination?

“Since I have assimilated the monument, does it mean that I am the city lord now?” Zhang Xuan asked.

He could sense that a portion of his will was already embedded within the monument.

Ming Laixiang was completely taken aback by the situation, and she felt deeply indignant. But in the end, she had no choice but to nod.

Given all that had happened, she had no choice but to accept the outcome.

“Here is a Beauty Pill. I’ll give it to you. Even though it can’t change your physique, I believe that it’ll still make a huge difference to you,” Zhang Xuan said as he flicked a low-tier God Essence Pill over.

“In exchange, I hope that you can deal with Lin Xie and Wu Yang on my behalf. Within four hours, I want the whole city to know that I’m the new city lord, and the rules of the previous city lord will be swiftly enforced.”

He had gained legitimacy as the city lord for assimilating the City Lord Monument, but in terms of influence, he was still nowhere close to Ming Laixiang. It would be more effective if he could have her do it on his behalf.

“Alright then.” Ming Laixiang nodded.

She knew that it would make no difference to the outcome whether she helped him or not. Given that the young man had obtained the recognition from the previous city lord, there was no one who could shake his position anymore.

Since that was the case, she might as well do it on his behalf and get on good terms with him. In fact, her effort would be worth it even if it was just for the Beauty Pill.

After agreeing to Zhang Xuan’s request, Ming Laixiang swallowed the pill right away.

She took out a copper mirror after that to look at her own reflection, and her eyes lit up in excitement.

It was really as miraculous as the rumors suggested. The effects started showing as soon as she swallowed the pill.

Her skin became supplier and smoother, and her facial features became more distinct. Even though her bulky physique remained the same, she emanated a newfound charm that would make others want to take a second look at her.

Ming Laixiang did not view herself as a vain person, but it would be a lie to say that she was not concerned about her own appearance. With her standing, there was no need for her to try to intentionally please anyone anymore, but if she had a choice, she would rather be more beautiful and feminine.

As such, she was very satisfied with the effects of the Beauty Pill.

With a broad smile on her lips, she took Zhang Xuan to the City Lord Manor and settled him in before swiftly heading out on an aerial divine beast to settle the task entrusted to her.

Her reputation as the strongest contender for the city lord position was not just for show. In less than four hours, almost everyone in Dusklight City knew that a person named Zhang Xuan would be taking over the position of the city lord.

News swiftly spread, and by the evening, Royal City had already delivered the Conferment Edict and City Lord Token over to acknowledge his position.

“It’s finally done…” Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

With this, he would be able to use the Teleportation Formation within Dusklight City to travel to the Royal City swiftly.

“These are the tokens for the three provinces of Dusklight City,” Qi Ling-er said as she passed three tokens over.

She was honestly a little speechless at just how efficient Zhang Xuan was. She had nearly lost her life competing for her city lord position!

On the other hand, the young man had managed to do it in less than half a day. It sure was maddening just to think about it!

Zhang Xuan passed the three tokens to Sun Qiang and his parents and said, “Assimilate these tokens, and you’ll be able to use the Teleportation Formation.”

After that, he turned to Qi Ling-er and asked once more, “Little Chick and Zhang Jia are my tamed beast, so it should be alright for them to travel together with me, right?”

“That isn’t a problem at all,” Qi Ling-er replied with a nod.

The City Lord Token was designed in a manner that allowed its master to extend its effects to their tamed beasts via the Soul Contract. After all, it was not uncommon for city lords to travel together with their tamed beasts.

Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. He turned to look at Sun Qiang and his parents once more and said, “If possible, try to assimilate the tokens today. We’ll be heading to Royal City tomorrow morning!”

There were some matters that he needed to attend to as the new city lord. First and foremost, he needed everyone to learn of their existence, or else they would not be able to earn Anima of Yearning in their City Lord Token and Province Lord Tokens.

So, he walked out of the City Lord Manor to the square right in front of him. With a leap, he jumped on top of the City Lord Monument and sat down on it casually.

At this moment, a huge crowd had already gathered around after hearing the news that they had a new city lord. They were a little curious yet fearful to know who their new city lord was.

After all, this was the man who had the power to determine their fate.

“You might have heard, but I am the new city lord of Dusklight City. My name is Zhang Xuan. I don’t intend to change how this city has been functioning so far, but it is my wish to see Dusklight City becoming stronger over time. So, in four hour’s time, I’ll be holding a lecture here to impart my comprehension of cultivation to you.” Zhang Xuan addressed the crowd beneath him with a leisurely but authoritative tone.

To be honest, he did not have a concrete idea of just what the Anima of Yearning was, but based on what he had heard about it so far, he should be able to receive a steady stream of it as long as he could make others have a deep impression of him.

The fastest way he knew he could do that was through a lecture.

It was similar to how Kong shi’s reputation had become synonymous with his teachings, and it was remembered even after tens of thousands of years on the Master Teacher Continent.

Until the day that his impartations became obsolete and forgotten, his name would continue to be passed down from generation to generation.

News that the new city lord would be holding a public lecture spread like wildfire. Over the next four hours, millions of cultivators gathered in the city square and its vicinity.

With a satisfied nod, Zhang Xuan started his lecture.

“Cultivation lies in the heart, the spirit, and the soul…”

His voice drifted into the surroundings with the warm breeze of spring, nourishing those taking it in.

Everyone was swiftly enraptured by it.

Standing amid the crowd was Wu Yang, another ex-contender for the city lord position. He was still wondering why Ming Laixiang would suddenly submit to a young man in his early twenties and even went to the extent of warning him not to oppose him.

However, when he came over personally to hear the public lecture, the significance of those words immediately became apparent to him.

It was no wonder that young man was able to become the city lord.

Putting everything aside, his comprehension of cultivation surpassed that of any expert they had seen before.

Profound concepts were conveyed in simple, comprehensible terms, leaving countless citizens nodding vehemently as epiphanies struck them. They were able to swiftly understand ideas that had eluded them previously and draw links between seemingly abstract aspects of cultivation.

All in all, one thing was for sure. Dusklight City would never be the same again after this lecture!