Swallowed Star 2: Land of Origin

"Quite a few forces have directly come to my cave mansion for visits. When I go to the Dream Flower Tower, similarly, there are forces waiting there as well. That's why I'm hiding out in this Fire Realm Restaurant—this little restaurant, at least, is peaceful and quiet!" Luo Feng remarked wistfully.

"Haha, the moment you forced the Blood Python Association to bow their heads and make amends, you became one of the few top figures in Huyang City," laughed Shang Tianyan. "I don't know how many eternal true gods are envious. Us common eternal true gods can't compare to Brother Luo He when it comes to influence."

There were profound gaps even among eternal true gods.

Disparities in the strength of a godly body, gaps in the quality of Weapon Secret Treasures and armor, differences in Secret Techniques, levels of laws, variances in bloodline talents, different willpower... Various factors made the disparity staggeringly vast.

"If I'm not mistaken, the city owners' mansion has likely already upgraded your ranking to Grade A," Shang Tianyan said.

"Grade A?" Luo Feng asked curiously.

"An eternal true god that a Huyang Legion can't do anything against is generally considered Grade A. At that level, the city owners' mansion won't take action lightly either," explained Shang Tianyan.

Luo Feng thought for a moment and then said, "A Huyang Legion is led by a top eternal true god, with tens of thousands of true gods of void space and tens of millions of elite true gods controlling the Legion Mechanical Secret Treasures. When the legion's power is unified, the force it can unleash already possesses a portion of the Primal Chaos Realm's might."

"With Brother Luo He's strength, even if you can't resist head-on, you can always employ hit-and-run tactics, making a Huyang Legion helpless against you," Shang Tianyan said with a smile. "You didn't use any Weapon Secret Treasures, and with just one hand, you captured Vice President Lai Mo's True God's Heart.

Anyone can see that once you fully unleash your power, you can still contend with a Huyang Legion using various Secret Techniques even if there is a gap."

Luo Feng just smiled and said nothing.

The Huyang Legion is strong head-on? In terms of quantity and purity of Divine Power, the multitudes of eternal true gods, true gods of void space, and masses of true gods all amounted to less than himself! It was merely that their Mechanical Treasure was somewhat stronger than his own "Sha Wu Wings."

A head-to-head confrontation wouldn't exhaust him but would be something a Huyang Legion couldn't bear in terms of the cost!

"Looking at your smile, you don't seem to take a Huyang Legion too seriously," said Shang Tianyan as he raised his cup. "To this, we should drink."

"Drink," Luo Feng replied with a laugh, toasting with him.

"But Brother Luo He, don't ever underestimate the city owners' mansion. Huyang's Ten Great Legions, the Huyang Guards... These are just the overt deterrent forces," Shang Tianyan said. "This large city, which has been built and refined over endless ages, is one of their real points of reliance.

If truly pressed, I'm afraid a Primal Chaos Overlord, or even a Godly King might come tearing through space to arrive!"

"I'm not that foolish to provoke the city owners' mansion needlessly," acknowledged Luo Feng.

"Of course, the entire Jiu Jiang Primal Chaos Prefecture is the fief of the Marquis of Jiu Jiang. Who is the Marquis of Jiu Jiang? Unless there's a major issue, it's unlikely he'd come rushing to Huyang City," continued Shang Tianyan. "So as long as you don't challenge the city owners' mansion's rule, there's no need to fear provoking a Primal Chaos Overlord. But remember one thing..."

Shang Tianyan's expression turned much more serious.

"Please speak, Brother Shang," said Luo Feng.

"Never get involved in the conflict between Shi Kingdom and Yu Kingdom," whispered Shang Tianyan. "That is the most fearsome whirlpool of Huyang City. Once you get caught in it, no matter how strong you are as an individual, you could be ground into dust."

"Conflict between Shi Kingdom and Yu Kingdom?" Luo Feng asked, curious.

"Since its establishment, Shi Kingdom has been expanding and encroaching on its neighbors. It now borders our Yu Kingdom, so naturally, there are many conflicts," Shang Tianyan explained. "As a large border city, Huyang has never stopped its covert conflicts. For example, the Zan Yun Commerce Chamber is a commerce chamber of Shi Kingdom."

Luo Feng nodded and said, "The chairman of the Zan Yun Commerce Chamber visited my cave mansion yesterday, but I didn't pay much attention to him."

Simply because the other party was from Shi Kingdom, Luo Feng was unwilling to get too involved.

"That's the right approach," Shang Tianyan said. "As a large border city, normal trade can't be forbidden by Yu Kingdom. Zan Yun Commerce Chamber acts very respectably on the surface, but Shi Kingdom has long sent a batch of eternal true gods into the city in secret."

"Whenever Shi Kingdom wishes, they can always summon more powerful forces here," said Shang Tianyan. "This is also the biggest trouble for Huyang City."

"Someday, if the two Divine Kingdoms go to war, it would be normal for this place to be ground to dust."

Shang Tianyan sighed and lifted his cup.

He had spent most of his life in Huyang City and naturally did not wish to see Huyang turned to ruins.

"There's nothing we can do about the conflicts between the two Divine Kingdoms. We can only go with the flow," Luo Feng said, drinking with him. He really liked Shang Tianyan as a friend—straightforward in character, and when Luo Feng asked about problems with Body Refinement, Shang Tianyan didn't beat around the bush.

As one of the top Artifact Refining Masters in Huyang City, Shang Tianyan was much stronger than Luo Feng in Artifact Refining. With no master to guide him, it was natural that Luo Feng would come across some difficulties in his own understanding of the Primal Chaos Great Strength Diagram. A few words from Shang Tianyan, however, could reveal the key points to him.

If Luo Feng had immersed himself in research, his solid grasp of the laws would have eventually led him to comprehension, but it would have taken longer and involved some detours.

Grateful for the guidance, Luo Feng cherished this friendship deeply.

The two of them ate, drank, and chatted, gaining a report on the situation in Huyang City. But more importantly, talking with Shang Tianyan allowed Luo Feng to gain a deeper understanding of the various forces in Huyang City.

"Not to mention, this restaurant has its own unique charm," praised Shang Tianyan, standing up to leave.

"I like it here too. Their roasted meat is robust enough," said Luo Feng. His Perfect Divine Body was so powerful that ordinary delicacies felt too weak and bland.

The two of them talked as they walked out of the little building, and Morosa quickly stowed away the wine pitcher as they did.

At that moment, Luo Feng and Shang Tianyan both saw a woman with a fluffy tail ahead, accompanied by a guard.

"This is 'Diaorong Qi' from the Diaorong Family, the daughter of Diaorong Yan," Shang Tianyan introduced.

"I have seen Uncle Shang," Diaorong Qi said with a smile and a polite bow.

"Are you here to visit Brother Luo He?" Shang Tianyan asked with a smile, "How did you find your way here?"

Diaorong Qi quickly explained, "I heard about the Supreme Lord Luo He being at the Dream Flower Tower and really wanted to visit. Later, I learned from my guard that Supreme Lord Luo He might come to the Fire Realm Restaurant."

Luo Feng watched the scene with interest. The guard beside the woman was none other than the young True God 'Suo Yun' whom he had saved from a tribal squad before.

"Supreme," Suo Yun hastily explained with respect, "I share a residence with Brother Suo Zi, and during a conversation, I accidentally learned of your visit to the Fire Realm Restaurant."

"Quite the coincidence," Luo Feng said, looking at the woman with the fluffy tail, Diaorong Qi, "What brings you to find me?"

"To request mentorship!"

Her eyes shining brightly, Diaorong Qi said, "I wish to take you, Supreme, as my master."

"Your father is an eternal true god, and yet you come to take me as your master?" Luo Feng looked at her.

"My father excels in alchemy but is not skilled in combat," Diaorong Qi said with a respectful bow, "I am willing to offer five thousand Cosmic Sands, merely hoping to be accepted as your disciple."

Luo Feng shook his head and looked at Shang Tianyan, "Brother Shang, let's go."

Without trying to persuade him, Shang Tianyan understood that accepting a disciple was a very serious matter, and he flew off with Luo Feng.

"Supreme," Diaorong Qi called out urgently, "please give me a chance, an opportunity to be tested."

"Dreaming of becoming a disciple of my master? Pretty wishful thinking!" Morosa glanced at Diaorong Qi and then followed Luo Feng as they left.

Diaorong Qi stood still, then after a moment, turned and instructed as she walked away, "Suo Yun, you continue to stay at the Fire Realm Restaurant. As soon as you spot Supreme Lord Luo He, inform me immediately."

"Yes," the guard Suo Yun responded respectfully, watching as his mistress departed.

"Suo Yun," Suo Zi approached, "how could you carelessly spread the word that the Supreme is here?"

The guard Suo Yun looked at his brother, retorting, "My mistress wanted to visit the Supreme and bore no ill will. Why shouldn't I speak of it?"

"We run a restaurant business, and we should guard the privacy of our esteemed customers," Suo Zi admonished, "I told you in confidence because you are my brother. You didn't even let me know before telling your mistress the news?"

Suo Yun scoffed, "The Supreme didn't blame me, yet you, as my brother, are blaming me."

"The Supreme may be amiable and not blame you, but if you encounter someone with a bad temper, you'd be done for!" Suo Zi said urgently, "In Huyang City, especially in matters involving eternal true gods, caution can never be excessive!"

"Being cautious all the time, when can we make a breakthrough?" Suo Yun said coldly, "We must seize opportunities when they come! Just for this piece of news, I've already been granted a Secret Technique!"

Suo Zi was taken aback.

Having come from their tribe to Huyang City, and after identifying their bloodlines, they sought to acquire Secret Techniques suitable for themselves. But good and suitable Secret Techniques were prohibitively expensive.

"Suo Yun has already acquired a Secret Technique?" Suo Zi felt mixed emotions at the moment.

On one hand, he was happy for his brother, yet he could also feel the gap between them widening. He was still an apprentice, painstakingly saving up to purchase Secret Techniques with Primal Chaos Crystals, anticipating a long and arduous process ahead.

"The Clan Leader said, one must be cautious and prudent in Huyang City. No rush, I have a long life ahead, I can spare the time," Suo Zi suppressed his emotions.

...

Blood Python Association Headquarters.

"These past two days, the most famous person in all of Huyang City has been that Luo He," Vice-chairman Mu Lin shook his head, "Mention of Luo He will always bring up our Blood Python Association."

"Can you shut up?" Vice President Lai Mo snapped irritably.

"I don't care about these rumors," said Chairman Mu Yang, frowning, "What bothers me is that we paid out twenty thousand Cosmic Sands in compensation. I am too poor now, every single Cosmic Sand is precious to me."

Vice-chairman Mu Lin and Vice President Lai Mo looked at each other.

"We've both run out," Vice-chairman Mu Lin quickly stated.

"Chairman, whatever I could lend, I already did, and this time you paid 18,000 Cosmic Sands for me, which means you still owe me 5,000 Cosmic Sands," Vice President Lai Mo said.

Both vice-chairmen were somewhat puzzled by the continuous poverty of 'Mu Yang', the chairman who controlled most of the association's resources, making them apprehensive to lend him anything more!