Star Odyssey

Chapter 1914: Issue Settled

Upon hearing Yao Hong's words, City Master Qing gazed at Luo Mei with a somber expression. "You, come here."

Luo Mei trembled as she stared at City Master Qing in fear.

City Master Qing's eyes flared. "I said, come here!"

Luo Mei was terrified. City Master Qing's face seemed to fill her entire vision. This man could kill her effortlessly, and she was too scared to even move.

City Master Qing looked up. "Are you not going to show yourself? Very well!"

As he spoke, he raised a hand to seize Luo Mei. He was thinking the same as Yao Hong, and he was naturally worried about the hidden attacker who had not shown themselves. City Master Qing had no idea how the hidden attacker was remaining undetected, but since they had deliberately protected this particular woman, City Master Qing would use her to force the attacker into making a move.

Could an Envoy be secretly protecting Azure Mansion? That was impossible. Neither Yao Hong nor City Master Qing even considered such a possibility.

Right when City Master Qing was about to grab hold of Luo Mei, a palm appeared in front of him, shooting out from the true universe. City Master Qing was able to see it clearly.

The Envoy's expression changed drastically, and a long knife appeared in his hand. He slashed the knife upwards, but there was a sudden bang as the knife shattered. The hand that had appeared then shot forward and slapped City Master Qing's face before the man could react. He was struck to the ground and sank deep beneath the surface.

Everyone fell silent and stared blankly at the hole in the ground.

City Master Qing had just been slapped, not Qing Yu. City Master Qing, an Envoy, had actually just been slapped into the ground!

Yao Hong stared blankly at the hole in the ground. It was at this moment that she finally felt a flicker of fear. There was a powerhouse present. What sort of strength was needed to strike down City Master Qing with a single slap? The city master had a power level of a bit more than 700,000! Just who was secretly protecting Azure Mansion?

Not a single person dared to breathe loudly as they all stared at the ground.

Deep underground, City Master Qing managed to slow his momentum and prevent himself from being blasted through the landmass and into outer space. The moment he had been struck, he had sensed an irresistible power. That slap had not only smacked him into the ground, but it had also woken him up. City Master Qing was a powerful cultivator, and yet he had not been able to react or resist that slap.

The city master was an intelligent person. He had established Skyraiser City, built it up, and also owned Gazemore Auction House. He was normally a calm and domineering person, but he also needed to maintain the saviness of a successful businessman. This slap had clearly shown him the gap between him and his hidden opponent.

No dignity or respect was as important as staying alive.

Was it difficult to suffer being slapped? No, not for City Master Qing. If his opponent had used a little more strength, City Master Qing knew that he would have been struck dead. Knowing this, he valued his life more than suffering a bit of humiliation.

This thought caused him to emerge from the hole in the ground and face Qing Yun, Luo Mei, and the other women of Azure Mansion. He bowed low. "I've offended you all, so I will offer a suitable explanation and recompense to Azure Mansion for today's events."

The Envoy then grabbed Yao Hong and Qing Yu and silently left. Only after the three were already gone did anyone notice their sudden departure.

Everyone remained utterly silent.

The various men who had gathered quickly left. They had been encouraging Qing Yu just a moment before.

Lu Yin also left.

Qian Zou stared at Lu Yin in utter shock. "Seventh Bro, that was City Master Qing! Did you just slap him?"

"What else?" Lu Yin said lightly.

Qian Zou swallowed. Was it really that simple? That man was City Master Qing! He was someone who did not need to show any respect to even the Expeditionary Forces! He was famous throughout the entire Neoverse, and yet he did not dare to retaliate in the slightest after being slapped? Just how strong had Lu Yin become?

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Back in Azure Mansion, Xi Shuang was also left stunned. She was familiar with City Master Qing's strength, as before this trip, her grandfather had mentioned that he and City Master Qing possessed a similar level of strength. Despite that, Xi Shuang had just watched City Master Qing be slapped. Just how many powerhouses in the universe were capable of doing that?

She turned back to stare at Azure Mansion after walking away. How strong was the powerhouse protecting Azure Mansion? Was there someone other than Bu Laoweng behind Azure Mansion? Despite that person's strength, Bu Laoweng had still been completely suppressed by Lu Yin. In that case, just how strong was Lu Yin and his Great Eastern Alliance?

There were rumors that claimed that dozens of Envoys had appeared during the Outerverse war between the Great Eastern Alliance and the Astral Beast Domain. It suddenly looked like there might be a bit of truth to those rumors.

That final slap had not only woken up City Master Qing and the others present, but also many of the Neoverse's powerful organizations. The universe was not as simple as they had believed it to be, and even a fallen Azure Mansion still had powerhouses hidden in its shadows.

The arrogant behavior of Qing Yu and his fiancée had exposed the dark side of many people, but the revelation that a powerhouse was still supporting Azure Mansion had forced them all to give up on their former intentions.

As for Qing Yun and the other women of Azure Mansion, none of them were surprised by these people's behaviors or dark sides. The women had all seen too much evil, and things had gotten much, much worse for them in recent years. In fact, while they had been able to publicly maintain their virtue, they had not been able to do so behind the closed doors of Azure Mansion.

These women had already seen the ugly side of humanity.

Xi Shuang sat in a bar near Azure Mansion, and she had made sure to take a seat that allowed her to have a full view of Azure Mansion, including the courtyard where everything had just taken place.

This bar was not small, but it looked tiny compared to the size of Azure Mansion. It was a popular place for people attending the city's auctions to grab a bite to eat. There was no dining room in the bar, only private rooms, which made it more convenient for people to conduct their negotiations.

"Sister Shuang, it's nearly time to go back," one of Xi Shuang's protectors said.

As soon as the man spoke up, another of them became upset. "Why are you pushing her? Sister Shuang has her own plans."

"Don't forget what the general ordered on this trip," the first protector growled.

The second man said, "Even if you don't head back yet, you should still make sure that you stay far away from Azure Mansion. Anyone who can slap City Master Qing and scare him into such a passive state is extremely powerful and cannot be antagonized. I have no idea who that person might be or where they might be from, but if they learn of Sister Shuang's identity, they might do something."

These words left all of the protectors quiet. The Expeditionary Forces had offended too many people over the years. Of the Hall of Honor's three armed forces, the Beast Extermination Force fought the Astral Beast Domain at the border at all times, and the Guardian Force did nothing other than protect Mt. Microcosms. The Expeditionary Forces was the military that maintained the Fifth Mainland's peace, and there was no way to determine just how many families and powers they had wiped out over the years.

No one believed that Azure Mansion was capable of supporting such a powerhouse, so there had to be some other reason for such a person to be protecting Azure Mansion. If this expert had any grudges against the Expeditionary Forces, things could get complicated.

These protectors were not Xi Shuang's bodyguards, but rather her suitors. Over the years, they had each encountered far too many people who hated the Expeditionary Forces. In fact, it could even be said that one out of every ten powerhouses hated the Expeditionary Forces. The probability of encountering such a person was just too high.

Xi Shuang impatiently ordered, "Leave for now."

"Sister Shuang-" They wanted to say something more.

Xi Shuang angrily demanded, "Get out!"

Her escorts had no choice but to leave the private room with only Xi Shuang remaining behind. She continued to drink her wine while staring out at Azure Mansion.

She had once believed herself to be someone important in the vast universe. She was like a princess to the Expeditionary Forces as everyone there pampered and protected her. She felt that such a treatment meant that no one in the entire universe would dare to go against her, which was why she had been so arrogant and domineering. Her suitors had all been men from powerful backgrounds, but she looked down on all of them, believing herself to be superior to them all.

However, she had met multiple people on this trip who did not fear the Expeditionary Forces, and then she had met Qing Yu. He was a completely unhinged person who had shown the dark side of humanity to Xi Shuang.

Still, the most shocking thing that she had seen so far had been that final slap.

Her grandpa had mentioned that City Master Qing possessed about the same level of strength as him, and yet City Master Qing had been slapped on the face. This meant that whoever had attacked the city master could do the same to Xi Shuang's grandfather.

Xi Shuang was not one to brood over matters, but she had still been badly startled by that slap. She had realized that her grandfather was not invincible.

"It's boring to drink alone, so I'll join you," a voice spoke from across the table.

Xi Shuang was startled to hear someone speak to her, and when she turned to look, she saw an average looking young man sitting at her table. There was a smile on his face, and an unseen sense of dignity that he radiated. There was something about him that seemed a bit villainous, but there was also something charming about him. In particular, his eyes were captivating. They gave off the impression that they could stare into the depths of people's hearts and see through all their thoughts.

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The man poured himself a glass of wine and then poured another for Xi Shuang. "This seems to be a pretty good wine."

The jug thumped onto the table, causing Xi Shuang to jump, and she warily stared at the young man across from her. "Who are you?"

Even as she spoke, she pulled out a glowing, pale yellow power vessel from her cosmic ring.

One side of the man's curled up into a smirk. "You don't recognize me? Look again."

He then took a drink from his glass of wine.

Xi Shuang stared intently at the man and studied his eyes that felt quite familiar. Suddenly, the image of a certain face overlapped with that of the young man before her, and she blurted out, "Lu Yin?"

Lu Yin smiled and then raised the jug of wine to pour himself another glass. "And here I thought that you didn't recognize me."

Xi Shuang was shocked. Lu Yin? It was him? She had heard about him far too many times, both from others and from her own grandfather. This person was brought up much too frequently to forget.

Lu Yin was considered an enemy of the Expeditionary Forces, and also her grandpa's enemy. However, despite being an enemy, Lu Yin was an invincible existence.

In Xi Shuang's limited understanding of the universe, the Expeditionary Forces and her grandpa were very powerful, but Lu Yin was someone they were both incredibly wary of and did not dare to cross. This had caused Xi Shuang to be very attentive to any news regarding Lu Yin.

She had seen the reports claiming that dozens of Envoys had participated in the Outerverse war between the Great Eastern Alliance and the Astral Beast Domain, but Xi Shuang had not believed it. She was aware of how powerful her grandfather was, so how could it be possible for dozens of people at his strength to appear on a single battlefield?

However, she had started to think that the reports could be true after leaving Azure Mansion. She had already realized that her grandpa was not invincible after seeing City Master Qing be slapped by someone and then not daring to retaliate.

"Was that you? Did you throw that slap?" Xi Shuang asked as she stared at Lu Yin.

He only responded with a slight smile.

Xi Shuang instantly denied such a possibility. "It couldn't have been you. That should have been one of the elders who supports you. I heard that you managed to get more than ten Envoys to participate in the Outerverse war."

Lu Yin found her reaction rather amusing. "You were right on your first guess. Don't second guess yourself."

His reaction caught Xi Shuang off guard. "It was actually you?"

Lu Yin nodded. "That was me."

Xi Shuang could not believe it. "Impossible! You're only a bit older than me! How could City Master Qing not dare to take any action after being slapped by you? That's impossible! Grandpa told me you're strong, but you can't be that strong."

Lu Yin lowered his glass. "Maybe. Why don't you go ask Xi Gu if it's possible or not. Or maybe I can take you back to meet him. Then, I can slap him myself, and we can see if he can avoid it."

Xi Shuang's expression changed and she shot to her feet and stepped back, knocking her stool over in the process. "Lu Yin, what do you want?"

Lu Yin just looked at the young woman. "As soon as you recognized me, there was hatred in your eyes. It looks like those are the feelings of the Expeditionary Forces, which is a disturbing thought. I've never been merciful to my enemies."

Xi Shuang was instantly terrified. Her movements in the private room alerted the men waiting for her outside, and they all charged in. As soon as they saw Lu Yin, one of them demanded, "Who are you? What did you do to Sister Shuang?"

Lu Yin did not even look at the men. "Get out."

The man who had spoken was about to reply, but he was stopped by two others. These two instead bowed low. "Overseer Lu, we've offended you."

They then quickly dragged their companion out of the room and closed the door.

What of Xi Shuang? What of the Expeditionary Forces? Neither of them were as ruthless or terrifying as Lu Yin. He was someone who was capable of doing anything, and the men knew that this person was not someone whom they could afford to cross.

When she saw the men who professed to love her and had declared their willingness to die for her flee without any hesitation, Xi Shuang's expression repeatedly changed. She did not feel safe even with the power vessel that her grandfather had given her.

Lu Yin pointed at the table. "Sit down."