Since he himself was not strong enough, he could only rely on the person in front of him. He then took out a treasure map and said respectfully, "Your Excellency is so powerful. Consider the previous treasure map as a gift to you. This one is the reward for your help. I hope you will not refuse and will accept it!"

"Don't worry, I certainly won't refuse your kind offer." Gu Changqing took the treasure map, glanced at it casually, and was immediately excited.

The location on this treasure map isn't Zijun Mountain, but rather a distant area in Zhongzhou. He plans to wait and get his hands on the treasures that are closer first.

Of course, we'll deal with this middle-aged man's problem first.

"What do you need my help with? Just say it," Gu Changqing said with a slight smile, getting straight to the point.

"I've offended a big shot, the most powerful and influential person in this city. I'm now backed into a corner. If I don't fight back, I'm afraid I'll be wiped out." The middle-aged man said with a furrowed brow and great helplessness.

"The most powerful person in the city? Could it be the city lord? Who else is there besides the city lord? Although I don't know much about this city, I have heard some things from other people. Isn't the city lord the father of that fat man I just killed?" Gu Changqing said with a faint smile.

"Brother, you are truly amazing. I didn't even say who it was, and you guessed it all." The middle-aged man was slightly taken aback, then said with a smile.

"What a small world! It's hard to imagine that I, Gu, wouldn't want to let them get away with this," Gu Changqing said coldly, seemingly unconcerned.

"But I'm very curious, how did you offend the city lord?" Gu Changqing asked with some doubt.

"In the end, it all comes down to the treasure maps left by my ancestors. I sold two treasure maps before, which attracted a lot of people to fight over them. Many people know that I have treasure maps and want to get their hands on them. This news naturally reached the ears of the city lord, who also wants to get the treasure maps and wants to buy the ones I have."

"He was willing to buy, and I was naturally willing to sell. I thought that since the city lord wanted to buy, I should just give him the lowest price to show my sincerity. It was a good deal, but the city lord wasn't satisfied with the price I offered. He was only willing to offer one-tenth of that price, which was too low, so I didn't agree. As a result, he got angry and left with threats, saying that I would be unable to survive in this area. Sure enough, he sent people to harass me and ambush me every few days, but he just wouldn't kill me. Maybe he didn't want to ruin his good reputation. But I'm almost driven to the brink of despair by him." At this point, the middle-aged man looked distressed and dejected.

“Since the city lord is buying, why don’t you just give him one? You have so many anyway. If you give him one, you might be living the high life right now. You really don’t know how to do business,” Gu Changqing said with amusement, stroking his chin.

“Brother, you don’t understand. I originally thought the same thing: just give him one treasure map. But the city lord doesn’t just want one; he wants all the remaining ones, at one-tenth of the price he’s asking for. I simply can’t accept that. Isn’t this blatant robbery? These are treasure maps left to me by my ancestors. I can’t possibly sell them all. If all the treasure maps disappear from my possession, wouldn’t I become a sinner to my family?” the middle-aged man said angrily.

“I really wanted to kill him, so I sent someone to inquire about the city lord’s cultivation level. According to reliable sources, he has already entered the Immortal Emperor realm. I could never defeat him in this lifetime. But I didn’t want to keep enduring this; it was too humiliating. So I made a bold decision: to spend a lot of money to find an assassin to take care of the city lord. But finding an assassin at the Immortal Emperor level is no easy task. So I came to the largest restaurant in the city to try my luck. After all, it’s bustling with people here, and there are more opportunities.” The middle-aged man continued with a resolute expression.

"I never expected to be so lucky to meet you, brother. I think you are strong enough to kill two quasi-immortal emperor peak experts in an instant. Your strength must be at the immortal emperor level. You can definitely help me with this."

The middle-aged man smiled slightly and spoke with utmost respect.

After hearing this, Gu Changqing smiled faintly and said, "You know what, you're really lucky today to have met me. This is no problem for me; I'll take care of it."

"Then I thank you in advance, brother." The middle-aged man was delighted to hear Gu Changqing's words, feeling that the matter was almost certain.

"Then let's not waste any more time. Lead the way, let's go find the city lord now," Gu Changqing said with a slight smile.

Then the three of them transformed into a bolt of lightning and sped off towards the city lord's direction.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before long, they arrived at the gate of the city lord's mansion.

The first thing that catches the eye is the two lifelike, fierce, dark blue lions at the entrance of the city lord's mansion. They are so realistically carved that they look just like real lions.

Looking to the side, there were two more imposing and sturdy guards standing ramrod straight. They were calm and meticulous in their guarding of the gate, looking like two iron men from a distance.

As expected of the city lord's mansion, even the main gate is edged with gold, making it shimmer and dazzling, almost blinding people. This golden gate is very grand, and you can tell at a glance that it belongs to a very wealthy and noble family.

"Just look at how luxurious the gate is, the city lord's family must be very wealthy. I don't understand why the city lord still insists on having the treasure map in your hand," the woman in white said dismissively.

“Silly girl, your grandfather must have protected you too well. You’re too naive. You don’t understand. No one will complain about having too much money. Even if he has mountains of gold and silver, he’ll still want more. To put it bluntly, he’s greedy and insatiable.” Gu Changqing smiled helplessly and then explained.

“Brother, you are right. Young lady, you are inexperienced and do not know how unpredictable people are or how dangerous the world is,” the middle-aged man said with deep feeling.

"Where did these mad dogs come from, barking like that? This is the city lord's mansion. How dare you stray cats and dogs linger here and spread rumors? If you know what's good for you, stay away."

The two guards were very displeased to see Gu Changqing and his group constantly discussing the city lord at the entrance of the city lord's mansion. Without saying a word, they drove them away.

"A mere guard dares to be so arrogant? You've got some nerve, so disrespectful to everyone," the middle-aged man said angrily.

"Who do we have here? It's you. You're still alive. The city lord is too soft-hearted; he hasn't killed you yet." The guard looked at Song Qinglong with disdain and said mockingly.