Chapter 74

Jitang had been on duty in Huanguang Valley for three months and finally got a three-day break.

She met up with Su Jinzhou from the tree house and went to Dengtian City in Sangyuzhou together.

The City Lord of Dengtian City is still in seclusion. Jitang and Su Jinzhou are looking for the Young City Lord Chu Jinhuai. After being informed, they met him in the Young City Lord's Yuntian Pavilion.

Chu Jinhuai still looked lazy, leaning back on the silk cushions on the high seat. He waved away the servant who brought them in and pointed to the chair below, "Sit down."

Ji Tang raised his eyes to look at Chu Jinhuai who was standing high above him. "Young City Lord, do you still want to keep your cooperation?"

Chu Jinhuai nodded at the chair twice again, "Don't want to sit?"

Jitang took a step forward and without saying anything, Su Jinzhou led him to sit in the chair.

"It's been a while since we last met. Your cultivation has improved a lot, but your temperament hasn't changed much." Chu Jinhuai smiled and sat up a little straighter. "I've heard a lot about the Nightmare Clan recently. You're growing very fast. With more time, you'll surely shine in Chenwuzhou. Everything is going well. So why did you come to me for cooperation?"

Ji Tang refused to believe that he knew nothing. He stood up and saluted Chu Jinhuai patiently, "Young City Lord, you don't know that the current clan leader, Xue Mei, has abolished clan rules in order to make the Nightmare Clan stand above other forces. His style of doing things is often biased, which is not what our clan has always done. If this continues, the Nightmare Clan will only become a short-lived flower that flourishes for a short time and will wither sooner or later."

"Oh?" Chu Jinhuai sat up straighter. "It seems that the young patriarch doesn't approve of Nightmare Lord's actions. Does he want to replace him?"

Jitang clenched his fist and said, "Yes."

Chu Jinhuai then looked at her seriously, "That's not something you would say. What happened in the Nightmare Clan?"

Jitang didn't think that she would get Chu Jinhuai's sympathy if she told him about the clan's affairs, and she didn't need it, but saying nothing would not promote cooperation.

Jitang had no choice but to explain the current situation of the Nightmare Clan, but he only briefly mentioned what the clan members had experienced.

Chu Jinhuai's fingers slid across the armrest of the chair. He looked down at Ji Tang, who was standing straight, and his eyes darkened. "If I help you obtain the position of Nightmare Lord, what will I get from Dengtian City?"

Chu Jinhuai was looking at her.

Ji Tang and he were both the Young Clan Leader of the Nightmare Clan and the Young Master of Ascension City, respectively, and their statuses were not much different. But to be honest, Ji Tang, the Young Clan Leader, only had a title, no power, no manpower, and she stood below, watching Chu Jinhuai sitting in the high seat, feeling insecure.

She hesitated and asked, "What does the Young City Lord want? Even if I become the leader of the Nightmare Clan, I still have to consider the clan."

Chu Jinhuai: "Dengtian City doesn't need the Nightmare Clan for the time being, and the Nightmare Clan is also unable to do anything for Dengtian City, right? But I want to hear a word from the young clan leader."

Chu Jinhuai was right. Dengtian City was already the overlord of Sangyuzhou, so naturally they looked down upon the Nightmare Clan, which had lost its thirteenth generation patriarch and was declining.

Jitang guessed he hadn't refused because he saw potential for the Nightmare Clan's future. From Ascension City's perspective, helping her ascend to the throne of Nightmare Lord wasn't difficult; it was a simple task. And this possibility might provide some support for Ascension City in the future.

After all, Chu Jinhuai's favor was not for Jitang, but for her parents and the Nightmare Clan, which had the potential to return to the top in the future.

Ji Tang knew that she was not qualified to be on equal footing with Chu Jinhuai, nor did she have any bargaining chips, so she could only choose to accept or reject.

Seeing that she was silent, Chu Jinhuai made a request: "If Dengtian City encounters difficulties in the future, the Nightmare Clan must devote all its strength to help Dengtian City overcome the difficulties."

Ji Tang's eyes darkened, his heart beating fast, "How can the Nightmare Clan withstand such a difficult situation that threatens Ascension City?"

Chu Jinhuai smiled, but the words he said were very harsh, "Young Clan Leader really has no confidence in the Nightmare Clan."

Ji Tang replied woodenly: "If I agree right away, the Young City Lord will probably say I'm overestimating my own abilities."

Chu Jinhuai looked at Jitang and said meaningfully, "That depends on the Young Clan Leader's opinion. However, any favor given by Dengtian City, no matter how big or small, must be doubled back."

Dengtian City has many allies, including the Nightmare Clan, and Jitang knows this.

Regardless of the future of Ascending Sky City, even if things were to get tough, Chu Jinhuai wouldn't pin all his hopes on the Nightmare Clan. It wasn't that Ji Tang looked down on his people; after all, judging by the Nightmare Clan's current situation, they couldn't compare to Ascending Sky City's other allies.

However, for Chu Jinhuai, using the full support of the entire Nightmare Clan in exchange for Ji Tang taking the position of clan leader is a deal that can only make money.

He patiently let Ji Tang make her choice and did not rush her to answer. He turned to look at Su Jinzhou and asked, "What does Su Xuanzong plan to do?"

Su Jinzhou bowed and said, "I am just a disciple of the sect and cannot represent the Suxuan Sect."

Chu Jinhuai found it amusing. "So you're here to represent yourself. The Nightmare Clan's ostentatious behavior is despised by everyone, and you're still hanging out with them. And since you're a disciple of the Suxuan Sect, aren't you afraid of being branded ungrateful?"

Su Jinzhou was not afraid of those things, his expression was calm, and he asked Chu Jinhuai: "Young City Lord, aren't you afraid?"

Chu Jinhuai laughed and said, "Then I will have to worry only if the person next to you agrees."

Ji Tang also made up his mind at this time and said, "Then I would like to thank the Young City Lord for his help."

"Young Clan Leader, have you made your decision?" Chu Jinhuai looked at her with interest. "I would like to ask you two more questions. When you take the position of Clan Leader, can you guarantee that the entire Nightmare Clan will be at your disposal? Can you shoulder the responsibility of protecting the lives of all the members of the clan?"

Ji Tang looked him straight in the eye. "Don't worry, Young City Lord. If Dengtian City encounters any trouble, the Nightmare Clan will certainly do their utmost to help. As for the latter, you don't need to worry about it."

Chu Jinhuai had a smile on his face and clapped his hands at his sides.

A man appeared from the darkness and knelt in front of Chu Jinhuai.

"Lord."

Chu Jinhuai didn't look at him, just said 'hmm', and said to Jitang: "This is my shadow. I'm lending it to you. Once Xue Mei dies, he will no longer obey your orders."

Ji Tang looked at the person kneeling on the ground, "Young City Lord, you only sent this one person and you expect my Nightmare Clan to give you all your support?"

Chu Jinhuai leaned back in his chair and said, "Jitang, numbers don't mean anything to me. Even those people in your clan can't defeat Shadow."

Shadow came to Ji Tang and half-knelt. As long as Xue Mei was not eliminated, Shadow would be used by her.

Ji Tang lowered his eyes to look at him, unable to discern his cultivation level, and asked, "What is your cultivation level?"

Shadow replied briefly: "Middle stage of the Void Realm."

Ji Tang was horrified and almost couldn't stand Yingzi's kneeling.

Countless thoughts flashed through her mind at once: What was the level of the Lord of Dengtian City, who had been in seclusion, and what about Chu Jinhuai? How many powerful figures like Shadow were there around Chu Jinhuai?

The depth of Dengtian City is frightening.

No wonder Chu Jinhuai was so confident. Xue Mei had no chance of winning against Shadow. Once Xue Mei died, the clan would be leaderless. Chu Jinhuai naturally didn't care whether the whole clan would willingly recognize Ji Tang as their leader. Everything would depend on Ji Tang.

Chu Jinhuai: "I heard from my father that the thirteenth generation leader of the Nightmare Clan doesn't care about fame, wealth, or power. He has always been aloof from worldly desires and only wants to build the Nightmare Clan into a paradise."

When Jitang heard him talking about his father, he couldn't help but look at him.

Chu Jinhuai spread his hands: "It is true that the Nightmare Clan has a longer cultivation life than humans, but after living like this for hundreds or thousands of years, the stability has long worn away your desire to become stronger. I heard that you still respect strength. Don't you think it's ridiculous to say it?"

Ji Tang didn't believe what he "heard". Chu Jinhuai had far-sighted eyes and a long reach. He knew something about the Nightmare Clan, so Ji Tang was not surprised.

Chu Jinhuai: "Xue Mei wants to lead the Nightmare Clan back to its former glory. This idea is very good. Unfortunately, he used the wrong method and lost the hearts of half of the clan members. Otherwise, I could have a chat with him." He nodded between his eyebrows, raised his eyelids, and stared at Ji Tang from top to bottom. "If you were the clan leader, what path would you take to lead the Nightmare Clan?"

Jitang was forcing her to answer this question, as it was too profound and far-fetched.

Chu Jinhuai didn't really want her to give an answer right now. Seeing her silence, he didn't dwell on the issue. "We'll talk about this later. The Nightmare Clan has made Chenwuzhou a mess. Even if you take back the position of clan leader, you still have a lot of things to do. I don't mind you coming back to me then, and we can talk slowly."

Ji Tang retracted his gaze and said, "Thank you very much, but the Nightmare Clan doesn't have any more flesh and blood for the Young City Lord to absorb."

Chu Jinhuai was amused by Jitang, "What are you talking about, Young Clan Leader? Aren't we allies? I'm waiting for good news from Shadow."

Ji Tang and Su Jinzhou bid farewell to Chu Jinhuai and returned to the Nightmare Clan with Shadow.

They first settled in a tree hole.

Ji Tang: "I'm sorry to bother you to stay here for a while."

Shadow gave people a very cold feeling. He didn't have the airs of a senior, and he kept his mid-stage Void cultivation very clean, not revealing a single bit of his terrifying power. He lived up to his name, like Shadow. If you didn't look for him, it would be easy to miss him.

Half of his face was covered with a black cloth, so his appearance could not be seen. One could only see a pair of ordinary eyes, which were always looking downwards. This humble attitude on him turned into an indifference that showed no concern for anything.

Shadow: "When does the Young Clan Leader want to take action?"

Ji Tang: "Wait a little longer," she said with a complicated feeling, "Xue Mei is not fit for the position of clan leader. If he stops, there is no need to take his life."

Shadow then raised his eyes to look at her, "Young Patriarch is kind-hearted."

How could Jitang not understand that he clearly wanted to say that she was indecisive.

Ji Tang looked at Su Jinzhou and said, "Brother, the Young City Lord is right. The relationship between the Nightmare Clan and the human cultivators is tense. You can't stay here any longer. There's a shadow here. Don't worry, you should return to the sect!"

The shadow walked out of the tree hole very wisely.

Su Jinzhou: "Now is a critical moment. I can help you a little bit here. Don't worry about me. I won't show up."

Ji Tang understood Su Jinzhou and knew that what Su Jinzhou said meant that he was determined not to go back. No matter how much she said, Su Jinzhou would at most pretend to go back, and in the end he would still stay here secretly without letting her know.

Ji Tang had no choice but to settle for the next best thing, "Brother, do you mean what you said? It's hard for me to return to the sect, and I don't want you to have a home that you can't return to."

At least she still has the Nightmare Clan as a place to stay, but once Su Jinzhou is discovered to have a connection with the Nightmare Clan, the noble and righteous paths will definitely not tolerate him, and then he will truly be homeless.

Su Jinzhou was pricked by Ji Tang's words "It's hard to return to the sect again", and the pain spread out in thin and dense areas, and finally even his fingertips felt numb.

"Why can't we go back?" He almost blurted out, his tone anxious, "You can go back anytime you want. Master and Gu Yan are still waiting for us!"

Ji Tang felt a lump in his throat and immediately lowered his head, resting his forehead heavily on Su Jinzhou's chest.

Su Jinzhou's chest heaved violently, making her forehead feel hot.

She didn't think she'd ever be able to return to the sect. Looking down at the ground with bitter eyes, she tried to speak in a light tone, "Okay, but we can't keep Master and Gu Yan waiting too long."

Above her, which she couldn't see, Su Jinzhou's eyes were filled with longing and loneliness, but the corners of his mouth were curled up into a smile that was uglier than crying.