Qi Zhiheng followed Yan Yinyue to register, and after showing the resources he brought, he obtained the qualification to challenge.
The appropriate resources are counted and then sealed in the hands of the organizers. If you win after crossing over, you can get them back from the organizers; if you lose, the resources will fall into the hands of the enemy.
Thus, the day of the challenge arrived.
There were quite a few people who wanted to seize the city. Besides Qi Zhiheng, there were also about ten Mahayana cultivators who wanted to get involved.
Because they fear that the city they want to choose will be taken by someone else, most people want to challenge it in advance, but there are rules for the challenge, and the order needs to be determined by drawing lots.
Qi Zhiheng has always been lucky, and he drew the third number to participate.
There were two more people ahead of him in line. Qi Zhiheng wasn't worried about these people taking the city he wanted to challenge, because even if they succeeded in the challenge, they would still have to be able to defend it.
Fortunately, neither of the two cities chosen by the top two candidates was Houtu City. It's possible that the resources in that city were just so-so. Qi Zhiheng thought this was the most likely reason, since the city had only changed hands ten years ago and would need to work hard for many years to compete for more resources.
However, one must act within one's capabilities in order to succeed. Just like the two Mahayana stage cultivators before Qi Zhiheng, they failed when they attempted the challenge.
Actually, this is not surprising. Anyone who can become the city lord must have some ability. It's not like they can win so easily.
Qi Zhiheng went up on the stage.
Chi Qing still remembered Qi Zhiheng, after all, Qi Zhiheng was standing next to Yan Yinyue at that time.
Qi Zhiheng didn't care much about the other party's thoughts. After all, he had already decided to eliminate Chi Qing. As a newcomer, if he won, there would likely be others wanting to challenge him, and he didn't want to deal with so much trouble. He had already made up his mind to intimidate these people.
The two entered the excavated space, surrounded by nothingness.
Qi Zhiheng felt that this space was tailor-made for him. In this space without the constraints of the Heavenly Dao, he was practically invincible.
The moment he entered this space, he used the power of rules to surround a large area of it.
Chi Qing sensed the stagnation in the air instantly and became somewhat tense. He immediately tried to raise a layer of spiritual energy as a protective barrier, but found that he could not control the surrounding air.
At this moment, he couldn't help but panic.
Qi Zhiheng did not act immediately. After Chi Qing panicked for a few moments, he used his spatial power to create several spatial rifts, cutting the unable-to-escape Chi Qing into several pieces.
Qi Zhiheng won.
Those who witnessed this were all in uproar. Both were at the Mahayana stage, yet one was able to kill the other in just a few breaths.
"Who is this person? How can he have such abilities?"
"Isn't it written with a name on it? It's Qi Zhiheng."
"I've never heard of Qi Zhiheng before. When did such a brilliant talent emerge in Zhongzhou?"
"Indeed, I've never heard of him either. Does anyone know anything about him?"
...
Not to mention these unfamiliar cultivators were surprised, even Yan Yinyue, who already knew Qi Zhiheng, was stunned by Qi Zhiheng's methods. He did not expect Qi Zhiheng to be such a powerful expert.
He had initially guessed that Qi Zhiheng might have come from some sect to establish his own sect, and brought along the cultivators from his own sect along with him, but he never expected that this person would be so capable.
After Qi Zhiheng revealed this skill, those who wanted to challenge him all backed down, and in the end, the matter was dropped.
In any case, Qi Zhiheng's goal has been achieved.
After he emerged from that space, everyone looked at him with a sense of inquiry.
Qi Zhiheng returned to his seat without any hesitation. Once the competition was completely over, he could go back and collect his belongings using the token he had previously obtained.
Qi Zhiheng was much more relaxed in the next challenge. If he hadn't wanted to maintain his refined demeanor, he would have been sitting to the side eating sunflower seeds long ago.
Watching a good show without snacking on sunflower seeds? That sounds completely out of place.
He succeeded in two of the next challenges, but these had nothing to do with Qi Zhiheng.
After the matter was over, Qi Zhiheng took his identity token and went to retrieve his reward.
At that time, Qi Zhiheng will need to accompany the person in charge to Hou Tu City to hand over the matter.
The people of a city cannot refuse a new city lord; otherwise, they will be dealt with by the city's higher-ups.
It is generally accepted that cultivators in the Mahayana stage can have their own territory, but given the large number of Mahayana stage cultivators, most still cannot obtain their own independent territory and thus have to rely on the power of their sects.
After the matter was over, a Mahayana cultivator came to Qi Zhiheng's side. This person was a cultivator from the Central Continent City Alliance, and he would lead Qi Zhiheng to Houtu City.
Since Qi Zhiheng also needed to bring his subordinates, this Mahayana cultivator went back to Yanqing City with him.
Fortunately, Hou Tu City and Yan Qing City are two adjacent cities, relatively close to each other, so going there on the way wouldn't be a waste of time.
After returning to Yanqing City, Qi Zhiheng gathered his men, bid farewell to Yan Yinyue and Ning Xiu, and left Yanqing City.
The distance between the two sides was not far, really not far. They quickened their pace and arrived at Houtu City in three days.
Looking at the plaque with the three large characters "Hou Tu Cheng" (Thick Earth City) in front of him, Qi Zhiheng asked the Mahayana cultivator beside him who was helping with the handover, "Can the name of this city be changed?"
The Mahayana cultivator named Bu Yunchen said upon hearing Qi Zhiheng's request: "Changing the name is possible, but the process is extremely complicated. It might take a year or two to get it approved. Besides, the name of this city is already well-known. If we change the name now, people might not know what kind of city it is when they mention it."
Qi Zhiheng handed the other party a bottle of top-grade level eight pills: "Please explain in detail, Fellow Daoist Bu, how exactly should this name change be done?"
Bu Yunchen opened the bottle and checked inside. He found that there were actually three top-grade level eight pills inside. Taking one of them would definitely allow him to advance his cultivation to a higher level!
His smile became much more genuine. After putting away the pills, he said, "These are all minor matters. Let's go and hand over the city first. Then, Fellow Daoist Qi, give me the name of the city you want to change. I will then help you take the information back and enter it into the system. However, you will have to find someone to make the plaque on the city gate yourself."
Qi Zhiheng: "..." So the so-called trouble was just a lack of proper etiquette.
Qi Zhiheng: "Then I'll have to trouble Fellow Daoist Bu."
"No trouble at all! We're friends, what trouble is there? It's just a small favor. Let's keep in touch." Bu Yunchen said, winking at Qi Zhiheng, leaving him speechless for a while.
The handover was extremely fast. No matter how many of the original city lord's men were in the city, they dared not make any rash moves under the guidance of the envoy. After Qi Zhiheng obtained control of the central formation of the city, he went to take inventory of the contents of the treasury. Of course, half of them were taken away by Bu Yunchen, as they were to be taken back. The remaining items were the ownership rights of some mineral resources.
After the handover was completed, Qi Zhiheng had some of his men quickly occupy various important positions in the city. Meanwhile, Chi Qing's original men were also gathered together.
These were all the original members of the team, and Qi Zhiheng stood in front of them.
"Chi Qing is dead. I killed him." Qi Zhiheng's first words indicated that their original master was no longer there. Then he began to observe the expressions of these people.
Some people showed surprise, while others remained unmoved. Then, a few people seemed to have figured something out, and their faces showed a hint of restraint.
Qi Zhiheng's soul power witnessed all of this and continued, "From now on, I will take over this city. Those who wish to leave may do so, and those who wish to stay may also stay. I will not make things difficult for you if you leave now. Does anyone want to leave?"
After he said that, 90% of the people immediately decided to leave.
These people also knew that although Qi Zhiheng said he could let them stay, everyone knew that they would not be valued by Qi Zhiheng if they stayed, so leaving was of course the best choice.
Qi Zhiheng was already showing mercy by allowing these people to leave with their families.
Only fifty-odd people remained. Qi Zhiheng selected a few and had them thrown out. The people of western Zhejiang harbored deep resentment towards Qi Zhiheng, so he naturally did not want these people to remain in his city and cause trouble.
The selected individuals, pressured by Qi Zhiheng's Mahayana stage cultivation, dared not resist and were thus driven out of the city.
The remaining people were scattered and assigned to some unimportant positions.
After dealing with these people, Qi Zhiheng pondered what name to give the city.
“I think it should be called Ascension City! I’ll definitely be able to ascend after five years, and the name has a good meaning.” Yang Yitian immediately expressed his opinion.
Qi Zhiheng thought the name wasn't very original, but it sounded better than Hou Tu City. He first asked Bu Yunchen if any other city had already claimed the name.
When Bu Yunchen heard them ask about the name, he couldn't help but feel that they were being a bit arrogant. However, they were just passersby, and it was not his place to make unwarranted comments on the name. When Qi Zhiheng asked, he replied, "No city has used this name yet."
Qi Zhiheng slammed his fist on the table and declared, "Then let's change it to Ascension City!"
"If you like it, that's all that matters." What else could Bu Yunchen say...?
After Bu Yunchen finished dealing with matters in Shengxian City, he prepared to return. When he saw him off, Qi Zhiheng gave him a few pills.
Bu Yunchen was very satisfied and exchanged communication jade slips with Qi Zhiheng: "If you have any questions, feel free to come to me. If there is any new information from the city management headquarters, I will definitely notify you as soon as possible."
This was the first time Bu Yunchen had ever received such a high reward for running errands, and he was overjoyed.
Qi Zhiheng quickly thanked him and escorted him outside the city.
The affairs of Shengxian City have been almost completed, and Qi Zhiheng and the others have moved into the City Lord's Mansion.
Qi Zhiheng entrusted most of the matters to Xiong Shuang and others, while Yang Yitian began preparing to break through the Integration Stage and enter the Mahayana Stage.
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