Dual Cultivation God Returns-Chapter 964: Sometimes the right words come...

It was raining in the Iron Claw City as well - its region was prone to frequent heavy rainfall to begin with - and the rain only intensified by nightfall.

But unlike the Silver Wing City which stood on a relatively flat, but overall elevated, terrain with three large, deep-set rivers that could absorb the majority of the rainwater and carry it downstream without overflowing in its vicinity, Iron Claw City stood smack in the middle of a low-height mountainous area, its center built around the World Stone stood essentially at the top of a rounded-top mountain.

And although both cities were roughly equal in population and area, that was in regards to the main city proper.

Iron Claw City had vast suburbs stretching far beyond the city walls, and if viewed collectively with the agglomeration of settlements around it, occupied the whole mountain.

These outskirts lacked any kind of city planning or organization, built haphazardly - mostly by generations of mortals from all over the continent either driven out of their homeland and seeking asylum, just seeking a better life under the protection of and in service to cultivators, or enticed by the allure of possibly stepping on the path of cultivation themselves - and were down-slope from the city itself, which turned the sloped, vertically-aligned streets into shallow muddy rivers during heavy rains, and flooded any areas with slightly flatter terrain.

Unlike these residential areas of the suburbs populated by mortals, that lay flat in the open areas of the gentler slopes, inns and various entertainment establishments that catered to cultivators were built in elevated spots, perched on the steep sides of the dozens of long and narrow ridges that carved up the mountainsides like enormous serpents, effectively creating natural districts for the suburbs.

Especially in the furthest parts of the city-agglomeration, at the foot of the mountain, where the populated areas were smaller and much sparser in between, and where the outskirts truly bordered the wilderness, the terrain further outward suddenly rose up with the surrounding mountains, creating multiple long and relatively narrow basins that easily became completely flooded during heavy rains or thaw after the long winter.

The small markets of mortals living in these far outskirts which traded with nearby mortal kingdoms, were filled with cheap low-quality cultivation pills, manuals, tools and ingredients marketed as valuable goods of cultivators from the city, as well as outright shady people offering fake books filled with "legendary cultivation knowledge" or some kind of "potent cultivation pill" supposedly stolen from some famous Sect, that could "instantly turn a mortal into a full-fledged cultivator, or a "miracle medicine even among cultivators" that they somehow obtained.

These far outskirts were a place of stark contrasts, since they housed some of the most high-end luxurious establishments and mansions of the city - both within and outside the city walls - next to some of the most seedy and dangerous districts where the rule of the Iron Claw Group did not quite reach, instead ruled by a class of local elites who employed localized gangs.

This was particularly true of the Western Outskirts, which could be considered a separate town within the city-agglomeration, consisting of three large districts, with its own laws of the land - a territory almost completely ruled by the dark side of the cultivation society.

It was home to the branch of the Palace of Secrets, along with other more powerful organizations which the Iron Claw Group could not touch or even speak to on even terms.

There was a particularly large ridge in the center of the Western Outskirts that connected the mountain of the Iron Claw City to another, particularly craggy mountain, crashing into its sharply rising walls.

On top of this ridge, stretched out throughout its length, stood an enormous complex of palaces and pavilions, one of the largest establishments in the entire city agglomeration, culminating in a giant palace built directly against the rocky mountain wall of the neighboring mountain.

Some small detached structures were built right on the almost vertical slopes around it, connected to the palace with either risky wooden stairs and bridges, narrow passages carved out from the mountainwall, or not visibly connected at all, indicating that there were caves cut into the mountain itself or that they could only be reached by flying over.

Every building in that complex - and especially the main palace at the very back - looked luxurious, but in a particularly gaudy and cheap manner, with screaming bright colors, exaggerated flashy design and fake golden ornaments, creating a sharp contrast to its shabby, run-down surroundings, a bright spot amid the dark and gloomy neighborhood.

However, there was a strange, almost festive allure to that cheap luxuriousness, and the countless red lanterns brightly illuminating the tall and spacious buildings, which looked especially inviting on such a dark, chilly, and rainy night.

There was a steady stream of people going back and forth the main road down the slope and straight up the ridge, leading to the entrance of the complex from the direction of the Iron Claw City up the mountain.

Four figures were moving among the crowds on that road. Zhao Biren - who was a regular in this place almost every week - led the way, followed by Wu Long who had his arm around Hong Ye’s waist and Hong Yue walking beside them.

Both twins were wearing their silver masks, while Wu Long was wearing a simple wooden mask with no features except for the cutouts for eyes, painted black color, while Zhao Biren - acting as a hired guide for them - did a deliberately sloppy attempt at concealing his identity by wearing a loosely-fitted cloth mask more resembling a scarf.

Overall, they did not stand out in the crowd, most of which also concealed their identities in one way or another. Although it was possible to pick out people who, much like Zhao Biren, did only a symbolic job of covering their faces, which identified them as ’locals’ or ’familiar faces’ of the Western Outskirts rather than outsiders.

Wu Long raised the umbrella he held to look at the brightly illuminated pavilions in the distance uphill, and then noticing Hong Yue vigilantly scanning their surroundings in the periphery, turned his gaze to her, "I didn’t expect you to propose such a risky move"

"You said that the disturbance on the continent is not big enough yet", she also slightly tilted her umbrella back to get a better view ahead, including him and Hong Ye.

"I didn’t say I don’t appreciate it, just saying it was unusual for someone as careful in her approach to planning and making moves as you", he chuckled.

"You thought I didn’t see the merits in your way of doing things?", she raised her eyebrow with a hint of a smile in her voice, which caused Hong Ye who was hidden from her twin’s view by Wu Long’s figure to widen her eyes.

’That’s something new... I’ve never seen Sister Yue act this way...’, the younger twin thought with shiny eyes full of amazement.

Meanwhile Hong Yue continued with a more neutral voice again, "I learned a lot from you, especially that sometimes boldness is necessary in making decisions... besides, it’s not like this is entirely for only your benefit. There’s a chance our appearance here will not only stir things up as you want, but will attract the attention of some of the remnants of Bahshi Assassins who went into hiding"

"Fair enough", Wu Long smiled.

At this moment, Hong Ye’s head popped out from behind his silhouette, "As expected of Sister Yue~! So smart~!"

Her twin returned her a blank stare, "You, on the other hand would benefit from ’some’ planning and at least a bit of contemplative hesitation before doing something..."

"Umm~", Hong Ye pressed a finger on her lower lip with upturned eyes in thought, causing a burst of adoration within Wu Long, and then chuckled in her usual carefree way, with a completely relaxed and nonchalant tone, "No~, I’ll pass~"

This in turn caused her older sister to roll her eyes with a somewhat helpless sigh, while Wu Long, while thoroughly amused, still felt a pang of empathy for Hong Yue, knowing she was never going to win in a mental battle with Hong Ye.

It was at this moment that Zhao Biren who tactfully waited for them to finish their conversation, spoke up - his voice not concealed by Wu Long - "Mister, you have visited at an opportune moment! Vague rumors that some big shot was supposed to visit soon were going around for some time already, but in the recent week or so there have been actual movements that confirmed that something was indeed happening. So if you’re lucky you can benefit-..."

Unlike them he wasn’t holding an umbrella, only wearing a rather wide bamboo hat and rain-cloak, and as he spoke, half-turning his head to look back at his ’clients’ with an ingratiating tone of a hired guide, he stepped into a big muddy puddle.

"Shit! Fu-... khm... ahahaha", he quickly adjusted his expression back to an amicable smile.

A man sitting on the edge of a shoddily-built roofed wooden porch to the side openly laughed, "Hahaha, can you help someone even a little as a guide in that drunken state, Drinking King?", and then turning to Wu Long without pause added with a sly smile, "What do you think, Mister? Want to switch guides? I’ll be much more useful than this drunkard"

Wu Long’s eyes merely turned a bit toward the man, without answering. But both Hong Ye and Hong Yue immediately noted that despite sitting in such an unremarkable place, and looking rather ordinary, the man’s cultivation roughly gave off the same feeling as Zhao Biren, at 4th level of Essence Awakening Realm. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"You fuc-... khmm~", Zhao Biren’s eyes and attitude turned sharp, but he quickly adjusted after a quick look back at Wu Long and the twins, speaking in a more moderate tone, "You have a lot of nerve trying to poach guests from me on the main road, One-Legged, you forgot your manners? Or are you still sulking about losing that drinking match with me that time?"

"You cheated!", the man’s relaxed attitude instantly disappeared at the mention of the drinking match as he pointed his finger at Zhao Biren.

The latter’s expression turned into a mocking one as he scoffed, "Ha! Such a whiny looser"

The man on the porch stood up while still pointing his finger at Zhao Biren, raising his voice, "Bullshit! I saw you drinking a whole barrel earlier that evening with my own two eyes! You were clearly already drunk! And you’re telling me~... that you could outdrink me after that?!"

"Whatever you say~", Zhao Biren simply waived his hand with a dismissive tone, and turning to Wu Long and twins once again turned up the level of servile attitude, "Now, now, dear guests, let’s go on our way, don’t pay attention to that looser. There’s no need to waste more time here with him. I’m sorry you had to witness all this"

"Hey Mister! I was serious before! This guy’s only been here not that long, I’ve been around here for more than 140 years, I definitely can be a better guide to you!", the man on the porch didn’t seem to want to let this go, shouting over Zhao Biren’s last few sentences.

"Hey One-Legged, I am warning you, my patience also has limits", Zhao Biren’s tone became much colder and serious, no longer caring to appear amicable in front of his ’clients’, while his cloak slightly moved, indicating that his hand under it had moved toward the hilt of his sword.

The one he called ’One-Legged’, instantly became more vigilant as well, taking out a sword and shield, but his words changed course, "Hey... I was just messing with ya, you don’t want to start anything here..."

The moment this tension rose, the crowds of people moving back and forth on the street all stopped, visibly vigilant in case something started.

"Knock it off, Drinking King", a third voice came from the opposite side of the street, where a group of men and women idled at the entrance to some shady parlor. The voice belonged to a man who seemed to be in charge among them, "You too, One-Legged, even if it’s on the main road not far from the entrance to the Crow King’s Nest, no one will question Drinking King for retaliating if you tried poaching clients from him like this..."

The man then looked around and added, "... some might even help him... you know the rules~"

Among the crowds, most locals, both idling in vicinity and similarly guiding clients, gave One-Legged warning or even hostile looks.

"O-of course, I was just-...", One-Legged shrank in stature, visibly shaken, but he wasn’t given the opportunity to finish, as the man who spoke to him turned to face the crowd, including Wu Long’s group.

"Dear guests of our Western Outskirts, forgive this unsightly scene, please continue on your way", he spoke and then returned to his previous idle pose.

"Haha, I can always depend on big brother Lu!", Zhao Biren chuckled in a friendly tone, and seemingly not minding the rather lukewarm reaction, turned back to Wu Long and twins, "Sorry for that, dear guests. Now, let’s go~ what was I saying before...?"

"Drinking King?", as they walked further, Wu Long asked with a smile under his mask, this time concealing their conversation from the outsiders, "I didn’t see that nickname in your reports~"

Zhao Biren’s already red from alcohol cheeks became slightly redder as he cleared his throat, "Khm~ ehm, you know folks in these kinds of places Valley Master~, no one’s calling each other’s name out here, most don’t really even know, and no one can choose their nickname either, people just randomly start calling you stuff when you become ’familiar’ enough for them to recognize~"

"Why’s that guy One-Legged though? He had both legs...", Hong Ye chimed in with a curious look in her eyes.

"Ah~, from what I heard, he has a unique fighting stance, but because of it, in the 140 years he’s been here, his right leg’s been cut off at least twice already, some say more, he just went into big debts to some local bigshot for Medicine Daoists to reattach it", Zhao Biren explained with a chuckle, causing Hong Ye to laugh, while he added, "Rumor is, that it’s the reason he’s here all this time even though he supposedly originally had no intention of staying in this place, he’s trying to pay off those debts-..."

And then, some kind of realization seemed to dawn on him as he exclaimed with genuine sorrow while placing a hand on his forehead, "Aah! Shit! I should’ve threatened to cut his leg off again! That’s such a good comeback!!! He never would’ve been able to recover from that one~! Why didn’t I think of it~! Dammit~!"

Wu Long shook his head with a smile under the mask, feeling genuine regret and disappointment in Zhao Biren’s voice, knowing what it felt like and thus able to slightly sympathize.