Chapter 453: Xi Men Chun’s Psychological Shadow

“Report…” A spy’s voice reached Lin Xu and the others from afar.
“Any news?” The short, fat man narrowed his eyes slightly on his seat at the head.
“Yes, there are fifteen of them in total—eleven men and four women. They’re currently staying at Qingfeng Tower…” The spy was cut off before he could finish.
“Qingfeng Tower? The cost there is quite high—one mid-grade divine crystal per night. Could they really have some special background?” The fat man frowned deeply before turning to the spy. “What else?”
“A few of them have just ascended from the Heavenly Realm.”
“What?” The fat man was stunned. Not only him, but even Lin Xu and Xi Men Chun were shocked.
“Are you sure?” Xi Men Chun pressed immediately.
“Absolutely. They ascended early this morning from the Ascension Pool in Qingfeng Town. Two soldiers guarding the pool led them into the city. They clearly remember the appearance of those fifteen people.”
“How is that possible? Those who just ascend usually possess at least the strength of a Supreme God.” Xi Men Chun looked utterly incredulous. After all, his own cultivation was at the peak of the Heavenly God level—most ordinary foes were nothing to him.
Even Lin Xu fell into deep thought. Though he couldn’t detect their cultivation level, he was certain the man who attacked Xi Men Chun was stronger than him—by a huge margin. He had always suspected the opponent to be a Royal God-level powerhouse, but could someone truly reach that level right after ascending? Was that possible???
The fat man glared at Lin Xu unhappily. “Lin Xu, that guy used a technique to hide his cultivation level, so it’s understandable you couldn’t detect it. But when he attacked, couldn’t you see his strength? Royal God level? Have you ever seen someone reach that level right after ascending? I’ve lived for so many years and haven’t even seen anyone at the Heavenly God level! It’s understandable that your nephew Xi Men Chun was captured in a moment of carelessness, but how could you lack such insight?”
“Fourth Uncle, from what I observed, that man’s speed was indeed far beyond mine, which is why I concluded he was stronger. But it’s also possible his cultivation level isn’t high, yet he has some special acceleration devices or has practiced certain secret techniques,” Lin Xu said, sneaking a glance at the fat man.
A flash of greed appeared in the fat man’s eyes, which Lin Xu caught clearly.
“Is there anything else?” Lin Xu suddenly noticed the spy still there.

“Lord City Master, when I went out to gather information just now, I found that a rumor has already spread in the city,” the spy said anxiously.
“What is it?” the fat man asked impatiently.
“A level-three beast horde has erupted in Karun City. It is said they can hold out for at most three days, after which the horde will head toward our Pompei City…”
“What? Who spread this rumor?” The fat man’s expression changed. “Has its authenticity been confirmed?”
“We don’t know who spread it yet, but I’ve already sent someone to verify it. We should know the result soon.”
“It’s very likely to be true. If it were a rumor about a beast horde, it would be easily exposed, let alone a massive level-three one,” Lin Xu said with a frown.
“How long before the horde reaches here?” Xi Men Chun asked anxiously, looking at Lin Xu.
“It should take about four days for the horde to get from Karun City here, and Karun City should be able to hold out for three days. So, it will probably take another seven days before it affects us.” Lin Xu frowned slightly. He knew that Xi Men Chun, being a coward, surely wanted to run away.
“Um… Brother Lin, Fourth Uncle, I suddenly remember there are some matters at home that need to be taken care of. I won’t bother you anymore. I’ll take my leave first. Next time I have the chance, I’ll definitely spend time with you properly.” Xi Men Chun made up an excuse casually. He was well aware of the horror of beast hordes. When he was young, a level-five beast horde had erupted in the main city of Yanquan. He still clearly remembered that vast army of magical beasts. That level-five horde was caused by five ancestral gods of magical beasts, with the leader being a super-strong being at the late stage of the ancestral god level. If not for some changes at the last moment, Yanquan City might have been removed from the list of main cities ever since.
There was another special reason why he remembered that incident so clearly: his seemingly invincible grandmother was severely injured in that battle and remained unconscious for years before waking up, her cultivation level forever stuck at the mid-stage of an ancestral god. During those years of her coma, their once-prosperous family rapidly declined, causing Ouyang Chun to suffer bullying from peers from other families during his youth.
So, he had deep fears regarding beast hordes.

Such things happening, although Lin Xu was reluctant to see Xi Men Chun leave—because with Xi Men Chun around, the Xi Men family would send experts to assist when an animal plague struck—now that Xi Men Chun had asked to leave, he couldn’t force him to stay, as that would only bring trouble. After all, Xi Men Chun held considerable influence in the Xi Men family as their eldest grandson. He was Xi Men Bing’s first grandson and her most beloved one.

“Alright, Brother Xi Men. I’ll arrange to send you back right away.” Lin Xu’s expression showed some helplessness. Without the help of the Xi Men family, whether he could survive this third-level animal plague was still uncertain.

“Brother Lin, why don’t you come back to the Xi Men family with me for a while?” Xi Men Chun looked at Lin Xu. “Let’s pretend we don’t know about the animal plague. We can just say it’s out of courtesy that you’re visiting our Xi Men family.”

“Brother Xi Men, thank you. But that won’t work. I’m the city lord of Pompeii. Even though it’s just a remote second-level city, I can’t abandon millions of people and try to survive on my own.” Lin Xu shook his head with a bitter smile. “Although the third-level animal plague is terrifying, this small city might not be spared. But I’ll do my best to survive and help as many people as possible.”

“How about this? I’ll ask my grandmother to send a team of bodyguards over. They’re all at the Imperial God level, seven in total. If they set off now, they should arrive in five or six days. I’ll have them protect your life.” Although Xi Men Chun wasn’t very smart and often thought only about matters related to men and women, he still cared deeply for Lin Xu, who might be his only friend.

Back then, both of them were bullied among those prince-like elites. Xi Men Chun was bullied because his grandmother was in a coma and his family declined in status. As for Lin Xu, although his father was the head of the Lin family, his mother was an ascendant, making him the least respected young master in the family and also a target of bullying among those elite youths. That’s why, after reaching adulthood, he was exiled to such a remote second-level city to become its city lord.

Among those children at the time, only the two of them were bullied, so Xi Men Chun had always regarded Lin Xu as a friend—because only he had never bullied him. But what Lin Xu thought was unknown. He was respectful to everyone, even to the once-down-and-out Xi Men Chun.

“Seven Royal God-level warriors?” Lin Xu was slightly stunned. He hadn’t expected Ximen Chun to be so loyal. In his eyes, aside from inheriting his father’s strength in bed, Ximen Chun seemed to have no other merits. Of course, he had only heard rumors about his exceptional skills in bed and wasn’t sure if they were true. Still, it wasn’t bad that this fool regarded him as a friend. He immediately agreed, “We’ve been friends for so many years; I won’t refuse. After all, it concerns my life safety. Thank you in advance. If I survive this time, I must go on a drinking spree with Brother Ximen someday.”
“I’ll wait for you!” Ximen Chun took out his communication token and sent a message. Soon, he received a reply. His expression first turned joyful, but then turned fearful.
“What’s wrong?” Lin Xu grew anxious. Had the Ximen family refused?
“Grandma agreed to send two teams of bodyguards, and even assigned a branch uncle at the early Imperial God level to lead them…” Ximen Chun looked troubled. “But she wants me to stay and observe this beast invasion closely to strengthen myself…”
“Elder Ximen is doing this for your own good,” Lin Xu said, relieved. With an Imperial God-level expert around, although it couldn’t guarantee the city’s safety, their lives would surely be protected.
“Don’t worry, nephew Ximen. In a Level 3 beast invasion, the strongest monsters are only Royal God level. With an Imperial God-level warrior here, our lives will be safe.”
“But…”
“Don’t worry, nothing will happen!” Lin Xu patted Ximen Chun’s shoulder, finally calming him down.
“Nephew Ximen, since you want to stay, how about I take you to confront that guy who bullied you just now?” The fat man suggested this to distract Ximen Chun. He was also overjoyed at the idea of Ximen staying. If a Level 3 beast invasion really struck and the city gates fell, even his own Royal God-level strength might not be enough to save himself. But now that Ximen Chun was around, he became a talisman for him, so he needed to curry favor with this young man even more.

“Fourth Uncle, there’s no need for that. In a few days, when the beast horde arrives, it’s even uncertain whether those who have just ascended will survive. Why do we need you to get involved?” Lin Xu frowned slightly. With the beast horde approaching, he really didn’t want to create more trouble. Moreover, after learning that those people were merely ascendants, he believed they had no chance of resisting in front of his fourth uncle. His original plan to use those people to kill his fourth uncle also vanished. In this Pompeii City, he was nominally the city lord, but in reality, he was just a puppet; the real city lord was his fourth uncle, who pretended to protect him but actually wanted to seize power.
“What do you mean there’s no need? Letting them die at the hands of the beast horde would be giving them an easy death!” The fat man’s fleshy face trembled violently. “Nephew Ximen, we’ve suffered wrongs in Pompeii City—how can we just give up like this?”
Seeing that Ximen Chun had no objections, Lin Xu could only stay silent. He knew Ximen Chun was very vindictive, so it was better not to persuade him any further.
“Nephew Ximen, let’s go!” The fat man gave Lin Xu a cold glance before pulling Ximen Chun away.