The Yan Huang Heaven Raising Staff gave Wu Yu confidence.
However, the exorbitant amount he had to pay off also stressed him quite a bit.
The fact that he had to pay off this debt also played a part in his decision to walk on such a clear-cut path.
If he did not do so, he would not live up to the support and trust that Zhang Tiande had placed in him.
Hence, as Wu Yu rode his sword toward the inner city, he had made up his mind, and was never turning back.
This was what he was determined to accomplish for now anyway.
He would no longer go to places that he was supposed to leave, and there was no need for him to flinch when he headed to places that he had to go either.
Right now, he was considered somewhat of a celebrity within Yan Huang Imperial City. As he traveled within the vast city, there were many people who recognized him.
They were a variety of people that were of all shapes and sizes.
Some of them even approached Wu Yu to engage in small talk with him. They asked Wu Yu where he was going, and whether he was interested in chatting with them for a while.
Wu Yu tactfully declined every one of them.
"It seems like he's really going to the inner city."
"Apparently, the Lunar Flower Sword Sage and the Distant Fire Sword Sage of the Shushan Sword Sages have been strolling around the area recently."
Wu Yu had heard such news as well.
However, he was not afraid at all. He was traveling through a huge crowd, and there were Yan Huang Immortal Army troops patrolling the area too. Even two Sword Sages would not be able to do much to Wu Yu.
In the distance, the inner city of Yan Huang Imperial City was shrouded in an immortal fog. Over there, the immortal qi was dense and the place shone radiantly. From the outside, one could not discern anything that was going on within.
This inner city was similar to the peak of the Clear Sky of Shushan, the Shushan Immortal Domain. It was an elusive place on the divine continent that normal people could not easily enter, and it was even more difficult for them to check it out from afar.
From within, there was an indistinct feeling of spiritual qi drifting through the air and a strong sense of battle intent too. Screams and sounds of killing echoed out from within.
"I'm afraid that I have to become a Yan Huang Immortal Army soldier before I'm able to bury Huang Yanwu in the middle of Yan Huang Imperial City. This isn't my turf after all."
The expansive Yan Huang Imperial City even had mountain streams flowing through it.
Not long after, Wu Yu noticed that one of the gates to the inner city had appeared before him as he rode on his sword.
Jiang Xuechuan had mentioned that he just needed to report that his name was Wu Yu in order to enter at any time to become one of them. There was no need at all for him to undergo the trials and selection processes of the Yan Huang Immortal Army.
This was a new beginning!
As Wu Yu looked to the vast inner city, he was quite excited as well.
"Wu Yu."
All of a sudden, a frosty female voice ambushed him from behind, causing him to stop in his tracks. At this moment, Wu Yu turned around to take a look. A pair of sword cultivators descended and appeared before him, filling the void behind him as they did so. They had livid faces and their breathing was agitated. After they saw that Wu Yu had noticed them, they used their tyrannical presence to intimidate him as they approached. Wu Yu felt as though there were two giant mountains pressing down on his head.
They were none other than the Lunar Flower Sword Sage and the Distant Fire Sword Sage.
Sure enough, they had entered Yan Huang Imperial City and found him.
"It's the two of you. What brings you here?" When the Lunar Flower Sword Sage and her husband trapped Wu Yu, many people around them took notice immediately.
Among the crowd, there was no lack of Yan Huang Immortal Army soldiers who often patrolled the outer city.
The news regarding Jiang Xuechuan's recruitment of Wu Yu was something that the majority of the Yan Huang Immortal Army had heard of by now. After all, it had been close to 20 days since this happened.
Wu Yu was truly not afraid of these two.
Countless bystanders started to surround them.
After losing her daughter, the Lunar Flower Sword Sage seemed to have deteriorated with age quite a bit. At this moment she glared at Wu Yu and said, "Who knew that you would hide here. How clever of you. I'm sure that Shen Xingyao was the one who gave you such an idea."
Wu Yu replied, "I feel helpless regarding the death of your daughter. However, everyone knows that the true killer wasn't me, so why would the two of you compel yourselves to cope by coming all this way to find me? Unless, you're really thinking of taking my life right here in Yan Huang Imperial City?"
At this moment, there were signs that indicated they were going to make a move, so numerous Yan Huang Immortal Army troops started to surround them too.
Among them was a centurion that led a squad of over 100 people. They completely surrounded Wu Yu and the two, and the centurion, who was dressed in the uniform of the Yan Huang Immortal Army, shouted out, "It's my honor to meet you two Sword Sages. Welcome to Yan Huang Imperial City. You're free to enjoy the city to your heart's content, but please do not start a fight in Yan Huang Imperial City. This is against the rules set by the City Lord, and nobody is allowed to go against them."
Yan Huang Imperial City never invaded other places, but on their own turf, they were an incomparably mighty presence.
For instance, just a mere centurion like this declined to be overly polite to these two Sword Sages when speaking to them.
However, the Lunar Flower Sword Sage ignored him completely. The couple stood side by side and walked closer to Wu Yu. At this very moment, if Wu Yu was a rabbit, then these two would be savannah lions. The moment they made a move, they would naturally be able to easily end Wu Yu's life.
After all, they had been cultivating for hundreds of years, and were prestigious Sword Sages that had emerged from the tens of thousands of Shushan disciples.
Wu Yu felt a lethal presence that made his scalp go numb!
"Wu Yu!" The Lunar Flower Sword Sage's eyes were wide as a wave of valiant mental resolve rushed out from her to strike Wu Yu's very spirit. The voice of this beautiful woman was extremely piercing as it rang out beside Wu Yu's ears. She said, "You're not wrong, we won't do anything to you today. We just want to tell you one simple thing. You're going to have to spend the rest of your life growing old as a cowardly tortoise while hiding within Yan Huang Imperial City. You'd better not take a step out of Yan Huang Imperial City, or else, keke..."
This was a threat.
At this moment, the Distant Fire Sword Sage continued, "As for the murderer of our daughter, we're well aware as well. The Blood Dragon of Mount Wu is one of them, but you, Wu Yu, were the one who personally did the deed that sent her away. You can't escape your involvement in this matter! You'd better be willing to stay here forever, or else there will come a day where you'll find it difficult to protect your life."
"You've traveled over such a long distance just to come here and tell me this. Don't you feel that it's quite pointless?" Wu Yu was practically speechless.
The two of them were Sword Sages, yet their way of thinking seemed to be rather illogical.
The truth was that the two of them wanted to see Wu Yu quake in horror and live a tortured existence in Yan Huang Imperial City till he grew old. They wanted him to never dare to leave this place. Such an existence would perhaps be extremely tormenting to Wu Yu.
However, Wu Yu personally felt that there would be no such day where that would end up happening. There would eventually come a day where even when Shushan Sword Sages stood before him, he would not feel the need to fear them.
"Once you realize that you're too scared to leave after a few years, you'll truly understand what it means to suffer." The Lunar Flower Sword Sage gave a sinister laugh.
Wu Yu guessed that it was the Ursae Sword Immortal who forbade them from dealing with himself in secret after he had been expelled from Shushan. As such, all they could do was come and scare him and attempt to severely torture his spirit. However, Wu Yu clearly knew that this was the case, so he did not even want to bother with them.
The Golden Essence Pills required to enter Yan Huang Imperial City were quite worth it after all. In practice, there were also many others who had come to Yan Huang Imperial City as a way to hide from their enemies.
"Esteemed Sword Sages, please forgive the manners of Mister Jiang here." At this very moment, a bright voice sounded out from behind. This voice was resonant and was rather dignified as well.
As Wu Yu turned to take a look, he realized that it was none other than the domineering and powerful Jiang Xuechuan wearing a suit of Yan Huang Immortal Armor. His stalwart expression remained completely unfazed in the face of these two Sword Sages. From the moment he came forward, he lined up beside Wu Yu. Essentially, he was helping Wu Yu reduce a portion of the pressure exerted on him by the other two.
"Who are you?" The Lunar Flower Sword Sage was naturally unfamiliar with the various chiliarchs here.
"Your humble servant here is known as Jiang Xuechuan. I'm an insignificant chiliarch of the Yan Huang Immortal Army. I'm good friends with Wu Yu here, right?" Jiang Xuechuan gave a forthright laugh as he stretched out his arm to pat Wu Yu's shoulder.
He had probably rushed over immediately when he heard news of what was happening. It so happened that Wu Yu was going to go look for him today as well.
"Since you know that you're an insignificant soldier, then don't stick your nose into others' business." The Lunar Flower Sword Sage mockingly laughed.
Jiang Xuechuan's voice became solemn as he replied, "That won't be possible. This is Yan Huang Imperial City, not the Shushan Immortal Sect. Over here, we don't welcome the two of you to come trouble my friend like this. I have to politely request the two of you to leave."
The Lunar Flower Sword Sage was slightly peeved.
Jiang Xuechuan continued, "It seems like the two of you aren't aware of our Imperial General's temper. Do you dare to make a move against me here? Do you not think that the Imperial General will skin you two alive before throwing you two out?"
Upon hearing him mention the Imperial General's name, the Lunar Flower Sword Sage and her husband revealed expressions of reverence on their faces. That person was truly an insane, tyrannical presence with no scruples whatsoever.
The actions of the Imperial General in Jiang Xuechuan's description had naturally been done many times before.
This time, Jiang Xuechuan had protected him, so this helped Wu Yu make up his mind. He felt like he had to bring things to a conclusion, and the Lunar Flower Sword Sage was here along with a huge crowd. Therefore, Wu Yu turned to the crowd and loudly declared, "Everyone, I, Wu Yu had been exiled from Shushan, and am currently someone with no affiliations. I'm greatly indebted to Yan Huang Imperial City's high regard for me, and commander Jiang Xuechuan has graciously extended an invitation to me as well. As of today, I, Wu Yu, will join Yan Huang Imperial City!"
Wu Yu's personality was simple and clear-cut, and he was courageous enough to be straight to the point. He had even chosen to announce this right in front of the Lunar Flower Sword Sage.
A hubbub spread through the crowd.
"What a great guy. That's brave of him."
"He's daring to act and courageous enough to take responsibility without any fear of infamy. He's certainly one with verve."
The truth was that even Jiang Xuechuan did not expect these words. He had spent the last few days fretting over how to convince Wu Yu to join them, so he never expected such a pleasant surprise today. He instantly started to loudly laugh and remarked, "Wu Yu, Yan Huang Imperial City welcomes you. From here on out, this shall be your home! Unlike that nose of an ox of Shushan, we're definitely different. Once you're in, we're all brothers!"
"Wu Yu! You're indeed a disciple that would betray his master and destroy his tribe! You dare to join Yan Huang immediately after leaving Shushan? Beneath the heavens, could there be anyone who is more of a disgrace than you? Shushan treated you so well and helped nurture your talent, yet today you actually dare to betray your teachers and join forces with others! Do you even know the meaning of the word 'shame?'" The Lunar Flower Sword Sage's expression was ashen as she pointed toward Wu Yu's nose and cursed at him.
Shushan had helped nature his talent?
That did not seem to be the case…
Since he had already made his decision, he cared nothing for these insults directed at him. He bluntly said, "Ever since my descent from Shushan, I no longer have any relation to the sect. From then, my whereabouts and actions were not within the purview of the two of you. Besides, wouldn't it make the two of you happier if I bear the title of a traitor?"
Upon seeing Wu Yu's indifferent demeanor, the Lunar Flower Sword Sage naturally started to quake in anger.
"You're a disciple that would betray his master and destroy his tribe! It was truly unfortunate that Shushan ever took you in! We feel an immense amount of shame on your behalf!" The Distant Fire Sword Sage was exploding with anger as well.
Even though they were both so worked up, Wu Yu remained calm and even-tempered. He quickly bade them farewell and retreated away from them. This was a straightforward departure on his end, and he did not want to be entangled with the two of them any further.
"Wu Yu! Once news of this reaches Shushan, over a million people will surely revile you! Since ancient times, you're Shushan's biggest disgrace!" Lunar Flower Sword Sage continued to curse.
However, Wu Yu had already walked quite a distance away.
At this time Jiang Xuechuan had followed after him as well. He gave Wu Yu a thumbs up and laughed. "You're exceptionally daring despite your young age! Mister Jiang here admires you."
Wu Yu was not really proud of this. The truth was that he had to muster up his courage before he was able to announce his intentions to the crowd like that. He used to be so fond of the Shushan Immortal Sect. He had the most beautiful memories of that realm of icy skies and snowy grounds. If his previous masters and brothers also decided to spit on and curse at him because of his actions, he may not have been able to smile back at them like he had just done.
However, even if that were the case, he would still have chosen to become a Yan Huang Immortal Army soldier anyway.