Tianbei City is one of the sixteen main cities in the Northern Territory. It is located at the northernmost point of the entire Northern Territory, next to the "Endless Mountains" further north.
The fierce cold wind blowing from the "Endless Mountains" rages in its territory all year round.
The entire territory of Tianbei City is covered with frozen soil, forming an ice sheet landform that is different from other major cities.
Except for the two mid-year months of June and July, the temperature in Tianbeicheng is basically below freezing all year round.
Although it was still mid-August at this time, there had already been two heavy snowfalls around Tianbeicheng.
The temperature nearby is extremely low, almost to the point where dripping water turns into ice.
It was almost midnight, and due to the curfew, the entire outer area of Tianbei City was completely silent, with almost no light.
Even in the inner city area, which is extremely bustling during the day, there are few pedestrians walking on the streets at this time.
Only a full moon, from time to time, shines through the lead clouds in the sky, casting a cold silver glow towards the city below.
At some point, a dark cloud floated silently in the sky to the southeast of Tianbei City.
Although the latter is not very powerful, it is extremely fast.
In just a few breaths, it had crossed dozens of miles and reached the sky above Tianbei City, where it was quietly suspended.
Because of this, under the snowy moonlight, the outline of this dark cloud finally appeared.
She was a young woman with a graceful figure but an extremely ordinary appearance. Judging from her age, she should be in her early thirties.
She has hip-length black hair, but she doesn't wear any decorations, just hanging it behind her back without any fancy.
Paired with a pale green palace dress, it exudes a calm and graceful temperament.
This woman is clearly Lu Feng, the "Flying Dragon City Interviewer" who was injured and escaped during the Qingyuan Mountain Incident when he failed to compete with the "Embers" for the Qingyuan Mountain ruins!
It's just that compared to her original leisurely and undisciplined look, her demeanor was now much calmer and more reserved, and there was even a chilling air between her brows.
I saw her with her hands behind her back, standing quietly in the sky more than a kilometer above the ground.
He looked expressionlessly down at the Tianbeicheng area that was in silence.
Around her body, there was a layer of inexplicable translucent energy that twisted and swayed like water waves.
Isolating all the breath and energy fluctuations around him.
So much so that even though Lu Feng was obviously a great monk in the late Hunyuan realm, he was standing condescendingly above Tianbei City, but he did not cause any reaction from his peers in the city.
After standing in silence for a moment, Lu Feng's body swayed slightly, and she reached out her hand to tap something on her waist.
I didn't see any follow-up actions from her, but I saw her face was solemn and her lips moved a few times, as if she said a few words.
After doing all this, Lu Feng stopped his movements and resumed his previous posture with his hands behind his back, as if he was waiting for a response attentively.
This is more than enough time for a cup of tea.
Until Lu Feng's plain face gradually showed a hint of impatience.
Finally, as if she sensed something, she tilted her head slightly and looked like she was listening attentively.
Then she stood there and paused for a moment, and then like a fallen leaf in the wind, she slowly and silently fluttered towards the inner city of Tianbei City not far away.
At the same time, no matter how she moved, the translucent energy covering her whole body suddenly began to twist without warning.
And her figure, like a reflection in the water, began to twist and shake rapidly, becoming increasingly blurry.
In just a few breaths, Lu Feng's figure disappeared in mid-air like bursting bubbles under the sun.
…
The main palace of Tianbei City is located in the center of the inner city. It is a very large building complex covering an extremely large area.
In addition to the various functional buildings in the outer parts, in the core area of the City Lord's Mansion, there is also a continuous courtyard that is three-thirds larger than that of an ordinary market town.
Unlike the silent outer city, the area around the city lord's palace was brightly lit.
At regular intervals, there are huge moonstones equipped with special diffusion arrays, each projecting extremely bright light, making the area covered by it shine as bright as day.
There are also a large number of young people in uniforms on duty outside various buildings and at surrounding road crossings.
From time to time, there are soldiers arranged in fixed formations, patrolling back and forth between various areas.
All of this creates a solemn atmosphere in the Tianbei City Lord's Mansion.
At this time, Lu Feng used the power of the secret treasure to restrain all his aura and movements, and like a ghost, he quietly landed outside the city lord's palace.
Under the influence of the hidden aura surrounding her that covered her whole body, even the light of the moonstone projected from the surroundings could not leave the slightest trace on her body.
It was as if her body really didn't exist, passing straight through her body.
Therefore, without alerting anyone, Lu Feng passed by the guarded and open gate of the City Lord's Mansion as if there was no one around, and headed towards the courtyard behind it.
No matter the guards on duty along the road or the soldiers on patrol, there was no reaction when she passed by.
Even the protective formations scattered throughout the city lord's palace spontaneously made way for her in advance before they came into contact with the hidden aura around Lu Feng.
This allowed her to move unimpeded through the formation's envelope as if she were in an uninhabited land.
Lu Feng seemed to be very familiar with the layout here. He saw her walking through the buildings and courtyards without stopping at all to identify the way.
In just a few minutes, she arrived at the door of a huge palace located at the deepest part of the city lord's palace.
Unlike other areas of the City Lord's Mansion, this palace in the core area has neither moonstones arranged around it nor dedicated personnel to guard it.
Against the backdrop of other brightly lit areas around it, it looks quiet and out of place.
Lu Feng stood outside the palace and paused subconsciously, but then he pushed open one of the tall palace doors and stepped in.
There was also no lamp inside this palace, and it looked very dim. However, Lu Feng didn't seem surprised by this, and he didn't show any unusual look on his face.
I saw her closing the palace door behind her silently, and then quickly taking a few steps in a certain direction inside.
Then he knelt down on one knee neatly, clasped his fists in one direction and saluted:
"Lv Feng, a humble official, has met the guard."
"..."
There was no response, and the entire hall was so silent that you could hear a pin drop.
However, Lu Feng didn't say anything. She just kept kneeling on one knee and waited quietly.
"well……"
After more than ten breaths, a sigh suddenly came from the direction Lu Feng was facing.
"Lu Feng, you came here without authorization before the day of debriefing came. Why did you come here?"
An old and unusual voice sounded quietly, but it seemed extremely ethereal, as if it were thousands of miles away.
So for a moment, Lu Feng couldn't even tell the direction from which the sound came.
But she did not dare to investigate carefully. When she heard this, she knelt down on one knee and kept the same movement. She just lowered her head slightly and said:
"Reporting to the Lord Guard, the second phase of the secret relics that I am responsible for has been arranged according to the plan. I am reporting back to the Lord!"
"In addition, I have received a secret report that the 'Ember' has made some changes in the Southern Territory recently. It is suspected that it has launched a raid on Baiqu City in the Southern Territory. I would like to ask for your instructions, do you need to activate the third phase of the secret relics in advance?"
"..."
After a short silence, the old voice was heard again:
"No, you just have to act according to the original plan. Now, you can retreat."
"...I humble my duty and obey my orders!"
When Lu Feng heard this, he hesitated for a moment, but still clasped his fists and responded in a low voice.
However, she did not stand up in a hurry, but raised her head with flashing eyes, as if she still had something to say.
But I heard that old voice sound again:
"As an interviewer, leaving the station without permission is a serious offense and should have been dismissed on the spot."
"I remember that you have accumulated many merits in the past, but this is your first offense. Now is the time when I am employing people, so I will give you a chance to repent."
"You are ordered to return to the station immediately and not to leave the station until further orders are received."
"After this mission is over, you can return to the clan to accept the punishment. Go ahead!"
When Lu Feng heard this, her originally calm face suddenly changed, and the hesitation in her heart immediately disappeared.
She suddenly stood up and didn't try to find the source of the sound. She just faced the direction just now and said angrily:
"Leaving the station without permission? Hey! Father, don't you know why I came here this time?"
"At three o'clock today, the soul stone is shattered. I, a small interviewer, have received a message from the clan. You are the guard of the Northern Territory. Don't you have anything to say to my daughter?
"
"..."
After a wordless silence, the old voice came from afar again:
"Adult experience comes at your own risk. You and I have experienced this, and today is no exception!"
"Before he sets off, I have already fulfilled my responsibilities as an elder."
"As for you, when he chooses to go out for training, you should be prepared in all aspects."
"Now that his soul stone is shattered, I can only say that his destiny is like this, so don't worry too much."
"Besides, you gain adult experience at your own risk."
"Once the experience begins, no one is allowed to interfere. After the experience, no matter what the result is, no one is allowed to seek revenge privately."
"This is the rule of our clan. It has always been this way for thousands of years. No one is allowed to violate it!"
After a short silence, seeing that Lu Feng was still unmoved, the old voice urged again:
"Forget about this and go back."
Lu Feng stood there silently, listening to the words of the old voice coming again, a sarcastic smile appeared on her face, and she said:
"Sure enough, after so many years, you really haven't changed at all."
"Unfortunately, before I came here, I still had some illusions about you."
"Humph, you don't have to pressure me with clan rules. I know exactly what to do."
"Anyway, no matter what I do, it has nothing to do with you, just like back then."
"Then, just pretend that I haven't been here today..."
"I resign from my humble position!"
After saying this, Lu Feng turned around and left the hall without waiting for the other party's response.
Then I don't know what kind of secret technique was used, and he quickly disappeared outside the palace.
And the main hall once again returned to its previous silence.
It wasn't until a long time later that a faint sigh came out.
…
Deep in the wild forest.
Gao Yuan fled all the way, but when he returned to the underground stronghold, the sky was still completely dark.
But he was in a very good mood!
Originally, he broke into the fourth level of Hunyuan Realm yesterday and his comprehensive strength was greatly improved, which made him feel extremely happy.
Originally, according to his plan, he was going to the Gray Desert early this morning to find two "weird demons" to confirm the results of his practice.
Unexpectedly, not long after he entered the Gray Desert and before entering the area where the Succubi were active, he received a hunting mission from the Whip Bearer organization.
This is also the third task he needs to complete before he can unlock a new number of intelligence consultations. As long as he completes this task, he can apply for another intelligence consultation from the alliance.
At this point, when he had greatly improved his strength and was about to leave for the uninhabited land outside the territory to hunt down the third-level monsters, the issuance of this hunting mission was really like a timely rain.
Before setting off, he can first obtain a batch of detailed information about the third-level monsters through the 'Whip Holder' organization.
In this way, he will be more confident when he goes out to hunt the third-level monsters this time.
Therefore, after receiving the hunting mission against the 'Feilong City Deacon', Gao Yuan did not waste even a minute.
Without even leaving the 'Grey Desert', I directly opened the 'Cross-border Disk' and got the jade slip for this mission.
Then he turned around and ran to Songyuan City, nine thousand miles away, in the northeast direction of the Northern Territory according to the mission instructions.
Even when he was on the road looking for someone, it took him less than six hours in total to easily find and shoot to death the 'Flying Dragon City Deacon' who was at the peak of the Kaiyuan Realm.
The speed with which this mission was completed can be said to be the fastest he has completed since he joined the ‘Whip Holder’ organization!
After returning home, Gao Yuan immediately took out the Exile mask, entered the exclusive secret room, and submitted this mission.
And soon received the reward for this mission from the alliance, a merit reward of 2,300 points.
Afterwards, he non-stop used the 'Appearance Jade' to submit an intelligence consultation application to the alliance regarding 'the most detailed information on third-level monsters around the Northern Territory'.
At the same time, in order to obtain more useful information, he specially highlighted the word "details" and noted the requirements for additional merit.
"I hope this time, we can really get as detailed information on the third-level monsters as possible!"
Muttering to himself, Gao Yuan exited the exclusive secret room.
Lying on the leisure chair, he reached into the pocket of his cassock and took out a gold brocade and exquisitely shaped storage bag.
He was still very interested in the loot captured this time.
Not only because the storage bag on the target this time has a larger volume, reaching an unprecedented scale of one thousand square meters.
At the same time, this time he also absorbed the lessons from his previous mistakes and adopted a targeted sneak attack strategy when hunting down the target of this mission.
With his strength in the middle stage of the Hunyuan Realm, he went to sneak attack a monk at the peak of the Kaiyuan Realm. Without any mental calculation, he disarmed the 'Flying Dragon City Deacon' on the spot before he activated the secret treasure to protect him.
This avoids the situation where the secret treasure was destroyed along with the target as happened several times before.
In other words, although the level may not be very high, he finally captured two ancient secret treasures that looked pretty good in a real sense!
As his mind turned, Gaoyuan's consciousness swept towards the storage bag in his hand.
A moment later, two palm-sized objects appeared in front of him one after the other.