2227 Sky of Freedom

Freedom Royal City was built in the middle of a massive mountain range.

Unlike the Royal Cities of the other Skies, which were bound strictly by rules, it had no city walls nor guards. Due to that, it did not feel as stifling as the other cities.

There were all sorts of vegetables, tamed beasts, weapons, and pills on sale at the market square. There were pots filled with salted meat and pickled vegetable.

If Zhang Xuan had to use one word to describe the city, it would be that it was chaotic.

“In the Sky of Freedom, everyone is free to do whatever they wish. There are no rules tying them down,” Luo Qiqi explained as they walked through the streets.

Unlike the rest of the Nine Skies, there were no rules, no guards, and no armies in the Sky of Freedom, and yet, none of the other Skies dared to provoke it in any way.

From one perspective, it could be considered a paradise.

Chaotic as it might be, there was still some sort of indescribable and invisible order in place.

Zhang Xuan nodded.

The Sky of Freedom was very different from any place he had ever seen. The cultivators lived much more comfortable lives than those from the other Skies, and they were determined to protect their way of life. Anyone who tried to destroy their haven would have to face their wrath.

Just like that, in its own unique way, the Sky of Freedom towered over the rest of the Nine Skies.

Zhang Xuan entered one of the larger markets, stopped a high-tier Celestial God, and asked, “Pardon me, but do you know where God Monarch Lingxi resides?”

Sensing the powerful auras that Zhang Xuan and Luo Qiqi were emanating, the high-tier Celestial God replied without any hesitation, “Based on what I know, Her Sovereignty usually spends her time cultivating on Lingxi Mountain over there. However, it might not be that easy to get there…”

“Thank you!”

Looking at the direction the high-tier Celestial God had pointed out, Zhang Xuan saw a mountain peak shrouded in a layer of fog in the distance.

So, the two of them quickly made their way over.

At first, the mountain appeared to be relatively close, but no matter how the two of them tried to fly toward it, they were not able to get close to it at all. Despite having flown for an hour now, it did not seem like they had gotten any closer to the mountain at all. It felt like they would never reach it at this rate.

In a sense, it felt similar to how no matter hard one tried to head toward the sun, it would simply look as large and brilliant as it always did. Even if a person walked for their entire life, they would never be able to reach it.

Knowing that it was futile, Zhang Xuan raised his head and shouted, “Luo Ruoxin, I know that you knew that I would come. I want to meet you!”

Without a doubt, the other party must have done something to prevent him from ever reaching the mountain.

Since that was the case, he might as well get straight to the point.

Hu!

As expected, right after he said those words, a series of spatial ripples appeared before him, and a woman appeared from them.

She appeared to be around seventeen or eighteen, and she was dressed in green.

“Young Master Zhang Xuan, please return!” The green-robed lady bowed deeply as she spoke. “Our Young Mistress is currently preparing for her battle with the Heaven Subjugation Monarch, and she can’t afford to allow her concentration to waver at a moment like this. If you really care for her, I’ll have to ask you not to disrupt her at such a critical time. In a clash between experts, the slightest opening revealed can result in disastrous consequences.”

“I…” Zhang Xuan clenched his fists tightly.

In a fight between experts, the slightest lapse in concentration could easily result in a calamity. If his sudden appearance affected her battle with Kong shi, he would never be able to forgive himself.

But…

He could not give up. He could not allow anything to happen to Luo Ruoxin and Kong shi!

“Is there no way to prevent this fight from happening?” Zhang Xuan asked with gritted teeth.

Even though he had already heard the responses of the Deathless Monarch and the God Monarch of the Sword Hut, he still could not give up.

The green-robed lady shook her head. “There’s no way to stop this fight from occurring.”

“Why?” Zhang Xuan asked. “I want to hear the answer from her personally!”

“Young Master, please don’t make things hard for a servant like me. What our Young Mistress needs at a moment like this is a person to support her, not someone to add to her stress and pressure. If she wins the battle, she’ll naturally explain everything to you in due time. And if she loses… everything will be over. There will be no need for her to explain anything,” the green-robed lady replied with a lowered head.

“Fine then, I’ll wait for her explanation!”

Seeing how determined the green-robed lady was, Zhang Xuan knew that it would be impossible to change her mind. Thus, he turned around and left.

If Luo Ruoxin was determined not to meet him, there was nothing he could say that would make any difference. He would only be wasting his breath.

Luo Qiqi quickly caught up with Zhang Xuan as she asked, “Are we giving up just like that?”

They had already come all the way to the Sky of Freedom in order to stop the duel! It was not like Zhang Xuan to stop just because of a person’s words.

Even though she knew that the person whom Zhang Xuan really loved was God Monarch Lingxi, and their reunion would only reinforce their feelings, she could not stand seeing Zhang Xuan in such a state.

The person she loved was a person who would stand haughtily in the face of the world, as if there was nothing in the world that could trouble him!

“Of course not! Since she isn’t willing to meet me, I’ll meet the Heaven Subjugation Monarch instead,” Zhang Xuan replied.

It was clear that Luo Ruoxin was determined to avoid him till the duel started.

Since that was the case, he would look for Kong shi. Just like how two hands were needed to clap, a duel was also a fight between two people. He just needed to meet one of them in order to understand the reason behind the fight.

Understanding Zhang Xuan’s intentions, Luo Qiqi asked with a confused tilt of her head, “But where are you going to find him? We don’t know where he is at the moment!”

The Nine God Monarchs governed the Nine Skies, but the Heaven Subjugation Monarch was a God Monarch who had only risen to power forty years ago. He did not have any territory of his own, so no one knew where he resided. Unless the latter decided to appear, there was almost no way they could know where he was.

“Given that the duel is just around the corner, there’s a good chance that he’s already in Freedom Royal City at the moment,” Zhang Xuan said. “As long as we look around, we should be able to find him.”

So, the two of them quickly returned to Freedom Royal City.

However, looking at the massive expanse of buildings all around her, Luo Qiqi exclaimed, “How can we find him among so many people within Freedom Royal City?”

In the first place, there was probably no one who would be so foolish as to reveal the whereabouts of a God Monarch of their own accord.

If they looked around the city by themselves, how long would it take for them to look through the hundreds of millions of people within the city?

“Well, we can try Freedom Royal City’s Master Teacher Pavilion first,” Zhang Xuan said.

Luo Qiqi was stunned for a moment before nodding in realization.

Indeed!

Since the Master Teacher Pavilion was a power under Kong shi, it should have a way to get in contact with him. So, as long as they headed to the Master Teacher Pavilion, they should be able to figure something out from there.

The Master Teacher Pavilion was a power that had risen to prominence over the past few decades, so it was not too difficult to figure out where they were located. It did not take long before the two of them arrived at their destination.

The Sky of Freedom had no rules, so there were no restrictions on the development of an occupation. As such, many guilds had chosen to base their headquarters in Freedom Royal City.

Compared to the Master Teacher Pavilions the other Skies, Freedom Royal City’s Master Teacher Pavilion was bustling with huge crowds. There were many cultivators who were visiting the Master Teacher Pavilion in order to find a teacher to study under.

Entering the building together with the crowd, Zhang Xuan saw quite a few master teachers lecturing within.

It was starting to take the shape of what he had seen many times back on the Master Teacher Continent.

Looking at the crowds that were continuously passing them, Luo Qiqi turned to Zhang Xuan and asked, “Are we looking for their pavilion master?”

If they wanted to get in contact with the Heaven Subjugation Monarch, they had to at least get in contact with the pavilion master.

“That would be too much trouble,” Zhang Xuan replied.

He took a deep breath before bellowing with a deafening voice, “Zhang Xuan has come to challenge the head of the Master Teacher Pavilion. I ask you to come out and meet me!”