"In that case, Brother Ye, are you perhaps interested in serving the Young Alliance Leader? With your capabilities, holding the position of a mere City Lord would be no problem at all..." After a slight pause for thought, Mu spoke directly. Although some doubts lingered in his heart, they were negligible compared to the benefit of recruiting a group of masters.

Masters who had reached the Cosmos (Zhou) level were invariably arrogant. If he caused Ye Jingyu to feel repulsed, the man might immediately turn away, perhaps even turning against them, which would be a massive loss.

As for whether what he said was true or false, that would naturally be investigated and understood in time...

"City Lord? Heh heh, City Lord Mu greatly overestimates me. Although I've had some fortuitous encounters in the Wild Forest, I have no problem fighting alone. But asking me to manage an entire city—that truly is holding me in too high regard!" Ye Jingyu chuckled lightly.

"Then what is Brother Ye's intention..." Mu's brow furrowed tightly. The current Earth Alliance had adopted the system of the former Abyss Demons, where City Lords stood directly below the Sovereign Lords. However, the City Lord's influence was measured by the size of their respective cities.

Just like the Seven Fiends of the Earth Alliance, whose strength all reached the peak of the Cosmos level. Except for Yuan, who controlled Earth Fiend City, the other six Fiends also occupied the six great paramount cities of the Earth Alliance. The main reason Mu could secure the position of City Lord of Wild City was Yuan's appreciation...

"My two brothers and I do not wish to be separated, and I have no interest in becoming a City Lord. If City Lord Mu does not mind, having us take up some minor official post here would be sufficient..." Ye Jingyu smiled faintly. Of course, he didn't genuinely intend to stay; this was merely polite maneuvering.

"Brother Ye, where are these words coming from? With your strength, staying here would only be doing you a disservice. If Brother Ye truly is unwilling to be a City Lord, how about this: Lord Yuan plans to establish a new Blood Demon Army, and the Commander position has long remained unfilled. With your abilities, serving as the Commander should present absolutely no issue!" Before Ye Jingyu could finish, Mu interrupted directly. It was unthinkable—if he truly brought these three men under his banner, regardless of whether they were sincere or not, if Yuan discovered he had three Cosmos-level masters (Mu assumed all three were at the same level) nearby, wouldn't he immediately suspect him of plotting rebellion?

"Oh?" Ye Jingyu paused, displaying a look of curiosity...

"It's just that this might cause some inconvenience for Brother Ye?" Seeing the interest flicker in Ye Jingyu's eyes, Mu showed a troubled expression.

"In what way?"

"Brother Ye may not know, although the Blood Demon Army was proposed by Lord Yuan, the other Sovereign Lords all wish for their own direct subordinates to command this force. Although Lord Yuan is the Young Alliance Leader now, he cannot directly command the major Sovereign Lords; many matters require consultation with them, and ultimately, the command of this Blood Demon Army will be decided by an open election. Any Sovereign Lord can send their subordinate to participate in a duel, and the final victor will become the commander of this army..." As he spoke, a bitter smile touched Mu's lips.

The Earth Alliance was merely an alliance, not a nation; Yuan was no dictator, much like the situation in the Sky Alliance...

"Heh heh, interesting, very interesting decision. This works out well; I wouldn't want others gossiping about you and me. I will certainly participate in this duel, Brother Mu, rest assured. If I am fortunate enough to become the commander of this Blood Demon Army, I certainly will not forget Brother Mu's kindness today. I can even swear an oath to forever pledge my loyalty to Lord Yuan!" Ye Jingyu said with a light smile. The change in address from "City Lord Mu" to "Brother Mu" had indirectly closed the distance between them...

As for the oath later? Heh heh, those Immortals and Demons are bound by their oaths, but what does he have to fear? He possessed the Primordial Chaos Body; the laws of the Heavenly Dao held no sway over him...

"Hahaha, with Brother Ye's capabilities, there is certainly no problem. Come, let us drink to our meeting..." Hearing Ye Jingyu call him Brother Mu and even declare allegiance to Lord Yuan, Mu's face broke into a brilliant smile.

How great would the merit be for recruiting three Cosmos-level masters for Lord Yuan?

The following days proceeded with relative ease. With the contest for the Blood Demon Commander less than a month away, Ye Jingyu took residence in the City Lord's Manor of Tianman City. He spent his time learning about the current state of the Earth Alliance from Mu, while simultaneously instructing Xue Ling in cultivation methods. Naturally, the Batian Jue could not be taught to her, but whether it was Zhurong, Hou Yi, Hanba, Tianwu, or Jumang, they all took a strong liking to the determined girl. All the ancient Witchcrafts from the Primordial Era were imparted to Xue Ling, and Ye Jingyu even merged these techniques to create the Xue You Ling Jue, a set of practices tailor-made for her.

Furthermore, Mu's son, Zhong, eager to please Ye Jingyu, dispatched men everywhere to search for various spiritual elixirs to enhance power. Coupled with Xue Ling's relentless training, her strength reached the Heaven level in just one month—a rate that could truly be described as flying...

And since there were no so-called Heavenly Tribulations at this stage, cultivation naturally progressed very quickly...

However, with several Cosmos-level experts like Ye Jingyu present to guard and transmit the teachings, reaching the Heaven level was indeed a small matter. If Ye Jingyu hadn't worried about her cultivation accelerating too rapidly and potentially harming her future potential, he could have forcibly raised her to the Desolate (Huang) level...

In that month, Mu had also conducted discreet investigations into the Ye family. He eventually found that aside from a difference in name, every other habit and mannerism of Ye Jingyu perfectly matched that young master of the Ye family from several hundred years prior. Of course, since he was a wanted individual by the Sky Alliance, changing names was a common occurrence...

And during his stay in Tianman City for over a month, besides instructing Xue Ling, Ye Jingyu made no other overtly suspicious moves. His two brothers were quite distinct: one only cared about eating, while the other was a battle fiend, constantly challenging others and managing to defeat every single general under Mu's command. Apart from this one point causing Mu some distress, there was nothing else...

His wariness toward Ye Jingyu had largely dissolved. When he reported Ye Jingyu's situation to Yuan, Yuan also bestowed great commendation upon him...

To recruit three Cosmos-level masters—that was undoubtedly a feat worthy of the highest merit...

Time flew quickly, and the day of the duel was fast approaching. The location was set for Earth Fiend City, the central hub of the Earth Alliance. The nine Paramount City Lords and over a hundred other City Lords were required to attend. Mu arrived early at Ye Jingyu's residence to deliver the news.

When he learned they would be traveling to Earth Fiend City, Ye Jingyu's expression remained unchanged, but his heart surged with excitement. This was all because the person he cherished most in the world resided there—Luo Ling'er...

(Infernal Affairs, hmm, let's see how Little Yezi and Little Ke navigate the Celestial Realm! Brothers, what comes next will only be more exciting. If you believe in the Stars, smash those bricks and vote! Computer voting address: /b/b.rid=159965)F