Watching Hua Yunfei leave, Mu Jinyu's gaze was full of reluctance.
It wasn't reluctance to let his newly acquired servant leave; he didn't care much about this servant.
If it weren't a bit troublesome to just kill Hua Yunfei directly, he would have sent him to the Western Heaven long ago.
Mu Jinyu's reluctance was toward that Golden Bell.
That was indeed a treasured item, its rank was likely on par with the Bi Fang Cauldron, both being top-quality spiritual treasures!
It was only a step away from generating an artifact spirit and becoming a heaven-reaching spiritual treasure!
At that time, when he collected it into the Bi Fang Cauldron, along with refining Hua Yunfei for a long time, it remained unharmed, which was a testament to its power.
If not for the unique Bi Fang Flame, able to infiltrate and scorch Hua Yunfei, it's likely he wouldn't have any means to deal with Hua Yunfei even now.
How could Mu Jinyu not want such a treasured item?
Even if he didn't want it for himself, he could give it to Wen Rou or Jian Ruyan to use, ensuring their safety even more.
However, regrettably, he dared not seize it directly now.
After all, he had already decided to spare Hua Yunfei and take him as a servant, making him an insider and mole within the Heavenly Palace.
If he took that Golden Bell now, how would Hua Yunfei explain it when he returned to the Heavenly Palace?
It would inevitably implicate him.
Considering many factors, Mu Jinyu had to painfully give up and let Hua Yunfei take that Golden Bell away.
"Sigh..."
Mu Jinyu sighed quietly, then looked toward Wen Rou and Jian Ruyan, who were flying toward him, along with Wu Zhiming and the others.
"Brother Mu, are you okay?"
Seeing the people from the Heavenly Palace leave, although they didn't know what was discussed between him and Mu Jinyu, seeing the two sides made peace, they all breathed a sigh of relief and flew toward Mu Jinyu.
"I'm fine, and the people from the Heavenly Palace have also left."
After giving Wen Rou and Jian Ruyan a reassuring look, Mu Jinyu gently shook his head at the City Lord and others, saying, "I'm sorry for destroying the walls of your Demon Slaying City."
"It's not a big deal, as long as you're okay..."
Upon hearing Mu Jinyu's words, everyone quickly smiled and said.
The walls of Demon Slaying City were for defending against the onslaught from the Demon Beast Mountain Range, but now with the massive beast tide coming and going, even if the walls collapse now, there's little worry.
Once they rebuild the walls, even the ferocious beasts in the Demon Beast Mountain Range can't recover their elemental Qi!
They naturally wouldn't dwell on it.
After that, they invited Mu Jinyu to attend the celebration banquet they were about to hold.
Upon hearing this, Mu Jinyu gently shook his head and said, "No need, I am preparing to leave."
Upon hearing this, the City Lord knew that Mu Jinyu's quick departure was likely due to his own reckless actions.
If he hadn't notified the Heavenly Palace before the agreed time, things wouldn't have turned out this way in the end.
He had no idea how Mu Jinyu had made peace with the people from the Heavenly Palace.
Feeling full of guilt, the City Lord couldn't help but try to retain Mu Jinyu, frankly saying that the protective national reward he applied for him would arrive soon, hoping Mu Jinyu would stay a little longer.
Mu Jinyu shook his head and eventually, under the reluctant and guilty gaze of the City Lord and Wu Zhiming, he left Demon Slaying City with Wen Rou and Jian Ruyan.
...
On the other side.
After leaving Demon Slaying City, Hua Yunfei took a few shichen to find another city, and upon revealing his identity as an envoy from the Heavenly Palace, he activated the teleportation array and left the Wu Kingdom.
"Buzz!"
After a strong feeling of weightlessness and dizziness, Hua Yunfei slightly shook his head to adapt.
In front of him was a room made of special black stone, entirely pitch black, with a few greenish candle flames giving off a somewhat eerie yin Qi.
"How did things go?"
At this moment, an old and cold voice suddenly sounded in Hua Yunfei's ear.
Upon hearing this, Hua Yunfei couldn't help but tremble in his heart, then forced himself to calm down and looked up in the direction from where the voice came.
It was the elder that the City Lord of Demon Slaying City previously contacted through the bronze mirror, now sitting upright on a stone chair, his murky eyes looking at him.
Hua Yunfei's heart skipped a beat and he quickly said, "Reporting to the Hall Master, I arrived late, and when I got to Demon Slaying City, the Demon Phoenix had already left the Demon Beast Mountain Range after breaking through to the Demon Emperor's Realm, currently whereabouts unknown..."
"I see."
The old man didn't show much disappointment upon hearing Hua Yunfei's report since it was just a newly advanced demon to the Demon Emperor's Realm. If it didn't contain a trace of Phoenix Bloodline, he wouldn't have sent Hua Yunfei to capture it.
"After that Demon Phoenix left, did you find anything in the Demon Beast Mountain Range?" the old man asked again.
Hua Yunfei gently shook his head, "No, it should have taken everything away."
"Very well, return the Soul-Suppressing Bell then," the old man said with a trace of disappointment in his expression.
"Yes!"
Hua Yunfei respectfully complied and then took the Golden Bell from the storage bag and handed it over.
After receiving the Soul-Suppressing Bell, the old man checked it slightly, letting out a curious "huh," "Huh, that's odd..."
This little sound nearly scared Hua Yunfei to the point of his soul flying away.
He thought that the old man had discovered something, and feared for his life.
At this point, his life was fully in Mu Jinyu's control, and he dared not think of seeking revenge after returning and having the restrictions lifted by the Heavenly Palace's higher-ups.
And so he had completely pledged allegiance to Mu Jinyu, betraying the Heavenly Palace.
"What's wrong?" Hua Yunfei asked in a trembling voice.
The old man gave him a puzzled look and said, "How come the Soul-Suppressing Bell has been used? Didn't you say you didn't encounter the Demon Phoenix?"
Upon hearing this, Hua Yunfei breathed a sigh of relief and then explained, "Because I didn't find the Demon Phoenix's whereabouts, I felt I couldn't just come for nothing, and thought the people of Demon Slaying City were deceiving me, so I asked them for an explanation..."
"But they were uncooperative, and in the end, I had to take action against them!"
A flicker of doubt flashed in the elderly man's eyes as he said, "But as I recall, the City Lord of Demon Slaying City is only at the Seventh Layer of the Fanxu Realm. You being in the Eighth Layer of the Fanxu Realm, is it necessary to use the Soul-Suppressing Bell?"
Hua Yunfei continued to explain, "This beast tide was particularly violent, intended by that Demon Phoenix to undergo Tribulation Transcendence in peace without human disturbance, causing all the ferocious beasts and demon beasts of the Demon Beast Mountain Range to attack. With the City Lord's strength, how could he withstand it? Fortunately, a cultivator at the Peak Ninth Layer of the Fanxu Realm happened to pass by Demon Slaying City and helped out!"
"This person was unwilling to give me compensation after I demanded an explanation and dared to fight me, so I had to use the Soul-Suppressing Bell to shake him to death!"
"Is that so..." the old man lost all interest after hearing Hua Yunfei's explanation, his eyes returning to murky once more, "You may take your leave."
He didn't bother with Hua Yunfei pocketing extra gains, nor did he order him to hand them over.
Such matters occur often in the Heavenly Palace, and he could not possibly put a stop to it.
Moreover, he believed that an envoy from the Heavenly Palace shouldn't end up with nothing for his efforts.
"Yes... Hall Master!"
Hua Yunfei relaxed his tensed nerves and respectfully exited the room.