Chapter 428 - Tianxuan Continent
The night passed without incident. At daybreak, Kong opened his eyes, got dressed, and after a simple wash, made his way to the hotel front desk, intending to learn some local news from the mouth of a native.
"You're not from around here?"
The woman at the front desk paused in her work at his question. Looking up, she asked curiously.
"What, are outsiders not allowed in your city?"
Hearing her counter-question, Kong felt a trace of wariness in his heart, but he smiled as he spoke.
What did that mean? Did this place have something it didn't want others to see?
"Not exactly."
The woman shook her head, answering casually, "It's just that once outsiders come in, they can't leave."
"What do you mean?"
Kong froze in surprise. Reaching into his clothes, he slipped her a few gold soul coins and said in a low voice, "Sister, could you explain more clearly?"
"It's nothing much."
After glancing around to make sure no one was nearby, the woman's right hand flashed as she pocketed the coins. Giving him a knowing look, she smiled and said, "Just like I said, this place has a strange barrier. No one knows where it came from or how long it's been here, but no matter how strong someone is, once they enter, they can't leave. Over time, some outsiders who couldn't get out simply became locals."
Kong's eyes widened in disbelief.
Seriously? Wasn't that too outrageous?
"All these years, no one has managed to get out?" he asked, suppressing his shock.
"I don't know."
The woman shook her head without hiding anything. "As far as I know, no one has left. But I can't be certain. After all, I'm just a hotel clerk. What I know is very limited."
"I understand."
Kong didn't press further on that topic, instead steering the conversation toward what this place was, what kind of strength the so-called experts here possessed, and—most importantly—the distribution of power in this world.
At first, the woman's expression soured at his endless stream of questions. She was about to refuse when he quietly slipped another handful of coins into her pocket.
Her eyes lit up at once, and with a beaming smile, she readily shared everything she knew with her generous patron.
Converted into local currency, the amount was enough to match a year's wages. In such circumstances, almost no one would refuse.
"Any more questions?" she asked happily, her face glowing as she glanced at the glittering coins in her pocket.
"That's all for now," Kong said with a smile. "If I have more, I'll come back to you."
With that, he turned and left the lobby, heading to Gu Yuena's room.
He knocked on the closed door.
Before long, the door opened—and what he saw made him start in surprise.
"What the hell, did you not sleep at all last night?"
Once he recovered from his surprise, Kong asked with genuine puzzlement.
At this moment, Gu Yuena was wearing a thin long dress that perfectly displayed her tall and graceful figure.
Yet what surprised and intrigued Kong the most was not her appearance or attire, but the messy, tangled state of her hair, resembling a bird's nest, and the fatigue in her noble purple eyes, complete with dark circles.
"You didn't stay up all night doing something shady, did you?"
The thought seemed to strike Kong suddenly, and he asked with a hint of probing suspicion.
She was the Silver Dragon King, ruler of the soul beasts. Although her cultivation had once been extremely high, now neither of them could use divine power.
More importantly, during the month of travel, she had barely eaten, so he strongly suspected that on her first night here, she might have done something unknown to him.
After all, whether ordinary soul beast or soul beast ruler, their true forms were still beasts. And as beasts, they would naturally have a keen interest in fresh, raw food.
"You're the one sneaking off to do shady things!"
Hearing his unfounded accusation, much of the weariness in Gu Yuena's eyes faded.
She shot him a sharp glare and asked, "So, what do you want? Don't tell me we're leaving again already?"
"No, I just came to tell you something."
Without waiting for her response, Kong stepped inside.
"To tell me something?"
Gu Yuena was momentarily taken aback, then quickly shut the door as if realizing something.
"You've figured out what this place is?" she asked, her eyes narrowing with curiosity.
"Looks like you're not too slow after all."
Kong chuckled and, without hiding anything from his partner, explained, "This world is called the Tianxuan Continent. Unlike our Douluo Continent, there are no soul beasts and no gods here.
The cultivators here are mostly beasts. With their innate sensitivity to the power of the Great Dao's laws, they grow quickly and eventually unified the entire Tianxuan Continent."
Hearing this, Gu Yuena's eyes lit up with delight.
This was exactly the kind of world she desired—just like Douluo Star and the God Realm had once been before humans overthrew beast rule.
Kong paid no mind to her reaction. If their positions were reversed, he too would wish for his own race to dominate the world.
"In that case, doesn't that mean humans have little presence in this world?" Gu Yuena asked after some thought.
"Correct," Kong replied with a nod. "Because of this, humans live in remote cities, safe from danger and free from attacks by the beasts."
"Then, do you think that with my identity and race, I could earn a place in this world?" Gu Yuena asked with interest after a moment's silence.
As the Silver Dragon King, she too belonged to the beast race. By that reasoning, she should be able to cultivate here and attune herself to this world's laws of heaven and earth.
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