"That God Stone was exchanged together with him. To enter the city, you need Violet Cloud Crystals, but I didn't have any on me at all. I had no choice but to exchange it so as not to attract attention, but I never thought it would bring him such needless disaster. I hope you'll arrange for someone to release him as soon as possible—after all, this all started because of me. Do you understand what I'm saying? Also, from now on, don't call me 'master.' Just call me Evan Lin. If you call me 'master,' you'll expose my identity." Evan Lin said seriously.
"Understood, Master. Please wait here, I'll immediately send someone to escort that old man out of the city, and make sure he's taken care of!" The old man finished speaking and prepared to leave.
"Seriously, you... From now on, when no one's around, call me 'Young Master.' When people are present, call me 'Evan Lin.' Got it? I'll wait here for you, so hurry back!" Evan Lin said.
After the old man left the room, Evan Lin began pacing inside. To think he'd run into his former servant by sheer coincidence—he'd never expected that in a million years. And now, what he needed most was someone with decent strength who was familiar with the current situation in the God Realm. Little Lee was the perfect candidate.
This meant he finally had a place to settle down, where he could cultivate in peace and keep tabs on the opportunities in the God Realm. Even though All-Stars City was only a second-tier city, its information network was still very sharp. Evan Lin trusted that completely—after all, this was the God Realm.
It wasn't long before the old man returned. "Young Master, everything's been taken care of. That old fellow will be sent out of the city soon, and I even had someone give him ten thousand Violet Cloud Crystals as compensation. What do you think of that?"
"Good job. But you also need to get me a position in the City Lord's Mansion as soon as possible. If it's too high, I won't be able to handle it—my strength is limited, and that would make people suspicious. If it's too low, I'll just get ordered around and bullied, which is honestly unbearable." Evan Lin said.
"Don't worry, Young Master. I've already arranged everything. Your position is simple—you're my personal attendant, and a close one at that!" the old man said.
"That's not bad. By the way, why does the City Lord's Mansion have positions like 'Hall Master'? Does that mean there are Protectors and Elders above you? You're a God-King, so why do you hold such a low rank?" Evan Lin asked, confused.
"Young Master, you've got it wrong. As Punishment Hall Master, I'm actually one of the top figures in the City Lord's Mansion. Even Protectors and Elders have to show me proper respect. I only take orders from the City Lord—except for you, of course." the old man said.
"By the way, what's the current situation in the God Realm? Fill me in—I need the full picture, since it's crucial for my future plans." Evan Lin said seriously.
The old man poured Evan Lin a cup of tea, then said unhurriedly, "Young Master, the God Realm is ruled by ten apex powers—the very strongest, each with God-Venerables sitting in town. They have countless God-Emperors and God-Kings under them, and every faction dominates its own territory."
The strongest among them is Heavenblade Sect, which has five God-Venerable-level experts. Their territory is in the east, and more than half of the eastern God Realm is under their control. As for their sect master, almost no one knows who it is—rumor has it they're in closed-door seclusion.
Next are Shadow Divine Palace and Freewind Sect, both with four God-Venerables overseeing their domains. But those two factions are like water and fire—whenever their disciples meet, there's bound to be a fight unless special circumstances force them to hold back.
Both sects hold major territory in the west and north, but they keep a low profile and rarely show their faces. The City Lord of All-Stars City is actually a Shadow Divine Palace disciple, sent here to govern. But since 'heaven is high and the emperor is far away,' the City Lord acts like a local tyrant and lives pretty carefree.
The other major powers are Drifting Cloud Guild, Rainbow Court, Stormtower, Lost Gods Valley, Treasure Consortium, Skysoar Sect, and Sandstorm Sect. There's also a special region—divine beast territory—where no one dares enter lightly.
It's said that the divine beasts inside are terrifyingly strong—even God-Venerables might fall if they go in. But those beasts don't like causing trouble in human lands, so things stay peaceful. Around the edges, though, there are plenty of creatures that aren't true divine beasts.
The strongest of those creatures only reach the God-King Realm, but their meat is incredibly delicious. Lots of people love eating it, and the price is sky-high. Usually you can only find it in big cities.
Among these, Treasure Consortium is a merchant association. It only has three God-Venerables, but all are late-stage. Their wealth is unmatched—even Heavenblade Sect treats them with respect. Treasure Consortium has the best reputation in the God Realm.
Stormtower, on the other hand, is both an assassination organization and an intelligence network. Its direct strength isn't overwhelming, but its agents are everywhere in the God Realm. Their information network is the most responsive, and their assassination methods are endlessly varied—giving everyone headaches.
The other sects have stayed pretty conservative—nothing major has happened in the God Realm for years. Only Shadow Divine Palace has been acting strangely lately, especially after Protector Liu was killed and nobody found a single clue. It's made everyone suspicious."
Hearing all this at once left Evan Lin shocked. He couldn't help but wonder—could his old enemies be from Heavenblade Sect? He remembered that Princess Liana Moon once had a palace too, so why hadn't Elder Lee mentioned it? Had it fallen? Since Elder Lee didn't bring it up, Evan decided not to ask.
"The Protector Liu you mentioned—the one who went to the Ascension Pool? I was the one who killed him. I also killed the two God-Men guarding the pool. I just can't stand being constrained by others, but I didn't expect killing them would stir up so much trouble." Evan Lin said.
"Protector Liu was killed by you, Young Master? But he was at the God-Lord Realm! Judging by your current aura, you're only early-stage Heavenly God, yet you managed to kill a God-Lord? That's almost unbelievable." The old man stared at Evan Lin in shock.
Just then, something occurred to him. "Young Master, did you just ascend to the God Realm? How is that possible—reaching early-stage Heavenly God as soon as you ascended? No one in the whole God Realm has ever advanced that fast, especially since your Ascension Pool was the lowest grade and its energy isn't even that strong."
"There's nothing to be shocked about. Think about who I am! I might as well tell you—back in the lower realms, I could already kill God-Lord-level experts. Now that I've broken through to early-stage Heavenly God, fighting late-stage God-Lords is possible too, so don't act so surprised!" Evan Lin laughed, then picked up his teacup and drained it in one go...