The group trekked through the vast mountains with great difficulty. Although they passed several inns that provided supplies for travelers, they did not rest for long. They endured wind and rain and slept in the open along the way. Finally, on the tenth day, they arrived at the famous Free City, also known as the City of Sin.
The City of Sin is situated on the largest plain among the vast mountains. Although it is called a city, it has no city walls. Instead, a river flows through the city in a "田" (field) shape, serving as the city's main transportation route.
The population here is around 400,000, which is much smaller than other major cities, but its prosperity is no less than that of any country's capital. The city is bustling with traffic, lined with shops, and has everything from brothels and money exchanges to casinos. This prosperous city of sin is famous throughout the continent and is a shining pearl among the continent's famous cities.
Half of the daily necessities of the City of Sin are supplied by itself, while the other half are continuously transported from the Eastern and Western Continents. Due to the long distance, the transportation of supplies is not very convenient, which is also the main reason why the population of the City of Freedom cannot expand excessively.
Perhaps the City of Sin could be called a small country, for it is a land of freedom, belonging to no single nation. The city has an army, but not a large one; daily affairs are handled jointly by the five city lords.
From afar, the city of Liberty is surrounded by green mountains and winding waters, like a paradise with pleasant scenery and beautiful landscapes.
Without taking a break, the mercenary group escorted the merchants toward the western continent.
After watching his employers enter the City of Sin, Guan Hao asked Chen Nan, "Brother Chen, what brings you to the City of Sin? Are you also planning to apply to the Divine Wind Academy like me?"
Chen Nan said, "No, I came here to seek refuge."
Guan Hao exclaimed in surprise, "Your skills are so superb, you must have reached at least the second level, right? Who could possibly send you to such a distant place?"
"These are the little girl's family members." Chen Nan pointed to the little princess who was playing happily with Tiger King Xiaoyu next to him.
Guan Hao exclaimed in surprise, "This little girl has such a powerful background, and you still dare to make a move on her? You're incredibly audacious!"
Upon hearing this, the little princess picked up Xiaoyu and angrily said, "You damned rat, what nonsense are you spouting? You actually believe what this guy says?"
Guan Hao looked at the little princess and said, "If you wash away the grime on her face, she's definitely a stunning beauty. Brother Chen, you have excellent taste!"
"Xiaoyu, please teach this bastard a lesson."
Before he could finish speaking, a deafening tiger's roar rang in his ears: "Roar..."
Guan Hao's ears were ringing from the shock. Before he could understand what was happening, he was pinned to the ground by a huge, furry creature.
When he came to his senses, he found himself sitting on a huge tiger's buttocks. He couldn't help but scream, "My God... Help!"
The little princess watched from the side, giggling with delight.
Guan Hao turned pale with fright and stammered, "Brother Chen, help me! I know I was wrong, waah... Oh my god, get this guy away from me!"
The tiger king's eyes flashed with ferocity. It had suffered a great loss at the hands of the mercenary group before, and now, facing its mortal enemy, it opened its blood-red maw and was about to bite down.
Just as Chen Nan was about to take action, the little princess hurriedly stopped the Tiger King, saying, "Xiao Yu, don't!"
The Tiger King stopped what he was doing and looked at the little princess with a puzzled expression.
The little princess said, "This guy is despicable, but his crime doesn't warrant death. Don't take people's lives lightly, understand?"
Even after Xiaoyu moved away from Guan Hao, she still glared at him menacingly.
Guan Hao shakily got to his feet, his eyes fixed on the snow-white tiger king with its glossy, jade-like fur. Finally, he exclaimed in shock, "My God, this guy is... the tiger king! It... it's actually become a spirit! The little wildcat is its incarnation!"
The Tiger King suffered severe injuries that day, and its power was greatly depleted. It had fallen from a third-tier magical beast to a first-tier beast. Now it was less than ten feet long, not much bigger than an ordinary tiger, but its arrogant demeanor remained the same. Guan Hao recognized it at a glance.
He dashed up behind Chen Nan and said in a trembling voice, "No wonder... it kept staring intently at those mercenaries all the way here... So that's how it is... This guy is terrifying, he actually knows how to transform."
The little princess looked at him with ill intent and said, "You have such a loose tongue, I'm going to teach you a lesson today."
"Little girl, don't come any closer! Brother Chen, quickly chase that tiger demon away!" The ferocious tiger king from that day had left a deep impression on Guan Hao. When he saw the fierce glint in Xiao Yu's eyes, he couldn't help but feel a little guilty.
Chen Nan smiled without moving. He wanted to see how much strength the Tiger King had recovered after a few days of recuperation, and he also wanted to see Guan Hao's true abilities.
The little princess's smile was particularly wicked, and Chen Nan seemed to see the little devil from the western border of Chu Kingdom again. At this moment, the Tiger King had bypassed Chen Nan and slowly approached Guan Hao, with the little princess following behind it.
Guan Hao's face turned green instantly, and he said in a trembling voice, "Little girl, I have no grudge against you. I have been protecting you diligently all the way, how could you do this to me?"
"Oh my god..."
Tiger King Xiaoyu roared, and Guan Hao was so frightened that he turned and ran away.
The little princess clapped her hands and laughed from behind, "Little Jade, don't bite him! Shock him with lightning, burn him with fire, hee hee..."
A bolt of lightning shot out from the tiger king's mouth and struck Guan Hao, who was running ahead. A wisp of smoke rose from his body, which was charred black and emitted a faint smell of burning.
The powerful electric current did not knock Guan Hao down, but only slightly burned his strong body. He did not slow down and ran quickly towards the woods not far away.
After a tiger's roar, a vast expanse of flames swept towards Guan Hao like a tidal wave.
"Help!" A scream came from the edge of the woods.
"Xiaoyu, come back." The Tiger King turned and ran to the little princess's side.
"Little girl, whew...you're such a little devil!" Guan Hao leaned against a large tree that was emitting blue smoke, panting heavily. At this moment, he was barely clothed, his body was charred black, and his hair stood on end. He looked extremely disheveled.
The little princess flipped herself onto the Tiger King and said, "Little Jade, can you still fly? Transform quickly, let's deal with this nasty fellow together."
With a roar, the Tiger King sprouted a pair of pure white wings from its belly and a jade horn from its forehead. Then, it leaped into the air, carrying the little princess.
The little princess shouted excitedly in the air, "Great! I can fly now! Haha... If that wicked old woman keeps forcing me to learn magic, I'll have an excuse! Xiaoyu, let's go teach that girl a lesson! Charge!"
Guan Hao's expression changed drastically, and he turned and disappeared into the woods. At that moment, he had the same realization Chen Nan had had: this little girl was definitely related to the demons of hell.
"Haha, you dead rat, where do you think you're going? Xiaoyu breathes fire, yes, burn him, haha..."
"Little witch, I surrender..."
"Xiaoyu unleashes lightning..."
"Xiaoyu, hurry and chase after them..."
"Brother Chen, come save me! I'll return your 100 gold coins!"
"Flame... Lightning..."
"Brother Chen, I'll give you a thousand gold coins. I'll hire you as my bodyguard. Come quick, save me!"
...
The Tiger King's ferocity that day left a deep impression on Guan Hao, filling him with immense fear. He didn't even notice that the Tiger King's strength was far less than before, causing him to passively dodge.
There were shouts and cries in the woods, including the little princess's triumphant laughter and Guan Hao's miserable screams.
Finally, Guan Hao couldn't run anymore and lay on the ground in a "spread-eagle" position, his eyes rolled back and foaming at the mouth.
The little princess complained in the air, "How boring! It's so fragile, it can't even handle a few moves." Then she turned her gaze to Chen Nan and smiled maliciously again.
Chen Nan was startled. He knew the little princess too well and knew she was up to no good again.
"Stop fooling around, little devil. Get down here right now, or we'll be in trouble if the people of Freedom City notice this place."
"Hehe, you scoundrel, I hate you so much, today I'm going to teach you a lesson."
Chen Nan said, "Don't forget, you've already been hit by my Soul-Binding Finger. If I'm displeased, you'll suffer terribly, and the attack will begin soon."
"You... scoundrel, filthy thief, villain, bastard..." The little princess was furious. If it weren't for the power of the Binding God Finger on her body, she would have already ridden Tiger King Xiaoyu back to the capital of Chu.
"No way, I'm going to teach you a lesson no matter what. Xiaoyu, give him a shock."
A powerful arc of electricity shot rapidly from the sky toward Chen Nan. He hurriedly drew his longsword and threw it into the air. The lightning and the longsword met in mid-air, bursting into a dazzling light. Finally, the longsword landed on the ground, and the lightning disappeared.
The little princess was furious and shouted, "Xiaoyu, set him on fire!"
The reason why the Tiger King was defeated that day was all because of Chen Nan. Now, facing its mortal enemy, it roared repeatedly and spewed out a large amount of flames, which swept down from the sky.
Chen Nan did not dodge, but instead punched the air, the golden energy bringing up a gust of wind that blocked the flames.
"Damn it, this guy has become so powerful! Xiaoyu, don't be discouraged, let's try again!" The little princess commanded the Tiger King to launch continuous attacks on Chen Nan, soaring up and down in the air, swirling and crashing.
In the City of Sin, at the Divine Wind Academy, an old man in purple robes and an old man in blue robes gazed at the distant sky, constantly marveling at its beauty.
The old man in purple sighed, "That's a tiger king with the superior bloodlines of both the Eastern White Tiger and the Western Demon Tiger!"
The old man in blue sighed, "It's a magical beast that can continuously evolve; truly an ideal mount!"
...
The old man in purple said, "The rumor of the Divine Hand has attracted so many cultivators. The City of Sin has been quite lively lately."
The old man in blue nodded in agreement and said, "I never expected that the severed left hand of the ancient god would cause such a great commotion. I wonder if the god really held a glowing object in his hand. If so, it would be something to look forward to seeing."
The old man in purple said, "Why don't we discuss with the other old fellows and make 'Finding the Left Hand of God' the assessment question for all students this semester?"
The old man in blue laughed and said, "You rascal... but that's a really good idea."
The old man in purple said, "The owner of that tiger king in the sky seems to be quite young, about the same age as your granddaughter. If your granddaughter were to ride her divine eagle and charge over there, it would be quite a spectacle, hehe..."
The old man in blue laughed and scolded, "You old codger, you really seem to thrive on chaos, actually wanting to see two juniors fight..."
The old man in purple said, "I hope your granddaughter didn't see a strange beast that's just as good as her divine eagle, otherwise, given her temper, she would definitely go up and fight it."
At that moment, a cry of an eagle rang out in the Divine Wind Academy, and a golden light shot into the sky, flying away through the air.
The two old men looked at each other, and the old man in blue said, "You jinx, you were right."
Above the eastern part of the City of Sin, the little princess rode on the Tiger King, flying back and forth in the sky, constantly cursing Chen Nan, as if she wanted to vent all the grievances she had suffered over the past few days.
"The great villain..."
"Shameless thief..."
...
The little princess cursed as she commanded the Tiger King to spew lightning and flames to attack Chen Nan.
Although Chen Nan was not afraid of these attacks, he was still caught off guard and made a mess of things. At this moment, he was very envious of those magicians who could fly. If he could fly, he would have already captured the little princess.
"No wonder dragon knights and mages are so powerful on the continent. If a person can move freely between the sky and the ground, their combat power will increase exponentially. What level of cultivation does an Eastern martial artist need to reach to be able to fly? Does he have to reach the unfathomable level of his father?" He pondered to himself as he parried the lightning and flames.
Suddenly, a cry of an eagle came from the sky, and a golden light arrived in the blink of an eye like lightning.
The little princess was startled and quickly stopped cursing. Tiger King Xiaoyu also looked wary, her eyes fixed on the front without blinking.
A huge golden eagle carrying a girl in yellow approached from afar and instantly arrived in front of the little princess, stirring up a fierce gale in the air.
The little princess swayed against Xiaoyu and screamed in fright, "Ah... Xiaoyu, steady yourself!"
In fact, the Tiger King didn't sway at all; it was the gust of wind brought by the giant eagle that made her sway. However, Xiaoyu was very understanding and swayed her a few times to stabilize her.
The little princess was furious and said, "Where did this stinky eagle come from? Where did this brat come from, daring to offend me like this?"
The giant golden eagle had a head and tail that were two zhang long, and its wingspan was a full five zhang. Its feathers shimmered with golden light, making it look even more majestic than the tiger king before them. Sitting on the eagle's back was a veiled woman in yellow, with a slender figure and graceful curves.
Upon hearing this, the masked woman scoffed, "Where did this little beggar come from? You can't even sit still, yet you blame others."
The little princess's face was smeared with dirt by Chen Nan, and she was wearing tattered clothes that Chen Nan had found for her. Upon hearing the words of the woman in yellow, she suddenly screamed, "You brat, how dare you talk back to me... this young lady! Xiao Yu, teach her a lesson!"
Tiger King Xiaoyu roared, and a bolt of lightning shot out from its mouth, the powerful current crackling in the air.
The golden eagle opened its iron beak, and a row of wind blades shot out. The wind blades and lightning met in the air and burst into a dazzling light. The two magical energies disappeared together in the end.
The woman in yellow, who was masked, said, "Your Tiger King and my Roc are both growth-type magical beasts, but my Roc has already reached the second rank, while your Tiger King is only at the first rank. If we let them fight, it would be really unfair. I came with high hopes, but I didn't expect to leave disappointed. It's really disappointing."
The little princess snorted, "Pah, what a load of nonsense. You think you're so great just because you're riding a big, fat duck? If I let you ride a big, clumsy goose, you'd be quacking all over the world."
"How dare you be so rude to me, little girl! I'll teach you a lesson!"
"Old woman, I'm not afraid of you."
"I am in the prime of my life, how dare you say I am old? I will not let you get away with this, you little beggar."
"I'll say it anyway, old woman, old woman, you're too old..."
"Dapeng, let's go teach that little beggar a lesson!"
"Xiaoyu, hurry up and breathe fire! I want to eat roasted fat duck!"
"You filthy little beggar, you don't even wash your face. I'm ashamed of you. Let me use magic to wash your face, Water Dragon Wave." The masked woman cast a water spell, which not only extinguished the flames spewed by the Tiger King, but also splashed some water onto the little princess.
Caught off guard, the little princess was drenched and screamed, "You old woman, how dare you ambush me... Little Jade Lightning!"
...
Chen Nan had once heard people jokingly say that two women arguing was like five hundred ducks quacking. Now, he felt like there were three thousand ducks flying and flying and flying in the air...
Although the Tiger King was once a powerful third-tier magical beast, it had been severely injured that day and had fallen to the first tier. Facing the second-tier divine eagle in front of it, it roared repeatedly, but was helpless.
The little princess's powers had all been sealed by Chen Nan, leaving her powerless to resist the masked woman's magical attacks. She commanded Xiao Yu to dodge and weave through the air, screaming in alarm.
"Old woman, I'm done playing, stop now."
"You still dare to call me an old woman? Flames, wind blades..." The masked woman in yellow unleashed wave after wave of magical attacks on the little princess, relentlessly.
"Old woman, stop yelling and I won't shout anymore..."
"You scruffy little beggar, let's see how long you can keep up your stubbornness!"
The little princess, unable to use her skills, harbored deep resentment towards Chen Nan. In mid-air, she cursed, "You scoundrel, you shameless scoundrel, you despicable thief! You've ruined me! One day I'll kill you!"
The veiled woman in yellow shouted angrily, "You filthy little beggar, how dare you insult me like that! I'm not finished with you today!"
Chen Nan laughed heartily on the ground, knowing that the little princess had now caused a huge misunderstanding.
"Old woman, I was cursing that shameless scoundrel, not you!" the little princess screamed as she explained, facing the overwhelming magical attack from behind.
"I'm so angry! Let's see how long you can keep up this stubbornness, you little brat."
"Stop, you old woman!"
"Lightning, wind blades, ice blades..."
Guan Gao struggled to his feet. His mind was still hazy. When he looked up, he saw the little princess being subjected to a dazzling magical attack.
He was taken aback, and then couldn't help but mutter, "God, you've shown your power so quickly! Let the magic come even more fiercely and teach that little witch a lesson!"
Chen Nan shouted into the air, "Little devil, come down now! If you don't want to go to hell and reunite with your sisters, call me master and I'll protect you."
"Pah, you scumbag, I hate you so much, I'll never let you protect me again. Ah... old woman, stop attacking, let's make up."
"Ah, help me, you old woman, I surrender..."
Eagles roared and tigers howled in the air, accompanied by flashes of lightning and thunder.
The masked woman in yellow did not kill the little princess. The powerful magic such as lightning and wind blades did not touch the little princess's body, but only kept whistling past her ears. Only water magic kept hitting her, leaving her soaking wet.
Nevertheless, the little princess was terrified and screamed repeatedly.
Finally, with nowhere to run, she had no choice but to beg Chen Nan for help: "You scoundrel, save me! Get rid of this old woman!"
Chen Nan shouted, "Get down quickly, or I won't be able to help you."
The little princess directed Xiaoyu to quickly descend to the ground, with the giant golden eagle in hot pursuit.
"Here's an ice pop for you, you slovenly little beggar." After saying this, the masked woman in yellow chanted a spell, and the temperature around the little princess dropped rapidly, instantly freezing her wet clothes.
"It's cold, old woman, stop!"
When the little princess landed on the ground, she was covered with a thin layer of ice armor, her eyebrows and hair were covered with frost, her face was blue from the cold, and her body was shivering.
"Old woman...get down here...I'm not done with you yet." The little princess's voice trembled from the cold.
"Haha, you slovenly little beggar, I'm not playing with you anymore, I'm leaving."
"Coward...if you've got the guts...let's try again!"
"Hehe, little slovenly boy, if you want revenge, you can come find me at Shenfeng Academy." After saying this, the masked woman in yellow rode her golden giant eagle and soared into the sky, disappearing in the direction of the City of Sin in the blink of an eye.
The little princess stomped her feet angrily, shouting, "Old woman, don't run away!"
Chen Nan found it incredibly amusing. Women's fighting was indeed unique, not only in their actions but also in their verbal battles.
Despite the sweltering summer heat, the little princess was shivering from the cold. After cursing the masked woman in yellow, she angrily said to Chen Nan, "You scoundrel, quickly remove that damned finger technique! If you hadn't sealed my power, how could I have been bullied by that old woman?"
"You were the one who spoke rudely first, otherwise why would they bother you for no reason? If you want me to release you from the Binding God's Finger, you'll have to write a contract of servitude to prove you're my maid."
"Keep dreaming!" the little princess said angrily. "Oh, right, I remember now. You do have a contract of servitude in my hands. I think it's in the Emperor's... in my study. I'll definitely make it public when I get the chance, so that you, this shameless scoundrel, will be utterly disgraced and everyone will know that you are my slave."
"You little devil, how dare you bring up the matter of the western border of Chu! You'll serve me tonight!"