Zhou Hong returned to Wumeng City.
As soon as Zhou Hong entered the City Lord's mansion, the butler hurried forward and said to Zhou Hong, "City Lord, we have guests. I told them you were on your way to the Demon Immortal Kingdom for official duties. They are in the main hall now. Please go in and receive them quickly."
Upon hearing the butler's report, Zhou Hong's brow furrowed slightly.
"What guests?"
"They said they are relatives of the Dragon Subduing General and presented his token of authority."
"Dragon Subduing General?" Zhou Hong had no idea who that was.
Zhou Hong immediately entered the main hall and saw three young men sitting inside, harassing several maids from the City Lord's mansion and laughing heartily.
"What are you doing? How dare you act so presumptuously in Wumeng City!" Zhou Hong roared.
When the young men saw Zhou Hong, they immediately stopped their harassment. One of them smiled and said, "Are you the City Lord of Wumeng City?"
"Indeed, I am the City Lord." Zhou Hong sized up the young men before him. Their cultivation was not strong, all of them only being third or fourth-grade Demon Masters.
"You've returned just in time. Serve us wine and food quickly. We plan to stay in Wumeng City for ten days to half a month. Also, find us some pretty girls." one of the young men ordered.
"How ridiculous. Why should I serve you wine and food?"
"Listen up, you bastard. My name is Yang Ming Long, and my father is Yang Zheng, the Far-Reaching General of the Li Qiang Demon Immortal Kingdom. He commands 500,000 heavenly soldiers. You dare to ask why? Do you believe I can summon 100,000 heavenly soldiers with just a glance to surround your entire Wumeng City?" one of the young men said angrily, clearly displeased with Zhou Hong.
Zhou Hong felt a bit skeptical at this moment, but also a bit shocked. The so-called Far-Reaching General commanded 500,000 heavenly soldiers; he wondered if it was true.
"You brat, it seems you know nothing about the important officials of the Li Qiang Demon Immortal Kingdom. Fine, I'll show you my father's token of authority."
After speaking, the young man took out a token from his person.
Zhou Hong had never seen it before and couldn't tell if it was real. However, judging by their arrogant demeanor, it didn't seem fake.
"Zhou Hong, do as they say. There's no need to provoke them over this," Zhou Hong's grandfather said in his mind.
"Grandfather, does commanding 500,000 heavenly soldiers make him very powerful?"
"Reasonably powerful. When I was in the Immortal Realm, I held a similar position, commanding a million heavenly soldiers."
"So, from this, we can deduce that this Far-Reaching General's strength is likely inferior to yours back then, meaning he hasn't reached the ninth-grade Demon King realm."
"That's not necessarily true. The immortal court I belonged to back then was a relatively small immortal empire, which is why I, a ninth-grade Immortal King, could become the supreme commander of a million heavenly soldiers."
"Haha, doesn't that mean this Far-Reaching General's strength is even lower? Besides, the Li Qiang Demon Immortal Kingdom I'm in now only has over a hundred cities, which is already quite small."
"Uh!" Zhou Hong's grandfather was slightly taken aback. Indeed, this Li Qiang Demon Immortal Kingdom was about the same size as the immortal empire he belonged to in his past life.
"Therefore, this Far-Reaching General is at most a ninth-grade Demon King. To be safe, let's say he's a first-grade Demon Emperor." A hint of coldness flashed in Zhou Hong's eyes. With the 500 puppet sword formations Zhou Hong could currently deploy, he might not be afraid.
"Zhou Hong, it's better to avoid trouble."
"Alright, alright, I'll listen to you. It's better to avoid trouble." Zhou Hong sighed, unwilling to offend these second-generation officials over such a trivial matter.
"What are you still waiting for? Go down and prepare!" the arrogant young man shouted.
Zhou Hong grunted softly and immediately turned to go down and give instructions.
After Zhou Hong left the main hall, one of the young men quickly said, "Young Master, this City Lord is completely different from the City Lords in other places we've visited. The previous City Lords would fawn over you, offering you all sorts of fun, delicious, and comfortable accommodations. But this worthless City Lord even looks displeased."
"Yes, Young Master. I'm very unsatisfied with this City Lord. He shows too little respect for you. You are the son of the Dragon Subduing General! It's a great honor for you to rest in Wumeng City, and yet he wears such a sour face."
The young man also said angrily, "This bastard, when I return, I will definitely tell my father to have him removed, or perhaps, send people to destroy him directly."
"Young Master, didn't you notice that this City Lord's cultivation realm seems a bit low?"
"Hmm, I saw that too just now. He seems to be only a fifth-grade Demon Master. I thought I was mistaken."
"Young Master, you're not mistaken. He really is only a fifth-grade Demon Master."
"Then how did he become the City Lord?"
"Why else? Either he relies on someone else, or he possesses a very powerful demonic artifact."
The young man snorted, "Then we'll interrogate him later to see what kind of demonic artifact it is."
Zhou Hong went to instruct his servants to prepare a feast for these people.
Food and wine were not valuable, so there was no need to be stingy.
However, Zhou Hong went into the kitchen and urinated directly into the water vat used for stir-frying.
"City Lord, you?" A maid happened to walk in, ready to help prepare the dishes. Upon seeing the City Lord urinating into the water vat, she was startled. Of course, the City Lord's intimidating presence also made her swallow.
"Later, have the cooks use the water from this vat to cook for those bastards," Zhou Hong said, shaking himself.
"This...!"
"What 'this'? Can't I treat them to a meal? Don't say a word about this."
"Yes, City Lord." The maid naturally wouldn't dare to speak of it.
The cooks all began to busy themselves, washing vegetables and stir-frying. Every time water was needed, it was taken from the water vat where Zhou Hong had urinated.
Soon, various delicious dishes were prepared.
"City Lord, the dishes are ready to be served!" the head chef said to Zhou Hong.
"Let's go. Follow me to serve the dishes."
"Yes!"
Over 20 servants, each carrying a plate of food, walked towards the main hall, with Zhou Hong leading the way.
"Everyone, the wine and food are ready. Please enjoy," Zhou Hong said indifferently as he entered the main hall.
"You bastard, taking so long to prepare a few dishes." The second-generation official seemed displeased.
"I apologize. Because our dishes here are particularly delicious, it takes more time to cook them."
"Stop with the nonsense and serve them quickly."
The servants immediately brought the dishes forward, and the second-generation official impatiently began to eat.
Although Zhou Hong had urinated in the water vat, it was difficult to detect immediately, as the urine had been diluted in the water.