"Alright, you've surrendered it this time. What's your name?"
Zhou Hong replied, "My name is Zhou Hong."
"So, do you still want to register for the City Lord position?"
"This...!" Zhou Hong was now without the Demon Subduing Pestle, his strength had plummeted, and he couldn't even refine the dried radish into a puppet. It was indescribable.
"Don't blame me for not warning you. If you become the City Lord, and your strength can't protect you, countless people will come to kill you. You need to think carefully."
Standing beside him, the Dried Radish sneered, "Zhou Hong, without the Demon Subduing Pestle, let's see how you'll be City Lord."
Zhou Hong glared fiercely at the Dried Radish. If it weren't for him, Zhou Hong wouldn't have ended up in such a predicament. It seemed he truly couldn't be soft-hearted; he should have refined him into a puppet back then.
"Hahaha, Zhou Hong, having regrets now?" The Dried Radish looked smug, as if his plan had succeeded.
"Dried Radish, do you think you're any better? You need my antidote every month," Zhou Hong threatened back.
The Dried Radish's expression shifted slightly. He clenched his fists and threatened, "Don't rush. After we leave, I'll make you pay. Anyway, my strength won't be affected for this month. Within this month, I'll skin you ten times until you tell me the method to remove it, or give me enough antidote for at least the next ten thousand years."
"Utterly delusional."
"Alright, you two, stop arguing. Do you want to be City Lord or not? If you do, come over here to register, then enter the Celestial Gate. Go left, don't climb the stairs. A few kilometers in, someone will be in charge," one of the guarding generals shouted.
Zhou Hong thought for a moment and then said, "Yes, I do."
Since he had come this far, Zhou Hong naturally wanted to be the City Lord. As for other matters, he would deal with them later.
"Come over to register."
Soon, Zhou Hong finished registering and entered the Celestial Gate.
"He needs to register too, otherwise, there's no way to prove you snatched the City Lord position, unless you bring his head in." At this moment, one of the guarding generals pointed at the Dried Radish. It was useless for Zhou Hong to go in alone unless he carried the head of the previous City Lord.
"Come in with me!" Zhou Hong commanded, looking at the Dried Radish.
"Hmph, you wish. I'll go in with you to prove that you took the City Lord position from me?" the Dried Radish sneered.
Zhou Hong truly wanted to slap himself. He regretted it immensely once again. If only he had refined him into a puppet, this wouldn't have happened.
Just then, one of the guarding generals said, "How about this, Zhou Hong? Considering you voluntarily surrendered the wanted demonic artifact, I'll help you prove that you indeed took over the City Lord position from the former City Lord."
"Thank you, senior," Zhou Hong rejoiced inwardly.
The Dried Radish immediately looked displeased.
"Senior, isn't this against the rules?" the Dried Radish quickly said.
"If you think it's against the rules, then I'll drag you in with us. In fact, you were indeed coerced by him to come here today. If he hadn't voluntarily surrendered the wanted demonic artifact, this obstacle wouldn't exist. Therefore, helping him prove it is only fitting."
And so, Zhou Hong entered the Celestial Gate. Upon entering, the first thing that met his eyes was a very, very long staircase that stretched all the way to the clouds above. However, minor officials like Zhou Hong, who were City Lords, were not qualified to walk up the stairs. They had to enter through a side path. Not long after entering, he saw a simple office.
With the proof from one of the guarding generals, Zhou Hong successfully registered for the position of City Lord of Wumeng City. Furthermore, he was given a register of demonic cultivators.
"Alright, you can go now."
"Thank you, senior."
Zhou Hong took the register of demonic cultivators and walked out of the Celestial Gate.
Outside the Celestial Gate at this moment, only Heil Lan stood there. The Dried Radish had long since vanished.
"You can go back. I hope you can hold onto your City Lord position for a while longer." Although the two guarding generals said this, they clearly held no hope for Zhou Hong. The reason they were willing to speak for Zhou Hong was first, because he had surrendered the wanted demonic artifact, and second, because at such a young age, he could still snatch a city lord's position, which showed some capability.
"Zhou Hong, let's go," Heil Lan said with a dark face, his expression incredibly dejected. He felt that he wouldn't be able to return home alive today.
It was obvious that the Dried Radish would be waiting for them on the road ahead. The Dried Radish would definitely kill him, whereas Zhou Hong, needing the antidote, wouldn't kill him directly.
"How do we go? The Dried Radish is definitely waiting for us below," Zhou Hong said, glancing at Heil Lan.
"What's coming will come. It's all your fault for being soft-hearted. Otherwise, you wouldn't have ended up like this. I have no hope of returning home alive," Heil Lan's words were filled with resentment. He had told Zhou Hong earlier to quickly refine the Dried Radish into a puppet to avoid future trouble, but who knew! It was too late to say anything now.
Zhou Hong wanted to say a few words to his grandfather in his sub-world, but realizing it wasn't the place, he suppressed himself. If his sub-world were discovered, his situation would be even more dire.
As expected, not far below, the Dried Radish was waiting, a smile on his face. He coldly snorted, "Zhou Hong, I'll see when you come down. And you, Heil Lan, you will surely die today."
Zhou Hong stood outside the Celestial Gate for a long time, not leaving, because he still hadn't figured out a way to deal with the Dried Radish. If Long Yu were here, he could have used his mental-type immortal artifact to eliminate the Dried Radish in an instant.
"Why aren't you two leaving yet?" the two guarding generals asked.
"Apologies, could you let us stay here a bit longer? If I go down now, I'll inevitably run into the Dried Radish. He's waiting for us below," Zhou Hong quickly replied.
"This is not a place where idle people can linger indefinitely. Leave quickly, or we'll have to drive you out." The two guarding generals paid no heed to Zhou Hong's fate. In the Demon Realm, so many people died every day; who cared about so much?
"Phew! What a miscalculation," Zhou Hong sighed deeply. Perhaps this was the most regrettable thing he had ever done.
"Alright, stop sighing. We'll go down now. After we run into the Dried Radish, I'll do my best to hold him off for a while, and you run as far as you can," Heil Lan said to Zhou Hong.
"Where else can I run? Even if I return to Wumeng City, he can still chase after me."
"Why are you going back to Wumeng City now? This is suicide! Hurry up and run somewhere else to hide, or see if you can find some help."
"Huh!" Zhou Hong suddenly thought of something. He wondered if Long Yu was still in the Immortal Demon Mountain Range. If he was, Zhou Hong could go find him there and ask him to help eliminate the Dried Radish.
However, if Zhou Hong ran away, what would happen to Heil Lan's family in Wumeng City? What about Hei Xiaolu?