Chapter 0436: Night Investigation of the City Lord’s Mansion

The City Lord was definitely hiding some unspeakable secret—something unimaginably mysterious. Everything in the Dark City stemmed from the Dark City Lord. Without him, this place wouldn't have transformed into its current form. Yi Tianxing wasn't at ease without thoroughly investigating.In fact, Yi Tianxing suspected that the entire Dark City itself was a conspiracy.

Leaving behind the Ten Thousand Talisman Banner, he stepped out of his dwelling.Above, a cloud silently drifted in to obscure the moonlight, casting the night in deeper darkness. The Dark City at night was eerily quiet—frighteningly so. Few dared to walk its streets under the cover of darkness.Hidden dangers lurked in the night. Even formidable experts like the Tiger King, Wu Hai, didn't dare venture out lightly. Many had vanished without a trace, killed in the silence of night—bodies never recovered.

Pfft!

A pitch-black dagger, dull enough not to reflect light even at night, silently slashed toward Yi Tianxing's throat. There was no killing intent—this was definitely an elite assassin.But before the blade could land, a sword flash sliced through the darkness. A head flew, blood trailing through the air. The body collapsed and vanished in the next second, swiftly absorbed into the pagoda—its soul sealed in the Yin-Yang Space as nourishment.

This was not the first person to die by Yi Tianxing's sword.Time and again, killers thought they could hide in the darkness and strike unseen—but they were up against Yi Tianxing, a warrior forged in blood. His powerful physique and opened Sea of Consciousness Aperture, combined with spiritual force, allowed him to sweep and probe the environment even without sight. No matter how hidden or restrained the assassin's killing intent, the moment they acted, their fate was sealed: death.

That was already the fifth to die by his blade tonight.

Moving quickly, Yi Tianxing soon arrived at the gates of the City Lord's Mansion.It was a massive structure, shrouded in a dark mist. From what he had learned, this mist had appeared the moment the City Lord arrived. No one had ever seen it dissipate. No one who had entered had ever come back out.It had happened more than once. Always the same result.

The mansion had become a forbidden zone. People avoided it entirely—as if some monster inside was waiting to devour intruders.

"Interesting. Even with my Innate Yin-Yang Eyes, I can't see through this black mist. Everything's blurry, like viewing flowers through fog. My spiritual sense only penetrates ten meters at most. This mist isn't normal. Entering it means losing all sense of direction—those who go in can't come out."

Yi Tianxing studied the mist and muttered to himself. A chilling thought crept into his mind:Perhaps those who entered didn't need to be killed by anyone. They simply got lost forever and died within the fog.

"So mysterious. Now I have to know what's hidden inside."

Taking a deep breath, Yi Tianxing stepped forward and entered the City Lord's Mansion.It had no guards; anyone could enter. But whether they could leave—that depended on fate.

The mist churned as he stepped in, blocking his vision. Even with his Innate Yin-Yang Eyes, he could barely make out the vague shapes of nearby structures.

"Innate Yin-Yang Eyes!!"

Yi Tianxing activated his eye power to the limit. A black and a white light swirled in his pupils. Suddenly, his vision changed—the world turned black and white. In this state, even the dense mist couldn't block his sight. It was as if the mist was broken apart.Everything became starkly visible. In this monochrome world, nothing could hide. Illusions were pierced. The mist could no longer blind him.

"What a vast mansion… and so many bones. These must be those who entered recklessly and died, unable to find their way out. I wonder how many tried to probe this place."

He now clearly saw everything.There were bones even beneath his feet—flesh long rotted away, only white skeletons left. One clutched a longsword. No signs of battle. The most likely cause of death: starvation.But Yi Tianxing suspected the mist also played a role.

"This mist induces hallucinations. Like being plunged into endless darkness."

He continued walking. The illusions of the mist didn't affect him.As he passed the corpses, he collected them all into the Heavenly Emperor's Pagoda. Even the smallest mosquito had meat—no reason to waste. Some bodies carried wealth, items stored in pouches. He didn't bother checking yet—just took them all.

Swoosh!Suddenly, a chill ran up his spine.

"You little ghost! You're seeking death!!"

Yi Tianxing's reflexes were razor-sharp. He dodged to the side. A black figure lunged at the spot he'd just been standing. Shrouded in black mist, the ghostly figure made the temperature drop sharply. It was a terrifying specter. For those at the Divine Sea Realm, getting noticed by such a ghost could mean instant death.

But the moment it failed its ambush, a black-and-white iron chain appeared—wrapping around the ghost at lightning speed.

Aaaahhh!!

A shrill scream echoed from the ghost. The Yin-Yang Lock burst with radiant white light. As it touched the ghost, its black mist sizzled and dissolved.Yang energy—deadly to ghosts—eroded it instantly. It was like ice meeting fire.

"No consciousness. Only instinct. Likely someone who died here, their soul unable to escape the mist, becoming a ghost driven by instinct."

Yi Tianxing captured the soul and stored it within his Yin-Yang Eyes. It had lost all sanity—no answers could be gleaned.

Step. Step.He walked onward.

Front yard, rear garden, inner courtyards.

He explored room after room, finding only decay. Layers of dust. Molded bedding. No signs of recent habitation.

"No one's lived here in a long time. Not even signs of human activity. Does the so-called Dark City Lord even exist?"

He couldn't help but doubt.

The garden was overgrown and dead. The pond had dried up. There was no life.

Before he realized it, Yi Tianxing arrived at a quiet chamber.

Opening the door—it was more like a study. Bookshelves lined the room.

"Chronicles of the Dark City, The Autobiography of Li Xuanqing, Yunzhen Herbal Classic, Yunzhen's Alchemy Notes. Looks like an actual study."

The shelves contained all kinds of texts—biographies, local records, strange anecdotes, alchemical manuals. But only one true technique caught his attention: "Shadow Blade Sutra".

A high-level, darkness-based cultivation technique focusing on the Dao of the Blade. Practitioners condensed Shadow Blade Essence, not ordinary true essence. It was brutal and strange.Clearly a core inheritance of the Dark City Lord's Mansion.

"A study, but no signs of recent activity. Wait—there are footprints."

Although faint, accumulated dust made the footprints visible under black-and-white vision. The prints led toward a bookshelf… then stopped. No return prints.Someone had entered—but not left.

"There's a mechanism here."

Yi Tianxing's eyes narrowed. Without hesitation, he collected all the books for the Scripture Pavilion. Knowledge was always valuable.

Swoosh!

After a careful search, he pressed against one of the bookshelves. It shifted sideways, revealing a hidden passage.

"As expected—a secret passage. The real secrets lie underground."

Yi Tianxing gazed down at the twisting staircase below, anticipation in his eyes.This study was just a cover. The true secrets of the Dark City Lord lay in the hidden chamber beneath.