After a day's flight, the Golden Leaf Flying Boat finally flew out of the Ghost Territory and arrived at Lianyun City the next morning.

Fang Qiu dismissed the Golden Leaf Flying Boat and said to the nine students, "Everyone, pull your dragon tendons and fly around Lianyun City in a circle, so the citizens can see our achievements and understand the impact we made against the Ghost Cultivators..."

Following the instructions, the students took to the skies, pulling out dragon tendons from their Storage Rings. In their hands, they circled around above Lianyun City. The dragon tendons were densely adorned with the heads of Ghost Cultivators, an awe-inspiring sight, yet the people of Lianyun City were not horrified; instead, waves of joyous cheer surged.

As the news spread, tens of thousands of people poured out of their homes onto the streets, looking up at the sky, genuinely thrilled by the scene above, erupting into cheers,

Wang Xiaoqiang was never one for showing off and thought this seemed foolish, but he understood this gesture wasn't for grandstanding, but to reassure the populace, so he too pulled his dragon tendons and joined the "display" lineup.

While others had one dragon tendon, and some couldn't even fully cover theirs with Ghost Cultivator heads, only Wang Xiaoqiang had two dragon tendons, one in each hand, both filled with Ghost Cultivator heads.

The crucial point is, most of the heads on Wang Xiaoqiang's dragon tendons were of Ghost Generals, the higher-ranking Ghost Cultivators, with Ghost Soldiers being fewer in number.

Clearly, Wang Xiaoqiang's achievements ranked first.

So when Wang Xiaoqiang was flying around Lianyun City holding his dragon tendons, he immediately captured the broad attention of the crowd, who gasped in admiration.

Especially the local Cultivators looked up at Wang Xiaoqiang in the sky, giving thumbs up. While they showed wonder and doubt in their eyes, wondering how Wang Xiaoqiang, with only mid-level cultivation among the ten students, could slaughter so many Ghost Cultivators?

After a round of "showing off," the ten students landed one after another, receiving questions and accolades from the city's populace. During the interaction with the citizens, the ten students naturally explained how the Ghost King was driven back to the Netherworld, assuring them that for a long time ahead, Lianyun City would no longer be harassed by Ghost Cultivators.

The citizens of Lianyun City were filled with amazement and joy upon hearing this. Amazement at how merely ten students managed to drive the mighty master of the Ghost Territory—the Ghost King—out, and joy that they no longer had to fear the havoc from Ghost Cultivators.

Afterward, the ten students were invited by the Lord of Lianyun City to the City Lord's Residence.

Due to years of destruction by Ghost Cultivators, the City Lord's Residence looked somewhat dilapidated, yet its architectural scale was rather grand and imposing, with expansive courtyards, towering pavilions, and winding corridors...

Though the residence was large, there were few servants to be seen, indicating that this City Lord was not a man of luxury. His name was Hu Lai, a middle-aged man, dressed very simply in plain clothes.

Hu Lai ordered fine wine and dishes to entertain the students. During the feast, three pretty maidservants busily passed dishes and drinks around,

Judging by their demeanor and attire, these three maidservants didn't seem like mere servants; rather, they appeared to be of noble birth. Moreover, they bore some resemblance to one another, all being stunningly beautiful with graceful figures and bright smiles, their words gentle, their glances dazzling.

During the banquet, at the request of the City Lord, Fang Qiu recounted their journey into the Ghost Territory to slay the Ghost Cultivators,

The City Lord found the story about the Ghost King and Ghost Spirit fleeing to the Netherworld a bit peculiar, although he said nothing, his expression betrayed some disbelief, as it was apparent that he was somewhat skeptical of this account.

As the City Lord, he was very knowledgeable about Ghost Cultivators, aware of the Ghost King's formidable power, far beyond what a few students could contend with. In his eyes, it was lucky enough that these ten students returned safely, let alone having driven away the mighty Ghost King.

In order to dispel the City Lord's doubts, Fang Qiu vividly recounted Wang Xiaoqiang's epic battle against the Ghost Spirit at the sacrificial altar,

The City Lord and the three maidservants listened attentively, remaining spellbound for a while. Then, all their gazes fell on Wang Xiaoqiang, their eyes alight with admiration.

According to Fang Qiu's description, it was this young student who drove away the Ghost King and Ghost Spirit, yet Wang Xiaoqiang was just of the Fourth Soldier Realm of the Immortal Sage, his unremarkable cultivation level making his prowess all the more astonishing and reverential.

"Young Master Wang, your martial prowess is unmatched, your slaying of Ghost Cultivators commendable. On behalf of the people of Lianyun City, I thank you. Come, let me toast to you,"

The City Lord raised his cup to toast Wang Xiaoqiang, his demeanor exceptionally sincere and respectful.

Wang Xiaoqiang humbly responded and drank a cup with him.

The City Lord instructed one of the maidservants, "Xiulian, quickly refill Young Master Wang's cup. Today I plan to drink my fill with these students from the Empire..."

The maidservant named Xiulian promptly refilled Wang Xiaoqiang's cup, gazing at him with admiration and affection in her beautiful eyes.

The City Lord hesitated for a moment before speaking, "If I may be so bold to ask, Young Master Wang, you are so young, you must not have married yet?"

This question from the City Lord was not merely bold but excessively so, immediately causing Wang Xiaoqiang to feel a wave of embarrassment. The sip of wine he just took almost made him choke, he hastily set down his cup, too embarrassed to speak.

Nevertheless, the City Lord did not let Wang Xiaoqiang's embarrassment deter him from pursuing this topic, continuing, "Young Master Wang, your feats against the Ghost Cultivators are merit-worthy, making you a hero of Lianyun City. My three daughters have admired heroes since childhood..."

The City Lord said this while gesturing toward the three maidservants beside him.

The audience, hearing this, looked at the three maidservants with surprise, then a dawning realization, thinking, uh, no wonder these three girls didn't seem like maidservants; they were the City Lord's daughters.

The fact that the City Lord had his daughters serve them showed his seriousness and sincerity towards the students.

"They are all yet unmarried. If Young Master Wang has an inclination, you can mention it to me after the feast. Any one of them could be yours, whichever you fancy, haha..." The City Lord said, laughing joyfully.

The City Lord even winked at his daughters, indicating they should be proactive in currying favor, seemingly implying that being chosen by Wang Xiaoqiang would be their great fortune and destiny.

The oldest girl appeared somewhat bashful, while the youngest was quite bold. Far from showing any shyness, she even took a step closer to Wang Xiaoqiang, personally picking food for him and putting it in his bowl. The middle girl, with her charming manner, even gave Wang Xiaoqiang a flirty glance.

Wang Xiaoqiang was so awkward he felt like crying. The City Lord was way too frank and generous, offering to marry off his daughters right in front of everyone and even letting him choose, it was almost like a beauty contest.

While Wang Xiaoqiang had a pained expression, the other male students wore slightly mischievous smiles, while the three female students were overcome with jealousy, looking rather displeased, especially Princess Hua Shao.

Princess Hua Shao directly voiced her displeasure, speaking mockingly, "Lord of the City, what do you mean by this? Are your daughters unmarriageable, that you have to thrust them upon someone?"

The City Lord, hearing this, felt slightly displeased and said, "How can this young lady speak like that? Young Master Wang is handsome, charming, unparalleled in martial prowess, and a great hero of our Lianyun City. Right now, countless girls in Lianyun City want to marry him. My daughters are all beautiful flowers; as they say, heroes match beauties, this is a match made in heaven, how can you call it thrusting?"

"But, to marry off your daughters so lightly, allowing him to choose at will? You mean if Wang Xiaoqiang likes all three, you'd marry all three of them to him..."

The City Lord was unfazed, naturally, and unsurprisingly said, "Exactly. As long as Young Master Wang's interested..."

Princess Hua Shao rolled her eyes in frustration, grumpily saying, "Lord Hu Lai, now I understand why you are called Hu Lai..."

"Why is that?" Lord Hu Lai asked in surprise.

"Because you're muddleheaded, and you muddle through things." (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)

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