Zhou Hong arrived on the ground with eight puppets.
"Eight Immortals Sword Formation!" With a shout from Zhou Hong, the eight puppets instantly formed an Eight Immortals Sword Formation.
Zhou Hong smiled with satisfaction. With this Eight Immortals Sword Formation, killing a fifth-grade demon king would be no problem. Of course, if it were a genius-level fifth-grade demon king, one who also possessed powerful weapons, that would be another matter.
If Zhou Hong were to face Long Yu now, he would likely not lose to him. Long Yu's spiritual attack immortal artifact would have no effect on Zhou Hong's puppets because puppets have no spirit of their own. Therefore, if Zhou Hong and Long Yu were to duel now, Zhou Hong would be very confident.
"I never expected that after losing my Demon Subduing Pestle, my strength is now on par with before with the Eight Immortals Sword Formation. It's just a pity that many of the subtle uses of the Demon Subduing Pestle can no longer be employed," Zhou Hong felt a slight regret but could do nothing about it, accepting his fate.
"Next, I need to focus on diligently cultivating my realm. My current realm is only second-grade demon master, which is too low. With my current status as City Lord, my cultivation quota can reach first-grade demon king," Zhou Hong said to himself.
The higher the official position, the higher the realm one could cultivate. With the rank of City Lord, Zhou Hong could cultivate up to first-grade demon king. Previously, Zhou Hong's cultivation quota had only reached third-grade demon master, which was the limit Hei Lan could arrange for him.
Now that Zhou Hong had become City Lord, he no longer needed approval; his cultivation quota could automatically extend to first-grade demon king.
This was why the City Lord level of official position only saw competition among demon kings of the first, second, or third grade, because this position only granted the qualification to cultivate up to the first-grade demon king.
At this moment, Hei Lan walked over.
"Congratulations! After more than 20 days, you've finally succeeded. Your combat power now is not inferior to a fifth-grade demon king, right?" Hei Lan chuckled.
"Yes, as long as they are not genius-level or cultivators who possess powerful demon artifacts, I should have no problem with anyone below fifth-grade demon king," Zhou Hong said confidently.
"Don't worry, there probably aren't many cultivators more talented than you. They are likely only found in the upper echelons of the demon realm."
"The upper echelons of the demon realm, do you mean the continent floating above us?"
"Yes, beyond the Celestial Gate, those floating sky islands are the upper echelons. Ordinary cultivators cannot go there. Even you, as City Lord, can only enter the Celestial Gate; you can't even take a single step on the stairs."
"Oh! Then what level does one need to reach to pass through the Celestial Gate and cultivate in the upper echelons?"
"One must reach at least fifth-grade demon king and hold a corresponding official position in the Demon Immortal Kingdom to establish their own immortal mansion there."
"Alright."
"However, it's not necessarily good to be up there. After all, it's too close to the Demon Emperor. Many powerful cultivators prefer to carve out their own territory below, living a leisurely and carefree life."
Zhou Hong nodded and did not continue the topic.
At this moment, Hei Lan suddenly said, "Zhou Hong, you are now the City Lord of Wumeng City. Would you like to invite the powerful cultivator forces within your jurisdiction to gather here?"
"Gather for what?"
"According to custom, either they come to congratulate you, or you invite them. Since they show no intention of coming to congratulate you, you must either invite them actively or go to them."
"How many powerful cultivators are there within the jurisdiction of Wumeng City?" Zhou Hong asked curiously. Before, he only knew about the Ten Great Demon Kings in the city, but there was also a large mountain range outside the city, as well as some towns and villages, all of which belonged to the jurisdiction of Wumeng City.
"I've tallied it up these past few days. Outside Wumeng City, there are about fifteen or sixteen demon kings."
"So many?" Zhou Hong was slightly surprised.
"Yes, these fifteen or sixteen demon kings do not live within Wumeng City like we do. They choose to find a mountain outside and build their own large manor, or dig a cave or underground dwelling. Of course, some have occupied a village or town and are kings there. In any case, there are all sorts."
Zhou Hong nodded. He had not paid attention to these forces before.
"What is the strength of these fifteen or sixteen demon kings? How did the previous Rotten Dried Radish get along with them?"
"To be precise, there are 16 demon kings. About half of these 16 demon kings are first-grade demon kings. This half of first-grade demon kings dare not be too arrogant. Although the previous Rotten Dried Radish did not offend them, they were also quite well-behaved and did not commit any lawless acts."
"What happens if they commit lawless acts?" Zhou Hong asked.
"Then it will naturally be your responsibility. You are the City Lord of Wumeng City, and you have the right to maintain the peace of all cultivators and civilians within the Wumeng City region. If riots or horrific major cases occur within the Wumeng City area, and the matter is reported to the Immortal Court of the Demon Immortal Kingdom, you will surely be held accountable. And you are just a minor City Lord; they will not care about your life or death. Once you fail in your duty, and an imperial envoy is sent down, you will likely be executed directly." Su Dan Novel Network.
Zhou Hong couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat. It seemed that being a City Lord wasn't so easy. But then again, with power comes responsibility.
"In that case, I need to maintain good relations with all the major and minor forces in Wumeng City, especially those powerful demon kings."
"Yes, of the 16 demon kings I mentioned, half are first-grade demon kings. The remaining half include second-grade and third-grade. These are not to be feared, and they normally wouldn't dare to go too far. The ones we should most be wary of are two: one is the Alitoto gang residing in the Tai Kui Mountain Range, and the other is the Dragon Tiger Demon Sect residing in Dragon Tiger Mountain."
"Alitoto? Dragon Tiger Demon Sect?" Zhou Hong narrowed his eyes. Zhou Hong had heard of the Dragon Tiger Demon Sect before. When he first ascended, he had almost considered becoming an outer disciple there. Later, he heard at an inn that someone had been an outer disciple there for several hundred years, doing nothing but mining for them, so Zhou Hong abandoned that plan. He managed to win over Hei Xiao Lu and used her as a stepping stone to have the opportunity to become City Lord.
"Yes, these two forces are the strongest within the jurisdiction of Wumeng City. Alitoto is a bandit leader who occupies a mountain, and he is the most difficult to manage. The previous City Lord, Rotten Dried Radish, was helpless against them. As long as they didn't do anything earth-shattering, Rotten Dried Radish would turn a blind eye. Moreover, during festivals, he would even have us few demon kings deliver gifts for him."