Qin Shilei frowned and said indifferently, "Miss Gongsun, I didn't mean it that way."
"Then what do you mean?" Gongsun Xi sneered, "You came to our Dujiang City, weren't you here to snatch our City Lord's position?"
"You are being overly suspicious."
Qin Shilei said coldly, "I am only here for the spatial rift. I came to Dujiang City on a whim to have a look. Since you do not welcome me, I shall leave now."
As soon as he finished speaking, a loud alarm suddenly sounded from the north of Dujiang City.
"Three short beeps and one long one, that's the highest level of alert."
Gongsun Xi's expression changed. She quickly summoned her Wind Chaser Eagle, preparing to fly towards the alarm. As she took off, she saw a black figure flash past her, and in the blink of an eye, it had flown hundreds of meters away.
Gongsun Xi cursed inwardly, "That hateful fellow, still claiming he has no intentions towards our Dujiang City. He's rushing there so eagerly, he must want to show off his power and gain prestige among our city's evolvers."
"No, I must chase after him and warn Brother Qi about this guy."
Qin Shilei, in a moment of kindness, wanted to see if a golden异兽 (yi shou - exotic beast) was attacking the city. He never expected to be so wrongly perceived by Gongsun Xi. If he had known her thoughts, he would have turned and left immediately, caring not whether Dujiang City was destroyed.
In less than fifteen minutes, Qin Shilei had arrived above the city walls of Dujiang City's northern sector. Looking down, he saw that the area outside the city was densely packed with zombies. These zombies had stopped about one to two hundred meters from the city walls, staring menacingly at the defenses. The zombies had not chosen to attack immediately but were waiting for more of their kind to arrive from behind. This indicated the presence of a Zombie King or even a Zombie Emperor directing the horde. Qin Shilei instantly had this realization. After a careful observation, unable to spot the Zombie King, he swooped down to where Qi Pengju and others were standing on the city walls.
"Why has City Lord Qin come? Has Gongsun Xi not taken good care of you, City Lord Qin?" Qi Pengju, putting away his worried expression, asked sternly.
"I heard the alarm and came to see," Qin Shilei replied truthfully. "City Lord Qi, judging by your urgent warning, is the situation very critical?"
"Heh heh, it's nothing," Qi Pengju chuckled, "Just zombies attacking the city, it's not like we haven't encountered this before. We will handle it. City Lord Qin, as our guest, you should return and wait for the banquet."
He thought to himself, "I've figured out your game. You want to gain prestige by fighting off the zombie attack, then usurp my position as City Lord. Hmph, I won't let you interfere. Let's see how your plans unfold."
Several of his subordinates chimed in, "City Lord Qin, this is an affair of our Dujiang City. We wouldn't trouble a peerless expert like yourself. Please return to the City Lord's mansion and wait for a moment. We will all drink heartily tonight."
Qin Shilei hesitated, then spoke again, "I noticed these zombies are very disciplined. The Zombie King behind them is likely not simple. I will go forward to investigate." With that, he soared into the air and flew towards the rear of the zombie horde.
"Damn it, why is this Qin fellow so clueless? Can't he see we don't welcome him?" A burly young man grumbled after Qin Shilei had flown far away.
Qi Pengju's expression turned extremely grim. He said coldly, "We absolutely cannot let this Qin fellow interfere with Dujiang City's defenses. When he returns, we will find a way to sideline him, at least convince him to return to the City Lord's mansion."
A thin middle-aged man cautiously said, "City Lord, according to our reconnaissance, there are likely tens of millions of these zombies. The Zombie King behind them is probably extraordinary. Should we perhaps not push this Qin fellow away? If we truly cannot hold them off, at least we'll have a fallback."
The burly youth glared at the middle-aged man, angrily scolding, "Are you thinking of defecting to Qin? Our city walls are fifty meters high, those zombies can't get in, and they will only be our targets. This Qin fellow is the real threat."
The middle-aged man quickly defended himself, "I'm not. Don't spout nonsense. I said 'what if'. What if that Zombie King can fly, how will we deal with it?"
The youth snorted, "Do you think it's that easy to fly? The Tiger Shark last time, even at the Golden realm, couldn't fly. This Zombie King probably isn't even at the Golden realm. It's dreaming if it thinks it can fly."
Qi Pengju raised his hand to stop their argument and ordered, "Send more people to scout. I need to know the exact combat strength of the zombie horde."
Just then, Gongsun Xi also arrived. As she jumped off her Wind Chaser Eagle, she said indignantly, "Qin Shilei's intentions are indeed not good. He even said that without a peerless expert like him to guard Dujiang City, it is destined to be destroyed!"
"Did he really say that?" Qi Pengju's face darkened to the point of dripping water.
"Absolutely true," Gongsun Xi said with righteous anger, "His words implied that only if he were the City Lord, could Dujiang City continue to exist."
"Hmph!" Qi Pengju snorted, "He's looking down on us. Later, you all must perform well and show this Qin fellow the spirit of Dujiang City's evolvers."
As he finished speaking, the roars of zombies echoed from outside the city. Then, a middle-aged man in casual attire flew from the rear of the zombie horde. This zombie could fly? Everyone suddenly felt a sense of unease. Qi Pengju frowned and asked the person beside him, "Can your reconnaissance skills discern the opponent's cultivation?"
The person replied with a trembling voice, "No, this zombie is at least at the first star of the Golden realm."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions drastically changed. When the Golden realm Tiger Shark attacked last time, they had all tried their best but were unable to harm it. It was only because the Tiger Shark couldn't breach the towering city walls that it left, and Dujiang City was spared. Now, a flying Zombie King leading tens of millions of zombies was attacking the city again. Dujiang City was likely in grave danger.
Ding Teng flew to a short distance in front of the city walls and asked in a deep voice, "I am Ding Teng, the Zombie Emperor. Does Dujiang City have a City Lord?"
Qi Pengju suppressed his fear and stepped forward, asking, "I am the City Lord of Dujiang City. May I ask why the Zombie Emperor has come to Dujiang City?"
Ding Teng commanded, "Surrender the City Lord's position, and I shall spare your life."
Qi Pengju was bewildered and asked, "Zombie Emperor, do you mean for us humans to evacuate Dujiang City?"
"No," Ding Teng said calmly, "You will continue to stay in Dujiang City. I will be your City Lord."
Everyone was stunned. This Zombie Emperor was actually coveting the human City Lord's position? Did he intend to raise humans like livestock, killing a few for a taste when he pleased?