Chapter 284: The Twelve Cities
The Heaven Prison City was almost deserted. Not too many people were even walking in the city. It was so different from when it was crowded with people and traffic.
By noon, the Teleportation Formation lit up as Lu Li showed up with Ming Yu. Then he walked directly into the auction house. Soon, the Teleportation Formation kept glaring as more were coming. Many patriarchs here came out. The lifeless Heaven Prison City became alive again after Lu Li got here…
Zhan Yang showed Lu Li into a side chamber where Du Zheng was. Two beautiful maids were rubbing his shoulders.
Du Zheng didn’t get up to greet Lu Li. He just waved at Lu Li and said with a smile, "Brother Lu, you have come. I won’t treat you with unnecessary politeness. Sit wherever you want."
Du Zheng appeared to be middle aged. He had a cultured and elegant look, and his smile was warm. People would feel close to him uncontrollably.
Lu Li actually was more comfortable when Du Zheng was not being too polite. Lu Li waved to Ming Yu to have him sit down as well. Lu Li himself sat next to Du Zheng. He took a fruit on the golden table and gobbled down.
"Brother Lu, I hear that Black Widow went to see you yesterday?"
Du Zheng suddenly moved closer and said with an obscene smile, "Were you lured to her bed? She is a woman of smart tricks. You must be careful."
It seemed the talk of pretty women brought men closer. Lu Li rolled his eyes and said, "What are you thinking? I am not a man like that!"
"Ha, ha, ha!"
Du Zheng laughed out loud. He pulled a girl at his back into his arms, caressed her and said, "Heroes love beauties. This is the true nature of men. The Black Widow is an attractive piece of work but she is just too sophisticated. However, in this world, power is the essence. You can have all the women you like once you have power and status. Brother Lu, just don’t lose yourself in women."
Lu Li shook his head and said a straight face, "I am leaving soon and I don’t have time to fool around. Chief Steward Du, you have worried about too much. I am here to ask Chief Steward Du to take care of the Bai Family and Liu Family after I leave."
"No problem!"
Du Zheng freed the girl in his arms. He said seriously, "Brother Lu, are you going back to the Lu Family? You don’t want the Northern Desert?"
"It makes sense…"
On second thoughts, Du Zheng said with disappointment, "The Northern Desert is too small. The Central Plains is the stage for the powerful. Brother Lu, you have made the right choice. I thought you were going to stay at the Northern Desert for a while and I thought I might be able to help you unify it."
Du Zheng had made a great plan to send Lu Li a gift. Only, Lu Li wouldn’t appreciate it. He was going to leave soon, so Du Zheng was disappointed. For him, making the arrangements was a piece of cake. It was not hard but it took some doing nonetheless.
Lu Li could see the disappointment in Du Zheng’s eyes. He really didn’t like the gift, but Du Zheng had gone through so much just to befriend him, so Lu Li must return the favor by at least some nice words. Lu Li replied, "Brother Lu, thank you for thinking so highly of me and for being willing to make a friend with me. I am grateful. But I like to make friends with sincerity. Like the Liu Family. They once helped me so I never leave them behind. This is the rule that I am acting on."
Du Zheng seemed to be thinking of something. He finished his goblet of wine and said, "I am sorry and I drink this as an apology. Well…I have spent so much time in the Central Plains that my thoughts are twisted. I forget that to make a friend one must be sincere. It is not a matter of quid pro co. Brother Lu, now that you called me a brother as well, I will risk my life for you if you need me."
Du Zheng’s words were sincere and moving but Lu Li was not entirely convinced. To make a friend was not something to be accomplished in a matter of one or two days or one or two words. Time would tell a true friend from a false one.
Lu Li smiled lightly and replied, "Brother Du, you have made it too serious. I will be grateful enough if you can look after the Bai Family and the Liu Family for me."
"Put your mind at ease!"
Du Zheng said with seriousness, "As long as I am at the Northern Desert, I will not allow anything to happen to the Bai Family. If I fail, you just come back and scold me in my face."
With this said, Lu Li was relieved. He clinked his goblet with Du Zheng’s and finished his cup.
Du Zheng asked after a pause, "Brother Lu, is there anyone from the Lu Family to pick you up?"
Now that Du Zheng had known so many things about him, Lu Li decided to be open, "No, I need to find the Lu Family on my own. Brother Lu, do you know where the Lu Family is?"
"Of course…"
Du Zheng said with a frown, "The Lu Family is at the Mystical Armor Region at the east end of the Central Plains. If there is n.o.body to pick you up, I think it will be troublesome for you to go to the Lu Family."
"Troublesome?" Lu Li and Ming Yu looked at each other and Lu Li asked, "How so? Brother Du, isn’t the Du Family one of the big ones at the Central Plains? Can you send me to the Lu Famliy?"
"Big?"
Du Zheng smiled bitterly, shook his head and said, "Brother Lu, compared with the families at the Northern Desert, Du Family is a big one but not so at the Central Plains. Also… we really cannot offer you much help if you are going to the Mystical Armor Region. If you need it, I can ask our family to send over two n.o.ble Lord Realm warriors to protect you along the way."
Of course, Lu Li didn’t need more warriors of the n.o.ble Lord Realm. He had Ming Yu and Yu Huashen and they could defeat regular warriors of n.o.ble Lord Realm. If more powerful n.o.ble Lord Realm or Human Sovereign Realm warriors were to kill him, then it wouldn’t be much help even if the Du Family could give him four or five n.o.ble Lord Realm warriors.
He refused Du Zheng’s kindness. Du Zheng asked someone to someone to get some pens and papers after a moment. He put a dot on the east and north side of the paper and said, "You need to go the Mystical Armor Region at the east and you can only be teleported to the north side of the Central Plains if you go from here. Therefore, you need to take a large Iron-armored s.h.i.+p and then fly to the east from the north. The Central Plains is very large. You will need at least two years if everything goes well."
"Iron-armored s.h.i.+p? There is no Teleportation Formation?"
Lu Li and Ming Yu were even more confused. There were so many Teleportation Formations at the Northern Desert so how come there was none at the Central Plains? Couldn’t they just take some Teleportation Formation to go from the north of the Central Plains to the Mystical Armor Regions?
"There are!"
Du Zheng made a circle on the map and explained, "Only cities of the same level can be teleported between each other. You cannot teleport from one city to another of different levels. Mystical Armor City is one of the 12 major cities. Therefore, you can only take the Teleportation Formation in the other 11 major cities. There is one at the north of the Central Plains. But… the Teleportation Formation of the Mystical Armor City was sealed off 10 years ago so there is no Teleportation Formation that can take you there now."
"Teleportation Formation of the Mystical Armor City was sealed off!"
Lu Li was more surprised. He asked, "Brother Du, based on what you said, the Lu Family should be a powerful one. If so, why did they do that? Something happened at the Lu Family?"
"You don’t know about the Lu Family? Lu Family is one of the 12 Royal Families of the Central Plains. Lu Family has the most powerful defensive Bloodline of the Central Plains and is one of the Eighth-rank. It is a giant."
This time, it was Du Zheng that was surprised. He thought about it and said, "As for… why the Teleportation Formation was sealed off, the outside world doesn’t know. I think only the other 11 Royal Families know."