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Chapter 232 - Holy Cat City Again
🕑 Added 2025-02-03 07:00:12 +0000 UTCLayla blushed slightly at Leyvi's unexpected tease but maintained her poised demeanor. Right beside him, Anda was already covering her mouth, chuckling silently, clearly enjoying the scene as usual.
"Don't worry, husband," Layla said, her tone firm and determined. "Leave everything to me. I will uproot all evil lurking in this city."
Leyvi blinked, momentarily stunned. He had meant for her to look after their family, not the entire city. But, considering her role as the city lord, her response wasn't entirely unexpected. With how relentless she was in her plans and operations, he was honestly surprised that there were still criminals daring to hide in Bara City.
As they stepped outside the estate's grand gate, Leyvi was met with an unexpected sight. Hundreds of people were gathered, standing in neat rows, saluting him. The chant began in unison, led by Barto, the enthusiastic leader of his ever-loyal fan club:
"Lord Leyvi, we wish you good luck! May you return triumphant! We believe you will defeat everyone and conquer the Mystic Realm!"
Leyvi nearly stumbled. He stared at the group, utterly baffled. "What the heck? I'm not going to war! What do you mean defeat everyone and conquer the Mystic Realm? We're just going to look for treasures!"
Anda, walking beside him, leaned in with a smirk. "Oh, by the way, did you know? During your seclusion, some of your fan club members married the ladies from the Bara Corps."
Leyvi's eyes widened. "Wait... what? Those scary ladies? How did that happen?"
Anda grinned mischievously. "How else? They learned from you, of course!"
Leyvi's expression shifted from surprise to disbelief. "Learned from me? I didn't expect those women to let a man live off them too."
"Pfft!" Anda, Valenia, and Ava couldn't hold back their laughter. Anda waved her hand dismissively as tears of amusement formed at the corners of her eyes. "No, no! Not that part! I mean they learned how to treat women nicely from you."
Meanwhile, Lilian remained entirely unaffected by the commotion, still smiling and waving goodbye to Jojori. The boy eagerly waved back, his small hands flapping wildly as if to send them off with all his energy.
The five of them soared toward the nearest city gate, the wind rushing past them as they navigated through the skies.
Leyvi's attention shifted to Ava. Her flight stood out, distinct from the fluid glides of the others. It clicked in his mind—Ava wasn't a Qi cultivator like the rest of them. She was a pure body cultivator.
As a Qi cultivator, Leyvi propelled himself by channeling Qi in controlled bursts. When he reached the Foundation Building realm, he had figured it out through trial and error. At first, he would clumsily blast himself upward with raw Qi. Over time, he refined his technique, forming a stable Qi field around his body to move with precision.
Ava, however, lacked the luxury of manipulating Qi for flight in the same way. Pure body cultivators like her, while capable of absorbing and using small amounts of Qi inefficiently, relied on entirely different methods. Ava flew by kicking the air—a high-level movement technique crafted for body cultivators, harnessing their enhanced physical strength, agility, and speed.
Her movements were subtle, almost imperceptible to the untrained eye. But Leyvi, with his keen perception, could make out the rapid, blurry kicks she used to push herself forward. The speed and grace of her flight were astonishing, her momentum seemingly effortless.
It reminded Leyvi of his days in the Qi Refinement realm, when he would leap into the air with fiery kicks—an early, crude attempt to mimic flight. Back then, he could only manage a few unstable steps upward, far removed from Ava's masterful technique.
"Why are you staring at me, Sex Fiend?" Ava's sharp voice cut through the wind. Despite her words, her movements remained as fluid as ever.
"Nothing," Leyvi replied nonchalantly, though a hint of curiosity lingered in his tone. "Just wondering what your flying technique is called."
"Air Walk," she said curtly. "Nothing special."
"Can I learn it?" His eyes lit up with interest.
"No!" Ava shot back instantly, her tone firm and final.
"Why not? I'm a body cultivator too, you know," Leyvi protested, feigning indignation.
"Because your body is too tough and stiff," she retorted, her voice carrying an air of superiority. "My Air Walk is designed for flexible body cultivators. You're more like... a walking brick."
"I see." Leyvi nodded thoughtfully, as if genuinely considering her assessment.
Ava raised an eyebrow, her curiosity getting the better of her. "Why do you even want to learn it? You can already fly using Qi."
"Uh..." Leyvi hesitated, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "It looks fun."
Ava faltered mid-flight, her movement disturbed for the first time. She turned to him, utterly baffled. "Fun? That's your reasoning?"
"Hahaha! Why not? Life is supposed to be fun!" Leyvi's laughter echoed through the air, carefree and contagious.
Ava shot him a weird look, her brow furrowing. Is that why he laughs every time he opens his mouth? She wondered, shaking her head in disbelief.
Moments later, they passed through the city gate and boarded the airship that Leyvi brought out.
Their destination? The Holy Cat City, of course! It had been seven long years since their last visit.
This journey felt different from the start, not just because of the passing years, but because of their mode of travel. Back then, they had traveled by land, riding in carriages pulled by the still non-delusional Mr. Bison, their path winding alongside the scenic Kiki Lala River. Now, they flew high above the world in the airship, taking a direct route straight to the Holy Cat City.
Ten days later...
They arrived at their destination.
During the journey, they hadn't encountered a single flying demonic beast just like when they returned from Holy Cat City last time.
Leyvi glanced out at the serene skies surrounding the airship, a small sigh escaping him. Deep down, he had hoped one or two flying demonic beasts might show up to give him a chance to stretch his muscles. Still, a peaceful journey wasn't so bad.
As the airship approached the Holy Cat City, Leyvi noticed the faint, shimmering barrier enveloping the city. "It seems the Grand Kitty Nine Layer Formation has been repaired," he remarked, his tone laced with curiosity.
Anda, standing nearby, crossed her arms and gave him a knowing look. "Your formation-dismantling benefit only disassembles formations—it doesn't destroy them entirely," she reminded him, echoing a point she'd already made a few weeks prior.
During Leyvi's recent seclusion, Anda and Sawi took the opportunity to examine the space ring Leyvi had forcefully unsealed, the one from which he got his metal bat. Sawi discovered that the tiny array chip within the ring, while disconnected, could still be reconnected to resume its function. From this, Anda theorized that Leyvi's unique ability worked the same way across all arrays and formations: dismantling them without causing permanent damage.
Leyvi chuckled, his mood lightening. "Hahaha! My benefit is better than I thought. Destroying formations completely would've been such a waste anyway." He recalled the sense of relief he'd felt when Anda first shared their findings. The thought of accidentally destroying the arrays and formations in their mansion had always lingered in the back of his mind.
Thankfully, that fear had never become a reality.
Soon, the airship landed near the city's south gate. Once they disembarked, Leyvi waved his hand, and the airship disappeared into his internal storage room.
"I wonder if they ever found Lin Wei," Leyvi mused as the group began walking toward the gate.
Anda glanced at him. "I guess we'll find out soon enough. Mia should be here too—unless their academy gave her slot to someone else."
As they moved through the gate, an unfamiliar voice called out. "Young man! Haha! It is you! You're here again! Thank you so much for helping us back then. I never got the chance to thank you properly!"
Leyvi turned toward the voice, his expression blank for a moment before recognition dawned. "Oh, you're the guard from back then! Weren't you stationed at the east gate?"
The man laughed heartily. "Haha, we city gate guards rotate shifts. I'm here this time. What a surprise to see you again! As expected from the man who saved our city, you've grown even stronger. Core Formation already, in just seven years—impressive!"
"Hehe, it's nothing special," Leyvi replied with a modest chuckle. "Just got lucky, that's all."
The guard leaned in slightly, lowering his voice. "Should I inform City Lord Caterina about your arrival? I'm sure she'd want to know."
Leyvi stiffened and quickly waved his hands. "No, no, no! Don't inform her. I'm here for a different matter." Why would I want to deal with that cat ghost lady again? he thought, suppressing a shudder.
The guard glanced at the women accompanying Leyvi and gave a knowing nod, his expression shifting to one of mischievous understanding. With a grin, he raised a thumb. "I see, I see. Say no more! Enjoy your time here, young man. If anything happens, we're counting on you to save us again. Haha!"
Leyvi stared at the guard, dumbfounded. What kind of misunderstanding is going on in his head? And why are you wishing for something bad to happen?
Shaking his head, he led the group through the gates into the familiar streets of the Holy Cat City.
