I tricked you into thinking you had the makings of an emperor, but you actually did it?

Nine auspicious dragons and nine colorful phoenixes circled the spaceship.

The dazzling light shone on everyone, clearly revealing the surprise and horror on their faces.

Kowloon City was also in an uproar. Before today, the most exaggerated dragon and phoenix phenomenon belonged to Ji Xuan of the Ji family.

Ji Xuan was among the top ten on the Hidden Dragon List and possessed true dragon blood. When he arrived in Nine Dragons City, five dragons and five phoenixes shone in the sky.

Since then, no one has surpassed it.

Even now, the number of dragons and phoenixes is more than double.

Who on earth is capable of such outrageous behavior?!

The people on the ship looked at each other, searching for someone who could trigger the vision.

It wasn't hard to find. Under the strange phenomenon, Shen Ming was bathed in the glow of the sunset, as if he were wearing a sacred cloak.

Shen Ming faced everyone's gaze with a calm expression and an extraordinary demeanor.

Even Hua Yuexi had to admit that this young man was first-rate in both appearance and temperament.

"Who is this person?!"

The same question arose in their minds.

Even though Shen Ming wasn't wearing a mask, they still couldn't recognize him.

Those who saw Shen Ming's appearance at the Xuan Tian Grand Ceremony were all top figures from first-class forces; those people wouldn't be traveling in a spaceship.

At this moment, the dragon and phoenix transformed into countless rays of light, which coalesced at the bow of the ship to form a staircase leading towards Kowloon City.

Shen Ming felt something, stepped onto the stairs, took a step, and disappeared.

The strange phenomena in the sky disappeared, and the people on the ship awoke as if from a dream.

After several days, they were completely unaware that such a person existed among them.

He said his name was Shen Ming!

The man who had been talking to Shen Ming earlier shouted, ignoring Hua Yuexi's presence.

A commotion arose, and Hua Yuexi raised her eyebrows but did not make a move.

"Shen Ming? Xuan Tianzi? Number one on the Hidden Dragon List, this kind of pomp is quite reasonable."

"That can't be right, didn't he die in the Burial Sea? Even if he were alive, he should only be at the Divine Realm!"

"Could it be that he saw what happened earlier and was just joking?"

Before this year's Hidden Dragon List, there were no dragon and phoenix phenomena, so no one could say for sure whether the number of dragons and phoenixes was related to the ranking.

These people would rather believe it's just someone with the same name than believe it really is Shen Ming.

Firstly, it is the Burial Sea, a terrifying forbidden zone for life.

Secondly, the last time the Xuan Tianzi appeared, he was only at the Divine Treasure Realm.

"Wasn't there a rumor before that the masked man who defeated the Five Demon Lords was Xuan Tianzi? That makes sense!"

Suddenly, someone brought up this rumor.

"Come on, even the Xuan Tian Sect disciples I know say it might not be true." Some people also questioned this.

……

Shen Ming felt a flash of light before his eyes, followed by a dizzying sensation, and then a magnificent palace appeared before him.

If you look up slightly, you can see the towering Kowloon Walls reaching into the clouds.

"Did they just bring me directly into the city?" Shen Ming muttered to himself.

Just then, I heard hurried footsteps behind me.

A pretty young girl walked in; she was clearly very excited, but she was trying her best to hide it.

"Young master, my name is Yuan Yao, and I am a guest of Kowloon City," the young woman said.

Knowing the guest means being the person who guides the guest and answers their questions.

"To have reached the Yuantai Realm at such a young age, and to be merely a guest in Kowloon City, that's quite a feat," Shen Ming chuckled.

“Young master is joking. Not everyone is treated like a young master. Only guests staying at the Nine Dragons Palace are given special guest service,” Yuan Yao said.

The Nine Dragons Palace refers to the palace where the two of them were located.

Knowing he had many questions, Yuan Yao explained them in detail.

Kowloon City is the venue for the Hidden Dragon Ranking. No matter how many people come, the focus is still on the thirty people on the list.

Therefore, they built the Hidden Dragon Palace in the inner city!

The Hidden Dragon Palace is a palace of nine ranks. Shen Ming summoned nine dragons and nine phoenixes and moved into the Nine Dragons Hall, the highest-ranking palace.

"Does the young master have any companions who may stay here together?" Yuan Yao said.

"No, I came alone," Shen Ming said.

Yuan Yao was greatly surprised. All the outstanding talents who came were very impressive and made a big splash. She had never seen someone so low-key.

She carefully considered which language to use to inquire about Shen Ming's identity.

"The dragon and phoenix phenomenon isn't based on ranking?" Shen Ming sensed something upon seeing her reaction.

“Ji Xuan of the Ji family ranks seventh, with five dragons and five phoenixes, far more than the second-ranked Demon General,” Yuan Yao said.

"Oh? What's that based on?"

"Dragon King's Palace".

Yuan Yao realized that Shen Ming knew very little about Qianlong City, so she began to explain patiently.

Qianlong City stands independently in the thirteen states of the Northern Region, a vast expanse of land with nine dragon veins.

The dragon energy of a dragon vein is far more powerful than the spiritual energy of a spiritual vein, and it is an indispensable source of many powerful cultivation techniques.

The Hidden Dragon Ranking became a dominant force in the Northern Region solely by relying on dragon energy.

However, in this dog-eat-dog world, many forces are eyeing Qianlong City covetously.

This ancient city, which has stood since ancient times, was unclaimed land for a long period of time.

Entering the city is easy, but manipulating the dragon's energy is another matter entirely.

The Dragon King Palace is the central hub of Kowloon City, controlling everything.

All forces tried every means to break into the Dragon King's Palace, but all failed and suffered heavy losses.

Until the first city lord appeared, he successfully entered the Dragon King Palace and took control of the entire Kowloon City.

Because the first city lord possessed the bloodline of nine dragons, he gained the approval of the Dragon King's Palace.

Through generations of inheritance, Kowloon City and White Emperor City have become two major cities in the Northern Region, comparable to first-class aristocratic families.

After the emergence of the Azure Sky Ranking, the ancestral dragon of the Nine Dragons Palace awakened, and the entire Nine Dragons City underwent earth-shaking changes, with the Nine Dragons City Lord gaining more power.

The last time the Nine-Headed True Dragon appeared out of nowhere and pulled back the Taiyi Treasure Vault, it was the arm of the Lord of Nine Dragons City.

The auspicious phenomenon of dragons and phoenixes is also one of the changes.

Now, some people are putting the Lord of Kowloon City and the Xuantian Sect Leader together.

"Is Kowloon a real dragon? I mean a living, breathing dragon with flesh and blood."

Shen Ming asked a question that everyone in the Northern Region was curious about.

Yuan Yao smiled gently but did not answer.

During the ensuing conversation, Shen Ming learned about the process of the Hidden Dragon Competition.

"You still don't know the young master's name?" After saying so much, Yuan Yao finally asked.

“Shen Ming, Xuan Tianzi of Xuan Tian Sect, yes, don’t be surprised, I just swam back,” Shen Ming said.

He was used to the incredulous reactions of others when they heard his name.

As expected, Yuan Yao blinked and her cherry-like lips parted slightly.

"Rest assured, young master, Kowloon City will keep this a secret."

She assumed that Shen Ming's arrival alone was part of a plan, and immediately indicated that Kowloon City would cooperate.

Shen Ming wanted to say that he didn't intend to keep it a secret, but he was too lazy to mention it.

"Which palace does the Xuantian Sect reside in?" Shen Ming asked.

"Two Dragon Palace."

"Only the Second Dragon Palace?"

Shen Ming raised an eyebrow. If it were a person, they wouldn't care which palace they lived in.

But if it concerns the face of a power, then that's a different story.

"Take me there," Shen Ming said immediately.