Douluo: Starting with the Signing in of Goddess Xiaowu

The group thought they had reached the Fire God Capital, but to their surprise, what lay before them was a massive grand pass.

This grand pass, towering ten thousand meters high, stretched endlessly from east to west, all constructed of Divine Core Energy Crystals. Atop it, there were many defensive cannons of which Chu Qin and the others couldn't even name.

Moreover, every mile or so along the pass, there was a tower, each manned by members of the Ancient God Tribe.

"Where is this?" Seeing the towering grand pass, Shi Yao couldn't help but express her shock.

"This is the Western Boundary Wall of the Ancient Deity World," Huo Ning'er explained. "It guards the west of the Ancient Deity World. Crossing it will take us to the Ancient Deity World and also to my territory—one of the twelve Ancient Deity Countries, the Western Fire Nation."

"So are we in the Nether Beast Realm right now?" Bossi asked.

"Correct. The Nether Beast Realm's You Ming Heavenly Mansion captured one of the Great Generals of the Fire Nation. I personally led a rescue to exchange prisoners and didn't expect to fall into Ma Kui's conspiracy, nearly getting killed in the process," Huo Ning'er nodded.

"It seems that the Nether Beast Realm and the Ancient Deity World don't get along very well," Chu Qin said with a light smile.

"Yes," Huo Ning'er nodded. "In this Life Forbidden Zone, unlike the outside, every plant can provide heaven earth origin energy. The wider the territory controlled, the more heaven earth origin energy it can provide, and the stronger the realm of the ruler."

"It seems that it's driven by ambition," Bi Bidong immediately understood. "If not for the rulers being too greedy, they could coexist peacefully."

"There's actually another reason. In the Ancient Deity World, the population of Nether Beasts and Ancient God Tribe cannot become too large. Once it reaches a certain peak, a great disaster will be born!" Huo Ning'er added.

"Why would that be?" Chu Qin and the ladies exclaimed in surprise.

"Is the person below Ruler of the Fire Nation, Lord Fire Emperor?" At this moment, an ancient voice sounded from above the city tower.

"If it isn't General Lieyang, it is indeed the Ruler of the Fire Nation speaking. Open the gate!" Huo Ning'er called out.

"Open the gate!"

No sooner had Huo Ning'er's words fallen, the Xuanmen City Gates, standing eight hundred meters high, began to slowly open. An elderly man in red armor, with greying hair, led many armored soldiers out from the grand pass to meet them.

With just a faint sense, Chu Qin and his group realized that these armored soldiers were at least Pinnacle God Kings, and Lieyang, without a doubt, was a Second Calamity Supreme God.

"Lord Fire Emperor, how come you are alone?" Lieyang looked at Huo Ning'er with some surprise and asked.

"I was tricked!" Huo Ning'er said. "As soon as I stepped into the territory of the Nether Beast, I was ambushed by the Nether Beast Race. All my attendants were sacrificed, and I was nearly executed. Thankfully, these powerful humans who came over from Tian Qian saved me by killing Ma Kui and saving my life."

Having heard this, Lieyang couldn't help but show a look of astonishment at Chu Qin and the others.

"Lord Fire Emperor, you've been startled. Please, you and the distinguished guests should enter first," Lieyang continued. "If people from the Nether Beast come later, it could get troublesome."

"Alright," Huo Ning'er nodded, leading Chu Qin and the others into the Ancient God West Pass.

About a hundred miles from the Ancient God West Pass was the Fire God Capital.

The buildings of the Fire God Capital were all of ancient oriental architecture but no less grand and imposing compared to the western capitals.

Of course, the Fire God Capital couldn't possibly compare to upstarts like Luo Wang City.

The most distinguishing feature of the Fire God Capital was its intense heat.

Moreover, the residents of the Fire God Capital, one by one clad in armor, seemed ready for battle at any moment.

Fire Ling'er quickly led Chu Qin and the others to the Fire God Palace.

At first glance, the most striking feature was the colossal statue standing in the center of the Fire God Palace. This statue, reaching tens of thousands of meters in height, had been noticed by Chu Qin and the others as early as their time at the Ancient God West Pass.

"Sister Fire Ninger, who is this, statue of, and why is it so huge?" Wang Qiu'er asked.

"Sister, this is no statue!" Fire Ninger said, "This is the true form of Lord Zhurong!"

"Zhurong's true form?" Including Chu Qin, all the ladies were surprised.

"Exactly, Lord Zhurong was the first ruler of the Ancient Deity World in this Life Forbidden Zone." Fire Ninger continued, "Countless eons ago, Lord Zhurong fought a century-long battle here with the ruler of the Nether Beast Race. Ultimately, the ruler of the Nether Beast Race was slain by Lord Zhurong, and Lord Zhurong himself exhausted his Divine Power and eventually turned into this stone sculpture. The people of the Ancient God Tribe, in order to protect Lord Zhurong's true form, created the Fire God Capital right here!"

"This must just be a legend, right? This is merely a stone sculpture." Luo Yiyi spoke up. Her Nine Phoenixes Eye detected no peculiar fluctuations.

"Legends are always hard to distinguish true from false," replied Fire Ninger with a smile, "Let's just treat it as if it's real!"

"Benefactor Chu Qin," Fire Ninger then turned to Chu Qin and said, "I still have matters that need urgent attention in the great hall. I've already arranged for someone. They will take you to your residence."

"Thank you for your arrangements," Chu Qin nodded and looked at the ladies, "Let's go, it's time to rest."

Perhaps considering that Chu Qin and his companions were humans, unsuited to such a hot environment, Fire Ninger had arranged accommodations for them in the middle of a lakefront estate.

This estate was extremely unique, as the scorching steam outside was blocked out by the special waters of the lake, making the climate here pleasant and eternally verdant like spring.

"This lake water looks kind of different," Meng Ying remarked as she observed the lake, slightly astonished, "It seems like the water from the God Jade Cold Pool."

"Hmm," Chu Qin nodded, "It seems that this Fire Ninger is quite thoughtful."

"Could it be that she has taken a liking to you?" Xiaowu teased with a smile.

"How could that be? My charm may be unparalleled in this world, but it's not possible to conquer the ruler of a nation with just one glance, and besides, she's from the Ancient God Tribe. Perhaps their aesthetic is different from ours," Chu Qin said with a smile.

All the ladies grinned, knowing full well that Chu Qin was not speaking his true feelings.

"Chu Qin, so we'll settle down here?" Xi E spoke, "I feel that my master's trace isn't here. Fuxi City and Chi Emperor City are most likely—the Tian Qiang Elder mentioned that my Hualsheng Emperor Technique comes from the Chi Emperor Lineage."

"No worries," Chu Qin responded, "If your master is here, then we will surely find her. No rush."

"I'm not sure whether Fire Ninger has set her sights on you or not, but you definitely have your eye on her!" Bi Bidong pouted.

A ruler of a nation, beautiful as a Heavenly Immortal. Isn't that exactly what the LSP System indicated?

Chu Qin speculated that there was more to Fire Ninger than met the eye.

Anyway, this Life Forbidden Zone was baffling enough; settling down somewhere first seemed like a good idea.

Just as Chu Qin was gearing up to argue lightheartedly, a pleasant voice came through, "Benefactor Chu Qin."

Chu Qin and the ladies looked toward the sound, only to see Fire Ninger gracefully approaching. At this moment, Fire Ninger was no longer wearing her tight-fitting armor but had changed into a fiery red dress. Her hair also cascaded down, transforming her from the passionate fire she was before to a gentle and soothing water-like figure, seemingly a completely different person.