The city ahead of them quickly became clearer as Liang Chen's group approached it, and just as it was previously, there wasn't a single defensive wall present around the city. Wilderness and civilization blended seamlessly, the two indistinguishable from each other, just the way Purgatory wanted it to be.

But there was one rather distinct difference that separated this large yet drab city from the previous one that Liang Chen had visited, scent. The previous city smelled the same as the rest of Purgatory's Cradle, the faint and slightly moist scent of blood, both fresh and old. But this city had a much fresher scent, it was as if lemon trees had been planted along every street to liven up the atmosphere.

But Liang Chen could tell that there weren't any trees planted within the city so the smell likely came from somewhere else. And for it to be so strong that it overpowered the natural odour of the land also meant that its source was either rather grand, or something strong enough to drown out the scent of blood. And truthfully, neither of the options was terribly assuring, nothing that could grow big or strong in a land like this would be simple, or good.

"Yumao, keep an eye on Lan Yun if a fight breaks out and I don't have time to put her away."

It would be for the best if Liang Chen could just bring Lan Yun to safety inside his interspatial ring should a battle start, but he had no idea what they might face as they went deeper into the cradle so he had to make sure that he was prepared for most situations. Yumao understood the severity of the request so he nodded his head strongly and slithered down from Liang Chen's head, curling up on top of Lan Yun's head so that he could protect her at a moment's notice.

As Liang Chen set foot into the city, he quickly noticed another difference, he wasn't attacked. He had been attacked almost instantly when he entered the previous city, but that didn't happen here. No, there were plenty of people on the streets, but none of them attacked him, or each other for that matter. They were just watching, guarding themselves while waiting, their expressions tense.

The people that he saw were a bit stronger than the ones in the previous city, here, most of the people he saw were between the middle and the late-stage of the Soaring Immortal realm. It was a realm so low he didn't really consider them as threats, but it meant that if there was a ruler in this city they would likely have reached the Primordial Immortal realm. He didn't fear most Primordial Immortals, but there was no telling what skills or tricks they might have.

Liang Chen walked rather slowly, but not aimlessly. The guiding sensation produced by Purgatory's Cradle was urging him towards the depth of the city so that was exactly where he was headed, something was waiting for him there. But as he was walking, roaming eyes constantly tracing his movements, he felt his soul move slightly.

It wasn't a movement of wariness or warning, it wasn't even twitching because it was nervous. No, his soul moved slightly because it noticed something beneficial to it, something that was a part of it. And as such, it started to automatically absorb that thing, partly to return it to where it belonged and partly to strengthen itself. And as his soul did so, he realized exactly what that citrus scent in the air was.

"Ah, it's poison. It seems to be rather slow-acting, is it because it's spread throughout the entire city, or is that just how the poison is?"

Liang Chen wasn't terribly worried as he muttered to himself, his steps momentarily halting. His soul was poison itself, it only missed a tiny amount before his entire soul would have been converted into his unique soul-cultivation law, which took poison as part of its core. With how weak the poison hanging in the air was, so weak that he hadn't even noticed it right away, there was no way it could harm him.

But Lan Yun and Yumao were a different story so he sent out a bit of his Anima Essence and used it to form a shield around them so that they didn't absorb too much of the poison. And as Liang Chen secured Lan Yun and Yumao, the myriad of eyes that were occasionally tracing him also sprung into action.

Most of them scurried away, clearly not wanting to have anything to do with what was going to go down next. But four of the people closest to him grit their teeth, looking as if they had bitten into the proverbial sour apple. But they only allowed that expression to flit past their faces for a second before they moved forward, charging at Liang Chen as one.

The air around their hands started to shimmer slightly, different scents mixing into the air as almost translucent mist started to seep out from their skin. The four of them were clearly proficient in the use of poison, and since they were the first to attack then he also guessed that they were part of the faction responsible for the poison that filled this city.

He didn't know what their plans were, but there was no chance that the four of them would be able to take him down even if they attacked him all at once. His Qi moved with a thought, lightning rushing out and piercing all four of them, abruptly shutting down the nerves in their limbs so that they fell to the ground like sacks of potatoes.

"Now then, you'll talk, won't you?"

A question there was no point in answering, the four men simply didn't have a choice in the matter. They may be proficient with poison, but there was no way their souls would be able to resist the strength of Liang Chen's poison, their levels were simply too far apart. So the four men talked, they spilt everything they knew and everything they had done in their lives. And once they stopped talking, Liang Chen sealed their voices forever.

"Yeah, should have expected that there won't be many good people in a cradle like this."

Liang Chen had expected to receive answers along the line of what he got, but it was still disappointing nonetheless. The four bodies were tossed into his interspatial ring, his head turning to gaze towards the depth of the city again. A few errant bolts of lightning appeared around him as his head turned, crackling through the air and curving around buildings as they hunted down and eradicated their targets, only giving them the chance to let out one final garbled screech.

Lan Yun tried to follow the lightning with her eyes, but it moved far too fast for her to see where it went. But she could still tell what the end result was, those screeches garbled by fried lungs. And as she heard it, she couldn't help but remember what Yan Ling had once told her while giggling fondly.

"Mamaran said that Paparan had a... Hard-on? Hardy? For killing, but why, Paparan?"

She struggled to remember the correct word for a second, eventually just spitting out what sounded most similar to her. But the words she spat out made Liang Chen's face cramp slightly, Lan Yun both looked and acted far too young to be spouting words like that.

"The next time Mamaran tells you a word like that then you have to tell her that Paparan will viciously rap her forehead if she speaks like that. And don't repeat what she says, at least not for a few more years, okay?"

He couldn't help but exhale heavily as he gave Lan Yun the reminder, the somewhat grim mood that was approaching due to what he heard dissipating instantly. Lan Yun nodded her head rapidly a few times, but she had a somewhat quizzical expression so whether or not she would take his words to heart was unknown. As for her question, Liang Chen spent a short moment pondering on how to answer it in a way that she would understand.

"Why, is it? Hmm... I guess the best way to explain it to you would be to say that I do it so that kids like you can grow up happy and without needing to cry. Does that make sense?"

He didn't think that she would understand him if he said that he killed to prevent more people like him from being born, or if he told her that he was trying to take the place of the heavenly justice he had been raised on. And Lan Yun did indeed understand the way he explained it, and thanks to that even a child like her was able to spot the hole in his desire.

"But Paparan, won't their kids cry?"

She moved her hand as if she was trying to point while also sweeping out her arm, a very stilted way of trying to gesture towards a broader group of people. Of the four that Liang Chen had killed first, one of them had a son that had just turned 17, the other three had no children. But there were probably some among the others he had killed that had children, some older and some younger.

"They will. They'll cry harder than they ever have, losing your parent is one of the most painful things in the world."

Liang Chen couldn't sugarcoat it or beat around the bush. He had lost his parents, that pain was one he could understand better than most. It was the pain that started it all, the first embers of wrath that eventually spread to cover his entire body.

"But then...why?"

Lan Yun seemed like she wanted to say more, elaborate further. But it didn't seem like she was able to properly bring out the words, perhaps she simply didn't know the words to use since she herself didn't quite understand what she was trying to ask. And to respond, Liang Chen stretched out his arm and opened his hand, directing Lan Yun's gaze towards the area covered by it.

"Look. Do you see that small area covered by my hand? That's all I can grasp, that's as far as my tiny hand can reach. I'm not a god, I can only save those that my hand can reach."

Liang Chen had been told many things in his life, but it was perhaps these words that had stuck with him the longest. Yan Ling had been the first to say them to him. You are not a god, you can't decide what's right and wrong, only what you want to do. And if you are the one that chose to do it, then it is right for yourself. In the end, he didn't have to save everyone, couldn't save everyone, only those he could hold in his grasp.

"Mhmm, it sounds hard, choosing his hard."

Lan Yun muttered slightly while rubbing her temples with her closed fists, seemingly trying to wrap her head around what Liang Chen was trying to tell her. She wanted to understand, wanted to learn so that he would pat her head and tell her that she was doing well, that was what Yan Ling had always done. But Liang Chen only gave her a somewhat thin smile, stroking her hair softly.

"It really is."