Her question made Xin Ci even more confused.
Logically, the Nether God race should be familiar with humans. Why couldn't she tell he was human?
Could she be disguised?
Xin Ci pondered, but maintained a detached expression, stating calmly:
"I am human."
"Human? Hehe... Young master, you do have a sense of humor."
Youlan giggled, covering her mouth, but there was no hint of sarcasm in her tone.
Instead, she genuinely thought Xin Ci was joking, which left Xin Ci, unfamiliar with the Nine Nether Realm, bewildered.
Originally, he had stated his human identity to gauge Youlan's attitude and see if she was disguised. To his surprise, she showed no signs of panic.
"What are you laughing at?"
Xin Ci couldn't help but press further.
"Hehe... I'm laughing because you're so amusing. How could a human look like you?"
This time, even Elder Han and Mu Qingqing found it strange.
Youlan then explained, "Young master, don't try to deceive me. Humans are merely an ancient legend in the Nine Nether Realm; they simply don't exist."
"Moreover, my father told me that humans have strange appearances, all monsters with three heads and six arms, cruel and bloodthirsty demons."
"Tens of thousands of years ago, our ancestors of the Purple Nether race were invaded by humans. Fortunately, our ancestors were powerful enough to defeat the humans and protect this land of the Nine Nether Realm."
"Therefore, humans no longer exist and have become mere bedtime stories to scare children, unbelievable."
"This..."
Xin Ci was speechless after hearing this.
He hadn't expected Youlan to say such things and didn't know where to begin to retort.
Youlan's statements were so full of flaws that even Mu Qingqing, in her spiritual consciousness, was stunned.
What nonsense is this? Humans invaded your Nether God race? Your ancestors defeated humans?!
Every single point sounded utterly absurd and ridiculous to Mu Qingqing.
Shouldn't the reality be that your Nether God race invaded the Eternal Continent, enslaved humans, and were finally defeated and expelled from the planar world by the human Eternal Emperor?
She truly hadn't expected this Nether God race girl named Youlan to be so adept at twisting the truth.
And she said it with such conviction, her face full of righteous indignation.
The most outlandish statement was that "humans don't exist," which made both Mu Qingqing and Xin Ci doubt if this Nether God race girl named Youlan was mentally sound.
Since that was the case, Xin Ci decided to play along with her line of thinking and asked, "So, you're saying that the three major races in the Nine Nether Realm today have never seen humans?"
"That's right."
Youlan nodded, then continued, "That's why I accidentally laughed at you, young master."
"I don't see you with three heads and six arms. Apart from your skin color, you're no different from the three major races of our Nine Nether Realm. However, your skin color is quite similar to Lord Jiuyou's."
"Therefore, I am certain that you are definitely not human."
Xin Ci: "..."
Mu Qingqing: "......"
What kind of absurd logic is this?
And this young lady, I suspect you're insulting me, but I have no proof.
Xin Ci was also speechless. This girl had just stripped him of his human identity with a single sentence.
However, he did glean some information from Youlan's words: this Nine Nether Realm had existed for tens of thousands of years.
And for these tens of thousands of years, humans hadn't discovered it, nor had the Nether God race here ever left the Nine Nether Realm.
This meant that no one in this Nine Nether Realm could find the entrance to the Nine Nether Realm.
"Young master, you're here in the Black Xuan Marsh to look for the Xuan Qing Flower, aren't you?"
Youlan continued to ask, her beautiful eyes flashing with excitement.
"Xuan Qing Flower?"
Xin Ci asked doubtfully.
"Young master, you don't know that today is Lord Jiuyou's birthday? This is an event that all beings in the Nine Nether Realm eagerly anticipate attending, and the Xuan Qing Flower is a required item to participate in Lord Jiuyou's banquet."
Youlan explained.
"Oh."
Xin Ci nodded, a hint of doubt in his heart.
Now there was another "Lord Jiuyou." Judging by Youlan's tone, this Lord Jiuyou seemed to hold a very high position in the Nine Nether Realm.
"If you don't have a Xuan Qing Flower, young master, you probably won't be able to attend Lord Jiuyou's banquet."
"However, I happen to have two Xuan Qing Flowers. I'll give you one as repayment for saving my life."
As she spoke, Youlan took out a fragrant spiritual herb from her spatial ring and handed it to Xin Ci.
Xin Ci didn't stand on ceremony. After accepting the spiritual herb, he cupped his hands and said to Youlan,
"Thank you, Miss Youlan."
"You just said you liked me, and now you're accepting flowers from another girl right in front of me..."
As Xin Ci accepted the Xuan Qing Flower, Mu Qingqing appeared beside him in her spiritual form, her beautiful eyes teasingly fixed on him as she spoke.
"Qingqing, let me explain. I only accepted the Xuan Qing Flower to enter Jiuyou City, not because I'm interested in her."
Xin Ci quickly explained.
Mu Qingqing, however, chuckled, "I know, I was just teasing you."
Xin Ci: "......"
A helpless, wry smile appeared on his face. Qingqing really loved to play tricks.
...
Jiuyou City
This was the largest city in the Nine Nether Realm, the venue for Lord Jiuyou's birthday banquet.
At this moment, Jiuyou City was bustling with activity, vibrant and lively.
Xin Ci, clad in a black robe and with his hood pulled up to conceal his face, walked through the streets of Jiuyou City.
His human skin color differed from that of these Nether Gods. To avoid unnecessary commotion, Xin Ci could only dress and disguise himself in this manner for now.
Jiuyou City was no different from human cities in many ways. The only distinction was that here, in addition to Nether Gods with purple skin like Youlan,
there were also Nether Gods with gray and blue skin. These were likely the Gray Nether race and the Blue Nether race.
Xin Ci walked, taking in the surrounding environment. It was much larger and more crowded than he had anticipated.
Just then, a commotion arose. The people on the street spontaneously parted to the sides, clearing a path.
Xin Ci followed the crowd's gaze and saw several Nether Gods in the distance carrying a palanquin towards them.
This palanquin was exceptionally grand and spacious. Through the curtains, a woman could be vaguely seen within.
Inside the palanquin, this Lord Jiuyou reclined lazily, a black gown accentuating her perfect figure. Her face was beautiful, and her demeanor exuded a certain charm.
A group of guards followed beside the palanquin, seemingly assigned to escort this esteemed Lord Jiuyou.
"Young master, what are you doing? Quickly retreat to this side! That's Lord Jiuyou's palanquin!"
At this moment, Youlan's voice suddenly rang out, causing Xin Ci to stop his observation.
By then, Lord Jiuyou's palanquin had already approached.
"Quickly clear the path! Lord Jiuyou is here!"
"Hurry and move to the sides, do not obstruct Lord Jiuyou's palanquin."
"Lord Jiuyou has arrived! We welcome Lord Jiuyou!"
......
The onlookers around them prostrated themselves on the ground, paying homage to Lord Jiuyou. The scene was immensely grand.