Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Shen Ying and Lonemoon accompanied Yi Qing to the capital city.
Although the transportation array in the immortal realm was far superior to the ones in the lower realm, the journey still took them a full three days. They reached the capital city of Chong Lan country on the very last day of the time limit specified in the summons.
Compared with Qu Shuang city, the capital city was much bigger. This was a city built entirely on the clouds. A variety of ancient buildings could be seen between the layers of clouds. At the very center of the city, a huge palace city suspended above all the other immortal palaces, emanating a golden aura that dazzled the eyes.
At the forefront of the city loomed a towering gate that reached to the sky. There was no one guarding it; instead they saw a huge array formation at the centre of the gate. The top of the array was surrounded by shimmering golden dharmic talismans.
Yi Qing took out the summons token. A red light flashed instantly and the token flew directly through the gate. The array at the gate began to darken, revealing a passage.
The three of them walked straight in, and the moment they crossed the entrance, the scenery in front of them changed; more immortal palaces suddenly appeared, shrouded in a misty glow and swirling clouds. From time to time, they could hear the warbling of immortal cranes. The immortal palaces were connected by white jade staircases. Each staircase floated independently. They could see many immortals standing on top of these staircases, which moved automatically. Rare spirit herbs, which were rarely seen in the lower realm, grew wild along the roadside.
They had just arrived at the gate when an immortal clad in green flew towards them from afar. Lonemoon was surprised to find that he was a Stygian Immortal.
The immortal saluted them politely and asked, “Which one of you is Sword Immortal Yi Qing?”
At first, they were surprised; then they remembered the token that had flown in had Yi Qing’s name on it. Yi Qing stepped forwards and replied, “I am he.”
“Fellow Immortal Yi Qing.” Smiling, the man stepped aside and said courteously, “I’ve orders from His Majesty to wait here for you. Since Fellow Immortal is here, please follow me to the Palace of Arms to pay respects to His Majesty.”
“So fast?” asked Yi Qing. Wasn’t this just a routine summoning? That the Immortal Emperor actually asked to see him personally given that they had just entered the city surprised him.
“This is not considered fast.” Beaming even more widely, the man said, “I have been waiting here for Fellow Immortal for three days.”
Three days!
This time, his reply caused not only Yi Qing, but even Lonemoon to subconsciously frown in perplexity. It appeared that the Immortal Emperor regarded Yi Qing with special importance.
“In that case, we’ll wait in the city for you.” Passing Yi Qing a communication talisman, Lonemoon said, “Look for us after you are done.”
Frowning a little, Yi Qing turned towards Shen Ying and said, “Master….”
“Yes, go ahead!” replied Shen Ying, nodding.
Only then did Yi Qing turn to the immortal guide and said, “Please lead the way.”
Nodding his head, the guide led Yi Qing in their flight towards that shimmering, golden majestic palace.
“Let’s find a place to settle down first, then we can look around the city!” Seeing the two men flying off into the distance, Lonemoon pointed to the city with an expression of eagerness. Suddenly a thought crossed his mind and he instructed Shen Ying, “Stick to me, don’t wander about!”
“OK.” Shen Ying nodded.
But in view of the fact that a certain person had a notorious record of getting lost, Lonemoon decided to play it safe. Grabbing her by the hand, he led her all the way to a restaurant. He booked a private dining compartment, then seeing that it was close to noon, ordered a table full of dishes.
“As we don’t know how long Yi Qing will be gone, you’d better eat first. I’m going to the city to look for business opportunities, but I’ll be back soon.” His main objective in coming to capital city was because of the Invincible Sect; accompanying Yi Qing on his imperial summons was secondary. The appearance of Ning Zi’an had interrupted all his plans. Naturally, all the plans he thought up of to make money had all gone down the drain.
After the Bao father and son left for the new city, they sent some people over to Invincible Sect. But as he had not wanted anything more to do with them, he sent those people back. Perhaps sensing his intentions, they had not contacted Invincible Sect for the past two years.
So during this trip to the capital, he had to look for ways and means to earn money for the Invincible Sect, otherwise there would not be food on the table. If it were only the other immortal disciples, it was not so bad. But the foodie Shen Ying was another matter. He could already picture the commotion she would cause if the food ran out here.
“Remember, don’t wander around!”
“Yes, Father Niu!” Seeing the dishes on the table, a happy Shen Ying started work on the food immediately.
Hmmn… not as tasty as the Chef’s dishes, but good enough.
Lonemoon’s mouth twitched a little. Why did he have a feeling that he was the only one who was worried over nothing. This must be his hundredth and one time that he had regretted putting in his lot with this foodie.
Father Niu certainly knew how to do business, returning a short while later with everything settled. Shen Ying had not even finished eating when she saw him from afar, guiding a plump, … prosperous looking immortal to their room.
Exchanging banters, the two of them walked in; they behaved as if they were about to become sworn brothers at any moment.
“And this is?” asked the rotund immortal, as he entered and saw Shen Ying, who was seated at the table holding a piece of meat in her hand.
“Er…” Lonemoon’s mouth twitched a little as if he had just remembered Shen Ying’s presence here. He had no choice but to explain, “Shen Ying, our sect’s…. sect master.” The last two words were almost inaudible.
“So you’re Sect Master Shen. I’m honored to meet you.” The immortal immediately cupped his fists in a salute.
Shen Ying smiled back politely. Nudging Father Niu, she asked, “Who is he?”
“He is Exalted Immortal Shu Jiang, the most famous alchemist in the capital. Half of all the high grade immortal pills in Chong Lan country are refined by him,” replied a beaming Lonemoon. Then, through voice transmission, he informed Shen Ying, “The richest man in the city.”
“Oh…” Shen Ying understood the situation in a flash. She had to hand it to Lonemoon; in just an hour, he had managed to trick the richest man into coming here, and he was an Exalted Immortal to boot.
“Brother Lonemoon is too kind.” Shu Jiang smiled and said, “Since providence has brought us together, if you ever need my help, please do not hesitate to ask. Only…” A look of doubt flickered across his eyes as he looked at Shen Ying. In a veiled tone, he asked, “Regarding the matter that Fellow Immortal just spoke of, is it really true?”
“You mean about the holy place? Of course it’s true!”
Seeing that Lonemoon did not seem to display any reservations about the matter in front of Shen Ying, Shu Jiang asked directly, “Is there really such a miraculous place?”
Nodding his head vigorously, Lonemoon said, “Haven’t I brought you here just to let you confirm this matter? If you are doubtful, why don’t we start straight away?”
Shu Jiang looked pleased to hear this. Then as an idea crossed his mind and he said, “Brother Lonemoon, please wait a moment!”
He suddenly took out a white-colored bell like talisman and put it on the table. At once, a beam of white light shot out from the bell. Within moments, a transparent shield had enveloped the entire dining compartment, shutting out all outside noise.
“I know Brother Lonemoon trusts me, but this matter is of great importance. It’s better to be on the safe side.”
“What Brother Shu says makes sense!” Nodding his head, Lonemoon fished out a piece of talisman from his robes and said, “This is the object.”
“Isn’t… this a spirit transmission talisman?”
