Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“This…” Fang Fang wore a blank look, turning towards them as if inquiring their opinion.
“It’s getting late.” Lonemoon glanced at the sky, those officers were occupied with presenting the treasure to the City Lord and seeking credit, seems like they couldn’t care less about them. “The matter has been settled, let’s get some rest.” With that said, he pulled Shen Ying and Chef upstairs, taking the dishes on the table with him at the same time.
It wasn’t suitable for the girl to say anything else and she could only randomly pick an empty guest room and settle in.
—————
“Did you hear, a huge hole suddenly appeared through Mountain An opposite the river last night, it’s about a few hundred feet wide.”
“How could you miss such a big hole, it appeared overnight and looks very smooth, doesn’t seem like its man-made.”
“There are rumors that there even people who heard the ethereal voice from heaven last night, that voice was dreamlike, like an immortal song from the skies.”
“In that case, could that big hole be a divine sign? It is a sign of great prosperity!”
“It definitely is, otherwise who has the ability to cut through a mountain and leave behind such a big hole in a night’s time? The only explanation is that an immortal descended to Earth last night!”
“Then doesn’t that make our city a lucky city.”
Early morning, every street and alley in the city was discussing the big hole that suddenly appeared in the middle of the night. And the talks became increasingly dubious, someone even swore that he saw the immortal with his own eyes. All at once, that big hole became a divine sign, a good number of people even wanted to cross the river to worship it.
Lonemoon: “…”
Shen Ying: “…”
Yi Qing: “…”
Alright, to a certain extent, it was really the doing of an immortal.
While he went out to report the case last night, Lonemoon had actually also probed around the city, but he came to the same outcome as he did previously. This was simply a mortal city, nothing different from other places and nowhere was it related to Managers.
So he decided to head out for the city for a look, if there are still no discoveries, then they would return to their plane first. Anyway, they weren’t particularly interested in this Big Dao Organization.
Yet just as they were about to leave the city, they were stopped by a person, a person they recognized, it was the officer who brought troops to investigate the case yesterday but ended up taking a merman away with him. This time, he was missing his domineering stance as he smiled amicably. “Fellow guests, the City Lord requests a meeting with you!”
City Lord? Lonemoon paused, it must be because of the merman incident, seems like this officer really presented that merman to the City Lord. After giving it some thought, he did not decline and followed the officer with a nod.
They arrived at the biggest building in the city in a short while, the City Lord Abode. When he came here to report case last night, he’d only stood outside to explain the situation before leaving. Now the three of them were taken all the way into the abode, to a hall used for meeting guests.
There was already a person seated inside, at a closer look, it was the girl from yesterday, her name seemed to be Fang Fang.
“Miss Shen, young masters, why did you all come too?” Fang Fang looked towards the trio with surprise.
“Miss Fang, why are you here too?” Lonemoon asked. They’d parted ways as they left the inn this morning, didn’t she mention she was returning to her village?
“The officer at the city gate said that they had orders from the City Lord to bring me here.” Fang Fang replied.
Seems like they gathered all the people in the know, Lonemoon frowned as a voice announcing the arrival of the City Lord sounded outside the door. In the next moment, a middle-aged man hurried in, his eyes lit up upon seeing the few of them as he quickened his steps and walked over excitedly.
“It was you all who discovered that merman?”
Lonemoon exchanged a look with Chef before stepping forward and answering. “Yes, we were the ones who found it.”
“How insolent!” He’d just finished when the person beside him suddenly rebuked, “How dare you not bow when you see the City Lord?”
“No need to bother with such empty shows of ceremony.” The City Lord waved his hands, becoming even more excited. He surveyed Lonemoon from top to bottom, then turned to look towards Yi Qing who was beside him and said with approval. “I can tell that both of you are of no ordinary talent at one look, no wonder you were able to capture a merman who has been known to be ferocious and would even bewitch humans.”
“…” Actually, it was caught by Shen Ying.
Yet the City Lord treated them with increasingly ardor, his eyes filled with curiosity. “Could you tell me how you managed to capture it?”
Lonemoon was stumped, he could not say that Shen Ying first smashed a hole through the mountain and scared it sh*tless before she managed to capture it.
“We all learned some simple kungfu and chanced upon this merman, so we took it down.” Lonemoon could only make up a story on the spot.
“I see!” This City Lord was evidently at the height of his enthusiasm and did not suspect anything. “Seems like you are also an exceptional man.”
“You flatter me, it was merely some small tricks.”
“No need to be too humble!” The City Lord said exceedingly eagerly. “To be able to catch such a rare creature, how could you be an ordinary man? Don’t worry, I remember your contributions, there will definitely be generous rewards for all of you.”
“Then I thank you, City Lord.” Money sent right to his doorstep, why not.
The City Lord’s smile grew wider as he glanced at the both of them again, something flashing across his eyes. “I see that the few of you are foreigners, since you have such capabilities why don’t you stay in my abode to make a future for yourself?” He suggested directly and added after some thought. “To be honest, I have always been very fond of such precious objects and rare creatures, I also have quite a number of collections here, but this is my first time seeing someone who was able to capture a merman from the sea, I truly want to cherish such talents.”
So he wants to recruit fighters, Lonemoon said with a smile, “Thank you for your kind offer, but the few of us still has important matters to attend to. We are just passing through this city on our way, it’s not likely that we will stay behind now.”
“Oh?” His expression fell instantly, seeming displeased with his rejection. “You must be clear, if you were to stay in my abode, great riches and splendor will be right at your fingertips, isn’t it better than having to travel everywhere?”
“We seek your understanding, City Lord!” Lonemoon’s reply remained the same. “We indeed have important matters to attend to.”
The City Lord’s face became a little darker and he continued to smile after a moment. “Don’t be so quick to come to a decision. I reckon that the few of you do have some knowledge regarding the different races, why don’t you follow me to Precious Creatures Garden to take a look at my collection of races before deciding?”
With that said, he walked out without waiting for their response. His armed guards by the side took two steps forward, looking like they were waiting for them to move. Lonemoon exchanged a look with Yi Qing, something flashing across their eyes at the same time before following, taking Shen Ying’s hand at the same time. Fang Fang wore a look of panic but could only follow along and walked carefully beside Shen Ying.
The Precious Creature Garden that the City Lord spoke off wasn’t far away, they followed him through several courtyards and finally turned into one that had a completely different style. It was massive, but there were rare treasures everywhere, there were even colorful exotic flowers and rare herbs grown by the paths.
Occasionally they could see living creatures with odd appearances walk through, a deer with a flowering branch on its head, a cat that could speak human languages, various beasts with unusual appearances, all things that couldn’t be spotted easily in the mortal realm.
