Linzhou.
In the huge city located at the edge of the landmass, seven heavenly boats passed through the light curtain of the city’s defensive formation and slowly descended onto the Chixuan Qinggang Square in the city.
When viewed from above, the scale of the city was immense. The thick city walls were about a hundred zhang high and more than twenty zhang thick. They were filled with soldiers wearing heavy armor, as well as numerous cultivators wearing Daoist robes patrolling the walls. Outside the city walls was a vast wilderness, with the ground presenting a strange black color with a dark red glow, exuding a strong killing intent.
Inside the city, one could clearly see streets, pedestrians, and numerous brightly lit buildings, making it as bright as day. There was no shortage of facilities such as restaurants, trading houses, gambling dens, and pharmacies, as well as a market specifically serving the cultivator community.
In addition to the disciples of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace, there were also many cultivators from small and medium-sized sects, as well as certain commercial forces from the secular empire. They relied on the protection of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace in their daily lives and naturally had to fulfill certain obligations. Every year, they had to send a certain number of disciples to rotate in these dangerous areas to defend the city.
“It seems that this place is quite popular.” Qing Muling couldn’t help but mutter.
Qi Yalan smiled and said, “Of course, Linzhou still has abundant resources, even though it has been occupied for so many years. There are still many bold commercial forces that have stationed branches here. As long as the city is not breached by the monsters and other creatures outside, the annual profits can be quite substantial.”
Qing Muling nodded. People travel thousands of miles for wealth. Although this place was full of dangers, as long as there were enough profits to attract them, there would still be no shortage of people or cultivators who were not afraid of death.
When Qing Muling followed her senior sisters out of the heavenly boat, she saw that many people had already gathered below to welcome them. Some were dressed in Daoist robes, giving off a celestial aura, while others were fully clad in heavy armor, exuding a chilling killing intent. The majority of them were women.
“Senior Sister, you finally arrived.”
The one leading them was a graceful and elegant woman in a silver robe. Her eyes and temperament seemed somewhat weak and timid. However, with Qing Muling’s keen perception, she could tell that this core disciple had shed quite a bit of blood from the foreign races. The blackened red sword on her back emitted a strong killing intent, distorting the light, almost turning into a demonic weapon.
Xuebing Xuan looked at her and asked, “Junior Sister Yurong, are you in charge of the situation in the city now? Where is Wanjing?”
Su Yurong replied, “Senior Sister Wanjing led a team to exterminate the foreign races outside the city a few days ago and has not returned yet.”
“Oh, how is the situation now?”
“It’s difficult. Those creatures have been attacking continuously until yesterday when they finally retreated. We suffered significant losses, and the defensive formation has been damaged in many places. Due to the insufficient spare materials in the warehouse, we haven’t been able to repair it yet!”
“Understood, let’s discuss it inside!”
Xuebing Xuan nodded and didn’t say anything else. Under Su Yurong’s guidance, they boarded a luxurious carriage and returned to the magnificent City Lord’s Mansion. Thousands of disciples of various levels went to the military camp to await deployment. As for the resources and puppet soldiers in the heavenly boat, there were dedicated personnel to handle the handover.
As they traveled, the streets were bustling with noise and people. On the streets, which were more than ten zhang wide, one could occasionally see heavily armored warriors riding war beasts in groups, their weapons gleaming with a faint light. It was evident that they were mass-produced standard magical weapons. They were led by cultivators with cold expressions and long swords on their backs, patrolling the city along fixed routes to maintain order. At critical moments, they would also participate in defending against the attacks of the foreign armies outside the city.
In the conference hall of the City Lord’s Mansion.
The eldest senior sister naturally sat in the first seat, with more than ten core disciples and elders sitting below. In addition, some inner disciples who had made enough contributions and met the cultivation requirements also had seats. As long as nothing unexpected happened, they would soon become core disciples.
Qi Yalan wasn’t interested in this pre-war meeting and simply mentioned it to Xuebing Xuan before taking Qing Muling to stroll around the city.
“If it weren’t for being distracted by mundane matters, Senior Sister’s cultivation should have advanced further. Unfortunately, our Master doesn’t usually take care of such matters, so these tasks fall on her.”
Qi Yalan said, “Junior Brother, you shouldn’t follow her example. Just focus on cultivation. Like me, with enough cultivation, anything in the world can be obtained with just the sword in your hand.”
Qing Muling smiled and didn’t say anything. Everyone has their own aspirations, and this kind of thing couldn’t be forced. It was obvious that the temperament of the third senior sister was not suitable for being the Sect Master. She liked and excelled at one thing the most, which was using a sword to kill people. Of course, he didn’t seem to need to consider this now. Improving his cultivation was the most urgent matter.The two of them wandered around the city for a while, and Qi Yalan suggested going to the market to see if they could find some useful materials. Qing Muling naturally had no objections.
The market was quite large, with cultivators of all sorts coming and going incessantly. Their cultivation levels varied greatly, ranging from those who had just entered the Qi Refining Stage to those at the peak of the True Person Realm.
Calls of vendors selling their wares echoed back and forth, with hundreds of stalls set up along both sides of the street. Most of the stall owners were also cultivators, selling all sorts of materials from various exotic creatures, rare medicinal herbs and plants, precious raw metal ores, fragments of incomplete magical tools, and so on. It was a feast for the eyes.
Many stalls were surrounded by groups of cultivators, inspecting the goods, haggling over prices, and engaging in various debates. However, due to the strict supervision of the elders from the Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace, the market was always in good order. There were hardly any cultivators who dared to bully others with their strength, forcing them to buy or sell.
Qing Muling casually scanned the area and found quite a few items worth looking at, especially the raw ores and unknown plant roots and seeds. Of course, the items that caught his attention were not cheap.
Qing Muling was a bit troubled. He had plenty of elixirs, high-quality food ingredients, and spirit stones in his storage bracelet, but these were cultivation resources allocated by the sect, and he had very little spare money to spend.
“Junior Brother, have you seen anything you like? I’ll buy it for you,” Qi Yalan said, holding his hand and speaking with a smile. Her demeanor and tone were reminiscent of a wealthy older woman spoiling her kept man in his previous life.
As a senior core disciple with strong cultivation, it was much easier for her to earn wealth and resources. Over the years, she had accumulated a considerable fortune and had no problem supporting Junior Brother.
Qing Muling shook his head, “I appreciate your kindness, Senior Sister, but I’m not used to spending other people’s money.”
Qi Yalan frowned slightly, a hint of annoyance in her voice, “I’m not an outsider, am I? Why are you being so distant? If you really mind, then consider it a loan. That should be okay, right?”
Without waiting for his response, she handed him a storage pouch. Inside were tens of thousands of neatly cut and polished standard spirit stones, all of high quality. For Qing Muling, this was an astonishingly large fortune.
“I’ll have to pay you back eventually,” Qing Muling sighed.
“You can pay me back whenever you want, without interest. Even if you can’t pay me back, it’s okay!” Qi Yalan said, but in her heart, she added: But you will belong to me.
Qing Muling understood her intentions. She was planning to have him repay the debt with his body. His pride as a man wouldn’t allow him to let her get her way so easily.