Chapter 208 - Million Stars Palace
The capital was divided into three zones, while each zone was a smaller city ran by a respective royal family.
‘So this is how things are in the capital…’ Ye Wei’s runicle glided through the mild winter storm, approaching Helian City. The closer he got, the more runicles he saw on the road..
“Zoom!”
A luxurious runicle whizzed by. At ten times the size of Ye Wei’s carriage, it looked more like a mobile palace.
“Eh?” Ye Wei could feel a great presence from the gigantic runicle’s direction and looked at the small open yard next to its driver seat.
The young Runemaster quickly identified the source of the Qi presence in between a group of gorgeous escorts; a young man dressed dashingly in gaudy robes was at the center of a small dance..
He then shifted his attention to the flagpole at the hind end of the runicle where the Bai family crest fluttered in the wind.
The Bai was one of the sixteen superpowers of the Zhou dynasty beneath the three royal families. Each of these sixteen influential households had over a thousand years of heritage, treated as though they were nobles, an extension of the royals.
The young Bai sensed Ye Wei’s attention and turned around. He stared back with his drunken gaze, raising his glass as the runicle drove further away.
“Zoom!”
The Bai’s vehicle accelerated and disappeared into the skyline. Its speed caused a turbulence, shaking Ye Wei’s runicle violently.
In the following minutes, Ye Wei encountered a few more similar, lavish runicles, “this is the twelfth of them! What are the Bais up to?”
“Show offs!” Ye Wei channeled his Qi to stabilize his ride, deciding against confrontation as he was alone and new to the area. ‘Just wait, you will be bowing before me one day.’
The three imperial cities were the heart, brain and soul of the dynasty. They were guarded by the strongest elites of the land, safe from the threats imposed by demons and beasts. It was natural that the sixteen superpowers based themselves close to the royals, but the area had turned into the dynasty’s most materialistic region due to the influx of money that came with them.
Ye Wei shook his head, ridding himself of the pessimistic thoughts. He looked ahead to the hills and the buildings ahead.
A few hours later, a large convergence of building structures as wide as the skyline appeared on the horizon as Ye Wei ‘s runicle escaped the valleys.
The young Runemaster could feel the royal city’s energy and life from a hundred miles away. He could also feel a faint, ancient runic presence emitted by the centuries-old city walls.
“This is a colossus runic array.” Ye Wei mumbled to himself as he narrowed his eyes. He noticed that there was a flow of runes circulating about, maintaining a semi-spherical shell around the entire royal city.
‘The scale of this barrier is unbelievable. I wonder how many centuries it took for this enormous runic structure to be built…’
Not only did the array protect the royal city, it also shielded the five hundred miles radius around it, creating a humongous no-fly zone, a zone that was powerful enough to turn any lawbreakers, even ten star returned prime Warriors, into dust.
Ye Wei had realized he would have to stop as he went closer to the shield and saw a large amount of wayfarers. He got off the runicle and stored it in one of his interspatial bags.
He then used the Starblink Steps, attempting to finish the last six hundred miles of his journey as fast as he physically could.
It only took an hour before Ye Wei arrived at the front entrance of Helian city, he lifted his head to appreciate the beautifully crafted frame of the two-miles tall, one-mile wide front gate.
The young Runemaster was slightly hesitant to move as he was secretly terrified by the immense energy he could sense from within the rectangular shape, but he eventually joined the lengthy queue to enter the city.
“Three vermilion gold each, and there are twelve of you. Of course it is going to cost you thirty-six gold!” One of the golden armored guards yelled impatiently. Ye Wei could tell from the guards’ Qi presences that all of them were returned prime Warriors.
“One thousand silver exchanges to one gold and we do not do exchanges here. You can either try your luck with the other groups in the queue, or you will have to ask the vendors around. However, I can’t guarantee you that they will buy your silver at a fair rate.”
“Nonetheless, you are to pay the entry fee in legal fashion if you wish to step your feet into the capital.” The guard captain explained in a cold, strict tone.
The group then shuffled along the queue, emptying their pockets to gather the correct amount. One of the guards handed over a jade sigil as he received the fee.
After briefly reading some information regarding the royal city displayed in the air by the sigil, the group finally walked through the gates.
Although Ye Wei had never seen queues that long, the guards were processing them efficiently and systematically. Merely a few minutes after joining its end, it was already his turn to pay. He immediately melted into the crowd and headed into the city after receiving a jade sigil.
“Zoom!”
The young Runemaster was mindlessly going with the flow; he injected his Qi into the sigil, which transmitted information about the royal city directly into his mind in return.
‘So the municipality is divided into the inner city, south, north, east and west. The inner city is a restricted area that nobody may enter without a royal invitation. And intruders will be killed on sight…’ Ye Wei frowned as he received the information, ‘that is a bit unforgiving…’
The east wing was the most developed, busiest area. It was predominantly a commercial area where many trading guilds and individual merchants set up their posts and markets.
The west wing was a residential area, home to thousands of powerful cultivators and the headquarters of many influential families and forces. The exaggerated living expenses and cost of land made the west wing a prestigious location.
The south wing was the ‘fun’ quarter. It ran the whole gamut from casinos to restaurants, brothels to parks; the south end provided the city with entertainment that was suitable for both the young and old, the old-fashioned and the ones lacking moral fiber.
‘The north wing, Million Stars Palace…’ Ye Wei’s face showed concern as he processed the information.
The Million Stars Palace spanned over a hundred miles. It was set up by the Helians to house the young elites they had recruited from all over the dynasty. Its size revealed just how eagerly they wanted to expand their influence.
“A whole zone dedicated to the reruits!?” Ye Wei exclaimed, forgetting that he was surrounded by other visitors.
“They must really care about us.” Having made a fool of himself, he muttered with a blushed face.
‘But that also means that there are tens of thousands as special as I am—they might be stronger or weaker, but they surely all have potential to achieve greatness…’
‘I am Green Moon City’s strongest and maybe even the best of the younger cultivators of the thirty-six outskirt cities region. But I don’t think I should expect recognition just yet. Well, ranks are just numbers in the end; it will be nice to have someone to compete against, or someone to look up to.’
‘I have to keep fighting stronger opponents and improve through battles and the mistakes I make in them. If I don’t exceed my limit, I will never break through to returned prime level quickly enough!’ Ye Wei was thirsting for battle, for the thrills and the improvements that come with bloodshed. He missed the rush he experienced during the regional tournament.
The city was tall and wide, as the center was a prohibited area, even with Ye Wei’s speed, it took him more than two hours to get to the north wing from the southbound entrance.
“The Million Stars Palace!”
The palace’s front was on the edge of Ye Wei’s sight after the long trip. Although he was told of the shape and the size of the palace, experiencing it first hand was still mind-blowing.
The gates of the palace were made of forged cyan meteorite, the polished surface glittering like a cloudless night. To each sides of the gates was a row of ten feet tall golden giants, each of them standing straight as a pole.
“What are these…”
Ye Wei stared at the giants. He could not sense any sign of life, but his senses picked up a cold, intense Qi presence from each of them.
“Who are you!?” Just as Ye Wei stepped forward towards the gate, a young cultivator appeared out of nowhere and shouted. His purple robe fluttered as if he had sprinted out.
“Ye Wei, of Green Moon City!” Ye Wei skipped the socializing and grabbed the talisman given to him by Helian Jieyuan from the interspatial bag hung on his waist.
“Newbie!” The purple-robed youngster took the talisman from Ye Wei’s hand, a small smile appeared on his cold and emotionless face. He waved and said: “Welcome, but be warned. There are one hundred and thirty-seven new recruits in total, and they are all trying to prove themselves. You will have to work exceedingly hard to stand out.”
Ye Wei nodded, surprised that anyone at all could tell that he was eager to compete and to prove himself. He was then led to an area filled with outgrowing weed, and soon they arrived at a remote villa; it was old and dirty, its walls cracked and decorated by moss.
“This is your residence, newbie.” The purple-robed youngster didn’t even bother to remember Ye Wei’s name. He took a deep breath, coughing as he nearly choked on the putrid odor.
‘This looks like an abandoned house…’ Ye Wei frowned as he assessed the building, wondering if Helian Jieyuan’s invitation was a joke.
“Don’t give me that face. All newbies are assigned to places like this.” The purple-robed youngster quickly read Ye Wei’s body language. “There are a few more newbies to come. I will call all of you for a meeting when they’ve arrived.”
“Being here gives you access to the Helian family’s bottomless resources, but if you want better standing and a better life, you will have to fight for it. I will be on my way if there aren’t any questions.”
“Thank you very much for leading the way, May I ask how you would like to be addressed?” Ye Wei handed over a small jade bottle as he spoke in a respectful tone.
“Ha, blood essence pill, huh, you big spender.” The caretaker popped open the cork and smiled, “I am Baili Hengtian, and I will watch over you for now.”