Thereafter, Tan Xun became an official beast appraiser, giving him access to greater knowledge. It wasn’t long before he learned about the fact that monsters were able to alter their appearance. Throughout his career as a beast appraiser, he had met several monsters but none reached the Transfiguration stage.
It was due to his past experience in the forest that Tan Xun believe in Lin Jin’s words.
“We need to verify this. If there’s really a monster that is able to take on a human form living within the royal capital, we have to track it down!” Tan Xun said.
Lin Jin was aware of how prominent Tan Xun was in the imperial city. He should be well-acquainted with many high-ranking state officials. Given that he has shown interest in pursuing the matter, the upcoming investigation should be none of Lin Jin’s concerns anymore.
His mention of the encounter with the monster was merely done out of curiosity. If Tan Xun didn’t know anything about it, that monkey demon might just be passing through the city.
After all, it was said that all roads led to Jade Dragon City.
Lin Jin and Tan Xun became closer friends after this meal. The old man asked Lin Jin the reason why he came here to the capital, to which the latter replied, saying that he was here on someone’s request to treat a patient.
Tan Xun didn’t pry on the matter. After learning which inn Lin Jin was staying at, they parted ways. One headed back to headquarters while the other continued his stroll around the city.
Lin Jin walked aimlessly and chose which way to turn based on gut feeling. About thirty minutes later, he realized how the crowd had grown visibly sparser and there seemed to be a temple at the end of this road.
It was Lin Jin’s first time seeing a temple in Jade Dragon City. As the building seemed sizable even from a distance, Lin Jin planned to take a look inside. And yet, the moment he arrived at the gates, he was stopped by some guards and their ferocious beasts.
The guards stated that this was the royal capital’s forbidden territory and no one was to venture beyond its gates, so they chased Lin Jin out.
Since it was off-limits, Lin Jin decided to turn around and leave.
As he turned around, he noticed that there was a tea stall nearby. All that walking was exhausting so he decided to take a seat and order himself a pot of tea.
Xiao Huo and the white ape rested obediently by his side. Xiao Huo’s eyes darted around cautiously whereas the white ape was much more relaxed. From time to time, he would scratch himself before continuing the search for ticks hiding in Xiao Huo’s fur. Though, to his disappointment, he didn’t find any thus far.
Lin Jin paid them no mind. After taking a sip of tea, he asked the stall owner about the temple.
The tea stall owner chuckled and said, “Sir, I’m guessing you’re not a local here.”
Lin Jin nodded. “I just got here this morning and thought I’d look around since everything here is so new to me. Having stumbled upon this place, I thought I’d take a look at the temple but they wouldn’t let me in.”
“Of course they wouldn’t. That temple is no ordinary place. It’s a temple for the jade dragon. It is said that our Jade Dragon Kingdom’s guardian pet beast came from this Jade Dragon Temple,” the owner whispered.
Lin Jin was surprised.
It was no wonder they prohibited commoners from entering that place. So this was Jade Dragon Temple.
Of course, Lin Jin was aware of the history behind the Jade Dragon Kingdom’s name. When the nation was first established, its development was thanks to a jade dragon that even carried its status up to being a superior country.
Though, they didn’t remain too long at the peak. For some unknown reason, the country started going on a decline. All this happened more than fifty years ago and none of it had been recorded in history books. The only way it was passed down was through hearsay.
But one sure thing was that Jade Dragon Kingdom’s guardian beast back in the day was a jade dragon.
Speaking of which, Lin Jin was very curious as to what breed the jade dragon could be. Surely, it must have belonged to a rare breed, but Lin Jin was interested to know what it looked like.
Sitting beside the tea stall was a dog the owner kept.
It seemed like the dog was this owner’s pet beast.
Average folk couldn’t afford to purchase rare creatures so their choice of pet beasts was limited to normal beasts, and dogs were a popular choice.
Not only were they great at guarding one’s home, but these creatures could also relieve loneliness. They didn’t require specific diets either.
The owner’s dog was currently staring at Xiao Huo and the white ape with great curiosity.
“Ah Bao[1], come back. Don’t disturb the customers,” the owner called out and that little mutt immediately returned to its owner’s side, where it sat down obediently.
The owner was clearly a man trying to make ends meet but his life seemed to be free of all burden.
After paying for his tea, Lin Jin made his way back. At this point, he had explored most of the city already, so it was time to head back and catch some rest.
The royal capital’s streets were rather complex. Lin Jin had to make a few turns before locating the street he was familiar with. After a short walk, he finally saw the inn he was to spend the night in.
Upon reaching the second floor, Xiao Huo let out a low growl. Lin Jin knew from the wolf’s reaction that someone was inside his room.
He took a deep breath and could vaguely smell the fragrance of flowers, which immediately told him who his uninvited visitor was.
“You must have waited long, Seventh Princess,” Lin Jin said as he pushed the door open.
Sure enough, He Qing was sitting inside with her tetrawinged butterfly dragon.
He Qing was shocked when she saw him. Being the playful and lively girl that she was, she really was annoyed by Lin Jin’s later-than-anticipated return. She hid in the room and concealed her aura, hoping to give Lin Jin a good scare when he returned. Who knew that he would find out about her presence before even entering the room.
“How did you know it was me?” He Qing was confused.
Lin Jin didn’t bother to answer her question. He couldn’t possibly say that he remembered her scent, right?
“Seventh Princess, you’ve come for an unexpected visit. Did you need anything?” Lin Jin asked, leaving the door open.
He Qing was the type to be easily distracted. Upon hearing Lin Jin’s question, she forgot about her malicious plan of scaring him and she stood up to bow at him. “I didn’t know that Appraiser Lin was Mister Curator’s disciple earlier. Now that I do, I’m here to pay you a visit. Uhm, is he here too?”
As she spoke, He Qing’s eyes darted around the room.
Her eyes were sparkling with anticipation as if she was a little fangirl waiting to meet her idol.
Lin Jin knew that Lu Bin must have told her about it. However, he didn’t plan to keep it from her so he simply sat down and shook his head. “I came alone.”
He Qing looked disappointed.
She sat down as well and stared at Lin Jin. “Appraiser Lin, I didn’t know you were Curator’s disciple earlier so I ended up verbally offending you. I hope you can forgive me and forget about my mistake.”
Lin Jin nodded.
“You see, I snuck out from the palace for two reasons. One, I wanted to apologize to you, and two, I wanted to talk about my sister’s condition,” He Qing said quietly.
Lin Jin seemed to have heard how Jade Dragon Palace was a terribly strict place. Previously, in the Visitation Hall, he recalled He Qing complaining about not being able to venture beyond the palace walls. To be able to make it this far from the palace she must have broken a few rules in her journey.
However, there was also the possibility that everyone just let her do as she pleased since her pet beast was already at Rank 4.
The palace may act as if they had no idea she was out on a frolic, but it was highly likely that there’s a royal messenger on a nearby rooftop, trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.
Lin Jin glanced out of the window. Behind a nearby roof structure, a human silhouette jolted and quickly hid away from his line of sight. He felt as if he had been found out just now.
“I’m a palace supreme guard and technically, I should be camouflaged by my pet beast. No one could possibly have noticed me. Guess that was just my senses acting up,” the guard muttered to himself.
[1] Name of the dog: roughly translates to “Treasure”.