Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The Upper Nine Heavens in the Shangqing Domain was one continent within a vast and endless group. The overall strength of the Upper Nine Heavens Continental Group had the topmost ranking in the entire Shangqing Domain.
The Giant Gods Continent was the main continent in the continental group of Upper Nine Heavens, with throngs of strong cultivators.
The ancient royal family of Duan was a symbolic power of the Giant Gods Continent as well as its holy land.
Recently, news from the Giant Gods Continent that the ancient royal family of Duan had taken the cultivators of Four Corner Village as prisoners. It was said that Fang Huan, a cultivator from Four Corner Village, had killed a cultivator from the ancient Duan family in a confrontation and was arrested by the ancient royal family. His father, Fang Gai, received words that instructed him to use the divine technique he possessed in exchange for his son’s freedom.
Not only did Fang Gai of Four Corner Village not turn over the divine techniques, but he had also injured the cultivators of the Duan family and was taken prisoner. The ancient royal family of Duan claimed that they hoped Four Corner Village could give them justice in this matter.
This news became public after Zhang Ye set off from the Four Corner Continent. Obviously, both sides had good ideas of the other’s movements and responded accordingly.
As expected by the people in Four Corner Village, although the Duan family had taken their people hostage, their plot was exposed. They now had enough concerns that they dared not directly execute the hostages out of fear that they would anger the Four Corner Village and be retaliated against.
After all, no one dared to underestimate the power of Four Corner Village today; the top three figures recognized it.
Even the ancient royal family of Duan had to keep that fact in mind.
After both sides released their own version of the incident, it was clear to everyone what was going on. Fang Huan’s conflict with the ancient royal family of Duan could not be verified at this point. The pretext of asking for an explanation from Four Corner Village had only one purpose, and that was to get the divine technique.
However, since Fang Gai didn’t hand over the divine technique, it was probably not an easy task for the ancient royal family of Duan to get it now. Furthermore, the envoy from Four Corner Village was already on his way.
Giant God City on Giant God Continent was known as one of the largest cities in the Upper Nine Heavens. The structures within the city were extremely magnificent and spectacular. It was the largest city in the Giant God Continent, and the ancient royal family was also located within the city boundaries.
At this moment, outside the Giant God City, a massive demonic beast came from the void, sheltering the sky.
This demonic beast was pure white with the horns of a goat but had wings on its back. Its eyes were extremely bright, and an auspicious divine light surrounded its body; it was Baize, the sacred beast.
A man stood on Baize’s back, his white garment dancing in the wind, but a mask covered his face, so his countenance could not be discerned. The eyes that were exposed were extremely brilliant, with a faint celestial light lingering about him. There was a sense of holiness about the man as if he was an existence not of this world. One glance was enough to feel his uniqueness.
This masked figure was Ye Futian, who had encountered Baize the Demonic Beast on the road. It was a sacred beast at the level of demon saint, so he allowed the beast to accompany him to the Giant Gods Continent.
Baize traveled by air. It gradually descended, soaring at a low altitude. Looking at this splendid city, Ye Futian drew up his plans. To get close to the important core figures of the Duan family, he had to attract them to him instead of the other way around.
So, he had to gain a reputation in Giant God’s City, and it needed to be a great one so that the entire city would know about him. Only then could he attract important enough figures from the ancient royal family to appear.
There was a map in Ye Futian’s mind, and the general situation of Giant Gods City and the distribution of its powers. These were information he obtained after entering the Giant Gods Continent. Since they weren’t secrets, they were easily obtained; Ye Futian had made a note of them.
In addition, he had some general understanding of the most important and well-known figures in the Duan family.
In order to achieve notoriety with the fastest speed, the most prosperous and happening place was the key. In every city, where treasures were changing hands had to be the most happening place.
There were several cities within cities inside Giant God City, one of which belonged to the ancient royal family of Duan. The existence of the royal family was equivalent to that of a city.
The Ninth Street in the Giant Gods City was the ninth street in the city. This ranking referred to the size of the street, but when it came to fame, Ninth Street was the most prestigious street in all of Giant Gods City.
On this street, there were the most prosperous taverns and inns inside the city and the largest trading market. Common wisdom had it that nine out of ten treasures in Giant Gods City came from Ninth Street.
This street, also known as the Ninth District, was a city within a city.
The place that Ye Futian chose to stay was Ninth Street inside of Giant Gods City. After he arrived and descended, he sat on Baize to tour this famed street. Even though he came on Baize, no one paid much attention to him except for an occasional glance or two.
On the road, there were many powerful demonic beasts, and Renhuang-level characters could be seen everywhere. This was the center of Giant Gods City. This largest trading place was the gathering place of some of the strongest cultivators in Giant Gods City.
Ye Futian discovered that the items traded in some random shops on the street were all saint-level treasures. Though imperial-level treasures could occasionally be found, it was rare.
After all, these shops were small holes-in-wall, and the real treasures were inside the big trading pavilions.
Moving forward on Baize Demonic Beast, Ye Futian saw an impressive inn. The aura of heaven and earth was richly endowed upon it; this was the Ninth Inn. It was the most eminent inn on Ninth Street and opened only to those of Renhuang Realm, with treasures as the only acceptable form of payment.
Although the Ninth Inn was resplendent, it was not large in size, as it was not as majestic as many inns on the mainland. The operation of an inn was difficult enough due to the limited space on Ninth Street.
Furthermore, the most well-known thing about the Ninth Inn was that no matter what happened on the Ninth Street or who was involved in what conflicts, as soon as the person entered the Ninth Inn, their safety was guaranteed by the inn. Fighting was absolutely forbidden inside Ninth Inn, but outside of the scope of the inn, anything could happen.
One could say that it also served as a sanctuary.
For many years, the Ninth Inn had never had any incidents. This fact spoke more of the background of the inn’s owner more than anything else. Some people said that the Duan family was the power behind the Ninth Inn, but this had never been confirmed. Still, such rumors persisted over the years.
It could be viewed as an inn, or it could be said to be a formidable force in itself.
In a large trading place like Giant Gods City, conflicts and confrontations, or even killings, were commonplace. Having such an inn in a place like this, its influence must be considerable.
Baize Demonic Beast, with Ye Futian on its back, headed towards the inn. There were guards at the entrance, and knowing the rules, Ye Futian released his aura and was immediately let through.
Ye Futian stepped off the back of Baize Demonic Beast and led him forward. They came to the lobby of the inn, where a woman received them.
“Elder,” said Ye Futian. The woman smiled and nodded at Ye Futian. He took out a porcelain bottle and handed it to the woman. “How long can I stay?”
The woman carefully assessed the bottle, then replied, “Elder, please wait while I check.” As the woman spoke, she left to have the item inspected.
It didn’t take long for the woman to return. She bowed slightly to Ye Futian and said, “Elder may stay as long as you wish; the way, please.” Ye Futian was surprised as he confirmed again, “As long as I want?”
“Yes,” the woman nodded.
This piqued Ye Futian’s curiosity. Obviously, the person who inspected the item was an expert and knew how precious was the panacea he gave them. Of course, the Ninth Inn was not an ordinary place, and he knew the amount of panacea he gave was not enough for the generous offer of stay. After all, it was not unusual for a cultivator to stay for years or even decades.
The real reason for them to do so was because they valued the item. Obviously, they appreciated it.
“Thank you very much.” Ye Futian nodded slightly. The woman led him to a courtyard, one of the tallest in the Ninth Inn, with a view of Ninth Street.
Here, he was an alchemy grandmaster!