Chương 87: Chenqi Immortal City

"These books are a lot more informational than the ones we got in the Huang Empire," Shu Yang said, leaning against a tree and reading. It had been a week since he left the Li family's marketplace, and he had covered a lot of ground. Based on the information he had gotten from the books he bought, he shouldn't be far from Chenqi Immortal City now.

He also learned that Chenqi Immortal City was run by the Chen family, which apparently was the most powerful family in Yuanchi Immortal Land, along with the Green River Sect. The other two cities were called Ziyou Immortal City and Shenchu Immortal City. Ziyou was built by a gathering of loose cultivators and was currently helmed by a cultivator at the peak of the Foundation stage.

But what Shu Yang really cared about was Shenchu Immortal City, as it was run by an alliance of family clans, one of which was the Qing Family!

'I guess it's good that I could find out about the Qing Family so easily, but the fact that they can control one of the Three Immortal Cities means that they are very powerful.' Shu Yang sighed to himself. Getting his daughter away from that place would be difficult.

'No use in thinking too much about it now; I just need to get there and start gathering information, and then I can make a plan.'

'But first, I should make a stop at Chenqi. I'm so close now, and it would be more convenient to ask around for information about the Qing Family there.' If Shu Yang asked around for information about the Qing Family in their own city, he was sure to be discovered.

"Did you find out anything useful?" Shu Yang asked, turning to Xiaorong, who had just returned.

"Family clan. Weak. No Foundation," Xiaorong answered, "They had meat."

"No stealing for now," Shu Yang said, "I'll buy you meat once we get to Chenqi." Shu Yang looked down at the rough map drawn in one of the books, but soon shook his head. If the family clan Xiaorong had just visited didn't even have a Foundation Elder, they wouldn't be significant enough to be placed on the map.

'It's fine. I think I know the way from here either way.' Shu Yang rose to his feet, ready to continue. But just then, a familiar feeling washed over him.

'A grandchild?' Shu Yang took a deep breath and felt that something noticeable had changed within him.

'It's not without talent!' Shu Yang closed his eyes and connected to the Bloodline Tree to see which of his children had another child while he was away.

'So it's Tianzheng. Good kid. Already back to working on the next generation.' He examined his newly born grandchild and discovered it was a girl. She only had slight body cultivation aptitude, but what surprised Shu Yang was that she actually had trash-grade spiritual roots. That would be the first of his descendants to reach that tier, except Tianyi.

'So does that mean?' Shu Yang focused on his own traits. [Bloodline Power: 14. 19 (Founding - Low)] [Bloodline Ability: Piercing Gaze] [Founding Traits: Sword Bone] [Common Traits: Great body cultivation aptitude, 9th-grade spiritual roots, Sharp Mind, Lucky, Charming, Long-lived]'9th-grade spiritual roots! They finally crossed the threshold.' Shu Yang had already been close to advancing his spiritual roots, and this grandchild finally helped him cross the last hurdle.

'My spiritual roots are probably still seen as quite weak in this place, though. But it's fine, they'll continue to improve.'

'I wish I were somewhere with spiritual qi so I could test the effects.'

'I guess Chenqi Immortal City will have plenty.' Shu Yang didn't dawdle any longer and took off once again, heading north.

'I'll have to guide my granddaughter in cultivating spiritual qi when I return, so she doesn't waste her talent.' Shu Yang quite looked forward to it, suddenly missing home. He took a brief glance home, activating his Bloodline Ability. He saw his son Tianzheng holding a small baby in his arms, smiling happily.

'Good. Everything seems fine back home.' … Only two days later, Shu Yang found himself in front of the giant gates leading into Chenqi Immortal City. It had been fairly easy to find once he got close, as he had spotted two flying boats heading in the direction of the city, which he could follow. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

'So many cultivators.' Shu Yang thought to himself as he looked around. There was a long line of people outside the gates, as well as carriages entering one after another to the side.

'I wonder how many people live here?' Even from a distance, the city walls seemed to stretch out endlessly. The city was countless times bigger than Fugu City.

'I guess cultivators might take up more space than ordinary people. But it should still approach a million people, right?'

"Xiaorong, I feel like this is a bad idea. Someone here is sure to be able to see through your stealth," Shu Yang said in a low voice, "This isn't just one Foundation cultivator we need to worry about; there could be hundreds of them in the city. Not to mention that the head of the Chen family is a False Core." Shu Yang had traveled alongside other people for the past hour or so and had overheard some tidbits of information.

According to one pair of passing cultivators, the city was jointly run by the Chen family and the Green River Sect, and they both had a False Core expert stationed here. Thanks to the books he had bought, Shu Yang knew that a False Core cultivator was the name for those who tried to advance from the Foundation stage to the Golden Core stage, but only partially succeeded in their advancement.

They weren't as strong as Golden Core cultivators, and they were forever stuck in the False Core stage, never able to advance further. But they were still a lot stronger than any Foundation cultivator, and had a lifespan of about 350 years. The Chen family was the only family in the Yuanchi Immortal Land to have managed to nurture an expert of that level within the family.

'There really is no telling what they are capable of. Not to mention the Green River Sect disciples that are surely numerous here.'

"Should be fine," Xiaorong said.

"Let's just be safe, alright? If someone notices you, it's all over, you know," Shu Yang said, "Can you wait outside the city for me? I'll try not to be away for too many days, and I promise to buy you some good meat." Xiaorong was quiet for a moment before answering, "Okay." She nudged his cheek affectionately and said, "Be quick," before jumping off his shoulders and disappearing. Shu Yang breathed out a sigh of relief. He was really not confident at all that Xiaorong would be able to hide.

'Now, let's just hope I manage to hide my body cultivation.' He was pretty sure no Qi Refining Cultivators could see through his body cultivation, but the Foundation experts inside the city were a different matter. Shu Yang had tried to practice hiding his cultivation these past few days, as he realized how necessary that skill would be in the future. He even asked Xiaorong for some tips, as she was an expert when it came to hiding.

Unfortunately, Xiaorong was a beast and did most things on instinct; she didn't really need to think when she hid herself. So her attempts to explain were practically useless. Either way, Shu Yang was talented when it came to body cultivation, so he could make some progress on his own. He felt that unless someone made physical contact or had a special trait, he should appear as a normal Qi Refiner at the 1st stage.

'The 1st stage is still a bit weak, though. Preferably, I would have loved to be able to give off the aura of a 9th-stage Qi Refiner. But even the 2nd stage is a lot better than I am now.' It wasn't really for the increase in strength, as that would be negligible. He just thought that his low strength attracted too much attention.

'Maybe there is a way to use my body cultivation to influence my spiritual cultivation. I'll look around and see if there are any spells for sale. Even if there isn't something that perfectly suits me, just having an example of a stealth spell would give me a lot of inspiration.'

"One spirit stone," The guard at the gates said to Shu Yang when it was his turn in line. Shu Yang had already heard about the entrance fee, so he had prepared a spirit stone and gave it to the guard. It was a bit expensive, but Shu Yang guessed that this Immortal City wouldn't lack visitors just because of that. Stepping inside the city, Shu Yang took a deep breath and circulated his cultivation technique. He was now finally in a place with spiritual qi and could make use of his improved spiritual roots.

'Not bad! At least 50% faster than back home.' The spiritual qi was a bit denser here, so that might affect things, too. But Shu Yang wasn't going to complain; his spiritual roots were still the lowest of the low grade, but they would continue to increase in efficiency as his descendants reproduced.

'I'll cultivate later.' Shu Yang quickly snapped out of his thoughts and continued into the city. He knew he would probably be staying there for at least a few days, so he might as well take the time to see if he could break through a small stage. Chenqi Immortal City really couldn't be compared to the cities back home. The buildings were tall and lofty, and they were sparsely built, leaving large spaces of seemingly unused land.

Not long after he entered, he spotted a building that surely stretched 400 feet into the air. The area around it was just an unadorned lawn of grass. It was as if the space were only meant to display the wealth of those who owned the building.

'It does give the building a certain air, I suppose. Unfortunately, I don't have time to look around much right now.' A few steps ahead, he noticed a middle-aged man with a large belly and, unusually, short brown hair. The man was looking at the building to the side with a gentle smile on his face. Shu Yang thought the man looked quite approachable, so he took the opportunity to ask him a few questions.

"Excuse me," Shu Yang said, lowering himself to a slightly humble posture. The man in front of him should be in the 4th or 5th stage of Qi Refining, so it was necessary to be polite.

"What building is that?"

"Oh? It belongs to the Alchemy Association," The man answered with a kind smile.

"It's a store?" Shu Yang asked.

"No, no," The man said, shaking his head, "It's just used for the examination of apprentices. My girl is in there right now; she has always had a talent for alchemy."

"I see," Shu Yang said with a nod. He thought that it was rare to meet someone like this, in a good mood and with time to spare, so he continued asking, "This is my first time in the city, and I don't really know my way around. Do you know a suitable place to stay?" The man didn't seem to mind the question, as he kept the smile on his face, glancing at the Alchemy Association Building.

"If you only plan on staying a few nights, there are plenty of inns. But they are expensive. I don't come here often either, so I'm afraid I don't have any recommendations. If you plan on staying longer, you should head to the Administration Office. There are plenty of rooms available for rent, and they are a lot cheaper than staying at an inn. I usually rent a room for a few months every time I come. It's not an easy journey, after all, and the city has much to offer."

"Thank you very much, I will heed your advice," Shu Yang said with a grateful smile, "Do you know a place suitable to learn a bit more about the city? I want to be sure not to offend any of the powers here."

"Well, just ask, and people should answer. You will figure out how things work in time. If you're worried, you can always go to a tavern or teahouse; they usually sell information," The man said.

'That could be useful.' Shu Yang didn't want to bother the man any longer and said thanks, wishing his daughter luck in the exam, and went on his way. The city offered quite a few sights that piqued his curiosity, but Shu Yang reined it in. He needed to take things one step at a time.

'First, find a place to stay. Then, gather information.'