Chapter 270: Visitors in a Foreign Land
Xu Qing stepped out and exerted crushing pressure on everyone! Then he stood there, the center of attention. The bearing and manner which had once belonged to Master Shengyun was now embodied in Xu Qing. When you added in his amazing good looks, he was like a shooting star that gave the coalition disciples no choice but to bow their heads. As for the female disciples, their eyes shone brightly.
High above in the sky, Sir Bloodsmelter looked down with an expression of satisfaction. Master Seventh was next to him, smiling. As for the patriarch and matriarch from Spiritgloam Valley and the Heavenmirror Treasure Sect, they smiled and shook their heads as they glanced at Xu Qing.
“Things seem to be going well.”
“Ahh, kids. Always getting so worked up. They’re definitely not like us.”
Sir Bloodsmelter laughed heartily, and then followed his two friends to fly off into the distance. After the older generation left, the mood on the shore remained tense. However, with Xu Qing there, the male coalition disciples eventually just sighed and backed down.
The Seven Sect Coalition actually had a much more relaxed atmosphere than in Seven Blood Eyes. Therefore, the female disciples openly ogled Xu Qing, which he didn’t exactly like.
After stepping out and crushing the opposition, Xu Qing led the way to a ceremonial flying boat that had been set up to take them into the sect. The coalition disciples parted to make way for them.
The Captain ran to catch up with Xu Qing.
Third Elder Brother joined them on the flying boat. Clicking his tongue, he said, “Nice job, little Junior Brother. Later on I’ll teach you a few things that’ll make you unbeatably attractive to the female disciples here.”
Xu Qing looked at Third Elder Brother but didn’t say anything.
As for the Captain, he bit a chunk out of an apple and then sneered. “That’s more than enough from you, Third Sib, you pervert. Little Ah Qing and I prefer to play it cool. We don’t do things like you.”
Third Elder Brother chuckled as he looked at the surrounding crowd.
After the Seven Blood Eyes delegation was on the ceremonial flying boat, the disciples that had been assigned to escort them led the way into the city. Almost immediately, Xu Qing was overwhelmed with the sensation of being in a foreign land. Though many of the buildings reminded him of the architecture in the Violet Lands, there were also a lot of small buildings with domed roofs and white plaster walls. It made the place seem very neat and orderly.
The vegetation here was different from South Phoenix. The plants were much less leafy, and the leaves they did have were very big and thick. Some of them emitted a fragrant aroma that would stick to you when you walked past them. Xu Qing could tell that they weren’t poisonous. Instead, the aroma contained medicinal properties that, over time, would improve one’s constitution and cultivation base.
As they proceeded along their way, Xu Qing noticed numerous streams meandering through the city, the waters of which contained spirit energy that would nourish the populace. The temperature here was different than back in Seven Blood Eyes. It was warmer, and as a result, people wore more revealing clothing. Many people would look at them curiously as they passed. Xu Qing noticed that most people had smooth skin with few wrinkles, and their eyes shone brightly. Even small details like that revealed what it was like to be in a supervisory sect.
This was only one tiny part of the city; from his position on the flying boat, Xu Qing couldn’t even see where the city ended. It was truly a spectacular place.
Eventually, the Seven Blood Eyes delegation arrived at the location where they would be staying. It was a mansion complex filled with buildings large and small, all of them richly ornamented and beautiful.
The coalition disciples said their farewells, after which the Seven Blood Eyes delegates took some time to rest before going their separate ways. After all, this was everyone’s first time in the Seven Sect Coalition, and they were all very curious to explore the city.
The older generation would spend the day reminiscing, and would get down to business the following day.
It wasn’t long before the various highnesses were spreading out into the city to explore. As for Xu Qing, he inspected the building he had been assigned to, then set up some spell formations and scattered poison powder everywhere. As he was finishing up, the Captain and Third Elder Brother came looking for him.
“Come, little Junior Brother. Your Elder Brothers are here to take you for a stroll.” The Captain was obviously eager to show Xu Qing some of the sights.
Xu Qing looked back at him suspiciously.
Standing next to the Captain was Third Elder Brother, who blinked a few times, then smiled and said, “I asked some of my old coalition friends about what to do around here. They strongly recommended one of the nearby immortal hot springs.”
“Before the Everlasting Immortal Profundity River flowed into coalition territory,” the Captain explained, “there weren’t many immortal hot springs. But now that the river is flowing again, quite a few have opened up. We should go try one out.” His eyes glittered as he looked around, then lowered his voice and said, “I heard that some of the immortal hot springs allow for co-ed bathing. It’s ridiculous! I just can’t believe something like that would be allowed right out in the open. We should definitely go take a look and offer some constructive criticism!”
Xu Qing had originally been planning to decline their offer, and simply stay in the complex to work on his cultivation. But the Captain and Third Elder Brother were just too insistent, so eventually he forced a nod out and let them pull him along.
It didn’t take long before they had changed clothes and were out on the street. The shops lining the way were busy, and there was a lot of foot traffic. People were talking everywhere, and they had different accents than back in South Phoenix, which only accentuated the sensation of being in a foreign land.
The Captain bought a bunch of fruit that he’d never seen before, and tossed a few to Xu Qing and Third Elder Brother. Munching on fruit, they walked around looking at the sights.
“This place is huge,” the Captain said. “It’s probably ten times bigger than the capital city back home. Third Sib, you’re originally from Revered Ancient, right? You must know your way around here.”
Third Elder Brother grinned. “The coalition doesn’t just have one capital city. Each of the seven sects has one. But they’ve expanded over the years to become one megacity. The district we’re in right now is part of the Heavenmirror Treasure Sect. There are also many places controlled by small kingdoms, as well as 130 of the sects that make up the coalition. One of the big reasons our delegation has come here is to discuss where exactly Seven Blood Eyes will end up in the city.”
Xu Qing listened carefully as Third Elder Brother explained things. He also noticed that the Captain seemed to be looking left and right in a very suspicious manner.
“Another unique thing about the Seven Sect Coalition,” continued Third Elder Brother, “is that it’s not just made up of seven huge cities. The seven sects’ headquarters are also located here. What’s more, each sect offers techniques, reserve power locations, and areas of good fortune that anyone can visit.” He pointed at a huge white mountain off in the distance. “That’s the headquarters of the Heavenmirror Treasure Sect. Anyone can go to those places to study and seek enlightenment, although it’s not free. They charge high prices for admission. I suppose Seven Blood Eyes has something like that now. The Seazombie ancestral land is an area of good fortune that we control.”
With Third Elder Brother explaining things along the way, they walked through the city until they reached a very fancy looking building constructed next to a stream. It was pentagonal in shape and very large. The stream flowed right into the building, and came out the other side having been split into several smaller streams that fed into other parts of the city. It was obviously a very popular place. Both male and female disciples came in and out, all of them wearing different clothing, which went to show that cultivators from all over the coalition came here, not just the seven sects.
“This is the place,” the Captain said, his eyes glittering. Pulling Xu Qing and Third Elder Brother along, he headed inside. Third Elder Brother paid for all of them, and soon enough, they were standing next to one of the hot spring pools inside. Steam curled up from the surface, but it was still possible to see male and female cultivators here and there. None of them wore very much clothing. Some carried on whispered conversations, others just kept their eyes closed and worked on cultivation.
Because of the steam, it wasn’t possible to see very clearly.
Xu Qing could sense the strong spirit energy in the pool, and could also tell how pure the water was. Unexpectedly, it didn’t contain even a scrap of mutagen. Cultivators who soaked here and did breathing exercises could purge themselves of mutagen.
Of course, Xu Qing didn’t have any mutagen to begin with, but practicing cultivation here would be half the work, twice the effect.
“It really is co-ed!” the Captain murmured. Clearing his throat, he stripped down to his undergarments and waded in. Third Elder Brother did the same.
After some hesitation, Xu Qing took off his outer garment and then picked a place to sit cross-legged in the water. The water wasn’t too hot, and it felt wonderful. Xu Qing felt very comfortable as the spirit energy seeped into his pores and caused his cultivation base to stir.
The three of them were in one corner of the pool, and had all taken measures to disguise their appearance so they looked like ordinary coalition cultivators. Because of that, no one had any idea who they were. Time passed. Cultivators came and went. About two hours later, conversation swelled in the hot spring in response to some big event that had just taken place outside.
“Seven Blood Eyes is so fierce!”
“I just heard some news. The grand highness from Seven Blood Eyes’ Third Peak challenged a group of chosen from the House of Grue Hunters. He fought three in a row, beat two, and then ended up fighting to a draw with Chen Yunhua, who’s considered on the same level as Sima Ling. After that, Sima Ling refused to fight him!”
“The same thing happened in the Lunisolar Dao Palace. The grand highness from Seven Blood Eyes’ Fourth Peak is over there right now. I heard that he fights really fiercely. He also swore that he would fight anyone from the Lunisolar Dao Palace who’s under Gold Core.”
“Back when our coalition chosen went to Seven Blood Eyes, they made a big deal about how good they were. Apparently, Seven Blood Eyes was actually being very deceptive. And now that they’re here, they’re determined to show how strong they really are!”
Upon hearing this talk, Xu Qing, the Captain, and Third Elder Brother opened their eyes and exchanged glances. Lowering his voice, the Captain said, “It’s the perfect opportunity to get rich.”
He looked at Xu Qing.
“You’re right, Eldest Brother,” said Third Elder Brother. “If we work together, we should be able to make out like bandits.” He also looked calmly over at Xu Qing.
After a moment of silence, Xu Qing said, “What’s the split?”