Li Yan's demeanor was very natural as he spoke; he had long since prepared his story.
The young guard looked Li Yan up and down. He did not ask what the two had been doing on the Tianlan Prairie. Such a question would be pointless. If they claimed they were searching for a certain medicinal herb and had ended up here, could he really investigate it thoroughly? His task was only to verify their identity; as long as he could confirm they were not Tianlan Clan cultivators, it was enough.
"Human cultivators?"
Li Yan nodded.
"If you want to enter the city without a token, it won't be so simple for you two. You'll have to come with me!"
An hour later, Li Yan and his companion walked out of a large courtyard. Looking back at it, Li Yan finally let out a long sigh of relief.
"Alright, it seems we're in the clear!"
He was in a rather good mood. Although the process had been very troublesome, and they had to spend two thousand spirit stones before they could truly set foot in the Tingyun Kingdom, it was enough to see the tense situation between the Tingyun Kingdom and the Tianlan Clan. However, having arrived here, they were temporarily safe and should not have to worry about being pursued by Tianlan Clan cultivators anymore.
In the past hour, they had been placed in a series of formations, all of which had illusionary effects. They could even have a certain influence on the consciousness of a Golden Core cultivator; a single mistake could expose them. Besides being questioned by illusory relatives and close friends, the formations could also create one's own dreamscapes, even scenes of brutal slaughter, making one reveal their experiences in a state of despair.
However, the refiner of the formations had only targeted matters related to the Tianlan Clan for testing. Otherwise, if the Tingyun Kingdom had acted in such a manner, it would have long since caused public outrage. What cultivator didn't have secrets they couldn't reveal?
Li Yan and Zhao Min were far superior to those of the same rank, so the formations here did not affect them too deeply. Furthermore, the two of them could be considered to have a feud with the Tianlan Clan. After going through the process, they smoothly passed the formation tests.
However, afterward, they were required to reveal their so-called human bloodline. Only after their human identity was verified did the attitude of those Tingyun Kingdom cultivators improve somewhat. But this was not the end. The subsequent actions of the Tingyun Kingdom made even Li Yan feel that they were exceptionally ruthless, even malicious. They required you to sign a blood contract, the content of which was roughly a statement of disrespect toward the gods worshipped by the Tianlan Clan.
This was a move that no Tianlan Clan cultivator would ever sign, and it was also a sinister trick used by the Tingyun Kingdom against cultivators with ambiguous origins and insufficient proof of identity. Such a practice by the Tingyun Kingdom would undoubtedly displease cultivators from sects who did not want to offend either side. However, the Tingyun Kingdom had long anticipated this. If cultivators from large sects or major families came, they would surely carry their own tokens. As long as they presented their sect's token and it was confirmed, they would be allowed to pass.
But for someone like Li Yan, who claimed to be a rogue cultivator and whose identity was very vague, this was a must. In any case, the Tingyun Kingdom was not afraid of offending such minor cultivators.
"The cultivators of the Tingyun Kingdom are not all vicious and evil, so there are many cultivators coming and going here. The various shops in the city are also well-stocked. Let's see if we can find a suitable map!" Li Yan looked at the cultivators coming and going on the streets. It was quite lively, and a look of relaxation finally appeared in his eyes. The tension of the past few days had finally dissipated a lot.
Zhao Min nodded gently. With Li Yan around, she didn't have to worry about many things.
This border city, perhaps because of the Tianlan Prairie, attracted foreign cultivators who, besides training, took the opportunity to hunt demonic beasts and search for various rare medicinal herbs. This had also led to a proliferation of shops in the city, with a very complete variety. Shops selling and buying the flesh, blood, fur, and medicinal materials of various demonic beasts were everywhere.
Similarly, it was commonplace for cultivators to be injured, and a clear guide was also necessary. Medicinal pills and maps had become the most popular items here.
Li Yan walked for more than an hour, passing through several streets. After carefully picking and choosing, he finally bought a map that covered a wide area and was marked in detail. This map alone cost him five hundred low-grade spirit stones, a considerable price. Of course, this was also the best map Li Yan had seen for sale here.
As for the medicinal pills sold in the shops, in the end, he and Zhao Min didn't buy a single bottle. They still had many medicinal pills on them, and they were all of a high grade. Furthermore, the things here were really too expensive. An ordinary bottle of second-rank "Qi Recovery Pills" could sell for one hundred and fifty spirit stones, whereas it would normally cost about seventy. In their opinion, this was simply an exorbitant price, not worth it at all.
A map, however, was a necessity. They were completely blind on the Verdant Continent, so it was a must-have. The two didn't mind spending the spirit stones.
After walking down a few streets, they learned some news about the Tingyun Kingdom. The Tingyun Kingdom was a monarchy. The ones with the highest cultivation were the current emperor and his younger brother, a prince. They were two Nascent Soul-level experts. The court, from the ministers to the soldiers in the army, was composed of cultivators. The Tingyun Kingdom was equivalent to a super-large sect, leading its vassals in constant bloody wars, which made the combat strength of the nation's cultivators quite formidable.
"This is Yunguan City. A Guxi said the Sparrow Plume Pagoda Domain is in the southwest, about six hundred thousand li from here. But we'll need to ask A Guxi for more details later." As he spoke, Li Yan handed the jade slip map in his hand to Zhao Min. After Zhao Min checked it with her Divine Sense, it was indeed as Li Yan had said.
Because this map mainly marked the nearby areas, other places were only roughly sketched out, and some places were even blank. Therefore, they could only see some of the important cities and markets in the Sparrow Plume Pagoda Domain. This did not surprise the two of them. Every continent was vast and boundless, and it was already quite good for a general map to be like this. If they wanted a more detailed and comprehensive map, they would either have to add the places they had been to themselves, bit by bit, or find an extremely powerful merchant guild and perhaps obtain one after paying a higher price.
"The map is sufficient for now. Let's go find out if there's an auction house here and see if we can find any clues about the Desolate Moon Continent." Because Zhao Min had changed her appearance, she now looked extremely plain and did not attract too much attention while standing on the street. However, occasionally, someone would sweep a fiery gaze over her curvaceous and firm body. But when they saw her face, they couldn't help but show a look of regret.
As long as the other party's gaze did not linger too long on her, Zhao Min's face showed no joy or anger. After hearing this, she immersed her Divine Sense into the map again. If they wanted to inquire about the Desolate Moon Continent, it was not something they could find in an ordinary shop; they would have to find some large ones. But not long after, she looked up with a puzzled expression.
"What's wrong?" Seeing her expression, Li Yan immediately asked alertly.
"Why is there also a shop named 'Gui Qu Lai Xi' here? Many markets on the Desolate Moon Continent have a shop named 'Gui Qu Lai Xi.' I wonder if you know of it, Junior Brother? They come from the same faction. I heard from Father that the origin of that shop is very mysterious, but because they have always only done legitimate business, the Four Sects have only been monitoring them in secret and have not eliminated them."
Zhao Min knew that Li Yan should be aware of this shop because there was a Peiyang Market near their sect, and Li Yan must have been there. As long as one had been there, they would know of this shop.
Upon hearing this, Li Yan's expression indeed faltered. "'Gui Qu Lai Xi' shop? This… this must be a coincidence."
"From here, go south three streets, at the corner of a crossroads!" Zhao Min handed the jade slip back. Li Yan immediately probed it with his Divine Sense. Because the map here was mainly for the use of cultivators who came to Yunguan City, the various places in the city were marked with exceptional clarity. Just now, Li Yan had not paid much attention to the information within the city, but had first confirmed the location of the Giant Wood Clan, so he really hadn't noticed.
Probing the area again with his spiritual sense, Li Yan found it was just as Zhao Min had said. Three streets south of their position, on a corner at a crossroads, the words "Gui Qu Lai Xi" were emblazoned on a sign. Beside the name, there were several annotations in fine print. Li Yan looked closer and saw that it was indeed a shop with a wide range of goods that also held regular auctions.
At that moment, an image of a captivating woman appeared in Li Yan's mind. She was slowly walking down from the second floor of a building, a vision of glorious youth. She wore a form-fitting, light green palace dress with a heart-stoppingly high slit at the side. Her hair was styled in a high bun, her skin was whiter than snow, her teeth were like jade, and her beautiful eyes shimmered with a flowing light. It was the same captivating woman he had first met upon entering the market—Su Hong.
"According to what Senior Sister said, no matter how powerful this shop's backer is, it's impossible for them to conduct business across the Verdant Continent and the Desolate Moon Continent, right?" Li Yan's eyes were filled with suspicion. He had thought of a very big problem: cross-realm business. What kind of powerful faction would it take to achieve that?
"We'll know if we go and take a look. If it's true, since they can conduct business across realms and even have a branch on the Desolate Moon Continent, they might have a way to return to the Desolate Moon Continent!" Zhao Min's judgment had always been very decisive. A strange light flashed in her eyes, and she had quickly made a decision.
Not long after, looking at the shop before him, Li Yan felt as if the scenes were overlapping. A cultivator's memory was unbelievably good. The style of this shop was almost identical to the one in the Peiyang Market in his memory. It was also a three-story pavilion. In the center of the second floor hung a huge golden plaque with four eye-catching vermilion characters, "Gui Qu Lai Xi," which were very memorable.
Especially at the entrance of the shop, there were four shrewd-looking hosts who were constantly talking to the approaching pedestrians. Then, they might shout inside, and a young attendant-like person would quickly run out and warmly greet the person, leading them inside. On both sides of the main entrance also stood two burly men in smart attire, their gazes vigilantly watching the customers coming and going near the shop.
All of this was almost identical to what Li Yan had seen in the Peiyang Market back then. It was just a different location, with different-looking hosts and guards. It was as if it were yesterday.
Li Yan looked at Zhao Min, and Zhao Min also looked back. Without asking, Li Yan got the same answer from her gaze.
"Senior Sister, I really hope we are not mistaken. If it's the same faction, then our luck has truly come!" Li Yan's voice sounded in Zhao Min's mind. Zhao Min could actually hear a rare hint of trembling in Li Yan's voice.
When the two of them walked toward "Gui Qu Lai Xi," the two burly men instantly focused their attention on them. They had seen these two standing diagonally across the street, constantly looking over here, and had been watching the customers coming in and out for a good while. This made them have to be on guard.
Seeing Li Yan and his companion make a move, their gazes fell on Li Yan and Zhao Min in unison. But as guards, they had their own set of principles and would naturally not take the initiative to inquire. They just had to prevent the other party from causing trouble.
"Well, you two patrons, I wonder how our little shop can help? Our shop's reputation is not only well-known here, but if you two have been to other markets, you have most likely seen our branches nine times out of ten. Whatever your needs, just let me know, and we will arrange for a clerk who is familiar with your needs to serve you."