Chapter 66: Luo Yang Paper Is Precious
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Clang!”
A loud noise echoed from the center of the caravan, its sound waves rapidly reaching every corner. The look of confusion on everyone’s faces was immediately replaced by clarity.
“Ah, my eyes, my eyes!”
Pained screams began to resonate within the caravan, each voice louder than the last. Many within Chen Fei’s carriage had their hands over their eyes, seemingly on the verge of gouging them out.
It was thanks to the old man’s warning that their reactions had been slightly delayed, sparing them from losing their eyesight.
“What’s happening?”
Some in the carriage shivered, unnerved by the feeling of being utterly controlled. Most importantly, they had all forgotten what they had just witnessed that triggered such reactions.
…..
Recollections of a straw hut appeared, but no one remembered what ensued.
The screams outside the carriage persisted as the guards of the Immortal Cloud Caravan began inspecting each carriage for problems. Meanwhile, they cautioned everyone not to look outside carelessly; else they would bear the consequences.
“That’s bizarre. There’s something off about a straw hut appearing in the valley out of nowhere,” the old man sighed. “When encountering such issues, it’s best to see nothing and hear nothing. Our safety is generally guaranteed with the Immortal Cloud Caravan’s protection.”
“Thank you for the warning earlier,” everyone expressed their gratitude to the old man, who casually dismissed the thanks.
He had intended to save himself. Had he been bewitched by the evil, losing an eyeball would have been only the first step. Subsequently, other horrifying things might have occurred in the carriage, leading to an actual disaster.
The continuous screams from outside left everyone in a state of fear.
Meanwhile, Chen Fei, seated in a corner, furrowed his brow. When the others were looking at the thatched hut, he chose not to. After experiencing a few evil entities, he had nearly summed up his own strategy.
However, when someone attempted to poke their eyeballs, Chen Fei’s mind was slightly affected. Although the Clear Heart Formula circulated automatically, it failed to immediately dispel the abnormality.
In other words, whether he viewed the entity or not, he would still be affected—only the intensity of the impact varied. With regard to the numbness in his arm, he was only starting to feel it.
Chen Fei glanced at the old man. He suspected the old man possessed something that could restrain the entities, making him immune.
On the other hand, although the Clear Heart Formula was still effective, it seemed unable to handle slightly stronger anomalies. However, this was understandable. After all, it was merely a commonplace cultivation technique.
“Fortunately, we chose the Immortal Cloud Caravan. Otherwise, we would have been doomed!” Chi Defeng admitted, still shaken by the recent events. This evil phenomenon had probably only recently emerged. Otherwise, even the Immortal Cloud Merchant Band wouldn’t have been caught off guard and almost suffered a catastrophe.
The Immortal Cloud Caravan skirted the mountain valley, taking a detour before returning to their original route. Alarmed by the evil event, the Immortal Cloud Caravan appeared to have quickened their pace.
Their usual routine of taking three to four rest breaks a day was reduced to two, and each break was considerably shorter. They wasted no time in continuing their journey.
The eighth and ninth days swiftly passed. In the evening, a cheer erupted from the entire caravan. They had caught sight of the Immortal Cloud City.
However, as the old man explained, what they saw was not the Immortal Cloud City but a smaller city adjacent to it. They still had a day’s journey before they could truly enter the Immortal Cloud City.
Seeing the outline of the city in the distance brought a smile to the old man’s face. Being here meant safety. The incident with the monsters two days ago was still fresh in his memory. It was only in the city that he could feel more at ease.
After another hour, the entire caravan finally entered the city. Some people began to depart from the Immortal Cloud Merchant Band. Not everyone was heading to the main city.
Chen Fei’s destination was naturally the main city. Since the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect was near the main city, most people were also heading there.
The Immortal Cloud Caravan rested in the city for a day. Chen Fei utilized this time to explore the city.
Chen Fei could clearly sense the city’s vitality. Just the number of entertainment places, such as brothels, greatly exceeded that in Apricot Fen City.
At the same time, the prices of pills and weapons were significantly lower compared to Apricot Fen City.
As long as there were sufficient talents, the price of such materials would decrease. In contrast to Apricot Fen City, where Marrow Tempering realm martial artists were seen occasionally, here in this city, Chen Fei could vaguely sense the presence of many such individuals on the street.
Chen Fei recalled the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect’s requirement for martial artists to reach the Marrow Tempering realm below 20 years of age and pondered silently. Only in such a cultivation environment could the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect dare to make such a demand.
Chen Fei couldn’t help but think of Pingyin County and the rebel army.
The rebel army was just a small group among the many rebel soldiers. Their target was a small county like Pingyin County.
Reflecting on it now, Chen Fei wondered how many incidents must have taken place in this dynasty for such a vast scale of rebel soldiers to run rampant? It was a turbulent era indeed.
The next morning, the Immortal Cloud Merchant Band set off again. The old man in the carriage had already left. He believed that while the main city was more prosperous, the pressures of life were also greater.
It was better to live in a nearby smaller city, which was more comfortable. Anyway, he was already at this age and had no intentions of going to the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect.
“Shall we rent a courtyard in the city and continue selling medicine when we arrive?” Chen Fei asked Chi Defeng during a break.
Chen Fei was determined to continue selling pills. After all, it was a quick way to make money, and he was counting on this to save some cash. Of course, he had to be more careful when selling medicine this time. Ideally, Chen Fei would be able to join the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect. Then, he would probably have no issues using the sect’s name to avoid trouble.
“I’ll certainly continue selling,” Chi Defeng answered with a smile. At his age, no sect would accept him. If Chen Fei’s medicinal pill business was done well, Chi Defeng would also be able to live a comfortable life.
In the evening, Chen Fei caught sight of the Immortal Cloud City. One look at it left him speechless.
He had never imagined that he could see such a magnificent city in this world. It was hard to believe that it had been constructed by human hands.
The city gate guards were all at the Bone Tempering realm, and the sergeant was above the Marrow Tempering realm. As for his exact realm, despite the help of the Clear Heart Formula, Chen Fei was unsure. The sergeant’s aura was cold, and it was evident that his hands were stained with a lot of blood.
After saying their farewells to the others in the carriage, Chen Fei and the others found an inn. The price was high, and the food was not cheap either. However, the two of them were mentally prepared.
“Two thousand taels a year?” Chen Fei and the others were brought to a courtyard by the innkeeper the next morning. They were quite satisfied with all aspects, but the price was frightening.
Chen Fei initially planned to do as before, to live humbly, but he quickly realized that this was entirely impossible.
The cost of living was high, but this was excessively so!