''Let's go and see this Silver sword city then.''
Liu Mei's beautiful black eyes stared at Shun Long, as she then smiled brightly and nodded her head as she said
''Then, give me one moment first.''
Liu Mei took out a white veil from her spatial ring, and placed it on her face, covering it completely, before she turned to look at Shun Long.
Shun Long smiled when he saw Liu Mei's actions, but he understood, that since they were going to enter a completely new city that they knew nothing about, it was possible that Liu Mei's beautiful face would attract a lot of unnecessary attention.
Nodding his head, Shun Long took her hand as he mounted on the 'Silver-winged panther king', as they then left the cave.
Liu Mei had planned to wear this veil on her face, ever since she had seen Yang Gongsun's look on his face, when he stared at her outside the entrance of the 'Vermilion realm'.
With the black panther's speed, it took less than 20 minutes for Shun Long and Liu Mei to reach the end of the forest, and they were now just a few miles away from the Silver sword city.
As soon as they got out of the forest, Shun Long had the panther lower his speed, as they approached closer and closer to the giant city in front of them.
When they were just one mile away from the enormous city gates, Shun Long and Liu Mei noticed 2 long queues for the people who wanted to enter the city.
One of the queues seemed to be for the pedestrians, while the other one was for carriages or people riding on their magic beasts.
Many luxurious carriages were lined up, all the way from the city gates, to Shun Long's and Liu Mei's current location. Most of them had rank 2, or rank 3 magic beasts pulling them, when suddenly, everyone's attention was drawn to the 2 people sitting on the 'Silver-winged panther king' that approached them from the distance.
A handsome young man, along with the young woman who was wearing a white veil on her face, had painted a picturesque scene.
The nearby magic beasts however, instantly started to shiver as they felt the aura of a peak rank 5 magic beast approaching them.
The people sitting inside the carriages immediately got out, looking to to calm down their agitated magic beasts, while the pedestrians had started to silently discuss between themselves.
''That's a rank 5 magic beast! Heavens! How can these people ride on a rank 5 magic beast?! I wonder if they are members from one of the powerful clans?''
''That's not just a rank 5 beast, but a peak rank 5 'Silver-winged panther king'! These beasts aren't just extremely rare, but their combat power is also above average magic beasts at the same level as them. I wonder which clans these 2 people belong to?!''
''But... look at their clothes... they are so plain! I'm not so sure that they come from a big clan.''
Shun Long and Liu Mei completely ignored the discussions around them, and a little more than an hour later, they had already arrived in front of the enormous city gates.
2 guards dressed in black robes, with swords strapped on their waists, approached the black panther, as one of them then looked at Shun Long and clasped his hands as he said
''Welcome to the Silver sword city. If you are new to the city, then you will have to pay 100 spirit stones for each person on your magic beast. Of course, if you are a member of one of the sects, or part of the mercenary association, then you can enter free of charge.''
Shun Long nodded his head, as he had indeed saw everyone else before him pay 100 spirit stones, and waving his hand, he handed 200 stones to the guard in front of him.
The black-robed guard then moved aside, as Shun Long and Liu Mei finally entered the Silver sword city.
Passing through the gates, Shun Long noticed that the city was much more prosperous than he had imagined, as countless carriages could be seen on its wide streets. The tall buildings around them, would also immediately attract the attention of whoever visited the city for the first time.
Walking through the streets of the Silver sword city, Shun Long and Liu Mei saw countless street vendors haggling with their customers, as well as innumerable shop signs. From street food, to alchemy pills and weapons made from formation masters, the street vendors of the Silver sword city had everything.
Turning his head to look at Liu Mei, Shun Long's lips curved up as he said
''Let's find a good place to eat, and get some information about this city. Then we can decide what we want to do.''
Liu Mei nodded her head, and a smile was formed beneath her white veil, as Shun Long held her hand while they searched for a good place to eat.
10 minutes later, they arrived in front of a luxurious restaurant, that was more than 5 times bigger than the 'Mystifying Fragrance pavilion'. Shun Long then patted the black panther's head, as he told him to wait for them outside, before he and Liu Mei walked inside.
As soon as Shun Long and Liu Mei had walked through the silver colored gates of the restaurant and entered inside it, a seductive woman in a red dress, that seemed to be in her early 30s approached them, and with a bright smile on her face she said
''Welcome to the 'Red rose pavilion'! Young master, young lady, how may I be of service?''
Looking at the bustling first floor of this pavilion, Shun Long then turned his attention to the woman in front of him as he asked
''Are there any empty tables on this floor?''
The woman nodded her head with that same professional smile on her face, as she replied
''Of course! Please follow me.''
The woman in the red dress, soon led Shun Long and Liu Mei to an empty table near a window.
Since this was the first time that he and Liu Mei were visiting the Silver sword city, Shun Long was curious about the food here, as he looked at the woman in the red dress and said
''Bring us two dishes of each of your pavilion's specialties, as well as 2 jars of your best wine.''
The woman nodded her head as she took the order and left, while Shun Long and Liu Mei quietly listened to the discussions around them, while they waited for their order to arrive.
20 minutes later, when their order arrived, Shun Long and Liu Mei had already learned quite a bit of valuable information from the people in their surroundings.
It looked like the Silver sword city had many strong powers inside it. There were even some sects, who had set their headquarters inside the city. However, the most interesting piece of information that Shun Long and Liu Mei had heard, was regarding the Mercenaries' Association. It seemed to be some kind of super power, that was even stronger than the various sects inside the Silver sword city.
After they finished tasting their dishes, Shun Long and Liu Mei both marveled at the quality of the food. Even the best inn of the 'floating cloud sect', couldn't compare in the slightest with this random restaurant in the Silver sword city.
Just as they had finished their food, the quiet Liu Mei's voice sounded inside Shun Long's ears as she asked
''Shun Long... do you plan to enter one of these sects? Or maybe... you are interested in joining this Mercenaries' Association?''