Liam stood before Zhou and the elderly man, his eagle-sharp eyes catching every subtle shift in their expressions.
Zhou was slightly winded from travel and the elder in blue robes carried himself, with a piercing gaze and his long white beard swayed faintly in the breeze.
"Senior," Zhou said hurriedly, clasping his fists and bowing low. His voice trembled with a mix of respect and relief. "This is my master, Elder Han of the Nine Heavens Thousand Blades Sect. Master, this is the expert I told you about — the one who saved us from the Ironblood Bear."
Liam gave a small nod and offered a smile. For a moment, he considered giving them a made-up name, something that would blend in with their world. A fabricated identity might make it easier to navigate this society unnoticed. But he dismissed the idea just as quickly.
Why hide? Why pretend?
A false name would change nothing. His aura, his strangeness, his very existence already set him apart. In a world ruled by strength, masks didn’t matter. Power did.
So he straightened, his tone calm but steady. "My name is Liam Scott."
Zhou and Elder Han both blinked in faint surprise. The name was alien to their ears, harsh in sound, nothing like the flowing syllables of their world’s cultivators. For a heartbeat, silence stretched between them.
Then Elder Han smiled, his eyes narrowing as though filing this peculiar detail away.
"Liam Scott," he repeated, rolling the words carefully on his tongue. "A strange name, but fitting for one as peculiar as you."
Zhou bowed again, his respect growing.
Liam chuckled lightly, shaking his head. "I didn’t do anything extraordinary. I was simply unlucky enough to encounter the beast... and lucky enough to survive. Nothing more."
Zhou and Elder Han exchanged glances. To them, his words were the height of humility. To dismiss defeating a Grade 2 Ironblood Bear as mere luck? Either he was too modest to flaunt his strength... or his true power was so overwhelming that such a battle meant nothing to him.
Elder Han inclined his head. "Still, you saved my disciples’ lives, even if indirectly. For that, you have my gratitude. I hope one day I may repay this favor."
Liam waved it off casually, but his smile remained. "No debt between us. It was just circumstance."
Zhou stepped forward then, his tone gentler, almost cautious. "Senior, forgive my bluntness, but... are you perhaps entering the city as well? If so, do you require assistance?"
His eyes flickered briefly to Liam’s attire. To him, Liam’s clothes looked plain and foreign, his sleek black trousers, his strange looking shoes and his fitted shirt standing out sharply from the flowing robes of other cultivators.
And then there was the artifact on his face—the Gear Glass. Zhou couldn’t sense any spiritual fluctuations from it, yet he was certain it wasn’t ordinary. A senior expert wouldn’t wear something without purpose.
Liam tilted his head slightly, suppressing a smile. He had expected this question.
"Yes," he said simply. "I was waiting in line to enter."
In truth, he hadn’t anticipated a city at all. He thought he would pass by a modest village, perhaps a cluster of huts at most. Yet here stood towering stone walls and a gate bustling with life. Perhaps the girl from the night before had been exaggerating—or perhaps in this world, even a "village" dwarfed Earth’s towns.
Zhou nodded quickly, relief flickering across his features. "Then please, . You won’t need to worry about the gate fee. I’ll handle it."
Liam gave a small bow of his head. "My thanks."
The group moved forward together, drawing curious glances from those waiting in line. The guards, clad in light armor with swords at their hips, scrutinized every entrant carefully. Some people, mostly merchants, paid in gold coins, others with copper, but everyone was required to purchase a stamped wooden badge. Get full chapters from novel⟡fire.net
When their turn came, Zhou stepped forward. He reached into his pouch and handed five copper coins to the guard in charge.
The guard nodded curtly, accepting the payment. Another guard took out a wooden badge and pressed a heated iron seal into it, leaving behind a crisp imprint. Zhou collected it and turned, presenting it to Liam with both hands.
"Here, Senior. Your badge."
Liam accepted it with a faint smile. The wood was warm under his fingers, the faint smell of scorched fibers rising from the fresh seal. He slipped the badge onto his pocket, and into the Dimensional Space, and inclined his head. "Thank you, Zhou."
With that, the group passed through the gates.
And then Liam stopped in his tracks.
The world before him unfolded like a painting come to life.
The city was alive. More alive than anything he had seen on Earth. Streets paved with smooth stone stretched in every direction, wide enough for caravans to roll side by side. Buildings of timber and stone rose high, their tiled roofs adorned with hanging lanterns that swayed gently in the breeze.
Vendors shouted from colorful stalls, their wares spilling out in bright displays: spirit herbs, weapons of steel and jade, talismans etched with runes.
The air was filled with a symphony of sound. Merchants haggled, children laughed, hammers rang in the distance from a blacksmith’s forge. The faint scent of roasting meat mixed with fragrant incense, wrapping the streets in a heady aroma.
And above it all, the people. Cultivators with sharp gazes strode confidently, their robes fluttering in the faint breeze. Ordinary mortals bustled alongside them, carrying baskets, pushing carts, leading beasts of burden. The contrast was stark but seamless. This was a society where the mystical and the mundane coexisted.
Liam’s eyes widened slightly, his lips curling into a faint smile. So this is no village, he thought. This is a city. A true cultivation city.
Zhou noticed his reaction and smiled knowingly. "Senior, this is Blackstone City. Modest compared to the great sect capitals, but a thriving place nonetheless."
Elder Han gave Liam a long look, then turned to Zhou. "It’s time for us to return. The fallen disciple must be laid to rest properly."
Zhou nodded. Then he turned back to Liam, his expression earnest. "Senior, the path ahead may be inconvenient. Please accept these coins as travel funds. It is but a small token, but I hope it will spare you trouble."
He held out a small pouch, its drawstrings tied neatly.
Liam blinked, caught slightly off guard. The weight of the pouch in Zhou’s hands told him there was a decent sum inside. He could see the sincerity in Zhou’s eyes, and in Elder Han’s quiet nod. They weren’t offering out of pity, but out of respect.
After a heartbeat, Liam reached out and accepted it. "Thank you," he said warmly. "I’ll make good use of this. I hope we meet again."
Elder Han smiled faintly. "Should you ever need assistance, come to the Nine Heavens Thousand Blades Sect. We will welcome you."
Liam inclined his head. "I’ll remember that."
The group clasped fists in farewell, and then Zhou and his master turned, heading deeper into the city toward their sect’s branch estate.
Liam watched them go for a moment, smiled to himself. "Not a bad start, I guess."
He turned and began walking aimlessly down one of the busier streets, letting his eagle eyes drink in every detail. Children darted between legs with sticky sweets in hand. A merchant shouted about the effectiveness of his talismans, claiming they were blessed by an elder of the Seventh Heaven Pavilion. A pair of cultivators argued heatedly over the price of a spirit herb.
Everywhere he looked, there was life, energy, and opportunity.
And as he turned a corner, he saw a two-story building with lacquered wooden panels, red lanterns hanging from its eaves, and a carved signboard that read in bold golden characters: The Azure Crane Restaurant.
The air wafting from its open windows carried the unmistakable aroma of spiced meats and fragrant broths. Laughter and conversation spilled from inside, mingling with the clatter of dishes and the strumming of a lute.
Liam’s lips curved into a smile. "Perfect."
He adjusted the pouch of coins at his waist, pushed open the door, and stepped into the restaurant.