Many cultivators were still here, as it wasn’t every day that they had a chance to see one of the Seven Heroes in person.
****
“Greetings,” Mad Sword Haoran offered Long Di a cupped fist in front of the astonished gazes of everyone present.
Long Di saw this but had his guard up only responding with a, hey. He wanted to suss out this Mad Sword Haoran’s intentions before anything else.
The crowd frowned upon seeing this. To them, the Seven Heroes were unreachable existences. For one to acknowledge them would be the greatest honour. Yet this Di Long acted as if it was just some common person on the street greeting him.
“Mad Sword Haoran, ignore him!”
“That’s right, he’s just acting cool!”
“He’s a lustful child with no proper upbringing!”
Long Di’s gaze shot to the person who made the last comment, and that expert felt as if he fell into an ice cellar. He had the feeling that if he said anything else, he would be killed.
This was so peculiar, as there was no killing intent that manifested. So where was this feeling coming from?
Mad Sword Haoran realised that something was off and interjected. “D-Dao Brother Di, how about we go somewhere more private!?”
Long Di gave him a side-eye glance before responding with a slow nod.
Mad Sword Haoran sighed a breath of relief. He then turned to go where he planned to talk. “Shall we go then?”
“Hold on,” Long Di walked over to where Xiannu Liang and Sun Zixin were. The latter had once more regained consciousness.
Sun Mei and Sun Kai were hugging him tightly, which Xiannu Liang allowed since he was strong enough for this at least.
“How you feeling?” asked Long Di.
“A-A lot better,” Sun Zixin stated.
“We’re heading out. Wanna come so you don’t get robbed anymore?” Long Di asked without batting an eye.
“Uhm, we’re not really…” he gestured to his rags, which he didn’t believe was acceptable in any establishment they were thinking of heading to.
“Well, I am not going shopping and I don’t think this guy even gives a damn for the most,” Long Di thumb-pointed at Mad Sword Haoran who flashed them a warm smile.
“I don’t mind.”
A blush appeared on Sun Mei’s face upon seeing this.
Sun Zixin then got up, albeit with help from Sun Mei and an enthusiastic Sun Kai. He then cupped his fist towards Long Di.
“I appreciate it, Sir Long-”
“Brother is fine.” Long Di corrected him since he didn’t feel as if he was old enough to wear the title of sir yet.
“Senior brother Long Di.” He decided on calling him this. Age aside, in terms of status, power and standing, Long Di was above him in all aspects, so calling him senior brother wasn’t too out of place.
Seeing that they finally had everything sorted out, Mad Sword Haoran and the girl he was with led them through Cang Bian City to where he planned to have their meeting.
They came upon a multi-storied restaurant with a plaque that read.
‘Vermillion Phoenix Restaurant’
The characters were masterfully carved, and they were engraved in gold. They really popped against the red backdrop of the plaque they were written on.
Long Di and the others could tell that this was an extremely high-class restaurant.
“Evening, esteemed guests. Table for eight?” The concierge in the restaurant asked them in a polite tone. Even though he was only the concierge, he wore expensive robes that were worth far more than the Sun siblings had ever seen in their life.
He didn’t even bat an eye on the rags that the latter came in. His demeanour and mannerisms showed that he was trained quite well.
“Table for nine.” Long Di corrected.
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“?” Both the concierge and Mad Sword Haoran were surprised by this, but didn’t question it.
“Yes, please, we’d like a room at the top,” Mad Sword Haoran requested.
“Very good, sir.” The concierge bowed.
He led them inside the restaurant and took them up several stairs. They noticed that the higher they went, the more luxurious the dishes that were being served.
It seemed the levels of this restaurant acted as a sort of visualisation of one’s status and wealth.
They could even see where several patrons looked at the Sun siblings with disgust. However, the latter lowered their gazed and followed in silence behind Long Di.
Before long, everyone found themselves on the top floor of a luxurious restaurant overlooking Cang Bian city.
The restaurant itself was an imperial red that stood out and showed its status. It was complemented by the time of day as well.
This was owed to the setting sun in the distance as it painted the landscape in a red and orange glow that was both beautiful and sad. Sad because it represented the death of a day.
The young maiden sat beside Mad Sword Haoran, while Long Di sat on the other side. Shen Ling and Mina sat on either side of him, followed by Xiannu Liang.
The Sun Siblings were a bit farther up the table, not daring to say too much. Sun Kai was being properly restrained by his sister at this point and didn’t get the chance to make much trouble.
After taking their order, the server left.
“Allow me to introduce myself. I am Haoran Jian from Heavenly Sun School, and this is-”
“Jingyi Yu, I am… young noble Haoran’s fiancée.” Her face reddened as she said this, increasing her beauty even more.
Shen Ling was slightly envious when she saw the two of them, but she tried her best to hide it.
Long Di then took the chance to introduce himself and everyone else from his side.
In truth, they didn’t pay much attention to anyone else from Long Di’s side except Long Di himself.
Mad Sword Haoran then took out a bottle of wine from his pouch once they were all settled in. “Has Daoist Di Long ever sampled Phoenix Amber Bauble Wine?”
The wine was in a luxurious crimson glass bottle. The bottle itself was extravagant, as precious stones were embedded in its sides.
What was even more eye-catching though, was a glowing engraved emblem on it that mirrored the brightening and dimming of smouldering coals.
“I’m eleven.” Long Di unceremoniously declared.
Mad Sword Haoran was caught off guard by the declaration. For Long Di to tell him that he was eleven after offering him a drink meant that he was… underage?
This was strange to Mad Sword Haoran as this was a mortal law and cultivators such as them never had to adhere to such trivial things.
After all, cultivators were able to stave off the effects of intoxication fairly easily. It was only after imbibing certain special wine that cultivators would have trouble preventing such a thing. Plus, it was only when those special wines focused on inducing such an effect.
“I won’t force you fellow Daoist. However, you needn’t worry about the effects of alcoholism since this wine is meant for cultivators. It empty’s the mind, allowing you to enter a state of Zen. It can help in clearing a problem you might be having.” Mad Sword Haoran advised.
“You sound like peer pressure throwing a pitch for the wonderful life of crack,” stated Long Di.
After saying this, however, Long Di held a cup up, which prompted Mad Sword Haoran to pour some of the wine out for him.
Long Di observed the liquid coming out and was amazed by what he saw. When Mad Sword Haoran poured the drink out, the emblem that he thought was engraved on the bottle swirled around before it burst into light strands. They then poured into his cup as a maelstrom of glittering particles.
It seemed that the emblem was not on the bottle but inside the wine itself.
Shen Ling and the others, Mina included, were immersed in the phenomenon birthed by the wine.
“This is where its name Amber Bauble comes from,” Mad Sword Haoran said with a smile. It seems he saw Long Di’s interest through the dancing of his eyes on the particular transformations taking place.
“It looks impressive,” Long Di commented.
Mad Sword Haoran then gestured for Long Di to take a sip. Long Di did just that and took a modest sip of the wine. He closed his eyes to both savour and analyse the taste.
As it entered his mouth, it released a cool and refreshing sensation that immediately cleared his mind. It then streamed down his throat, turning into a pillar of flame that engulfed his body.
Poof!
This manifested into reality as Long Di’s body was truly on fire!
“Long Di!” Shen Ling was frighted by what she saw.
Mad Sword Haoran and Jingqi Yu were shocked as they were just noticing this person. “Who are… h-he’s fine.”
Though he and Jingyi Yu were beyond confused, he still explained. “He’s entered a rare state of comprehension brought about by the wine. Who are yo-”
Shu!
“Meow.”
A lazy sound echoed out, drawing everyone’s attention to the top of Long Di’s head where a…
A cat?
Let’s call it a cat. A cat lay down on his head, feeling the properties of the flame as it engulfed him.
It was Pebbles!
“Pebbles!?” Shen Ling was surprised to suddenly see him appear.
“The audacity of this bi… Shen Ling, you know better!” Pebbles glared at her.
Shen Ling bowed in apology. “Sorry big brother-in-law Pebbles the Wondercat!”
Pebbles’s expression softened. “You are forgiven.”
Jingyi Yu widened her eyes in shock upon espying Pebbles. Mad Sword Haoran noticed this and immediately gripped the sword on his back.
“You draw that sword and you die.”