Jie looked out the window again. "It's fine if you don't know who they are," she said smoothly.
The older woman's aura pulsed and the pressure in the cabin increased. Jie restrained a smile. To think this woman was so easy to aggravate. She didn't say anything though, and Jie didn't bother to continue. After all, this woman was unlikely to be helpful anyway. She simply stared out the window, utterly disinterested.
"I happen to be one of the strongest healers and alchemists in this entire region," said Pan Keai.
Jie looked back to the older woman, but she remained unimpressed. This woman could kill Jie easily, sure, but her power was like a drop in the ocean compared to Ming. And Ming was weakened. She was no good unless she knew of someone or something that would actually be useful.
For some reason, the older woman seemed to get even angrier as Jie looked at her, still largely disinterested. Was she supposed to be awed or something? How stupid.
"Perhaps I'll teach you, if you learn some manners," said Pan Keai, her lips curling into a disgusting smile once more.
"No thanks," Jie said.
The Pan siblings' eyes went wide and the older woman's eye twitched.
"You should be begging for the opportunity," Pan Keai said.
"Can you heal gods?" Jie asked, bored.
"No..." the older woman said, forcing the words through her teeth.
"Then, my family wouldn't approve," Jie said. She was concerned that Pan Keai's vastly superior cultivation would enable her to see through lies. So, Jie thought of how Ming wouldn't approve of anyone he considered weak and how he felt like family to her.
She hoped a half, twisted truth would be harder to see through than a blatant lie.
The older woman swallowed hard, and her expression shifted from rage to... something else.
"Your family wouldn't allow you to apprentice to anyone who can't heal gods?" Pan Keai said.
"Mmm," Jie said, "they're pretty strict about things like that."
"Well," the woman said, "I suppose I can take you with me to a few places. With me there, we can ask around and perhaps find you someone. Do you just want alchemists and healers?" The woman's entire tone had shifted from abrasive to smoother than silk. It made Jie suspicious. Was this some kind of trap or something?
"Just healers and alchemists," Jie said, "I can always look at the others when I get a chance. But... I suppose anyone that can heal would be good. I like the idea of being able to heal people."
Jie kept her statements as close to the truth as possible while trying to keep as calm as she could. With the older woman's cultivation so far above her own, she could probably hear Jie's heartbeat or something equally absurd. Outright lying would just be stupid.
"I see..." said the older woman, "so... you're interested in healing? I'd have thought you were more of a fighter." Though her words might've been an insult before, now they dripped with honey.
Jie shrugged. "What's the point of fighting if you can't keep the ones you care about alive?" she asked.
The older woman blinked as though she didn't understand but smiled anyway. Her smile was practiced and reminded Jie of politicians back on Earth. Like her, their eyes never smiled. They were soulless, calculating things. Like snakes.
"Well, we'll certainly try to find you someone," the older woman said, "although... someone that strong... they would be exceptionally hard to find. Gods are little more than legends. And, no doubt outrageously expensive."
"I'm sure my family can pay any reasonable price," Jie said with more confidence than she felt. Who knew how wealthy Ming was or how much they might charge? Surely an apprenticeship would cost more than just having them heal one person one time though? Well, whatever... she'd cross that bridge once she got there.
For now, finding the damn bridge was the real issue.
Jie's words seemed to trigger an extra dose of honey in the older woman's voice as she continued chatting with Jie. Which just made Jie increasingly suspicious.
***
Hours later, Pan Keai said they'd arrived in the city of Heping. 'The jewel of the Spectral Empire' she called it. Jie wondered if that was true. Somehow, she imagined that every city around the world likely called itself the jewel of whichever empire it happened to inhabit.
Jie heard voices outside, and when she looked through the window, she saw them pass through what looked like a massive gateway. There were buildings lining the streets, but she couldn't see much from within the carriage. She still had her spirit sense, but all that told her was that there were a lot of people here.
Stolen story; please report.
Their strengths varied, but strangely enough, many of them were weaker than she was. It felt weird for that to be the case when she wasn't even an adult and these people lived for hundreds or thousands of years. If not forever.
Was cultivating really so hard for most people?
The thought made her feel a bit guilty for some reason. But she returned her attention to analyzing what little she could make out of her surroundings. This world was very different from Earth. It wouldn't do to get killed over something stupid.
"I have some business at the auction house," Pan Keai said, "You can come with me and ask about anyone selling powerful healing items if you like. It might help you find someone to learn from."
Jie nodded. "I would appreciate that," she said.
Pan Keai smiled. "Of course, once you're done asking, I have some boring business with them. You and my niece and nephew can explore the city together while I'm busy. I'll make sure guards are with you to avoid any unpleasantness," she said.
Jie nodded again, still mystified by and suspicious of the change in Pan Keai.
"That would be nice," Jie said. She wasn't sure what to say, but she forced herself to be polite. She didn't trust this woman, but if Pan Keai stuck to her word this might prove to be a useful trip after all.
Jie felt rather than saw as people parted for the carriage in front of them. The carriage had slowed massively from when they were traveling here but moved at a steady pace even so and Jie had the horrible suspicion that anyone who failed to get out of the way would find themselves run over.
Buildings rose high into the sky on either side, and many of them looked beautiful. It was strange though, as many of the buildings felt like they didn't belong together. Some buildings looked like ancient Greek or Roman designs, others more Asian, and some just looked... weird. Like the building made of what appeared to be moving fish.
It was at once totally alien, and eerily familiar. People walked the same way they did on Earth. They peered into shop windows. They spoke among their groups and largely ignored anyone else. Some wore tattered rags. Others wore elegant robes or shining armor. Some walked, and others rode on magical beasts, or in carriages like the one Jie was in. The roads were wide, and Jie spotted a few storm drains.
Men walked around in armor covered in matching symbols, like a uniform. And, by the way they sneered at the poor and kept a watchful eye on everyone around them, Jie had a feeling they were this city's version of police. Like some kind of city guard. And everything about them screamed that they'd happily accept a bribe.
Not all of them looked that way though. But those that did often wore more distinguished-looking armor.
Jie held back a sigh. No matter what world she was on, it seemed life was unjust everywhere she looked. But, like Ming said, if she wanted things to change she'd need to be strong. Maybe after she'd dealt with Fang Zhuyu, she could see about guiding people to a better path. Until then, she had a promise to keep and that took priority.
Of course, she might die before then and render the whole point moot.
"Ah, we're here," Pan Keai said.
They stepped out of the carriage and Jie looked up at the building. It was an enormous tower of seamless, polished onyx that gleamed in the sunlight. With several tiers of hip-and-gable roofs with upturned eaves built out of it and a spire at the top with a dragon seemingly carved from onyx stone clutching a golden pearl that glowed with soft golden light.
Rows of guards stood on either side of a long, red carpet that led toward an archway. The doors were open and each of them was made of a dark metal almost as thick as the carriage itself.
The guards and pillars lined either side of the red carpet. Even the weakest guards radiated the aura of a slightly higher cultivation base than Jie had while the pillars gleamed and glittered, covered in what Jie assumed were precious metals and gems.
She refrained from commenting at all though. The gems and metals could easily be cheap like rhinestones here. It wouldn't do to reveal her ignorance. They did look pretty though. Stupid and gaudy, but pretty individually.
"Stick close to me," Pan Keai said as she strode along the carpet. Jie followed, with the Pan siblings to either side of her. The guards stood rigidly still as though each were competing with a statue, but their eyes never stopped moving, and Jie felt their careless awareness sweep over her. She frowned but said nothing.
If this was how this place treated their customers, she couldn't imagine they'd stay in business much longer. After all, who wanted to spend money in a place that examined them so frankly?
As they stepped beyond the doorway, they entered a massive chamber. It reminded Jie of a lobby for a large bank, only significantly bigger. Jie swept her spirit sense around her surroundings and found the entire room rippled with power.
There were queues of people lined up in front of tellers, or whatever they were. Appraisers maybe? Given that it was an auction house... but Jie wasn't sure. Many of those in the queue held themselves with an air of danger and harshness to them. An edge. And, given that several of them wore armor, or clothes that were saturated with blood, Jie imagined that they were here to sell off whatever treasures they'd stolen, harvested, or killed for.
She kept her face as neutral as she could manage. She didn't like that people could walk around so brazenly covered in what had to be blood, but she reminded herself that she didn't know their story. They could just as easily be bandits as the ones bandits had tried to kill.
A man in black robes with a red trim appeared as though stepping out of a shadow in the dimly lit hall. He strode over in Jie's direction and stopped in front of Pan Keai. He bowed deeply and with a flourish. "The Onyx Pavilion is pleased to have you visit our fine establishment, Lady Pan Keai," he said still bowing, "Please allow me to bring you to a place more befitting your rank."
Pan Keai nodded stiffly. "Do so," she said.
The man bowed even deeper. His motions were smooth and graceful. Like an oiled dancer. He turned on his heel while still bowing and swiveled around until he faced the opposite direction and walked proudly and stiffly like someone carrying a mighty banner.
Pan Keai followed him, and Jie followed her. A few among the queue cast jealous or curious glances, but they said nothing.
The man led them beyond a pair of dark doors and down a long corridor that sloped upwards in a spiral, like a combination of staircase and corridor. The carpet they walked on looked expensive, as did all the various decorations around them. They went up several floors, and each one seemed wealthier than the last. They stopped on a floor that did not seem to be the top one, and Jie assumed that they had even higher floors for those of greater status.
Jie hoped that meant they did business with people more powerful than Pan Keai. Gods perhaps? That would be best. But how should she ask for such things if she got a chance? If there was a god, could she be risking her life and Ming's by asking? Surely, they wouldn't care though? Or would they?
Jie chewed on the inside of her lip as she considered this dilemma, all the while the man continued leading them deeper into the viper's nest.