Writer's Note: Been busy with papers due and finals coming up. Geez. Enjoy the chapter.
Chapter 22: The Capital
"How you guys holding up back there?" a man asked as a large caravan proceeded out of the mountains.
"We're doing fine," Mei answered, putting a wet towel on Yang's head. Yang had a strong fever, sweat forming and covering his brow. His eyes were shut tight, groaning in his deep sleep. A woman in her late twenties was in the carriage with the two duo, helping Mei care for Yang as a little girl and boy watched.
"He is doing alright. The lad has done something which went entirely against his spiritual self. He is on the verge of victory in the war inside his own mind," the woman said, a practitioner at the middle Meteor Vessel Stage. "It is strange. Such a metamorphosis does not occur so early in life. What has your friend done to cause this?"
"He cast aside his past," Mei said.
"The hold of the past must have been strong then," the woman said as she pat Yang's cheeks to absorb the sweat into the wet towel she also held. "It's been almost three weeks since you joined our caravan. This young man is at the peak of the Element Adept Stage, you are also at the same cultivation level. It is good to have such childhood friendship."
"Yes. Lance Wang and I have been friends for a long time," Mei said, the Guo siblings choosing this new alias for Yang as they were to go to the southern continent where the mages lived. This way, Yang would be considered part of both continents and explained his red hair color.
"It must be true. A metamorphosis this long, it's as if he is a human becoming a dragon," the woman nodded. "We should be at the capital soon. He should awaken before then. Lance will be fine. You should both be careful though. Some don't like foreigners ever since the Day of the Eye and Snake."
"Of course," Mei said, staring silently at Lance. "We'll be fine. We'll be leaving the Pangu Continent soon."
"Hoping to learn magic too, are you?" the woman asked, Mei nodding.
"We experienced much pain here. It is good to have a fresh start and explore the world, learning its ways. Doing so, we will be more powerful than we ever could have been," Mei said and noticed Yang open his eyes.
"....Mei.....I'm thirsty," Lance rasped, Mei quickly giving him a cup of water.
"I presume the war within you is over?" the woman asked, Lance nodding silently.
"Good. My grandchildren and I will return to our carriage now. Make sure he rests until we enter the capital," the woman said, the duo murmuring thanks as the three outsiders left.
"I am finally at the initial Meteor Vessel Stage," Lance sighed, feeling raw power inside his body. "I can now draw spirit energy from the stars."
"Yes," Mei nodded as she helped him lean back against the wall of the carriage. "What was it like, the metamorphosis?"
"It was...horrible. I can't express it in words. There are none. My personality remains the same: cold and heartless. The transition will take time. Being human is difficult. It affects my mentality more than I would like to admit," Lance sighed. "I need to rest. Maybe I can sleep this time."
"Alright," Mei said, seeing Lance close his eyes. "I guess it was too much to expect him to change right away."
A few days later, "Lance, it's time to get up. We're here."
"So this is the capital," Lance said as he gazed at the golden wall before him.
"Not exactly. This is the outer walls. Most of the farming and armed forces live here," a guard riding a horse beside them answered as Lance and Mei poked their heads through the windows of the carriage. "The outer area of the city is fifty miles long. The real city is past the inner walls. It's shaped like a large oval, the actual city only encompassing half of it with the palace laying against a huge mountain range."
"What about invasion from the mountain range?" Lance asked.
"Impossible. Magical beasts at the Meteor Vessel Stage reside all over the surface of the mountain range, the inside of the mountain covered with traps and a labyrinth. The weakest palace guard is at the initial Meteor Vessel Stage and all of them are equipped with magical reloading crossbows. Land, air, or underground; nothing can threaten the city," the guard said. "We are going inside soon. Our job of escorting you is over. Have fun in the capital."
"Thank you," Mei said and she and her brother left the carriage and stood in line. Guards would check them in ten minute intervals. Lance was getting irritated at the constant inspections but the city guards were all at the Element Adept Stage. He would be imprisoned against so many of them as he just became an initial Meteor Vessel Stage practitioner.
"State your business in the capital?" a man with a large scroll and quill asked.
"We're going to go to the auction house and apply to the Adventurer's Guild," Lance said.
"Foreigner?" the guard asked.
"Half. I was born here, but my mother wasn't. My name is Lance Wang, family name of Wang," Lance answered.
"Explains why it's just the hair then. Thought you dyed it," the guard nodded and gave them silver passes. "These passes are given to visitors. You are allowed to stay one month in the capital. The fee for entry is 15 demon spirit coins, 30 demon spirit coins for a month extension."
"That won't be necessary," Lance said, giving the guard 30 demon spirit coins to pay for them both. "We're only here for the weekly auction. The big one is once a week, right?"
"Yes it is. Tomorrow in fact. Follow the road down and take the third path on your left. It'll take you to the Adventurer's Guild. You can't miss it," the guard said and waved his hand. Ten guards nodded and allowed Mei and Lance to head into the city. "Welcome to Gold Song City, the heart of the Song Dynasty."
"The big city sure is different. Look at all the vendors!" Mei cried, admiring all the merchandise of the shops and stalls on display.
"We're not here to go shopping," Lance sighed and headed to a man selling BBQ. "I'll buy three sticks."
"That'll be eighteen demon spirit coins," the vendor said, exchanging the sticks for the money. "Storage ring. Not bad."
"Yes. Do you happen to know the results of the inter-academic competition?" Lance asked, five demon spirit coins in his hand.
"Ah, yes. Gold Lotus City was the victor. Some kid named Guo Lin was first place, a prince and princess taking the next two ranks," the man answered, smiling as he got the coins.
"Thanks for the info," Lance said, handing a stick to Mei as he finished one quickly and took his time eating the second.
"Lin won. That's a relief," Mei said as she headed inside a shop. Lance frowned as he saw that it was a mail carrier shop.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Writing a letter to say that I've escaped the man who kidnapped me and currently finding out clues to who is in charge of the criminal ring the kidnapper worked for. I am letting them know that I aim to take it down and won't return home anytime soon," Mei answered. "I'm letting them know you're alive, the two of us separated as I could not save you from a group of slavers at the Meteor Vessel Stage."
"Why do that?" Lance asked.
"Because mom and dad will cry their hearts out. They do love you, you know," Mei said.
"I suppose. Not used to the whole emotions kind of thing. I am still inclined to not care," Lance shrugged. "Get on with it then. Let's head to the guild."
"Wait up!' Mei said as she quickly finished the letter and paid the shop, an emblem of an eye, sun, and lightning bolt on the letter on the top left of the envelope. Mei was sure her family would know it was her.
"I can never understand sentimental thoughts. Is it really necessary to send a letter now?" Lance asked mildly as they walked down the road as they saw the third path on their left. "Have you thought of an alias?"
"Yes. My first name will still be Mei. I'll use your alias's last name, Wang, and pose as your cousin," Mei answered.
As Lance and Mei walked in, people stared at them. Lance had the hair color of a foreigner and both of them were not even adults. Most of the guild members didn't bother to check their cultivation, but the smart ones did. They were utterly terrified. The two only looked around fifteen and they were both at the Meteor Vessel Stage? They could practically be palace guards with their cultivation!
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
"Heh. Look at that foreigner. Wait, he looks like one of us. It's just his hair. Ha! A half mutt huh?" a man laughed, his friends around his table laughing as the smart guild members paled with fear. Most of them were at the Spirit Forming Stage, a few at the Element Adept Stage. It was because the Adventurer's Guild was not popular in the Pangu Continent and most guild branches were formed in the other continents. The Adventurer's Guild in the Pangu Continent only formed just over a century ago. The prejudice against foreigners was exactly the reason.
"Calm down. Don't fight them," Mei said, holding Lance's arms as he glared at them.
"Yeah kid. Don't fight us. You'll be beat up. Run along to mommy now," the man laughed, his friends roaring with laughter.
"Mei, let go before I hurt you too," Lance said, Mei quickly letting go as Lance smiled at the gentlemen. "You guys look like you make enough to get by. You must have a lot of stuff. Give it to me or watch as I rip your arms off."
"This guy," the man laughed pointing at Lance. "Thinks he is so tough. Just what is his cultivation to....."
"Oh gods. Meteor Vessel Stage?" one of his friends gasped, pale white with fear. "It has to be. I can't sense his cultivation."
"It can't be. What do you know? You're only a Spirit Forming practitioner. I'm an Element Adept. Now, let's...." another friend scoffed and fell back on his chair. "It's true! Boss, he's a Meteor Vessel practitioner!"
"What?" the man frowned and turned to Lance, chocking as Lance appeared before him in a flahs and grabbed him by the throat.
"You know, I'm having a hard time adjusting to the changes over the past three weeks. Feeling pity for others, having to care about people's feelings, and being a good person. It's fucking annoying. How do you people deal with this shit? Do I have to be an idiot kid and grow up to understand it?" Lance mocked as he lifted the man in the air. "Fuck. I',m taking your arm now."
"Wait!" a receptionist at the desk cried but was too late as Lance ripped out the right arm of the man. "He's left handed!"
"Oh. Then it's both arms then," Lance said and mercilessly ripped out the other arm before turning to the friends. "Save yourself the pain and tell me which one is your sword arm."
"Wait! Wait! Here is my storage bag. I've unbound it. Take it. Take it," a man cried, the others falling suit as they unbound their storage bags and gave it to him.
"Lance!" Mei cried, Lance turning to her.
"What? Is what I've done illegal? This idiot boss and I are both cultivators. According to the law, as I understand it, it is legal if one party enrages the other. So long as it does not involve murder, fighting is allowed," Lance said.
"You are trying to be a better person. This is not how you do it," Mei sighed.
"I didn't torture the bastard. What more do you want? I didn't even poison him," Lance said, a green haze appearing in his left hand.
"That's just spirit energy," a woman in the building said. "How is that poison?"
"I am a poison cultivator. My very spirit energy is poison," Lance smiled, the people backing to the wall as Lance smiled at the man he chocked. A burst of cold came from his hands and the man was encased in ice from the neck down. "I can't kill you. Against the law, you see. I am also attempting to be a better person, so I won't kill you outside the city either. No point anyway. You got no arms. Unbind the storage ring you have and I will use my light element healing art: Radiant Touch, to heal you."
"You know a human practitioner art?" Mei frowned.
"Hey now. Just because I don't use them, does not mean I don't learn them either. Those bandits had quite a few practitioner arts manuals. I merely took a few without you guys knowing about it," Lance shrugged and looked at the man. "What's it going to be? Your arms or your stuff? Frankly, I can just inject my spirit energy around your arm. It will become corroded by my spirit energy and no one would be able to regenerate it, spreading the poison instead. Of course, that's just the second option. The first is ideal, I think. No?"
"My arms," the man sobbed. "Please give me my arms."
"Of course," Lance said, snapping his fingers and the man was still held by the throat. The ice was gone and his arms were back. Surprisingly, there was no blood or arms to be found anywhere as the man unbound his storage ring.
"What just happened?" a man cried, even Mei stunned.
"Ah, people. I am trying to change, no? I merely used my Light Puppet Art. There is a Radiant Touch Art, but I never learned it.
"But, but I saw you rip out his arms. We all did," the man's friend cried out.
"My Light Puppet Art is hypnotism. What the mind sees, the mind believes. It also helps to have people hear what I said," Lance smiled and turned to Mei. "Mei, am I the brute type of fighter?"
"No. Far from it," she replied immediately. "We didn't look at your eyes though."
"Indeed, but don't humans use a medium to entrance others. When something exciting happens, don't you focus on precisely that so as to avoid the details. When I chocked the man, what did you look at?" Lance asked.
"Your right hand," Mei said and her eyes widened as she stared at the red storage ring. "You used your storage ring as the medium!"
"Bingo. Er, I believe that is the word," Lance shrugged as he let the man go, the poor guy gasping for breath. "Did you see water around the man as I encased him in it? I can create water out of my spirit energy, but I cannot freeze anything without water already being there. The devil is in the details. Magic is a form of deception, er, hypnotism. Magic does exist after all."
"So you couldn't rip my arms out," the man glared as he caught his breath, a chill running down his spine as Lance smiled at him.
"Oh, you poor stupid man. Do you honestly believe a Meteor Vessel Stage practitioner cannot rip out the arm of a man with a lower cultivation? Save for the whole freezing in a block of ice, I really did show what the old me would have done. I think that's progress," Lance nodded, pleased with himself.
"That is...progress," Mei admitted, scaring more of the people in the guild. "We came to register to the guild. At our cultivation, I believe we qualify for a C Rank license."
"Yes. Please come with me," the receptionist said quickly, hoping the calm the situation and restore order.
"Here. I only wanted the storage ring of the man who insulted me," Lance said, returning the storage bag to the man's friends. If you want to make friends with a racist asshole, he better damn well have the strength to back it up. In this society, strength does it. In others, not so much. You might not want to leave the Pangu Continent if you stay with this ass."
"Yes. Thank you," the men sighed with relief as they got their storage bags back.
"You didn't keep them?" Mei asked as he walked back to her side.
"I already checked. It's not hard. They had nothing of value. Even a storage ring costs 10,000 demon spirit coins. Storage bags cost a measly 100," Lance shrugged, many growing silent with shame as even 100 demon spirit coins can last a scrooge for a month.
"Week 3," Mei wrote in her journal as she completed her guild test and waited for Lance. "Lance makes some progress. He did not kill a man and returned some storage bag. Some negative progress was the fact that he uses more devious methods to trick the mind of others. He uses hypnotism with his words now. He jokes now, but it is too scary and the time and place is not suitable. Is Lance Wang, a more emotional human, better than Guo Yang? That remains to be seen, for now."
"Got the damn license. Now we can go to the auction and ditch this empire," Lance said. "I never did explore the planet. I'm actually getting kind of excited."
Mei scratched out some words before following Lance. "....to be seen, for now. He exhibits more of his emotions albeit in a cold manner sometimes. However, he is more curious about the world."
"What are you waiting for? We need to book an inn to rest for the auction tomorrow," Lance frowned as he stood at the door, the people in the building silent with awe and fear. Fear for him as a person, and awe in respect to his cultivation at his young age.
"Just writing in my diary," Mei said, Lance tilting his head.
"You have a diary. I suppose you're a girl after all," Lance nodded and went on ahead.
"Hey! What do you mean by that?" Mei shouted as she stormed after him.