Chapter 537: Searching for a Realm Map

Could this be related to the problem concerning their predicament in this realm that his master had hinted at earlier?

Tushan Shanhe might overlook that detail, but Fu Young certainly wouldn’t. It seemed he would have to find a way to coax his master into explaining everything.

Having made up his mind, Fu Young quietly began planning.

Tushan Shanhe nodded when he heard their suggestion. After remaining tense for so many days, it would be good to relax for a while. Once the three reached an agreement, they immediately changed direction and flew toward the city.

When the three descended from the sky, completed the procedures for obtaining their entry tokens, and stepped into the city bearing the ancient characters for Grandspire City, Xiao Shou and Fu Young, two country bumpkins from a Small Thousand Realm, were immediately stunned.

This city was extraordinary. It was taller, wider, more expansive, and far more densely populated with cultivators than the Holy City.

The two looked around in amazement, unable to take in everything at once.

Cultivators came and went through the gates, carrying goods inside and leaving with spirit jade in their hands. Vendors set up stalls along the streets, displaying their wares on rows of exquisite jade tables. Beautiful female cultivators rode in carriages drawn by enormous demonic beasts.

Countless dazzling scenes unfolded before their eyes. Before they knew it, a short while had passed, and Tushan Shanhe’s voice sounded beside them.

"We’re here."

"Huh? No Water Inn? There’s actually an inn with that name!"

Realizing that they had arrived so quickly in front of a magnificent five story pavilion glowing with the radiance of jade, Xiao Shou stared in surprise at the sign above the entrance.

Fu Young’s mouth twitched as he tried to suppress a laugh.

"It’s probably related to the scarcity of water in this realm. It’s like how someone in Everdeep City named their shop Everdeep Shop. I imagine the reasoning is much the same."

"Everdeep Shop? There’s actually a shop with that name in Everdeep City?" Xiao Shou asked. This was the first time Fu Young had mentioned it to him.

Fu Young smiled and nodded. "Of course there is! You just haven’t visited Everdeep City often enough to see it."

"Oh!"

Xiao Shou had never imagined that cultivators would sometimes choose such plain, unrefined names. He had always thought they would favor names that sounded either lofty and elegant or refined in a grand, worldly way.

Seeing the two of them chatting about shop names, Tushan Shanhe shook his head wordlessly and entered the five story pavilion first.

After all, he had grown up in a Spirit Realm. Although the realms differed, their customs were largely similar. Just as in the Spirit Fox Realm, the jade plaques hanging near the entrance lit up one after another as he entered, stopping at the eighth plaque.

As the plaques illuminated, one of the at least thirty servants in the hall immediately approached him. The attendant had pleasant, regular features, fair and bright skin, and clothing of better quality than that worn by most of the other servants, though still not as fine as that of a select few.

He greeted Tushan Shanhe respectfully. "Senior, please come this way."

"Mm."

Maintaining his usual cool and aloof demeanor, Tushan Shanhe responded softly and followed the attendant’s directions. As he walked, his long silver hair fluttered in the breeze.

Xiao Shou and Fu Young hurried after him. Once they crossed the threshold, the jade plaques lit up to the sixth one. A man and a woman, both dressed in slightly less lustrous clothing than the first attendant, immediately came forward to accompany them.

Seeing this, Xiao Shou couldn’t help sighing in admiration.

As expected of a Spirit Realm! It was far more impressive than a Small Thousand Realm. Not only were three random attendants a Nascent Soul cultivator and two Golden Core cultivators, but the jade plaques could even actively detect a person’s cultivation realm.

The night passed peacefully. After the three of them enjoyed a good night’s sleep and replenished their energy, they gathered in Tushan Shanhe’s room again the following morning.

Now that they were well rested, all three felt noticeably refreshed. They began discussing what to do next. Strictly speaking, however, it was hardly a discussion, since Xiao Shou and Fu Young knew very little about the Spirit Realm. For the most part, they simply listened to Tushan Shanhe.

Tushan Shanhe believed that the severe water shortage in this Spirit Realm was an ominous sign. It went against the usual nature of Spirit Realms, which generally possessed abundant resources and a complete balance of the five elements. Therefore, he thought it would be best to find out as soon as possible where they could obtain a realm map showing the route back to the Spirit Fox Realm or to another Spirit Realm. Leaving this place would be the wisest course of action.

Tushan Shanhe’s suggestion perfectly matched Xiao Shou’s wishes. He was even more eager than Tushan Shanhe to leave this troublesome place as soon as possible. Even if returning meant getting caught up in the female protagonist Xiao Ran’s storyline again, that would still be preferable to being trapped in the even more ruthless plot of a system cultivation novel.

Fu Young, meanwhile, had always been obedient to his master’s wishes. Even though he had no idea why Xiao Shou was so desperate to leave this realm, he nodded in agreement without hesitation.

Thus, Tushan Shanhe’s proposal was readily accepted. The three then split up and discreetly made inquiries throughout the city. Unfortunately, none of them could find anyone who knew anything about realm maps. Most people had never even heard of them.

In the end, Tushan Shanhe managed to locate an intelligence agency that also operated in the Spirit Fox Realm: the All-Seeing Pavilion.

After purchasing the relevant information there, they learned that Grandspire City was merely an insignificant little city in the Mystic Jade Realm. Both the cultivation levels and social standing of its cultivators were near the bottom of the realm. It was only natural that they had never heard of realm maps.