Chapter 386: Act
Chapter 386: Act
Summer was almost over by the time Liam and Grace resurfaced in the valley, not that it mattered. The night was chilly, and seasons had little meaning to cultivators anyway.
Liam immediately scanned his surroundings. He smelled something, but it was a few days old, distant, and in the sky.
Either someone had flown over the area, or the rumored magical beasts took the blame.
The darting of Liam’s head didn’t hinder his vision for once. Grace had done his hair, opting for the usual half-up half-down style, his long strands falling at his face’s sides and on his back.
There was also something peculiar about Liam’s topknot. A hairpin kept it steady, the accessory matching Grace’s in every way, especially in the fact that it was a rank 2 life-saving magical item.
As for the clothing, Grace had dressed Liam in a male version of her attire. His robe was fancy, mostly black, the only blood-redness coming from the floral patterns on his long sleeves and the second layer peeking past the first’s chest area.
The two looked like members of the same Sect, which was the vibe Grace had intended.
"We are in the clear for now," Liam declared. There were basically no secrets between him and Grace anymore, so she had waited for him.
Grace nodded and turned away, ready to head in the direction pointed by Liam’s map, only for an arm to wrap around her back, ready to lift her.
"Let’s not fly," Grace promptly warned, looking up while clinging to Liam’s chest to hold him back. "It’s better if we don’t announce that we have a rank 3 weapon yet."
Liam had left the planning to Grace, and his trust wouldn’t waver now. He lingered in that quasi-embrace a fraction of a second longer than usual, mesmerized by the figure in his arm, but eventually let her go.
Grace didn’t miss that tiny delay but didn’t address it. She wore the small, conceited smile of her new persona, but that was it. The break was over. It was time for business.
’A different world,’ Liam found himself thinking while he and Grace ran side by side through the valley. ’A lantern in the darkness.’
That comparison involved none other than Melissa and Grace and what they represented for Liam. The new thoughts his mind had concocted demanded such introspection.
Melissa was a breath of fresh air, a luminous life Liam would have chosen if he didn’t have his revenge, a peaceful, happy world without the cultivation journey.
Instead, Grace was a light in the grim abyss that the cultivation journey could be, showing the path through the darkness, bringing warmth and color when Liam shouldn’t have had any.
Despite the internal conflict, Liam felt unbelievably lucky to have found two such exceptions. In tragedy, he had been fortunate. His pickle came from too much of that good fortune.
In theory, the choice was made, but life had gotten more complicated, and in ways that turned Liam’s uncompromising stance into part of the problem. He knew what he wanted but didn’t know what was right, even if he was the one deciding what that meant.
And the answer was simple. Liam had to learn more, experience more, know more, even about himself. That decision, whatever it ended up being, was still too much for him to take with confidence. His current problem wasn’t something he had thought possible after all, so he had to take his time to ponder it.
As for whether Liam would have enough time, it depended on his sanity, which was dangerously brittle with that sensual figure running at his side.
All that was in the back of Liam’s mind. He was merely making the point of the situation, reorganizing his thoughts. A proper introspection about himself and his changes would come, but not now. Now, his gears had switched.
Liam had chosen that area precisely because it was empty, and things hadn’t changed. Despite the old tracks, the valley and surrounding plain remained barren.
Eventually, tundra reappeared, as well as patches of trees. Everything was still occasionally scarred by traces of battle, but Liam was mostly wary of something else.
As soon as Liam left the wasteland, he felt observed. The sensation was faint. No one was looking directly at him, probably using techniques or the perception’s ethereal attention, but the event remained uncomfortable.
If Liam wanted to, he could chase those sensations to their sources, but nothing attacked, so he did the same. It didn’t feel good to know that he was exposed, but such was the nature of that place.
The border was lawless and full of lone cultivators. The population density remained surprising, but it was an innermost Outer Circle after all, and wariness was common among such unorthodox environments.
If anything, Liam could take comfort in the fact that he and Grace weren’t classified as prey, at least not easy enough to warrant sudden attacks.
Because of that and through a few detours, Liam and Grace reached their destination one and a half weeks later, their runs turning into calm, confident walks.
The targeted city looked like a glorified settlement from a distance. It had no gates or barriers, and its arrangement was quite messy.
The place actually didn’t look too livable. It didn’t really have houses. It was a cluster of larger and larger buildings that peaked into three huge, tiled mansions.
It was as if three small hills were growing from an artificially leveled plain, just made of buildings rather than soil.
’Three families, three mansions,’ Liam thought at the evident division in the settlement’s arrangements. ’So, this is Mairis.’
Liam had wondered what a city of cultivators would look like, and the answer had arrived, becoming clearer with each step he and Grace took toward the place.
Through perception and rough calculations of the city’s size, Mairis seemed to host around five hundred people, which would make it a town. However, everyone seemed to be a cultivator there, putting it closer to a big Sect split into three parts.
The presence of Qi came not only from the various auras Liam felt. There were tinier traces of that energy all around from buildings, unpaved streets, and more, almost enveloping the entirety of Mairis in a magical halo.
No guards blocked the way, so Liam and Grace delved directly into that messy arrangement of buildings. There were plenty of wide roads, too, so they chose the nearest, entering a silent but bustling scene.
Cultivators had different needs from mortals. They still ate, but their priorities involved resources, which was exactly what Liam saw.
The buildings had large banners or wooden insignias that described their purpose, be it Qi-enhanced materials, alchemical ingredients, or specific tools.
Before the buildings, cultivators sat on the ground or mats, displaying a series of wares while meditating in silence.
None of that could appeal to Liam. Those cultivators were foundation experts, with only a few offering actual rank 1 resources, and even then, of poor quality. Yet, the sight was interesting.
Without the Guilds managing such services, lone cultivators had clumped together to create poorer versions of what righteous forces could provide.
The unique open market and the tournament for the previous Outer Circle seemed to be a common occurrence there, having evolved into a proper civilization.
’Where do they get these resources?’ Liam wondered, standing straight and looking ahead in confidence like his Master had taught him, but capturing everything. ’Who did these inscriptions? How is no one destroying this place?’
Mairis had stronger cultivators, but Liam couldn’t sense anyone beyond the rooting stage. However, there had to be a reason for that cohabitation, and, as Grace would say, money probably was the answer.
Obviously, Liam and Grace drew many gazes, and it wasn’t just due to their cultivation. Their attire was several steps above the shabbiness surrounding them.
No one ever dared to call the pair, but Grace and Liam couldn’t go far into the settlement before someone approached them. News spread fast in the cultivation world, and they were too eye-catching for the city to stand still at their arrival.
A blonde rooting expert, followed by five foundation experts, emerged from one of the branching paths, his face lighting up when he spotted Liam and Grace.
The blonde cultivator was a young man with a curated hairstyle no different than Liam’s, his blue robe standing out due to its excellent fabric. Instead, the five guards wore tight, black clothes, but their hands were on the swords at their waists.
"Ah, Fellow Daoists!" The blonde rooting expert cheerfully exclaimed. "I finally found you."
The cultivators on the ground interrupted their meditation at the group’s arrival, and some doors even opened to reveal the shop owners peeking at the scene.
Grace stopped, so Liam did, too, but neither of them cupped their fists or uttered greetings. They simply waited for the group to reach them.
"You are new faces," The blonde man laughed, not minding the lack of introductions, starting them by cupping his fist. "I’m Duke Pitker, fourth son of the Pitker family. Welcome to Mairis."
’That’s one of the ruling families,’ Liam recalled, explaining the rank 1 weapons on the foundation experts’ waists. Clearly, the Pitker family had the wealth to arm its Young Master’s guards.
Grace still didn’t perform greetings, instead saying something that sounded out of character. "Is this how the Pitker family manages this place?"
The evident disdain seeped into Grace’s glance at her surroundings. That was nothing short of an insult. Liam had seen battles start for less, but Duke kept smiling, albeit his expression stiffened.
"Beggars will be beggars," Duke stated, also throwing a pitiful look at the foundation experts on the ground. "They come crawling for my family’s sanctuary, only to give Mairis’ outskirts a bad name."
"That’s bold coming from a family of beggars!" A female voice suddenly resounded from around a nearby corner before a second group stepped into the road.
The new group had five people. Four were tall, burly, and sleeveless, rugged men in the foundation stage. A black-haired woman in her thirties, a rooting expert, dressed in red, was in the lead, her scowl moving from Duke to Liam and Grace.
"Outsiders should have better manners," The woman snorted, stopping at some distance from the two groups and crossing her arms. "Or do you think you can come to insult the Crege family’s city without facing repercussions?"
"Is Mairis yours now, Erika?" Duke snickered. "How come it hasn’t fallen apart already, then?"
"I won’t entertain monkeys with no self-respect," Erika commented.
"Respect is earned," Grace butted in, her small smile reeking of derision. "It seems they don’t teach such lessons in these backwater places."
Instead of feeling insulted, Duke’s expression turned sly as he threw a glance at Erika’s group, as if he welcomed what was about to come.
"Should we apply this lesson to you as well?" Erika wondered. "Men, see what they can do."
The four burly foundation experts bowed at Erika before crossing her, forming a line and staring sternly at Liam and Grace.
Before Liam could make sense of that development, a hand landed on his arm, followed by a still-arrogant but sweeter voice.
"My dear," Grace called, looking up at Liam. "Don’t kill them."
"How should I not kill foundation experts?" Liam genuinely asked. He had never been one for non-lethal methods, and he wasn’t even sure what his recent improvements amounted to.
"For me?" Grace said, her tone even sweeter as she leaned on Liam’s arm.
Grace wasn’t one to speak or act randomly when business was involved. She seemed to enjoy that opportunity to flirt, but Liam recognized the spark of greed in her green eyes.
Everyone on the scene reacted differently to the interaction. Duke’s gaze grew sharp, cold machinations in his brown eyes. Erika’s scowl deepened at that complete disregard, while some cultivators on the ground looked away, not wanting to intrude on the romance.
Liam didn’t reply. He didn’t even sigh, ignoring the throb in his chest caused by that temptress. If that were to be an act, he would stick to his Master’s teachings, so he stepped ahead, leaving Grace behind.
As soon as Liam was a few meters from Grace, two of the burly men disappeared, while the others charged ahead. There seemed to be a battle strategy at play, but it failed before the latter could reach Liam.
Something flew at the two men, forcing them to stop their charge and dodge. Crashing noises exploded in their previous positions, which had gained holes featuring their unresponsive companions.