Slow Fairy Road (Fairy Spirit Realm)

  Compared to the bustling wharf of Xing Chuan Floating Island, Mei Shan Floating Island's dock was much smaller. A stone archway stood on the dock, with three large black characters "Bai Yu City" engraved on it. On the spacious stone ground, two or three airships were parked, and the sailors were scattered about, either sunbathing, chatting, or dozing off, looking very relaxed.

  Xiao Yao looked around and was about to ask someone where the registration office was, when a black shadow appeared in the sky. She raised her head to see a lavishly decorated airship with bright colors slowly descending from above. At this moment, all the sailors changed their lazy attitude and approached with flattering smiles.

  But then, a group of women walked down from the ship, most of whom were stunningly beautiful, wearing colorful silk skirts, with their chests half-exposed, captivating the hearts of onlookers. Especially the woman at the forefront, her hair styled in a cloud-like bun, her face radiant and elegant, could be considered a beauty unparalleled in the world, even surpassing Fang Yimiao, who was renowned for her peerless beauty. Watching her walk with an air of confidence, every step accompanied by the tinkling of her jewelry, two maids dressed in light green robes followed closely behind her, their entire demeanor exuding an aura of intimidation, their cultivation unfathomable, while the other women trailed behind them, taking small steps and not daring to overstep.

  Just as the woman Jinlian was about to disembark, she glanced at the sailors surrounding the ship with a slight movement of her eyes. A maid in a green dress beside her understood and stepped forward, releasing a stern aura, saying coldly: "You scoundrels! Keep away from my mistress! The cargo is still behind, stand aside first, don't sully my mistress's eyes!"

  At that moment, the sailors' faces turned very pale under the pressure, and some of them knelt down, unable to bear it. The others hastily retreated ten meters away, extremely fearful.

  Xiao Yao glanced at the crowd of women and noticed that they all wore a waist card made of the same material as her own jade symbol, but with slightly different styles. Except for the two maidservants' waist cards, which showed a faint cyan color and were engraved with the characters "xi" and "gui", the rest of the women's waist cards were red and engraved with various insect and fish characters, all of whom were in the Hua Shen period.

  As the surrounding boat workers were all driven away, except for a row of women who were making a pile, Xiao Yao alone became even more eye-catching. The woman at the front glanced at Xiao Yao lightly, her gaze stopping on the dog tag at her waist for a moment before quickly withdrawing her gaze and leading the other women onto a spacious beast-drawn carriage not far away, leaving without a trace. Even after the carriage had gone so far that it was no longer visible, the fragrance of cosmetics in the air still lingered.

  Recalling the appearance of these women, they were all delicate and charming, without a hint of murderous aura on their bodies. At first glance, they seemed to be the noble ladies of a wealthy family. Although I had expected that in the Xianling Realm, cultivators who reached the Houtian stage wouldn't be rare, but what surprised me was that even these women, who were covered in heavy makeup and had never killed a chicken before, could also reach the Houtian stage. This made Xiao Yao sigh at the great disparity between the two realms! Think about it, in the mortal realm, which cultivator wasn't struggling against heaven and earth, using their lives to comprehend the Heavenly Way? Only those who had experienced nine deaths and one life's worth of trials could step through this first threshold, which was also the highest honor. Looking at these women again, they seemed to be able to reach the Houtian stage without having to undergo arduous cultivation or battles. The goals that others struggled their entire lives to achieve but couldn't touch, some people could easily obtain. It's truly a case of heaven playing tricks on humans!

  "Immortal Master traveled thousands of miles from the lower realm to arrive here, and upon arriving at Meishan Island's White Jade City, he had to go to the Household Registration Office in the city?"

  Just as Xiao Yao was lost in thought, a respectful greeting suddenly sounded from the side. Upon hearing it, she looked up to see a middle-aged man with disheveled hair and wearing casual clothes standing before her. Seeing her furrowed brow, he slightly bowed his waist and humbly said: "I am Qian Er, I have lived in this White Jade City for decades and am familiar with every place. I am willing to guide the way for the immortal master and render my humble service."

  It's better for a newcomer to be guided by others than to wander around alone, but the other party recognized her identity as a flying ascender at a glance. Xiao Yao instantly became vigilant and, considering she didn't have much money on her anyway, refused: "No need."

  The man named Qian Er saw her reject him outright, but he didn't give up. He followed closely behind her and begged: "Immortal Master, Immortal Master, don't go! I don't want Yu Jing, just give me one ordinary elixir from the lower realm and that's enough, it's really very cheap."

  Xiao Yao, although not accustomed to taking elixirs, had also obtained some miscellaneous items from the Star Fragment Valley last time. He stopped in his tracks and re-examined him, seeing that his hands were clenched into fists with tattered clothes, his expression anxious and flustered, with a hint of fear that his business would be ruined. Raising an eyebrow, he asked: "How did you know I was a Flying Ascension Cultivator from the Lower Realm?"

  Listening to this tone, Qian Er immediately knew that there was still room for play and hastily bowed his head to explain: "Returning Immortal Master, this is actually very simple. The identity tokens of the immortals who ascend from the lower realm are slightly different in style from those of our native cultivators in the Eastern Extreme Realm. As long as one's eyes are good, anyone can tell them apart. Moreover," he said, holding up the wooden token at his waist and handing it to Xiao Yao, "the identity tokens of ordinary people in the Eastern Extreme Realm are also different from those of Immortal Masters. Immortal Master can take a closer look."

  The tokens on the women's bodies just now were indeed different from their own, and it was to distinguish between the flying ascenders and the spiritual realm cultivators. Xiao Yao looked at the token again, thought for a moment, and then said: "Alright, you lead the way in front, and by the way, tell me about the rules and customs of Meishan Floating Island."

  The man's sallow face suddenly broke into a smile, becoming even more enthusiastic and respectful. "Alright! Qian Er is willing to go through fire and water for Master Xian, please come in!"

  Two people, one in front and one behind, walked through the dock, outside which was a bustling main street. However, all that was being sold were everyday items needed by ordinary people, without even half a hint of anything spiritual or supernatural. What's more, most of the people on the entire street were ordinary mortals who had not cultivated any spiritual energy, and occasionally one or two Qi-refining apprentices would hurry past with proud expressions and quick steps.

  Qian Er was a perceptive person, seeing Jin Zhu's gaze on the crowd, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, and he guessed it out. He hastily said: "Immortal Master, in the Eastern Extreme Realm, although we mortals and immortals coexist on the same island, our places of residence are strictly divided. This is the Lower City District, where ordinary people who cannot cultivate immortality live. Only after passing through this main street will you find the Upper City District where the immortal masters reside. Therefore, it's usually impossible to see any cultivators here."

  Xiao Yao nodded and continued on her way, while Qian Er, in order to gain her favor, talked incessantly and introduced everything along the way without leaving out any details. She also gained a lot of useful information from him.

  The cultivators of the Eastern Extreme Immortal Realm and the Taiji Cultivation Realm are not much different in principle, both adhering to the principle of strength speaking for itself. However, the secular world of the two realms is completely different. In the Taiji realm, they follow a moral system where men are superior to women, and immortals cannot interfere with the mortal world. Ordinary people mostly do not know about cultivation.

  In contrast, the Eastern Extreme secular world follows the immortal family system, where cultivators are the absolute masters of mortals. Here, men and women are equal, and as long as they have strength, men can have multiple wives, and women can also have multiple husbands. Moreover, the lifespan of ordinary people in the Eastern Extreme realm is relatively long, with a lifespan of around 300 years.

  If one is born without a spiritual root, they can obtain it by taking a pill called "Huilian Dan". However, the spiritual root obtained through this method is not as good as those born with three spiritual roots. In the immortal realm, such a root is called a "false spiritual root". Even if one takes top-grade pills to cultivate, they can only reach the stage of transforming into a god, and their "degree" is extremely small. If they encounter a cultivator of the same level with a large degree, they can be killed with just one move.

  In most places within the boundary, gold and silver are not in circulation, and all transactions are settled with spirit stones or yuan crystals. There is no low-grade spirit stone or medium-grade spirit stone here, and the lowest currency is high-grade spirit stone. One high-grade yuan crystal can be exchanged for one hundred medium-grade yuan crystals or one thousand low-grade yuan crystals. One yuan crystal can be exchanged for one thousand top-grade spirit stones or ten million high-grade spirit stones. As for top-grade yuan crystals, they are rarely seen on the market, and there is no clear regulation on how to exchange them. In the money house, exchanging from high to low does not incur any fees, but exchanging from low to high will incur a certain exchange fee at each level.

  After walking for more than an hour in the lower city, the two finally saw the upper city where the Xian family was located. A very high wall separated the upper and lower cities, as if to signify the distinction between the immortal and the mortal, dividing the land into two halves. Through the wide-open city gate, Xiao Yao could see the rows of shops owned by the Xian families on both sides of the main street, as well as various beast-drawn carriages flying through the sky. Looking further away, he could see a magnificent and gigantic mansion floating in the air above the upper city, with four golden characters "Bai Yu Bie Yuan" (White Jade Separate Courtyard) written on the gate, which was dazzling under the sunlight.

  On both sides of the Upper City Gate, there were two Golden Core cultivators guarding it. One of them saw Qian Er and stretched out his hand to block him without any courtesy, saying, "Show your entry permit!"

  "Only monks are allowed to enter and exit the Upper City, ordinary people need a pass to enter." Qian Erbian explained to Xiao Yao while taking out an iron token from his pocket and handing it over to the monk with respect. The monk scanned it with his divine sense and said in a tone that was not close to human emotions: "You are only allowed to stay in the city for one hour, otherwise you will bear the consequences."

  Qian Er's face first darkened, then he immediately smiled obsequiously and said: "Sir, I came into the city to guide this newly promoted immortal master. Can you please be a bit more accommodating and give us another two hours?"

  The Jindan cultivator first glanced at Qian Er with impatience, but his gaze finally fell on Xiao Yao, seeing that her cultivation was difficult to grasp. He immediately put away his casual attitude and, upon seeing the jade token at her waist, became even more respectful: "Senior, it seems we were rude. I wonder if what this person said is true."

  Xiao Yao nodded, "For now, he is indeed leading the way for me, and later on, I might still need his help to run errands. Can't this little friend be more accommodating?"

  The male guard had been guarding the gate for over a decade, and no matter how high or low the cultivators' cultivation was, most of them were arrogant. He had never seen such a kind and gentle high-ranking cultivator before, and he was taken aback, saying: "Of course, senior's identity is naturally acceptable, but senior, to be honest, this person is just an ordinary mortal. If senior is willing, I can introduce one or two low-ranking cultivators who are familiar with the city's situation for you to dispatch."

  Qian Eryi's face turned white as soon as he heard it, but he didn't dare to say more. He could only look at Xiao Yao pitifully, hoping that she wouldn't replace him after all.

  In fact, it wasn't just him who was unwilling, Xiao Yao himself also felt that it wasn't a good deal: what a joke, if they were to find a repairman to lead the way, the cost wouldn't be as cheap as one pellet of Lower Realm Dan medicine! But on the surface, he still smiled and declined, "No need, he's just right." And signaled for Qian Er to quickly lead the way.

  The male cultivator glanced at the two of them, didn't bother to entangle further, and immediately let them pass, saying: "Within the city district, cultivators below the Refining Spirit stage are prohibited from flying, and private duels are also not allowed. Please remember this, seniors."

  In the Upper City, the atmosphere was a hundred times more dense than in the Lower City. The streets were also wider and the houses were very beautiful. However, Xiao Yao didn't have the heart to appreciate them as she rushed straight to the Household Registration Office. Under the enthusiastic reception of the registration officer, everything was quickly settled, and he even personally escorted her out of the gate, reminding her that if there was any trouble in the future, she could come to the government office at any time to find him.

  Xiao Yao then had Qian Er take her to the entrance of the money house, where she took out a bottle of dan medicine from her storage wristlet and gave him two pills. Qian Er was overjoyed that the reward was more than they had originally discussed, and he thanked her profusely before leaving.

  As she watched him walk away, Xiao Yao turned around and entered the money house, exchanging all the spirit stones on her body for fifty pieces of lower-grade yuan crystal and some top-grade spirit stones. Weighing the small amount of money in her hand, she planned to stroll around the nearby market and think about it later.

  She first picked a medium-sized grocery store and went in, looked for less than half a minute and came out with a disappointed face covering her purse.

  "This is a black shop! Although there are many treasures inside that I have never seen before, the prices are also tricky. Even a low-grade Dao instrument costs nearly 100 top-quality spirit stones!"

  After running through four or five shops in a row, he finally realized that it wasn't the shops that were black, but the entire Eastern Extreme Realm! No matter which shop had prices that were extremely high, and they would often ask for tens of thousands of lower-grade yuan crystals. That was still for low-grade items. Slightly better ones wouldn't even let you look at them unless you spent hundreds of thousands of lower-grade yuan crystals. As for the top-grade items, they were all offered upstairs. If your cultivation wasn't enough to go upstairs, then your wallet wouldn't be able to keep up either.

  She had no choice but to turn her attention to the street stalls, where prices were much cheaper than in stores, but still not cheap for herself. Moreover, shopping at these stalls required good eyesight and many things from the Xianling world were unknown in the mortal realm, making it difficult to determine their value.

  By sunset, Xiao Yao was empty-handed and somewhat exhausted, finding a teahouse to consider her next move.

  The top priority now is to find a manual for the leopard as a reference, so that it can quickly compile and recite the incantation after transforming into a divine being. Before this, she had thought of holding an auction in the bustling city, planning to first bid on a book for the leopard as an emergency measure, but unexpectedly or rather, even if she had expected it, there was no way, the prices in the immortal realm were simply too high!

  Now she only has some miscellaneous items and some refining materials, as well as a foot bucket and two mementos left by her master. If she sells everything that can be sold, she can get at most a thousand or so lower-grade yuan crystals. Wanting to buy good skills is simply a fool's dream!

  The only way left is to join a Xianmen sect or a Xian family, and among the major sects, there must be many superior techniques, but I don't know what kind of famous sects and families are in Meishan Fudao.