As Li Tengfei and Elder Ye walked along the spacious streets of the city, the young boy could not help but be awestruck at the bustling crowd of both plebeians and cultivators alike. Although commoners distanced themselves from cultivators, the order was much better than the small Yellow Mountain Town where cultivators would brazenly steal from shopkeepers and do some immoral things in the back of an alley. He could not help but smile gleefully at the vastness of the world and how he had been but a small frog in the well.
"Shocked? Haha! It makes me remember the first time I was here as well! I was as astonished as you when I first arrived here with the sect master!" Ye Dongfeng smiled and reminisced while looking at Li Tengfei.
Both sides of the road were fully occupied by various stalls selling all kinds of mysterious looking items, though Li Tengfei could no tell if the items were counterfeited products. The occasional piercing shouts of sellers advertising their products awoke Li Tengfei from his stupor.
"Here is the shopping district, at the south of the city. Here, you can get anything, ranging from the best weapons to powerful antiques, however, beware! Not all sellers are honest. These guys may sell you fakes or even stolen goods. It's best if you avoid buying things here." warned Elder Ye, his voice brimming of seriousness.
As Ye Dongfeng was not in a hurry to return to the sect, he made a tour of the town to introduce Li Tengfei the important places. Everywhere they passed, there would be some passersby who would point at the duo with eyes full of admiration. It could be seen that the Soaring Dragon Sect enjoyed a rather good reputation. Meanwhile, Li Tengfei relished at this unprecedented feeling of satisfying his vanity.
After the visit, Li Tengfei could recognise the general outline of Xuanwu City. The city could be separated in four distinct areas namely: the shopping district, at the south, the residential area, occupying the north, the noble district, to the west and finally, the entertainment area, on the eastern side of the city. More importantly, the mayor and officials lodged in the palace, right in the middle of the city. There was also a ditch surrounding the walls of the city to slow down beast hordes that come from the bordering Thousand Acres Forest.
"Now, lets get you some clothes. You cannot dishonour our sect by wearing those rags!" said Elder Ye smiling to Li Tengfei.
They arrived at a tailor shop where a signboard reading 'Hua Clothes' was hanging above the door of the building. When the tailor saw Elder Ye, he revealed a fawning expression on his face. He obediently listened to the elder and skillfully measured Li Tengfei's sizes.
Though Li Tengfei was rather skinny due to his malnutrition, after removing the dirt from his face, he looked quite handsome. In a flash, the tailor finished a taoist robe for Li Tengfei and the latter decided to put it on. He looked just like a young master of a wealthy family who had recovered from an illness. His face was well-proportioned and his eyebrows sharp with an occasional glint of intelligence flashed in his eyes. With his look, he would be popular among the elderly as a good grandson. Li Tengfei himself could not believe he looked so handsome.
"Wow! You look just like me when I was young! No wonder I chose you as disciple." Elder Ye commented, nodding his head in satisfaction.
Li Tengfei suspiciously glanced at the elder; he, a more-than-60 years old grandpa, was like me when young?
"Hey brat! Don't eye me like that! I was quite the playboy when I was your age!" the elder revealed a shocking truth about himself.
Meanwhile, the tailor's eyebrows twitched when he heard what the elder said...Who knows, maybe he had a relationship with his mum...
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In a corner of an abandoned alley, the shadow of a man was quietly seated on a mouldy crate, as if waiting for someone.
"Have that old sack of bones returned to the city?" the shadow asked out of the blue, as if talking to himself.
"Yes, Sir. And he has with him a youth who maybe his disciple." another voice replied surprisingly.
"He has taken in a disciple? How surprising. Maybe we can make use of it." the shadow on the crate snickered.
After a long conversation to elaborate a plan, they separated and only the silhouette on the crate was left, returning the alley to its past tranquility.
Suddenly the shadow started laughing louder and louder until it sounded like a maniac's laughter.
"Finally! Finally! I will finally take my revenge on that grandpa! It has been a full 20 years since that accident happened!" He then forcefully gave a kick to the crate under him and it exploded in smithereens revealing its contents; human skulls of all sizes still covered with some flesh. The shadow then disappeared silently, as if he was never there.