Ancient City of Xianyang

Chapter 20: Ancient City of Xianyang

How could this be!

There were quite a few people waiting for the ferry. The old man's tobacco scent, the woman's perfume, the smell of sweat, the smell of fish, the smell of rotting wood at the dock… all rushed into his nostrils.

This smell was incredibly pungent.

Li Yan almost stumbled from the assault.

He understood that his Olfactory Mystical Power had suddenly improved once again.

Since the life-or-death battle with the Cold Altar Rampaging Soldier that night, this was the third explosive increase in a short period.

Besides these ordinary smells, he also detected many special ones.

Hundreds of meters away from the dock, there was a cold, sticky scent, seemingly left by some malevolent entity. Even the lapping waves couldn't wash it away, lingering persistently…

On the Cao Gang's large ship on the river, someone at the bow was burning incense, tying red ribbons, scattering paper money, and pouring livestock blood. A fiery energy circulated around the bow…

Even more terrifying was the city of Xianyang in the distance.

It sat on the plain like a ferocious beast, exuding an ancient and desolate aura. Within the city, various scents of incense and worship could be detected.

Any one of them was dozens of times stronger than the Earth God Temple in Li Family Fortress.

Is this the real world…

Li Yan was shocked.

Ever since he awakened his Olfactory Mystical Power last year, he hadn't even set foot in Lantian County, let alone Chang'an City. He had been cooped up in Li Family Fortress.

Now, arriving in Xianyang City, he immediately noticed the difference.

No wonder Widow Wang and the others had to hide in the remote village of Li Family Fortress. If they went to Chang'an City, they would likely be exposed immediately and attract their enemies.

Just then, Li Yan's vision suddenly went black.

Waves of dizziness washed over him, and his astonishing sense of smell vanished along with them.

Li Yan grabbed onto a nearby willow tree, and it took him a while to recover.

His expression was grim, and he cursed inwardly.

Clearly, this mystical power came at a price.

Widow Wang hadn't mentioned it, perhaps because she hadn't expected his Olfactory Mystical Power to erupt and improve so many times.

The worse reason was that his mystical power was out of control.

Any loss of control was a major problem.

He had to resolve this as soon as possible!

"The boat's here—!"

The boatman's voice interrupted his thoughts.

Fortunately, his Olfactory Mystical Power had shut down by then. Although his head was spinning and cold sweat was trickling down his back, Li Yan still walked towards the ferry.

The ferry was not large, about seven to eight meters long, with no canopy.

After paying the fare, Li Yan casually found a spot to sit.

A gentle breeze blew across the river, and the conversations of the people around him reached his ears:

"Wang A Niang, why are you coming into the city instead of quickly harvesting your wheat?"

"I've hired some Wheat Harvesters from Longyou this year. I need to go into the city to offer incense, praying it doesn't rain these days, and then I'll rush back…"

"You have quite a few male laborers at home."

"Don't even mention it. My second and third sons ran off to Jinmen, saying the factories there make good money and they won't be back even for the New Year. I figured, with not much land at home, the eldest is fine, but the second and third need some prospects…"

Li Yan knew about the things they were discussing from his time in the village.

The Great Xuan Dynasty had been established for a hundred years and had now reached its peak.

But beneath the prosperity, undercurrents were already stirring.

Large-scale land annexation had begun, and refugees were becoming more numerous in various regions. There had been quite a few disturbances in the past decade.

However, at the same time, the imperial court had announced the opening of the seas for trade. Large-scale handicraft workshops were built in many port cities, absorbing a significant number of refugees.

It was said that the imperial court was also not peaceful, with factions forming and attacking each other.

Of course, Li Yan was not interested in these matters.

All he wanted now was to resolve his predicament as quickly as possible.

After crossing the Wei River, Li Yan's mind felt much clearer. His mystical olfactory sense had also returned, though it was much weaker now, about the same as before he dealt with "Blind Old Three."

Li Yan didn't bother to pay it any mind. He lowered his straw hat and entered the city.

After all, it was an ancient capital of the Qin Dynasty. Historical records described it as having "palaces and villas, pavilions and towers, stretching continuously for over three hundred li, obscuring the sun."

Despite several wars and repeated reconstructions, the city had shrunk considerably, but it was still prosperous enough. As soon as he entered the city, the bustling noise assaulted him.

Unlike the chessboard layout of Chang'an City's one hundred and eight wards, Xianyang City's layout was not standardized. Li Yan entered from the south gate, which was close to the ferry crossing and led directly to a crisscrossing old commercial street.

The street was lined with shops, their signs and banners fluttering. The sounds of vendors hawking their wares were incessant. At the ferry crossing, mule carts, horses, and pedestrians mingled, creating a scene of bustling chaos.

Of course, there were beggars too.

Perhaps it was because Li Yan had his saber on him, but no one bothered him. However, other unfamiliar merchants and travelers who had just entered the city were immediately surrounded by a group of beggars.

They were in tattered clothes, some with missing limbs, and they clamored around people with pleas like, "May your honor have a heart of mercy and gain a thousand gold this year!" and "May your lady bestow kindness and bless your children and grandchildren!"

Li Yan glanced at them, then turned and walked away.

In the martial world, the Beggar Gang was divided into Eastern and Western factions.

The Eastern faction were "soft beggars," primarily performing for a living with a wide variety of acts, such as "Chang Xiang Zi," "Wen Wu Qiang," "Bai Shen Zhu," and "You Wu Hu."

These beggars mostly traveled far and wide, going with the flow.

The Western faction, on the other hand, were mostly sedentary beggars. They usually occupied a certain city, led by a beggar chief who collected a portion of the daily alms.

Beggars of the Eastern faction, upon arriving at a city, would definitely first pay their respects at the Western beggars' den to get permission to perform, and they would also have to pay a cut.

If they didn't understand the rules, they would become a corpse before nightfall.

Among the Western beggar chiefs, there were quite a few "fake beggars" who passed down their positions through generations, controlling the beggar dens in the city. They would wear rags during the day and change into fine clothes at night to enjoy themselves in the entertainment districts.

Even more detestable, they engaged in businesses like mutilating people for alms and human trafficking, maintaining close ties with the city's brokers.

Their specialty was "hard begging." Don't be fooled by the pitiful appearance of those beggars; they were actually ruthless and vicious, and ordinary people couldn't afford to offend them.

As expected, when the unfamiliar merchant didn't give them money, the beggars' expressions immediately changed. They banged their broken bowls and sang "Lian Hua Luo" to curse him.

"If you don't give money, I won't come. Use the rest to buy a coffin!"

"If you don't give, I won't beg. Let's see how anxious you are, you grandson!"

The merchant was furious and chased after the beggars, but he didn't realize his money pouch had already been stolen...

Of course, there were also quite a few beggars from the Eastern faction traveling the martial world.

As Li Yan passed through the street, a blind old beggar was telling stories on the street corner.

His eyes were cloudy, his voice hoarse, and he possessed a certain ancient charm.

"Fame and fortune come and go, glory and wealth are fleeting."

"The mortal world churns like the tide, how many can become immortals..."

"Attain the Way!"

"Excuse me, is Daoist Priest Wang Dao Xuan here?"

Outside a small shop, Li Yan asked the shopkeeper for directions.

Near the Xianyang City God Temple, besides stalls selling snacks and breakfast, there were mostly shops selling paper offerings, incense, candles, and coffins, as well as fortune-telling establishments.

The shop Li Yan asked at, for example, was an incense and candle shop. It had everything from ordinary incense sticks to arm-thick ones, from plain red and white candles to ornate dragon and phoenix candles, as well as various paper money and ingots.

Arriving at this place, Li Yan only felt the strong scent of incense from the temple, which made him dizzy and lightheaded, so he didn't go closer and directly followed the address given by Sha LiFei.

According to Sha LiFei, Wang Dao Xuan also ran an establishment that offered character readings, divination, feng shui consultations, and handled both joyous and somber occasions, as well as demon-slaying.

However, the shop at the address had already changed owners.

Li Yan had no choice but to ask around.

"Wang Dao Xuan?"

The owner of the incense and candle shop was a cross-eyed fatty. He looked confused at first, then as if he had thought of something, he suddenly realized, "Are you referring to Wang Lao Nian!"

He said with a smile, "He owed a mountain of debt and sold me the shop. He's running his business from home now."

Wang... Lao Nian?!

Li Yan's face stiffened, and he felt a surge of anger.

That guy Sha LiFei was really unreliable.

Although he had mentioned before that Wang Dao Xuan took any job, implying he might be a bit of a scoundrel, he was at least someone from the Xuan Gate who could inquire about things.

But from what the owner said, he was probably worse than expected.

Owed debts and couldn't even keep his shop...

The name Wang Dao Xuan was probably just a stage name he used to brag, just like Sha LiFei!

Li Yan, whose Spiritual Power was already out of control, felt an even greater surge of malevolent energy.

Seeing this, the owner had an idea. He stepped forward, bowed his head, and said with a smile, "Are you here for a character reading or to arrange a ceremony? Just say the word. I know all the shops on this street, and I can get you a better price..."

"Thank you, I'll let you know later."

He said it nicely, but Li Yan didn't believe him.

He had seen plenty of people like him. They would undermine each other within the same trade, so how could they be any less ruthless towards customers?

Moreover, he could tell just by smelling that the items in this incense and candle shop were all ordinary. Even the idols they worshipped didn't have the scent of incense; this was an amateur.

As expected, seeing that Li Yan was not interested, the owner's attitude immediately turned cold.

Li Yan's heart stirred, a hint of anger appearing on his face. He cupped his fists and said, "I have an account to settle with that Wang Lao Nian. Please tell me where he is."

The shopkeeper glanced sideways, saw the saber at his waist, and a hint of schadenfreude appeared in his eyes. He raised a hand and pointed, "Easy to say. Do you see that alley, sir? Go in three hundred meters, and the Asking Dao Pavilion is on your right!"

The place the shopkeeper pointed to was an old street alley of residential houses.

Li Yan entered and looked around. All he saw were old, rustic houses. Although they were all single-family homes with courtyards, they were remote and small, clearly residences of ordinary people.

However, many of these houses had courtyard walls built from old Qin Bricks salvaged from Xianyang. Coupled with the mottled bluestone slabs on the ground, they possessed a certain ancient charm.

He walked three hundred meters forward and quickly found the place.

He saw a plaque hanging on the gate of an old house.

It was made of ordinary jujube wood, only coated with some wood lacquer, not even as good as a restaurant's. However, the words "Asking Dao Pavilion" were ancient and vigorous, quite impressive.

Li Yan's anger inexplicably subsided a little.

Immediately, he twitched his nose.

There were quite a few unusual smells within the small courtyard