Yulan City

"Social climate?" Liewen asked, puzzled.

Master Longers nodded. "Liewen, you have lived in Chiyan City and felt the atmosphere of the O'Brien Empire. The O'Brien Empire is a nation that values martial arts, and its people worship the strong. It is a land of warriors, where many nobles earned their titles through sheer strength, which is why it is the number one military power on the continent."

Liewen nodded. Take Linley's younger brother, Wharton, for example; he was able to defeat a ninth-rank expert while still only an eighth-rank warrior. It was because of his outstanding strength that he was granted the title of Count and bestowed a count's manor.

"The Yulan Empire, however, does not have such a healthy climate. Those nobles live lives of luxury, their minds occupied only by indulgence and vanity, even going so far as to invent titles like 'centennial family,' 'millennial family,' or 'ten-thousand-year family.'"

As he said this, an undisguised look of disgust appeared on Master Longers' face.

"Centennial family? Millennial family? Ten-thousand-year family? What are those?" Liewen asked, confused.

"They are just boring titles invented by a bunch of nobles for the sake of vanity."

Master Longers wore a mocking expression. "The Yulan Empire has been established for over ten thousand years, and many ancient families have long lineages. To elevate themselves, these families use their family history to define noble ranks."

"Those with a history of over a hundred years are centennial families, over a thousand years are millennial families, and over ten thousand years are ten-thousand-year families. They use this to divide social circles; the older the family history, the more noble they consider themselves."

Liewen understood and laughed. "That really is boring."

Master Longers nodded in agreement. "What is family history? What is worldly power? A Saint Realm expert can completely ignore it all."

However, Liewen could somewhat understand the thinking of these families. They certainly wanted to produce a Saint Realm expert of their own, but the Saint Realm was not so easily attained.

Take the Jax Family of the O'Brien Empire; it was only because they produced a Mackenzie that they could control the Northwest Province.

One must realize that the entire O'Brien Empire only had seven provinces.

From this, it is clear how incredibly difficult it is for a family to produce a Saint Realm expert.

Without a Saint Realm expert, a family must find ways to continue its legacy, and family history and worldly power are tools that help a family endure.

Master Longers watched Laina playing in the air. "There are many noble children in the Imperial Magic Academy, and these social trends are inevitably brought inside. I hope little Laina is not influenced by them. Her talent is no less than Dixie's, and she has the potential to reach the Saint Realm in the future."

Delia's brother, Dixie, was currently an eighth-rank magus and had already been taken in as a personal disciple by the High Priest.

If not for Linley, Dixie would be the number one magic genius on the Yulan Continent right now.

The riverboat sailed along the Yulan River, and after more than half a month, it finally arrived at the imperial capital, Yulan City.

Yulan City was the oldest city in the history of the Yulan Continent. Unlike the iron-blooded, solemn nature of Chiyan City, Yulan City exuded an ancient aura forged by ten thousand years of history. If Chiyan City was a ferocious magical beast, then Yulan City was more like a towering ancient tree.

When the diplomatic mission returned to the Yulan Empire, there were naturally some official procedures and etiquette to follow.

Liewen couldn't be bothered with these, so he took Kuhn and Laina to bid farewell to Master Longers, leaving the mission group ahead of schedule.

As the three of them walked to the city gate, a middle-aged man in fine clothes with a straight posture walked up to them.

"Mr. Liewen, I am White, the person in charge of the Dawson Chamber of Commerce in Yulan City. I have been waiting here specifically for you."

Back in Chiyan City, Liewen had already contacted the Dawson Chamber of Commerce, paying a high price for them to help him purchase a manor in Yulan City in advance.

The Dawson Chamber of Commerce was naturally happy to do business with a Saint Realm expert, and they had everything arranged quickly.

Upon learning that Liewen and his group were arriving today, White had come to wait for them in advance.

The three of them boarded the carriage prepared by White, and the carriage slowly moved forward, entering Yulan City.

The carriage cabin was large, and it did not feel crowded even with Liewen, his companions, and White sitting inside.

It was the first time for all three of them in Yulan City, and they looked curiously at the street scenes outside the window.

The scenery on the streets of Yulan City was significantly different from that of Chiyan City.

The streets of Chiyan City had a bold and heroic style, with warriors and magi riding magical beasts visible everywhere; the air seemed filled with the iron and blood of battle.

Yulan City, however, was much more luxurious, with exquisite sculptures carved into the buildings and shops along the street.

The pedestrians on the street were dressed elegantly, and their behavior followed specific codes of etiquette. Even some of the rougher warriors appeared well-mannered, and there was not a single person riding a magical beast on the street.

White knew it was the first time for the three of them, so he enthusiastically introduced the city to them.

"Mr. Liewen, look, that white-spired building is the famous Proulx Gallery. After the Day of Destruction, the headquarters of the Proulx Gallery in Fenlai City moved to Yulan City."

"Please look, that elegant circular venue is the Imperial Opera House. There are wonderful operas performed there every day."

"And over there, that is the Royal Art Gallery, where many works by top masters are on display."

White introduced one landmark after another in Yulan City to the three of them.

"Mr. Liewen, Yulan City is the art center of the Yulan Continent. The nobles of the Yulan Empire place great importance on artistic cultivation. If you don't appreciate art or understand it, you will be looked down upon."

Liewen smiled casually; he had no research into these things and was not interested for the time being.

Kuhn was a warrior and also had little interest in this.

Little Laina understood even less.

The manor the Dawson Chamber of Commerce purchased for Liewen was on White Jade Avenue.

"Mr. Liewen, the most prestigious place in Yulan City is Yulan Road. That is the residential area for top nobles, and the imperial palace is also on Yulan Road."

"All the manors on Yulan Road are already occupied, and those who live there are at least millennial families. White Jade Avenue is the next best place after Yulan Road, and it is a residential area for many newly promoted nobles and wealthy merchants. Your manor is right here."

The carriage arrived in front of a luxurious manor on White Jade Avenue.

Liewen and his group stepped out of the carriage one after another.

"Mr. Liewen, please come in. Everything has been arranged. When purchasing the manor, we followed your instructions and did not reveal that you were the buyer," White said.

Liewen nodded; he only wanted to buy a mansion as a place to settle down and cultivate in peace. If people found out that the White-Clad Light Saint was living here, the threshold would likely be trampled flat by those wanting to pay a visit.

They walked into the mansion, where everything had already been arranged by the Dawson Chamber of Commerce.

The courtyard of the mansion was decorated with several exquisite stone carvings, all of which were at least the work of master-level sculptors.

The main hall was hung with many oil paintings; Liewen didn't quite understand them, but he felt they couldn't be cheap.

All the furniture was also very sophisticated, with many pieces having a long history and being antiques with a pedigree.

"Mr. Liewen, in Yulan City, a noble's mansion must have these things. It's called artistic cultivation and historical heritage; otherwise, people will gossip and mock you," White explained to Liewen.

"I don't understand these things, and wouldn't pretending to understand make me even more of a laughingstock?" Liewen laughed.

"Mr. Liewen, you don't need to overthink it. In fact, many nobles don't study them deeply either; they are just following the trend. We should just do as the locals do," White said casually.

"By the way, Mr. Liewen, are you satisfied with these carvings? I have arranged for Alice, the manager of the Proulx Gallery, to come over personally today. If you are not satisfied, you can have her replace them."