Twenty li south of the Canglang River.
A mortal city sat quietly there, known as Linshui City.
It was not large, with high walls of gray brick and orderly streets.
This was a place entirely untouched by cultivation.
All who came and went were commoners in plain clothes, traveling merchants, and martial artists from the jianghu.
Carriages and horses passed through as voices mingled in a lively bustle, rich with the warmth of everyday life.
Su Yun put away his Spirit Boat, descended into the woods outside the city, and walked in.
The moment he entered the city, he instinctively spread out his spiritual sense. He detected no cultivators within its walls.
That was the norm for a mortal city.
The world of cultivation was vast and boundless, but cultivators were ultimately few and far between.
Of the billions of living beings, nine out of ten were ordinary mortals.
They lived out their lives, grew old, fell ill, and died, bound to one small patch of land.
Many people went their whole lives without ever seeing a true cultivator.
To mortals, even a Qi Refining cultivator was a mighty figure, powerful enough to lord over an entire city.
Linshui City was no different.
Among mortal martial artists, Qi Refining cultivators were immortal masters of legend.
Su Yun collected his thoughts and strode into the city's streets.
Wine shops, teahouses, restaurants, and general stores lined both sides of the street.
Pedestrians streamed past, and the clamor of the bustling city washed over him.
His gaze swept over the surroundings, then settled on the busiest teahouse at the street corner.
The teahouse was packed with guests and brimming with noise. People from all walks of life gathered there, making it the perfect place to ask for information.
Su Yun stepped inside.
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