Linhai Region, the former lands of Great Huan, the new capital of the Long Kingdom.
The streets seemed rather deserted. Occasionally, someone rode past on a Mechanism Beast, but even they were in a hurry.
Most of the shops along the road had closed their doors. Only a few bearing signs for eateries or inns remained open as usual, lending the place a rare hint of prosperity.
This had once been the fief of the Lord of Long under the ancient Great Huan Dynasty, only a few tens of thousands of miles from the Eastern Coast.
Years of war and Demon Calamities had destroyed most of the industries that sustained livelihoods here. Most commoners could find no peace, forced either to seek shelter under the powerful or to become rogue cultivators, usually eking out a living by hunting monsters and demons.
It was in September that Li Chen arrived in such a place.
At that moment, a young man who looked to be in his twenties, dressed in blue-gray cloth, was walking beneath a cloth umbrella along a dilapidated street in the old city of the Long Capital. Before long, he turned into an inn bearing the sign of the Cloud-Inn Tavern.
"Would you like a meal or a room, sir?" A waiter came over eagerly when he saw him and asked.
The young man folded his umbrella and turned, revealing an utterly unremarkable face. A gentle smile rested on it as he said, "Neither. I'm here to ask for information."
"Well..." The waiter's expression immediately cooled at that.
"Warm a bowl of wine and bring two small dishes." The young man felt around in his long robe and took out a cloth pouch.
Delight appeared on the waiter's face. "Right away! Please wait a moment, sir. Your food and