Stone Kingdom Imperial Capital

Seeing this, Xia Youyu said no more and addressed the people behind her:

"Prepare to depart!"

As her words fell, the Blue-Feathered Sparrow circling in the sky immediately flew above their heads.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh-

Following Xia Youyu and the others, they leaped up and landed on the Blue-Feathered Sparrow's back.

"Boss, boss, wait for me!"

Once everyone had settled down, they set off into the distance, and the scenery around them gradually blurred.

Li Dao sat cross-legged on the Blue-Feathered Sparrow's back. Feeling the burning gaze directed at him from beside him, he asked rather speechlessly:

"What is it?"

The Five-Colored Pheasant said somewhat bashfully:

"Boss, I've already joined you, but I still don't have a name."

Li Dao looked at him in surprise, his gaze turning a little odd:

"Doesn't Five-Colored Pheasant sound good?"

"It does, it does. I just want a name that tells everyone I'm one of your people the moment they hear it," the Five-Colored Pheasant said bashfully.

Hearing this, Li Dao said nothing more and began to ponder carefully:

"Brilliant plumage, golden eyes, majestic as a phoenix, wondrous and extraordinary."

"How about Little Flower!"

Listening to those first words, the Five-Colored Pheasant grew excited, expecting some wildly domineering, outrageously cool name.

His excitement surged, but when that last sentence came out, his eyes nearly bulged from their sockets.

He had never imagined he would end up with a name like that. His breath caught at once.

"'How about Little Flower'? Boss, can you change it? I'm male."

Li Dao curled his lip and said irritably:

"It's Little Flower, not How About Little Flower. Count your blessings I didn't call you Little Chick."

"And what's wrong with being male? This is to harmonize your yin and yang, understand?"

The Five-Colored Pheasant shook his head to show he did not.

"If you don't understand, just listen to me. Stay quietly off to the side."

With that, Li Dao put an immediate end to Little Flower's hopes of pestering him further.

Xia Youyu sat cross-legged beside Li Dao. Listening to him, she flushed slightly, though she soon recovered.

Looking at Li Dao and Little Flower, the corners of her mouth rose, her eyes brimming with curiosity.

Little Flower still wanted to plead his case, but a look from Li Dao immediately scared him back into submission.

The journey went smoothly. With Liu Yun, an inscription pattern realm expert, present, no ferocious beast was foolish enough to come and harass them.

Time hurried past, the green mountains receded, and an immense, majestic city standing amid towering mountain ranges slowly came into view.

The jet-black city gates loomed like a winding giant dragon entrenched across the mountains, while soldiers in heavy armor patrolled constantly with spears in hand.

Streaks of light arrived from different places and entered the city, while many other beings emerged from it.

This was the Stone Kingdom Imperial Capital, where factions large and small mingled and entrenched themselves, and myriad beings gathered.

Li Dao gazed from afar at the city gates, which grew ever closer and more imposing, and emotion welled within him.

"This is the Stone Kingdom Imperial Capital. Cultivators from all over travel here every day. You can even see pure-blooded creatures."

"Experts are everywhere inside, including great figures of the venerable realm. Junior Brother, you must be careful once we enter."

Listening to Xia Youyu, Li Dao nodded and solemnly agreed.

Their party then entered the Stone Kingdom Imperial Capital in a grand procession.

Houses stood in close-packed rows, streets were orderly and clean, and lofty buildings rose like ancient trees.

A dazzling assortment of goods lined both sides of the streets, and the crowds flowed shoulder to shoulder.

There were commoners in simple clothes; elegant cultivators with extraordinary bearing; and princes and noble ladies in splendid attire, radiating imposing auras...

They all mingled together in a lively bustle, full of the warmth and clamor of everyday life.

"Freshly steamed meat buns! Made with the flesh of cave heaven realm ferocious beasts! Come take a look!"

"Tusk from a cave heaven realm Iron-Tusked Pig! Makes an excellent treasure bone! Going cheap!"

"Treasure medicine! Thousand-year-old blood-replenishing treasure medicine! One stalk makes you lively as a dragon and tiger, two let you go ten rounds a night! Come take a look!"

Accustomed to the monotony of the forest, Li Dao felt a little out of place after suddenly entering a world so full of everyday bustle.

He looked left and right, his eyes filled with curiosity.

Little Flower followed behind Li Dao with his head held high and chest puffed out, his eyes full of disdain.

"Tch, boss, look at that cultivator. He actually keeps a shifty-eyed big black dog. What terrible taste."

"How could it compare to my beautiful, colorful feathers..."

Listening to his endless chatter, Li Dao shot him a cutting glare, immediately silencing him.

"A big black dog? A certain being whose name must not be spoken likes big black dogs. Watch what you say."

Confusion appeared in Little Flower's eyes, but he said nothing more and obediently followed behind Li Dao.

Although Xia Youyu had been here many times, the bustling scene still made her smile brighten.

"Let's get settled at an inn first, then visit the Martial King Manor."

Xia Youyu spoke rather casually.

Their visit to the Martial King Manor was merely a formality. Before they left, the elder had instructed them not to insist on recruiting the Double Pupils One.

Presumably, some agreement had been reached with the Martial King Manor. This visit was only a matter of going through the motions and conveying their intentions.

Starleap Tower was said to have been built from a single starwood tree.

The moment Li Dao entered, he felt the dense spiritual essence there. Starlike glimmers occasionally flickered across the surrounding walls.

"Junior brothers and sisters, go rest in your rooms first. We'll visit the Martial King Manor tomorrow."

"If you want to look around outside, don't stir up trouble, and come back early."

Xia Youyu addressed everyone, exuding the authority of the Heaven Mending Pavilion's senior sister.

Everyone answered in unison, then returned to their respective rooms.

Li Dao also brought Little Flower to his room.

The room was tidy and carried a faint sandalwood fragrance. It had a bedroom as well as a cultivation chamber.

"Tsk, tsk, this really is luxurious. No wonder it's one of the capital's finest inns."

Li Dao had no intention of going out for a stroll. Having just arrived, caution was the wiser choice.

Although he now had a transformation technique at his disposal, he could still be unlucky enough to run into a venerable realm cultivator.

Before such experts, his disguise was still far too crude.

It was not the ten thousand likely outcomes one had to fear, but the one unlikely mishap. Away from home, it was best to be cautious.

Though he did not fear fighting, being obliterated by a venerable realm cultivator's single palm strike

was not what he wanted either.

Thus, he went straight to the cultivation chamber, sat cross-legged on a cushion, and began cultivating.

Looking through the window at the lively scene outside, Little Flower had thought he might get to go out and explore, but then he saw that Li Dao had gone to cultivate.

He abandoned that idea as well. If he went out alone, he would probably become a roast chicken in minutes!

So he could only remain obediently in the room.

The next morning.

Hearing a knock at the door, Li Dao slowly roused from his cultivation.

He opened the door and found Xia Youyu already standing outside.

"Junior Brother, let's go."

"We're visiting the Martial King Manor today. I've already asked around: the Martial King has gone to the imperial palace, so don't worry about him seeing through your disguise."

"Let's meet that Double Pupils One and see whether he really has three heads and six arms, as the rumors say."

Seeing how thoughtful Xia Youyu was, Li Dao nodded and immediately followed her out.

"Boss, remember to come back early."

Realizing he alone would remain in the room the whole time, Little Flower spoke mournfully.

Li Dao shot him a fierce glare at those words, then stepped through the doors of Starleap Tower.

He headed toward the Martial King Manor.

He could not help feeling a little anticipation.

I wonder what realm Shi Yi has reached now?

And just how powerful are his double pupils?