Luojing lay beside the Luo River, at the heart of the plains. It was the greatest city under heaven, square and orderly, with nine great roads running across and nine running lengthwise, dividing the entire city into wards of varying sizes. Every day, no fewer than a million people made their living here.
Holding the Soul-Bewildering Banner and dressed as a wandering daoist priest, Shi Xuan threaded his way through the bustling crowds on Vermillion Bird Main Street. He had been in Luojing for seven or eight days already, spending all that time asking around for the whereabouts of Huilong Temple. Yet the temple was obscure, and no one knew of it at all.
In the end, Shi Xuan had to sneak into Luojing's Prefectural Office, look through the temple registry, and question the veteran clerk in charge of such matters before he found Huilong Temple's location. It was actually tucked away in the most remote corner west of the city.
After turning a corner, the flow of people before him gradually thinned. By the time he reached Anle Ward, only scattered groups of children could be seen playing on the road. The surrounding houses were dilapidated and had not been repaired for ages; at a glance, it was clearly a place where impoverished families gathered.
Outsiders rarely came here. The moment Shi Xuan entered the ward, the children began trailing behind him in ones and twos, laughing and chattering as though they were watching a spectacle.
Huilong Temple stood at the northernmost edge of Anle Ward, also the place with the fewest inhabitants. There was not a single household within several hundred meters, only a ramshackle Daoist temple standing there all alone.
When Shi Xuan saw Huilong Temple, he nearly could not believe his eyes. It was far too