0021 : Thunder Dragon’s Departure
Luoyang was indeed a massive city, just as I had heard. Even from a distance at the outskirts, the scenery of the city shone brightly from the hill, and the city walls were exceedingly tall, spanning dozens of layers. During my time living as a traveler, I never had a reason to visit Luoyang; this was my first time here.
‘Truly, the largest city under heaven… the Emperor’s fortress…’
I couldn’t help but gasp in admiration as I passed the guard post. In other cities, a single inspection would suffice, but Luoyang was unique, requiring a check at the outer city gate and again a hundred paces further down. Furthermore, there was yet another inspection to enter the inner city, indicating its grand scale.
As the guard inspected my belongings, he remarked, “What’s this? Are you a Divination Master?”
I had already concealed the scroll in a hidden part of my pack, so the only thing the guard would find suspicious was the scroll of the Imperial Palace map. The Book of Qimen Dunjia would not raise any eyebrows. I smiled and replied, “I’m still in training.”
“Hah… you should visit Zhu Xian Street. There are many like you there.”
The guard clicked his tongue, offering seemingly random advice.
‘So it seems that on Zhu Xian Street, divination masters and fortune-tellers gather to read fortunes together.’
While I could potentially set up my stall alone, in a vast city like Luoyang, it made sense to form a collective to attract attention and compete for business. It was an intriguing sight, something I had never seen in other cities.
As I entered the bustling streets of Luoyang, I couldn’t help but drop my jaw.
“……!!”
It was truly immense! The streets and shops were dazzling and far grander than anything I had seen before. While most buildings I had encountered were typically three stories tall, here there were many buildings and pavilions soaring to five or six stories. I was taken aback to see that the roads were wide enough for four carriages to pass, and even more astonishing was the fact that the spacious streets were packed with people.
“Watch out, watch out, make way!”
Clatter, clatter!
A carriage zoomed by, seemingly belonging to an official. People were so accustomed to this that they preemptively created space for the carriage to pass. As I ventured further in, the sounds of people’s chatter filled the air, creating a lively atmosphere throughout the city.
Numerous food stalls were set up, showcasing exotic delicacies I had never encountered before, along with many restaurants that seemed to be professionally run. Notably, there was even an eight-story dining hall, forcing me to crane my neck just to take it all in. The sizzling sounds of frying dumplings and fish mixed with enticing aromas wafted through the air.
Usually, in a typical city, there weren’t many inns, making it easy to choose one. However, Luoyang was a different story; inns and dining halls lined the streets, with dozens on a single block. And there were certainly more than just one or two streets of this nature within Luoyang, making it almost impossible to keep track of which dining halls were where.
‘Remarkable…!!’
If one had the money, I had heard complaints about how living in Luoyang was the best. I had thought that life in any place was generally the same, and so I hadn’t given their remarks much thought. However, there was a reason behind those statements.
I stood there, bewildered, before deciding to enter an inn. Since it was still early evening, I planned to grab a quick bite before securing a room for the night.
“Welcome!”
In this large city, even the dining halls were on a different scale. As soon as I entered the first floor, the waitresses, dressed neatly and with graceful appearances, all bowed their heads in greeting. Usually, in a typical inn, there would be about three waitresses, but here there seemed to be ten on just the first floor. This meant that it was a bustling and popular dining hall frequented by many.
I was guided by one of the waitresses to a table and, astonishingly, she presented me with a wooden board.
“What’s this?”
“Please choose your desired dishes and call out your selections!”
“……!!”
I was taken aback. In most dining halls, the choices usually ended with a few dumplings, noodles, or chicken dishes. Typically, the waitresses would just list a couple of options, and I would choose among them. However, this wooden board had no less than 20 different dishes and beverages listed! I spoke with a slightly trembling voice.
“Is it true that the chef can prepare all these dishes?”
“Hahaha! Our head chef is Hongchen. There’s no doubt about his skills.”
“Hmm…”
Hongchen!
I had heard of him before. In the culinary world, chefs are ranked into four levels: Qing (青), Hong (紅), He (黑), and Bai (白), with the top tier being the Qingchefs, who are recognized for their unparalleled skills in imperial culinary competitions. Although Hongchen was a step below the Qingchef, he was still recognized as a master chef of great renown in at least one city. He would be a remarkable chef whom high officials would seek out in the region where I lived.
But the prices were equally exorbitant.
‘Oh, what the—’
I gasped slightly at the realization that even a couple of dishes would cost one tael of silver. The pricier ones ranged from three to four taels for a single dish.
“I’ll have a dumpling, please.”
“Yes….”
Prices seemed to be several times more than those at average inns. While I wanted to leave immediately, my apprehension kept me from doing so, so I ordered the dumpling.
‘This… lodging and meals will cost a fortune. I’ll have to find some work while I’m here, won’t I?’
The total amount of money that Mangryang had given me as a fund was forty taels of silver. Under normal circumstances, this would have been more than enough to indulge and plan a venture. In most other regions, this amount could sustain me for three months, but in Luoyang, if I were to eat and rest, it seemed I would exhaust it all in less than a month. Prices were unusually steep, and it appeared that all forms of entertainment, including inns and dining halls, carried high costs.
I had no intention of storming into the Imperial Palace right away. For the time being, I decided to stay in Luoyang, refine my skills, and meticulously plan my entry. If I were caught, it would mean death at the very least, and my entire clan could face extermination; thus, I couldn’t afford to act recklessly.
Time was on my side. I felt it necessary to stay long-term in Luoyang, doing odd jobs to sustain myself. The detailed information I would gather while living here would also aid my infiltration plans.
While eating my dumpling, I asked the waitress, “Excuse me, do you happen to know any ways to earn a living through martial arts here in Luoyang?”
The dining hall was still quiet, and the waitress I had called upon appeared to be quite experienced. Perhaps sensing this, she glanced around before smiling and kindly responding to my inquiry.
“It seems you are a martial artist, sir. Well… sometimes martial artists do participate in challenge matches, but those individuals often face unfavorable outcomes. If you are set on doing something, it might be more realistic to enter as a guest of the Great Gate Sect.”
“Unfavorable outcomes, you say? Have you seen or heard something?”
“Hahaha…”
The waitress only laughed and said nothing more. I quickly understood that he was hinting for a tip, so I carefully took out twenty taels from my pocket and handed them over. However, the waitress didn’t budge at all, looking disappointed, so I reluctantly added another thirty taels, and only then did he open his mouth.
“From your speech and accent, you seem to be from Anhui Province. In Luoyang, unlike Anhui, the Great Gate Sect and the Huashan Sect hold a strong influence among the Nine Great Sects, yet they cannot exert much power within the city of Luoyang. This is because many masters, comparable to them, have opened martial arts schools within the city.”
“Comparable to the Nine Great Sects?”
I was surprised. Even the Huangshan Sect, which is at the bottom of the Nine Great Sects, had at least four peak masters. The martial arts of the Nine Great Sects are primarily based on Taoist esteemed techniques and combat skills developed over many years, which makes them incredibly powerful. It was hard to imagine that there would be masters who could rival even that.
The waitress nodded in response.
“The most prominent factions in Luoyang are referred to as the Twin Gate Sect and the Four Clans. This term denotes the two major sects and the four prominent families.”
“Hmm… Could you elaborate?”
As I casually mentioned this, I discreetly handed him another tael of silver. It was quite a considerable expense, but the effectiveness was immediate. The waitress accepted the silver and began to share information as if delivering a speech.
“Those six factions take charge of recruiting for the Imperial Army, the Golden Eagle Guards, or for the Martial Arts examinations every year. For individuals from the provinces, unless they have extraordinary skills, it is not easy to defeat someone from the Twin Gate Sect. It’s not merely bribery or money; those from the Twin Gate Sect are renowned for their exceptional martial arts abilities.
The Twin Gates refer to the Iron Blood Gate and the Great Sword Gate. The four clans are the Zhang Clan, Seo Clan, Yi Clan, and Han Clan. The people of Luoyang usually abbreviate it as ‘Iron Blood Great Sword Zhang Seo Yi Han.'”
The Twin Gate Sect!
Iron Blood Great Sword Zhang Seo Yi Han!
These were factions I would have to memorize as I continue my activities in Luoyang. After rolling the phrase “Iron Blood Great Sword Zhang Seo Yi Han” in my mouth for a moment, I asked another question.
“Does that mean all the martial artists who attempted to challenge the dojo in Luoyang lost to the Twin Gate Sect?”
“It is well-known that even the elder of the Huashan Sect lost to the head of the Great Sword Gate in just a hundred seconds. The Huashan Sect has been trying to expand its influence within Luoyang by requesting duels, but such disasters have happened…”
“……”
I realized that the strength of the Twin Gate Sect was beyond my expectations, and I let out a low murmur.
The head of the Great Sword Gate is at the level of a sect leader, while the elder of the Huashan Sect could be considered a lower rank, yet the situation was not that simple. An elder of the Huashan Sect would be a peak master who roams across the central plains and is someone who has deeply trained in swordsmanship for decades. No matter how supreme the Great Sword Gate’s leader might be within their sect, the fact that he defeated the elder of the Huashan Sect in a hundred seconds was not something to take lightly.
The waitress made a distressed expression and said, “Oh, you must not speak of this carelessly. Everyone knows, but if it were to reach the ears of a disciple from the Huashan Sect, there would be consequences.”
“I understand. So, please tell me more in detail.”
My eyes gleamed coldly.
“Where is this Twin Gate Sect located in Luoyang?”
“Uh, well…”
As the waitress excitedly explained the Twin Gate Sect, I ordered another vegetable dish. While absorbing the information about the Twin Gate Sect piece by piece, I thought,
‘This is perfect. Exactly the kind of opponent I need.’
Having only focused on studying for the past three years, my martial arts training had stagnated. However, that didn’t mean I was regressing. On the contrary, through the Thunder Spirit Classic, my concentration and vitality had greatly improved, leading me to instinctively believe that, given the right opportunity, my martial arts would surge dramatically.
What I currently needed was the process of merging my powerful internal energy with martial arts.
I required practical experience.
After acquiring the internal energy of the Thousand-Year Snow Silkworm, I found no worthy opponents to spar with, so this martial training would be of great benefit to me.
After finishing my meal, I decided to stay at the inn. If I ate and lodged here, I would likely run out of money in two to three weeks, but before that, I thought I might find an opportunity to challenge someone.
My method of choice was to challenge the martial arts school directly!
I wanted to confront the formidable Twin Gate Sect in Luoyang and spar with their top masters. Although it would be nominally a friendly duel, it was clear that they would give it their all for the sake of their honor, turning it, in a sense, into a life-and-death struggle.
Moreover, if I could gauge the strength of the masters at the Twin Gate Sect, I could also appropriately assess the capabilities of the high-ranking martial artists working in the Imperial Palace, the Imperial Army, and the Golden Eagle Guards. There was something that Mang Yang had told me.
[The strength of the Golden Eagle Guards? Hmm… If ten of them were to join forces, even a sect elder from the Great Gate Sect would not escape death. In the Inner Palace, at least thirty such Golden Eagle Guards are swarming, so one must avoid direct confrontation.]
“……”
I steeled myself inwardly.
If I couldn’t secure a total victory by challenging the Twin Gate Sect, I shouldn’t even attempt an infiltration operation into the Imperial Palace. If my martial arts were lacking, I had to be prepared to hide and train for several years. I also had to keep in mind the possibility of becoming incapacitated or killed while fighting the Twin Gate Sect and the Iron Blood Great Sword Zhang Seo Yi Han.
But I wasn’t afraid.
Thanks to the Cheonam Biseo, the fear of death felt more exhilarating to me.
Moreover, without knowing the true nature of the Cheonam Biseo, the future would remain uncertain, so stealing the Nameless Ritual Book from the Imperial Palace became a necessary condition for me to succeed. Avoiding it out of annoyance and danger would not bode well in the long run.
‘Proceed with caution.’
That said, I would avoid death as much as possible while maximizing my skills.
And I could start planning once I felt I had reached a new level.
I had resolved to waste ten years in Luoyang.
—————————= Author’s Note —————————=
I made some corrections. I will write diligently!
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