Ciwood City

Days passed in this fashion, and contrary to William's expectations, nothing similar to the Terrorghoul encounter happened.

At the moment, William and the others are in the borders of the Draetrohan Empire. The coachman was taking care of the paperwork so they can enter while Dustin and the guards stayed inside the carriage.

After showing the unique insignia of the Godfrey Clan, the border guards allowed for William's carriage to enter and very soon, the outside views started to change.

No longer was there the endless mountains and woods, instead, human settlements came into view, as expected, most of the houses and other buildings were of the medieval ages.

They were manors and cottages with the tallest being only three or four floors.

Seeing these buildings, William felt kind of tranquil and at ease. He was long tired of the skyscrapers and bustling cities of earth so a change like this is definitely something he appreciates.

"William, this is the Draetrohan Empire ruled by Eternal Emperor Draetrohan. We're heading to the Ciwood city which is only a few kilometers away from our current location, my friend Deirain lives there." William nodded as he wondered to himself, 'What kind of figure is Draetrohan for him to be titled an Eternal Emperor?'

After the time it takes an incense stick to burn, William and the others finally arrived at the Ciwood city. Unlike the previous settlements they passed by, the Ciwood city was enormous.

It spanned for hundreds of kilometers and it would definitely dwarf the biggest cities of earth in size. William was astonished at it's enormous size, he thought that the Godfrey Clan's estate was big enough but the Ciwood city is definitely on an entirely new league of it's own.

He wondered if one of the Draetrohan Empire's cities are this big, then how big must imperial capital be?

The Ciwood city is a hub for merchants, people from the nearby regions would come here and trade for goods. As a result, the streets were quite populated. There were tons of stalls and shops selling various things that caught William's attention.

Although William is considered to be ninteen years old mentally, his eyes couldn't help but sparkle when he saw the collection of items and goods being put up for sale. After all, he was new to this world and his one year old body was still in the midst of development, it had some effects on him in one way or another.

He was intrinsically a very curious person, and if you add on top of it his developing brain which is like a sponge ready to absorb all things alongside the infant-like hormones being produced by his one year old, his curiousness and inquisitiveness reached unprecedented heights.

Even his father, Dustin, was starting to get tired from William's non-stop questions. He even starting thinking how nice would this trip be if he didn't bring his son.

In these busy streets, the two Kelpie horses naturally slowed down, no longer were they moving at absurd speeds, instead they walked slowly, allowing William to intake more of this new civilization and broaden his horizons.

William wanted to go down and explore the streets, but unfortunately his father did not approve of his request.

One area after another passed by, and each one was unique in every way.

There were animals, beasts and monsters being put up for sale. They had weird, strange and distinctive appearances, some had wings, some had horns, some were giants and some were tiny. However, none of them were Godbeasts. After inquiring about this matter from his father, William found out that Godbeasts were as rare as Immortals and Cultivators. Catching them is almost impossible without the right means or the necessary strength, and even if one caught a Godbeast, who is in the right mind to sell it?

Godbeasts were priceless, and tamed ones like the Kelpie horses should not even be discussed. Only royalty and Immortals can have the luxury to ride such horses.

There were also weapons such as axes, swords, spears, shields, bows etc... They shone lustrously under the sunlight, and some had strange properties that made William wonder whether these weapons were made of the same material from earth or not.

There were varios herbs, medicine, pills, plants, food and all sort of stuff you couldn't even imagine. Seeing the wonderous items put up for sale, William's desire to go out and explore grew only more deeper, alas the only thing he can do is let out a sigh.

"We arrived." The coachman's voice could be heard from the outside.

William and the others got off the carriage, what welcomed them was a fancy manor surrounded by a beautiful garden.

Deirain is an exalted Immortal, and wherever he goes he will be reverred and respected.

Although it seems as though William is surrounded by Cultivators and Immortals, it's because he is a member of the Godfrey Clan and both his parents are Immortals as well. Naturally he will grow up unlike any other person, it must be mentioned that not even the princes and princesses of the Draetrohan Empire can meet Immortals casually.

Since Deirain decided to bless the Ciwood city with his presence and reside in it, his status is without a doubt illustrious. Naturally, even in the middle of such a bustling city, he will be given such an estate.

When William looked around, he found out that all pedestrians were looking at him with curiosity, fear, awe and reverence. He found it a bit uncomfortable but it's not a feeling that he could not get used to.

The coachman stood to the side and acted like an obedient servant, however, an imperceptible light flickered in his eyes. On the other hand, the three guards surrounded William protectively.

The Godfrey Clan could be said to be on par with the Draetrohan Empire in terms of strength and prowess, however, they have a pitiful amount of members in comparison. As a result, each and every single member is cherished, and the protection that would go towards them is unlike anything before.

Although Dustin brought only one servant and three guards with him, they were more than enough. After all, in this world, personal strength is what matters the most. Sometimes one single person can triumph over ten thousand mortals with ease, and some extremely powerful lone Immortals or Cultivators can be on par with superpowers such as the Godfrey Clan or the Draetrohan Empire.

The gates opened and a servant exited Deirain's manor and welcome William and the others.

"Master invites you inside." The servant said courteously and acted in a very careful manner, not daring to raise her head to look at the guests.

William and the others proceeded inside, entering the manor. It was what you expected from a medieval mansion, luxurious interior, paintings and other fancy miscellaneous decorations.

On top of the stairs was a bald middle-aged man who was wearing a formal attire, he looked towards Dustin with a warm expression on his face as he said enthusiastically, "Dustin! It's been a while, how have you been?"

Hearing this, Dustin laughed as he repied, "I've been good my friend! What about you?"

The bald middle-aged man was Deirain, someone who fought with William's father back-on-back. They shared many life-and-death experiences together and their relationship could be said to be even deeper than brothers.

Both hugged each other, and after exchanging few pleasantries and catching up. Deirain looked towards William and asked, "Is this your new-born child?"

"William Godfrey greets you uncle Deirain." William took the initiative to introduce himself.

Deirain was caught a bit off-guard, he looked towards Dustin and laughed, "Oh! I didn't expect your child to speak so fluently at such a young age, how old is he? One-year old? That's amazing."

Dustin's chests puffed in pride as he replied, "You didn't know? My child learnt how to speak more than ten months ago! It only took him two months to learn how to speak, read and write, he's truly a genius the likes of which I've never seen before."

Deirain couldn't help but look at Dustin questionably, after confirming the veritability of this matter, he sighed in astonishment.

"I'm truly amazed, your Godfrey bloodline is astounding. I can't help but envy you."

Even amongst Immortals and Cultivators, the amount of intelligence William showed at such an early age is mind-boggling. When Immortals copulate and give birth to a child, that child will usually exhibit some extraordinary capabilities however William was far too intelligent and his memory was way too good.

The reason why people didn't suspect him of anything is because of William's parents, both Dustin and Cecilia are illustrious Immortals, one is a dual-practitioner who cultivates Body Forging and Ki Refining while the other is a Ki Refiner.

However, Deirain knows Dustin way too well. He knows that both Dustin and Cecilia can not produce such a dazzling genius due to the rank of their cultivation bases, that's why he said that Dustin's Godfrey bloodline is astounding.

He suspects that William, by pure luck or coincidence, activated the hidden intricacies of the Godfrey bloodline, allowing him to gain supernatural intelligence that allowed him to learn how to speak, read and write in just two months right after being born.

The founder of the Godfrey Clan is truly a terrifying figure, his cultivation base was unfathomable and even the Eternal Emperor Draetrohan is not a match for him in terms of strength, naturally the offspring of such a person would be exceptional.

Little did they know that William is an adult who got reincarnated into this world, if they find out about that, who knows what will happen to William...

Both Deirain and Dustin engaged in talk while William stayed to the side, listening to the two Immortals... After a while, he got bored out of his mind and asked his father, "Dad, I want to go outside and explore the city."

Dustin was interrupted mid-way in his sentence, he looked at William sternly and just when he was about to refuse his request, Deirain said, "The Ciwood city is my home turf, Dustin, why don't you let your child explore the city?"

Dustin grumbled, after some persuasion from Deirain's part, he finally agreed to let William go outside, he threw a leather pouch filled with gold coins to William and basically allowed him to go on a shopping spree. Naturally, William was elated. Not only is he going to look at the various merchandise in the Ciwood city, he also has the opportunity to bring some to his home and study them later on.

"I'll have the royal guards accompany your child just in case." Deirain added, his status as an Immortal is not something to be underestimated, since such an illustrious figure decided to live permanently in the Ciwood city, a territory belonging to the Draetrohan Empire. The royal family and the various princes would naturally do anything to get Deirain under their wing, thus not only did they reward him with such a large manor, they also assigned a squad of royal guards to him as curtesy.

"Hmph, you think a bunch of mortals who are neither Ki Refiners nor Body Forgers are worthy of protecting my child?" Dustin looked towards the three guards and the coachman belonging to the Godfrey Clan, although these four figures look ordinary, one guard was a Body Forger while the other three were Ki Refiners. William wouldn't have to worry about his safety with those four around.

Naturally, the four understood Dustin's visual cue. The guards escorted William to the outside while the coachman disappeared in the shadows.

After William left the manor, Deirain looked at Dustin and couldn't help but say, "I didn't expect the cold-blooded Dustin to have a side like this."

"What do you mean?", Dustin raised an eyebrow.

"I mean, look at you, when we adventured together, you were a block of ice who wouldn't even bat an eye when killing someone. But now, you look at this child of yours with deep care and love. If the people who refer to you as the Blood Swordsman saw this side of yours, they may as well die from the mental shock."

In the streets of the Ciwood city, William alongside the three guards were strolling around and looking at the various merchandise being put up for sale.

After walking around for just three minutes, something already caught William's attention, he walked up to a stall that was selling weird and strange herbs. It was the likes of which William have never seen before.

What caught William's attention was ginseng-like herb that seemed to embody the starry sky itself, it had a pitch-black body and little white dots all over it, seemingly depicting stars and other celestial bodies.

At first, William thought someone colored it that way but upon noticing that the stars in the ginseng were moving in a cycle, he immediately went up to the stall, pointed his fingers towards that ginseng and inquired about it.

"Hello sir, can you tell me what is that?", since it was a toddler who asked this question, the merchant was going to dismiss it and ask William to shoo away however, when he saw the icy expressions of the three guards, he put on a friendly expressions as he explained the star-like ginseng with pleasure and patience, "Young sir, this is a three-roots constellation spiritual ginseng. It is plucked in the underground hot springs of the Ursa Major mountain region in the east and takes up to three hundred years to form. The three-roots constellation spiritual ginseng is a vital component for concocting medicine that relieve stress and pain, and sometimes can be used as a complimentary component to make muscle-strengthening pills."

Although the three-roots constellation spiritual ginseng have an amazing appearance and a striking name, it is by no means an Immortal treasure. In fact, it's just a slightly rare ginseng unique only to this world, the only reason why William was attracted to it was because of it's appearance.

"Mhm." William nodded as he looked at the other herbs and plants, other than that three-roots constellation spiritual ginseng, everything else looked pretty ordinary, although there were tons of herbs and plants William didn't recognize, he didn't think much of it.

This world was unique and richer than earth, plus, he is not that specialized in this particular field, so it's only ordinary for him to not recognize some herbs and plants.

William moved to another shop, this one was selling all kinds of weapons, ranging from swords and spears to crossbows and shields. Some weapons shined brightly, and some looked extremely ordinary while some others were pulsing weirdly, as though they have veins underneath pumping blood constantly.

When William entered the shop, he was caught a little bit off guard by the wide variety of the weapons, naturally, they were unlike anything he have seen before.

"I wonder what kind of material these weapons were made of?" William couldn't help but murmur when he looked at the strange properties of these weapons.

The Body Forger guard, Noy, heard William's 'question' and answered casually, "Young master, rare ores such as adamantite, orichalcum and cobalt. Although they look extraordinary, they are just weapons used by slightly stronger mortals, and compared to the Magical Artifacts used by Immortals, they are pretty much worthless."

"Hmm I see." William replied, he strolled around the shop for a while before he moved on.

Although his father gave him around one hundred gold coins, he didn't buy anything. It looks like a lot of items and treasures caught his attention, but he was merely fascinated and curious, nothing he saw was something he deemed fit and worthy to him in the long term.

What he's looking for right now is either knowledge that could not be found in the Godfrey Clan's library such as clues or information regarding Immortals and Cultivators. Stuff like that is priceless, and even the Godfrey Clan's library does not mention information like that.

In fact, despite William spending more than ten months reading books non-stop, he did not stumble upon any information regarding Ki Refining, Body Forging, cultivation paths, Dao, Divine Power and Ki.

To William, everything pertaining to Immortals and Cultivators was shrouded in fog. Despite him being surrounded by Immortals and Cultivators such as Dustin, Cecilia, Deirain and the three guards, he only managed to learn superficial information such as introductory knowledge.

During the journey to the Draetrohan Empire, William kept nagging at his father, asking to teach him about how to become an Immortal just like him. However, Dustin refused and insisted that he's waaaay tooo young, he should wait until he becomes at least sixteen years old before he embarks on the path of cultivation.

"Sigh." William sighed, he kept exploring the city, looking for anything useful. In fact, he entered quite a few libraries and similar establishments, only to leave disappointed.

He noticed that their catalog and selection is lacking greatly compared to the Godfrey Clan's library, at least his clan's library had some bits of information pertaining to Immortals and Cultivators such as journals, stories and brief mentions of information such as the existence of spiritual roots, etc...

However, the libraries of the Ciwood city view Immortals and Cultivators as the stuff of the legend, figure and beings that only exist in myths. Naturally there were stories about them, but they're way too 'fake' and 'unreal'.

"Uncle Noy, why is information regarding Immortals and Cultivators is guarded so tightly? The books and people here do not even believe in their existence." William couldn't help but ask guard Noy.

Noy was pretty friendly, and during the long journey to the Draetrohan Empire, he told William about his journeys and adventures in order to pass time, thus William had some good feelings towards him.

"Hmmm", Noy scratched the top of his head, "All I know is that the superpowers of the Southern Domain unanimously agreed to bar the path of Immortality and make it extremely hard for mortals to become Immortals and Cultivators."

William was caught off guard by Noy's reply, if all the people can become Immortals and Cultivators, the world will prosper and most of the world's problems will end. No longer will children and widows suffer from cold and hunger, no longer will people have to worry about disease or short lifespan, everyone will be happy.

However, after thinking about it carefully, William realized that things were not as simple as it looks like. The reason why the superpowers of the continent guards information pertaining to Immortals and Cultivators tightly is most likely the classic case of not wanting to share cultivation resources and treasures.

Both Ki Refiners and Body Forgers need an immense amount of treasures and resources to sustain their cultivation, these resources are most likely limited and the superpowers of this continent would not want to share these resources with others.

Plus, if too many Immortals and Cultivators appeared, fights over resources will ensue and the continent will be thrown into a mayhem.

Or they don't want any unknown variables to pop up.

In this world, one individual can triumph over an organization all alone, without the need of external aid. Immortals possess unfathomable powers, one extremely powerful Immortals can theoretically be the match of an entire continent all by himself.

The organizations and superpowers of the continent will probably want to minimize the appearance of such figures by limiting information and barring the path to Immortality, they want to recline in their comfy seats and enjoy their powers, looking down at the mortal world with contempt and disdain from their lofty positions.

Or it can be another reason entirely, something William couldn't even think of.

'I wonder if I wasn't reincarnated into the Godfrey Clan, but instead to a poor or rural family, would I still be privy into Immortals and Cultivators?' William couldn't help but think how will he be if he was born into an ordinary farmer village, just like earth.

Once he reaches adulthood, he will most certainly become an Immortal just like his father, and it's all thanks to his status.

Birth truly dictates fate.