68.

"That is Mehull!?"

Standing in front of a city whose walls spanned tens of miles, Yang Ze was stunned for a long time. From the ground, he couldn't even see the city beside the walls that were more than five hundred meters in height. There was only a single giant wooden gate acting as a sole passage to the city. Even that gate was guarded by a number of warriors, each one carefully checking the people making their way inside.

Looking at the long line that was more than a mile long, Yang Ze sighed heavily. Just from the looks alone, the majority of them looked poor. There were a few amongst the crowd that stood out. These types of people were easy to identify as they were cladded with luxurious clothes and jewelry and were followed by a large number of carriages.

"Merchants." This was the word that came up in Yang Ze's mind after looking at them. Looking further, Yang Ze could see some burly figures in the crowd too. There were even many cultivators that were sitting away from the crowd and circulating their Qi.

"Interesting." From the flow of their Qi, Yang Ze could feel the realm they were in. The majority of the cultivators were in the Qi Condensing, with a few in early-stage Qi guiding while a handful in middle-stage Qi guiding. As for the late-stage and peak, Yang Ze couldn't find anyone. There were either none or they were standing Quitely without circulating their Qi.

But even cultivators in the Middle-stage of QI Guiding didn't dare to be presumptuous here. Just like the other people, they stood in the queue silently, waiting patiently for their turn.

"Please... Please let me in... I CAME FROM AFAR..."

"LET ME IN."

A man with tattered clothing was shouting at the top of his lungs. But no matter how much he pleaded, the guards didn't bother listening to him. They just picked him up and threw him to the other side before completely ignoring him.

"Hehe... How can someone like him enter the city? Doesn't he know that just the entrance itself required a considerable wealth?" A fat boy in front of Yang Ze spoke with a sneer. Shaking his head, he looked at Yang Ze from top to bottom before nodding.

"How about you my friend? What brings you here?"

"Huh?" Stunned by this sudden conversation, Yang Ze observed the fat boy in front of him. The person in front of him looked to be around twenty years old. He was cladded from head to toe in a luxurious outfit. The chubby face along with his eyes that were almost closed gave others a feeling of a friendly neighbor. His long hair along with his round face gave him the appearance of a round ball hanging from a tree.

"Just for sightseeing."

"Nice... Nice... Nice..." Shaking his head excitedly, the fatty smiled. "You know, I love traveling too. Traveling is something that helps you ease, it is something that helps you explore new places. It not only helps you relax but also opens up your mind to various possibilities. Traveling is meant..."

"Thank you." Speaking in a hurry, Yang Ze stopped him in the middle of his long speech.

"Mmm." The fatty stood still after being interrupted. However, this silence of his didn't last long.

"Oh! Silly me. I never got a chance to introduce myself. You can call me Xiao Pang. Hehehe... don't think that just because my name is little fatty, you can call me fatty. You see, my name was actually given to me by my grandfather who actually got this suggestion from his friend. Now you might not know who this friend of his was, but let me tell you, he was one of those people you won't find anywhere else. Just his eyes that emit a fierceness... My goodness, even now I am afraid of those eyes. Now... You might want to know how he got those fierce eyes, so let me tell you this... Once when he was walking through the forest...."

"Hey, Xiao Pang, nice to meet you." Rushing forward, Yang Ze held his hand before shaking it in greeting. After smiling at him for a while, Yang Ze stepped back before sighing in relief.

And Just when Yang Ze thought that things were finally quiet, he heard him speak again.

"OH! Hahahahaha... Nice to meet you. Hey, I never got a chance to know your name did I? You see, a name is very important, not only does it helps the other person to keep you in his memory, but it also gives you an identity. An identity that not only proves your existence but also helps you stand out from others. Now think about it. One day you are standing in the middle of the crowd, and someone wanted to speak to you. How do you think they will be able to call out to you? You see, a name is important not only to someone but also to others. A name is...."

"Hua Ji... My name is Hua Ji." Speaking in a hurry, Yang Ze shook his hand again to stop him from speaking further.

"Hua???? Hua????" Frowning his brows Xiao Pang went into deep thoughts.

"Finally... Some fucking peace."

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"AAAH! I remember. Are you from the Hua family of the Ignis City? Well, you must be. After all, your clothes and temperament meet that of a young master of a big family. HAHAHAHAA... You must be surprised as to how I know... Well, I would be too if someone I just meet can tell me about my identity. Hahahaha, let me tell you how I know. You see, I usually travel a lot due to my family business. We deal with all kinds of goods. Everything a normal person or a wealthy person needs, we make sure to provide it."

"Yes, yes, yes I know that we are nowhere near the Numinous Treasure Pavilion, but hey... Those guys only deal in treasures and things that are required for the cultivators, whereas, our family deals with things that both the cultivators and normal people need. Now, you must be surprised by my attitude. You must be thinking, 'hey this guy is so rich, but is so humble'. Hehehehe, let me thank you for your kind thoughts, you are the same as me; humble and down to earth."

Standing beside him, Yang Ze clenched his fists. If not for the presence of people around him, he would have trashed this chatterbox a long time ago.

"Now, where was I? Oh yes. Hua family from the Ignis city. You see, when I went there for business, I also met them, the family has a talented young woman too right? What was her name again? Wait let me check, I have written the names of all beautiful women in my diary..... Yes, found it... Her name is Hua Lin. Hey, do you know her?"

"Yes, you must know her, after all, both of you are from the same family. Hey, how about this? You introduce me to her, perhaps she might fall in love with me and both of us can get married..."

"What's that? You want my notebook? Well, sure you didn't ask for it, but I can read your eyes. Hehehehe... My brother, even though you are my dearest friend, I can not share this with you. This is something this brother of yours got after a lot of blood and sweat. You see the tale behind this notebook is something extraordinary, do you want to hear it?"

"Nevermind, I will tell you. So it happened a long time ago, one day when I was..."

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"and that is why the horses don't eat meat."

"Oh! It's my turn. Talking with you is so fun my dear friend, I didn't even notice the passage of time."

"Erm... Yeah. Sure you shouldn't keep the guards waiting." Yang Ze spoke the words with great difficulty. Right now, only he himself knows how hard he was trying to control his anger. There were even times when he just wanted to rush forward and trash this fatty, but every time he would control himself.

It was only now that he was able to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Your identity please."

The guard was still busy writing on the stacks of papers in front of him.

"Xiao Pang."

As soon as the guard heard the name, his hands trembled for a moment before he slowly raised his head and look at the person in front of him.

"Shit... What bad luck." Cursing loudly in his mind, the guard suddenly stood up and signaled the fatty to go inside.

"Hey, sir... Do you still remember me? We both met a few...."

"NEXT"

As soon as Xiao Pang started to speak, the guard shouted at top of his lungs.

"Your identity?"

Ignoring the sulking Xiao Pang, the guard looked at Yang Ze before asking the question.

"Hua Ji, from the Hua family of Ignis city."

"One spirit stone or a hundred gold pieces for entry. After that, you will have to pay three hundred gold pieces or three spirit stones every month till you buy a property here."

Nodding his head, Yang Ze took out a bag that was filled with gold pieces before placing it in front of the guard.

"Here take this." After counting the gold pieces, the guard picked up a wooden token and carved two words 'Hua Li' on it. Just below the name, he put the time till the token was valid.

"Do not lose it. Also, pay the fee on time to increase your stay. This token is valid for a week only."

Without waiting for him to speak, he signaled him to move forward before shouting again.

"Next."