Chương 295: Moonlake City (IX)

As we made our way to the central plaza, so did the rest of the city, it seemed. It was as though the floodgates opened and the rushing waters swallowed the world--except the waters were people, and the floodgates were... well, honestly, I haven't a clue. I knew the city was packed, but this was insane. We were rubbing shoulders within seconds, and before I could even comprehend what was going on, every inch of seemingly every street in the city was suddenly overcome.

Within moments, yelps and screams blared out--people calling out pickpockets, or just somebody being rude, or for seemingly no reason at all... Just about fifty yards in front of us, I watched someone literally get his head ripped off clean from the neck. And yet, the march continued, with nobody seeming to register any of this shit. By the time we'd gotten to the plaza--a somewhat centralized area surrounded by quite a few tall shops--I'd seen at least twenty people die. And yet, nobody cared....

this world's proper fucked, huh? When we got there, my eyes immediately wandered to the slightly elevated platform jutting out of one of the sandstone-made towers--on it were three people, two men and a woman. Well, more a girl than a woman, to be honest, as she looked no older than Wan Lan.

All three had somewhat unique features, more so than any other person I've met thus far--besides the slightly bronze skin, their ears were somewhat pointy and curled back, while earlobes hung low with thick rings spreading them. Their noses were long and thin, and all appeared slightly gaunt with sunken cheeks and deep eyes.

The colors of their hair, perhaps more so than anything else, awed me--it literally looked like someone wove a bunch of tiny LED lights in them, as the hair shimmered in colors ranging from deep teal to burning amber. Gilded jewelry ran above their eyes, woven into their eyebrows, with their clothes reflecting that somewhat garish appearance that I always associated with 'grew up poor, came into sudden wealth'.

Perhaps it meant something different in this world, but to me it screamed insecurities more so than anything else. I'd done a bit of a dummy thing earlier today and spent all but one of my eye charges, which left me in a bit of a conundrum--though I wanted to inspect all three, I could only inspect one. At the same time, I didn't want to spend too many Creation Points, and I had a gut feeling inspecting anyone but the young girl would force me to do precisely that.

But I had another feeling that inspecting her was unlikely to yield anything unexpected. Thus, with furrowed brows and an uncertain heart, the older of the two men spoke up. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Welcome, fellow Daoists, to our humble home," he said.

"You have all come from far away places in pursuit of Dao, and this old one commends you. Life, shorn of false glimmer and sheen, is the search in regression--we seek that which brought us here so that we may never leave. For those who've been here before, welcome back--I hope that your fortunes may be even greater than before.

For those who've come here for the first time, welcome--I hope that you shall fall in love with this place and all its beauty and return every year, even if it is merely to see these streets once more.

"As with every year, understand that, despite our humble origin, we must impose certain rules, as otherwise chaos would reign supreme. Though we can never come between two cultivators desiring a death duel, we implore that you do not engage in fights within the city borders--our Guardian Spirit, kind and benevolent though it may be, can and will be angered, at which point even we will not be able to help you.

Secondly, as with every year, you are free to explore the Moon Lake as far and as deep as you desire, and anything you unearth there will be yours. If you wish to sell it for one reason or another, you may enter any of the Grand Towers and make a sale. We will never divulge either what you sold or for how much.

"Children of my Clan, as every year, are in charge of disposing of the bodies that are left behind--should you come across one, please find one of the members of the Clan and report to them. We shall not ask whether you've found anything on the body, but we implore you that you do not disrobe them; even the dead deserve a mote of respect.

"The festival, unlike years before, will be extended to nineteen days this year. We have prepared two competitions--one between our Juniors and one between those seeking the Dao--that will take place starting with the seventh day. Anyone who wishes to participate may merely show up on that day, when our Guardian will erect the Sky Platforms. For this year's reward, our Clan has prepared a truly special item--a certified Soul Orb, unearthed from a decaying necropolis."

'Oohs' and 'Aahs' quickly echoed out, though I only had to glance over at Long Tao, who literally yawned, to know that, whatever it was, it wasn't all that impressive. To him, at least.

"For unaware first-timers, the first time you come to any of our Alchemist, the treatment will be free--regardless whether it is just one cut or if you are on death's door. Understand, however, that we have a limited number of Alchemists, and that we will always prioritize those closer to death." Everyone clapped for a couple of moments, and I joined, not wanting to be left out.

While his words sound wonderful, and it all appears to be well thought out, why do I have this damned worm in the back of my head telling me that it's all bull?

"Without further ado," he said.

"I shall give the seat to my granddaughter and the future heir of our Clan, Ethereal Rain."... you haven't a clue what 'further ado' means, do you? I almost sighed, actually, just barely holding back as the young woman stood up from her seat and walked forth, grabbing onto the fence.

"While my father has covered most of everything," she said.

"I asked him to make this announcement myself: I have come of age this year, and as an heir, I must seek a companion to herald the Clan's future with me. As such, for the winner of the Junior competition, he or she will have a right to challenge me to a duel--should they manage to defeat me, they will have the right to take my hand in marriage. Should they fail, if I find them desirable, I may take them in as a concubine. Thank you." huh. Yo. What the hell? These things actually happen? Wow.

I could practically feel the temperature abruptly shoot up, as it seemed every person under the age of thirty became extremely motivated. Which, I'm pretty sure, made all of my kids stand out like sore thumbs. But whatever. I've made my decision, and instead of looking at her, I turned toward her father and activated the Creator's Eyes. Lo and behold, it cost 400 points. It wasn't the expenditure so much that hurt (though it did), but the realization that Pànqiū's status somehow cost less.

Nonetheless, I spent it, and as soon as I did... I realized why it was so expensive.