In retrospect, it was quite a coincidence that he received the task today.
Fu Mingxu, who had cut off the communication, was unaware of everything that had happened at Qingheng Sect. He remembered the time and location of the teleportation array, which was only activated once every ten days. While he was secretly marveling at his good fortune in catching up with it, he didn't have time to think about what was happening in Yunhan City.
The teleportation array leading to the floating city is located at the easternmost edge of Dawn City, where it can receive the first rays of sunlight when the world is bright.
Looking at the people arriving one after another, Fu Mingxu was glad that he had arrived early.
Perhaps because it was not easy to go to the floating city, not only humans but also demons appeared in Xiaocheng.
Aside from the demon race, the human race and the monster race have a relatively good relationship and often engage in trade. Humans also do not treat intelligent monsters as slaves under contracts.
This is why the Le Chao brothers felt safe and bold enough to appear in human territory.
The Cangling Continent suffers from a lack of spiritual energy, and after several great battles, most of its rare birds and beasts have disappeared. Now, besides the Dragon Clan, the Feathered Clan occupies the southeastern corner of the continent, and the remaining demon clans also reside in the southeastern part of the continent.
The merfolk live in the depths of the East Sea, bordering the winged race, but there is no direct passage between the two races.
Standing in front of Fu Mingxu was a member of the Feather Clan, dressed in a white robe adorned with silver feathers and with silver feathers in his hair.
However, he didn't know much about the demon race. Apart from knowing that there were some peculiar spiritual plants in the demon race's territory, he couldn't tell which race of the winged race the person in front of him belonged to.
Perhaps because the floating city is not picky about the races that come to exchange goods, Fu Mingxu roughly scanned the surroundings and estimated that there were more than a hundred people and demons present.
There were quite a few people, and he was afraid of arousing suspicion, so he didn't use his divine sense and just looked at them with his naked eyes.
As he pondered these random thoughts, the sun moved across the sky, and time slowly passed until the hour of Si (9-11 AM).
Two beams of light, one white and one blue, landed in front of everyone. Fu Mingxu looked up and saw Li Chixue approaching with sword energy. Standing opposite him was a man with extremely handsome features.
As if sensing someone staring at him, the man tilted his head slightly, revealing his light blue pupils. In the sunlight, the deep blue of the few light scales at his temples and the light blue of his pupils complemented each other beautifully.
Mermaids are indeed unique and beautiful creatures of the deep sea. Just a side profile is enough to make many people's minds wander, as if they are stunned by their beauty.
If Meng Shui hadn't managed to conceal his appearance, Fu Mingxu, with his cultivation level, would never have been able to leave the Demon Realm.
Li Chixue didn't notice the "spectacle" caused by the mermaid Meng Lian's appearance. He glanced at Fu Mingxu's position without leaving a trace. The other party was still wearing a veil, making it impossible to see his face. He stood tall in a green robe, like a green bamboo in the wind, with his own unique style.
Meng Lian was already used to his ignoring her, and chuckled, lowering her voice to say, "Fellow Daoist Li is indeed resolute."
Li Chixue knew what he meant, and said dismissively, "The time has come, let's begin."
At the exact moment of the hour of Si (9-11 AM), Fu Mingxu saw a human and a mermaid standing in front of him simultaneously unleash two streams of spiritual energy towards him, and then form hand seals.
A breath after the hand seals ended, the shape of the teleportation array appeared, and a light blue ripple flowed like a tide from beneath everyone's feet. The instant the ripple reached their feet, Fu Mingxu seemed to smell the unique salty smell of seawater.
The light blue ripples stopped where the last person stood, although the water ripples under everyone's feet increased, as if the sound of ocean waves could be heard.
A water curtain formed at the outermost edge of the group. The pulling force of the teleportation array was somewhat unsettling. Just as Fu Mingxu was surprised to find that Li Chixue had not left the teleportation array, the teleportation power was activated instantly, and the surrounding space became distorted.
A burst of golden light descended from the sky, landing with a tremendous sound, and Han Tao's black robes fluttered in the fierce wind that rose from the ground.
Just before Fu Mingxu's figure disappeared, his gaze met a pair of golden eyes.
His golden eyes churned with intense emotions, and the darkness beneath them seemed to form a vortex that could devour a person; a single glance was enough to send chills down one's spine.
A note from the author:
Han Tao: I've found you.
Fu Mingxu: You can't see me, you can't see me... Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2022-05-06 16:24:32 and 2022-05-08 16:03:51!
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 67
The stagnation during spatial teleportation blocked out sound. In the instant the teleportation array ended, Fu Mingxu only had time to subconsciously open and close his mouth twice, lip movements forming the words "Han Tao".
Then, under the gaze of the golden eyes, his figure disappeared.
For some reason, Fu Mingxu's heart was pounding, and when his feet touched the ground after the teleportation ended, he felt unsteady.
Many people around saw Han Tao arrive. His golden eyes were so bright and cold that those who knew him dared not speak out, while those who did not know him only muttered to themselves, mistakenly thinking he was a great demon of the demon race.
Suppressing the pounding feeling in his heart, Fu Mingxu made no unnecessary movements, looking just like a cultivator who had arrived in the floating city.
Once the teleportation ended, the others didn't think much of it. Li Chixue glanced at him from afar, but her veil obscured her vision, so she couldn't see the expression on his face.
He naturally recognized Han Tao, and the other party recognized him as well. The glint of light in Han Tao's golden eyes that was directed at him was nothing but cold ferocity.
"We've arrived at the floating city. You're all free to do as you please." Meng Lian's light blue eyes lingered on the island before her, her voice seemingly tender and affectionate. "The return teleportation array will open at the same time in half a month. I hope you'll still be willing to go back then."
After saying that, he gave Li Chixue a meaningful look and then disappeared from the spot.
Many people chuckled, thinking that the floating city he described was so beautiful that people would linger there.
Beneath the veil, Fu Mingxu frowned slightly upon hearing this. He always felt that the mermaid's narrow, light blue eyes held a hint of wickedness when they flashed with interest.
He glanced at the people around him and saw that they had already dispersed and no one seemed to think anything was wrong.
The floating city is not as its name suggests; it is actually an island floating in the sea.
As dusk settles and the setting sun casts its rays, a fiery orange hue spreads across the sky beneath a sky ablaze with crimson, infusing the azure sea with the crimson hue of the sunset.
Looking at the boundless sea, Fu Mingxu felt as if even if he had wings, he would never be able to fly out of this ocean.
"What are you looking at?" Everyone had left, and Li Chixue noticed that he was staring at the sea without moving. "Thinking about Lord Han?"
"What?" The vast ocean seemed to be so captivating that Fu Mingxu didn't even notice the person who had come next to him.
The orange-red of the setting sun still lingered on his brows, and even his clear black and white eyes were tinged with a touch of vibrant red.
Li Chixue's breath hitched, but she didn't lose her composure for long. She stepped forward and stood right beside him, her voice as cool as seawater: "I saw Lord Han."
In a fleeting glance, he knew that the other person was looking for Fu Mingxu.
However, the teleportation array connecting Xiaocheng to the floating city was closed, and the other party didn't know when they would find their way here.
The waves on the sea rose and fell continuously, accumulating to form even larger sprays. Driven by the sea breeze, these sprays continued to move forward, transforming into giant waves that crashed over us.
Fu Mingxu's heart skipped a beat, but his steps did not falter even slightly.
Sure enough, when the giant wave crashed over, it was as if it had hit a transparent barrier. The sound of the seawater "splashing" rang out, and the giant wave burst open instantly, only to turn back into waves and disappear into the seawater in a short while.
The waves repeatedly crashed and dispersed, creating a unique and beautiful scene in the floating city.
It took Fu Mingxu a while to come to his senses. He nodded to Li Chixue and said, "I saw it too."
An awkward silence fell between the two. Li Chixue twitched her fingers, then composed herself and said nothing more.
In truth, Fu Mingxu didn't know if Han Tao would come, or how he would come, but he remembered why he had come here. Although the teleportation array wouldn't reopen for another two weeks, it was always good to find out the information he wanted as soon as possible.
He shook off his chaotic thoughts and then, as if remembering something, asked, "Why didn't you go back?"
Just as Li Chixue was about to answer, she caught sight of merfolk in the sea behind him and changed her tone: "The scenery here is so beautiful, let's buy some local specialties before we go back."
Specialty products? Fu Mingxu inexplicably thought of the Mermaid Pill, and was about to speak when a resonance came from his divine sense.
He felt that familiar fluctuation, and a sudden sense of tension arose in his heart.
Across the vast ocean, their spiritual connection was established.
After the connection was established, the questioning that Fu Mingxu had imagined did not occur; instead, there was a long silence on the other end of the connection.
"You've come out of seclusion so quickly?" After calming down, he resignedly took the initiative to speak. Before the other party could question his abrupt departure, he guiltily changed the subject, "Did you take the pills I left for you?"
Just in case, he refined a pill for Han Tao to stabilize the dragon's soul.
The person on the other end finally broke the one-way telepathic communication, their voice deep yet devoid of coldness: "Are you talking about the ninety Heart-Cleansing and Desire-Severing Pills you left behind?"
Upon hearing this, Fu Mingxu nearly choked on his own saliva.
How could he forget that he did indeed refine ten batches of the Heart-Cleansing and Desire-Severing Pill?
However, his success rate in producing pills was 100%, and without realizing it, he left a full ninety pills for Han Tao.
"Of course not, that was just for you. The message I left didn't say you should eat it now." He licked his back teeth, his fingertips fidgeting inside his sleeve. "Eat the Yangpo Pill."
Li Chixue walked alongside him at a distance that was neither too close nor too far. She saw a slight smile on his lips, like a lotus shrouded in mist revealing its hidden beauty.
But Fu Mingxu's smile quickly faded, because Han Tao told him in his mind, "I didn't eat. My dragon soul is in a bit of pain, probably from forcibly leaving seclusion."
Fu Mingxu paused, his smile froze, and before he could speak, he heard the other person say again, "Don't wander around in the floating city. We'll talk when I get there."
After saying that, he abruptly cut off the transmission of his voice in one direction.
Fu Mingxu felt a surge of mixed emotions, a mixture of anger and guilt, and then he suddenly realized that his act of running away on his own was wrong.
At the very least, we should wait until he comes out of seclusion, especially since he's here to forge a flying artifact for me.
Now that she's out of quarantine, should she just obediently wait for him to "sleep" with her?
Fu Mingxu recalled the secret manual that had disappeared from Han Tao's palm; the manual was as thick as his outstretched hand.
Thinking about it this way, he felt that leaving temporarily was not a mistake.
But then he couldn't help but recall what the other person had said about the dragon soul being a little painful, and for a moment he was filled with worry, his whole being in a state of great turmoil.
Li Chixue had no idea what he was thinking. Seeing him stop and not move, she asked, "What's wrong?"
Fu Mingxu naturally wouldn't tell him these things. He only glanced at the cultivator not far away and replied, "It's nothing. I just feel that this floating city is a bit small."
It's called a city, but it really only has one main road, and you can see the azure blue sky on the other side of the main road at a glance.
He suspected that the small island was prepared by the merfolk to facilitate trade with humans, and that the name "city" was intended to appeal to humans.
On both sides of the main road were small houses of different sizes and colors. He saw the demons he had seen before and went into one of them.
Fu Mingxu continued walking forward, but didn't enter any of the houses. Instead, he carefully observed his surroundings. He noticed that the doors of each house were open, only closing when someone needed to make a transaction went inside. After the transaction was completed, the door would reopen, the person inside would come out, and a new person would go in.
Without exception, everyone who came out was all smiles, clearly having gotten what they wanted.
Fu Mingxu stopped in front of a room and looked at the sign hanging on the door, which read "Registered Household".
"Then I'll go in first." He didn't sense any danger and nodded to Li Chixue beside him.
Li Chixue glanced at the "Ji" on the sign and guessed that he might have come to exchange for some kind of information. He stared at the merman sitting inside for a while, until the scales on the other's tail were about to stand on end, before slowly looking away.
Fu Mingxu went inside, and the door behind him slowly closed.
The luminous pearl on the roof beam emitted a soft light, making the merman sitting in front appear even more gentle, like a handful of water in the vast ocean.
"Please sit down," the other person gestured to Fu Mingxu.
Fu Mingxu did not remove the veil, but that did not prevent him from seeing the silvery-white scales on the other man's temples and the silvery-white fish tail hanging under the table.