Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Jingliu: I... Have a Friend

A few minutes later, the little one was trotting along on her not-quite-short legs, walking briskly down the bustling main street of Cangcheng.

Due to the nature of their development, the Xianzhou weren't particularly large in overall footprint, but their interiors were immensely complex — worlds within worlds.

Grotto-heavens were everywhere. A street that looked barely a block long from the outside opened up into something vast once you stepped inside — towering pavilions lining both sides, crowds flowing like woven silk, stretching what had to be several hundred meters.

And it didn't end there. Step out of one street and you'd enter the next grotto-heaven, just as thriving.

"Well? Cangcheng's pretty prosperous, right?"

Whenever the topic of her hometown came up, Jingliu always felt a little surge of pride. The Luofu may have been the foremost Xianzhou that ushered in the Age of Longevity, and the Yaoqing may have been the military powerhouse, but when it came to prosperity and commerce, Cangcheng was number one.

Wangshu's focus was on something else entirely. "Come to think of it, I've always had a question — does your Cangcheng have a Guardian Revered Spirit?"

The light on Jingliu's face froze.

Wangshu saw her reaction, immediately seemed to understand, and nodded. He didn't press further.

"You... didn't know about this before?"

Little Jingliu turned around to face him, tilting her head slightly. The street was noisy, but not so crowded that walking backward with her hands clasped behind her would cause a collision.

Wangshu was silent for a moment. "Cangcheng is a painful memory for you, after all. I never wanted to make you relive those days, so I rarely asked about these things."

Though in truth, he was just curious. After all, the Seven Arbiter-Generals of the Xianzhou Alliance had been clearly established as the seven Emanators commanding six Xianzhou vessels.

Jingliu's footsteps gradually slowed. She pressed her lips together, her eyelids lowered. After a moment, she silently turned back around and resumed walking, no longer facing Wangshu.

"It's nothing to be shocked about, really. When the Reignbow Arbiter first bestowed a divine miracle, most people still followed the Firmament Arbiter. As for our Cangcheng... we were always the most prosperous, moving with the times."

"Not to mention, Cangcheng upheld the principle of harmony above all. We'd already entered deep cooperation with the IPC back then. The Amber Palace stands right in the heart of Cangcheng — see, that most magnificent complex over there."

Jingliu rose on her tiptoes, pointing toward the distant cluster of palaces that seemed to rival the heavens themselves — glazed roof tiles catching the light, shimmering like celestial halls among the clouds.

Perhaps feeling that her future self was quite close with Wangshu, she dropped the aloof act. Her voice took on a lilting, theatrical cadence, as if she were a storyteller reciting verse: "Lean on the railing, gaze upon immortal palaces far. A single step rides the clouds of mystic grottoes. Behold the Firmament's towering walls above — the heavenly ramparts stand apart from common peaks~"

Every child raised in Cangcheng could recite this poem to some degree. After all, who hadn't visited the Amber Palace as a kid? Knowing the poem got you in for free.

"So what you're saying is, after the Reignbow Arbiter's descent, the rest of the Xianzhou all unified their direction and turned outward... while Cangcheng was still clinging to 'harmony above all.'"

Wangshu more or less got the picture. "So basically, your Cangcheng was a pushover back then."

Jingliu: ...

Her little cheeks puffed up, but ultimately deflated in a sigh of concession. "You... could put it that way, I suppose."

Whether the Reignbow Arbiter was truly the Xianzhou's hero was debatable — but if everyone was willing to believe it, then it was so!

Nearly everyone in the universe acknowledged the Hunt Aeon as one of the Xianzhou's own. After all, it had only taken a few centuries of warfare after the Aeon's descent for the Xianzhou to gain seven permanent Emanators.

Seven!

One could only wonder whether those who had originally decided Cangcheng should avoid war and focus on the economy had any regrets when they witnessed the Reignbow Arbiter's favor and the birth of the Seven Arbiter-Generals.

The rest of the walk was relatively quiet. By the time the Ten-Lords Commission came into distant view, Jingliu suddenly remembered something.

"Do you know the standard registration process for Outworlders, or... special individuals like yourself?"

She hadn't passed her coming-of-age certification yet, after all. Her understanding of these matters was genuinely shallow.

Wangshu was silent for a moment.

【Bright Future Chat Group】

Wangshu: "@Jingliu, Senior, Senior — emergency help! What's the Outworlder registration process for Cangcheng again?"

Jingliu: "That procedure hasn't changed in thousands of years. Have you been to the Xianzhou before?"

Wangshu: "No."

Jingliu: "Then... are you in a hurry right now?"

Wangshu: "I'll probably need it in about ten-ish minutes."

Wangshu figured they'd handle the history report first — which would almost certainly be dismissed — and then move on to his own registration. Ten minutes should be more than enough.

Jingliu: "...Give me a few minutes."

This was her blind spot too. She hurriedly called out to Jing Yuan, who had been wandering off in a daze.

"What else do you need?"

Jing Yuan turned around, his tone flat. He didn't address her as "Master." Time had passed, things had changed, and certain boundaries had long been drawn. There was no going back.

Jingliu's expression twisted with conflict. "If... hypothetically speaking, I had a friend."

Jing Yuan was silent for a beat, then gave a subtly knowing nod. He understood. Sure — he'd just go ahead and assume his Master had a friend.

"This friend of mine has suddenly appeared on the Xianzhou. Given that they're essentially undocumented, where should they go to register?"

By all rights, someone who'd lived nearly two thousand years ought to know at least something about this sort of thing.

Unfortunately, Jingliu had never paid attention to such matters. Baiheng would have known — her warmhearted nature had helped many outsiders over the years.

Jing Yuan's expression remained blank. "The Ten-Lords Commission. Transient Population Management Division. Every day from 8 AM to 5 PM, there are dedicated registrars on duty."

He hadn't expected this kind of question. A general shouldn't have such trivial details memorized this clearly, but Jing Yuan came from a Ten-Lords Commission lineage. It was etched into his bones.

Could it be that Master was so bored she was going insane, coming here just to make small talk?

Jingliu mulled it over. "What if... this person isn't just passing through, but intends to settle on the Xianzhou permanently? Are there any prerequisites or things to be aware of?"

Jing Yuan: ...

He rubbed his brow, finally unable to hold back. "Master, did you leave behind a child out there somewhere?"

Before this, her every action had been so ruthless and razor-sharp — carrying a kind of manic, reckless abandon. Yet now, at the very end of it all, she was suddenly concerned about mundane matters like settling down and putting down roots?

Besides, even if I tell you all this now, what good does it do?

The Jingliu of today was already a convicted criminal with no freedom whatsoever. Even if everything this so-called friend claimed was true, she likely had no ordinary life left to live.

Adult Jingliu choked slightly on those words, but managed to maintain her composure. "It truly is a friend who asked me to inquire."

Jing Yuan sighed, feeling somewhat exhausted.

"Just give me the name, Master. I'll take care of the rest."

This would also be the last time he openly called Jingliu "Master." For the sake of their shared past, he'd help look after that child.

"No, they're... not on the Luofu."

They're on Cangcheng. Nearly two thousand years ago.

"..."

The corner of Jing Yuan's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly. You won't even place the child on the Luofu? Is it that you don't trust me, or is there something else going on?

"Even if I tell you everything now, how would you relay the information?"

"I have my ways."

Jingliu's answer was brief and certain.

Jing Yuan didn't know whether to believe her, but in the vast sea of stars, perhaps there really were methods of communication he was unaware of.

Maybe it was a blood connection...

"Does this child have anyone on the Xianzhou who can vouch for them?"

"Yes."

...So you actually planned quite thoroughly, Master. And yet amid all that meticulous planning, you somehow forgot the most basic registration step?

"Then it's much simpler. I'll try to explain it as plainly as possible."

【Bright Future Chat Group】

Jingliu: "It's not complicated. I'll try to explain it as simply as I can — just ask if anything's unclear."

Wangshu: "Senior, you're so reliable!!!"

Asta: "Ms. Jingliu really is warmhearted!"

Jingliu: "..."

Wangshu: "..."

Jingliu: "..."

Asta: "Hey, hey, hey!"