Chapter 175: Seafaring Lightning Boat
Only after flying for tens of thousand of kilometers did Han Li heave a long sigh of relief.
Judging from the information that he had received from Fang Pan, he clearly still wasn't safe yet, but at the very least, the most immediate threat had been eliminated.
He released his spiritual sense to briefly inspect his surroundings, then flew toward a certain direction.
A short while later, he arrived in front of a large city.
He had changed his own appearance once again, transforming into a young scholar who appeared to be in his thirties. At the same time, he had concealed his own cultivation base entirely, and he was casually fanning himself with a peach wood paper fan as he made his way into the city as part of the crowd.
This city was called Moonview City, and it already belonged to the eastern region of the Primordial Wave Continent.
While fleeing from Fang Pan, he had been traveling eastward the majority of the time, so his eastbound journey actually hadn't been delayed by much at all.
In contrast with a rural city like Seaside City, Mooview City was no less prosperous than Black Wind City, but of course, it was far smaller than the latter.
Another difference between this city and Seaside was that the vast majority of the people here were mortals, while cultivators were far less common. Among the small proportion of cultivators, most of them were at or below the Core Formation Stage, and even Nascent Soul cultivators were quite rare.
Furthermore, all of these cultivators had concealed their auras so that they resembled mortals in the crowd.
Along this journey, Han Li had passed through quite a few cities of different sizes, but aside from Seaside City, the vast majority of those cities belonged to the nations of the mortal world.
Furthermore, it was an unspoken rule in these cities that cultivators had to conceal their auras and refrain from using their flight abilities, all to maintain the order of the mortal world.
The ones establishing these rules were naturally the immortal forces behind the authorities.
Of course, in some of the larger cities, there were some marketplaces that were set up exclusively for cultivators.
As the largest city in a radius of tens of thousands of kilometers, such marketplaces naturally existed in Moonview City as well.
These marketplaces were situated in the southeastern part of the city, and the concealment restrictions set up there were essentially non-existent to Han Li. He was able to directly enter the area, then made his way along a main street that was lined with shops to a tall pagoda constructed from giant white stone blocks.
The pagoda was several hundred feet tall, presenting a grand and majestic sight to behold, and it was giving off a bright white radiance under the light of the sun.
This was where the teleportation arrays of Moonview City were situated.
There was also a shimmering golden palace near the white pagoda, and that was the city's Immortal Outlet.
Han Li made his way directly into the pagoda, and the first thing that he saw on the first floor were five teleportation arrays, each of which was separated by no more than 1,000 feet from the other. The arrays were arranged around the hall in a circulation formation, and there was a golden-robed cultivator stationed beside each array.
The golden dragons embroidered onto their robes were a clear indication that all of them served the Immortal Palace.
Furthermore, there were also several cultivators standing beside each teleportation array, seemingly waiting for something.
Han Li only took a brief glance at his surroundings before making his way directly toward the teleportation array at the center of the hall.
Before Han Li had a chance to say anything, the golden-robed cultivator beside the array smiled as he said, "Please go and purchase a teleportation talisman from over there. Once we have enough people, the teleportation will commence."
Han Li turned to the direction that the golden-robed cultivator was pointing in to discover a long stone table, behind which sat a golden-robed elderly man, and there were several people lined up in front of the table.
The person at the very front of the line just so happened to be in the process of accepting a golden badge in exchange for a small pouch of spirit stones.
Han Li paused for a moment upon seeing this, then immediately turned and left the teleportation hall.
He made his way into a secluded little alley nearby, and by the time he re-emerged, he had already transformed into a middle-aged man with a yellow complexion. Upon his emergence, he strode into the Immortal Outlet before arriving in the room where immortal tokens were arranged.
"Tell me your name and place of origin," a bald elderly man instructed.
"My name is Li Yufei, and I'm from the Precious Jade Mountain Range," Han Li replied in a calm manner.
He had previously set off from Seaside City under the identity of Liu Shi, and there was a chance that someone could track him from Seaside City to Moonview City if he were to use the same identity again. Hence, it was best to switch to a different identity as a safety precaution.
Shortly thereafter, Han Li returned to the white pagoda, and it didn't take long before it was his turn to purchase a teleportation talisman.
The golden-robed elderly man took a glance at Han Li's new immortal token, then asked, "Where do you want to go?"
"Red Lake City," Han Li replied.
……
Thunderclap City was situated on the easternmost coastline of the Primordial Wave Continent, and going any further eastward of the city would take one into the vastly renowned Thunderstorm Sea.
This was a massive city, and due to its location, it was a natural gathering place for all high-grade cultivators who wanted to cross the Thunderstorm Sea to reach other continents.
Given its geographic advantage, it naturally stood to reason that Thunderclap City was an extremely prosperous place. It wasn't the most prosperous city on the entire Primordial Wave Continent, but it could definitely rank in the top five.
Due to its close proximity to the Thunderstorm Sea, the sky above the city was perpetually concealed behind a thick blanket of dark clouds, and occasional flashes of lightning could be seen within the clouds, followed by rumbling thunderclaps.
There was a massive tree planted every few kilometers in the city, and each tree was over 10,000 feet tall. These trees were all of a dark purple color, and their trunks and leaves were all riddled with lightning-shaped patterns.
All of these giant trees had extremely lush canopies that resembled massive purple umbrellas, and together, they were able to encompass the entire sky above the city.
These trees were called Urgent Lightning Trees, and they possessed the ability to absorb and store the power of lightning while being impervious to lightning strikes.
Fearsome thunderstorms took place all year round on the Thunderstorm Sea, and Thunderclap City was often affected due to its close proximity to the sea. If it weren't for the presence of these Urgent Lightning Trees, Thunderclap City would've most likely already been destroyed long ago.
Furthermore, these trees were also able to convert the power of lightning stored within them into light, and as a result, the city was constantly brightly lit regardless of whether it was daytime or nighttime.
At the center of the city was a giant purple pagoda, and around a dozen teleportation arrays were flashing incessantly on the pagoda's first floor as groups of people were teleported away from the city or arriving from other cities.
This first floor was extremely massive, with an area of several thousand feet, but even so, it was still quite crowded.
Right at this moment, around a dozen figures appeared on one of the teleportation arrays amid a flash of light, and one of them was none other than the yellow-skinned middle-aged man that Han Li had disguised himself as.
He followed the crowd out of the teleportation hall, and he couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief as he took in the wide street ahead of him.
After several months of traveling, he had finally gotten to the coastline, and once he crossed the Thunderstorm Sea, he would be able to reach the Ancient Cloud Continent, home of the Blaze Dragon Dao.
Even with the canopies of the Urgent Lightning Trees up above, rumbling thunderclaps could still be occasionally heard.
However, most of the people on the streets displayed any reaction to this, and it was clear that they were already accustomed to this. Only those who were only visiting the city for the first time were still feeling disturbed by the frequent thunderclaps.
Han Li naturally wasn't going to be affected by these thunderclaps, but he didn't take a few extra glances at the collective canopies of the massive Urgent Lightning Trees up above.
Right at this moment, a youthful voice rang out beside him.
"I'm assuming this is your first time here in Thunderclap City. Is that correct, Senior?"
Han Li turned to discover an honest-looking young man not far away from him, extending a salute with a cupped fist.
Han Li didn't say anything, and the young man continued, "My name is Gu Sanming. This is quite a big city with many complex streets, so it can be rather inconvenient to get things done. If you want to buy something or find someplace, I can be of help to you, Senior."
"So you're a guide? I suppose it can't hurt to have one. Tell me this: what is the safest way to cross the Thunderstorm Sea?" Han Li asked.
The young man faltered slightly upon hearing this, and Han Li's brows furrowed slightly as he asked, "Is there something wrong?"
Due to the fact that Han Li had concealed his aura, Gu Sanming was rather taken aback that someone of Han Li's cultivation base would be seeking to cross the Thunderstorm Sea. However, it then quickly occurred to him that Han Li was most likely concealing his cultivation base, and he hurriedly replied, "Not at all. If you want to cross the sea, then you've come to the right person, Senior.
“My cultivation base may be nothing remarkable, but I worked at the Black Feather Trading House a few years ago, and the Black Feather Trading House's Seafaring Lightning Boats are the safest mode of transformation to cross the Thunderstorm Sea. If I recall correctly, a Seafaring Lightning Boat is set to depart in less than three months from now, and there should still be some sports available."
"What is this Seafaring Lightning Boat?" Han Li asked as he raised an eyebrow.
"Ah, please forgive me for not offering an explanation. This is your first time here in Thunderclap City, so there must be many things you're still unfamiliar with," the young man hurriedly said in an apologetic manner.
"It's fine. Seeing as you're so familiar with this matter, why don't you tell me about these Seafaring Lightning Boats? Give me as detailed a description as you can, and if your information is useful, I'll be sure to reward you," Han Li said.
On the way here, he had conducted some research into ways to cross the Thunderstorm Sea, and he had heard about how incredible these Seafaring Lightning Boats were. Now that he had arrived in Thunderclap City, this was the perfect chance to enquire more about this subject.
The Thunderstorm Sea was renowned for how perilous it was, so he naturally had to find the safest way to cross it.
"A Seafaring Lightning Boat is a type of special flying boat crafted specifically for the purpose of crossing the Thunderstorm Sea. Fearsome lightning storms that are comparable in destructive power to heavenly lightning tribulations frequently take place in the Thunderstorm Sea, and a normal flying boat would quickly be torn apart in such storms.
“However, Seafaring Lightning Boats are constructed from extremely lightning-resistant materials, and a layer of Urgent Lightning Tree membrane is applied to the outside. This is a special membrane made from the sap of the Urgent Lightning Tree, and even the most ferocious of thunderstorms won't be able to harm it in the slightest. Hence, Seafaring Lightning Boat can cross the Thunderstorm Sea with a very high degree of safety..."
"I see. How many spirit stones are required for a spot on one of these boats?" Han Li asked.
A slightly hesitant look appeared on the young man's face, and he was carefully gauging Han Li's reaction as he replied, "Given that they're the safest mode of transportation across the Thunderstorm Sea, the required fare is naturally quite steep, costing 500 top-grade spirit stones per person."
"I want to take a look at the boat," Han Li said in an expressionless manner.
The young man's heart began to pound in his chest upon hearing this, and he hurriedly replied, "Please come with me, Senior."
Even though he couldn't discern much from Han Li's reaction, if Han Li were to claim a spot on the boat, then he would receive a handsome reward from the trading house for the role that he played in guiding Han Li.
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