Chapter 1260: A Familiar Face
Zhang Lie and Li Qianlin spent a few days enjoying themselves in the Lie kingdom. In the past, because there was always something he had to do, Zhang Lie hadn't availed himself of the sights and scenery of the kingdom, but now he had plenty of time.
Zhang Lie headed to a certain city.
The city was clearly prosperous, and the scent of alcohol filled the air. Zhang Lie puffed up his chest proudly. "This city was built by me and the Lie king, my disciple whom you saw."
Li Qianlin asked curiously, "Why did you suddenly decide to build a new city here?"
Zhang Lie replied, "While the struggle for succession was ongoing, the Lie king didn't have a base of power. To avoid unnecessary trouble, we chose to distance ourselves from the capital, where the fighting and scheming was most vigorous. We decided to build a foundation and conserve our strength before returning, only to find..."
Li Qianlin asked, "Only to find what?"
Zhang Lie shrugged. "Only to find that nothing had gone to plan. The original king had dropped dead—assassinated by the Jinghun clan. The Jinghun clan then manipulated affairs so that the eighth prince could take the throne. The crown prince, shocked by the sudden coup, attacked the capital with his standing army, only to be routed and forced to flee. He ended up coming to us, instead."
By then, Li Qianlin had already guessed what happened next.
"And then you, the current king, and the crown prince all headed back to the capital, where you defeated the nascent coup?"
"You could guess?"
Li Qianlin rolled her eyes. "Anyone could have guessed. Everyone knows who you are—if you were able to destroy even the superior worlds of antiquity, how could a large world hope to stand up against you?"
Zhang Lie smiled. "I wasn't as strong then as I am now, and I had to take even a king of a large world seriously. Only after I had maxed out my disaster gene fragments did I dare to head over to where you were. This world was where I started my journey in the third realm, and it was the most important step in that journey. It does bring back some fond memories..."
Li Qianlin asked, "What made you choose this location? Was it famous for its alcohol?"
"This used to be a desolate wasteland—there was no alcohol whatsoever. However, there used to be a dimensional wormhole by that mountain, connected to a medium-sized world. A tribe of brewers had been located there, and they could brew amazing alcohol that could even confer gene fragments on those who drank it, strengthening their bodies." Zhang Lie pointed toward a mountain in the distance.
As a princess, Li Qianlin had the education expected of royalty, and she quickly understood the economic implications.
"No wonder. You wanted to take advantage of that dimensional wormhole to set up a trading post in this town, to sell the alcohol of the alcohol tribe here and amass a profit in the short term."
"Yes, though things didn't turn out as planned. The Lie king had become king before the town was even finished being constructed, and I had left the world by then. Even so, the Lie king followed my original instructions and developed this town to the city you see today. It's clear that they even forged connections with the alcohol tribe—and they've brought that miraculous alcohol here."
Li Qianlin was very curious about everything around her, and her gaze darted all over as Zhang Lie brought her through the city.
She was fascinated by anything that had to do with Zhang Lie.
"This time, I intend to bring some of the alcohol back with me as a small gift—ah, that's..." Zhang Lie had just stepped inside a tavern when he saw an alien carrying a vat of alcohol.
Li Qianlin asked, "Who's that? Someone you know?"
Zhang Lie raised a hand and yelled out, "Mu!"
Mu turned around and, upon seeing Zhang Lie, revealed a puzzled expression that turned into one of delight.
"Zhang Lie? Is that you? What are you doing here?" Mu gave Zhang Lie a warm hug, which Zhang Lie reciprocated. He then introduced him to Li Qianlin.
"This is Mu, a brewer from that wondrous tribe I told you about."
"Is this your wife?" Mu asked.
Li Qianlin lowered her head, flushing.
Zhang Lie shook his head. "Not yet."
"Oh? Not yet, eh?"
Zhang Lie asked, "What are you doing here?"
"Why, this is my tavern!"
Zhang Lie laughed and patted Mu's arm.
"Not bad, not bad! You've certainly come far since the last time we spoke."
Mu scratched his head and laughed. "It's all thanks to His Majesty. His men came to the tribe one day and sought out cooperation with us, exchanging all sorts of resources and riches for our alcohol. Subsequently, when the worlds merged, there was no longer any need to traverse a dangerous dimensional wormhole, and transporting alcohol became much simpler. Many of the younger members of the tribe brought alcohol over here and started businesses."
Upon glancing at how crowded the tavern seemed to be, Zhang Lie smiled. "It looks like you're doing well."
Mu scratched his head and laughed. "Everyone's doing well. Those of us who left the village to do business in the city have prospered. It's all thanks to His Majesty and the grandmaster for allowing us to ply our trade here. If not for the scaleman world—ah!"
Mu realized that he had made a mistake and quickly corrected himself.
"It's the Lie kingdom now. Who else would have taken us all in? Many of my clan is here now, and almost two-thirds of the people in the city are from my world. We were able to make ourselves at home here very easily, and I can't thank His Majesty and the grandmaster enough."
Mu clearly didn't realize that he was speaking to the grandmaster himself.
"Don't just stand there—come on in! Let me buy you a drink."
Mu dragged Zhang Lie into the tavern.
The two of them had two flagons of alcohol. Mu asked, "How have you been recently, Zhang Lie?"
"Not too bad. I'm almost at a bottleneck in strength."
Mu seemed excited and curious. "You must be very strong, Zhang Lie. Have you ever met the Lie king?"
Zhang Lie nodded. "Of course!"
"Is he really as impressive as the rumors say? That he has a warrior's physique, a scholar's appearance, a golden dragon coiled around him, clouds of fortune by his feet, a mortal god?"
Zhang Lie couldn't help but laugh. "Who has been spreading these sorts of rumors?"
Mu asked, "Is he really not like that?"
"He isn't."
"What's the Lie king like, then?"
"He's a young lad in his prime. Usually, he's a little unassuming, but he can play the role well when it counts. He's been a king for quite some time now, and he does give off the impression of the strong at this point."
"And the grandmaster?" Mu asked.
Li Qianlin countered, "Have you never met the grandmaster?" Do you not even know of his identity?
Mu seemed a little embarrassed. "I'm just a small brewer, nothing more. I've never met the Lie king, so how could I have met the even more mysterious grandmaster? Apparently, many of the court officials haven't ever seen him either."
"After all, the grandmaster isn't frequently in this kingdom," Zhang Lie replied.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢