The Laws of Cultivation: Qi = MC^2

I sat in my carriage, looking out the window, as the Azure city began to appear in the distance. Houses began to appear all around us, the grass still alive, with a light layer of frost covering the leaves as the only sign of winter. And with every step closer, I could feel warmth returning, like the oncoming wave of spring, as new life burst forth after the cold long winter months.

After learning more from Xianwu, I knew this to be a result of the Azure Dragon’s presence. It made sense too. Spring was the epitomic representation of life. And the Azure Dragon was the Divine Beast of Spring and Wood, two things most strongly connected to life. The abundance of Qi in the air, and the flowering plants that covered the trees with blossoms slowly drifting across the skies, made the city look like a veritable paradise.

The skies were blue— or rather, azure. The houses shared a similar color scheme. Shades of blue covered the city, even from a distance, mingling with the pleasant look of the trees and the skies shining with a bright sun up above.

Amidst all of that, within the grand city that spun outwards in a cobweb of streets and houses, towering over and watching over this entire place was the Jade Court. The palace was massive, and could be seen even from the outside, rising up above the city with its inner and outer grounds taking up the entire central area.

In many ways it was a world of its own, inside those grounds. The emperor’s eternal spring garden, inside the city of immortals.

As our carriages rolled past, my eyes began to look at the people walking by. Had this been any other place, any other city, even one of the seven celestial peaks then we would’ve seen mortals and children watching in curiosity as a caravan as big as ours passed by.

Here, none looked twice. The sight of a regional lord arriving in the city was rather mundane apparently, with few glancing in our direction, or being particularly impressed by the mystical carriage the Lord sat in.

That wasn’t the only thing curious here either. The second thing was… there were no mortals in this city. All those who walked by were cultivators. Many were in the second circle, and quite a few were in the third.

What would’ve only been seen in talented individuals or powerful elders was seen here in people of roughly my own age.

Given my current ability, I would rank somewhere in the eighth realm. An impressive feat that would make me an unparalleled genius on the Seventh Peak.

Here, I was merely a genius at best. Certainly, still an impressive feat nonetheless, but not anything that couldn’t be matched by equally talented people.

Even the youngest children I saw, dressed in bright colored robes, held Qi in their core. Not all of them had broken through into the first realm, but they possessed Qi nonetheless. They were not mortals, and they would never be.

It was truly like watching a paradise slowly unfold in front of my eyes. The city was massive in size, and the roads we traveled on were paved and layered with stones to allow for smoother travel. Celestial carriages moved around the city constantly, with people delegated to sidewalks to clear the way for them.

It was the kind of infrastructure you only saw back home after the advent of cars, and was something that was lacking in all the other cities or towns I had been to in this world. But here it was, showing me what the greatest city of the great Azure-Jade empire looked like.

There was no wonder that these people were conceited. They held power, the very key to immortality, they lived in a city ruled by the emperor, the literal chosen one of the heavens, with the Azure Dragon watching over them, distant from any threats of demons.

A paradise built upon the suffering, deaths, and corpses of millions. But none would have to see those, buried under the earth and far from the eyes of the people in this city.

The thought soured my mood, and the magical paradise city around me began to appear a little less mystical when paired with the ugly reality it subsisted on. But for the moment, I tried to put the thought behind me, simply taking in the sights.

We passed by many beautiful sights and displays and even something that I was fairly sure was some kind of a pleasure district with immortal courtesans glancing out with their mystical robes, looking resplendent and powerful in their gilded cages.

I couldn’t help but sigh. The hypocrisy of this immortal city was far too evident to ignore, the false glory of its shiny displays too hollow to look past even if I tried to let myself buy into it for just a moment. Perhaps I wasn’t ignorant enough, or perhaps I’d simply seen too many things and could no longer blind myself with ignorance like the rest of the capital did.

The carriages moved rapidly through the paved paths as we went further into the Azure city, now nearing the walls of the Jade Palace itself. For a moment I wondered if we were directly going inside for some reason, but at the last turn, the carriages moved left. After moving just a little further we arrived at a fairly large estate, whose gates opened to welcome us in. Like with anything else, owning this much land in the most popular location within the city was a display of status and power, and this time people did turn to look. Even if only for brief moments of curiosity.

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The garden inside the manor was lush, the cold chilly gusts had been reduced to mild breezes that made the flowers blossom all around. This close to the castle, I could feel the Azure Dragon’s aura much more clearly, and for a moment, I almost felt like the heavens were rumbling in the skies, disgruntled at my presence.

I smiled wryly, wondering if I had just imagined the noise, but feeling amused nonetheless at the thought of the heavens being annoyed that I had managed to arrive at the heart of their reign unscathed.

As my carriage shuddered to a stop, I pulled the door open, stepping out onto green grass. Even though I had my problems with the existence of this city and the cost it asked, I could not deny enjoying the pleasant sensation of spring that emanated within this place, especially after I had nearly died in that winter storm just recently.

Everyone else stepped out of their carriages one by one as well, followed at the end by the Lord. Servants were already moving about and they bowed their heads deeply to him. One man in particular stood out, with graying hair and wrinkled lines that appeared with grace upon his visage. He seemed somewhere in the seventh realm to my senses. “It is my utmost pleasure to welcome you back, my Lord,” the man said, bowing deeply.

“Guoren, it has been too long. I hope you have not had too many difficulties here,” the lord said, speaking in a much friendlier manner than his stature would have him do. The older man gave him a smile. “No such thing my liege, though we would certainly be delighted if you could visit us more often.”

“Work has its demands, you know how it is. But we are pleased to be able to see you again,” Lord Zhou said, putting a hand on the old man’s shoulder, who simply bowed his head again. The man turned to face Zhou Fang next, smiling as well. “The young master has grown into a splendid young man as well. I remember the last time you were here, you asked me to fly you to the clouds so you could capture them,” Guoren said, laughing as Zhou Fang looked embarrassed.

“I was five at the time,” Zhou Fang replied.

“Ah, indeed you were. How time passes by in a blink of an eye,” the man said, before his gaze went towards me, and he bowed his head again.

“It is a pleasure to meet you as well, Lord Jie. The Lord has told me many things about you and your friends. If there is anything you need, please do not hesitate to call on me.”

I dipped my head an appropriate amount as well to the kind old man. “I’ll be in your care.”

As we exchanged words and the servants moved about, the old man also stepped out of the carriage, looking exhausted from the travel. Guoren glanced over to look at him, and his eyes widened in surprise.

“Ah… the Flame Dragon has returned to his home?” He asked.

The old man froze at his words, before looking at the man. “No such thing. This old man is but a humble alchemist,” he said.

Guoren looked at him, his expression going through many emotions rapidly, before he simply settled on a kind smile, as he nodded. “My apologies, it seems I had mistaken you for someone else. Old age is getting to me, haha.”

I glanced towards the old man and Guoren, before deciding to leave that whole topic alone for the moment.

“Let me guide you to your chambers,” Guoren said, taking the Lord, Zhou Fang and me with him. Looking inside the carriage, I made sure to grab my special box before I followed. The others followed behind servants who began to show them around the place as well.

Walking inside the manor, I noticed the beautiful sculptures and paintings present and tastefully scattered all around inside the place. Dozens of servants moved all over the place, doing different things, and carrying items. I left Su Lin to handle taking care of the auction items, trusting him to be able to manage it.

“Are there normally this many people around here?” I asked, looking around curiously.

“No, normally it is just me and a few more helpers. But of course we knew of the Lord’s arrival, and thus hired workers to ensure your stay is as smooth as possible,” Guoren said.

“We will go from here. It is the same chamber as always, is it not?” The Lord asked, as we arrived near one of the larger chambers.

“Yes, my liege. The same one as always,” Guoren said.

The Lord nodded, glancing at me. “You should take some time to rest, Lu Jie. And I do mean, actually rest. There are many things to do, but the body and mind still need some time to recover,” the lord said.

“Is that an order, my lord?” I asked.

“Do not have us make it one,” he said, and I chuckled, bowing my head.

“I’ll head out to my chamber as well, you can show Lu Jie to his,” Zhou Fang said, stepping aside as well.

Guoren nodded, before looking at me. “It is nearby, I will show you,” he said, and we walked a little further, before arriving at a rather luxurious looking room with a large bed and shelves filled with various books. The entire place was laden with Qi and decorated with vases and pictures that would probably be enough to pay for the entire village of Taizhou from any one of them.

“If you require anything, just call my name,” Guoren said.

“Thank you,” I replied, as the older man bowed and left the chamber.

I sat down on the bed with a sigh, feeling the softness of the material. It felt comfortable, almost like I was sitting on a cloud.

Lying down on the bed, I thought over the things I needed to get done. Yet, my thoughts slowly began to fade away against the warmth and comfort of the chamber.

Perhaps a short nap first wouldn’t hurt too much.