The Portal of Wonderland

The area of the city that stood in front was considerably large. Shi Mu was in the air, but he still couldn’t see the entire city in one glance despite his excellent eyesight. He had experienced this kind of situation only once before. And, that was when he had set his eyes on the Heavenly Yu City for the first time.

He noticed that the city was crowded with many towering buildings of various styles when he looked from afar. Those buildings were great in number, and were arranged in close order.

There were spacious streets between these buildings; these streets were accessible from all directions. Also, those streets were neat and tidy. An endless stream of people was wandering around these streets and buildings… like innumerable fishes in a creek. So, it could be said that these streets appeared exceptionally lively.

Moreover, there were many small and large rivers across the city. The surface of these rivers looked very limpid with undulating waves and ripples. Small boats and cargo ships were sailing on their surface at the moment. They were loaded with all kinds of goods. Their movement was adding a bit of noise to this city.

“The Rising Sun City deserves to be called one of the biggest cities in the Western Continent. It indeed appears very prosperous, and lives up to its reputation. Perhaps, it’s not inferior to the Heavenly Yu City in any respect,” Shi Mu took a deep breath, and suppressed the stunned look that had just emerged on his face.

“Of course it is. After all, this place is located in the eastern part of the Western Continent. Its location in the eastern part is a vital point since it leads to all directions. Otherwise, the Chamber of Commerce would’ve never set up its General Headquarters here,” Zhong Xiu said.

“It is indeed a good place.” Shi Mu said. He had already learnt about the existence of the Heavenly Wu Chamber of Commerce’s Headquarters from Zhong Xiu during the journey.

“By the way, this city is under the jurisdiction of the Mystical Eagle Tribe; it is one of the top-ten barbarian tribes. In addition, a spatial prohibition barrier has been set up in the sky around the city. So, it would be better for us to get down here,” Zhong Xiu said.

Shi Mu heard these words, and moved his head in a nod. He then patted the Green-winged flying carriage, and made it land in a small valley nearby.

Afterwards, they headed in the direction of the Rising Sun City’s eastern gate on foot.

They saw that there were altogether six active entrances under the East City Gate at this time. And, each entrance had a large number of people waiting in a queue to enter the city.

Shi Mu and Zhong Xiu walked over, and stood at the end of a queue. Then, they started to proceed towards the city gate step by step.

Cai stood on Shi Mu’s shoulder, and was sweeping his gaze all around in a curious manner. However, he looked quite well-behaved at the moment. Also, he didn’t insist on flying away because Shi Mu had already warned him in advance.

However, Cai was soon attracted by two gigantic black-stone statues which stood on either side of the Rising Sun City’s eastern gate.

Both statues were thousands of feet high, and looked vivid and lifelike. They were sending forth a powerful pressure that could shake anyone’s heart and soul even though both of them were inanimate objects. They seemed to be looking at the people below who wanted to enter the city in a manner that made it seem as if two warriors were guarding the city.

The statue on the left was a barbarian man with bare upper body. There was a plume feather on top of his head. In addition, that man had outstanding facial features, and a strong and muscular body; he held a long spear in his hand. The statue on the right was the sculpture of a man with a pair of wings on his back; he held a longbow in his hand. His face was marked with a vigorously heroic spirit. Moreover, his eyes looked bright, and seemed to be exuding a mysterious light.

“Who are these two people? They look so dashing and domineering!” Cai said

“A war had erupted between the Demon race and the Barbarian race thousands of years ago in the Western Continent. It is said that these two had been the two most famous warriors of the Mystical Eagle Tribe at that time. I must tell you something about the Mystical Eagle Tribe… The men and the women of this tribe have one characteristic in common — exceptional beauty! Most of the women of this tribe make the men of other barbarian tribes go crazy over them due to their ethereal beauty. It is said that the Chiefs of many small and medium-sized tribes marry women of this tribe only for glory,” Zhong Xiu explained.

“Elder Sister Zhong… So, you’re basically saying that there are many beautiful women in this city…? That feels so good. Shi Tou, maybe… Ouch, it hurts!” Cai’s eyes brightened up, and he started to express his feelings excitedly. But, he was in the midst of speaking when Shi Mu’s finger flicked on his head, and made him swallow his words back.

“You try to act obediently. Don’t try to stir up any trouble!”

Shi Mu said, and then turned his head to say something to Zhong Xiu. However, he noticed that Zhong Xiu’s beautiful eyebrows were slightly creased, and there was apparently an anxious expression on her face. Then, something crossed his mind, and he said, “Miss Xiu, are you still worried about this matter?”

“Big Brother Shi, I’m fine. It’s just that this Xiu’s mistake is very grave. It was fortunate that you were there by my side. Otherwise, I’m afraid that the Chamber of Commerce’s reputation would’ve been terribly damaged due to my mistake,” Zhong Xiu put on a smile, and said to Shi Mu. However, a trace of apprehension flashed through her beautiful eyes as she spoke.

“You’re still deeply concerned about the lost Star Stone. You don’t need to be anxious about that. I have already thought of a way to deal with this matter. So, leave it to me.” Shi Mu said.

“Big Brother Shi, can you possibly have some means to find out the whereabouts of that woman?” Zhong Xiu asked in a surprised voice.

Shi Mu moved closer to Zhong Xiu’s ear, and whispered something in response.

Zhong Xiu felt Shi Mu’s breath against her ear, and her face got smeared with a reddish glow. But, a look of focus gradually appeared on her face as she continued to hear Shi Mu’s words. Simultaneously, she looked more and more surprised by his words.

“Won’t it have any problem?” she heard his words till the end. Then, she finally knitted her brows, and asked.

“You just do what I’ve told you, and I assure you that you’ll be able to report the successful accomplishment of this mission before the deadline of your final delivery,” It seemed for a second that Shi Mu had said everything in a casual manner. But, he took out a conical bamboo hat, and put it on his head after finishing his words.

“Okay then… I’ll follow Brother Shi’s instructions.” Zhong Xiu’s eyes flashed. She then took out a veil, and wrapped it around her face.

…

They had gotten a general understanding of the situation in the city when they had been outside the city at high altitude. But, they had finally entered the city now. And, their close-range observation made them realize that the barbarian buildings in the city carried more or less the same characteristics that some buildings of the humans would usually display.

There were many pavilions, terraces, and open halls in some of the grand stone-carved buildings. And, all of them were arranged in an unorganized yet graceful manner. They were clearly the imitation of the human race’s architectural style. These building looked inappropriate at a glance. But, a little observation made them realize that the two architectural styles were merged in a manner that complemented one-another. They were exhibiting an exotic sense of beauty.

The dusk was approaching, but the street was still buzzing with the hustle and bustle of people. In fact, the crowd was so dense that the people were jostling one-another on the way.

This city was home to the Mystical Eagle Tribe. Therefore, most of this tribe’s barbarian people had a feather inserted in their heads here.

Most of them had only one plume feather on top of their heads; they were the ordinary people of the Mystical Eagle Tribe. Those who had two or three plume feathers on their heads were the warriors of this tribe. And, the high-ranked people of this tribe usually wore four or more plume feathers. But, Shi Mu and Zhong Xiu hadn’t caught sight of any such high-ranked people so far.

However, Zhong Xiu had already explained the reason beforehand. It turned out that the people with four plume feathers commanded a very dignified and influential position in their tribe.

Also, the men and women of the Mystical Eagle Tribe were indeed blessed with incredible beauty just as Zhong Xiu had mentioned before. In fact, they looked quite conspicuous in the crowd when compared with the people of the other tribes.

The barbarian women of the Mystical Eagle Tribe had a more petite and exquisite figure than the barbarian women of other tribes. Even their attires had a great similarity with humans’ style of dressing. They wore similar kind of short-breasted shirts and long skirts. Their shirts also had long and large sleeves. And, some even wore a gauze jacket. Their snow-white shoulders were partly visible. So, they would attract a lot of attention whenever they would pass by.

Cai’s gaze often swept over the Mystical Eagle Tribe’s women. In fact, he was staring at them with his eyes wide open. He would also make clamorous noise every now and then.

“Elder Sister Zhong, the thing that you had just said indeed seems true! Especially, the clothes of the human race, Tsk Tsk, makes them look incredibly beautiful!” Cai said while fluttering his wings.

“Be honest… you do know that you are staring at these girls, right?” Cai was reprimanded by Shi Mu before Zhong Xiu could give him a reply.

“Hey, Shi Tou, what did you just say to me? Our noble Gossiping Parrot Tribe is a pure and honest tribe. But, birds have that so-called ‘beauty-loving heart’!” Cai wasn’t pleased with Shi Mu’s remarks. So, he started to argue with him.

“I’ve heard that the Mystical Eagle Tribesmen always go out to hunt, and they prefer hunting birds above all others. However, it doesn’t matter to me if you keep staring at others, and make others concerned about their safety,” Shi Mu said.

Cai had been following Shi Mu for such a long time. Therefore, he clearly knew that Shi Mu was trying to scare him. However, his whole body still revealed a fit of shudder due to his cowardly disposition. So, he retracted his wandering gaze for the time being. However, he was still mumbling something in a low voice.

Zhong Xiu watched the quarrel between a man and a bird with a smile on her face. She had often felt that Cai’s frequent jokes and teasing had added a lot of fun and merriment to their journey.

“I can guarantee that Sister Zhong would be the top beauty in this entire city if she were to put on their apparel. In fact, she would look far superior to those gorgeous women of the Mystical Eagle Tribe! Shi Tou, don’t you think the same?” Cai thought of something, and then said.

A flush of shyness rose to Zhong Xiu’s face as she heard these words. Meanwhile, Shi Mu extended his hand, and gave Cai a beating; it sounded as if a chestnut had been cracked. Then, he said in a rebuking manner, “You still aren’t well-behaved!”

It wasn’t long before the curtain of darkness finally hung down.

The people had begun to illuminate the decorative lanterns by now. Therefore, many buildings in the city had started to brighten with all kinds of lights. And, the stream of people on the streets still seemed as if moving back-and-forth.

“Big Brother Shi, it’s already too late. Shouldn’t we start looking for an inn?” Zhong Xiu asked.

“The night view is pretty good here. So, let’s wander around for some time. It’s not important to find an inn right away. However, you must be careful at all times. Don’t get recognized by the people here.” Shi Mu said.

Zhong Xiu nodded. She then took out a long grey gown, and draped it over her body.

In addition, there was already a veil on her face. Therefore, the people certainly wouldn’t be able to recognize her now.

“Miss Xiu, you seem to know a lot of things about this Rising Sun City as well as the Mystical Eagle Tribe. How many times have you been to this city?” Shi Mu asked.

“I’ve visited this city just once. That was when I had barely set foot in the Western Continent. But, I became aware of these things from the conversations of my colleagues in the Chamber of Commerce.” Zhong Xiu replied.

“Oh, that’s right… where is the Chamber of Commerce’s headquarters?” Shi Mu asked.

“The Rising Sun City is divided into many districts. It starts from district No 1, and goes to district No 20. Each district has its own distinguishing features. The Heavenly Wu Chamber of Commerce’s headquarters is situated in the second district. And, we are currently in the districts No 15. This district has many small shops, vendors’ stalls, and hawkers. In addition, the night market streets of this district are also quite famous.” Zhong Xiu said.

Shi Mu nodded, and ran his vision around. He noticed that the shops on either side of the street were indeed small. In addition, he would also see some small stall-keepers on the roadside every now and then.

These small stall-vendors were selling a wide variety of things. These things ranged from the ordinary barbarian tribe’s costumes, clothes, hats, and other things… to various weapons, tools, medicinal herbs, and so on. However, the quality of these things wasn’t up to the mark.

Shi Mu and Zhong Xiu were passing through the street-stall of an old barbarian man when Zhong Xiu was suddenly attracted by a faint light. Therefore, she came to a halt.

The source of that green light was a green bracelet that lay on a certain stall. That bracelet was emitting a faint gleam despite being somewhat old. And, that radiance looked extremely conspicuous in the dim light of the night.

Zhong Xiu was seemingly a little attracted towards it. She picked it up, and looked at it minutely.

Zhong Xiu had spent a short span of her life in the Wonderful Sound Sect. And, she had devoted most of her time there in her practice. So, she had never thought about dressing-up. However, she didn’t know why she was feeling that this bracelet was exceptionally beautiful. In fact, she liked it so much that she was unable to part with it.

“The young lady has good eyesight. This bracelet is carved with green light and unpolished jade. It has exquisite handwork, and is considered a rare thing to see! You won’t find such a bracelet in the entire Rising Sun City. I’m the only one who sells it here!” the old vendor started to explain as he saw her.

“How much is the price?” Shi Mu asked directly.

“Only one-hundred spirit stones,” The old man swept a glance over these two people. Then, he put forth the price.

“Too expensive!” Zhong Xiu frowned, and was about to put down the bracelet.

“I want this bracelet. Help me wrap it up securely.” But, Shi Mu took out a middle-ranked spirit stone from his Vast Earth Ring, and handed it over to the old man.

“Alright!” The old man accepted the spirit stone with a broad and beaming smile. Then, he took out a delicate jade box, placed the bracelet in it, and gave it to Shi Mu.

Zhong Xiu wanted to say something in order to persuade Shi Mu when she saw his action. The words had also come to her mouth. But, she couldn’t bring herself to open her mouth. Consequently, she remained standing in the same place with a blank expression on her face.

“Miss Xiu, come… I’ll put it on your hand.” Shi Mu held the box, and took out the jade bracelet. Then, he supported Zhong Xiu’s jade-like white wrist with his one hand, and gently wrapped the jade bracelet around her wrist with his other hand.

The green jade and Zhong Xiu’s white hand set each other off quite beautifully.

The fact was that this bracelet was neither a magic tool nor a particularly good jade. It was just an ordinary and unpolished jade. And, the carved work on it was also barely acceptable. It was obviously not worth so much money. However, the considerable amount of wealth Shi Mu owned nowadays naturally didn’t allow him to think much about the spirit stones.

The only thing that mattered to him was that Zhong Xiu had taken a liking to it.