Arc 14: Dayan Empire | Chapter 239: Yaojin Beast
Translator: Lynn
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The Dayan Empire’s capital is Shengyan City. It spans a vast area and is divided into inner and outer cities. The outer city is naturally where many officials and common people reside, whereas the inner city houses the imperial city. This city is where the royal family’s descendants all reside. Unless they are granted a title, they can open a mansion in the outer city and are no longer subject to strict inner-city regulations.
Even though there are many people of various identities mixed with dragons and snakes1Royal descendants and nobles (officials and other positions) in the outer city, they are still classified based on their origins. People of high status naturally do not want to live next to ordinary people. As a result, a long street was opened in the east, divided into several sections, and many houses were built.
One of them is extremely majestic and exudes an aura. The plaque at the gate features four large characters “Mansion of Prince Tiancheng” written in bold strokes with an arrogant aura. This is the home of the Twelfth Prince, Prince Xun Ze, with the courtesy name2A courtesy name (Chinese: 字; pinyin: zì; lit. ‘character’), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one’s given name. Prince Tiancheng.
Only the sound of “squeak, squeak” can be heard, and five or six eight-foot-old men with iron chains on their shoulders are dragging a one-foot-square cart forward.
The cart appeared to be made of fine iron, and on it was tied to a dead beast about half a foot tall, with a big man escorting it on both sides, muscles in his arms, and firmly grasping the iron plate on the side. They don’t dare relax at all. These big guys are at least seventh or eighth-level warriors, but they can only serve as porters.
When they all arrived at the northwest gate of the palace, the small opening of the gate opened wide, and a graceful girl came out from inside. The girl was dressed in a complicated ruqun3
‘襦裙’ or ‘ruqun’ a type of hanfu worn by women., her skin was snow-white, and her smile was like a flower.
When the warriors saw it, they all had admiration in their eyes, but they didn’t dare to say anything. The leading man says: “Miss Ruyan, these are the twelve Yaojin beasts hunted by my Chen family. Do you think they are suitable?”
On the animal carcass, it was submerging into its hide, and there was a smile in his eyes: “Alright, your Chen family is really doing a good job. The prince values such a loyal person the most, and you can hunt as much as possible in the future. If you bring more Yaojin beasts, the prince will definitely not mistreat you.”
The leading man was overjoyed: “Thank you for your kind words, Miss Ruyan. I will hunt for more, and I will never disappoint the trust of the prince!”
Bi Ruyan smiled openly, revealing a mouthful of pearl-like teeth. Then her hands shone brightly. A magic weapon, like a shuttle, appeared and flew in mid-air. The port of the magical weapon opened wide, sucking away many animal carcasses from the cart. It spun around and landed in the girl’s palm. Without saying much, Bi Ruyan took back the magic weapon, turned around, went in immediately, and closed the corner door.
A group of warriors who were originally bowed and waiting only then dared to straighten up. The big man in the lead put away his smile immediately and said solemnly, “Let’s go back!”
The wheels turned again, but at this time there was no more sound of rutting. After walking for a while, someone couldn’t help asking, “Boss, our Chen family clearly hunted a few other beasts with extremely high-quality meat. Why don’t we offer them together to get more favors from the prince?”
The big man in the lead snorted coldly. He said, “In the past three years, Tiancheng Palace has been collecting Yaojin beasts wantonly and sending the other beasts away. How can I get anything? The reason my Chen family has successfully attached themselves to the prince until now is because I have always followed a principle. Which can last forever.”
Someone asked curiously, “What’s the reason?”
The leading man stated, “It is just one word, ‘obedience.'” He stood tall and cautiously said, “When the superior is powerful. There will be many subordinates, and there are plenty of people with exceptional abilities. However, loyalty to the superior is the most important thing. For a small family like mine, we do not have to be overly visible, but we also can not be too quiet. Simply use the word “obedience” and follow it through to completion. We will do as the superior directs, without asking additional questions, without getting to the bottom of the matter, and without pretending to be smart, and then we will be valued.”
When everyone heard it, they suddenly realized.
The leading man immediately smiled and said, “However, I have some knowledge of this time. Three years ago, the prince travelled to the Wild Beast Plain to oversee the battle. When he returned, he hosted a distinguished guest. I heard that the distinguished guest possessed the spirit of Gengjin. How could the prince treat him so well while also focusing on the Yaojin beast? The Yaojin Beast, as we all know, is a metal eater. Its liver is smooth, refreshing, and full of golden energy. It is best suited for those who have this constitution to consume it. It is no surprise the prince has behaved this way for several years.”
Many warriors immediately complimented him after they understood what had happened. The leading man accepted all the compliments with a smug expression on his face.
On the other hand, after receiving the twelve Yaojin beasts, Bi Ruyan straightened her body and walked through several corridors before arriving at the back kitchen. There were over a dozen cooks in it, as well as many more people and cooks. Its size was almost like that of a palace dining room.
Bi Ruyan walked in and saw a fat old man with a moon-like face. He walked out with a smile. The fat old man smiled and said, “Miss Ruyan accepted the offering?”
Bi Ruyan smiled sweetly and handed over the magic weapon in her hand, saying, “The Chen family is quite proper in their actions.”
The fat old man accepted it quickly, then carefully picked up a tray and placed it in Bi Ruyan’s hands. “Esteemed Yun’s ‘Jīn Gān Yùsuǐ’ is now ready. It was stewed at You Shi yesterday. The quality has finally reached an acceptable level after last night. Please let Miss Yan deliver it there.” He smiled and complimented, “Thanks to Miss Ruyan’s promptness; otherwise, tomorrow’s rations would be gone, and I would like to thank you, Miss, for your kindness.”
Bi Ruyan smiled as she carefully picked up the tray in her hand before turning around and leaving with swaying eyes. “Old Ge is extremely careful. The prince must also know.”
Hearing this, the fat old man’s smile widened.
Bi Ruyan walked through several aisles, courtyards, and waterside pavilions before arriving at a courtyard in the east known as “Lanjian Residence” and stopping outside the door. There was a boy servant cleaning the door, and when he saw Bi Ruyan approaching, he immediately greeted her with a smile.
Bi Ruyan opened her mouth and inquired, “Is there anything significant for the esteemed daoist at this time?”
The boy servant stated, “Master Yun did not issue orders, so it appears that there is nothing important.”
Bi Ruyan felt relieved, opened the door, and walked inside.
As soon as you enter, you can see the scene in the courtyard. It turns out that the courtyard is only paved with blue bricks, and the houses within it are also made of blue bricks.
There is no vegetation or living creatures. It appears desolate and noble. There is no distinction between the interior and exterior of this courtyard.
There is only one person sitting up on the blue brick floor. His eyes are slightly closed, and his demeanor is cold.
When Bi Ruyan saw this white-clad sword cultivator, she became quite shaken. Then she calmed down and announced, “My Lord, this maidservant has brought the court food.”
She was surprised because the Lanjian residence originally hosted another sword cultivator. The prince built this place for him, and all the materials are obtained from refining tools, which are very expensive. Naturally, they are also extremely strong and extremely difficult to damage.
However, since this daoist moved in, she can see sword marks criss-crossing the ground and walls every day. Compared with what she saw yesterday, there are several more and more profound ones, which shocked her very much.
Speaking of which, Bi Ruyan is not an ignorant person. She was originally a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment period, and she was also the prince’s confidant maid. But this time she was ordered by the prince to serve this distinguished guest, so she couldn’t help but feel a little bit unwilling.
It needs to be known that she has received a lot of training, and finally climbed to this position. She is very hopeful to become the prince’s concubine. Now she is assigned to a servant, how can she be happy?
If this guest wanted her to meet him in person, she really couldn’t refuse. But after seeing the real face of the guest, she felt slightly relieved. And even after finding out the identity of the esteemed guest later, she felt a little regret.
This Master Yun, who was strongly invited back by the prince, is a core disciple of a high-ranking sect. This status is really comparable to that of a county king, and even her country prince’s status in the empire seems to be different. His aura is very powerful.
Bi Ruyan has seen many Golden Core stage daoists before, but none of them can compare with him.
What’s more worth mentioning is that this person’s swordsmanship is obviously ruthless and indifferent. He even seems to have nothing in his eyes when looking at her.
One needs to know that she has always been fascinated by men, thus the way this man treats her made her feel uncomfortable at first. It’s just that after seeing him more often, Bi Ruyan became more cautious towards Master Yun.
The difference in cultivation between the two can be said to be far apart. Master Yun regards her beauty as nothing, so he has no heart to respond and react to her. If she didn’t serve him well, he might not hesitate to cut her down with a single sword.
While her mind was spinning, Bi Ruyan was waiting for the sword cultivator to reply.
The sword cultivator in white opened an eye, and suddenly two cold lights shot out, hitting a stone wall on the right.
Only two sounds of “Qiang Qiang” were heard, and immediately there were two sword marks on the stone wall where the stone was hit, about half a finger deep. The marks were very sharp, and it seemed that the wall was extremely hard.
Then the sword cultivator in white said, “Put it down.”
Bi Ruyan didn’t dare to neglect. She immediately stepped forward and carefully placed the tray on a low bluestone table in front of the man.
There was a silver cup in the tray, about the size of a fist, and very delicate. There was also a silver spoon next to it, which had a slight flash of color and did not look like a mortal thing. Bi Ruyan was even more careful as she gently opened the cup.
In an instant, a sharp energy shot up into the sky, almost rushing into her eyes.
The next moment, the white-clad sword cultivator opened his mouth and took a breath, swallowing the spirit into his stomach.
Bi Ruyan breathed a sigh of relief. If this sharp energy had hit her, it probably would have taken ten and a half months to expel from her body.
Even though it was not her first encounter with Master Yun, she still felt a trace of fear in her heart.
Afterwards, a strong fresh fragrance overflowed from the cup, which was really wonderful. After smelling it, there was a lot of stinging feeling, which made people want to enjoy it quickly, but also seemed a little timid.
The white-clad swordsman was not in a hurry to make a move. He only raised his eyes slightly and swept past Bi Ruyan.
Bi Ruyan was shocked and said obediently, “If the esteemed daoist has an order, please ask.”
The white-clad swordsman didn’t care about these things but asked, “How is Ziqing?”
Bi Ruyan felt relieved. It turned out that this was the matter, so she immediately replied, “Senior Xu is still in seclusion. I have been waiting to deliver food for the past few days, but I haven’t seen him come out.”
Just after saying this, she raised her head slightly, wanting to catch a glimpse of the daoist’s face. Unexpectedly, she found that this person’s breath eased a bit.
She had some doubts in her heart but soon understood. Just at that moment, someone behind her made a sound.
“Shixiong.”
Bi Ruyan turned her head quietly and saw a handsome young man in green robes pushing the door with one hand and walking in.
Translator’s notes:
Hii! Sorry for the long break, was having a field work for a month so it’s not convenient to update properly!
However, I expected you guys to forget the characters (mostly side characters) because of the extensive amount of the characters in this series.
Although the glossary is not quite finished just yet, I’ve inputted the latest arc in the glossary.
You can check the link:
The Transmigrator’s Cultivation Glossary
You can also check the novel details page to visit the link in future chapters!
Please let me know if there are typos/mistakes in the chapter.
Support me on ko-fi if you like what I do^^
1Royal descendants and nobles (officials and other positions)2A courtesy name (Chinese: 字; pinyin: zì; lit. ‘character’), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one’s given name.3
‘襦裙’ or ‘ruqun’ a type of hanfu worn by women.