Chapter 47: The Gray City

Qian Ye stowed away the velvet pouch. He wasn’t particularly interested in the crimson crystal pendant, but he was a bit surprised that William’s tone didn’t seem to hold much respect for the Eternal Night Council.

At this moment, Qian Ye was hesitating about whether to travel with William.

In terms of geography, the Tulip Market and the secluded city where the recipient of the Rockheart Jade Book resided were in the same direction, and not far apart. The spoils from Zha Lun that Qian Ye carried would be safer to sell in the gray city. But no matter how friendly William appeared, Qian Ye couldn’t fully trust him.

William handed the crimson crystal pendant to the wolf girl and whispered a few words to her. After she left, he walked back to Qian Ye’s side.

He seemed to have completely missed Qian Ye’s hesitation and said with a casual smile, “Let’s go now. Let’s get out of this damned place. I don’t want to run into those old geezers from the Eternal Night Council, and I’m sure you don’t either!”

Qian Ye suddenly realized that William must have always been suspicious of his identity. Proposing to travel together wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision; it was probably also to prevent Qian Ye from revealing his movements in this mountainous region.

So, despite their different thoughts, the two—man and wolf—traveled together for the next two days.

During the journey, due to William’s presence, Qian Ye chose to practice only the War Chant. This was the first time he had used the War Chant after absorbing the purple blood crystal and elevating his vampire constitution rune to the advanced level.

After the origin tide turned thirty-eight times, Qian Ye began to feel the pressure, but he clearly still had some reserve. Usually, pushing it past forty times reached his limit, but this time, a faint notion stirred in his heart, and he started to prepare for the forty-first round!

The later stages of the War Chant caused the body to suffer an almost exponential increase in recoil force, making each additional cycle more difficult. That’s why there were so few War Kings. But behind the difficulty lay an almost unmatched achievement: the infinite potential for increasing one’s cultivation speed, even if it was just theoretically infinite.

Zhang Boqian’s illustrious reputation was partly based on the War Chant. He had unprecedentedly pushed the War Chant past fifty rounds before reaching adulthood, and then ignited nine nodes at a breathtaking speed, finally breaking through the bottleneck to become a warlord in just one night.

That year, Zhang Boqian was only fourteen.

After breaking through to become a warlord, Zhang Boqian changed his cultivation method. To this day, people still speculated excitedly about how many rounds Zhang Shuai could have pushed the War Chant to if he hadn’t changed methods.

Now, Qian Ye was walking the same path, and in front of him, the shadow of Zhang Boqian loomed.

The difference between the advanced and intermediate levels of the vampire constitution was fundamental, and with the increasingly robust dark golden blood essence protecting his heart, the forty-first and forty-second rounds of the tide passed directly, reaching the forty-third round in the blink of an eye.

At this point, the Dawn Tide felt like a tsunami, and even the protection of the dark golden blood essence dimmed instantly! So, Qian Ye knew that the true limit had been reached.

As the tide gradually subsided, a sense of joy welled up in Qian Ye’s heart.

With the continuous advancement of his blood essence, his constitution would continue to strengthen, and he would be able to withstand even more tidal impacts. Perhaps one day, he could withstand fifty rounds of the tide and truly stand beside Zhang Boqian.

Even in this era, that would be a peak that could only accommodate two people.

Over these two days, Qian Ye focused on the War Chant, filling his body with mostly crimson origin power, with a small amount of purified Dawn Origin. If he looked inward, it would be like seeing golden light floating and sinking in a crimson mist, occasionally bursting forth, illuminating his entire being.

Qian Ye suddenly understood that the term “Dawn Awakening,” one of the top three Dawn Origin powers, might refer to the most refined and condensed nature of Dawn Origin.

Leaving the mountains, what appeared before Qian Ye was a vast wilderness. This place was different from the Silent Fire Plain, with a rougher and more vibrant style. Apart from the trees with deep roots that drew water from underground rivers, vegetation grew close to the ground.

Everywhere on the land were weathered rocks, and at the horizon, there stood several tall stone pillars, like ancient relics.

After half a day, a cluster of low-rise buildings appeared ahead, an oasis unmarked on both human and dark nation official maps. It was home to a lush forest, its fresh green contrasting sharply with the gray and brown surroundings.

The gray city had no walls, and all the buildings were low, with three-story buildings being the most magnificent.

The desert winds were fierce, and at night, they could sometimes blow camels off the ground. Buildings here needed to be exceptionally sturdy and not too high to withstand the natural forces.

Moreover, the gray city wasn’t fixed. Every few years, the Zhao clan would sweep through the area, and places like the Tulip Market would relocate and rebuild. As a result, there were no grand structures.

Like the Mohora lilies that bloom with small yellow flowers in the wild, even if uprooted, they would stubbornly grow again from the cracks when the winds died down.

Seeing the gray city, Qian Ye felt a slight chill and instinctively touched the gun and knife at his waist. In such a place, there was no order or trust, and people died mysteriously every day. Whether to protect a transaction or himself, strength was the only reliable thing.

William, however, smiled nonchalantly, “Don’t be so tense. This place may look dirty and chaotic, but it’s not dangerous. You can walk around freely here!”

Qian Ye pulled the hood of his traveler’s cloak over his head, not wanting to respond.

These gray cities were similar to human territories, usually guarded by one or two warlords to maintain basic order. A market like the Tulip Market, which had grown to this size, would have at least two or three. And with William’s current rank of count, he was a noble who could be addressed as “Lord.” The head of a middle-to-lower-ranking family in the Qin Empire, with a hereditary title, was only at this level.

As the two approached the gray city, Qian Ye saw wolves and vampires chatting amiably, humans and spider demons haggling, and even a carriage pulled by servant spiders passing by, with both the driver and passenger being humans.

These scenes, if not seen with one’s own eyes, would be hard to imagine.

The gray city had no walls and no guards, and people moved freely. After entering the city, Qian Ye realized why dark races and humans could coexist peacefully. The humans here were all extremely fierce, surpassing the dark races in both murderous intent and aura.

Occasionally, passersby would glance at Qian Ye and William, as if assessing the value of their prey. Qian Ye was no stranger to such gazes, common in any underground world or lawless place, a way of sizing up unfamiliar faces.

Qian Ye and William both wore simple traveler’s cloaks. Qian Ye didn’t hide his level; Level 7 wasn’t the strongest here, but it wasn’t weak either, enough to avoid unnecessary trouble. William, however, had suppressed all his aura, even his race.

The gray city had inns, casinos, bars, and even a sizable auction house. In just a short walk through a narrow street, Qian Ye saw almost all the Eternal Night races, including the rarest demon descendants, one of whom owned a general store.

Passing by a gun shop, Qian Ye stopped involuntarily, eyeing the inconspicuous little shop with surprise. At the entrance, there were two Level 5 guns, one of which was a rare vampire sniper rifle.

The Level 5 sniper rifle was very attractive to Qian Ye, especially since vampire weapons were known for their precision and craftsmanship. The only uncertainty was whether the “Heavy Punch” array could be installed on the sniper rifle.

Qian Ye looked at the tilted price list and was surprised to see that the Level 5 gun was priced at eighty high-purity blood crystals.

This was almost double the normal price.

Qian Ye picked up the gun and examined it, noticing signs of refurbishment in several places. The work was skillful but not enough to fool an expert like Qian Ye. This was not a new gun but a second-hand one. Factoring in depreciation, the price was at least three times higher than it should be.

Qian Ye shrugged and put down the gun, intending to leave.

After learning the true use of the Twin Flowers, he didn’t need a high-level sniper rifle as much. If he needed a long-range combat role in the future, the modified Eagle Strike with the Heavy Punch would still be his first choice, as it outperformed this second-hand Level 5 sniper rifle in all aspects.

However, the fact that a random shop could display a Level 5 gun as a showpiece gave Qian Ye a clear understanding of the Tulip Market.

Just as Qian Ye turned to leave, a gruff voice called out from behind, “Stop right there!”

Qian Ye turned to see the shop owner, a middle-aged man with a face full of scars. On either side of him stood two tall men, clearly wolf-people judging by their unrestrained auras, all staring at Qian Ye with ill intent.

A human running a shop with wolf-people as guards would be unthinkable in the Empire or the dark territory, but in the gray city, anything was possible.

Qian Ye remained calm, asking coolly, “What’s the matter?”

The shop owner spat on the ground and extended a large hand, saying, “Eighty blood crystals! You looked at my gun and asked the price, so you must buy it!”

Qian Ye frowned. He knew that such places were full of trouble, but he hadn’t expected it to come so quickly and directly.

Some people had gathered around, standing leisurely, many with a clear look of watching a show. But Qian Ye knew that, given the chance, they would turn into hungry wolves, ready to pounce.

Qian Ye glanced at the shop owner and his two guards. The guards were both Level 7, and the owner was Level 6. In this gray city, this combination was formidable, even elsewhere.

This was a test, a severe test for outsiders.

Qian Ye glanced at William, who wore a relaxed expression, his gray-blue eyes filled with amusement. He asked softly, “Need any help?”