Unsheathed

A middle-aged man arrived on the outskirts of Bamboo Scroll Lake, entering a bustling and prosperous city called Pond Water City.

The man rented a horse-drawn carriage, and the carriage driver was a talkative old man who had traveled to many places in his lifetime. The middle-aged man was generous and enjoyed lively atmospheres and interesting stories, and he didn't like to stay inside the carriage by himself. Thus, he sat beside the old carriage driver for almost half the journey, offering the driver a large amount of wine and leaving him in a very good mood.

The old carriage driver recounted many stories about incredible people and peculiar matters pertaining to Bamboo Scroll Lake that he had heard, but he said that Bamboo Scroll Lake wasn't as terrifying as outsiders made it out to be. There was indeed conflict and death, but the large majority of these violent matters wouldn't affect commoners like them.

However, Bamboo Scroll Lake was a huge money drain, and this rumor was definitely as true as could be. In the past, he and a friend had transported some young masters from the Luminous Vermilion Empire to Bamboo Scroll Lake, and the young masters had boastfully told them to wait at Pond Water City, saying that they would return in one month's time.

Yet, only three days had passed when the group of young masters boarded a boat from Bamboo Scroll Lake and returned to the city. They were without a single copper coin, and the seven or eight of them had wasted away a whopping six hundred thousand taels of silver in just three days. Listening to the conversation between the prodigal young masters, however, it seemed as if they were still yearning for more. In fact, they said that they would save some silver for half a year before returning to Bamboo Scroll Lake to enjoy themselves.

The middle-aged man appeared unremarkable and inconspicuous as he walked along the busy streets in Pond Water City.

A group of Qi refiners had been guarding the city gates just then, yet they hadn't checked for any passports or travel documents at all. Instead, one simply needed to pay some money to enter.

Pond Water City was situated on the western banks of Bamboo Scroll Lake.

Bamboo Scroll Lake was incredibly large, containing a thousand or so islands of various sizes that dotted the lake like stars in the sky. Most importantly, the lake was brimming with spiritual energy. It would be a monumentally difficult task if one wanted to establish a force and obtain a large swathe of islands and territory.

On the other hand, it would be most suitable for one or two Golden Core Tier earth immortals to occupy a relatively large island and use it as their residence and cultivation abode. The island would be tranquil, and it would also be similar to a small world. Thus, Qi refiners who possessed a strong affinity with water viewed some islands in Bamboo Scroll Lake as territories that were definitely worth fighting over.

The middle-aged man carrying a sword on his back entered a restaurant on the bustling street, ordering a pot of crow caw wine, the most renowned wine in Pond Water City. As he drank, he listened to the spirited conversations taking place on the neighboring tables. There was little information of use, and only one matter that caught his attention. Bamboo Scroll Lake was seemingly about to host a one-in-one-hundred-year meeting between all of the island masters, preparing to choose a new "ruler of the cultivation world," a position that had already been vacant for three hundred years.