Ink-Clad Creator

When the majestic capital city appeared on the horizon, even the well-traveled Superman was silent for three seconds.

"Based on the scan data, the city wall is estimated to be about 15 zhang high, 20 zhang thick at the base, and its circumference... exceeds 50 li." Superman's electronic voice carried an unusual hesitation. "This scale exceeds the conventional concept of a city and is closer to a 'city-state'."

The city wall was built of grayish-blue boulders, its surface covered with dark green moss and vines, revealing at least three hundred years of history. Arrow towers stood atop the wall, banners fluttering in the wind, and every hundred paces there was a watchtower, its spire inlaid with crystals that shimmered with various colors—a 24/7 surveillance array.

The most impressive thing is the city gate.

The main gate was five zhang high and three zhang wide, with two massive iron-clad doors tightly closed, only the side doors on both sides were open. A huge plaque hung above the lintel, with gold characters on a black background, bearing the three large characters "Zhenyuan Gate". The calligraphy was powerful and vigorous, with faint energy fluctuations – the writer was at least a master of the Divine Origin Realm.

In front of the city gate, the queue stretched for two miles.

Peddlers carrying loads, caravans of merchants, scholars with baggage, and refugees with their families... all sorts of people gathered here, slowly inching forward under the scorching sun. The city guards, armed with halberds, checked each person one by one, their attitude rude.

"This is the true center of the world," Binglan said softly. "Compared to it, Linghan Palace is like a child's toy."

The three Shi brothers craned their necks, their mouths agape, wide enough to fit eggs. The largest "city" they had ever seen in their lives was nothing more than a small earthen walled village on the edge of an oasis.

"Goodness... how many years would it take to dig this up?" Shi Lei murmured.

Shi Yan slapped him: "What nonsense are you talking about! We're here to study, not to demolish the city!"

Peng Shitao clutched the silk handkerchief her sister had left behind, feeling both expectant and nervous. The little pine tree on Xiao Lingshan's shoulder trembled slightly—the energy gathered in this city was too complex and chaotic, making it instinctively uncomfortable.

Li Xian took a deep breath: "Let's get in line."

They waited in line for a full hour before it was their turn.

The city guard was a centurion with a fierce face, sitting behind a broken wooden table, holding a thick register in his hand, without even raising his eyelids: "Name, place of origin, purpose of coming to the capital, length of stay. State everything clearly."

Li stepped forward: "My name is Li Mo, from Tonghai Prefecture. I have come to the capital with my family to apply for the Wanxiang Academy."

"Family members?" The centurion glanced at the group of people behind him. "Are these all your relatives? Your 'family members' are quite a mixed bag, including three dark-faced men."

Shi Jian puffed out his chest: "We are Young Master Li's guards and craftsmen!"

The centurion chuckled and flipped open the roster. His finger paused on a certain page, and his brow furrowed.

"Li Mo..." He murmured the name, then suddenly looked up, his sharp gaze fixed on Li Xian. "A native of Qinghe County, Tonghai Prefecture, nineteen years old, orphaned, and from a family that has fallen on hard times... But the household registration records show that three months ago, you were listed as a missing person by the Tonghai Prefecture government for 'suspected collusion with the Demonic Cult'."

The atmosphere froze instantly.

Bingwei placed her hand on the short blade, and ice crystals condensed at Binglan's fingertips. The three Shi brothers clenched their fists.

The soldiers behind the centurion stepped forward simultaneously, their halberds pointing at the crowd.

Li Xian's expression remained unchanged: "Your Excellency is wise; it was all a misunderstanding. I left home to avoid trouble due to a family crisis, but later I met a benefactor who cleared my name, which is why I dared to come to the capital. I can testify for this matter to Chu Huaizhou, the Inspector General of Tonghai Prefecture."

"Chu Huaizhou?" The centurion raised an eyebrow. "That fourth-rank civil official? He's in dire straits right now, impeached by the Censorate for 'colluding with gangsters and allowing a wanted criminal to escape,' and is currently at home awaiting investigation."

Li Xian's heart sank. Chu Huaizhou had been implicated? It seemed the net cast against him by the court was even more intricate than he had imagined.

The centurion stood up, paced back and forth around the table, and scanned the crowd: "These 'family members' of yours... are quite interesting. These two young ladies," he pointed to Bing Lan and Bing Wei, "have traces of Linghan Palace techniques on them. And this one," he pointed to Xiao Lingshan, "has a wood-type spirit medium physique, and that token at her waist... looks familiar."

His hand reached out to Aoki Rei.

Xiao Lingshan took half a step back.

At this critical moment, Peng Shitao suddenly stepped forward, unfolded the silk handkerchief in her hand, and handed it to him with both hands.

"My lord, this is a keepsake left by my elder sister before we left. She said that if we encounter any trouble in the capital, we can use this to prove our identity."

The centurion impatiently took the handkerchief, his gaze falling on the embroidered character in the corner of the light blue handkerchief—an extremely exquisite character for "peach," surrounded by a subtle embroidery resembling water ripples.

His expression changed.

It didn't become calmer, but rather... strange. It was like seeing something you shouldn't have seen, or like burning your hand.

He shoved the handkerchief back into Peng Shitao's hand, took two steps back, and cleared his throat: "Well... since you're an academy candidate and have... have identification, then go in."

He waved to the soldiers: "Let them through! Next!"

This sudden change in attitude stunned everyone.

Peng Shitao looked down at the silk handkerchief, then at the centurion's hurried retreating figure, lost in thought.

As you pass through the city gate, a cacophony of noise hits you.

The wide main street could accommodate eight horse-drawn carriages side by side, with shops lining both sides, their signs and banners gleaming in the sunlight. Pedestrians thronged shoulder to shoulder, the cries of vendors, the sounds of carriages and horses, and laughter blending into a cacophony of noise. The air was thick with the aromas of food, cosmetics, horse manure, and a strange mixture of various herbs and metallic scents.

"The energy density is thirty-seven times that of the desert, but the level of disorder is also alarmingly high," Superman reported in a low voice. "I suggest activating 'energy filtering mode,' otherwise long-term exposure to this environment may lead to sensory disturbances."

Li nodded first, and at the same time released a wisp of orange-gold energy, forming a thin filtering field around everyone—this was a little trick he learned from the "Hou Tu Zai Wu Jue" (The Earth Carries All Things Technique), using the "stable" characteristics of earth-type energy to counteract environmental chaos.

As Peng Shutao indicated in his letter, they headed south.

The capital city was divided into an inner city and an outer city. The inner city was the residence of the imperial family and high-ranking officials, while the outer city was divided into four wards: east, south, west, and north. The southern ward was close to the canal wharf, a gathering place for merchants and a melting pot of all walks of life, making it the most well-informed but also the most chaotic area.

Tingtao Pavilion is located in a narrow alley at the deepest part of Nanfang. The alley is so narrow that only two people can walk side by side. The ground is slippery and the corners of the walls are covered with moss. Compared with the bustling main street, it is eerily quiet here.

The pavilion is a three-story wooden building with an old appearance. Weeds grow on the tiles, and the plaque above the door has faded, but the three characters "Tingtao Pavilion" are still faintly discernible.

The door was closed.

Li Xian stepped forward and knocked on the door.

"Tap, tap, tap."

no respond.

He knocked three more times, this time with slightly more force.

Still, deathly silence.

Bingwei went around to the side and peeked through the crack in the door. Her expression suddenly changed slightly, and she whispered, "There's a smell of blood."

Li Xian's heart tightened. He took a half step back, his palm gathering orange-gold energy, and gently pressed it against the door panel—not by pushing, but by using energy to "sense" the situation behind the door.

Within a three-zhang radius inside the gate, there were the auras of at least three people. Two were faint, and one... almost nonexistent.

"Break down the door," he said in a deep voice.

Shi Jian stepped forward, placed his hands on the door panel, and an earthy yellow light surged from his palms. With a soft "click," the latch was broken from the inside, and the door opened.

Inside the door was a small hall with a few tables and chairs, complete with tea sets, but no one was there.

The smell of blood was coming from below the stairs.

Li Xian signaled for everyone to be on alert, then went over first. In the shadows at the bottom of the stairs, two people were huddled together—an old woman dressed in coarse cloth and a child of about twelve or thirteen, both unconscious. The old woman had blood on her forehead, and the child had abrasions on his arm.

And next to them, a third person...

It was a man dressed in night clothes, lying face down on the ground, a short knife embedded in his back, the blade completely submerged, only the hilt sticking out. There was a pool of blood on the ground that had partially congealed.

"Dead." Binglan confirmed after examining him. "He's been dead for at least three hours."

Xiao Lingshan knelt down to check on the old woman and the child: "They are just unconscious, there is no danger to their lives."

Peng Shitao took out a silver needle and gently pricked the old woman's philtrum. The old woman's body trembled, and she slowly opened her eyes.

Upon seeing the strangers before her, she was initially terrified, but when her gaze fell upon the silk handkerchief in Peng Shitao's hand, she suddenly became excited: "You...you are...!"

"We are Peng Shutao's friends." Li Xian helped her sit up. "Are you Grandma Xu?"

The old woman nodded, tears streaming down her face: "That child Shutao... came half a month ago and left a message saying that someone with this handkerchief would come looking for me... I waited and waited, but I never expected..."

She looked at the corpse on the ground, her voice trembling: "This man broke in last night, trying to steal something. My grandson and I fought back desperately, but somehow... he just died."

Li Xian frowned. An assassin capable of infiltrating the capital was killed by an old woman and a child? That didn't make sense.

He walked to the body, crouched down, and examined it closely. The night clothes were made of the finest silk, and there were no markings on the hilt of the knife, but the forging of the blade was extremely exquisite—this was not something an ordinary assassin could afford.

What's even stranger is that the deceased had calluses on his fingers from holding a pen for a long time, but there were no thick calluses on the base of his thumb like those of a martial arts practitioner.

"This is no ordinary thief." Li stood up. "This is a spy with a certain status."

He looked at Granny Xu: "Granny, what is this man trying to steal?"

Granny Xu's eyes flickered, and she struggled to her feet: "You... come upstairs with me."

The second floor was a study, with bookshelves piled high with ancient books and an account book spread out on the table. Granny Xu walked to the bookshelves, turned an inconspicuous mechanism, and a hidden compartment slid open in the wall.

She took a roll of parchment from the hidden compartment and carefully unfolded it on the table.

The drawing depicts intricate energy circuits with fine lines, and is covered with dense text annotations. The drawing is divided into three parts.

The drawing on the left depicts an enlarged structure of a drop of water with a spiral energy flow inside, labeled "Holy Water Spiritual Encoding Conjecture - Based on Observations from the Cold Pool of Peach Blossom Valley".

In the center is a cross-section of a small tree, with light spots connecting the roots and branches, labeled "Speculation on the resonance network of a wood-type pure energy body (small pine tree)".

On the right is a strange mechanical structure with rotors, sensors, and an energy core, labeled "Functional deduction of a flyable mechanical construct (drone) - reconstructed based on oral description".

In the lower right corner of the drawing, there is a line of delicate handwriting: "Drawn by Peng Shutao of Peach Blossom Village in the capital. Partly based on actual observations (holy water, small pine trees), partly based on my younger sister Shitao's oral account (flying mechanism), and partly based on conjecture and deduction. Retained here for verification."

Peng Shitao covered her mouth: "This...this was drawn by my sister? She actually guessed the general structure of the drone just from my description!"

Li Xian was shocked. Peng Shutao not only had exceptional talent in water-related fields, but also possessed such powerful spatial imagination and logical reasoning abilities! To be able to grasp the principles of drones, a revolutionary invention, based solely on her sister's verbal description, was truly astonishing.

"Miss Shutao came here half a month ago. She said that while preparing for the academy's exams, she became interested in these 'strange objects' and drew these diagrams from memory and imagination." Granny Xu sighed. "She asked me to take a look and see if these energy circuit designs are reasonable. I worked in the Tiangong Institute's workshop when I was young, so I know a little about them."

She pointed to the blueprints: "I told her that the spiritual coding of this 'holy water' part is somewhat similar to the 'wise man's dew-condensing technique' recorded in the ancient books of the Heavenly Crafts Institute; the resonance network of the wood-type energy body is in line with some principles of the 'Azure Wood Token'; as for this flying mechanism..."

Grandma Xu paused, her eyes filled with complex emotions: "The design concept of its energy core is remarkably similar to the 'Flying Thunder' project that the military is secretly developing."

Li Xianxin felt a chill. Was the military also developing something similar to a drone?

"This man," Granny Xu pointed to the corpse downstairs, "came for these blueprints. He sneaked in last night, demanding to know where the blueprints were. I activated the trap to imprison him, intending to interrogate him about the mastermind, but seeing no hope of escape, he bit through the poison sac in his mouth and committed suicide."

"Death squad," Bingwei said coldly.

"The body was examined, and there were indeed ruptured venom sacs in the molars," Binglan added.

Li Xian stared at the blueprint, his mind racing. Peng Shutao's drawing, though only a conjecture and deduction, involved three core secrets: holy water, the pine tree, and the drone. Any one of them leaking out could lead to serious trouble.

"Mother-in-law, has anyone else looked at these blueprints?"

"Besides Miss Shutao and myself, there was no one else," Granny Xu affirmed. "Miss Shutao is very cautious; she put the painting away in a hidden compartment after finishing it. She said these were just her wild thoughts, and she didn't want others to see them and laugh at her."

Li Xian breathed a slight sigh of relief. But how did the "big shot" behind that assassin know about the existence of this map? Did Granny Xu leak the information, or... was Peng Shutao being watched?

"Da da da..."

In the alley outside the attic, a blind old beggar appeared out of nowhere.

The old beggar was dressed in rags, his white hair filthy and matted. He held a broken bowl in his hand, tapping the bluestone ground with a wooden stick while muttering to himself:

"Azure Wood Token, Mystic Crystal, Geng Metal Sword Qi pierces the clouds..."

His voice was hoarse and unpleasant, but it was exceptionally clear in the quiet alley.

"...The academy's exam has three dangerous stages. The first stage will kill half of you...hehe...half of you will die..."

Li Xian stepped out of the attic and looked at the old beggar.

The old beggar seemed to "see" him, turning his head to "stare" at Li Xian with his grayish-white eyes, grinning to reveal a mouthful of yellow teeth.

"Young man, want to buy information? This old blind man knows everything."

"What do you know?" Li asked first.

"I know what you want to know," the old beggar said, tapping his bowl. "Like... whose family was that dead person upstairs? Like... where are the two people you're looking for, 'Gold' and 'Water'? And like..."

He paused, his smile turning sinister.

"That drawing by the girl from Peach Blossom Village... some people are really envious."

Li Xian's pupils contracted slightly. This old beggar knew about the blueprints!

But he seemed unaware of the little doll's existence, which was a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

"Who are you?" Li Xian's voice turned cold.

"Just an old blind beggar." The old beggar stood up and staggered out. "But... since you didn't lay a hand on that old woman, I'll give you a piece of advice—"

He walked to the alley entrance and turned back:

"Registration for the academy closes in three days. The registration office is located in the south wing of the 'Heavenly Craft Academy.' When you go... remember to bring the jade token from Yunmeng Mountain. Someone recognizes it."

After saying that, he turned out of the alley and disappeared.

Li Xian stood there, touching the jade token given to him by the Daoist nun Miaozhen in his pocket. This old beggar even knew this? Was he Miaozhen's informant, or… a spy for another force?

That evening, everyone settled down in the backyard of Tingtao Pavilion.

The backyard was indeed simple, but it was very clean. The three Shi brothers volunteered to repair the holes in the roof, while the drones were scattered around the attic to establish a surveillance network.

Li Xian told everyone what had happened that day.

"That old beggar...could he have been sent by that person from Yunmeng Mountain?" Xiao Lingshan guessed. "Didn't the Daoist nun Miaozhen say that she has spies in the capital?"

"Possibly," Li nodded. "But he mentioned the blueprints for Miss Shutao... How was that information leaked?"

Binglan pondered: "There are two possibilities. One is that Granny Xu is being watched, and the other is that something has happened to Miss Shutao. Judging from the assassin's identity and equipment, he has considerable power behind him and should have a fairly extensive network of informants in the capital."

Peng Shitao asked worriedly, "Will my sister be in danger?"

"The fact that Miss Shutao could calmly arrange for us to find Granny Xu in her letter suggests that she is currently safe," Li Xian analyzed. "But that map is indeed a hidden danger. Although it's just a conjecture, the direction is too accurate; anyone in the know can immediately recognize its value."

He looked at Granny Xu: "Granny, could we keep these blueprints for now? It's too dangerous for you to keep them here."

Granny Xu nodded: "That's exactly what I was thinking. Keeping this thing in our hands is a potential source of trouble."

Li carefully put away the blueprints, having already made up his mind.

"Registration is in three days. We'll split up," he told everyone. "Ling Shan, Shi Tao, and I will be in one group. Bing Lan and Bing Wei, you two will take the three Shi brothers and be in a separate group. Our destination is the Southern Office of the Heavenly Craft Academy."

"What about the drone?" Bingwei asked.

"Disguise them as 'teaching aids'," Li said. "Superman, you five should act a little dumb and not be too conspicuous."

"Understood, Lord Li." Superman's electronic voice carried a smile. "I'll make Daya and Erya make a few more silly mistakes, like miscalculating numbers or mistaking people for each other."

Daya immediately protested, "I wouldn't mistake someone for someone else! My facial recognition system is very accurate!"

Er Ya added insult to injury: "Last month you mistook Brother Shi Jian for a walking rock."

Shi Jian chuckled, "It's alright, it's alright, I just look like a rock."

Everyone laughed, and the tense atmosphere eased a bit.

As night deepened, everyone returned to their rooms.

Li Xian stood by the window, gazing at the Beijing night sky. The stars here were dimmed by the streetlights, appearing lackluster. But within those lights, how much was goodwill, how much was malice, and how much... was an unfathomable mystery?

"The capital city..." he murmured to himself, "Just how many secrets are you hiding?"

Outside the window, the melodious chimes of a distant clock tower drifted through the air.

It's midnight.

A new day is about to begin.

The academy registration three days later will be the start of a real show.

(End of Chapter 56)