The starting point is auspicious; the fiancée will not call off the engagement.

When Fang Zhou walked out of the porridge shop, it was already completely bright outside.

People came and went on the main street of Cheng'an City, and the faint light of the spirit array flowed between the buildings. Everything was as usual.

He walked along the familiar route toward the small building, glancing at today's elixir prices as he passed the entrance to the market.

He didn't really care much about that guy surnamed Zhou.

After spending three days in Cheng'an City, Fang Zhou had a general understanding of the local culture. The Study Hall was a gathering place for young people from all walks of life, representing all sorts of backgrounds.

There were independent cultivators genuinely seeking the Dao, scions of noble families coming to gain prestige, and various factions hoping to climb the social ladder of the Myriad Saints Sect. A prince from a dynasty coming here to study might sound impressive, but it was nothing compared to the Myriad Saints Sect.

Princes of the dynasty are a dime a dozen in the academy, and even the crown prince of the dynasty obediently waits in line for the examination. What is he, a prince of a remote dynasty, anyway?

However, one thing caught Fang Zhou's attention: when that young master Zhou spoke about the governance of Cheng'an City, the eagerness in his eyes seemed genuine.

Most people want to join the Ten Thousand Saints Sect for either cultivation resources or sect protection, but this person is different; all he cares about is city governance.

But that was all; Fang Zhou didn't intend to delve into it further. He was living a comfortable life now, with a place to live, food to eat, money to spend, and a beautiful fiancée.

He never dared to dream of such a life in his previous life, but now that he's finally living it, he just wants to enjoy it to the fullest.

Young Master Zhou remained seated, with only a small portion of the congee remaining in his bowl. He picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of side dish, and chewed it slowly, showing no intention of leaving.

The head guard waited a moment, then bowed and asked, "Your Highness, shall we return to the Academy?"

"No rush." ​​Young Master Zhou picked up the bowl of porridge, took a slow sip, and said, "Wait a little longer."

The head guard looked puzzled. Young Master Fang had already made his point very clear. What was there to wait for if he stayed? But he had followed Young Master Zhou for many years and knew the prince's style well. He never did anything without a purpose.

The customers in the porridge shop changed hands several times. Uncle Bai, the owner, sold four or five more bowls of porridge. Seeing that the customers at the corner table showed no sign of leaving, he didn't urge them, but simply refilled their tea twice. After some time, the light at the shop entrance suddenly dimmed for a moment.

A figure in blue appeared at the door at some unknown time.

Ye Ninghan stood there, dressed in a close-fitting outfit, her long hair tied back. Her gaze swept around the shop before landing on Young Master Zhou, her eyes cold and indifferent.

She strode in, her steps slow, but each step carried an invisible sense of oppression.

The guards unconsciously placed their hands on their weapons, but when Young Master Zhou merely raised his hand, they all released it again.

"Fairy Ye arrived even faster than I expected."

Young Master Zhou stood up, turned to face her, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect, and smiled serenely.

Ye Ninghan stopped five steps away from him. She was half a head shorter than Young Master Zhou, but when she raised her eyes to look at him, the feeling of looking down on him was the opposite.

"Fang Zhou has nothing to do with the affairs of the Ten Thousand Saints Sect. If Young Master Zhou wants to take a shortcut, he has come to the wrong person."

Her voice wasn't loud, but it sounded like a sword blade slicing through ice.

Young Master Zhou remained calm and composed, saying, "Fairy Ye, you misunderstand. I am but an unknown person; how could I dare to violate the rules set by the Myriad Saints Sect?"

He raised his head, met Ye Ninghan's gaze, his smile faded, and his expression became solemn.

"The real reason I came here is to ask Fairy Ye a question."

Ye Ninghan did not respond, her gaze as cold as frost.

"I was born in the Northern Shuo Dynasty."

Young Master Zhou said, "The dynasty's territory spans thousands of miles, and there are many cultivators, but in the cities under its rule, mortals either suffer unbearably, or cultivators are high and mighty."

"When I was in the capital, I often heard of the great reputation of the more than one hundred cities under the rule of the Ten Thousand Saints Sect. Cultivators and mortals lived side by side, each in their proper place, and no major chaos had occurred for hundreds of years. At that time, I wanted to see it for myself."

He paused, and the fervor in his voice resurfaced, but this time it was no longer a deliberate performance, but a serious expression that had been suppressed for a long time and was finally able to be poured out.

"In the three months since I came to Cheng'an City, I have read through all the publicly available rules and regulations of the Affairs Hall, and I have also consulted with many disciples about the layout of the spirit arrays and the market system in the city."

From the initial plans of the third patriarch when he founded the city to the current law enforcement systems of each city, I've read almost every record I could find. But there's still one question that I just can't figure out.

Ye Ninghan finally spoke: "What's the problem?"

"Rules are rigid, but people are flexible."

Young Master Zhou looked at her and asked, "What makes the Ten Thousand Saints Sect so powerful that mortals are not afraid of cultivators, and cultivators do not bully mortals, and why has it not caused any major trouble for decades or even centuries?"

Ye Ninghan was silent for a moment, then she looked at Young Master Zhou again.

"Is this what you wanted to ask?"

"Exactly."

Young Master Zhou met her gaze frankly, "To be honest, my talent for cultivation is not as good as my brothers, so I am the one who will most likely inherit the throne."

I will manage the affairs of the dynasty so that they can focus on their cultivation without being distracted by worldly matters. These days, I have very little time to spend away from home.

He solemnly clasped his hands in a fist and bow to Ye Ninghan: "If Fairy Ye is willing to give me some pointers, I, Zhou, swear on my Dao heart that I will never use what I have learned for anything detrimental to the Wansheng Sect."

The porridge shop was quiet for a long time. Uncle Bai, the shopkeeper, stood behind the counter, his hand tightly gripping a dishcloth.

If his dynasty had such a figure, the people wouldn't have been displaced and eventually rescued by the disciples of the Wansheng Sect.

Ye Ninghan remained silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Do you know the difference between the Myriad Saints Sect and you?"

Young Master Zhou was taken aback.

"Right at your feet."

Ye Ninghan calmly said, "There are three spiritual veins buried beneath the city. The central array eye is maintained by the Wansheng Sect year-round, and the spirit stones consumed each year are enough for a small sect to operate for a hundred years. Without the Wansheng Sect's support, an array of this scale could not be set up at all."

Young Master Zhou frowned slightly: "Does Fairy Ye mean that this method is impossible for others to learn?"

"You can learn," Ye Ninghan said, looking at him, "but first you need to have a Wansheng Sect."

She paused, then her gaze suddenly shifted to Uncle Bai behind the counter: "Moreover, Cheng'an City's success isn't solely due to its systems and magical arrays. In Cheng'an City, cultivators are punished the same as mortals for committing crimes. Do you know why?"

Young Master Zhou did not answer.

"Because whether they are cultivators or mortals, in the eyes of the Ten Thousand Saints Sect, they all have only one identity, which is human, without distinction of high or low status."

Since we choose to break the law, we should bear the consequences, and I am no exception. Therefore, whether mortal or cultivator, everyone believes that in Cheng'an City, there is only equality.

Ye Ninghan withdrew her gaze and looked at Young Master Zhou again: "Systems can be copied, formations can be learned, and spiritual veins can be found. But this kind of trust takes a long time to grow."

Even if you bring back the exact same rules and regulations to the Northern Shuo Dynasty, without a powerful enough force to support those rules, no one will follow them.

Without unwavering impartiality over decades, mortals will never truly trust monks, and monks will never truly revere the law.

That's all I wanted to say.

She turned and walked towards the door, but stopped after a couple of steps. She turned her head to look at Young Master Zhou, her voice regaining its initial coolness.

"If Young Master Zhou has come to study, then we will examine him according to the rules. If it's for something else, he should go back now, as there won't be another chance."

After saying that, she moved and her blue figure disappeared into the morning light.

The porridge shop returned to silence.

The guards looked at each other, none of them daring to speak first.

Young Master Zhou stood still, gazing in the direction Ye Ninghan had left, without moving.

Young Master Zhou looked down at the bowl of completely cold congee on the table, then suddenly reached out, picked up the bowl, tilted his head back, and drank the rest of the congee clean. The empty bowl landed on the table with a soft thud.

"This method requires a sect of ten thousand saints."

Young Master Zhou got up, straightened his robes, and pushed open the door to step into the bright morning light outside the shop.

He walked along the wide, clean streets of Cheng'an City, with his guards following closely behind him, hearing their prince's voice carried on the morning breeze.

"Then the Northern Shuo Dynasty might very well be the next one."

Looking at his tall and straight back, the head guard suddenly felt that this prince, who had cared for the people of the world since childhood, had found the answer he was looking for in Cheng'an City.

Fang Zhou, meanwhile, was on his way back.