Chapter Fifty-Seven: Clothes Removed

Page 1 of 3

At dawn, the first ray of sunlight streamed into the room.

Lin Cheng opened his eyes.

He pushed open the door and stepped outside.

Stretching lazily, he was just thinking how unusually peaceful it was that those two girls hadn’t come to block his way at the crack of dawn today.

Just then, a maid appeared at the gate.

“Good morning, Young Master Lin. My lady instructed me that if you awoke, I should tell you that she and Miss Yingying have gone together to inspect the An Family’s mine. If…”

“If Young Master Lin misses them, you may go and find the two of them…” As the little maid reached this point, her cheeks colored with a shy flush.

Hearing this, Lin Cheng could only shake his head and smile wryly. Those two girls…

After tidying himself up, Lin Cheng decided to take a stroll around Long City, and perhaps check out the so-called auction house as well.

As he walked along the bustling streets, he couldn’t help but marvel—Long City was indeed far more prosperous than Qiuming City.

Occasionally, he saw cultivators openly displaying their auras, though most were only at the early stages of the True Qi Realm.

In truth, living among ordinary folk wasn’t so bad after all.

He wandered leisurely, and before long, found himself standing before a nine-story tower.

Glancing up, he observed that the architecture of the building seemed quite out of place in Long City.

The entire structure was cylindrical, with four archways—each three zhang high and wide—on each side, connecting with one another.

At the junctions within the doorways, four intersecting stone beams formed a cross. Most striking of all, the stairways were built on the exterior, spiraling around the nine-story building.

The handrails along the stairs were made from some unknown transparent material, catching the sunlight and shimmering with a dazzling luster that was hard to look at directly.

Atop the tower stood a stone sword.

Its hilt pointed downward, the blade upward, as if ready to pierce the heavens.

Looking at the tower—especially the sword above—Lin Cheng felt his blood surge with excitement.

He thought to himself, the one who built this tower must be an extraordinary person.

Shifting his gaze, he saw three bold characters inscribed above the entrance in a style as strong as iron and as graceful as silver.

Taibai Tower!

The moment he saw these characters, the white-robed sword cultivator within the sword mark in the starry sky opened his eyes slightly, glanced over, then closed them again.

What a name!

What a sword!

What a Taibai Tower!

Silently praising it, Lin Cheng was just about to step inside.

At that moment, a commotion erupted on the street.

Page 2 of 3

“Clear the way, clear the way…”

“If you make us late, you’ll pay with your lives…”

“Hurry up and keep moving! These insolent commoners dared to escape—just wait until we get back, death will be too easy for you…”

…

Lin Cheng looked over. At the front rode three men on black-armored warhorses, flanked by guards with long halberds who shouted as they cleared the path, booting aside any bystanders too slow to move.

As they passed, the citizens could only fume in silence, powerless to protest.

Behind, two rows of black-armored soldiers herded a group of shackled, ragged men. If any lagged, they were immediately beaten.

Lin Cheng looked closely—weren’t these the miners he’d helped escape from the southern mine that night?

So the City Lord’s Manor had acted quickly, not even letting these poor commoners go. Well then, let’s see how you handle this.

With that thought, Lin Cheng leapt into the air and landed steadily in front of the three leaders.

“Hei!”

He’d planned a grand, awe-inspiring speech, but suddenly found his mind blank, and after a long moment could only manage a single word.

“Who is this insolent fool, daring to…”

The three in front immediately sensed this newcomer was no ordinary person, and hastily signaled their men to silence.

“Friend, why do you block our way? Are you aware we are the Black-Armored Guards of the City Lord’s Manor?” one of them asked.

Lin Cheng: “…”

“You don’t have to be so polite… You’re making it hard for me to make a move…” Lin Cheng replied.

The three on horseback frowned. “So, you’re here to cause trouble.”

With a wave of the hand, the Black-Armored Guards surrounded Lin Cheng, locking onto him with their murderous auras.

Sensing their strength, Lin Cheng understood the situation.

Aside from the three on horseback, who were at the sixth stage of the True Qi Realm, the rest were only third or fourth stage at best.

He grinned. “I’m not here to cause trouble. It’s just that you all, dressed head to toe in black in broad daylight, are hurting my eyes… So, if you take off your uniforms and leave the City Lord’s Manor, I’ll spare your lives.”

The onlookers on both sides of the street were stunned.

They thought, where did this young man come from? Doesn’t he know how fearsome the Black-Armored Guards are?

Some kind-hearted citizens looked at Lin Cheng with concern, while others, more interested in the spectacle, suppressed their laughter at his mocking words.

“Courting death…”

Enraged by Lin Cheng’s mockery, the three leaders sprang into the air, forming hand seals as a barrage of techniques rained down upon him.

“Excellent!”

With a flicker, the Heavenly Sword appeared in Lin Cheng’s hand, and a flash of light swept forth.

Page 3 of 3

The three men crashed to the ground, a thin red line clear upon their throats.

Moments later, blood spurted like a fountain and the three collapsed, terror still frozen on their faces.

Everyone stared in disbelief.

Before the remaining Black-Armored Guards could react, Lin Cheng swung his sword again, cutting them all down.

Now he understood—since he’d already given them a chance and they’d squandered it, he would not allow them to go on harming others.

Approaching the stunned miners, he waved his hand to break their shackles.

The miners who recognized Lin Cheng trembled with excitement.

Several rushed forward, kneeling and kowtowing in gratitude. “Immortal, thank you for saving us again…”

“Thank you, Immortal, for your rescue…”

“Many thanks, Immortal, for your help…”

…

Lin Cheng stepped forward to help them up. “Find a place to hide for now. Wait until things quiet down before coming out. Don’t worry; the City Lord’s Manor won’t last much longer…”

Hearing his words, the miners once again bowed in heartfelt thanks.

——

After dispersing the crowd, Lin Cheng strode into Taibai Tower.

Inside, he found that the first five floors of the entire building were open, with a massive spherical crystal slowly rotating overhead, encrusted with luminous night stones. In the center of the hall stood a square counter.

As Lin Cheng entered, a portly, middle-aged man with the air of a manager came forward.

He sized Lin Cheng up carefully, narrowed his eyes, and said, “You’re the young man who just killed the Black-Armored Guards in the street? You have quite the spirit…”

Lin Cheng shrugged. “Don’t tell me Taibai Tower is under the City Lord’s control?”

“Hahaha… The City Lord’s Manor? They’re not qualified to make Taibai Tower take notice…” The fat manager burst out laughing.

Lin Cheng pressed, “Then who owns this place?”

“Taibai Tower belongs to no one, and we don’t involve ourselves in power struggles. We’re strictly in business, not in fighting,” the manager replied.

“Oh? You must be something special, then. Or is there a great sect behind you—one of the Three Sects?” Lin Cheng asked with curiosity.

“Hahaha… The Three Sects?”

“You don’t mean to say you don’t even take the Three Sects seriously?” As the manager adopted a lofty expression, Lin Cheng couldn’t help but be astonished.

——