A yellow-haired youth, a flying gremlin, a curvy cat-girl, a doe-eyed fox-girl, and a strange little beast cradled in her arms.
Among them, the only one who looked even remotely normal was Aether.
Strolling down the main avenue of Spirit City, such an odd combination naturally drew more than a few curious glances.
But this was Spirit City—strictly governed and heavily monitored. Anyone allowed within its walls shared some degree of connection with the Spirit Hall.
So while their appearance did cause surprise, no overeager busybodies came over looking to make trouble.
After all, anyone you recklessly provoked on the street might very well be backed by one of Spirit Hall's Elders or higher-ups.
In this city, if you stirred up trouble, you'd better seriously consider how much powers your backers really had—and whether it was enough to shield you from the consequences.
There were plenty of cautionary tales about this sort of thing.
One particularly famous incident involved a wealthy merchant with business ties to a Spirit Hall Elder. When he brought his son into the city, the spoiled brat—used to throwing his weight around—publicly harassed a girl on the street.
Unfortunately for him, that girl turned out to be the granddaughter of another high-ranking official. Upon hearing what had happened, the furious elder personally rushed over and executed the lecherous young master on the spot.
He even reported the merchant's father's patron to the Worship Hall.
In the end, not only was the merchant cast out of Spirit Hall City, the implicated Elder also received his due punishment.
These bloody lessons had left a deep impression on the spirit masters and their families who lived in the city.
Of course, no matter how high the tree, there would always be a few reckless birds.
There were still some who roamed freely through Spirit City—either because their elders were Spirit Hall Elders, or because they themselves were part of the gifted "Golden Generation."
"Fire Meow Meow, where are you going?!"
On the street, Yu Keke failed to hold on properly as Fire Meow Meow, wriggled out of her arms.
The fiery little creature darted between stalls and, with surprising agility, pounced onto a vendor's table, snatched a stone into its mouth, and dashed back without a second glance.
"Hey—my stuff!"
The stall owner, startled by the sudden theft, recovered quickly and chased after them with a shout.
Fire Meow Meow bounded over to the group and sprang gracefully into Yu Keke's arms, spitting the stone into her hands while looking up with gleaming eyes.
Before the vendor could catch up, a flash of red arrived first. A fiery figure stormed up to Yu Keke, pointed at Fire Meow Meow, and roared:
"You damned beast! How dare you cause a scene in public!"
As he spoke, he reached out to grab Fire Meow Meow.
Yu Keke panicked and twisted her body to shield her companion.
"Hand over that damned creature!"
The red-clad youth's temper was clearly explosive. He jabbed a finger at Yu Keke and barked orders with righteous fury.
Aether frowned and prepared to intervene, but Yu Keke quickly bowed her head and apologized:
"I'm so sorry, Fire Meow Meow didn't know any better. Is this stone yours? I really apologize."
She offered the stone to the fiery young man, cradling it in both hands.
"Stone? What stone?! That beast ran into Nana! Hand it over!"
He swatted at her hand—but just as he was about to make contact, a sharp voice rang out.
"Stop!"
The red-robed youth paused mid-motion and turned. The moment he saw who it was, his scowl melted into a sycophantic grin.
"Nana, are you alright?"
The girl he addressed as Nana gave him a cold look. Her eyes then locked intently onto Aether, as if trying to confirm something.
"Nana, that beast had the gall to bump into you. Let me catch it for you and see how you want to deal with it!"
As he spoke, the youth—Yan—readied to move again, but noticed that Nana's gaze was fixed elsewhere.
Following her line of sight, he discovered that she was staring not at the creature, but at the youth beside it—Aether.
"Nana? …Nana?!"
Yan called out a few more times, but she didn't respond. An inexplicable fury welled up in his chest.
"How dare you make a scene in Spirit City?! Where is the Enforcers' Squad? Arrest them immediately!"
Clearly, Yan wasn't someone with low status in Spirit City. At his command, several patrolling guards quickly rushed over.
"Lord Yan, what happened?"
One of the guards bowed respectfully.
"Are you blind? They're making a scene in the street! What are you even doing here?! Take them down!"
Yan pointed viciously at Aether, face twisted with rage.
But Aether paid him no mind. He took the stone from Yu Keke and examined it, speaking to Fire Meow with interest:
"This stone looks unusual… So, you've got this kind of function, huh?"
Though outwardly an ordinary pebble, the interior held a dense and refined energy. What its purpose was, however, remained unclear.
"Raaawr~"
Fire Meow Meow, a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast, couldn't care less about threats from a spirit master hovering around rank 40 or 50.
Hearing praise from Aether, it let out a delighted roar.
"What are you all waiting for?! Arrest them!"
Yan was about to explode. These people were chatting and admiring rocks like they weren't even in danger. Were they insane?
The surrounding guards, long experienced with Spirit City politics, exchanged glances and hesitated.
Anyone who could face off with Lord Yan so calmly clearly wasn't someone to trifle with lightly.
Still, with Yan's fury looming over them, they had no choice but to inch forward, slowly closing the circle.
"Stop!"
Two voices shouted simultaneously.
Hu Liena—the girl called Nana—shoved Yan aside and stepped forward. She bowed respectfully to Aether and asked:
"You're the traveler everyone's been talking about, aren't you?"
Aether looked at her and nodded.
From her earlier exchange with the hot-headed Yan, he'd already figured out their identities.
The girl was Hu Liena, disciple of Bibi Dong and the de facto leader of Spirit Hall's Golden Generation.
At least, she held that position for now—since they had yet to learn of Qian Renxue's existence.
The fiery-tempered youth next to her was almost certainly Yan—another member of the Golden Generation, and more importantly, a hopeless simp…
But Hu Liena wasn't the only one who shouted to stop.
The captain of the guards—who had earlier recognized Paimon—came sprinting over, face pale with anxiety.
He shoved the other guards aside, quickly cupped his fists toward Aether, and said urgently:
"Milord, are you alright?"
Aether shook his head calmly.
"Whew…"
The captain exhaled deeply, then turned toward Hu Liena and Yan.
"Lady Hu Liena, Lord Yan—this man and his companions are honored guests of Spirit Hall…"
He practically screamed the implication in their faces, terrified they might not realize whose toes they were stepping on.
Offending this group could very well end with consequences even Hu Liena and Yan couldn't bear…
"Wait, wait—'Traveler'? You know him?"
Yan, as dense as ever, stared at Hu Liena and Aether with increasing disbelief and rising jealousy.
All he ever saw was Hu Liena.
The captain's words went completely over his head.
_
Please support my patreon, patreon. com/TravelerDouluo
And get early access to my 80 advance chapters.