In a quiet corner of the capital, the old man appeared.

Lin Xuanji moved forward and raised his thumb in praise. “Old man, you’ve got some skills. In just a few moves, you’ve managed to chase a divine dragon away.”

The old man rolled his eyes. “There are strong and weak dragons out there. That dragon was from the Azure Dragon lineage of the dragon race. Even though it’s an adult dragon, it has yet to reach its peak. Furthermore, it just gave birth to a dragon egg, damaging its essence qi greatly resulting in a significant decrease in its strength.”

“Then why didn’t you kill that Azure Dragon just now?”

Lin Xuanji rubbed his hands together. “Since we’ve already become enemies, why don’t we kill it to eliminate all future troubles?”

“That’s easy for you to say, lad.”

The old man sneered, “Do you know the consequences of slaying that Azure Dragon? The Great Zhou’s capital turning into rivers of blood would be the least of them! If it’s serious, the entire Northern Region would be strewn with enough corpses to form mountains!”

“Don’t scare me, old man!” Lin Xuanji was startled.

“Scare you? Back then, that…”

The old man stopped mid-sentence and shook his head. “Forget it, let’s not mention that.”

“Fu*k!””

Lin Xuanji’s ears were perked up to listen in focus when the old man decided to not continue…

The old man waved it off. “Furthermore, did you think that the Azure Dragon came alone? In the dark, there’s another dragon that did not show itself. That dragon is the true expert!”

Lin Xuanji frowned and asked, “Old man, I used a Minor Transference Talisman! How did that Azure Dragon find me here?”

“The three of you ate a dragon’s egg, that’s equivalent to eating an entire dragon! Even though that dragon hasn’t been formed yet, how much energy do you think it possessed?”

The old man continued, “The only way to avoid that Azure Dragon’s detection is by absorbing that energy completely!”

“That’s easy for me. I only ate a little bit of that egg juice so it’ll probably take me a month to absorb it all.”

Lin Xuanji gloated. “That Su Zimo and that dog are doomed! It’s their own fault for eating so much, haha!”

Pondering for a moment, the old man said, “Go and remind him that he should not leave the capital before he refines the essence energy of that dragon’s egg in his body completely.”

“Ah?

Lin Xuanji was stunned for a moment. “Old man, are you planning on staying here still?”

“Of course not.”

The old man shook his head. “After you refine the essence energy of the dragon’s egg, we’ll return to the Middle Continent. In another two years, the ancient battlefield will be opened up. We’ve got to prepare for it.”

Tianhuang Mainland consisted of four regions, three oceans and one continent.

The four regions referred to the North, South, East and West regions.

The Great Zhou Dynasty was located in the North Region of Tianhuang Mainland.

The continent referred to the Middle Continent. Located at the center of Tianhuang Mainland, it was extremely huge and its territory was larger than all four regions combined!

If a Foundation Establishment Cultivator were to travel on his flying sword at full speed, he would not be able to travel through the entire North Region by the end of his lifetime, let alone enter the Middle Continent.

Golden Cores were faster and had a longer lifespan. However, no one would waste most of their precious time on the road just to get to the Middle Continent.

Furthermore, the journey was fraught with dangers and demon beasts lurked through the mountains and rivers. They would probably die before even reaching the Middle Continent.

It was only by reaching Nascent Soul realm that one would have the ability to protect themselves and could attempt to cross the four regions and continent.

…

In the restaurant, Su Zimo ate his food as he listened to everyone’s discussions.

Suddenly, someone sat down opposite his table.

When Su Zimo looked up, he was slightly stunned.

Lin Xuanji.

Both of them parted ways after escaping from the primordial ruin.

He had not expected to encounter this person once more in the capital.

Su Zimo poured a cup of wine for Lin Xuanji and smiled. “It’s probably fate that we’re both able to meet again so soon.”

Lin Xuanji’s lips cramped up at the mention of ‘fate’.

It was because they were fated that he was almost done in because of Su Zimo and that dog!

The dragon’s egg was gone.

His tracks were exposed and he was hunted down by a dragon.

His Minor Transference Talisman was gone.

He was even slapped twice by the old man and the handprints had just faded.

At the thought of those things, Lin Xuanji was furious.

He said coldly, “It’s not fate. I came to find you.”

“Oh?”

Su Zimo exclaimed softly, “What can I do for you, fellow Daoist?”

“Don’t leave the Great Zhou’s capital before you’re done refining the essence energy in your body.”

Lin Xuanji said, “I’m sure you witnessed that battle outside the capital earlier on as well. The dragon came because it could sense the energy within your body.”

Su Zimo frowned – that was exactly what he was worried about.

After a moment of silence, Su Zimo continued, “I can’t stay in the capital and refine all that essence energy as well. What if the dragon comes knocking again during this period of time? The only way is if that mysterious expert continues guarding this place and can step forward to stop the divine dragon.”

“Even if the old man isn’t guarding here, it’s also relatively safer for you to stay in the capital.”

Lin Xuanji said, “After today’s battle, the dragon race must have some reservations. After all, they might not dare to come knocking once more after suffering a loss. However, if you were to leave the capital before refining the essence energy of the dragon’s egg, they’ll definitely sense it and hunt you down. By then, you’ll be dead for sure!”

Su Zimo remained silent.

His original plan was to return to Ethereal Peak as quickly as possible.

He missed little fatty, monkey, spirit tiger, little crane and everyone else dearly.

However, upon hearing Lin Xuanji’s analysis, Su Zimo realized that he had no other choice but to stay in the capital!

Of course, staying in the capital was not entirely a bad thing either.

First, it could ensure his safety.

Second, he could save a lot of time on the road and use it to raise his cultivation as well as refine the essence energy of the dragon egg.

Right now, what Su Zimo needed the most was time to cultivate.

In the past year, he had reaped a lot of complex benefits. However, he did not have the time to settle down and convert them into his actual strength.

Third, the sect competition would occur two years later. Every single major and minor sect of the Great Zhou Dynasty would arrive at the capital eventually – Ethereal Peak included.

That way, Su Zimo could just meet everyone from Ethereal Peak in the capital and save the trouble of heading back and forth.

At that thought, Su Zimo was decided.

For some reason, Su Zimo had a vague sense that there was something amiss with what Lin Xuanji said earlier on.

“Alright, that’s all I have to say,” Lin Xuanji rose to leave.

Su Zimo looked at Lin Xuanji’s cheeks and said with a fake smile, “Fellow Daoist, you seem to have gotten a little chubbier after half a day.”

Lin Xuanji’s expression froze as he said with gritted teeth, “None of your business!”

With that, Lin Xuanji flicked his sleeves and left while murmuring, “Damned old man, you struck me so harshly…”

When he heard that, Su Zimo’s heart skipped a beat and finally realized what was amiss with Lin Xuanji’s words.

“Even if the old man isn’t guarding here, it’s also relatively safer for you to stay in the capital.”

That was what Lin Xuanji had just said.

How did Lin Xuanji know that the mysterious expert was an old man?

None of the cultivators in and out of the capital saw the appearance of the mysterious expert clearly!

“Was it a coincidence? Did he mention that on a whim? Or…?”

Su Zimo’s eyes flickered as he pondered.