"Deming Fai," Chief Lang fanned himself. He looked as if he ate something sour. "Of all the kings to be noticed by."

I was currently seated in my living room with Cheif Lang and Cheif Chang'e.

"How many kings are there?" I asked him.

Chief change made a sound of surprise before she composed herself. "You really know little about our world." She murmured.

I shook my head. "No, I don't. I originally was too busy focusing on the valley."

Chief Lang closed his fan. "I think we can all be grateful for that." He took a sip of tea I made for them before he continued. "Best to start at the beginning, then. There are six realms. The Mortal realm where we are currently. Then there's the Heavenly realm, the Demon Realm, the Fairy realm, the Elemental realm, and the Immortal realm. Here in the Mortal realm, there are three continents each ruled by an emperor. Each Emporer has Six kings that govern the six provinces of each continent. Each King has a court of ten governors in charge of districts within the provinces. A Magistrate reports to the Governors that govern every city and us clan Chiefs report to the magistrates if we live in the cities. Gold Valley is autonomous. We report to no one. As long as we obey the Emporer's laws and pay our taxes when the collector comes, they leave us to our own devices. However, as independent as we are, we can't refuse the summons of the king."

"What would happen if I refused?" I asked him.

He chuckled and playfully hit my arm with his fan. "I expected you to say something like that. You don't strike me as a man to be summoned anywhere. If you don't go, Deming Fai could take that as an affront to his honor and send his armies here to either kill you or force you to appear before him, then kill you in court. You can slay his armies with your own power. The strongest Body cultivator on this continent is Early Nirvana Rank 1, but he belongs to the Heavenly Sutra sect. The king wouldn't dare try to force him to come after you and the king has nothing to bribe him with. "

"I know we assessed my cultivation, but I don't understand it," I admitted to him.

"I am quite jealous you cultivated to your stage without even realizing it." Chief Chang'e said. "There are two forms of cultivation. Body and Spirit. There are different stages of development early, middle, and late. Each stage has 9 ranks. The stages for body cultivation are as follows. Body foundation, body refining, body perfection, Nirvana, half immortal, and Immortal Form. Your spirit root is fire which means two things. You're a man of passion, not only in the physical sense but in all you do. It also means that fire spells and certain techniques will be easier to learn than others. Dual cultivators build Body and Spirit. I believe you can dual cultivate if you wanted. For your sake, I'll tell you the stages of spiritual cultivation. Qi Gathering, Qi refining, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Nihility, and Ascension."

It was a lot to remember, so I wrote what she said in my recipe notepad. I always carried it with me in case I thought of a good recipe and didn't want to forget anything. I had been training again in private to get a sense of my new powers. Physically, I could knock a tree down with my fist. I could run a mile in two minutes, I could leap twenty feet in the air, with disastrous consequences. My senses were keener if I focused on them.

Without even realizing it my parent had laid the foundation for my success in this world. "Where could I learn spiritual cultivation?"

Chief Chang'e gave me a knowing smile. "You'd have to join a sect. They hold a monopoly on spiritual cultivation. Most spiritual cultivators join and spend their whole mortal and even immortal lives in their sects, never returning to the mortal realm." She told me. "You might never come back."

I snorted. "Don't count on it."

"At any rate. Whatever you decide, Master Ivory, we will stand by it." Chief Lang said.

"I'm guessing there are certain etiquettes I will need to know?" I asked.

"Normally yes. But you're the goddess hero. It's best if you let him think you are ignorant of this world."

I nodded my head. "What do you recommend I do, Chief Lang?"

"Appear before him on time," he said, pointing his fan at me. "Pick an entourage. You might not need guards or servants, but you should show him you're not a pushover. Arriving in style is the best way to do so. I would suggest you take your wife and at least one concubine to show off in court. Other than that, do what you feel is best."

I ran a hand through my hair and nodded. "Thank you both for your counsel." I bowed respectfully to both of them. "When should I leave?"

"Deming Fai's palace is in the capital a week's travel. You should leave at the end of the week to get there in time." Chief informed me. I nodded. "Chief Lang, please pick five of your best warriors to accompany me." The Chief beamed at me. He seemed pleased that I would want his men to escort me.

Chief Chang'e cleared her throat. "In that case, please allow me to send five of my girls with you. They will serve you and your woman's body, mind, and soul. This I can assure you."

I inclined my head. "It would be my honor, Lady Chang'e."

She blushed and hid her face behind her fan. I chuckled and excused myself. I walked to the Shen clan's old home. The village was mostly intact after the raid that killed everyone. The Razorbacks had enough brains not to start any fires or else the whole valley could go up in flames. I might have to leave instructions to fix that. Some forest thinning might be in order.

The Shen estate resembled an Asian quadrangle. Kai stood at the open gate to the courtyard. He smiled and bowed low to me. "Hey Kai. Is Jiao inside?"

He nodded. "She's in her quarters." He waggled his eyebrows at me suggestively.

I gave him a dirty look and punched him lightly on the shoulder before going inside. I could hear him snickering behind me. Members from the Heavenly Blossom had voluntarily joined the Shen clan to help make the Shen clans special apparel and accessories. A few of them bowed before they continued walking.

I walked up to Jiao's room and knocked on her door. She opened the door and her face brightened when she saw me. I smiled in return. "May I come in?" She nodded and stepped back, then closed her door after I entered her room. We sat at an ornate table where she poured me a cup of tea. I thanked her and took a sip.

"So I'm sure you must have heard by now that Deming Fai has summoned me."

Her eyes went wide. She shook her head. "No, I haven't heard about that yet."

I raised an eyebrow. "I guess the Echo birds are falling behind." Just then, an Echo bird flew into the room and pronounced that "they have summoned Master Ivory to the capital of Hajin province." Jiao laughed and shooed the bird away.

I chuckled. "So I spoke with Chief Lang and Chang'e. I'll be leaving at the end of the week with an entourage often. Five Lang warriors and five Wha Servants. I'll also be taking my two wives. Min Bajie and Jiao Shen."

Her face was a mask of surprise, then she beamed. "You kept your word. You didn't make me wait long."

I laughed and took her hand in mine. "Yes. Well, I figured the trip would be a marvelous chance for us to get to know each other better. When we return, we'll have a proper ceremony."

She nodded her head. "That sounds perfect."

"And it'll give you and Min a chance to get to know each other better."

Her face fell slightly. "Do you think she'll like me?"

"What's not to like?"

She blushed and gave me a sheepish smile. Sometimes Jiao was too cute for words. I kissed her hand. "I know she'll adore you."

She nodded her head. "I hope so." I stood to leave, but she tightened her hold on my hand. "Will you return tonight?"

I nodded slowly. "I'll return," I promised her. She smiled and pressed her lips to my hand. Her tails were quivering. She was doing all she could to not show her excitement. I reluctantly left her. I had to go see Min now. I didn't know how she'd react to everything. I only hope she didn't cook me in her pot.

I sat at Min's table. She hummed as she cooked. I had just finished telling her about the summons and my intent to take Jiao as my second wife. After a few more minutes, she ladled the soup into a bowl and set it down in front of me.

It was probably poisoned. Ah well, I deserved it I guess. I scooped up a spoonful of the soup and put it into my mouth. Flavor exploded. I moaned in delight. "This is fantastic," I told her. I finished the bowl in seconds and waited for the poison to kick in. Seconds passed and nothing. I checked my pulse. "Huh."

Min was giving me an odd look. "What are you doing?"

"I was expecting to be dead," I told her honestly.

"Did you think my cooking was going to be that bad, or did you think I poisoned it?"

"I guessed poison."

She tilted her head. She wore an expression of hurt and bafflement on her face. "Why would I do that?"

I shrugged. "Scorned rage for picking a second wife."

She made a sound between a snort and a laugh. "You're the goddess's hero. I wouldn't be surprised if you one day had ten wives and a hundred concubines. Deming Fai has refused to have wives, but he was over two hundred concubines. His Magistrates send him a new girl every month."

I shook my head. "Yeah, that's too much."

She shrugged. "I'm not mad. Jiao was very kind to me. Of all the women you could have taken for a second wife, I'm glad it was her."

"That's a relief, actually. I'm going back to be with Jiao tonight. Would you like to join us?" I asked her.

Her cheeks turned a bright red, and she leaned close. "We can do that?" She asked in a whisper.

Her naivete was adorable. I nodded my head. "There are a lot of things we can do. Chu really was a horrible lover."

She nodded her head. "He really was. Just one night with you proved that. But I think I'll stay here this time. Maybe next time?"

I stood and rounded the table. She looked at me with apprehension before I captured her lips with mine and kissed her till she was limp in my arms. When I broke our kiss, she stared at me with dazed eyes.

"We can do whatever you like when you're ready," I promised her.

She bit her bottom lip. "Then kiss me like that one more time before you go."

I smirked and obliged her, pressing my lips to her in a scolding kiss that even left me lightheaded. She clung to me for dear life and murmured softly. "You really are good to me."

I carried her to her bed and laid her down. Her eyes were still dazed, but she was grinning as she wished me a good night.

When I got back to Jiao's room, I was still grinning. I took a deep breath, feeling nervous. I shook off the feeling and knocked on her door.

"Come in." I heard her call softly.

Despite myself, butterflies were dancing in my stomach. I entered her room, closing the door behind me. When I turned back, I saw Jiao sitting on her bed. Her hair was loose and fell about her shoulders. She wore a silky gossamer robe that hid nothing. Her tails were alive with activity. They wagged and flopped about in excitement or trepidation. I couldn't tell. Her emotions must have been all over the place if she couldn't control them. I approached her bed slowly. Giving her time to change her mind.

"I have to tell you. I've been with other men. I'm no longer a virgin." She admitted.

I sat next to her on the bed. "That's not an issue for me." I brushed her hair away and kissed her nape. She let out a gasp of delight. "I prefer women with experience," I assured her. I really did. A virgin's innocence was great, but it got frustrating after a while. You had to keep teaching them everything and being gentle was fine, but sometimes a man didn't want to hold back.

I would have stayed the night be she insisted I go home to my bed. "Our first night together should be in our own bed." She said. I think she was just too embarrassed after I gave her such an orgasm. There was no rush. We could take our time getting to know each other. And we did. In the week that followed, I visited her room twice more. Instead of my mouth, I coaxed an orgasm from her with my fingers and then with hers. She was still too nervous to let me inside her, but that was fine. Her soft hands stroking me to completion were good enough for now.

When I wasn't spending time with my women, I was showing the artisans of the valley how to make a carriage. I wanted it to be big enough for the three of us to be comfortable. Instead of a hard seat, I had them install cushions where we could sit or lounge comfortably. I had them make a second wagon for the servant girls that would accompany us, and the Bitter Fang warriors would ride on horseback. Lian would pull our carriage and the horse would pull the carriage behind us.

I had the carriages built with enough space on the back for footlockers for our clothes and other belongings. I was told we'd be provided lodging once we reached the Deming Fai's palace.

The whole Valley showed up to wish us well on our journey. We waved goodbye to everyone before we left.

The journey to the capital was shockingly uneventful. We learned from a peddler when we stopped to water the horses that the Gold Valley bandits were the biggest bandit gang around. When their leader did, the rest of the bandits killed themselves, fighting over the succession right. The handful left were too weak and cowardly to be a threat, so they left the area in fear of being hunted down.

For the moment, the district was bandit free. It wouldn't stay that way for long. Eventually, another bandit gang would show up, but for the time being, it meant a peaceful ride into the capital.

During the ride, Jiao and Min got to know each other. They would talk for hours and I eventually thought them how to play Gin rummy and go fish to occupy their time.

When we arrived at the capital, I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my head. They surrounded the capital city on all sides by a fifty-foot wall. In the sky above, I could see wyverns patrolling along the perimeters of the walls. The city itself reminded me of Asia. The building, the market stalls, even the way the people dressed.

They halted us at the main gate and a question. The guards of the capital were fairly hostile. When we explained the king had summoned us, their attitudes changed drastically. They escorted us to the palace. The king's head secretary was waiting for us upon our arrival.

He was an older man with a long white beard and gray hair. He bowed low to me. "Venerable master Ivory. You honor us with your presence. Allow me to show you to your quarters."

The palace comprised many halls. Many of which were dedicated to members of the king's harem, immediate family, and visiting governors. The head secretary led us to the Onyx Mirror Hall. They reserved it specifically for our use. According to the man, it would be where I would stay should I ever return to the palace.

The king planned on summoning me back here. No doubt he planned on making me his puppet or lackey. I wasn't any man's puppet. Nor would I let him think he could use me.

After we settled in, they escorted me and my wives to the throne room. The throne room was smaller than I imagined. It was long and rectangular. Desks lined the room on either side, forming a center aisle that led straight to where the king sat. His throne was made of wood and colored red. A pair of statues modeled after a rearing horse flanked the throne on either side. Gold-colored cushions adorned the red throne. The king, a slender man with a rat face, lounged on the throne.

I wasn't kidding about his face. His eyes were small and beady. His nose was long and narrow. He had an unfortunate overbite, coupled with the ridiculously thin handlebar mustache that gave him the appearance of a rat. I wanted to laugh, but I restrained myself and kept my expression neutral.

"So you're the hero sent to us by Leandra?" He eyed me up and down. "I was expecting someone more imposing. The last hero that the goddess sent was six feet tall and built like an ox. "

"He still failed in his mission," I commented.

The king sniffed. "Yes. I suppose you're right. Does that mean you're confident you'll succeed where the others have failed?"

I shrugged. "I don't intend to fail. But if I do, it won't be from a lack of effort on my part."

The king watched was sizing me up, and I was getting sick of it. "Why have I been summoned?"

The king snapped open a red fan decorated with a portrait of galloping horses. "In the mountains, there is a certain group of people that have been a thorn in my side. If you use your power to make them disappear, I shall reward you with your own weight in gold."

The man was rotten, and if these people vexed him, then I would like to meet them. "Very well, your grace. Tell me where I can find these people."