The Lord of Void and Real
Chapter 677

Chapter 677: Chapter 673: How does a Good Man Cross? Chapter 677: Chapter 673: How does a Good Man Cross? “I had a sudden sensation just now, as if something in that direction was calling me.” Chan'er placed his hands together, murmured a Buddha's name, then spoke.

Bai Xiaotian and Shen Luo were taken aback when they heard this, and turned their gaze in the direction that Chan'er was looking.

“This way, if I remember correctly, the Red Valley City, the capital of the Black Chicken Kingdom, lies ahead.” Shen Luo took out a classic book, flipped to a page where a rudimentary map of the Black Chicken Kingdom was drawn.

“That's correct, it is Red Valley City.” Shen Luo confirmed on the map, his memory had not failed him.

“Red Valley City? It seems familiar.” Chan'er furrowed his eyebrows and commented.

“We'll know once we go take a look.” Bai Xiaotian mobilized the flying boat with a spell, carrying the three of them towards that direction.

The Black Chicken Kingdom was expansive, and Shen Luo and the others had to be constantly vigilant of the demons that could appear at any moment, so they couldn't travel with full speed. It wasn't until half a day later that they arrived at Red Valley City.

Red Valley City, true to its name, was built within a huge crimson valley, and the city's area was immense, more than ten times the size of Bai County City. The streets were packed with people, and the city's prosperity put the rest of the Black Chicken Kingdom to shame. Although it couldn't rival Chang'an City, it was not less than Jianye.

Moreover, on both sides of Red Valley City were continuous mountain ranges; the rocks of these mountains were distinctly different, exuding a dark red color. Like rusted iron, they even permeated the air with a coppery smell.

“These are red copper mines! So much is exposed.” Shen Luo examined the mountains on both sides and said in awe.

“Our Hua Sheng Temple has business transactions with Red Valley City; I've seen some recordings about the city. Red Valley City of the Black Chicken Kingdom is a famous city in the Western Regions. It is rich in red copper and is even skilled in the art of Artifact Refining. It is heralded as the crown jewel among the Thirty-Six Nations of the Western Regions. Countless people come to Red Valley City every year seeking magical instruments, which has brought prosperity to the area.” Bai Xiaotian explained.

Upon hearing Bai Xiaotian's words, Shen Luo was pleased.

He's carrying top-grade materials to refine into magical instruments but find no suitable artifact refiner in Chang'an City. Now that they're at Red Valley City, which is famous for artifact refining, he will certainly take full advantage of this opportunity.

“Master Golden Cicada, is this the place?” Bai Xiaotian saw Chan'er staring at the city in front of them, deep in thought, and asked in a soft voice.

“Yes, it is here, I can feel something calling me from within the city, but I cannot identify where exactly.” Chan'er came back to his senses and replied.

“Buddhist Bead, what do you think?” A thought crossed Shen Luo's mind and he asked the crystal bead.

“Why are you asking me? I don't feel anything.” The crystal bead responded huffily.

Shen Luo frowned slightly. It was not due to the bead's attitude. He initially thought they would quickly find the thing Chan'er was searching for upon arriving in Red Valley City. But looking at the current situation, it seemed they needed to conduct a detailed investigation within the city.

“In that case, let's first enter the city and take our time searching.” He decided.

Thus, the three of them landed near the city walls and began to walk forth. Soon, they arrived at the gates of Red Valley City.

While they were on the flying boat, the scale was not immediately apparent. But standing beneath Red Valley City, they could see the city walls were extraordinarily tall, reaching around one hundred and fifty zhang (about 1500 feet), even exceeding those of Chang'an City. They were built with massive crimson rocks, resembling a towering mountain. Standing at the city gates made one feel incredibly insignificant, like a mere ant.

Above the city gate, several large structures were built on the walls that seemed like giant beasts crouching in mid-air, waiting to pounce at any moment, filling anyone beneath with uneasy anticipation.

The three of them briefly marveled at the grandeur of the Western City, then they blended into the crowd, queuing up to enter the city.

Shen Luo observed the surroundings of the city, and soon he noticed something unusual. It seemed that the city gates and various parts of the wall had been repaired recently. The edges of the walls and the roads near the gates still bore traces of mending.

“Renovating the city at this time? According to the norm of the Black Chicken Kingdom, it's not a major holiday, could there be some sort of celebration taking place within the city?” Having previously read some classics about the Black Chicken Kingdom, he speculated quietly.

The process of entering the city from the city gate was fast, and it wasn't long before it was the turn of the three of them.

This time they weren't extorted and after paying the entrance fee, they smoothly entered the city.

As a major city in the Western Regions, Chigao City naturally continued the consistent rugged, heavy style of the Western Regions. The streets were paved with very large crimson stones, each the size of a tabletop and extremely thick. Although the roads were not as smooth as the Central Region, stepping on them gave a feeling of unparalleled stability, as if they would never break down.

The streets in the city stood in great numbers. Unlike the square blocks of the Chang'an city, Shen Luo had just seen from mid-air that the entire Red Valley City was laid out in a radial manner, with a majestic palace in the center of the city, and many roads radiating out in all directions.

The streets were bustling with people, not only were there locals from the Black Chicken Kingdom, but there were also many foreign faces, and occasionally one could see one or two merchants from the Tang Dynasty. Shen Luo and his companions did not attract attention.

Just like the whole of the Black Chicken Kingdom, Red Valley City housed a large number of temples, both big and small. Buddha statues could be seen frequently throughout the city, some of them so large they were quite spectacular.

There were signs of renovation in the city; virtually all houses had been painted in red, white, and yellow colors.

“Huh, does Red Valley City plan on hosting a festival?” Bai Xiaotian noticed the renovations happening in the city and asked.

“Seems so. I overheard some locals saying something about a Mahayana Assembly being held here,” Shen Luo replied after listening to the conversations of the locals.

“Mahayana Assembly!” Chan'er's eyes sparkled, although he came to Black Chicken Kingdom to find his lost memories, as a disciple of the Buddhist sect, he was interested in exchanging knowledge at a foreign Mahayana Assembly.

Just then, a commotion started ahead. A ragged figure was staggering like a madman. The man was wearing ragged clothes and was very dirty, emitting a foul odor.

“It's that lunatic again!”

“The Mahayana Assembly will start soon and monks from all over have started to arrive, why is this madman still allowed to roam the streets!”

The passersby avoided him like a plague, disgust evident on their faces.

But this madman, as if he had no one around him, walked on the street and would occasionally grab passersby, asking them “How can kind people be saved?”

Shen Luo frowned slightly, ready to avoid the madman with Chan'er. But the madman noticed Chan'er in his monk's robe and his eyes immediately lit up. He charged over and grabbed onto Chan'er's monk's robe and asked.

“Master, please tell me how can kind people be saved?” the madman asked.

Caught off guard, Chan'er did not know how to respond. Although he had attended countless Dharma assemblies at the Golden Mountain Temple and understood the various mysteries of the Buddhist sect, he had never encountered this particular one.

Just then, a “rustle” of neat footsteps came from ahead. A squad of soldiers quickly ran over.

“It's him, take him away!” yelled a squad leader pointing at the madman.

A few soldiers immediately pounced on him, capturing the madman and dragging him away.

But the madman clung tightly to Chan'er's sleeve, ripping off a large piece of fabric with a 'rip' sound.

“How can kind people be saved?”

“How can kind people be saved?”

The madman continued to shout at Chan'er, his voice hoarse with desperation.