A Demon’s Paradise - Volume 1 Chapter 11 To A Safer Place

Xia Moyin slipped into her room at the inn and began to pack up her meager belongings. As much as she wanted to sit down and start cultivating, she couldn’t.

The process of making the brew would send out powerful waves of spirit power that would attract every cultivator in the city to come and figure out what’s going on. If they found her, they would definitely try to take the Buzzing Fire and Heavenly Spirit Water. Since she had stolen it right before a prince walked in, there would probably be a substantial price on her head from the empire by the end of the night. Plus, there was still the matter of the man that she had almost fought with at the auction house, He had seen her and would probably be on her tail as well. It would be safer to just retreat and regroup somewhere safer to get stronger.

There wasn’t really anywhere for her to go, but anywhere would probably be better than the Moon Empire. She didn’t plan to meet up with Xia Jun anytime soon anyway, and there wasn’t anything else holding her down. In her mind, the entire stinking family would be better off dead, but she didn’t plan to search them out, nor did she plan to let them go if they sought her out either.

The Wildlands to the east seemed like a good choice, so did leaving the continent, but she quickly ruled those out. The Wildlands really were wildlands, and there was even more king of the hill mentality than in the established kingdoms. There were no permanent cities built, much less places for her to hide and train.

Leaving the continent was also a good option, but she had no way to get there, and there was nothing guaranteeing her any sort of upgrade from where she currently was. Either way, she would have to take a chance and travel.

Xia Moyin didn’t have many items to put away, and in less than ten minutes she had not only packed, but she had also cleaned the room of all traces that she had been there. She disguised herself as the tan man she had been when she had checked in and left the inn through the front entrance.

The only thing she had on her was a Cosmos Sack holding all her belongings, a small bag full of some spare clothing she had picked up while she had been in the city, and the robe she was wearing. It was about midnight when she left, and the city had fallen asleep, completely silent other than the occasional barking dog disrupting the calm night.

The sight of a lone man walking down the street hile the moon hung overhead seemed to be straight out of a painting, the stars twinkling brightly above.

Xia Moyin fished a stolen map out of her bag, set her route, and left, heading out of the city.

***

About three streets over from the inn she had just left, a carriage set off in about the same direction as Xia Moyin. There was no driver, yet the Spirit Beast pulling it knew exactly where to go. There were two people in the cab, sitting silently together.

One was a man, wearing a black robe and reclining leisurely on a pillow, half-asleep. The other was a child, barely six years old and fully awake, snacking on some small pieces of candy in a bowl.

The man’s looks were best described as a sort of refined ruggedness. His face was devilishly handsome, seeming to be carved from stone and able to set any living breathing straight woman’s heart on fire. He had his dark hair cut short and thick eyelashes, a strong chin and a lazy smile.

Yet his eyes, his most attractive features, were filled with cold toughness and guile, chilling down to the bone. They were the color of pure gold, flecks of silver on the edges and vertical pupils. The robe he was wearing was a deep black, golden dragons embroidered into the sleeves and no hood.

The child looked much like a younger version of the man, though his eyes were green and he had a head of black hair tinted red instead of just black. His eyes were filled with childish innocence and confusion as he looked down at the now empty bowl and his candy stained hand before pouting.

“Big Brother, why are we leaving this late? I didn’t even have enough time to pack some snacks..”

The man cracked open one eye, looked him up and down once, then closed it.

“You did have snacks, you just ate them all. As for why we are leaving so late..” the man smiled faintly, a tiny speck of interest on his face.

“We need to find and catch a certain little fox and get back what she took from me…”

*

Three streets over, Xia Moyin sneezed, sniffling.

‘There must be someone talking about me…’ She scanned the buildings, looking for prying eyes. There were none.

A feeling of coldness between her shoulder blades made her shiver for a moment before she shook it off, taking off at a good clip. If she walked the entire way she wouldn’t get to the city gates by dawn.

She took off southeast, toward the general housing and government buildings. She raided a few shops for enough supplies to last her a while before exiting the city and going east. Her destination was Black City, a hole for mercenaries, fugitives, and cultivators to hide, and a paradise for those who want to disappear.

The only reason she went there instead of north, south, or taking her chances in the Wildlands was because of the two defining features of Black City

1) Spirit Power was completely useless for things other than training. There was probably an array, put over the city to ensure that everyone can train, they just couldn’t fight using spirit power and be at an unfair advantage/disadvantage. Any people looking to brawl would have to rely on their pure physical strength versus Spirit Power.

2) The city was built in a place that is extremely beneficial to the training of spirit power and other crafts. A certain pressure was put over the city that makes spirit power move faster and gather quicker, though it is difficult to withstand for more than a moment.

Xia Moyin, despite inhabiting the body of a teenager, could fight just as hard as she could in her previous life, and the only reason she avoided confrontation was because of her lack of cultivation. To be in a place where spirit power didn’t work for things other than training would be a blessing for her, though others might think differently. Plus, it was famous for being a great place to hide out and train.

Even though half the population had a price on their head, it would be great for if she wanted to blend in and lie low. Nobody would expect that the Prime Minister’s daughter from the Moon Empire would go to Black City.

Xia Moyin started running, kicking up a plume of snow in her wake as she went.