211: Qincheng: A place outside the law and a place of order

The streets were bustling with people, shoulder to shoulder, yet unusually, there was almost none of the usual clamor of eating, drinking, and hawking found in a typical market.

“Come and see! Ancient fragments unearthed from a ruin, containing the supreme Dao!”

“Freshly dug deer-skin iron, full of medicinal properties, in exchange for a water-attribute Flying Sword!”

“A small piece of Spiritual Iron from the Upper Realm, a top-grade Material for refining Magical Artifacts, to the highest bidder!”

On both sides of the road, Cultivators could be seen sitting directly on the ground, with a cloth spread before them, displaying Jade Slips, Spiritual Plants, Ores, damaged Magical Artifacts, and even some Cultivation Technique Secret Manuals with obscure auras and intimidating names.

The air was filled with a peculiar scent of various Spiritual Plants and Ores mixed together, along with faint fluctuations of magical power.

Jiang Yan was dazzled, his mouth unconsciously agape: “Blazing Sun Crystal, Thousand-Year Blood Ginseng… ‘Soul Devouring Art’? How dare they openly sell something like this?!”

He felt like a country bumpkin who had just entered the city, his head almost unable to process everything.

Ye Jianwei slightly tilted her head, as if ‘watching’ the bustling street scene with her ears, her voice calm and even:

“Under the Qin Family banner, no one dares to break the rules.”

“Precisely because no one dares to cause trouble here, those illicit items can be displayed in broad daylight.”

“This place is beyond the law, yet also a place of order.”

The people here abide by, and only by, one law: the law of the Qin Family.

Qin Wangchuan was not surprised by the scene before him; his gaze briefly lingered on several black-clothed figures who seemed to be standing casually but exuded a composed demeanor—they were the Qin Family’s patrol guards.

It seemed there was nothing overtly amiss here.

He said without turning his head, “Let’s find a place to set up a stall first.”

The group followed the crowd deeper into the street, Jiang Yan still couldn't help but glance left and right.

In ordinary cities, most vendors are common merchants, and Cultivation Techniques need to be bought and sold in specialized places, often through auctions.

But here, it was different.

There were very few food stalls; one had to deliberately search to find one or two.

Everything here was set up solely for Cultivators.

Qin Wangchuan led them through the crowd for a while, eventually finding an empty spot at a street corner, branching off a main road, where the foot traffic was slightly less dense.

With practiced movements, he retrieved a table and a cloth banner from his storage Magical Artifact, setting up his talisman stall.

As soon as the stall was set up, a capable-looking young man in a green Qin Family steward’s uniform approached. He held a Jade Slip in his hand and spoke concisely: “New stall? Registration.”

Qin Wangchuan nodded.

“Origin, business content, estimated duration of stay. According to the rules, two tenths of the income earned within the city is to be paid as city tax.”

“Dao Seeking Palace, Talisman Cultivator, Qing…”

“No need for specific names.” The steward raised a hand to interrupt, his gaze sweeping over Qin Wangchuan with a hint of routine indifference. “Selling talismans? How long will you stay?”

“One month, tentatively.”

The steward continued writing, casually confirming: “Hmm, Dao Seeking Palace, Talisman Cultivator, one month…” Halfway through his sentence, his writing suddenly stopped.

He abruptly looked up, and when his gaze fell on Qin Wangchuan again, his previous indifference quickly receded, and his tone softened: “My apologies, it turns out to be a Fellow Daoist from a prominent sect.”

His attitude clearly shifted, and he made a few new marks on the Jade Slip: “Since it’s someone from Dao Seeking Palace, the tax can be halved, only one tenth will be collected. This is your proof, please keep it safe. It can be renewed for free upon expiry; just bring this item to me for reporting.”

He handed over a receipt of special material, imprinted with simple talismans, with both hands.

Qin Wangchuan took the receipt, his expression unchanged.

He was not surprised by this process, because this was precisely the idea he had proposed to his grandfather back then—

The Qin Family’s influence spanned across all realms; to only use their outposts for guarding and reception would be too wasteful.

It would be better to free up some of the buildings, establish strict laws, and attract Cultivators from all directions.

This way, they could collect taxes, gather intelligence, and spread the Qin Family’s prestige far and wide.

Over time, the Qin Family would transition from a high and mighty imperial clan to dwelling in the hearts of all people.

He just hadn't expected that a casual suggestion he made back then would have spread so rapidly without him noticing.

As the steward finished his instructions and was about to turn and leave, Jiang Yan, like a curious fool, asked:

“Brother Steward, why can Dao Seeking Palace get a tax reduction? Is there a special reason?”

The steward stopped, glanced at Jiang Yan, then at the calm-faced Qin Wangchuan beside him, his tone even softer than before:

“Dao Seeking Palace is on good terms with our Qin Family Divine Son, so they naturally enjoy preferential treatment.”

The steward paused as he spoke, as if he had something to add, but then thought better of it and dismissed the idea.

Actually, initially, people from Dao Seeking Palace were exempt from taxes when they came to the Qin Family’s outposts.

But those people truly didn't know how to restrain themselves; they really fleeced them!

They almost wanted to move their entire families to the Qin Family’s outposts, and their behavior was quite unseemly.

That’s why the rules were changed to what they are now.

“Qin Family Divine Son? Just by the name, he sounds amazing!” Jiang Yan was stunned at first, then his face quickly filled with undisguised excitement and yearning as he looked at Qin Wangchuan, “So Dao Seeking Palace is related to the Qin Family?”

Qin Wangchuan nodded, “There’s some connection.”

Jiang Yan nervously looked left and right, confirmed the steward had walked away, then pulled Qin Wangchuan behind the stall, asking urgently in a whisper that only the two of them could hear: “Then, Big Brother, since Dao Seeking Palace is on good terms with that… Divine Son, how did you get into trouble with the Qin Family?”

Hearing Jiang Yan’s question, which was both nervous and full of curiosity, Qin Wangchuan’s lips curved into an extremely faint arc. He said in a hushed, understated tone:

“It’s nothing, just borrowed the identity of their Divine Son and did a small thing.”

“Borrowed an identity?!” Jiang Yan’s eyes almost popped out in shock. He instinctively gasped, then quickly clapped a hand over his mouth. After glancing around, he leaned in closer, gave a thumbs-up, and whispered in awe: “Awesome, Big Brother!”

“You dared to impersonate the Qin Family’s identity in Dao Seeking Palace. If you were born into the Qin Family, wouldn’t you be Heaven-Defying?”

“If this gets out, they’ll tear you apart!”

After he said that, he felt it wasn’t strong enough, so he quickly shook his head to correct himself: “No, no, no, tearing apart would be light! It would probably be…”

Although Ye Jianwei couldn’t see, she seemed to perceive Jiang Yan’s rich facial expressions, and a faint, clear smile appeared on her lips.

This silly boy.

No one would have thought that the Qin Family Divine Son, who should have been high above the clouds, was standing right here at this moment.

Just then, a slightly arrogant voice interrupted their low whispers:

“Hey, talisman seller.”

A richly dressed young Cultivator stood before the stall, his gaze sweeping over the banner hanging below, a hint of interest in his eyes.

Qin Wangchuan’s smile remained unchanged, but he raised his hand, pointing to the empty space next to the stall, and said to Jiang Yan:

“Go get beaten up.”

Jiang Yan’s expression changed like magic, from shock to excitement, and now to distress. With a long face, he muttered reluctantly:

“At least… at least let me wander around the city first… I just set up the stall…”

However, despite his complaints, under Qin Wangchuan’s calm and unwavering gaze, he still shuffled grudgingly towards that empty space.

Time to get beaten!