50: Chapter 50 Spicy Strips

Stepping into the majestic border city of the Great Xia, Luoxia City.

At that moment, both Ji Lingxuan and Elder Xuan were stunned.

They looked like country bumpkins who had never seen the world.

Was this place truly on the edge of the Eastern Wasteland, that barren land with thin Spiritual Qi?

The streets were paved with unknown dark green rocks.

Broad. Smooth. It could accommodate ten beast carriages abreast.

On both sides of the street, shops stood in rows, and the voices of people were boisterous.

A hawker selling candied haws had a booming voice, and there was actually the blood energy fluctuation of the Body Refining Realm.

The proprietress of a cloth shop, sitting behind the counter clicking an abacus, was a Divine Treasury Realm Cultivator.

Even the guards standing at the city gate had straight postures and calm auras.

The lowest cultivation level was actually the Cave-Heaven Realm.

The Cave-Heaven Realm as a gatekeeper? Who would believe that!

The commander of the Imperial Guard of the Yuhua Dynasty was only at this level.

Elder Xuan was completely numb.

He followed behind Ji Lingxuan, his expression shifting from solemnity and shock to bewilderment.

The common sense he had accumulated over tens of thousands of years was completely overturned in this small city.

Everyone was a martial artist. No, this was a reserve force for universal cultivation.

Ji Lingxuan wore a simple, elegant cloth dress and used a secret technique to conceal her appearance, looking just like a pretty girl next door.

She walked through the bustling crowd, her eyes filled with even deeper confusion and curiosity.

Everyone here, from the elderly to the children, had faces beaming with confidence and ease.

That kind of spirit could not be faked.

This was the atmosphere that only a prosperous age would have.

"One can tell the atmosphere of a Dynasty by observing its people."

Ji Lingxuan transmitted her voice using Divine Thought, her tone filled with emotion.

"Everyone here has an extremely strong sense of belonging and pride in this land; this kind of cohesion... is terrifying."

Elder Xuan nodded in deep agreement.

Just as he was about to reply, his nose twitched suddenly.

A strange fragrance aggressively entered his nasal cavity.

This fragrance was complex. It had the charred scent of roasting flames, mixed with a spicy, stimulating sensation.

Underneath the stimulation, there was a rich, almost tangible fragrance of Spiritual Qi.

After just one sniff, the mana in Elder Xuan's body, which had been stagnant for many years, actually showed a hint of agitation.

"What is this thing?"

The two looked towards the source of the fragrance.

At a street corner not far away, a small group of people was gathered, as if watching the excitement.

The fragrance was coming from the center of the crowd.

Ji Lingxuan and Elder Xuan exchanged a glance and walked over.

Pushing into the crowd, the scene before them left both of them stunned.

In the center of the crowd, two cute, rosy-cheeked little children were squatting.

The older one was about three years old, wearing a sloppy little jacket with glistening snot hanging from his nose.

He was holding a half-foot-long, bright red, steaming strip-like object, his mouth covered in oil as he ate.

His little face was full of happy, silly smiles.

That aggressive fragrance was coming from this red strip.

Standing next to him was an even smaller little girl, about two years old, wearing a clean, pink little dress.

Her expression was aloof. She frowned with her tiny brows, looking at the boy eating happily with a face full of disdain.

These two cute children were Li Changsheng and Li Qingyue, who had snuck out of the Royal Academy.

Known as the "Imperial Capital Duo".

The onlookers were clearly very familiar with them and were smiling kindly.

"Yo, little Changsheng is sneaking snacks again. Be careful, or your Imperial Father will spank you when you go back!"

"Princess Qingyue is as clean as ever. Look at her disdainful little gaze; it's too cute!"

"These two children are truly the treasures of the royal family."

The surrounding discussion allowed Ji Lingxuan and Elder Xuan to instantly grasp the key information.

Princess? Prince?

These two little ones before them were the Prince and Princess of this mysterious Imperial Dynasty?

Ji Lingxuan's heart skipped a beat.

She subconsciously looked at Elder Xuan, only to find this Peak Venerable Realm guardian staring fixedly at the red strip in Li Changsheng's hand.

His eyes were wide open. His body was frozen in place.

His expression changed drastically, his mind shaking violently.

Just a moment ago, he had released his Divine Thought to probe that "snack" emitting the strange fragrance.

He didn't know until he probed it; upon probing, he almost lost his composure.

As soon as his Divine Thought touched the red strip, it felt as if he had fallen into an ocean composed of Heaven And Earth Treasure.

The spicy taste came from the powder of the "Red Flame Earth Core Pepper".

This item grew in the depths of ten-thousand-foot volcanic lava and bore fruit once every thousand years.

The fragrance of Spiritual Qi came from the roots and stems of more than seven types of thousand-year Spirit Medicine.

Among them were even the extinct "Purple Veined Dragon Saliva Grass" and "Nine-Leaf Phoenix Blood Ginseng".

And the flame aura that fused all of this, arrogant and noble, was an existence he could not understand.

That was the power of the Solar True Fire Origin.

Using Solar True Fire as a barbecue grill and using thousand-year Spirit Medicine as seasoning to make snacks for a three-year-old child?

This was not luxury. This was insane.

This was a ruthless trampling and public humiliation of all resources in the Cultivation world.

Elder Xuan's Dao Heart was shaken by this.

He had been a guardian in the Yuhua Dynasty for his entire life, eating and using only the top-tier items.

But compared to this unknown snack in front of him, all the Heaven And Earth Treasure he had eaten in the past were simply pig slop.

"Elder Xuan? Elder Xuan!"

Ji Lingxuan's voice transmission woke him up.

"Your... Your Highness..."

Elder Xuan came back to his senses, his voice dry, even his voice transmission trembling.

"Don't... don't speak, don't move, pretend you didn't see anything... let's leave quickly!"

He was scared. Truly scared.

A force capable of giving such divine items to a child as a snack had a foundation that exceeded his realm of understanding.

Saint Ziyang did not die unjustly. He was even a bit honored.

However, it was too late.

Just as they were preparing to sneak away quietly.

Li Changsheng, who was eating happily, lifted that little face covered in oil stains.

A pair of big, dark eyes looked curiously at Ji Lingxuan.

Although he was only three years old, he was born with an Ancient Desolate Saint Body, and his perception of auras was terrifyingly sharp.

He could feel that this pretty big sister and the old grandfather behind her were different from the people around them.

Ji Lingxuan's body stiffened. She couldn't leave.

Avoiding would only make them look guilty. Since they were discovered, they had to bite the bullet.

She squeezed a kind smile onto her face and slowly squatted down to be at eye level with Li Changsheng.

"Hello, little one."

Her voice was very gentle.

Li Changsheng tilted his head to look at her and gave an indistinct "Mm".

He lowered his head again and took a fierce bite of the red strip in his hand, making a crisp "crunch" sound.

The situation was a bit awkward.

Ji Lingxuan's smile was a bit stiff, but she still patiently pointed to the thing in his hand and asked softly:

"What is this you're eating? It looks so delicious."

Hearing someone praise his snack as delicious, Li Changsheng finally got a bit interested.

He held the half-eaten snack up in front of Ji Lingxuan and said very generously:

"This? This is called a Spicy Strip! It's delicious! Do you want to try some, big sister?"

Looking at that "Spicy Strip" covered in saliva, Ji Lingxuan's smile stiffened, but she still forced a smile and waved her hand.

"Thank you, but big sister isn't hungry."

Li Changsheng didn't care, took back the Spicy Strip, sighed, and said in an old-fashioned tone:

"Sigh, actually it's not that delicious."

Ji Lingxuan and Elder Xuan were both shocked.

A divine item made from several kinds of Heaven And Earth Treasure and thousand-year Spirit Medicine, and it's "not that delicious"?

Is your mouth inlaid with diamonds?

Then, Li Changsheng's innocent yet disdainful remark left both of them speechless.

"This was just casually made by Imperial Father using that... 'Touch of Gold'. I told him that this Spicy Strip is too dry and not good."

"I still prefer eating Dragon liver, the kind roasted with Solar True Fire until it's crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. That's what you call fragrant!"

After saying this, he smacked his lips, savoring the memory.

Touch of Gold... casually made... Dragon liver... roasted with Solar True Fire...

These words, like claps of thunder, left Ji Lingxuan and Elder Xuan's minds blank.

They stared blankly at the little brat in front of them who was licking the oil stains off his fingers.

And then looked at the little girl next to him with an expression that said "My brother is so embarrassing."

They couldn't help but shudder.

This... what kind of devilish family is this?!