[After leaving Star Harbor, you rode Black Wind, carrying Ah Dou, heading toward the rendezvous point.]
[You only had a guess as to where exactly the rendezvous point was, and it still needed verification.]
["As the stars begin their turn on Dongting's autumn eve, by the ancient ferry under the fading moon, someone waits."]
On Vermilion Violet Star, there was a mountain called Dongming Mountain. To the west of Dongming Mountain sat another mountain, named Tingxuan Mountain.
If you were merely matching the names of two mountains to the words "Dongting" in the rendezvous verse, that would naturally be too reckless.
After all, Vermilion Violet Star's terrifying surface area meant it had countless locations bearing those two characters.
But as luck would have it, a river flowed between Dongming Mountain and Tingxuan Mountain.
And, right at that spot between the two mountains, there was a ferry.
That couldn't help but make you think of the line "by the ancient ferry under the fading moon."
One coincidence could be brushed aside as chance. Two were worth checking out.
As for the rendezvous time—
That was where your rich cultural reserves came in handy.
At first, you thought "fading moon" hinted at a time—some moonlit night? Or perhaps the first full moon or new moon of a month?
But then you recalled Du Fu's poem: "In life, we meet not, moving like the stars Shen and Shang."
Shen and Shang were two constellations.
Their positions in the sky faced each other east and west, their trajectories completely separated, one rising as the other set.
The moment when those two "began their turn" was exactly the Zi hour.
So, "fading moon" wasn't the time; it could only be the contact person's name.
Thus, the meaning became clear.
At the ferry between Dongming Mountain and Tingxuan Mountain, on an autumn day during the Zi hour, you would rendezvous with someone named "Fading Moon."
As for the specific day?
Naturally, there wasn't one.
This was to prevent some specific time from accidentally coinciding with an outsider waiting there, causing misunderstandings.
Only by waiting at the ferry for many consecutive days during autumn could one be certain of the contact person.
"Ah Dou, we're in luck. The rendezvous point is very close to us. We can get there before this autumn. Otherwise, we'd have to wait at least another year."
Ah Dou, however, looked a bit disappointed.
You knew what he was thinking.
"Ah Dou, in a world like this, we humans cannot rely on anyone. The only one we can rely on is ourselves!
Maybe on Blazing Star, you saw Mr. Xun, Shen Yifeng, Ma Bang, and countless other human compatriots radiating the brilliance of humanity, sacrificing their lives for justice so you could escape!
But remember, never hesitate to suspect the worst malice in others!
For someone like you to grow up, the difficulties and obstacles you'll face are beyond imagination. Don't easily trust or rely on anyone!"
"Uncle Chen, I understand."
On the way to the rendezvous point, you found a random town to top up your Immortal Qi allowance.
It was a large city—at least, from the perspective of someone from the Void Realm, it was quite big.
But there were no city walls, nor any large-scale garrison forces, only a few yamen runners responsible for public order.
The commerce within the city was quite prosperous, with a mature commodity economy.
Various races lived together, enjoying peace and stability.
At least on the surface, that was the case.
After a little inquiry, you learned about the administrative system on Vermilion Violet Star.
Each city and its surrounding area formed an administrative unit with its own local government, essentially governing themselves, making their own laws and regulations, and establishing yamen and government offices from local personnel.
It looked like a national system.
In reality, there was still no nation.
The superiors of these local governments were not a royal court but the cultivator forces that governed that region.
In other words, unlike Blazing Star, cultivator forces didn't directly administer areas. Instead, they allowed local autonomy, but taxes had to be paid, and corvée labor and talented individuals had to be provided.
Only when a major problem arose in the area that mortals and low-level cultivators couldn't solve would the major force ruling that region intervene.
"Immortal Qi allowance and Source Stones are one-to-one. How much do you want to buy?"
There were only two staff members at the Immortal Qi Station.
One was lying down sleeping in the back room, and the other was sitting behind the counter reading a comic book.
It felt like people who had coasted into a cushy job within the system.
However, you noticed that the race of these two was very special.
It was the first time you had seen this race; you'd only heard rumors about them before.
The Holy Dragon Clan!
Unlike the Dragon-Man tribe, which had Western evil-dragon traits, the Holy Dragon Clan looked like humans with Eastern dragon heads.
They also had dragon tails.
Other than that, they were no different from humans.
"I'd like to ask, how long can one cultivate with one unit of Immortal Qi allowance?"
The one reading the comic book said impatiently,
"If you want to buy, buy. If not, get lost. Why so many questions?"
You nearly bared your teeth.
Damn it, I only asked one question!
What does he mean, 'so many questions'?
Doesn't he know that in my eyes, the two of them are just two pieces of tofu?!
Killing them would be easy, but now was clearly not the time to cause trouble.
Especially since the uniforms they wore had the symbol of the Holy Dragon Society.
In fact, all Immortal Qi Stations belonged to the Holy Dragon Society.
In other words, this Holy Dragon Society had the ability to control all the Immortal Qi on the entire planet, making it impossible for anyone to absorb it unless through the channels they provided!
This was the Real Realm.
Having such control over nature—imagine what kind of strength that required!
What was even more terrifying was that Vermilion Violet Star wasn't the Holy Dragon Society's headquarters; it was just one piece of their "commercial empire."
You also recalled that, back in the old hag's lair, you had discovered some "banned books" concerning human culture.
And it was also this Holy Dragon Society that had stamped those books as "banned."
You directly paid a thousand Source Stones to try it out.
The Holy Dragon man took your Temporary Residence Permit—that basin-sized compass—and carved a series of divine marks onto it.
When he was done, he tossed your Temporary Residence Permit back carelessly, then continued reading his comic book.
You took a few deep breaths, suppressing the urge to have a heart-to-heart talk with this Holy Dragon man.
During the transaction just now, you had inadvertently touched the Holy Dragon man's hand.
You had already copied the Holy Dragon Clan's racial talent.
Dragon Transformation: Transform into a divine dragon of varying strength based on your cultivation level. After transforming, you can use the Heavenly Fiend Divine Ability "Ride the Mist and Drive the Clouds."
"Holy crap, you can use a Heavenly Fiend Divine Ability right after transforming? Even without reaching the Extreme Terrain Realm? This racial talent is too insane!"
No wonder the Winged Clan on Fortune Star said the Holy Dragon Clan was the noblest race in the Silver Southern Star Realm.
With this level of talent, plus their control over Immortal Qi and the Holy Dragon Society that harvested cultivators from across the universe, this race definitely dominated far more than just the Silver Southern Star Realm!

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