Chapter 56: Who Still Wants a Perm?

“This is Yuanhai City.” Yan You stopped at the city gate after escorting the four of them, clasped his fists apologetically, and said, “My duty only allows me to see you this far. It will take another five months of sailing to reach the Lanru Continent from here. If you need anything while in this city, feel free to come find me.”

“Thank you, Daoist Yan.” Qiuci and the others quickly clasped their fists in gratitude. Since he was a guard of the city, it was understandable that he couldn’t accompany them further.

After exchanging a few polite words, the four entered the city.

Almost the moment they stepped inside, they sensed something different about this city. First was the dense spiritual energy; although they were flying above, the city’s aura showed no signs of dissipating—it was even more concentrated.

The streets bustled with activity, people coming and going endlessly. Upon closer look, most were cultivators above the Foundation Establishment stage, with many at the Golden Core stage, and a few even at Nascent Soul. It confirmed their suspicion that cultivators on the outer continent were generally far stronger than those on the Linyuan Continent.

However, unlike the typical cultivation cities they had imagined, this place had numerous ordinary mortals without any cultivation. Many of these mortals were dressed luxuriously, their expressions calm and composed, completely free of the reverence or fear commonly seen among ordinary people on Linyuan when encountering cultivators. It was as if cultivators and mortals here were regarded as equals.

Qiuci’s impression of Yuanhai City improved considerably, even evoking a sense of familiarity akin to returning to Blue Star. To achieve this atmosphere, the city’s management must be quite capable, which only piqued her curiosity further about the wider continent.

Just as Qiuci’s goodwill was growing, a discordant voice suddenly rang out.

“Where did these refugees sneak in from?” A young man blocked their path. He wore a long robe embroidered with golden thread patterns, a luxurious hair crown atop his head, and held a fan in his hand. His features were ordinary—flat nose, crooked mouth—and he had a habit of scrutinizing others through his large nostrils. His small, beady eyes scanned the group repeatedly.

Behind him trailed six or seven henchmen, all at the Golden Core stage.

Was this some randomly spawned villain NPC?

Qiuci frowned, noticing people around subtly avoid the group. It seemed this man’s habit of suddenly blocking and picking fights was well-known—clearly a habitual troublemaker.

“Oh, and there’s even a pretty one here!” His beady eyes swept over them before settling on Feng Ting to the right. A gleam flashed in his eyes as he chuckled, “Young lady, how about a drink with me?”

He struck a flirtatious pose and reached out to grab her.

“Ah!” Feng Ting was startled. Timid by nature, she immediately dodged and instinctively hid behind Qiuci.

“What do you want?!” Zhen Yi exploded in anger, stepping forward to block him. He hadn’t expected to encounter such a person.

Shy Jing’s face also darkened; he silently stepped forward.

The young man ignored them both, scoffing, “I’m giving you all face by setting my sights on her.” He then glanced at Qiuci’s disheveled appearance with contempt, reaching out to shove her aside. “You beggar—”

Fizz, fizz, fizz—

Before he could finish, a surge of electricity suddenly shot through him. With a bang, the exquisite hair crown atop his head shattered, and an explosion of hair identical to Qiuci’s erupted, causing him to convulse violently in place.

The sudden turn of events stunned not only his henchmen but also Zhen Yi and the others.

A moment of silence fell over the scene.

One of the henchmen nearest the young man regained his senses and angrily stepped forward, pushing Qiuci while shouting, “What spell did you use on the Young Master? Let go of our—”

Bang!

Another ion shock followed.

The others quickly grew anxious, shouting, “Let go of the Young Master!”

Qiuci: “...” Wait, who’s supposed to let go? They clearly grabbed me first.

The henchmen swarmed forward but wisely avoided touching Qiuci again. Instead, they tried to pull the convulsing young man away, clearly unaware of physics and that the human body conducts electricity.

Thus,

Bang! Bang! Bang!

One after another, ion shocks exploded atop their heads.

The seven or eight people who had been blocking the way now sported uniform afro-like explosions and began twitching uncontrollably, like a bizarre group dance.

Zhen Yi: “...”

Jing Hong: “...”

Feng Ting: “...”

Onlookers: “...”

Why provoke her for no reason?

Qiuci’s mouth twitched as she watched the chaotic scene unfold. She hadn’t even acted, yet these people had fully backfired.

The once crowded and lively crowd quickly retreated several paces, as if wanting to be several blocks away. Their eyes regarded the four as if they were monsters. Qiuci no longer hid; her entire body radiated the pressure of the Nascent Soul stage.

Those who had been grabbing her were flung aside, and the crowd collectively backed away several more steps, eyes filled with fear.

She swept a cold glance around and said bluntly, “Who else wants a hair treatment?!”

Everyone: “...”

A sudden hush fell over the area.

Seeing her intimidation was effective and no one else dared approach recklessly, Qiuci withdrew her pressure.

“Let’s go find an inn to settle down,” she instructed the others and resumed walking.

She paid no mind to the group convulsing on the ground, foaming at the mouth—after all, they wouldn’t die.

Upon entering the city, she had already scanned it with divine sense. Though the city was filled with countless Golden Core cultivators and several Nascent Souls, only three shared her Nascent Soul aura. No one surpassed her, so there was little to fear—just didn’t expect to encounter such a reckless group.

Thinking about the five more years of electric current she carried, Qiuci wished she could pull out the system hiding in her divine sea and give it a good thrashing. With her current “touch anyone, get electrocuted” trait, what would she do in the future? She couldn’t completely avoid contact with others—she still needed to find the Blue Star base.

Clearly, this problem needed urgent fixing; at least she couldn’t keep leaking electricity indiscriminately.

With that thought, she quickened her pace, leading the three companions to find a place to stay.

After all, Yuanhai City was essentially a ferry vessel. Most of its facilities catered to service needs, so the inns here differed from typical cultivation cities. These “inns” were more like temporary rented caves, equipped with all manner of arrays and barriers.

With no shortage of spirit stones, the four rented four rooms and began their secluded cultivation to stabilize their strength.

Qiuci didn’t need to stabilize her cultivation for the thunder tribulation, which would last another five years, but she wanted to use the time to forge a magic garment that wouldn’t leak electricity. The robes the elders had given her, though many, consumed quickly—after just ten or so minutes per garment, they were nearly gone. If this continued, she would truly be forced to “go fruit,” as the saying went.