I want to tread the heavens

Three days later, at noon. Riding on the Wind-Riding Beast, his straw hat pulled low, he squinted at the road ahead. Finally, a road was taking shape. The loess had been compacted, large enough for three or four large carts to pass side-by-side. The ruts, deep and shallow, crisscrossed, and there were many fresh hoofprints and footprints. Along the roadside, scattered low houses made of adobe and stones began to appear, some with faded banners, selling tea, coarse bread, or repairing cart and horse equipment. More people were coming, mostly hurrying along, either driving livestock laden with goods or carrying loads on their shoulders. Their clothes were neater than those at the desolate ferry crossing, but still carried the dust of travel.

Fa Cai stood up from the shelf, its silvery-gray fur slightly matted in the sunlight. It held its head high, its nostrils flaring rapidly, its ears twitching incessantly, its eyes filled with wariness and a strange, bewildered feeling, overwhelmed by too many unfamiliar presences. "So many people… so many smells… so noisy… houses… so tall…" its thoughts came intermittently, tinged with a barely perceptible tension. For it, accustomed to the wilderness and the starry sky, this dense, "civilized" clamor was entirely new.

Ling Xiao gently patted its head, signaling it to calm down. His own heartbeat quickened. Not from nervousness, but from a premonition... of something enormous about to be unveiled. The Wind Beast's pace quickened unconsciously, as if it too had caught the scent of the "city" ahead, yearning for the safe haven of food and water.

The road began to ascend, forming a gentle slope. As they reached the top, the hazy, colossal shadow they had gazed at from afar for days finally burst into view, unreservedly and with an almost brute force. The first thing they saw was a wall.

It wasn't the earthen and stone wall, ten feet high, like those of the old Guo family manor, nor was it a haphazardly piled-up, dilapidated barrier on the border. It was a continuous, majestic, silent colossal wall, stretching as far as the eye could see. Its height definitely exceeded a hundred feet, like a gray-black mountain range, lying across the land. It was constructed from countless neatly cut, dark gray boulders, each comparable in size to a house. The surfaces of the stones weren't smooth; instead, they were engraved with dense, intricate runes and patterns that were dizzying to behold. These patterns weren't conspicuous in the midday sun, but occasionally a faint, deep, spiritual light would flicker across them, carrying a chilling sense of stability and oppression. The wall gradually narrowed upwards, with serrated crenellations at the top, where the cold glint of metal and patrolling figures could be vaguely seen.

The city walls were so high that they obscured everything behind them, revealing only the towering spires of several prominent towers reaching towards the azure sky. An invisible aura of antiquity and boundless spiritual energy emanated from these colossal walls, weighing heavily on the hearts of everyone who gazed upon them. This was Falling Star City, one of the mighty cities of the northeastern region of the Azure Profound Continent.

He tilted his head back and gazed for a long time. A warm resonance emanated from the jade pendant on his chest, seemingly echoing some immense presence deep within the city walls. The scabbed wound on his shoulder stung slightly under the pressure of this "power." "Go." He withdrew his gaze, flicked the reins, and urged the Wind Beast along the main road towards the city gate—a gate that resembled the slightly open mouth of a giant beast—below the massive wall.

The closer they got, the more people there were. Carriages and pedestrians converged, forming a fairly long queue outside the city gate. There were caravans carrying mountain goods, weary travelers, well-dressed cultivators riding strange mythical beasts, and ordinary people with their families, their faces etched with fatigue. The noise, hawking, shouts, and children's cries mingled together, the air thick with the smells of sweat, livestock, dust, and the spicy aromas wafting from the pots of roadside vendors.

The city gate was extremely high and deep, allowing only a small section of sunlight to penetrate, making the interior dimly lit. On either side of the entrance stood two rows of eight heavily armored guards, their dark blue armor uniform, their auras deep and focused, their cultivation levels generally at the mid-stage of Qi Refining. Their sharp gazes scanned everyone entering the city, maintaining order. Inside the gate, several long tables were set up, behind which sat several people dressed as civil officials, processing entry procedures.

The procession moved slowly. He saw people ahead hand over some kind of jade or metal token, which the guards would then examine with a small mirror-like magical artifact before allowing them to pass. He also saw people being stopped, questioned, and forced to pay something (presumably spirit crystals) before being allowed to pass. Mortals seemed to have another passage, where the checks were simpler, but a fee was still required.

It was Ling Xiao's turn. He led two Wind Beasts, with Fa Cai following warily at his feet, attracting the attention of those around him. There were many cultivators with spirit beasts, but wolf-type spirit beasts, especially those with such agile eyes as Fa Cai, were rare.

A guard stepped forward, blocking his path, his gaze sweeping over Ling Xiao's face, body, and the two wind-riding beasts that appeared to be in poor condition. "Entry into the city? Identification documents."

He pulled out the rough-edged gray metal identification tag he had received from the "Immigration Department" at the border crossing from his pocket and handed it over.

The guard took the item, not even glancing at the simple engravings on the front. Instead, he took a palm-sized bronze mirror from his waist, its edges inlaid with tiny crystals, and held it up to the identity tag. Several lines of fine runes immediately appeared on the mirror's surface—Ling Xiao's registered information, along with the location point Bianhuangdu, which was flashing rapidly, indicating that he had "left the border." "A temporary identity from Bianhuangdu?" The guard raised an eyebrow, his tone unchanged, but his eyes held a scrutinizing glint. "Purpose of entry?" "Visiting relatives, seeking out old friends." Ling Xiao had already prepared his answer, his tone calm. He deliberately maintained his aura at the sixth or seventh level of Qi Refining.

The guard then used the bronze mirror to reflect Ling Xiao's image. The mirror's light swept across him, pausing slightly, seemingly surprised by his true early Foundation Establishment cultivation (Ling Xiao hadn't completely concealed it) and slightly mixed spiritual energy attributes, but he didn't ask further. In that desolate place, all sorts of strange cultivators could be found. "Temporary residents entering the city must pay a 'temporary residence tax,' one low-grade spirit crystal per day. Three days' worth must be prepaid. Spirit beasts must be registered; if they injure people or damage property within the city, the owner will be fully responsible, and fines will be imposed separately. Also," the guard pointed to the two wind-riding beasts, "large pack animals are not allowed into the inner city; they can be stored in the 'beast pen' on the left side of the city gate, charged daily."

He silently did the math. Three spirit crystals, plus the animal pen storage fee… He pulled out four low-grade spirit crystals (including a broken horn) and handed them over. These were his only remaining spirit crystals; the ones Liu An had given him were almost all used up on the way to replenish food and water. The guard took them, weighed them in his hand, and tossed them to the clerk behind the table. The clerk made a note, stamped a thin piece of animal hide paper, and handed it back to Ling Xiao along with his identity tag. "Temporary residence permit, valid for three days. Renewal or a formal identity must be obtained from the 'Household Registration Office' in the city before expiration. Next!"

Ling Xiao accepted the identity token and the note, thanked them, and led the Wind Beast and Fa Cai into the dimly lit city gate.

Passing through the long, echoing doorway filled with the sounds of hurried footsteps, a breathtaking view suddenly opened up before me. The street was wider than I had imagined, wide enough for ten carriages to travel side by side. The ground was paved with smooth, bluish-gray flagstones, worn smooth by countless footsteps and wheels. On both sides of the street stood rows of buildings. Some were five or six stories high, with flying eaves and carved beams, adorned with exquisite plaques and lanterns; others were two or three stories high, with spacious storefronts displaying a dazzling array of goods. Fabrics, medicines, weapons, magical artifacts, books, rare treasures… the shop signs were a dizzying array. Pedestrians thronged shoulder to shoulder, cultivators and mortals mingled, their clothing either magnificent or simple, their expressions either composed or hurried. The sky was cut into narrow slits by the towering buildings, and sunlight streamed through, forming hazy beams of light amidst the rising dust.

The aromas of food (the charred scent of roasted meat, the sweetness of pastries, the savory flavor of soups), the rich fragrance of cosmetics, the pungent aroma of medicinal herbs, the sandy scent of aged wood, the smell of sweat, the smell of livestock, and the faint, pungent odor wafting from the drainage ditches along the streets, steamed by the scorching sun... all these smells blend together to form a unique, intense, and irresistible "human touch" that belongs only to bustling metropolises.

Fa Cai was clearly bewildered by the sudden shock. It clung tightly to Ling Xiao's leg, its silver-gray ears tucked back, its eyes wide open, constantly turning its head, trying to comprehend this completely unfamiliar environment. The various strong smells made its nose itch, and it sneezed several times. "Noisy... dizzy... so many legs..." Its thoughts were somewhat confused.

Ling Xiao took a deep breath, suppressing the slight disorientation he felt upon first arriving in this prestigious place. The prosperity far surpassed that of the old Guo family, even exceeding his wildest imagination. But beneath this prosperity, he keenly sensed something more: the occasional scrutinizing or calculating glances cast from the shadows of the streets; the air thick with not only mixed spiritual energy but also several powerful yet subtle auras; among the seemingly ordinary pedestrians, there were quite a few cultivators with considerable strength; and from the towering towers in the distance, a sharp gaze seemed to sweep across the entire city…

This is not a chaotic garbage dump like Bianhuangdu, but a behemoth with strict rules, a rigid hierarchy, and hidden talents.

He composed himself and, following the guard's instructions, first deposited the two exhausted Windbeasts at the official stables near the city gate—costing him another spirit crystal shard. Then, carrying Fa Cai and a simple bag (mainly some fodder and water, and Dew-Gathering Grass wrapped in cloth), he gripped his broken sword, which he had re-wrapped in cloth, and truly stepped into the streets of Falling Star City. The crowds pushed him forward. He was like a drop of water merging into a surging river.

Where to go? How to find out about the "Ascension Ceremony"? How to find a foothold in this enormous city and obtain the resources to repair the starship and improve his cultivation? Questions came one after another. But after the initial shock, Ling Xiao's eyes returned to calm. He slowed his pace, no longer swept along by the crowds, but began to carefully observe his surroundings, listening to the passing, fragmented conversations, trying to find his own direction in this dazzling fog of prosperity. Falling Star City, here I come. He murmured to himself.