Early the next morning, Jiang Chen rose with the intention of seeking out Huang'er, only to discover that she had left a note saying she was going to wander around Wanyi City on her own, and that he should head out of the city first without waiting for her.
Jiang Chen understood that Miss Huang'er had done this deliberately, and he was deeply moved by the thoughtfulness of this considerate girl.
A young lady of such noble birth, such beauty, and such extraordinary talent, yet so understanding and devoid of any spoiled young miss temperament—her manner with others was poised and gracious.
Since Huang'er was so insistent, Jiang Chen would not stand on ceremony.
He arrived punctually at Steward Qi Ye's door, where the steward had already been waiting for quite some time. Upon seeing Jiang Chen, Qi Ye's expression was noticeably more enthusiastic than the day before.
"Lord Alchemist, we are all prepared."
Judging by Qi Ye's tone, Jiang Chen knew the Young Master of the Wei family must be in decent condition. He gave a faint nod. "In that case, let's set out. One final confirmation—are you confident?"
Qi Ye naturally understood what Jiang Chen was asking. He smiled. "I would never joke about my young master's life."
Just as he spoke, a door in the adjacent room opened, and a young man emerged. His complexion was still slightly tinged with purple, and his gait was a bit unsteady.
"Young Master, why are you out here?" Qi Ye hurried over to support him when he saw the young man.
"I'm fine." The young man waved him off, declining Qi Ye's assistance, and nodded amiably toward Jiang Chen. "You must be the Lord Alchemist who is detoxifying me?"
"It seems you've recovered well." Jiang Chen sized the young man up with a glance and offered a faint smile.
The young man was clearly well-mannered. He stepped forward and bowed, his tone earnest with gratitude. "This one is Wei Jie, a disciple of a ninth-rank family in the Glazed King City. Thank you, Lord Alchemist, for saving my life."
Jiang Chen smiled casually. "No need for thanks. We each get what we need. Besides, you're only out of the woods for the time being."
Wei Jie took no offense and replied with a smile. "I'm certain that under the Lord Alchemist's masterful hands, I will make a full recovery."
Jiang Chen saw that Wei Jie carried none of the arrogance typical of scions from great families, and that his conduct was quite polished. He found himself developing a measure of goodwill toward the young man.
"Let's go," Jiang Chen said with a nod. He didn't want to say too much.
Qi Ye was briefly taken aback. "Lord Alchemist, don't you have a companion?"
"Just a friend from Wanyi City who came to visit when she heard I was here. She's already gone back."
Jiang Chen said this deliberately, not wanting this group to suspect he was the person the Undying Heavenly Capital was hunting.
Sure enough, upon hearing this, Qi Ye and Wei Jie exchanged a quick glance, and whatever lingering shred of doubt they had been completely dispelled.
Still, for them, whether this Lord Alchemist was Jiang Chen or not didn't really matter. At this moment, Wei Jie's life was above all else. Even if he was Jiang Chen, they could help each other—there was nothing wrong with that. The Wei family wouldn't mind either.
Walking along the main streets of Wanyi City, Jiang Chen took in the local customs and atmosphere, his mind surprisingly calm. Now that he had decided to take this gamble, there was no point in worrying.
Half an hour later, they arrived at the north gate.
After the Undying Heavenly Capital had taken control of the north gate, everything had changed dramatically. Guard posts were set up everywhere, and various restriction arrays had been deployed at every point around the north gate.
Looking at this setup, it was practically an inescapable net.
Outside the north gate, no fewer than a thousand people were lined up waiting to exit. Because the inspection procedures were extremely cumbersome, the queue of those waiting to leave the city stretched on for quite a distance.
The people from the Glazed King City, however, had no intention of standing in line obediently.
It was one thing when Wei Jie was injured and this group could do nothing but stand there helplessly. But now, the sense of superiority that came from the Glazed King City was on full display.
Under Qi Ye's lead, the group simply cut through the crowded throng without joining the line, making their way straight to the exit checkpoint.
The rogue cultivators who were queuing, upon seeing such a procession, were clearly not surprised—it was nothing new to them.
After all, whenever it was a team from the Glazed King City, regardless of their rank or status, they simply never had the habit of lining up properly.
And the Undying Heavenly Capital certainly wouldn't make them queue either, nor would they stop them from cutting in line.
Qi Ye walked up to the inspection point, where a disciple of the Undying Heavenly Capital was already holding a strange mirror-like device, ready to scan Qi Ye's face with it.
Qi Ye shoved the man's hand aside with a glare. "What do you think you're doing?"
The surrounding disciples of the Undying Heavenly Capital swarmed over. A person in charge walked up and gave Qi Ye a once-over. "Sir, please cooperate."
Qi Ye grinned broadly. "Are you from Wanyi City?"
"This one is an enforcer of the Undying Heavenly Capital, acting on orders from the Capital's leadership to apprehend—"
"The Undying Heavenly Capital?" Qi Ye cut him off rudely before he could finish. "Is Wanyi City your Undying Heavenly Capital's territory?"