Chapter 447

Longyuan City.

With a population of several million,

it could only be considered a small city within the entire territory of the Fulong Region.

Inside Longyuan City, at the courier station.

"Is the guest looking to choose a flying mount for travel?"

The courier station was large. As Lin Chen stepped into the courtyard, he saw many mounts. A middle-aged man saw Lin Chen enter, his eyes lit up, and he hurried over to greet him.

Lin Chen did not conceal the unique aura of an Innate powerhouse on his body, and as an Innate powerhouse, he naturally looked down upon mounts that ran on the ground.

"Hmm, how do you trade for these flying mounts?"

"Guest, you can choose to rent or buy them outright. However, the latter costs three thousand Yan coins. If you are only using it for a short term, it is more cost-effective to rent. It is only ten Yan coins a day, two hundred Yan coins for a month, and only five hundred Yan coins for three months."

The middle-aged man spoke with a smile. The person in front of him looked to be in his early thirties. To be able to cultivate to the Innate Realm in his early thirties, he must have a sect behind him, and the sect's strength should be decent—at least a second-rate sect.

Second-rate sects all cultivated their own flying mounts, yet this person had come to the courier station. Either the flying mounts in his sect were occupied by others, or he was out traveling and could not use the sect's flying mounts.

It was true that sects had flying mounts, but not all disciples could use them. Unless they were out executing tasks arranged by the sect, they could not occupy sect resources for personal matters—except for those in super sects.

Do not look at the fact that there were twenty-four super sects, and their disciples added up to over a million. Looking at the entire Yan Imperial Court, the chances of an ordinary martial artist encountering a super sect disciple were really not high.

The Yan Imperial Court was too large, and the status of super sects was extremely transcendent. Super sect disciples rarely interacted with martial artists from non-super sects; these super sect martial artists were active in higher circles.

"Buying one only costs three thousand Yan coins, but renting for three months costs five hundred. Isn't your asking price a bit too high?"

Lin Chen was not in a hurry to buy. Before leaving the sect with the Grand Elder, his Master had given him quite a few Yan coins, totaling as many as thirty thousand.

He did not lack elixirs for cultivation, and the Yan coins his Master gave him were for emergencies while traveling. Thirty thousand Yan coins were already enough.

"Hehe, guest, you must have just come out of your sect not long ago."

"Why do you say that?"

"If you had been traveling in the various regions of the Yan Imperial Court for a long time, you wouldn't ask this question. Although buying a flying mount only costs three thousand Yan coins, daily feeding also requires expenses. It must eat one Yan coin's worth of food every day. Unless you are flying long-term, if you stay in one place for a few months, wouldn't you be wasting over a hundred Yan coins for nothing?"

Hearing the other party's explanation, Lin Chen suddenly realized. This was just like private jets and yachts in his previous life; buying one was a huge sum of money, and the later maintenance was also a bottomless pit.

Looking at it this way, renting was indeed more cost-effective.

"If I rent, how should I return it? I can't specifically come back here again later."

"We courier stations have already reached an agreement. Guest, as long as you arrive at your destination, just take the mount to the local courier station; you don't need to worry about anything else."

Lin Chen nodded; he roughly understood.

These courier stations had reached an industry alliance. This indeed made it convenient for martial artists renting mounts. As for how the courier stations internally distributed the rent, that had nothing to do with him.

"What do I need to do to rent one?"

"If you have an object that proves your identity, as long as it is a sect on our courier station's list, you can be exempt from the deposit. If you don't have such an object on you, then you need to pay a deposit of three thousand Yan coins. After you arrive at your destination and return the mount, the courier station will return your deposit after deducting the rent."

Hearing the second half of the middle-aged man's sentence, Lin Chen also smiled meaningfully. The so-called not carrying an object to prove identity was just a polite way of speaking; it should be that some people did not want to expose their identity and background.

As for why they didn't want to expose it, there were many reasons, and the courier station was just doing business, so it naturally wouldn't care about these things.

Lin Chen thought for a moment. From the Fulong Region to the East Sea Region, he would have to pass through seven regions. According to the speed of a flying mount, it would take about four months.

Just as Lin Chen was about to rent one, the middle-aged man suddenly lowered his voice and said: "May I ask where the guest is planning to go?"

Lin Chen frowned and looked at the other party without answering.

"Guest, don't misunderstand. The reason I ask is because our courier station happens to have a flying boat heading to the Xuanhuang Region. If it's on the way, the guest can ride the flying boat with others; it only costs thirty Yan coins."

"Ride?"

"This is a flying boat our courier station bought from the Qianji Sect. It can carry ten people, and it only takes fifteen days to reach the Xuanhuang Region. There are already eight people now."

"Fine, then I will take the flying boat."

Lin Chen pondered for a long time and finally accepted the suggestion made by the man.

It was not that he was reluctant to part with the Yan coins, but he thought that although his appearance had changed, flying alone would still be too conspicuous. However, if he rode a flying boat with many people, the chance of being noticed by others would be reduced.

Most importantly, he had to pass through the Xuanhuang Region to return to the East Sea Region.

"Alright, guest, please follow me."

Lin Chen followed the middle-aged man to the other side of the courier station. A flying boat was parked there. At this moment, there were indeed eight people on the flying boat. Lin Chen did not use his spiritual sense to probe these people.

Probing with spiritual sense was an extremely impolite behavior in the Yan Imperial Court. If one's strength was high, it would naturally be nothing if those being probed didn't discover it, but if they were discovered, it would cause the other party's dissatisfaction.

While traveling, Lin Chen did not want to create extra complications.

After Lin Chen boarded the flying boat, not long after, another young man arrived. After reaching ten people, the flying boat slowly flew up and left Longyuan City, heading toward the Xuanhuang Region.

Seven days later.

"Brother Gu, are you visiting friends in the Xuanhuang Region?"

"No."

Facing the young man who came up to talk, Lin Chen shook his head. During these seven days on the flying boat, he had also gained some understanding of the backgrounds of the other nine people on the boat.

Among them, two men and two women were all Innate first-stage martial artists; they were children of local powerhouses in Longyuan City, and this time they were traveling together to the Xuanhuang Region. The only old man was also an Innate first-stage martial artist, and the man and woman beside the old man were his disciples; they had not yet entered the Innate Realm, but they were already at the first rank.

There were also another man and woman who, like Lin Chen, were independent travelers, but those two had maintained a "strangers keep out" attitude since boarding the flying boat and had not talked to anyone else.

Even for a flying boat that shared passengers, those who could afford to sit on it all had a certain background, and it was not something that martial artists below the Innate Realm would be willing to spend money on.

"I see that Brother Gu looks very unfamiliar; you shouldn't be from near Longyuan City."

"Hmm, I am traveling through Longyuan City and plan to go to the Xuanhuang Region to travel some more."

Hearing Lin Chen's answer, Zhang Fan believed his guess was correct. This Gu Fei should be from some first-rate sect, and his own family background was ordinary.

If it were those second-rate sects, stepping into the Innate Realm in one's thirties would definitely not involve sharing a flying boat with others; the sect would definitely provide a flying mount. Only in first-rate sects, although an Innate powerhouse in their thirties was not bad, they were not the most top-tier, and the flying mounts in the sect were prioritized for disciples and elders with higher status.

In terms of family background, the families they belonged to could be considered a second-rate sect, but they were all direct descendants, and only under the full cultivation of their families could they break through to the Innate Realm at the age of thirty.

A disciple of a first-rate sect with a weak family background—for Zhang Fan, such a person was worth befriending.

"If Brother Gu is traveling, when you arrive in the Xuanhuang Region, why not accompany us? We are going to Jiuxi City in the Xuanhuang Region this time to visit a senior at the second stage of the Innate Realm. This senior has already broken through to the second stage of the Innate Realm for twenty years."

Do not look at the fact that there was only one stage difference between the second stage of the Innate Realm and the first stage, but for most martial artists, this one stage was a huge gap, whether in strength or status.

"Many thanks for Brother Zhang's kindness, but I have already planned my travel route and do not intend to go to Jiuxi City."

Lin Chen smiled and refused. He himself was at the second stage of the Innate Realm; there was absolutely no need for him to visit an Innate second-stage martial artist to seek advice.

As for Zhang Fan's intentions, he was clear about them in his heart.

Ever since he boarded the flying boat, Zhang Fan had tried to strike up a conversation with him several times, which was nothing more than feeling that his strength was good and he had potential, wanting to befriend him.

Hearing Lin Chen's refusal, Zhang Fan did not insist: "That is truly a pity. If Brother Gu comes to Longyuan City again in the future, you must come to be a guest at my Zhang family."

"Fine, I will certainly do so."

Lin Chen replied politely, and Zhang Fan also returned to his companions.

"Big Brother Zhang, you are really trying to be friendly to someone who is cold to you."

A young man beside Zhang Fan chuckled. Zhang Fan shook his head helplessly: "Brother Gu has a good temperament; I suppose he really has something to do."

"I think he doesn't look down on us at all. He really thinks that breaking through to the Innate Realm in his thirties is something amazing. If his subsequent martial arts resources cannot keep up, even if he is in a first-rate sect, he will stop at this stage for the rest of his life."