Chapter 91: Immortal Academy

For this, Dai Meng naturally had no objections; he had long said that if his former teammates called, he would immediately resign and join them on another adventure.

In contrast, Frolame had many concerns.

She feared Old Wol would suspect Dai Meng’s loyalty, worrying that his resignation might create a rift between them and his father.

But it turned out Frolame had overthought it—having Dai Meng serve as their advance scout was Lin Yu’s suggestion.

Old Wol not only offered no opposition, but even before they left, he instructed Dai Meng to protect Frolame at all costs.

Thus, the three-person team set out on their journey five years ago, becoming Lin Yu’s private slave-hunting squad.

Over these five years, they returned to Spine Peak City multiple times, bringing Lin Yu vast quantities of experimental subjects, mostly demons, followed by human criminals, with not a single elf or dwarf ever found.

This wasn’t because elves and dwarves were particularly noble, but because their numbers were simply too scarce.

After five years of travel, Frolame’s trio had encountered only two dwarf villages and found no suitable targets.

Returning to the matter at hand, upon hearing Fllien’s words, Dai Meng smiled and said, “That’s true—the Lord himself said the lava-fire hotpot is the most Sichuan-flavored…”

Fllien asked, puzzled, “Sichuan-flavored?”

Dai Meng shook his head. “That’s what the Lord said—I don’t know what it actually means.”

Frolame knew, but she had no interest in spicy food; instead, she brightened and said, “According to the Immortal folk we met earlier, the Moonlight Display Window in the Inner City just launched a new signature dish—why not try it?”

“The Moonlight Display Window?”

Dai Meng shook his head. “Their prices are too high—I’d rather go to the Dragon’s Gizzard.”

Frolame raised an eyebrow. “That’s the first all-you-can-eat restaurant in Spine Peak City?”

Dai Meng’s eyes gleamed. “Exactly—for nine crystal coins per person, you get unlimited grilled meat skewers. Before I resigned, I loved going there with the City Guard brothers for meals…”

As they chatted about food, the three walked toward Spine Peak City.

Not long after, they reached the outer city’s wall—the North Gate among the Eight Gates.

Outside the gate, the crowd was already packed.

Caravans from all corners of the land waited patiently in line with countless others hoping to enter.

At the end of the queue, dozens of fully armored guards stood before the gate, checking each entrant’s identity one by one; only after confirmation were they allowed inside.

Of course, these procedures applied only to first-time entrants.

For caravans with long-standing ties to Spine Peak City, and for guests like Frolame, there were faster, special channels.

Soon, Frolame’s trio bypassed the long line and arrived beneath the North Gate.

There, two smaller gates flanked the North Gate—though called “small,” each stood fifteen meters tall, wide enough for two ground-dragon caravans to enter side by side…

On each side gate, a carved relief of a one-horned beast adorned the surface.

When Frolame stepped before the gate, the gem-embedded eyes of the relief instantly glowed, projecting two blue beams onto her alchemical wristwatch.

Instantly, the gate rumbled open, and a slightly mechanical voice echoed from the relief.

“To our esteemed guest of Spine Peak City, Holder of the Construction Medal, Honorary Advisor of the Demon Hunting Guild, Honorary Citizen of Spine Peak City, Dragon Slayer… Frolame, we salute you—welcome!”

The mechanical voice echoed outside the gate, instantly drawing gasps from the waiting crowd.

The guards in charge were startled and immediately dispatched personnel to greet their esteemed guest.

Frolame’s face darkened. She turned to the approaching guard and asked, “Last time, there was no such nonsense announcement—when did Old Wol add this?”

“About half a year ago,” the guard replied honestly. “You know, in Spine Peak City, material life is effortless; the Demon Hunting Guild and Immortal elders prefer spiritual pursuits, so…”

The soldier said honestly, “You know, in Spine Peak City, material life is stress-free; the hunting demon squads and immortal clans prefer spiritual pursuits, so...”

Frolame rolled her eyes.

Beside her, Fllien hesitated, then whispered weakly, “Um… do I need to do this too?”

The guard hurriedly said, “No need for you to scan—by protocol, these honors grant unlimited guest entry privileges. Look at the number displayed on the relief—that’s how many people Frolame can bring in each day!”

So she could bring in one hundred twenty-seven people daily…

Frolame stared at the number, her lip twitching—how many honors had Lin Yu piled onto her head over the years?

Meanwhile, Fllien and Dai Meng exchanged glances and visibly relaxed.

The guard whispered, “Frolame, Captain Dai Meng—I advise you to enter quickly. If you delay, those waiting caravans will swarm you.”

The soldier whispered, “Lord Vulame, Captain Dai Meng, I urge you to enter the city quickly—otherwise, the caravans eager to get in will come looking for you!”

Frolame instinctively glanced at the long queue beside them and saw many eyes fixed on them, clearly eager to approach.

Without hesitation, the three hurried through the side gate, vanishing from the disappointed gazes of the crowd.

After entering the outer city, Frolame did not head straight to the inner city; instead, she led the two on a stroll through the outer district.

She had to admit—Spine Peak City now truly resembled the “Magic Capital” she had imagined.

Walking along the Rainbow Street, closest to the North Gate, they saw novel magical devices everywhere.

Magic-crystal-embedded glass containers had long replaced the sooty torches of old, becoming the twenty-four-hour streetlights of Rainbow Street.

At the street’s center stood a massive rainbow fountain.

Many Spine Peak residents loved holding weddings here.

Unfortunately, Frolame and her companions had never been lucky enough to witness one during their repeated returns since its construction.

The buildings along the street retained their era’s architectural style, but the walls were adorned with glowing vines they had never seen before.

These were fluorescent plants transplanted from the Southern Region, refined by Immortal folk to emit seven colors, shifting hues every three seconds.

Countless vines draped over both sides of the buildings, resembling Earth’s LED strips, making Rainbow Street truly worthy of its name.

On the second-floor balcony of a nearby tavern, a handsome minstrel tuned his lute; as the strings vibrated, beautiful music mingled with magical illusions shaped like roses, drawing the attention of passersby.

Passing beneath the Starlight Arch beyond the rainbow fountain, Frolame turned to look back at Fllien.

There, the elf girl’s silver-white hair fluttered in the wind, her strands brushing against the floating, glowing stars above the arch, painting a serene and breathtaking scene.

Frolame savored the sight of her disciple’s beauty.

At that moment, a merchant with a single eyepatch suddenly appeared beside them, eagerly pitching:

“Frolame, would you like a photo service or a Memory Crystal?”

“Lord Vulame, would you like photographic services or a memory crystal?”

Frolame turned and saw the shop window behind him—hundreds of prismatic crystals hovered and rotated, each containing a frozen moment of a scene.

These were the Memory Crystals recently produced by Spine Peak City, accidentally invented by the most fearless Immortal folk, with no connection to Lin Yu.

As a frequent and honored guest, Frolame had already purchased many Memory Crystals, so she politely declined the merchant’s offer.

The three continued south along Rainbow Street, soon circling three blocks to reach Fllien’s longed-for Lava Street.

This was a famed culinary street in the outer city, lined with restaurants of all sizes; many had tasting stalls outside their doors to attract newcomers.

Fllien eagerly dragged the two into the Lava Flame.

Two full hours later, they emerged, full and satisfied.

Perhaps the restaurant owner reported their whereabouts—when the three stepped out of Lava Flame, four guards from the Lord’s Guard were already waiting.

Seeing the four guards bow respectfully, Frolame and the others were unsurprised.

After all, this was Lin Yu’s territory; even she couldn’t hide her movements.

The three exchanged glances and immediately followed the guards toward the inner city.

The inner city of Spine Peak was built around Lin Yu’s castle; its northern side retained the original dense forest, while the other three directions were planned into residential, commercial, and academy zones.

Compared to the bustling outer city, the inner city felt quiet.

This was because, after the outer city’s construction, many merchants and new citizens settled there, and numerous Spine Peak residents moved to the more vibrant outer district.

As for the inner city, they regarded it as the Lord’s private domain.

Only two types of people were eligible to live within: those transformed by the [Heart of the Kin], and the families of reserve cultivators implanted with spiritual roots!

Indeed, over these five years, the first batch of infants had gradually grown.

The oldest were now nearly seven, the youngest barely six.

On their sixth birthdays, Lin Yu personally sent his avatar to examine each child and implant a spiritual root.

Once the spiritual root reacted with the soul and formed a true elemental root, Lin Yu ordered Old Wol to send acceptance letters, placing them in the newly built Immortal Academy within the inner city.

Unfortunately, not everyone possessed the talent to trigger a reaction with the spiritual root.

Of the hundreds of infants who grew up in the first batch, only thirty-six qualified for the Immortal Academy.

The rest, though lacking this fortune, still benefited from the spiritual root’s bodily enhancements, gaining strong magical affinity and qualifying for the neighboring Magic Academy.

According to Old Wol’s plan, these children were future Kin reserve cultivators.

If any proved strong enough in soul strength, they might even become Kin like him…

If someone’s soul strength meets the standard, they might even become a retainer like him...

(End of Chapter)