Staying Alive Cautiously in the Celestial Realm and Becoming the Strongest

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Ten Thousand Cultivators City is very large and also very complex.

This immortal city, composed of hundreds of thousands of cultivators, simply cannot have a straightforward interior.

The city lord of Ten Thousand Cultivators City is named Wan Haishan, a powerful Golden Core True Person, who is said to be the descendant of the city's founder, with unparalleled prestige.

However, True Person Wan spends most of his time in seclusion within his own cave mansion, rarely appearing in public. The real responsibility for managing the city's affairs falls to fifty-seven families of the Purple Mansion!

These families each posses at least one Superior, leveraging their strength to divide authority.

Below the Purple Mansion families are numerous gangs of all sizes.

The gangs are basically affiliated with families, helping the latter control the various trades and industries within Ten Thousand Cultivators City.

And then, further down, are thousands upon thousands of Loose Cultivators.

The Real Estate Agent that Wang Chen found belonged to a small gang, and the Qi Cultivation Level Four Real Estate Agent brought him to an alley in the north of the city.

There was a household here with a vacant room for rent.

By now, Wang Chen had already figured out the reason behind the exorbitant housing prices in Ten Thousand Cultivators City.

To put it plainly, it boils down to two words.

Safety!

In those years, the True Person established Ten Thousand Cultivators City as a refuge for the vast number of Loose Cultivators.

An enormous Array is laid beneath the Immortal City. This Defensive Array, connected to the Earth Vein, is said to be able to withstand an attack from a Nascent Soul True Immortal when raised to the highest level.

What's most important is that the Array simultaneously possesses the powerful ability to Expel Evil and subdue Monster Beasts.

Although the constantly active Array does put pressure on the cultivators within the city, greatly affecting the efficiency of their cultivation.

But it truly shelters the tens of thousands of Loose Cultivators, in the truest sense.

After several hundred to a thousand years, Ten Thousand Cultivators City has naturally become the paradise of Loose Cultivators.

It's a place bristling with commerce, where food, drink, and entertainment of every kind are available, including hundreds of gambling and Courtesan Houses!

However, the situation is starkly different once one leaves Ten Thousand Cultivators City.

Bandits and Evil Wraiths are everywhere, Monster Beasts appear and vanish unpredictably, and even the farmers and estate owners living near the city walls constantly face various dangers, forced to organize their own patrol teams for protection.

The Loose Cultivators and Traveling Merchants of the Outer Domain also tend to enter and leave Ten Thousand Cultivators City in groups, with very few braving the journey alone.

Wang Chen's idea of living like a cave-dweller outside wasn't entirely unfeasible, but unless he stayed hidden underground and never came out, traveling back and forth between inside and outside the city would be too likely to attract the attention of those with ulterior motives.

And with it, unpredictable dangers and troubles!

Considering he planned to earn a vast amount of Spirit Stones in Ten Thousand Cultivators City, such an approach was just not appropriate.

After careful consideration, Wang Chen decided to settle down in the city.

As for the issue of cultivation, he could always cultivate later in a cave mansion bolstered by a Spirit Vein after earning Spirit Stones, surely much more effective than in the Outer Domain!

"Lady Ye, this is the Taoist Friend Wang who would like to rent a room," the agent said.

To Wang Chen's surprise, the landlord was an attractive and graceful Female Cultivator.

As soon as she saw Wang Chen, she furrowed her brows and chided, "Didn't I tell you, I only rent my rooms to Female Cultivators. Why did you bring Taoist Friend Wang here?"

Female Cultivator is what she meant by Female Cultivator, which clearly did not meet her requirements, as Wang Chen was a Male Cultivator.

Wang Chen looked impassively at the Real Estate Agent.

You're kidding me, right?

As the Real Estate Agent caught his gaze, he shivered involuntarily and hastily forced a smile, explaining, "Lady Ye, you want to rent to single Female Cultivators, and you're eager to rent out the place. I'm afraid that's really difficult to achieve."

After a pause, he continued, "Taoist Friend Wang is a Talisman Maker; he's only renting for six months and is willing to pay a high price. I think he fits your requirements quite well."

"Besides, it's not like there are no men in your house. What is there to fear in Ten Thousand Cultivators City?"

Lady Ye replied irritably, "My child is only ten years old!"

But she was clearly swayed by the Real Estate Agent's words, and after a moment of hesitation, she asked Wang Chen, "Taoist Friend Wang, are you really only renting for half a year?"

Wang Chen nodded, "Yes, we can sign a contract."

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"Let's do it this way."

Lady Ye clenched her teeth, "If you pay the rent all at once, I'll rent it to you!"

Wang Chen smiled, "Forget it, there's no need to force it. I'll look for another place."

He was the one paying out Spirit Stones, not begging for charity, let alone putting up with someone else's terms and harsh conditions?

Wang Chen didn't believe that in a city as big as Ten Thousand Cultivators City, this was the only house for rent.

Worst comes to worst, he would just try another real estate agency.

Seeing Wang Chen ready to walk away, the real estate agent grew anxious right away, "Lady Ye, this isn't what we agreed upon!"

"I was looking to rent to a female cultivator!"

Lady Ye shot the agent a glare but softened her tone towards Wang Chen, "Alright then, pay for three months first, and then pay another three months when it's due—that should be okay, right?"

The agent leaned in, "Taoist Friend Wang, the house that Lady Ye has put up for rent is really nice, and it's also very close to North Mountain. There is also a market and a bazaar nearby, which is very convenient whether you're cultivating or doing business."

"If you miss out, it'll be hard to find a better fit!"

Wang Chen thought for a moment, then said, "Let's take a look at the house first."

Lady Ye's house was a modestly sized residence, with the main house separated from additional side chambers.

Both the main house and side chambers were two stories, offering quite a spacious living area.

She was renting out the right side chamber, which came complete with a bedroom, study, meditation room, and bathroom.

There was even a small parlor for receiving guests on the first floor.

The only shared space was the kitchen located in the left side chamber.

The house was clean and neatly arranged, furnished with everything you might need—practically ready for someone to move in right away.

Just as the agent had said, this set of rooms was indeed quite nice.

After viewing it, Wang Chen was quite satisfied.

During the viewing process, he also learned about Lady Ye's situation.

She was a widow with a son and a daughter; the son had just turned ten this year, and the daughter was fourteen. Explore more adventures at mvl

It was precisely because of her status as a widow that she had requested to rent to a single female cultivator.

To avoid any gossip that could arise from improper appearances.

However, such a request wasn't easy to fulfill since there were very few female loose cultivators to begin with, let alone single ones without a Dao Companion.

Because Lady Ye was eager to rent out the space, the agent had brought Wang Chen over.

Perhaps she was in urgent need of Spirit Stones. Seeing that Wang Chen appeared to be quite a decent man, although he was a young male cultivator, Lady Ye was still willing to rent the house to him.

Thus, under the witness of the real estate agent, the two parties drew up a tenancy agreement, and Wang Chen paid Lady Ye three months' rent.

A total of six hundred Low Spirits.

That was much cheaper than staying at an inn.

Wang Chen had inquired before; an inn's single room for long-term rent was three hundred Low Spirits a month.

And it wasn't nearly as spacious and comfortable as this place.

Of course, Wang Chen also paid the agent a commission equivalent to half a month's rent.

After handing over a significant amount of Spirit Stones, he now had a stable footing in Ten Thousand Cultivators City.

Finally, he could start his grand plan of earning Spirit Stones!

That very day, Wang Chen checked out of the inn's single room and moved into Lady Ye's side chamber.

Meanwhile, he also bought a large quantity of Talisman Paper and Talisman Ink.

Being a Great Perfection level practitioner with beginner Talisman Crafting skills was indeed the best strategy for Wang Chen to rack up Spirit Stones!

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The second update is delivered.