"Are you two ready?" Clark asked his new passengers for the road. They were in the wide grandiose halls of the palace yet not even a shadow of Ning Bao could be seen around them.�
The King could not accept the fact that he would probably lose more than his daughter in this family adventure which sadly excluded him in the first place.�
'Finally!' Clark took a deep breath to hide the annoyance from his face.
Almost an hour has already elapsed and he would have thought that the wait would have taken more but it was fortunate that Wan Fei and his dearest Ning Xi finally reappeared in front of him again.
'And boy oh boy, the wait was indeed pretty worth my time!'
Clark almost whistled on the spot as he looked in awe at the two beautiful ladies in red and black fairy dresses that may have perhaps showcased the feelings of both their owners.
Wan Fei was dazzling as ever in her crimson dress which signified a ferocious attraction to any gender in creation.
While beside her, Ning Xi wore a shrouded color of black that represented a mourning of sorts.
A memento of her freedom slipping fast away from her fingers before she could have truly experienced its delights.
Still, if it had not been Clark today then someone like Zhang Mu may have likely replaced him in droves.
Such was the fate of having an unparalleled beauty in these cruel lands where the bigger fist dictates what was right and wrong.
Thus, being highly desirable by many may as well serve a curse as much as it was a blessing.
"We are prepared to go anytime, Clark." Wan Fei nodded and rubbed a ring with her thumb.
"BOINK!" a second later, a huge flaming flying sword materialized into place by her side.
Wan Fei then obviously looked intently at her daughter as if wordlessly saying for Ning Xi to follow her lead and do the same.
"SIGH!' A muted act that was barely audible but utterly plain to all was portrayed with style by our lovely Ning Xi.
"BOINK!" another flying sword appeared. This was Ning Xi's own.
"We don't need to travel by flying swords. Take them back and I will show you something a lot more practical." Clark announced mysteriously.
If they would use this means of travel then they would perhaps arrive a million years by Nancy's conservative estimate before they could ever set foot in the shores of the Withered Continent.
That was how vast this xianxia world was! So to avoid going on an endless journey, it was a must for some needed innovation.
"Here take this." Clark provided two special treasures unto the mother and daughter pair.
"What is this, Clark?" Wan Fei asked but did not await for any invitation and wore one of the items on her person. The other one came into the possession of Princess Ning Xi of course.
It was a bracelet with no distinguishing features whatsoever. It was as ordinary as trash which was fully intended by Clark in the first place.
Shiny sparkling things were after all very much coveted no matter where one goes to.
"It's a convenient magical tool that I purchased beforehand precisely for this event. It will become pretty useful for all of us." Clark replied as if he predicted for this exact moment to happen.
He smiled but there was a slight bitterness in his face. He knew that these things were not cheap at all. It had cost him a hundred shop points for each bracelet.
After a one time use, these items would instantly become worse than garbage on the wrists of the ladies.
The only upside for this was that Clark could use the same amount of shop points in order to instantly move around these girls should the need arise once again.
A nifty trick to have indeed when one was on the brink of danger or much worse.
'For a price that is! Another one hundred shop points each if ever that were to happen someday.' Clark sighed and hoped that there would be no need for him to do this kind of rescue.
"Good to go?" Clark asked in a playful voice.
"Yes, we are." Wan Fei was the first one to respond.
"Hmmm..." Ning Xi on the other hand continued to avail her right for silent protest.
"Now close your eyes." Clark instructed.
"Why?" Wan Fei asked.
'Because it's more fun this way.' Clark almost said the words out. He replaced them with these instead...
"Because when you open them again, it will be a whole new world than this one. A lot more different. That i can promise you!"
Clark pledged like a gentleman that he was not but he was lucky that this did the trick to lull the women in doing what he wanted them to.
"Okay, Clark. It's great to know that you are a man that loves surprises also." Wan Fei smiled seductively at Clark but closed her eyes all the same.
Princess Ning Xi nodded once and followed the obedient actions of her mother.
And the moment the two of them opened their eyes once more, the word surprise was a bit lacking to describe what both of them felt.
* * *
'What?!' The greatest spy in Haran, Deng Shun, almost blurted the words out when he witnessed the three figures vanish before his eyes.
He was speechless for a time until he finally got the courage to approach the spot where the recent party disappeared.
'Gone. They're all gone.' Deng Shun who was a man of few words and rarely even spoke at all could only conjure this conclusion up in his mind.
Another breath passed, and he too was nowhere to be seen in the palace halls.
* * *
'Where is this place?' Wan Fei asked inside.
She expected that she would be brought unto a castle of much grandeur than where she originated from but the truth that slapped her face right now was too ridiculous to believe.
Although the place was pristine and not one rubbish cluttered on the floors but the determination that hammered the final nail into place was how severely thin the spiritual essence of the world was in this place.
Still, Wan Fei was a woman of culture and had already experienced several decades under her belt so she smiled and asked softly...
"Is your Empire nearby, Clark? Should we travel by flying swords from here on out?" Wan Fei looked around and immediately saw a scraggly old man slowly approaching the three of them.
Beside Wan Fei, Princess Ning Xi only looked at the entire thing with dead eyes. Although it was astonishing to see this much dull reception but her situation has not changed after all.
She remained a prisoner of lust and this basic truth clouded her reality in impotent acceptance.
"We don't need to do that, Wan Fei. We're already here."
"This is my domain. The Lu Family of Nexus City. Welcome!"
"Welcome, Wan Fei!"
"Welcome, Ning Xi!"
"I believe that the two of you will surely enjoy your stay here!" Clark opened his arms wide as if what decorated his surroundings were mountains of gold and not the archaic designs of his heritage.
"Please tell me that this is just a cruel joke, Clark!"
"Your territory should not have this kind of barren spiritual presence!"
"This is absolutely impossible!" Wan Fei was trying to deny the absurdity of this situation. She can't accept that the man who she thought so highly of turned out to be living in a savage environment.
She inhaled deeply and tasted of the quality and quantity of the spiritual essence of the world and quickly found out a disturbing discovery.
'I would die of old age before I could reach another stage of cultivation in this place!'
'NOOOOOOOOOOO!' Wan Fei's snow white skin turned even paler.
"You are not mistaken, Wan Fei. This is truly my home." Clark reassured and he was brutally frank about it.
There was no sense covering the truth with lies especially now that his guests were within his care. A deafening silence ensued thereafter. No one spoke. Not even a single movement echoed in the halls.
Wan Fei looked as if the whole world fell upon her shoulders while Princess Ning Xi only gazed at Clark with new eyes and perhaps a little bit of curiosity also.
What mirrored behind the windows of her soul, only she could dare tell. Ten breaths of this same stale air and Clark has finally run out of patience with his visitors.
"Lai Peng."
"What is it, master?"
"Guide our guests to their rooms and let the servants take care of their needs."
"As you wish, master." Lai Peng bowed and immediately attended to his task.
"Mistress Wan Fei, Princess Ning Xi... please follow me." The old man gestured. Alas, the two sets of feet still remained immovable in their stances. The two lovely ladies locked inside their own thoughts.
Not that our bored gamer cared at this time.
With a pair of undead bodyguards in the shadows, he doubted that Wan Fei and Ning Xi could escape even if they miraculously sprouted some angel wings from out of nowhere.
In the end, Clark left first to retire inside his room. The day was still young and there were more important things yet to accomplish.
"Show me my status, Nancy."