"This is quite similar to the world I come from," Ming Zhi Tian said, listening intently. "May I ask, Xiao Linglong, what level have you reached?"
Xiao Linglong shook her head. "It's not about levels here, it's about realms. I'm at Qi Cultivation First Layer! Pretty impressive, right?"
"Qi Cultivation First Layer?" Ming Zhi Tian pondered. "And what is the hierarchy of these… realms?"
Xiao Linglong glanced at him. Since she was bored anyway, she decided to chat. "The realms of cultivators are divided into ten layers of Qi Cultivation, then ten layers of Ascending Dragon – ten layers of Pill Refinement – ten layers of Transcendence – ten layers of Royal Field. That's all I know so far. The realms above are unfathomably deep, and I have no chance of reaching them, *sweat*."
Ming Zhi Tian mused, "So, you're currently just at Qi Cultivation First Layer. Isn't that the lowest realm?"
Xiao Linglong held a flash of green light in her hand, ready to attack. "Even though I'm only at Qi Cultivation First Layer, I have enough power to kill you. You can try if you don't believe me."
Ming Zhi Tian quickly shook his head, a wry smile on his face. "No, no… I believe you."
...
After Ming Zhi Tian and Xiao Linglong left, a spatial rift suddenly tore open with a "Screech"!
The Phoenix of Neon Feathers appeared, which was none other than that fiery phoenix. A woman in an orange, pleated dress sat on its back. "You say you were injured by a mysterious person earlier, accidentally fell into a wormhole, and upon returning, a person and a beast entered the wormhole with you?"
The Phoenix of Neon Feathers let out two clear, resonant cries of "Qiang Qiang" and nodded.
The woman mused, "Just a brash young fellow and an ordinary beast. They won't cause any significant trouble. Let's go back to the Ten Thousand Mile Forest Wood."
...
Arriving at Huayang City—
Xiao Linglong intended to sell Ming Zhi Tian and Buck to the slave exchange. Upon reaching the slave market, she first asked the slave owner for a Binding Immortal Rope and then tied up Ming Zhi Tian and Buck.
"What are you doing?" Ming Zhi Tian asked.
Xiao Linglong ignored him and dragged him to the slave owner. "A cultivator of no consequence, plus a pet."
The slave owner, seated on a wooden chair, glanced at them and yawned. He then tossed a small bag of coins to Xiao Linglong. "Five hundred Divine Martial Coins."
Xiao Linglong took the bag. "Only five hundred? And that's including a small pet."
The slave owner waved his hand. "That's the price. Take it or leave it, or take them back."
Xiao Linglong put the money bag into her storage pouch. "Of course I'll take it. Alright, they're yours now. I'm leaving."
She then looked at Ming Zhi Tian and complained, "Truly useless, not worth much."
Ming Zhi Tian stared blankly as Xiao Linglong left. He felt incredibly indignant. "So she was going to sell me?"
Suddenly, an iron whip lashed out. Ming Zhi Tian caught it. The slave owner looked somewhat annoyed. "You dare resist?"
The slave owner yanked, and Ming Zhi Tian couldn't hold onto the whip. Then, he felt a searing pain on his back!
Ming Zhi Tian took a hit from the iron whip. It was too fast, and it carried spiritual energy fluctuations. This slave owner was actually more powerful than Xiao Linglong.
The slave owner said coldly, "I don't care who you are or where you're from. Once you enter here, no one gets out. Those who work get food. Those who don't work or fail at their tasks will be whipped. Understand?"
Ming Zhi Tian blinked. "Huh… huh?"
"Whip him!"
"Hiss!~~"
Ming Zhi Tian took a whip to his side. "I understand, I understand! Uh… I want to say, is there no law here? I want to file a complaint!"
The response he received was the cold and merciless impact of the iron whip!
The slave owner berated him, "You talk about law here? I am the law! Guards, take them away."
Two slave guards immediately came forward and separated Ming Zhi Tian and Buck, locking them into individual cages.
After the slave guards left, Ming Zhi Tian tried to break free from the Binding Immortal Rope using force, but after struggling for a long time, it didn't loosen at all. He was stumped. "What kind of rope is this? How can it be so strong?"