Shuimu Yan stretched lazily, feeling refreshed. Seeing Luo Shu and Lu Hanmo approaching, he greeted them with a smile. "The carriage is ready. Let’s set off." After three days of rest, his injuries were completely healed.
"Alright!" Luo Shu and Lu Hanmo nodded and walked out together with Shuimu Yan.
"Wait for me!" Shuimu Ye dashed over with a bundle in hand.
The three stopped in their tracks, waiting for Shuimu Ye.
"Didn’t you say you weren’t coming?" Shuimu Yan teased as he looked at Shuimu Ye, whose running had left her hair slightly disheveled.
"I’ve changed my mind. The Holy Light City’s Light Domain only opens once every six years. If I miss this chance, I’d have to wait six more years. I’m not that dumb," Shuimu Ye declared, sounding justified. After a conversation with her mother a few days ago, she impulsively decided not to go. But after thinking it over last night, she changed her mind. She had never been someone to retreat when faced with challenges.
"Women are just fickle." Shuimu Yan rolled his eyes helplessly and strode toward the exit.
"Filthy brother! I’m not a woman, I’m just a girl," Shuimu Ye glared at Shuimu Yan.
At the stables, the carriage was ready.
All four of them boarded the carriage. With a loud shout from the coachman, the carriage sped forward.
The Holy Light City was a thousand miles away from Shuimu City. Even with the carriage’s speed, it would still take about a week.
As they got closer to Holy Light City, the mysterious force surrounding it grew stronger. Even Luo Shu, with her spatial abilities, felt considerable effects. Fortunately, her Divine Sense was still operational.
The carriage rolled slowly into Holy Light City. As soon as they entered, the four of them were startled by the bustling crowds within. Forget about the carriage, even walking would have to be done slowly.
"We should get off the carriage; otherwise, we won’t make it to the inn until tomorrow," Shuimu Ye said, standing up and lifting the curtain before stepping off the carriage. Before coming here, they had already arranged their lodging through a letter from the City Lord’s Mansion. Otherwise, finding a place to stay now would have been impossible.
Luo Shu and the others also got off the carriage. Taking a quick glance around, the four of them joined the crowd, moving forward slowly.
This time, the opening of the Holy Light City’s Light Domain was a major event for everyone in Shuize Country. Seeing the Holy Tree would allow one to gain Sacred Power, and drinking Holy Water brought even greater benefits.
When they arrived at the inn, Shuimu Yan approached the counter. A number of people were already at the counter, enquiring about room availability.
"Keeper, I’m Shuimu Yan. Please give me the keys for the three rooms I reserved earlier," Shuimu Yan called out to the innkeeper at the counter.
"Certainly, patron!" The innkeeper retrieved the room keys and handed them to Shuimu Yan. These rooms had been personally reserved by someone from the City Lord’s Mansion, so he dared not delay.
Just as Shuimu Yan reached out to take the keys, a middle-aged man nearby snatched them away.
"Give it back!" Shuimu Yan frowned at the man.
The man stuffed the keys into his pocket. "I won’t. If you said there were no rooms, why do you suddenly have three available when you show up?"
"Those rooms were reserved in advance by this patron," the innkeeper explained. Right now, rooms were in short supply, and under normal circumstances, no new reservations would be accepted. But when the City Lord’s Mansion reserved the rooms, he couldn’t say no, could he?
"Who knows if it’s truly reserved? Either way, I’m taking these rooms," the middle-aged man said arrogantly.
"Why are you being so unreasonable? These rooms truly were reserved by this patron, and it was someone from the City Lord’s Mansion who made the reservation," the innkeeper explained helplessly, mentioning the City Lord’s Mansion for emphasis. If the man managed to seize the rooms, the inn would surely suffer the consequences.
The middle-aged man sneered mockingly, "Trying to scare me with the City Lord’s Mansion? As big as the City Lord’s Mansion is, do they really need to reserve rooms at this small inn? What a joke."
Shuimu Yan stood there with a cold expression, waiting for the innkeeper to handle the matter.
The innkeeper sighed and turned to a nearby staffer, instructing, "Take this patron and his friends to their rooms." Other than these three rooms, all others were fully booked. Since the middle-aged man had snatched the keys, the only solution was to directly escort them to the rooms. After all, the keys were merely proof of reservation — useful for checkout but not necessary otherwise.
"Understood!" The staffer responded, stepping out from behind the counter and addressing Shuimu Yan and the group, "Please follow me."
The middle-aged man stepped forward to block Shuimu Yan and his group. "Those three rooms are mine now. If you dare go upstairs, don’t blame me for what happens!"
"We’ve chosen not to argue with you, so don’t push your luck," Shuimu Yan said coldly.
"Now that I have the keys, I have the authority," the middle-aged man retorted arrogantly.
"Patrons, your rooms are Unit A, numbers 303 to 305. Please proceed upstairs directly, we’ll handle this situation," the innkeeper said, stepping in to help Shuimu Yan and the group.
The middle-aged man quickly strode to the staircase entrance, blocking their path. "I’m not letting this go. These rooms are mine now."
The innkeeper, accompanied by two staffers, approached the man, instructing the staffers to pull him away. However, the middle-aged man’s Combat Power was too high, and he swiftly took down both staffers.
"Well done! That’s exactly what should be done."
"Clearly there are rooms available, but they lied to us. This inn is shady."
"Hit them harder! Teach them a lesson!" The surrounding crowd began jeering, obviously siding with the middle-aged man. Like him, they all needed rooms too.
The middle-aged man, emboldened by the crowd’s encouragement, got even more aggressive, raising his fist to strike Shuimu Yan.
Though Shuimu Yan knew some rudimentary kung fu, he was certain he couldn’t beat the man. As he was about to dodge the incoming punch, a hand shot out faster and caught the man’s fist.
Lu Hanmo stepped forward and coldly stared at the middle-aged man.
"Y-you... Let go..." The middle-aged man’s hand, gripped tightly by Lu Hanmo, was wracked with pain, twisting his face into a grimace. And the overwhelming aura coming from Lu Hanmo sent chills throughout his body.
"Hand over the keys!" Lu Hanmo demanded in a low voice.
The middle-aged man didn’t dare resist and immediately fished the keys out of his pocket, holding them out to Lu Hanmo. "H-here... take them..."
Lu Hanmo took the keys before releasing the man’s hand.
The middle-aged man wasted no time and bolted toward the exit.
The nearby crowd, upon realizing the drama was over, dispersed quickly. With the last three rooms gone, staying longer at the inn wouldn’t help anyone. It was better to try their luck elsewhere.