Chapter 269: Bluewave city 1.

The first thing Mo Yuxin noticed about the Southern Continent was that it smelled of salt.

It was not a bad smell. In fact, after spending months traveling through mountains, forests, and long stretches of dry inland roads, the sharp salty breeze felt almost refreshing. The wind came from the endless sea beyond the harbor, carrying the smell of fish, wet wood, spices, and something faintly metallic that made the back of her throat itch. The sky over the port city was a clear blue, and under the afternoon sun, the sea looked so bright that ordinary people would have to squint to keep their eyes open.

Mo Yuxin stood on the deck of the spirit boat and looked ahead.

Below the clouds, the city stretched along the coast like a huge crescent. White walls wrapped around the older parts of the city, while newer districts had grown beyond them in every direction. Hundreds of boats crowded the harbor. Some were ordinary wooden ships, some were merchant vessels covered in protective formations, and some were clearly spirit ships that could cross thousands of li in one trip. Tall watchtowers stood near the docks. There were even several stone platforms where flying swords could land.

This was Bluewave City.

It was one of the largest port cities in the Southern Continent and the main reason Mo Yuxin and Su Yubing had chosen this particular route.

They were not in a hurry.

That was the important part.

They could have crossed from the Eastern Continent to the Southern Continent in less than a day if they were willing to expose their real cultivation. Neither of them was. Their outward cultivation had been deliberately suppressed to the Nascent Soul realm, and their aura had been adjusted to look ordinary for that level. Even that was already enough to make most cultivators treat them with respect.

Nascent Soul cultivators were not common.

They were not the strongest existence in the world, but in many cities, just having one in the family could make an entire clan stand taller. A Nascent Soul cultivator could establish a sect, guard a city, or become a guest elder in one of the major powers. In a small place, even the casual arrival of one could be a matter people talked about for years.

Mo Yuxin had no interest in being talked about.

Su Yubing had even less interest.

The two of them were perfectly happy to look like two married women traveling together, carrying enough spirit stones to live comfortably, pretending that their only concern in life was finding good food and a nice inn.

The fact that they were actually far beyond the Nascent Soul realm was a small detail that nobody needed to know.

Mo Yuxin folded her arms and looked at the distant city.

"It is noisy."

Su Yubing stood beside her, one hand resting lightly against the railing. Her long black hair moved with the sea breeze, and she turned her head with a faint smile.

"You say that like you dislike it."

"I do not dislike it."

"You have been staring at it for ten breaths without looking away."

Mo Yuxin glanced at her. "I was deciding what we should eat first."

Su Yubing laughed softly.

That was one of the things Mo Yuxin liked most about traveling with her. Su Yubing did not need many words to understand what she was thinking. Sometimes she did not even need words at all.

Su Yubing stepped closer and quietly fixed the jade hairpin that had shifted in Mo Yuxin’s hair because of the wind. Her fingers lingered for a moment near Mo Yuxin’s temple.

"Then what have you decided?"

"Fish noodles."

"You have not even entered the city."

"The smell gave me the answer."

"That is not how cultivation works."

"I am not cultivating right now."

Su Yubing smiled again.

Mo Yuxin reached over and took her hand.

There was no dramatic reason for it. They had been married for many years, and touching each other had already become as natural as breathing. Sometimes they held hands while walking. Sometimes Su Yubing leaned against Mo Yuxin’s shoulder while reading. Sometimes Mo Yuxin simply rested a hand on her wife’s waist when they were standing in a crowded market.

Their relationship was not passionate because it was new. It was gentle because it was deep.

The spirit boat began to descend.

As they got closer, Bluewave City became more impressive. The harbor was enormous. The outer seawall had been carved with formations that glowed faintly under the sunlight. Ships entered and left through a wide channel protected by several floating barriers. People shouted from the docks. Merchants called out prices. Porters carried boxes of sea resources. Cultivators moved through the crowd in robes from different sects, clans, kingdoms, and distant islands.

A familiar xianxia feeling hung in the air.

There was probably going to be an auction.

There was probably going to be an arrogant young master.

There was probably going to be some poor fisherman who picked up a priceless treasure and did not know what it was.

There was almost certainly going to be an ancient senior hiding in a beggar.

And if Mo Yuxin had guessed correctly, someone was going to yell that they would pay ten thousand spirit stones for a broken piece of trash because the trash actually contained a world-shaking inheritance.

She looked at Su Yubing.

"I have a feeling this city is troublesome."

Su Yubing nodded seriously. "I had the same feeling when I saw three separate young masters fighting over the same horse on the road two days ago."

"That was impressive."

"Especially when the horse kicked all three of them."

Mo Yuxin’s lips curved.

The spirit boat landed at the designated docking platform.

The moment their feet touched the stone ground, the noisy atmosphere of the harbor wrapped around them.

Mo Yuxin slipped a storage ring into her sleeve and pulled her cloak into place. Su Yubing did the same.

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to be continued.