Along came a Spider

Shou Huiyu and Li Huang was sitting in Liang Longwei's office looking at the decorations while sipping the most delicious tea they had ever drank. Shou Huiyu was thinking about the city she had just been brought to, and assumed Li Huang was the same. The buildings looked odd, travel artifacts rolled down special roads or flew in the air, and the appearance of the various beastkin were eye catching. Also, the cultivators from Emerald Jade continent noticed small artifacts in the hands of the city residents, and the variety of robes worn by them as well. All the robes were made with high quality fabrics, and some had the appearance of normal robes while the rest were robe designs that the two clans had never seen before.

Liang Longwei entered his office, "Please excuse me, I had a few orders of business that needed my attention, and I made you wait."

Shou Huiyu and Li Huang nervously motioned to the mayor, and Shou Huiyu said, "You are taking time for your busy schedule to meet us without an appointment. I feel it is necessary for us to apologize to you."

"Then nothing else should be said about this", Liang Longwei asserted, "Now that we are settled, let me explain our situation."

Liang Longwei placed his Qphone into an open slot on his workstation, and sent some mental commands to it. The lights dimmed as his workstation produced a small holographic image of the world the size of a basketball.

"This is our world", Liang Longwei narrated, "Using special artifacts, we have recorded images of our entire world. If you see here, you will see the island we are currently staying on, and the two continents above and below it."

The two clan leaders were in awe because they did recognize the lands near their clan, but had never seen the entire continent displayed on anything. The orb floating in the air began to slowly spin until the three continents that surrounded Sun & Moon island were displayed.

"This is where we came from, traveling here on special flying ships to reach this island", Liang Longwei told them, "A portion of us came from this tiny island here known as 'Sun & Moon' island, while the rest are a collection of cultivators from the three continents. This continent here is the Nanying continent where traditional cultivation takes place, this is the Shou continent that is the home of the beastkin, and this is the Wu continent which focuses more on the mind and body."

All this was almost too much for Shou Huiyu to learn that not only did other lands and people exist, but they were so powerful in different ways. She listened to everything with an expressionless face, but this took all her self control to do so.

"So, can I ask more about you and your purpose here?", Liang Longwei inquired.

Li Huang spoke first, and Shou Huiyu could tell he was already trying to curry favor, "Mayor Liang, I am Patriach Li Huang of the Lishou clan. Two methods are generally practiced here, the spiritual beast fusion and spiritual beast taming methods. Our Lishou clan is probably the most powerful beast fusion clan in the north, and we might have something in common with the beastkin. We also can display traits of the spiritual beasts we merge with."

Li Huang held out his right arm, and pulled his sleeve up to the bicep before Liang Longwei noticed the former's arm and hand became hard and claws appeared before disappearing.

"I was fortunate to merge with an earth dragon egg when I reached the Qi Gathering realm", the patriarch said proudly.

"Interesting", the mayor admitted before looking at Shou Huiyu.

"Mayor Liang", she said, "As Patriarch Li said, he follows his method while we are beast tamers."

"Other than some flying mounts, we did not see any other beasts on your arrival", Liang Longwei said in an inquisitive manner.

Shou Huiyu grabbed a small artifact from a pocket in her sleeve and laid it on the desk, "Most of my companions are very large now so it would be inconvenient to travel with them, so our artifact refiners make these special artifacts that allow us to carry our beast with us."

Liang Longwei looked at the artifact on his desk but did not make a move to pick it up, "This is also very interesting as well."

Liang Longwei looked as if he was in thought before continuing, "I had the idea of showing you something we use often, but since your ways are very different for ours, I might have to consult with our leaders first. So what brings you to this island?"

"Both of our cultivation methods require the eggs of spiritual beasts", Shou Huiyu explained first to keep Li Huang from dominating the conversation, "We travel here every few years to worship at the altars and receive eggs from the divine beasts of the north."

This caused Liang Longwei to frown, "Does that mean we should expect more visitors soon?"

"Yes, three days from now", Li Huang replied not to be outdone.

"I understand", the mayor responded, "This information is important, and I need to speak to someone immediately. Please enjoy our city during your stay, and please proceed with your rituals as planned. We are sorry for the incident of our first meeting, and look forward to a pleasant future as neighbors."

The two clan leaders understood why the mayor was now in a hurry, so they finished their tea, rose from their seats, and were escorted back to their clan mates.

Liang Longwei sent messages directly to the ministry, with a recording of his conversation attached to it. Soon, he saw an invitation to join a meeting, so he told his assistant that he should not be disturbed and entered his personal pod. Soon, he was sitting at a long rectangular meeting table with all the ministers and Wei Huoran.

"Mayor Liang, Thank you for joining us on such short notice", Minister Zel greeted him.

"Of course, Ministers", Liang Longwei answered.

"We are going to send a high level enforcement team to you as soon as possible", Minister Zel told the mayor, "We are also adjusting the satellites to focus on the area to the north. I highly recommend that you use the enforcers and drones you have to keep an eye on the situation as well."

"This is interesting", Wei Huoran interrupted the minister, "I think I will go there as well. Can you tell me how strong you think the visiting spiritual beast will be?"

No one opposed Huoran's proposal, and ignored the fact he had injected himself into the conversation so they just awaited the mayor's answer.

"The two that led their members here where at the late Nascent Soul realm", Liang Longwei told the audience, "The spoke of the messenger from the beasts with reverence, so I assume the messenger is at the Void Refinement realm."

"I agree with your assessment", Huoran stated, "I think I will personally scout the northern continent while I'm there. If there are any spiritual beasts at the same level as my master, we need to know and make preparations."

Everyone saw the wisdom in Huoran's words, and the latter left the meeting quickly after to get ready to go. The rest spoke a bit longer before finishing the meeting, and Liang Longwei found himself back in his office.

The teleportation portal activated for the regular scheduled transportation of construction crews, materials, and everyday necessities. Once the portal stabilized, personnel on the Twin Dragon city side started going through the departure gate as others appeared through the arrival gate.

Mayor Liang watched the whole process, and after the crews finished passing through, he stepped up to greet the next arrival.

Wei Huoran took a moment to get his bearings before recognizing Liang Longwei.

"Venerable Wei, welcome back to Twin Dragon city", the mayor greeted him.

"Just Daoist Wei is fine, mayor", Huoran advised, "We do not need to be so strict about formalities."

Liang Longwei smiled, "Of course, Boss Wei. I will meet you halfway and refer to you like this."

"That's fine too", Huoran sighed in acceptance.

He turned around to watch the next set of arrivals, so Liang Longwei also focused on the portal as well. Cultivators passed the portal wearing matching robes, but the mayor realized that they belonged to a sect and not to Sun & Moon personnel. Liang Longwei read 'Vermillion Blood' on the robes, and turned back towards Huoran.

"Ah, this sect has the unusual ability to detect spiritual beasts bloodlines", Huoran explained, "They have decided to uproot themselves from the Wu continent, and look for their fortune here. It will ultimately be up to fate if they can make this into an opportunity."

"Ah", Liang Longwei exclaimed, "Is that the wisest way of doing things?"

"It is not my place to tell them what to do", Huoran remarked, "We will still accept their business, and we will help if they need our assistance."

The sect master of Vermillion Blood appeared through the portal with Hu Shan.

"Venerable Wei, Mayor Liang, thank you for this chance", the sect master bowed to the pair, "It finally feels as if the sect is where it belongs."

Before either had the chance to say something, the sect master turned and followed after the elders and disciples who had went ahead.

"We should stop standing here as well", Huoran suggested.

"Yes, I have a courtyard ready for you", the mayor said, "Please follow me."

Huoran complied, and settled down in place Mayor Liang had arranged for him.

Two days later, Huoran left Twin Dragon city and arrived at his destination, the altars dedicated to the worship of ancient beasts. He was curious about the spiritual beasts from the north considering his theory about the continent being the cradle of life.

Huoran had a clear view of the altars when he saw the two clans arriving. Each clan approached a certain altar, and began pulling things out of their storages rings and setting them down on the altar. Once everything was in place, the clans returned to their bases awaiting the messenger.

The afternoon passed, then the evening, and finally the morning arrived.

'Xiao Ran', Quanliyuan spoke, 'Something big is coming.'

Huoran spread out his divine sense, and for a few minutes he could not find anything, so he used Quanliyuan's senses. As the artifact spirit had said, he could sense two life forms heading in this direction.

'What could be flying towards that is that size?', Huoran asked Quanliyuan.

'A Roc', the artifact spirit answered, 'A bird of legends whose wings are said to cover the sky, and is the ancestor to eagles and hawks.'

'I sensed two souls coming though', Huoran wished to clarify what he felt.

'Yes, I suspect that it is the messenger', Quanliyuan stated, 'The Roc is the transportation. Based on their strength, you are not in danger and Twin Dragon city is hidden under illusions.'

'You did not mention what it was though', Huoran chided Quanliyuan.

'It is a spider', the artifact spirit realized its mistake, 'Specifically, it is a Qiling spider, an ancient creature that should be the size of a horse. It should black, purple, green, and blue, a mixture of dark and iridescent colors. They have excellent skills spinning their webs and illusions, and often are used as messengers.'

While Huoran waited for the incoming visitors, he sent a message to Liang Longwei to tell the latter the situation. Huoran instructed that the city needs to be locked down, and all protective measures need to be in place immediately. Satisfied that the city was safe, Huoran played games on his QFold waiting for the pair to arrive.

The pair Huoran had been tracking arrived an hour later, and he was not impressed when the Roc finally was spotted in the sky.

'I thought it would be larger', he commented.

'Just wait', Quanliyuan laughed, 'It is fairly far away, you will understand when it gets here.'

True to his word, it took awhile for the Roc to arrive, but once it closed in on the island, it size became apparent. The Roc landed on the mountain range the same as a normal sized bird would land on the branch of a tree. It did not seem to have the intention to move, but Huoran could sense that the spider had dismounted and was making its way towards the altars. Its movement were perfect as if it was well versed in this area, and had experienced this process countless times. It collected the offerings quickly before leaving a variety of eggs on the altars for the clans.

Huoran used Quanliyuan to evaluate the eggs, and sighed at the results.

'Are you surprised by the results?', the spirit asked.

'I shouldn't be', Huoran said as he left the area with the altars, and headed back to the city, 'Even the beasts are heartless, all the eggs given to the clans are of low quality. These beasts probably see the cultivators here as nothing but weak followers, let us get ready to take a trip there.'