Chapter 3: Night at Azure Water Paradise
Time flowed, and before they knew it, it was already the end of May.
Over these past two months, Linley had spent most of his time each day in meditation, with the remainder devoted to sculpting and reading books. The Ernst Institute’s library housed a vast collection of books, and through his reading, Linley’s breadth of knowledge continuously expanded.
On the morning of May 29th.
Linley, Yale, Reynolds, and George stood on the square in front of the Proulx Gallery. Beside them, a carriage held three wooden crates. Over the past two months, Linley had actually completed nine stone sculptures, but for this first delivery to the Proulx Gallery, he was only trying out three pieces to see how they would fare.
“You there, carry these three crates,” Yale ordered.
Several servants from Yale’s household immediately lifted the three wooden crates.
“Third brother, follow me.” Yale was clearly familiar with the route, heading directly toward the side of the Proulx Gallery. The Proulx Gallery occupied an enormous area, and several hundred meters from the main entrance, there was an inconspicuous door. Standing at this door was a middle-aged man dressed like a gentleman.
Seeing Yale and the others approaching, the middle-aged man’s eyes lit up, and he walked over, bowing with a smile. “Young Master Yale, welcome.”
Yale nodded with a smile. “You should know the purpose of my visit by now. This is my good brother, Linley. These three stone sculptures are his. Where are the warehouse workers of your Proulx Gallery? Have them bring these three crates inside quickly.”
“One moment, please.” The middle-aged man nodded with a smile.
Soon, several porters came out from the passageway. The middle-aged man smiled at Linley and said, “Young Master Linley, according to the rules of our Proulx Gallery, we must record your identity information. You only need to let me record your Ernst Institute student ID, and that will be sufficient.”
The Ernst Institute student ID was enough to prove one’s identity.
Linley took out his student ID from his bosom.
The middle-aged man took the student ID, opened it, and his eyes immediately widened. He looked up at Linley in surprise. “Fifth year?” Linley’s age was obvious at a glance, and for someone so young to have reached the level of a fifth-rank magician was indeed astonishing.
Yale said proudly, “This brother of mine is one of the two peerless geniuses of our Ernst Institute. Last year, when he was only fourteen, he reached the fifth-rank magician level during the end-of-year tests.”
Two peerless geniuses of Ernst Institute?
The middle-aged man immediately understood in his heart that this Linley before him had limitless potential for the future. His attitude instantly became much more respectful. After recording Linley’s identity information, he also made marks on the three wooden crates.
“Young Master Linley, everything is in order. You only need to come back in a month to collect your payment,” the middle-aged man said with a smile.
“A month from now? I won’t have time then. Is it alright if I delay by two or three months?” Linley asked. In another week or two, Linley planned to set out for the Magical Beast Mountain Range, and this trip into the Magical Beast Mountain Range would take nearly two months.
“No rush. Once your works are sold, you can come collect your payment at any time,” the middle-aged man nodded.
Yale frowned and said, “Hey, what’s going on? I remember that in the past, when you accepted stone sculptures, you would inspect the inside. Why no inspection this time?”
The middle-aged man explained, “Inspecting the inside of the crates is to prevent people from sending damaged stone sculptures. If we didn’t check, they might later claim that the gallery caused the damage and try to extort us. However, since these three stone sculptures are sent by Young Master Yale and Young Master Linley, I trust that people of your standing would never do such a thing.”
The middle-aged man understood clearly in his heart.
Who was Yale?
Would he extort the Proulx Gallery? The small amount of money he might gain wouldn’t even be enough for Yale’s casual spending. As for the creator of the stone sculptures, Linley, who was hailed as one of the two peerless geniuses of Ernst Institute, would someone of his stature stoop to such extortion?
...
Late that same night, on the third floor of Azure Water Paradise, deep within Champs Elysees Avenue in Fenlai City’s East District, Linley and the others were in a private room.
The night in Fenlai City was bustling.
But the night at Azure Water Paradise reached the peak of its splendor and noise. The coquettish laughter of women and the hearty laughter of men rang out continuously. In the private room, the four brothers were drinking and chatting idly, with four delicate-looking girls accompanying them.
“Second brother, third brother, Fourth and I are going to bed now. You two...” Yale, holding a girl with green hair, said with a mouthful of alcohol.
“Alright, Yale, big brother, just stop talking, okay?” Linley interrupted Yale.
Yale and Reynolds exchanged a glance, then looked at Linley and George with a contemptuous gaze. The two of them, each holding a beauty, left the private room. It had been two years since Linley and the others started coming here regularly.
Usually, Yale and Reynolds would go off to enjoy themselves, while Linley and George would at most drink some wine and chat with the girls.
“Young Master Linley, we’ve known each other for two years, but you still...” the green-haired girl sitting beside Linley said somewhat discontentedly.
Linley found it quite a headache.
“Ella, if you’re tired, go back and rest. You won’t be short a single copper coin,” Linley said coldly. This made the girl named Ella dare not say anything more. Coming to Azure Water Paradise and only drinking wine was indeed a rare occurrence.
A streak of light flew out from the Dragonblood Ring, transforming into Doehring Cowart.
Doehring Cowart looked at Linley with a smile, teasingly saying, “Oh, Linley, with a woman right in front of you, you still put on this sour face? Alas, it’s a pity that I, a grand Saint-level magister, now exist only as a soul. I can’t even touch a woman. And you, you little brat, still act like this?”
“Grandpa Doehring.” Linley frowned, transmitting his voice to Doehring Cowart with displeasure.
Doehring Cowart curled his lips. “You’ve never tasted a woman’s flavor. Once you do, you’ll probably be a completely different person.”
Linley turned his head to look out the window, ignoring this lecherous old man Doehring Cowart. The cool air from outside blew against his face, calming Linley’s heart.
“The Magical Beast Mountain Range... what is it really like inside?”
In another week or two, Linley would set out. At Ernst Institute, Linley had heard many legends about the Magical Beast Mountain Range, and he had also heard a lot from Doehring Cowart. But Linley had never been there. He could only imagine all the scenes of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
“One week from now, I’ll set out.”
Linley looked through the window at the endless night sky and made his decision in his heart.