How can I enter the colorful space?
Zi Linling fell into a dilemma.
Suddenly, she felt a slight itch between her brows, and a character appeared in her mind—"Enter"!
"Enter!"
Zi Linling silently repeated it in her heart.
Immediately, her head spun, and she vanished from the room.
"Miss!"
Xue Ying cried out in alarm as Zi Linling suddenly disappeared.
Before Zi Linling's eyes was a flight of stairs extending upwards.
The stairs were shrouded in thick white mist, obscuring their edges and end.
With the naked eye, one could see at most seven steps.
From the depths of the mist, the occasional beast roar would emanate, sending shivers down one's spine.
Just as Zi Linling hesitated whether to ascend the stairs, a ethereal voice echoed in the air.
"Welcome to the Heaven-Ascending Stairway! Do you decide to begin climbing now?"
Zi Linling was taken aback, thinking, "Is this the colorful space?"
As the thought crossed her mind, the ethereal voice spoke again.
"Yes, this is the colorful space! Do you wish to begin climbing the Heaven-Ascending Stairway?"
Zi Linling became instantly vigilant.
Her thoughts had been probed twice now.
"Who are you? How do you know what I'm thinking?"
"You needn't be surprised. From the moment you found and merged with the first layer of the colorful space, the purple space, the colorful space has become one with you. Therefore, your every thought is no secret within the colorful space."
Zi Linling incredulously asked, "Do you mean the colorful space, like the Nine Spirit Ring, has recognized me as its master?"
"You could say so. Do you wish to begin climbing the Heaven-Ascending Stairway now?"
The ethereal voice asked for the third time.
"The Heaven-Ascending Stairway?"
Zi Linling looked at the winding stairs before her and asked, "What benefits are there to climbing this Heaven-Ascending Stairway?"
This time, the ethereal voice did not answer Zi Linling's question but spoke with a hint of anger, "Third instance of answering evasively, the Heaven-Ascending Stairway enters cooldown for twelve hours!"
"During the cooldown period, the recognized individual will be expelled from the colorful space."
As the voice faded, Zi Linling once again felt a wave of dizziness.
When she came to her senses, she was sitting back on her bed in the room.
Expelled?
Zi Linling gave a bitter smile.
To be expelled by a space that had recognized her as master for talking too much—she was likely the first in all history.
After Zi Linling's sudden disappearance, Xue Ying had instantly panicked. But before she could do anything, Zi Linling reappeared.
The time difference between her disappearance and reappearance was incredibly short, merely the blink of an eye.
Thus, Xue Ying thought she was hallucinating.
She asked uncertainly, "Miss, just now… just now you…"
Zi Linling looked at her, puzzled, and asked, "What about me just now?"
Xue Ying took a deep breath and asked, "Miss, were you here the entire time just now?"
Zi Linling blinked, seeming to have guessed something, and retorted, "Wasn't I here just now?"
She wasn't deliberately hiding anything from Xue Ying, but until she understood the colorful space, she didn't know how to explain.
Xue Ying was taken aback by her question, "This…"
Had she truly been mistaken?
Seeing Xue Ying's reaction, Zi Linling knew she harbored doubts.
To allay Xue Ying's suspicions, she could only change the subject, saying, "Xue Ying, have the things been packed?"
Xue Ying blinked, taking a moment to register what Zi Linling was asking.
She nodded belatedly, saying, "All packed!"
"Good, then let's depart!"
Zi Linling said, getting out of bed.
Her appearance had changed significantly. To avoid unnecessary trouble, she donned a veil.
Before leaving, to prevent others from the Zi family from entering the Purple Heart Pavilion, Zi Linling summoned Elder Du, who set up a simple illusion and entrapment formation around the pavilion, creating the illusion that she was still there.
The mistress and servant did not leave through the main door but climbed over the wall from the Luo Yu Pavilion where they had previously stayed.
After leaving the Zi Estate, the two wasted no time and headed straight out of Dark Night City.
The Misty Forest was about a three-day journey from Dark Night City. However, as it was their first time traveling outside, they were unfamiliar with the surroundings and had to ask for directions as they went.
By the time they reached Xianhe Town outside the Misty Forest, it was already the morning of the fourth day.
Xianhe Town was the only small town outside the Misty Forest, about an hour's walk away.
It was named Xianhe Town because a small river separated the town from the Misty Forest, and no matter how rampant the beasts in the forest were, they never dared to cross the river.
The reason for this likely traced back a thousand years.
Legend had it that a thousand years ago, the beast race repeatedly harassed the ordinary people on this side of the river. A powerful being, unable to bear the people's suffering, engaged in a duel with the beast king on the opposite bank of the river.
They agreed that if the beast king won, the powerful being would cease to interfere in the disputes between humans and beasts. However, if the powerful being won, the beast race would from then on be forbidden to cross the river.
The powerful being and the beast king fought for nine days and nine nights, only barely winning by half a move.
The beast king, true to his word, immediately issued an order that from then on, no beast would be allowed to cross the river, with expulsion from the beast race as punishment for disobedience.
To express their gratitude to the powerful being, the people renamed the river Xianhe (Immortal River), and the town was subsequently renamed Xianhe Town.
Later, some merchants discovered a business opportunity, trading daily necessities for discarded herbs, animal skins, and bones from ordinary folk. Thus, Xianhe Town gradually prospered.
When the three kingdoms of Tianqi, Jinxia, and Qionghua were founded relying on the Misty Forest, Xianhe Town, due to its geographical location, became a necessary route for trade between the three kingdoms.
However, as the Misty Forest was the territory of the beast race, merchants often fell prey to them.
To ensure the safety of goods and people, some merchants began hiring spirit users as escorts, leading to the gradual formation of the mercenary profession.
Over centuries of development, mercenaries gradually formed into groups, which came to be known as mercenary corps.
As the number of mercenary corps increased, so did the conflicts between them.
Therefore, to safeguard the rights and interests of mercenaries and to mediate conflicts between mercenary corps, the high-ranking members of some major mercenary corps negotiated and established an organization called the Mercenary Guild.
After a period of development, the Mercenary Guild's functions extended beyond safeguarding mercenary interests and mediating conflicts between corps, evolving into a more diversified entity.
For instance, it began accepting and issuing various tasks for individuals or factions, and handling the settlement of commission fees for completed tasks.
As the number of people posting and completing tasks increased, the Mercenary Guild grew ever more powerful, and Xianhe Town became increasingly prosperous.