God Of Crafting

The first attempt at touring the spiritual world came to an end the moment Chihiro finally brought us to one of the local inns.

There, right as we stepped over the threshold of the place, the somber mood, the extremely unpleasant feeling of mental and emotional separation, even all the doubts of what we were actually supposed to do in the spiritual world…

At least in my case, all of those things took a backseat, forced to the back of my head by the awe brought by everything about this place.

"It feels like…" I nearly voiced my impression, only to then press my lips together, opting to gatekeep the rest of what I wanted to say within the privacy of my mind. 'It feels like stepping into the world I could only read about in history books before.'

The inn, just like most of the other buildings in the border city, didn't rise above a single story, making up for the lack of verticality with just how far its grounds spread in every direction.

While modern inns and hotels would take great advantage of stacking floors higher and higher, the architect of this place took all the liberties that came with having ample space to manage, making sure even the walk toward the main building of the whole damn resort would be an experience all in its own right, rather than just a commute from the outer to the inner gate.

There was a fountain on each side of the relatively short gravel path leading from the street entrance of the ranch to the impressive, wood-carved gate of the main building.

Those fountains, however, as if to rub the superiority of the spiritual world and its designs into the modern world's face, weren't limited just to their main pond and the statues erected in the middle and basked in the splatters of water ejected from the statues' mouths. Instead, pretty much the entire garden on each side of the path incorporated the outflow of the fountain water.

'Wait, this stream…' I thought, stopping right in the middle of the road as my eyes drew toward the curly path the water took to finally disappear behind a tiny, merely inch-or-two-high mound.

"Isn't this a rune?" I muttered under my breath, too excited about my discovery to keep my mouth shut.

And thankfully enough, as opposed to my earlier remark that could be taken as dismissive by the locals, what I just said could hardly be taken in the wrong way.

"It indeed is a rune, young man," one of the inn's guests who just happened to be taking a stroll through the front garden smiled, strangely pleased by my discovery. Yet, as he glanced at my robes and then my small company, his smile only grew brighter. "Is this, by chance, your first day in the spiritual world?"

I turned my eyes to the man again, only to then cup my hands together before giving the man a slight, polite bow.

"It is indeed, respectable senior," I answered in the most polite way I knew how, making sure to bend my back at the precise angle—not too shallow to imply a lack of respect, nor too deep to diminish my own position.

"It seems that soon, rather than just a ward, you will visit this place through your own achievement, then," the man added, only to then copy my bow with a small smile lingering on his lips before turning away to continue his leisurely stroll.

'Oh shit…' Only when the man left us to our own devices did I realize that this seemingly innocent exchange had caused Claire's stare to burn even harder, to the point I felt as if her eyes could claw bloody holes out of my side.

'I really should keep my mouth shut,' I thought, gritting my teeth while doing my absolute best to maintain a polite and calm expression on the outside.

'May the pain of my teeth forever remind me not to speak carelessly,' I swore to myself, only to then lower my head and silently follow after Chihiro.

Before any other incidents could make Claire's feelings even worse, we managed to reach the main entrance to the inn… or rather, the entrance to its main building.

When we stepped inside, however, rather than a dining hall or even a relaxation zone, this whole building turned out to be nothing more than a fancy reception!

"Welcome to the Prancing Butterfly!" A young jade beauty in weirdly revealing robes stood up only to then bow so deeply, it made me question whether she wanted to show respect or flash her cleavage. Then, as soon as she rose, she flashed a bright smile, showing her perfectly white teeth. "How may I be of service? Would you like some refreshments? Are you seeking a lodge? Or maybe…"

"We will require three bedrooms and a private cultivation area, along with an assortment of refreshments and my daily quota of the cultivation materials," Chihiro stepped out to converse with the lady while I made sure to keep my eyes away from her belly-button-deep cleavage or pretty much the entirety of her outer thighs, which her robe conveniently left uncovered.

Right now, the last thing I needed was to give Claire yet another reason to feel bad about me—or, in this particular case, to potentially feel jealous about where my eyes would naturally venture.

"I assume I can leave the necessary paperwork for the quotation to you, can I?" Chihiro then inquired a bit further, only for the receptionist lady to bow again… only to then cup her hands together as she did.

"On the honor of the innkeeper, all the papers shall be submitted both to the office and to your rooms for review," she stated out loud, only to then peek up a little, smirk a little when she saw how obstinately I refused to look anywhere near her direction, before refocusing her eyes back on Chihiro. "That is, only if you are happy with the added fee that this service will bequeath upon your bill."

"Yes, that will be both acceptable and welcomed," Chihiro replied with a bow of his own, although quite a bit shallower than the one the receptionist kept performing.

"Perfect," the receptionist smiled, this time saving us the plight of flashing her goods as she concluded the transaction with just a polite smile. "In that case, allow me to guide you to your rooms, then," she offered, only to quickly glance through our entire group before smiling again. "And, I assume you will not require cultivation assistance?"

Normally, I would be happy to accept such an offer. It was a rare chance to have a spiritual world local help me out by sharing some of the basics of their understanding of cultivation, something I could later use to enrich my own understanding of it…

Or so would be the case if not for the actual meaning behind this question, one that had only a little to do with actual cultivation and quite a lot more to do with relaxation for the guests and a money-making opportunity for the young and beautiful locals.

"That won't be necessary," Chihiro replied, his voice quickly growing colder. "Just guiding us to our rooms will suffice."

"So it shall be," the receptionist smiled again, not allowing Chihiro's rejection to faze her even in the slightest. "If you could follow me, then…"