Even in the Outer Circle Districts, there was a difference in the quality of life for the residents. That became more evident as Ah Mieu left the market street. This market street was located on the very outskirts of the city, practically adjacent to the city wall.
His destination was the District-to-District transportation hub that was further in the city. Not to be confused with the Circle-to-Circle transportation hub that was near the Inner Circle's wall.
This District-to-District transportation hub was in the middle of the Northern District, much like the others in the other Districts.
Compared to the Circle-to-Circle transportation hub that uses Teleportation Circles, the District-to-District transportation hub merely uses flying treasures in the form of ships. But with that said, unless someone was a cultivator with a bit of wealth, it was highly improbable that someone in the Outer Circle could use the District-to-District transportation hub due to the cost. As for traveling to the other Districts on foot or with horse carriages, it was even more impossible due to the distance.
The City of Pangu was the self-proclaimed capital of the Pangaea Continent. Without mentioning the other continents bordering it, the Pangaea continent consisted of several billion people. So, it was safe to assume that the self-proclaimed capital of such a massive continent would be large.
If one wanted to travel from one district to another without the help of a transportation hub, it would take a minimum of three years on horseback, and this did not include the logistical aspect of the travel, such as getting a permit to move through the various checkpoints along the way. Getting those permit documents could take up to five to ten years. But this was also not including the time it would take to save up money to purchase those permits.
For a normal Outer Circle Citizen, they would never be able to leave their District without some special circumstances. However, this does not mean they did not dream of leaving the slums and forging a better life than what their parents had.
As the rising sun bled into the night, dispelling the darkness, Ah Mieu reached the transportation hub of the Northern District.
Even as early as it was, the area was still packed with people. While standing in line, Ah Mieu casually glanced around at the people in the plaza.
The transportation hub indeed had more fancily well-structured buildings and gorgeous pavilions; however, its layout was quite simple.
Aside from the local shops, resident buildings, and logging Inns, there was a large plaza where one could purchase a travel ticket after providing their identification.
This form of identification was issued to citizens by the City Lord Mansion, which was located in the Main Circle. Perhaps some important information that should be noted was that the City Lord Mansion was under the command of the Emperor and the Royal Family of the Pangaea Continent.
That's right, the Pangaea Continent had an empire that spanned the entirety of the continent. But even though they had powerful experts among their ranks, with the Emperor being one of the strongest existences on the continent, there was a reason why the Sects and Clans in the City of Pangu dared proclaim the city to be the capital of Pangaea rather than acknowledge the Royal Capital City.
They were just too powerful.
The only solution the Emperor could come up with was to designate a City Lord to Pangu City and try to curb the power of these unruly Clans and Sects through covert maneuvers.
Making the Royal Capital's currency the main currency used in Pangu and issuing citizens these identification documents were two of such covert maneuvers.
However, most of those covert maneuvers by the City Lord Mansion were confined to the Outer Circle. To gain influence in the Inner Circle and the Main Circle was a slow and grueling process, which was to their dissatisfaction.
After an hour of waiting, it was Ah Mieu's turn. He reached into his left sleeve, and with a thought, a green jade slip appeared in his hand from his storage ring. Reaching into his sleeve was merely a symbolic gesture.
"I'd like to buy a ticket to the Eastern District, preferably one leaving soon."
Ah Mieu said as he handed over the jade slip to the young male attendant behind the counter, who looked to be in his late teens. When the young male attendant looked away from the projection screen created by the Rune Inscription on the desk in front of him and saw Ah Mieu handing over a jade slip, his pupils momentarily constricted, but he quickly recovered and accepted the jade slip. Afterward, he placed Ah Mieu's jade slip onto another Rune Inscription on the desk that looked like it had hardly been used.
Meanwhile, the people across from Ah Mieu, as well as a few behind him, similarly had their pupils violently constricted to the size of pin-needles when they saw that his ID was a jade slip.
Only Cultivators in the Inner Circle had their ID in the form of a jade slip. For Martial Artists like them, it was a piece of paper.
Even though no one spoke, the atmosphere around Ah Mieu had noticeably changed. Those Martial Artists all stared at him with vigilance.
It was as if Ah Mieu were not a child but was instead a sleeping wild beast that might suddenly wake up and maul them to death.
Ah Mieu keenly noticed this change in the people around him, but there was nothing he could do about it. Even if he told these people that he hadn't yet started his cultivation and only knew a few Rune Inscriptions taught to him by his Older Brother, they would still fear him, or rather, his connection to the Upper Circles.
In this tense atmosphere, the young male attendant completed Ah Mieu's ID check. Looking up, he then said nervously.
"The earliest ship leaving for the Eastern District is three hours from now."
Smiling, Ah Mieu replied.
"That's fine, I can wait."
The young male attendant glanced back at the projection in front of him, and after tapping it a few times, he tentatively asked.
"Will you be riding first class?"
"En."
Ah Mieu nodded in confirmation, and the young male attendant tapped the projection in front of him before saying.
"That would be one hundred Mortal Gold coins."
Ah Mieu reached into his left sleeve and took out the required amount. After spending a few coins on those beggar children, he still had a fair bit of silver and gold coins remaining.
At the same time, the people around unconsciously sucked in a cold breath of air while watching the young male attendant collecting the one hundred gold coins. If it were them, it would have taken them several months to a year to make that much.
These Martial Artists couldn't help but feel a sense of dejection when they looked at Ah Mieu and determined he should still be a child. They weren't even better than a child from the Upper Circles; the world was indeed unfair to those not born in the Upper Circles.
After taking the gold coins, the young male attendant handed back Ah Mieu his ID. As for his ticket, his ID jade slip had many functions, and one such function was being able to connect to these establishments' Rune Inscription Network. So, he only needed to present his ID to confirm his ticket purchase.
With that out of the way, Ah Mieu decided to walk around this upscale area of the Northern District while waiting for his flying ship. However, he allowed his curiosity to get the better of him as time slipped by, and without him noticing, there were only a few minutes left until his flying ship arrived.