Azure signifies serenity; the city stands for sincerity. Possessing the Way and practicing caution, embodying virtue with humility, swallowing clouds and mist, slaying demons and fiends—such is the Sword Immortal of Azure City.
In a shabby roadside stall, Dog-Egg was fully absorbed in pulling noodles. The once shapeless dough, kneaded and struck repeatedly under the sunlight, began to glisten like crystal. With deft hands, Dog-Egg gave it a flick; with each pull and stretch, the dough seemed almost magical, transforming into ever finer, longer strands. The noodles looked as though they would snap at a touch, yet under Dog-Egg’s nimble hands, they danced with resilient grace. At last, with a final shake, the noodles fell precisely into the boiling pot.
“Dog-Egg, one bowl, extra spicy!” Old Liu straightened the filthy stool and sat down, greeting several regulars with a clasped hand. “Dog-Egg’s noodles have real bite—better than anything that master chef at Fragrant Pavilion across the street can conjure up!”
“Liu, you’re boasting again, aren’t you? Fragrant Pavilion’s no ordinary place—without a handful of silver, you can’t even step through their doors. You, a petty bailiff, an ant among men, could enter Fragrant Pavilion? You’d be thrown out the moment you got in!” one regular teased.
“Don’t be so sure!” Liu retorted. “Once, I accompanied my superior to a banquet at Fragrant Pavilion. Out of pity for us minor folk, the master ordered a table just for us bailiffs. I sampled their famed Prawn and Eel Explosion Noodles. Honestly, it doesn’t compare to Dog-Egg’s big bowl with an extra egg. Far more satisfying.”
“But the chef at Fragrant Pavilion was brought in from the capital! Such skill—does Dog-Egg match up? Face it, you’re just meant to gnaw steamed buns on street corne