The five passed through a grey zone, observing their surroundings. The entire Nine Dragons Street was also built inside a colossal building, whose interior space, thanks to core technology, was far larger than it appeared from the outside.
The architectural style on both sides featured red walls and green tiles, with most buildings being relatively low, two or three stories tall. The walkways were quite narrow, usually only allowing two vehicles to pass abreast, and pavilions were connected by plank roads, with flying eaves crisscrossing above. Beneath dark red lanterns, alluring flower girl projections smiled charmingly outside the pleasure houses.
Ubiquitous neon signs cast a cool filter over the generally oppressive atmosphere.
The five walked through the underground district and ascended an escalator. Before their eyes were two rows of pavilions adorned with brilliant lights. Behind dim yellow screen shadows, graceful figures plucked guzheng, while virtual projected signs advertised things like 'house for rent' and 'panacea' — typical GG.
Faint folk songs drifted from an unknown source, with distant flute sounds. From the jewelry and handicraft shops on both sides wafted the smoky scent of incense burners, mingling with the heavy aroma of traditional Chinese medicine, filling the corridors and making one feel clear-headed, refreshed, and light.
Around them, the crowd was bustling and noisy. Patrolling Pulao drones whirred and flew away, their beeps echoing. A few arhats, with bodies like bronze statues and golden skin, approached with heavy steps. Their forms were like mountains, their faces sculpted, exuding an unyielding majesty that made the crowd instinctively part to form a narrow path.
In the blink of an eye, the red-haired girl vanished. When they found her again, she was pressed against the glass front of a ramen shop.
A ramen master with eight mechanical claws was rolling dough, skillfully kneading and flattening it, then tossing it into the air. Several mechanical claws swiftly sliced the dough into countless uniformly sized portions, which landed perfectly in a bowl of clear broth. A sprinkle of salt and chopped green onions, and with a practiced motion, the formed alkali noodle cake was slapped onto a glowing red bronze stove. The entire sequence of movements flowed like water.
A sizzling sound emanated as the noodle cake roasted to a fragrant crisp. The bronze stove, resembling a turtle and a dragon, rested on a stone block, its eyes like brass bells.
The ramen master's tone was cordial: “Little girl, a bowl of clear broth knife-cut noodles, plus two crispy cakes and two chanfu, would you like to try?”
Akabane Tsubaki looked longingly at Xu Xiaoyou.
Xu Xiaoyou's pockets were empty.
She then looked at Bai Youyou and Angelina, who both merely shrugged.
It was truly pitiful; the four of them couldn't even scrounge up half a chanfu.
Just then, a girl in a different outfit approached. With her waist-length blue hair, she held a small round fan, lightly touching it to her lips, her face half-hidden. She wore elegant attire: a ceremonial blouse cinched at the waist, a bustier subtly revealing fair skin, a light blue narrow-sleeved wide shirt, and a flowing cloud-white pleated long skirt.
“Hmm?” Tang Xin tilted her head.
A moment later, the four emerged from a tailor shop, all in new outfits.
The blue-haired girl following behind opened her empty purse, a black cloud forming above her head.
Looking at the four, they were radiant.
A horse-face skirt flowed down from the black-haired girl’s waist. Bai Youyou had fastened her white blouse, with eight-faced sabers at her waist, and her high ponytail made her appear even taller, with a slender neck curve, exuding an air of sophistication.
“It feels a bit... tight.” Bai Youyou's movements were unnatural. Even Angelina, usually so boisterous, had quieted down. She wore a cool, wide-sleeved white robe, her silver hair cascaded over the skirt, her wine-red eyes serene. A pair of red flower pendants paradoxically added a touch of unapproachable aloofness to the girl's already world-weary demeanor.
“I wouldn’t have thought you had this side to you,” Bai Youyou remarked, scrutinizing Angelina.
Her appearance and temperament were entirely different from before. Bai Youyou found it hard to compare the cool, aristocratic young lady before her, who looked like she’d stepped out of a merchant guild, with the silver-haired girl she knew.
“Don’t even talk about it, I’m disgusted by this look myself,” Angelina said, her eyebrows practically knitted together as she gazed at her own bright lips and clear eyes in the mirror. “Is this even me?”
“Why do they all look so good, and I’m just a maid?” Akabane Tsubaki pouted, looking at her coarse linen clothes and unhappily tying her hair into two buns.
Xu Xiaoyou, in a long robe and mandarin jacket, pushed up her small black round glasses, looking exactly like a money-grubbing pawnshop owner, and ceremoniously patted the jade ruyi scepter in her hand.
“Actually, I’ve already scouted ahead,” Xu Xiaoyou explained. “Most of those who rush to Nine Dragons Street immediately upon entering Skyline City are non-combatants, either scholars or young literary types interested in culture.”
“We’ll specifically target them for a Visiting Battle by Overstepping Authority. It’s guaranteed to be an easy win.”
“Yuzu, isn’t that a bit... much?” Akabane Tsubaki grinned knowingly.
Bai Youyou and Tang Xin exchanged glances, both seeing helplessness in the other’s eyes.
The five then split up, mingling with the crowd, and began searching for their targets on the bustling Nine Dragons Street.
A few minutes later, inside a tea house.
“Legend has it that in those peaceful years, the Four Tower City flourished, and its people lived in contentment. However, an Eight-Spider Abomination descended upon the world, causing internal strife and external chaos under the Red Heaven. Lives were devastated, corpses littered the land, and the common folk withered, desperate for release from suffering. It was at this critical juncture that a young girl emerged! Wielding four divine artifacts, she purged the otherworldly filth…”
A young man quietly sipped his tea. Beside him, the storyteller’s voice was fervent, yet his gaze remained as calm as water.
For Su Sheng, no place brought him more inner peace than a pot of tea, a scenic view, and a small building far removed from the world’s clamor.
If he could, he would truly wish to stay here for the rest of his life.
He hadn’t expected that after so long away from the Kowloon ship, he would see a shadow of his homeland in a place like this.
Oasis...
Su Sheng had also entered this virtual world after hearing rumors about his younger sister, but after days of searching, he had made no progress. She was one of his few remaining connections to this world.
This season's league wasn't important to Su Sheng. His teammates were found haphazardly on the world channel, and he didn't care about his ranking. He had no interest in fighting; he merely wanted to find his kin.
Whether she was willing to return with him or not, he wanted to sit down and talk with her properly, to hear what thoughts had been in the girl’s heart all these years...
“Yo, having a drink?” Someone sat down in front of him. The girl had beautiful golden long hair.
“You look familiar?” Su Sheng was slightly startled, only then realizing that this golden-haired girl wasn't the tea house owner, but a player like himself.
Yet, she had just been ordering the waiter around so brazenly.
“Could it be, are you also from Kowloon?” Su Sheng asked.
“Mm-hmm.” Xu Xiaoyou took a shallow sip from her teacup, noncommittal.
“I wonder if you’ve seen a girl,” Su Sheng said, “This is her picture. I had a portrait artist here make it, so there might be some slight discrepancies. Please take a look.”
As Su Sheng spoke, he took a photograph from his pocket and handed it to Xu Xiaoyou.
Xu Xiaoyou took the photo.
A stranger in a foreign land, for the young man to ask such a question, there could only be one possibility: the girl he spoke of was quite famous within the sphere of influence of Kowloon Information Enterprise. Could she be a descendant of a prominent family?
She glanced at it. The girl in the photo was young, perhaps only eight or nine years old, with half of her tender little face severely burned.
Strangely, Xu Xiaoyou actually found the girl somewhat familiar, as if she had seen her somewhere before, but for the life of her, she couldn't remember where.
She returned the photo to the young man, shaking her head.
“I see.” Su Sheng was neither surprised nor disheartened. Asking such questions of random people in a vast crowd was akin to looking for a needle in a haystack.
Perhaps, to others, his actions seemed inexplicable, but this was his sole reason for moving through the world.
The other party hadn't shown any impatience; she must be a good person, right?
Just as Su Sheng finished his tea and was about to move on, the girl called out to him. She walked over and heavily patted his shoulder. His HP dropped a small chunk, and he entered combat state.
Su Sheng hesitated: “Are you...?”
“Don't be in such a hurry to leave,” Xu Xiaoyou said, tapping the table. “My time is precious; consulting me costs money.”
Su Sheng, with a complicated expression, took out a few green chanfu and placed them on the table.
“This is all I have.”
“Not that,” Xu Xiaoyou’s smile grew more playful.
“What I want is...”
“A Visiting Battle by Overstepping Authority.”
Su Sheng froze. The moment the girl's words fell, the surrounding space abruptly changed!
Rate on N.U.
