Chapter 109

Chapter 109

Two days after leaving Jing'an City, on the afternoon of the third day, as Yan Bubu climbed a mountain, a magnificently grand scene unfolded before his eyes.

Below the cliff, over the wilderness, a brightly lit, massive city floated in mid-air.

The city, about a dozen meters above the ground and split into upper and lower levels, was constructed from large steel plates. Interlacing iron bridges connected these plates, forming this sturdy airborne fortress.

The city lights pierced through the chaos and darkness, striking forcefully into their view with an incredible yet so real impact.

For years, Yan Bubu had only seen ruins and desolation, as if the world was heading towards an apocalypse. But here stood this colossal steel entity, silently proclaiming to the world that humanity, civilization, and industry still existed, and that this world would not perish.

Yan Bubu's heart surged with emotions, his eyes brimming with tears, while Feng Chen was evidently also stunned by the sight, silently gazing ahead.

Ding Hongsheng and Cai Tao stood quietly aside, waiting for them to regain composure before explaining, "After the extreme cold, everyone worked together for several years to build this airborne city. The city's base is made of huge metallic plates, supported by many large metal pillars. It seems to float in mid-air, but it's not really suspended."

Yan Bubu followed the direction of his finger and saw, beneath the illumination of the lights, slender columns erected at intervals, supporting the majestic city steadily in mid-air.

Upon closer inspection, each column was surrounded by many people, some even climbing up them.

"Those people..." Yan Bubu started to ask but quickly realized they might not be human and promptly stopped.

"Right, those are zombies," Cai Tao added.

The searchlights on top of the city swayed, illuminating the ground swarming with zombies, moving like ants, endless just like the city itself.

"Let's go, we're entering the city," said Cai Tao.

As they walked, Ding Hongsheng explained: "As you've seen, the ground is overrun with zombies, so the checkpoints to enter the central city are on the mountain tops. The mountains surrounding the central city are all cliffs, keeping the zombies from climbing over."

The group walked for half an hour along the mountain peak and soon encountered a checkpoint. On one side of the checkpoint was a sheer cliff, and on the other, a winding road leading down the mountain, with a few military vehicles just leaving the central city.

Approaching the checkpoint, Ding Hongsheng said to Feng Chen, "Brother Feng, once you're in the central city, just reveal that you're a sentinel guide, and the Eastern-Western Allied Forces will surely come for you. If, and I say if, you haven't made a decision yet, I hope you'll consider joining the Eastern Alliance."

Cai Tao quickly chimed in, "Yeah, exactly. I've been wanting to mention this but didn't find the right moment. Brother Feng, if you and Bubu join the Eastern Alliance, you'll definitely be sent to the Ehart Sentinel Guide Academy, and we'll meet again."

Feng Chen neither declined nor agreed, just smiling, "First, we need to find an acquaintance, we'll talk about it after that."

Ding Hongsheng hesitated, "If you don't want to be disturbed, don't reveal your sentinel guide status when entering the city. Otherwise, you'll be stopped at the checkpoint, and the Eastern-Western Allied Forces will take you away immediately, leaving you no chance to do your own thing."

"I see..."

Feng Chen turned to remove the luggage bag from the Black Lion, carrying it himself, as the Black Lion returned to his spiritual domain.

He stroked his chin and looked at Binunu, asking, "What about you?"

Yan Bubu took out his large cloth bag from his luggage, which he got from the everyday supermarket, emptied its contents, opened the bag, and said to Binunu, "Excuse me."

Binunu stared at him motionlessly, and Yan Bubu pleaded softly, "My lord, you heard it too. We can't reveal our sentinel-guide identity right now. Please bear with it for just a little while."

Only then did Binunu reluctantly jump into the cloth bag.

Yan Bubu slung the bag over his shoulder, not daring to fasten the top button, leaving it slightly ajar. Cai Tao and Ding Hongsheng watched, with Cai Tao whispering, "Look at the treatment of their quantum beast. I feel like I've been mistreating my wolf dog."

Ding Hongsheng whispered back, "I should be nicer to my terror cat from now on."

The checkpoint was established atop the mountain, directly facing the central city across a distance of several dozen meters. Apart from a squad of soldiers on duty, no one else was entering or exiting the central city. After Cai Tao and Ding Hongsheng had their identities verified, Feng Chen and Yan Bubu approached.

Feng Chen had already reverted their identities back, and the soldier scanned their identity chips, "Feng Chen, Yan Bubu, is this your first time in the central city?"

"Yes," replied Feng Chen.

The soldier muttered, "Born in Haiyun City... So where did you come from?"

"Haiyun City."

The soldier amiably explained, "I know you were born in Haiyun City, but where were you two living before coming to the central city?"

Yan Bubu interjected, "Right, Haiyun City. We've always lived there."

Another soldier asked in surprise, "You are survivors from Haiyun City? Have you always lived in Haiyun City without ever leaving?"

"Yes," nodded Yan Bubu.

The two soldiers exchanged glances, "There are still survivors from Haiyun City?"

Feng Chen quickly asked, "Could you tell me where to find the Haiyun City survivors who came to the central city nine years ago?"

The soldier replied, "The survivors who came here nine years ago have probably dispersed by now. I'm not sure where to find them, but you could ask the reception center if they left any information."

"Okay, thank you."

"By the way, have you two undergone mutation yet?" asked the soldier.

Feng Chen answered, "We should have. It was just a strange period of low fever, followed by a high fever. We're not sure if we've really undergone it."

The soldier looked up, asking, "Not sure if you've undergone it... and recovered as normal humans?"

"Perhaps so."

Cai Tao and Ding Hongsheng, who were standing nearby, listened quietly. After the soldier finished asking, they stepped forward to inquire about the sudden darkening of the sky.

"The military says it's a kind of dark matter blocking the sky. The source of this dark matter is still unknown, as is how to clear it. However, it's certain that this dark matter is harmless to humans," the soldier, knowing they were sentinels from the Eastern Alliance, answered in detail.

"Thank you."

Yan Bubu asked Feng Chen in a low voice, "Brother, what is dark matter?"

"Dark matter is just dark matter," Feng Chen replied nonchalantly.

Yan Bubu glanced at him skeptically.

Feng Chen explained, "If I told you dark matter is a type of particle that interacts weakly and has mass, and its main components are likely not any known microscopic fundamental particles, would you understand?"

"I don't get it."

"So, dark matter is just dark matter. It's enough for you to know it's something like that."

The soldiers, seeing they were with Cai Tao and Ding Hongsheng, didn't ask many questions nor search their luggage. They simply registered their identities, checked their temperatures, and then handed each of them a pass card, saying, "Someone will guide you to your residence once you enter the city."

A soldier pressed the intercom, spoke briefly into it, and suddenly, a steel bridge extended from the underground city in the opposite direction.

The bridge stretched forward in the air, locking into a device on the checkpoint side with a loud clang.

"Let's go." Feng Chen picked up his luggage bag, and they all started across the bridge.

This wide bridge could accommodate two cars side by side. Although the distance was shrouded in darkness, Ding Hongsheng pointed and explained, "Over there is our plantation, but right next to it is a sandy area where sandworms damage the crops. Our Sentinels Academy students often take turns hunting these sandworms. On this side is the industrial park under construction, including the Lishi mine. And that way, where we came from, is just barren mountains..."

Yan Bubu followed Feng Chen closely, trying to see each area Ding Hongsheng mentioned. Despite the darkness, his curiosity was undiminished, and he nodded along attentively.

When they finished crossing the bridge and entered a tunnel, the bridge automatically retracted back towards the central city with a clang.

At the end of the tunnel was another checkpoint, guarded by armed soldiers. Here, they didn’t check identities, just letting the group pass through directly.

"The underground city has three gates in the east, west, and north, with several checkpoints. Apart from the first checkpoint where identity is verified, the others don't do checks. They're just precautions against the unlikely event of zombies or mutants entering the city."

As Ding Hongsheng explained, Yan Bubu walked hand in hand with Feng Chen out of the checkpoint’s main gate.

They were greeted by a straight street lined with single-story houses, all featuring simple cement brick walls coated with a layer of whitewash. The street itself was paved with cement bricks, flanked by sidewalks and streetlights. Apart from its simplicity, it wasn’t much different from the streets of the past.

"On the left is the reception center. If you don’t want to reveal your Sentinel Guide identity, you should go there now. Someone at the center will take you to a different district."

Ding Hongsheng and Cai Tao stopped, "Brother Feng, Bubu, this is where we part ways. We hope you'll visit the Sentinels Academy once you're done with your tasks. We'll be waiting for you."

After journeying together for so many days and sharing perilous experiences, Ding Hongsheng and Cai Tao felt a sense of reluctance to part ways.

Ding Hongsheng only shook hands to bid farewell, as he was conscious of Feng Chen's polite but distant demeanor, despite Feng having once saved them.

Cai Tao, less burdened by such considerations, opened his arms for a big hug with Feng Chen.

Feng Chen subtly stepped back, offering his hand instead: "Goodbye."

As Cai Tao firmly grasped his hand and went to add another, Feng had already withdrawn his.

Cai Tao then turned towards Yan Bubu.

Just as Yan Bubu was about to open his arms, Feng took his hand in his own: "So, farewell."

After the pair left, Yan Bubu continued to wave towards them until their figures disappeared around the corner of the street.

"Let's go. We'll meet again someday." Feng flicked Yan Bubu's forehead playfully with his finger.

Walking towards the reception center, Yan Bubu noticed Bi Nunu peeking from the bag and murmured softly, "First time seeing so many houses, huh? Does it remind you of the movies? I saw this many houses and such straight streets when I was young too..."

The reception center was a two-story building, where they were met by a weary-looking middle-aged woman. She showed little interest in inquiring further and, after collecting their pass cards, began searching the computer, muttering, "Area A is full, Area B is full, but there are vacancies in Area C."

The woman rapidly typed on her keyboard. A machine beside her clicked and dispensed two cards.

"Welcome to Central City. These are your credit point cards, starting with a hundred points each, enough for a month's living in Area C. Your assigned place is in Room 59, Bed 3, upper and lower bunks of Area C. Take the unmanned Bus No. 3 outside, get off at the Area C station. It's right across from the station. Just find the reception staff and give them your names."

The middle-aged woman must have repeated these words countless times; her speech was rapid. Yan Bubu pricked up his ears and focused on her lips, afraid of missing a single word.

Snap!

The woman slapped the two cards onto the table and stood up to walk into the inner room. Feng Chen quickly called out to her, "Excuse me, do you know where the survivors from Haiyun City, who arrived nine years ago, are now?"

"Who knows that," the woman continued walking without turning back. "I've only been working here for two or three years. Besides, so many survivors arrive each year from everywhere. Who can remember those from nine years ago? They might all be living on the surface below..."

"Wasn't there any registration of people at that time?" Feng Chen pressed.

"Today's registered people might be gone tomorrow. Who keeps records?" The woman had already entered the inner room and called out loudly, "How's it going? Has the news come out? What on earth is that thing in the sky..."

Feng Chen didn’t pursue further and reached for the two credit point cards. Yan Bubu looked puzzled, "Brother, did you catch what she said? Building number five in Area C... Which room was it?"

"Room 59, Bed No. 3, upper and lower bunks in Area C." Feng Chen picked up the credit cards and the large luggage bag from the floor, "Let's go."

Stepping out of the reception center, Yan Bubu habitually looked up at the sky, his mouth opening in awe.

Bi Nunu, who had been poking his head out and looking around, also looked up.

"Brother, look, there are iron plates above us. Is that the second layer of Central City right above our heads?"

Feng Chen also looked up to see a vast expanse of giant metal plates, four or five stories above their heads, shimmering in the cold metallic light reflected by the street lamps.

"Yes, that's the second layer of Central City."

"It's amazing, can we go up to the second layer and see? I wonder what it's like up there." Yan Bubu walked on, still looking up, nearly colliding with a lamppost ahead but was swiftly pulled away by Feng Chen.

"Watch out, we're at the bus stop."

The bus stop was rudimentary, marked only by a metal signpost. A No. 3 bus, its body covered in random graffiti, obscuring its original color, was stationed on the platform.

Feng Chen led them onto the bus through the front door. There were no passengers inside, so they sat down in the front row.

Binunu's eyes lit up, about to jump out of the bag, but Yan Bubu quickly pressed it down, "This bus doesn't need a driver, see, there's no driver's seat. Haiyun City used to have these kinds of driverless buses."

Binunu poked its head forward, indeed seeing no steering wheel, and then sulkily settled back into the bag.

With a ding, the bus doors closed, and it began moving along the street.

"Brother, switch places with me, I want to sit by the window," Yan Bubu pushed Feng Chen aside, pressing his face against the glass to look outside, with Binunu pressing its face against the lower right corner of the window.

Since the second layer of the central city was above them, the first layer consisted entirely of single-story houses, all with their doors tightly shut and hardly any pedestrians on the streets.

"Who lives in these houses? Are they inhabited?" Yan Bubu turned to ask Feng Chen.

Feng Chen glanced outside, "They're probably rented by people using credit points."

"I wonder what our place will be like. Will it be a house like these?" Yan Bubu idly scratched at the window, his curious eyes reflecting the lights.

Feng Chen lounged back in his seat, "Dream on. The place we're going to is probably more like a shelter, not even close to a hive. To live in a house like this, we'll need to earn credit points in the future."

Yan Bubu turned to Feng Chen and giggled, "Then I'll earn credit points. I want to get you a house like this."

"Fine, I'll wait to live in the house you earn," Feng Chen said with a closed-eye smile.