Chapter 269: Zhu Bile Shan City

On the grass in front of Winter Thunder Fortress, the airship slowly rose into the sky.

Lei En stood at the edge of the deck, waving farewell to Viola on the ground, and the airship rose higher and higher, the castle shrinking in his view until it was only the size of a palm; the spiral propeller at the rear of the airship roared, speeding up as it headed west through the clouds.

Even at this distance, Lei En could still see Viola clearly.

She stood at the castle gate, looking up toward him, lingering without turning back, her expression complicated, her eyes full of reluctance.

Lei En let out a light sigh.

Yisu's figure appeared beside him, shaking his head in puzzlement, "If I had such a beloved confidante, I would never stay in the castle for only two days; I'd stay at least half a month before leaving."

"Viola has her own career pursuits, and I have my own matters to attend to; there's no need to stay together for a long time," Lei En replied somewhat insincerely.

"You really are generous."

Yisu sighed, "I've never seen such a beautiful Half-elf in my life; aren't you afraid she'll be taken by another man?"

Lei En gave Yisu a glance.

This legendary assassin is a veteran in love affairs, called a lecher in brothels, yet these past two days in front of Viola he has behaved courteously, without any frivolity, as if he were a different person.

It's unclear whether he has just emerged from a low point and temporarily reined in, or is merely putting on a gentleman's façade while harboring ulterior motives.

Yisu possesses an unknown item that even the Soul Eye cannot pierce, so his thoughts remain unreadable.

"Hmph."

Lei En said with implication, "Anyone who dares lay a finger on Viola, I'll smash his skull!"

Yisu shrugged indifferently.

The airship flew westward, crossing the Empire's lands, passing through three provinces, flying day and night for two days and one night, finally entering the Huoha Wen Principality.

This vassal state of the Empire is larger than a typical province, with a population exceeding fifty million, making it the strongest among the Empire's vassals; its ties to the Empire are extremely close, and its people's customs and language are almost identical to those of Imperial citizens.

The Huoha Wen Principality sits in a vast basin.

It is surrounded on all sides by plateaus or mountains, while its interior is a flat, fertile plain stretching for thousands of miles, spring‑like year‑round; the entire Empire can find few lands more bountiful, with annual abundant harvests, especially grapes that produce the world's finest wine.

Because its people are prosperous and rarely experience war, Storm Queen's rule is very lax; over centuries, the Huoha Wen Principality has gradually become a romantic utopia.

In the southwest of the principality, a portion borders the edge of the Shi Jie Shan Mai.

Naturally, Huoha Wen's wealth draws the attention of the dragons of the Shi Jie Shan Mai. After descending, they fear the Storm Queen and dare not raid openly, so they assume human form to infiltrate the principality, using various means to seize or deceive people's riches, even kidnapping beautiful human women.

Huoha Wen is a feudal state, with various ranks of nobles and many knights beneath the Storm Queen.

Brave knights reclaim treasure and maidens from the evil dragon's claws; such tales are the most beloved stories among Huoha Wen's people.

Some are true, but most are fictional; the overwhelming majority of knights perish beneath dragon breath.

The treasure and maidens still belong to the dragons.

Yet this does not tarnish people's impression of the Huoha Wen Principality: fine wine, knights, wealth, and dragons—a land of gold and heroic legends!

The airship crossed one mountain range after another, and the view opened up brightly.

An endless plain suddenly appeared on the horizon ahead, like sailing from a raging sea into a calm, bright lake.

Lei En stood by the cabin window, looking down on the vast land.

Under the clear sunshine, vast expanses of farmland and estates stretched across the ground, planted with various crops, grapes being the most abundant, nearly more than half.

Every few miles a clustered village could be seen.

A beautiful pastoral scene unfolded slowly before his eyes, thriving and pleasant, making the newly arrived Lei En feel refreshed and delighted.

"What a wonderful place!" he exclaimed.

Even without meeting any Huoha Wen locals, merely observing the land from above, he could already sense its atmosphere differs from the Empire's, making one feel relaxed.

"Have you been here before?" Lei En asked, turning his head.

Yisu was sitting at the table, gripping a handful of Wanling cards, looking deep in thought.

These past two days were a bit boring, so the two passed the time by playing cards.

Yisu's card skill is actually quite good, but against Lei En he kept losing round after round, winning less than a handful of times in two days.

"I'm done playing; playing cards with you is no fun."

When Lei En asked, Yisu seized the chance to stop, replying gloomily, "I spent my youth in Mo Du, then fled to the New Continent to wander for over a decade, never having been to Huoha Wen."

He stroked his chin, his eyes suddenly brightening, "But I've heard Huoha Wen's brothels are thriving, with many varieties; we could go try them tonight. Want to join me?"

"Not interested," Lei En rejected outright.

He had only just spent two intimate days with Viola, and the sage's time hadn't ended yet.

The airship continued for a few hours, and in the afternoon a massive city appeared ahead: Zhu Bile Shan had arrived.

Zhu Bile Shan is the capital of Huoha Wen and its largest city, with a resident population of about three million, roughly comparable to Longshande.

It is called Zhu Bile Shan rather than a city because it truly is a mountain.

The entire city is built upon several connected mountains, situated on the banks of the Na Qu Mo He, the mountains not tall but sprawling, terrain not steep; over half the structures are built into the hills, so Zhu Bile Shan is also called a mountain city.

Zhu Bile Shan sits at the center of the Huoha Wen basin, where another tributary joins the Na Qu Mo He, and countless fertile fields lie outside the city.

From afar Lei En could see a striking mountain in the middle of the city.

It floated above the wide surface of the Na Qu Mo He, only a few dozen meters high, like an island in the river's heart, yet not touching the water.

This is the Storm Queen's Agelonde Floating City.

Agelonde's shape differs greatly from ordinary floating cities; it employs the Naiser construction method, cutting off a mountain peak and propelling it skyward using Iola Core's energy.

However, Agelonde Floating City has its peak pointing upward and its flat cross‑section facing down.

This is the opposite of Weizelan Floating City, where the mountain peak is covered with lush forest and flora, with hidden buildings scattered within like a meticulously arranged city garden.

At the summit stands a magnificent castle, within which a not‑very‑tall Wizard Tower rises atop the mountain.

Lei En gazed far out and saw a suspension bridge spanning the riverbank, linking the floating city to the ground; many pedestrians crossed the bridge to ascend to the floating city.

People wander and stroll within the floating city; aside from the Storm Queen's castle, all other areas are freely accessible.

Lei En couldn't help but sigh.

It has always been said that the Storm Queen is extremely popular with the people, even the Fu Kong Cheng is open to the public; it turns out to be true, no wonder the Storm Queen enjoys such high prestige in Huo Ha Wen and is deeply loved by the people.

This reminded him of Yi Si Lei Ke's PurpleFlameDuke, the two are complete opposites.

A moment later, the airship landed at the landing field outside the northern city of Zhu Bile Mountain, docked at a berth; after the airship shut down, the captain immediately ordered the field workers to refuel and replenish water.

"Boss."

Xi Ka Liu Si came up and said, "My brothers and I will go find Tai Li En right now; he's not far from here, and we'll have news back soon."

Te Li En is the leader of the Makulag people on Zhu Bile Mountain.

Because it is closer to the Seian Plateau, there are more Makulag people adventuring on Zhu Bile Mountain than in Mo Du, exceeding twenty; under Tai Li En's leadership, they formed a small mercenary troupe that serves local nobles and merchants, usually taking only bodyguard and guard assignments.

Besides Mo Du and Zhu Bile Mountain, a few Makulag people went to the Empire's southern Thus: Thus: Shengangcheng; Xi Ka Liu Si tried to make contact but could not find anyone.

Makulag who dare to leave the Seian Plateau are the elite of the tribe.

Lei En's idea, of course, is that it would be best to bring all these Makulag under his command, but since they cannot be found, there is nothing he can do.

"I'll go with you."

Lei En rose and walked to the lower deck of the airship, where the Extreme Warriors were waiting, and ordered, "Xi Ka Liu Si, Ge Long, and Ji Er Te, the four of us are enough; take off your armor so we don't stand out. Ao Tuo, you and the other brothers stay on the airship and make sure to protect the cargo."

"Understood." The Extreme Warriors replied in unison.

A few minutes later, Lei En left the airship with three towering Makulag, glanced left and right, and found that Yi Su had not followed, his whereabouts unknown.

His dragon-horn warhorse and the Extreme Warrior's Kodo Beast were left at Ge La Mo Gen; the Makulag were too massive for the car, so they had to walk together.

Fortunately, the destination was not far.

After a half‑hour sprint, the four entered Zhu Bile Mountain, climbing along the streets until they reached a complex halfway up the slope; all around were many transcendent beings and alien races. Judging by their attire, most were mercenaries or adventurers, likely the transcendent gathering place of Zhu Bile Mountain.

When the people saw the towering Xi Ka Liu Si and his companions, they were not surprised at all, clearly accustomed to barbarians.

"Boss, this is the place."

Xi Ka Liu Si stopped outside a large courtyard, called out to Lei En, and went forward to knock on the door.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Tai Li En, open the door quickly!"

The sturdy wooden door was slammed and shook as if about to collapse; from within came heavy footsteps and the clatter of weapons being seized, as if surrounded by enemies.

A dozen seconds later, the door was violently flung open.

A tall, imposing barbarian rushed out, brandishing a massive axe as if ready to strike. When he saw the people at the door, his expression instantly shifted from anger to joy, and he said happily, "Xi Ka Liu Si, you finally arrived!"