In the course of more than two thousand years of continuous construction and development, Twilight Capital had become a strange and deformed behemoth.
Its predecessor was originally several city-states in the hinterland of Midgard. At that time, the size of a city-state was quite limited. Even if several city-states and their respective territories were connected together, it was only the size of a giant city on Earth today. A Twilight Shroud was enough to completely cover all of it. After the shroud was raised, the survivors on this land could only build their homes under this layer of sky. The land area was limited, so they could only develop their city toward the sky.
They first connected several city-states and exploited every inch of barren land between the city-states as much as possible. When the land was full, they built up the cities layer by layer, with the help of some long-lost technology that may have been left behind by the god Vanir.
The resources collected from the dark wilderness were constantly converted into steel and adhesives, filling up every inch of space under the Twilight Shroud bit by bit over the course of two thousand years, and finally formed the peculiar cone-shaped structure of the city. Today, the upper city of the city could almost touch the energy shield that emitted a pale yellow light. Standing on the highest platform of the upper city, you would feel that the Twilight Shroud was within your reach. In fact, if you had enough arm strength, you could see ripples on the shroud by throwing a pebble into the sky.
The city no longer had the luxury to continue developing.
In the depths of this deformed nest, the ancient steam turbine and pressure pipe system were still running slowly, like the aging internal organs of the ultimate behemoth. Every time those things, which had a history of hundreds or even thousands of years, turned, the Twilight Capital would groan in pain. Sometimes even the entire upper city would shake, but the residents of the city were used to this ominous sign.
The steam locomotive slowly stopped at the station in the upper city. After leaving the carriage, Hao Ren immediately felt much better. The steam locomotive used to transport workers and ore was definitely not comfortable. In fact, in order to operate in the dark wilderness, the steel monster was more concerned with sturdiness and safety than humanness. The completely sealed carriage was not only stuffy, but also filled with the pungent smell of engine oil. It was a kind of torture to stay inside for a long time.
Although the air quality outside the carriage was just so-so.
They were near the highest point of the city, but standing here, Hao Ren did not feel relaxed at all. The low Twilight Shroud above only made people feel depressed. He looked at Wendell and asked, "Where are we going next?"
"The headquarters of the Lightseekers is in the lower city, near the Temple of the Iron Throne. We have to go down through the big shaft, but the big shaft is controlled by the Steam Assembly," Wendell explained patiently. "The shaft lift runs once an hour, and ordinary citizens can use it. But you are a problem: you have no legal identity. So the most likely scenario is that we first have to accept the Steam Assembly's — "
Lily suddenly interrupted the old man. "Is the Steam Assembly those people?"
A group of people in uniform boarded the platform. They looked proud and confident. Their tight black and blue uniforms were decorated with silver trim, and the logo of gears and valves hung on their chests. Except for the leader, these people were holding a metal stick in their hand. The stick was supposed to be used for law enforcement, but it looked like some kind of elongated and deformed machine control lever.
After the team boarded the platform, they walked directly toward them. Wendell's face suddenly became gloomy when he saw them.
"It's them, the sheriffs of the Steam Assembly," the old man's voice was a little depressed. "And it's the last thing I want to see …"
Hao Ren gave the old man a strange look, thinking that the confrontation between the Steam Assembly and the Lightseekers was more serious than he thought.
At this time, the 'sheriffs' had come to them. Standing in front of the team was a middle-aged man with short black hair and a serious face. He ignored Hao Ren and his team, just nodded to Wendell, and said with a deliberately cold and alienated voice, "Mr. Wendell, I'm 'glad' to see you return safely from the darkness."
Wendell said with a bitter face, "Yes, whether you are happy or not, I'm back."
"I didn't see any other Lightseekers, so can I assume that the result of this light-seeking journey is still the same?" The serious middle-aged man's eyes were sharp. "You are the only one who came back alive. The last light-seeking operation was a complete failure as expected."
Wendell's attitude suddenly changed when he heard this. He straightened his neck and said, "No! It's different this time! I found them! "
The middle-aged man seemed a little surprised by Wendell's sudden tough attitude. He looked at Hao Ren curiously and asked, "These people?"
He received news that Wendell had returned to Twilight Capital and came to the upper city by motorcycle. But the news came from the mine dispatching bureau in the outer zone. The brief report did not mention the 'outsiders'.
"They are from outside Twilight Capital!" Wendell said aloud. His eyes finally glowed again at this time. It was the brilliance of a lifelong pursuit that finally achieved results. "They are from Asgard. Look at them, healthy and strong. The whole of Asgard is not polluted. There is no need for the Twilight Shroud. The whole country is healthy!"
The sheriffs of the Steam Assembly suddenly looked at each other, and some slight commotion spread among these people. The middle-aged man was also stunned for a moment, but his eyes quickly turned cold.
"Nonsense!"
He glared at Wendell.
"You …" Wendell was suddenly angry, but before he had time to say anything, the middle-aged man in front of him waved his hand. "I don't know where you found these people, but you made this scam to shake the foundation of the entire Twilight Capital! You are finally completely crazy. Take them away! "
The sheriffs hesitated a little. The middle-aged man immediately glared at them. "What are you waiting for?"
At this time, a hand suddenly rested on his shoulder. Hao Ren looked at the superior sheriff with a faint smile. "My dear friend, any normal person should know that there is no right to speak without investigation. Do you judge the truth of others based on your mood?"
The middle-aged man had no idea how Hao Ren suddenly approached him from a few meters away and put his hand on his shoulder. He was startled. When he looked up, he found that the strangers who claimed to be from Asgard had surrounded him. His sheriffs were still standing there, their expressions stiff as if frozen.
The shadows under each of their feet were elongated, and the elongated and deformed shadows were pointing in the direction of the little demon Y 'lisabet. In Y' lisabet's innocent eyes, two clusters of thin green flames flashed.
"What are you doing?"
"We heard that the Steam Assembly is the manager of Twilight Capital," Hao Ren said with his arms crossed. "You manage the city, maintain the city, and let the city develop smoothly for two thousand years. To be honest, I admired you at first, but you … you're ruining our reputation."
"Cursemancer?" The middle-aged man's face was gloomy, but he did not panic. He just glared at Wendell. "Is this the helper you found to help you put on a show? Aren't you afraid of attracting the wizard guards? "
"I have no intention of reversing your misunderstanding and prejudice against me," Wendell smiled helplessly. "But you should not let this prejudice completely blind your mind. Don't you want to believe that outside the barrier …"
"There is only darkness outside the barrier! As black as your heart! " The middle-aged man glared at the old man. "I knew it when you abandoned your wife and son for the first time!"
Hao Ren was still wondering how to show some humanistic care to this seemingly stubborn council official. But now he was stunned. It sounded like there was an inside story behind it.
Not only Hao Ren, but Vivian, Lily, Wuyue, Y 'zaks, and the others were also in high spirits. A large number of people who were waiting for gossip turned their heads in unison, their eyes gleaming.
It was understandable if it was Vivian, Lily, and Wuyue. After all, the three of them were watching family dramas on TV. Naturally, they would be enthusiastic when they heard about it. But it was hard to explain for Y 'zaks. Did the demon king have a hobby of inquiring about the divorce of others?
The expression on Wendell's face changed. Finally, it all turned into a sigh. "This is my son, Hope."
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