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On Roni Islands, there is the Navy Oceanic Division of the Dawn Empire, with a total of eighty soldiers stationed there. For the Eternity Alliance, Roni Islands belongs to the territory of the Dawn Empire. However, this place is completely inhospitable for human life; experts have studied and concluded that Roni Islands cannot receive rain due to the unique oceanic monsoon effects. The Navy relies on ships to transport food and water.
Although practitioners are somewhat stronger than others, they still need to eat and drink. What is Mi Xiaonan doing on Roni Islands? How does one survive there? Mi Xiaomo doesn’t know; all she knows is that Mi Xiaonan left an address at the Navy division and sends a pile of letters there every month.
After hearing Mi Xiaomo’s introduction, Cui Ming said, “I think I’ll head back to Dawn City for a while.” Not knowing where to go, everyone had their own matters to attend to. As a wanderer returning from afar, it was only natural to visit home first. The only place he could consider home was the small villa in Beiyue.
Upon arriving at the small village, Yorkian greeted them warmly; they were always friendly towards outsiders. They produced a hero among thousands, which was their term for practitioners. They didn’t find practitioners strange at all. Cui Ming and Feng first washed their hair and bathed, then changed into two sets of blue worker uniforms that Mi Xiaomo had painstakingly obtained before heading to the barber shop.
Cui Ming looked at himself in the mirror from different angles; for someone who had aspired to be a Magician since childhood, appearance was important. Cui Ming said, “Trim my hair into long layers down to my shoulders, and leave some stubble on my chin.”
Unexpectedly, Feng wanted a change too after coming out of the desert: “No beard or anything, let my hair grow down to my waist and just tidy it up.”
The barber was very professional and quickly got to work. Feng tied his hair back with a cloth strip and tossed it behind him, walking with a swagger that gave off a sense of grace. Feng Dao remarked, “I’ve always wanted to grow my hair long like my master. But every time it gets long, I get lazy about washing it and end up shaving it off. Hey, your style is pretty average.”
Cui Ming’s hair fell loosely over his shoulders. He smiled and put on his Cowboy Hat, lowering the brim slightly. Feng clapped his hands: “Not bad, you have presence.” If one were to ignore his lower half clothing and just look at his head, with his hair down and some stubble on his chin, Cui Ming exuded an air of maturity that suited his character well. Cui Ming was quite deep-minded and considered matters thoroughly—nothing like a typical young person.
Feng looked around: “You still need to put on your cloak.”
The barber chimed in: “You might consider a stiff cloak made of hard material in black, white, or red. Your shoulders are relatively low; a stiff cloak can help elevate them.”
Cui Ming looked at the barber: “Master, you’re amazing.”
The barber humbly replied: “I studied costume design for several years in Twilight City.”
“Then why are you working as a barber in this small mountain village?”
“Life in Twilight City is exhausting,” the Barber said. “Isn’t it nice here in this peaceful little village?”
“Nature is beautiful,” Cui Ming asked. “Where can I buy clothes?”
“There aren’t any nearby; you’ll have to go to the capital, over two hundred miles away,” the Barber replied. “And there aren’t many styles available, mostly our own Yorkian clothing. If you really want well-fitted clothes, I suggest going to West Lake City. Although the population there is quite small, their clothing industry is very developed. You can get custom-made outfits.”
“Thank you, Master,” Cui Ming said. “Xiao Mo, give a tip.”
“No need for money,” Xiao Mo thanked the Barber and said, “It’s a meal for our guest. How could we possibly charge for a haircut? Let’s go.”
Xiao Mo’s sister had prepared a feast: grilled dishes, wild boar, rabbit meat, mountain chicken, wild mushrooms, and various other mountain delicacies. Mi Xiaomo’s sister was an ordinary person currently in her twelfth year of school in the capital. She had already applied for the culinary program in Twilight City, with the dream of opening a restaurant in the capital.
“Why open in the capital? Open in Hero City instead,” Feng Dao suggested.
“Hero City?” Mi Sister asked in response.
“Exactly. With your current skills, if you take them to Hero City, I guarantee everyone will find excuses to stay there,” Feng nodded.
Mi Sister innocently asked, “Why?”
Feng replied, “Because your cooking is so good that once they leave Hero City, they won’t be able to eat it anymore.”
Mi Sister’s face flushed instantly as she shyly said, “I’m not that good; I’m just a little bit decent.”
Mi Xiaomo nodded and said, “Little sister, you really can go to Hero City. This time I’m going to participate in an assessment; as long as I pass, I’ll immediately help you find a shop.”
Mi Sister hurriedly replied, “If I’m going to open a restaurant in Hero City, I must study hard and not bring shame to the York Clan.”
Look, the wind took the flattery seriously. The wind looked at Cui Ming, who ignored him. This is the York Clan. When they consider you a friend, they trust you completely. However, this isn't necessarily a bad thing; Mi Sister's barbecue marinade skills are truly impressive, easily surpassing several restaurants in Hero Town.
...
After staying at Mi Xiaomo's house for a night, the next day, Mi Xiaomo gave the two of them several thousand dollars for travel expenses. While a few thousand dollars was certainly not enough, Mi Xiaomo had no extra provisions. The few thousand was meant to say: don't cause trouble in the York Mountain Range; once you're out of the York Mountains, I'm not responsible anymore. Although Feng and Cui Ming had only spent one night with Mi Xiaomo, they looked at him with disdain when it came time to take the money, and Mi Xiaomo nearly pulled out all of Mi Sister's tuition fees.
"Xiao Mo, why aren't you going out? You signed up for the competition this year; why aren't you with your teammates?"
"My role in the team has already been defined by the captain. I’m back to focus on closed-door training."
Cui Ming curiously asked, "What do you mean by defined?"
Mi Xiaomo replied, "Hated."
"..." Cui Ming and Feng were confused; what kind of definition is that?
Mi Xiaomo continued, "Not only do we have to participate in the assessment, but we also have to take part in the first Competition Match. When facing other teams, I must make them hate me enough so that my sacrifice can help the team achieve victory."
"Who’s your captain?"
"Nier, someone you don’t know." Mi Xiaomo said, "She comes from the Northern Snowfield."
"I know about the Northern Snowfield." Cui Ming recalled attending a wedding during the Assessment Match; it was a couple from the Northern Snowfield: Romir and Fanxi.
Mi Xiaomo was startled. "They belong to two conflicting tribes. My captain is applying for arbitration matches with their tribe. Since both tribes lack enough practitioners, they are looking for help to gather five people."
"How will you gather them?" Cui Ming asked. "I remember the alliance rules state that if anyone fights for a City-State in an arbitration match, they cannot participate in another City-State's arbitration match."
"Changes have been made," Mi Xiaomo said. "To enhance the cohesion and practical combat abilities of practitioners, not only will we introduce the Competition Match every few years, but we have also abolished this regulation."
Various creatures from Antarctica and the Arctic began migrating towards the Three Continents due to natural reasons. Additionally, with the Silent City being unregulated, the summoned Otherworldly Creatures increased in number, and since they were summoned without being managed, these Otherworldly Creatures flowed into the Three Continents. The Alliance hopes that all practitioners can improve their combat abilities; even if you do not intend to help others, you at least need to possess self-defense capabilities. The Alliance has clearly observed that the increase in Otherworldly Creatures is not a coincidence, indicating that there must be issues within the Silent City. However, communication with the Silent City has been met with excuses about non-interference in the actions of mages. In any case, if Otherworldly Creatures are going to escape, it is up to you to deal with it. Under such circumstances, it is necessary to identify the types of Otherworldly Creatures—whether they are greedy, fierce, or friendly.
Therefore, enhancing the cohesion of the Alliance is essential. Previously, when incidents occurred, it was generally led by Twilight City, Dawn Empire, and Nordo City, or initiated by prominent families; the Alliance often acted as a puppet. Now, the Alliance hopes that the Force Alliance will be a neutral organization rather than one exploited by a particular family or nation.
The reforms initiated by the new President have garnered significant support from many people; those opposed cannot openly voice their dissent. Furthermore, both prominent families and nations believe this is a good approach. Currently, Twilight City, Dawn Empire, Nordo City, and the Four Great Families all support this reform and have contributed Force Stones to reward the winning team of the Friendship Competition Match.
After robbing the rich to help the poor in Double Bridge City, Feng and Cui Ming traveled to West Lake City. Each ordered three sets of custom-made clothing and stayed for a few days. After receiving their clothes, they prepared to take their leave. Cui Ming left Zhao Wei's phone number while Feng provided addresses and contact numbers for Raefus's ordinary subordinates in Twilight City, Nordo City, and Dawn Empire.
After bidding farewell to each other, they set off on their respective journeys.
The use of mobile phones has become widespread; communication within the Three Continents has been realized. The Dawn Empire has the most financial resources and has renovated buoys originally used for receiving telegraph signals at sea as base stations. Currently, wireless telephone services have been established between the Western Continent and Eastern Continent. At present, only Nordo City and Dawn City can connect with the Western Continent.
However, there are obvious drawbacks. First, each phone weighs three kilograms and must be carried on one's shoulder. Secondly, call charges are very expensive; per-minute rates range from several yuan to dozens of yuan. Lastly, it is inconvenient; for example, if someone in Dawn Empire wants to call Cui Ming's phone number, they must first dial the operator in Twilight City and request a manual transfer to Twilight City's operator. Then they must ask Twilight City's operator to connect them to Dawn City's operator before finally reaching Cui Ming's number through a landline via the base station. Even if Cui Ming does not answer the call, charges still accrue during waiting time.
Currently, only wealthy nobles use cross-continental services; if you have a phone, others must also have one. Mobile phones are predominantly used within cities; now both Dawn City and Nordo City are constructing city-state communication networks to enable mobile calls in suburban rural areas.
On a luxurious ferry from Purple Moon City to Dawn City, Cui Ming saw wealthy individuals using these phones with their aides carrying them around. When needed, they simply took out a microphone. If they wanted to call someone, they would instruct their aide to communicate with the operator on their behalf. Thus, for them, mobile phones have limited drawbacks; instead, they serve more as a status symbol. It is said that a television station is negotiating with Dawn Empire to use their buoy base stations to establish a live broadcast network across the Three Continents. Relevant technological research is underway in Nordo City. In any case, wireless signal transmission has allowed the Three Continents to break through a bottleneck of civilization. (To be continued.)
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