Chapter 3: The City in the Sky

Taking advantage of the topic of the giant elephants, Li Mingxing asked many more questions about the cities in this inner world. According to the explanation provided by Seven Yada the Scimitar, apart from a few limited oases, the rest of the land was comprised entirely of deserts, both large and small.

Each morning, as the sun rose above the desert, a whirlwind would appear somewhere in the sands. No matter where it began, no matter which direction it blew, it would only travel fifty miles before abruptly halting. Because of this phenomenon, even the oases were considered too dangerous for people to inhabit, and every city in this inner world was built in the sky.

After traveling for about three hours, the elephant caravan finally stopped. A few people jumped down from the flying carpets and began to clear away the nearby sand dunes.

At this point, Li Mingxing, who had been suffering unbearably atop the giant elephant, also leapt down, followed by his subordinates who wore similar expressions.

The desert troops quickly cleared away the sand, revealing a massive stone formation before Li Mingxing's eyes. The formation was about thirty meters in diameter and appeared to be carved from a single immense piece of black obsidian. Strangely, despite years of wind and sand, the formation showed no signs of wear.

Once the formation was cleared, the desert troops did not step onto it but instead placed several gemstones onto its surface. Four flying carpets began to circle around, loudly announcing, “The formation is about to be activated. Those heading the same way, pay your fee; others, please leave.”

The four carpets circled nearby, and indeed, a group of people emerged from the vicinity, handing over some gold coins.

Seven Yada the Scimitar explained, “Those are civilians or merchants who can’t afford the energy stones required to activate the formation. They wait here for the major caravans to activate the formation so they can return to the cities above. The caravans often take them along, since the fees they pay can cover over half the energy costs. Helping them also earns their gratitude—it’s quite a profitable arrangement.”

“Why not just use flying carpets to ascend?” Li Mingxing asked, noticing that some of the people paying had carpets of their own.

“Flying carpets can only reach heights of up to one thousand meters. To prevent cities from being swept away by the daily whirlwind, each city is built at an altitude of over ten thousand meters. It’s impossible for carpets to fly that high,” Seven Yada explained.

“How is the price calculated?” Li Mingxing grew even more curious.

“It varies. Usually, one gold coin per person, three for a carpet, and ten to twenty for a giant elephant.”

“That doesn’t seem particularly expensive,” Li Mingxing remarked.

“Yes, but that’s only because the gemstones used to activate the formation are almost all found in the desert. They cost practically nothing,” Seven Yada replied.

Hearing this, Li Mingxing was amazed. These gemstones, which would drive women mad in the real world, could simply be picked up in the desert and cost next to nothing. If such words were said elsewhere, the speaker would surely be beaten for their audacity.

Watching the people toss gemstones onto the formation without the slightest hesitation, Li Mingxing found himself believing it.

Soon enough, with enough gemstones in place, the formation began to operate. Seven Yada the Scimitar quickly instructed, “Please stand steady. We’ll arrive soon—no need to worry.”

As he spoke, Li Mingxing felt a rush of air lift him skyward. In the blink of an eye, he was soaring upwards. Around him, everything within a kilometer radius was swept off the ground, rising toward the sky.

Before long, the wind that had carried them stopped. The yellow sand around them was falling away, but they themselves were not descending; instead, it felt as if they were standing on a stable surface.

Li Mingxing looked around and found himself in a chamber roughly three acres in size. On the walls were about three hundred stone statues.

He noticed these statues resembled monkeys in form, with twin wings like those of Western dragons, and eyes made of gemstones commonly found in the desert. Each statue stood before a large stone tablet inscribed with unfamiliar writing.

“Those are gargoyles, the guardians here. If enemies enter the city from this point, they’ll face an attack from these statues,” Seven Yada the Scimitar explained, seeing Li Mingxing’s expression.

“How powerful are they?” Li Mingxing asked, watching as Razak led his caravan out of the chamber.

“They’re fairly strong. I can handle two at a time, but their numbers are great, and they feel no fear. As long as the energy in their eyes remains, nothing will stop them, no matter how battered they become. Ordinary people avoid fighting them,” Seven Yada answered.

No sooner had Seven Yada finished speaking than Li Mingxing’s three harpy attendants landed beside him. “Master, the gargoyles’ weapons are not the stone tablets in their hands, but their tails,” one said.

As soon as she spoke, Li Mingxing felt every gargoyle’s eyes turn toward him. He quickly pulled the speaking harpy close and followed Razak out of the chamber.

Upon entering the sky city, Li Mingxing was struck by its enormity. The city was like a floating sphere, layered every thousand meters, each layer smaller and more lavish as one ascended.

Between layers, metallic devices reminiscent of flying carpets provided passage, and there seemed to be teleportation formations as well.

Li Mingxing found himself on the lowest level, the domain of slaves and heavy industry.

Before he could take in his surroundings, Seven Yada the Scimitar led him to a nearby teleportation formation. “Lord Razak is the city’s Maula. His residence is on the fourth layer, the upper level—above that is the lord’s inner city and the nobles’ district. As for us, we must go to the second layer, where the mighty warriors live.”

“Was that area just now the first layer?” Li Mingxing asked as they arrived at the second layer via the teleportation formation.

“No, the first layer is the commercial district; we were just at the lowest level,” Seven Yada explained.

“Who lives on the third layer?”

“That’s where elite heroes and magicians reside and train.”

“Heroes? I am a Grand Warrior myself—can I go there?” the resident dwarf warrior asked.

But the Blackstone Warrior beside him stared him down, and Seven Yada the Scimitar smiled helplessly. “Given our current situation, only this dwarf gentleman qualifies as a hero.”

Li Mingxing calculated that entry to the third layer required at least fourth-tier strength—a requirement far beyond what he currently possessed.

So, he settled for staying on the second layer for the time being. Seven Yada assured him that all Maulas were extremely trustworthy and would certainly deliver on their promises. Once Razak returned and handled his affairs, he would send Li Mingxing what he had promised, so there was no need to rush.

Li Mingxing decided to use this opportunity to familiarize himself with the city, perhaps even recruit some troops, as he remained quite interested in flying carpet units.

When he brought up the topic, Seven Yada the Scimitar laughed. “You want a flying carpet unit? No need to buy them outright. Two people on a combat flying carpet cost just three hundred gold coins. Buy a few, train your own men on them. If you’re worried they won’t adapt, you can hire our Scimitar Soldiers or Spearmen for a very reasonable price.”

“You don’t actually need to hire them,” came a voice from nearby. Li Mingxing and Seven Yada turned to see a man standing with them.

The man was bald, his skin a shade of purple, his eyes glowing with white light. His appearance and attire were reminiscent of a genie from Arabian legend.

Seven Yada immediately bowed his head and introduced, “This is the Second Steward of Maula Razak.”

Li Mingxing greeted him courteously, “So it is the Second Steward. A pleasure to meet you.”

The Second Steward was equally polite, nodding and explaining his purpose—he had come to deliver Razak’s promised items.

Because giant elephants could not appear above the second layer, they had to go to the first layer to complete all necessary formalities.

Li Mingxing had no objections and simply led his subordinates to follow.