It seems that during the long time outside, that Silly Bird also learned a lot of things, like using cutlery and drinking soup. At meal times, I was delighted to see that Little Crow finally stopped grabbing food directly with her hands, and she wouldn’t slam her head into the soup bowl when drinking soup anymore. You should know, just these two things used to cause everyone a lot of trouble when she was at home. Every time she ate, I almost wanted to set up a protective barrier beside me. She could distribute food evenly within a two-meter radius in one meal.

It’s much better now, although she still seems a bit clumsy. Little Crow can imitate and use a spoon to drink soup and use chopsticks to eat noodle cake—it’s a lot better than grabbing with hands, right?

Because we wanted to experience more local food (and to prevent a certain Big Stomach Queen from eating to the extent of attracting the whole city’s attention at one meal), we spent two hours and changed several dining locations. Actually, sometimes I really envy Sandora, envy her amazing appetite and endless capacity. If you want to experience local delicacies in a place you’ve never been to, this talent provides a huge advantage: you can achieve what others need half a month to do in one meal. While ordinary people would feel stuffed after trying a bit of each local food, Sandora almost set off to eat again two hundred kilometers away after going around the entire city... later, I managed to convince her otherwise.

"Wow... I feel quite full." My Glutton Queen contentedly patted her belly, expressing what could be considered a satisfactory sigh. I couldn’t help but cast curious glances toward her slender waist. Well, the statement "a Prime Minister’s belly can hold a boat" is literal for Sandora.

"The flavors were pretty good, and it’s all common people’s dishes with quite a variety." Lin Xue exhaled, seemingly relaxing her stomach, "This world sure has quite a knowledge in eating. The snacks here aren’t any less than the ones on our side, especially that three-layer stacked fruit cup we just had. Where did they come up with that? The person who invented that must have had an excess of food to waste..."

"There’s a lot of fun stuff here," Lilina said with a smile, "You know, this planet is originally one size bigger than Earth, and the land area exceeds sixty-four percent, with more than half being habitable zones. That means the living space here is several times that of Earth—and that’s not counting those Lost Worlds. In such a vast world, there are over a dozen highly intellectual races with independent cultural systems. Some are native species, while others are hybrid races that emerged after historical discontinuities, becoming independent from their original racial and cultural systems. With so many races and cultural branches, all continuing from ancient times to the present, imagine how many things could be created. Just the variety of foods is countless—of course, some races’ food you might not be able to accept, like Hill Earth Spirits’ roasted stone eggs and Ward people’s raw meat feasts. But I think Sandora won’t have any stress with these."

By this time, Sandora was already daydreaming, "Ah Jun, we must drag this world to the Imperial District—no matter what!"

Everyone seemed unusually energetic after a good meal, which might be related to the explosive combination of Qianqian and Lilina finally getting together again: whenever the two are together, they pretty much bulldoze through everyday life. You can imagine what a terrifying combo a proactive thinker living in a parallel space and a mischief maker morally situated in another dimension would make. Fortunately, this time their goal was just to play around rather than destroy the world. We spent nearly an entire day circling around Sen Tu Port—well, circling the main and distinctive parts, as this is also quite a large city. Of course, the guide was Lilina, even though she had only been here for a little more than a day (they only came over after confirming the transmission location from the Ancient Garden to the Mother Continent. Lilina and the others had been elsewhere before that); but this girl, with her offhand remarks and casual manner, could almost pass as a local. Needless to say, after arriving here, Lilina likely did nothing but frantically ask the locals about things here, just so she could chatter non-stop all day in front of me today, aiming for a possible compliment. Facing such an unconventional effort method from this girl, I was completely stumped.

As a city much like a transit hub, Sen Tu’s area is quite large, but there are not many residential areas and distinctive landmarks. The side facing the "Port" (locals sometimes refer to that vast plain as a "Dry Port," which is pretty fitting) is mostly occupied by various inns and rental warehouses, and a third of the city’s area is related to material logistics, with not much to see. The more distinctive places, apart from the Central Square, are the "Special Material Trading Market" and the "Secret Magic Meeting." The former is most familiar to explorers, who find rare materials or potentially research-worthy odd items in those dangerous zones of the Lost World, which haven’t been fully controlled by humans, and sell them at the "Special Material Trading Market." Buyers are mostly alchemists and scholars, the former’s status waning day by day in this world, while the latter is highly revered. This market is a vibrant and bizarre place where these two vastly differing classes have to directly interact, as explorers’ yields often fluctuate greatly and they are scattered and unorganized, so no one can monopolize the trade of this industry. Thus, even today, this kind of small-scale commodity wholesale trading method robustly exists. The "Special Material Trading Market" is located next to the Central Square, in front of the Dark Alley District.

The "Secret Magic Meeting" is situated on the city’s other end, almost away from the urban area, close to the outskirts, due to its need for a relatively quiet environment. That place is mostly gathered for researchers who require peace.

Lilina specifically introduced the Secret Magic Meeting, speaking highly of such a unique facility. It serves as a public facility for this world’s mages, alchemists, religious believers, and other quirky researchers, providing basic materials and venue services to all applicants, and also offering data queries and task commissions. In other words, if you are an alchemist needing to conduct research in another region, you can find the Secret Magic Meeting locally, pay a certain handling fee, and rent a lab to start your work. Of course, you’re also welcome to find accommodation with facilities much superior to those in the city, though prices are much higher too. Still, as the saying goes, scientific research is inherently a money-burning business...

After listening to Lilina’s introduction, I felt that this place called the Secret Magic Meeting was somewhat similar to a highly liberal public lab, and it also functioned like a library. The Secret Magic Meeting doesn’t belong to any collective; it is somewhat like an open museum, library, lab, and talent market all combined, much like those on Earth. Some are individually invested in establishing them, while some are funded by large trade associations, varying in size and scale. This is something unique to this world and also where we’re planning to rest today. Lilina particularly introduced the Secret Magic Meeting. She emphasized its unique aspect: this world’s public facilities are designed to serve its highly intelligent races. The Secret Magic Meeting serves all applicants who require space and materials for research, offering fundamental resources and services. It provides a place for alchemists, mages, and other researchers to work, almost independently. You could say that each facility combines a high level of practicality and affordability. Even if the world doesn’t possess Earth’s advanced technology, magic civilization can do a lot of very sci-fi things. For example, laser barriers and induction-type pass cards.

"We’re registered as religious believers," Lilina said excitedly, boasting to me, "We’re Crow God believers! The religious environment in this world is so free, with gods everywhere, and even deities with only three to five followers exist. You can create your own god without fearing attacks from other churches. Ah, this world is simply a paradise tailor-made for this Pope... Here we are."

Just as I was pondering the potential for religious wars arising from a world with a multitude of gods, I realized we had already reached the outskirts. We were on the opposite end of the city from the port zone, an area with few residential areas around, sparsely scattered buildings, and almost no normally dressed civilians walking on the streets. Most people strolling on the freshly watered, slightly damp stone roads seemed to be decently dressed mages and alchemists. Although some absorbed in their academic pursuits often neglect their appearance, a slightly more successful scholar always has one or two assistants to take care of them, so those visible outside appear properly attired.

I looked around, noticing the scattered buildings nearby that were distinctly different from other parts of the city. These tall and elegant buildings were not erected with rough structures of wood and stones, but instead constructed using advanced-looking technology. Entire surfaces were pure white, treated with a coat similar to paint, making the walls look seamless, and all roofs were covered with golden yellow glazed tiles, giving them a magnificent and resplendent appearance from afar. It seems the city’s most beautiful building in Shadow City is also the Mage Tower in Silver Moon District.

"Magic and research are elegant arts," Lilina read aloud a sentence floating in the air in front of us, then added her own insight, "So those researching this stuff tend to be flashy. Regardless, the researchers of this world are mostly flamboyant; after all, at least those trade associations investing in them are like that," Lilina commented as she waved a matchbox-sized metal plate in the air, causing a line of light blocking our path to disappear into thin air. Is this what an access control system in the Otherworld looks like?

The Secret Magic Area is an independent zone about the size of the city’s central square, surrounded by beams pointing straight to the sky, with no enclosing walls. These beams are generated using magic and are carved with complex magic array patterns. The disks can sense the energy field of a "key" waved nearby, causing the beams to temporarily vanish when interfered with by the key. This proves that even without advanced technology from Earth, the magic civilization can achieve many high-tech-like things, such as laser barriers and induction-type passes.

"The place where we live is up in that high tower ahead. In this world, there’s no population pressure, and only Alchemists and Mages can produce high-strength building materials, so buildings generally aren’t very tall. Only scholars like to live high up, one to broaden their horizons, and two so that small reporters coming to interview them would be exhausted halfway up the tower. Inside the tower, there are things similar to elevators, but under no circumstances are the elevators and transmission arrays in secret facilities open to reporters; this is a fundamental ethical norm for all scholars in this world," Lilina led us to a white tower, whose base diameter was at least a hundred meters or so, with a height of about four or five hundred meters. In this world where the average building height is only three or four stories, this is simply a giant building, showing that the experts and scholars in this world have almost gone mad hating those little reporters. If their material science were better, they’d definitely build the Burj Khalifa all over the world. Lilina swiped her card at the entrance and led everyone into the lobby on the first floor of the tower, "We are on the twentieth floor, and we’ve rented out the entire floor. Little Bird’s feathers are truly wonderful things; when she molts, I might be able to buy all of Sen Tu..."

The first floor of the white tower is a round lobby, yes, the entire floor has no other rooms, just a particularly expansive lobby. The floor of the lobby is laid with green and light gray intersecting glossy tiles, and every ten meters or so there’s a thick pillar supporting the high ceiling, adorned with lavish crystal chandeliers that illuminate the whole hall brightly. That kind of bright and steady light clearly isn’t from fuel lighting. Around the lobby, you can see seats like half-circle service counters, each with uniformed staff on duty, showing an eight-tooth smile to every walking target. Many people, dressed differently and looking hurried, move around in the lobby. The first impression this atmosphere gave me was that in a moment when the doors open, what we might see is not the Otherworld, but a civilian aircraft ready to take off...

What was even more eye-opening was the four hollow crystal columns in the center of the lobby. These four hollow columns are completely transparent, and their internal diameter is about three meters. Just as I wondered what these things were for, one of the columns suddenly slowly descended from upstairs a floating metal platform, on which were four or five elderly men wearing purple robes—damn, this is a sightseeing elevator!

There’s definitely civil aviation parked outside the tower! This place is definitely a newly built airport somewhere!

A group of people boarded this Otherworld magical version of an elevator. Although everyone has seen elevators, this anti-gravity sightseeing elevator driven by magic is truly the first time we’ve encountered it. The magical development in this world has clearly come a long way in civilian aspects. I suddenly remembered the stove used by that stall owner when we ate at the Central Square, which seemed to have automatic temperature control with a blower function...

Vanilla has been wearing a curious yet restrained expression on her face, several times wanting to squat down and study the glowing patterns on the floating metal platform. Obviously, to her, someone from the mountains who has never seen the world and even knows few words, things here still exude novelty—even though it’s almost two days since she arrived at Sen Tu Port. Silly Bird Medivh always tries to slam her face into the transparent shell of the sightseeing elevator. After watching for a long time, I finally realized she was trying to peck that shiny "glass" layer. Bingdisi was betting with 123 about the rated load of this magic-driven anti-gravity elevator. The former decided to take out a ton of stones from personal space to smash the platform underfoot to test, which I stopped with sincere advice. Qianqian kept baring her teeth and making faces at the floors passing by outside the elevator, trying to get someone’s attention. Later, Lilina couldn’t help reminding, "The elevator above the second floor can’t be seen from outside; it’s one-way glass..." So Qianqian was greatly disappointed and asked discontentedly, "Then why make the first floor transparent on both sides?"

Lilina shrugged, "The main purpose is to show off."

The elevator stopped on the twentieth floor, and starting from the seventh floor (perhaps the sixth floor? I couldn’t count clearly), the layout within the tower was the same, somewhat like a comprehensive office building. A corridor stretches in four directions from the four transparent tubes, with rooms distributed on either side of the corridor. These rooms are generally not very big, with some serving to meet the accommodation needs for two or fewer people, while others can serve as small laboratories, activity rooms, or reading rooms. But the entire second floor here is bought out by Lilina, and reportedly to "lay the first foundation for the Crow God Sect," she’s permanently purchased this floor as an office, so it doesn’t matter about rooms or not.

Just as we stepped out of the "elevator," prepared to throw ourselves onto the bed to thank our legs (today we walked around the whole city), a petite girl suddenly stepped out from a room in front.

Why are there outsiders here?

The little girl seemed startled seeing this big group of us but immediately relaxed upon seeing Lilina and was reassured, quickly stepping forward to greet us. I noticed that she was only about 1.4 meters tall but had an adult’s mature body. She was dressed in a black long dress with two silver vertical ribbons hanging from the bodice—I couldn’t help but glance at Little Crow and Vanilla, who had similar ribbons on the front of their dresses but in gold. Initially, I thought this was a decoration normally on such dresses, but this short girl with silver ribbons made me doubt my assumption. Besides the silver ribbons, what most caught my attention was the skirt hem; there were many golden feather ornaments, also present on Little Crow’s and Vanilla’s clothes.

Besides her attire, what attracted even more attention were the ears on her head—the girl had a pair of lovely yellow cat ears, matching her short hair.

Cat ears...cat ears...cat...

"Oh my gosh, the kid’s dad is here!" Bubbles screamed and rushed over, hanging her tiny 1.1-meter frame on the little 1.4-meter body and swinging back and forth. She also rudely reached out a hand to pinch the girl’s ear and blurted out a long series in excitement, "This cuteness is barking! The Cat Lady possessing the world’s cuteness, hurry and make a contract with me to become a cute girl, give sister a meow...hey? Ah! You can’t do this, kid’s dad! You can’t interfere with your wife’s normal life hobby! Put me down! I’m not Lilina; you can’t treat me like this! There’s no justice! Little Baobao, come help your mom!"

I casually picked up this hopelessly poisoned being and swung her around in the air for a while. After a good bit of tossing, the world finally quieted down. Looking again at that short girl with cat ears—her ear fur was all puffed up. Based on my experience with fox dogs, this means she’s pretty scared.

"Let me introduce you; she’s someone called that. She’s one of the first believers of the Crow God that I took along when we set off, and the main task here is that business."

Lilina pointed at the now at a loss Cat Lady and happily introduced. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly votes at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation.)