Chapter 259: Mount Illumination
Chapter 259: Mount Illumination
Ji Xinghuo stared at the humanoid Crystite before him, blocking his path.
The Crystite stood at a towering height of two meters, its body encased in a sturdy layer of azure metal armor that seamlessly integrated with its form, allowing for unhindered movement. Its head was also helmeted, the movable faceplate raised to reveal a face with indistinct features, its skin refracting light like crystal.
Only now did Ji Xinghuo notice that the Crystite spoke without moving its mouth, its voice emanating from the oscillations of a crystal fragment on its forehead.
Its nasal bridge was flat, the nostrils barely visible.
Its eyes, like a pair of gems set in its face, were unblinking and lifeless.
If one ignored its face, its form resembled that of a Highlander.
This Crystite guard carried no weapons, his hands empty, but Ji Xinghuo did not dare underestimate him, for he was a legendary powerful being.
The Crystite spoke in the Highlander dialect of the elegant Xin language.
Ji Xinghuo furrowed his brows, his eyes flashing with the ferocity of a Chi Emperor believer, as he asked in a low voice, "What is it?"
"First-time entrants to the City of Eternal Day must register," replied the Crystite guard.
"Why don't others need to?"
Ji Xinghuo scanned the people around him, unable to discern any differences between them and himself. Many others were clearly first-timers as well, yet they passed through without hindrance.
The Crystite guard's face twitched, as if making an expression, but Ji Xinghuo couldn't tell if it was smiling or displaying some other emotion. With its lustrous gem-like eyes fixed on Ji Xinghuo, it said, "Because your strength is too powerful."
Ji Xinghuo's expression froze.
Upon hearing the guard's words, the people passing by turned to look at him, and a portion of them, who clearly knew what was happening, revealed looks of awe.
Ji Xinghuo, however, was perplexed. While he acknowledged his considerable strength, he couldn't fathom how the Crystite guard had discerned it.
"Please follow me."
After speaking, the Crystite guard turned and led the way.
Ji Xinghuo had no choice but to follow.
Passing through the towering city gate, which stood at a height of over twenty meters, Ji Xinghuo's eyes beheld a magnificent sight. Before him lay a grand and spectacular city, its streets broad and immaculate. The sky above was bright and clear, and countless buildings, platforms, spires, and palaces constructed from crystal stretched along the lengthy street until they faded from view.
It was as if, beyond the walls, lay a different world.
Outside was a cold and dark plateau, but within the city, it was warm and luminous, as if one had stepped from a desolate wilderness into a civilized realm, transforming one's entire being.
"Please wait here," said the Crystite guard, stopping by the roadside.
Ji Xinghuo noticed the slight vibration of the crystal fragment on the guard's forehead, emitting low-frequency sound waves that he couldn't hear.
After a few seconds, a hovering vehicle swiftly approached and came to a stop before them.
The vehicle's design was simple—a rectangular crystal platform surrounded by a railing, floating about half a meter above the ground.
It had no engine or driver's seat, nor even a place to sit.
It resembled a floating skateboard more than a car.
The Crystite guard stepped onto it.
Ji Xinghuo followed suit, standing on the crystal platform, which swayed slightly but remained stable overall.
The hovercraft immediately sprang to life, its speed gradually increasing until it reached a velocity of approximately 80 kilometers per hour. Ji Xinghuo noticed that the Crystite guard stood at the front, his hand resting on the railing where a blue crystal was embedded. The guard's touch seemed to transmit information to the crystal.
"So it's manually controlled. Interesting driving system," remarked Ji Xinghuo.
This technology was vastly different from anything on Earth, and although he didn't understand the specifics, he surmised that it must be Aether technology!
Scanning the crystal platform beneath his feet with electromagnetic induction, he detected an intricate and delicate internal structure.
The hovercraft's movement wasn't solely reliant on its own power source.
Part of the energy came from the ground.
Ji Xinghuo examined the ground, which, like the city's architecture, was paved with a type of crystal. As the hovercraft glided over the surface, a corresponding area on the ground would glow faintly, and even with the naked eye, one could see energy flowing along the ground.
"It's similar to a superconductor highway system, but in essence, it might be completely different," Ji Xinghuo thought.
His face reflected his astonishment, resembling a country bumpkin entering the city for the first time.
This was the reaction a Highlander should have in such a situation.
The hovercraft sped along the streets, occasionally encountering other hovercraft coming from the opposite direction. Each was piloted by a Crystite, some traveling alone and others accompanied by members of different races. They would nod to the Crystite guard beside Ji Xinghuo before speeding past.
While the Crystite guard focused on piloting the crystal hovercraft, Ji Xinghuo took in the sights of the City of Eternal Day.
The entire city had been meticulously planned.
Every street, every building, and even the patterns on each crystal building material bore a unified design aesthetic—clean, majestic, and grand, while also being incredibly practical, with not a single dissonant or shadowy corner to be found.
This was a city without filth, a shining beacon of light akin to paradise.
Perhaps the only elements that clashed with the city's style were the pedestrians on the streets and the residents within.
A diverse array of Star Realm races and extraterrestrials, both humanoid and non-humanoid, tall and short, fat and thin, of various hues, and some indescribable and of unknown origin, could be seen here.
Despite the multitude of races intermingling, there was no unrest, and the streets bustled with activity, the shops teeming with customers, a vibrant and prosperous scene.
Even though most individuals carried weapons, not a single conflict could be spotted.
Beneath the ground lay numerous deep spaces, akin to an underground maze.
About every three hundred meters along the streets stood a four-meter-tall crystalline statue resembling a giant clad in metallic armor, unmoving.
But these were not mere statues.
Their aetheric energy fluctuations were subtle, but if unleashed, they would undoubtedly be formidable.
From time to time, even more powerful crystalline statues could be seen patrolling the streets like gigantic mechanical sentinels.
Ji Xinghuo experienced a sense of temporal disorientation.
This place was not in the Star Realm but rather a trading planet located within the Milky Way galaxy!
The hovercraft was headed toward the mountain at the heart of the City of Eternal Day. At their current speed, they would arrive in just a few minutes.
"How do you know I'm stronger than others?" Ji Xinghuo asked.
The Crystite guard turned to glance at him and pointed to his eyes. "I have an implant in my head that can directly perceive the strength of others' stellar power, allowing me to gauge your strength roughly."
He didn't explain further, likely considering that a Highlander from the primitive tribe wouldn't understand the intricacies of aetheric technology.
But Ji Xinghuo understood immediately and was intrigued.
"Can you tell me more about it?"
"No," the Crystite guard replied indifferently. "I can only tell you that your strength has triggered the alert standards of the City of Eternal Day, and you must undergo the registration process."
Ji Xinghuo was helpless to change the situation.
Ever since entering the City of Eternal Day, he had realized that there were too many powerful beings within its walls!
Every Crystite he scanned with electromagnetic induction turned out to be a legendary existence. Among the evolvers of other races, the proportion of those at the third and fourth tiers reached one in ten, and there were many fifth-tier legends as well. He had even detected over ten sixth-tier Kings.
And this was just within the range of his electromagnetic scans.
There were undoubtedly more powerful beings in those magnetic field blind spots.
"Where are we going?" Ji Xinghuo asked.
"The Special Resident Registration Office of the City of Eternal Day," the Crystite guard replied promptly, like a robot. He provided only the necessary information and remained emotionally detached. He added, "It's located at the foot of the Illuminating Peak, and we'll be there soon."
The Illuminating Peak? Ji Xinghuo looked up at the towering mountain within the city. As they drew closer, the majestic peak seemed to soar higher and higher, and the numerous spires built upon its slopes appeared even more grandiose.
Soon, Ji Xinghuo's electromagnetic induction scanned ahead to the Illuminating Peak.
Just as he had guessed, the peak was a forbidden area for the Crystites, with the majority of it being a magnetic field blind spot.
However, his electromagnetic induction still picked up on some clues. The interior of the Illuminating Peak had been hollowed out, revealing a vast and intricate network of spaces, akin to a labyrinth.
As Ji Xinghuo gazed upon the somewhat incongruous mountain, he couldn't help but feel that it was out of place with the surrounding terrain. Moreover, the internal structure and surface features of the peak bore clear signs of excavation and construction, leading him to a bold hypothesis.
This three-kilometer-high Illuminating Peak was entirely man-made!
With the Crystites' aetheric technology and their number of powerful beings, it was not surprising that they could achieve such a feat over the course of their seventy thousand years of existence in the Star Realm.
The reason for doing so was simple.
The Crystites' stargate was likely located within the Illuminating Peak, and the entire mountain served to protect it.
As the hovercraft approached the foot of the Illuminating Peak, Ji Xinghuo's electromagnetic induction detected a unique blind spot right at the center of the mountain's base. To be precise, it wasn't a magnetic field blind spot but rather a spherical cavity with a diameter of about fifty meters.
Within this cavity, there were no magnetic field patterns or any detectable information.
It was like a black hole.
Ji Xinghuo was familiar with this situation, having experienced the same thing each time he entered or exited the Earth's stargate. As expected, this was the location of the Crystites' stargate.
The precise and unique positioning further validated his hypothesis.
The Illuminating Peak was indeed artificial.
"We have arrived. Please disembark," the hovercraft announced as it came to a stop in front of a tall crystalline structure. The Crystite guard escorted Ji Xinghuo out of the vehicle and into the building's grand foyer.
The spacious lobby was bright and airy, with a ceiling that soared to a height of over ten meters. Crystal windows lined the walls, and a row of colorful crystal chandeliers hung from above, casting a dazzling array of lights. The floor was immaculately clean and reflective, and their footsteps echoed throughout the hall, creating a solemn atmosphere.
In the center of the hall stood a Crystite with a serpentine form.
It resembled a giant serpent that had reared up on its tail, measuring about twelve meters in length. Its lower body was encased in metallic armor, while its serpentine tail coiled several times on the floor. Its upper body, however, was humanoid, with six arms and a human-like head. It wore a well-tailored white jacket, and its facial features were distinct.
"Welcome to the City of Eternal Day!"
The serpentine Crystite was polite and courteous. The crystal fragment on its forehead vibrated, emitting a hollow and ancient sound. It looked down at Ji Xinghuo with its gem-like eyes, studying him intently.
Just one glance from the serpentine Crystite sent a shiver down Ji Xinghuo's spine.
For standing before him was a powerful sixth-tier evolver, equivalent to a King on Earth!
(End of Chapter)
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