Chapter 198: The City in the Supernatural Realm
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The tall and skinny federal police officer who was on duty was feeling bored when he suddenly saw an Asian youth standing outside of the fence extending his neck to look inside. “You little brat! You’re not allowed to get near here so you better leave quickly.”
“Do you know who you are talking to, police officer?” When Edward, who was panting heavily as he followed Zhang Lisheng’s footsteps ran towards the metal fence, saw the police’s arrogant att.i.tude, he immediately protested loudly, “This gentleman here is the director of 357 farmers in the National Farmers Union! The company under his name even provides jobs for thousands of American people. I’ve already kept in mind your police number, so just wait, we’re going to file a complaint about you. This is our pa.s.s number, so now, make way for us to go through!”
Upon seeing the well-dressed LS chief legal officer spoke in a high and imposing manner, the tall and skinny federal policeman was caught off guard for a moment before having his expression turn pale with rage.
At this time, a man next to him who looked slightly older and who seemed affable fixed the situation by taking the mobile phone Edward handed over to scan the pa.s.scode on its screen with the scanner he carried with him. He returned the phone to Edward but did not speak to him, instead, he looked at Zhang Lisheng and said, “I’m sorry, sir. My colleague has encountered some heartbreaking incident lately. The pet dog that he has raised for seven to eight years has died, so he unintentionally…”
“Can we enter now?” The young man frowned and asked in a blank expression.
“Erm, oh, o-of course!” The older police officer turned around to look at the tall and skinny federal police officer and gave him a helpless look before making way for them. Zhang Lisheng walked at the forefront, with Maddie, Edward, and Charlie behind him, and crossed the fence.
The fence that was more than 100 meters long had two pa.s.sages from both left and right. It surrounded the berth of a large cruise. Three giant cruise s.h.i.+ps alternately used this berth to send groups of visitors to the supernatural realm every one and a half hours.
When they reached the berth, there were already one to two thousand people excitedly waiting for the cruise s.h.i.+p to return. Some of them went here empty-handed. It was apparent that they were intending to go for quick sightseeing. Some of them, on the other hand, were carrying a big backpack, looking as though they were going to pitch their camp in the supernatural realm to live there.
After everyone waited for a while, a whistling sound resonated from the distant blue sea.
“It’s coming! It should be the cruise that is coming…” the crowds exclaimed in excitement. “Hopefully it’s not a freighter because my legs are so sore of standing for so long already.”
“Who asked you to come so early? We’ve waited for seven to eight hours before the policemen let us in the berth…”
“It’s a cruise! It’s a cruise! The s.h.i.+p is coming! The s.h.i.+p is coming!”
“The s.h.i.+p is coming! Our s.h.i.+p is coming! Yoohoo! We’re here…”
In the soft cheers of thousands of people on the pier, a giant cruise s.h.i.+p sailed to the sh.o.r.e along with wind and waves.
A few minutes later, the cruise pulled in to the sh.o.r.e and put down its suspension ladder. Thousands of seemingly exhausted but satisfied tourists disembarked from the s.h.i.+p.
“It’s very interesting but don’t touch the sand there! It’s just like what the TV said, the sands are very sharp…”
“Those aborigines look like clowns in a circus, but they’re very strong! You can casually bring some candy for them and have an arm-wrestling compet.i.tion with them. Their strength is really unbelievable…”
“That is really a magical island! The animals inside are also very strange! Don’t eat the snacks you bring. When you reach the gathering place, you can buy very delicious dried meat from the soldiers but don’t look at it carefully! Just put it straight into your mouth, and I promise you the taste will be unforgettable…”
After disembarking, the precursors enthusiastically told their experience to the latecomers, as though they had been living in the supernatural realm for several years.
The latecomers nodded as they lined up to board the cruise s.h.i.+p. They were standing on the deck and leaning against the s.h.i.+p’s side as they stared at the deep ocean. It was as though they wished for the Shrimp World No. 2 to be already in sight.
At the time when the other people were overwhelmed with unusual excitement, Zhang Lisheng walked into the cabin of the cruise s.h.i.+p and asked the female service personnel wearing corporal uniforms in the lobby of the cruise s.h.i.+p’s first floor to open a guest room for him to rest.
However, the answer he received was, “I’m sorry, sir. The Shrimp World No. 2 is only 2 hours 15 minutes away from us through our direct route. For this reason, all of the rooms on the Reclaimer is fully closed. Right now, we only offer hot dogs, burgers, c.o.ke and coffee.”
“Is this a cruise s.h.i.+p or a sampan? To think that it doesn’t even have a room for resting…” The young man grumbled. “Alright then, give me seven hot dogs…”
“The vending machine is right there. I only provide coin changing service right here.”
Zhang Lisheng was dumbfounded before helplessly taking out a twenty-dollar bill to change for coins. “What do you guys want to eat? It’s on me,” he asked as he hurriedly walked to the vending machine.
Unfortunately, in the face of the generosity of the chairman of the board, the female secretary, general manager, and chief legal officer merely refused. “Oh thank you, Lisheng. However, I plan to leave my stomach empty till I reach the Shrimp World No. 2, so I can try the delicacy there.”
“Boss, I’ve eaten hot dogs, burgers, and beers for half of my life so I plan to change my taste today in the supernatural realm.”
“I have the same thought as Charlie. Perhaps you should change your mind as well. It’s only a two-hour voyage. It’ll end very soon. Why would you choose to fill your stomach with such ordinary food now?”
Zhang Lisheng, who had eaten countless strange animals when he was lost in the supernatural realm, curled his lips and showed a smirk but did not say anything more.
Under the protection of two destroyers, the cruise s.h.i.+p sailed straight in the ocean speedily. It first relied on the nautical instrument connected to the satellite, but after it entered the supernatural realm, it changed to rely on an ancient compa.s.s to decide its route.
As time pa.s.sed by, not long after the cruise s.h.i.+p brushed across the second cruise s.h.i.+p on its return pa.s.sage under the escort of battles.h.i.+ps, the young man, who had finished spending all of his change in eating fast food to fill his stomach, heaved a sigh. Standing at the bow on the s.h.i.+p, he saw the outline of a large island appearing at the distance of the sea and sky.
“Oh, so the island is actually so close to New York! If I just fly straight, I’d reach it in less than one hour by riding the wyrm dragon…” He could not help but mutter.
“Lisheng, have you seen it? Have you seen it? It’s real! There really is an island larger than Long Island in New York inland sea! This is too amazing!”
“Hasn’t the Office of Natural Resources Revenue released the data already? This supernatural realm’s island has an area of at least 30,000 square kilometers, which is bigger than all of the islands in Hawaii added together, let alone Long Island!”
“I know, Lisheng! However, I can only believe that all of this is real when I really see such a spectacle with my own eyes!” Maddie held a small binocular in front of her eyes and shouted in the midst of the cheers of the entire s.h.i.+p.
In the midst of the cheers that resonated across the clouds, the cruise and the escort wars.h.i.+ps accelerated their speed. Not long after, they parked at a spot of a natural harbor.
Zhang Lisheng had seen this harbor and a little town surrounded with solid concrete walls a few months ago. This time though, despite the unchanged harbor that still had five wars.h.i.+ps written with ‘prawn201’ to ‘prawn205’, the little town on the coast near the battles.h.i.+p had expanded tenfold in size and had basically become a big city already.
Thousands of indigenous midgets were freely wandering around the city. Other than bartering with the soldiers, they were freely communicating with some young people who were obviously civilians.
These young people must have come by taking the first few cruises earlier today to the supernatural realm. In fact, the group of people who remained behind did not know what they should and could do now. They were merely trying to adapt to the unique humanistic environment on the island of Prawn World No. 2.
Right at this moment, Charlie, who was still standing high on the cruise, looking down in a commanding position, who had yet to step onto the island, had already decided on the use of the LS Group’s 5 million USD development fund.
He pointed to an empty s.p.a.ce beside the gathering place, he excitedly told Zhang Lisheng, “Boss, look! That piece of empty land is next to the gathering place and the only pa.s.sage connecting the outer world! It doesn’t look like a core area, but in fact, it has marvelous development potential. If this gathering place is a booming city…”
“Charlie, if you have a high opinion in it, we can just buy that land directly. It should still be very cheap now.” Zhang Lisheng’s remark stopped the LS’s general manager from continuing his pompous speech. Lining up to use the suspension ladder, he disembarked from the s.h.i.+p.
A tall and strong young man wearing a denim cowboy suit, with a cowboy hat, and a pair of riding boots in the late summer, did not listen to his girlfriend’s dissuasion and grabbed a handful of sand the moment he disembarked the s.h.i.+p. “Stop lecturing me, Christine! Nothing will happen if I am careful. It’s not like I’m grabbing it hard anyw—ah my hand! The f*ck! The sand here is really as sharp as a knife! Oh yeah, that’s right! W-Wouldn’t these grains of sand become as expensive as diamonds soon?”
The sand had already cut his hand into a blurry mess of flesh and blood, but he still daydreamed, watching the rough sand covered with blood.
Upon seeing this, Maddie, who was beside Zhang Lisheng, kindly reminded him. “Even if these sands are diamonds, it would not be worth anything now. You better go bandage your hand first.”
“Why wouldn’t these sands be worth anything anymore even if they’re diamonds?” The tall and strong young man asked with wide eyes.
“It’s because there are too many of it!” Zhang Lisheng, who was by the side, smiled and took out a whistle from his pocket to blow. Soon, several curious indigenous midgets surrounded him.
One of them, who had white powder on his body and a bright feather stuck on his head, even reached out a hand directly while baring his teeth, making a fierce gesture of wanting to take it.
The young man shook his hand and bent down to pick up a handful of sand, before gently slanting his palm to let the sands drop on the palm of the fierce aborigine.
The aborigine was angered by his teasing. He knew he could not casually kill anybody in this huge tribe built by the strangers who came from far away on a huge s.h.i.+p but a conflict of blood has still acquiesced. Right away, he fisted his palms, wanting to punch the nose of this stranger who seemed to be tall and big, but who was in fact far weaker than him according to his experience.
However, the instant he fisted his palms, a horrifying look suddenly appeared on his face as he quietly took a few steps back.