The Difference Between Falling Star City and Nuoding City

White clouds drift by, and the trees are sparse.

As far as the eye can see, there is nothing but emptiness.

In the gently rolling plains, as the sun sets, a small town sits peacefully and serenely, like a dreamlike place.

Lifting the carriage curtain and inhaling the fragrance of flowers drifting in the air, Zhou Qing was suddenly inspired to write poetry, exclaiming aloud. "How much romance has been brewing in this fairyland-like wilderness, how much longing has drifted with the scent of autumn grass and flowers in the wind, yet, who could have imagined—"

hiss--

Xiao Wu tensed up, looking at Zhou Qing with suspicion and uncertainty. "What are you doing? Reciting hymns? Or telling a scary story?"

Romantina, who was driving the carriage, said, "I actually quite like listening to horror stories. The chilling feeling can make every cell in my body tremble!"

After he finished speaking, the hand holding the reins trembled slightly, causing his body to tense up.

The horse was also panting heavily.

There was no other reason than that, in order to reach Falling Star City as quickly as possible, Romantina whipped the horse's rump so hard that the horse was almost exhausted.

"After all, we might be facing a Fallen Ones, and since we've arrived in Falling Star City and it's almost dark, to set the mood, I'll briefly describe the terrifying story that might happen next."

Zhou Qing chuckled and then asked Tang San, "What do you think?"

"If I wrote it as a story, it would probably be popular."

Although Tang San relied on the concept of gods and ghosts to make the Mysterious Heaven Skill appear "reasonably" before Zhou Qing, he himself was not happy about this opening statement that leaned towards the idea of gods and ghosts.

I really feel nothing.

"That won't do, San'er. If you look back on your life and write your biography in a flat and straightforward manner, not many people will be willing to learn about your story," Zhou Qing said seriously.

"Isn't it because you're here?"

Tang San was slightly taken aback, but then his intelligence kicked in, and he gave Zhou Qing a trusting look. "I believe you will definitely describe me in a more vivid way."

Zhou Qing: "..."

You've changed! Tang San! You've become lazy!

"Arrive!"

As the three people in the carriage were joking with each other, Romantina, who was driving, turned around and called out, "I've been here a few times, I can be your guide. I've heard that Falling Star City has undergone several road rezoning projects over the past two hundred years..."

Apart from Zhou Qing, Tang San and Xiao Wu weren't particularly interested in these things. They simply got off the carriage one by one, showed their Martial Soul certificates to the guards at the city gate, each handed over a Copper Soul Coin, and then followed the carriage into the city.

The scenery in Falling Star City is very different from that in Nuoding City. The most obvious difference is in the architecture. The houses on both sides of the street are mostly covered with tiles that resemble fish scales, and the walls between the houses are connected. If you don't look at the different doors and plaques on both sides, you can't tell them apart.

As dusk approached, a warm breeze blew, creating a mesmerizing atmosphere.

The houses on both sides of the street had decorative lanterns hanging at their doorways, emitting a dim, yellowish candlelight that dispelled the approaching darkness.

The streets were bustling with people and business was in full swing.

Zhou Qing looked around at everything, feeling the wind brushing against his face. For a moment, it felt as if he had returned to a somewhat retro night market in modern times.

Although Nuoding City was brightly lit at night before curfew, the European-style buildings did not feel familiar to him.

Now that Zhou Qing has personally entered Falling Star City within the Star Luo Empire, he truly understands the "difference" in the book's description of "Star Luo Empire's landscape being different from Heaven Dou's."

But Zhou Qing wasn't the only one captivated by this nighttime scene reminiscent of Huaxia.

Tang San!

This Transmigrator from a fictional ancient Huaxia martial arts world was truly captivated by the scenery and lost his soul.

For a moment, he felt as if he had returned to his past life.

"I've snapped out of it."

Zhou Qing waved in front of Tang San to wake him up. "The architectural style in the Star Luo Empire is really different from that in the Heaven Dou Empire, but the people are pretty much the same."

That's true.

Tang San looked at the pedestrians on the street. Their appearances were not much different from those in Nuoding City. Some had gentle faces like the reserved and rounded people of the Central Plains in his previous life, while others had high noses and sharp features like people from foreign tribes in his previous life.

In my previous life, there were also foreign tribes who came to do business in this bustling town, but they were ultimately a minority.

In this world, whether it's the Heaven Dou or the Star Luo Empire, people with distinctly different appearances are mixed together in roughly equal numbers.

All of this tells Tang San that this is not the world he lived in before.

"It's getting dark, where are we going to stay tonight?" Xiao Wu was more concerned about this.

"Come with me."

Romantina had been here a few times with her father, Romanyac, and was quite familiar with the city's layout. She led the three of them through the streets to the city center.

This area is much more bustling than the surrounding area!

According to Romantina, the construction of Imperial Road cities of all sizes within the Star Luo Empire has made travel between them more convenient, leading to the greater prosperity of Falling Star City.

"Let me tell you, here, every shop doesn't close until after midnight, but around three or four in the morning, everyone gets up again to open their shops!"

"Especially breakfast shops, I heard the owners never sleep!"

"But in reality, everyone who can sell breakfast here has brothers, sisters, relatives, and friends helping them out, taking turns working..."

Zhou Qing summarized Romantina's eloquent descriptions into a single sentence:

In the heart of Falling Star City, trade continues day and night. At the turn of day, the number of tourists begins to dwindle, and at the third or fourth crow of the rooster, the vendors at the morning market open their shops again.

All of this stemmed from the establishment of Imperial Road connecting the various cities, large and small, within the Star Luo Empire.

"Indeed, to get rich, build roads first." Zhou Qing personally felt the truth contained in this saying. However, he also understood that the original purpose of the Star Luo Empire in building roads between cities of all sizes was probably just to facilitate the transmission of government orders and military operations.

The matter of driving economic development...

This is probably an unexpected surprise.

Why isn't Nuoding City this lively?

Tang San, after all, had never received compulsory education and had never systematically studied the corresponding Eastern and Western history, so he couldn't understand—

Nuoding City and Falling Star City are both small cities of the same level, with similar sizes, so why is Nottingham so much less prosperous?

Could it be that Dales is a benevolent official who loves his people like his own children?

"Imperial Road).

Zhou Qing also realized the limitations of Tang San's thinking. No matter how much he thought about it, without direct enlightenment, he would never be able to break out of the framework. So he didn't keep him in suspense and directly said the root cause, "The Star Luo Empire is full of martial virtue. It connects major cities with Imperial Road, which is convenient for military marches. In the future, it will be of great use whether it is to go to war or to suppress rebellions. The wide Imperial Road also allow merchants between major cities to travel more easily."

"I see."

Tang San suddenly realized why, since the Qin Dynasty, every dynasty, whether the emperor was incompetent or wise, would send some manpower and resources to build roads.

The fundamental purpose was to facilitate marching!

"Then why doesn't the emperor of the Heaven Dou Empire order the construction of Imperial Road?"

Thinking of the roads Nuoding City, although they are wide, they become narrow after stretching for more than ten miles from the four city gates, and the roadsides are overgrown with weeds. This is because they are formed by people walking on them over the years, rather than being deliberately built by humans.

Tang San was puzzled again.

If Heaven Dou is similar to medieval Europe, then Star Luo Empire is similar to ancient Divine Land.