Act. 5: Knockin' on Heaven's Door · Opening Heaven's Gate

[Part 1: British Dry Humor]

The Big Sister remained motionless in front of the clothing selection menu.

She didn't choose any clothes; she simply took out the prison uniform from her baggage and spread it out in front of the leatherworker girl.

She pointed to two simple black and green prison uniforms and said to the temporary head of the clothing department.

"Me."

He casually pointed to the A Xing beside him.

"And her number."

Ultimately, it points to prison clothes.

"Sew it onto these two garments."

For a moment, the cobbler girl couldn't understand the customer's request.

Jielina's expression suddenly changed, from laughing and joking to serious and terrifying, and cold sweat dripped down her forehead.

Something seemed to have happened, and the atmosphere in the entire fashion showroom turned icy.

The leatherworker girl smiled awkwardly, "Sir, are you really going to do this?"

Jielina: "Hey G117!"

The Big Sister asked, "Is there something wrong with doing this?"

"It's not impossible," the leatherworker girl said after inspecting the two prison uniforms. She knew they were made of rock wool and Kevlar, bulletproof, and the material was soft yet tough. There were no hidden weapons or contraband. "However, I must remind you two distinguished guests that this level of bulletproof vest is no match for the weapons in the hands of our guards. It can only stop handgun bullets at most."

Jielina screamed, "G117! You really intend to live in City of Heaven dressed as a prisoner?"

"Jielina, I'm new here, is there anything wrong with what I'm doing?" Jiang Xueming turned around and asked, "I don't understand, explain it to me."

The kind-hearted female bank robber spoke gently about the rules of City of Heaven.

"Glory, is this really your first time in City of Heaven? You really don't know anything about it, yet you've come all the way to the hardened criminal area?"

Jiang Xueming: "Yes."

Jielina clutched the prison uniform, her expression agitated.

"How could you wear something like this to a public area?! In other people's eyes, you'll look like a poor, helpless, and vulnerable prey! Only the weak who can't afford anything would wear prison clothes to jail!"

She grabbed the Big Sister's shoulder, determined to explain the dog-eat-dog world of survival of the fittest.

"Clothes are a person's facade, clothes are a person's sense of shame—only shameless beasts run around naked. Beasts are prey, you know that, right? The Blackland Royal Hotel is full of carnivores. If you put on this prison uniform, it's no different from being naked. When people observe you, they'll assume you don't have a penny in your pocket, that you're a fresh, steaming hot meal! You'll get into a lot of trouble!"

Big Sister: "That's it?"

Jielina nodded, somewhat incredulous at the sight of her Big Sister's calm demeanor. "Yes."

The Big Sister pointed to the prison uniform. "This is it."

The leatherworker girl didn't try to stop them. After all, there were many high-end hunters who often lurked in hotels disguised as prey. This mentality was similar to cosplay. In Hedland, you could buy a very nice outfit that fit perfectly for two hundred dollars. Although prison clothes were rare, there were also truly desperate opportunists who committed serious crimes to try to meet a gangster boss and turn their lives around in the City of Heaven.

These speculators and performance artists like to wear penniless prison uniforms.

Simple long-sleeved shirts and trousers adorned with prisoner numbers—this was the disguise Big Sister and A Xing used to navigate the underworld.

The leatherworker's daughter instructed the two newlyweds to change their clothes and meet the private butler, marking the transition of the check-in process from the [tailor] to the [butler].

Just then, a fiery red sun streaked past the window; it was the King of Cinder at 6:45 AM.

--It was like a true god on earth, taking off from the highest tower of the Blackland Royal Hotel. Its flight was very stable, and in Xue Ming's eyes, it was about the size of a fist. Light streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the entire corridor.

A robust gentleman, leaning on a black umbrella, approached Xue Ming.

The gentleman had a head of bright red curly hair, looked to be over sixty years old, and had a face full of wrinkles that made his eyes almost invisible.

He was about seven feet tall and very strong; even with gloves on, his large finger bones were visible, hidden in the shadow of the black umbrella.

He greeted Jielina and explained his purpose, "Mrs. Jielina, it's been a long time."

"Edward!" Jielina rushed forward and threw herself into the old butler's arms.

They kissed each other on the cheek, like family members reuniting, like father and daughter being together again.

Jielina excitedly introduced the old gentleman to her two sisters.

"This is a vampire, and also the steward of the women's prison ward in City of Heaven. His name is Edward —I really like this handsome old man."

"Don't say that," Edward waved his hand, signaling his bride to stop teasing the old man. "Jello will come looking for me to duel if he finds out about this."

Before Jielina could say anything more, Edward immediately got to work, never idle for a moment.

He stood hunched over beside the Big Sister, using his broad body and the umbrella to block the sunlight from the window.

"Little red-haired girl, just as described in the guest information, you shine like a diamond. Your name is Glory, and your guest number is G117. From now on, I will take care of your daily life."

Jiang Xueming replied indifferently, "Okay."

"That's quite rare." Edward raised an eyebrow, peering through the folds of his skin to get a better look at his Big Sister's face and physical characteristics. "You can actually look directly into the sunlight—I can smell a strong scent of blood on you, yet you also have a body temperature that is unusual for a vampire."

"This girl is a vampire?" Jielina covered her mouth in surprise. "Ah, no wonder she came to Hedland, she must be looking for a backer, right?"

"A guest's past is a secret." Edward pursed his lips, smiling, revealing glimpses of his canine fangs. "But if it's convenient, could you tell me about the sect you belong to?"

Jiang Xueming remained silent; clearly, the bright red hair had caused the butler Edward, to misunderstand.

"I care very, very much," Edward emphasized. "Because I'm also a vampire. As you can see, I work here for the governor of Eleventh District, and I always feel a strange sense of closeness to my fellow vampires. If your background isn't so sensitive, it doesn't seem like it."

"The Rose Sect," the Big Sister said, referring to Mary Stuart's church.

Edward's small eyes gleamed, as if he had instantly identified the name of this ancient sect within seconds.

Big Sister: "Are we acquaintances?"

Edward: "It'll be here soon."

Big Sister: "Is there anything else?"

Edward: "As far as I know, the Rose Sect..."

"I was overturned by an anonymous car at the station." The Big Sister stated succinctly, "I'm a remnant of the Rose Sect, all alone and helpless."

Edward: "Who performed the blood-offering ceremony for you?"

The Big Sister: "The godfather of the Queen's faction likes fish. I went to great lengths to acquire two large pufferfish. He only agreed to bleed me to satisfy his perverse tastes."

Edward: "I see. So, what is your body temperature?"

"When you're out in the world, you need a couple of special skills." The Big Sister brushed it off. "Let's end this topic, Edward. Are you still trying to get close to me? Trying to trick me into talking? Who sent you? Tell me about your master, okay?"

Upon hearing this, the old steward's face turned ugly.

The sun outside the window receded further and further away, and the sudden darkness stretched their shadows long.

The Big Sister pressed on, "Can I know who your master is? Is he a man or a woman? Which sect does he belong to? Can I pledge allegiance to him? Is he also a vampire? Can he protect me in this prison?"

"No one will harm you, please rest assured." Edward folded his black umbrella and led the way, intending to take the three guests to the kitchen. "Allow me to say one last thing, Glory— "

"--This name," Edward asked, holding the guest list, "Is it a Chinese name?"

The Big Sister, "Perhaps your surname is Ai, and your given name is Dehua."

"I like your humor." Edward squinted, then smiled again. "You really know how to charm people. Just as you said, if your background were like your spiritual pressure, a pure yet angular diamond, I think my master would really like you—finding a backer wouldn't be difficult at all. Quite the opposite."

The old butler paused, finally adopting a terrifying and serious expression.

"If you approach the City of Heaven with ulterior motives, attempting to disrupt its order, know that diamonds are extremely fragile. Though hard, they shatter with the slightest touch, and even a lighter can burn them to ashes—do you understand what I mean, Glory?"

The Big Sister: "Let's get real."

Edward immediately got down to business. "The Rose Sect is gone. The Blessed Mother of God you relied on, and the godfather who introduced you, are dead. I have a few more words to say: in the City of Heaven, vampires are nothing rare or precious. Don't think of yourself as some rich heiress with a spoiled attitude. If some ruthless character takes a liking to you, just accept your fate—my fellow countrymen, submission is always easier than resistance."

The Big Sister, "I love your straightforwardness. It saves me a lot of trouble figuring out the nuances of etiquette."

[Part ②: The Gates of Heaven]

Upon arriving at the kitchen's vegetable garden and freezers, the old butler Edward officially ended his casual conversation.

He spoke with the three guests about the rules of the City of Heaven.

"From here on, you may only bring three items into the kitchen. Your personal belongings will be kept at the hotel reception and returned when you are released. In addition, you may exchange these three personal items when summoned by the warden or when you return to the reception during your break time. In short, you may not bring more than three items from outside."

Jielina pulled out a lot of jewelry and odds and ends from her clothes, such as car keys or wallets, wedding photos with her lover, and so on.

In the end, she reluctantly left behind the HC card, the wedding ring, and the wedding shoes given to her by Jello.

Without the jewels and the club, she wasn't a passenger, just one of the ordinary people in Eleventh District.

Her HELLCAT account contained a huge sum of money, which was living expenses she received from a middleman after robbing a bank. It would be transferred to the couple's account at different times and in different amounts. This was the material basis for their happy life in Hedland.

A Xing pouted and asked Edward, "Can we only have three?!"

"Sorry, I can only bring three items." Edward shook his head.

A Xing slumped the bundle on the ground. "What about these?! Can I include the custard buns for ten people and the frozen shrimp dumplings for twenty people in one package? I was planning to give them as gifts to my new friends! They're all local specialties from my hometown."

Edward's expression turned awkward; he didn't know what to say.

The A Xing kept rummaging around inside.

"--And this, a Nobita Nobi commemorative eraser, a signed copy of the manga by the author of <Soul Eater>. If anyone in the prison likes this, they'll be so happy! You want me to choose three things from so many things? This is really difficult! Grandfather Edward! Can you please be lenient and let me bring a few more things in?"

Edward wondered to himself whether this young girl was here to go to jail or for a vacation.

"No, you really can't."

A Xing added, "If we leave these things at the service desk, won't all this food and drink go bad? Wasting food is unacceptable!"

Edward: "There have been precedents of guests bringing food, but large quantities of food are not allowed in public areas. Chocolate and alcohol are highly toxic to dogs, and your menus have strict regulations. I'm very sorry."

A Xing pouted, looking aggrieved, and finally pulled out two cans of yellow peaches from her bag. "Can these two things count as one item?"

Edward finally nodded. "Okay."

Xue Ming wanted to say something more, but seeing A Xing's cleverness, she seemed to take the agreement about the "three items" very seriously.

Meteor then pulled out a bright Rose Shining Stone quartz wolf mask. "This is the second one!"

Edward: "Yes, your pyroxene is beautiful."

Meteor finally pulled out the Iron Knight's Staff: "This is the third one!"

Edward: "Absolutely, both the pyroxene and the club are beautiful."

Jielina, watching anxiously from the side, said to A Xing, "Why didn't you bring any money, little sister? What use are those two broken cans?"

A Xing didn't care. "I want this one, it's my treasure! You can't buy it in the underworld!"

Yellow peaches thrive in sandy loam or black calcareous soils and can only survive in temperatures above 22 degrees Celsius. To produce plump and juicy fruit, one must search for this fruit in the mortal world. In fact, many fruits are unavailable in the underground world, and yellow peaches are one of them.

If you want to eat fresh fruit, you have to try your luck in the Greenstone People's territory.

The underground world's transportation capacity has made fruit a luxury, and in Edward's eyes, A Xing's request is perfectly reasonable.

The Big Sister left behind her laurel wreath, a parasol containing the Martial Universe Greatsword, and her personal HC card with over 400,000 Hui Stone Currency for spending in City of Heaven. She couldn't possibly be bringing the Nameless One's public account to this godforsaken place to spend money.

Upon seeing the Big Sister's stone and umbrella, the old butler Edward immediately wore a "taken-for-granted" expression, seemingly convinced that this fellow vampire was indeed afraid of sunlight, not as outrageous as he had imagined.

Immediately afterwards, the old butler led the three guests to the kitchen to select their food.

In City of Heaven, all food undergoes safety checks, is customized according to guests' requests, and comes with corresponding fees. The final product is then exquisitely prepared, delivered to a private room, and consumed within a designated time slot.

All these measures are for the sake of people's personal safety, health, and physical well-being.

Jielina was a picky woman who loved French food and spent a lot on food and drink. Before long, she had spent more than four thousand pyroxene coins to order her meals for the first month of her imprisonment.

Jiang Xueming was as simple as when choosing clothes, pointing to the lowest standard of fitness meals and ordering food for herself and A Xing according to the monthly allowance of thirty-six yuan.

Edward could hardly comprehend the diet of these ascetics.

"Fellow countryman, don't you need blood?"

"Do you sell human blood here?" Jiang Xueming immediately perked up, a smile spreading across his face.

Edward immediately shuddered, as if he had been stabbed by a sharp, cold weapon. "We have synthetic blood here. Using dairy products as a meal replacement can solve the vampire problem."

The Big Sister curled her lip. "That's boring."

The counter was filled with a dazzling array of delicacies, frozen foods, and rare and exotic animals.

The A Xing was so excited by the sight that it ran right up to the counter, afraid of missing anything.

Like the mustard green spine of the calamity beast that Wen Bucai roasted for the two of them when they first met, there were also various meat, egg, dairy products, ferns and mushrooms. After selection, the remaining standardized products with excellent appearance were placed in the refrigerator, all as neat as if they were made from the same mold.

Prices range from low to high. Rare ingredients that can be found on the surface can also be found here, while wild game from the deep abyss that cannot be found on the surface is considered the chefs' specialty.

Unbeknownst to them, A Xing had run quite a distance. Xue Ming was still wondering why Edward didn't stop her, letting this innocent little devil run all over the kitchen. Wasn't he afraid she'd run into the ventilation ducts? Or find a chance to sneak out into the refrigerated truck?

"I'm sorry," Edward returned carrying two cans of yellow peaches with A Xing in them, "G117, your good friend has given us a problem; these two cans won't pass security."

The Big Sister thought to herself, "Just as I thought."

--Things that A Xing keeps by special means are usually suspicious; she must have had ulterior motives.

Edward lifted the lid of the can and showed the two the contents. "There are two thousand two hundred and forty milliliters of Universal Elixir here. It can't possibly count as one thing; it's overweight."

The Big Sister tried to reason with her gently, "Can't we bring it in?"

"Just 250 milliliters of the Universal Elixir is enough to bring a critically ill, seemingly dead, or even brain-dead injured person back to life." Edward lowered his eyes, his temper not pleasant. "That's the rule. You can only carry a maximum of 250 milliliters, which is also the standard dosage of the Universal Elixir injection set by Ming De —however..."

Edward leaned close to Jiang Xueming's ear and whispered.

"I can do you a favor. If you just agree to this favor, I can persuade the security department to let you bring these things in."

Big Sister: "What do you need me to do?"

Edward: "Nothing special, just like the Chinese way of exchanging favors—I know you all like that. Maybe one day I'll be in trouble, like you are now, going to jail with so many 'Universal Elixir.' It'll definitely buy me something very valuable, a status that ordinary people can't attain, or a friendship with a big shot. When I need you, I might use this favor."

"Deal." Faced with this empty promise, the Big Sister agreed to the deal without hesitation.

The A Xing was running around in the kitchen and looked like it was about to wander into another area.

Then her feet slipped and lost their footing—

--Back in the kitchen and dining area.

"Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh!--"

A Xing started screaming and yelling, covering his face, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"--Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh! Glory!"

Hearing her companion's call, the Big Sister came to A Xing's side and asked in a low voice.

"Are you having another fit of madness?"

A Xing said very seriously and with great surprise.

"I just ran over there!"

She pointed to the exit from the kitchen and dining area leading to the North Courtyard, which was the corridor leading to the housekeeping department.

"But then again! I'm back!"

She then pointed to the door behind her, which led from the tailor department's ready-to-wear exhibition hall to the kitchen and dining area.

"From here to there! It's like there's a magic door! It brought me back!"

This wasn't Jielina's first time here.

Edward also wore an expression that seemed perfectly natural.

The Big Sister asked in confusion, "What's going on?"

There was no Inspiration Pressure, nor any fluctuation or tidal sign of spiritual energy.

If this is the power of the soul...

So it never shows any signs of starting or stopping; it's as if it's always working.

Edward clapped his hands with the surveillance camera, and immediately saw incredible changes begin to occur at the two doors leading to the North Courtyard and the dressing room. The scenery in them turned upside down, the light distorted, and the sunlight outside the floor-to-ceiling windows also changed direction due to these changes.

Edward smiled and revealed the most powerful trump card of City of Heaven, the key element for dealing with the prisoners.

"[Knockin' On Heaven's Heaven's Gate] -- This is the Warden's soul power. He is like a god! God! A silent yet powerful being who can control the demons of hell."