At seven o'clock in the morning, Lin Ciyan checked out and left the hotel on time.
Heaven Dou City's floating station is more sci-fi than he imagined - the entire station is built on a three-hundred-meter-high aerial platform. Under the transparent Soul Tool Glass dome, streamlined Soul Guidance Trains lie on the track like silver arrows, waiting for the order to set off.
"Sir, the express train to Star Luo City will leave in thirty minutes. The fare is 500 Federation Coin and the journey will take about six hours." The smart ticket vending machine announced the information with a soft electronic voice.
Time was running out, so he quickly swiped his card and boarded the train.
The interior of the cabin is much more comfortable than expected.
The large seats can be completely folded flat, and each seat is equipped with an independent Soul Power Circulation System, which can provide a pure cultivation environment.
The car windows are color-changing Soul Tool Glass, which can adjust the light transmittance and display the scenery along the way.
Lin Ciyan found his seat, naturally adjusted to a semi-lying position, and took out food from the system warehouse.
"This is called traveling." He started eating with satisfaction.
[System prompt: In long-distance travel Relaxation Domain state, Slacking Value+150]
The train started on time, with almost no vibration. The scenery outside the window began to move slowly backwards, and the speed gradually increased.
After a few minutes, the entire Heaven Dou City turned into a silver light spot in the distance.
"This speed... must be seven or eight hundred kilometers per hour, right?" Lin Ciyan estimated, "Douluo III's traffic is indeed developed."
He remembered that during the Douluo II period, the fastest carriage would take half a month to go from Heaven Dou City to the Star Luo Empire.
Now, it only takes six hours.
Technology changes life.
The train passes through vast plains, rolling mountains, and winding rivers.
Lin Ciyan spends most of the time with his eyes closed and resting, running <Great Dream Freedom Scripture>, and occasionally he opens his eyes and looks out the window.
He noticed that the closer he got to the Star Luo Empire, the more primitive the architectural style along the way.
Heaven Dou City is a pure technological city, with high-rise buildings, suspended tracks, and holographic projections everywhere.
Within Star Luo Federation, although there are also Soul Guidance Technology, more traditional elements are retained - ancient buildings with cornices and brackets coexist with Soul Guidance Lamp. On the stone streets, there are both Soul Master dressed in ancient costumes and ordinary people wearing modern clothes.
"It's a bit like... a fusion of ancient and modern styles." Lin Ciyan commented, "It's more comfortable than the purely technological feel of Heaven Dou Federation."
At least it doesn't look so "future", more like the Douluo II period he's familiar with.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, the train arrived at the Star Luo Federation capital Star Luo City on time.
The moment he walked out of the station, Lin Ciyan felt the unique atmosphere of this thousand-year-old capital.
If Heaven Dou City is a cold technological capital, then Star Luo City is an ancient city with profound humanities.
The hundred-meter-high ancient city wall still stands, and the mottled traces on the wall tiles tell the story of history, but the Soul Tool Turret installed on the wall also demonstrates modern armament.
The street is wide, with rows of shops on both sides, selling Soul Tool, herbal medicines, Soul Beast materials, and even traditional snacks. It is full of people and full of fireworks.
"This tastes right." Lin Ciyan took a deep breath, the aroma of various foods was mixed in the air, "It smells much better than Heaven Dou City's 'disinfectant water' smell."
He did not go to the Tang Sect branch immediately, but first found a restaurant that looked good and had a meal of authentic Star Luo Empire dishes - Braised Qilin Beef Tendon, Steamed Silver Scale Fish, and a bowl of fragrant bone soup.
"This soup... is a bit interesting." Lin Ciyan took a sip and his eyes lit up slightly.
The soup did contain a very faint scent of dragon, although it was very slight, but for him who owned Holy Radiance Qilin Martial Soul, he could sense it very clearly.
"Boss, what ingredients are used in this soup?" he asked curiously.
The owner of the restaurant is a chubby middle-aged man. He said with a smile, "The customers have good eyesight! This is made with bones dug from Southern Star Luo Territory'Dragon Bone Wasteland'. Although the energy has been lost long ago, the soup is particularly delicious!"
Dragon Bone Wasteland?
Lin Ciyan's heart moved, but his face remained calm. "Oh? Is there such a place?"
"Yes, it's just three hundred miles south of the city." The boss talked eloquently, "That place is very evil, not a blade of grass grows, and the ground is full of all kinds of bone fossils."
"Is anyone exploring there?"
"Yes, there is, but there is nothing gained." The boss shook his head.
"Those bones look scary, but in fact they are too brittle to be used as building materials. Except for some archaeologists and curiosity hunters, no one goes there."
Lin Ciyan nodded, paid and left.
Dragon Bone Wasteland... This name matches the clue of Dragon Valley.
The Tang Sect branch of Star Luo City is located at "Ancient Culture District" in the east of the city.
The architectural style here is more traditional, and a simple wooden plaque hangs at the door with the two characters "Tang Sect" written on it.
If it weren't for the small holographic guidance mark below the plaque, Lin Ciyan would almost think that he had returned to ancient times.
"Is Elder Mo here?" He walked into the door and asked the staff at the reception desk.
The staff member was a young woman. She raised her head and glanced at him. "Do you have anything to do with Elder Mo? He usually doesn't accept outsiders."
"I am from Heaven Dou City I came from the Tang Sect branch, and the ancient books administrator there recommended me to come to Elder Mo to ask some questions about getting into the Ancient Secret Realm." Lin Ciyan said, handing over a handwritten recommendation letter - he forged it himself, but the handwriting was simple, and he used Tang Sect's special letter paper, which looked decent.
The woman took the letter, read it, and softened her attitude. "Please wait a moment, I will go and report it."
A few minutes later, the woman came back. "Elder Mo'Ancient Book Pavilion' is behind, please follow me."
Lin Ciyan followed her through several courtyards and came to a small independent building.
The building was filled with the smell of old books and herbs. An old man with white hair and gray robe was lying among the books, wearing a magnifying glass and carefully studying a piece of tortoise shell.
"Elder Mo, the guests are here." The woman said softly.
The old man raised his head and looked at Lin Ciyan with squinted eyes. "Heaven Dou City is here? Recommended by Elder Zhao?"
"Yes, Mr. Zhao said that you are an authority in the research of the Ancient Secret Realm, so he specifically asked me to ask for advice." Lin Ciyan said respectfully.
Elder Mo snorted, "Elder Zhao will cause trouble for me. Sit down, what do you want to ask?"
Lin Ciyan sat down on the chair next to him and said after careful consideration, "I am studying the secret realm related to the ancient dragon clan, especially...'Dragon Bone Wasteland'."
Elder Mo's hand paused slightly, put down the tortoise shell, took off the magnifying glass, and looked at Lin Ciyan seriously. "Young man, how much do you know about Dragon Bone Wasteland?"
"Not much, I just know that something happened there, which caused Soul Beast's body to be contaminated with the breath of the dragon Soul Beast," Lin Ciyan said calmly, "The information I found at Heaven Dou City is limited. I heard that Star Luo Branch has a more complete collection."