An Unfathomable Oddity.

"I have no way to repay your kindness to South River City, so I can only do this small thing... I hope you don't mind."

Li Zhenfang was telling the truth.

Although they managed to see the true form of the Great Beast through their own efforts, they were still a long way from defeating Great Beast.

They had laid out everything they could use, and truly had no more power left.

Without Maria, he couldn't imagine what would have happened.

Therefore, his gratitude towards Maria was immeasurable.

Maria, who appeared out of nowhere, truly saved South River's star at that time.

At Maria's request, very few people knew the details of the battlefield...

As he spoke, he pulled out an envelope that he had prepared beforehand from his sleeve.

"Although the Li Family has lived in South River City for generations, I studied in Hundred Stoves years ago. I have some acquaintance with the head of the Gong Family there, and we have corresponded over the years. This letter can serve as my token. I have already made arrangements for you. If you encounter any difficulties in Hundred Stoves, you can use this to contact the Gong Family, and they will help you..."

~~~~~

305

Chapter 305 The Unfathomable Strangeness.

Several weeks have passed.

Soon, Maria and Sui and the others arrived at the city called Hundred Stoves.

It truly lives up to its reputation as the capital of the Yan.

In Maria's view, South River City was already large enough; it took at least an hour to walk from west to east, and this city only occupied a quarter of the area.

Looking at it from the side, the development of Hundred Stoves as a whole is obviously much better.

The caravans kept appearing and leaving, to the point that Hundred Stoves had to set up several city gates specifically to deal with these merchants.

The queue to enter Hundred Stoves was actually not long.

It's not that Hundred Stoves isn't attractive enough, but simply that its processing efficiency is too high...

Basically, whenever a group of people arrives, the staff here quickly verify their qualifications to determine if they are eligible to enter.

Because of their special status, Maria and Sui were quickly granted entry into Hundred Stoves by a girl named Zuo Zheng.

Soon, the two officially arrived in this ancient city...

The streets were bustling with activity.

"We've finally arrived."

Upon entering the territory, Zuo Zheng let out a long breath, his expression easing considerably.

Meanwhile, Maria and Sui, still dressed in traditional Yan attire, were curiously looking around.

Seeing this, Zuo Zheng also felt a bit of a headache.

The journey was far from peaceful.

Although when she was assigned here, Miss Zuo Zheng had already anticipated that she would definitely not be able to control these two people, one of whom was a superman who could fight Great Beast single-handedly, and the other was a master of Originium Arts who could complete the smelting of a massive amount of steel in a single day.

So from the very beginning, she held the lowest possible expectations.

I don't care about anything else, as long as the two of them don't wander off to Hundred Stoves.

But who could have imagined that these two would cause so much trouble along the way?

Maria is alright; aside from occasionally running off into the mountains and wreaking havoc, she doesn't pose much of a threat or hostility towards humans.

She would occasionally take action, but that was only because the opponents were local bullies and bandits... Even so, Maria didn't kill them all; she would leave some alive to appease them.

But it's different when you're older.

This woman, who appears mature and composed, is actually a genuinely curious child.

She would basically go over and take a look at anything that happened on the roadside.

If they happen to encounter a theatrical troupe, they might be so happy that they don't want to leave for half a day.

Even when Zuo Zheng explained that the convoy was about to depart again, she waved for everyone to go first, promising to catch up later.

Although the girl does possess such abilities, can Zuo Zheng really just let her leave on her own?

That definitely won't work!

So, the convoy had no choice but to stop and wait for her.

Fortunately, this convoy, though seemingly composed of merchants, was actually made up entirely of elite soldiers who had been reassigned to escort two people. Therefore, there was no fear of delays or losses.

Even so, the presence of these two people, one big and one small, still gave Zuo Zheng a lot of headaches.

Maria is alright; she listens to what you say, and as long as it's reasonable, she'll understand and make some concessions.

But at that age, he was completely childish, wanting whatever he wanted and doing whatever he pleased without any regard for others.

He would only listen to Maria occasionally.

This made it Zuo Zheng really couldn't get a good night's sleep every single day.

However, this situation eventually came to an end.

By this time, everyone had arrived at Hundred Stoves, which meant that Miss Zuo Zheng's work was completely finished...

She's free!

Thinking of this, the girl's expression became much happier.

Maria nodded slightly.

"In that case... shall we part ways for now?"

After some thought, Maria prepared to leave with Sui Xian.

But Miss Zuo Zheng quickly waved her hand.

"There's one more thing..."

"Um?"

"Because... your identities are indeed somewhat special. I've already been informed in advance that I must find an opportunity to meet you upon your arrival, so..."

Zuo Le's words were somewhat awkward.

But Maria understood.

"So you're confirming we've arrived safely, right?"

"Yes... that's right."

"It's okay, I understand."

Maria nodded, indicating that she understood.

After all, this is their home turf... Although Maria didn't really care about these things, she wasn't here with the intention of dominating everyone, so there was no need to go against them.

It's a small matter; it's fine to go along with it.

That's great.

With Maria's consent, the girl relaxed considerably.

This time, Maria and the others didn't need to come along.

"You can go get something to eat first, and I'll come find you after I've made the arrangements."

Zuo Zheng spoke, he waved his hand and watched Sui and Maria nod and leave.

Once the other party had completely disappeared from her sight, she let out a long sigh of relief and prepared to return to report.

But after taking only a few steps, she paused slightly.

Etc...

These two people usually prepare their own meals, so why are they suddenly at Hundred Stoves...? Do they even know to pay?

"... Surely they wouldn't be so lacking in common sense?"

Zuo Zheng pondered for a moment, then shook his head.

I'm definitely overthinking it.

Regardless of her age, Miss Maria should know these things.

Don't worry about it unnecessarily.

After reporting back to the authorities, I should take a good vacation and relax...

"This is the largest city in the world... it seems quite crowded."

As the two walked along the road, the boy and Maria looked around with curious eyes.

But the final evaluation was just a meaningless remark.

In fact, on the surface, Hundred Stoves has nothing to be praised for except for being a little more prosperous.

Although the city walls were thicker than those of South River City, and there were also more guards.

But... to the Great Beast, it was no different from a folded piece of paper.

If there's anything special about this place, it's that some cannons have been placed on the city walls.

Judging from its appearance, the design is even more advanced than those in South River City.

However, the exact extent of the situation is still unclear.

Moreover, the quantity is not large, so it's estimated that it was only recently prepared.

After walking for a while, Sui got a little bored, so he took Maria's hand and turned his head slightly.

"Shall we find a place to get something to eat?"

"... Can."

Maria did not refuse the girl's request. After nodding, she randomly chose an inn and began ordering food.

Perhaps because Maria didn't look like Yan, the waiter specially took out a menu from the side and handed it to her.

However, for two people who could eat anything, the menu wasn't really necessary. After casually ordering some food, the two gradually fell silent.

Despite his age, he still maintains his curiosity as he looks around.

Maria, on the other hand, listened quietly to the sounds around her.

Several weeks have passed, and news of what happened in South River City has gradually spread throughout the streets and alleys.

Even today, many people are still discussing the various aspects of it with great interest.

"I heard that someone in Wang Donggua's family served in the army in South River City and went to that battle... I heard it was a tiger demon, three or four hundred meters tall! Its head could touch the sky!"

One of the diners said, while also looking at his companions with great interest.

Seeing their curious gazes directed at him, he felt a strange excitement and continued speaking.

"It's said that the tiger demon was incredibly ferocious... Hundreds of thousands of people were mobilized, but they still couldn't defeat it. In the end, it was a strange weapon they developed that blasted it to death with a single shot!"

"That strange weapon is said to have an extraordinary origin... It seems that the city lord of South River City found it in the mountains and then invited all the masters in the city, but none of them could figure it out... In the end, it seems that they had to ask a reclusive master to make it and solve the problem!"

The man became more and more excited as he spoke, his wide eyes gleaming with a peculiar light, his exaggerated movements and constantly changing expressions suggesting that he too was participating in that magnificent war.

But soon, his increasingly outrageous boasting aroused suspicion from others.

"This isn't right, is it?"

A diner at the next table couldn't help but turn their head and look in their direction.

"What's wrong with it? Tell me."

People are always like this; when they're in high spirits, they hate it when others spoil their fun. A man, perhaps after drinking, gets more assertive and starts questioning the other person about their opinions.

The man had only intended to say a few words, but upon hearing the other person's words, he also started arguing.

"Your statement... that tiger demon is a hundred meters tall, towering into the sky, how could it possibly be killed by a single cannon shot? If such a divine weapon truly exists, then why don't we in Hundred Stoves have it?"

"So you mean the tiger demon is alright? I'm just bragging?"