The majestic, sprawling city now crouched alone upon a boundless wilderness.
The soul-guided railways and composite highways that had once radiated outward to connect the empire's entire transportation network stopped abruptly at the city's edges, like limbs severed by a colossal blade.
At the broken railway lines, jagged reinforcing bars and twisted alloy jutted starkly toward the empty wilderness.
Farther north, the dark, rolling silhouettes of mountains looked unfamiliar and menacing beneath the moonlight.
Star Luo City, a city that blended ten thousand years of history with soul guidance technology, now resembled a vast ship lost at sea, cast onto an ancient, silent land.
The glory of Soul Master history and the power of soul guidance technology suddenly seemed so fragile and... lonely against the vast starry sky and the endless wilderness.
From the forests of the Big Dipper Mountains to the north, a long, unfamiliar howl from some unknown soul beast tore mournfully through the night sky.
The imperial palace.
An imperial retainer brought Dai Yueyan to the palace from the Imperial Junior Soul Master Academy in the city's northwestern corner, just in time to see his father and several senior ministers enter the council hall.
Emperor Dai Tianling sat at the head of the hall. He was only in his fifties and had the cultivation of a Titled Douluo. Having served in the army in his youth, he possessed an inner calm and remained as steady as Mount Tai.
With the emperor so composed, his senior ministers naturally did not panic.
"Your Majesty, after the upheaval, the capital's security mechas joined forces with the Geographical Survey Bureau and immediately set out to investigate the surrounding area."
An elderly minister operated a soul-guided projector, bringing up a three-dimensional map of Star Luo City's administrative district on the screen. "The city's current coordinates match the original latitude and longitude system perfectly. The surrounding terrain shows..."
"The main soul-guided railway line has been cleanly severed on the western bank of the Xiding River. The Xiding River Bridge remains undamaged..."
"All expressways connecting the imperial capital to the four directions now extend into undeveloped primeval forests..."
"Numerous unknown soul beast signatures have appeared in the Big Dipper Mountains and the Xiding Mountain Range. Three energy fluctuations at the level of hundred-thousand-year soul beasts have been detected..."
"...Contact with the soul-guided signal tower networks in the surrounding cities has been completely lost."
Following the upheaval, the Star Luo Empire's senior ministers had already compiled all the information gathered at the grassroots level and assigned personnel to restore production and maintain public order. They themselves stood ready to report to the emperor at any moment.
Under Emperor Dai Tianling's rule over the past few years, the Star Luo Empire had enjoyed burgeoning national strength and prosperity. Its officials were capable ministers, nothing like their counterparts on the Dou Ling Continent, who occupied their posts while idly drawing their salaries.
Dai Tianling tightened his grip on the dragon carving adorning his throne's armrest and asked gravely, "What are the civilian casualties?"
"Your Majesty, since this happened in the evening, most citizens had already returned home from work. Apart from the fright, they suffered no serious harm. Police officers have also begun patrols and public announcements to maintain order."
"What about municipal infrastructure?" the emperor asked. "How are the water supply system and the soul-guided energy grid? Can the soul-guided factories resume production? We must prepare to survive in unknown territory for an extended period."
The heads of the relevant departments answered in turn.
"Your Majesty, I do not think this is necessarily unknown territory." An elderly man in white robes suddenly appeared beside the emperor.
"Isn't the surrounding terrain the same as before? The Big Dipper Mountains, the Xiding Mountain Range, and the Green Scale Plain to the south.
"There have been minor changes, but the broad outlines are recognizable. We may be standing in the Star Luo City region of eight thousand years ago."
"Imperial Preceptor." Emperor Dai Tianling felt somewhat reassured.
With Holy Dragon Douluo En Ci here, the sky over Star Luo City would not come crashing down. Holy Dragon Douluo En Ci was an Ultimate Douluo, as well as a Four-Word Battle Armor Master.
"Star Luo City eight thousand years ago?" The senior ministers fell into thought.
Foreign Minister Sima Lanxiao half-jokingly lightened the mood. "Does the Imperial Preceptor mean that we have traveled eight thousand years into the past, like characters in popular novels?"
The rapid development of soul guidance technology had unleashed productive capacity, which in turn brought greater economic prosperity and national strength.
By this era, compulsory education had become essentially universal among the people of the Star Luo Continent, and the large literate population had laid the foundation for cultural development.
Popular novels were one product of that rising literacy rate.
At Foreign Minister Sima Lanxiao's words, quite a few officials laughed. Even the emperor smiled, and for a moment, sovereign and ministers enjoyed a warm harmony.
"It is not this group of people who traveled through time, but Star Luo City itself.
"To be precise, it is the portion of Star Luo City extending from the Xiding River in the west to the Yuheng River in the east, and north to Beidou Reservoir.
"We have already lost contact with the other cities to the south."
En Ci said unhurriedly:
"Furthermore, hundred-thousand-year soul beasts have actually appeared in the primeval forests of the Big Dipper Mountains. It is difficult to imagine that hundred-thousand-year soul beasts still exist on the continent today."
The senior ministers' smiles faded.
On both the Douluo Continent and the Star Luo Continent, terrestrial soul beasts had all but gone extinct.
In particular, the Big Dipper Mountains and the Xiding Mountain Range were close to the capital. There could not possibly have been powerful soul beasts there.
"As for the eight thousand years I mentioned, that is only a guess. In fact, we may well be in Spirit Ice Douluo's era ten thousand years ago, or even earlier."
En Ci said:
"Because our Star Luo Empire only landed on this continent and began developing it eight thousand years ago. Ten or twenty thousand years before that, this continent was inhabited by indigenous peoples."
"What do the Tang Sect and the Spirit Pagoda have to say?" The emperor looked toward Sima Lanxiao.
As foreign minister, Sima Lanxiao was responsible for official liaison with the Tang Sect and the Spirit Pagoda.
"There is no word yet."
While the Star Luo Empire's sovereign and ministers awaited news from the Spirit Pagoda and the Tang Sect, a handsome middle-aged man entered the council hall expressionlessly after having his identity verified.
Netherflame Douluo Zhang Geyang.
Deputy master of the Spirit Pagoda Headquarters, and master and chief administrator of the Spirit Pagoda's Star Luo Continent branch.
He had served on the Star Luo Continent for more than twenty years and was one of the Spirit Pagoda's strongest experts. Even the Spirit Pagoda's master, Qiangu Dongfeng, treated him with great respect and addressed him as a brother.
"Your Majesty, Imperial Preceptor." After offering his greetings, Netherflame Douluo Zhang Geyang sat directly in a seat near the front. As the master of the Spirit Pagoda's Star Luo Continent branch, he had that right.
On the entire Star Luo Continent, only Imperial Preceptor En Ci and that deputy sect master of the Tang Sect could speak to him as equals.
Emperor Dai Tianling counted as only half an equal.
Zhang Geyang addressed En Ci directly. "What happened? Where is that smiling tiger?"
"He has not arrived yet," En Ci replied serenely.
Golden Belly, Silver Buttocks, Smiling-Faced Tiger.
That was the nickname of Smiling-Faced Douluo Hu Jie, the Tang Sect's deputy sect master and the man in charge of its affairs on the Star Dou Continent.
"Hmph." Zhang Geyang asked no more and closed his eyes to rest.
En Ci represented the Star Luo Empire, Zhang Geyang represented the Spirit Pagoda, and Hu Jie represented the Tang Sect.
As three of the Star Luo Continent's foremost experts, they naturally ought to gather and discuss a response to an upheaval such as a city traveling through time.
Zhang Geyang had arrived late because, immediately after the upheaval, he had tried contacting the Spirit Pagoda Headquarters, only to receive no response whatsoever.
Unwilling to give up, Zhang Geyang had then called Qiangu Dongfeng's private number, with the same result. He had therefore had no choice but to come to the palace and meet En Ci first.
That fellow Hu Jie must also be contacting the Tang Sect headquarters. I wonder whether he can reach Cao Dezhi.
If he has... what are those Tang Sect people trying to do by cutting off contact between me and Brother Dongfeng?
Possibilities churned through Zhang Geyang's mind.
Bzz, bzz-
The emperor's soul-guided communicator vibrated. He took it out and glanced at it, and his expression changed drastically. When he looked up at En Ci and Zhang Geyang again, every trace of ease had vanished.
"The Tang Sect has vanished!"
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