Chapter 811
Chapter 811
Shen Lang felt like his head was about to explode. He didn't want to concern himself with the affairs of the Western world, but this information was of great significance. Rumor had it that the northernmost continent was shrouded in darkness, forcing the Great Emperor Seirun to journey south, conquer the new continent, and establish the Seirun Dynasty. Over twenty years ago, a ship from the White Jade Capital had come to these waters. Now, the northern seas of the new continent were completely frozen over, cutting it off from the northernmost continent. The northernmost continent, the Great Desert of Ten Thousand Miles, and the Devil's Triangle—did this world have three forbidden zones? The ten thousand miles of ice and the thousand miles of swirling snow seemed, at a glance, to be related to the White Jade Capital. Though there were six transcendent powers, Shen Lang had encountered five of them. He had interacted with the White Jade Capital twice, yet he had never met anyone from there in person. Shen Lang shook his head vigorously.
'Don't think about it, don't think about it.'
Right now, there was only one task before him. To enter the capital of the Witch Empire and confirm whether Queen Medusa was Qiu Yao'er or not.
'I want an army. I want cannons.'
* * *
Along the way, they saw Duke Russell's army deployed everywhere. They were truly elite soldiers. When they were still two hundred miles from the capital of the Witch Empire, Shen Lang was stopped by a centurion. After examining their military tokens, the centurion said.
"You two, you've come a long way. This is our final outpost. You cannot proceed any further. Ahead lies the territory of the Witch Empire, and we cannot guarantee your safety."
Had the Witch Empire fallen into such a dire state? If their territory only extended two hundred miles from the capital, did that mean the rest had fallen? The situation seemed similar to the Taiping Rebellion, when Suzhou was captured, leaving only the capital city of Tianjing.
"We are on a secret mission and must enter the Queen's City."
The centurion said.
"Both of you, remove your helmets."
Hill and Shen Lang removed their helmets, revealing two beautiful faces, one with long, blond hair. The centurion's eyes suddenly lit up as if he remembered something.
"I see. However, you will need to change your clothes."
Soon after, the centurion granted them passage.
* * *
Shen Lang and Hill continued forward. Indeed, as they went further, Duke Russell's army was nowhere to be seen, though occasionally a few scouts would flit past them like ghosts. Shen Lang and Hill had changed their clothes earlier and were no longer in Seirun Empire uniforms, but in black cloaks.
The road ahead seemed to be a no-man's land. Though there were clearly many cities and towns on both sides of the road, with beautiful scenery and lush greenery, not a single person was in sight. It seemed all the citizens had fled. Duke Russell's army had not yet occupied this area, but the Witch Empire's forces appeared to have completely retreated into the city. They traveled another hundred miles forward.
"Honey, follow me."
After speaking, Hill led Shen Lang to the top of a mountain.
"That is the Queen's City."
Where Hill pointed, everything was shrouded in mist, and nothing could be seen.
"Wait. I will show you the most romantic city in the world."
The two of them then waited quietly. While waiting, Hill slept with Shen Lang again. Even though they hadn't bathed all day, Shen Lang could bear it. After all, all he had to do was lie there. Before long, the clouds and mist dispersed, and the Queen's City appeared before Shen Lang. For a moment, he was stunned by the sight.
'Damn it all! How can such a beautiful city exist in this world?'
Just how incredible was the aesthetic sense of the Seirun Empire's empress who had built this city? Words could not possibly describe the beauty of this city. No wonder this city was named the Queen's City. If cities had a gender, this one would undoubtedly be female.
This red city was a deeper shade than pink, yet slightly lighter than vermilion. When the sunlight hit it from different angles, it even revealed hints of purple. The walls, roads, and even the houses of this massive city were all red. Furthermore, the city had a double wall. The outer wall was about fifteen meters high, the inner wall twelve meters high, and the space between them was twenty meters. In Earth's history, there had also been such massive double walls, for example, in Constantinople.
While the City of Gold and Jade was built across mountains, the Queen's City was situated on flat terrain. Only the royal palace was built atop a mountain several hundred meters high, looking down on everything. It was as if the peak of the mountain had been sliced off to build the imperial palace. This several-hundred-meter-high mountain, at least on the side facing Shen Lang, was a sheer cliff, making the palace appear to be perched on the edge—an architectural marvel. However, Hill told Shen Lang that the back of the mountain was relatively gentle, and all the materials for building the palace had been transported up that side.
The entire city was red, but the several-hundred-meter-high cliff was white, and the palace was white as well. Everything was red to accentuate the pure white of the palace. It was so dreamlike and beautiful. The City of Gold and Jade was also incredibly beautiful, but the Queen's City was a level above. Especially the palace built on the cliff, which could truly be called a castle in the sky.
"We Vedans have very complicated feelings about the Seiruns. We resent them because they are outsiders who ruled this continent. But we also revere them. Without the Seiruns, we would have forever remained a barbaric tribe, and we certainly would never have built a city like this."
The Black Widow Hill's words were both sorrowful and profound. Through them, one could see that the Seiruns had conquered not just the continent, but also the minds and hearts of its people.
* * *
When they were less than ten miles from the Queen's City, Shen Lang and Hill were surrounded by elite cavalry. The knights were all white women. They were all very tall, averaging over one hundred and eighty centimeters, and looked lean yet powerful.
"They are the Roland tribe. A strong warrior race with a very small population. They are also natives of this new continent and have a matriarchal society. The men stay home to look after the children while the women go out to fight."
Hill quietly explained. The captain of the Witch Empire's knights looked at Hill, and seeing that she was a woman, her gaze became quite friendly. Then she saw the Eastern man beside her, Shen Lang, and was taken aback.
"Who are you? What is your business?"
At the female knight captain's question, Shen Lang was so moved he could have shed tears. Because she had spoken in Chinese. A full half-year had passed, and only now did he finally hear his mother tongue again. In that moment, he felt a sense of belonging to the Witch Empire.
"I have come to see the Queen."
The female knight captain said.
"Our Witch Empire can be considered the homeland for Easterners in the Western world. But we are in a very perilous situation right now. Are you certain you want to enter our royal city?"
"I am."
The female knight captain looked at Shen Lang for a moment, then shook her head.
"I'm sorry, but you cannot."
"Why not?"
"Recently, quite a few Easterners have entered our Queen's City, but eighty percent of them were spies who engaged in large-scale sabotage after entering. Therefore, I must ask you to leave."
"I must enter."
The female knight captain raised her hand, and dozens of her knights instantly aimed their crossbows at Shen Lang and Hill.
"You two, I have no desire to harm you. But the Queen's City welcomes no one at this time."
Hearing the captain's words, Shen Lang raised his hands and said.
"There's a possibility I am your queen's man."
Hearing this, the female knights were not shocked, but utterly enraged. It was as if they felt their queen had been insulted. Shen Lang realized he had poked a hornet's nest. This Queen Medusa was even more formidable than he had imagined, far beyond an ordinary person. Thus, in the hearts of these knights, no one was worthy of being the queen's husband. Even Hill looked at Shen Lang in disbelief.
"Seize him!"
At the female knight leader's command, Shen Lang was taken captive, and a hood was immediately placed over his head so he could not see. Shen Lang looked in Hill's direction and said.
"Beautiful Hill, it's time to say goodbye."
The Black Widow Hill looked at Shen Lang for a long moment and said.
"Goodbye, my love. I will never forget this past month. It was the most beautiful time of my life. All my life's happiness will remain in that moment. I will never meet another man like you, nor will I ever love someone like this again."
With those parting words, the Black Widow Hill mounted her steed and rode away without looking back. As expected of a merchant and the daughter of a pirate, she was decisive.
* * *
Hooded, Shen Lang was led into the Queen's City. He could see nothing, only smell. Even in these perilous times, the Queen's City was still fragrant, a different scent from the stench of the City of Gold and Jade. He could even hear the sound of beautiful music. Someone was singing, and someone was playing a zither. In such a dangerous time, with the Witch Empire on the brink of collapse, you still have the heart to sing? he thought, but regardless, the city was beautiful.
"Heavens, please protect our Queen."
"Heavens, please protect our Queen."
The same words echoed continuously in Shen Lang's ears.
The city was so large that Shen Lang walked for a long time before he felt like he was ascending a mountain. After walking for another long while, everything around him grew quiet, and the surrounding fragrance became even thicker, almost intoxicating. He must have entered the royal palace. The white palace on the cliff, the castle in the sky.
After walking a bit more, he seemed to have entered a palace hall. It was extremely quiet, and he could feel it was enveloped in a special aura.
"Lady-in-waiting, we have captured an Eastern man who claims to be Her Majesty the Queen's man. Should he not be drawn and quartered?"
At the knight captain's words, Shen Lang's balls shriveled.
'No way! You're going to draw and quarter me just for saying I'm your queen's man? Is Queen Medusa's dignity so inviolable? If so, can she still be called an ordinary person?'
Hearing the knight captain, the lady-in-waiting replied.
"Remove his hood."
The moment he heard that voice, Shen Lang was stunned, and his entire body began to tremble. An old acquaintance! Another old acquaintance. A friend he hadn't seen in years. Shen Lang truly hadn't heard that voice in years. He had tried to find news of her many times, but had heard nothing. The knight captain removed Shen Lang's hood, revealing his incomparably handsome face. And the moment the lady-in-waiting saw Shen Lang's impossibly beautiful face, she stared at him in stunned disbelief.
"Shen... Shen Lang!"
Shen Lang looked at the familiar face, his heart trembling. It was Zhang Chunhua, the daughter of Zhang Chong. To think he would meet this vixen tens of thousands of miles away.