NOVEL WEB Chapter 27: Registration
In Luan Yu's opinion, although the cities of other empires have their own unique characteristics—some even boasting a history of 10,000 years, such as Heavenly Dou City of the Heavenly Soul Empire, Star Luo City of the Star Luo Empire, and Shrek City of Shrek Academy—none can compare to the prosperity and advancement of the Sun and Moon Empire's Mingdu.
Mingdu is undeniably the foremost city on the continent, a fact acknowledged not only by the people of the Sun and Moon Empire but also by those from the original Douluo Three Empires.
One of its most striking features is the absence of city walls, a concept that seems almost inconceivable to the inhabitants of the Douluo Three Empires.
However, the lack of walls does not imply vulnerability.
On the contrary, Mingdu is heavily fortified. Advanced soul tools are deployed in all directions, including detection devices for souls, heat, soul power, sound waves, and high-altitude surveillance.
Defensive and offensive soul tools are also strategically placed, transforming the city into an impregnable fortress.
The absence of walls is a testament to the Sun and Moon Empire's confidence in its soul tool technology, which has reached a level where traditional city walls are unnecessary.
While a city wall might offer some protection, it would be ineffective against a Soul Saint-level intruder.
Thus, the open design of Mingdu not only showcases the empire's technological prowess but also its self-assurance.
That said, Mingdu is the only city in the Sun and Moon Empire that relies entirely on soul tools for defense.
Other cities, despite their advancements, still maintain traditional city walls. The reason is simple: operating soul tools on such a scale requires immense resources, and even the wealthy Sun and Moon Empire can only afford to sustain one Mingdu.
At the heart of Mingdu's defense and energy systems are four high-energy compression array soul tools.
These devices are the crown jewels of the Sun and Moon Empire's technology, capable of autonomously absorbing soul power from the environment to replenish their energy.
However, their massive size makes them immobile, and thus they are exclusively stationed in Mingdu.
These four soul tools provide the energy needed for the city's defense systems, detection devices, and even civilian applications.
The high-energy compression array soul tools are a closely guarded secret, accessible only to the ninth-level soul engineers of the Royal Worship Hall.
These engineers are responsible for maintaining the soul tools, ensuring the smooth operation of the entire city.
Despite Mingdu's impressive features, it pales in comparison to the wonders Liuxing has witnessed in the Liuyang Universe.
From space stations orbiting planets to start-traveling trains, these marvels far surpass anything Mingdu has to offer.
Similarly, Liuying, born in the interstellar civilization, was unimpressed by the city's modernity.
Luan Yu, observing the two, notices their lack of awe. Unlike visitors from the Douluo Three Empires, who often gawk at Mingdu like country bumpkins, Liuxing and Liuying remain composed, showing only mild interest. This disappoints Luan Yu, who had hoped to impress them.
"Let's go," Luan Yu says, shaking her head. "Mingdu has many delicacies that Dragon City can't match."
At the mention of food, Liuying's eyes light up, finally showing genuine interest. Luan Yu can't help but chuckle at the reaction.
Liuxing smiles as well, knowing that Liuying, having grown up with limited exposure to food, has developed a particular fondness for delicacies, especially desserts.
Her obsession with oak cake rolls, a treat she stumbled upon once, has made her eager to explore more culinary delights.
In a year in Dragon City, to satisfy Liuying's small appetite, Nan Qiuqiu's treasury shrank by more than half.
However, Nan Qiuqiu was wealthy and didn't worry about her treasury being drained by Liuying. She was very generous to Liuying.
After all, the cute, straightforward, and playful Liuying was very popular in Earth Dragon Sect.
Many disciples of Earth Dragon Sect would occasionally prepare delicious desserts to please the second sister after learning about Liuying's preferences.
Accompanied by Luan Yu, Liuxing and Liuying walked along a spacious avenue toward Mingdu.
Although Mingdu had no city walls and seemed accessible from all directions, entering the city openly required passing through the main gate—the official entrance established by Mingdu.
There, one needed to register and obtain a pass to live in Mingdu openly.
While it was possible to sneak into Mingdu by cultivating for a while, and one could manage living and eating expenses with money, encountering Mingdu's law enforcement patrols without a pass would result in arrest.
Therefore, to live in Mingdu peacefully, it was best to take the regular route and obtain a pass.
Walking on the concrete avenue, which was more than ten meters wide, Liuxing saw many merchants driving horse-drawn carriages or advanced soul guide vehicles coming and going.
As the foremost city on the continent, Mingdu attracted millions of merchants, including those from the original Douluo Three Empires.
Even the Sun and Moon Empire did not trouble these foreign merchants; instead, they treated them preferentially.
After all, these merchants brought specialties from the other three empires to Mingdu and could also sell goods from the Sun and Moon Empire to the original Douluo Three Empires.
Although the Sun and Moon Empire and the original Douluo Three Empires were hostile, merchants cared only about profit.
For them, the Golden Soul Coin was their sole belief. As long as they could make money, they had no qualms about borders or allegiances.
For merchants, business knew no boundaries, and everything was tradable.
Obtaining a pass was not complicated. One only needed to register their name, age, and place of origin to receive a pass.
Whether to report one's real name or empire of origin was up to the individual. The registration officers did not scrutinize the information too closely, as they were merely collecting basic details and had no intention of verifying identities.
The authorities simply did not have the time to verify the authenticity of every registration. A simple registration sufficed, as the officers earned only a few Silver Soul Coins a day and had no reason to go out of their way to cause trouble.
Moreover, encountering a vicious wanted criminal or an evil soul master could cost them their lives. Why risk it for such meager pay?