Chapter 373: Chapter 362 Much Safer Than Outside (Please Subscribe)
Juque City.
Even Chen Fan couldn’t help but marvel at the grandeur of this giant city.
Just the four directions, east, south, west, and north, each had camps equivalent to eight mid-sized cities.
Strangely, these camps had no walls for protection, much like the cities from his previous life.
"This seems a bit different from what Gu Ze described."
Chen Fan thought to himself.
These settlements had no walls. Were they not worried about Fierce Beasts attacking at night?
After all, in Anshan City, even he didn’t dare to loiter outside at night, but here...
"Perhaps, there really are no Fierce Beasts active at night here?"
A flash of insight crossed Chen Fan’s mind.
Walking all the way from Anshan City, initially, he would occasionally encounter one or two elite-level Fierce Beasts. Gradually he only saw high-level Fierce Beasts, and then, not even mid or low-level Fierce Beasts.
Nearer this place, he didn’t see a single shadow of a Fierce Beast.
Considering these camps had no walls, if there were nighttime attacks by Fierce Beasts, these people wouldn’t survive.
"It truly is a large city."
He sighed inwardly, continuing to observe. The roads crisscrossed with houses densely packed, people bustling and moving continuously.
The most eye-catching aspect was a road twenty to thirty meters wide in each direction, stretching for dozens of miles, finally converging in front of a colossal structure, which was Juque City.
The city had walls towering over 300 meters high, reaching into the clouds. Compared to this structure, the eight surrounding camps were insignificant.
The city walls extended for several hundred kilometers, connecting at the ends to form a square. The walls seemed to be made of some kind of metal, not particularly dazzling in the sunlight but exuding a dark sheen, like a slumbering steel behemoth.
The walls had countless window-like structures, about two meters in size, all tightly shut.
"Could those be the muzzles of cannons?"
Chen Fan muttered to himself.
He could imagine the scene if a Beast Tide erupted, with countless dark cannons protruding from the walls, aiming around and firing simultaneously.
On the walls, one could vaguely see some cannons, even traces of fighter jets.
And this might be just the tip of the iceberg of this city’s defense forces.
Chen Fan took a deep breath, slowed his pace, and walked forward. Having finally arrived at a large city, he wanted to see what it was like.
As he walked, he felt a sense of déjà vu.
On the streets, there were streams of traffic, traffic lights, zebra crossings, pedestrians waiting by the roadside, killing time by looking at their phones.
At bus stops on both sides, many people dressed like office workers, carrying briefcases, either sitting or standing there.
There were also students, about sixteen or seventeen years old, wearing school uniforms and discussing in low voices.
"Only two months until the entrance exams, and I’m still not prepared. I really don’t know if I can get into Martial Artist High School."
"Sun Hao, stop being modest. You’re definitely set for the academic part. As long as your Martial Arts Realm reaches Body Tempering Second Layer, you’ll get in, right? You’ve already reached it, so what’s there to worry about?"
"Exactly, overdoing modesty is pride."
"Really?" Sun Hao smiled bitterly, "Though the admission requirement is Body Tempering Second Layer, it doesn’t mean everyone who reaches it will get in. It’s competitive, you know many in our grade have reached Body Tempering Third Layer, and a few have even hit the Muscle Refining Realm!"
"You’re talking about Wang Shi, right? That guy’s a genius, younger than us by a year but already at the Mid Stage of Muscle Refining. I heard Martial Artist High School has already pre-accepted him. No matter his academic scores, he’ll definitely be admitted."
"Class 13 also has someone who reached the Muscle Refining Realm, though not as crazy as Wang Shi, it’s at the Early Stage of Muscle Refining."
"Class 6 has one too."
"It’s really frustrating comparing oneself to others. They’ve entered Muscle Refining, whereas we’re still at Body Tempering First Layer, not even at the threshold for Martial Artist High School. Guess we’ll have to go to regular high school, then either farm or work in a factory after graduating."
"Sigh, working in a factory wouldn’t be too bad, at least there’s no life risk, and you get a salary. After decades, maybe we can’t afford a house in Juque City, but buying a small place here is possible. Life here, bitter as it is, is a luxury compared to other cities where mere survival is a struggle."
"Is it really that bad?"
"What did you think? Look at our city, there are almost no Fierce Beasts, buses run even at night. Even if there are any, they’d be swiftly dealt with by the city’s Awakeners or Martial Artists. Over the years, how many Fierce Beasts have you seen outside of screens?"
"That’s true."
"Exactly, and deeper in, there are three super-large cities guarded by the Thunder Emperor, forming a triangle zone even safer. Still, our area’s pretty good, just surviving here is better.
"But becoming a Martial Artist would be even better." This sparked unanimous agreement.
"Yes, if we could get into Martial Artist High School, not only would tuition be waived, but we’d get stipends too. Our parents wouldn’t have to work so hard to pay the rent."
"Right, and we could eat better, even buy elixirs. I heard Wang Shi reached the Muscle Refining Realm so quickly because he took Qi Blood Pills since childhood."
"If strong enough, we could hunt outside. An uncle of mine said one hunt could earn as much as a commoner’s annual salary! If you catch a big one, it could exceed a lifetime’s earnings of a common job."
"True, but it’s dangerous out there, even Awakeners from the city might not return."
"Indeed."
The atmosphere fell silent.
Chen Fan showed a look of realization.
His guess was right; there were no Fierce Beasts here.
If outsiders could come to a large city, even not here, any place would be safer than the outside.
However, from Anshan City to here was over 2000 kilometers, even the closest large city, Jiangnan City, was over a thousand kilometers away. Ordinary Martial Artists couldn’t manage that.
Moreover, the outlying forts and small cities acted as buffers, keeping stray Fierce Beasts at bay.
If everyone fell back, these large cities would become the frontline against Fierce Beasts.
Chen Fan sighed.
The apocalypse was especially harsh for ordinary people. It’s better to live in peace than turmoil, so true.
Besides, he learned something from these students’ discussions.
Martial education in big cities seemed very developed, with Martial Artist High Schools, and students eagerly aspiring to become Martial Artists.
After all, Awakeners are born with their abilities; you either have it or not. Martial Artists can be cultivated later, offering a chance for commoners to rise.
Yet, this path required talent and resources, making it difficult.
Chen Fan shook his head, walking on.
A road of dozens of miles may be daunting for most, but for him, it was a few steps.
The 300-meter-tall city wall was oppressive.
At the bottom, nearly twenty entrances resembled train station platforms.
Entry required purchasing tickets, except for Awakeners and Martial Artists.
When someone verified their Awakener or Martial Artist status, they earned admiring looks from the crowd.
When it was Chen Fan’s turn, he showed his Awakened Association ID.
Unsurprisingly, he received everyone’s respect again.
Chen Fan chuckled and put his ID away, entering the city.
The instant he entered, a familiar feeling washed over him.
Tall modern buildings rose up, with light rail and overpasses complete. Further was residential areas, villa complexes, parks, all resembling a first-tier city.
Chen Fan watched for a while before exhaling slowly.
If he wasn’t clear-headed, he might have thought he hadn’t traveled at all.
Truly a large city.
Compared to Anshan City, Chen Family Fortress was nothing.
Anshan City, compared to Juque City, was also insignificant.
For a moment, he was greatly tempted.
"I wonder what a super-large city would be like."
The thought crossed his mind.
There, in Yan Country, was the safest and most powerful place.
"But now isn’t the time to think about that; I need to deal with my task first."
Chen Fan shook off his thoughts, walked a few steps, then realized he didn’t know the way. He took out his phone and searched for the Awakened Association.
Surprisingly, there were several branches in the city due to its vast size.
"I’ll go to the closest one."
It was about thirty kilometers away.
In no time, he stood before the Awakened Association base, where people shouted for elite team members, needing a control-type Awakener or a healer.
Seeing Chen Fan, someone approached, asking his level and interest in joining a team.
Chen Fan declined, walking forward alone.