Chapter 58: Arrival in the Capital, Registration for New Students

As the Earth-Splitting Tiger King departed, the convoy soon arrived beside the train. A group of fully armed soldiers disembarked from their vehicles. Xu Han glanced over and saw that the leader was actually a fourth-rank powerhouse. Judging by his attire, he appeared to be a swordsman.

Members of the train’s security team hurried forward to greet them, explaining the situation in detail. Afterwards, they began cleaning the battlefield while the maintenance crew started repairing the locomotive. The healers tended to the wounded. Xu Han sat quietly nearby, resting.

Over an hour later, another convoy arrived from behind. Judging by the insignia, it was the convoy from East Sea City, led by Li Zhentian himself. As soon as Li Zhentian got out, he rushed toward the locomotive. Seeing Xu Han sitting there safe and sound, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank goodness you're all right, Xu Han. I thought I was going to die of fright just now!” Li Zhentian said with a wry smile.

Xu Han rose to his feet. “Thank you for your concern, Lord City Master.”

Li Zhentian looked around. “Have the members of the Abyssal Church been dealt with? Did that guy show up?”

Xu Han nodded. “You're absolutely right. The president of the Abyssal Church is none other than the president of the Professional Guild, Thunderclap!”

Li Zhentian’s expression darkened. “I knew it was him! I suspect he wanted to incite the beasts to attack the city and create chaos, then seize the city lord’s seal from the City Lord’s Mansion.”

“But you intercepted him midway, so he decided to vent his fury on you instead.”

Xu Han asked in confusion, “What use does the city lord’s seal have for him?”

Li Zhentian replied solemnly, “The city lord’s seal holds the power of life and death over a city. When the seal is active, beasts cannot spawn within the city. But once it’s deactivated, beasts will continuously appear inside the city, which means…”

“The city will fall!”

Xu Han’s gaze sharpened. If the city lord’s seal were lost, East Sea City would become a playground for the beasts. The consequences would be unimaginable.

Li Zhentian patted Xu Han’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, I’ll report this to the Grand Headquarters at Zhenhai at once. I’m sure they’ll issue a wanted notice—Thunderclap won’t escape death!”

Xu Han nodded slightly at last.

The fourth-rank swordsman walked over to Li Zhentian and clapped him on the shoulder. “Old Li, you got here fast.”

Li Zhentian grumbled, “Old Wang, this place is closer to your East Port City. Why are you only just arriving? You’re too slow!”

Wang Wenwu answered helplessly, “We rushed here as fast as we could once we got the news, but we ran into traps laid by the Abyssal Church along the way. That delayed us a bit.”

Though dissatisfied, Li Zhentian didn’t dwell on the issue. “Let’s clean up the battlefield and get the locomotive fixed quickly. Also, to guard against another attack from the Abyssal Church, we need someone strong enough to accompany the train.”

Li Zhentian’s gaze landed on Wang Wenwu. “I think you’re the best candidate.”

Wang Wenwu’s face darkened. “I am, after all, the commander of the garrison. And you want me to babysit the train?”

Li Zhentian nodded. “Otherwise, should I, the city lord, accompany it myself?”

Wang Wenwu looked resigned.

He gritted his teeth. “But if I’m not present, what if East Port City is attacked by the Abyssal Church?”

Li Zhentian replied with a smile, “Don’t worry. East Sea City is only a little over a hundred kilometers from East Port. We’ll rush to your aid at the fastest speed.”

Wang Wenwu had no choice but to agree.

Thanks to the maintenance crew’s efforts, the locomotive was barely repaired—still battered, but able to run. Xu Han glanced at the crew’s profiles and saw one was a B-rank mechanical specialist. No wonder the repairs went so quickly.

Since the locomotive was damaged, they could only drive to East Port City to replace it.

The train started up and slowly headed toward East Port City, with the East Port convoy guarding it closely, wary of another Abyssal Church attack. This time, the journey was smooth.

Upon arrival at East Port City, the train underwent a change of locomotive. After a long wait, the train set off again, bound for the capital.

This time, Wang Wenwu accompanied the entire journey, and even the conductor was replaced by a fourth-rank expert. Two fourth-rank powerhouses guarded the train—a first in history.

On the morning of the second day, Xu Han dozed in his seat. The broadcast sounded with a pleasant female voice:

“Dear passengers, the train is about to arrive at Capital South Station. Please prepare to disembark.”

Xu Han slowly opened his eyes and looked out the window, his gaze steady.

A vast city appeared before him. From the train, the entire metropolis stretched to the horizon. Towering city walls, tens of meters high, rose like mountains, separating city from wilderness.

Within the city, skyscrapers nearly a hundred stories tall stood in dense clusters. Transparent walkways connected some of these towers, and in midair, rails of special metal crisscrossed, exuding a sense of high technology.

Just from this scene, East Sea City and the capital seemed worlds apart.

With a rumble, the train suddenly shook. Xu Han was startled to realize the locomotive was rising!

Shui Lingyao smiled and explained, “This is the capital’s unique aerial railway. The city covers over sixty thousand square kilometers. To ease travel, besides buses, there are these aerial rails. Trains travel on them, moving faster and without obstruction.”

Xu Han nodded slightly. It seemed similar to a subway, but the capital was truly vast! Sixty thousand square kilometers—nearly ten times larger than the capital city from his previous life.

The train moved along the aerial rails, almost like flying, giving a bird’s-eye view of the city below. The rails threaded through the skyscrapers. Looking out the window, one could see people in offices, busy at their desks.

Xu Han was filled with awe. This was a modern super metropolis!

Many passengers pressed to the windows, marveling at the scenery outside.

Shui Lingyao gazed calmly out the window. “They say there are seven such top-tier super cities in the world, each in a different country. And before the beast invasions, there were even more of them. All destroyed by the beasts—what a pity.”

Xu Han nodded. According to the books, besides the capital, there were Hang City, Gold City, Sheep City, Deep City, and other top-tier metropolises. Now, however, these cities had all fallen to the beasts, becoming their playgrounds.

Each of these great cities was occupied by beasts of the ninth rank and above, leaders of their kind. Epics roamed everywhere, platinums were as common as dogs, and even legendary and titan-rank leaders abounded.

Retaking these cities would not be easy.

But once his strength grew, he could seek out these leader beasts and challenge them. He wondered what rewards awaited for reclaiming a top-tier super city.