Chapter 17: Holy City (2-in-1) [VIP]
When Luke set out, a dragon was already on the road.
When they are too lazy to fly, they will simply take the airships made of special fire crystals.
All the flying creatures in the sky were hundreds of feet away from them.
“Bang, bang, bang…”
Monsters similar to seagulls formed a group and started cursing.
Who is so crazy as to drive this kind of airship on the road? If they accidentally bump into something, they will be seriously injured!
Inside the airship, the giant dragon that had transformed into a human form restrained its pressure.
Blaney never put down the book, and he read over and over again the gift he received for writing the message, his eyes curved.
"I wish I had such a well-behaved dragon cub."
He had completely classified the small monster as a dragon race, and was even looking for evidence between the lines.
If anyone said that the little monster was not a dragon, Berlani would spit out a breath of ice to make the person reincarnate and have a new brain.
Leo was just about to tell him to stop dreaming when suddenly, the airship became unstable and several strong and swift air currents appeared in the air.
Berlani put away the book in his hand and saw the source of the storm at a glance: "It's Alice."
Several sparks burst out in the sky, and the one coming was also a dragon, which transformed into a red-haired woman standing on the tip of the airship.
"Blanny, Leo?" Her eyebrows were wine red. "Why are you here?"
A homebody dragon who only knows how to sleep and a picky dragon who spends every day buried in books are actually traveling together. Alice smells something wrong.
Berlani said calmly: "Let's go to the Holy City."
The Lord of the Stone City hinted that the Holy City was going to hold some activities related to the Cubs, so they decided to go and take a look.
Alice was annoyed: "If I had known you were going to the Holy City, I would not have gone."
Wan Chao would send an invitation. This year the invitation was written by the saint himself, so they had to give her some face. There were a bunch of people on Dragon Island who took advantage of their seniority, and in the end she was kicked out of the event.
Alice noticed that Leo was holding a book.
It's normal for Blaney to read books, but Leo is not a cultural dragon.
Just as she was about to ask, a magnificent city suddenly appeared below her.
On the high walls outside the holy city, patrol soldiers were working vigilantly, and inside the holy city, the great magicians were crowded. Only the statue of the saint stood in the center of the city, and could only be looked up to forever.
A messenger was waiting in the outer city to pick them up early.
When the guiding messenger discovered that three dragons had arrived at once, he was flattered.
Are the dragon clan so considerate this year?
The city was bustling with activity, as many races that had arrived early were showing off their new inventions.
The patrolling guards were replaced by seventh-level magicians, obviously guarding against something.
Leo wasn't interested until he saw the various selection activities, and then his wandering eyes settled down.
The guide said quickly, "To enter the inner city, you have to go this way."
The two figures turned a deaf ear and stopped one after another under a huge promotional poster.
The entire nearby area was filled with promotions for various activities and there was a constant stream of discussion.
“Why is there a best-selling book selection this year?”
What the hell is the last one?
——A masterpiece created by a young man who charmed the four tribes and was said to be more beautiful than the Elf King.
"Haven't you heard about the bathhouse peeping incident that made a lot of noise a while ago?" A passerby who had just placed a bet on the pharmacist competition passed by and stared at the end of the leaderboard and said, "It's just a way to attract attention. I followed the trend and bought a copy. It's so ugly."
There was another victim standing nearby, who was angry when he heard this: "It's just this once that I was fooled."
Next to the selection of best-selling books is the voting for the most popular protagonist of the year.
The voting rules are very simple. The designated bookstores in each area have teleportation arrays, which cost one gold coin to use once. The bookstores will charge an additional 5% handling fee.
If you want to vote for someone, just write it down and put it into the teleportation array. Someone will collect and count the information every day.
On the few ballots that were cast, in addition to the little monster's name, there were also insults attached to it.
"It's no use spending a gold coin. I was disgusted for a week after watching it. I hope more people can see it and feel disgusted together."
Three-and-a-half-year-old literature is a hot topic in itself, so no one noticed Leo and Blanchett who were unusually silent in the crowd.
Those who are powerful can infinitely weaken their own presence.
Leo looked at the poster quietly.
The promotional poster is piled with magical elements, making the drawn image more lifelike. The little monster lies on the edge of the eggshell, blowing bubbles with anticipation, with "Choose me" written in big letters in the bubbles, but what greets it is a crowd of ruthless slander.
It lay there full of anticipation, as if it knew nothing, with its usual innocent smile.
So pitiful.
The more slanderous remarks he made, the more distressed Leo felt.
It has clearly been trying very hard to adapt to this world.
Completely unaware that he was being abused, Leo looked at the yawning staff and asked: "Where can I vote?"
"You can also invest on the spot, but you need to pay each time..."
"Invest 100 million first."
With just a few words, the surroundings instantly became quiet.
Sacks of gold coins began to be thrown out of the storage ring without warning.
When the staff saw that the sacks filled with gold coins were about to pile up into a small mountain, they finally came to their senses:
"Sorry, according to the selection rules, a single reader can only vote five times at most."
A small list that no one cares about, and it is actually not checked very strictly.
But he couldn't pretend to be blind even if he wanted to when he had to spend 100 million in public!
Hearing about the restrictions, Leo frowned and asked, "What will the author get after the character wins the award?"
The staff was stuck, what could they gain?
It's an honor.
Leo: "Give the author 100 million as well."
“…Sorry, this is not included in the event either.”
The atmosphere at the scene became increasingly silent. Someone seemed to have guessed Leo's identity, and his expression changed from disbelief to a little fear.
Leo's narrow brows were tightly knitted together, and he was extremely disgusted with the idea of not being able to spend money.
Blaney, who had been silent all this time, suddenly fixed his eyes on one place.
Not far away, a newsstand was promoting a magician's autobiography.
In comparison, Zaizai's small piece of land in the voting activity seems particularly shabby.
Blaney whispered a few words, and Leo noticed it, his eyes becoming increasingly darker.
Alice was getting impatient waiting, so she went to the list and said, "What the hell are you two doing? Hey...what is this? It's pretty cute."
The guiding envoy: "Your Excellencies..."
Leo raised his hand and said solemnly, "Where is the best bard in the Holy City?"
————
Thousands of kilometers away from the holy city, a luxurious convoy pulled by dozens of monsters was moving.
Inside the carriage, Luke asked, "The selection activity is held in the Holy City. How can readers from other places participate?"
Karen narrowed her eyes and smiled, and roughly explained the rules.
Luke was thoughtful after hearing this.
It’s a mechanism similar to SMS voting, but it obviously has many loopholes. But considering that there are not many participants in unpopular activities, it doesn’t matter.
Karen continued, "This time the Holy City has stepped up its publicity efforts. You should thank the City Lord."
Luke was puzzled.
"The publishing industry is in a recession, and no one cares. The city lord personally wrote to the high-level officials in the Holy City who he is familiar with, and this year he organized an event to support unpopular fields."
Luke suddenly realized, is there such a good thing?
The city lord, who had been sitting calmly with his eyes closed, said, "Famousness comes from controversy. Maybe you were already famous before we arrived."
Luke was more concerned about whether this fame could be converted into faith.
The journey would take some time, and he spent most of the time writing.
Luke deliberately took out a feather pen to test the city lord's reaction. As long as the other party shows the slightest suspicion, he will find a way to end the journey to the holy city first.
Fortunately, the city lord paid more attention to the manuscript than to the quill pen.
Lujia completely relaxed. If he could deceive the city lord, he could deceive most of the elite magicians in the Holy City.
"Beep~" A bird that came from nowhere kept pecking at the edge of the window.
The city lord asked the monster to stop. After a few seconds, the door was pushed open by a pair of hands, and a girl in a gorgeous dress came in.
The city lord called out Lillian's name helplessly.
"Thank you, City Lord." Lillian said with a smile while hugging her pet. "I am so tired after chasing all the way."
The visitor was the president of Stone Magazine.
Luke: "Are you going to the Holy City too?"
Lillian nodded repeatedly: "For first-hand reporting, let's go to the inner city to have some fun."
Although she is half succubus, judging from her familiarity with the city lord, Lillian has a very strong family background.
The other party dropped a bombshell right away: "It is said that the Demon King will attend the Wanchao meeting in person this time."
Luke paused holding the pen.
Fortunately, the city lord and Karen were also immersed in surprise, so he did not appear out of place.
The city lord's expression became serious: "Are you sure?"
The demons of the Wanchaohui would also send a team to exchange ideas every year. In previous years, the team was led by the Crown Prince. It had been at least twenty years since the last time the Demon King personally participated.
Lillian nodded: "Ninety percent true, first-hand information from my intelligence dealer in the demon world."
She stroked the pet bird in her arms, and like magic, two tickets appeared in her hand.
"Luke, I also got two tickets for the inner city opera, we can go and see it together then."
Thanks to Luca, the magazine's sales have been booming recently.
Looking at the opera tickets, Luke's thoughts couldn't help but spread. In this era, opera is the mainstream and movies have not yet appeared. It is not because the technology cannot keep up, but because no one has thought of developing in this direction.
He couldn't help but be tempted. Compared with reading, movies are obviously more capable of opening up the market and attracting fans.
If you want to make a movie, you first need a photo stone, and it has to be a very large one that has been polished by a special person. It is very valuable, and what you have in your pocket is just a small amount.
Dragons are rare, so it is unrealistic to rely solely on them to increase book sales.
"Looks like I have to write a hit."
It's so popular that any passerby would want to buy it.
"What are you mumbling about?" Lillian looked at him and asked.
Luka smiled, his fingers involuntarily reaching for the quill: "Nothing, I'm just a little surprised that the Demon King is coming."
The slender fingertips brushed across the wings, and the hairs on the quill stood up at the touch. I wonder what evil this kid is up to.
They traveled day and night, and as they approached their destination, the monsters' speed became faster and faster.
The sun was rising that day, and the sunlight shone on Luke's hair, giving off a strange crimson hue in the black.
The monster suddenly let out two uneasily sounds. The air was filled with the breath of demons, and it seemed that the demon's guard of honor had passed by here not long ago.
The city lord waved his sleeves, and the aura completely disappeared, and the monster became quiet again.
Luke opened the window and looked at the magnificent city below, thinking: I was a little too conservative before.
He only saw the troubles brought by the identity of the Devil's son, but forgot that this identity could be fully utilized.
Everyone got off the bus one after another.
The law enforcement teams that were feared by foreign races were on duty on both sides. Each of them was wearing white armor and had a big sword on his waist, looking very majestic.
After seeing the totem mark on the animal cart, the captain walked over immediately and saluted respectfully to the lord of the Stone City. He paused for a moment when he saw the masked boy among the group of people.
City Lord: "A friend I specially invited."
The captain did not explore further: "Please follow me."
Quill had been as quiet as death the entire time since entering the city.
It watched quietly all the way.
Luke walked briskly, the sunlight shone down on him, and his shoulders seemed to be filled with an inextinguishable vitality.
The young man who used to be in rags and had no food to eat in the land of exile, now wears decent clothes and a storage ring, and walks into the holy land that countless humans dream of.
The scenery is spectacular all the way.
Countless tall buildings are covered with a luxurious aura.
Airships could be landing at any time not far away, and the latest weapons that were difficult to buy in ordinary places were being cleared out at will.
In this vast land, there are a large number of nobles active, and law enforcement teams are stationed every hundred steps.
Lillian has been much more restrained since coming here, and whispered, "The Demon King is coming, and there are guards everywhere."
Unintentionally seeing the flowers on the roadside, she was a little happy: "It's a lily! The origin of my name, it symbolizes purity and elegance."
She suddenly became curious: "Luke, what is the origin of your name? Come to think of it, your name is a bit strange."
"There is no origin."
"ah?"
Luke: “Because it’s a fake name.”
The original body's name is a long one, and it's really hard to remember.
The city lord who was walking in front coughed, and Karen and the captain of the law enforcement team looked back at the same time.
There are many people who travel around the mainland using fake names. It can be seen from the masks they wear that they are hiding their identities, but do they really have to be so honest?
It is worth mentioning that Luke changed into a silver mask and was not recognized as the author of the three-and-a-half-year-old literature.
Lillian was also confused by his frankness.
She changed the subject awkwardly: "Your aura seems to be much stronger. It seems that you have had a good rest recently."
Lujia shook his head: "I have recently tried to use my blood essence to take an unorthodox approach. I have been lucky and have improved the physique of the useless magician a little bit."
He clenched his fist solemnly: "Please look forward to my success."
There had to be a reason why he was suddenly able to practice magic.
Lillian was completely silent.
The city lord and the captain of the law enforcement team were even more silent than her.
Forbidden techniques are a school of their own, but because their users usually do bad things, they are often scorned when exposed in public.
The city lord reminded: "There are many disadvantages of forbidden magic, don't just focus on the present."
Lujia was grateful for his kindness. "Don't worry, I found that my bloodline is not completely useless. Many sequelae can be offset. If I succeed in my cultivation in the future, I will give you some blood and you can study it."
It can also be considered a contribution to mankind.
The law enforcement captain was the most unsympathetic. He couldn't help but try to smooth things over and said, "We've arrived at the rest house."
If he continued talking, he would have wanted to arrest the person.
The captain of the law enforcement team almost forgot about the main task after being interrupted by Luke. He said to the city lord: "The saint is meeting with the devil and the dragon clan. When you arrive, you'd better go there too."
The city lord nodded slightly.
The person who received the convoy was not an envoy but the captain of the law enforcement team. He knew that they were here to convey the oral instructions from the top leaders.
Speaking of the Demon King, the city lord subconsciously glanced at Luke.
Being on different channels, Luke did not have much emotion. He just looked at the spire of the majestic building in the distance, guessing that it should be the residence of the saint.
No building in the Holy City will be taller than the place where the Saint resides.
Everybody is so pretentious.
Luke couldn't help but think of the red-haired figure high in the air when he was struck by lightning that day.
I wonder if I will run into the Demon King in the Holy City this time.
He always had a bad feeling.
"Luke," Lillian's voice brought him back to reality, "Let's go to the opera!"
Taking a break from thinking about garbage, Luke became interested.
Anyway, I will be making a movie in the future, so it might be good to observe the situation in advance.
After saying hello to the city lord, he followed Lillian towards the opera house.
Karen was with them. Although it was difficult to get tickets for famous actors, it was not a problem at all for the president of the Rhine Trading Company.
Everyone was talking and laughing on the way. Everything in the holy city was new to Luke, and Karen patiently introduced it one by one.
It's just that his eyes would darken from time to time.
From the moment he entered the holy city, Luke's behavior revealed many problems, and he looked like a complete inexperienced person.
This is probably not a mistake caused by carelessness.
He quietly speculated: On the one hand, the purpose of using the Chamber of Commerce as a springboard to publish books has been achieved, and after arriving in the Holy City, the other party has a new goal.
Secondly... Luke might feel that he can't hide it anymore, so he simply stops pretending.
Karen narrowed his eyes slightly. What was certain was that Lujia's identity was not simple. The city lord's attitude was the best explanation.
But why do they lack basic common sense? What is the source of the sense of disharmony?
A burst of floating singing interrupted his thoughts.
"Sing for the brave one,"
"It was born in a cold, dark cave;"
"Clap for its kindness,"
“It has learned to share since birth;”
"If you had seen its weakness, you would have seen thorns under its fragile bones;"
"Today we witnessed a weak warrior,"
“Life is worth applauding…”
The beautiful string music and the bard's delicate and soft voice seem to be telling a story.
Although the lyrics are a bit strange, the melody is very beautiful.
The three of them couldn't help but slow down their pace and listened attentively -
"Ah, praise this story of the group's favorite three and a half years old,"
“Why three and a half, you ask?”
"This must be a turning point of fate..."
The intoxicated look instantly disappeared, and the faces of the three people on the street became excited.
They seemed to know what the song was about.
The bard sang so seriously that if you didn’t know better you would think it was a story about a protagonist trying to become self-reliant.
Luke looked at Karen: "This is a good publicity."
Karen frowned. This didn't seem like the company's usual promotional method.
As we headed forward and approached the outer city area, we could hear this song everywhere.
Even as the three of them entered the theater in a daze, the BGM was still playing repeatedly in their minds. It has to be said that the composition of the song was very successful, the melody is catchy and it is hard to forget.
The theater was full today and the three of them were in the VIP seats.
The lights shone on the stage and the show began on time.
"Sing for the brave one, born in the cold, dark cave..."
Luke closed his eyes: "Did I see a ghost?"
The song has clearly stopped playing in my mind.
Lillian: "It's not an illusion, look at the stage."
Luke opened his eyes and saw a woman in a flowing black dress dancing on the stage. It seemed to be a musical drama with a singing and dancing element, and the woman played the role of the wind. The black skirt, which was more than ten meters long, really swayed in the wind.
Then the woman left the stage and the lights dimmed. When they came back on, a big egg appeared on the screen.
Lujia was extremely shocked: "This can't be played by a three and a half year old?"
Lillian really had no idea. She bought tickets for a theatre company and had no idea what she would see in person.
A gentleman nearby has already put on a mask of pain: "If it weren't for supporting Miss Norris, I would never buy a ticket."
Loris is one of the most famous actors in the drama troupe.
The people in the back seats echoed: "The theater will be performing this play for the next month. If you don't buy it, you won't be able to see Loris for at least a month."
Luke looked at Karen in surprise. He didn't expect that he had done so much.
Karen was very serious: "It has nothing to do with the Chamber of Commerce."
Not to mention how much it would cost to book the largest theater in the holy city, just buying out a well-known theater troupe's performance for a month would be an astronomical figure.
"The time doesn't match up either. It takes at least ten days to edit a play."
What's more, it has to rehearse, release, review, etc. "The Three and a Half Years Old Group Pet" has not been on the market for that long.
After hearing some of his mumblings, the gentleman explained, "You just entered the city, right? This is the work of the Dragon Clan. Not only did they spend a huge amount of money to book a group, they also gathered the most elite musicians and playwrights... Anyway, a lot of people, rehearsing a play overnight."
Damn dragonism!
When he heard that it was his rich reader, Lujia straightened his back immediately: "As expected of the Dragon Clan, someone will pay for this."
“No, some people really like it.”
The corners of the gentleman's eyes twitched wildly, and at this moment, a cane was stretched out from the side and tapped his knee warningly.
The old woman sitting next to him glared at him sternly and signaled him not to speak.
The gentleman had a hard time expressing his feelings, and mouthed, "Not only to support Loris, but my mom also loves the three-three-and-a-half-year-old."
This time Karen understood immediately.
Same world, same mother.
Luke observed after hearing this and saw that the special seats in the front row were full, with a group of noble ladies watching the stage attentively.
Women seem to be naturally more tolerant and empathetic.
Having gone through the noisy age when even children and dogs disliked them, the little monster was so well-behaved in their eyes that it was like a good medicine to heal their souls.
A play lasts about two hours, and the image of the cub is performed by the actor wearing a special 'shell'. The overall performance is quite good, at least the main plot is performed.
I have to praise the professional capabilities of the well-known theater troupe, which can accurately convey emotions through actions.
The play finally ended, and the gentlemanly man sitting next to him couldn't wait to help his mother leave.
The old woman was dissatisfied: "You have grown up from a little kid."
The gentleman was speechless: "Don't you see what talent your son has?"
Luke finally stood up, resting his hand on his chin in deep thought.
Nowadays, strength is respected among the top leaders on the mainland, and those with talent are naturally superior to the ordinary people, so there is no sense of substitution.
When books, variety shows, movies, etc. become popular, he wants to sell them at a low profit but in large quantities, at least to enrich the spiritual life of the people.
After leaving the theater, the three of them enjoyed the fresh air.
Finally, the brainwashing melody was dispelled again. When they looked up, they saw a super-large cub printed on a building in the distance. There was an airship flying overhead, and it also had "Group Pet Three and a Half Years Old" written on it in various languages. Even if they passed by a booth betting on the pharmacist competition, the stall owner would say, "I wish you a successful bet, just as lucky as the cub in Three and a Half Years Old."
In addition to the opera, the dragon clan also bought several buildings and contracted the advertising space for the products of the dwarves who came to promote the new airship technology as well as various popular stalls.
"Youlong threatened to give the author 100 million."
The stall owner's words made Luke's heart beat faster.
Lillian whispered, "Didn't the law enforcement captain say that the dragon is with the saint? We can go to the door to block the dragon. We still have time to ask for money."
Lujia looked at her deeply, and it was not only about blocking the dragon, but also about having a face-to-face encounter with the devil.
"No, I only earn what I deserve."
The nature of the matter changes if he takes the money directly. At least in the relationship between the author and the reader, he has to be equal to the dragon clan.
Lillian said seriously: "Luke, you have become ugly."
Although he was wearing a mask, one could feel that the face underneath the mask became hideous at this moment.
"Wealth... nobility cannot corrupt, power and might cannot... bend."
Lujia took a step with difficulty, his back looking haggard, as he moved towards the guild hall.
On the way, he met many equally ferocious people. They were all dissatisfied with the three-and-a-half-year-old literature and could not stand the fact that the Dragon Clan was rich, and they could see fan activities cheering them on everywhere.
They can only plug their ears and refuse brainwashing.
Throwing money always works. The ladies in the inner city actually went to vote, and there were also some people who admired the strong and believed that something the dragons liked must have its value. In a very short period of time, the little monster jumped to the top of the list of the most popular characters.
In short, the popularity of Luke's book has been completely increased.
Luke himself was not much amused.
When he returned to the guild hall, he was still heartbroken over the loss of 100 million.
“One hundred million…”
Feather Pen had had enough of his heart-wrenching wails and said coldly, "It's just 100 million?"
"You are so rich, of course you don't know the suffering of the lower class!" Lujia was about to twist on the bed, but soon reacted: "I almost forgot, you don't have any money now, and your diary has been dug out and sold."
“…”
The author has something to say:
Excerpt from Luke's diary:
One hundred million can’t buy my self-esteem, my backbone, or…
I can't buy your tough talk. ——Alex.
Happy New Year, Happy New Year, I wish you all a happy New Year~
One hundred small red envelopes will be dropped randomly, wish you all a happy new year!
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