Despite having secretly observed the entire outline of the shelter through the Nanochanical Insect, when Pei Yan arrived at his destination after two hours and was welcod into the boundary by Miss Sifuer, who had been waiting there, he could not help but marvel at the sight before him.
In one step, he was still at the foot of a mountain under the shadow of the Red Calamity; the next step, as he was brought into the boundary of the shelter, saw him stepping into a completely different world. The bright sun shone down, white clouds floated in the sky, and the gentle breeze carried the scent of flowers and the chirping of birds, creating a scene of harmony and serenity.
As Pei Yan repeatedly compared the two worlds along the boundary line, Miss Sifuer exchanged glances with Raphael beside her, both subtly displaying an imperceptible mocking smile. Though they sched against each other with hidden agendas, they had an innate sense of superiority towards others from different planes, especially those from the Keystone Plane. Pei Yan’s behavior fit the stereotype of a bumpkin from an energy desert, which greatly satisfied their vanity.
"Mr. Shitang, Mr. Shitang...." Unable to restrain herself after a while, Miss Sifuer ventured forward to inquire.
"Ah!" Pei Yan was initially startled upon hearing this, but then he rembered that this was the alias he had previously given to them. He then withdrew his gaze, turned to Miss Sifuer, and feigned surprise and excitent: "This is truly miraculous! Is this the sanctuary you ntioned? Is it a completely independent space? Is there only this one?"
"Yes, this is the sanctuary. There are many such sanctuaries in our plane, providing refuge for my companions during the outbreak of the Red Calamity." Saying this, Miss Sifuer stepped aside to introduce Raphael beside her: "This is Mr. Raphael, the overseer of this sanctuary, and Mr. Raphael, this is Mr. Shitang Longsi from the Keystone Plane, whom you saw on the light screen."
Without waiting for Miss Sifuer to finish her introduction, Raphael stepped forward, lightly struck his left shoulder with his right arm, and bowed slightly, saying, "Hello, Mr. Shitang. I have seen your combat style, and it is truly impressive. As the overseer of the Wooden Shelter in the Forest, I welco you on behalf of the Hell Plane and express gratitude for your actions against the Red Calamity invasion."
"You flatter . One of my purposes here is to gather information about the anomalies in the Hell Realm. What I have done is rely my duty. If possible, I would like to obtain more information about the Red Calamity from you all, and I will try my best to relay these ssages along with your requests back to my plane." Pei Yan responded with a slight bow, smiling without imitating the other party’s gestures.
"Certainly, certainly. Miss Sifuer has already given a brief introduction regarding your matters! Now that you are here, we can talk slowly. Mr. Shitang, you have fought bravely and traveled long distances, so let first take you to rest. We will discuss the details later!" Raphael said as he stepped aside, gesturing with a smile: "Mr. Shitang, it is completely safe here, and the air has returned to normal. You can lower your defenses, or is the air you breathe in the Keystone Plane different from ours?"
Upon hearing this and confirming that the surrounding air was indeed no problem, Pei Yan no longer insisted, relinquishing his chanical state. After a flash of white light, Raphael looked at Pei Yan, who had reverted to his physical form, a flicker of surprise flashing in his eyes before quickly regaining composure: "Please, this way."
Following Raphael, Pei Yan walked deeper into the shelter, and upon truly entering the place, he realized that this sanctuary was far larger than he had imagined. Previously, his Nanochanical Insect had only focused on the populated areas of the town. Now, seeing it, calling this place a paradise was not an exaggeration. As he walked along the path to the town, he could clearly see that there were many non-anthropomorphic creatures doing sothing amidst the plants in the fields along the road, though Pei Yan did not recognize what these plants were exactly. He could easily surmise that it must be so kind of food ingredient in the Hell Realm, perhaps similar to the rice of his world.
And as confird in his conversation with Raphael, Pei Yan learned not only that this plant was called the Persephone, nad after a goddess of the Netherworld and a rather tongue-twisting delicacy, but also that this grain has a quick growth cycle, is easy to manage, and yields a high harvest, making it a very delicious food. Fond of daydreaming, he suddenly thought if the natural environnt here was similar to Earth, he wondered if this crop could be transplanted to Earth. If it were as good as described, it might benefit humanity.
While learning these details, Pei Yan also understood the relationship between the Red Calamity and the sanctuary. This Red Calamity occurs once every month, each ti lasting seven days. During its outbreak, there’s not just a disturbance in heaven and earth, but more like another world overlaying this world. During this ti, apart from the last piece of unstained territory—the Holy City realm—and the scattered shelters in the fallen areas, most of the Hell Plane is enshrouded by the Red Calamity.
According to the speculations of Miss Sifuer and others, if the final Holy City were to fall, it would an the complete overlap of the two worlds, and at that ti, the Hell Plane would cease to exist altogether. The disappearance of the Hell Plane would mark the beginning of the Red Calamity’s invasion into other planes.
Although Pei Yan felt that the invasion of other planes was sowhat alarmist, he maintained a grave expression, continuously nodding in agreent during the conversation. As they entered the town, Pei Yan clearly felt himself becoming the focal point of attention. People walking by stopped to watch, and inside the houses on both sides of the street, there were people constantly peering through opened doors and windows for a peek.
Amidst this eerie atmosphere, Pei Yan was settled into a clean dwelling arranged by Raphael. Raphael, after instructing the Attendant responsible for hosting Pei Yan to serve him well and et his requirents as much as possible, exchanged pleasantries with Pei Yan and ntioned they would discuss more at the evening banquet.
Upon returning to his own residence, while washing his hands, Raphael turned back to ask, "Casro, what do you think of this person?"
"Hmph, truly a bumpkin from the Keystone Plane, asking endless questions even about a simple al. Brother, I think there’s nothing to fear from him. Although his abilities seem formidable, they only allow him to accomplish things in the Red Calamity that we cannot. Without the constraint of the Red Calamity, I believe we could subdue him for a certain price." Casro leaned against the door fra, took a piece of fruit from the tray delivered by a serving girl, and chewed disdainfully.
"Bumpkin, is it?" Receiving a towel from the butler, he wiped his face and casually tossed it into the basin. Turning around, he sat on the sofa, where a serving girl dutifully ca behind to massage his temples. Letting out a comfortable sigh, he tapped the armrest and coldly said, "Casro, do you rember what the person who sat in my position before called us?"
Upon hearing his brother’s words, Casro, who had been wearing a carefree expression, imdiately beca serious, stood upright, and lowered his head to solemnly say, "Bumpkins."
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