Chapter 238: Heart City
"What is going on..."
The Scarlet Moon opened her eyes, only to find herself, at some point unknown to her, back in her own home, lying on the familiar bed.
The events of yesterday were real, and a day has already passed since then.
The memories of this period have vanished without a trace, what on earth has happened...
She lay on the bed, gazing at the ceiling without moving for a long time.
The experience of yesterday remains vivid in my mind, without fading in the slightest... As the person who sought out the Babel Tower myself, I was inexplicably manipulated by a mysterious force, and I cannot remember what happened afterward.
The Scarlet Moon has discovered a piece of paper in her hand, and she doesn't even need to look at it. With a simple touch, she can discern the words within from the subtle differences.
"Please consider the well-being of the vampiric clan."
The Scarlet Moon couldn't help but sneer, knowing full well that this was a threat.
However, she had also recognized an unshakable fact: for the time being, the power of the Savior was beyond imagination, an entity that she couldn't possibly contend against.
For the Scarlet Moon, encounters with such circumstances have been rare for centuries.
In every nation, the most powerful transcendent beings of "the Apocalypse level" can be counted on one's fingers, and without a doubt, the Scarlet Moon, who holds the position of the Crown, is the epitome of top-tier strength.
An existence that can render her so powerless is, of course, extremely rare.
"Why is it like this... Him, or rather, what exactly is He?"
She couldn't comprehend, perhaps, the Savior of the Babel Tower is truly some ancient god, and even possibly the incarnation of the Outer God, possessing formidable powers that are beyond her grasp.
The Scarlet Moon remained silent for a long time, suddenly sensing something peculiar.
She couldn't quite pinpoint what exactly was strange, but both her INT and the sensory perception of her physical body reacted... And so, the Scarlet Moon approached the mirror.
The Scarlet Moon was taken aback.
A large tiger was drawn on her own face with a black water pen!
"It must have been done by that Mu Ling... a trivial play of a human little girl, hmm, only children would engage in such antics."
The Scarlet Moon gently shook her head, causing the tiger drawing on her face to vanish without a trace.
She knew that going to find Mu Ling again would not yield any positive results, pondering for a long time.
The Scarlet Moon decided to visit the school she had not been to for a long time.
Yes, all along the Scarlet Moon had been attending school in Tatsumi City while concealing her true identity.
This is the advice given by Crimson, aiming to prevent her from completely falling out of touch with the times... but the outcome was not very successful.
The school where the Scarlet Moon attends is Tatsumi City's Seventeenth High School.
However, she only visits a few times a month, and each time she does, there is only one thing she does... sleep.
Therefore, the Scarlet Moon is still quite out of touch with the times. So far, she doesn't even know the name of her homeroom teacher and can't remember the faces of most of her classmates.
Due to the mesmerizing ability of her magical eye, the peculiar attendance pattern of the Scarlet Moon goes unnoticed by the teachers and classmates, and everyone considers it to be perfectly normal.
The Scarlet Moon, in a displeased mood today, once again came to school to find solace by indulging in sleep.
Li Yin, the girl who once traded her life for Fleeting beauty.
She sat beside the Scarlet Moon with a complex mix of emotions, stealing glances at her clandestinely.
How wonderful, she's here again... and she's so beautiful as ever.
During this period, the Scarlet Moon suddenly stopped coming to school, causing great concern for Li Yin. However, today, at last, the Scarlet Moon finally appeared, bringing immense joy to Li Yin!
The Scarlet Moon, who had been sleeping on the desk, abruptly opened her eyes and cast an indifferent gaze towards Li Yin.
"Why have you been staring at me all this time... are you one of the people from the Babel Tower?"
Ah! This is the first time she took the initiative to speak to me! Li Yin's heart raced with excitement, and her face blushed.
"Ah? What, what did you say? Babel Tower, is that the mysterious organization in the video? I have heard of it too!"
Li Yin clasped her hands into fists in front of her chest, eagerly longing to have a chat with the Scarlet Moon.
"It's nothing."
The Scarlet Moon shook her head and then turned back to sleep.
After realizing that the other person was just an ordinary individual, she no longer wished to pay any further attention to Li Yin.
Li Yin stood frozen, her initial excitement plummeting, tears welling up in her eyes.
--
Yesterday, Bai Yan received an emergency mission on his phone while escorting the Queen of the Scarlet Moon back home.
Its deadline for completion is much longer than before; it can be completed within three days.
"Emergency mission: Sinister Medicine in Heart City"
This is not a mission within Tatsumi City, but rather a mission that will teleport Core Operators to Heart City.
Starting from now, the activities and scope of emergency missions within "Babel Tower" have fully unlocked Noah's entire map.
No longer will most of the missions and activities occur solely in Tatsumi City as they did before; only a small portion of tasks will take place in other regions.
From this moment on, people throughout the Noah world will gradually come to realize the existence of Babel Tower, and there will be an increase in missions concerning the otherworld realm.
Bai Yan sat on the couch, calmly reading the mission instructions.
"A sinister drug has emerged in Heart City, capable of altering people's minds and inducing rapid outbursts of negative emotions. This drug enables individuals to freely unleash the power of the 'Flow of the Heart·Outsider,' leading to numerous tragic incidents. However, the hidden workshop responsible for manufacturing this malevolent substance is heavily guarded, requiring a formidable assault force to completely dismantle it."
"Please select two Core Operators for battle!"
Heart City.
In Bai Yan's impression, Heart City is a city with distinct Eastern characteristics and serves as a prominent Air Alliance stronghold – one of the few Air Alliance cities where the existence of extraordinary powers is openly acknowledged.
It is the second most populous city of the Air Alliance, with a population surpassed only by the "Supreme City" where the Hundred Kings Assembly is located, even surpassing the third largest city "the City of Time Key" where the headquarters of Time of Chord is situated.
As for the population of Tatsumi City, it can barely squeeze into the top ten among the numerous cities of the Air Alliance.
After considering for a while, he decided to send the Scarlet Moon and Mu Ling.
Simultaneously, Bai Yan treated "Nightsaber" differently by activating the "self-discipline mode," while he chose to manually control the Queen of the Scarlet Moon for the gameplay content.
"Alright, let's begin," he murmured to himself.
"Entering the mission."
"Loading new map..."
The image on the phone screen gradually starts to change.
In the drizzling rain, a modern city, filled with an oriental atmosphere and a hint of punk flavor, suddenly unfolds before Bai Yan's eyes.
Everywhere, there were rows of vibrant red lanterns, nostalgic-style noodle shops, herbal pharmacies, towering hundred-meter tall metal Bodhisattva sculptures, narrow alleyways with dark brick walls in old lane fashion, and majestic golden-red carp-themed long cars slowly gliding down the streets.
Every element here encapsulates a distinct sense of classical charm that sets it apart from the outside world.
Heart City, resembling a living entity, with its intricately woven roads resembling its arteries, and the maze of alleys formed between numerous buildings resembling tiny blood vessels, spreads throughout the entire city.
This emergency mission adopts a conventional 2D game style for level progression, rather than a pixelated art style.
The 2D depictions of "Queen of the Scarlet Moon" and "Nightsaber" also appeared together on the mobile screen.
The charm of these two stunning beauties, even after being transformed into a 2D style on the mobile screen, still captivates passersby and makes it difficult for them to look away.
Bai Yan activated the self-discipline mode for Mu Ling, and now the only controllable character he has is "Queen of the Scarlet Moon."
The new mission mode is "Galaxy City type," featuring a non-linear map exploration gameplay, which is an action-oriented 2D game style for exploration and level clearing.
The representative works of this genre include titles such as "Galaxy Warrior," "Demon Castle," "Ori," and "Hollow Knight"...
"Excellent, the gameplay has instantly been elevated."
Bai Yan took a deep breath, revealing a smile. Regardless of the time, he still enjoys playing games for the sake of the game itself.
Now that there is such a powerful controllable character like "Queen of the Scarlet Moon," it is only natural to manually experience it firsthand.
"Dadadada......"
At the beginning, accompanied by the familiar sound effects, black subtitles emerged on the screen of the mobile phone.
Queen of the Scarlet Moon, "Why am I unable to act freely, while you can?"
Nightsaber, "Because my heart already belongs to the great Savior. Even without being controlled, I am able to complete missions successfully. However, you temporarily cannot achieve this."
Queen of the Scarlet Moon, "Do you not feel any shame when you say such things?"
Nightsaber, "All the glory I have now, it is bestowed upon me by the Respected Savior, and I have witnessed his actions and great vision... I have long concluded that he is a deserving entity to whom I shall pledge my eternal loyalty."
Queen of the Scarlet Moon:"......"
Queen of the Scarlet Moon, "I don't identify with you. Babel Tower is not a member of the bloodline, nor is it of my lineage."
The dialogue ends here.
Next, Bai Yan, controlling the Queen of the Scarlet Moon, moves forward in this city brimming with Eastern characteristics. Following the mini-map, he navigates through the alleyways to find the checkpoint.
Nightsaber silently follows along as the two of them navigate through the old alleys together.
During the journey, the Queen of the Scarlet Moon continues to speak, with subtitles appearing on the screen.
"I am not interested in saving the world, while your master claims to be the Savior but casually deprives others of their freedom. Isn't that a form of hypocrisy?"
--
Heart City.
Within this vibrant behemoth, there are numerous quaint and antiquated alleyways scattered throughout the streets, interconnecting the various structures.
Heart City, enveloped by a gentle drizzle, possesses a distinct flavor unlike any other.
Standing in front of a pharmacy in the "Dark Street" were two stunning beauties.
Even on the street, many people couldn't help but stop in their tracks, holding umbrellas and staring blankly at the two individuals, unable to divert their gaze.
It would have been remarkable enough to have just one stunning beauty, but when two individuals stand together, they create a breathtaking tableau in the gentle drizzle, resembling a beautiful landscape painting!
Like a work of art!
The Scarlet Moon, with an expressionless face, had her red clothes drenched by the rainwater.
She said, "I am not interested in saving the world. Your master claims to be the Savior, yet casually deprives others of their freedom. Isn't that too hypocritical?"
"This is a necessary sacrifice."
Mu Ling's black windbreaker was also soaked by the drizzle. She gently shook her head and calmly said, "Moreover, you will soon receive unimaginable recompense. By then, your perspective will change."
After listening to the response of "Babel Tower's loyal hound," the Scarlet Moon's face remained devoid of any emotion, only closing her eyes.
Allowing the "Savior," whose whereabouts are unknown, to manipulate her body.
She took the lead and stepped into the pharmacy ahead, with Mu Ling following closely behind.
The owner of this pharmacy is a diminutive half-orc, with a height of barely over one meter, believed to be in his sixties. He is adorned in a white gown, sporting a pair of raccoon ears and wearing sunglasses, while keeping a goatee.
"The shop has already closed, please go elsewhere!"
The accent is quite strong.
He was stunned right after he finished speaking, for these two girls in front of him were incredibly beautiful, worthy of being called "astonishingly gorgeous".
Moreover, they appear... far from being virtuous individuals!
