I Am Extraordinary Alone
Chapter 134 - 133: Dragon Lies in Fengrao

Chapter 134: Chapter 133: Dragon Lies in Fengrao

The night passed without incident.

At dawn, a female attendant pushed a cart to them and placed three delicate aluminum lunch boxes on the table in front of Wei Tianyang and his companions.

Wei Tianyang lifted the lid, and the scent that filled the carriage was instantly enticing. At first glance, the box contained fragrant rice, strands of green vegetables, boneless fish pieces, and minced meat—all fresh and tender, not at all like a re-heated instant meal.

Afterward, the attendant took three white coffee cups from the cart; clearly, they didn’t contain coffee but seemed to hold vegetable and fruit juice by the smell.

This was their breakfast.

The complimentary meal was overly exquisite—it was clear that some under-the-table cooking was involved.

The three of them had spent the previous night sitting up in the carriage. Wei Tianyang himself had only managed to rest his eyes intermittently, while Yaha had spent the night sleeping on his lap, and Lin Yanqing had gone to the next carriage to avoid him and taken several calls throughout the night.

The journey neared its end, and on a clear winter morning, the train was traveling across an iron bridge, speeding past one red support frame after another. The roaring great river surged toward the horizon, blending into the pale sky. And in that distant vastness, Wei Tianyang faintly saw the silhouette of a massive structure.

"We are almost there. That’s Fengrao City," Lin Yanqing said.

Wei Tianyang carefully observed the distant mirage-like shadow and remarked, "It looks... so vast, almost as if it’s floating in the air..."

"It’s not floating. Fengrao City is a tower-shaped megacity; the top layer is called ’Lingxiao Palace,’ where the Emperor resides."

"Emperor? The President of Yin Country... Why is he addressed this way?" asked Wei Tianyang.

"Our great Dayin has been established for a thousand years, and under the leadership of generations of Emperors, we have reached today’s position. Each Monarch is selected from among the six major clans, we have a system of aristocratic governance unlike any other country, and naturally, the title of our leader is different as well," Lin Yanqing explained.

"Emperor..." Wei Tianyang shook his head, woke Yaha, and fed her rice with bamboo chopsticks.

"Before entering Fengrao City, the train will make a brief stop... Shortly, three individuals will board the train... You need to communicate well with them and not do anything inappropriate," Lin Yanqing added.

"Hmm? Which three individuals?" Wei Tianyang asked.

"The Venerables in charge of the Three Armies Bureau. They rank just below the Emperor and above tens of thousands, at the very pinnacle of the power hierarchy. These three people, 99% of Yin Country’s population will never have a chance to meet them in their lifetime," Lin Yanqing said.

"I have nothing to discuss with them. I am here only to give testimony at the trial," Wei Tianyang replied.

"They can change your fate with just one word. Opportunities like this don’t come every day," Lin Yanqing said.

As they talked, the train crossed the bridge and stopped in the midst of a vast green field. Outside the train windows, a military helicopter, which had been there for who knows how long, was idling, surrounded by several fully armed regular soldiers of Yin Country.

Wei Tianyang chewed on his meal as he watched three elderly men being helped aboard the train.

After them, the soldiers also boarded, and not until the helicopter slowly took off did the train start moving again.

The atmosphere in the carriage suddenly grew tense. Wei Tianyang looked around; many passengers had silently left this car, and only then did he realize that even the passengers on this train had been arranged by Yin Country.

After finishing their meal, when the attendant came by to collect the dishes and trash, the train was already approaching Fengrao City. Just as when looking at Yunzhou from Yaha’s car, Fengrao City too was a looming giant with skyscrapers jutting out.

However, what left a deep impression on Wei Tianyang was the overall structure of the city itself.

It was not only vast and huge but also developed upwards, with a tetrapod cauldron-like structure enveloping the entire lower city. Atop that cauldron, there was a new city.

And such a structure was repeated a total of six times, with each layer being two rings smaller in area than the one below it. Until the very top layer, Lingxiao Palace, which was small enough to contain only a single, colossal palace.

And atop that palace, a black dragon stretched out.

About 15 minutes after the meal, several men dressed in suits entered and respectfully stood by Wei Tianyang’s side.

They didn’t carry weapons, had amiable faces, and the middle-aged man leading them smiled at Wei Tianyang, "You’ve had a long and arduous journey to come to us. It hasn’t been easy. Our elder would like to meet you, to see if everything has been satisfactory and if there’s anything we’ve overlooked. We have long days ahead, and we wouldn’t want to neglect you."

Wei Tianyang remained silent, looking towards Lin Yanqing, who had straightened her posture, her expression solemn and serious, sitting perfectly upright. She was like a sentinel on duty, only daring to signal with her eyes.

At the same time, the middle-aged man glanced towards the back of the car and hastily announced, "Venerable Qin, Venerable Xu, Venerable Gu have arrived!"

After he spoke, everyone patted their sleeves in a certain direction and then bowed respectfully.

What kind of lineup was this? Was it some special ritual? Wei Tianyang didn’t understand but saw three elderly people slowly approaching.

These three elders, two men and one woman, were all dressed in dark blue brocade Zhongshan suits. Though the style was simple, the high-quality fabric and color indicated their expensive nature. Despite their advanced age, they all exuded vitality. The two old men, one played with two jade walnuts the size of eggs, the other fiddled with a string of brownish beads; and the old lady wore a large gemstone ring on her index finger, her pair of silver earrings also notably eye-catching.

"The youngster seems quite agreeable! You can tell he’s from Yin Country at a glance," said the old man with the walnuts, smiling as he approached Wei Tianyang.

"The space here is tight. Shall we move to the front car?" The bead-twirling old man wasn’t as friendly, speaking sternly.

The middle-aged man by their side nodded and said, "Indeed, I will send someone to prepare seating."

As he spoke, a group of people surged towards the front car.

"Come now, youngster, let’s have a good chat. Whatever requests you have, whatever grievances, you can speak freely," said the old lady in a gentle, laughing voice.

Wei Tianyang nodded. Since the other party had invited him to make requests, it saved him the trouble of asking for help.

He stood up, took Yaha with him, and followed the three elders toward the front car. Lin Yanqing was the last to rise and followed behind him.

As soon as they entered the new car, Lin Yanqing was stopped by several men.

The walnut-twirling elder smiled at her and said, "Comrade Lin Yanqing, your task here is done. Once the train enters Fengrao City, you can return to the Three Armies Bureau and report to your superiors."

"Eh... okay..." Lin Yanqing suddenly felt at a loss and bowed her head in a bow.

When she looked up again, the door to the car had closed, and two stone-faced Inner Guards gestured for her to leave.

A sense of desolation arose in Lin Yanqing’s heart, and she had an inkling that she had lost something. She returned to her seat, and the communication in her earpiece also cut off.

She would never know that this was her last contact with Wei Tianyang and also her first, and last, time meeting the Venerable seniors of the three institutes.

She could have used Wei Tianyang as leverage to rapidly advance within the Three Armies Bureau of Yin Country and enter the vast world of politics, but because she harbored feelings for Wei Tianyang, the Venerable elders saw through their uneasy relationship and removed her from the game.

Four years later, Lin Yanqing was discharged from the army at the age of 35, got married, and had a son and daughter. Yet eight years later, she divorced and spent the rest of her life alone.

Sometimes, Lin Yanqing would think back to the time in 2106, when she first came into contact with Wei Tianyang in Chicken Snake Country. If she had only been able to see things a little more clearly back then... perhaps, both her future and that of the world would have been different...