I Am Extraordinary Alone
Chapter 164 - 162 Earthly Heaven

Chapter 164: Chapter 162 Earthly Heaven

The Airbus 707 soared above the clouds, facing the direct sunlight, flying towards the promised land.

Four hours later, Wei Tianyang looked through the aircraft’s window and saw the country with its long, narrow coastline.

Mountains stood tall, overlooking all beings, and the cities bathed in sunlight, across the land, white buildings with varying heights were akin to waves made of concrete, with many skyscrapers’ glass facades reflecting blinding white light.

As the plane approached the capital, Lazarus, of Yixu, a huge white humanoid statue captured Wei Tianyang’s gaze. The statue was incomparably huge, towering far above the surrounding buildings. With its arms wide open and head slightly bowed, it seemed to be telling a story to the creatures below.

Surrounding that sculpture was a bowl-shaped, open circular basin, and judging by the buildings around, the basin’s area was quite vast. Viewed from a kilometer high, the scene aroused an indescribable sentiment in the onlooker’s heart.

The statue faced northward, with fewer high-rises in that direction, and several plumes of smoke rose on the horizon, marking the border of Azaha undoubtedly.

"You must be impressed too, right? That statue is acknowledged as the tallest and biggest in the world, reaching a height of 420 meters. Just building it cost Yixu a lot of money and time. How long was it? Let me think... it seems it took something like three to five years to finish," said Du Ming, who had walked up beside Wei Tianyang.

"Is the statue their President? Or their founding leader? He must be very important to them," Wei Tianyang said.

"It’s Radagan, the only True God mentioned in the Yixu Holy Scripture," explained Du Ming.

"The only... True God? So this is the land He promised to the Yixu people?" Wei Tianyang laughed.

"According to the scripture, Lazarus is the borderland between Heaven and the mortal realm. Radagan came here, drove out all demons with divine power, then smashed the seal with a hammer and promised this land to the Yixu people. They built their nation here and will pass through the borderland after death to reach the eternal land of bliss," Du Ming said.

"Why only the Yixu people? What about others?" Wei Tianyang couldn’t help asking.

"In their worldview, there are no ’others’. Originally, Yixu people lived in the painful Hell, served only by demons that resembled humans. Later, Radagan was born; he broke the rift, seized back the borderland from the uncivilized demons... Anyhow... the scripture underwent several revisions; a few decades ago, after the Heavenly Falling Objects fell, they revised it again, claiming those items were cast down by Radagan after killing in the eternal blissful land..." Du Ming laughed.

"Alright... then why did they invade Azaha? How did Azaha end up on this land?" Wei Tianyang was perplexed.

"That’s a long story... Simply put, it was due to the split within the ruling class of the religious faction," Du Ming said.

"A bloody betrayal? Hmm? Another version where the struggle for power leads to organizational schism?" Wei Tianyang said.

"What? Have you experienced something like that before?" Du Ming asked with a smile.

Wei Tianyang smiled and said, "No, I’ve only witnessed such things. Thankfully, I’ve stayed out of it."

Half an hour later, the plane landed at Lazarus Airport. Du Ming, carrying his suitcase, walked ahead and reminded, "We’re not welcomed here; better if you don’t talk. I’ll handle them; you just do what you need to."

Wei Tianyang nodded and followed with his backpack.

Unlike Chicken Snake Country, even in a state of war, Lazarus Airport wasn’t closed and was still bustling with flights. The airport was crowded, mostly with locals in white robes and businessmen in various suits.

There to escort them were four Yixu military personnel, their expressions exuding hostility.

Du Ming handed over his and Wei Tianyang’s work credentials, and after what seemed like reluctant verification, they returned them and then led the two men to the airport’s passenger inspection room.

"Stand against the wall," a soldier commanded, pointing towards the room’s wall.

"This isn’t necessary... We are from the United..." Du Ming tried to smooth things over with a smile but was forced back by the steely gaze of two soldiers.

"Stand against the wall! We need to inspect!" the soldier said.

Du Ming, somewhat helplessly, looked at Wei Tianyang, who had his hands in his pockets and wasn’t wearing headphones, so he couldn’t hear what was being said, just that these people were very rude.

"Wei, stand against the wall," Du Ming whispered.

"Why?" Wei Tianyang didn’t understand.

"They want to inspect our luggage," Du Ming explained.

"Why? Do they see us as terrorists?" Wei Tianyang’s face showed displeasure.

"Don’t make things complicated. Just play along for now. We only have four days," Du Ming advised.

Wei Tianyang took a couple of deep breaths and reluctantly leaned against the wall.

Then they watched as two soldiers roughly searched through their luggage and backpacks, turning out the change of clothes and carelessly throwing them onto the floor.

The soldiers searched but didn’t find what they were looking for. They kicked the clothes to one side and told the two men, "Hurry up and pack up!"

Du Ming was annoyed, but still squatted down to quickly pack clothes and toiletries into his bag. After bustling about for a while, he finally got his luggage ready.

He stood up and said to the surrounding Yixu soldiers, "I will report this to the United Council!"

"Suit yourself!" the soldiers were indifferent.

Wei Tianyang took the backpack from Du Ming, and the two were again escorted out of the airport by four soldiers. They boarded the jeep provided by the soldiers and headed toward the hotel in the city area.

On the way, everyone was silent. Wei Tianyang looked out the car window at the streets on both sides. Although Lazarus City was not as prosperous as the upper levels of Fengrao City or Georgetown, it was still considered a wealthy place.

There were many pedestrians on the street, but soldiers armed with carbine rifles patrolled everywhere. These soldiers, both men and women, were equipped with DRH weapons supplied by the Western Alliance. The camo gear and ammo pouches did not betray any specific model.

The jeep meandered through the streets, turning left and right, until it arrived at a small hotel next to the military station.

The four-story white building was very shabby. The two were half-pushed and half-pulled into the hotel, where the narrow corridor only allowed one person to pass at a time. To get past each other, they had to squeeze sideways. Moreover, whether by design or to save electricity, the lighting inside the building was poor, and it was pitch black once they entered the corridor.

Their room was on the third floor, but Wei Tianyang observed that the soldiers and special agents of Yixu were all downstairs. In other words, they were under strict surveillance.

The room was not large, with two beds, an open balcony, but beneath it was a terrifyingly steep slope. The bathroom was next to the door, and that was pretty much it.

Through the balcony, one could see the city below and the water-blue Earth Sea in the distance.

The soldiers closed the room door, leaving the two inside.

Wei Tianyang threw his backpack onto the bed and said, "This is what you called... not very welcome? It’s not much different from house arrest to me."

"Don’t expect them to roll out the red carpet for us. Given the situation... how are you planning to complete the mission?" Du Ming said.

While saying that, he walked to the balcony and gazed out toward the Earth Sea.

"At least... the view is nice here." he said.

Wei Tianyang sighed, and at that moment, thumping footsteps came from the hallway, indicating that the newcomer wasn’t wearing military boots, hence likely not a soldier.

A soldier opened the door and stood at attention. Following him, a middle-aged Caucasian man, dressed in a suit and shoes, entered the room.

He was tall and lean, with blond hair and a face full of professional, fake smiles. He reached out his hand to Wei Tianyang, saying, "Hello, I am the official in charge of receiving you. You can call me Robson."

Wei Tianyang shook hands with him reluctantly, and at that moment, Du Ming came in and said, "Nice to meet you... We’re from the United Council..."

"I know, we have your information. The United Council sent it to us yesterday," Robson said with a smile.

"What was the search at the airport about?" Wei Tianyang was displeased.

"Just routine procedure. We are at war, and we have to prevent any dangerous materials from entering the country. We must also be vigilant against those who come with ulterior motives to spread inappropriate remarks—the damage to our public sentiment can be significant..." Robson said with a smile.

"We understand. We’ve been ordered to come here and assess the situation, to provide reference information for follow-up ceasefire negotiations..." Du Ming said.

"We won’t ceasefire until they’re all dead," Robson said with a smile.

Seeing Robson’s smiling face, Du Ming’s eyes twitched, and Wei Tianyang’s pupils reddened slightly.

"Uh... You just used... ’they’." Du Ming pointed out.

"Correct, we are eradicating demons. This is a glorious holy war and our supreme mission. We will not ceasefire with demons," Robson maintained his smile.

"We need to start working immediately. Could you arrange transportation to take us to the front line?" Du Ming asked.

"Let’s talk about that tomorrow. You just got off the plane, you should rest a bit. Tomorrow, I will arrange for someone to show you around the city," Robson said.

"Uh... Mr. Robson, what I mean is that we’d like to take a look at the front line," Du Ming reminded.

"The front line? There’s nothing to see there. If you really want to see, watch the news. Now gentlemen, I won’t disturb your rest anymore," Robson said.

He was about to turn and leave when suddenly he remembered something and turned back, saying, "Oh, a reminder—since we’re at war, don’t go out at will. The soldiers are all on edge, and a foreigner walking around the city without soldier accompaniment might be mistaken for a spy and shot."

He looked at them with a smile that had a threatening undertone.

"I think this city is quite beautiful, but you describe it like it’s a haven for terrorists," Wei Tianyang said sarcastically.

"This is Heaven on Earth, but only for Yixu people. You are an inferior race, and there’s no place for you in the land of eternal happiness," Robson said with a smile.