Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The Royal Hawaiian Hotel was located in the heart of Honolulu’s sightseeing and commercial district.
In Hawaii, where municipal buildings were strictly controlled, one could not expect the high-end hotels to be as luxurious as the ones found in the Middle East. However, they had their own advantages — that was, the tourists could see the most beautiful sea in the world directly. Treading on slippers, you could walk on the fine, soft sand and enjoy the pure natural sunshine and air that was just a few steps away from the hotel.
However, do not underestimate these few points that sound insignificant. In fact, in the heart of many people, the superior natural environment could never be replaced by any artificially built luxury.
Twenty minutes after getting off the plane, Zhang Lisheng sat in Alice’s car and arrived at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. When he walked into the lobby, a waiting staff naturally came to ask him, “Sir, is there anything I can help you with?”
“My name is Zhang Lisheng and I’ve booked a room here,” the young man replied before turning his head to look at Alice who pushed the door open to enter the hotel after handing over her Beetle to the parking attendant with three 1 dollar bills. “Thank you for your help, Miss Alice. Since we’ve reached the hotel, I can settle the rest on my own now…”
Even though Zhang Lisheng’s words were tactful, it was apparent that he wanted her to leave. When Alice heard it, she opened her loud mouth to remark, “You want me to leave? Are you shooing me away?”
Zhang Lisheng did not say anything and merely flashed a smile.
Coming across such a rude man for the first time, the beautiful girl’s caramel face flushed with a shade of red concurrently as her face paled. After a moment of silence, she suddenly said, “I’m sorry, Mr. Lisheng. My attitude towards you today after I’ve fetched you from the airport was a little rude. Something irritating was weighing on my mind so… I promised Tina that I’ll be your guide in Honolulu so I hope to keep my promise. I apologize to you. I’m sorry.”
In the face of the gentle attack of the girl who lowered her attitude, Zhang Lisheng hemmed for a while before cooking up a lie. “Miss Alice, the reason I asked you to leave was because I didn’t want to bother you too much. Since you’re willing to become my guide, of course I’m honored. In that case, please wait for me in the lobby. I’ll go to my room and put my luggage down before I come to meet you again.”
“Alright, Mr. Lisheng. Alright,” the girl responded before turning around to walk towards the hotel lobby, to the resting area where one could see the blue ocean through the back door where people were making their ways in and out.
As the two of them parted ways, a huge ship sailed past a calm sea surface in the Pacific Ocean about three to four nautical miles away from Oahu. Several seagulls flew low, only a few meters above the sea surface, picking up the small dead fishes that had just been crushed by the sea.
Without warning, the sea waves rolled in turmoil. Numerous large waves that were formed by the seawater consolidated to become a giant door — that had a height of about six to seven meters and a width about three to four meters — engraved with a complex pattern as it glistened under the rays of the sun, looking like a large piece of blue crystal.
A seagull could not stop itself in time before crashing into the giant door midair. The liquid in its body swelled up several times and caused its body to explode into a bloody mist.
The splattered blood of the seagull slid down from the blue crystal door. When it was just about to fall into the sea, the giant door opened without warning. An antique ship that had multiple parts patched up with wood and metal nails suddenly sailed out of it before falling into the Pacific Ocean.
The antique ship floated quietly on the sea. Not long after, a man who was over two meters tall and was covered entirely in heavy armor stood up from the deck staggeringly with a longsword in his hand.
Swaying, he shook his head before standing still and took off his helmet, revealing a wide mouth and a nose that resembled a lion. Looking around at the currently peaceful and beautiful Pacific Ocean, this man suddenly yelled out madly, “This is the world of those devils! Without magma, flames and mourning grievances, their world is as beautiful and serene as ours! They already have such a world so why, why do they still want to take our home…”
When the lion-like man was howling, a black-clothed man shrouded entirely in a cloak stood up on the antique ship’s deck. “It’s because we’re weak compared to them. It’s as simple as that. Casdia, stop howling and saying such immature words. You and your compatriots have also beheaded thousands of barbarians before snatching their land as well…”
“But they’re uncivilized barbarians! Those barbarians who believe in the evil spirits are no different from animals. We, on the other hand, are civilized people with faith…”
“Have you seen that big ship?” The black-clothed man pointed at the giant ship that was about to disappear on the sea surface before pointing at the wooden ship beneath his feet. With a sarcastic yet sincere tone, he asked, “Do you think that in the eyes of those who can build that kind of giant steel ship that is as huge as a city, just how different you, a so-called civilized person with faith, would be from the barbarians that you’ve beheaded?”
“You’re an insult to all of the people in the Red Iron Nation who believe in the True God! It’s a blasphemy against the Gods!” Casdia could not refute the black-clothed man’s words so he resolved to waving the long sword in his hand out of habit and pointed it towards the black-clothed man’s neck.
The black-clothed man looked at the sword tip that was about to slash at him but he did not even do so much as dodge. Just as he was about to be beheaded, a majestic and awe-inspiring hoarse voice resonated, “Enough, Casdia! This is the world of the devils, a land where the True God’s authority cannot touch. We need help from all of the Red Iron Nation’s people, no matter whether they’re fair or evil. Don’t forget that the Golden Rose Clan has already sacrificed one-third of their Royal Guards and several dozens of their mages just for the sake of breaking through the defense of those devil’s metal machinery and let us step into this world. Right now, there are very few people on the ship who survived the disordered Water Portal Spell. For this reason, we need to cherish every power available!”
The heavy long sword that produced a sharp wind when it was brandished stopped like a straw in the air. Casdia, who was as brave and strong as a lion, gritted his teeth before retrieving his sword. Gradually, he said, “Yes, Sage Altman.”
“Mage Julinas, Casdia will restrain his temper but I also hope that you’ll be able to watch your language. As a non-believer, perhaps you can escape from the watch of the gods in this devil’s land but that is not something to be proud of.” The third person standing on the deck was a hunchback wearing a purple long robe whose short hair was shaved off in the middle of his head.
He looked old but his eyes were gleaming with wise brilliance. His hand was holding a thick book in front of his chest that he did not let go even for a moment.
“Sage Altman, I’m the beloved son of ‘poison’ and ‘acid’. I’m a sorcerer, not a mage… but it doesn’t matter. What profession we have is not important here, instead, what matters is that we have not lost our power,” Julinas replied before spreading his arms and chanted a few incantations. In an instant, a blob of dirty dark green bubbles that were the size of ping pong balls gushed out of his palms.
Upon seeing this green small ball, strong vigilance crept upon Casdia’s face right away. Taking a step sideways to shield Sage Altman, he took out a shield that was the size of a pan from behind him and held it in his hand. The yellow light that resembled burning flames rose from his body all of a sudden, before mysteriously expanding the shield into a tower shield.
“Thank the Gods for the blessing. Casdia, looks like you and Julinas have not lost your power.” Altman seemed to not have seen the confrontation set for a showdown to the death. Opening the thick book in his hand, he looked at the vivid giant ship and seagulls drawn on the pages. “My power of the Truth’s Domination has been blocked but I still have my Enlightenment power. It looks like this world doesn’t welcome the Gods’ power but it is very tolerant towards the human’s own power. Alright, we should go see how many companions of ours are still alive. Then, we’ll go to the shore and blend into the cities of the devils. The Red Iron Nation doesn’t have much time left.”
When they heard the Sage’s words, the warrior and the sorcerer quietly dispersed the mysterious power in their bodies that were ready to burst out any time. Then, they began to count the survivors on the antique ship.
A few moments later, about seven to eight figures stood up on the antique ship’s deck, moving together to throw dead bodies down into the sea along with their armors and weapons.
By the time the ship had reduced its load to the minimum, a few burly men found oars from the storeroom and began to paddle the wooden ship to the distant Oahu.
When the antique ship was cutting through the wind and waves while making its way forward, Zhang Lisheng, who had already placed his luggage in his hotel room and called his mum to inform her about his arrival before freshening himself up, was once again sitting in Alice’s car strolling around the streets of Honolulu.
“Alice, I think we should go to the dock first to ask what time the boat to Kauai will start to operate tomorrow,” the young man watched the palm trees that were flashing across the window as he casually remarked.
“Mr. Lisheng, you’ll have to go to Kauai by plane. There’s only one flight every two days in the morning. In other words, this also means that you can only depart the day after.” The girl who decided to teach Zhang Lisheng a lesson cooked up a random lie.
“By plane? Damn it! I only searched for general information about Hawaii on the Internet. Urghh, then I’ll book the ticket right now.”
“You don’t have to book for tickets. The plane to Kauai is very vacant as well. Most of the people who come to Hawaii will only stay in Honolulu for a few days before they leave. The schedule I’ve arranged today is to take you to the traditional Hawaiian market where tourists would not usually be able to experience. Then, I’ll look for a few friends to accompany you for a barbecue and camping outside of Honolulu City at the volcanic zone to give you a taste of how we local Hawaiians like to spend our summer.”
“Camping? It’s okay for a girl like you to stay overnight outdoors?” Zhang Lisheng’s words had good intentions but it sounded like mockery in Alice’s ears again.
“Don’t worry, it’s just some beers and barbecue in the summer with a few good friends I’ve known since childhood. There are boys and girls and my parents don’t mind at all,” the young girl could not help but remark while the corner of her eyes twitched. “As for you, I’m not sure whether you dare to go or not. After all, I gotta remind you that staying overnight in the volcanic area can be very scary too!”
Zhang Lisheng looked at the girl and intuitively touched the bag beside his leg before flashing a smile. “I’ve read online that there’s a unique biosphere around Hawaii’s volcanic area and that each island is different. I do have the intention to take a look at it.”
When the young man was still speaking, the girl parked the pink Beetle in front of a skyscraper far from the beach. “That’s great, Mr. Lisheng. I’ll help you get familiar with the unique ‘biosphere’ around Honolulu’s volcanic area tonight then. ”
