{Chapter 94} Arrival at Star Luo City
"The Crown Prince has arrived!"
A loud announcement echoed at this moment.
The clanging sound of armor colliding could be heard as a large group of soldiers clad in silver armor rushed in from outside.
These soldiers wore silver armor engraved with sun and moon patterns, signifying that they were the imperial guards of the Sun Moon Empire.
Behind these imperial guards were about fifty lightly armored soldiers, all around thirty years old.
Their light armor was not ordinary but rather soul-guided armor.
Their appearance immediately caused Ma Rulong and the others to narrow their eyes.
This was a soul master legion.
Despite being only a fifty-person team, they could rival thousands of soul master soldiers.
The Crown Prince of the Sun Moon Empire, Xu Tianran, was escorted by them to this place.
Jing Hongchen quickly led a group of teachers from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy to greet him.
"Your Highness, the Crown Prince," Jing Hongchen bowed in salute, while the other teachers knelt on one knee.
Except for the ninth-level engineers, everyone else needed to show sufficient respect to the crown prince of the Sun Moon Empire.
Xu Tianran smiled slightly and nodded gently to Jing Hongchen, who also narrowed his eyes.
Clearly, Xu Tianran's arrival was unexpected.
Nevertheless, he personally walked behind Xu Tianran's wheelchair and pushed him to the front of Liuxing and the others.
"Your Highness, the Crown Prince."
Ma Rulong and the others also hurriedly saluted.
Xu Tianran, with a warm smile, said, "No need for formalities. You are all the future pillars of the empire. This time, you not only represent the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy but also our Sun Moon Empire. Therefore, I am here on behalf of the empire to see you off, hoping you return with glory."
"We will surely live up to Your Highness's expectations."
Liuxing, as the team captain, spoke on behalf of the group.
Xu Tianran looked at Liuxing and smiled with satisfaction, "I heard you became the official team captain. I knew I wasn't wrong about you."
His tone was warm and familiar, as if the two were close.
Although Liuxing was indeed quite familiar with the crown prince.
"Thank you, Your Highness, for coming to see us off. It's time for them to depart."
Jing Hongchen stepped forward respectfully.
Xu Tianran's expression remained unchanged, still smiling, "In that case, I wish you all a smooth journey."
Liuxing glanced at the crown prince. Although he was still the same person, there were noticeable changes from the Xu Tianran he knew before.
Not just the physical change from a healthy person to a disabled one, but even his personality had shifted.
Though he remained gentle and approachable, Liuxing keenly sensed a hint of discord.
The current Xu Tianran felt much more dangerous than before his disability. This wasn't about strength but something else.
This could be seen from Xu Tianzhen. In the past, Xu Tianzhen often spoke of Xu Tianran in front of Liuxing and the others, full of pride and affection, clearly showing signs of being a brother-con.
But after Xu Tianran was attacked, Xu Tianzhen rarely mentioned him.
Even when she did, Liuxing could detect a trace of fear in her eyes.
Perhaps even Xu Tianzhen herself hadn't realized that she and Xu Tianran had gradually grown less close.
Though Liuxing was curious about what Xu Tianran had done to make Xu Tianzhen fear him, these were not matters he should concern himself with now, so he didn't inquire further.
This time, upon seeing Xu Tianran, he noticed a hint of gloom in the crown prince's demeanor.
However, Liuxing could understand. Any normal person who suddenly became disabled would undergo a drastic change in temperament.
That Xu Tianran could maintain his outward gentleness was already extraordinary.
Moreover, he was the crown prince of the Sun Moon Empire.
A disabled crown prince ascending to the throne was nearly impossible.
The pressure on Xu Tianran was immense.
Under such circumstances, Xu Tianran still took the time to come to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy to see them off.
His ability to win people's hearts was not to be underestimated.
At least from the expressions of Ma Rulong and the others, their favorability towards Crown Prince Xu Tianran was undoubtedly high.
Even Liuxing felt that although the crown prince was disabled, it wasn't impossible for him to become emperor.
Xu Tianran, despite his disability, remained the crown prince, and there was a reason for that.
After bidding farewell to Jing Hongchen, Xu Tianran, and the others who had come to see them off, the group of seventeen, carrying the hopes of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, officially set off under the leadership of Elder Ma and two other teachers, heading to the capital of the Star Luo Empire to compete!
Their mode of transportation was a large flying soul-guided device, capable of carrying up to twenty people.
Liuxing stood on the large flying soul-guided device, feeling the cool breeze against his face, his eyes filled with anticipation.
Star Luo City.
As the capital of the Star Luo Empire, it boasted an extremely ancient history.
It was also the political, economic, and cultural center of the Star Luo Empire.
Since its construction, it had endured ten thousand years of trials.
Even during the succession struggles between the Dai and Xu families, its status as the imperial capital had never been shaken.
Thus, it had earned the title of the "Eternal Capital."
After four days, Liuxing and the others arrived safely in Star Luo City.
As soon as they arrived, the first thing that caught their eyes was the towering, majestic city walls, reaching a terrifying height and thickness of a hundred meters, constructed entirely from solid rock.
The city covered an area of over several thousand square kilometers, stretching hundreds of miles in both length and width. It was a source of pride for every citizen of the Star Luo Empire.
Many students from other academies who had come to compete were awestruck, marveling at the grandeur of the city.
However, in the eyes of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, these walls were more flashy than practical, pale in comparison to Mingdu.
The thick walls didn't impress them much. Instead, they wondered how such height and thickness affected lighting and ventilation.
Moreover, what was the point of building walls so high and thick?
To defend against ordinary soldiers, a wall of ten meters would suffice. Against soul masters? Well...
Just look at the soul masters of the Sun Moon Empire, each equipped with a flying soul-guided device.
What difference did a hundred-meter wall make?
And no matter how thick the wall, it couldn't withstand a level-nine fixed soul-guided artillery shell from the Sun Moon Empire, could it?
The only thing worth praising about this wall was its ten-thousand-year history of standing firm.
The rest? Well...
Folks, times have changed!
This was no longer the era of cold weapons and soul masters, but the era of soul-guided technology and firearms.
For this reason, as the birthplace of modern soul-guided technology, Mingdu had abandoned city walls, becoming the only city on the continent without walls yet remaining unconquerable.
However, aside from the questionable walls, Star Luo City was commendable in other aspects.
Its architectural standards and urban planning were first-rate on the continent, second only to Ming Du.
Especially the inner city of Star Luo City, also known as the imperial city.
After generations of royal maintenance and enhancements, its scale and opulence far surpassed that of the Sun Moon Empire's imperial city in Mingdu.
As the capital of the Star Luo Empire, Star Luo City covered a vast area, capable of accommodating twenty million people.
During the once-every-five-years Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Grand Competition, countless citizens of Star Luo poured into the city, leading to an endless stream of tourists.
With such a surge in numbers, even a supercity like Star Luo felt crowded.
Every hotel in Star Luo City was fully booked, forcing the Star Luo authorities to requisition some residential buildings and open up official residences as temporary lodging for tourists.
With such immense influence, the impact of the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Grand Competition was immeasurable, especially this year, with the added spectacle of a continent-wide live broadcast!
In Liuxing's previous life, there were even countries that built entire cities just to host competitions.
Compared to some competitions in his past life, the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Grand Competition was, well, just another event.
Although the competition hadn't started yet, the tourists were already buzzing with discussions.
These days, the talk in Star Luo City was all about the competition.
The most frequently discussed topics were the Shrek Academy, which was seen as the lock for the championship, and its rival, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy.
In past competitions, it had mostly been a showdown between the Shrek team and the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master team.
Other academies paled in comparison, with a significant gap in strength.
However, when it came to the championship, almost 99% of people believed it would still go to Shrek Academy.
After all, just look at how many years Shrek Academy had been winning.
Barring any surprises, this year was still most likely to be another victory for the Shrek team.
This was also why Ma Rulong and the others had been so pessimistic.
Across the continent, even many in the Sun Moon Empire didn't hold much hope for the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. After all, they had lost too many times!
Just like certain sports in Liuxing's previous life, people always hoped for a win, but it never came.
In Star Luo City's Star Luo Square, there stood a seven-story grand hotel, the Star Emperor Hotel, a property of the Star Luo royal family.
It had been reserved specifically to host the teams from various countries coming to compete.
As the top soul master academy on the continent and a favorite to win, the Star Luo Empire arranged for them to stay on the top floor of the Star Emperor Hotel, the most luxurious area.