Heilong-kou (Black Dragon-Mouth/Pass)
Heilong-cheng (Black Dragon-City)
Censorate (Supervisory Court)
Yuling City (Jade City)
Jingui Town (Golden Turtle Town)
Xuanwu City (Black tortoise City)
Yin Jixue had once considered building a suspension bridge at the river or maybe tossing a couple of boats onto the water.
But she didn't currently have any blueprints for boats, and the techniques for bridge-building weren't something she could master overnight. Thankfully, the massive tree trunk being used as a crossing should hold up for at least a few years.
The next day, under her command, the Supervisory Court established the Black Dragon Clan's first logistics center just outside the city—Black Dragon Express.
This would become the future hub for all of Black Dragon City's logistics, and the company's HQ was set up at Black Dragon Pass.
Though Black Dragon City sat at the heart of Black Dragon territory, Black Dragon Pass was the true transportation hub of the demon realm.
From there, it took only seven days to reach the Xuanwu Clan, and less than half a month to reach the Azure Luan and Winged Tiger Clans—and that was just using airships.
If roads were built, travel time would be cut in half.
Don't be fooled by the fancy name "airship." These flying vessels had been around for thousands of years, their origins shrouded in mystery. Even if powered by demon crystals, they were slow—nowhere near the legendary "ten thousand li a day" speeds from a thousand years ago.
Every machine ages. Thousands of years of use inevitably lead to wear and tear.
In truth, "airship" was generous. "Flying boat" would be more accurate—they moved at sea vessel speed.
For now, their slow pace was only acceptable because the roads were terrible. If roads were fixed, no one would bother with these sluggish things—except maybe for sightseeing.
For the Black Dragon Clan, traveling to any other city meant crossing rugged mountains. Except from Black Dragon Pass, which was surrounded almost entirely by flatlands.
But first things first—warehouses and cold storage needed to be built at Black Dragon Pass.
Back when the Shadow Demon Tribe had been soaking in hot springs, they'd already heard that after a few more days' rest, they'd be assigned to mine work.
They were confident about that—what's a little digging? One Shadow Demon could outwork ten ordinary demons. They figured they could earn their homes within a month.
But then, their chieftain was summoned to the palace.
Upon learning that the Shadow Demon Tribe would be in charge of Black Dragon City's logistics, express delivery, and sorting operations, the chieftain rubbed his hands excitedly.
"I heard all new arrivals work in the mines to earn their houses?"
Yin Jixue reassured him, "As long as you have a work record, your hours will count. Housing is based on work hours."
The chieftain immediately stood tall. "Then we'll gladly take on the task!"
However, Yin Jixue soon ran into a new problem—how to package the shipments.
In modern times, you'd just use shipping boxes and plastic bags. But here, sending fresh produce via freight truck to Yuling City meant they needed proper shock absorption.
Then it hit her—rubber!
They could install rubber padding in the truck beds, then layer it with soft, non-toxic leaves to cushion the goods!
Just as the logistics company was officially launched, Yin Jixue received her first order, prompting the system to confirm:
Mission Complete.
And that order? She had Qing Yuan to thank.
When he heard there was a way to send packages across the demon realm, he immediately wanted to ship some toiletries and perfume samples back to his aunties, hoping to earn some forgiveness and avoid being grounded upon return.
And if they liked the perfumes? Maybe they'd send him a little pocket money in return.
Even if Qing Yuan hadn't made the request, Yin Jixue had planned to let him write a letter home and send it in one of the air-shipping crates, along with some fresh produce from Black Dragon City.
She carefully studied the crate's description and discovered that the air crate's refrigeration system functioned via time-freeze—meaning whatever state the fruits and vegetables were in when packed, they'd remain the same, down to the position of the water droplets.
However, when she checked the system shop, the blueprint for the crate cost 100,000 contribution points and included only 100 units' worth of materials.
She winced a little. If the crates got good feedback, she'd bite the bullet and buy the blueprint. If not… she'd pretend she never saw it and go back to using freight trucks like a normal person.
Qing Yuan was very intrigued. He'd heard the crate would fly like an airship to his home and deliver straight to his family's hands.
"What do I need to do?"
A Shadow Demon working the logistics station walked him through the process:
"You need to fill out both your name and the recipient's. To ensure secure delivery, we also need your pupil and fingerprint data. Just place your hand here and look at the box—perfect, it's all set."
Qing Yuan followed the steps, still a bit dazed. That's it?
Felt a bit sketchy. If it got delivered, great. If not, no big deal. Worst case, he'd just say Her Highness the Queen is so kind and beautiful, and get his aunt to plead his case.
The parcel was shipped that very morning, and by the next day, it had already reached the Azure Luan Clan.
In truth, even the logistics staff didn't fully understand what the air crate was. During training, they'd just memorized the instructions by rote.
So once the crate was dispatched, it vanished into thin air. The handler assumed it had simply traveled super fast, not realizing that the crate not only moved swiftly—it could automatically camouflage itself.
As a result, when the crate arrived on Azure Luan territory, no one noticed a thing.
At that moment, in the Azure Luan royal palace—
"Wuwuwu~ Baby is just too thoughtless! I only kept him home to keep him safe, and now he's snuck off with some strangers. Where am I supposed to go look for him?"
The beautiful, tearful woman was Qing Yuan's mother—and also the younger sister of the Azure Luan Empress.
The Empress, ever calm, said with quiet certainty:
"I sense his presence to the northwest. He's likely gone to the Black Dragon Clan."
The woman sobbed harder. "Black Dragon Clan? What's he going there for? Are they going to turn him into an extra dish?"
The Empress tried to comfort her overly dramatic little sister. "They're not as savage as you think. If they still ate their kind, would any of us still be standing?"
If the demons engaged in cannibalism, Heaven's Will would have struck them down long ago—nothing but ash under divine lightning.
"I don't care! The Black Dragon Clan's clothes barely cover their bodies, and they eat raw vegetables! My son's soft skin and tender flesh—he's a walking appetizer!"
Just then, there was a knock at the window.
"Hello! Black Dragon Express—your parcel has arrived. Please sign."
The Empress and her sister exchanged startled glances.
What in the world was that?!
This was the Azure Luan royal palace—how could some random box just fly in?
The Empress waved a hand, and the crate froze mid-air, unharmed, still calmly repeating its message.
"Sigh… I'll go check," the Sixth Princess said, ever the adventurous one.
She carried the box to the table.
"Recipient verified. Blood relation confirmed."
With no visible opening, the large box suddenly opened by itself.
The Empress's pupils narrowed—a sign of alarm.
But a pleasant fragrance wafted from within, and a letter gently floated out first.
She opened it and, upon reading, gasped and covered her mouth in excitement.
"It's from Yuan'er! Yuan'er wrote to me!"
The Sixth Princess peeked over her shoulder, then handed the letter to the Empress.
"Look—he says all this is stuff he bought from Black Dragon City. But I don't buy it…"
While the Empress read the letter, the Sixth Princess excitedly rummaged through the crate, laying out all its contents.
"I've never seen any of this before! Have you, Royal Sister?"
The Empress had only glanced briefly—until her eyes landed on the fruits and vegetables.