Inside The Black Mist

Two people stood beyond the door.

Dongyan recognized one of them, the Deputy Commander of their Collection Team, Luo Hao, an officer of the Upcivil Army.

The man, with a slightly balding head and thinning hair every year, was a respectable gentleman. He was due to retire in seven or eight years. Most times, Luo Hao was seen to be friendly, but now he looked furious.

His overweight body struggled to squeeze into the narrow dorm, and then he rushed over at a speed unsuitable for his size.

He grabbed Dongyan and slapped him hard.

"What are you doing? How dare you treat Mr. Tianyang like this?! Apologize right now!" The Deputy Commander's roar echoed in the absent dorm.

Dongyan and the other person were stunned.

Mr. Tianyang? Apologize?

Did they mishear?

Tianyang looked at the other person outside the door, a middle-aged man with a firm face and slightly gray hair, Ling Feng's deputy.

He had introduced himself when he came to deliver something. Tianyang recalled his name as Lin Yang.

The Deputy Commander's attitude should be caused by Lin Yang's appearance.

And it was indeed the case.

Otherwise, Luo Hao wouldn’t be so angry. Neither the Ascenders nor the Night Walkers were opponents that the Collection Team could provoke.

Luo Hao was glad he came early; otherwise, if Dongyan and the other dormmate assaulted Tianyang, Night Walkers would give the Collection Team a hard time.

Seeing the two soldiers still standing there, Luo Hao displayed even more anger, "Don't let me say it a second time; apologize to him!"

"Sorry, Mr. Tianyang."

"Louder!"

"Sorry!"

After a few more apologies, Luo Hao smiled and said, "Mr. Tianyang, is this alright?"

Tianyang knew Lin Yang had something important to discuss with him and didn't want to argue with Dongyan and the others, so he nodded.

Luo Hao immediately called in several soldiers and detained Dongyan and the other man (ED: Still no name for dear Mr. Other person welp). This action showed that the relevant department was already handling the matter for Tianyang.

After the Collection Team left, Lin Yang came in and handed a box to Tianyang. "Your new identity card is in here. The application for the apartment dormitory in the Upper District has been received and should be arranged for you in one to two weeks."

"Also, Mr. Ling Feng has made an appointment for you at the Fortress Medical Center for an electronic eye installation surgery. If you want to upgrade to a higher level, you must pay for it yourself. You may take the hyper-speed train back to the fortress. I took the liberty to book a seat for you. Please pack up and head to the station."

"Rest in the fortress for a few days, and if there is a new task, I will let someone notify you."

Tianyang saluted. "Yes, sir!"

Lin Yang nodded and left the dorm.

After Lin Yang left, Tianyang shouted with joy. He moved to pack his luggage before heading to the base station. He boarded a hyper-speed train to the rear base where Clough's Gate was located, passed the simple boarding check with the Ascenders' dedicated passage, and arrived near Clough's Gate.

This black steel arched gate was wide open, with vehicles and pedestrians passing through it, shuttling between the Inverse Universe and the fortress.

On the other side of the gate, the light was bright, in sharp contrast to the dimness of the Inverse Universe.

Tianyang took a deep breath and walked towards the gate, picking up his pace until he finally entered the light.

Crossing between two worlds always gave him a wonderful feeling, like walking out of a waterfall. After getting used to the light outside the gate, Tianyang spotted the transfer platform of the fortress.

This huge transfer platform used to be an empty mountainous area before the fortress was built. One day, No. 127 Clough's gate quietly appeared, and after its discovery, a fortress city was built.

Most fortress cities were formed in this way.

Tianyang's hometown, the Sky Tower, was relatively young compared to other cities, with a history of just over a hundred years.

Therefore, the various buildings and equipment in the Sky Tower were still fresh and full of vitality.

Tianyang carefully avoided various vehicles, especially heavy transport trucks carrying building materials. They were like steel beasts, constantly delivering massive resources into the Inverse Universe to support the construction of the third outpost base.

In addition, he also avoided some people wearing strange clothes. They had no uniform clothing or equipment and they emitted a dangerous aura.

They were Prospectors.

Each Inverse Universe was so vast that no fortress city could fully explore it. Therefore, there were Prospectors, a profession where these fearless guys would always gather in groups and rush into the Inverse Universe, risking their lives to search for treasure that might not even exist.

The fortresses used their help to improve the map info in the Inverse Universe. At the same time, any benefits they obtained from the Inverse Universe must be paid back to the fortress by twenty percent.

Even so, the prospectors still continued to flock in, and some lucky ones among them stimulated more people to join this dangerous industry.

Tianyang's home was in the Lower District, so after leaving the transfer platform, he boarded the tubular city train.

This was an important means of transportation between the various districts, after all, not everyone could own a private vehicle. Nor could anyone drive around the fortress as they pleased.

Therefore, the tubular city train, which circled every 15 minutes, became the preferred mode of transportation for city residents. Of course, the train couldn’t reach every corner of the city. Take the Lower District as an example; the train only had three stations there.

After getting off the train, people had to rely on themselves to explore the area of the district.

As the train passed the outer orbit of the Upper District, through the window, one could see an almost boundless sea.

The Sky Tower was built near a bay, which was a rainy area and where sunny days were rare.

Tianyang looked out the window and saw the sea illuminated by the bright sun, shimmering like it was covered in jewels. This was his favorite scene. Every time he looked at the ocean under a clear sky, it was as if all his troubles vanished into thin air.

Suddenly, the light outside the window dimmed. Tianyang knew that the train had entered the Sky Tower's top corridor.

Due to the rainy climate, the city area of the Sky Tower had large circular skylights. When the weather was clear, they would retract their covers to let sunlight enter the city.

During the rainy season, the streamlined skylight design could discharge rainwater, reduce wind load, and protect the buildings in the city from the onslaught of storms.

There were also many rainwater collection pipes on the circular skylights. The collected rainwater was sent to the water desalination plant. Which was then distilled and purified before being transmitted to various city areas for residents to use.

After the train left the top corridor, a strong beam of light shone blindingly. Tianyang could barely open his eyes. It was the reflection of the windows of the observation towers on the skylights.

Below the observation tower were rows of turbine turrets, symbolizing military force. The multi-functional track at the bottom ensured free movement.

As the observation tower and turret array gradually receded, the train entered the tunnel, indicating that the Upper District was far away. The train was heading towards the middle and lower levels of the fortress.