The Dawn of the New World

Salome walked along the left path that snaked through different areas, further dividing into smaller streets and pathways. The scenery kept changing as did the designs of the surrounding buildings that looked older and more traditional the further in he went.

It was almost like a walk through time itself, through the history of the Beast World and its many different eras that were represented by various architectural designs to Salome's left and right.

But as if guided by an unknown force he didn't stop even for a second and kept walking until the singing got louder and louder.

Zhurong who was in his embrace opened his eyes a couple of times to glance around but otherwise acted as if he couldn't hear it at all, or maybe he really couldn't.

If observed from a birds-eye view, the town on top of the Walking City was barely 150-200 meters in circumference, a perfect circle. Yet Salome had walked for more than twenty minutes through the twisting alleyways and streets while every few steps the buildings around him would completely change, never to be seen again.

His eyes had become dull, completely losing their luster. It didn't even look like he was awake but his feet didn't pause for even a single moment.

In the extra-large woolen coat that Hao Xuan had fashioned for him from a random beast hide that was laying around in his storage space, he looked like a gangster from afar, especially with Zhurong in his embrace.

The singing got even louder until it sounded like it was just a few meters away around the next corner but soon as Salome would turn towards it, it would disappear, reappearing from somewhere else.

Salome strode across the many pathways, one foot after another, onward and outward. It was only after another 35 minutes that did his feet came to an abrupt halt.

Shaken awake from his nap by the sudden change in the rhythm, Zhurong opened his eyes and looked ahead.

Somehow, they were standing on top of the roof of the Church of Light that was located at the edge of the town, in front of the original two pathways from which Salome had gone left.

In front of them was a girl, sitting at the edge of the roof with her feet dangling in the air, swinging back and forth as she hummed a melody for all to hear. She was dressed in a modern black and white dress that looked quite expensive, even giving off a faint energy of its own.

Clarity returned to Salome's eyes and he suddenly woke up, looking left and right in confusion until he saw the girl. He took a careful step forward but stepped on some leaves, informing the girl of his presence.

The singing stopped and she turned around halfway with a surprised expression, "Oh my, I'm sorry. I thought no one was in the city. Did I disturb you?" she asked standing up.

"N-No," Salome awkwardly shook his head left and right before swiftly turning away.

One look was enough to turn his entire face beet red. His heartbeat increased by several folds, threatening to jump out of his very chest.

Salome had been staying with Hao Xuan ever since he first came to the Walking City. He had seen Ceni and numerous other beautiful princesses and holy daughters but none of them even deserved a second glance from him.

Yet the girl that was standing in front of him at this instant could probably make his heart stop with a single smile if she wanted.

And she definitely was beautiful, although not at the level of Ceni who the majority of the male AND female population would fall for. But then again, beauty was in the eye of the beholder and in Salome's eyes, no one was prettier than this unknown girl right now.

"Do you live here?" the girl leaned forward to get a better look at the shy man in front of her, "I don't sense any Qi from you," she said with a cheeky wink.

He nodded, "Salome lives over there," and pointed at the lake that was barely visible from the roof. The girl followed his line of sight, squinting her eyes to look for it.

"Oh, that far?" she turned around and looked behind Salome warily, at a building not far away.

That was the only other building in the entire town that looked better than the Church of Light and at this very moment two silhouettes could be seen sitting by the window.

"Looks like they are still busy," she mumbled before swiftly reaching out and grabbing Salome's hand before he could dodge.

"Can you show me around? My brother rarely ever lets me go by myself so I want to make use of this opportunity. Please? Hmm?" she asked with wide, doe eyes that immediately melted Salome's heart into a puddle.

"Ungh," he nodded, getting a quiet jump of elation and a sweet smile in return.

***

Several hundreds of kilometers away, Hao Xuan pulled himself out of the muddy ground.. His body was covered in bloody wounds and now that even the nanotech had ceased working, he looked like a walking corpse, even worse than some of the undead that were running towards him.