Mystery Paradise: Wishing Power Demon

The train traveled steadily on the tracks, leaving rows of trees behind it.

The farther away from the Royal Capital, the simpler the landscapes became, and the cities passed by grew increasingly backward. Especially after entering the Southeast Forest Region, the untouched land and dense forests became the main scenery.

Farrelan looked out the window with a hint of regret and sighed.

Although his family was safe, the achievements he had accumulated over half his life were also fading into the distance.

"Can’t bear to part with the house, wealth, and connections in the Royal Capital?" Dane joked from the opposite seat.

"Yes, I can’t bear to part with them." Facing his old friend of many years, he couldn’t bother to pretend, "Unlike me, you only need to fend for yourself, and your whole family is carefree." Farrelan turned to check the seats behind, making sure his wife and children were asleep before continuing, "Ailan hasn’t said anything yet, but I’m sure she resents it in her heart. She can bear a worse life, but it’s different when it comes to the kids’ future. I don’t even know if Thistlefort needs detectives; maybe I should join you and become a journalist."

Seeing Dane didn’t respond, he couldn’t help but rub his forehead, "I won’t really have to become a lumberjack, will I?"

"Don’t worry," Dane began to laugh, "There are more opportunities in Thistlefort than you think, it’s completely transformed now."

No matter how transformed, it’s just a marginal small city, Farrelan thought to himself. After experiencing the glitz and glamour of the Royal Capital, everywhere else seemed like the countryside to him.

Of course, it now belonged to the Paradise Sect’s territory.

But the headquarters of the Paradise Sect was across the vast ocean. He had also visited Magnificent Castle half a year ago. Even if it was one of the better-developed cities among those expanding, it absolutely couldn’t compare to the Royal Capital.

"Thank you for your consolation," Farrelan replied indifferently, "If there are good teachers in Thistlefort, recommend one for me, please."

As he spoke, the forests suddenly cleared to both sides, and the view abruptly opened up.

Farrelan was momentarily taken aback.

He saw cultivated land all alongside the railway, some piled high with materials, and others already fitted with buildings. This area was so vast it almost stretched beyond sight, and it was anyone’s guess how many acres it covered. Even more incredible was the sight of numerous wheeled machinery zooming back and forth on the ground; even when loaded with a dozen logs, they did not seem to struggle and were far more efficient than horse-drawn carriages.

"Are these steam vehicles?"

Steam vehicles that didn’t need tracks had been made by some companies, but they were slow to start, slow to stop, and required a driver with special Talents, so they never really became popular in the market.

"No, they are all new energy vehicles."

"What kind of new energy?"

"That... I don’t really know," Dane laughed, "It is said that with an energy unit placed within a hundred miles, it can power hundreds, maybe thousands, of machines. It’s something Mr. Zhao developed after I left. So if you ask me what it exactly is, I can’t tell you."

"Ah?" Farrelan was greatly surprised, "It hasn’t even been a year since you came to the Royal Capital, has it?"

Dane acknowledged, "But for the Paradise Sect, every month can bring about earth-shattering changes... so a year is already quite a long time."

As the train approached the urban area, Farrelan was astonished to find that the towering buildings here were almost on par with those in the Royal Capital. Most were brick buildings three or four stories high, and in the distance, there were even "true high-rises" shooting up from the ground, conservatively estimated to be over ten stories tall!

To know, the number of high-rise buildings is an important symbol of a city’s development!

Is this really a small border city of the Kingdom?

He wasn’t dreaming, was he?

"It seems the construction skills of the Paradise Sect have risen to a new level," Dane said with satisfaction, "Mr. Zhao truly is someone who can create miracles."

...Is this something built by a single person?

Farrelan didn’t believe it from the bottom of his heart.

On the surface, it was just a collection of houses, but in reality, it consisted of bricks, tiles, cement, steel, reinforced glass, and the coordination of dozens of types of workers. Without sufficient materials and money, it was impossible to support a city of such scale. Even Shengxia had undergone nearly a hundred years of repair and renovation before it became the magnificent sight it was today, and the number of workers who had lost their lives in the process was in the hundreds.

Although Paradise did indeed present several awe-inspiring wonders at Magnificent Castle, house construction was a different matter. Even if the wonders were magical, houses still had to be built brick by brick.

After getting off the train, the Farrelan family was immediately stunned.

The station here was even bigger than the one in the Royal City, with seven or eight rail tracks and platforms crisscrossing each other, filled with large numbers of people coming and going, making the place as bustling as a market area.

Remembering the reports about the continuous miracles of the Paradise Sect he saw back in the Royal Capital, he exclaimed in astonishment, "Could it be that all these people are tourists coming to sightsee?"

"As far as I’m aware, the proportion of tourists is currently on the decrease," Dane explained, "Recently, a large crowd has been flocking here; some to find jobs in Thistlefort, City of Defense, and Magnificent Castle while others are looking to settle down here. Didn’t we see many vacant lots before? Those are housing districts under construction."

"But you said before that you didn’t know!" Farrelan complained loudly.

"Technical details and city planning are two different things. After all, when I was in the Royal Capital, I was always receiving news from here," Dane bluffed, "Come on, let me take you to your lodging; your house is already prepared."

"My house?"

"Yes, Mr. Zhao arranged it specially for you. As for work, you don’t have to worry. After a day’s rest, someone from Paradise Church will contact you."

It took a while for Farrelan to come back to his senses. "Why didn’t you tell me earlier? I’ve been worrying about how to solve the problem of food and lodging. Well... It turns out you’re doing pretty well here, I thought you were just a reporter for a small newspaper like before."

"Actually... it’s pretty much the same as before. The reason Mr. Zhao will take care of you is because you helped the editor who publicized for Paradise Sect. It doesn’t have much to do with me."

"Oh..." Though he said that, skepticism was evident on his old friend’s face, "Then let me ask you, how much is the salary offered to you by Paradise Sect?"

"If I’m on a business trip, it’s five Serriels a month, otherwise it’s two a month. Of course... if I publish reports, there’s also additional manuscript fee income."

"Are you... sure?" Farrelan found it hard to believe. The pay wasn’t too low, but it certainly didn’t match the status of someone who could chat with the Divine Envoy anytime he wanted.

In the Royal Capital, his monthly income was at least fifty to sixty Serriels, and even with that, he couldn’t see the King whenever he wanted.

Seeing the "What do you think?" look in the other person’s eyes, Farrelan realized it was true.

He was still the Kort Dane from ten years ago, who would never be retained by mere profit alone.

"Actually, this isn’t so hard to understand... You’ll naturally get it after staying here for a while." Dane said as he took over the suitcase from Ailan’s hands, "Let’s go put the luggage away first, then we can have dinner together later."

Farrelan’s house was near the Acalian Sanctuary, and it was a three-bedroom, one-living-room apartment on the second floor. The basic furniture had already been arranged, and by the time the cleaning was done and the luggage was put away, the sky had begun to darken.

It was then that the two children were the first to notice something different outside the window, "Mom, it’s getting bright outside."

Curiously, Farrelan walked to the window and his eyes widened—seeing the entire city light up with splendorous brightness, red, white, yellow, blue... It was like numerous rainbows scattered across the sky.

"What is this..." he murmured as he pushed the door open, walking outside the house, realizing that it wasn’t just his imagination. The city streets, as well as the high-rise buildings, were all lit up by these neon lights... Even as night was about to envelop the earth, this place was colorful instead of monochromatic. In fact, from another perspective, the night in Thistlefort was even more dazzling and enchanting than the day.

This thought was far from his alone.

There were noticeably more people walking on the streets at night than during the day, their lively chatter was clearly audible even from the second floor... Whether they were out to enjoy the cooler evening air or to grab a bite of street food, everyone’s expressions were quite relaxed, seemingly unconcerned about the harassment from the underworld forces, let alone worries about war.

"This is Paradise..." Dane said, appearing beside him at some point, "Just like you, it is my first time actually seeing the night view here with my own eyes, but it’s exactly like the scenes I’ve imagined countless times in my mind. Paradise isn’t just a name; it’s about the land it cultivates and the people... before I used to think that such a world was nearly impossible, but now I don’t think so... You see, the reason I’m willing to dedicate my life to it isn’t so hard to understand, right?"