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"So this is the Flying Feather Star Domain..."
After landing on ’White Feather-α’ star, Tilan looked around and couldn’t help but exclaim.
Unlike the expected metropolitan cities, filled with streams of traffic and crowds, the architecture on this planet could be described as elegant and magnificent.
Or rather, this was a planet full of wonders that unleashed the imagination of the people of this era.
As one of the wealth and material-rich Central Star Domains, the pursuit of aesthetic appeal and conceptual designs took precedence in the cities of the Flying Feather Star Domain, rather than layout efficiency or maximized economic utilization.
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The city ’Sapphire Lake’ in front of them was a perfect example. The shape of the entire city resembled a squeezed ellipse, forming a beautiful S curve. From high above, the city looked like a deep blue sapphire set into the ground, level with the horizon.
This gigantic ’sapphire’ had a hollowed-out, enormous lake in the center, covering about 30,000 hectares. Many rare aquatic Transcendent creatures lived within. Surrounding the lake, underground structures glinted like the frame of a mirror, shining with a silvery light only revealed to be the reflection of countless glass walls upon closer inspection.
The silver glass structures on the sides stood like walls of a city, hundreds of floors high, encircling the entire lake. Broad thoroughfares within housed continuously shuttling hover cars, while at the top there were trains circling above the lake’s surface.
"Living here must be novel, like dwelling underwater. Every morning, you could see the sunshine filter through the surface and light up the room," Audrey explained to Hexia.
"Moreover, within the central Sapphire Lake, there are also rare mermaids living," she added.
Mermaids, beings with human upper bodies and fish tails, were also a branch of humanity, or rather said to be life forms with a higher level of evolution. They could go long periods without food or drink, absorbing nutrients and electrical energy directly through their skin to maintain their activities. Read chapters at freewebnovel
Moreover, their perception of sound waves was broader and more acute than humans, giving them a natural advantage in music. In human society, the mermaids mostly worked as singers, musicians, or experts in AI and electronics.
The shuttle they were on landed between the high-rise buildings at the edge of ’Sapphire Lake,’ then the three of them disembarked onto a platform between the towers.
Once on the ground, Tilan turned back to gaze at the lake. The 300-meter-tall transparent walls kept the lake water separate from the adjacent buildings. In the space between, a variety of shuttles, hover cars, personal Levitation motorcycles and so on wove in and out. Blue waterlight rippled, spreading across the underground plaza and the surrounding structures.
The immense lake was not pitch-dark but filled with floating orbs of light, akin to miniature suns. Even from a distance, one could see the many varieties of fish swimming about, as well as the occasional mermaid.
"This city is a gathering place for the ’Mermaid Clan,’ with about a hundred thousand mermaids living in the lake," Audrey informed Tilan.
In the early days of the Federation’s establishment, some mermaids joined, but it’s estimated that a large number of mermaids still lead a nomadic life within the Milky Way, staying away from the centers of civilization and rarely interacting with the outside world, preserving their own culture and habits.
"There’s a music theater in the lake, run by the mermaids, where you can enjoy their performances. However, most of the mermaid clan don’t like crowded places. They seldom appear in public, so it’s more common to see them here," Audrey explained.
"Would you like to go and listen, Tilan?"
"Yes, I would."
Seeing Tilan agree, Audrey smiled, partly amused. She was beginning to see that this young girl had little interest in expensive and flashy clothing and jewelry, the Transcendent Sequence advancement resources that most people cared about did not seem to excite her much, but when it came to music and history, she was quite attentive.
"Then let’s get settled first. I have a place here, right by the lake with a nice view," Audrey said.
Afterwards, Audrey led Tilan to drop off their luggage, they had lunch together, and didn’t head to the ’Shell Grand Theater’ in the middle of the lake until the afternoon.
Standing in the elevator that went straight to the bottom of the lake, the two could see pink, light yellow, and blue fish swimming past the glass, and occasionally one or two beautiful mermaids waved at them.
Once they arrived at the theater at the bottom of the lake, they found their designated seats and, along with thousands of other spectators, patiently waited until the lights above the theater dimmed.
Soon, the ceiling that blocked the view retracted and opened up, revealing mermaid dancers swimming above. They started from the outer circle of the ring-shaped theater and headed towards the center, clothed in garments as sheer as gossamer. When they reached the middle, a pure white ripple spread out. The theater lights brightened, and one after another, the mermaids positioned themselves in the water, each holding a variety of musical instruments, beginning their performance for the day.
The special instruments remained sonorous even underwater, and the sound traveled through the water waves, reaching the ears of the audience seated beneath the glass floor, invoking a feeling of listening to the prolonged song of whales in a serene sea depth.
Unlike the rock and energetic tunes popular on the Star Web, the mermaids played music of a completely different style and mood, as if drifting alone in the distant and cold expanse of space, looking back at the increasingly distant stars, and then journeying step by step into the dark faraway.
Filled with nostalgia and melancholy, there was nonetheless a firmness and resolve hidden within these emotions, making the music undulate and surge, evoking myriad feelings that ebbed and flowed in the hearts of the listeners.