Chapter 253: Balance at Both Ends 34
Kui Xin has already searched for relevant information about Fusgong City online and knows what kind of city it is.
Fusgong City, close to the Federal Administrative Center, undoubtedly sits at the top of the pyramid in terms of both economic and political status.
“We’re currently… in the suburbs of Uri City,” Kui Xin checked the coordinates on her wrist device, “We’re still over two thousand kilometers away from Fusgong City… Ugh, that’s far… Let’s rest first.”
“Is using an S Rank Spatial Vortex physically exhausting?” Ambereye asked.
“Yeah, it really is,” Kui Xin sighed, “Using a vortex once is fine, but if you do it consecutively, you’ll start to feel tired. The physical cost depends on the distance; the farther you go, the more stamina you need. Of course, going a shorter distance isn’t too much trouble.”
“That makes sense… After all, each vortex crosses nearly four hundred kilometers,” Ambereye said, “If it were Night Cicada, he wouldn’t be able to keep it up after using his powers so many times today.”
If Kui Xin hadn’t sent Scalpel and others to Hei Hai City, she and Ambereye could have traveled even further. Unfortunately, powerful abilities come with high costs. If Night Cicada uses the vortex too many times, he has to carry an oxygen tank. Kui Xin’s physical condition is much better than his; at least she still has some energy left.
From White Whale City to Hei Hai City, Kui Xin used the Spatial Vortex six times. Switching from Hei Hai City to Fusgong City is expected to require twelve uses of the vortex.
White Whale City is actually located in a relatively central position, with similar distances to both Fusgong City and Hei Hai City, but Hei Hai City is farther from the Federal Administrative Center, being a coastal city while the latter is located in the inland center.
“It’s already eleven-thirty; let’s eat,” Kui Xin said, sitting down on the ground and pulling out prepared food from her equipment bag to take a bite.
Ambereye also sat down and took out her prepared food to eat.
“I estimate it will take me six hours to recover,” Kui Xin said.
Ambereye responded, “Okay, I’ll take over the watch. You can rest first.”
After finishing her food and hydrating, Kui Xin leaned back against a large rock at the roadside and closed her eyes to rest.
The sun was a bit strong at noon; they were sitting in the shade of the rock, but as time passed, the sun gradually moved around, and the intense sunlight was about to shine on Kui Xin’s face.
Ambereye was uncertain whether Kui Xin had fallen asleep, so she didn’t wake her; instead, she took off her backpack, stood up, and moved to face the sun, using the backpack to shield Kui Xin from the sunlight.
A few hours later, the sunlight was no longer intense.
Ambereye took the backpack off her head, and Kui Xin also ended her rest.
“Let’s move on,” she said, stretching her limbs as her joints cracked audibly.
The Spatial Vortex was opened again, and they proceeded toward their next planned coordinate point, moving purposefully toward Fusgong City.
……
The architectural landscape of Fusgong City was a completely different sight.
“Finally, a subway…” Kui Xin muttered to herself. “Neither Hei Hai City nor White Whale City has subways; they only have Hover Trams. White Whale City doesn’t even have electric trams.”
Ambereye replied, “The transportation here is divided into above-ground and underground sections; there are both Hover Trams and subways. I came here once a long time ago.”
“You guys call it a subway? We call it a ‘subway train’ here; the terminology is pretty similar,” Augus said. “Different cities have different transportation methods, dependent on their geographical locations.”
Many cities in the Federation have a long history, and some did not consider future development when they were first built, resulting in incomplete transportation planning. Another reason is that when these cities were built, the Federation’s technology wasn’t advanced enough to ignore geographical environments.
Hei Hai City has no underground transportation because it is a coastal city prone to heavy rains; subways can easily flood, and drainage issues can cause certain problems. Therefore, Hei Hai City took a different approach and built Hover Tram tracks that span the entire city.
White Whale City initially developed its mining industry, with a unique soil type and being located near polar regions where permafrost made excavation difficult, making the cost of building underground transportation too high. Hover Trams wouldn’t work there either, as most of the year it is winter, and ice can accumulate on the tracks, which is costly to remove. As a result, the streets of White Whale City are exceptionally wide, and there are layers of overpasses built to alleviate traffic pressure.
With the Federation’s current technology, it is possible to forcibly construct above-ground and underground transportation systems in coastal cities and polar regions, but the cost of urban renovation is too high. Although the current transportation routes are under pressure, they are still usable, so there’s no urgency to build a new system, leading to delays in planning.
Augus explained, “Fusgong City is the most important transportation hub in the Federation; it connects to the Federation and to other cities. If you look at a map, you’ll find that the city with the most centrally located network of transportation routes is Fusgong City.”
“Why isn’t the most central city the Federal Administrative Center?” Kui Xin asked Augus using data manipulation.
“Because Fusgong City was established before the Federal Administrative Center. The Federal Administrative Center is a newer city. Fusgong City could have originally become the administrative center, but there were too many factories here, limiting development, so a new city was built around Fusgong City, which is where the Federal Administrative Center originated,” Augus explained.
“The history of these cities is quite academically valuable for research…” Kui Xin remarked. “If social scientists were to cross over to the Second World, they might write a few papers titled ‘Comparative Study on the Urban Development of the First World and Second World’ or ‘The Impact of Geographical Location on the Urban Landscape of the Second World’…”
“Indeed, these are worth discussing as academic topics,” Augus agreed, “It’s just a pity that such papers can’t be published.”
“Let’s go take the subway… or rather, the subway train,” Kui Xin said to Ambereye.
Using the Spatial Vortex continuously had exhausted her, so she wanted to save energy by using transportation.
“But we don’t have valid identification; how can we board?” Ambereye pointed out. “Once we enter, the city’s transportation monitoring system from the Investigation Bureau will scan us.”
“That’s not a problem,” Kui Xin said lightly.
Ambereye nodded thoughtfully, “Alright then, since you say so.”
The city’s transportation system is managed by the Investigation Bureau, which is under Augus’s control, allowing Kui Xin to wander around the city without worrying about being caught by the Investigation Bureau.
Although Augus can provide them with backdoor access, they still needed to be discreet in practice, especially since Eve was keeping a close watch on her.
The subway entrances on the outskirts of Fusgong City were sparse. Kui Xin and Ambereye changed into casual wear, donned high-priced lifelike masks ordered from a black market doctor, and carried backpacks to pretend they were travelers.
They smoothly passed through subway security checks and identity verification, boarding the train without paying for tickets.
As Kui Xin sat on the clean and spacious subway seat, she felt as if she was back in her hometown in the First World.
Through the glass, colorful advertisements flashed on the walls around the waiting area; the vibrant ads reflected on the train’s glass, casting animated shadows of the people sitting or standing in the train, bathing them in luminous colors.
The train cars were divided into several sections, and with few people inside, the train started moving, making the hanging handrails sway. As the train sped through the silver tunnel, the advertisement walls on both sides blurred into colorful shadows, and Kui Xin felt like she was passing through a tunnel filled with auroras, deep blue and purple hues flowing around her.
“Really beautiful,” Kui Xin said softly.
“It is indeed beautiful,” Ambereye replied, “The cities people built are all quite lovely, but not every part of every city is equally beautiful.”
The beautiful parts are more beautiful, while the ugly parts are more grotesque. The developed are more advanced, while the underdeveloped fall further behind.
After two hours, the subway train reached the destination Kui Xin intended to go—Fusgong City Slum.
Such a glamorous city still has slums, which is why Ambereye said not every part of a city is equally beautiful; in the unlit areas, people live like rats.
As they exited the subway, they found that the escalator was already broken with a sign reading “Temporarily Out of Service; Awaiting Repair” covered in dust, suggesting it had been there for a while.
Kui Xin and Ambereye had to walk out of the underground.
After walking a few steps and rounding a tall building, all that lay ahead were low, gray houses; the dim lights peeking through the gray blocks indicated where the poor lived.
Kui Xin gazed into the distance and, beyond the gray blocks, accurately caught sight of the tall factory buildings.
A nuclear power plant!
Those factories were so conspicuous, reflecting a cold gleam in the night. Kui Xin also saw the “capsule,” a protective cover to prevent nuclear leaks tightly enclosing several buildings of the plant. The area of those protective covers was so vast that she could feel a sense of oppression even from such a distance.
The buildings of the nuclear power plant towered far above the slum structures, like a giant gazing down at ants. Compared to the nuclear plant, the gray houses of the slum looked like tiny pebbles at the foot of a mountain range.
“How big is the nuclear leak protection cover?” Kui Xin asked gravely.
“Each one covers an area equivalent to twenty soccer fields, with a total of two protective covers. Because the area is so large, internal support frameworks are used, resembling those of tents,” Augus replied. “The total area of the two covers is nearly thirty hectares.”
“Wow,” Kui Xin said, “Living here is like being neighbors with death…”
“The initial control of the nuclear leak was timely, causing minimal impact on surrounding areas,” Augus noted. “It’s just uncertain whether any lingering issues will flare up one day.”
“It’s like death holds a knife to your throat at all times, and you don’t know when it will come down,” Kui Xin said.
She withdrew her gaze, looking at Ambereye.
“Ambereye, it’s your area of expertise coming up,” Kui Xin said.
Maybe it was her imagination, but Ambereye sensed expectation and encouragement in Kui Xin’s eyes.
“Don’t look at me like that… Your gaze makes me doubt my own ‘area of expertise’,” he replied.
“Why would it make you doubt?” Kui Xin asked. “Now, the nuclear power plant doesn’t have any sewers for you to sneak into.”
“Alright, I get it,” Ambereye sighed wearily, “I’ll control a small animal to check on the situation… didn’t you bring me along to do this?”
“Split into two routes,” Kui Xin instructed. “One goes into the nuclear power plant to check the situation, and the other stays around to help me find someone.”
She lifted her communicator and sent Ambereye a picture showing the face of Remover 777.
