Chapter 368: Mingsha City’s Unconventional Entertainment Venture

Actually, Mingsha City’s traffic lights don’t need modern lighting—a wooden sign reading ‘Pass’ or ‘Prohibited’ is enough! What do you mean by changing the signs? And what type of mounts should be allowed?

Upon hearing this,

Xu Hao waved dismissively.

Although he mentioned traffic lights, he only intended to borrow the idea rather than actually install modern ones.

If they went ahead and installed modern traffic lights, not only would it be inconvenient for Mingsha City, but even the tourists would be displeased.

After all, many visitors come here specifically for Mingsha City’s authentic ancient charm.

“Change the signs?”

Luo Peng’s eyes brightened.

That way, simply hanging a banner at each intersection would solve the issue—just assign two staff members at each spot to check the signs.

“Anyway, give it a try first. If it doesn’t work, we’ll think of another solution. Let’s just get through tomorrow for now.”

Xu Hao nodded in agreement.

In the future, Mingsha City’s traffic will undoubtedly need a long-term plan, especially once the core area opens up—when even traffic lights might not suffice.

“Alright, Brother Hao!”

One night passed—neither too short nor too long!

While many citizens of Long Kingdom had long since gone to bed, Mingsha City remained brilliantly lit.

Outside the core area, staff in the regular zones began working overtime (Mingsha City pays overtime in accordance with regulations and does not violate Long Kingdom’s labor laws) to manage the next day’s influx of visitors.

Sure enough, by 7 AM the next morning, the City Gate of Mingsha City was teeming with people, and long lines had formed at the ticket booths outside.

And that wasn’t all.

The parking entrances on both the north and south sides of the City Gate had turned into massive queues.

Foreign visitors did just that, while locals staying in guesthouses arrived early at the Visitor Service Center. “Hello, I want to go to No.3 Entertainment City. How do I get there?”

A resident guest inquired.

Although Mingsha City had issued a public notice, it didn’t include an official guide for the exact location.

“Hello! You can head to North Street in Qixia Town. At the end of North Street, you’ll find public carriages and other riding options to take you to No.3 Entertainment City.”

The staff member explained while handing over a map of Mingsha City.

“Thank you!”

After receiving the map, many visitors immediately made their way to the Mingsha Metro Station at the City Gate.

Exit A of Mingsha City’s Line 1 is located right in Qixia Town; taking the metro can save a lot of time.

And so it went—after some hustling, they reached North Street in Qixia Town, where they chose their mounts, bought tickets, and walked about six kilometers along Qing Brick Avenue before the carriage turned left onto another Qing Brick Avenue.

This side avenue was a bit narrower than the main Qing Brick Avenue, but its lush greenery far outshone that of the main road.

Looking around, it felt as if they were entering a vibrant valley.

After a mix of ups and downs, about half an hour later, the first batch of visitors finally arrived at Mingsha City’s No.3 Entertainment City.

However, when they saw the scene before them, the group was momentarily dumbfounded, exchanging puzzled glances. “Is this really Mingsha City’s No.3 Entertainment City? How are we supposed to have fun here?”

What lay before them wasn’t an array of modern entertainment facilities, nor a building reminiscent of the ancient-style No.1 or No.2 Entertainment Cities—it was a sizable lake concealed among green hills.

In front of the lake was a small square bordered by white marble railings, with pavilion towers standing at its northeast and northwest corners.

The visitors now stood on the square, with the white marble railing just steps away from the small lake.

A gentle breeze swept over the lake, sending delicate ripples across its surface, while wild birds flitted in the nearby trees, stirring up soft waves.

All in all,

the scenery was flawless, but if this was meant to be an entertainment venue, nothing exciting was evident.

“Seriously, how are we to have fun here? Even if you put a few motorboats or small boats on the lake…”

“Forget the boats—in fact, I’d settle for a few designated fishing spots at the shore.”

“I admit, creating a mountain lake in Mingsha City wasn’t easy, but its purpose is to serve as an entertainment venue.”

Before they could recover their senses, many visitors began to murmur among themselves.

Throughout the journey, they had been discussing No.3 Entertainment City non-stop, and with its long-standing rivalry with Dino Park, their anticipation had soared.

No wonder they felt a mix of surprise and disappointment upon arrival.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please hold on. Get your tickets checked here! In a moment, our staff will guide you through a special in-depth experience.”

As if it were prearranged,

two staff members exchanged a knowing smile before beginning to direct the visitors.

“Ticket check? In-depth experience? What exactly does that mean?”

The visitors were even more puzzled.

“This way, please!”

Without further explanation, the staff member nodded and led the group toward the ancient pavilion at the northeast corner of the square.

“Let’s go! We’ve come all this way; turning back now wouldn’t make sense.”

After a brief exchange of glances,

the visitors followed him.

One minute, then two minutes—about ten minutes later, indistinct murmurs of “What the heck?” began echoing from the pavilion, with both male and female voices making the scene lively.

Before long, as the sun climbed high, over at the Tianchen Culture Headquarters in Haishi and at the Dino Park Headquarters,

Cole sat at his computer, frantically refreshing a forum. “How come there are still no posts about it?” he wondered.

A few minutes later, an increasingly irritated Cole clicked his mouse several times, leaning back in his chair.

Ever since news broke about Mingsha City’s No.3 Entertainment City opening that day, he had hardly slept and arrived at the office bright and early.

He wanted to be among the first to learn what the project was really about.

Yesterday, Deputy Director Adam had been busy reassuring himself,

especially after both Mingsha City and Dino Park trended that afternoon, even driving a surge of traffic to Dino Park. Yet, he couldn’t shake the feeling that trouble was coming.

“It’s almost 10 now. The first wave of visitors should be out by now!”

Taking a deep breath,

Cole checked the time and muttered to himself.

In the past, whenever a new project in Mingsha City launched, netizens or short video creators would quickly post guides online. But now, even at 10 AM, there wasn’t a hint of No.3 Entertainment City.

The only posts related to Mingsha City were about the visitor traffic today.

Some tourists complained that the intersections in Qixia Town were jam-packed, while others mentioned that the Mingsha County traffic police had everyone bouncing uncontrollably. There were even tales of a tourist shoving aside the carriage staff to grab a spot. Not one person mentioned No.3 Entertainment City.

How could he not be anxious? And the longer this continued,

the worse Cole’s unease became.

“What on earth have they done over there?”

Phew! With a deep sigh, just as Cole prepared to refresh the forum once more—Bam! “Boss!”

In the next moment, the office door was flung open and Adam burst in.

“What’s going on?”

Seeing this, Cole froze.

“Boss, it’s bad. The No.3 Entertainment City project in Mingsha City has been exposed. A short video was broadcast and uploaded onto someone’s account.”

Adam’s face turned ashen as he, disregarding any formalities, thrust his phone in front of Cole.

“A video of No.3 Entertainment City?”

Cole’s heart skipped a beat as he picked up his phone to watch the footage.

Seconds passed—then minutes—and as the video played, Cole’s eyes grew wider and his face darker. Finally, he couldn’t hold back any longer and cursed, “What the hell do you call this?”

At the same time, Cole looked up at Adam.

“Many foreign tourists even asked Mingsha City’s staff online, and they said that the project hasn’t even been given a proper name. Calling it No.3 Entertainment City is acceptable, but they might as well call it an Aquarium!”

Adam frowned even deeper.

“An Aquarium? Are you kidding me? That’s outrageous! They’re treating us like foreigners who don’t understand Long Kingdom’s legends. A Dragon Palace is a Dragon Palace, not some damn Aquarium! Disgusting!”

Bam! At that moment, Cole’s frustration finally boiled over and he erupted.

He had seen the video in complete detail.

How can you call it an Ocean World? “Boss, please calm down. The real issue now is what to do next. This video has already got netizens talking about our Underwater World.”

Adam understood Cole’s emotions.

There was no other reason.

Because Mingsha City’s so-called “Aquarium” easily outdid any water park in Long Kingdom. Even he had to admit that Dino Park’s newly built ‘Underwater World’ couldn’t compare!

In fact, they were on entirely different levels.

Right now, both Dino Park and Mingsha City were trending. If in a few days visitors started comparing Dino Park’s situation, the consequences would be disastrous.

“Mingsha City is really going too far! They’re deliberately setting us up! Fuck it.”

However, while Adam attempted to calm him, Cole remained overwhelmed, panic-stricken and unable to regain control.

In reality, Cole had collapsed in fury after watching the video, and online, chatter was rampant—every thread on one forum mentioned Mingsha City’s No.3 Entertainment City.

“I never saw this coming!”

“Yeah! Who would have thought Mingsha City would create an underwater ‘Dragon Palace Ancient Architecture Complex’ complete with shrimp soldiers, crab warriors, Chancellor Turtle, that stunning Crystal Palace, and dazzling underwater lighting effects? Unbelievable!”

“Totally! When I went in, I was floored—I genuinely thought I had stepped into a mythological Dragon Palace.”

“I’m dying laughing! In any other aquarium, you might see sea creatures or even human mermaids, but in Mingsha City’s Aquarium, you actually see a Dragon King!”

“No kidding—the Dragon King’s performance is incredibly lifelike! I heard many visitors lit incense by the lake afterward, promising to come back for rain prayers.”

“One word: impressive!”

“The only thing that doesn’t add up is why Mingsha City didn’t create a Four Seas Dragon King—it would have been much more imposing. Who knows?”

“Oh my god, if I’d known this, I would have bought my ticket to Mingsha City yesterday!”

“I know, I’m so regretful right now!”

“After experiencing Mingsha City’s Aquarium, other Underwater Worlds just don’t compare.”

For a moment,

the forum buzzed with every kind of comment, though most focused on the No.3 Entertainment City project.

“By the way, may I ask—if one goes to Mingsha City now, is it still possible to grab tickets for No.3 Entertainment City?”

After a brief pause, another visitor asked.

“I just checked—tickets for the next ten days are completely sold out!”

“What? Sold out for the next ten days? Then what about tickets after that?”

“Tickets beyond ten days aren’t available. The staff said that for the next ten days, a shoot is scheduled—a filming that will likely take about a week, after which the venue will reopen.”

“Filming? What kind of shoot?”

“It appears to be a recently approved project, a collaboration with Yan City TV to film a version of Investiture of the Gods.”

“So, I’m not getting any tickets for the next twenty days?”

“Haha, you won’t see any in Mingsha City. You might want to check out Dino Park—it also has an Underwater World!”

“Dino Park?”

Many netizens were taken aback. “If you hadn’t mentioned it, I’d have forgotten that Dino Park is also launching an Underwater World. I guess I’ll try that first.”

Little did they know, as netizens continued their frenzied discussions about Mingsha City’s No.3 Entertainment City,

in Haishi at the Tianchen Culture Headquarters, Yang Yuan leaned back in his chair after reading his computer screen.

Only after a while

did he turn to Liu Qing sitting across from him. “First there was Wuzhuang Temple, and now they’ve come up with a Dragon Palace. It’s unbelievable! If only we could use Mingsha City for filming—everything is ready, and it looks far more genuine than movie effects!”

“Yang Yuan, I agree! Mingsha City has plenty of ready-to-use locations. The scenes for ‘The Four Saints’ could be shot in Mingsha Fudi, the ginseng-stealing scenes at Wuzhuang Temple, the Spider Demon scenes at Pansi Ling, and even Sun Wukong’s havoc in the Underworld could be filmed in No.2 Entertainment City. Now that the Dragon Palace is here, even the Dragon King’s scenes can be done.”

Liu Qing nodded in strong agreement.

Ever since they began remaking Journey to the West, although production had officially started with location scouting, progress was painfully slow!

It wasn’t that they couldn’t find willing locations—in Long Kingdom, even the top 5A spots felt a little lacking; real-life scenes didn’t feel ethereal enough, and special effects took away from the authenticity.

Only Mingsha City— the more they thought about it, the more it seemed as if the locations were tailor-made for a mythological costume drama.

“That said, will Mingsha City agree? We’ve had quite a few disputes with them before! If there were no grudges, perhaps negotiation would be possible.”

Yang Yuan rubbed his brow.

Honestly, he now deeply regretted impulsively getting involved with Mingsha City in the first place.

“Yang Yuan, you never know! Our project is a cultural export initiative for Long Kingdom. After the last Cultural Expo, Mingsha City’s sense of national pride was second to none! When Jinlong Ancient City slandered Mingsha City to protect Long Kingdom’s reputation, Mingsha City quietly sent over a Wan Gong Sedan Chair!”

And besides, Mingsha City seems to be short on cash these days—if we quote a high price, it might just work out!

At this, Liu Qing quickly voiced his idea.

“You mean Mingsha City’s big-picture perspective?”

Yang Yuan paused for a moment before saying, “In that case, I’ll call Director Wang to see what he thinks!”