The unique blue energy reaction, the location and timing of its appearance, and most importantly, the reaction of the two Dragon Hatchlings — when all these pieces of information were put together, Gawain instantly realized what the sentinel captain had discovered: the Dark Blue Magic Mark.
"Where did you find this thing?" Melita also reacted instantly. She stared straight at the tall sentinel captain and asked, "How many more are there?"
"We found these marks in the southern part of the outpost and in a section of hills extending to the eastern inland area. There are not many of them, but they are very concentrated. The scattered area is roughly in the shape of a belt," the sentinel captain immediately replied. "The stone that was affected is basically this kind of stone, but similar marks were also found on some metal wreckage. It's hard to say if it's further away — it's beyond our current control. "
Noretta stood aside and listened with a serious face. Finally, she could not help but look at Melita and asked, "What do you think? These marks … "
Melita did not speak but her eyes fell on Gwen. The latter frowned as if he was thinking about something. After noticing Melita's gaze, he slowly broke the silence. "These marks should be the 'evidence' left behind by the changes in the Deep Blue Network. It may also be the reason why the Young Dragons are resonating and restless in the direction of the West Coast. But now we have no evidence to link the Deep Blue Magic Mark with the Tide-Defying Tower … I can't think of any connection between the two."
Melita subconsciously looked at the tower standing on the sea under the deep night. "So, we are going to that tower next?"
"Not 'we'. You and Noretta have to stay on the Winter for the time being. The other Dragons have to stay too." Gwen shook his head. "Amber and I will go in first."
"You two?" Melita immediately widened her eyes. "The situation in the tower is unclear. Are you sure you don't need Noretta and me as guards? Furthermore … "
"The biggest danger in the tower is not the threat of force, but the pollution of the reverse tide." Gwen shook his head before Melita could finish. "Amber and I have the ability to resist the erosion of the gods, and … I don't know if Helagol or Andal have told you that I have a connection with the Voyager's legacy. Apart from the two of us, any ordinary person who approaches the tower may be contaminated. This isn't something that can be solved with pure strength. "
At that, he smiled, his tone filled with confidence. "And speaking of 'powerful' … Don't forget that I'm a Legendary myself, and I don't need anyone's protection when I'm exploring the tower.
"So, all of you will stay here as backup. Keep an eye on the movements at the tower as well as the news that Hu Po and I send back. If something really does escape from the tower … You must stop it."
"… Okay." Melita thought for a moment and found that she had no reason to refute. She could only nod gently. "Then we will stay on the Winter and wait for your news. But how are you and Amber going to get there? And how are you going to send the news back? We are still six nautical miles away from the tower. If the Winter and the dragons can't get close … "
"How come we didn't even prepare for this?" Gwen could not help but laugh. He looked up at an area near the bridge of the Winter. "The Winter is equipped with the Dragon Rider with reconnaissance and escort functions. Amber and I will drive that over. As for the connection with the Winter … This ship is equipped with a powerful magic net broadcast transceiver. Amber and I will bring the magic net terminal over. Six nautical miles … It's not beyond the reception range of the Winter's shipboard communication. Of course, we may encounter something in the tower, and the communication may be blocked. There is no other way. We can only play by ear. "
"I understand." Melita nodded gently. But just as Gwen and Amber were about to leave, the great adventurer Modir, who had been standing next to Victoria, suddenly stepped forward and broke the silence. "Hey, you are not going to take me? I have to go with you! "
Gwen could not help but look at the great adventurer. "You'd better stay here for the time being. After all, you may also be contaminated."
He still had the second half of the sentence in his heart that he did not say out loud. This time, if you are contaminated again, there will be no Dragon God to help save your life.
However, Modir had apparently seriously considered this issue. The old man shook his head and said firmly, "If I stay on the ship at such a critical time, why should I come with you in the first place? I want to go with you. I know the risks, but in my current state, I'd rather take a little risk. I came so far from the Loren Continent just for today. "
Gwen quietly looked into the eyes of the great adventurer, and the latter met his gaze calmly. After a dozen seconds of confrontation, Gwen looked at Duchess Victoria, who was standing next to Modir. From the latter's eyes … he could not see anything, but the Ice Duchess nodded slightly.
"Well." Gwen finally nodded. "Prepare anything you need now. We will take off in fifteen minutes."
…
A low hum broke the silence of the night. The light dragoon aircraft for reconnaissance swept across the sea under the starlight, broke through the cold wind, and flew towards the tower in the distance. The lights and navigation lights on the aircraft's hull glowed in the dark, outlining the outline of the magical creation, making it look like a phantom shuttling in the night.
Amber was sitting in her seat, but she was not at all obedient. She leaned forward and almost stuck her face to the crystal window on the side, looking excitedly at the night view outside and talking non-stop. "Hey! I didn't expect you to really know how to fly this! At first I thought you were joking. I didn't expect you to fly it so well. When did you learn … "
"Nonsense." Gwen held the aircraft's joystick in his hand, feeling the mechanical feedback from the magical creation. He could not help but glance sideways at the Shame of the Alliance beside him. "If I don't know how to fly it, do you think I can just make a plan? Do you think this aircraft is your Shadow ability? When you use it, 'I think' will work? If you don't control it well, it will fall! "
"Oh, oh, oh —" Amber nodded as he replied, not sure if he was really paying attention to those few words. On the other hand, Modir, who was sitting behind Gawain, did not speak at all. The great adventurer had a thoughtful look on his face. Ever since the aircraft took off, he had been carefully observing the various equipment in the cockpit, the changes outside the porthole, and the flow of mana inside the aircraft. Seeing this, even Amber, who was in a state of excitement, could not help but ask, "Hey, old man, can you share your thoughts?"
"… It's really incredible." Modir finally spoke, his tone was full of admiration. "When I saw the mechanical ship powered by magic gears, I already felt the incredible power of magical technology. But I didn't expect this legendary flying machine to be even more ingenious than the mechanical ship … Its anti-gravity structure and driving structure are not like the things in the human magic system, but they can work together … Incredible, incredible …"
The great adventurer used the word 'incredible' several times to express his feelings. Then he was silent for a moment before he said thoughtfully, "If only I could have such a machine during my adventures. Although I can fly too, this machine is obviously more tireless than humans. Its speed and altitude are far beyond the mage's flying spell … And it can carry more supplies …"
"In fact, we're already using a variety of specially modified 'Dragon Calvary' to do the survey work," Amber immediately said. "There are several departments in the government office that have corresponding survey teams. Some are mapping, some are prospecting, and some are observing forests, hydrology, flora, fauna, and coastal ecosystems. They're equipped with magic cars, anti-gravity aircrafts, and mechanical ships. The government office provides logistics, as well as well-staffed professional teams and all kinds of equipment. Recently, we've even hired a few sirens to be deep-sea consultants. The government office is even planning to explore the seabed near North Port …"
Amber was just habitually blabbering on and on. But Modir, who was listening by the side, looked very serious and solemn. The great adventurer listened with rapt attention as if he was imagining the systematic, large-scale exploration project backed by the power of the state. Finally, a somewhat complicated smile appeared on his face. He whispered softly as if he was talking to himself, "That's great … This era is really different …"
There was a moment of silence in the aircraft's cockpit. Only the low hum of the magical equipment could be heard. Then, Gwen's voice suddenly rang out. "We're here. I'll find a place to land."
Amber's attention was once again attracted to the outside. She leaned hard against the window and stared at the scenery outside. Her mouth slowly opened as she let out an exaggerated cry. "… Wow!"
The towering tower loomed over the small spacecraft. The ancient miracle that had stood on the surface of the planet for nearly two million years had been magnified to the point where it was impossible to see its full form at this distance. Amber tried her best to widen her eyes to observe the overall outline of the tower, but all she could see was an "arc-shaped barrier" that extended upwards in her field of vision under the night sky, and the surface of the barrier was full of lines and protrusions that she could not understand.
Gwen turned on the additional ground-facing light and looked for a suitable landing spot with the help of the strong light. He saw that the ground made of an unknown alloy was extending below. Buildings that looked like warehouses or factories were distributed on a roughly disc-shaped man-made platform. He also saw structures that looked like roads and connecting tracks. These suspected ancient transportation facilities were connected to the buildings scattered all over the platform and finally to the base of the tower.
The towering tower above blocked the starlight, casting a spectacular but disturbing shadow on the platform and the nearby sea. The light reconnaissance aircraft quietly passed through the shadow. In the process of looking for a landing spot, Gwen's mind was constantly outlining and imagining the appearance of the place when it was first built. He imagined what the ancient facility would look like during the short period when the voyagers stayed on the planet.
Would the factories operate day and night? Would there be managers living on this steel island? Where would the things produced here be sent to? Would there be shuttles from space cutting through the sky and landing somewhere on this steel island? Like a spaceport?
He felt his heart pounding and his blood flowing faster. He had to deliberately control himself to suppress the excitement that surged from the bottom of his heart. And he knew where this feeling came from.
This was the first time he had come into contact with a Voyager's legacy that was still intact, and on such a large scale at that. An inexplicable "resonance" awakened in his heart, and he vaguely felt that … there was a connection between him and the tower.
Amber noticed the subtle changes in Gwen's breathing and eyes. She looked a little worried and seemed to want to ask about the situation. But before she spoke, a slight vibration suddenly came from below. The aircraft had landed on a metal platform somewhere. Gwen's voice came into her and Modir's ears. "We have landed."
Gwen took a deep breath and turned on the communication device on the control panel. With a slight rustle, the signal between the aircraft and the Cold Winter was successfully connected. Byron's figure appeared in the small holographic projection. His voice sounded clear. "Your Majesty, how is the situation on your side?"
"We have landed safely at the southwest corner of the inner ring of the steel island," Gwen said, looking out the porthole. "According to my observation, there should be an entrance to the interior of the tower nearby. After that, we will land on the island to investigate. I will keep the aircraft's magic net terminal turned on and adjust it to transmit mode. Do not close this communication line. "
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"Let's go." Gwen nodded and looked at Amber beside him and Modir behind him. "Let's witness this miracle left behind by the ancient times."
The hatch of the Dragon Cavalier opened. Amber and Modir stepped out of the cockpit one after another and stepped on the steel island that had not shown any signs of weathering and disintegration after nearly two million years. Gwen was the last to leave. Before leaving, he adjusted the Dragon Cavalier's communication system to transmit mode. This way, the aircraft could act as a communication base station, and the portable magic net terminal he carried could maintain contact with the Cold Winter through this' base station '. This was equivalent to solving the problem of the portable magic net terminal's low power and weak signal.
"My God …" Amber's eyes widened as she looked at the silent steel island. "How the hell is this thing made? Can the mortal race really make this thing?"
Gwen gently patted her on the shoulder. "In the eyes of the ancients ten thousand years ago, our mechanical bridge over the Whitewater River is also a miracle. It will also make them exclaim like you."
Amber seemed to be deep in thought, while Gawain looked at Modir who was standing on the other side of him. "What do you think? Do you remember anything? "
"… No." Modir slowly shook his head. "I don't feel anything, and I don't remember anything. But … I vaguely feel that this place seems a little familiar, a … I can't quite put my finger on it."
"It's within my expectations." Gwen nodded gently as he looked into the darkness in the distance. They were now standing on a straight and flat road. There were some neatly arranged metal piles, only half a meter high, on both sides of the road. There seemed to be traces of some kind of traffic sign on the mottled ground. "Follow this road. I just saw from the sky that the end of it is at the foot of the tower."
As he spoke, he stepped forward. Amber and Modir followed closely behind him.
"Bzzz —"
A slight buzzing sound suddenly entered Gwen's ears.
In an instant, the three of them were on guard. Gwen pulled out the Pathfinder's Sword that he had specially brought along for this operation. Modir had a combat staff in his hand. Amber had one foot in the Shadow Fissure. In the next second, Gwen saw that the half-meter high metal piles on both sides of the road suddenly changed in the darkness.
The structure at the top of the piles quietly opened up. A bright white light ball rose from it and rose several meters into the air. Under the light ball's illumination, the road that was originally covered in darkness became as bright as day.
It was a street light.
It activated on its own.
(End of Chapter)
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