At the top of the tallest mountain in Tarlonde, the resplendent Sanctum was bathed in the starlight for the next six months.
The eternal starlight shone down from the sky, casting a faint glow on the pale golden walls and dome of the Sanctum. Clouds flowed slowly under the feet of the Sanctum, and under the clouds, one could vaguely see the prosperous lights of Tarlonde in the night. The lights illuminated the country of the Giant Dragon. The huge intercity tube network and air traffic guidance lights crisscrossed, weaving a net-like pattern between the highly developed and old cities. In between, there were extraordinarily large facilities standing in the depths of the lights. Those were huge factory facilities or large-scale environmental maintenance facilities.
Backed by the mountains, the whole of Tarlonde seemed to be divided into two distinct levels. The plains and the foot of the mountains were densely packed cities and factories, while the upper levels of the mountains were the temples, the parliament, the senate, and the headquarters of various giant enterprises.
All of this, like the stars in the sky, had not changed for too many years.
A blond figure stood at the end of the Sanctum's terrace, bathed in the starlight, overlooking the continent of Tarlonde.
But his sight did not stop at the country of the dragon, but extended to the edge of the continent, as if crossing the endless sea, crossing the eternal storm, and falling on the continent occupied by the humans.
"My Lord," Helagol, the dragon priest, lowered his head. "The observer has sent news that the 'magic net' of the human empire, Cecil, has completed the connection today, but there seems to be some twists and turns in the process, we are still investigating …"
"There is no need to investigate," the Dragon God said in a calm tone. "There is nothing worth your attention."
It was just a reckless and lucky god who had succeeded in breaking free of the shackles, but the whole process was not for reference, and it was destined not to be repeated.
"… Yes, my Lord." Helagol lowered his head and responded respectfully.
After a few seconds of depressing silence, he finally heard the god speak again. "Tomorrow, let the young Dragons called Melita see me."
"Yes, my Lord."
…
Although Naretil failed to capture the god suspected to be the Goddess of Magic, the hunt was fruitful after all. Naretil collected the "remains" stripped from Mirmina, the Goddess of Magic, in the border area. For the participants of the Disobedience Plan, this was a vital sample of the god.
In the Great Pyramid of the Imperial Capital, Gwen saw the black fragments that Naretil collected. They looked weightless, fragile, and loosely piled together. But in fact, each fragment was much stronger than it looked. Not only did it have high physical strength (in the network), but it could even withstand Magnum's psionic storm.
"Actually, I'm very curious," Gwen looked at these samples and couldn't help but say to Yuri and the others beside him, "These fragments from Mirmina … Are they a piece of data in a neural network, or can they produce some kind of … entity in the real world? Gods have flesh and blood entities, but their 'entity' … seems to be different from what we understand. "
"For the gods, perhaps illusion and reality are false propositions," Selena, who stood not far from Gwen, said. At the same time, she subconsciously glanced at Naretil, who was quietly guarding the pile of ashes (the latter seemed to be seriously protecting her trophies). "You should remember how the upper narrators almost walked into the real world from the dream."
"So … as long as the method is right, in theory, these fragments can also be brought to the real world and become samples for analysis in the laboratory," Gwen said thoughtfully. "As long as we find some kind of … 'interface' that connects the neural network and reality — not an immersion pod or artificial nerve cord, but something more abstract and advanced."
Selena's expression suddenly became a little weird. "This sounds like a challenge to common sense, but Naretil and Duwalter may have an idea. But do you really want to bring these things to the real world?"
"… No, forget it. There are too many uncontrollable factors, and the potential risks are too great." Gwen shook his head. "I even suspect that the Goddess of Magic deliberately left these fragments behind. Maybe she was waiting for us to bring these things to the real world?"
"Some conspiracy theories, but when it comes to the realm of the gods, conspiracy theories are not bad at all," Magnum said casually. "You're right. It's safest to keep these 'ashes' in the virtual laboratory of the neural network. At least Naretil and Duwalter are here, and we still have those 'deep sea forces' as protection."
"Deep sea forces …" Gwen repeated in a low voice. The first thing that came to his mind was Tyre's sleepy face, followed by Tyre's ecstatic tentacles in the form of the sea monster, and finally, the siren's deep sea runes appeared correctly. "Kamel is preparing to import the siren's runes into the neural network, but how to make the best use of those runes is still a matter of careful study. The most direct idea is to let those runes cover the entire visual area of the network and project them to various places in the real world through the magic network terminal connected to the network. But this idea … is not very realistic. "
"It sounds terrible." Semler imagined it and sighed sincerely. "It's terrible no matter how you think about it …"
"It is said that Kamel and Jenny have further ideas. I will confirm with them when I go back," Gwen said casually. Then he took one last look at the ash samples left behind by the Goddess of Magic. "Handle these samples properly and submit a complete plan to me before carrying out a series of tests."
Yuri, Selena, and the others immediately bowed. Gwen nodded, took half a step back, and his figure gradually faded.
…
After returning to the real world, Gwen did not waste any time. After making some arrangements, he set off for the Gloom Mountain Range and entered the deepest part of the Defiant Citadel.
He wanted to talk to the god who faked his death again.
This time, he only took Veronica with him. It did not make sense to bring more people when talking to Amoun the giant deer. From a safety point of view, only he and Tyre could really get close to Amoun without being affected. In addition, Veronica and Kamel could protect themselves for a short time with technical means. Among them, Tyre was the one who only had biscuits in her head. Now that she knew that Amoun was faking his death, he naturally could not bring Tyre with him. She was in a bad mood because she did not eat the food, and she ate the strange scene, so it was best not to bring her. As for Kamel, he was in charge of the finishing technical work after the integration of the magic net, as well as the research on the introduction of siren runes into the magic net.
So this time, only Veronica, the ancient Defiant, entered the Defiant Citadel with Gwen. In fact, if it was not for the fact that he needed someone to take care of him in case of an accident, Gwen would not have a problem coming alone. But obviously, Heti would not agree to such a risky plan, and Gwen himself … in his position, he was not qualified to act recklessly and recklessly.
The ancient alloy barrier slowly opened, and the vast and chaotic land and sky of the Realm of Looming Shadow appeared before them. Standing in front of the last safety barrier of the Defiant Citadel, Veronica looked at the god who was quietly hibernating like a hill from afar. She nodded to Gwen beside her and said, "I'll go with you this time."
Last time when Gwen and Amoun talked, she stood in the safety barrier with the others and did not go in herself.
"This may be risky." Gwen had guessed that Veronica would make such a request, but he still reminded her. "I don't doubt your defensive means, but this is a real 'close encounter' after all."
"My consciousness has faced the God of Holy Light at a closer distance." Veronica just smiled faintly. "In fact, my defensive technology may be more effective than you think."
Gwen raised his eyebrows.
"In that case, I won't stop you," he said. "But you have to pay attention to your condition at all times. I think this should not be difficult for an experienced Defiant."
Veronica did not speak but nodded slightly. She then raised the platinum scepter in her hand and opened a small opening in the ancient safety barrier.
The two crossed the barrier and stepped into the broken courtyard that was directly exposed to the environment of the Realm of Looming Shadow. They faced the visual pressure of the God of Nature (although he was no longer a god), crossed the broken road and the ancient connecting bridge, and came to the giant deer, Amoun, whose eyes were tightly closed.
Amoun had been sensing the changes in his surroundings. As soon as Gwen and Veronica came near him, the giant deer slowly opened his eyes. The crystal-like eyes quietly stared at the uninvited guests before him. A low and pleasant voice rang in their minds. "Welcome. Today, there is an additional guest in my courtyard."
"I stood a little further away last time," Veronica said indifferently. "And you should have known me earlier. At that time, I had another identity."
"Then you have to tell me your name and identity at that time," Ah Mo 'en said. "It's different from what many believers preach. God is neither omniscient nor omnipotent. No matter how strong the faith is, it can't really give us the ability to violate these two rules …"
Veronica smiled. "My name was Ophelia, Ophelia Norton."
"Ah, I do have some recollection of it," Amoun said after a short moment of recollection. "The mortal scholars who were busy drilling holes or building brackets in my body had mentioned this name. In their chatter, they also mentioned Herman Norton and Simmons Norton."
Veronica nodded. "They were my father and brother."
"It's really memorable. For you mortals, this is a very long time ago. So how did you, a human, live to this day? It seems that your body is just that of a human. "
"This is my secret. Since you are neither omniscient nor omnipotent, let's keep some secrets." Veronica shook her head. "Today, we are not here to talk about the old days with a god. We are here to ask you some questions."
"Ah, I guessed it, and I even guessed what you wanted to ask …" Ah Mo 'en's tone seemed to carry a hint of a smile, then he paused for a moment before saying unhurriedly, "There was a' god 'in a hurry passing by the Shadow Realm, and I happened to see her. She should have run far away by now."
Gwen was thinking about how to start the conversation, but he was caught off guard when he heard the information that Amoun threw out. He swallowed all the words he wanted to say and was shocked. Even Veronica was stunned.
"It seems that you really want to ask about this." Amoun's tone was still calm and indifferent. "Why, are you looking for her?"
"Did you really see her with your own eyes?" Gwen could not help but confirm. "She passed by you?!"
"I did see her with my own eyes, and if I'm not wrong, she should be the Goddess of Magic. Mirmina, I remember this name. Her form has very obvious elements of occultism, and the aura released from her body also points to the spell system created by the mortals. It's just that she looks a little weak, and even … seems to be a little weaker than when I first came here, "Amoun said slowly. Finally, he asked," So, what happened? "
"… She may be your imitator," Gawain hesitated for a few seconds, and finally sighed. "I don't know if I should tell you the details, but there's one thing you can know now — there shouldn't be a Goddess of Magic in the world anymore, at least not for the time being. Mirmina has left her place, and I suspect that her current state is not much different from yours. "
Amoun was silent for a moment. It was impossible to tell what he was feeling at the moment from his appearance, but Gwen felt that he caught a trace of shock in his eyes. The change of the Goddess of Magic had obviously shocked this ancient "God of Nature"!
After a few seconds of silence, Amoun's voice sounded again. "There really is such a day … such a day …"
Then, without waiting for Gwen and Veronica to speak, he narrowed his eyes slightly and said in a somewhat self-deprecating tone, "You said that her current state is not much different from mine, but I don't agree with that. She ran past me quickly. Do you think I can do that in my current state?"
Veronica subconsciously glanced at Amoun's body, and what she saw was the countless metal wreckage, fixing bolts, and restraining locks. These layers of shackles made it impossible for Amoun to move his limbs, let alone run all the way from the neural network to the Realm of Shadows like the Goddess of Magic who had regained her freedom …
For some reason, Gawain's mind was reminded of Nareltyr. He thought of the Narrator's obsession with "legs". He glanced at Amoen, and his mind was filled with flirtatious thoughts.
You guys have eight legs, but you can't even outrun someone without legs …
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