Chapter 307 - 300: A Long Journey Ahead
Chapter 307: Chapter 300: A Long Journey Ahead
The clouds in the nearby sky had all turned a purplish-black.
To avoid contact with the abyssal aura, Allen had to fly the Odyssey below the cloud layer.
Outside the porthole, he could vaguely make out a collapsed volcanic range next to the fortress.
Among them, one black mountain stood out.
As they drew closer, the outline of that "mountain" gradually sharpened.
It was a metal giant, leaning against a volcano.
Even just slumped on the ground, it was over five thousand meters tall, comparable to the altitude of Mount Siguniang from his past life’s Earth.
The tall volcano behind it looked like the back of a chair in comparison.
This was his master’s Giant Golem. Allen had once glimpsed its combat form from a distance.
They drew closer and closer, and the Odyssey flew past its lowered head.
The eighteen-meter-long Floating Ship was so minuscule before this colossus that it couldn’t even be considered a mosquito.
Even though its dim crystal eyes had lost their light, their residual power still sent ripples through Allen’s Sea of Spirit.
As he got closer, the oppressive feeling from the colossus struck him to his very soul.
"It’s so huge," Allen murmured to himself.
Ten thousand meters. On a blueprint, it was just a cold string of numbers, but in reality, it was a suffocating presence that could steal your breath away.
It looked heavily damaged. The left half of its body was covered in terrifying, web-like cracks, and a layer of dark purple abyssal aura now clung to its once-gleaming metal armor.
The incredibly strong, unknown metal, once capable of withstanding High-tier Witchcraft, had undergone a bizarre material transformation under the Abyss’s corruption, giving it a twisted, malevolent texture.
’If the abyssal aura alone is this potent, I can’t imagine what the Abyss Plane itself is like.’
The Forged Fire Fortress, a huge workshop Allen had visited many times, was now a scene of devastation.
The outer metal walls had been torn open by some terrifying force, leaving several gashes hundreds of meters wide.
Countless Engineering Golems clung to the breaches like worker ants, busily carrying out repairs.
The landing pad was littered with wrecked aircraft and combat Golems missing arms and legs.
Allen put away the Odyssey and stepped onto the private passageway.
He encountered far fewer Wizards along the way than last time, and everyone was rushing about.
The door opened.
Without the twelve light screens that usually surrounded it, the command hall felt somewhat empty.
Mercer Iron Star stood with his back to the door, in front of a massive floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the Giant Divine Soldier slumped in the distance.
"You’re here." Mercer didn’t turn around, his voice as flat as ever.
"Master." Allen gave a slight bow.
"What do you think of that Golem?" Mercer asked.
"It’s breathtaking," Allen answered honestly.
Mercer turned, his gaze falling upon Allen.
His emotionless stare felt as if it could peel back Allen’s flesh and see through to the newly stabilized Core Matrix in his Sea of Spirit.
"To advance to Level 2 in less than nine years since arriving here, and even kill two Second-level Black Wizards."
Mercer’s tone was flat. "In the thousand-year history of the Black Tower of the Forge, your achievements would rank in the top three."
"I was lucky, and I had my Master’s guidance," Allen said, lowering his head.
"Don’t sell yourself short."
Mercer then asked, "Do you think you’re strong now?"
Allen’s heart skipped a beat. "I have never thought so."
Mercer pointed at the Golem outside the window.
"It’s called the ’Giant Divine Soldier.’ I started building it the day I first set foot in the Molten Iron Mountain Range plane, almost fifty years ago."
Mercer was uncharacteristically talkative. It seemed the life-and-death struggle had sparked a desire to confide in this precisely calculating machine of a man.
"Half of all rare ores submitted annually by every zone in this plane were used to build it."
Allen’s eyelid twitched.
’Half?’
’Half the output of over twenty zones in the entire plane?’
He made a quick mental calculation. The resulting figure in Magic Stones was enough to make any Second-level Wizard shrink back in fear.
’No wonder Master is usually so damn stingy, charging two million Mid-Level Magic Stones for a single blueprint.’
’He’s been feeding a real money-devouring beast here!’
"I thought it was perfect."
Mercer looked at the cracks on the Giant Divine Soldier, a shadow passing through his deep blue eyes. "But it was still damaged by the Abyssal Calamity Beast. The laws of the Abyss have contaminated its power core. Repairing it will take at least ten years, and resources equivalent to one hundred years of your Zone 18’s output."
Allen sucked in a sharp breath.
"I’m not telling you this to show off my wealth."
Mercer stared at Allen. "You advance quickly, you’re smart, and you have a ruthlessness that most people lack. But you must remember: in the face of true, great power, even a Morning Star Level Wizard is nothing more than a slightly stronger insect."
Mercer raised his hand, and a miniature model of a plane appeared in his palm.
"A Morning Star Level can dominate everything in this plane, and the Giant Divine Soldier can wipe out a Beast Tide of a hundred thousand with a single blow, but in the eyes of a Moonlight Mage, this is nothing special."
"Within the Ring City Alliance, I am able to oversee the development of a small-to-medium-sized plane, which makes me a standout among my peers. I consider myself to have touched the threshold of the Moonlight realm, but that final sliver of distance is the difference between heaven and earth."
He paused, his tone carrying a rare instructive quality.
"Don’t be idle. Don’t stop moving forward. Only when you have a true seat at the table can you control your own destiny."
Allen reined in the trace of pride that came with his recent promotion, his attitude becoming exceptionally solemn.
He fell silent, listening quietly.
"Master," Allen looked up and asked the question that had been swirling in his mind, "what kind of great power does a Moonlight Mage possess?"
The corner of Mercer’s mouth seemed to twitch upward.
"Great power?"
He pointed down at his feet. "This Molten Iron Mountain Range plane is, in my eyes, already extremely rich in resources, but the plane itself is classified as only small-to-medium-sized. As for true Moonlight Mages... every single one of them possesses more than one large plane as their foundation."
"Only the core output of several large planes can support a single Moonlight Mage, allowing them to pursue even higher levels of power."
A hint of deep reverence showed in Master Mercer’s deep blue eyes.
"When Morning Star Level Wizards fight, even at full power, the most they can do is sink a continent, like me. But when a Moonlight Mage makes a move..."
Mercer’s fingers snapped shut, and the model of the plane shattered violently. "Where do you think demi-planes come from? They are born from the wreckage of battles between those great Wizards."
Shattering planes.
’Could they really shatter this vast, boundless Molten Iron Mountain Range, a world that has nurtured countless powerful creatures and ores?’
Allen couldn’t imagine such a scene, and even Dseek couldn’t deduce the immense power that would be required.
"The road ahead is long, Allen."
Mercer retracted his gaze, his cold and rational demeanor returning. "I admire those who work hard. Talent gets you through the door of being a Wizard, but effort and inspiration are the key factors that determine how far you can go."
"You seem to have your own independent system of technology, but the path of a Wizard is equally profound. Remember to maintain your humility in the face of knowledge and power."
"Thank you for your guidance, Master." Allen bowed deeply.
This time, it was from the heart. He had understood the deeper meaning in his master’s words.
The bit of smugness he had felt from killing opponents above his level was completely washed away by the cold water his master had just thrown on him.
’What’s being Level 2? What’s buying a fragment of a demi-plane?’
’In the face of immeasurable power and a vast ocean of knowledge, he was currently just a child picking up shells on the beach.’
"Alright, that’s enough reminiscing."
Mercer waved his hand. "Speak. You didn’t make a special trip here just to listen to me talk. Your zone is in shambles and needs rebuilding. You’re not at home repairing your mines and Golems, so what did you come to me for?"