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Chapter 1176: A [Flaw]

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

Roland cast Edith a surprised glance.

After the miserable failure of the ambush tactic, some governmental officials criticized the judgement of the General Staff, and the Chief of General Staff, Edith Kant, naturally became the target of these unkind attacks. In addition to the Administrative Office, the Sleeping Spell also raised objections. Tilly waved these skeptical voices into silence immediately and thereby reduced the impact of this temporary outbreak of resentment to the minimum.

Edith had also requested for disciplinary action when she had come back from the front. However, Roland had declined her request and hushed up the whole thing.

Because he knew this was not Edith's fault.

On the contrary to a defeat, the "Torch" campaign was indeed a great success. They had slaughtered nearly 20,000 demons at the cost of only 500 casualties and recovered the Taquila Holy City lost to the demons hundreds of years ago. Undoubtedly this was a major victory.

Everybody knew how much the General Staff had done for the war.

In fact, Roland had discussed this matter with Tilly, Agatha and Alethea in private, and all of them believed the misjudgement was largely attributed to the unexpected behavior of the enemy. Even the Three Chiefs back in the Union would not have been able to predict that the demons would let the opportunity to take over the entire continent slip just because of a few witches.

Nevertheless, it was undeniable that Edith had indeed lost to Ursrook. Roland anticipated that she would succumb, for once, to despondence because of the scathing criticism, but to his great consternation, Edith remained poised and confident as ever, and again, blurted out a completely different view.

"... What's wrong?"

"First is the last two sentences," Edith said while pacing up and down, her head hanging. "If he succeeds, the demons should increase their forces tenfold. Doesn't it sound strange? If the demons' ultimate goal was to wipe out the human race, then they should have taken Taquila more seriously. I understand that they're now struggling to deal with their enemy in the Sky-sea Realm, but they shouldn't have given up on Taquila completely either, for the letter suggests they should come back and eliminate us."

Momentarily stunned, Wendy asked, "It does sound strange. Why didn't they do that in the first place?"

"Because of the Red Mist?" Nightingale said tentatively while propping her chin on her hand.

"The demons aren't likely to send all their forces, but they could have increased the troops by ten times as long as they sent more transportation units. Plus, they have weapons like giant skeletons," Agatha said, frowning. "It took us over half a year to build the ten railway stations, so the demons should have had enough time to make a choice."

"The General Staff made the operation plan based on the information from this guy, Kabradhabi's testimony. According to Kabradhabi, the demons are having a battle of life and death against the enemy in the Sky-sea Realm," Edith said while glaring at the Senior Demon who glowered from the interrogation stand. "However, this letter is suggesting that even if they lose the battle, the demons would still survive and possibly even have a chance to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. So, why didn't the demons send reinforcements to Taquila instead? It doesn't make sense. Their operation intention contradicts their action."

Everyone lapsed into thoughts.

"Also, this one, 'I know my action will subject you to criticism, but I don't think it'll affect your plan for the Western Front'," Edith read meditatively. "There seems to be nothing wrong with this statement at the first glance, but it doesn't bear close examination. He went to pursue the witches and did lose Taquila. Will it really not impact their entire plan?"

"Perhaps, Ursrook was trying to hoodwink his superior?" Roland said thoughtfully. "Nobles usually tend to do that..."

"Your Majesty, please view him as the most difficult enemy we've ever come across!" Edith said tersely. "Just treat him as another version of me who works for the demons. Do you think I'll do things like that?"

Looking at her clenched fists, Roland suddenly came to the realization that Edith was not as unflappable as she appeared. She was not completely immune to the skeptical remarks behind her back either but simply had chosen not to listen to them.

Deep down inside, she did not want to lose to Ursrook.

"Alright. Since he's serious, it means that Taquila has become their second choice... I would be inclined to believing that the demons have found a way to attack the Four Kingdoms without erecting the Obelisk or the Red Mist."

"We discussed this at the early stage of the 'Torch' project," Agatha sighed. "I still think it's impossible. Otherwise, why did they still have to save Taquila? If the demons were not relying on the Red Mist anymore, they should have infiltrated our land by now."

"Er... why are you all arguing about the impact?"

While everyone was puzzled about the demons' unusual behavior, Nightingale asked in confusion, "Doesn't that 'Western Front' sound awkward to you? The demons are on our opposite side, so the area to the west of Neverwinter should be the east for them. Don't you think so?"

"We talk about positions always in relation to our own location. Plus, the world isn't flat," Celine explained good-naturedly. "The demons are coming from another continent. If Ursrook views the continent they are living on as the center of the world, then not only Taquila but the Four Kingdoms are also to the west of the Land of Dawn."

"I see... So, the west he's talking about isn't the same west we normally refer to, right?"

"Hang on. What did you say?" Edith asked as she looked up suddenly.

"Their west... isn't the same as our west," Nightingale answered hesitantly.

Edith's eyes sparkled. She hurried to a long desk littered with different maps, unrolled every scroll while casting it a fleeting glance before she put it aside, and then finally rested her eyes on a very crude map.

Roland studied the map for a while until he realized that it was a map of the Kingdom of Everwinter.

She pointed at the blank area to the north of the Snow Ridge, which was the most northern part of the Kingdom of Everwinter, and asked Celine, "What's that there?"

"Mountains, endless mountains that stretch away for thousands of miles between the south and the north that almost encircle one side of the Land of Dawn. We call them the ridge of the continent."

"Did the Union explore that area by any chance?"

"Of course. The Quest Society drafted a full map of the entire Land of Dawn, naturally including the ridge of the continent."

"Just a map?" Edith asked earnestly. "No other more detailed records?"

"What are you trying to say?" Agatha asked in surprise. "It wasn't easy to draft a map because there are just so many mountains there, and they are huge. The Impassable Mountain Range is just at the very end of the whole mountain range, and its widest part could house the entire castle. The mountains are treacherous and covered in snow all the year round. Even if we marked every single mountain, how could that possibly help us?"

"I believe we overlooked an important fact here. The plan for the Western Front that the Sky Lord is talking about here probably doesn't refer to Taquila at all but the plan to attack the entire human population. Taquila is just one of their options!" Edith said while running her finger along the Impassable Mountain Range. "The demons' ultimate goal is to let the Red Mist cross over this mountain ridge. As long as they could approach the Four Kingdoms, it doesn't matter which city they choose to enter from. They simply need to erect the Obelisk!"

"You mean…" Agatha's manner tightened abruptly.

"Is there a possibility that there are unknown God's Stone mines around the ridge of continent?" Edith asked gravely.

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Chapter 1177: Before the Storm

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

"Well..." The ancient witches exchanged looks, bemused and lost.

At long last, Pasha broke the silence. "Yes, there might be."

"Can I ask a question? How did you find God's Stone mines in the past?" Roland asked.

"I can't remember the method used 1,000 years ago, but I believe it was by pure coincidence," Celine replied. "After the establishment of the Union and the Quest Society, looking for God's Stone mines became our main job."

Roland thought of the map that marked Taquila, the Misty Forest and the North Slope Mine, through which Lightning had located Agatha and thereby uncovered the old history that had once been shrouded in secrecy.

"As God's Stones can block power, we started to search for them based on this feature. Witches like Sylvie, Nightingale, Lightning and Isabella could all become researchers 600 or 700 years ago. In peacetime, there were nearly 100 witches in the search team. We found six mines in total, three of which were suitable to build a large city around." Celine went on, "Later, we discovered the technologies of the underground civilization and started using the magic core to conduct the search. Once the core generates power, the sensor could cover an area with a radius of 100 kilometers. It actually helped us find the southern end of the Misty Forest and Hermes Plateau. Unfortunately, by the time we found them, the Bloody Moon had appeared, and the demons destroyed everything."

"In other words, there was no point in the Union searching the mountain ridge," Roland said slowly. "It's inaccessible for common people, and even witches would find it hard to get there. So, it should be very inconvenient for the demons to build an Obelisk there."

"That's right," Edith said as she gave a nod of approval. "It isn't likely that they'll send all their forces, but this area is large enough to replace Taquila as their stronghold to exterminate humans. Besides, the number of the troops they could send to the mountains also depends on their preparation time. If the 'Western Front Plan Ursrook referred to included many contingency plans..."

"The demons would have been preparing for this operation for over half a year," Iron Axe supplied the answer heavily. "Your Majesty..."

"I see," Roland said as he threw his eyes over the others. Whether or not Edith's deduction was correct, he had to confirm this intelligence first. After all, it concerned the other three kingdoms as well as the future of the human race in the next hundred years. If the demons did plan to invade men's territories via the mountain ridge as speculated, it would be a total disaster if Neverwinter continued to direct all the resources to the development of the Fertile Plains. Roland straightened up and said solemnly, "Now, hear my orders!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" shouted the witches and officials together.

"Wendy, bring Lightning and Maggie back to Neverwinter immediately."

"Got it. I'll go right away."

"Iron Axe, implement the migration policy as soon as possible. I don't mind resorting to force."

"As you command!"

"Finally, I need the Taquila witches to provide another magic core," Roland said as he turned to Pasha. "Considering air reconnaissance alone may miss something, I need your assistance to make sure that we discover everything."

"As you wish, Your Majesty."

As the crowd was dispersed, Celine stopped Roland.

"I want to show you something, Your Majesty."

Roland thus followed Celine into the underground laboratory. To his surprise, he saw four yellowish brown stones almost identical to the Magic Ceremony Cube on the desk.

"You've already created four replicates?"

Roland went up to the workstation in earnest and fiddled one of the stones. Compared to the real Magic Cube, the replicate looked sharper, newer, with clearer patterns on it.

"Yes, but they functioned a little differently. I reckon it has something to do with their raw materials. Perhaps, the radiation race put something else in it when they made the Cube. Nevertheless, I tested them on chickens already and confirmed those tiny differences don't affect its use."

"That's even better," Roland said while he lamented the poor chickens within himself. "We need its power to last longer. I don't care about its lethality to be honest. Keep up the good work."

"No problem. Do you still need these prototypes?"

"Of course. You discovered a new energy source!" Roland praised ardently. "You can't imagine how important your research actually is. You made such a great contribution to the development of the human race that you've certainly carved a glorious place in human history!"

The next step was to design a device to convert the thermal energy released by the Magic Cube into kinetic energy. If this attempt was successful, there would soon be another industrial revolution in Neverwinter!

At these thoughts, Roland contemplated Celine's blob-like body with mournful presentiment and said, "You should be receiving a Special Award for Services to Neverwinter and congratulated by the public on the stage on the central square..."

"That's nothing, Your Majesty. I knew this kind of honor wouldn't be available to me when I decided to transfer my soul," Celine said smilingly. "I'm just doing my job. Plus, you've already fulfilled my dream in the Dream World."

...

Roland's orders were immediately spread throughout the entire kingdom.

Every day, a dozen birds rose into the air from the top of the castle and brought encrypted messages to the northeast. Every port and every fleet were making their contributions to this great relocation.

The First Army departed for the Port of Clearwater, Seawindshire, and other port cities on paddle steamers. From there, they took another ship before heading to the north.

Although the details of the operation plan had not been disclosed to soldiers and the soldiers had no idea what exactly their mission was, they immediately assembled and commenced their journey to another country without the slightest hesitation after receiving the order.

In the City of Glow, the Kingdom of Dawn.

After Horford Quinn received Hill Fawkes' letter, he summoned his son at once and said to him, "Go to the Beach Bay and Dragon Castle to let the local lords know that they should prioritize the ships from Graycastle over all other ships. Make sure they leave a docking area specifically for Graycastle. The royal family will bear all the necessary expenses!"

"Father, are you sure?" Hawn asked, frowning. "That'll cost a large sum of money and will also affect the businesses of other merchant vessels..."

"Enough!" Horford interposed irritably. "Just do what I said!"

Hawn bit his lip, his head bowed, and conceded, "Yes, father."

He turned around again and said reluctantly, "At least you should tell me what Graycastle is up to."

But Horford remained silent.

He heaved a deep sigh after Hawn withdrew and closed the door.

Horford walked up to the window and gazed upon his neighbor, muttering, "Everything's going to... change now."

In the meantime, in an underground limestone cave in the suburb of the City of Glow.

Banach Lothar settled himself into his wheelchair while studying the 200 "Unspeakable" who stood erect next to him and his 20 masked managers coldly. For years, he had relied on these followers to operate "Black Money".

"You made a lot of investments in the Kingdom of Wolfheart and the Kingdom of Everwinter in the past few years. Now it's time to reap your profits." After gazing at his followers for quite a while, Banach croaked, "I've received information from a reliable source that Graycastle's troops will soon enter the Kingdom of Everwinter and the Kingdom of Wolfheart. No matter what they're doing, your mission is to provide as much assistance as you can, including money, food and intelligence. 'Black Money' shall do its best to meet their needs. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Very well. Off you go."

Everyone immediately obeyed and trooped out of the underground hall.

Banach produced an empty vial from his inner pocket. This had been the fifth vial of liquid medicine since the Oracle had killed Appen Moya.

One more vial... He just needed one more vial to reach immortality!

Banach's hand trembled as he held up the little bottle.

"Rest assured, Oracle. I'll not let you down."

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Chapter 1178: Being a Grown-up

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

Two days after the issuance of the order before the actual implementation of the migration policy, Lightning and Maggie returned to Neverwiner.

Roland was a little shocked at the changes in the two little girls as they came into the office.

Maggie had not changed much except she was a little fuller than half a year ago, making her now terribly resemble a goose instead of a pigeon.

He was, as a matter of fact, surprised at Lightning.

Her hair was a lot longer, which cascaded down to her shoulders, a little unkempt as a result of a long-haul flight. Her face was dirty. Several ugly pouches sprouted from her patched flight suit near her legs, chest and shoulders, which Roland highly suspected they were the work of her own. Although Lightning was disheveled and windswept, she looked more like a true explorer now.

The biggest change, however, lay in her eyes and the expression she was wearing.

Roland suddenly realized she was no longer that little girl he used to know.

"Your Majesty, did you request to see me?"

Lightning said as she swept a bow.

For a second, Roland did not know what to say. Finally, he told her about Ursrook's letter and Edith's deduction from it. "If the demons do plan to do what the letter suggests, the consequence will be disastrous. Therefore, I want you guys to fly to the Kingdom of Everwinter and explore the untraversed mountain range in the north. Demons can't survive without the Red Mist. If they wanted to enter the mountainous area, they should have left some traces there."

"That's unbelievable..." Lightning remarked, her brows contracted. "It's very fortunate that Maggie found his letter, but Your Majesty, what if the demons operate underground? You must understand that what I could do is limited. It's really hard for me to spot deliberately hidden objects from above."

"That'll be the worst scenario," said Roland. "The God's Punishment Witches will bring a magic core and take off at the Shallow Beach to join you. If you can't find the demons, they'll resort to the magic core to conduct a final search." Judging from the result of the "Torch" project, Roland noticed that the demons were not as good at excavation as human beings who possessed the devouring worms. However, as the demons had, at one time, occupied half of the Land of Dawn, they were definitely more proficient in magic. As such, it was unlikely that the demons would have no knowledge of the relic of the underground civilization when even the Union had made some discoveries of the carriers during their exploration of the ruin. On the contrary, there was a big chance that there were other carriers around the ridge of the continent.

"I see. I'll do my best," Lighting replied with a nod.

"But it'll take you at least a month to get to the north of the Kingdom of Everwinter from the south of Graycastle, so you may not be able to receive support in a timely fashion. Also, the residents there, as I fear, may still remain hostile against witches. It may not even be safe in a city, so you have to be careful."

"Explorers are particularly good at surviving in the wild, Your Majesty," Lightning returned quickly. "I could live in the wilderness for a year, not to mention just one month."

"Coo, coo!" Maggie rejoined as she flapped her wings in approval.

"Sorry," Roland sighed. "You just came back, and you have to take another expedition again..."

"Your Majesty, don't feel sorry for us..." Lightning said while averting her eyes, her voice lower. "Compared to those who sacrificed themselves for the victory, compared to Ashes... this is nothing." She soon recollected herself and continued, "Since this is a new expedition, then as usual, could you..."

For a moment, Roland did not grasp what Lightning meant. Then he came to the realization just in time. "Of course, yes," he said as he stood up and walked around the desk.

Lightning raised her hand but retracted her arms abruptly as she caught sight of her blotchy sleeves. "Oh, no, that's OK... I forgot to get changed. I smell bad. That's fine — "

Her words, however, were drowned in Roland's crushing hug.

"You did a great job. I'll ask the tailor to make you more flight suits so that you could wear them by turns."

Lightning instantly fell silent. At long last, she stifled her sniff and replied a "yes".

"And me, coo," Maggie rejoined as she craned her neck.

"You did a good job too," Roland said as he stroked her smooth feathers.

Nightingale also walked up to them and gave both a hug. "Please stay safe."

"We will."

After Lightning and Maggie withdrew, Nightingale remarked, "Lightning would have never said 'what I could do is limited' before."

Roland nodded vigorously. The old Lightning he knew would have definitely promised everything before even hearing the full account.

Leaf had told Roland that after Ashes had died together with Ursrook, Lightning had cried her eyes out and sunk into a state of despondency for several days. However, now he could not see the faintest trace of distress in her. Roland could tell that Lightning had still not got over with Ashes' death, but she no longer wallowed in sorrow. Instead, she became more determined to fight against demons after this unfortunate loss.

"She's grown up," Roland commented.

...

Roland wished the migration campaign to start as early as possible; nevertheless, it took months to travel from Graycastle to the Kingdom of Wolfheart and the Kingdom of Everwinter. Due to the extra long commute, it was impossible for the Administrative Office and the First Army to increase the population of Neverwiner in a short period of time.

Insufficient manpower, therefore, hindered the further expansion of industrial projects he had conceived a long time ago. As the threat of the demons was still hung above his head like a naked sword suspended by a single hair, Roland was stressed out.

Fortunately, the success of the replication of the Magic Ceremony Cube offered him some consolation. He stayed at Anna's laboratory at the North Slope all day to see whether he could develop a new energy source with the cube replicates. After Lightning, Maggie and the God's Punishment Witches departed from Neverwinter on the "Roland" with the magic core, Roland invested more time in his research.

The magic steam engine would definitely benefit every industrial project in a more profound manner than any other inventions.

Celine also volunteered to help with the research. As the laboratory was located in a relatively remote area and was also heavily guarded, nobody was likely to bump in by accident. Roland was very impressed with Celine's assembling ability. Her dexterous auxiliary tentacles could install flywheels and pistons effortlessly, which really made Anna's life a lot easier.

Thus, the scene where a man, a woman and a tentacled monster worked together on a machine became the norm at the North Slope.

It wasn't long before a peculiar prototype materialized in the laboratory.

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Chapter 1179: Tri-tank Magic Power Unit

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

Anna studied the prototype up and down before she expressed her thought on the machine.

"It's pretty... small."

"But it looks nice," Celine said meditatively. "I like those tubes. They're just like tentacles."

Roland smiled. Anna and Celine viewed this new machine from a completely different perspective, and naturally, they reached different conclusions. Nevertheless, both of them pointed out the exact features of the machine.

Compared to the first cast-iron steam engine Anna had created, this prototype was much smaller. Needless to say, Anna's skills had improved a great deal since then, but most importantly, the reduction of size was mainly ascribed to the absence of a boiler.

The steam engines currently used in Neverwinter was of its fourth generation. In spite of that, the boiler portion of the machine remained pretty much the same for each generation. The steam engine still required a large combustion chamber and a furnace to operate, no matter what kind of combustible materials were in use — whether it was charcoal, wood or heavy oil. Now, the boiler was replaced with a rectangular steel box one meter in length, half a meter in width and less than 20 centimeters in height.

This box was the core power unit of the whole mechanic system.

The cube and water were put in an enclosed container with a high pressure tolerance to power the machine. The system was technologically demanding, so Roland did not think they would have been able to create such an advanced steam engine back in the Border Town even if they had obtained this cube that had once belonged to the radiation race at that time.

The steel box, which was the power unit of the machine, was embedded with three magic cubes. Its bottom was plastered with lead to block excess radiation, the top of which was lined with a dozen conduits that passed through a water tank and a condenser around the bottom. The whole "heating-converting-cooling" process was conducted in an enclosed system without any contact with the external environment. Theoretically, there would be no need to replace the thermal conductive material as long as the device was functioning properly.

Roland could have produced a smaller steam engine.

He could have replaced water, the most accessible and affordable thermal conductive material with more efficient one, such as liquid alkali metal, to further reduce the size while maintaining the same power.

However, the main purpose of building a prototype was to see if this system worked. Roland did not want to see any leak during the test. If the evaporated alkali metal and water vapor reacted, the entire laboratory would be probably blown away.

The thermal energy created by the cube would reach the water tank through the conduits to boil the water in it. After the water was heated up, everything would then be quite similar to ordinary steam engines that they were very familiar with.

Celine really liked the condensers on both sides of the machine. To maximize the heat-transfer area, each tube meandered around the box just like tentacles.

Compared to cumbersome traditional steam engines, this prototype was small and delicate with its dazzling silver box at the center and reflective copper conduits around it. Even a regular lay man who knew nothing about machinery would be able to tell which steam engine was more advanced.

It was almost like artwork.

"So... let's begin?" Roland suggested while turning to Celine and Anna.

Anna nodded as she rested her hand on the operation rod and said, "Together."

Celine placed her main tentacle on both Roland's and Anna's hands after a moment of hesitation.

"Testing on the prototype of the magic steam engine. Three, two, one, go!"

As Roland counted to three, the rod was pulled down to the bottom, turning the three magic cubes on. The new steam engine, which marked the dawn of a new age of industrialization, started running for the first time.

Yet the laboratory was perfectly silent as though nothing had happened.

"Er... did we fail?" Celine asked hesitantly as she looked at the motionless machine.

"No, it's still heating," Roland replied confidently.

After around two minutes, the central steel box trembled slightly, and the indicator light on one of the tubes emanated a soft yellow glow. The indicator light, which was actually a pressure gage made of the tablet discovered in the cave, showed changes in the air pressure within the tubes.

It took a much longer time to transmit the heat. After around another five minutes, vapor finally escaped from the water tank, and the piston started to move.

As the temperature in the tubes steadily increased, the flywheels of the steam engine spinned faster and set the water pump of the condensation system in motion. The main purpose of this water pump was to expedite the circulation of the system and send the cooled thermal conductive material back to the central box, which thus completed the whole cycle.

"It seems the machine works pretty well," Anna said while heaving a deep sigh smilingly. "The only drawback is that it's a bit slow at the beginning."

"All steam engines have that problem," Roland assented while nodding. It took time to transfer heat. Even the most efficient thermal conductor would be slower than an internal combustion engine that could almost start working immediately. As this new steam engine required at least three water tanks in theory, it would be still a lot larger than an internal combustion engine. Another shortcoming was that the Magic Cube consumed a lot of uranium, which made this prototype almost had no practical value.

Nevertheless, every industrial undertaking was time-consuming.

Once Celine figured out how to sustain the system, Roland believed this new steam engine would soon benefit the whole society. Its relatively small size made it easier for mass production and also enabled people to attach it to most transportation tools. Meanwhile, the new power source would also save a lot of space for cargos, as fuels were no longer necessary for operation.

Half an hour later, the speed of the steam engine reached its height. The whole machine shook dangerously, and the bubbling sound of water vapor gradually dissolved into an angry shrill. Apparently, three magic cubes overloaded the system. Roland thus turned off two magic cubes and finally tranquilized the prototype.

The next step was a lengthy reliability test.

This test would take approximately a week, which was also a test that would expose many potential problems. It was easy to build the machine and make it work, but it was hard to ensure that it would function properly every time.

Watching a puffing and huffing steam engine was boring, but Roland liked to talk with Anna. He felt relaxed and calm as if he and Anna had suddenly traveled back through time to the moment they had first met.

Celine left the laboratory quietly, leaving the couple alone.

Anna rested her head on Roland's shoulder. The noises produced by the machine suddenly became muffled and distant.

"If this thing works, I'll then be one step closer to your previous world, right?"

"Yes, and probably you'll be much closer than you think. There has not been any technologies like this in that world yet."

"Can we also create those four-wheeled vehicles that you once talked about?"

"Yes, we can. I can design a simple one for you if you like."

"Sounds great!" Anna said, her face lighting up. "By the way, what will you call this machine?"

"Does it have to have a name?" Roland asked, smiling.

"Of course," Anna replied solemnly.

"Alright then. Black Technology No. 1 or Magic Cube Power Unit. Which one do you prefer?"

"It's not black at all... Oh well, I choose the latter. But how do we distinguish its various models if we use this name?"

"That's easy. One Magic Ceremony Cube represents one tank. So, this prototype can be called tri-tank magic power unit. How does that sound?"

"Sounds a little strange for some reason."

"It doesn't have to be perfect..."

Their laugh and the roar of the machine mingled together and lingered on in the air like a long murmur of music above the yard.

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Chapter 1180: Rose Café

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

The test lasted for several days. Apart from testing on the Magic Power Unit, Roland also found another way to combat stress, which was to take the witches to the Dream World. Nothing would be more relaxing than being surrounded by a group of witches who seemed to always have an insatiable curiosity about everything they saw.

In the meantime, Roland was also busy with his coffee shop business.

A month and a half later, Rose Café officially greeted its grand opening.

To keep a low profile, Roland decided to hold the opening ceremony and start the fireworks display at around 10:00 after breakfast hours. By that time, students and young professionals would have left for school and work, and elders should have gone grocery shopping. It would be the quietest hour of the day in the neighborhood.

The two-storey coffee shop was right next to the warehouse, with a rent of $3,500 per month. He knew this number was a little higher than the average rent around this area.

However, it was not Roland's intention to make profits anyway, so he signed the paper without much negotiation with the landlord. His only request was to connect the warehouse and the coffee shop together so that he could more easily manage his inventory. Roland also promised to rebuild the wall before he surrendered the tenancy.

As Roland agreed to pay a full-year rent in advance, the landlord immediately gave his consent.

Nevertheless, this was not the real reason Roland conducted his business in this way.

He was not planning to become an entrepreneur by any means, and the Taquila witches were obviously not interested in serving customers either. In fact, the coffee shop was set up solely for their own entertainment rather than attracting businesses.

If truth be told, Roland rather hoped that nobody would visit his store.

To attain his end, Roland specially put up a sign outside the shop, listing the prices of all the drinks offered in the cafe. All of them were ridiculously expensive, around ten times the normal prices. For example, he put a regular latte ￥260 and ￥300 for a small caramel macchiato.

It should be noted that the soy milk next door only cost ￥1.5.

Roland did not think that any sensible person would choose to order here.

If someone knowingly visited the shop regardless of the daunting prices, then he must be the person who had left the note in the book.

But Roland was not quite sure whether this "Rose Cafe" was the same one the messenger was looking for.

"Your Majesty, is that OK now?" Phyllis asked as she put down the ribbon.

"Yes, once the ribbon is cut, Rose Café is officially open," Roland replied while nodding. "Let's have a celebration."

There was a bar and a few round tables in the coffee shop, each table decorated with a lit candle and a bouquet of roses. Soft music murmured quietly. However, when Phyllis and Roland went upstairs, the romantic atmosphere downstairs instantly gave way to raucous noises that typically existed in a restaurant.

Roland had bought a complete set of cooking utensils and a barbeque rack for the ancient witches. As KFC and the McDonald's could no longer satisfy the witches' unquenchable hunger for food that had not been fulfilled for hundreds of years, they started to cook themselves. The experience at that buffet enlightened them as to the science behind cuisines, so they became extremely excited to try out on their own. It took them a while to learn how to use stoves and microwaves. However, they soon got the hang of cooking and started to follow the steps on recipes.

Many of them, for example, Phyllis, were surprisingly talented. The food they made was indeed very professional. They not only had excellent cutting skills but seemed to just know the secret of brewing and simmering as well.

"Your Majesty, I just learned how to make braised eels. Would you like to try it?"

"This is roasted pork loin I just made!"

"Your Majesty, could you help me find some recipes for cold dishes?"

From their exhilarated looks, Roland judged the witches enjoyed cooking as much as they watched a movie or took a tour.

Roland felt a little sorry that they could not live in this world forever. After Elena died, Roland had made several attempts to look for her in his dream but to no avail. Nothing had changed in either the warehouse or the apartment.

This meant that they would eventually leave him one day.

Death, whether a natural death or being killed in action, would transform everything into a thin thread of memory.

Probably that was why the witches treasured every single trip to the Dream World.

Perhaps, he should sleep more at night, just to let them stay here a little longer if not for himself.

Ding.

Just at that moment, the bell downstairs rang.

The witches instantly fell silent.

"Your Majesty, there's a customer coming," Phyllis reminded Roland.

Roland did not expect to see the messenger come that fast right after his opening. He cast a glance at everyone and said in a hushed voice, "Do what I planned." With these words, Roland and Phyllis went downstairs. Among all the ancient witches, only Phyllis, who had once disguised as a maid in "Black Money", had customer service experience.

"Not a single person at the bar. Are you really planning to provide job opportunities to your relatives?"

The customer who stepped into the store gazed at Roland suspiciously, her arms folded and her brows knitted. Her eyes lingered on Roland's cheeks and collar for a few seconds.

This customer was Garcia.

Roland was hugely relieved. Garcia knew about his business and she had actually helped him a lot with the moving. He beckoned Phyllis to bring two coffees and then gestured Garcia to sit down. "Of course. I always want them to get out of their village."

"Hang on, I'm not going to — "

"My treat. It's free."

Garcia took a seat and said, "Anyway, the prices you list out there are just highly unrealistic. It really makes people doubt your true intention to open this store."

"You're wrong," Roland said truthfully. "The most important thing for them now is adapting to the new environment. They just moved here from the countryside. If tons of customers swarm in at a time, do you think they'll feel at ease? They'll probably freak out. I don't care about profits but more about them getting used to the city life. That's the reason I opened this Rose Café."

"R-really?" Garcia asked skeptically.

"Of course. Also, I have to thank you for the invitation card last time. It helped me a lot," Roland steered away the subject.

"So, all settled?"

"Not only did he fix their status but he also sent them to school. It's the same school as Zero, but they're in high school," Roland explained smilingly. "The three girls wanted to thank you for your help."

"I'm glad to hear that..." Garcia said, her expression softened. "They don't have to thank me. You did all the work. After all, I didn't come forward to confront my father and media."

Roland shook his head and said, "You did all that you could."

There was a mute interval.

"Coffee. Enjoy," Phyllis broke the silence.

Garcia came out of her reveries and picked up the cup. After a moment of hesitation, she said, "I need to tell you something."

"Regarding the Martialist Association?" Roland asked. He knew Garcia must have some important business to share.

Garcia nodded and said, "Yes, there's a task, and the Association wants you to deal with it."

"I hope it's not a show or anything like that. I've heard the Martial Arts Contest this year is drawing close."

"No... it's a joint mission to annihilate Fallen Evils," Garcia corrected him gravely.

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Chapter 1181: The Best Team Combination

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

Roland twitched his lips. The term "annihilation" seemed a little barbarous for a society governed by law. Roland commented airily, "Sounds like something extraordinary."

"It isn't as complicated as you think," Garcia retorted as if having seen through Roland's mind. "There are precedents. Normally, the Association intends to gain more information about Fallen Evils through this kind of mission and kill them all at one shot. It'll actually be much safer to have some preparation in advance than fighting an unexpected Fallen Evil alone."

"Have you participated in any joint missions before?"

"Er..." Garcia faltered. "I only heard about those missions from my master because I wasn't qualified to participate in any before. This is my first time." She paused for a second, her eyes fixed on the coffee cup in her hand, and said, "Perhaps you don't really mind that, but I have to make it clear first. When you got that hunting license, you surpassed me. The Association asked me to inform you because you're relatively new, so you might not be very familiar with the transition. If you feel it improper, that's fine. I'll let the Association know — "

"No, that's OK," Roland interrupted her. "Since it was you who asked me to join the Association in the first place, naturally you should take on a leadership role, shouldn't you?" Roland had no intention whatsoever to glorify the Martialist Association or become a leader. His main purpose of joining this organization was to simply probe into the mystery around the Erosion and the Force of Nature while at the same time earning some extra incomes.

Garcia stared up into Roland's eyes for quite a while, a little bemused, and then burst into a laugh. "A leadership role — you're so strange... I know you don't want to take the responsibility, so you make it sound like you offer the position to me," Garcia said, apparently looking a lot more relieved.

"Yup, I just don't want to say it out loud," Roland said indifferently with a shrug. "Back to the business. So, anyone else joining us this time? Who's our target?"

"To avoid unnecessary information leak, we'll disclose the plan once everyone has arrived," Garcia said as she gulped down the coffee. "But I've heard that some modern martialists will also join in this mission."

Roland nodded understandably and asked, "When and where are we going to meet up?"

"Tomorrow evening, 6:00, in the southern suburb. I'll text you the details. You could go by yourself or I could give you a ride."

"I'll go by myself," Roland said quickly. It would be impossible to take witches with him if he went with Garcia.

Garcia replied while twitching her lips, "Up to you." Then she waved at Phyllis and passed her a note. "I'm Roland's neighbor. I'm just living next door in Room 0827. If you encounter any problems in this city, feel free to contact me. I mean if you're under duress or coersion, call me at this number. I'm happy to help."

Phyllis winked and said, "Th-thank you."

"You're welcome," Garcia said while patting Phyllis on the shoulder with a smile. She waved at Roland at the doorstep and said, "Well, see you tomorrow then."

With another silvery clink and clatter, Garcia vanished from behind the door.

"She's nice," Phyllis remarked. "Your Majesty, are you going?"

"Since the Association appointed me, I don't think I could turn it down. I guess this is the price I have to pay for the hunting license," Roland said indifferently. "There are other people working with me as well, so it shouldn't be very dangerous as long as we proceed with caution. It's actually not too bad to partake in such an event once in a while." With a group of witches around him, Roland could almost guarantee the victory. Killing was also an effective way to alleviate stress.

"Then I'll inform Lady Pasha and bring some combat witches to assist you," Phyllis said on a bow.

...

Roland selected four witches to come with him for this mission, who were Phyllis, Faldi, Ling and Dawnen. They could track enemies while at the same time covering up their traces, which was exactly what Roland needed to carry out this mission.

The next day, Roland drove his mini van to the designated spot.

They were meeting up at a remote but accessible rest area in the suburb, from where they would change vehicles to avoid unwelcome attention.

Roland thought the Martialist Association was indeed quite thoughtful.

However, when he reached the rest area, he realized that he had been seriously wrong.

The parking lot was lined with luxurious cars, attracting a lot of onlookers. A knot of people was congregated there, shrilling in excitement. It was evident that they had spotted some celebrated martialists.

"Luo Luo, look over here!"

"Can I take a photo with you?"

"Are you coming here to film a commercial?"

"Is that the runner-up last year, Mr. Youlong?"

"Wow, he smiled at me! He's so hot!"

Roland rolled his eyes, wondering if these guys were really here for the mission. As soon as he parked his car, Garcia came up to him.

"Get under your veil."

"Got it," Dawnen muttered as she summoned the Veil of Invisibility and threw it over the three witches.

Roland got off the vehicle and waved at Garcia. "You're fast."

"You have a hunting license now. Why are you still driving such a... battered vehicle?" Garcia asked in confusion. "I understand that you like to keep a low profile, but... this is a little too much. This is shabby."

"Really?" Roland said while spreading out his hands. "I actually feel it quite convenient. You can use it for grocery shopping, and it's large enough to store a large quantity of food. I don't think other vehicles can do that." Roland left the other reason unsaid, which was that you would never know how many witches you could hide in this van.

"Alright then," Garcia said quite resignedly, "if you really don't mind how people look at you."

"I don't care it at all," Roland said while smiling indifferently. "Are those profligates also martialists?"

"Yes, but don't say that to anyone else," Garcia said while darting Roland a cold glance. "They joined the Association earlier than you. So, technically, they're all your seniors."

"What about their titles in the Association?"

"That would be even worse because they know you represent traditional martialists," Garcia sighed. "They won't miss any opportunity to embarrass you."

"I thought martialists were all selfless heroes like you," Roland mumbled. "By the way, you're also a modern martialist, right? Is that OK to stay so close to me?"

"Not everyone cares about the conflicts between modern and traditional martialists," Garcia grunted. "Plus, you asked me to take on a leadership role, didn't you?"

"I did," Roland said with a smile. "Then I'll follow your instructions."

"Well, as your senior, let me briefly introduce them to you. You probably saw some of them at my father's party, so I'll just go over the three main figures," Garcia said as she raised her eyebrows at several people at the center of the crowd. "Luo Hua, a well-established martialist, with excellent combat techniques. He has a lot of fans and was ranked No. 10 last year, which was the best in this city. He's only 22 but has already gained a lot of experience. That's pretty impressive."

"Mr. Youlong, not sure about his exact age but possibly between 30 and 35, was one of the representatives of modern martialists. His whole family is dedicated to martial arts, and that's how he got his nickname. Mr. Youlong is an all-rounder. People say that he's powerful enough to be a 'guard'. He was the runner-up last year, and I'm pretty sure he's aiming for championship this year. I believe he'll be the captain for this mission."

Garcia broke off and looked around as if searching for something. Then she pointed to a pavilion outside the parking lot and said, "The last one is probably the person that you have to approach with extra caution."

Roland looked in the direction Garcia pointed.

"Fei Yuhan, one of the most gifted martialists in recent years, who entered the final match within only five years," Garicia remarked half admiringly and half enviously. "I didn't expect to see her here. With her joining the team, this will probably be the best team combination."

"So, what do I have to take extra caution for? Is she going to mess up with me?"

"Rubbish," Garcia said while rolling her eyes. "You and she are not even in the same league. I just want to remind you that you should be careful not to crush on her!"

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Chapter 1182: Infiltration

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

"That's not what you said when you handed me the hunting license," Roland said to himself indignantly. He said, "Why are you introducing modern martialists only? Normally, they should send more old-school martialists to kill Fallen Evils. Don't you think so?"

"There are indeed more old-school martialists, but..." Garcia broke off and pointed at a knot of people whom, Roland had mistakenly regarded as irrelevant onlookers. "I don't have any detailed information about them. They work alone. Few Association members know where they normally go except for their agents. So, I practically have nothing to tell you."

Abashed, Roland mopped his forehead involuntarily. He had thought those homely, disheveled middle-aged men were just assistants or chauffeurs to the celebrated martialists. Their unkempt image, which formed a glaring contrast with the refined, cultivated modern martialists, made Roland suddenly have an urge to convert to the opposing party. He really did not want to be the representative of a group of bedraggled, lulling middle-aged men.

Could he still register for the trials of the Martial Arts Contest?

Just then, a black bus pulled into the parking lot.

"That's the bus from Prism City," Garcia said. "Let's go."

"OK," Roland said as he patted his right shoulder, gesturing for the witches to follow him. As long as Faldi's bug was attached to him, the witches would always be able to locate him.

Garcia and Roland went straight to the back of the bus.

"I like this seat best," Roland said as he stretched his legs and leaned back in the chair unceremoniously. "I feel like a king in this seat, as I can see everything that happens in the bus from here."

"You just want to be a loner. I get it," Garcia snapped.

"I didn't beg you to sit with me," Roland retorted, a little frustrated to notice that he and Garcia were always bickering.

"It's your first time to participate in a mission. I, as your senior, obviously have to keep an eye on you."

While they were glaring at each other, a rush of loud chatter caught their attention.

"Miss Fei Yuhan, over here."

"Yuhan, come sit with me!"

As that genius girl got on the bus, everyone stood up and offered the seat beside them.

"It appears that even for famous martialists, they're treated differently," Roland commented.

"That's right," Garcia assented quite surprisingly.

However, to everyone's dismay, Fei Yuhan did not accept any of the offers but walked straight to the back.

"Is there anyone sitting here?"

Fei Yuhan asked placidly while pointing at the seat next to Roland.

Garcia shifted her eyes between Fei Yuhan and Roland, trying to figure out what had happened between the two.

Having no idea what Fei Yuhan was up to, Roland coughed uncomfortably, realizing that all the eyes on the bus were locked on him. Finally, he said, "No."

"Thanks," Fei Yuhan muttered, nodding, and took the seat matter-of-factly. "Nice to meet you. Well, actually, we already met. Hello, I'm Fei Yuhan. I'm looking forward to working with you."

"Er, me too. I'm Roland. This is... Miss Garcia."

There was an awkward silence after this brief introduction.

Garcia fell silent and started to play with her phone. Fei Yuhan, on the other hand, sat upright in her seat, looking as aloof and frosty as ever. Roland, who was sitting between the two girls, suddenly found himself in the spotlight, under the curious scrutiny of all the passengers on the bus.

The bus slowly picked up the speed.

While he was planning to switch seats with Garcia, Fei Yuhan suddenly turned around and whispered tentatively, "Your Majesty?"

Bang.

Garcia's dropped her phone.

Momentarily stunned, Roland stared at Fei Yuhan in a daze before a proper response took shape in his mouth. "You —"

However, before he could organize his words, a booming voice cut across him, "Good afternoon, everyone. I'm the liaison officer C02 for this mission. I'll be responsible for intelligence and logistic support. You can call me 02. In the next few hours, I'll tell you about the details of this mission, including our target and operation plan. Please feel free to ask me if you have any questions." A man in a suit at the front was holding a microphone.

Roland fought down the words that were threatening to come out and averted his eyes to the liason officer.

"According to my intelligence, Fallen Evils have become increasingly active recently and started to act in groups, which, according to our historical records, means that the Erosion is around the corner. The Association learned from reliable sources that some Fallen Evils are going to congregate in an abandoned factory in the southern suburb. We still don't know their motive, but we're sure they're up to no good."

"Perhaps they just want to make some friends."

Luo Hua's comment caused a roar of laughter.

"I wish it was true," 02 replied good-naturedly. "Unfortunately, Fallen Evils are our biggest enemy. I would rather see them all die. There's an underground highway leading straight to the factory. After it was shut down, the road was abandoned. The Association created a secret passageway two days ago that could take us directly to the headquarters of our enemies. To make sure that we don't wake the sleeping dog, we are going to take action at 9:00 PM and distribute the necessary equipment when you get off the bus."

"Also, the army will also assist us to prevent any Fallen Evils from escaping. However, only people with the Force of Nature can inflict an injury on those monsters. Therefore, we have to divide into two teams. One to attack the Fallen Evils while the other cuts off their retreat. There's a list underneath your chair telling you which team you are in. If you don't have any more questions, we'll carry out the operation as planned..."

...

Fei Yuhan fumbled with the list expressionlessly. Her thoughts, however, had strayed away from the upcoming operation to Roland's interesting reaction when she had called him "Your Majesty".

Normally, a person would feel abashed, furious and mortified in this kind of situation when he realized that someone had seen through his scheme. He might not necessarily reveal these feelings, but Fei Yuhan was confident that she could discern every single change in his emotion as well as his subsequent disguise, unless he had predicted that this would happen.

Nevertheless, what she had just seen was a look that contained a multitude of feelings.

There were surprise, alert, confusion, and even a little bit of delight. For a second, Roland's lips had taken shape of a silent "yes", which he had quickly forced down his throat.

Fei Yuhan could not find a satisfying explanation to this reaction. Apparently, it was Roland's first time meeting her, and there was no reason for him to give such a response.

She did not notice the faintest trace of embarrassment. Was he actually used to being called "Your Majesty"?

Suddenly, she remembered the conversation between Roland and the three little girls at the party. She had thought it was just a juvenile game they played, but now she was not so sure.

Was he really... the king of two worlds?

Her initial interest in competing against Roland now transformed into an overwhelming curiosity about Roland himself.

Fei Yuhan thought she had made the right choice to join in this operation. Her master had once told her that the history of the Martialist Association was even longer than she had thought. The Association knew numerous secrets known by only a few people, some of which were even related to the origin of this world.

Was that the real reason that Roland had been granted the hunting license?

Seeing Roland looked anxious, Fei Yuhan suppressed her questions. She did not wish to create any hostility with Roland before knowing the answer.

She was certain that there would be plenty of time for her to get to know Roland in the future.

...

Two hours and a half later, the bus came to a halt at the end of the underground highway.

The martialists divided into two groups and moved into position according to the instructions on their map.

Roland and Fei Yuhan were both on the team responsible for attacking the Fallen Evils, while Garcia was on the other. She soon vanished from their sight into the night after reminding Roland to stay safe.

As Garcia had expected, Mr. Youlong, who was rumored to be almost as powerful as a "guard", had been elected as the captain of the assault team. "Follow me, all of you," he said while eyeing the rest of the team members encouragingly, and crawled into a ventilation duct.

The operation appeared to be more organized than Roland had thought. After they got off the bus, everyone received a pair of head-mounted, panoramic night vision goggles, a watch that could show their current location on the map, a vest equipped with identification and enemy recognition devices, and a headset for communication. Roland wished that the First Army could also have such advanced equipment, in which case, they would not have to fight so bitterly during a night battle.

He made a rough head count and noticed that there were 15 people in total in the assault team. Apart from Mr. Youlong, Luo Hua and Fei Yuhan, all the other members were old-school martialists. It seemed that the Association still trusted traditional martialists more than modern ones for this kind of mission. However, if the result of this operation turned out that modern martialists actually performed better, their confidence in traditional martialists might be shaken.

Roland had no intention of meddling in the affairs of traditional and modern martialists. In fact, he was simply curious how those celebrated martialists would cope with relentless Fallen Evils, wondering if they could still defeat them as effortlessly as they had done to their opponents during a match.

Through the night vision goggles, Roland could see everything clearly. They moved through the night soundlessly like ghosts and soon reached their destination.

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Chapter 1183: Sacrifice

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

"Here it is," Sir Youlong said in a hushed voice.

The party observed the surroundings cautiously by looking through the ventilation duct. They found themselves in a large plant, where a few overhead bridge cranes were hanging on either side of the wall. Below lay nothing but some dilapidated machine tools and rusty conveyor belts covered in dust. Apparently, the plant owner had removed every piece of usable equipment before he had shut the plant down.

The empty factory, however, was now lit by several torches, with their dazzling, greenish-white flames dancing around in the darkness. These torches were set in a circle, and there were around twenty distorted shadows in the middle.

"Are those shadows our targets?" asked Luo Hua.

"Most likely," one of the traditional martialists replied. "I can sense their fluctuating power, which tells me that these people are at the last stage of transitioning."

The last stage referred to a stage where the humans would completely lose their humanity and consciousness, thus becoming corrupted puppet. Fallen Evils at this stage only acted on their instincts like animals, as they lost all the communication ability they once had.

"They used to be... martialists?"

"Not necessarily. Although there were some fallen martialists according to the Association's records, generally speaking, amateurs are more prone to corruption."

"It's my first time seeing a living Fallen Evil, but regardless, a martialist lack of self-discipline and proactivity is, in every aspect, useless," Luo Hua snorted with utmost contempt. "Pathetic... they don't deserve the Force of Nature. Captain, let's do this."

"Wait a minute," Sir Youlong stopped Luo Hua calmly. "It appears that more Fallen Evils are coming here. Wait until they've all gathered so that we can kill them all in one go. But, don't you feel that this is strange? These Fallen Evils are all in their last stages. Why didn't they go kill the amateurs? Why did they come here? I have a feeling that things aren't as simple as we thought. Perhaps, we should first find out their intentions rather than killing them all outright."

While everyone was exchanging opinions, Roland stole a glance at Fei Yuhan.

That unexpected "Your Majesty" seemed to be still ringing in his ears.

Within a few seconds, turbulent emotions had flooded through Roland. He had not been so perturbed by someone over the past few years since his ascendence to the throne.

At first, Roland had thought it was Elena calling him and he had almost responded, but he had swallowed his words at the last minute. If Fei Yuhan was really Elena's incarnation, she would not have introduced herself in the first place and taken the seat beside him so carefreely.

The abrupt change from joy to disappointment was almost as painful as the grief itself. As he recollected himself in the next few minutes, he soon figured out why Fei Yuhan had addressed him like this. Garcia had told him that martialists were usually acute observers, particularly for those gifted ones. As Fei Yuhan had attended the party held by the Clover Group, she must have overheard his conversation with the witches.

The next question was — how much did Fei Yuhan know about him?

Roland judged that she probably did not know much at this stage, considering how she was still testing him. At least, she didn't know anything about the other world yet. However, this was alarming to Roland, since no one would want to know that he was only fictional and only existed in dreams. Once the secret about this Dream World was known to someone, the consequences would be disastrous.

Garcia was right. He needed to be extra cautious when dealing with Fei Yuhan.

"Mhm? Look, the new Fallen Evil... looks a little different than the others." At that moment, a voice from the headset interrupted Roland's train of thought. "It seems that it's commanding the other Fallen Evils."

Roland took off his goggles and looked toward the center of the plant through the ventilation. He saw a group of Fallen Evils slowly walk in while carrying three cargo containers, all the while at the command of a man in a suit.

"Are they the Fallen Evils who have yet to completely lose their minds?" Sir Youlong mumbled in bewilderment. "What are they playing at?"

Several traditional martialists frowned. Compared with transformed Fallen Evils, those still in transitioning period were normally more difficult to deal with. At that stage, compassion and empathy had escaped them, but the dark side of human nature, such as subterfuge and shrewdness, remained. Typically, these Fallen Evils used to be well-established martialists.

"Shh — " Fei Yuhan suddenly spoke. "Be quiet. Something's in those containers."

Everyone held their breath immediately.

After a while, Fei Yuhan said heavily, "There are people… inside."

"What?"

"I heard someone crying and pleading. It seems like they're gagged."

"You're saying that there are civilians in those containers?" Sir Youlong asked in surprise. "I've never seen anything like this before in the Association's records. Fallen Evils do kill often, but they don't really pick on common people."

They looked at each other in confusion when suddenly, the commander of the Fallen Evils yelled, "It's time, children! The divine will is approaching, and God is waiting for the sacrifices!"

"Grrrrr — " all the other Fallen Evils growled.

"Come. Let the power return to its source and let the Oracle grace continent with his presence once more!"

"Grrrr—"

"We'll be reborn with the destruction of this world! Surrender everything to God. Let's offer our sacrifice!"

The Fallen Evils produced an ear-splitting roar.

"Damn it, we have to act. Now," Sir Youlong said through clenched teeth. Although he had never heard Fallen Evils would perform human sacrifice or please the so-called God like some cults, they could not let innocent civilians die. In fact, as the mission of the Martialist Association was protecting the world, it was more important to save lives than annihilating the Fallen Evils. "Let's stay as close to the containers as possible to prevent these monsters from approaching them. It's OK to let one or two go. I believe the other team will finish them off!"

Fei Yuhan nodded expressionlessly and darted out first.

The others followed at her heels and dashed toward the enemies.

The deserted plant was instantly stirred!

Caught unprepared, the Fallen Evils collapsed under the impact of the Force of Nature and paralyzed when their cores were detached from their bodies.

Roland was the last to act. He followed his team members while at the same time hiding his ability carefully. This was not his first time fighting Fallen Evils, so he was much more experienced than the others. Unlike those awakened martialists possessed of the Force of Nature, Roland did not need to throw himself into a fierce battle. Fallen Evils would immediately lose their power upon touching him and be at his mercy. Roland did not wish to touch those detached red cyclones either, otherwise everyone would see numerous cores rise into the air of their own accord.

Meanwhile, the bug on Roland's shoulder trembled slightly, which indicated that Phyllis and the other witches had arrived. Supported by his witches, Roland felt more and more confident. He did not employ specific combat techniques, but he killed more Fallen Evils than anyone else except Fei Yuhan.

As the other team members were all focused on the containers, and Roland had been super cautious, nobody discovered his secret ability.

They soon reached the containers. Only a few of them were injured.

By that time, half of the Fallen Evils had been killed.

"Well, that's easier than I thought," Luo Hua said as he shook off the blood on his hands, snatched the lock, and broke it in half. "The Association should have issued me a hunting license as well. Hey, don't be afraid. The Martialist Association is here to help — "

Luo Hua stopped dead.

The other members all took a step back.

There were dozens of people tied to several metal posts, their eyes blinded and mouths sealed, who groaned with fear in one of the containers. A cyclone suspended in midair above each of them.

Roland felt all the hair at the back of his neck stood up.

He suddenly remembered what Garcia had told him several months ago.

"These cyclones are where Fallen Evils gain their power. They're signs of corruption. Once a person is corrupted, he loses his Force of Nature. If we don't store away these cyclones, they'll infect other people. Ordinary people will instantly lose their minds upon a single touch."

"Are you saying... that they can be transferred to multiple people?"

"That's why some people are collecting them. That's exactly what they're thinking. Are they not afraid that they'll destroy this world?"

"So... the Fallen Evils have been preparing over the past half a year just for this moment?"

Roland whipped his head around and stared at the leader of the Fallen Evils.

He dressed like a butler, wearing a pair of monocled spectacles, with his hair combed all the way to the back of his head. His suit crisp and his white gloves spotless. However, his face was now contorted with rage.

"We don't necessarily need you to complete this human sacrifice. However, the more victims, the better. Don't you think so?" With these words, he snapped his fingers.

The cyclones above the containers instantly dropped.

"No—!"

Luo Hua attempted to untie the prisoners. However, as they were so tightly packed in the container that it was impossible to rescue them without touching the suspending cyclone.

"Kill them, now!" a traditional martialist shouted.

"But... these are all civilians..." Luo Hua muttered.

Within a few seconds, those ordinary people had completed their transition to new Fallen Evils. Although they were not as strong as Fallen Evils that transformed from martialists, with so many of them, it was still quite dangerous.

The Fallen Evils then swarmed out of their container, and Luo Hua was soon drowned by the wave of the enemies.

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Chapter 1184: Corruption

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

The situation suddenly turned for the worse.

Both Sir Youlong and Fei Yuhan looked startled and lost at the abrupt change in the unfolding of the event. Fortunately, a traditional martialist turned around just in time and stopped the Fallen Evils.

"Get out of here!" a flustered middle-aged martialist yelled. "We must find a way out!"

The other two containers also started to wobble ominously as the people inside banged frantically against the container. Numerous lumps and bumps started to emerge on the surface of the iron containers. A lock was definitely not enough to hold them back, and the prisoners would soon break out.

If there were also dozens of prisoners in each of these two boxes, let alone killing the Fallen Evils, there was a chance that the whole team would be wiped out.

The last thing they wanted was being trapped by the enemies, so they must use all their efforts to avoid that situation!

Fei Yuhan immediately pulled herself together and darted toward the entrance of the plant. The only way to get themselves out of this dilemma was to find an open space and scatter.

This was the right plan.

Roland decided to wait until everyone had left the scene. He was putting all his efforts dealing with those new Fallen Evils who lunged at him like zombies. They were not necessarily dangerous, but Roland would still get injured if he got bitten.

"This is Team One. We're outnumbered and under attack. We request immediate assistance!" Sir Youlong yelled over the speaker phone while fighting.

A moment later, another two martialists fell down before a pack of crazy Fallen Evils who soon ripped their bodies apart.

Sir Youlong's moves significantly slowed down as he watched his fellow martialists torn into pieces. Even Roland, a layman, noticed that his action had become seemingly sluggish. After knocking down a few more Fallen Evils, Sir Youlong got a scratch for the first time.

BANG!

The containers were finally burst open and crashed to the ground as the raging Fallen Evils rushed out.

However, there were fewer Fallen Evils than they had thought.

Roland raised his eyebrows. A dozen tethered Fallen Evils, who had completed their transitioning, lay dead in the containers. Their blood oozing profusely from the several holes in their bodies, as though being penetrated by something.

He could clearly see a line of holes on the walls of the containers.

"Nicely done," Roland praised in his heart.

Without a doubt, it was Phyllis's work. Roland could even see in his mind's eye that Phyllis had sneaked around the containers under Dawnen's Invisibility Veil and dived her Blade Claws into the boxes.

"What... what happened?" the leader of the Fallen Evils bellowed. "What did you do to my children, you filthy scoundrels!"

Nobody responded to him. Although everybody was as confused as the leader, they could not afford to give the incident any thought. As the number of their enemies reduced remarkably, the martialists felt, once again, encouraged and saw the ray of hope and survival.

"Fine, whatever," the leader grunted while stamping his feet. "Nothing shall thwart my plan. You'll all end up dying here!"

With these words, he took out a square box that reminded Roland of a remote and pressed the button on it decisively.

With a deafening roar, the plant exploded, and the ground cracked and sank rapidly. The torches went flying into the air and extinguished as gusts of wind swept over the plant. Within a second, they found themselves groping in an impenetrable darkness.

"Son of a b*tch!" Roland swore, unable to help himself. He had never anticipated that the Fallen Evils would bury explosives underneath the ground. Although Roland had special abilities, he could not fly like Lightning.

"Your Majesty!" Just at that critical moment, a little hand had reached Roland.

Roland staggered until someone steadied him with a firm clutch. They finally landed safely after wallowing in the aftermath of the explosion.

"Aargh... Ling?" Roland asked in a low tone while coughing in the dust.

"Yes, it's me. Are you okay?" Ling replied immediately. "The light was out, so I was able to spot you in the dark."

Ling specialized in moving about in darkness. As the torchlight was extinguished and darkness fell upon the entire plant, she could glide through shadows as Nightingale fly through the Mist.

"I'm fine. How about the other witches?"

"Don't worry. Phyllis is with us. The explosion won't hurt Dawnen either. Faldi is keeping an eye outside the plant, so she's fine too."

"That's great," Roland said as he pulled on the goggles mounted on his head and started to look around.

"Your Majesty, what's this? It looks like that Eye Demon..." Ling asked curiously.

"It's a night vision device that helps you see things at night," Roland explained. "So you ought to be careful even in the darkness. Remember, you shouldn't be seen."

"Okay..." Ling promised as she disappeared into the darkness again while only poking out half of her head. Some bubbles escaped from her nose as if she were submerged in water.

Under the dismal moonlight that spilled across the ground, Roland soon understood the current situation.

The group was dispersed. The plant was littered with concrete slabs. Roland could not see where his other team members were. However, he assumed that such an explosion would not be fatal to martialists who were normally protected by the Force of Nature. As the Fallen Evils were also well aware this fact, they must have other plans. What he needed to do was to hold out until the second group came to their rescue. By that time, they would be able to interrupt the Fallen Evils' sacrifice ceremony.

What bothered Roland, however, was the hole created by the explosion.

According to C02, there was no basement underneath the plant. Moreover, judging from the map, the plant should have been built on a flat surface.

The bumpy walls around them were apparently not a part of the plant.

In other words, the Fallen Evils had excavated the ground underneath the plant and buried the explosives in advance.

Why did they do that?

Roland noticed that the area close to the rim of the hole was relatively flat, but it soon steepened with a sheer drop, as if it was a huge whirlpool. The bodies of the dead Fallen Evils slid into the whirlpool and piled up.

"Is this... also a part of the sacrifice ceremony?"

Roland's suspicion was soon confirmed. He saw the leader of the Fallen Evils reappear. At his command, the rest of the Fallen Evils stopped searching for the martialists. Instead, they all jumped into the hole along with their cyclones. Not only did they carry the dead Fallen Evils with them but they also snatched up the bodies of the martialists. Within a blink of an eye, the hole had almost been filled up.

Roland's heart stopped with a queer jerk. Suddenly, a warmth spread through him as though something was summoning upon him.

"Dear God, please accept our offering!" the butler exclaimed with his hands outstretched and fell forward into the hole.

Just at that moment, a jet of dazzling light erupted from all the cyclones!

Roland pulled off his goggles, standing agape. The crimson cyclones slowly rose, clustered then spread out, gradually forming a large, irregular-shaped "corrupted" area!

Then, something crept out of the corrupted area and took the form of a faceless man, but it only possessed a head and two hands. The shape was simply an inky silhouette strewn with numerous swirling stars, which reminded Roland of the black, unfathomed universe.

As the human-shaped shadow materialized, scarlet blood started to exude from its body and immediately spread through the entire hole on the ground, distorting the underground into a twisted space with red and black.

The bug on Roland's shoulder began to buzz, indicating that Faldi had sensed danger.

Roland had seen a similar scene before. He had once encountered a magic creature during a fight with a Fallen Evil. However, this one was much larger. It was almost two or three stories tall when it reared with only upper half of its body!

That was the real purpose of this human sacrifice. The Fallen Evils intended to create corruption and summon the monster that was not belonging to this Dream World!

But Roland did not understand why they chose to do this today and while luring the Martialist Association. The could summon the creature anytime.

He soon got the answer.

Dozens of black tentacles soaked in blood suddenly sprouted from the ground, dragged a martialist from underneath a concrete slab, and handed him over to the magic creature.

"M-monster..." the captured martialist stammered, making every effort to break away from the clutch but failed miserably.

"You stole something that doesn't belong to you, and you attempt to keep it to yourself. Now, it's time to return it to its owner." The magic creature snatched up the martialist, tossed him into the hole and said, "I'll correct this mistake and restore order upon the world. Now, accept your fate and return to the origin of the world!"

Its ringing proclamation reverberated across the deserted plant. With the corrupted area expanding rapidly, the monster grew larger as well, as though it was soon going to leap out of the ground.

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Chapter 1185: A Warning of Destruction

Translator: Transn Editor: Transn

The martialists were out of the pan and into the fire.

They could not approach the corrupted area controlled by the Fallen Evils. If they wanted to escape, they would have to crawl out of the hole that stood ten meters tall in front of them while avoiding those black tentacles. Once being caught by those tentacles, it would be impossible to wrench away from their grip. They knew they were now facing an unbeatable enemy, and not everyone had the courage to step forward and walk into the arena of death with their head held high.

The only person who chose to fight was Fei Yuhan.

"You guys go first!"

She hollered over the speaker phone. A flash of white shadow streaked out from the darkness and zoomed toward the magic creature. Fei Yuhan's body emanated a soft, bright glow, which was the manifestation of the release of her Force of Nature. Before this, she could only cover her arms.

The twisting tentacles instantly lunged at her like serpents. Fei Yuhan brushed past them, barely dodging their attacks. When she foresaw a confrontation that was unavoidable, she struck them with her palm and cut those tentacles with a knife-hand. White light congregated at the tip of her fingers and formed a shape of a sharp sword.

The other martialists all fled, attempting to get out of the hole.

Sir Youlong was the first to reach the edge of the wall.

"Ludicrous. Do you think you could escape from me?"

The magic creature swung his arms down towards Sir Youlong. The arms that was not long enough to reach the wall suddenly expanded rapidly, becoming thicker and longer.

Sir Youlong wheeled around at the last second and tried to block the strike, exploding his arms with piercing light, but in an instant, the giant hand had smashed him into the ground!

The thunderous crash left a deep ditch at the bottom of the hole, and the concrete slabs were pulverized.

Sir Youlong was reduced to a bloody sack of meat.

The magic creature then scooped up that bloody, muddy body, along with some mud, and tossed it into the "crack" it stood astride. Instantly, the corrupted area expanded again.

Roland realized that it was using the martialists' Forces of Nature to expand the corruption. For some reason, he felt indignity, as though someone had robbed him of his possessions. Those Forces should have belonged to this world, belonged to him.

It was intolerable.

"Your Majesty, what do we do now?" Phyllis and Dawnen asked together behind him. "The tentacles almost filled the hole."

"We have to kill the monster before the other group arrive here, but you cannot be seen," Roland said as he patted Ling's head. "Go knock out those materialists caught by the tentacles. Be fast, and wait for further instructions."

"That's easy. I'll do that right away..." Ling replied sprightly as she submerged herself into the shadow.

"Then we'll confront that monster," Roland said as he gazed at the enemy who stood ten meters tall. Although he had dealt with similar monsters before and knew that the key to the victory was to wrench the astrolabe out of its body, it was extremely hard to approach the magic creature. After a moment of contemplation, Roland whispered instructions to Phyllis.

"Your Majesty, that's — " Phyllis exclaimed in surprise.

"Do what I say. We must kill it," Roland cut across Phyllis decisively. "This is an order!"

"Yes..." Phyllis conceded after a moment of hesitation. "As you command."

"So, the last problem is her," Roland mumbled. He looked toward Fei Yuhan as his eyebrows contracted. She was still struggling to stand up, attempting to launch an attack although she had suffered two blows from the monster and was covered in blood.

Despite the injuries, her movement was less agile, yet she was still fighting with incredible obstinacy.

More tentacles reached out to her from different directions, which made it even harder for Fei Yuhan to approach the monster. The magic creature was too busy dealing with the fleeing martialists, or else she wouldn't still be standing at this point.

In the meantime, Ling had approached to the center of the corrupted area soundlessly.

"Your Majesty, everyone was knocked out," Ling reported over the speaker phone.

"Good job — " Roland's words rested on the tip of his tongue when he suddenly realized that the speaker phone channel was on for all the team members. Fei Yuhan apparently had heard Ling's voice, for she stumbled and, for the third time, got thrown out by the giant hand. The white light enveloping her had, by that time, completely faded out, and Fei Yuhan lost her consciousness.

"Now!" Roland yelled. The plan did not go as smoothly as expected, but this was a chance they need.

"Excuse my impertinence, Your Majesty," Phyllis said as she spread open her claws, clutched Roland's ankles and started to spin. Roland was thrown into a whirl of color, feeling his inside churning. When the spinning speed reached its maximum, Phyllis suddenly released him, and, like an arrow that cracked through space, Roland darted toward the magic creature under the momentum.

The moment Roland left the protection of the Veil of Invisibility, the monster saw an "unidentifiable object" streak towards it. It immediately turned away from the unconscious martialists to Roland, ready to swing its huge hand down as a giant swatted a fly.

They bumped into each other.

Roland went through its black arm and ran into its chest. Its colossal body was not as sturdy and robust as it appeared. Instead, it was simply an illusion covering emptiness.

The magic creature growled in terror and suddenly yelled with a look of dawning comprehension, "It was you! You didn't listen to my advice!"

Roland grasped the spinning astrolabe in its body and wrenched it. The scarlet interface gradually turned into a blueish white, and Roland felt his power inside him whoop in exuberance as if his expectation had been fulfilled. Roland asked, "Was the monster I killed last time your brother? Sorry, he didn't say it clearly, so I didn't hear his kind advice."

"We are one, we are united — " the magic creature's voice trailed off. "Stop your foolish act. This is my last warning, otherwise you'll be regretted for what you did. Everything will be reduced to nothingness, and our endeavor's workover the past thousands of years will be wasted. You can't... bear the heavy guilt brought about by such an... horrific atrocity..."

When its astrolabe was completely separated from its body, the monster stopped talking.

Blinding white light flooded over the hole, and Roland felt deeply content as if he had attained what he desired.

He could hear the throb of the ground underneath him clearly.

For a moment, Roland had a delusion that he and this world became one.

In the chaotic Realm of Mind, the Nightmare opened its eyes abruptly!

It just sensed a rhythmic beat it had never heard before that constrasted with the disordered surroundings.

The Nightmare had had similar experiences when it had tracked down the legacy shard, but its previous attempts were all fruitless. Due to the extreme complexity of minds, any mistake would make her lose a sense of direction.

Nevertheless, this time, everything seemed to be clearer.

This indicated that the origin of this beat was very close.

Valkries grinned.

It had found the traces of that mysterious man.

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