Chapter 584 — In the Shadows
Blade of Dawn · Page 2 of 4
The gravity school had not been created by humanity; its origins were a mystery, and its spell models contained numerous structures that defied explanation. Jenny and her technical team had labored to this day without managing to optimize a larger-scale anti-gravity array to the point of practicality. The Runic Institute's only achievements in the gravity school so far were "Reduce Weight" and "Levitation Trick" — the former already applied in construction and the transport of goods, while the latter, owing to its tiny payload and the interference problems of linking multiple arrays in parallel, remained unusable.
The technological black box of the old messaging arts had been cracked after the introduction of the Sleepers' technology. So then — might the black box of the gravity school find its breakthrough in the elves' body of knowledge?
The floating platform continued to rise. It bored into that thick cloud-layer of magic, and the misty luminous fog filled everyone's vision. Electric arcs born of friction between the magic and the platform's shield crackled all around. Amber, seemingly frightened by this perilous-looking "passage," instinctively ducked her head — while Gao Yang was still pondering the applications of anti-gravity technology.
To break free of gravity and soar through the heavens — this was something nearly every sentient being yearned for. Its significance in the military and civilian spheres went without saying; more important still, the technology to break free of gravity was something Gao Yang had cherished in his heart for a very long time — within his lifetime, within the realms imaginable, it seemed the only path by which he might touch those satellites in space, might touch his own "original body."
On that path, a griffin would not do; a giant eagle would not do; a mage's personal flight spell would not do.
Once conditions permitted, an aircraft must be built.
The floating platform passed through the cloud-layer of magic, more than ten meters thick. The crackling arcs and the misty luminous fog gradually sank away beneath their feet, and beyond the platform lay a breathtaking expanse of open view.
The Great Wall, astonishing in scale, unfurled before them like an aurora fallen to earth, tracing the borders of the ancient Gondor Empire. To the north, the undulating silhouette of the Dark Mountains marked the end of sight; to the south, the purple-black corrupted land stretched without limit, jagged and hideous rocks and withered plants scattered across the plains, and in the distance the ruins of shattered remains, twisted beyond all recognition, appeared on the horizon — bleak and desolate beyond measure.
Amber stared blankly at the scene on the far side of the barrier, and only after a long while did she cry out in amazement: "Whoa..."
"That is Gondor — the mightiest empire in human history. Seven hundred years ago the ancestors of Ansúr fled from there," said Gao Yang, as memories belonging to Gao Yang of Cecil surged up within him. Gazing at the wasteland to the south, he broke the silence. "See that band of terrain faintly tinged with crimson? That's the road — on that road we lost a fifth of our people. And those crooked ruins in the distance, the ones that look melted? That's Serranduran — the last border city still organizing a resistance. Back then, Charles tried to persuade Serranduran's lord to flee at once with his people, but the stubborn old count insisted on perishing with his city. In the end he detonated Serranduran's magic conduits; those crooked things are the remnants of the conduits."
Everyone listened quietly as Gao Yang spoke. Even Amber could not help falling silent — and in that brief hush, the entire lift platform passed into shadow.
It had reached the Stele's lower docking bay.