Chapter 975 The Monumental Gate <TOC> Chapter 977 Duchess Bel
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Translator: SumTLMan
A millennium past, the tale of a legendary demon obliterating a Translayer Gate was whispered, and this Ancient Demon God gave no sign of existence. Therefore, the wizards concluded that it may have already vanished.
However, vanishing into the annals of time does not equate to death. It may be slumbering in exhaustion, departing in disappointment, or completely eradicated by the relentless ravages of time.
Inevitably, the aura of this Ancient Demon God has faded away. The only remnants left are its will and power imprinted on the Translayer Gate, still persistent in this world.
“Rest here for a moment, everyone else. All members of the guard squadron will come with me to open the gate,” Sineva’s voice echoed in their ears.
This “opening the gate” means pushing the Translayer Gate open.
To achieve this, a certain level of strength is required.
According to studies, this constraint on pushing the gate open is, in fact, a form of protection that the Ancient Demon God provided to surface dwellers. To open the gate, one’s strength must at least reach the equivalent power of the Abyss’s third layer; otherwise, venturing into the third layer would be akin to courting death.
Based on Sineva’s strength before the curse, she could open it alone. Now, however, she needed the collaboration of the guard squadron, an indication of the severe impairment of her strength.
As the gate gradually creaked open, Angel curiously cast his gaze beyond the crack of the gate.
Regrettably, beyond the crack of the gate, no new world was revealed; it was instead shrouded by a layer of hazy mist.
Despite being unable to see the world beyond the gate, Angel fell into deep contemplation. Given the progressive layers in the Abyss, he originally thought that the structure of the Abyss was an infinite extension of a basement-like structure. Translayering was like leaping from one ladder to another, and it might manifest itself in the form of diving into a deep trench. Unexpectedly, translayering involved entering a door. Was the space behind the door a mirror, or was it parallel? Or was it a stairway to heaven, with the gate symbolizing teleportation?
“You seem confused?” Madeline noticed Angel’s furrowed brows and asked.
Angel voiced his doubts, “Is this translayering like a three-layered space inside and out, as seen in Fairytale World?”
“Not exactly. Although the Fairytale World is divided into three layers of space, its internal structure and size are constrained by the surface world. The Abyss is different. Each layer’s structure is not restricted in any way. You can understand it as each layer being a separate world. These worlds are arranged according to some strict rules of constraint, interconnected yet independent.”
Madeline’s own understanding of the Abyss’s structure is limited. She merely recounted the speculations about the structure of the Abyss that the Wizarding World has held since ancient times.
As Angel was deep in thought, the grand gate was finally pushed open to a certain width.
Furthermore, when the guard squadron let go of the force pushing the gate, it was slowly closing under the pull of some mysterious force.
“As the gateway nears its closure, all must hasten through without delay!”
Given the swift sealing of the Translayer Gate, there was no room for dawdling; each participant made their entry into the misty portal in haste.
Angel, abandoning his contemplations, steered the Gondola and plunged headfirst into the foggy veil.
After a half-minute journey through the murk, the exterior vista finally emerged—a boundless expanse of tundra.
Everywhere they looked was blanketed in pristine white. Blinding snowfall obscured their sight, and the chilling air slipped into their nostrils. The only sound that remained was the lonely howling of the wind.
“Is this the third layer of the Abyss?” Angel analyzed his surroundings. The fluctuating energy was indeed more turbulent than before, implying that replenishing magical power for wizards would become a more arduous mission.
As for other changes, Angel found none; the sky was still dim, the ambiance remained oppressive, and the frigid gusts of wind were as murderous as before.
The Frost Moon Guards didn’t halt their march; they continued to pave the path ahead.
After an enduring half-hour flight, they were still amidst the snowy plains but had found a dwelling—Nielgard Winter Palace.
A bizarre, abandoned temple stood defiant against the merciless snowstorm. Its facade was adorned with carvings of grotesque monsters, and even the statues guarding the entrance were gargoyle-like creatures with wings sprouting from their backs. This alone was enough to deduce that, before abandonment, this temple was likely a sanctuary to a malevolent deity.
Stepping into the Winter Palace, the biting cold was immediately held at bay, replaced by a warm ambiance that filled the air within.
“Nielgard Winter Palace is a crucial checkpoint for the Frost Moon Alliance. From here, depending on the respective missions, we will disperse to various outposts,” Madeline informed.
“Does this mean we will part ways from here?” Angel queried.
Madeline nodded, her expression growing more grave. “Exactly. That’s why the journey from here on out will be the most perilous.”
After a pause, Madeline changed the subject, “Didn’t Liana leave you with a bottle of Kunsha flower fragrance? Once you leave here, you can use it.”
Sineva arranged for everyone to rest inside the Winter Palace while she left with a few members of the guard.
As Angel wondered about Sineva’s whereabouts, Maher gathered the remaining guards and announced, “Lady Sineva has gone to coordinate with the local phantom beasts. They will take you to your mission locations.”
Pausing for a moment, Maher produced a document, “This time, the supplies will be dispatched to eight frontline locations. They are the Twin Towers Outpost near the Gate of Machinery, Kodo Port near the Dark Depths Ocean Whirlpool, Cliff Refuge deep in the Den of Evil… and Watchtower Fortress on the periphery of the Downfallen Forest.”
Maher began to catalog and digest the frontline missions received by the apprentices, arranging them according to need in different locations to craft their frontline formations.
As for the official wizards, Maher didn’t interfere. Having arrived at the Abyss frontline, these wizards would have their own, or their respective organization’s, plans in place. There was no necessity for him to intervene.
Once everything was settled, everyone rested in anticipation of the arrival of the phantom beasts.
In the meantime, Angel managed to gain a general understanding of each outpost.
All outposts were located near the entrances to the various inner layers. The outpost Angel was headed to was Watchtower Fortress. According to Bruen, this fortress was the most dangerous of all the outposts because it was adjacent to a demon city and accessed through the perilous Downfallen Forest, leading into the Dark Depths Ocean region of the Abyss.
If demons from the city wished to infiltrate the Abyss’s outer layer, Downfallen Forest would undoubtedly be the first choice.
“Even though Watchtower Fortress is the most dangerous outpost, it’s also the one with the most true knowledge wizards. The Phantom Master, Lord Like the Night, and Lord Ice Mirror are all there,” Bruen paused for a moment, “Unless there are unforeseen circumstances, Sineva should also be going to Watchtower Fortress. Therefore, overall strength is assured.”
“Sineva is going to Watchtower Fortress, too? Isn’t she going to find Lord Mengke to lift the curse of the Ice Valley?” Madeline questioned.
Bruen sighed, “It’s not that Sineva doesn’t want to go, but Lord Mengke ventured into the Abyss’s inner layer years ago and has been constantly on the move. We can barely make contact with him unless he reaches out to us first.”
Madeline didn’t expect such secrecy; she thought that Lord Mengke would stay at Frost Moon’s main base. But in that case, what about Sineva’s curse?
“The only solution is to wait until she returns to the Wizarding World, then seek others to help. However, even if she wants to return to the Wizarding World, she’ll have to wait until the energy tide has passed before she can cross dimensions again.”
As Bruen mused, a loud howling noise echoed from the outside of the winter palace, accompanied by a sharp eagle’s cry.
Upon hearing the eagle’s cry, understanding flashed through Bruen’s eyes, “Indeed, the quickest to arrive is still Grosch.”
Simultaneously, Maher’s voice echoed to everyone, “Grosch has arrived. Those headed to Cliff Refuge, prepare to depart!”
Walking in stride with the others, Angel found himself outside Winter Palace, facing a mythical beast known as Grosch.
This was a divine eagle of such massive proportions that it could blot out the sun. Its head was adorned with a white crown, standing in the snowstorm, it seemed like a servant of the Ice Goddess, descending from the heavens, stirring up a snowstorm of its own.
The back of this divine eagle was incredibly wide, on which a wind-resistant fortress was constructed. A member of the Frost Moon guard who had left earlier was standing at the entrance of the fortress, signaling those headed for Cliff Refuge to hurry up and board.
Over fifty apprentices, along with six wizards, stepped onto the back of the divine eagle.
With a cry from the eagle, Grosch spread its wings and took to the skies.
Grosch came quickly and left just as quickly. While Angel was still astounded by the size of the divine eagle, it had already turned into a dot, disappearing into the depths of the snowstorm.
Not long after Grosch left, the earth started to shake.
A single-horned red scorpion, even larger than Grosch, let out a roar towards the sky as it raced forward.
“Loganathan is here too.” Bruen said calmly. Like Grosch, Loganathan was a mythical beast missioned with transporting apprentices to the outpost. Its destination was the Twin Towers Outpost near the Gate of Machinery.
As time passed, various terrifying and gigantic mythical beasts appeared, carrying away the individuals from the Nielgard Winter Palace.
The number of people was dwindling, and the once bustling Winter Palace was starting to become quiet again.
At this point, Madeline turned to look at Bruen, who was still marvelling at the previous mythical beast. Her eyes were filled with both confusion and disdain: “Maher has already left, why haven’t you?”
Bruen shyly smiled and said, “Didn’t I mention earlier that I’m actually headed to Watchtower Fortress too?”
“What are you going to Watchtower Fortress for?” Madeline frowned. Bruen, as an academic wizard, was always treasured by the Frost Moon, so why would he suddenly run off to the most dangerous Watchtower Fortress?
Bruen grinned and said, “Guess?”
Madeline’s eyes narrowed, seemingly realizing something, her tone suddenly turned cold: “Are you…going there for her?”
Bruen shrugged, not answering. But Madeline was almost certain about Bruen’s intention. Considering Bruen’s profession, and that person’s hobbies…
Madeline’s gaze towards Bruen became even more hostile.
However, Bruen simply said, “What you want to do is up to you, I won’t stop you.”
“That’s best!” Madeline coldly glanced at Bruen and dropped the conversation, choosing to remain silent.
Chapter 975 The Monumental Gate <TOC> Chapter 977 Duchess Bel