In the outer space, deep within a realm shrouded in dreamlike chaos
A colossal war fortress floated silently.
This realm was no ordinary space.
Stars rose and fell, colors twisted, and the void shimmered with currents of liquid-like light and fragmented strands of time.
Within this dazzling yet perilous expanse, the massive fortress constructed of metallic structures, arcane runes, and multidimensional components stood out as a distinctive landmark.
Moreover, the war fortress itself possessed a powerful signal broadcasting system.
Thus, as time passed, this very fortress soon drew a gathering of wizards.
Together, they established the first foothold in this strange and unfamiliar domain.
This war fortress was none other than War Fortress No. 13 Lynn's assigned base.
Inside the fortress, numerous mechanical wizards could be seen moving about, operating, and experimenting with all kinds of mechanical devices.
At the highest point of the fortress, several figures stood none other than the current commanding officers of this stronghold.
Among them were the familiar figures of Grand Wizard Earl and Grand Wizard Yude.
However, the two were not alone. A third figure stood at the forefront.
On the top-level observation deck, the three stood at the edge of a storm of raging light streams, gazing into the unfathomable dreamscape beyond.
Earl and Yude both wore solemn expressions, their faces showing unmistakable reverence.
Their eyes were fixed without prior agreement on the black-robed figure standing at the center.
He was tall and upright, his wizard robes flowing like silent shadows, blending seamlessly with the space around him.
With his back turned to the two Tier-3 Grand Wizards, he quietly stared into the distance toward the chaotic mist where color and causality were fractured.
But what truly made him impossible to ignore were his eyes pale and pupil-less.
They were pure white like frost, devoid of blood or pupils as if completely cut off from all signs of life. A single glance from them could freeze the soul of a lesser wizard and throw their magic into disarray.
This man was the one known as the Eye of the Spirit Wizard.
Grand Wizard Yude usually sharp-eyed and wolf-like did not dare meet those eyes. Instead, he lowered his head, his tone more cautious than ever before:
"Lord Eye of the Spirit… we were unaware you had also descended into this world… Lord Machina gave us no prior warning…"
Beside him, Grand Wizard Earl also wore a grave expression, a trace of tension in his gaze.
He knew this mysterious wizard had previously shown proof of being a Morning Star Wizard, and had clearly stated that he was a contingency left behind by the Machina Wizard.
To Tier-3 wizards like themselves, a Morning Star Wizard was almost beyond reach.
Their power wasn't merely overwhelming it was fundamentally on another level of existence.
For a Tier-3 wizard to evolve into a Morning Star was an even greater leap than that from apprentice to official wizard.
So when this Morning Star revealed himself, the two Grand Wizards immediately formed their assumptions.
In their minds, the Eye of the Spirit should've appeared alongside the Machina Wizard.
It was only due to the unexpected upheaval when all wizards were scattered into separate regions that temporary chaos had ensued.
Now, with the link between the Eye of the Spirit and Machina confirmed, that taut string of anxiety in their hearts finally relaxed a little.
Having such a formidable being to "anchor the formation" was, to them, like securing a lifeline.
"Hmm."
The Eye of the Spirit responded with a low, indifferent hum.
His pale eyes slowly swept across the distant dreamlike mist.
After a moment, he turned around, his voice calm to the point of being icy:
"I will attempt to contact Machina."
"You two do you still have any way to reach your wizard battalions?"
The two Grand Wizards were momentarily stunned but quickly understood.
"It should be possible. We can try sending out a signal to reach them…"
At this, a faint glimmer flickered in the Eye of the Spirit's gaze. He gave a small nod and said:
"Good. Our top priority now is to assemble a combat-capable wizard army."
The two Third-Rank Grand Wizards responded without hesitation, each pledging to do everything in their power to gather their scattered subordinates and bring them back to this location.
The Morning Star Realm was a crucial threshold. Only after breaking through to the level of a Morning Star Wizard would one gain absolute dominance over all beings beneath that realm.
From that point onward, they would no longer fear being outnumbered. No matter how many opponents they faced, mere quantity would never surpass the absolute superiority of a Morning Star Wizard.
However, the situation was entirely different for the two Third-Rank Grand Wizards.
Though they had indeed reached the Third Rank, possessing powerful spells and profound knowledge, they had yet to cross the true boundary into the Morning Star Realm. They remained, fundamentally, as "mortal beings."
No matter how formidable their strength, they could still be overwhelmed by sheer numbers.
It was for this reason that assembling a powerful wizard army held even greater importance for Yude and Earl than the mysterious and unfathomable presence of the Eye of Spirit Wizard standing before them.
The wizard army was their true lifeline.
"Very well," the Eye of Spirit Wizard nodded, his tone calm yet filled with unshakable authority.
He stood on the high platform, hands clasped behind his back. His vast, pitch-black robe billowed softly in the wind.
"Set out immediately. This space is part of an outer plane… For the Divine Civilizations, this is a convergence point of supernatural forces, a place where the residual will of gods still flows."
His voice was low and heavy, landing in the ears of the two Grand Wizards like the weight of truth, prompting them to stand at attention as they listened to the secrets of this plane.
"In such a place, no anomaly should be seen as a mere coincidence," he continued, his gaze sweeping across the war fortress below, where rune-lit structures flickered in the shadows.
"Unless a god establishes a divine kingdom stabilized within the inner legal domain, then outside such sanctuaries, anything can happen."
"Here, space flows like a dream, and unfathomable illusions abound. Time can become disjointed in a heartbeat; eons may pass in a blink. You might close your eyes for a moment, and the person beside you will have aged ten years."
"Worse yet, beyond the harsh environment of this realm, there are also… unique beings."
He paused for a moment, his gaze growing even more profound. "These bizarre entities possess no life signatures, no soul. Killing them brings no gain. But if they devour you… you'll truly become part of this outer plane, never able to leave again."
At these words, Yude and Earl exchanged a glance, the weight of shock and solemnity reflected clearly in their eyes.
As commanders of a war fortress, their strength was formidable, yet their understanding of such divine-realm danger zones remained surface-level at best.
Now, with the Eye of Spirit Wizard's explanation, their horizons were not only broadened but a genuine sense of awe for the realm beyond Morning Star also took root in their hearts.
This was the true stature and perspective of a Morning Star Wizard every word and sentence conveyed a vision beyond the grasp of ordinary Grand Wizards.
At the same time, a strong sense of urgency surged within them.
They knew they had to retrieve their subordinates and reassemble the fighting force of the Thirteenth War Fortress as soon as possible.
If they delayed any longer, the natural anomalies of this plane might consume their people one by one and the loss of those lives would weaken their combat power in the long run.
Each wizard in the fortress was equipped with a specially designed communication device. As long as the signal strength was sufficient, there was a chance to re-establish contact.
Realizing this, the two wasted no time. They bowed deeply to the Eye of Spirit Wizard, then turned and strode swiftly away toward the command center, preparing to amplify the power of the array and strengthen the communication signals to search for every last scattered wizard with every passing second.
Meanwhile, on the high platform, that black-robed figure remained still.
The Eye of Spirit Wizard's pale, pupil-less eyes swept across the dreamlike mists of the alien realm. As the light and shadows shifted around him, a trace of unfathomable depth and hidden sorrow flickered in his gaze.
"Back in this place again…"
He murmured, the sound barely audible, yet laced with deep-rooted hatred.
.......
In the Material Plane, on the front lines of the Eastern War Zone, the battlefield had now become the focal point of the entire world's attention.
It was a vast land shrouded in golden light, as if a divine hand had descended from the heavens, casting its palm over the entire realm.
The entire region seemed to have been cleansed by a sacred radiance, holy golden light flowing like water, bathing every inch of the land and every floating boulder in brilliance.
Even though the rules of the world had changed now governed entirely by the laws of the wizarding realm this area still emitted a unique divine power, as if even the altered laws could not suppress it.
At this very moment, countless wizards had gathered here, ready to dissect and take control of everything within this divine domain.
Beyond the vast barrier of golden light, a densely packed army of wizards had already taken up position.
Countless mechanical constructs stood in perfect formation, from the skies to the ground, extending to the edge of the barrier's research arrays. Together, they formed a grand and intricate image of a vast war machine.
Thousands of steam-armored units, psionic turrets, and avian reconnaissance automatons patrolled tirelessly outside the barrier, monitoring and analyzing every fluctuation.
Research teams of wizards some floating in the air, some stationed on the ground operated complex instruments, conducting in-depth studies of this sacred, god-touched land.
Above the clouds, massive war fortresses hovered silently like a formation of stars, overseeing the scene below.
Each fortress resembled a floating continent immense, solemn, and brimming with pressure. Their structures were far more complex, and their firepower vastly more concentrated than any ordinary floating fortress.
At a glance, there were over a hundred such war bastions suspended in the sky.
They loomed like gods of steel, silently watching over the radiant domain below. Their shadows cast upon the earth rendered even the sunlight dim by comparison.
Above the golden light barrier, at the highest reaches of the sky where it met the edge of the firmament floated a miraculous construct of machinery.
It was the pinnacle of wizarding mechanical civilization: the Supreme Floating Fortress.
If ordinary war fortresses could be compared to armored carriages, then this colossal construct was nothing less than an interstellar warship towering above them all.
Countless rune circuits flowed across the fortress's surface, as though the very sky trembled in response to its presence.
Under the central command of this mechanical citadel, the entire frontline battlefield had been divided into a precise grid.
Every wizard, every automaton, and every piece of equipment operated with exacting precision down to the second.
It's worth noting that during the initial battles in the Eastern Warzone, just ten war fortresses could assemble an army numbering in the tens of millions, exerting overwhelming pressure on the battlefield.
Now, with over a hundred such fortresses gathered, it wasn't merely a matter of enhanced firepower it signified the full-scale mobilization of the entire City of Machines.
At this moment, the number of wizards, apprentices, and mechanical constructs amassed here had already surpassed the billions.
This, however, was to be expected after all, under the command of the City Lord of the Mechanical Metropolis, all wizards across the entire plane had been summoned to this location.
The number of full-fledged wizards now gathered in this warzone had reached staggering heights.
There were close to ten Morning Star-leveled high-tier wizards present.
Beneath them, countless Third-Level, Second-Level, and First-Level wizards along with a massive tide of apprentices had already spread across the battlefield like an overwhelming tide.
With the combined efforts of these vast numbers, the research into the divine golden barrier enveloping the region was progressing at an astonishing pace.
Many wizards were blending theoretical analysis with battlefield experience, tirelessly unraveling the mysteries and rules behind the radiant glow steadily advancing toward the domain of the gods.
Among the more than a hundred war fortresses, a select few hovered at the very front lines floating fortresses even larger and more intricate than the rest, emanating a pressure far beyond the norm.
These were the personal strongholds of Morning Star Wizards each one representing the strength and will of a top-tier figure, serving as the true nerve centers of the battlefield.
One fortress, in particular, stood out from the rest—its structure forged entirely from high-strength mithril and stellar alloy, with rune circuits etched across its entire body, radiating waves of arcane energy as brilliant as a star.
The fortress was like a fusion of a spellcasting stronghold and a high-level research sanctuary.
In the deepest core of this floating fortress, within the main command chamber, a solitary figure stood quietly before an array of intricate panels.
He wore a simple white robe, his hair white as snow, his posture straight and dignified yet there was not the slightest air of authority or oppression about him.
On the contrary, he resembled a kind and elderly librarian, or perhaps a scholarly elder engrossed in his lifelong research.
And yet, any powerful wizard present would instantly notice:
Four distinct and stable arcs of magical radiation pulsed faintly around him clear marks of a Fourth-Level Morning Star Wizard.
This man was not only a Morning Star wizard but a peerless one among them.
Even within the City of Machines, his power and status ranked firmly in the top five.
His name was known far and wide The Warhammer Master, a great sage of mechanical science and arcane engineering.
At this moment, he was absorbing data streams sent by various wizard research teams, compiling them into his mental network.
Golden arcane energy swirled at his fingertips, transforming into countless structural models that spun and interlocked midair, being analyzed and reverse-engineered in real-time.
In mere moments, he had already mapped out a viable plan for breaking through the divine barrier.
"Based on the current model simulations and high-frequency resonance analyses…" he slowly looked up, voice steady and calm,
"…we will be able to completely dismantle this divine light shield in ten days and eleven hours. The next step…"
As he spoke, he compiled all the refined intel into a high-energy data stream and transmitted it via encrypted channels
directly to the peak floating fortress where the City Lord of the Mechanical Metropolis resided in person.
Only after this was done did he slowly turn around, revealing a face etched with the traces of time.
It was a serene and kindly face. His white eyebrows shone like silver, and his eyes clear as a mountain lake were impossibly deep.
His gaze landed softly on a young figure standing not far away.
"Martha," he said gently, "Stay with me for now during this phase."
Martha trembled with emotion upon hearing this, quickly bowed deeply, and replied with reverence, "I shall obey, Master!"
It was Martha who had previously brought Darwin to the Mechanical Metropolis and arranged for him to meet the Warhammer Master.
Darwin had quickly become the master's favored student and because of that, Martha, despite being just a minor wizard, had earned a place in the old master's eyes.
Now reunited on the battlefield, the Warhammer Master didn't mind offering her some protection.
Especially since this young apprentice seemed to have a rather good relationship with his beloved disciple.
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