Chapter 840: Chapter 839: Crossing the Border

The night has yet to fade, and morning has not arrived, but a hazy glow brought by the giant sun has begun to appear on the horizon. It seems as if the faint rays are striving to break free from the constraints of the earth, while the stars still envelop this land asleep in darkness.

Near the Typhon border, a tower with a silver-white spire and grey-white exterior walls stands quietly on the high ground beside the Shadow Marsh. The starlight cascades from the sky, outlining a glow on the surface of the tower, and the large circular ring at the top of the tower floats in mid-air at the spire’s height, silently rotating in the night sky. The starlight shines upon the surface of the ring, constantly reflecting various glimmers.

A magic message arrives from afar, and a series of initially dim magic symbols on the ring light up sequentially.

The middle-aged mage who was keeping watch at the communication tower awakes with a sharp ringing sound. He quickly pulls himself out of meditation, standing up from the rune Array in the "Listening Hall." Before him, a complex and splendid magic symbol continuously lights up on the wall, projecting the emblem of the Royal Mage Association.

The mage’s eyes change, and he quickly walks towards the complex Array painted on the wall, casually pressing his hand on the surface of a specific Rune Stone within: "This is the boundary tower at Shadow Marsh, please speak."

"Command from Aldernon," a slightly distorted voice soon echoes in the mage’s ear, "immediately notify the border outpost for an interception..."

The middle-aged mage’s brow furrows swiftly, listening to the voice transmitted from afar. Without hesitation, he turns and slaps a nearby Rune Stone pillar, calling for another mage who is on standby in the lower level: "Nim, come change shifts, I need to go to the outpost, urgent orders from the imperial capital—check the records yourself later!"

Without waiting for a response from the other watch mage, he quickly heads to the window on one side of the hall. The nearby magic robe, staff, hat, and other items swiftly fly over as if imbued with life, adorning the middle-aged mage. Once the staff finally falls into his hand, the crystal window etched with numerous magic symbols bursts open—

The middle-aged mage leaps out, diving into the dark night sky outside the tower.

Under the starlight, the robe-clad mage, like a bird, swiftly glides over the high ground where the communication tower is situated. Behind him, the circular ring at the top of the communication tower continues to rotate quietly, more magic symbols light up in order. The other watch mage in the tower has already taken over the Array. This expensive and intricate magic creation hums in the night, starting to relay the command from Aldernon to the next communication tower...

...

Steel wheels crush the rails embedded in the earth, with repulsion mechanisms emitting a faint glow beneath the carriage and along its sides. The power spine releases surging energy, and the ancient magical device hums during its high-speed operation. A mechanical serpent forged from metal crawls across the ground, stirring the thin mists above the early spring earth in the dark night, rushing towards the direction of the border.

The mechanical noise from wheels, certain bearings, and levers echoed pathetically inside the quiet carriage. The freight carriage, after the lights were turned off, was a dark space, where the tense and oppressive atmosphere kept everyone in a state of diligent alertness. Yuri raised his head, and the eyesight of the Transcendent allowed him to discern the pairs of eyes in the darkness and the worry across Wendy’s face nearby.

"We’ve already crossed the Shadow Marsh checkpoint and will soon arrive at the border," Yuri whispered, "Even if Aldernon reacts quickly, the relaying of magical communications takes time, and at most, they can only relay it to the communication tower beside the Shadow Marsh—the number of Typhon’s communication towers is limited. Ultimately, the messengers at the end still rely on human efforts, and they won’t make it in time."

"I’m worried about the people who’ve remained back home," Wendy softly said, "The informants appeared earlier than expected; many probably won’t have time to relocate. The identities of the lower to middle-level cult members are easily exposed through mutual reporting... not to mention, the Empire has begun implementing population registration management in recent years, and exposed comrades likely won’t be able to hide for long."

Yuri furrowed his brow and suddenly said softly: "...Exposed comrades might not necessarily face life-threatening dangers."

Wendy looked over with curiosity: "Why do you say that?"

"If it’s Emperor Rosetta Augustus..." Yuri lowered his voice even further cautiously, "He’s likely to try and recruit the Eternal Sleepers, especially those who possess dream theurgies and neural spine technology among the middle-level priests..."

Wendy’s expression changed slightly, hearing Yuri continue: "The Royal Mage Association is entirely loyal to him, and the archMages probably have found ways to sever the connection between the Eternal Sleepers and the mind network. That ’informant’ who disconnected from the mind network is proof, and the Eternal Sleepers who have disconnected from the network... will become technical personnel controlled by the Augustus Clan."

Wendy subconsciously opened her mouth: "You..."

"I once lived in Aldernon, and..." Yuri revealed a complex smile, "I have some understanding of Emperor Rosetta Augustus plus, as a former aristocrat, I also know how a nation’s ruler thinks when faced with things that aid the governance... the royal family will soon issue a recruitment order for the Eternal Sleepers sect, and Emperor Rosetta Augustus will arrange a series of dignified reasons to dispel people’s resistance against the dark sect, with the Noble Congress supporting him wholeheartedly—we will have some priests become secret advisors and aides for various Augustus Clan families, while others will join the Royal Mage Association or the Constructers’ Guild, and all this won’t take long."

Wendy quietly gazed at Yuri.

She didn’t understand the aristocratic way, but she knew Yuri was once part of their circle. What he said probably wasn’t untrue; this... appeared to be the rules followed by the power group at the upper echelons of the Empire, and the inevitable outcome under this rule’s operation.

"You’ve thought about this before?"

"Even before the evacuation started, I had considered it," Yuri whispered, "And I believe some others had thought of it, too, but we all kept silent about it—some did so to prevent unsettling hearts, others... might already be awaiting Aldernon’s invitation letter."

Wendy couldn’t help but bite her lip: "...I thought the deterrence of the Wanderers from Outer Realm was sufficient..."

"The Wanderers from Outer Realm require the mind network to extend Their power, and currently, the mind network isn’t adequate to bear this power—the middle-level and above priests understand the technology, they know this as well as the strength of the Royal Mage Association... even amidst significant risk, someone is willing to take the risk," Yuri spoke slowly, shaking his head helplessly, "There are too many opportunists, plus, remaining in Typhon holds immense allure for many—especially for those fated not to be accepted by the ’Cecil Order’."

Wendy became silent for a moment. Amidst the darkness and stillness, she heard Yuri’s voice tinged with a sigh—

"Division is inevitable, Lady Wendy, especially when we’ve overextended... this is the best scenario now, at least none of the Archbishops have betrayed." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"I once thought the mind network connected all of us..." Wendy whispered with a sigh, "but we’ve reached this situation today."

Yuri remained silent.

Several beams of faint light pierced through the narrow vents on the side of the carriage, streaking bright lines across the dark freight car.

Several figures moved between the crates, a few eyes pressed against the vents ahead, and a bishop murmured softly not far away: "It’s light outside..."

Yuri leaned close to the gap behind him, pressing his eye against the narrow slit. He saw the dawn rising from the end of the wilderness, with the glorious corona illuminating the entire plain and the mountain range at its distant end. The lakes and rivers embedded in the plain shimmered with tiny golden glimmers, while the nearby trees and grass quickly retreated alongside the railroad, merging into an elongated blur.

The thin mist has been dispelled by sunlight at some point.

"We are approaching the border," Yuri immediately reminded, "Be cautious, there’s a checkpoint here—"

A sudden lurch occurred, the screech of steel wheels grinding against iron rails erupted from beneath the carriage. Simultaneously, distinct vibrations were felt on both sides of the carriage, and outside the walls, the rattling sound of some mechanical apparatus operating filled the air.

The braking mechanism is applying pressure to the wheels, while the Repulsion mechanisms outside the carriage are sequentially adjusting polarity—this train is decelerating.

"Don’t be nervous," Wendy immediately turned around and said, "We are approaching the border post, it’s a normal stop."

"I’ll go check the situation in the front carriage," Yuri rose gently and whispered, "It’s close to the connecting section, must be extra careful."

...

Sunlight shone on the checkpoint near the Typhon-Cecil Border, a slightly chilly wind blew from the plains, and several fully armed Typhon soldiers waited on the high platform, watching the freight train coming from Batfield County gradually slow down and steadily approaching the stop signal line in the inspection area. The station commander squinted his eyes, forcibly controlling the urge to yawn in the chilly morning, instructing the soldiers to advance for routine inspection of the train.

During the brief waiting time for the train to open its carriages, the station commander took a deep breath of the cold air on the plains, while boosting his spirit, looking to the distance—two Combat Mage Towers stood on both sides of the railway, their large arcane focusing crystals glimmered under the sunlight, while several junior combat mages and knights stood guard in nearby posts, observing the train’s stop.

His gaze continued to move afar, across the fence, across an open field, over the low walls on the border and to the blockade on the other side, finally settling on another checkpoint—that was the Cecil Clan’s border post, several square buildings erected on the cement platform, mage crystal devices floating in the center of the open ground, and several weapons known as "Rail Cannons" installed atop the walls, with their barrels aimed high at the sky.

The Typhon officer glanced at the soldiers who had already started the inspection task, then turned back, drawing a small dagger from his waist, reflecting sunlight on the blade, he waved twice toward the Cecil Clan’s checkpoint.

A few seconds later, a similar reflection swept across his eyes.

The young officer grinned, then pocketed the dagger, walking towards the direction of the train.

A man with a bushy beard, wearing a blue uniform, leaned outside the carriage, he was the conductor of this train, a Typhon native.

"Loaded with textiles and alchemical materials," the bearded man smiled at the young officer, "to get some gleaming gold for our emperor."

The young officer reached out: "Let me see the list."

"I just gave it to the soldiers..."

The officer frowned: "I haven’t seen it yet."

The bearded man had no choice but to find the documents he carried and handed them to the officer in front: "Oh, alright, here you go."

The officer took the list, then turned away, striding towards several carriages not far away.

The bearded conductor seemingly casually glanced into the distance, suddenly, a faint black dot appeared in the eastern sky, quickly flying like a bird toward here.

The conductor’s expression changed immediately, he turned to the officer who was leading the soldiers in checking the carriages, with a smile: "Knight sir, these carriages have been checked just now."

The young Typhon officer looked at the soldiers beside him: "Checked?"

"Checked, sir," the soldier replied immediately, "Matches the list."

The Typhon officer glanced at the list in his hand, then slightly looked at the side bearded man, grabbing the handle near the door, stepping one leg onto the door step, slowly leaning his upper body in to look inside.

The black shadow in the sky grew nearer, a vaguely human outline could already be discerned.

"Knight sir," the bearded man took a step forward, smiling flatteringly, "Inside are the alchemical materials..."

The Typhon officer’s gaze slowly swept across the carriage interior, the darkened freight carriage was filled with stacked crates, and nothing else.

Counting all those crates again would clearly be a waste of time.

The train conductor stood outside the carriage, with a smile on his face, his eyes unblinkingly watching the officer’s movements.

He dared not bribe, nor offer any verbal incentives, as both actions would immediately provoke suspicion—the guards here are reserve members of the Black Steel Knights, soldiers with aristocratic bloodlines who target the Black Steel Knights, exceptionally alert.

"Knight sir, we’ll have to undergo another inspection on the Cecil Clan’s side after this..."

The Typhon officer finally withdrew from the carriage door, his boots hit the ground with a click.

"Frankly speaking, having to stop on both sides of the border for checks is somewhat unreasonable," the officer casually said, "What do you think?"

"I wouldn’t dare say," the bearded man hastily waved his hand, "The big shots above surely have their reasons for setting these rules, we just follow them..."

"It’s bound to need optimizing eventually," the officer chuckled, "After all, everything’s just starting now..."

"Who knows..." The bearded man spread his hands, "As for me, just figuring out this massive thing behind me is already dizzying."

"Alright," the officer decided further discussing these matters with the man before him was futile, finally waved his hand, "Check verified, stop time’s about up, let it pass!"

The bearded man immediately flashed a smile, bowed like a gentleman, then turned and climbed the carriage handle, the next moment, the signal bell inside the train rang.

The huge and intricate steel machine began to slowly accelerate, gradually leaving the Typhon checkpoint, crossing the fence and low walls, over the wide buffer zone, smoothly heading towards Cecil territory...

Until the train crossed the border, a middle-aged mage in a black robe finally descended upon the Typhon checkpoint.