Chapter 189: Chapter 185: Freedom and a Far-off Journey

On a side note, Allen had learned two Intermediate Witchcraft spells after arriving in this plane: High-Level Magic Shield Technique and Short-Range Flash. However, he hadn’t yet encountered an emergency that required casting them, and he wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

Furthermore, his cultivation resources were running low. A top priority for this trip to the Forged Fire Fortress, besides purchasing technology, was to replenish his cultivation materials.

Outside the workshop, a reddish-brown wasteland stretched as far as the eye could see.

A fully loaded floating airship hovered silently, half a meter above the ground.

It had a flat, streamlined design with a slender hull, measuring about twenty meters long and five meters high. Its entire body was covered in a dark silver paint job, similar to that of the "Storm Falcon."

This was the "Odyssey," a floating transport ship that Allen had custom-built for himself using his available technology.

The ship’s interior space had been optimized to accommodate twenty Spider Slayers and two PX-series Golems. It was also equipped with an AT Field and Demon Eye reconnaissance devices, ensuring its long-range strike capabilities.

Allen checked his travel configuration. He didn’t board the vessel immediately, instead taking one last look around his domain.

The wind howled, and red sand swirled through the air.

Five "Storm Falcon - AT Field Special Type" fighters stood like loyal sentinels around the Odyssey, their AT Field Generators emitting a faint glow.

And high in the vast sky above, five giant metal spheres, each over three meters in diameter—the "Demon Eye IIIs"—slowly rotated their multi-dimensional sensor lenses. Like the eyes of a god looking down upon the land, they silently guarded this ten-thousand-square-kilometer iron domain.

"Jarvis, connect to the Celestial Net system. Run a final full-domain diagnostic sweep."

[Command confirmed. Accessing Demon Eye III cluster network... Connection successful.]

The next second, Allen’s field of vision expanded dramatically.

It was as if his consciousness had been instantly lifted ten thousand meters into the sky, merging as one with those five cold "divine eyes."

The real-time status of the entire Zone 18 was presented in his mind, in a way that transcended the limits of his five senses.

It was an incredibly magnificent panorama.

Underground, an "Underground Great Wall" stretching over seven hundred kilometers, like a dense neural network, continuously transported the output from the five major mining areas to the central workshop.

On the surface, armed mining fortresses, protected by the "Demon Eye II" Floating Cannons, were like indestructible nails driven firmly into the red wasteland.

His gaze swept over the edge of the Crystalized Forest, where he could clearly "see" the active territory of the Dream-Weaving Demon Spider colony, and could even distinguish several exceptionally large elite Demon Spiders among them.

He then switched his perspective to the Black Stone Gobi. The Rock Armor Earth Dragon King was napping in its lair, each breath stirring a small-scale elemental tide.

The movements of all powerful Magical Beasts were marked, tracked, and analyzed by the Celestial Net system, which had established behavioral models for them. Any abnormal activity would trigger an immediate alert.

This was the revolution brought by the Demon Eye III: all-weather, no-blind-spot, god’s-eye-view battlefield surveillance.

Each Demon Eye III cost five thousand Magic Stones, more than ten times the price of the first-generation Demon Eye. But the trade-off was absolute control over his domain.

’Switch to the production monitoring interface,’ Allen willed.

The view shifted.

He "saw" a Demon Eye III hovering above the mountain at Gray Granite Mining Area Four. It wasn’t just an eye; it was the "brain" of the entire region.

[Unstable rock formation detected in Sector A-3. Risk of collapse.]

[Directive issued: Mining team, adjust excavation route to bypass Sector A-3. ’Gratitude’ units 11 through 15, proceed to Sector B-5 to perform reinforcement operations.]

Under the coordination of the Demon Eye III, twenty production-type Golems and their logistics units immediately changed their trajectories. The entire operational flow continued without the slightest pause or confusion.

This was another core function of the Demon Eye III: to act as a regional command hub.

It was equipped with the most intelligent Control Core Allen could currently manufacture, deeply integrated with the Rune technology of the [Cluster-Link Formulae].

The processing power of each one was sufficient to coordinate and command hundreds of logistics and production Golems. It could break down the medium-term development plans Allen had preset for each mine into thousands of specific directives, issuing them with precision to every base unit.

These production and logistics Golems already possessed basic intelligence; the specific directives from the Demon Eye III only needed to provide a general work direction, and the Golems would then make their own judgments to execute the tasks.

With five Demon Eye IIIs overseeing operations, Allen effectively had five tireless, absolutely loyal, and astonishingly efficient "viceroys," which greatly reduced the pressure on Jarvis.

This was the foundation of Allen’s confidence in leaving the workshop.

They would ensure that during his absence, the entire industrial empire would continue to run itself methodically, like a precision machine.

"Jarvis, switch base defense protocols to ’Sentinel Mode’."

[Command confirmed. "Sentinel Mode" has been activated.]

[The five Demon Eye IIIs will assume control of routine production scheduling and full-domain security. The First Legion will enter combat-ready standby. Any unauthorized targets entering the airspace will be intercepted by the "Storm Falcon" squadron.]

"Status on loaded defense contingencies?"

"Under Sentinel Mode, a total of 132 defense contingencies have been loaded," Jarvis responded.

[Contingency Seven: If a large-scale beast tide is detected, the ’Inferno’ launch platform will automatically activate and execute saturation carpet bombing.]

[Contingency Twenty-One: If an energy signature equivalent to a Second-level Wizard is detected approaching the airspace, the "Storm Falcon" squadron will execute warning, deterrence, and, if necessary, annihilation protocols. PX-0 will act as a frontline command node, autonomously coordinating the operation.]

[Contingency Sixty-Four: Should the central workshop sustain an overwhelming attack, the hangar containing the Freedom Gundam will initiate a maximum physical lockdown...]

These detailed contingencies, one after another, formed a watertight line of defense.

As long as the Demon Eye IIIs provided real-time battlefield information, the Golems of his First Legion would use the ’Peacemakers’ as minor command nodes to fight autonomously, making them more than capable of handling low-intensity conflicts.

It was safe to say that as long as the three great Magical Beast chieftains didn’t attack in person, his entire operation was as secure as a fortress.

"Very good."

Allen slowly disconnected from the Celestial Net, his consciousness returning to his body. As he entered the Odyssey’s cabin, a wave of pride and ambition washed over him.

Three years.

He was now a "Warlord" who possessed a fortune of millions and commanded a Steel Legion that was always ready for battle.

He had finally carved out a place for himself in this cruel Wizarding World with his own two hands—a foothold that was truly his.

His gaze drifted toward a giant hangar deep within the workshop.

"Freedom, wait for my return."

He whispered softly, as if making a promise.

"Jarvis, I’m leaving the workshop’s production in your hands."

[Rest assured, Commander. Home will always be here.]

Allen turned and strode onto the bridge of the Odyssey.

Inside his Alchemy Bracelet, two PX-1A units and eight Spider Slayer IIs were on silent standby—his hidden escort for this journey.

"Target: Forged Fire Fortress. The route is plotted."

"Activate the Anti-Gravity Rune Array. Let’s go."

WHIRRR—

Dozens of Anti-Gravity Rune Matrixes on the underside of the Odyssey’s hull lit up simultaneously.

The massive vessel rose silently, without the slightest tremor.

The five surrounding "Storm Falcon" fighters automatically formed an escort formation, like five silver bolts of lightning.

The airship rapidly climbed to an altitude of one thousand meters, changed direction, and shot off like a streak of light toward the vast world beyond the Molten Iron Mountain Range.

The workshop rapidly receded below, eventually shrinking to a tiny speck before vanishing completely.