Chapter 1 Lin's Request

Lin Chou held a teacup, standing before the window, the sounds of broadcasts reaching him from behind.

"Today's highest temperature in Central City is 9 degrees Celsius, the lowest is -3 degrees Celsius, sunny, north wind, air humidity is..."

Lin Chou silently watched the green plants on the windowsill, their leaves trembling in the wind.

The wind was rather strong today.

A few seconds later.

The broadcast was interrupted with a crash.

A silver-white figure descended onto his windowsill.

A Liuer landed inside the stone railing of the window terrace, kneeling on one knee before slowly rising. "Master Zhu Xue, I come from Gu Fort."

The words "Gu Fort" made Lin Chou lower his eyes slightly.

He took a sip of tea and adjusted his glasses.

The radiant light fell into the room, casting upon the androgynous and handsome man's face, faintly revealing a smile.

Gu Fort was facing an unprecedented "severe challenge," the rapid spread of mental toxins, and the imminent arrival of the northern storm. The entire Central City had held emergency meetings for days on end because of this, and the inland nobles were all filled with worry that the rumored "Kindling Plan" might be implemented.

This was hardly the time to smile.

So Zhu Xue quickly composed himself, returning to his usual expressionless demeanor.

He had smiled only because, for more than a decade, he had dreamed of seeing that stubborn kid from Gu Fort finally give in to him.

When soldiers came, he would use generals to block them; when water came, he would use earth to dam it. Everyone he had sent had been dealt with clearly by Lin Lin.

Finally, this day had come.

Through the meetings these past few days, Zhu Xue had coordinated with the nobles of Central City, deciding to mobilize inland forces to head north to provide support. If Lin Lin didn't give in, he might "miss his chance" again.

Good… This kid hadn't remained stubborn to the end.

"If I'm not mistaken, he should have written a letter..."

Lin Chou smiled at A Liuer.

This was a tradition of the Lin family.

"Yes."

A Liuer was somewhat taken aback.

Zhu Xue extended his hand, preparing to welcome his "victory."

Then came a brief silence.

A Liuer awkwardly felt around in his pocket, took out a lacquered envelope, and slowly said, "He only wrote one letter, and it was addressed to Her Majesty the Empress..."

Lin Chou, who had been as gentle as the spring breeze, suddenly had his smile freeze.

Only one letter?

"Lord Zhu Xue, I've actually returned specifically to deliver a letter to Her Majesty," A Liuer said sincerely. "However, Lin Lin also asked me to bring a message: Gu Fort is currently in dire straits, and he requests your assistance. After this, he is willing to accept the Central City's command."

Zhu Xue snorted coldly, his expression unpleasant.

A Liuer didn't say much more. After delivering the message, he nimbly flipped backward like a cat, disappearing from the light and shadow of the windowsill, vanishing without a trace.

Lin Chou stood there for a long time, stroking the teacup, the expression on his face slowly returning to calmness.

That fool.

How many years had passed? Was he still holding onto that trivial grudge from his childhood?

With such a great trouble, if he didn't bring a message to me, would I really be able to hold back Central City's forces?

...

...

After leaving Grand Duke Zhu Xue's residence, A Liuer soon arrived at Central City's military district. This area was garrisoned by the supernatural beings who guarded the royal family. It was the largest ancient fortress area within the borders of North Continent, dwarfing the fiefdoms of several grand dukes in comparison, like a dim firefly meeting the bright moon. The emperors of North Continent throughout the ages had resided here.

And now in charge of this place was North Continent's unprecedented first "Empress."

She had overthrown the tyrannical rule of North Continent's previous emperor, brought hope to the people of North Continent, ended the long imperial war, and united the hearts and minds of all the legions on this continent.

Countless people sincerely praised her, respected her, and worshipped her. She was the most influential woman within the Five Continents, without exception. She only had halos and no shadows. When searching for this Empress in the Deep Sea, without data trimming, the spontaneous evaluation words that could be found were often "greatest," "most sublime," and "most sacred."

Historians who studied North Continent's history often associated such bright and flawless evaluations with the Empress's past.

The last person to possess such influence and such a positive image came from East Continent.

But twenty years had already drowned out that person's "radiance."

People remember.

People also forget.

Long ago, when Her Majesty the Empress was still young, she had grown up under the protection of Gu Changzhi.

Perhaps… that was one of the reasons she had grown into an Empress.

The fortress where the Empress resided was silent. The portraits of people who had "lived" for hundreds of years on both sides of the corridor faced each other, silent and speechless.

Apart from the Apostles, no one had the authority to enter this place at any time.

Coming here was usually by invitation from the Empress.

In North Continent, this was considered an unparalleled honor.

A Liuer proceeded towards the location where he sensed the fire seed in his heart, and before ascending to the second floor, he was stopped by a figure.

"Her Majesty the Empress… doesn't want to see anyone else."

The voice of that figure was gentle and forceful.

A Liuer looked up blankly.

"Commander..."

The woman standing at the stairs leading from the first floor to the second floor was none other than the commander of the Investigation Legion, who had previously had a conversation with Gu Fort.

The commander's face was quite gentle, completely different from the voice on the communicator.

She had an oval face that was not so "determined," and a pair of watery eyes that reflected the light, captivating and moving. She was a truly classic beauty. It was just a pity that, as a ruthless figure commanding the North Continent Legion, such a face was not a bonus.

So she didn't often show her face.

Most of the time, she was in the Central City military district, responsible for unified command and making major decisions.

A Liuer opened his mouth in confusion. "I don't understand..."

She was Her Majesty's Apostle, possessing an extremely precious wisp of the fire seed power. This power allowed Her Majesty to transmit her spirit at any time. As long as she was within the borders of North Continent, she could receive instructions from the God Seat.

Every move she made was under Her Majesty's control.

In a sense, she was Her Majesty's thought, a shadow.

Anyone could be someone else, but she never would be.

Even if…

If she wasn't allowed to meet, why not just transmit the spirit directly?

The two looked at each other.

The commander explained softly, "A Liuer, you should know that Her Majesty's mental state is very poor. The 'furnace' heart that supports the operation of the entire North Continent is not underground, but here... During this time, she has been trying to revive the heart that supports this land. The second floor is filled with sealed objects and formations, used to seal the terrifying 'fire seed power.' If you insist on entering, it is not a good thing."

The Apostle's power was derived from the same source as the fire seed.

It was very likely to damage the formations upstairs.

"I… understand."

A Liuer sighed softly.

"I am here to deliver a letter."

She took out the envelope with both hands and presented it. "Commander, please pass this letter to Her Majesty the Empress."

...

...

The world was silent.

Enveloped by the Domain of Truth, Gu Shen could hear nothing.

The Source Armor's soundproof mask could only block noise of a low level.

But the Domain of Truth truly isolated all interference.

No matter the roar of the storm or the raging tide, no noise could enter the domain. Gu Shen stared expressionlessly at the "umbrella" that was getting closer and closer to him!

The good news was that the umbrella defense line was approaching.

The bad news was that the speed of the storm had accelerated once again.

The "rubble" in front of him had reached an unimaginable level. Due to the terrifying attraction of the giant tornado, the mountains would collapse and shatter even before being swept away... This group of people was practically advancing against "a mountain." If not for the Ruler of Truth, even if the members of the team had ten lives, they would be buried in this desperate race.

Gu Shen's spirit had been trying to connect again and again.

His connection target was Chu Ling.

Outside the giant wall.

The Deep Sea had no signal... Logically speaking, this was an impossible connection.

But now he needed the umbrella defense line to open a passage for him. Only Chu Ling could do this. As long as she issued the order as the Deep Sea, Gu Fort would know about his return in advance and cooperate with this operation.

Gu Shen knew that the outer edge of the umbrella defense line was lined with countless Sky Eyes. These Sky Eyes could detect the Old World's movements and changes. They must have noticed this storm... But he wasn't sure whether these Sky Eyes could accurately transmit the Old World's information in this moment of intense storm landfall.

His group of people was almost submerged in the vast snow and violent wind.

Truly like ants.

"Di..."

"Di..."

"Di..."

Continuous mental connection requests all failed.

This was the first time since leaving the fortress that Gu Shen had felt such a true sense of nothingness and loneliness. Chu Ling could appear in any corner of the world, but not in this broken Old World.

There was not a trace of signal here.

...

...

At this moment, in the train heading towards nothingness.

Chu Ling sat on the floor of the carriage. In front of and behind her were numerous pop-up information windows, all of which contained data that she was urgently mobilizing. The Sky Eyes of the umbrella defense line were rapidly shattering... And each Sky Eye was aimed at the tiny figures in the storm under the mobilization of the source code.

The collection efficiency in the Gu Fort monitoring room was extremely high.

They only saw the Deep Sea providing the explorers' position coordinates at the speed of light, refreshing hundreds of times per second to confirm their safety.

They couldn't see.

In the virtual Zero Zero One, there was a girl waiting anxiously.

In this empty carriage, a solitary voice echoed repeatedly.

"Connecting... Connection failed."

"Connecting... Connection failed."

"Connecting..."

"Connection failed."