Chapter 366: The Metallic Tide
Dragon Court plane.
This plane, belonging to legendary dragons, has been peaceful since the end of the Glorious War.
But today, the Dragon Court plane has welcomed some extraterrestrial guests, breaking the years of tranquility that have persisted here.
Buzzing.
Seas of clouds churn, winds howl.
Amidst the swirling clouds and winds, bursts of fiery, sun-like radiance, and pure, holy light suddenly appear, accompanied by severe spatial fluctuations. One by one, extraterrestrial envoys cloaked in strange light emerge.
The legendary dragons residing in the Dragon Court detect these foreign visitors.
Their draconic might spreads far and wide, intertwining like tangible tides, engulfing the group of extraterrestrial envoys.
However, the draconic might recedes as quickly as it arrived.
This is because the legendary dragons recognize the mark of the Time Dragon God on these extraterrestrial envoys. Without this mark, they wouldn't have been able to enter the Dragon Court plane so effortlessly.
The space of the Dragon Court plane is reinforced by the divine powers of various dragon gods.
Even with the coordinates of the Dragon Court plane, ordinary planar teleportation spells cannot breach its defenses easily.
One by one, the dragons retract their gaze, showing little interest in the extraterrestrial envoys.
As legendary dragons, they have seen extraterrestrial envoys before, though they pay a bit more attention to the two leading demi-god envoys. However, they feel neither wary nor tense, as this is Dragon Court, the dragons' home turf, populated not only by ordinary legendary dragons but also by some of the strongest demi-gods and god-like ancient dragon elders.
"This is the Dragon Court."
"My lord's saint is in this place."
The extraterrestrial envoys look around, taking in the environment of the Dragon Court.
For races other than true dragons, the Dragon Court plane is somewhat mysterious.
During the Glorious War, this hub plane, which coordinated the top-tier dragon forces, came into the view of countless species across the endless world planes, especially since the Time Dragon, the lord of the Dragon Court, claimed the greatest victory of the Glorious War, ascending as a dragon god and marking the fall of the gods of fate and history as well as the herald of his own emergence.
These extraterrestrial envoys originally admired and followed God Garon because of his deeds.
Now arriving at the plane where the saint of the lord of the Dragon Court resides, their solemn faces also show a hint of curiosity.
At this moment.
A surge of draconic might, sharing the same origin as the Time Dragon God, sweeps over the extraterrestrial envoys.
Although it's a demi-god level draconic might, it feels as deep and terrifying as an unfathomable abyss. Both Celestial Envoy Susanna and Holy Light Envoy Morgan feel an overwhelming sensation that they cannot contend with.
Being demi-gods themselves, they recognize that there are levels among demi-gods.
The two extraterrestrial envoys exchange glances, seeing admiration in each other's eyes.
It is indeed the saint of the Eternal and Time Dragons, having such profound majesty as followers serving God Garon. The strength of the Time Dragon God is evident, and they feel honored to be associated with him.
Following the will within the draconic might, the extraterrestrial envoys transform into streaks of light, traversing the cloud-filled skies of the Dragon Court plane.
Breaking through the clouds, a magnificent hall stands between the heavens.
The Eternal Hall comes into view of the extraterrestrial envoys.
Surrounding the Eternal Hall, there are many floating islands and continents, varied in style, where the most powerful ancient and primordial dragons of the Dragon Court plane reside.
Setting aside the primordial dragons for the moment, the presence of the ancient dragons, though not overtly displayed, still makes each extraterrestrial envoy feel like they are in the same room as top predators.
Simultaneously.
A calm voice resonates within the Eternal Hall, saying, "Come in, my servants."
Extraterrestrial envoys, often referred to as divine servants or guardians of the divine, signify their role as attendants to deities.
A moment later.
Inside the Eternal Hall, the Star Chamber.
The space here resembles a beautiful cosmic starry sky, with twinkling lights flickering and rising. Due to spatial magic alterations, it is extremely spacious, capable of accommodating several hundred primordial dragons at once.
When Garon calls the Primordial Council or the Ancient Council, it usually convenes here.
A procession of extraterrestrial envoys enters in single file, stepping through the grand entrance of the Eternal Hall and being directly teleported to the Star Chamber.
The Eternal Hall, after numerous magical engineering modifications, is no longer just an ordinary building. It is now the central hub of the Dragon Court plane. During
the Glorious War, thanks to being nourished with the blood of countless high elves, a divine artifact, the Crystal Skull, has also integrated with the Eternal Hall.
"Praise my lord, your glory shines brighter than the radiant holy light."
The extraterrestrial envoys look up at the perched silver dragon, expressing their respect solemnly.
They hold no contempt for Garon being regarded as a divine saint.
In a world where gods exist, all beings understand one principle: seeing the saint is akin to seeing the deity themselves. A divine saint is both an independent incarnation and part of the deity.
The god and the saint are independent yet one.
This relationship is similar to that between Garon and God Garon.
Only, it is reversed.
The extraterrestrial envoys here do not realize that the lord of the Dragon Court before them is the original, while the Time Dragon God high in the divine realm is the 'saint.'
The silver dragon nods calmly, accepting the praises from the envoys.
"Susanna, you have been to that mechanical world."
"Do you think, with your current force of divine envoys, you could conquer the mechanical world?"
Before Garon are about one hundred forty extraterrestrial envoys.
Their strengths range from just entering legend to demi-god level, with uneven tiers. The weakest, a Star Realm Apostle, is at biological level twenty-one, while the strongest, Celestial Envoy Susanna, is not far behind Garon in terms of level. Holy Light Envoy Morgan has recently stepped into the demi-god realm.
Of course, the Heart of Machinery is now in the primary material world.
Both Garon and Celestial Envoy would be suppressed at the demi-god threshold there. In such cases, the combat power they can exhibit is crucial.
After hearing Garon's question, Celestial Envoy Susanna thinks for a moment, then shakes her head and seriously says, "Not enough."
Although she only spent a short time on the mechanical star, that was enough for Celestial Envoy Susanna to understand that a world where everything visible has evolved into metallic machinery is not something that two demi-gods and a hundred legends can resolve.
Even as a demi-god, if not for her reluctance to engage in battle, she couldn't have directly resisted the cataclysmic energy cannon from the sky.
"What if I lead the charge?"
The silver dragon's gaze is calm, his voice deep.
Without a moment's hesitation, Celestial Envoy Susanna, with a look of admiration for Garon, confidently says, "If my lord personally intervenes, the only fate for the evil machinery is destruction."
"Under your dragon wings, we will be unstoppable, victorious in all battles."
Garon is satisfied with Celestial Envoy Susanna's response.
A roar of dragon laughter echoes through the Eternal Hall, and after it subsides, the silver dragon speaks in a cold, detached tone: "I have lain dormant for years; it is time to demonstrate some of my power."
His dragon wings extend as Garon unfolds his massive form.
Simultaneously, an ethereal crown appears above the head of the silver dragon.
The Imasca Crown emits a ghostly blue glow, causing ripples like water curtains in space, forming a vast portal.
On the other side is the primary material world where the Heart of Machinery resides.
The Heart of Machinery has fortified the material plane's barriers, making ordinary planar teleportation ineffective. But with God Garon precisely locating the coordinates and firmly locking onto the plane, using the Imasca Crown, Garon easily tears through the opposition's defenses.
The silver dragon flaps his wings, stepping into the portal amid rising winds.
In an instant.
After passing through the planar barriers, the scene before Garon turns upside down.
Looking up, he sees a dark metallic sky, no sign of the sky or sun, as mechanical patterns emitting a ghostly blue glow move across the metallic firmament, converging into glowing cubic nodes, serving as light sources for this world.
Looking down, he sees no normal soil or forests on the ground.
Towering metallic mountains, deep rivers flowing with molten iron and steel, and dense, ferocious forests of steel—everything within sight seems forged from metal.
On the metallic ground, rumbling sounds are incessant.
From structures resembling munitions factories, plumes of black smoke billow, the high temperatures distorting the air. Molten iron and steel flow into these iron nests through channels, producing a series of mechanical creations like an assembly line.
The most numerous among these are a type of humanoid machines with four pairs of mechanical tentacles on their backs.
Iron Spiders.
The most basic combat unit created by the Heart of Machinery.
The main body of these metallic creatures somewhat resembles the Ultron robots from Earth's media, then augmented with mechanical tentacles.
Besides, there are giant cannons emerging from the ground, spires emitting lightning, honeycomb-like energy matrices, and other
mechanical units.
The metallic sky also opens countless gunports, gathering ominously pulsating waves.
Countless mechanical creatures form various formations, standing ready on the metallic ground as if awaiting Garon's arrival.
After encountering Celestial Envoy, under the will of the Mechanical Grandmaster, this peculiar mechanical planet immediately sprung into action, ready to welcome the arrival of deities.
Compared to the entire world.
Between a weaponized sky and ground.
Garon, who has just arrived, and the extraterrestrial envoys following him, seem exceptionally minute.
The metallic sky, tens of thousands of meters high, covers the entire world.
At this moment, Garon, thousands of meters in the air, looks around, his gaze sweeping over billions of metallic troops.
"The scale of this metallic army is even larger than the ancient Guimasca mechanical army."
Garon thinks silently.
After all, the Guimasca Empire was a human realm, whereas this is a true mechanical world. In terms of developmental potential and limits, the Guimasca Empire indeed cannot compare with their own creations.
At the same time.
A series of chaotic sound waves rise, becoming stable after a brief disorder.
Billions of metallic troops stand still, the mechanical units between the sky and ground ready to strike, though they do not launch an attack immediately.
A emotionless mechanical voice speaking in Draconic rises in this world.
"Intruders, leave my world."
Metal particles in the air swirl, forming a pair of narrow eyes, watching the silver dragon and the extraterrestrial envoys beside it.
Seeing these eyes, Garon recalls the eyes that appeared on the faceplate of a guardian angel.
Staring at the narrow eyes floating in the sky, Garon asks, "Interesting, what are you?"
The silver dragon's face shows curiosity, his words devoid of any insult.
Garon has already noticed that the machines here do not possess life; each is just a cold tool, except for the pair of narrow eyes before him.
Although the voice is mechanical, Garon can sense emotional fluctuations.
A guarded emotion.
"I am the Mechanical Grandmaster, the sole ruler of this world."
Mechanical Grandmaster.
Facing the Mechanical Grandmaster, Garon is even more certain of his guess.
This Mechanical Grandmaster is likely the Heart of Machinery that has developed sentient life and then evolved step by step.
"Grandmaster? That's a grand title, but why do you not dare to appear in your true form?"
Garon speaks calmly.
"I am everywhere, what you see, all serve as my shell."
The Mechanical Grandmaster's voice is unfluctuating.
Everywhere. Garon ponders the Mechanical Grandmaster's words, his eyes slightly shifting.
This being has likely evolved into a hive-mind-like entity.
With a supreme will commanding all mechanical creations, it could be said that countless mechanical creations collectively constitute the will of the Mechanical Grandmaster.
"Not a civilization composed of mechanical life, but a mechanical world governed by a single will."
"The developmental trajectory of the Heart of Machinery deviates from what the Guimasca Empire envisioned."
Garon gazes at the Mechanical Grandmaster.
"Intruder, this is your last warning, leave my world now."
"Disregard my warning, and you will turn to dust and disperse."
The Mechanical Grandmaster speaks again.
It's clear that it does not wish to conflict with Garon and the extraterrestrial envoys.
To avoid premature conflict with deities, a low-profile development was encoded into the core program of the original Heart of Machinery.
But it never anticipated that the casual intrusion of two ordinary dragons into its world would attract the attention of a dragon god.
Now, the Mechanical Grandmaster can only accept reality.
"You attempt to kill the followers and citizens of a deity."
"Do you think the gods will sit idly by?"
The Mechanical Grandmaster falls silent for a moment, then seriously says, "To destroy me, even a god must pay a price too great to bear."
This statement is not false; when the price is sufficiently high, even gods must consider whether it is worth intervening.
Unfortunately for the Mechanical Grandmaster, it is not facing just any deity, but Garon.
Garon knows the past of the Mechanical Grandmaster.
It was God Garon's domain of fate that led to the discovery of the quietly developing Mechanical Grandmaster.
The silver dragon firmly states, "Mechanical Grandmaster, right? You may not have a body, but I know you must have a core, somewhere in this world."
Pausing, Garon grins, saying, "I don't need to destroy this world; capturing your core will suffice."
The metal particles forming the Mechanical Grandmaster's eyes vibrate intensely.
Clearly, Garon has hit the mark.
"This will be your grave."
Seeing Garon determined to be its enemy, the Mechanical Grandmaster speaks no more.
As its words end, the narrow eyes disappear from the sky.
At the same time.
Buzzing. The sound
of countless engines starting fills the air.
The metallic army surrounding them activates.
Boom, boom, boom!
Endless attacks erupt from the sky and ground—sonic waves, gravity waves, high-temperature beams, lightning bolts, and physical weapons of all forms, like a torrential downpour.
The extraterrestrial envoys exert their own powers.
Brilliant radiance bursts forth, forming a sea of light around Garon and the extraterrestrial envoys, annihilating all incoming attacks.
However, seeing the strained expressions of the extraterrestrial envoys, it is clear that this violent onslaught is not so easily repelled.
The Cataclysm Cannon accumulating destructive energy in the sky also adds immense pressure on the extraterrestrial envoys.
But they believe in their saint, their faces determined, showing no fear.
The billions of Iron Spiders also rise into the air, along with countless mechanical creatures, like a metallic storm sweeping towards Garon's side.
The mechanical creatures blot out the sun.
From the sky to the ground, from all directions, they converge en masse, overwhelming Garon's entire field of vision.
But Garon remains unmoved, his expression calm.
"Heart of Machinery, where are you?"
Garon's eyes narrow slightly, his body beginning to emit a glowing light.
In an instant, the silver dragon's surface is covered with a layer of golden armor, transforming into a peculiar 'Golden Dragon.'
The Heart of Machinery is a product of the Guimasca Empire, and Garon possesses an Imasca secret weapon capable of controlling mechanical energies, which he can use to locate the Heart of Machinery hidden in this world.
Destroying this entire metallic world would be too troublesome.
That would require the power of the Dragon Court.
Although Garon is the lord of the Dragon Court, when handling personal matters, he does not casually assemble the Dragon Court's forces. The Dragon Court is the dragon court of all dragonkind, and the Dragon Court Covenant explicitly states these terms.
In personal schemes, if assistance from members of the Dragon Court is needed, he must provide adequate compensation.
Moreover, Garon's goal is not to destroy this place.
He wants to capture the Heart of Machinery, just as he controls the seven secret weapons of Imasca.
After activating the Imasca Armor, Garon's gaze sharpens, indeed sensing something unusual.
He feels a connection, a faint link with the Imasca Armor.
Using this connection, he pinpoints a coordinate.
At this moment, the extraterrestrial envoys continue to fend off the relentless attacks, surrounding Garon, who unleashes the power of time, enveloping himself and the extraterrestrial envoys, initiating time teleportation.
In the midst of violent attacks and rampant energy.
Ordinary spatial teleportation is difficult to achieve successfully, risking being swept away by spatial turbulence.
But Garon's time teleportation is not hindered by these.
As if heralding the end of the world, metallic roars fill the sky and earth, but the River of Time flows quietly, unaffected.
Next, amid the ripples of the River of Time, the silver dragon and the extraterrestrial envoys simultaneously vanish.
Boom, boom, boom!
The sea of light disappears, and the terrifying metallic storm and energy tides collide, unleashing waves of world-shattering impacts that tear through the metallic ground below.
At this time, within the ripples of the River of Time, the silver dragon and the extraterrestrial envoys arrive at another location on the mechanical star.
It is still a world of metallic machinery.
But here, a colossal pillar connects the metallic sky with the ground. On the mechanical giant pillar, endless energy circuits flicker and flow, like the bloodstream of a living being.
At the core node of the circulating energy circuits, a cubic silhouette forms.
The Heart of Machinery is inside.
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