Chapter 1385: 456. Well-informed

Inner Cosmos, Alchemist Island, in the Pollution Zone of Steel Forest of Mortal World.

30 kilometers below Ground Level, a large group of Death Steel Soldiers wearing power armor were chiseling the ground with their powered tools.

The constant clinking and clanging of machinery roared everywhere, yet the sound of stone cracking under the drill was seldom heard.

Beneath the feet of the Death Steel Soldiers, the ground was a flawless, seamless, unwrinkled smooth crystal barrier.

It was as vast as the Earth itself, tougher than a diamond drill, not only possessing an incredibly astonishing hardness but also capable of slowly self-repairing, filling every scar left by the drills.

“Bang! Bang!”

Explosive loud noises.

This was the sound of heavy equipment striking the ground with large metal hammers, yet the crystal ground remained completely unscathed.

“Whirrrr–”

A large drill with a diameter of over ten meters spun wildly, only lifting a small amount of crystal debris and failing to penetrate the crystal ground.

The same scene repeated continuously in this 30-kilometer-deep subterranean space.

This situation had been ongoing for over ten days.

The excavation operation jointly initiated by the Metal Ancestor Dragon and the Death Steel Legion was utterly halted by this crystal ground.

If they couldn’t break through the crystal ground to continue digging downwards, then the Metal Ancestor Dragon could forget about reaching the Sacred Fire buried deep underground.

The only good news was, after a series of explorations, the Death Steel Legion in this vast crystal ground discovered a rectangular window emitting a strange luminescence.

This window appeared on the crystal ground like a water well, inside which were colorful lights.

Before the Metal Ancestor Dragon came to inspect the window, the Death Steel Legion had already sent some soldiers inside.

The fate of the soldiers was predictable yet somewhat unexpected.

After entering the window, the Death Steel Soldiers lost contact, but they did not die.

Their souls remained intact, yet their consciousness was disconnected from their superiors and lost within the brightly shining window.

The Metal Ancestor Dragon heard the news and rushed over.

This old dragon, who liked to present itself in the form of a Dragon Man, recognized the origin of this rectangular window at a glance.

The Metal Ancestor Dragon did not elaborate to the Death Steel Legion.

It merely issued a command to continue searching for similar windows on the crystal ground, then hurriedly left the Underground Area.

Elsewhere, the Assassin Angel was monitoring every move of the Metal Ancestor Dragon.

Upon discovering the existence of the mysterious window, it immediately returned to the Spinning Continent and informed the Scroll Angel of the news.

After thinking and recalling, the Scroll Angel roughly recognized the origins of the mysterious window.

“The crystal ground that the Metal Ancestor Dragon and their allies are trying to destroy is the innermost barrier of the Inner Cosmos, designed to protect the Sacred Fire,” said the Scroll Angel as it reviewed past logs and spoke.

“I remember it very clearly. When constructing this barrier, the Star God requested three angels endowed with supreme Divine Power to each create a defense line that concentrated all their force.

“Space and Gravity Angel Gilenz gave the barrier an invincible characteristic.

“Time and Evolutionary Angel Senati ensured the barrier wouldn’t weaken over time.

“Angel of Heart Vaana set up an Illusion Space on this barrier to prevent non-physical beings and spirits from invading,” continued the Scroll Angel.

“If I haven’t misjudged, those rectangular windows appearing on the barrier are entrances to the Illusion Space. Any life or non-life form will face a trial from Vaana upon entering the Illusion Space. Only Vaana and Star God know the shortcut to navigating through the Illusion Space. According to my records, if Star God wants to approach the Sacred Fire, she directly reaches it through these Illusion Space entrances,” said the Scroll Angel further.

Enveloped in a thick purple fog, the fog subtly swirling, the Assassin Angel asked,

“So, you mean if the Metal Ancestor Dragon finds a way to break through the Illusion Space, it can bypass the inner barrier and directly reach the Sacred Fire?”

The Scroll Angel nodded with a hint of sorrow,

“As pessimistic as it sounds, that’s indeed the case.”

The Assassin Angel asked,

“Do we have a way to close the entrances to those Illusion Spaces?”

“No, at least not us. Only the Angel of Heart Vaana knows how to control the Illusion Space.”

After a moment of thought, the Scroll Angel said with a hint of helplessness,

“For now, we can only hope to locate the whereabouts of the Angel of Heart.”

The Assassin Angel silently nodded.

Time passed in contemplation and mechanical surveillance until late at night today, when things changed.

Ever since finding the mysterious window on the crystal ground, the Metal Ancestor Dragon had left the Underground and returned to the Metallic Magic Ship docked at Balde’s Gate Dock.

It established a spiritual connection with its counterpart in Outer Space through the ritual array in the Magic Ship.

Unable to see the thoughts in the Metal Ancestor Dragon’s head, the Assassin Angel had no way of knowing what instructions the other had given to its counterpart.

But late tonight, the Metal Ancestor Dragon suddenly awakened within the Magic Ship’s ritual array, and then violently and furiously stirred up a metallic storm within the ship, recklessly destroying the ritual array and metal facilities to vent its rage.

To avoid accidental injury, the Assassin Angel quietly moved away from the metallic storm.