Chapter 825: Predicament
What should have been a half-day journey to reach the space fortress turned into a grueling day and a half for Sein and the assault corps.
By the time they finally arrived at the outskirts of the fortress, half of it had been buried beneath yellow sand.
The most challenging part of the journey had been the final stretch to the outskirts of the space fortress.
Although the fortress appeared to be only a small distance away, the journey actually took nearly a day for these full-fledged mages to complete.
It was here that over eight thousand magic beasts were lost, permanently buried in the sands.
By the end of the journey, only fewer than ten thousand magic beasts remained capable of fighting.
Positioned at the center of the formation and protected by the surrounding magic beasts, the mages experienced relatively low losses.
On the other hand, the undead cannon fodder, commanded by Sanchez, had truly lived up to their title.
Only less than fifty undead creatures survived and arrived on the outskirts of the space fortress with Sanchez.
However, those that had survived were all Rank One or higher.
The undead knight Sein knew had survived yet another ordeal.
Looking at the creature’s cold armor and the thick layer of blood covering the surface of its mount, it was clear that this undead knight had taken down numerous enemies along the way.
When Sein and the assault corps got close to the space fortress, it seemed to come alive.
A yellow energy shield radiated outward from the center of the fortress, stretching nearly a thousand meters and enclosing Sein and the others in its protective glow.
However, the shield flickered intermittently as soon as it appeared, clearly far less stable than the one protecting the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s main fortress.
Suddenly, a legion of enslaved creatures emerged from the fortress. Standing 1.6 meters tall with gray skin and two horns on their foreheads, they charged out under the leadership of a Bloodline Warlock, wielding steel fork in hand.
Though not as powerful as the magic beasts accompanying Sein and his allies, their sheer numbers were overwhelming.
At a glance, the enslaved creatures that poured out of the fortress to receive Sein and the others numbered in the hundreds of thousands, blanketing the landscape in a seemingly endless wave.
Their sudden emergence momentarily disrupted the advance of the Wild Gorilla Army, granting Sein and his allies a crucial moment of respite to catch their breath and swiftly retreat into the fortress to recuperate.
***
This was Sein’s first time entering the space fortress owned by the Kermoine Serpent Warlock Clan, having only observed it from a distance while in Sandstorm World.
Unlike the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s space fortress, which was “modern”, “high-end”, and “pristine”, the Kermoine Serpent Warlock Clan’s felt “worn” and “cramped”.
Sein had also noticed that both of the Kermoine Serpent Warlock Clan’s space fortresses were slightly smaller than the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s.
Curious, he asked Angreas about this.
For someone usually so composed and aloof, Angreas surprisingly blushed a little at the question.
The Kermoine Serpent Warlock Clan was indeed one of the West Coast’s more renowned medium-sized Bloodline Warlock clans.
Their influence easily surpassed that of most divine towers established by Rank Five mages and was even comparable to those constructed by newly ascended Rank Six mages.
However, maintaining the continuous growth and advancement of their members requires staggering amounts of resources.
The fact that their clan could provide a space fortress for each of their three Rank Four or higher members was impressive enough.
Providing their three ancestors with the latest Magus World space fortresses, however, was simply out of the question.
The two fortresses currently used for transporting enslaved creatures had already been in service for fifty thousand and seventy thousand years respectively.
The fortress Sein and his group were currently aboard was the newer one, clocking in at fifty-three thousand years old.
“Good heavens. It’s even older than Lorianne,” Sein thought.
While both fortresses had been meticulously maintained by the Kermoine Serpent Warlock Clan and remained functional with some combat capability intact, these outdated models could not possibly compete with the newer fortresses developed by the Magus Civilization over the last ten millennia.
Advancement never ceased, and space fortresses evolved along with it.
Based on the steady evolution of the Magus World’s magitech over the past hundred thousand years, space fortresses—the Magus Civilization’s foremost weapons of interplanar war—undergo major upgrades approximately every fifty thousand years.
And that was just the standard models.
Custom-designed fortresses, like the one belonging to Grandmaster Feylis, received routine upgrades and maintenance every few hundred or thousand years.
As long as one could afford the costs, the heavy-industry laboratories in Steel City, the Business Alliance, and Sky City—leaders in space fortress innovation—would gladly provide these services.
Unsurprisingly, the most advanced space fortress in the Kermoine Serpent Warlock Clan’s possession was the one used by their peak Rank Five clan head.
With a service time of only ten thousand years, this space fortress was relatively “young” among its ranks.
Unless the owners were lavish spenders, or the space fortresseses suffered severe, irreparable damage, they could easily remain operational for another ten to twenty thousand years with proper maintenance.
Moreover, the Kermoine Serpent Warlock Clan had no immediate plans to replace their aging space fortresses.
The key difference distinction between Bloodline Warlock Clans and divine towers lay in their responsibilities.
Bloodline Warlock Clans were accountable for the growth and development of every clan member, providing resources for their training and personal growth.
This obligation placed a substantial financial strain on the clan.
By contrast, divine towers operated on a professional hierarchy.
For instance, Lorianne, as a tower master, could assign jobs and tasks to mages under her leadership but was not obligated to micromanage their lives.
After all, she was their superior, not a parental figure.
The awkward look on Angreas’ face and his vague reply spoke volumes to Sein.
Even Sein’s mentor, Lorianne, was far from a wealthy mage herself and faced considerable financial pressure from heavy loans.
This led Sein to reflect on the broader workings of the Magus Civilization.
The external expansion and proactive development it had sustained for millennia might be deeply tied to the economic stimulation spurred by the magicoin system.
Wherever the promise of profit lay, the knights and mage legions of the Magus Civilization were sure to follow.
For now, Sein, as a Rank Two mage, had little need to fret about resources.
His savings were sufficient not only to cover all his current research expenses but even to leave a comfortable surplus.
However, this was a privilege of being a lower-ranking mage.
Sometimes, as Lorianne observed Sein’s experiments from the top floor of the divine tower, she could not help but feel a twinge of envy for his seemingly carefree and fulfilling life.
There was a time when Lorianne herself had enjoyed such freedom, delving into the mysteries of truth without a care in the world.
In those days, Lorianne had the unconditional support of a doting mentor and several seniors who spoiled her.
As Lorianne’s sole apprentice without any direct seniors, Sein could hardly fathom the idyllic nature of her early studies.
However, everyone must grow up eventually.
The moment one stepped out from beneath the protective wings of mentors and seniors, the stark reality of responsibility became unavoidable.
Lorianne had learned this the hard way.
One day, if Sein found himself in a similar situation—needing immense resources and investments to pursue the truth—he would inevitably come to understand her state of mind.