The strong smell that wafted towards him was enough to make even the giant dragons from the Red Dragon Empire next door frown.

A scorching smell mixed with sulfur and coal smoke wafted through the city. A huge noise was like a real wave. The sound of steam engines shaking, the mechanical sound of gears meshing, the sound of trains passing by, and countless human voices, carriages, and horses... merged into a melody of chaos.

This is Ironforge, one of the great industrial towns in the Empire of Lorether.

The sky was gray, and huge chimneys pierced the sky like a forest, spewing out billowing black smoke and forming dark clouds in the low sky that never dissipated.

Now, against this gloomy industrial background, another kind of light is shining.

The huge gear, with a diameter comparable to that of a small airship, was not powered by steam. Its fine steel surface was etched with intricate dark blue magic patterns. At this moment, it was absorbing the thin magic power in the air, rotating slowly and silently, emitting a steady, cold blue glow.

There were hundreds of airships of various shapes in the sky, their hulls wrapped in shining metal skins, with buzzing tails emitting light blue magic flames hanging below them. They were like a huge school of metal whales, cruising leisurely over the chimney forest.

Xing looked at the airships and said, "Before Lina came to our country, she told me that Loris was researching a kind of ship that could fly in the sky. Now it seems that the research and development should have been successful."

I took off my hat and looked at this industrialized city with a little surprise.

"I thought that Rendria was already cold and dead, but I didn't expect that this city could create another deeper coldness."

Xing laughed and said, "I've lived in the Snow Country for dozens of years, and I didn't feel cold even when I heard the cold wind howling like a ghost. But now I feel cold when I see this industrial city with heat waves rolling in?"

I had indeed spent nearly a hundred hours alone on the snow before, and Xing probably remembered that experience and teased me.

I spread my hands and said, "This cold is a metaphor. When I say cold, I mean that the atmosphere of the city is very weak and chaotic. Compared to the active atmosphere on the snow in the wild, it is indeed much colder here."

Xing: "This is self. The higher the industrialization process, the more space left for self-growth is squeezed. Oxygen can be said to be another manifestation of self-vitality. It is normal for them to feel suffocated here. Moreover, there are also billowing black smoke, which also pollutes the air with ozone."

Listening to Xing's words, my eyes couldn't help but look towards the chimney in the distance that was spewing out black smoke.

I don't know if I will absorb the smoke and dust into my body when I meditate and practice.

However, magicians don't mind these things, because the magic here is weak, so they can go to other places. Ordinary people don't mind either, because they can't use magic themselves, so no matter how weak the element in the air is, it has nothing to do with them.

But they are interested in these industrial creations, because they are closely related to their existence.

When we got to the street, we saw a few newsboys with patches on their clothes but smart eyes waving newspapers in their hands. When they saw Xing and I coming, they came over and tried to sell newspapers to us.

Xing bought one from each paper boy.

I took one of the copies and read it. The headline on the front page was: "Magic Crystal Train's Speed Breaks 30 Miles per Hour! Empire's Transportation Enters a New Era!"

"Magic Crystal Train?" I was quite curious about this.

Xing and I have taken the Rendriane train several times, but this is the first time I've heard of the Magic Crystal Train.

Xing saw my confusion and said, "This is probably the magic crystal technology that Lina mentioned. She can build trains in the sky and build tracks regardless of the terrain. The only drawback is that it consumes a huge amount of magic crystals."

"Oh? Then why don't we go and experience it?"

Xing smiled and said, "Of course, there is nothing wrong with this."

The SkyRail station is located on top of a giant steel tower rising from the ground on the edge of the city.

When you take the huge steam elevator to the platform, the view becomes clear.

Below my feet was a city spread out like a grey chessboard. Giant chimneys formed a forest, spewing out never-ending columns of black smoke.

Right in front of us, the Silver Shuttle magic crystal train, suspended on the crystal track, is quietly waiting for its passengers.

The scenery is beautiful, but I was also shocked by the ticket price. It is too expensive. When people see such prices, most of them would rather take a carriage or a train instead of the magic crystal train.

Even if they are nobles, most of them will only choose to fly.

Of course, the experience of riding this kind of train is really good. Rather than saying it is a means of transportation, it is more like an item in an amusement park that provides others with an experience.

Xing and I took our seats and waited for a while before the train started.

There is no harsh friction, no violent bumps, only an extremely stable driving feeling, as if being held up by an invisible giant hand.

I pressed myself against the glass window.

The city beneath my feet quickly receded and shrank.

After a while, we arrived outside the city. The vast plain appeared before our eyes like a green velvet carpet, and the winding river was like a blue ribbon.

Further away, rolling hills loomed in the mist.

The view is very broad and the air seems to become fresher.

Of course, I knew that this was just an illusion caused by the altitude, and the shield on the train blocked all the wind.

Compared to flying and taking a train, this means of transportation really gives people a much better experience.

Looking at the scenery outside the window that was constantly receding, I couldn't help but have this thought again.

Xing was sitting in the soft seat, holding a small piece of exquisite dessert and savoring it slowly, but her eyes were not lingering on the beautiful scenery outside the window, but observing everything in the car with great interest.

"If our country also had this kind of train, I believe those old nobles would definitely like to come here every day to show off, and then take all kinds of photos and post them on Alice's website." Xing said.

I felt a little strange, so I retorted: "They can fly by themselves, why bother and waste money to take a ride? And just to take pictures?"

Xing snorted and said, "You don't know this. Pretending to be cool is a huge emotional need of human beings."

I shook my head helplessly. Xing said something that I couldn't understand anymore, but I was used to it, so I just experienced the moment.

The train sped steadily, and the scenery beneath our feet kept changing.

We passed a busy inland port, where ant-sized ships shuttled through the waterways; we flew over vast farms divided by neat ridges, like a green geometric puzzle; we also passed several smaller industrial satellite towns, which also had chimneys erected.

The end of the journey is a viewing platform built on the edge of a huge canyon, the Emerald Overlook.

The train stops here for a while to allow passengers to get off and take a short walk to enjoy the magnificent canyon scenery.

We followed the crowd out of the car and stood on the platform at the edge of the cliff.

Below is a deep canyon with an unfathomable depth and rugged rocks. A waterfall like a silver chain cascades down from a very high cliff and shatters into misty water vapor at the bottom of the valley.