No-fly zone
Ximu had no knowledge of architectural styles, so it was difficult for him to determine more information from the style of the stone bridge.
The bridge was so wide that it could accommodate two large carriages passing side by side. There were fences on both sides, and at regular intervals, there were small pillars, each of which was topped by a ferocious gargoyle.
And those balls of faintly burning magical flames were being held in the mouths of these gargoyles of various shapes.
"It looks... a lot like the style of some magicians."
Ruixia looked around and easily saw that these gargoyles were not simple statues, but more like a composite product of magic and simple mechanical engineering.
He turned on the monocular and started tinkering with some complex calculations and analysis while walking.
"You mean the thoughtful feature that automatically ignites the engine when someone steps onto the bridge?"
Although she said so, Morina was obviously not praising it.
She gripped her staff tightly and moved closer to her teammates, fearing that these terrifying statues would suddenly come alive and attack them.
"more than."
In the blink of an eye, Ruixia seemed to have reached some conclusion.
As usual, he stopped Xi Mu and zoomed in on the energy flow diagram on the screen. The energy points on the image were linked together, and he manually added some auxiliary lines. Soon, a complete magic circle appeared.
"These flames aren't just for lighting; they also serve as a signal and fuel for the activation of a spell. The moment we step onto the stone bridge, the spell will activate."
Is it another magic circle...
Ximu had certainly studied magic, but compared to traditional magicians, her studies were more inclined towards combat practicality, emphasizing speed and power, and she was relatively lacking in magic arrays that required a lot of time to set up.
Morina was almost overwhelmed by the word "magic circle" at this moment. With a look of despair on her face, she hurriedly urged, "You've run so far and still can't get out of the magic circle... Then what are you still standing there for? Hurry and leave!"
"Don't worry, this magic circle is not that one. The previous one was like this..." Ruixia pulled up another energy flow chart for comparison. "Look, aren't they very different? The styles are completely different. It seems that they were not created by the same person."
"You mean to say that the man who hunts lost people in the dense forest is not the same person who built this long bridge?"
Facing Ximu's question, Ruixia nodded: "At least in terms of the style of using the magic circle, it is very inconsistent. But we can't rule out the possibility that they may still be a group of people."
"Why are you two chatting again?" Molina was shocked. "We are now in the range of such a large magic circle. Is it really appropriate to analyze the style of the circle so leisurely?!"
"I told you not to rush."
Ruixia smiled and tapped an icon on the screen. A search function suddenly activated. After a few comparisons, a striking icon appeared at the top.
"'Forbidden Sky'?"
"right."
Ruisha looked up at the sky.
Scattered stars dot the eternally unchanging night, but beyond the reach of mortal eyes, several identical magic arrays cover almost all of their routes. Once someone tries to pass through here by flying, they will immediately be subjected to unimaginable intensive attacks.
No-fly zone...huh?
Is this some kind of fortress with mechanical devices?
This kind of method requires not only strength, but also corresponding power to implement... Such a rigorous and deterrent arrangement, is this place really in a wartime state?
Then...where are the people?
With such high-profile alert, not even a patrol showed up... Are they fighting against the air?
The question circled back to the original point. The three of them looked at each other, and finally had to put aside their doubts and continue exploring forward.
Strangely enough, the fog that used to occasionally appear over the dense forests and lakes had not bothered them for a long time as they moved forward.
But after passing a tower, the three of them had to slow down their pace.
"This... collapsed."
Looking at the massive collapse before her, which seemed to have been caused by some kind of attack, Morina turned to look at the other two. "This distance, how long will it take to jump over it..."
Before she could finish her words, Xi Mu beside her leaped up and covered most of the distance in the blink of an eye. Just as she was about to fall due to the great distance, the girl turned around and, not knowing how she got leverage from the collapsed rocks, she actually managed to climb up like that!
After building the bridge with one hand and standing up, she turned around, looked at her stunned companions opposite her, and made a gesture of "It's okay, I can pass."
"What the hell are you doing there?! What are you doing there so seriously?! Isn't everyone as light as a feather like you?!"
Molina's complaints were like a loud bell, and could be heard from far away.
"Hahaha!—Oh, never mind, let's go over there too."
Ruixia calmed down the angry priestess girl, and then performed a few simple operations on the accompanying mechanical beast.
"What do you mean? Can you jump over this thing?"
"I can't help it. This area is off-limits. If you use flying items or spells, you might get attacked... I'll give it a try first. If it works, you can just come over here like this."
After saying that, Ruixia climbed onto the toad's back, adjusted her posture, and activated the switch.
The mechanical beast on standby changed its shape, gathered its strength and aimed, then suddenly ejected and took off, drawing a beautiful arc in the air - in a moment, a solid "bang" sound of landing came from the opposite side, and the black-haired boy landed smoothly, waving his hands vigorously towards the opposite side.
"The distance is fine, it'll work! --Morina, sit on the side with the numbers!"
Morina was confused and turned around to look. Unexpectedly, she saw the number "10" appearing out of thin air on the head of the mecha beast closest to her.
What does that mean? Is this the one?
Just as I was wondering, the number on the toad's head suddenly changed and became "9".
"Oh, gods...it turns out it's a countdown!"
The priestess girl suddenly realized what was going on and quickly climbed onto the back of the mechamon, clinging to it tightly. Before she could finish preparing herself mentally, she felt like she was floating in the air. It was a familiar feeling, but also a bit like she wanted to cry but couldn't.
...By the way, doesn't this count as flying?
However, these mechanical toads were originally guarding the lake, and they might have been in cahoots with the people who set up the ban, so it seems reasonable that they have some immunity...
Before the random thoughts in my mind dissipated, a solid feeling of landing came back.
In fact, she could have gotten through this safely by just holding on with both hands, but Morina was holding the staff in one hand and was not very strong. She relaxed for a moment and was suddenly shaken away, crashing straight into Ximu who was not far away!
"Oh my, oh my, get out of the way!"
Even as the world was spinning, he didn't forget to remind his teammates to get out of the way, but Ximu didn't move a step. He grabbed Molina's armpits and shoulders with both hands, twisted her, turned her upside down in the air, and landed her smoothly on the ground.
After a moment of daze, she finally regained her composure. Morina looked at Ximu blankly, and instinctively expressed her gratitude and admiration with a thumbs up.
"Speaking of which, Morina, why don't you put away your staff?"
After reflecting on not having carefully instructed Morina on the standard procedures for dealing with falling objects, Ruixia also raised her own questions.
"Ordinary magic wands are indeed easy to conceal... but my staff is made from a branch of the sacred tree enshrined within the Temple of Life. It inherently possesses extremely powerful magic. Unless you have reached the rank of High Priest, it cannot be concealed or carried."
"I see……"
The priests who believed in the Goddess of Life possessed the purest healing power in the entire continent, and the assessment was extremely strict. Unless one had excellent character and talent, it would be difficult to obtain the title of "priest" without merit.
It seems that the fact that Morina has been ordained as a priestess at such a young age can indeed be considered a gifted person.
Her good friend Felicia is less talented. Although they entered the temple together to practice and are as close as sisters, she is now only a "temple attendant" and failed to pass the priest's trial with Morina.
"But even so, wasn't her death too quick? I arrived later than you, but she was killed before you were imprisoned in the dungeon. Isn't there something wrong with the timing?"
After all, they had been together all the way and gone through many hardships. Morina no longer doubted their intentions, and the topic naturally shifted from the priest's content to the death of her friend. There was no suspicion in her words, she was just simply confused.
"Perhaps the progress of different spatial channels is different? So even though you were separated at the same time in the outside world, your arrival time here is different?"
Ruixia's guess is not unreasonable.
But after all they said, there was no evidence, and they could only stare blankly, with no clue.
As he spoke, the long bridge gradually rose, freeing itself from the support of its suspended piers and clinging firmly to the high rock face. The terrain gradually separated from the lake and began to extend towards a winding plateau.
And the end of the long bridge finally appeared before everyone's eyes little by little.
It was a spacious yet still imposing square. Numerous flags of unknown origin lined the streets, fluttering gently in the night breeze. While it looked a bit deserted at the moment, it was easy to imagine the grandeur and bustle of a ceremony or celebration held here.
"Such a large plaza doesn't seem like the property of an ordinary noble..."
Morina was muttering in the middle of the team. Ximu and Ruixia heard it, but did not respond. They were all alert to the movements around them, fearing that they would accidentally trigger some strange restrictions.
After crossing the square, they arrived at a towering, sharp city wall and a descending iron gate blocked their way.
If it was an ordinary iron door, there would always be some way to deal with it. At worst, it wouldn't be impossible to have Ruixia blast it open with a cannon -
But above the iron gate, there was a clear and still-functioning magic circle covering it. The structure was complex and the technique was advanced. It was obvious that some kind of family secret technique was incorporated into it, making the strange emblem floating in the magic circle look particularly daunting.
With their limited knowledge of magic, Ximu and Ruixia exchanged glances, then sighed slightly at the same time.
"This seems to be... a seal?"
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