Chapter 549 Reconnaissance

The appearance of the giant dragon made Gawain even more interested in the mysterious impact crater at the southern foot of the Dark Mountains.

Whatever it was, it obviously caught the dragon's attention - so what was the last thing that caught the dragon's attention?

It was Cecil who was contaminated by the magic tide.

After exiting the satellite connection mode, Gawain thought quietly for a moment in the study, and then ordered Amber to call Hetty and Byron.

Hedi was taken aback when he heard that Gawain was going to go to the southern foot of the Dark Mountain Range to check the situation in person: "Are you going to the southern part of the Mountain Range?!"

"I'm very concerned about what happened over there," Gawain couldn't explain to the current Hetty what satellite monitoring was, so he could only say, "The overload of the magnificent wall happened not long ago, and now there is another phenomenon near the wasteland. There are new changes and we have to figure it out."

"But it's too dangerous over there," Heidi said worriedly. "Crossing the Dark Mountain Range is equivalent to facing the wasteland..."

"I've faced it more than once," Gawain interrupted Hetty, "and even if you cross the Dark Mountain Range, it doesn't mean you've entered the wasteland area - there are also the Black Forest and the Striped Plain in the middle. Strictly speaking, darkness The southern foothills of the mountains are still part of the 'civilized territory', with my strength, and a team of elites, there is no problem in moving there."

Seeing Gawain's resolute attitude, Hetty realized that he probably had no way to dissuade him.

Ancestor has always been far-sighted in doing things, and there must be a very important reason behind him being so concerned about this matter.

But just as Hetty was about to nod his head and Gawain was about to discuss manpower matters with Byron, a voice suddenly came from the door of the study, interrupting everyone's movements: "Old friend, I'm afraid you don't have to go over the mountains for now. ——There are some situations in the fortress of disobedience.”

Gawain raised his head and saw Soldrin standing there.

...

Immediately after the "quake", Soldrin received orders to lead a team of elite steel rangers into the Fortress of Rebellion and check south along the fort's main corridor to see if the ancient Gondor building had been damaged. The effect of mountain tremors.

Facts have proved that this order is not only timely, but also very necessary.

Relying on the magic spar lamp driven by the modern magic net system to illuminate the ancient long fortress corridor, Gawain brought Amber, Byron and Heidi,

Follow Soldrin to the southern depths of the fortress.

A team of fully-armed Iron Ranger soldiers walked with them, and on both sides of the corridor, you could also see sentries standing guard at intervals. The further you moved to the south of the fortress, the more sentries on the road.

"After the earthquake, the person in charge of the disobedient fortress arsenal sent a report that there was a loud noise coming from the southern corridor," Soldrin said calmly as he walked beside Gawain, "A few days in the south The workers in the operation area also heard loud noises and there were obvious vibrations. I was worried that the entire southern area would collapse, so I evacuated the workers in this area and checked all the way along the main corridor..."

The long corridor gradually came to an end, and an extra heavy and huge isolation door appeared in front of everyone.

This is the southern isolation gate of the Rebellion Fortress. Opposite this heavy gate is a huge cave called the "Shadow Experiment Field". Gawain still remembers this place - it was here that Amber jumped through the Shadow Realm to reach the contract Fort, who witnessed the scene of the assassination of Francis II, also brought back key evidence of a secret collusion between Prince Edmund and the cultists.

Since the development and exploration of other areas of the fortress have not been completed, the current "Dark Zone Industrial Zone" is temporarily not used in such a large area, so after that incident, the "Shadow Experiment Field" was temporarily sealed.

Solderin came to the gate of the Shadow Experiment Field and activated the magic mechanism of the door. With a crunching sound of mechanical operation, the newly installed magic mechanism drove the heavy isolation door to slowly open to both sides. The opposite scene is presented in front of everyone.

"To be honest, I was taken aback," Solderling said.

Opposite the gate, there is a thin layer of mist floating in the wide cave. At the end of Gawain's line of sight, the southern part of the cave is shining in the sky - there is an extremely wide opening, and the sky and mist are obviously coming in from there. of.

"It may be caused by the collapse of the mountain - the secondary collapse caused by the previous 'earthquake', part of the mountain rock peeled off, connecting the originally closed cave of the Shadow Experiment Field with the outside," Solderin said unhurriedly "These infiltrating mists have a faint magic tide, but fortunately they are very thin and belong to the 'boundary mist' that has declined to the point of being almost harmless."

"...Southern Dark Mountains..." Byron stared at the crack at the end of the cave in a stunned manner, and muttered to himself, "Oh my god...it was actually opened..."

Amber was equally stunned: "So this shadow experiment field is so close to the southern mountain wall?"

"Immediately mobilize a brigade, carrying light and heavy artillery, and placing them near the rift," Gawain suddenly turned to Byron, said quickly, and then looked at Hetty, "mobilize the engineering team, build fortifications near the rift, set Shield generator, and... bring enough Rebecca crystals here."

If the situation worsened, he wouldn't mind blowing up the entire southern fortress area directly to seal the breach.

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Byron and Hetty quickly responded to Gawain's order: "Understood!" "Yes!"

"I want to go to the south of the Dark Mountain Range to see..." Gawain turned to look at the Shadow Experiment Field, which was already connected to the outside world, with a strong sense of helplessness in his tone, "But I didn't want to go like this..."

...

The soldiers and engineering teams urgently transferred from Cecil City quickly arrived at the Shadow Experiment Field area. With the cooperation of the Iron Rangers who arrived earlier, they established a line of defense in the cave at the fastest speed. And began to build temporary fortifications relying on this line of defense, and during the whole process, Gawain did not leave this gap for half a step.

Gawain, Heidi and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief until the Magic Cannon was set up near the crack in the cave, and until a large amount of weapons and ammunition were sent to the South Gate Corridor.

Gawain brought Amber to the southern end of the cave, and the two climbed the collapsed and broken boulders, looking out at the vast scenery outside.

A purplish-black hillside covered with a thin mist stretched out in front of them. This was a relatively gentle mountain in the middle of the southern foothills of the Dark Mountain Range. At the end of the hillside, it extended down the mountain and was boundless. black forest.

Under the erosion of Chaos Magic Energy, the towering giant tree presents a distorted and mutated look. All the flowers and shrubs are no longer familiar to people. Those plants mixed with thorns, poison sacs, carrion and swollen glands are blown by the foul wind. There were constant rustling noises, some of them even creeping slowly between the rocks, and some particularly disturbing shadows flashed between the mutated and twisted plants, causing every witness to create countless numbers out of thin air. Terrible association.

That is the black forest, the black forest that is depicted in all epics, biographies, and poems. It is the product of the contamination of the magic tide, the result of the compromise of the normal natural world to the chaotic magic energy, and it can devour all the explorers who are not cautious enough. ——However, it is only the most fringe area of ​​the magic tide.

There are even hundreds of kilometers away from the magnificent wall.

"Is this the boundary of the civilized world..." Amber stood beside Gawain, this half-elf who was always fearless couldn't help but get nervous after seeing the Black Forest with her own eyes - even though she also stood in the Dark Mountains From the outpost at the top, I had seen the Black Forest at the southern foot of the mountain, but the view from the top of a high mountain from a long safe distance was obviously not comparable to the impact that was so close at hand.

Now she is standing here, only a few hundred meters away from the nearest Black Forest border, and she can even smell the rotten air wafting from the south - although this is mostly an illusion caused by psychological effects.

"We once had the opportunity to push this border southward. A hundred years ago, when the magic tide receded, if the pioneering spirit was still there, the Ansu people could always push the southern border to the magnificent wall, and then A more controllable barrier was built there—it’s a pity that Ansu missed this opportunity, and humans handed over this place,” Gawain sighed, “The Black Forest is no longer saved, and it’s corrupted to this extent, I’m afraid it’s Julu. Mourne won't be able to save it even if he gets up."

While speaking, Gawain raised his head and looked towards the southwest.

According to the satellite view comparison results in my mind, the shock crater that appeared mysteriously should be not far from the southwest.

The gap caused by the collapse of the mountain is indeed a huge hidden danger, but this hidden danger is not without benefits-now, the fortress of disobedience has connected Cecil with the southern region of the Dark Mountains. The ancient Gondor built this thousand years ago. The facility has now become a passage through the mountain. Through this passage, he can reach the southern area without having to climb the steep mountain road.

Moreover, with the help of the convenient passage inside the Rebellion Fortress, a large amount of materials can be sent directly to the southern foot of the Dark Mountain Range. After the fortifications here are stabilized, it may be a good idea to transform the entire "Shadow Experiment Field" into a forward fortress.

When Amber saw Gawain, he suddenly looked into the distance and fell into thought. After holding it for a long time, he finally couldn't help breaking the silence: "Hey, what are you looking at?"

Gawain said casually, "Since we're here... just in time to see the situation."

"...You haven't forgotten about this yet?!" Amber was taken aback, "Isn't it the collapse of the mountain—look around here, isn't it?"

"This place collapsed after the first 'earthquake', and the original 'quake source' was not here," Gao Wen glanced at Amber, "According to my perception, there seems to be abnormal magic fluctuations in the southwest."

The "perception" of the legendary powerhouse is a versatile reason. Amber can only trust Gawain's judgment, but looking at the dense and daunting distance in the distance, there are all kinds of crazy mutant plants, and it is unknown how many dangerous monsters are hidden in it. In the dark forest, the half-elf lady felt her scalp tingle: "Don't you want me to go with you... I'm allergic to the black forest..."

"Of course you have to follow," Gawain glanced at the coward, "but I have to say something first - Knight Byron, come here."

Byron quickly ran to Gawain: "Sir, are you looking for me?"

"I'm going to investigate that direction," Gawain pointed to the southwest hillside, "it should be within the Black Forest."

As a mercenary, a half-passenger with rich adventure experience, Byron immediately reacted: "Oh, okay, I'll organize a group of people who are good at reconnaissance..."

"No, the scout will just ask Solderling to prepare," Gawain interrupted Byron, "You bring in eighteen medium-sized 'Justice' railguns, I'll give you a few parameters, you go over there Blast a road..."

Byron was stunned: "...Sir, didn't you say investigation..."

"Yes, fire reconnaissance."

When Amber next to him heard this, his face became cute and circled: "How do I remember that the fire reconnaissance you told me last time didn't seem to mean that..."

"But this is beyond the boundaries of civilization, the edge of the wasteland," Gawain smiled, he patted Amber on the shoulder and looked at Byron again, "Remember, in this wasteland, the only way to survive is To destroy all threats, the only safety criterion is that nothing is safe, and the only reconnaissance is fire reconnaissance.”