Free Web NovelChapter 321: Chapter 314: Test Two
The deep blue light dissipated. Allen decisively severed his direct connection with the Earth Vein Magic Furnace.
The boiling Magic Power in his body rapidly subsided, and a sharp, needle-like pain pricked at his nerve endings.
His "mana bar" had briefly broken its limit, but his body—the "hardware"—had nearly fried from the overload.
’It felt amazing, just a bit too short.’
He flexed his wrist and cast his gaze toward the center of the deep crater.
"’My ’Infinite Firepower’ trial card has expired.’" Allen took a deep breath, quickly adjusting his state. "’Time for the next item on the list.’"
He took a deep breath, his Spiritual Power locking onto the spatial anchor point deep within his soul.
This was the most crucial step.
Since the workshop could be fully retracted into the half-plane, could he, as its master, directly enter this completely safe, independent dimension?
"Jarvis, create a channel. I’m going to try entering with my physical body."
[Command received. Establishing spatial channel...]
Above the crater, a blue fissure, just wide enough for one person, silently tore open. The other end led directly to the workshop’s central hub.
Allen lifted his right foot and stepped forward.
The very instant the tip of his boot was about to touch the fissure.
Red alerts from DSeek instantly flooded his mind, blaring shrilly.
[CRITICAL WARNING!]
[FATAL LOGICAL CONFLICT DETECTED!]
[Wizard’s physical body and the workshop entering the half-plane simultaneously will cause the spatial anchor to the Material Realm to sever completely.]
[Projected consequence: Permanent loss of connection. Unable to return.]
Allen’s half-extended leg froze in mid-air.
He quickly retracted his right foot. The blue fissure flickered violently before him a few times, then stabilized.
"Explain," Allen said, his brow furrowed slightly.
[Commander, the half-plane relies on the Material Realm for its existence, and your soul is the sole ’anchor point’.]
[When the workshop is fully retracted, you are the only coordinate connecting the half-plane to the Material Realm. If you also enter the half-plane, it means the ’coordinate’ itself has detached from the Material Realm.]
Jarvis directly displayed an animation: the single connection between a bubble representing the half-plane and a larger bubble representing the Material Realm snapped, sending the smaller bubble plummeting into an endless black void.
[Without a coordinate in the Material Realm, the half-plane will be swept away by the turbulent currents of the Sea of Magical Power. You will drift in the void forever, until your Magic Power is depleted and the dimension collapses.]
"Run the test again."
When the alert popped up, the data was identical to the previous time.
The moment Allen stepped one foot into the Space Gate, the anchor connection strength immediately decayed to 87% of the threshold.
Allen stopped the test and had Jarvis close the channel.
He understood now. A part of the workshop had to remain deployed in the Material Realm to act as a bridge between the two, only then could he enter the interior with his physical body.
"Control the variables. Deploy a part of the workshop’s outer Defense Zone to act as a bridge in the Material Realm. I will attempt to enter again with my physical body."
[Executing command.]
A twenty-meter-long wall of Black Patterned Magic Steel deployed, and Allen walked toward the channel again.
This time, the alarm didn’t sound immediately. But when his body was halfway through the fissure, the spatial stability index began to plummet wildly.
[Anchor connection decaying to 40%... 30%...]
Allen decisively retreated, backing out of the Space Gate.
"Try again. Deploy the entire Defense Zone."
Second test. The rate of decay slowed, but as his entire body was about to pass through the fissure, the value still approached the dangerous 20% threshold.
"Last time. Deploy the production zone, Defense Zone, and core area."
Third test. This time, Allen successfully stepped onto the metal floor inside the half-plane.
But he could clearly feel that the "pull" from the Material Realm was rather weak.
If the three deployed zones outside were to suffer a devastating blow, he would still be lost in the void.
Three consecutive tests led to a solid conclusion.
The Wizard’s physical body and the workshop could absolutely not be fully inside the half-plane at the same time.
At least a part of the workshop had to be deployed in the Material Realm, acting as a sufficiently stable "bridge," for Allen to enter the half-plane’s interior with his physical body and operate it.
The smaller the deployed area, the lower his safety factor while staying inside.
"So there’s no such thing as hiding inside like a turtle in its shell." Allen looked at the smooth metal wall and laughed self-deprecatingly.
The workshop could be hidden, but the person had to stay outside.
The underlying Laws themselves prevented Allen from treating the half-plane as an "invincible sanctuary."
Want to survive? Sure. Just smash the Defense Zone in the enemy’s face, then stand behind the armor and unleash your firepower.
Not hide in another dimension and take a nap.
"Can’t abuse any bugs, huh? That makes sense." Allen accepted this "setting."
He turned and left the half-plane, once again standing in the cold wind of the wasteland.
"Final test: deployment speed."
Allen raised his hand, his gaze sharp. This was a crucial factor that concerned his very life.
"Full deployment."
BOOM!
Above the crater, a massive blue fissure instantly tore across the sky, and the vast complex, nearly twelve square kilometers in size, reappeared.
The displaced air kicked up the surrounding sand and dust.
[Full deployment time: 3.1 seconds.]
"Full retraction."
With a flash of blue light, the behemoth vanished, revealing the deep crater once more.
[Full retraction time: 2.1 seconds.]
A sharp glint flashed in Allen’s eyes.
"Deploy Defense Zone only."
Allen pointed a finger at a mound of earth to his right.
0.8 seconds.
In less than the time it took to draw a breath, a section of Black Patterned Magic Steel wall materialized out of thin air atop the mound.
"0.8 seconds." Allen was very satisfied with this number.
He quickly ran a combat simulation in his mind: a surprise attack from a peer or even a High-tier Wizard. The opponent has just uttered half a syllable, preparing to cast a spell of Witchcraft.
With a single thought from him, dozens of heavy-duty turrets, fully loaded with live ammunition, would appear right in their face.
’I can almost cosplay the Gate of Babylon. And who’s to say cannon shells aren’t Treasures?’
All test data had been collected.
DSeek’s processing modules spun up at high speed. Jarvis’s voice rang out in his mind, beginning the final combat capability review.
[Overall combat power assessment updated.]
[Core Asset Security Rating: Extremely High. Physically indestructible while stored in the half-plane.]
[Personal Survivability: Increased to 300%. In deployed state, workshop defense installations can be called upon at any time for physical blocking.]
[Legion Deployment Speed: Increased by 400%. Deploying the production and storage areas nearby allows for immediate battlefield troop replenishment.]
[Energy Supply: Unlimited. Deployment and retraction states do not affect the Magic Furnace’s power output.]
[Comprehensive Assessment: "Stationary Defensive Production-Type" has been officially upgraded to "Mobile Fortress-Type".]
Allen listened quietly to the report, the hot wasteland wind carrying coarse grains of sand that beat against his Wizard Robe.
He suddenly recalled the day he first arrived in Zone 18.
The sky was just as scorching back then. Beneath his feet was a stretch of barren, scorched earth, and before him stood a small, primitive workshop. His account held only a pathetic amount of Low-Level Magic Stones.
Every day he had to pinch pennies for the maintenance fee of a few hundred Magic Stones, and he had to be cautious even just stepping outside.
Now, he possessed a portable mechanical world and finally had some power to protect himself.
With a thought, Allen deployed part of the workshop in the Material Realm and returned to the half-plane’s interior in his physical body.
He walked to a window.
In the past, the view outside this window was the unchanging sandstorms and ochre sky of Zone 18.
But now, it was a deep blue spatial barrier. Beyond the barrier was an endless void. Within the barrier was his domain.
Mechanical arms rose and fell on the assembly lines, and the Magic Furnace emitted a low, powerful hum.
This was his armory, his fortress, his nascent Divine Kingdom.
"Jarvis," Allen said softly.
[Here, Commander.]
"Create a new independent file for the half-plane. From this day forward, it will no longer be called the ’main workshop’."
Allen gazed at the vast void outside the window, his eyes profound.
He recalled the legend from his past life, one filled with steel and sparks, and remembered the mechanical behemoths that roared through the cosmos.
"Its name is—"
"Cybertron."
[Command confirmed. Half-plane name ’Cybertron’ has been applied.]
[Cybertron Plane — Current Development Progress: 12.9%.]
Allen turned and walked to the main console.
Of the 92.4 square kilometers of void space, less than an eighth was currently occupied. Vast swathes of empty area were waiting for him to fill and define.
Master Mercer’s words still echoed in his ears.
"The Mechanical Realm, the Clockwork Realm... they all started from a single fragment."
Allen’s finger swept across the holographic sand table.
He would not stop here. Being a Second-level Wizard was just the beginning, and this half-plane was merely an embryo. He would fill this place with steel, with cannon fire, with truth.
One day, he would make the shadow of Cybertron envelop the entire Sea of Magical Power.
"Jarvis."
A blazing fire ignited in Allen’s eyes.
[Initiating long-term development plan.]
[Phase One Objective: Fill it up.]
