Chapter 32: Nothing to Worry About
The strange power contained within the steel crystal transformed into a surging vortex, absorbing the surrounding free-floating energy. The surging energy flow from the mana core resonance detector, directly connected to the black steel furnace heart, was completely drained by it. In an instant, it matured and grew, becoming a gray-black eerie opening, from which the fluctuations of space-time emanated.
The strange power affected Joshua's reaction speed; otherwise, with his speed, he could have shaken off the entanglement of the gray mist. Gold-rank warriors could fight at supersonic speeds, their reaction time surpassing the imagination of most beings in the world, and the same was true for the old dwarf.
But he was affected after all, and in the face of the rapidly surging gray mist, even a single moment was an opportunity.
The gray mist churned, and after enveloping Joshua and the others, the space-time fluctuations intensified further. The warrior felt a twisting sensation, as if passing through a teleportation gate, and a dizzying vertigo appeared in his mind before being forcibly suppressed. Joshua forced himself to stay awake, and in the blur, he saw his own body crossing the gap between worlds.
"What the hell, being able to instantly teleport three Gold-ranks, this power..."
Only this sentence had time to flash through his mind before Joshua's thoughts came to a halt under the immense pulling force.
He stopped thinking.
The mana core resonance detector was still running, its indicator lights flashing red with increasing frequency, even emitting a piercing alarm. Accompanied by the clattering sound of vibrating parts, thick smoke billowed from this expensive alchemical device, and then—just like the final fate of all goblin-made products—it exploded.
A massive energy surge swept through the entire forge, high-temperature flames burning everything. Fortunately, most of the items the old dwarf had left in this forge were made of steel, so the explosion didn't cause much damage. However, this sudden explosion undoubtedly alarmed the other dwarves in the core forging area. A large squad of guards rushed over hastily. After confirming that no one was in Moria's forge, they dispersed the smoke and immediately called for senior leadership to come and inspect.
They did not have the authority to touch the private room of the Grand Master Forger.
Receiving the secret notification from the guards, the old dwarf's eldest son, Tania, hurried over from the city hall. He had been handling government affairs and allocating supplies, but upon hearing that his father's forge seemed to have exploded, this dwarf could only set aside all his work and come to check the situation.
"Has my father been notified?"
He asked the guard beside him.
"No. After Master Moria went to the core forging area with that human lord, no one else has seen them," the guard replied truthfully.
"So that human lord and his attendants are also missing?"
"No, his knight is still in the city, but that elven druid and the black-haired youth are indeed gone."
"...What exactly is going on?"
Frowning, Tania's expression was puzzled. Many possibilities flashed through his mind—perhaps this was a conspiracy against the Rune Dwarves, with those humans attempting to destroy the core forging area or kidnap Master Moria. But Tania wasn't an idiot; he clearly knew that the human lord named Joshua often corresponded with his father, and their relationship was indeed good, as could be seen from the previous banquet, where his father had specially crafted a set of the best enchanted armor for Joshua.
After all, the Rune Dwarves were one of the most important forces supporting the Radcliffe Family, their fates intertwined. How could that human lord do something so foolish as to undermine his own foundation?
"What should we do, sir? The detection array has roughly scanned the entire core forging area and the city district, but there is no trace of any Gold-rank aura in the magic!"
The guard looked somewhat at a loss. The current situation was very strange, and he could only report the known information to Tania: "It has been determined that the explosion was caused by that goblin-made mana core resonance detector. It was overloaded with energy, and the core scanning crystal overheated and exploded."
"Goblin junk is just unreliable!"
Irritably stroking his beard, the metal rings clattering, Tania thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Seal off the news... Say that my father and that human lord are negotiating on matters of cooperation, and the process will take a long time... Let's say three days for now."
"Yes, sir!"
Hearing the order, the dwarf guard immediately went to issue the command, while Tania strode into Moria's forge.
"...Huh?"
After looking around, he let out a puzzled sound: "Strange, isn't this the box my old man used to store the armor for that human lord? Why is the armor missing..."
Inside the huge iron box, it was empty, with traces of many blueprints burned to ashes around it, faintly revealing numerous complex design patterns.
Tania turned his head again, looking at the remains of the mana core resonance detector.
Black smoke still rose from the wreckage, but that was nothing to a dwarf accustomed to dealing with fire and lava. He stepped forward and carefully examined the residual substances inside.
But aside from a clump of gray dust, he found nothing.
"This is bad... Where the hell did my old man and that human lord go?!"
Rubbing the gray dust, a somewhat bewildered Tania muttered to himself, but then he gritted his teeth and said harshly, "If it comes to it, I'll have to notify the Imperial Emperor... The head of the Gatekeeper family and the leader of the Northern Dwarves disappearing together—this is a major event that could shake the empire's stability. I refuse to believe His Majesty the Emperor will remain indifferent!"
Just as the dwarves were hastily implementing a series of countermeasures, in the void between worlds, Joshua had already regained his ability to think.
At this moment, he felt as if he were drifting in an indescribably strange space. Lin held his hand, and he could also sense the presence of the old dwarf and the elven druid nearby, but all three were unconscious.
Channeling his battle qi, Joshua moved his body through the void. He grabbed hold of Moria and Claire's bodies, gathering everyone together. In this situation, it was best not to get separated; every bit of strength was precious.
Just as he had tied everyone to himself, a current surged from the depths of the darkness, pushing them far away. At that moment, a faint light appeared at the edge of Joshua's vision. He released his battle qi as much as possible, steering their trajectory toward the flickering light.
The current propelled them rapidly, and the point of light instantly transformed into a massive opening. In the blink of an eye, Joshua brought the other three through the opening to the other side.
"Boom!!"
A tremendous impact sound rang out, shockwaves carrying gales raging across the land. Dust and dirt were kicked up on the desolate, barren plain. Amidst the billowing smoke, Joshua slowly stood up, and under the stimulation of the violent impact, the three people around him gradually woke up.
As long as they weren't dead, there was no time to worry about their condition. Frowning, Joshua walked out of the crater created by their landing and observed the surrounding environment.
This was a world filled with gray mist. What could be seen clearly was a stretch of flat land like a plain around them. The sky was hazy, a black canopy covering everything. There was only some faint light of unknown origin in this world, with no other light sources.
"A world just like in the illusion..."
Joshua muttered to himself. Strangely, even though he had arrived in a completely unknown and dangerous region, there was no panic in his heart. Instead, he felt a calmness as if 'this was how it should be.'
He never regretted anything or wasted time pondering meaningless questions. Having arrived in an unknown area, the first thing to do was to determine the surrounding environment and what he had with him, including his companions.
Turning to look behind him, accompanied by a pained grunt, the old dwarf was slowly rising from the crater on the ground. Claire was also kneeling on one knee, rubbing her forehead, her green hair in complete disarray. Beside her, Lin had also opened her golden eyes, looking around in confusion.
Their condition was all good; no one was injured.
But strangely, in the very center of these three people, there was a large black lump. Looking closely, it was the set of armor that Moria had custom-made for Joshua, which had somehow come along as well.
"...Not bad."
Too lazy to think about why the armor had also come along—even figuring it out wouldn't help the current situation—Joshua nodded in satisfaction. He turned to look at the chaotic mist in the distance and the gray-black earth.
Weapons, armor, teammates... His condition was intact.
With these, there was nothing to worry about.
(To be continued.)