Chapter 466 — The Restarted Laboratory

The war between the Black Pit and the Tide of Reversal.

To be honest, Gao Yang had never expected to hear such a shocking ancient secret while chatting casually with the siren Tyr, but on reflection he realized that if anyone in this world could recite historical records older and more detailed than what he, the Satellite Spirit, knew, it could only be those deep-sea saltwater fish who had been observing the land since primeval times.

The so-called Black Pit... what on earth was it?

According to Tyr, it seemed to be some kind of filtration mechanism—or a "harvester mechanism" that reaped civilizations according to fixed criteria. Every land civilization from ancient times to the present had perished after reaching a certain stage of development—destroyed by the demon tides, or destroyed by that mysterious "black trap." The fact was enough to make one's hair stand on end.

Yet Gao Yang was equally clear that even if the Black Pit existed, humanity could not halt its advance.

Because the demon tides remained.

Not to develop meant dying in the demon tides; to develop meant possibly running into the Black Pit.

The only thing he could do—the only thing that might possibly work—was to find out the truth of the Black Pit before humanity encountered it.

"I don't know whether there exists a path of development that can both weather the demon tides and avoid the Black Pit, but I believe waiting passively for death is absolutely not the way. The demon tides have no mercy; they will not postpone their visit because humanity shows reverence and yields."

Gazing at the distant night, Gao Yang spoke slowly in a calm, detached tone, while Tyr beside him widened her eyes slightly, and a faint smile surfaced on her face: "A leader ought to have that kind of awareness... You are a good friend."

Gao Yang smiled back and asked a question. "Why did you suddenly tell me all this tonight?"

Tyr shrugged. "It just happened to come up while we were chatting."

Gao Yang said nothing, only watching the siren quietly, until at last she wore a helpless expression: "All right—it's nothing much, really. Just consider it a return gift for the Prismatic Light technology. You may not realize what you've created, but by my judgment, your new way of using magical energy is genuinely valuable as a reference for us sirens. As a return gift, that's why I told you all this... Of course, knowing it in advance isn't necessarily a good thing for you."

Gao Yang paid no mind to Tyr's last sentence and said earnestly: "You've already given the return gift for the Prismatic Light technology."

"That bit of crude shipbuilding knowledge counts for nothing—you could figure it out yourselves in a few years of study. But general magical energy... that has always been our bottleneck. We sirens cannot sense the mana in nature, nor can we understand or memorize your spell models. All this time we've been acquiring energy in the crudest, most violent way, with poor stability and efficiency—and because of the demon tides, our efforts in that regard are all but overturned and started over every tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of years... So you can imagine how much a hope of breaking through that bottleneck means to us."

At this, Tyr fell silent for a moment before continuing: "Sirens are not accustomed to owing others—even friends."

Gao Yang watched Tyr's eyes quietly, and after a long while gave a gentle nod. "I understand. Then I accept your goodwill."

"Very good. May your civilization prosper—tonight's conversation has been most pleasant."

Tyr's voice came through the night as she leaped, her fish tail reflecting the glittering starlight, carving a graceful arc beneath the star-strewn sky before falling toward the murmuring waters of the White Water River.

Standing on a rock at the riverbank, Gao Yang lowered his head and quietly watched the direction of Tyr's descent.

"...Affected by the local water element cycle, the White Water River's water level drops at night—you didn't break your neck, did you?"

"I'm fine!"

...

Even knowing that more challenges awaited him in the distant future, Gao Yang would not halt his steps—or rather, precisely because he knew of that mysterious and terrifying phenomenon called the Black Pit, he was all the more determined to accelerate development in certain fields.

Though it was still uncertain whether the ancient War Against the Tide was connected to the Black Pit, the fact that the dragons—who had always lived in seclusion—would participate on such a large scale in a continental war, and that the spearhead of that war was aimed directly at humanity's faith, was enough to turn Gao Yang's attention toward the gods.

He did not know what role the gods played in the Black Pit, but he had no objection to learning a little more about them.

In the deepest part of the Defiance Fortress, before the magic gate leading to the Shadow Realm.

The ancient hall, built a thousand years ago, had been refurbished; the damaged walls and roof had been repaired and decorated with modern cement materials and paint, and the long-defunct ancient magic array on the floor had been replaced by a modernized magic net. In this entirely renewed hall, only one thing retained its most primitive appearance: the circular magic gate at the center of the room.

Around the magic gate, several monitoring array platforms flickered with wavering light. Magitech engineers in white researcher uniforms bustled about the gate, monitoring its condition, while Kamael—his whole body brimming with arcane radiance—floated before the gate and released a powerful arcane pulse into its energy core.

The somewhat dim runes on the gate immediately brightened, and a stable passage to the Shadow Realm opened.

"The laboratory in the Defiance Fortress is ready," Kamael turned and said to Gao Yang and the others who had arrived early that morning. "We can begin at any time."

Gao Yang glanced around at those beside him—besides Wright, who had to take part in the experiment, Pi Yun and Amber had come along, as well as a host of researchers led by Rebecca. Hetty had originally wanted to come as well, but considering the busy affairs of the administration hall and the fact that she had already withdrawn from the research team, she had ultimately remained at her post in the administration hall.

Amber had not wanted to come, but she was Gao Song's bodyguard and the most powerful shadow master in the territory. Given the countless threads connecting the Shadow Realm and the realm of shadows, bringing her along was like adding an insurance policy that could give early warning of fluctuations in the passage—so whether the fellow wanted to or not, Gao Yang had dragged her along by force.

After confirming the hands at his disposal, Gao Yan nodded and looked at Wright: "Did you bring the substrate for the test?"

Wright pulled the holy light substrate from his person. "It's here."

Emily emerged from midair behind Wright and waved a greeting at Gao Yang.

Oh, and this little girl should be counted too—she was, in a sense, Wright's bound equipment.

Gao Yang waved back at Emily, then took the lead walking forward: "The testing equipment is already set up in the laboratory... Let's head in."

After passing through the passage to the Shadow Realm, the interior of the Defiance Fortress unfolded before everyone.

This ancient facility, a thousand years old, had been reactivated—but only one of its laboratories had been reactivated. Most of its areas still retained the appearance Gao Yang had first seen—indeed, they seemed even more deserted and empty than they had been then.

Because all the valuable ancient equipment and specimen materials had already been moved away.

The group paid no attention to those now-empty corridors and rooms, and under Kamael's guidance headed straight for the depths of the Defiance Fortress.