In an instant, all sense of direction vanished.
A force squeezed and pulled at him, leaving him grasping for sothing, anything—but his touch found only emptiness. It was an expanse of void surrounding him.
Suddenly, gravity returned.
His feet t solid ground, but for a mont, he struggled to regain balance, teetering forward a few steps before steadying himself just in ti.
Beneath him lay a lush green grassland, a delicate four-petal wildflower swaying nearby, appearing as though a single breath could sever its stem.
"Self-pollinating. Doesn't usually produce nectar." Hua Mi lifted his gaze.
A magnificent sight awaited him, causing him to hold his breath—the ancient Lost City lay right before his eyes.
Yet, it wasn't the grandeur of the architectural marvels that captivated him first.
It was the ceaseless swirling storm, a deep grey vortex dominating the city's skies.
He had seen simulations of Jupiter's storms online, their breathtaking scale etched vividly in his mory, but compared to this spectacle, they seed minor.
Jupiter's storms held a chaotic order, abiding by natural laws. Yet what he witnessed here was absolute chaos, devoid of any semblance of order.
Staring too long invoked a primal fear from within.
An invisible canopy enveloped the Brass City, where storms clashed and collided with it, unleashing a continuous display of dazzling fire accompanied by thunderous rumbles, illuminating the isolated city, rendering it as bright as daylight, at all tis.
Without that dod shield, this place would likely have succumbed to chaos long ago.
The structures here stood tall and sharply angled, interconnected by aerial pathways, a labyrinthine web that dazzled the eye when viewed from the ground.
Under the flas of the celestial fire, the buildings shimred like golden artifacts.
"These aren't re buildings; they're works of art," even soone like Hua Mi, disinterested in architecture, couldn't help but appreciate the city's craftsmanship.
It seed he stood within a plaza. At its center stood a statue.
Approximately ten feet tall, wielding a massive sword, entirely crafted from brass. It resembled less of a statue and more of a suit of interconnected plate armor, ablaze from within, emitting flas from wrists, joints, and helt.
Everything indicated the existence of a civilization.
Alyss stood not far ahead of him, gazing up at the majestic architecture, appearing no larger than an ant before skyscrapers.
Hua Mi approached her. "Sorry to interrupt your sightseeing, but I noticed soone's missing. Where's Uuno?"
"...," Alyss blinked, then scanned around, chin propped in thought.
Took you a while to notice.
"Perhaps he teleported elsewhere; it's a possibility," she mused.
An accident at the outset wasn't a good on.
It planted a seed of unease in Hua Mi about this journey.
"Let ask you this: is your trust in Uuno based on him as an individual or on the Abyss Research Association behind him?"
"Both."
Alyss maintained her usual calm. "Don't worry, he's not the problem. Let's stick to the plan."
Hua Mi was about to respond when a crisp tallic clang echoed from above.
Looking up, several chanical flying objects were swooping down towards them.
Only now did Hua Mi realize that those dots flitting in the sky were not optical illusions but these small entities.
These tallic flying objects varied in size and form. So glead, while others were rusty or damaged.
Several of them, descending, encircled them.
"What's this? Are they fire spirits?" It seed unrelated to fire.
"These are Constructs, tools created by Fire Spirits, similar to our animated armors... those over there are the Fire Spirits."
Even the composed Alyss sounded a bit shaken.
Hua Mi glanced in the direction she indicated.
At first glance, they resembled three sets of children's armors frolicking towards them.
Their size allowed Alyss to tower over them.
Their bodies were entirely tallic but seed to be made of different tals.
The leader looked shinier, seemingly newer.
The following two had dimr hues, with one showing signs of rust around its chest.
Each tallic body emanated flas leaking from various openings and joints.
They wielded tallic weapons; the leader carried a hamr emitting resonating tallic echoes.
So pattern could be discerned amidst their utterances; it wasn't aningless gibberish but their language.
Hua Mi couldn't comprehend it.
Approaching, Alyss raised her hand to her chest, struggling, " #@* & Alyss, * @ #& @…"
Speaking was challenging for her.
Her body wasn't made of tal, unable to produce Fire Spirits' sound.
Yet, she attempted to mimic their pronunciation as best as possible.
"I should learn more languages when I have ti," Hua Mi thought.
Starting with Elvish.
Alyss managed a few sentences with effort.
The three Fire Spirits exchanged glances, conversing among themselves, then holstered their weapons. Suddenly, they began hopping from side to side on one foot, making odd calls, like so primitive tribe's dance and chant, as they moved closer.
Sotis, the enemy's song and dance might not be a welco but a ruse.
Hua Mi stayed cautious.
Alyss, however, relaxed, translating, "They're delighted to welco Elves and humans as guests."
Seems like the reputation of Elves and humans is favorable here.
"You even understand the Fire Spirits' language."
"Sowhat."
Alyss exchanged a few more words with the Fire Spirits, pondering, "They're currently in a war and can't entertain us thoroughly, so please excuse them…"
Entertainnt or not didn't matter.
They could explore on their own.
In a city this vast, Alyss likely had much to examine.
His goal was clearer; head to the central area—the Fire Seed Temple—to acquire so seeds.
However, what's with the war?
What sort of conflict could happen here?
"Could it be remnants from the Abyss invasion?"
"Unlikely. Those Abyss creatures were pure war tools, unable to thrive without a master's control. A millennium has passed; the Fire Spirits should have eradicated them…"
Alyss was perplexed too, shaking her head, "Let's not dwell on that. They're inviting us to et the Fire Spirit King."
…
The Constructs scattered, soaring back into the sky.
Hua Mi and Alyss followed the three Fire Spirits to et their king.
On the way, Alyss continuously scanned the buildings with a crystal-embedded device, sothing akin to a cara.
Watching the petite and intricate tallic bodies of the Fire Spirits, Hua Mi pondered and leaned closer to ask Alyss quietly, "How do Fire Spirits reproduce? I an, their bodies are entirely tallic; I can't find any reproductive structures."
"Don't let your human perspective limit your understanding; that's a superficial consideration," Alyss explained. "Fire Spirits are fundantally living flas; the essence of their bodies lies within the living flas enclosed within their tallic form.
"When reproducing, two Fire Spirits rge their living flas, and upon separation, a new living fla is born. They then forge a new body using their living flas, lding the newborn fla into it. This creates a new Fire Spirit.
"The material used for crafting the body depends
on the strength of their flas. The higher the intensity, the more advanced the tal they can lt and forge. The offspring born from stronger flas are more powerful. At the lowest tier, their flas can't lt any tal, so they resort to using clay…"
Hua Mi listened, fascinated.
The ability to forge one's body with iron sounded far more intriguing than human reproduction.
Soon, guided by the three Fire Spirits, they arrived at their destination.
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