Extraordinary Voyage-Chapter 743 - 639: An Unexpected Surprise

The various demons in the [Clock Tower] are clearly unfriendly to outsiders.

Zhi zhi zhi...

Buzz buzz buzz...

Amidst the piercing screech that was formed by the vibrating membranes of the wings, a large mass of mechanical beetles screamed and swooped down on Aiven like a dark cloud. Behind them, wasps, butterflies, locusts, dragonflies, and birds... the largest was as tall as a building, the smallest larger than a wheel.

Their bodies were clearly composed of flesh and blood tissues, gears, transmission devices, springs, and other mechanical structures, flashing with dazzling Extraordinary Spiritual Light, devoid of the disjointed feel of artificial assembly, entirely different from the crude creations of evil alchemists.

"And so many mechanized insects too?"

While the abundance and variety of insects here felt somewhat abnormal to Aiven, he merely assumed that the creator of these constructs had a preference for insects, as after all, the chitin exoskeletons of insects might be simpler to combine with machinery.

Pop—!

He unhurriedly raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

A thick blue-white lightning chain shot forth from the sparks between his fingers, then fiercely darted like a giant serpent into the army of mechanical creatures.

It had already transformed into an elemental spirit of lightning, leaping swiftly over each monster without needing any command.

Now, manipulating charges was as simple for Aiven as breathing.

In combat, he would use [Flesh and Blood Uprising] against flesh transformers at the start, and high-intensity [Electromagnetic Pulse] against mechanical transformers, always hitting the mark with hardly any exceptions.

Crash crash...

In an instant, all the flying units, which at most were of Tier 2 Extraordinary level, fell from the sky like dumplings dropping.

"Kaka..."

The shadow at Aiven's feet quickly spread out, transforming into a massive shadow swamp.

"Thud thud thud..."

It wriggled continuously, swallowing every fallen flying unit without missing a beat. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

In each independent space within the [Clock Tower], there is at least one treasure. With the combined effect of the [Clock Tower] and the traits of the treasure, they resemble the "Golden Crown of the Frog God." Over years of radiation, a small space gradually transforms into a magical secret realm with specific rules.

And the area Aiven descended upon had already been transformed into an organic mechanical ecosystem capable of self-replication, using plants that automatically extract metallic elements from underground veins as the food chain's foundation.

Compared to this, the research of the "Mechanical Immortality School" pales significantly.

Rumble...

Thunderous hoofbeats followed the flying units, shaking the earth.

Barbarians like bulls and horses snorted steam from their nostrils, covered in steel armor; monkeys with steel helmets, limbs, and spines constructed of machinery; giant crocodiles like iron cans... an entire literal steel forest seemed to come alive.

Then.

The shadow swamp on the ground suddenly expanded, spreading underfoot of the ground army.

"Thud thud thud..."

Not refusing anything, it sealed them all into the [Shadow Cage], upgraded from the [Shadow Secret Vault] by the Tier 3 Shadow Dragon, to contribute to the research endeavor of the "Vitalist School."

According to predecessors' records of the [Clock Tower], the initial outer space should be the weakest.

Yet for Aiven, this place was exceedingly easy, almost entirely without challenge. But if an ordinary Official Transcendent were to come here, they would likely struggle to make any progress.

Tap.. tap..

Having cleared all obstacles here, Aiven, whose hairstyle remained unruffled, paced with hands behind his back, following the guidance of Spirituality, to stand before a massive unknown tree, finding the source maintaining this peculiar world.

"This is...?"

The black-red leather, of unknown animal origin, was covered with tiny script, seemingly embossed with gold, small yet with a faintly dazzling texture.

This familiar appearance made Aiven's body tremble, and joy immediately filled his face.

"This is actually the fourth volume of the Inheritance Secret Scroll!"

He hadn't anticipated that in searching for the [Ocean Treasure: Ancient Scroll], he would encounter such an unexpected joy.

Clearly, this volume of the Inheritance Secret Scroll had been lost for at least a thousand years, neither falling into the hands of a powerful transcendental being nor entering the [Clock Tower]'s vaults.

Clearly this was the reason Milan's Divination Ceremony yielded nothing when aiding Aiven in searching for the fourth volume.

Since Aiven received the inheritance to rekindle the flame, the "Flesh Sacrifice" chapter found the second volume, and now the fourth, only the fifth volume, [Creator's Blood], remains to complete the entire Inheritance Secret Scroll, lost for an incalculable duration.

Opening all the paths from Tier 1 Apprentice to Tier 4 Crowned Wizard for the "Vitalist School!"

Moreover.

In the original Inheritance Secret Scroll, there are many pieces of knowledge only available to members of the same school, including predecessors' annotations, supplements, research records, extended applications, etc., far beyond the sixth-hand mass-produced goods obtained from the "Turin Grand Library."

Within it, the two major series of witchcraft, [Whole Body Activation Technique] and [Activated Dead], have been greatly enriched, including the methods for creating many powerful witchcraft tools, [Flesh Destruction Staff], [Eye of Medusa]... there's even construction records for [Super Giant Rock Golem: Mountain Giant].

The gains are not limited to those.

There's also another magic book left by a Great Wizard from some unknown era of the "Life Tree School," titled "Transcending Race and Life and Death: Life Artist's Pink Book."

Clearly the initiator of such organic mechanical creatures.

Aiven's eye twitched slightly, as if already seeing a sleazy uncle doing strange things to a group of small animals:

"Is it really okay to give a magic book such a flamboyant name? And what exactly does this have to do with me??? The grandest treasures collected by the 'Clock Tower' from the Oldest School should be far more than just this one, right???"

Despite the sarcasm, his body was very honest, and after a quick skim, he immediately stored it in the collection room within the [Witchcraft Garden].

Simply because the various whimsical ideas within it are eye-opening indeed.

Mushrooms that produce milk, cats growing on stumps, potatoes with the taste of pork... thoughts running wild without ethics or morals, a bona fide evil scientist regardless of the era.

Aiven even had to wonder whether the creation of the Flying Horse had anything to do with this guy...

And the most precious point in his research, which is also the biggest difference from the "Mechanical Immortality School."

Is that the organic mechanical creatures he created no longer require post-natal transformation and are a kind of naturally reproducible extraordinary creature, revealing other carriers of "genetic code" beyond DNA.

The initial source could be the [Witchcraft: Flesh Curse] from the fourth scroll.

Develop this witchcraft to its limit, and even dead objects could grow flesh and be transformed into whatever a wizard desires, turning wooden tables into fine horses or fishing boats into whales, a miracle-like power indeed.

This was precisely due to the extraordinary contributions of the two individuals who contributed most to the "Life Tree," one of whom was "Big Banyan Tree," and the owner of this book might be a follower of Mr. "Big Banyan Tree's" theories.

After acquiring his wisdom, Aiven could get closer to mastering and maintaining the continuity of life with the "Tree of Life."

For in his theories, the "Life Tree" connects all individual life forms on this planet (including elemental life) as the commonality, the original gene! It's the genetic code rooted in the "bloodline"! The very first one!

The "Life Tree" comes from all living entities yet transcends them, it is one of the fundamental attributes that determine why something is what it is, then extracted into a common authority by the "Vitalist School."

Ultimately.

The essence spanning organic and inorganic worlds, exhaustively explored. Then, does this world with collective consciousness have its own [Life Code]? And does the [Golden Chain] have anything to do with this existence at a rank far above the True God?

This is the direction Aiven will research in the future.

After a successful first battle, organizing the spoils, Aiven clapped his hands and raised his head to find the surroundings had silently shifted to a different setting.

Gaa gaa gaa...

Crow cries echo amid the pitch-black forest, and in the center is a winding path, shrouded in mist with a visibility of less than a hundred meters, filling this woodland with no discernible boundary.

A wooden sign stands beside the weed-infested path, with "Banshee Forest" written on it in Spiritual Text.

Not daring to directly release his "mental force field," he instead activated [Desperate Thunder Swordsmanship: Short-Frequency Pulse], quickly "seeing" the bizarre sights hidden in the darkness.

Scarecrows high on bamboo poles sway in the wind, their stitched faces twisted which unnervingly creep into one's heart, within just a blink they have moved considerably closer.

Trees with faces carved like hollows, twisted branches appearing plagued, eerily tip-toeing and inching forward in the mist.

Then.

Dots of fire within the gray mist approach Aiven along the path. A group of "female figures" in simple black robes, plump and with whitish delicate skin.

But as they slowly approach, Aiven sees clearly that they have no heads on their necks, only a wick burning like candlelight, and their bodies are all made of pure white candle wax.

Wherever their dim glow touches, it begins to turn everything waxy.

Aiven knows the rules here, to proceed one must pass through, otherwise, everything must be left here if one falls.

What treasure has crafted the "Banshee Forest," Aiven doesn't care. His ultimate goal here is just the [Ocean Treasure: Ancient Scroll], anything else would be unexpected gains.

So facing these bizarre approaching entities, Aiven had no desire to interact, rubbing his head in slight frustration:

"I feel you all are deliberately making things difficult for me, Fat Tiger!"

Then.

Missiles weighting 42.5 kilograms with stabilizing fins popped out above his head within a pale blue mist, two, four... eventually, forty missiles hovered above him slowly adjusting angles.

The next moment, blazing orange-red flames lit up the entire dark forest.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!...

[Black Gold's Justice Iron Fist]

To these "hospitable" demons, Aiven's answer is with but one word — boom!