Chapter 1252: Ripples in the Darkness

Perhaps it was the widespread fluctuations of magical energy affecting the atmosphere, but the wind inside the Great Wall seemed never to cease. These restless gusts, heedless of season or reason, swept across the weathered, corroded earth, stirring up polluted dust and fragments of a long-lost civilization. Day after day, they carried these remnants across a land already dead. For centuries, the wastelands of Gondor had seen little of note.

But now, everything was changing—the plan that had been brewing for centuries was finally set in motion. Like the turning of fate’s gears, a long-dormant machine began to stir quietly, beyond the gaze of human civilization.

It was gradually pushing the world toward a destined future, yet the ordinary mortals outside the Great Wall remained utterly unaware of this machine’s existence.

“Just as the goddess of fate said—fate has begun to move,” Filna murmured softly, her gaze fixed on the twisted giants busily working around the ruins of the colossal structure. “From here, a small change, then a series of small changes, until the entire future of the planet is set in motion… it’s truly wondrous.”

“Fate may be wondrous, but the so-called goddess of fate is nothing more than a pitiful being who couldn’t hold out for even a few hours against the fleet,” Laelna replied sharply. “Ah, as pitiful as all the creatures on this planet.”

A faint smile touched Filna’s lips. “But now, their pitiful lives will finally have meaning… my sisters.”

Laelna said nothing, instead turning toward the steps beside the high platform. There, a cluster of withered, twisted vines crept upward. Suddenly, the tip of the vines contorted into a grotesque, ancient face—the visage of High Priest Borken. His tawny eyes swept past the twin elves and settled on the mutated “laborers” digging among the ruins.

“They’ve been digging here for two full days. Are you sure this is the right spot?” The vine-formed face stared for several seconds, then lifted with a hint of doubt. “Or could it be…”

“You’ve been losing patience lately, High Priest,” Filna shook her head. Laelna immediately chimed in, “We’re absolutely certain this is the place—another web node outside the Deep Blue Well’s surveillance range that meets our criteria.”

Borken was silent for two seconds, then spoke cautiously. “I can sense the subtle magical fluctuations in this area, and the residual flow deep underground, but it’s nowhere near the scale you describe.”

“Time changes many things,” Laelna said evenly. “Restoring those dusty relics to their former glory is no simple task.” Filna turned back to the ruins, now mostly cleared of collapsed debris. “This was once the largest ‘node city’ in the northwest region of the Gondor Empire. The magical energy from the Deep Blue Well was redistributed here, supplying countless towns and villages nearby. The building you see was once the magic regulation agency. At its peak, thousands of mages and apprentices guarded it day and night…

“And therein lies the tragedy and irony—they only knew this place as a convenient magical focal point, where energy from the Deep Blue Well could be easily controlled and converted. They never discovered the deeper connection between this focal point and the Deep Blue Web… Not until the eve of their extinction did they vaguely perceive the vast ‘planetary power system’ behind the Deep Blue Well. They missed the chance to elevate their civilization further, yet remained blissfully unaware of what they had lost, smugly proud of their crude achievements.”

Laelna’s gaze swept over the shattered remnants of the ancient city, the fallen towers, palaces, and temples. A sneer twisted her lips, her voice dripping with scorn bordering on anger. “So close to the truth, just a paper’s thickness away from success, they struggled their whole lives only to collapse at the final moment before the finish line… Always the same, over and over.”

“Weak and powerless,” Filna said softly. “Pitiful and lamentable.”

The vines shifted slowly on the platform, the rough scrape of plant against concrete grating on the ears. Borken’s tawny eyes fixed on the twin elves as a hoarse laugh escaped him. “Ha, it’s rare to hear such sharp, blunt words from your sweet, deceitful lips. No wonder you’ve lived through so many years and witnessed the Rebellion Plan. Your perspective on this world is certainly novel… But I’m curious—after all you’ve said, are you trying to tell me I’ll fail just before success?”

“You?” Laelna glanced at the vine-formed face, a smirk playing at her mouth. “Of course not, High Priest. How could your plan fail? It’s no longer just your plan…”

Borken snorted but had no interest in debating the twins’ usual sarcastic tone. His true body remained far away in the valley headquarters, handling various important matters. This place was merely a “line of sight” projected through the vast underground root network to monitor progress at this node. Until tangible results appeared here, he had no time to waste on two elves who never spoke plainly.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted from the excavation site, drawing Borken’s attention—and that of the twin elves on the platform.

They watched as the mutated giants successfully removed the last fragments of the dome covering the ruins and activated an ancient mechanism buried beneath. After seven centuries of silence, a low, resonant hum emerged from the depths. The earth trembled slightly, and faint blue light began to seep from cracks in the surface near the ruins, drawing every eye present.

“…Beautiful,” Filna whispered, a smile slowly spreading across her face as she watched the growing glow. “See it, High Priest? This is pure magical radiance… it’s been sleeping beneath here for seven hundred years.”

Borken’s eyes locked onto the flowing light pouring from the fissures. Suddenly alert, he shouted at the still-casual twin elves, “What are you waiting for?! This focal point is spiraling out of control! Damn it, the maintenance devices here burned out long ago. The cracks you opened will melt this place down—the resulting explosion will attract the entire Iron Legion! Do something to stop this!”

“Calm yourself, esteemed High Priest,” Laelna said with a laugh, strolling leisurely with Filna toward the platform’s edge. “We understand the Deep Blue Web. The energy balance won’t collapse that quickly—shouting only harms your dignity and image.” They stepped down as if on solid ground, hovering several meters above the ruins now crisscrossed with blue fissures. The mutated giants remained rooted, ignoring the flames flowing from the cracks, seemingly oblivious to the danger in the immense energy.

A beautiful stream of blue light finally lapped at the foot of the nearest giant. Silently, it ignited the grotesque creature, which quickly transformed into a blazing torch before disintegrating into drifting ash within seconds.

Filna glanced at the sparkling dust mingled with blue light floating in the air, reflected in her eyes. She shook her head, regret tinting her voice. “Such a waste.”

By then, the sisters had reached the glowing streams, standing midair as if on solid ground. The raw magical energy surging from the depths had begun to coalesce into vast sheets. Blue fissures of varying sizes pulsed with pure flame, weaving a web-like pattern. One by one, the mutated giants ignited and burned, while the nearby treants retreated nervously. Borken’s gaze remained fixed on the floating elves. He knew these cryptic sisters had a plan, but still couldn’t help asking, “How do you intend to control this? With your magic alone?”

“Strictly speaking, it requires knowledge and wisdom,” Filna said calmly, raising her left hand as runes began to flow from her fingertips. “Such immense power can be devastating, but if you find the right ‘node’ at the right moment and apply a subtle external force to ‘nudge’ it…”

“Like tossing a pebble to stir ripples across a pond,” Laelna added, raising her right hand to perfectly complement Filna’s gestures, skillfully redirecting the magical currents deep underground. “Everything will change.”

Silent magic seeped into the “Deep Blue Spring” gushing upward from below. The blue fissures across the land instantly dimmed. After a brief pause of two or three seconds, a blinding blue beam shot skyward. Accompanied by a faintly terrifying surge of magical unrest, the entire ruin seemed to be pulled inward by a powerful force from its center, collapsing and compressing from all sides!

Sturdy stones and rotting steel groaned and cracked under the immense suction, shattering and falling into the glowing beam’s depths. The treants on the outskirts fled in terror, desperate to escape the deadly gravitational vortex. Yet through this terrifying spectacle, Filna and Laelna remained expressionless, calmly watching the transformation unfold.

The inward collapse seemed to have no effect on them.

The process lasted a full ten minutes. As the tremors subsided, a new “balance” appeared to have formed at the collapse’s center. The original ruins had vanished completely, along with a large swath of ground, now a sunken pit. The blue beam that had shot into the sky gradually contracted and dimmed. Where it had risen, a structure resembling a “portal” hovered abruptly at the pit’s center.

A stream of blue light surged endlessly within some space inside the cavern’s mouth. Waves of pure magical energy continuously spilled out from the opening. It was as if a portal, embedded in the fabric of reality itself, was revealing a magnificent scene deep beneath this planet’s surface.

“Archprelate,” Relna approached the edge of the pit with measured steps, smiling as she looked down at the now-stabilized “portal,” “here is the new conduit entrance you requested. Please inspect it.”

“…You used a natural magical focal point to ‘blast’ open a gateway into the Deep Blue Conduit?” Vines stretched out from the platform, and amidst the gnarled, twisted tendrils, Bolken’s astonished face appeared. He stared at the portal, then suddenly realized, “Wait—opening a gate to the Deep Blue Conduit was actually this simple?”

“Yes. It wasn’t difficult for us at all,” Relna and Filna answered in unison, casually.

Bolken’s voice boiled with anger. “…And yet you had us spend a full two weeks in this valley constructing rune circles and conduit nodes, nearly draining all the magical reserves we extracted from the Deep Blue Well!”

“Archprelate, calm yourself. Where is that famed judgment you pride yourself on?” Filna smiled at the angry face emerging from the vines. “This gate we opened is only temporary. It’s meant solely to let you embed the rune stones. It will close in a few hours. The gate in the valley, however, is permanent—that’s the foundation of our work, the control center for all nodes. Considering that, isn’t two weeks of effort a fair price?”

Bolken fixed his gaze on the elf’s face. After a few seconds, he said in a low voice, “When you wear that fake smile, I don’t want to believe a single word you say.”

Relna laughed. “Don’t be like that, Archprelate. We’ll share the method for opening these temporary gates with you. After all, we’ll need to open many more rifts and embed countless rune stones in the future—we don’t have the energy to personally open every single gate.”

“Very well. I will thoroughly verify the ‘method’ you’ve brought. And this time, I expect no more secrets,” Bolken said grimly. “Now, let’s move on—since this is a temporary gate, we don’t have much time to waste. Get those rune stones in.”

“As you command—” Relna and Filna bowed slightly together, deliberately exaggerating their tone. Then Relna straightened and looked toward a nearby treant. “Are there any mobile aberrations left? Go fetch the rune stones—we’re about to ‘unload.’”

The treant shook its canopy, a twisted, terrifying face on its trunk showing a hint of irritation. “You burned them all just now!”

“…Ah, that’s unfortunate,” Filna said, genuinely surprised, shaking her head. “I thought we had enough in reserve, so we tested with those expendables…”

“Go catch a few more. Temporary use is enough,” Relna said calmly. “Besides, they’re no longer proud Gondor citizens anyway.”

(End of chapter)