I, the final BOSS of the beta test server!

The sky is clear and bright, with no clouds in sight, and a gentle breeze blowing from time to time.

Last paused at the door, quietly looking at the new world before him that he had stepped into for the first time.

This is undoubtedly a beautiful and peaceful world, completely different from the oppressive and suffocating atmosphere in Deep Blue Harbor.

The fresh air and the morning breeze made Last think of Canaan.

It was precisely because of that utopia-like "Canaan" that he had managed to persevere through the despairing cycle of Deep Blue Harbor.

The same is true for Hiltina.

It is precisely because she has a spiritual haven that Sheltina can walk among the echoes of the past in the night world again and again, living among madness, despair and pollution, but still be so strong and dazzling.

And what if the Iron Cross Plague of Deep Blue Harbor were to descend upon reality in the form of the "Twilight Disaster," transforming Canaan and half the human race in the real world into sadistic beasts...

Just thinking about that scene makes one's hair stand on end.

So, even though Hiltina faced certain death countless times, repeatedly leaving herself covered in wounds, she never wavered, never gave up...

Because behind Hiltina is her "Canaan".

Chapter 42 A new warehouse manager has appeared

The two walked out of the psychological measurement room and walked through the stronghold made of steel.

Ishtar walked in front, and Rast followed behind, watching the pair of golden ponytails rise and fall with the swaying of her waist.

Along the way, Last saw many figures wearing the same star-studded school badge, but after seeing Ishtar, these people all showed awe and chose to take a detour to avoid her.

This made Rast look at Ishtar a few more times. The sunlight fell on her fair and delicate face, and the hem of her beige windbreaker fluttered in the wind, making her look like an interrogator.

It seems that the psychometrician Ishtar has considerable prestige in Star University.

Of course, it may not be prestige, but notoriety.

Last noticed that many of the people coming and going were carrying large and small goods, just like the demolition crews in his memories of his previous life.

Ishtar noticed Luster's gaze and said, "They are preparing to evacuate."

"Evacuate?"

"Yes." Ishtar nodded. "Whenever a new entrance to the Night World opens within the country, the people of the Ashes Court will rush to the scene under the leadership of one of the twelve seats of the Round Table."

"The latter will explore the unknown Resonance of the Night, while the people from the Ashes Court will establish a strategy base around the entrance."

"After all, every new entrance to the Night World means a lost piece of history is brought to light..."

It seemed that after becoming familiar with Rast, she had let down her previous guard. Ishtar took out a bag of bear biscuits from her arms and began to eat them with relish.

"From the initial pioneering phase with extremely high mortality rates to the mid-term large-scale exploration phase."

"Even after the 'Reverberations of Disaster' appeared, the academy convened a meeting of the twelve members of the Round Table to discuss a strategy plan."

"Completely completing each Night World Reverberation is a long and drawn-out battle...sometimes taking months, others years or even decades."

"Therefore, establishing a frontier outpost around the passage is necessary, and Vice President Hiltina will be one of the twelve members of the Round Table responsible for this reclamation."

As she spoke, a hint of confusion flashed in her eyes: "However, the reverberation of the night world this time is a bit strange."

"Not long after Vice President Hiltina left Reverberation, the entrance to the Night World unexpectedly closed, completely skipping the entire process of exploration and strategy."

"Since I joined Starry University, this is the first time I've seen Night World Echo being conquered so quickly..."

"And now that the Night World passages have disappeared, the guys from the Ashes Court naturally had no choice but to dismantle their half-built stronghold and return home."

Ishtar chuckled. "You didn't see the expressions on the faces of the people from the Ashes Court when they first heard the news. This is the first time I've known someone's face could be so dark."

She waved the bag of bear biscuits toward Luster. After seeing Luster wave him off, she continued eating with a clear conscience. "I suspect something must have happened during that historical reverberation when Hiltina entered."

"Unfortunately, with my level of authority, I can't access the relevant data files from the Mystery Tower..."

"Perhaps only professors at the vice-dean level and the twelve members of the Round Table are qualified to access files of this confidentiality level."

Ishtar waved her hand at Luster and said, "Of course, this kind of thing has nothing to do with a freshman like you who just entered the school and is only at the first level. Just treat it as a joke."

Luster nodded obediently.

That really doesn't matter.

If it weren't for me, your Vice President Hiltina would have been buried under the power of God's descent, not to mention clearing the Night World Echo directly.

Of course, as a senior gigolo with a 100% approval rating in Deep Blue Harbor, Rast naturally knew very well what kind of personality mask would be most appropriate when facing a noble lady with a typical personality like Ishtar.

The mental backlash triggered by his previous "Iron Heart" seemed to have left a very deep impression on the other party, even causing him to be quite wary and hostile.

In this situation, if you continue to show your strong side, it will only arouse the other party's rebellious psychology and completely intensify the original conflict.

What you need to do at this time is to combine hardness and softness.

Appropriately showing your weak side is the best way to soften the other person's heart.

At the same time, Last was also constantly collecting a lot of intelligence from the real world by guiding speeches and hinting at things.

After all, his previous life was just a hard-working programmer, and the plot, writing, and art of the game "Snow Moon Emblem" were not within his job scope.

Therefore, he only had a vague impression of the real world outside the night world based on some design concept drafts, and he was not clear about the specific details.

As the conversation with Ishtar deepened, Rast's understanding of the worldview was rapidly completed.

……

Your bond with Ishtar Julian deepens, and the "Fool's Library" gains new power.

[The current bond level of "Hermit" Ishtar has been increased from 1 to 2]

You have unlocked a new original text.

[Night Blade "Eye of Secrets" - Spiritual Vision Unlocked]

[Do you want to change the currently equipped card from "Chariot"·Hiltina" to "Hermit·Ishtar"?]

In Last's mind, the card engraved with the girl with blonde twintails emitted a bright light, flickering unsteadily.

In just less than an hour of interaction, Rast raised Ishtar's bond level from 1 to 2.

Compared to the previous time in Deep Blue Harbor, where Last and Hiltina were chased and blocked by the Iron Cross Tide, and experienced countless times of life and death together before they upgraded their bond to level two, the difficulty is simply a world of difference.

Of course, in a sense—

Considering Last's appearance and his experience of imitating a gigolo countless times in Deep Blue Harbor, this is the normal progress for Last.

And people like Hiltina are extremely rare exceptions.

So, looking at the last flashing change prompt in his mind, Last decisively chose "No".

As we all know, the strength of a card is often directly linked to its difficulty of acquisition and rarity.

Compared to Hiltina's "Infinite Blade", Ishtar can only get the warehouse manager position.

Who made him a devout strength party?

Chapter 43: Is your way the same as “The General Takes This Small Path”?

"Although Starry University is nominally an institution of higher learning, affiliated with the Ministry of Education of Granville... in reality, this university is more like a violent organization like the military."

"A violent organization that exists solely to target the Night World and the Dusk Disaster."

"The relationship between Star University and Granville Country is actually more like that between a company and its investors."

"Although the government, the royal family, and a few nobles hold some seats on the board of directors, in most cases, Starry University maintains a high degree of independence and autonomy and is not dependent on any particular country. Even wars between countries on the continent have nothing to do with Starry University."

"To some extent, it makes no difference if you consider Starry University to be an independent military organization."

At this moment, a pleasant reminder ringtone came from Ishtar's arms.

She took out something that looked like a cell phone, skillfully unlocked the screen with her fingerprint, and checked the messages sent to her phone.

Then, Rust saw the pair of golden ponytails sway noticeably.

"Laster, your admission approval procedures have been approved."

"That is to say, from now on, we are classmates in college."

Ishtar scrolled through the screen, confirming the exact time. "There's a high-speed train back to the academy in exactly half an hour. According to the academy's arrangements, we'll take this high-speed train back."

"Oh, by the way, I almost forgot to introduce you."

As if suddenly reminded of Luster's rather unusual background, she waved her phone towards him and said, "This thing is called a smart terminal. Um... you can think of it as a miniaturized telegraph machine that you can carry with you."

"I know this may be beyond your imagination, but this small smart device can do so many incredible things, such as having real-time video calls with people across thousands of miles, checking intelligence, playing games, and so on."

"Many of the authorized functions of Fanxing University must also be used through smart terminals."

"But you don't have to worry too much. Smart terminals are easy to use, and there are simplified models specifically for the elderly..."

This girl really thinks of herself as a country girl from a remote village.

However, putting aside her somewhat weird personality, this girl is not a bad person by nature.

Rast followed Ishtar and walked out of the stronghold.

Soon, the steel buildings and the busy demolition teams around them disappeared, replaced by an ancient and lush red pine forest.

The quiet platform is located in the red pine forest and is covered with a dense layer of pine leaves.

Last sat on a bench on the platform and looked around the station, only to find that the railroad tracks hidden in the dense forest had long been in disrepair, with mottled deep red rust everywhere.

The sleepers were cracked, and even many of the rails at the joints were twisted and deformed, resulting in track gauge deviation.

"Let me confirm. Are you sure these tracks are still passable?" Last pointed at the rusty tracks. "And for a high-speed train?"

"This railway has been abandoned for a long time. Originally, after the Night World passage appeared here, the people from the Clockwork Institute planned to renovate the railway to facilitate logistical support and supply to the Night World stronghold... But now that the Night World passage is gone, the plan to renovate the railway has naturally been canceled."

Ishtar glanced at the rotten and decaying railroad tracks and didn't seem surprised.

She puffed out her chest proudly, and her academy uniform with the Starry Star emblem suddenly tightened. "Don't worry, the academy is more powerful than you think. You will soon find that choosing to join Starry Star University will be the right decision for you..."

"We're here." Luster spoke, interrupting Ishtar.

"What's arrived?" Ishtar blinked.

"The car is here." Rast looked up at the end of the dense forest where few people had been.

A howling wind suddenly swept across the platform, blowing the layer of red pine leaves on the platform everywhere.

A few seconds later, accompanied by the whistle, a silver train drove into the platform.

Last noticed that when the train was moving, a layer of rune light and shadow clearly emerged between the train and the rusty and dilapidated abandoned railway tracks, as if it was a road made of runes and light.

Not until the train stopped at the platform did the illusory road constructed by runes slowly dissipate.

The conductor, wearing a soft hat, slid open the door. "Welcome aboard the Silver Gear train, produced by the Clockwork Institute of Star University."

"Laster, and..."

The conductor looked at Ishtar beside Luster, took two steps back, and a strange look flashed in his eyes: "Peeper."

Ishtar was clearly accustomed to these looks. She surveyed the empty platform besides herself and Luster. "A special train is picking me up this time? Has my obelisk ranking improved again?"

"No, this is a request submitted by Vice President Hiltina as one of the Twelve Members of the Round Table. This special train is here to pick up Rast. You, Secret Voyeur, are just being brought along."

The conductor in the soft hat obviously had some problems with Ishtar and did not give Ishtar any face.

He extended his hand to Last. "It's rare for freshmen to be picked up on a special train. Perhaps in a few years you'll be able to join the Twelve Seats of the Round Table."

"Meet Rodri, a third-year student at the Clockwork Academy. Night Blade is the "All Roads"."

Then the conductor named Rodri was slightly startled, because he found that the boy in front of him had put on a sunny smile that made people feel like spring breeze.

"'All roads lead to success'?" Rast shook hands with Rodri.

The name of Night Blade reminded him of the scene where the Silver Gear train was running on the dilapidated railway tracks that had long been out of repair, but it was running as if it were flat ground.

"Well, the name Night Blade seems to come from an old saying called 'All roads lead to Rome', which means there are many ways to reach a city-state, and you don't have to stick to just one."

"This Night Blade allows me to define everything around me as a 'harmless path,' allowing me to safely navigate both sheer cliffs and all-consuming swamps."

"The Silver Gear was able to pass through here because I activated Night Blade and defined the abandoned railroad tracks as roads."

Rast took a deep look at Rodri in front of him.

Since cliffs and swamps can be defined as "harmless paths," then... what about the weapons swung by the enemy? What about the bullets fired at you?

The Night Blade "Wanlu Tongtu" has great development potential just by listening to its introduction.