Star Forge Titan

Dust fell and everyone in the adventure team couldn't help but take a few steps back.

Driven by the running machinery, a door as big as a wall slowly opened outwards, revealing a dark and unclear space inside.

Alvin suddenly felt magic flowing through the wall, but he did not act rashly. He had seen similar scenes many times in the game.

Many ruins have this function.

Dengdengdeng.

Magical power flowed through the ceiling, lighting up lamps along the way, making the originally dim space exceptionally bright.

Under the white light, a wide, half-illuminated area appeared before everyone.

But what Alvin noticed first was the house number fixed on the wall.

Special staff living area/Maintenance department leisure area

Time also affects the lighting system. Only half of the lights in the room can still be turned on, while in the remaining half, you can see the burning fire.

They looked at each other, and before they could make a judgment, the white cat Catworm held by Lilim suddenly broke free from her arms, and then ran towards the direction of the fire, looking back every few steps, obviously signaling everyone to continue following him.

At the same time, there were bursts of familiar "meow" sounds coming from the other side.

"These demonic creatures can actually use fire!" The half-elf wizard, who usually has a cold face, rarely showed an expression of surprise.

"It seems that these little guys are much smarter than I thought. At least their physiological structure can produce sufficiently good thinking ability." Alvin looked around thoughtfully.

Apart from the decorative patterns in the style of giant civilization on the ceiling and walls, this place specially used for the special employees of the maintenance department, that is, the group of cats and cats, to live in, unexpectedly looks a bit like a large-scale animal shelter, or another more common leisure place... a cat cafe.

Rows of 'walls' made up of a large number of rectangular boxes were neatly distributed over more than one-third of the area, while the other side was filled with sofas and chairs that were a size larger than those used by ordinary people, as well as a small round dining table.

Each box that makes up the 'wall' has one side made of transparent material, through which the internal structure can be clearly seen.

The box is divided into a living area, a play area, and a low-light area specifically for resting. There is also a device for regularly delivering food and water. However, the food and water bowls in most boxes are now empty, and it is obvious that automatic distribution has not been carried out for a long time.

Simply put, such a rectangular box is actually an independent living space with a high degree of modularity, and it can also be more directly called a cat house.

In this way, the "wall" formed by many cat houses can probably be directly called a cat apartment.

Even now, after so many years, cats and bugs still live in their own rectangular cat cages as small families according to the habits formed long ago.

Through the transparent side of the cat house, you can see all kinds of cats and insects resting, fighting, playing, and doing naughty things inside...

In addition to the adult cats and cats, you can occasionally see kittens that are even cuter! These smaller creatures are like furry remote-controlled cars, meowing and scurrying around the cat apartment.

It makes people want to grab it and rub it.

In the past, when there were no lighting equipment to provide light, they would build a fire between every two rows of cat apartments.

Although it is not known where the cat bugs got the fire from, the burning firewood can bring both light and heat to this space, fully meeting the basic survival needs of the cat bugs.

As for the food problem, just like the source of fire, it is difficult to figure out how they solved it in a short period of time.

However, from this point we can see that cats and insects that look like small domestic pets actually have a high level of intelligence that is inconsistent with their appearance.

The fact that they've survived from the ancient days of the Giant Kingdom's demise until the present day is enough to prove that these little creatures are undoubtedly quite intelligent. Ivan even suspected that during the Giant Kingdom's heyday, these cat-worms would have handled the vast majority of the mobile fortress's daily maintenance, leaving the giants in the maintenance department largely free to enjoy tea, pet the cats, and occasionally troubleshoot technical issues.

So……

While thinking, his eyes glanced at the part of the space that was not illuminated.

As expected, there were a large number of machines of unknown purpose stored there. They seemed to be regularly maintained by the cats and bugs, at least there was no sign of dust on the surface.

Perhaps because the two universes are similar in many aspects, or because of the common points of mechanical civilization, many of the machines make Alvin feel familiar.

But what concerned him more was the size of the machines.

Yes, although there are so many machines of different sizes, the parts that are closely related to the operator's own situation, such as the control room, handles, and buttons, do not look like they are for ordinary humans, let alone giants.

For example, the construction machinery that looks about three people tall looks like an excavator with two legs, but the operating room located in the middle of the fuselage is very small, definitely not enough for an ordinary person of normal size to sit in.

But if it were a catworm, there would be plenty of space inside.

But this creates a new problem.

How did the giants train these small animals transformed through magic to operate various machines for maintenance work?

It's not like they are going to have cram schools for them, is it?

Is there an additional charge then?

Senior mechanics charge 10,000 yuan, mid-level mechanics charge 5,000 yuan, and junior mechanics charge 1,000 yuan, like this?

A strange image popped up in Ivan's mind: a cat and a bug in a suit taking a cat and a bug in a school uniform to a cram school. This sudden brain-wrecking imagination made him grin foolishly to himself.

At this moment, the orc Gaoshan suddenly pointed at the wall and shouted:

"Look, there seems to be something painted there?"

Chapter 45 Ancient Murals

The living area specially designated for cat-worms in the ruins is quite spacious.

After all, judging from their original functions, the cats and bugs who are responsible for the daily maintenance of the entire mobile fortress should be here when they rest on weekdays.

Considering the extra-large seats and round tables, perhaps even the slacking giants would occasionally come here to relax secretly.

It is for this reason that, apart from the area occupied by the Cat Apartment and the area used to place various maintenance machines of unknown purpose, there are still many spaces where flat walls can be seen directly.

Just now, the orc archer took advantage of his height to pass over many debris and saw from afar that there seemed to be something faintly painted on the wall.

So he quickly called out to remind his teammates, and the members of the adventure team who heard the shout also gathered in front of the wall.

Ivan raised his arm, increasing the brightness of the light emanating from his fingertips. Soon, the entire wall was illuminated.

Then, everyone's eyes were drawn to the intricate murals covering the entire wall. The murals depicted so many things that it looked like a long scroll, spanning a vast expanse of time.

"This is... their history!" The half-elf wizard glanced at it for a moment and then exclaimed in amazement.

"Is it really a giant?" Andre nodded continuously as he looked at the mural.

"Why carve it on the wall this way?" Lilim asked uncertainly.

"Perhaps, it's because it lasts long enough."

Ivan's tone was a little strange. The halfling's question made him think of some not-so-good possibilities.

However, when looking at these murals, at least one thing is certain.

As magical creatures, cats and insects possess enough wisdom to build a civilization.

Otherwise, they, as they should be called now, would not have been able to complete such a well-organized historical record.

The murals can be clearly distinguished from different time periods. Judging from the signs of wear and tear observed at present, the oldest one should be the very wide mural in the middle.

At the same time, this mural is also the most exquisite of all the murals. It not only has various bright colors, but also has clear text information on the side. The overall look is like a history book with illustrations.

The wisdom and rationality that can be seen in it are obvious, and it does not look like a primitive work created by a group of furry animals.

Even judging from the carving marks, this mural was definitely not made with stone or claws, but must have used some advanced tools with considerable precision.

In the center of the wall, a giant surrounded by light was half-kneeling on the ground. Beside him was a square box. Lines depicting light extended from the giant's hands to the inside of the box, and then you could see a group of catworms crawling out of the box.

Standing near the exit of the box was a figure whose size was not much different from that of an ordinary person.

He or she was wearing a white robe, without any extra ornaments, except for a golden crown on the head, on which four small inlays of different colors could be vaguely seen, which made Alvin guess about the person's identity.

The giant was obviously in awe of the other's existence, so he knelt on one knee and lowered his towering head slightly, with his other hand on his chest over his heart, as if he was solemnly saluting.

The hands of the man wearing the crown were also emitting light. The bright light depicted with lines flowed out from the hands of the man wearing the crown, like a wave of water sweeping over all the cats and insects that walked out of the rectangular box, causing these animals that were originally lying on the ground to quickly change their posture.

They raised their upper bodies and began to walk on their hind six legs, with their first pair of legs raised high, and began to pick up various tools.

Next to the mural is a description of cats and bugs of that era written in ancient Norse.

The mighty Giant King gave us life, and the great and supreme Majesty gave us wisdom.

Our job is maintenance.

Descendants of later generations, please do not forget your kindness...

The following words became blurred. Even with Alvin's perception, he was unable to read the information engraved on the worn-out walls of the ruins, which was recorded countless hours ago.

Surrounding the initial mural is a group of information used to record the work of the cat and worm, which details the use of many tools.

Most of these tools could be found in the area of ​​the room where the equipment was stored. However, due to age, most of them were already damaged, and even if they weren't covered in dust, they might not be usable.

Rather than being murals, these murals are more like 'instruction manuals'.

With this information, as long as you can understand the text and pictures, you can have a basic understanding of how to use various tools.

But judging from the current behavior of the cat bugs, although they will maintain and wipe the tools and machines, there is obviously no sign that they will continue to use these things to repair this mobile fortress.

"It seems some key information is missing?" The half-elf wizard, who could barely read a few ancient Norse words, frowned and looked very puzzled.

Like him, Alvin also thought of this.

"Hey? What does this mean? Does the little guy know magic?" Lilith said, pointing to a mural right below the original mural that was mostly covered by stains.

When she noticed the stain just now, driven by curiosity, she found a cloth and roughly wiped it off, and then she saw a new mural that she had not noticed before.

"Let me see." Alvin said and walked forward.

The mural below the initial mural obviously records information that is very important to cats and insects, so it is placed so close.

What is depicted above seems to be a somewhat strange semicircular object with two entrances and exits. The right one is the entrance and the left one is the exit. The cat-worms lined up in neat rows enter from the right and leave from the left.

Inside the semicircular machine is a catworm wearing a strange headband and glowing all over.

The biggest difference is that most of the cat-worms that enter the machine are lying on the ground, while the cat-worms that come out of the machine have their upper bodies raised.

Their first pair of hands were all holding uniform tools, and even had an identical semi-circular safety helmet on their heads.

The function of the hat is still unclear, but its appearance is exactly the same as the special safety helmet used on construction sites that Alvin saw in his previous life.

"Can that machine give them intelligence?" the half-elf said uncertainly.

"That should be the case, otherwise the giants would not let these little guys be responsible for the daily maintenance of the entire ruins." Alvin nodded.

He noticed that next to the mural, there were many words written in ancient Norse. Although most of the content below was blurred due to weathering, the title at the top, which was deliberately enlarged, was still barely recognizable.

There is a simple set of nouns written there - skill learning machine.

You giants actually have something so lazy?

Alvin looked at the name in astonishment, and a lot of ideas emerged in his mind.

"Then why did they become what they are now, a far more primitive appearance than what is described in the mural?" Lilim looked at the group of meowing cats and bugs with a puzzled expression.

"Has the cultural heritage been cut off? Or is there a machine malfunction? The era of the Giant Kingdom is too far away from now. It wouldn't be surprising if something unexpected happened during this period."

Ivan sighed, feeling a sense of regret for the ruthless passage of time.

Perhaps, time is the most powerful force in this world.

He kept this idea in mind.

On the side, Andre and the orcs' interest in the murals gradually waned. They walked towards the place where engineering equipment and other tools were placed and began to look for anything useful.

For adventurers, entering the ruins naturally involves finding something valuable.

Alvin did not participate in it. He began to browse along the original mural and move outward to the part of the mural that was closer to the modern time.

Judging from the changes in the style of the murals, the civilization of the cat, cat and insect did indeed experience a period of decline.

The cat-worms that left the initial murals were clearly well-educated, so they were able to use tools to complete very large and detailed murals.

After that, the murals began to become simpler and the style gradually returned to primitive, more and more like the works left by primitive tribes that had not established a mature civilization.

As you can see, it describes scenes of the parasitic beast chasing the cat-cat bug, as well as scenes of the cat-cat bug hiding in various pipes.

Combined with the increasingly simple and grammatically incorrect written records, this should be the predecessor Cat and Bug teaching their descendants how to avoid the dangerous beasts in the ruins.

In addition, Alvin actually saw murals similar to planting, on which simple stone carvings were used to depict the general process of catworms turning the soil, sowing and harvesting. There was even a map to record the places where planting could be carried out.

Around the mural depicting the planting scene are detailed diagrams of how to proceed with each step, including a scene of making compost by mixing cat feces with soil and other things. In addition, all the steps such as seedling cultivation, crop rotation, and watering are included.

Obviously, the cat and insect ancestors who left behind the murals at that time were very eager to pass on this knowledge intact to future generations.

But if they were still under the protection of the giants at that time, there seems to be no need to attach so much importance to this knowledge.

Judging from the structures preserved in the Cat Apartment, the giants obviously provide their employees with sufficient food and water, and protect the safety of their cats.

The King of Sandworms, this empty living fortress is like a hollow shell that has lost its ability to think. It seems to be traveling aimlessly in the depths of the sand sea for a long time.

So, what exactly happened here in the past that cannot be verified?