A tall and muscular official wizard spoke indifferently, his voice as cold as ice:
"The City of Machinery has entered martial law. No non-citizens are allowed in the fifth level. Lynn, you have been conscripted come with me."
This sudden statement made Lynn's eyes narrow sharply. A strong sense of vigilance surged within him something was off.
Setting aside the fact that he was already a registered citizen of the City of Machinery, which meant that no one could easily lay a hand on him without undergoing strict scrutiny, there was still something odd about this situation.
The wizard had directly called out his name before Lynn had even spoken a word.
He knew his name!
This was no coincidence. This man was here specifically for him!
Lynn carefully reflected on his actions since arriving in the City of Machinery. He had always kept a low profile, never making enemies. There was no reason for someone to target him.
The only possibility that came to mind was the anonymous person who had sent him a message through his citizen token.
But that was highly unlikely the encryption on the citizen tokens was incredibly complex, making them nearly impossible to hack.
If that was not the reason, then there was only one other possibility…
Lynn's mind flashed back to the ambush he had encountered in the third level.
"Marco… He's the only one who could be behind this!"
A chilling realization settled over him, and anger boiled within.
That damned Marco! Lynn had never even met him in person, yet the man had targeted him multiple times. Just because Lynn was acquainted with Darwin, Marco had decided to treat him as an easy target.
Even a clay figurine has limits to its patience let alone a person!
Lynn silently vowed to get back at Marco when the opportunity arose.
For now, however, the situation in the City of Machinery was dire. Martial law had been declared, meaning that something major had happened.
If he allowed Marco's people to take him away at such a crucial time, he did not doubt that his life would be in danger.
Fortunately, he had already acquired his citizen status, granting him certain rights and protections.
Without hesitation, Lynn pushed a nearby mechanical apprentice forward.
"Explain the situation to him," he said calmly.
The apprentice looked back at Lynn with an uneasy expression, sensing that something was amiss.
But with two official wizards standing before him, he had no room to refuse. With a grimace, he turned to the tall wizard and said,
"Sir, Lord Lynn has already passed the citizen assessment and is a registered citizen of the City of Machinery. Lord Gilru from the assessment office has personally confirmed his identity…"
"What?"
The muscular wizard froze upon hearing this.
He had assumed that Lynn would either comply without resistance allowing him to carry out Marco's orders without issue or put up a fight, in which case martial law would give him a legitimate excuse to suppress Lynn using the city's mechanical enforcers.
But he had never considered the possibility that Lynn might already be a citizen.
This information threw a wrench into his entire plan.
Even Marco himself wouldn't dare act recklessly against an official citizen of the City of Machinery.
Sure, he could find ways to make Lynn's life difficult or create obstacles in his work.
But outright trying to kill him? That was nearly impossible.
If such an incident were to occur, the City of Machinery's law enforcement would launch a thorough investigation, and no amount of scheming would be able to cover it up.
The tall wizard had originally devised a foolproof plan to deal with Lynn, but this unexpected revelation left him in a difficult position.
The mechanical apprentice had already transmitted the legally binding verification of Lynn's citizenship.
Meanwhile, Lynn simply ignored the wizard and walked past him toward the villa behind him.
As he passed by, he let out a faint chuckle.
"Heh."
The sound made the wizard's face darken with rage.
If he failed this task, Marco would undoubtedly be furious with him.
But with Lynn's newly confirmed citizenship, he had no choice but to back down.
Watching Lynn disappear through the villa's entrance, the wizard cursed under his breath and shot a glare at the mechanical apprentice.
The apprentice shivered involuntarily, feeling a sudden chill run down his spine.
Inside the villa, Lynn let out a deep breath, finally allowing himself to relax a little.
Thankfully, he had always acted decisively and without hesitation. Otherwise, today might have ended very differently.
He recalled the awkward situation of the other official wizards who had taken the citizenship assessment alongside him on the sixth level.
During peaceful times, official wizards were supposed to receive a certain level of respect.
But now that martial law had been declared, they were seen as unstable factors that needed to be controlled.
Even the mechanical apprentices, who had once been insignificant, were now granted the authority to deal with official wizards as they saw fit.
As Lynn walked into the grand hall, a familiar voice called out to him in relief.
"Lynn, you're finally back… The City of Machinery has suddenly gone into lockdown. I thought you might not return, and I was about to go out looking for you!"
Darwin let out a sigh of relief upon seeing Lynn safe and sound.
Standing at the front of the hall, Bephnie had a tense expression on her delicate face. But when she saw Lynn unharmed, a glimmer of relief flickered in her bright eyes.
"Master, you're finally back. Lord Darwin said that the City of Machinery is now under martial law, and we shouldn't leave the house unless necessary…"
Bethany also let out a sigh of relief and spoke softly.
Lynn watched this scene, and for the first time in a long while, a rare warmth rose in his heart.
He never expected that in this cold and ruthless world, someone would care about him this much.
But now was not the time for sentimentality. Lynn walked straight to Darwin, who was sitting on the sofa, briefly describing what had happened that morning before asking with a puzzled expression:
"Darwin, what exactly is going on in the Mechanical City? Tell me in detail."
"Big Brother Lynn has become a citizen, so that makes things much safer!"
Hearing that Lynn had obtained citizenship, Darwin finally relaxed.
He slowly recounted the information he had received.
"At 10:05 this morning, I received a message from my senior sister, informing me that the Mechanical City had entered a state of lockdown. Unless necessary, it would be best not to go outside."
Darwin continued,
"All outsiders in the Mechanical City including wizard apprentices from the second and third levels, as well as official wizards from the fourth level will be officially conscripted."
"As for citizens of the fifth level, they will also be subject to selective summons."
He paused for a moment before going on:
"If a wizard does not hold an official position and has been in long-term seclusion for cultivation, the Mechanical City will actively reach out to them and arrange for their participation in operations in a flexible manner. Those who do hold positions will face different assignments depending on their job nature. Combat wizards and logistics wizards, for example, will be particularly busy and under immense pressure during this time."
Darwin let out a long breath and said slowly,
"Because the Mechanical City has now entered a wartime state. We are in the midst of a war!"
Moreover, Darwn's senior sister had high-level clearance and was aware of some deeper secrets.
For instance, the target of this war was not another faction within the wizarding world but an unknown force from beyond wizard civilization!
Not only had the Mechanical City gone into lockdown, but the entire Nightmare Great Rift had also entered a combat state, and several neutral cities had adopted similar lockdown measures.
The Nightmare Great Rift, as a powerful wizarding force, had never undergone such a large-scale mobilization before.
"The extraterritorial forces… have dragged the entire Nightmare Great Rift into war…"
Lynn felt a wave of turbulence in his heart.
Although he could not yet fully comprehend the scale or complexity of the war due to his limited strength and vision, he could tell that this was no simple matter.
He had his suspicions because, when borrowing Darwn's token, he had accidentally stumbled upon a page containing a peculiar message:
"After clearing the [landscape] remnants left by the gods' civilization, attempt to trigger a localized war and lock onto the Goddess of the Weave… Ideally, destroy her divine kingdom and capture her alive…"
At the time, Lynn had not fully understood the meaning behind those words, but looking back now, the Mechanical City's lockdown and the contents of that message made his heart sink.
Somehow, he had a strong feeling that this was exactly what the message had been referring to.
"Has the wizarding civilization made a move against the gods' civilization? What would the battlefield look like in an operation to capture a goddess…"
Though curious about the matter, Lynn had no intention of getting involved.
On the contrary, he wanted to stay as far away from the war as possible and focus on his cultivation of peace.
Tomorrow, once he obtains his citizen's token, he plans to report to the Research Department.
As Gilru had reminded him, the sooner he joined the Research Department, the better. If he delayed too long and someone else took the opportunity, it would be troublesome…
"As long as I can get into the Research Department, I'll finally have stability and can start cultivating the first-level wizardry knowledge in my mind."
Lynn did not lack extraordinary knowledge what he lacked was a stable environment.
Once he secured that, he could cultivate slowly and steadily, at least until he reached the peak of a second-level wizard without any further concerns.
"The message I saw was written with absolute confidence. The wizarding civilization seems very sure of its victory over the gods' civilization. I just hope they're right…"
While Lynn wished for the wizards to triumph over the gods' civilization, all he could do was silently root for them from afar.
The wizarding world was vast almost beyond imagination.
If a wizard were to traverse it without the aid of teleportation arrays, relying solely on flight, even a powerful Morning Star wizard would take an untold amount of time to circle the entire wizarding continent.
Boundless lands, vast oceans, and floating islands suspended in the sky were merely a fraction of the wizarding world's vast expanse.
Since ancient times, the wizarding world has been in a constant state of growth and expansion.
Countless powerful wizards, driven by a thirst for the unknown, had long since explored every inch of the surface world, the ocean depths, the underground magma realms, and even the ethereal sky domain.
As knowledge accumulated and power increased, their gaze gradually turned beyond their world to the mysterious realms beyond.
Through generations of relentless research and arduous exploration,
The wizarding world finally confirmed that it was not alone.
Beyond its boundaries, countless unknown worlds existed.
These worlds were not barren; they held life, civilizations, and growing sources of power.
Thus, the wizards embarked on an endless expedition.
They conquered other planes, sought rare resources, and brought one world after another under their dominion.
With time, the wizarding world grew ever stronger, becoming an incomparably vast and radiant civilization.
From an external perspective, gazing upon the wizarding world's brilliance would be like witnessing a colossal sun radiating dazzling light.
The worlds it had conquered and colonized resembled planets orbiting this great sun.
This boundless expansion was even reflected in the starry robes worn by law enforcement wizards.
The blazing sun embroidered on their backs symbolized the wizarding world itself, while the densely packed stars surrounding it represented the countless realms it had subjugated.
A testament to how, throughout the ages, the wizarding world had continually consumed and grown.
However, thousands of years ago, during one such expedition, the wizarding civilization encountered an unprecedented adversary an immensely powerful and resplendent civilization.
A civilization whose name sent ripples through the hearts of all wizards: the gods' civilization!
Since ancient times, wizards have pursued the mysteries of the divine.
To wizards, knowledge was the source of power, and gods were often associated with "omniscience and omnipotence."
Thus, wizards believed that if they could truly find a god, they might be able to uncover the ultimate path to truth.
Yet, despite countless expeditions, the so-called "gods" they encountered had always turned out to be nothing more than arrogant, powerful beings not truly omnipotent.
This time, however, the gods' civilization was entirely different!
It was a civilization as powerful and expansionist as the wizards perhaps even more ferocious.
From the very first contact, before any negotiations could take place, the gods' civilization launched an immediate and unprovoked attack on the wizards.
That war fought thousands of years ago, saw the gods' civilization unleash [landscape] attacks on the wizarding world, permanently altering its internal structure.
The Wizarding Council had to issue an emergency decree, forbidding large-scale warfare between Black Wizards and White Wizards until the conflict with the gods' civilization was resolved.
The devastating strike that tore apart Red Swamp and created the Nightmare Great Rift had come from a powerful figure in the Wizarding Council.
Back then, the southern region had ignored the council's orders, prompting this overwhelming attack, which ultimately transformed the area into the perilous land it is today.
And now, with the Nightmare Great Rift mobilizing on a massive scale and law enforcement wizards being drawn from the Wizarding Council, the goal was clear.
To launch a targeted counterattack against the gods' civilization.
Their objective: the Goddess of the Weave!
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