CHAPTER 550: CHAPTER 493: THE CORRECT WAY TO OPEN

A restless night passed.

The sky had subtly started to lighten.

Looking at the unexpected acquisition from the Dream Realm in their hands, neither of them could sleep any longer.

For them, "adventure" itself was not the goal; the ultimate acquisition was. For adventurers, only precious treasures are the best solace for a narrow escape from death.

They changed into fresh clothes.

Even in the cold of midwinter, Aiven was still in simple trousers and a shirt, while Olivia changed into a lady’s hunting outfit. Aiven also draped his wide ship captain’s cloak, the "Thunderbird Robe," over her.

On a patch of beach next to the campsite, the two of them carefully examined the brass box together.

"This should be a creation of the ’Alchemy School,’ right?"

Olivia, who had fought with them in the Dream Realm, was the first to make her judgment.

Although the toy soldiers were painted in colorful coatings on the surface, they were essentially metal puppets. Even a Beginner apprentice would know which school among Wizards was best at making such creations.

Aiven, however, did not hastily express an opinion. After thoughtfully examining the exquisite patterns on the box lid for a moment, he directly reached out and lifted the lid.

Snap—

However, this time, the "soldiers" did not jump out on their own like in the Dream Realm.

After waiting for a while, the two of them leaned in to look inside the box, which was filled with tiny, bean-sized toy soldiers, cold and hot weapons, various calibers of bronze cannon, tanks, military horses... even a clockwork locomotive, with everything in complete array.

But now they appeared just like real toys, having completely lost the lively energy from when they besieged Olivia last night.

Aiven picked it up and shook it vigorously, but even when turned upside down, the world inside the box remained unaffected, as if it existed in another space.

"Aiven, during combat before, these soldiers were all possessed by ’Dead Spirits.’ After I purified the ’Dead Spirits,’ they all stopped moving. Could they be broken?

Eh? No, wait, why would Alchemy Puppets need ’Dead Spirits’ to control them?"

The girl had just formed a hypothesis but quickly dismissed it herself. Given the ever-changing era of the Steam Industry, which has come to the forefront and even become mainstream in Witchcraft, could Alchemy be such an inconvenient practice?

If it were "Voodoo Sect" or the "Necromancy School," that would make more sense.

After meticulously examining every pattern on the [Toy Box], Aiven finally spoke excitedly:

"They are not broken by you; under your Spiritual Purification, they were restored to their original state.

Moreover, they are not from the ’Alchemy School,’ but the ’Vitalist School’!

I should have thought of this; it’s an Extraordinary convergence."

Excitement overflowed on his brow, and Aiven tapped a hidden rune among the box’s patterns with his fingertip shining with "Activated Spiritual Light."

Buzz—

The Spiritual Wind suddenly rose on the beach, with light green currents rapidly flowing along the patterns on the surface of the brass box, spreading to every nook and cranny inside and out. Like parched land welcoming nourishing rain, the dormant brass box instantly "came to life."

Rustle, rustle, rustle...

One by one, metal soldiers jumped out of the box like raindrops, transforming into sizes comparable to adult humans, and lined up into two neat phalanxes, red and blue, in front of the two of them.

Each phalanx was composed of Firearms Soldiers carrying guns, Tank Soldiers driving vehicles, Cannoneers handling cannon, and Cavalry wielding swords on horseback, totaling three hundred men.

Then, a particularly ornately colored officer with a marshal’s hat stepped out from each red and blue phalanx, saluted Aiven holding the box, and, in an uninflected tone, requested:

"Commander-in-Chief, please give your orders!"

Olivia, once filled with trepidation from being besieged by them, quietly hid behind Aiven, peering over his shoulder at the imposing military formation.

"What are your names?"

The two metal officers did not respond to this question, merely repeating:

"Commander-in-Chief, please give your orders!"

They seemed quite unintelligent, as Aiven defined them in his heart.

The toy soldiers appeared to possess a rather primitive mechanical intelligence, acting only according to predetermined rules. But in a way, this was good, eliminating fears of a real-world version of a mechanical enemy uprising.

He then tentatively issued a command:

"Why don’t you demonstrate for me?"

"Yes, Commander!"

The red and blue phalanxes, led by their respective Commanders-in-Chief, stepped forward, splitting and advancing sideways. When they reached about a hundred paces apart, they suddenly stood at attention, turned, and lifted their guns, not pointing towards a demonstration target but... each other.

Just as Aiven realized something was wrong,

"Fire!"

With great precision, they commanded simultaneously.

Bam! Bam! Bam!...

Boom! Boom! Boom!...

This time, their attack power was obviously far greater than when controlled by a group of "Dead Spirits" in the Dream Realm.

At a hundred paces, the firearms in their hands could leave deep dents on the enemy’s metal bodies, and the cannon could blow the opposing soldiers to smithereens...

And they showed no intention of dodging nor any signs of holding back.

Whinny—

As the Tank Soldiers and Cavalry charged through the cannon fire,

it was clear that they wouldn’t stop until one side was completely down, or both perished!

"Stop it, stop it, MD, you idiots!"