Comprehensive network wizard, magic emperor.

Chapter 288 The Dream of the Divine Abomination, Old Friends Gather

After a long absence, the half-elf druid has also undergone many changes. His equipment is better, the magic of the wilderness permeates his bones, and a ring of thorns appears on the skin of his neck.

He was truly astonished by the mage's transformation. If Lin Bo's physique hadn't increased proportionally, and if his signature skull mask, trench coat, and iron armor hadn't remained unchanged, the druid wouldn't have recognized him.

Lin Bo invited him to join them, and the two followed the Dawn Gods into the Pegasus carriage. The spacious, open carriage was perfect for enjoying the view from the railing. As the six pristine white horses spread their wings, a gentle breeze of magical light lifted the carriage into the air, and the streets of Meteor Town suddenly shrank.

As the majestic armored warriors patrolling the streets witnessed the divine chariot streaking across the sky, they all knelt on one knee. The crowds on the ground also stopped their work and other unimportant matters, bowing their heads or raising their hands in silent greeting to the fortress leader.

The Dawn Descendant is ancient, handsome, and eloquent. He is very old, and it is said that he walked the earth in the form of a saint before the evil star bombarded the earth and caused the death of the Goddess of Fertility.

Lin Bo listened as he talked about history, described the current situation, and introduced the local customs, his gaze sweeping across the display screen inside the mask and taking in the surrounding scenery.

Meteor Town has two urban areas, an inner and an outer one. The core area is built on the sealed node and is the front-line battlefield guarding the divine evil.

"We need to continuously send troops to eliminate the evil offspring. Through the node portal, we can step into the dream of the divine evil," said the Dawn God Descendant.

Kunkas dwells in the core of the earth, bathed in endless lava, and immersed in the dream woven for it by the gods from beyond the heavens. In a state of unconsciousness, parts of its body grow upwards, transforming into chaotic tentacles protruding from the earth's strata.

The Nine Towns were built around nine ancient, massive tentacles, which were then firmly sealed away, and a dream portal was forged within the sealing ritual array. The source of the wicked offspring is the dream world woven by the gods for Kunkas.

“Strangling the offspring can suppress Kuncas’s power and prevent it from awakening. However, it is a pity that the gods cannot destroy its true form, not because they cannot, but because they are unwilling, because doing so would also extinguish the lifeblood of this planet. The Earth’s core would become cold, the magnetic field would disappear, and disaster and apocalypse would come.”

This information is not unfamiliar to players of the online game. The descendants of the gods have always explained this war, which has lasted for six centuries and never ended, in this way, and have used it to comfort the people of their homeland, so that they would continue to endure pain and hone their fighting spirit for the sake of the continuation of the world.

Lin Bo listened quietly as he shared information with the druid beside him in a private chat interface on the network.

The Night Guard's forces are spread across the wilderness outside the Nine Towns, possessing a large number of strongholds and camps, responsible for protecting the production and life of the civilized world behind them. The main city is a floating fortress composed of seventy-six airships.

The faction leader is a prophet from the Church of the Goddess of Abundance, who resides year-round at the Temple of Enlightenment, a place that stores pure soil untouched by divine evil and also the remains of a god. It was from these remains that the prophet commissioned the players to find the "Lighthouse Keeper" who has descended into this world.

The Pegasus chariot passed through the bustling outer city, crossed a high wall, and arrived at the well-organized inner city.

The urban planning layouts of the nine towns are all similar, with commercial and residential areas on the outer perimeter and industrial and military facilities concentrated in the inner ring.

Players in this faction can obtain a single dormitory in the inner city once they acquire mercenary status, but they need to purchase additional property if they want to settle in the outer city.

Lin Bo spotted the dream portal built in the center of town. It looked like two iron-gray stone pillars, nearly a hundred meters high, with a rugged surface that seemed to have been sculpted by the divine hand of geological movements.

Between the stone pillars is a wide, waterfall-like two-dimensional light membrane, which is the rift between the real world and the dream world. A faint mist sprays out from the portal and falls on the square, turning into frost that never melts.

Through the light screen, the scene in the dream world opposite was clearly visible. It was also a military fortress, and it was in a state of war. The walls and bunkers that stretched through the frost and snow protected the roaring machine guns, which spewed out bright orange flames from their muzzles, like thousands of thunderous candles in the dim night.

Players and soldiers from the Nine Towns travel through the light curtain in vehicles, and personnel from other fortresses occasionally enter Meteor Town through portals for resupply.

The nine towns are physically far apart and scattered across the planet, but they can be used for rapid military marches and resource transfers through the Dream of the Divine Abomination.

When the Pegasus landed in front of the Great Council Hall, Lin Bo saw a familiar cat-woman priest rushing towards him. She was wearing plate armor and a bright red robe, and her whole body radiated holy light, like a torch.

"Brother Mage!" [Holy Light Above] charged forward, leaped lightly, and flew over the patrol of mech warriors. After landing, she appeared in front of Lin Bo. She smiled and opened her arms, jumped onto the mage, and gave him a firm and hard hug.

"Long time no see." Lin Bo smiled and patted her on the shoulder.

"You've grown so tall! What kind of magic potion did you take?" The cat-person priest jumped back to the ground, stretched her neck and looked up at the three-eyed skull, its tail behind her twisting and turning on her shoulder like a furry, living snake.

"Secondary development".

The cat-woman priest believed her, and she winked and waved to the little seagull perched on the wizard's shoulder. The little king puffed out his chest and flapped his wings in return.

Lin Bo looked at the descendant of the Dawn God, but before he could speak, the other party had already smiled, "No matter how many guests you bring, it's fine." He instructed the guards in the council hall that if anyone claimed to be a friend of the "Lighthouse Guest," they should be allowed to pass.

The banquet hall was located on the second floor of the main hall. The Dawn God Descendant presided over the banquet and sat at the head of the long table. Lin Bo sat next to him, and opposite them was the deputy of Meteor Town. Next to them sat the highest-ranking player in Meteor Town, the Dawn God Descendant's advisor, honorary councilor, and recipient of the Divine Grace Medal.

It was she who revealed Lin Bo's whereabouts to the Dawn Goddess.

"Hello, 'Lighthouse Guest,' would you like to add me as a friend?" The elven woman with purplish-black skin wore an elegant white robe, and her irises resembled gray diamonds, radiating a faint fire.

Lin Bo quietly observed the dark elf before him. The light reflected from her body carried the words of her skin, clothing, and other things. The light told of the objects she had touched, and the color of her skin revealed her health.

The shimmering light in her eyes was an outward manifestation of her spiritual energy, as she murmured the language of alluring humanoid beings.

This is a high-level psionicist. Their professional abilities are indeed well-suited for intelligence analysis.

Psionic energy originates from thought. Her psionic radiance fell into Lin Bo's eyes, carrying not only dragon language but also some Gudorei language—the sounds emanating from her thoughts.

Out of curiosity, Lin Bo listened to the other person's thoughts for a while, but out of politeness, he did not continue listening.

"Of course, what's your nickname?"

"[Stealing Heart], Nine Towns faction. Look for it in the public chat member list. Ah, I see the application, so I'll approve it."

[Stealing Heart] continued to blink her charming gray eyes. Her passively solidified allure was enough to fascinate any humanoid creature in just a few words. She kept probing into Lin Bo's background, trying to find out what made him special.

As the banquet began, Lin Bo removed his mage's robes and began to savor the dishes with a small knife and fork. He occasionally turned his head to chat with the psionicist beside him, whose thoughts would occasionally drift into his ears.

"This guy's got a tight tongue." "Is it because he's too tall and isn't looking me in the eye?" "Still not taking the bait? I'm getting angry. Humph."

Lin Bo smiled.

[Stealing Heart] paused for a moment, then asked frankly, "Is there something on my face?" As she spoke, she wiped the corner of her mouth with a napkin.

"No, I just find you quite interesting."

"Is that so?" The dark elf rinsed his mouth with his cup. "Time and experience always bring some benefits."

“Your psychic charm won’t work on me, so there’s no need to wait for the spell to take effect,” Lin Bo advised sincerely.

[Stealing the Strings] choked, and didn't say another word to Lin Bo at the rest of the banquet.

Players continued to arrive at the council hall from all over, many of Lin Bo's old teammates arriving weary from their journeys, laughing and joking with each other. Some high-ranking players from the Nine Towns faction also joined temporarily.

As the number of diners increased, the long table could no longer accommodate everyone. The Dawn Gods were very considerate and changed the banquet into an informal, casual reception, where everyone moved around, raised their glasses, and chatted.

Lin Bo waited until the last old friend from the dungeon arrived before he took his leave.

The descendant of the dawn brought over a communication mirror with a private seal embedded in it, handed it to Lin Bo, and instructed him to keep in touch in the future. He then did not try to persuade him to stay any longer.

As the host and guest parted ways, the public officials of Meteor Town prepared a Cross-Network Player Identity Card for Lin Bo. This card allowed him to own a dormitory in the inner city and freely enter and exit the Dream Realm portal.

The Night Guard players were eager to get started and led Lin Bo to the main city. At this time, the Temple of Enlightenment was floating in the airspace near Star Wolf Town, and they planned to use the Dream of the Divine Abomination for fast travel.

Lin Bo also wanted to see the battlefield of this world, and gain some killing experience along the way.

(End of this chapter)