Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

Then, he moved.

Caesar suddenly stood up, his body becoming fuller and thicker at a speed visible to the naked eye. His gray hair began to gradually turn black, and even the golden laurel branches on his head regained their luster.

The surrounding scenery shifted faster than Caesar himself—the light of the Lighthouse of Alexandria grew increasingly distant, yet increasingly sun-like, until only a single orb of light remained suspended in the sky. All around him was the white desert, crescent-shaped dunes, devoid of life, except for the ridges where the army's footsteps remained.

As I followed my steps, the light and shadow around me changed faster and faster.

"Bang!" Caesar slammed his shield into the sand dune, and the changes in the surrounding scenery also ended.

He glanced at Shangluo. Caesar had fully recovered his prime, and even more. His cheeks were painted a deep red, like Guan Gong, a symbol of the gods. The army assembled behind him, and the legendary Crocea Mors, Caesar's sword, was back in his possession.

Looking at Shangluo, he gestured forward with his hand, asking Shangluo to look forward:

A black cube loomed on the horizon, standing opposite the Lighthouse of Alexandria. One corner of the cube touched the earth, while the other reached high into the clouds.

Although the distance was as far as "running to death while looking at the mountain", the black cube still occupied half of the horizon and rotated quietly there.

"That is?"

Caesar did not answer, but grabbed Shangluo's hand, pressed it on the hilt of Huang Zhisi's sword and drew the sword.

The sword was drawn out - but Shangluo could feel that the power to draw the sword seemed to be exerted by himself alone, without a trace of strength coming from Caesar.

Gripping the end of the sword, Caesar pointed the tip of the sword in the direction of the black cube:

As his sight gradually drew closer, the black cube gradually filled his entire field of vision—its details becoming easier to discern. Its surface wasn't smooth, but rather irregularly dotted with doorways. The cube spun, both fast and slow, allowing Shangluo to clearly see each face. The number of doors on each face varied, but all together they numbered a hundred.

There were white, ivory-like chariots moving in the sky through the gate, and one of them was speeding towards his position. In a flash, he could see the face of the driver clearly - the other person also saw him.

"It's you!"

"It's you!"

"Are you a Dragon Tooth soldier now?" This face left a deep impression on him. This was one of the Dragon Tooth soldiers who had escaped from Lake Nemi and hitched a ride. Now they were driving chariots and seemed to have achieved a considerable status.

"Why are you here? Go back! Thunder is coming!"

"So this is... Hundred-Gate Thebes?"

He suddenly turned to look in Caesar's direction—but as he looked, everything around him weathered and crumbled, drifting away like dust. Sitting on the throne was still the same withered old man.

"Eh? What happened?"

【what happens? 】

Almost at the same time, the voices of Apollonia and Victoria came from behind.

Shangluo had just come back to his senses. When he looked at Caesar again, he had already closed his eyes and looked much more "peaceful" than before.

"Wait, didn't you see it either?" he asked Apollonia.

[No. I saw you staring blankly in front of the throne for several seconds—and then suddenly a golden sword emerged from thin air and pointed south?] Apollonia couldn't quite tell.

Before he could reply, Victoria asked, "Could that be Huang's Death?"

Only then did Shangluo notice that his hand held something substantial. A Roman dagger appeared in his hand, the entire blade radiating the same golden hue as gold. A spherical counterweight sat at the end, emblazoned with Caesar's Ten Military Achievements and the letters SPQR.

"It should be. It was pulled from Caesar's scabbard."

"Huh? Why can you pull out Caesar's scabbard? Wait, I remember!" Victoria said in astonishment, "You are... You are the King of Rome!"

“So there’s such a setting?”

"Ah," Victoria said, looking somewhat dejected. "It seems I'm not as orthodox as you in front of Caesar. Caesar hasn't said a word to me. Perhaps in his eyes, I'm actually a strange Greek. And according to Roman tradition, we Greeks are not allowed to touch this sword."

"why?"

"Because according to legend, this sword was forged by Vulcan and given by the goddess of beauty Venus to her son, Aeneas, the prince of Troy. At the time, the sword was called 'Trojan Fire,' and along with it, Aeneas was given the 'Shield of Aeneas,' the front of which was engraved with the fate of Aeneas' descendants and the grand vision of Rome's future. And also the helmet, a complete set.

"After Troy's defeat, Aeneas sailed far and founded Rome in Italy. So this sword is the enemy of Greece, or more precisely, the enemy of the Achaeans. Unfortunately, Rome and Greece later merged. I, who stand before you, am a Greek. Conversely, you, confirmed as the King of Rome, are 'closer' to this sword. So, what did Caesar show you?"

"He showed me the Hundred-Gate Thebes." Shangluo answered confidently.

"what?"

【what? 】

After a while.

Wait, it's true! There's a sympathetic link! I can now find the location of the Hundred Gates of Thebes! It's in the south! Aha! I found it! But...

"Shangluo, you're in great danger now," Victoria said sternly. "You saw the city of Thebes of Ammon Zeus, right? The direction you just pointed to is the direction of Thebes? But when you looked at him, he was also looking at you! The operators we sent to gather information all died because they all mysteriously disappeared on their way back. You should hurry back now."

"So there will be retribution for looking at this for a second longer?"

"So we didn't know what Caesar had done from the beginning. It was all ordered by the Muses. So that's why. Even if the Muses knew about it, it wouldn't matter. But if Ammon Zeus targeted us, we'd be in big trouble."

"Then I will."

"Yes. Now, immediately, go back immediately."

"What about the key I made?"

"Because you are the one bearing the consequences, we can instead send a large army to conquer you. Please wait a few days, it will only take a few days. Take the sword Caesar gave you with you. We may need your help with some minor matters along the way, but they're not a big deal."

"I understand that, but there's something." Shangluo held the sword in front of him. "Do you have a scabbard? It's not very convenient to hold the sword without a scabbard."

"Please put it in your own bag. After the battle, I'll ask Caesar if he has any solution."

I'll take a short break today and update once more.

Chapter 358 Sword Manual

Shangluo opened the scroll and placed Huang's death inside.

Swords, fine swords, even divine swords, were all arranged one after another within the scroll. As he slid, the swords slid along with the scroll. Before he knew it, he had amassed a vast collection of swords, like a sword manual.

"Wow," Victoria stared in astonishment, "What kind of swords are these?"

"You should recognize some of them. The first one on the left is the Sword King's Sword, an item dropped from the Sword King in Lake Nemi. The second one is Diana's hunting knife, a hidden reward. The third one is a wooden sword, which I usually use when sparring with Wen Yuan."

"Why is there a hammer?"

"Oh, that hammer is also a good thing. I once opened a magical ladle with it, and it is still very useful now."

[Wuwuwu~~ You hung it up and showed it off as a trophy. 】

"Oh~~ awesome. What about that one at the back? It looks like there's a Tai Chi figure drawn on it?"

"This is a Wudang Tai Chi sword, but it's just for practice. I'll have to pick out the real thing myself when I go to Wudang. The one at the back."

"What's that brown thing? Is it a pill? Why is there a tooth mark on it?"

"Yes, that's right. Sorry, that's my dinner, a steamed bun. It was so convenient to put it in this row, so I put it there. Sorry." He moved a piece of the steamed bun down to the row below.

"The next thing is Huang Zhi's death."

Huang's Death, a Roman gladius. Limited by the forging conditions of the time and Roman tactics, the Roman gladius was quite short, even about the same size as the hunting knife at the other end of the line. The two could be combined into a pair.

"By the way, what's the point of Huang's death?" he asked Victoria.

"That's the theory—whoever gets hit dies."

"Who wouldn't die if struck by a sword?"

"It's different. What you can't kill normally, you can kill with this sword."

“That’s pretty impressive.”

“But that’s not necessarily the case.”

Shangluo blinked. "What do you mean by 'maybe not'? It doesn't sound very reliable."

"Because of something like this - when Caesar was attacking Britain, he once challenged Nineus, a Celtic prince from Britain. Caesar struck with his sword, and the sword got stuck in Nineus's skull, or some say it got stuck in his shield. Then, Nineus pulled the Yellow Death from his skull and killed many Romans with it. After that, he held on for 15 days, but eventually died."

"Ah, this seems pretty powerful? Just chop it down hard and it'll be fine? But it looks like it's been poisoned."

"The theory goes like this: As descendants of Romulus and Aeneas, the Romans are blessed by the gods of fire and love. Therefore, the sword is essentially a 'perfect sword' watched over by the gods, capable of perfectly carrying out the wielder's will. Caesar truly wanted the other man dead, so he was able to strike him down."

"Then why didn't he kill Ninios?"

"Maybe it's because I didn't cut it completely. But the man still died in the end. As for this sword, if you truly have the will to kill, it will almost certainly kill you. Within your will, this sword is a perfect sword."

“Although it’s a bit short”

“Yes, although it’s a little short.”

Admittedly, the biggest problem with this sword is that it's too short. While the Roman gladius might have been a minor issue back in the day, a sword this short isn't much longer than a dagger these days. Even with the "Perfect Sword" ability, wielding it would still be a bit risky.

"By the way, how do you usually use all these swords? I heard that you guys in Zhendan seem to be able to control swords?"

"Yes, I can control swords. If I control swords, I can use many swords at once. I can use as many as I want, and I can also set up sword formations - but I haven't learned it yet."

Shangluo had previously thought he could easily win the race. But in recent years, it wasn't just him; everyone from the two capitals and thirteen provinces seemed to be preparing for the Formula One Championship as a battle of wits. This immediately filled his schedule to the brim, forcing his trip to Wudang to be put on hold.

"Then can you demonstrate it to me?"

"Okay, but wait a minute."

Shangluo slid the slider down one column.

"Oh, sorry, I let you see that steamed bread again."

He swiped down again.

"That's right. Good afternoon, former young man."

He greeted the former young player who was excluded.

The former young general stretched out from his fist, stretched himself, and floated out of the scroll.

He kept looking at Shangluo, as if asking "what are you doing".

"Could you please perform that again?"

“???” The former young player was stunned for a moment. He looked around and saw Victoria.

Immediately, he understood and made an "OK" gesture, cooperating much more than before.

"Then you pick one first."

The former young general did not refuse. He greeted with one palm, then stretched out his fingers and stroked upwards.

"What are you looking at that steamed bread for?"

The former young general immediately swiped to the sword selection page.

He extended his index finger and slowly stroked it, observing each sword. Seeing that another sword had been added, he reached out and took it out, spinning it twice in the air.

"Why, you want to use this?"

"It's too murderous, the kids don't like it"—that's what he said.

"Who on earth is this kid learning from all day long?"

[Hehe, me. What? Only you can accept a younger brother, but I can't?]

“I feel his future is still a bit bleak.”

After turning around several times, he finally stopped in front of Diana's skinning knife.

"Hey, you're quite interesting. You're playing with your heartbeat, right? Then it's my turn."

The young general pulled the hunting knife out of the scroll and moved it aside for Shangluo to choose.

Shangluo thought about it and took out a hammer.

【Take it away! Take it away! 】

"I'm not going to hammer you. Hehe, former general, this is your own choice. You want to use a skinning knife to beat your heart, right? Then I'll also awaken your sleeping soul."

After that, he turned to Victoria and said, "Are you ready? I'm going to start the demonstration."

"Ah, this... is it really okay? That skinning knife must be a very dangerous artifact, it can peel the skin off any prey."

"I know. I even peeled a pineapple with it."

"Are you sure it still has this function? And what artifact is that other hammer from? For example, Caesar's hammer, formerly known as the Fire of Troy."

[This is Apollonia's suffering, woo woo~~]

"It is the wisdom of Apollonia."