"Among the members behind you, there is a young girl who wields a sword."
He was referring to...
Among the sword-wielders was Zoe, but Li Ang was momentarily stunned before realizing that Melegon was referring to Meluna.
Melegon said, "When I first saw you, I thought it was just a name coincidence. When I saw her, I confirmed it. I know you."
"Because I used to associate with her?"
"Yes, the investigation about her hasn’t ended. Those closely associated with her have also reached our ears. Although she resides in the Holy City, making our work difficult, we’ve only made simple records. Her suspicion rank has been lowered because she hasn’t been involved in other matters."
"So you want to...?"
"Now that you’ve formed your own Sky Cavalry, be cautious of some island rulers during your travels. The parents of the Diamond Quicksand harbor a grudge regarding that affair."
Li Ang maintained eye contact with Melegon. When he finished speaking without changing expression, Li Ang confirmed that this white-haired man wasn’t looking for trouble but was rather extending goodwill.
From the perspective of an Order Knight, Diamond Quicksand is not considered good people. It’s just that their families have the capability to clean up the messes they create.
"Thank you," Li Ang said.
Melegon nodded and left one more remark before leaving.
"If she doesn’t commit any crime, she will always just be on the suspicion list."
Was this to say they were basically certain it was Meluna? Li Ang curled his lips.
"What did you talk about?" Dorothy poked Li Ang and asked when he returned.
"You know full well and still ask?"
"How would I know?"
"The magic power fluctuation of the Demon-Born Flower, and also you, your Immortal Spirit Stance has changed." Li Ang pressed Dorothy’s shoulder and Zoe’s head with his hands.
There were quite a few potted plants planted by the people from the Shadow Factory in the place where he and Melegon talked, which could serve as a vessel for their powers.
Zoe said assertively, "So she is a criminal! Arrest her! Ouch!"
"And what about you, who are afraid of being caught?" Li Ang quipped as he withdrew his hand that flicked her forehead.
"But, but you said you wanted to be a good person, so why protect her when she does bad things?"
"Didn’t say it was her, being a good person depends on the context. Plus, I’ve discussed this matter, did you forget?"
"I remember, teacher, I remember." Dorothy feigned innocence, raising her hand.
"Aren’t you embarrassed, pretending to be a student?"
"Didn’t you tell me to study hard? I’m just getting into character." Dorothy twisted her body, the soft flesh rubbing against Li Ang’s arm.
Human behavior sure is strange. Leviathan conveyed through the water bubble to Li Ang. Li Ang was uncertain how to respond.
"What are you talking about?" Zoe asked persistently.
"When we obtained the Curse Scale Fish material, I mentioned that the old Soul Apex had a confrontation with a group called Diamond Quicksand."
"So it was about that," Farina and Xiaomo came over from the side.
"Oh, that group, I remember, but forgot the name." Zoe held her head and asked, "Were you there at the time?"
"Yes, we were," Xiaomo said with a smile, tossing a dagger into the air. Li Ang recalled wanting to stealthily eliminate a few members of that group in anger.
Farina was smiling too, but that smile... Dorothy sensed the atmosphere wasn’t right and shrank back.
She could tell that the people from Soul Apex were truly furious at the time; that group must have been really annoying.
"It would be better if that group was just dead," Li Ang said.
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone saw Meluna walking over, and their voices immediately hushed.
They were aware of her habit of speaking without restraint, afraid of triggering her memory and making her confess to the matter.
The sky of Nebis is vast, and no one knows what happens in unseen places, but admitting to something in front of an Order Knight would be different.
"That person is looking at me." Meluna looked at Li Ang, meaning to ask, "Is he causing you trouble because of me?"
"It’s nothing, he just asked me some questions."
Li Ang wasn’t too worried, as he had subtly tested Meluna about this matter.
From her responses, he learned that she had cut through many people but Diamond Quicksand? Sorry, who were they? She wouldn’t even remember obstructive pests.
Back then, Li Ang even considered whether she could sink a Flying Airship; looking back now, that was not a problem at all. Even when she first arrived in this world with her powers unrecovered, those cocky Transcendent Realm Sky Knights aboard the ship were no match for her.
Therefore, he wasn’t afraid she might slip up, but the tension among the group slightly affected him, given her unpredictable actions and her gradually normalizing mind lately—what if she remembered?
"What about the quicksand you mentioned?" Meluna, with her Legendary background, enhanced her hearing through magic power, capturing very subtle sounds.
"Nothing, just don’t mention it."
"Alright."
The pre-battle interlude ended, and the group grandly proceeded to the gates at the end of the Machine Core Tunnel.
The shielding added by the power from the Primordial Being had disappeared, and the power solidified on the gates was also removed by the Water Dragon. Li Ang only needed to raise the rune she gave him, and the gate slowly and automatically opened.
Li Ang led the way at the front, followed by Melegon and Morales, with Loken also bringing engineers along, entering the passage with the battle team.
On the inner walls of the passage, the written symbols immediately caught Loken’s party’s attention. The Order Knights also glanced over in surprise, whispering among themselves.
Even though various ancient matters were known to the Excellence Realm figures, these busy knights couldn’t personally venture as the Celestial Group did—they had never seen them firsthand.
"This is clearly the knowledge left by the relic creators. We have retained and deciphered their language. The shipyards of twelve families collaborated on research, managing to roughly understand a quarter, but the research later ceased, halting all exploration of each family," Loken explained to the group.
Li Ang scratched his head; with the system’s help, he had already acquired the inheritance.
However, the Melting and Gathering Law seemed like an extra reward given specifically by the system, not something that the people here could grasp through reading the writings of the Island Founders.
As they proceeded, the heat within the passage began to rise, nearing an unbearable level.
This time, Li Ang had made significant preparations. He looked at Dorothy and pointed to the bubble by her side.
The half-elf, already feeling unbearably hot, immediately raised the Mermaid Incarnation Staff to channel magic power. The Ocean Bubble, hovering beside her, quickly expanded and levitated above everyone’s heads.
Leviathan, through her telepathic link with Li Ang, laughed while stirring up a whirlpool in the bubble, causing the Ocean Bubble to slightly tremble and shed mist-like vapor.
The scattered vapor invigorated everyone, who then thanked Li Ang.
Akuya glanced at the jubilant Leviathan and spoke some Dragon Language to her. Li Ang felt a profound magic power being transmitted between the two dragons. The power of the Ocean Bubble continued to expand, causing Dorothy to exclaim in a low voice as she struggled to control it.
"Borrowing the equipment creation from your group member," Akuya said, and with a tug of her hand, the mist dispersed from the bubble grew denser, spreading around the water sphere and enveloping everyone in a veil-like garment.
A notification popped up in Li Ang’s status bar.
[Water Defense Protection]
[Protection provided by the Water Dragon Incarnation, enhanced by the reborn Leviathan’s Ocean Bubble, specifically guarding against flame intrusion]
[Effect: Significantly reduces the impact of hot environments and flame effects, and reduces fire attribute damage by half]
The blistering heat greatly diminished. The crowd looked in amazement at Akuya, who was disguising her identity as an ancient wizard.
Li Ang immediately approached her, "Mighty Dragon God."
"Save your feigned respect and properly resolve this world-threatening incident," Akuya said, her face expressionless, but the proud tilt of her chin betrayed her satisfaction.
Li Ang knew she was referring to the Empire and the Destruction Battleship and nodded, "I will definitely give it my all."
Passing through a corridor with dormant transport vehicles and fallen golems, the team arrived at a place illuminated by firelight, ahead, it was the Mechanical Creation Furnace.
Having bypassed the metal giant wall, the scene of a complex, spectacular metal giant sphere unfolded. Other than those like Li Ang and Morales who had been here, everyone else gasped in astonishment, with some even exclaiming aloud.
Loken and the engineers couldn’t contain their excitement, understanding better than the Sky Knights the significance of such creations.
"Alright, engineers, from here it’s our task," Li Ang reminded them, pointing to the metal giants ahead.
Perhaps due to previous disturbances, the giants who used to walk out from the deepest part of the furnace now stood in rows on either side of the broad passage, strictly guarding the Mechanical Creation Furnace.
Feeling the intrusion of outsiders, the guards stepped forward in unison, turning their bodies. The undead Island Founders who controlled them had Nether Fire blazing in their eyes, staring intently at the group.

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