The Wheelless Train under Lin Gui's control was demonstrating the true essence of Levitation in the night.
The twenty-meter-long steel train glided as smoothly as if it were on ice.
Every turn was amazingly fluid.
The wheels maintained a constant ten-centimeter gap from the ground.
It was as if the entire carriage were hovering on invisible tracks.
Compared to the turbulence when Betty was at the controls, this was a world of difference.
When Betty had been controlling it, the train had stumbled like a drunkard.
The carriage had continuously emitted harsh grinding noises.
But now, even on the sharpest of turns, not the slightest jolt could be felt.
It was like riding on a feather carried by a breeze.
"M-Mr. Lin Gui..."
Betty timidly approached the front of the train, clutching her magic notes tightly.
"May I ask for some guidance? Why is it that it doesn't shake at all when you turn?"
While maintaining precise control over the train, Lin Gui answered calmly.
"The key lies in anticipation."
"You have to sense the subtle changes in the airflow ahead and start adjusting your mana output before the turn."
He extended his left hand, a faint cyan magical glow swirling at his fingertips.
"Look, like this—start micro-adjusting the direction thirty meters in advance, rather than waiting until the turn to make a sharp maneuver."
Betty's eyes widened as she strove to memorize every detail.
In the middle of the train not far away, Freya appeared focused on maintaining the concealment magic, but in reality, she was quietly pricking up her ears.
The staff in her hand was slightly tilted, allowing her to hear Lin Gui's explanation more clearly.
"T-Then, how do you maintain such a steady height?"
Betty continued to press, her voice filled with urgency.
"Imagine what you're holding in your hand isn't a train, but a bowl of water," Lin Gui explained patiently.
"You must keep the water surface level at all times; any sudden rise or fall will cause the water to spill out."
He demonstrated as he spoke, and indeed, the train didn't exhibit even the slightest fluctuation.
Freya nodded unconsciously, a flash of realization crossing her ice-blue eyes.
She pretended to tidy her long hair, which had been ruffled by the night wind.
In reality, she leaned her body a bit closer toward the front of the train.
As this lesson was underway, Theia's voice came from the front.
"Watch out. Three ancient trees are ahead at three hundred meters, arranged in a triangle."
"The canopies are particularly dense, and there's a lot of fallen leaves on the ground."
The scholar Eli immediately leaned down to look at the map, his fingers quickly tracing across the parchment.
"Triangular ancient trees... we are approaching the Sleeping Woods."
"I suggest increasing our altitude to avoid the nocturnal magic bats in the canopy layer."
Lin Gui nodded slightly, and the train subsequently rose smoothly, perfectly avoiding the dangerous area.
"Amazing..."
Betty murmured to herself as she sensed Lin Gui's mana traces, her notes being written at a rapid pace.
Freya finally couldn't help but speak, her voice still maintaining the authority of a leader.
However, it carried a trace of curiosity that was hard to hide:
"Little mage, where did you learn these techniques?"
Lin Gui answered without looking back:
"Figured them out myself."
"When you have to rely on this magic to travel every day, you naturally study how to make it more useful."
This was true; the system had provided him with max-level proficiency in Levitation.
And Lin Gui, during actual use, had constantly explored its limits.
He had continuously developed its various applications.
Whether it was making a raft fly steadily and quickly, or reassembling broken clumps of earth in mid-air.
At this moment, Theia reported a new situation:
"There are a large number of claw marks on the rock wall to the right. They're about two fingers deep, and the rock is dark red."
The scholar was instantly alerted:
"Territory markings of a Blood-Claw Demon... turn left immediately; we've drifted off the intended route."
Under the perfect coordination of Theia's night vision and the scholar's geographical knowledge.
Lin Gui steered the train gracefully through the dense forest, cleverly bypassing multiple dangerous areas.
By the time the first ray of dawn pierced through the canopy.
They had already passed thirteen important landmarks during the night.
Behind Lin Gui, Eve had already retired to rest.
The caravan's priest, Silas, had taken over to continue providing mana support.
Betty still followed closely by Lin Gui's side, occasionally asking new questions.
And although Freya had returned to focusing on her spellcasting, there was a bit more thoughtfulness in her eyes.
This night's journey had been much smoother than expected.
When the rising morning sun fully leaped over the horizon.
And cast warm golden light over the entire forest.
They had already safely passed the twenty-first landmark outpost.
A post marked by the North Wind caravan.
At some point, Freya had noiselessly come to the front, standing by Lin Gui's side.
Her ice-blue eyes held a trace of concern, and her voice was much softer than usual.
"Do you want to take a break?"
This question was clearly directed at Lin Gui.
As the primary operator of the entire train, he bore the heaviest mental burden.
A whole night of high concentration was enough to leave any mage mentally exhausted.
In the interval when no one was paying attention, Lin Gui's fingertip lightly flicked at his side.
A Novice-level soul magic spell, [Clarity], silently entered his body.
The sense of fatigue that had originally built up from prolonged spellcasting instantly vanished, and his mind returned to a state of clarity.
He shook his head slightly and turned instead to look at the scholar, Eli, who was carefully studying the map.
"Can you still continue?"
The scholar took an ancient-looking ceramic jar from his backpack, which contained a thick black liquid.
The liquid looked very much like black coffee, yet it emitted a strange herbal fragrance.
It also held a faint, refreshing hint of mint.
He tilted his head back to take a large gulp, then showed a gentle smile.
"I can."
As he spoke, he gently shook Betty awake, as she had at some point fallen asleep leaning against his shoulder.
The young girl had been sleeping soundly, and she rubbed her eyes groggily when she was pushed awake.
"Go have a good sleep in the carriage first," the scholar's voice was exceptionally tender.
Betty nodded obliviously and suddenly leaned forward, planting a smack on the scholar's cheek.
Only then did she stagger toward the carriage, nearly tripping over her own mage robes along the way.
Theia, who was standing to the side, took in the entire scene, her eyes widening in surprise.
She couldn't help but lean in toward the scholar and curiosity got the better of her as she asked in a low voice:
"You and that mage... exactly what is your relationship?!"
The scholar adjusted his glasses, the gaze behind the lenses warm and candid:
"We are lovers."
Theia's gaze scanned back and forth between the departing Betty and the scholar.
Recalling Betty's affectionate gesture just now, a trace of envy unconsciously appeared in her eyes.
It was a longing for a close relationship, a yearning to be able to express emotions without any reservations.
Her fingers unconsciously twisted the corner of her clothes.
Her gaze held both curiosity and an indescribable trace of unease.
Suddenly, she turned and leaned toward Lin Gui's ear.
Her warm breath lightly brushed against his earlobe, her voice carrying a deliberate softness:
"I'm tired too..."
Lin Gui didn't even look back, still focusing on operating the train as it shuttled through the woods ahead, his tone flat:
"Then go rest. The sun is out now; your night vision isn't needed anymore."
Theia stomped her foot huffily, her silver hair whipped out a graceful arc in the morning light:
"Hmph! Men! You really have no sense of romance!"
She nimbly flipped around and leaped toward the last carriage like a light swallow.
Her figure quickly vanished through the carriage door.
Seeing this scene, the scholar lightly adjusted his glasses, a meaningful smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
The morning light happened to fall on his smiling profile, adding a few degrees of warmth to this morning.
Rate on N.U.
