Under the cover of night, Lin Gui controlled the train to set off once again.
This time, his movements were even more composed and skillful.
At around five in the morning, the sound of waves crashing against the shore could already be faintly heard in the air.
By the time the horizon began to turn pale, the Wheelless Train had already passed through the final stretch of forest.
The view before them suddenly opened up, and a vast coastline unfolded before the group.
This coastline, known as the Reef Sea, displayed a unique demonic ecological environment.
In the shallow water areas, groups of crab demons could be seen.
Their shells were an ominous dark red, and their massive claws shimmered with a cold light in the morning sun.
These demonic crabs were foraging on the shallows, occasionally fighting one another over a piece of carrion.
On the reefs along the shore, various strange shellfish demons were attached.
Their shells bore eerie patterns and would occasionally gape open.
Revealing the sharp teeth inside.
Theia was the first to hop off the train, unable to wait to take off her boots.
She stepped onto the fine, soft sand barefoot, her silver hair fluttering in the morning breeze.
"So this is the ocean..."
She squatted down curiously and dipped a finger into the seawater.
She took a cautious lick.
"Pah! So salty!"
She immediately spat it out with a bitter expression.
Eve also followed suit, removing her shoes and socks to stand barefoot on the beach.
Watching Theia's predicament, she couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle softly.
Her ginkgo-golden short hair swayed slightly with her movements.
Lin Gui stood behind them, lost in thought.
At some unknown point, the relationship between Eve and Theia
seemed to have become much closer than it had ever been with Elvia.
The North Wind caravan decided to take a short rest here.
Betty, however, appeared extremely dejected for some reason.
She sat on a reef rock with her head hung low.
Her gaze followed the calm surface of the sea with a melancholy look.
Lin Gui couldn't help but frown.
He scanned the sky above the sea.
There were only a few scattered flying demons in the sky.
And the demons beneath the sea surface had always been uninterested in things in the air.
Much less a train flying above the sea.
Within his range of vision, there were almost no obstacles except for a few towering reefs.
According to the Golden Route map provided by the scholar,
this route was also quite straight.
Lin Gui truly couldn't think of any reason for Betty to be so repulsed.
Just as he was pondering,
the members of the North Wind caravan came to the bottom of the train.
They skillfully operated a certain mechanism.
Soon, broad iron bars and wings extended from both sides of the train.
These wings were engraved with complex magic runes.
Lin Gui: "???"
He leaned forward curiously.
He saw that the train had completely changed its form.
The wings extending from both sides made the entire train look like a giant iron bird.
The wing surfaces were covered with a special magic coating.
They shimmered with a faint blue light in the morning sun.
"This is...?"
Lin Gui couldn't help but ask.
The scholar, who was nearby recording data, heard the inquiry.
He looked up and pushed his glasses:
"These are wings specifically modified by the Dwarves."
"They can greatly stabilize the train."
Lin Gui was still puzzled:
"The reason Betty's control was unstable was mostly because of the complex mountainous terrain."
"There was a need to frequently avoid obstacles."
"On a flat sea like this, shouldn't we be able to do without such auxiliary devices?"
The scholar smiled mysteriously.
A meaningful gleam flashed in his eyes:
"You'll know why in a moment."
He left Lin Gui in suspense and continued to look down to record data.
Betty looked at the unfolding wings.
The expression on her face became even more bitter.
An hour later.
Once the rest was over, everyone returned to their respective carriages under Freya's command.
Betty, however, headed toward the locomotive carriage with the scholar, looking as dejected as if she were visiting a grave.
Seeing this scene, Lin Gui became even more confused.
The reason he had previously chosen to control the train from the roof instead of the front carriage was precisely because the window design there severely obstructed the field of vision.
With a belly full of questions, Lin Gui returned to his own carriage.
Inside the carriage, the two young women who had just been playing on the beach were sitting by the wooden boxes.
They had rolled up their pant legs, revealing fair and slender feet, splashing each other with seawater to wash away the sand.
Theia's ankles were delicate and elegant, with the arch of her foot tensed in a beautiful curve.
Eve's feet were so fair they were almost transparent, with blue veins faintly visible under the thin skin.
Water droplets fell from their smooth ankles, forming dark water stains on the carriage floor.
"This seawater is so cool and refreshing!"
Theia laughed while playfully dipping her toes into the water.
The resulting splashes wet Eve's hem.
Eve didn't get angry; she only smiled gently.
She reached out and lightly brushed away the water droplets from her skirt.
Just as Lin Gui closed the rear door, he heard a burst of creaking mechanical sounds from the train.
He looked forward and saw that the linked carriages, which originally had gaps to allow for flexible turning, were now being tightly connected under magic propulsion.
All the carriages were firmly fixed together, forming a complete unit.
What was even more astonishing was that the broad wings on the sides of the train were slowly unfurling.
The magic runes engraved on the metal wing surfaces lit up one by one.
They shimmered with a faint blue light in the morning sun.
After these wings were fully extended, the entire train looked like a steel giant bird poised to strike.
Lin Gui watched all of this, the confusion in his heart growing deeper.
Just as Lin Gui was wondering, an elegant figure suddenly appeared outside the rear door window.
It was Freya.
Lin Gui thought she had some business and was about to reach out to open the carriage door.
Freya, however, smiled and shook her head:
"No need to open the door."
She looked at the three people inside the carriage through the window, her tone gentle yet carrying a hint of solemnity:
"The train's speed might become extremely fast in a moment."
"Remember to tie yourselves down a bit tighter."
After saying that, she pressed one hand lightly against the outer wall of the train and flipped open her grimoire with the other.
She began to softly chant ancient incantations.
When he heard the first syllable Freya chanted, all of Lin Gui's confusion instantly vanished.
That was the starting incantation for a Legendary-rank Wind spell.
Hurricane Propulsion!
Freya intended to use Legendary Wind magic to accelerate the train?!
Those wings hadn't been modified for Betty at all; they were for Freya!
Lin Gui lunged toward the wooden boxes and yanked out the prepared ropes.
"Quick! Sit down!"
He shouted urgently at the two girls.
Theia and Eve immediately realized the gravity of the situation and quickly sat with their backs against the carriage wall.
Lin Gui's movements were strikingly fast.
He first wound the rope twice around Theia's waist, tying a firm sailor's knot.
Then he looped the other end of the rope around the central support pillar of the carriage.
Next, he tied the same knot for Eve.
Finally, he wrapped the rope tightly around his own waist and gripped both ends of the rope with all his might.
The entire process took less than ten seconds.
The moment Lin Gui finished all of this, Freya's chanting reached its climax.
A refined magic Circle, about a meter in diameter, appeared on the rear door of the train.
Locking the train dead tight.
Meanwhile, another giant magic Circle, nearly four times the size of the train,
slowly unfolded behind the train, covering a large patch of sky.
When Freya uttered the final syllable.
"BOOM!!!"
What erupted from the giant magic Circle wasn't an ordinary airflow.
It was a storm capable of destroying the heavens and earth!
The intense current of air instantly swept up all the sand and stones on the beach.
The seawater was pushed aside with such force that it created a deep trench.
The distant crab demons scurried about in a panic.
The entire train was violently pushed forward as if by an invisible giant hand.
"Ah!"
Theia let out a startled cry, her entire body pinned against the carriage wall by the massive inertia.
Eve squeezed her eyes shut, her fingers tightly gripping the rope at her waist.
Lin Gui gritted his teeth, feeling an unprecedented acceleration.
The Legendary spell blew a massive crater into the beach.
And along with the massive thrust, the train flew out with a whoosh, just like a rocket.
He didn't know if it was an illusion, but amidst the howling wind, Lin Gui faintly heard Betty's tragic wails.
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