Castle in the North

The boundless Northern Great Plains stretch out like a colossal painting, blanketing the entire north of the Terra Kingdom. Endless fields lie silent and magnificent, with rolling waves of wheat shimmering in golden light under the sun.

At the northernmost edge of the plains, nestled at the tail end of the Monster Mountain Range, sits a fortress of incomparable grandeur.

The entire fortress is built against the mountains, with the highest terrain in the southeast extending outward. It connects to the Monster Mountain Range in the west and Mount Modo in the east. The long, narrow city sprawls between the two mountain ranges like a dormant beast, its thirty-meter-high walls winding around without a single blind spot.

Across the vast plains outside the city, the land is rich and fertile. Streams flowing slowly down from the Monster Mountain Range are partially diverted into a moat, while the rest irrigate the fields, providing an inexhaustible water source.

This is the world-renowned Fortress of Radiance, situated on the border of the Terra Kingdom as the first line of defense for humanity against the Orcs.

Since its construction over a hundred years ago, the Fortress of Radiance has been breached by Orcs four times. Yet, after every destruction, the rebuilt fortress has emerged with even stronger defenses. Today, the entire structure acts like a war machine, with infinite lethality hidden in every corner.

The dozens of towering arrow towers standing between the front, middle, and rear walls are enough to drive any invading enemy to despair. The gates, solid as bedrock, reach an astonishing thickness of two meters; lacking any labor-saving winches, they require dozens of Advanced Warriors to open them together every time.

The winding, tunnel-like roads within the fortress and the houses built of Black Steel Rock on either side ensure that no commander would ever wish to engage in a brutal street battle here.

To this day, although the Fortress of Radiance is garrisoned by only three thousand soldiers, the Orcs on the other side have not launched a single charge against her in a long time. The countless lives and blood shed have not only brought endless sorrow to the Orcs but also infinite glory to the master of the castle.

Relying on this fortress, the Solomon Family has risen over the past hundred years from an obscure barony to a hereditary marquisate of the kingdom, holding the three counties of Roland, Copper Mountain, and Talei. It can be called a miracle among all human nations on the Saint Nor Continent.

The Solomon Family is affectionately dubbed "Terra's Iron Wall" by the people of Terra, guarding the northern plains of the kingdom alongside the Modo Mega Fortress to the east and west.

At this moment, on the road south of the Fortress of Radiance, two old horses with rough skin, seemingly having weathered countless storms, are slowly pulling a carriage that bears no markings.

Flanking the carriage is a small squad of cavalrymen riding tall horses, holding long spears and clad in black armor, appearing somewhat out of place next to the dilapidated carriage.

On the humble carriage, an old man in plain clothes gently waves a leather whip, driving the two old horses along the flat, wide road. He moves with such caution, as if fearing that any abrupt action might overtax the clearly failing horses.

The carriage cabin is cramped and narrow, piled high with various books, leaving no room to even set one's feet. Consequently, the youth inside can only curl up in a remote corner, enduring the jolting of the carriage.

The youth has a thick head of golden hair tied loosely behind his head. His skin is delicate and smooth, his features exquisite with a hint of youthful tenderness, and his azure eyes are like a calm, still lake—though deep within them lies a heart-wrenching weariness.

Peering through the gap in the carriage window at the endless fields on both sides of the road, a flicker of unknown confusion and anxiety crosses the youth's expression.

As a transmigrator, Roland is lucky; in this life, he has a noble father, and his title is not low, sparing him from struggling at the bottom of society.

Yet, compared to other noble descendants, he is unfortunate, for he is an illegitimate son—and one who receives no attention from his father.

Though the blood of the Solomon Family flows through his veins, he is a person not even worthy of bearing the family name.

A failed magic experiment led to the exhaustion of his mental power, causing the original owner to perish instantly, allowing Roland, who had transmigrated, to take his place.

For three days, while silently absorbing the memories of his predecessor, Roland has been constantly observing this world.

Fortunately, perhaps due to his childhood experiences, the original owner was somewhat reclusive, and his relationships with those around him were not particularly close.

Coupled with his long-term, obsessive immersion in alchemy, Roland was able to take his place without revealing any flaws.

However, these past three days have not been easy for Roland; they have been somewhat agonizing.

As the illegitimate son of Junot Solomon, the patriarch of the Solomon Family, the humiliation he suffered in childhood and the cold indifference of his father caused him constant torment. Over time, the obsession accumulated in his heart nearly drove him to madness.

Furthermore, having graduated and being about to return to the family that he feared like a nightmare, he was forced to risk a magic experiment far beyond his level. Unfortunately, it failed, leading to his death.

Roland, having transmigrated, had to struggle against this lingering obsession for three full days. Even now, strange thoughts would occasionally pop into his mind, asserting ownership over this body.

Looking out the window, Roland sighs softly. He knows he cannot delay any longer; if this continues, he will sooner or later be broken by the obsession left behind by his predecessor, leading to a mental breakdown.

"Under the witness of the mysterious and eternal Goddess of Magic Misra, I shall inherit your hatred, fulfill your wishes, and complete the revenge against the Solomon Family. I will make your high-and-mighty father bow his arrogant head and repent for the mistakes he committed in the past."

A breeze brushes across the endless wheat fields, causing ripples like those on a calm lake. As Roland's silent whisper ends, no change occurs around him.

A long while later, just as a look of disappointment appears on Roland's face, a nearly transparent soul slowly emerges from the depths of his mind, looking exactly like the body Roland now inhabits.

Without hatred or distortion, the eyes, which are almost too faint to see, gaze deeply at Roland's young face. A flicker of attachment flashes through them, but it is replaced by a sense of relief.

This eerie scene makes Roland shiver slightly. Just as he opens his mouth to say something, the phantom soul, now ethereal to the extreme, drifts away with the wind and vanishes without a trace in the blink of an eye.

The moment the soul dissipates, Roland instantly feels a long-lost sense of lightness, his entire body feeling comfortable and refreshed.

This causes Roland, who had been suppressed for three days, to let out a groan of relief from the back of his throat.

He knows that from this moment on, this body belongs entirely to him alone. Everything of the predecessor has completely vanished, including his obsession.

"Young Master Roland, are you alright?"

The sound Roland just made startles the old man sitting outside the carriage.

Hearing the old man's concern, Roland replies casually, "Grandpa Nob, I am fine."

"That's good, that's good. Young Master, hold on a little longer, we'll be there soon." Perhaps due to his age, the old man is a bit long-winded, but his tone reveals deep concern.

"Grandpa Nob, there's no need to rush. Let's take it slow."

"Very well, Young Master."

Inside the carriage, Roland, feeling reborn, looks at his fair, delicate hands and senses the vitality of this body. Finally, a smile appears on his face—a smile of survival and relief.

"Beep!"

"System initializing!"

Suddenly, at that moment, a mechanical voice rings out in his mind, instantly reaching the depths of Roland's heart.

A system essential for transmigrators? Roland is filled with surprise.

But before a look of joy can even appear on his face, he hears the voice in his mind speak once more.

"The Third Generation Nuwa Semi-Intelligent Chip is at your service!"

???

Roland was momentarily stunned, scratching his long golden hair with a look of annoyance.

So it's the intelligent chip from my past life. What a waste of excitement. But how is this chip still functional? Roland's lips first curled downward, but then a look of shock appeared on his face.

As the crystallization of technology and intelligence from his past life, the Third Generation Nuwa Semi-Intelligent Chip could be said to have benefited all of humanity on the Blue Planet.

The Third Generation Nuwa Semi-Intelligent Chip could be implanted directly into the brain and connected to the Federal Government's central super-processor, providing every human with three functions: storage, analysis, and scanning.

These three functions could be said to have completely liberated human hands.

Most daily affairs could be resolved with the help of the chip, and even learning and work were handled by the Nuwa Semi-Intelligent Chip on one's behalf.

However, as a researcher in his past life, Roland knew that the power of the Third Generation Nuwa Semi-Intelligent Chip was built upon the Federal Government's central super-processor.

The central super-processor, known to the outside world as Tiangong, was built only after the entire Federal Government gathered countless scientists and spent a full ten years on research and development.

Its terrifying computing power and intelligence meant that as soon as it appeared, it reduced the resource consumption of the entire Blue Planet by thirty percent, and it directly took over global satellites and quantum computers, allowing humanity to truly eliminate all blind spots on the Blue Planet.

Therefore, the fact that the Nuwa Third Generation Semi-Intelligent Chip could still be used after being disconnected from the Tiangong processor left Roland feeling suspicious.

"Report your current status." Roland tentatively issued a command in his mind.

"Beep! Affected by unknown factors, unable to connect to the central processor. Computing power has dropped; current maximum computing power is 3.4GHz."

"Beep! Affected by unknown factors, internal storage has been wiped."

"Beep! Unable to connect to the central processor, 91% of functions have been lost."

The series of beeps brought almost no good news, causing Roland's brows to furrow slightly.

With its computing power dropped to such a level, it was not even as good as an ordinary laptop from his past life.

In particular, the fact that the chip's internal storage had been wiped meant that he would be unable to replicate any of the technological achievements from the Blue Planet of his past life in this current one.

Perhaps, relying on the knowledge in his mind, he could fumble his way toward creating some technological products on this strange continent.

However, based on what he had seen and heard during the three days since his transmigration, Roland knew that the low-level technological products of his past life were simply not worth mentioning in this world.