Sky Curtain Cinema

8 PM.

The Divine Eagle Drone high above the battlefield were still bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, with thick clouds below.

From the ground where Su Ming was standing, it was already completely dark.

The Radiant Jurisdiction is located in the subtropics, and the evenings in late summer are already cool. Today, it is even more humid, carrying a certain oppressive weight. The wind on the plains has become noticeably stronger, blowing across the city walls and open fields with a low whistling sound.

A downpour is on its way.

Su Ming climbed to a high point in front of the position, stood on a makeshift observation platform, and looked towards the Radiant Holy City.

As night fell, the once dazzling and thick "Angel's Protection Shield" had dimmed to the point of flickering, swaying back and forth above the city.

The city lights were no longer as vibrant as they once were. Most of the city was shrouded in darkness. Only the city walls and the surrounding battlefields below were lit with torches and magic lamps, swaying in the night wind.

"Well done, Newman." Su Ming withdrew his gaze and said to the half-human skeleton beside him.

Newman held his observation recorder, his face beaming with undisguised pride.

"Circular symmetrical structures do indeed significantly reduce the amount of calculation during design, saving a lot of trouble." He shrugged, seizing every opportunity to preach to Su Ming, "But things that are easy to design are just as easy to crack!"

"But the technology side is better at pushing the computational load of configurations to the limit, without needing to deliberately set up such barriers," Su Ming retorted. "Simplicity and symmetry can also evolve into the ultimate form of computational brute force!"

Newman thought for a moment, then had to nod. "What you said makes sense."

****

As the "Angel's Protection" shield gradually dimmed, the mood of the city's high-ranking members of the Divine Covenant Faction also sank little by little.

They have little reason to be optimistic anymore.

Golden Autumn Island has been occupied, and the Nirvana System, which performs the "resurrection" function, has been completely destroyed.

Families and property that had been evacuated in advance were also attacked halfway through the journey. Those elusive demonic creatures attacked the convoy in droves, launching self-destruction attacks to take everyone down with them.

They attempted to surrender quietly, but their messengers were killed on the battlefield.

In short, aside from abandoning the city and fleeing, the leaders of the Divine Covenant Faction had lost all conceivable escape routes. A heavy and oppressive sense of dejection quietly permeated everyone's hearts.

Just then, the electromagnetic railgun's attack suddenly stopped.

"Beianqi, halt for now." This was the order Su Ming gave via communication.

The electromagnetic cannon bombardment, which had lasted all day, finally stopped at this moment. After the deafening roar subsided, there was even a moment of unreal silence in the air.

The Radiant Holy City Magic Power core of the holy city, which was on the verge of collapse, finally got a breather.

However, no one was naive enough to believe that the enemy was running out of manpower. The priests and knights on the city walls simply looked out of the city with even greater tension, awaiting their next move.

In the Pansy's command cabin, Beianqi switched to charging mode, while gradually reducing the power system's output from high load to 60%.

"Change the track immediately," she ordered.

On deck, the electromagnetic railgun maintenance crew immediately sprang into action. A group of people quickly gathered around the gun mount and began cooling down the overheated components while dismantling the external auxiliary components.

Another group of people pushed over the equipment used for hoisting the track, and the steel cables made a slight friction sound under the lights.

Another group brought in testing equipment and a large number of spare parts. In addition to the track, many other components needed to be inspected and replaced, and the electromagnetic railgun was immediately filled with busy figures.

After operating continuously for such a long time, this is already the second major overhaul, and everyone has become much more proficient.

"Initiate Operation Sky Curtain Project," Su Ming commanded from the front lines.

On the open ground, a large magic circle was already prepared. Runes were spread out in a net-like structure, forming a huge ring on the ground.

Members of the Star Sand Phantom Squad, along with several mages skilled in wind and water magic, were gathered near the center of the magic circle.

"I'll say it one last time." A faint halo of runic light surrounded Zijin, clearly indicating that she had already given everyone a live demonstration, correcting their mistakes regarding the details of the runes.

"Be very careful about how you exert force when casting spells. The power should be dispersed, not concentrated. Don't try to control the whole thing yourself; just focus on stabilizing your own nodes."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Alright, everyone to your positions."

As Zijin finished speaking, everyone quickly dispersed and took their places.

The magic circle was gradually activated. Rays of pale blue light extended from the ground, connecting with each other and quickly forming a complete Magic Power network. At the same time, several Rainbow Drone hovering in the sky began to descend.

The magic array nodes suspended beneath their bellies slowly lit up, establishing a connection with the Magic Power structure on the ground.

Large-scale aerial magic array – "Crystal Cloud Curtain!"

As the magic array activated, the previously chaotic clouds above everyone's heads began to change.

The deep sea of clouds seemed to be gently caressed by an unseen giant hand. The originally layered and chaotic cloud formations were slowly smoothed out, forming an extremely flat cloud surface.

Looking up from the ground, it seemed as if a huge lake had suddenly appeared in the sky.

The drone, carrying the aerial node, moved slowly, and the cloud lake began to move along with it. The entire "lake" drifted in the air, gradually approaching the vicinity of the Radiant Holy City.

Then, it tilted slightly, overlooking the center of the city, like a giant eye in the night sky.

"[Zijin, it's your turn to perform.]" Su Ming said.

Zijin smiled slightly, her figure slowly rising from the ground and flying towards the bottom of the cloud lake. Pure white light emanated from her body, appearing exceptionally dazzling in the night sky.

From a distance, it looks like a newly risen star.

"It is the Pale New Words!" Many people uttered this name on one side of the Radiant Holy City.

The girl raised her hand, Divine Favor Scepter appeared in the light. Behind her, a pair of enormous angelic wings slowly unfolded, their feathers gently spreading across the night sky.

Ordinary people would certainly not know the concept of "manifestation of dimensional will" or be familiar with the renowned Divine Favor Scepter.

But when they saw a holy maiden floating in the night sky, with divine light descending from the heavens, everyone subconsciously thought that some unimaginable miracle was about to occur!

However, in the eyes of the high priest, it was clear that what the other party was performing was just a large-scale "Divine Blessing Purification," or even just a gimmicky opening move.

"Playing tricks." Cardinal Bulameike muttered angrily.

"It's all just flashy moves," a cardinal remarked. "On such a large scale, the fake saintess can't hold out for long."

That being said, the scene of Zijin, filled with a grand and sacred aura, was still quite intimidating. At least, none of the people present could do it, and they were far from it.

Augustus also stood on the city wall, his gaze somber.

If the shield system's energy is still at a normal level, simply emitting light will be enough to shield the Zijin from the people inside the city, preventing them from seeing anything superfluous. They could even turn the tables and create even more magnificent "miracles."

****

On the battlefield of the Final Bone Mad Machines, several large engines had already been started.

The heavy mechanical casing vibrated in the night, and the exhaust pipe spewed out puffs of white smoke. A six-armed figure was busily operating the machine, and electricity was rapidly transmitted along the thick cables.

On the other side of the position, thirty-two floodlights had already been set up and were now being activated and preheated one by one. The crystals inside the lights gradually lit up, and the light gradually increased.

Zijin's performance spell was nearing its end.

Su Ming glanced down at the control interface on the tablet, confirmed that all devices were functioning normally, and then gently tapped the activation command.

With a whoosh, the shielding grille unfolded, and the array of thirty-six headlights on the ground lit up, beams of light shooting straight into the sky, enveloping Zijin's body within them, before converging on the flat cloud screen above her.

The cloud curtain suddenly became bright, and the huge disc floated in the night sky, like a bright moon that suddenly appeared.

The entire area was faintly illuminated by the reflections, and whether it was the soldiers guarding inside and outside the city walls, the residents in the city, or even the civilians who had not yet completely evacuated in the distance, they all involuntarily looked up at the sky.

The unprecedented sight caused a stir of surprise on both sides. The discussions on the Holy City's side were tinged with obvious unease, while on the Final Bone Mad Machines's position, an uncontrollable cheer erupted.

Zijin quietly withdrew her spell amidst the beam of light, her figure darkening as she slowly descended from the night sky, leaving the entire stage to the clouds above.

Her role in the "opening sequence" has come to an end.

"[Such a great stage, you could sing a song," Su Ming joked.

"Sure, let's go together?" Zijin's response was equally relaxed.

****

Meanwhile, the technicians on the ground were already busy.

"Align all six-by-six arrays!" Ainuobia shouted, holding up her telescope. "Pay attention to the stitching points!"

"Do the four corners calibration on the 12th!"

"Refocus on number seven!"

"Number 25, Sham's adjustment: Modify the trapezoid shape, reduce the bottom slightly!"

Even though they had rehearsed several times before, they were still a bit flustered when it came to the actual event. The technicians ran back and forth, constantly adjusting the spotlights.

Several minutes later, the light spots from the thirty-six devices finally came together, creating a huge yellow square light screen in the sky, though it was only a partial area and still somewhat uneven.

Su Ming clicked on the tablet to load the opening image, and a graphic that spread out to both sides appeared on the sky.

Everyone observed the actual display effect of the image and quickly made fine adjustments.

"Color temperatures three and eleven are a bit too cool," Unicorn Qiluo's voice chimed in. "Hmm, the blending of colors eighteen and twenty-four isn't smooth; reduce it by two degrees."

"Your sense of color and light is truly excellent," Ainuobia praised.

Qiluo was very proud upon hearing this, "When my mother was creating large paintings, I was always the one who helped adjust the layout!"

Under her guidance, a few minor corrections were made. The image in the sky quickly became clearer and more harmonious, and the content gradually emerged.

"Why is it a ginkgo leaf?" Su Ming asked, puzzled.

Because they were some distance apart, Qiluo didn't hear Su Ming's words at all. Pointing to the sky, she said with great satisfaction, "Not bad, right? This is the dragon totem I drew!"

Can Xin tilted her head to look at it, then turned to the other side. "This should be the zongzi we just ate."

Several giant dragons echoed this sentiment.

****

However, in the eyes of the people of the Radiant Holy City, the significance of this image is beyond doubt.

"The ostrich feather of the goddess Maya," a priest murmured, "The feather of judgment, symbolizing truth and order."

Su Ming was unaware that Qiluo's graffiti had caused such a disturbance. He pressed the play button on his tablet, and the real event of the night began.

The images on the celestial screen then came to life, and a movie slowly unfolded in the night sky.

The opening scene features a little girl. The camera quickly pulls back to show her living in a modest but stable family. Her parents and brother work together, transporting crops to the market to sell. Their life has its share of arguments and laughter.

Every night, they would pray devoutly before the lamplight, giving thanks to the God of Light for the peaceful life He had given them.

The people of this world had never seen anything like a "movie," so the opening narrative pace was very slow. Gradually, even the most oblivious person realized that the giant screen of light in the sky was telling a story.

The gentle and peaceful beginning made many people relax a little. This "god of judgment" who had suddenly appeared seemed rather mild-mannered.

The story continues as the girl grows up. Misfortune eventually strikes; one day, her mother suddenly falls seriously ill.

The family brought the patient to the church for treatment. The priest said he could treat him, but it would require a considerable sum. The father took out all his savings, gritted his teeth and sold the family's land, and borrowed money from the Holy See.

After the magical healing, the mother's health seemed to improve, and she was able to get out of bed and move around, but she became increasingly thin and pale.

Until one night, she quietly passed away.

The father went to the church to inquire about the reason, only to be told that the God of Light had shown mercy, but the patient's faith was not devout enough, and therefore he was not ultimately saved.

The family was devastated and had nowhere to turn for help, but the debt they were burdened with could not be reduced by even a penny.

After losing their land, the father had to take on even more strenuous work, and the older siblings also took on odd jobs to supplement the family income.

The family's impoverished life resonated with many viewers. Some raised their calloused hands and quietly wiped away tears from the corners of their eyes.

Even on such days, the father continued to comfort his children. He said that as long as they paid off their debts and proved their devotion to God, the suffering would eventually pass.

However, he didn't live to see that day. Under constant pressure from the church to repay his debts, he worked several jobs simultaneously, and his health deteriorated rapidly. One cold winter night, he collapsed on his way home and never got up again.

A chorus of sobs suddenly broke out around him. Su Ming was surprised to find that many people around him were crying, not only the members of the Final Bone Mad Machines, but even the giant dragons, their large eyes filled with tears as they looked at the sky.

Zijin, who was beside her, also wiped the corner of her eye with her sleeve.

"Why don't you feel anything at all?" She rolled her eyes at Su Ming.

Su Ming paused for a moment.

"----Perhaps I've seen too many stories, and my threshold is different from yours."