As soon as he entered the passage, Li Ang immediately understood why it was called the "Mechanical Creation Furnace".

Transport tracks, parked machines, silent golems, firelight and heat that continually emerged from the depths.

"Incredible!"

Xiaomo glanced around, continually looking up and down, as if everything in the passage was entirely novel to him.

"You live in a place filled with factories, even interacting with a unique Shadow Factory, haven't you seen anything like this?" Li Ang asked him.

"What do you take an ordinary factory for, even though its technology is exquisite, we all know that some ancient things far exceed current understanding, right?"

The young beast-eared man scrutinized Li Ang as if seeing him for the first time. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

What Xiaomo referred to is a reality understood by High-tier Sky Riders like Li Ang; exploring and re-mastering ancient powers is one way forward for people today.

Speaking of recent events, the reason the Empire became a preordained enemy in the Nebis Fantasy, causing a series of destructions in Meimei's timeline, was because its power stems from the ancient.

"Have you seen it then?"

Xiaomo, with a perplexed expression, asked in return.

"Accurately speaking, no, but..."

Li Ang pondered; the reason he wasn't so shocked was that, since some time ago, he had been profoundly impressed by similar things.

The resplendent Forging Martial Hall, that was Elaphia's Infinite Armament Forge Domain. Her imagination perhaps originated from the long inheritance of the Weapon Race bloodline.

Tracks, heat, and firelight, that was the Mountain Copper Furnace of the Dome Furnace Association, a condensation of artisans' creative power.

Massive golems were seen in the Mountain Copper Furnace, Cormac Workshop's basement, and the Star Palace of the Star Soul of the Creation Tree; they were the crystallization of various technologies.

Perhaps these things formed a shared impression layer, so when he saw the Isle of Casting founder's relics, everything seemed familiar.

But this also illustrated the Isle of Casting founder's extraordinary technology, enough to integrate all kinds of technology into a new wonder.

"No wonder."

Li Ang briefly recounted recent events, and Morales nodded.

The young beast-eared man pointed into the depths, "You've seen similar things, but how do you understand that a civilization, whose Machine City Core is still operational, has been extinct for so long?"

What surprised Xiaomo greatly was the firelight deep within the Mechanical Creation Furnace, the ongoing operation sounds and the continually blowing hot winds.

"As a civilization capable of constructing a Mechanical Island, they might have the ability to keep part of their facilities running until now," Li Ang said.

He even contemplated that neither the ancient ships he had seen before nor this metallic Sky Island should theoretically be able to float.

Although Li Ang hadn't been to the Bloody Red Land, even if it wasn't a sphere, it had Earth Core-like gravity similar to past worlds, where ordinary Sky Islands float by binding minerals and Magic Power within the island.

But this metallic behemoth created by the Isle of Casting founder must have a reason for floating in the air.

Perhaps the Mechanical Creation Furnace, deeply buried beneath the City of the Ship's Rudder, serves as the reason, known as the Mechanical City Core.

"I think about people living like this on the surface for hundreds of years, and yet there's something like this underground; it feels unrealistic."

"Indeed, it's different from those Desperate Secret Realms."

The main reason people gathered in the City of the Ship's Rudder was the reuse of pre-civilization's large machinery, greatly shortening self-development time. But if they knew the island's original owner's legacy existed beneath this city, many people's attitudes might change.

The inhabitants here haven't become the island's owners; they're merely enjoying the inheritance left behind during the owner's absence.

Xiaomo paused briefly in silence, allowing Li Ang to divert his attention to carefully browse the symbols and text in the passage, though he couldn't recognize them, the progress bar in the system was continuously increasing.

"Since the Mechanical City Core remains operational, it suggests that the pre-civilization hadn't reached a moment of necessary destruction; there's no relic or corpse visible. It's as if its creators suddenly left. Where have they gone?"

Xiaomo was silent for a while, pondering over the different aspects of this place, thus posing this concluding question.

He was not just asking Li Ang but also seeking an answer from Akuya.

As an experienced Elder Sky Knight, he naturally noticed the calm composure and confidence of this pink-haired Great Mage, sensing that she likely knew a lot.

Li Ang also believed that the Water Dragon understood the purpose of this entire facility, but she had no intention of explaining, merely continuing to move forward.

The heat ahead grew increasingly intense, and the firelight became even brighter. Silent golems and freight vehicles began to appear more frequently; they were scattered chaotically, some stacked atop one another, giving an impression of halting abruptly during use.

The road leading to the firelight and furnace sounds was blocked by fallen golems.

"This is—"

Witnessing this scene, Morales speculated: "Did they leave in too much of a hurry to tidy up, or did an accident disrupt the operation here?"

Li Ang switched to the Spiritual Horizon, seeing the spiritual structures of these golems; due to their exceptional material and craftsmanship, their spirituality remained remarkably stable.

He was also observing these golems' information via the system panel.

[Mechanical Creation Furnace Autonomous Engineering Support Unit]