Castle of Black Iron

The Idiots left the airship base of Crystal Battle Fortress in the bright and warm sunshine and kept going up. Only after 10 minutes, when the airship base became as tiny as an ant, the Idiots had already reached 7000 m high in the air. Additionally, it was over 50 km away from the airship base of Crystal Battle Fortress.

It meant that they had already entered the war zone of Selnes Theater of Operations and might encounter wing demons at any time. All the crew members of the Idiots were ready for the coming battle.

This height almost reached the maximal suspension height of 8,000 m of fury-level airships. From here, they could clearly see the exposed black coal mining area on Selnes Plain and the constant human defense line composed of trenches and battle fortresses.

The entire underground space of Selnes Plain was full of high-quality anthracite. The allied human forces chose this place as the first defense line against the demon corps. Besides, the terrain here was adaptable to the extension of mechanized human troops, what counted most was that the logistics of human corps faced the minimal stress here.

Wherever it was in the Selnes Plain, as long as you dug the ground, you would get high-quality anthracite, which could constantly provide a driving force for human battle fortresses, tanks, vehicles even airships.

Looking at the scarred black coal mining area over the plain, Zhang Tie instantly understood the intention of the headquarters of allied human forces. Height indeed determined one’s vision.

However, at this moment, Zhang Tie didn’t want to talk about national affairs; instead, he was making the final preparation for this battle.

”After I leave here, keep the Idiots hovering in this area...” after sending the order, Zhang Tie drew a circle on the air map in the command module. It was a fan-shaped area 50-100 km in the north of the Crystal Battle Fortress. ”If you encounter wing demons and could not resist their attack, I allow you to retreat towards the Crystal Battle Fortress. If I don’t come back in 48 hours, you can retreat to the Crystal Battle Fortress; if you do not see me in two weeks, it means that something must have happened to me. You can decide whether to stay here or not by then. Additionally, you should hand the Idiots to the airship troop of Jinyun Country and have it continue to serve on the battlefield!”

Before it set off officially, Zhang Tie had to tell the crew members how to respond to various emergencies. As the situation on the battlefield varied every single second. Even a knight might encounter emergencies in Selnes Theater of Operations, not to mention Zhang Tie, a LV 9 fighter.

After hearing to Zhang Tie like he was telling his last words, all the crew members in the command module exchanged glances with each other before focusing on the first mate. After Zhang Tie left the airship by glider, the first mate commanded the airship on behalf of Zhang Tie.

The first mate watched Zhang Tie with an admirable and solemn look. Each crew member knew clearly what a high risk would Zhang Tie face by driving a glider in the Selnes Theater of Operations. It could be said that anyone who dared to drive a glider in Selnes Theater of Operations was like a member of dare-to-die corps. Even though they had just stayed in the Selnes Theater of Operations for one day, they had heard the nickname of the glider drivers in this theatre of operations——Air Vanguard.

This arm of services was known with the highest mortality. Its mortality was even greater than the vanguards in the corps on the ground. It was said that the drivers of gliders were selected by drawing lots in the airship troops across the theater of operations.

Nobody expected that Zhang Tie would drive a glider to kill wing demons. Therefore, they all had complex moods. Some crew members didn’t believe that Zhang Tie would do that even now. To fight wing demons by glider? Even lunatic dared not think in this way. However, the captain of the Idiots would like to do such a crazy thing at once.

Nobody knew whether Zhang Tie was a lunatic or an idiot...

”Captain, before doing this, I suggest you fix your fly zone!” under the gaze of everyone, the first mate drew a triangular area outside the cruising area of the Idiots after thinking for a while and suggested on behalf of all the crew members, ”If you can fly in this area, the Idiots could coordinate with you. This would be the safest way!”

Zhang Tie smiled, ”I know. But you should know that the best protection for a bird is the sky, not the nestle. I’m very confident about driving the glider and my fighting strength. Even if some emergency comes up, I believe that I can still go back to Crystal Battle Fortress safe and sound. You don’t need to worry about me. What the Idiots should do is to survive itself in the wind and rain like a nestle. Don’t be blown off from the tree. I wish to see you when I come back. I hope you can still send me in the air when I want to give another blow to the demons! This is my nestle in Selnes Theater of Operations, am I clear?”

”Clear!” the first mate took a deep breath, ”Nobody would let you down in the Idiots!”

”Hmm, good luck to me!” Zhang Tie revealed with a big smile...

...

After a few minutes, all the available people in the Idiots had come to the glider throwing compartment at the bottom of the airship. After checking the glider very carefully, they let Zhang Tie sit in. Zhang Tie put on his flight suit under the sophisticated look of the crew members. After that, he sat in the cockpit of the glider and nodded towards the crew members. At the same time, he erected his thumb towards them.

”Open the hatch door!”

After receiving the order of the first mate, some crew members quickly opened the hatch door.

When the hatch door was opened, a strong wind blew in. Zhang Tie just nodded towards those crew members before immediately ejecting out of the Idiots along the lead rail.

”Salute...” the first mate roared as all the crew members gave a salute to Zhang Tie.

...

When the glider ejected out of the airship, Zhang Tie felt returning to the ocean like a fish. The glider was like a javelin being thrown towards the water from the airship. The moment the glider left the airship, its moving speed had reached 150 km/h.

In only a few seconds, Zhang Tie felt the glider was like a fish in the ocean current as he stepped down the left pedal. Meanwhile, Zhang Tie pressed down the elevator by hand. Closely after that, the glider flew towards left as agile as a sea swallow. After flying hundreds of meters, Zhang Tie felt an ascending thermal current. He stepped down the right pedal and lifted the driving handle. The entire glider then started to rise in the thermal current. Under the amazing gaze of all the crew members of the Idiots, Zhang Tie drew a cool letter ”U” around the airship. Finally, he reached above the air sacs of the airship and flew northward...

”How can he cut into the thermal current so fast and do such a cool movement?” A crew member watched Zhang Tie driving his glider around the airship while widely opening his mouth. Under Zhang Tie’s manipulation, everyone in the throwing compartment felt that Zhang Tie was like a skilled racing driver who was driving a super sports car and moving swiftly on the highway around the heavy truck ”fury-level” airship.

”Erm, it might be a coincidence...” another one muttered.

The glider could be easily manipulated. For each crew member on the airship, it was like how a sailor drove a rubber dinghy. Each crew member knew how to drive a glider. Actually, everyone would know how to drive a glider by following this rule——the driving handle in the cockpit was used to ascend and descend while the pedals were used to control directions.

When you pulled back the driving handle, the elevator of the airship would wave upwards, causing the head of the glider incline upwards. When you pushed forward the driving handle, the elevator would wave downwards, causing the head of the glider incline downwards. When you pressed down the left pedal, the rudder would wave towards the left, causing the head of the glider incline towards left. When you pressed down the left pedal, the rudder would wave towards the right, causing the head of the glider incline towards the right. Even a kid could master the driving skills, not to mention adults.

However, it was also very difficult to manipulate the glider. As the driver could hardly judge the sorts of airflow and use them such as topographic dynamic updraft, cyclotron updraft, wave-sized updraft and heating power updraft which provided a driving force for the glider. Whether a driver could use these sorts of airflow was the only standard on whether he was qualified to drive a glider.

Those kinds of airflow were invisible. They could only be judged by one’s practical experience and feeling. Therefore, one might only need 10 minutes to drive a glider; however, it might take him at least 10 years to combine his driving intention with those sorts of airflow.

Whether a person could apply airflow properly was the only standard of his driving ability. In front of this standard, the difference between a newbie and a powerhouse was like that between a LV 0 soldier and a LV 10 strong fighter.

In this age, people usually used four data to measure one’s driving skill on the glider, namely the longest air-staying time, the greatest flight distance, the recorded ascended height and the average speed of triangular routes.

In front of the above 4 data, the difference between a newbie and a powerhouse became remarkable.

The 4 data of a newbie was as follows: the longest air-staying time was about half an hour; the greatest flight distance was within 40 km; the recorded ascended height was lower than 1000 m while the average speed of triangular routes was below 50 km/h.

Under the same driving conditions, if a glider was like a sparrow in the hand of a newbie, it would be an arrogant eagle in the hand of a top powerhouse.

The 4 data of a top powerhouse was as follows: the longest air-staying time was over 70 hours; the greatest flight distance was over 2000 km; the recorded ascended height was over 15000 m while the average speed of triangular routes was above 220 km/h.

”Captain’s glider has reached higher than 300 km/h...” a voice drifted from the observation post above the airship through the sound-transmission pipe when everyone in the throwing compartment was still tasting that cool ”U-shaped” roll. After hearing this, all the crew members in the throwing compartment became stunned once again.

”It’s too fast. How can it reach such a high speed in such a short period...” the first mate muttered.

Nobody could reply...

...

Zhang Tie didn’t know what impression had he left on the crew members in such a short period. He didn’t feel that he had done something too special as he was just flying according to his feeling.

Zhang Tie found the airflow was like the currents in the ocean. With the preliminary water-proof body, Zhang Tie was very sensitive to both the waterflow and airflow.

Zhang Tie didn’t know why. Perhaps it was because the waterflow and airflow were both fluids or perhaps it was because of the moisture in airflow. Undoubtedly, Zhang Tie felt same in both the waterflow and airflow.

This feeling didn’t come from the sense of touch of his skin or body, but from the natural extension of his spiritual energy outside his body.

There was a moment when Zhang Tie almost thought that he was not driving a glider in the air but in the familiar ocean. Although he could not control the glider as agile as controlling his body, Zhang Tie indeed felt like following his heart by driving the glider. There were many similarities between flying in the airflow and flying in the ocean currents. Zhang Tie could think through many experiences and laws.

In the ocean, Zhang Tie reached his maximal speed not by moving along the ocean current but rapidly moving in the swirls and undulating places, by which he could gain more power. He could also constantly change his directions among different ocean currents in snake-shaped routes and swiftly cut into another ocean current from one current. In this way, he could reach a super fast speed.

Zhang Tie found that it was similar in the sky. Even the shapes of the ocean currents were similar to the that of thermal currents in the sky. Ocean currents swirled; similarly, thermal currents in the sky were like bubbles. They both existed and flew in the circular state.

Zhang Tie didn’t know how did others distinguish powerhouses and newbies. However, he felt that as long as he wished, he could stay very long and fly very far in the sky like he was in the ocean.

After leaving the Idiots for a short while, Zhang Tie descended his height and speed. He kept the glider at about 3,000 m and its speed as same as the Idiots. After that, he flew towards the north. He could see ruined villages on the Selnes Plain; sometimes, he could see the wreckage of large-scale airships.

Only after half an hour, Zhang Tie caught sight of some black spots in the distance. The black spots also noticed Zhang Tie as they instantly accelerated towards Zhang Tie...