Translator: AnubisTL
The lava giant pig roared furiously, its frustration palpable as it failed to breach the transparent shield before it.
Its massive body accelerated once more, slamming headfirst into the rune force field.
Each impact sent ripples through the force field.
"A mere third-tier magical beast," Jieming remarked calmly, dismissing the clumsy giant beast with a glance.
The other wizards within the node showed no fear of the third-tier magical beast either, some even pointing and commenting on the creature as if it were a spectacle.
Had they encountered such a demonic beast in the wild, they might have exercised caution. But here, they were protected by layers of runic arrays.
One of the second-tier wizards guarding the node turned to Jieming. "Your mission is to assess the situation and gather materials, right? Why not try your hand at it? You won't get another chance to test your skills personally once the beast tide arrives."
"Then... I'll take you up on that," Jieming replied after a moment's hesitation, nodding in agreement.
Under the guidance of several wizards, he quickly familiarized himself with operating the magical formation within the node:
"Thunder attribute, third-tier charging..."
He extended his palm flat, adjusting the controls on the holographic interface floating before him.
As he manipulated the interface, a searing bolt of thunder energy rapidly coalesced in mid-air, crackling and illuminating the interior of the surrounding force field.
This wasn't merely a raw energy construct; it was a "thunder energy arrow" refined by a runic array, designed to fatally disrupt the energy cores of demonic beasts.
"Go!"
With a low shout, Jieming unleashed the thunder energy arrow. Like a bolt from a crossbow, it struck the lava giant pig's skull with unstoppable force.
"Hoo-ah-ah-ah!" The third-tier lava giant pig let out a piercing shriek of agony.
Its vaunted rock-like hide shattered instantly under the impact.
Charred blood, mingled with the acrid stench of burnt flesh, gushed from the wound.
The thunder energy pierced through the skull, delivering a devastating shock to the pig's relatively weak beast soul.
The massive creature shuddered violently, as if all its energy had been drained away.
Finally, propelled by inertia, the massive creature crashed to the ground with a thunderous roar, sending up a cloud of dust.
Despite the devastating blow, the tenacious demonic beast still struggled, its limbs twitching violently as if refusing to fully succumb to death.
"It's still alive after that?" Jieming raised an eyebrow, unable to conceal his surprise.
The attack had been a genuine third-tier spell, specifically designed for maximum damage against demonic beasts. How could a third-tier magical beast survive such a direct hit?
The wizard beside him explained, "This plane is like that. It's not just the lava giants and snow monsters; all creatures here possess extraordinary vitality."
Jieming nodded, raising his hand to conjure an even thicker thunder energy arrow. This time, he aimed directly for the lava giant pig's heart, the location of its energy core.
Boom!
The second thunder energy arrow struck with pinpoint accuracy, piercing the lava giant pig's heart.
This time, the creature didn't even manage a final squeal. Its massive body stiffened completely, its thick limbs ceased twitching, and the ferocious glint in its eyes faded into darkness.
Jieming wasted no time, as he had another crucial mission: gathering materials.
He immediately activated the magical formation near the lava giant pig's corpse, quickly conjuring several runic arrays in mid-air.
These arrays weren't meant to decompose the corpse, but rather to capture and transport it.
As the arrays glowed, the massive body of the third-tier lava giant pig, accompanied by a spatial distortion, was teleported directly into the rear camp.
The corpse would then be transported by automated machinery along a disassembly line to the bioweapon manufacturing factory.
Jieming suppressed the fluctuations of his mental power, carefully savoring the sensation of manipulating the magical formation.
The combat wizard beside him explained, "This is essentially how we construct Frontline Nodes. Time is short, and we don't have enough salvaged materials from the outposts, so we can only build these rudimentary versions for emergency use."
"Thank you for your hard work," Jieming said with a polite nod. "But will this be sufficient against a beast tide?"
"It's sufficient for dealing with the beast tide," the wizard at the node explained. "After all, the core here is fourth-tier, and the beast tide rarely contains creatures stronger than that. Even if we can't eliminate them all, survival shouldn't be a problem."
Jieming nodded silently as he listened to the wizard's explanation.
His mission was ostensibly an inspection, but in reality, it was an acceptance test.
Moreover, the wizards hadn't established these nodes to defend against lava giants, but simply to prevent harassment from wild demonic beasts.
"Ever since the ship plane detached and Master Augustine departed, the camp has been receiving frequent reports of attacks by wild animals," Jieming mused inwardly, reviewing the current situation.
Initially, none of the wizards paid much attention. They dismissed these incidents as mere increases in ordinary demonic beast activity following the surge of planar energy.
However, less than a month after Jieming received the mandatory mission to create an army of bioweapons, the "wild animal harassment" that the wizards had previously dismissed had escalated to an unimaginable scale!
At the peak of the crisis, the camp was enduring daily assaults from beast tides numbering in the millions, with waves of creatures relentlessly throwing themselves at the defenses!
They surged forth like an endless ocean, pouring from the scorched earth of the Blazing Sun Realm and the icy plains of the Frostdark Realm, relentlessly crashing against the Wizard Camp's protective force field day and night.
Fortunately, internal investigations revealed that most of these wild creatures attacking the wizards were only first-tier in strength. A small number of advanced creatures reached second or third-tier power.
For the camp's impenetrable defenses, such a beast tide posed no threat whatsoever. They couldn't even breach the defensive system designed by a fifth-tier wizard.
In a sense, these endless beast tides were less of a threat and more of a raw material source for the wizards to create bioweapons.
"It's also because these demonic beasts have become such a nuisance—their endless numbers and relentless intrusions—that the camp had to expand its outer protective nodes to gain more buffer space, preventing the beasts from piling up like mountains at the edge of the core force field," Jieming summarized inwardly.
This was the mission he was currently undertaking.
Therefore, the node itself didn't require strict scrutiny; as long as it could provide a certain level of interception and early warning, it would suffice.
Jieming recorded the collected information on his terminal and, under the delighted gazes of the wizards, clicked "Mission Complete."
After a brief exchange of current intelligence, Jieming prepared to return to the laboratory deep within the camp to continue his bioweapon design work when...
Buzzing...
A piercing alarm blared from within the protective node once more!
The wizards present frowned simultaneously. One of the second-tier wizards expertly approached the magical formation and began manipulating it.
Soon, a luminous screen unfolded before them.
In the distance, the originally gray dome of the sky was now completely covered by a dense swarm of "fire ravens"!
Their sheer numbers were overwhelming, swirling like dark clouds that blotted out the sun.
Each raven radiated intense heat and fire qi, diving toward the protective node with astonishing speed!
At the forefront of this massive fire raven swarm, several tiny, stick-figure-like "black dots" were fleeing frantically.
When the wizards zoomed in, they realized that these struggling figures trying to escape the raven swarm were actually several wizards!
The sky-darkening swarm of fire ravens and the desperate flight of the wizards instantly shattered the protective node's brief tranquility. Jieming and the other stationed wizards tensed instinctively.
"Activate the energy conduction core!" the second-tier wizard barked.
"Acknowledged!" the wizard in charge of energy output responded swiftly.
Within the core of the protective node, stored energy surged like a raging torrent, rapidly being drawn out.
Thick beams of runic light erupted from the node's main cannons, precisely targeting the sky.
Instead of targeting the fire ravens directly, the beams acted like a giant hand swatting away mosquitoes, instantly dispersing the swarm.
A massive path was torn through the ravenous, cloud-like mass, creating a gaping hole.
The scattered fire ravens shrieked in pain, but ignoring their injuries, they scattered even faster.
Seizing this opportunity, the pursued wizards gained precious breathing room. With a few quick flashes, they darted inside the protective barrier.
"Quick! Shut down the energy field!" the second-tier wizard ordered again.
The protective node's transparent force field contracted instantly.
As soon as the wizards were inside, the runic shield sealed them safely within.
"Are you alright?" the garrison wizards rushed forward, offering magic potions to restore mental power.
But the rescued wizards' expressions remained frozen in terror.
Their faces were as pale as paper, their eyes bloodshot, and their pupils uncontrollably dilating.
Their bodies trembled violently, clearly at the absolute limit of their physical and mental endurance.
They seemed deaf to their colleagues' concern, unable to pause even for a moment to catch their breath, only shouting:
"The enemy is coming!"
"Run!"
Then they tried to rush through the protective node and into the heart of the camp.
"What enemy? Just the fire ravens?" a garrison wizard asked, puzzled. They had just witnessed the fire ravens fleeing in disarray.
"No! Those fire ravens... they're not the enemy! They're running for their lives!"
A wizard, nearly driven mad with terror, shrieked hoarsely, his voice cracking.
The wizards didn't yet grasp the deeper meaning of his words.
To their eyes, apart from the chaotic retreat of the fire ravens, no new enemies had appeared.
But Jieming felt a bone-chilling dread, an indescribable cold that pierced his soul like an invisible blade pressed against his throat.
It was an overwhelming premonition of death, surging through him like a tidal wave, saturating every limb and bone.
It was his spiritual perception, frantically warning him in the most extreme way possible: death was imminent!
This was no ordinary crisis, nor was it as simple as the fire ravens before them!
Jieming's adrenaline surged to its limit.
"Run!" he roared, his voice carrying a primal fear and decisive resolve that shook the surrounding wizards to their core.
At the same moment, his body erupted in a dazzling white light!
Without hesitation, he activated the Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror, instantly transforming into a blinding streak of light that shot toward the core region of the camp at breakneck speed!
His velocity was unparalleled; in the blink of an eye, he vanished through the protective node, leaving only a lingering white afterimage.
In truth, Jieming wasn't alone in sensing the danger.
In this environment of extreme planar rejection, the wizards' spiritual perception had become abnormally acute.
Jieming's warning and swift action acted as a catalyst, jolting several other wizards who had already sensed something amiss into sudden realization.
The instinct for survival instantly overwhelmed all hesitation and confusion.
Without a moment to think, they instinctively tried to activate their teleportation, rapid flight, or any other escape methods they could muster!
But...
The instant Jieming transformed into light and vanished,
Whoosh!
A faint, almost imperceptible sound, as if the very air had frozen.
Everything came to a sudden halt!
Inside the protective node, the wizards who had barely escaped the fire raven swarm stood with their mouths agape.
Their faces still bore expressions of terror and gasping breaths, but their bodies were frozen in place as if under a petrification spell, not even a single hair trembling!
In the distance, the fire raven swarm that had been fleeing in disarray had their wings frozen mid-flap, their feathers no longer drifting down.
Outside the protective node, the dust kicked up by the lava giant pig's charge and the rubble scattered by the explosions hung motionless in the air, as if time itself had been suspended!
Even the wizards who were preparing to activate their escape methods—their hand seals, their incantations, the mental power fluctuations about to erupt—all abruptly ceased!
Their bodies froze mid-motion, their faces still etched with bewilderment and determination.
An absolute stillness instantly replaced the chaos.
The entire world was like an insect trapped in amber, completely frozen, utterly motionless!
They didn't even have time to utter a sound; the light in their eyes was frozen in an instant.
Only Jieming remained, the rainbow-hued light of his transformation already vanishing into the distant horizon.
A moment later—an instant in the eyes of the wizards within the nodes—a massive cloud of dust surged skyward from the distant horizon with unstoppable force!
It was a flood of lava giants!
A vast horde of lava giants, their numbers blotting out the sun and nearly covering the entire horizon, advanced with heavy, synchronized steps, their irresistible momentum bearing down on the Wizard Camp!
Their bodies were covered in hardened rock and scorching lava, each step forward accompanied by a thunderous rumble that shook the earth.
Their numbers were beyond counting. As far as the eye could see across this scorched wasteland, only their terrifying figures dominated the horizon.
The lava giant horde neither accelerated nor paused unnecessarily.
Their sheer, overwhelming advance was enough to crush everything in its path!
Whether it was the frozen fire ravens still suspended in mid-air or the wizards frozen mid-motion like statues...
This terrifying mass of lava giants, like an unstoppable wall of flesh and molten rock, mercilessly crushed them all.
Crunch!
The living beings had no chance to resist, not even a whimper escaped their lips as they were utterly pulverized by the mountain-shattering force, reduced to shattered blood-soaked mud and bone fragments.
In the blink of an eye, they were completely assimilated into the earth.
The protective node, which had been functioning normally just moments before, collapsed into rubble, its fragments ground into dust beneath the giants' iron-clad feet.
(End of the Chapter)
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