Translator: AnubisTL
Time flies like a white steed across a meadow, and thirty years of planar conquest passed in the blink of an eye.
The Void Domain Plane was now thoroughly marked by the wizard civilization.
Yet, the predicted resource depletion never materialized. Instead, the fervor of development grew, not subsiding but transforming into a bizarre, near-boiling prosperity.
Thanks to the plane's nearly inexhaustible abundance of wind element, it displayed a variety of bizarre characteristics.
The vast, boundless space had lost its gravitational constraints, causing all matter to float freely. This added a new dimension to the plane's explorable regions.
Even more astonishing were the space distortion zones, scattered like scars across the plane, which continuously nurtured new, smaller spaces within them.
Each newly formed space was like an independent ecological bubble, containing unique resource profiles and peculiar lifeforms, akin to treasure chests randomly scattered across the universe.
It was this peculiar, nearly "renewable" phenomenon that prevented the wizards, even after thirty years of frantic exploitation, from ever grasping the plane's full extent.
The floating cities of the Wizard Camp were no longer what they had once been.
It had expanded several times over, like a metallic giant beast coiled in the void.
At the very summit of the floating city, the atmosphere was violently distorting, forming a massive, slowly rotating energy vortex that emitted heart-stopping spatial fluctuations—the World Teleportation Array was about to connect!
This project, originally slated for completion in over a decade, had been forcibly accelerated under the direct intervention of the seventh-tier wizard, Dionysius Spencer.
The urgency stemmed from the plane's "richness" far exceeding expectations; mountains of harvested resources were already straining the forward base to its limits.
The central plaza, expanded countless times, now resembled a chaotic, sprawling logistics hub.
Countless creatures of all shapes and sizes huddled meekly, while others violently slammed against their cages.
Piles of ore, dazzling in color and emitting varied energy signatures, rose like mountains, alongside indescribable rare resources that glowed or pulsed with peculiar light.
Along the plaza's edge, thick metal chains stretched outward, tethering more massive iron cages that floated in the city's misty outer clouds, each crammed with living creatures.
Even beyond the planar rift, one could see the earth of the opposing ship plane, where prisoner cages were piled up like newborn mountain ranges, stretching endlessly.
To sustain these precious living specimens, millions of construct puppet toiled daily, shuttling between temporary spatial gates like worker ants. Carrying precious spatial wizardry artifacts, they transported vast quantities of nutrients from rear bases, performing what was likely the most extravagant "feeding" operation in this world.
The premature activation of the World Teleportation Array was like opening the floodgates of a choked river, allowing a continuous stream of resources to flow efficiently back to the core territories of the wizard civilization. This only slightly eased the storage pressure on the frontlines.
Meanwhile, the wizards themselves were plunged into even more frantic activity.
Every wizard was like a wound-up machine, desperately chasing merit points and resources.
In this plane, lacking any sixth-tier creatures to command, the native forces could not organize an effective resistance. They were left at the mercy of these "extraterrestrial demons," which continued their relentless plundering like wolves descending upon a flock.
One day, a streak of light pierced through the thin clouds and approached the floating city.
It was Jieming.
Behind him trailed a string of massive cages, linked by thick iron chains. Inside were the bizarre creatures captured during his recent expedition: some resembled floating jellyfish but shimmered with a metallic luster, while others looked like birds made of pure energy, their calls causing faint spatial ripples.
Thanks to the zero-gravity environment of the Void Domain Plane, he could "brutally" drag this enormous haul back in one go.
After handing over the chain of "spoils of war" to the alchemy puppets that came to meet him, Jieming didn't even bother to slowly search for buyers in the market.
He kept enough research samples to send to his long-term rented warehouse. The rest he sold in bulk to the camp's official channels through his magic net terminal, at slightly below market price but with unparalleled speed.
One had to admit, Lord Dionysius Spencer's long-term planning was truly far-sighted.
Although this official buyback mechanism offered little profit, it greatly improved the wizards' operational efficiency.
This allowed them to quickly dive into the next round of plundering missions, forming an efficient closed loop.
Walking through the now-crowded streets of the floating city, Jieming slowed his pace, silently observing everything around him.
The air buzzed with noise as wizards of all shapes and sizes hurried past, their energy signatures intertwining.
At the mission boards, wizards continuously accepted tasks and loudly recruited temporary teammates on the spot.
After brief consultations, they signed soul contracts, forming small teams that transformed into streaks of light as they burst through the floating city's protective shield, vanishing into the colorful depths of the plane.
The effects of thirty years of unrestrained plundering were undeniable.
The wizard civilization's terrifying resource consumption and transformation capabilities, comparable to the insect race, were now fully displayed.
Jieming clearly remembered that during the early stages of the expedition, over 98% of the party consisted of first-tier and second-tier wizards, with third-tier wizards being rare exceptions.
Now, walking through the streets, the qi of third-tier wizards was almost everywhere. A rough estimate suggested their proportion had approached one-third of the total!
At this point, Jieming began to understand why the wizard civilization had divided wizard training into two branches: the Logistics Department and the Combat Department.
The Logistics Department possessed greater strength but required higher aptitude and advanced relatively steadily—or one might say, slowly.
While the Combat Department's power was not as strong as the Logistics Department's at the same tier, its unique training method allowed it to efficiently digest and absorb resources. With sufficient resources, its members could rapidly improve and gain immediate combat effectiveness.
In essence, the Logistics Department truly represented elite units, but the Combat Department was not merely cannon fodder.
Of course, such brilliance was shadowed by brutal elimination.
Over these thirty years, over one-tenth of the wizards had perished forever in this foreign land due to various reasons—spatial traps, rampaging creatures, or even betrayal by their comrades.
Although most of these newly promoted third-tier wizards lacked sufficient knowledge and could not yet fully unleash the power expected of their tier, the sheer number of participants and the constant influx of new members caused the expeditionary force's overall strength to rise rather than fall.
As Jieming gazed upon the bustling scene, teeming with life and greed, an persistent doubt lingered in his heart.
This method of plundering, like draining a dry pond, was causing fundamental harm to the Void Domain Plane.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that even if Wizard Dionysius Spencer intended to reintroduce the acquired creatures after the war, it would take centuries, perhaps millennia, for this plane's ecosystem to recover its primordial qi.
For a wizard civilization that had always excelled at "sustainable pond-draining," such a self-destructive act of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs seemed utterly bizarre and wasteful.
"The only explanation..." Jieming's gaze drifted toward the increasingly distinct vortex of the World Teleportation Array at the apex of the floating city. He thought to himself, "Lord Spencer's true objective for this expedition must be far greater than the long-term benefits of a single plane."
Recalling the wizard's earlier cryptic remark about a "pre-meal dessert," Jieming understood the implication.
Yet he still couldn't fathom what kind of entity or thing could possibly be worth more than the cumulative, long-term gains of an entire prosperous plane.
"Even if there's another plane of greater value, there's no reason to completely abandon this one we've already begun to control... Unless, of course, the 'target' isn't another plane, but something... something that, once obtained, renders these 'ordinary' resources irrelevant?" Jieming's mind churned with possibilities, but he quickly suppressed them.
He knew all too well that the schemes and vision of a seventh-tier wizard were far beyond his current level of comprehension or questioning.
Indulging in baseless speculation would serve no purpose.
After browsing the temporary stalls in the plaza and purchasing several rare crystalline minerals with unusual energy structures, along with biological samples suspected of possessing special abilities, Jieming returned to his temporary residence for a brief day of rest, during which he organized his recent gains and insights.
Then, he reopened his magic net terminal and skillfully filtered the mission list.
Soon, a mission titled "Investigate the source of abnormal energy reactions within the newly discovered large-scale spatial fold 'eye of the storm'" caught his attention.
The mission carried a high risk rating, but the merit points reward was exceptionally generous, and it hinted at the possibility of encountering unrecorded rare species or unusual rule phenomena.
Without hesitation, Jieming accepted the mission.
Moments later, a streak of light shot out from the floating city, hurtling unswervingly toward the vast plane.
(End of the Chapter)
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