"Please, step aside to allow the other students to arrive!" a loud voice called out, pointing to the side.
Just like last time, they had arrived in one of the areas that had been circled off. When looking at the person giving the commands, he hardly looked any older than them. Most likely, he was a recruit who had just graduated and decided to stay with the army.
The group moved over to where the man had pointed. It seemed there were other groups of students standing by the side waiting as well. Several soldiers were also present, checking and coordinating with them, making sure everyone stayed in place and didn't wander off.
Looking around, all that could be seen was greenery. Giant trees, thick bushes, twisting vines, and even plants that Fex had never seen before surrounded them. The place was humid, hot, and sticky, and it looked like he wasn't the only one affected. Everyone around him was sweating heavily as well.
The shelter itself was vastly different too. In a way, it looked incomplete. Most of it seemed to be made from some type of wood and mud, although the architecture was impressive. They had managed to build upon the large trees, incorporating them into the shelter itself.
There were stiff wooden bridges stretching between trees, along with spiraling staircases that led from floor to floor and tree to tree. The ground floor, where they were standing, was mostly empty, with only certain marked areas indicating where the teleportation spots would bring travelers.
Looking upward, Fex could see residential houses and a few market shops, although nowhere near the number compared to the shelters they had seen before. What surprised him the most, however, was just how many residential houses there were in an orange portal like this one.
Fex could even see children playing on the bridges above.
Layla noticed the surprised look on Fex's face.
"This is one of the cheapest places for people to live," Layla explained. "This is a tier five city, so it doesn't have any walls to protect the citizens, and it's open to attack. The soldiers will do their best to protect them, but because this planet is still in the middle of exploration, their focus isn't so much on the shelters themselves.
"The citizens aren't required to pay tax on an orange planet, so those who can't live on Earth and can't even make a living on a green portal planet end up here. Of course, red portal planets are just too dangerous in the first place, and only the strongest military shelters and factions are able to survive there."
As Fex was in thought, he noticed that a group of travelers had arrived at the shelter. One of the higher-ups in the military went forward to greet them, and the two seemed to respect each other quite a bit.
After a brief chat, the traveler handed the man something before heading off back into the jungle from where they had come.
"They looked kinda strong," Fex said with a grin.
"That's because they are," Peter replied. "To be able to travel through a planet alone where the level of beasts is unknown, with just five of them… they have to be really strong."
"What were they doing at the military shelter?" Peter asked.
Vicky answered in her mocking tone as always, "well you see, on an orange portal planet there is more than one shelter. Different factions, including the military, usually set up bases here. Exploring a planet is a collective effort, and once they finish scanning their parts, each of the shelters shares information with the others. This saves time so different shelters aren't exploring areas that have already been explored."
The students were now being led toward an open space. As they walked, they could see people from the shelter and children coming out from above, peeking over the bridges to look at the new students.
All of the first-year students were once again lined up in rows, with the homeroom teachers at the front, while Fay and Silver stood in the middle of all the classes.
They had arrived at an open area of the jungle that looked man-made. The trees had been uprooted and dug out, and the ground had been flattened. Most of what they were standing on was thick mud. Looking ahead, they could see several paths branching out from the circular clearing, leading deeper into the jungle.
"Alright everyone, each class shall now explore a different path," Fay announced. "I hope you listen to your homeroom teachers well. The scanners will not activate until your teachers say so, so don't try to get ahead of yourselves. You will continue to follow the path, and your teachers will tell you when you are in an unexplored area. Remember to always stay on your guard and keep your scanners by your side.
"My last warning to you all: you will encounter beasts on this trip. At what level, I do not know. I wish you all luck!"
The students saluted the two sergeants before heading off down their assigned paths.
Homeroom teacher Del took the lead down one of them. The pathway they walked on seemed quite wide and well flattened. It was clear the path was man-made, and it looked like large vehicles would pass through this way from time to time.
Because the path had originally been meant for large vehicles, the students weren't forced into a single file. Instead, they were able to spread out slightly as they walked, taking in the scenery around them.
Fex, walking beside Layla, took a deep breath of fresh air.
"Now this… this is what I call different," he said with a huge grin as he continued to look around at the towering greenery surrounding them.
"So back home, there isn't anything like this?" Layla asked, carefully adding the word home to make the question sound more natural.
Fex had indeed shared his secret with Layla—that he came from a different planet—after her repeated questioning.
"Nah," Fex replied with a sigh. "Compared to Earth and these planets with all the bright colors, our home has nothing."
"This should be a good spot," Del said, placing his large shield onto the ground.
The area they had arrived at was quite open. There weren't as many trees and vines, allowing them to see clearly in all directions.
"Students are not to travel more than two hundred meters from this spot. If you do, your scanner will make a ping indicating that it will no longer work," Del explained. "For each new plant discovered, you will receive five points. For each new beast discovery, twenty points. Please remember, this is not a hunting trial. There is no need for you to kill beasts.
"However, anything intermediate level and below—you may try your best to fight them if you wish. Kills will not be awarded points, but you can keep the crystal for future use."
He looked around at the eager faces.
"Alright. Your scanners are now on."
At the same time, each scanner made a small ding sound, and the students immediately rushed off in different directions.