Translator: AnubisTL
The communication terminal instantly refreshed, displaying a densely packed list of assigned missions.
But what immediately caught the attention of all wizards was the mandatory mission highlighted in scarlet at the top:
All wizards must, as directed by the command center, establish "signal nodes" within the Void Domain Plane (designated 655-4488-32194158) to assist in mapping the plane's interior.
Below the mission description were numerous clauses and detailed requirements.
Jieming quickly scanned the instructions. In essence, all wizards currently exploring the outer regions, like himself, were ordered to immediately return to the ship plane and retrieve signal beacon from the logistics office.
During subsequent operations, they were required to deploy a signal beacon every one thousand li, based on the beacon's effective communication range.
After carefully reviewing the mission twice, Jieming concluded that the mandatory task was within acceptable limits.
The only significant drawback was the need for all wizards to abandon their painstakingly established advantageous positions and return to the ship plane, which might result in some losses. Otherwise, the requirements themselves weren't particularly difficult.
Jieming remembered clearly that, according to the contract signed with the junction point, while the supreme commander of each planar war had the authority to issue mandatory missions, the requirements for issuing such missions were extremely strict.
The fact that seventh-tier archwizard Dionysius Spencer had issued this mission meant that, in his judgment, it would ultimately benefit all the wizards present.
In truth, Jieming agreed with this assessment.
Although this meant that his exploration progress over the past half-month had been wasted, it was merely a loss of a little over ten days.
Considering the benefits this mission would bring to everyone's future actions, the loss was entirely acceptable.
Jieming mentally calculated other factors and couldn't help but marvel at the cunning calculations of Archwizard Dionysius Spencer.
The timing of Dionysius Spencer's mission announcement was remarkably precise. Most wizards exploring outward should now be nearing the edge of their personal terminals' signal range with the ship plane.
Even if the seventh-tier archwizard hadn't issued this mission, most wizards would soon have returned to the ship plane to update their maps and replenish supplies, fearing they might lose their way.
As a result, this mandatory mission wasn't much of a burden for many wizards—merely a task they could complete in passing.
This significantly reduced their internal resistance to the mission.
Jieming casually scrolled through the other ordinary missions.
The vast majority of these missions involved acquiring various specialized resources from within the Void Domain Plane.
In particular, the demand for strange living creatures seemed nearly limitless.
Although the rewards for these acquisition missions were considerably lower than what wizards could earn by bringing these items back to the junction point and selling them directly, the convenience and speed made them a viable option for most wizards.
As he adjusted his course toward the ship plane and flew swiftly, Jieming continued to browse the mission list on his terminal.
While these were just missions, they revealed valuable intelligence about the ongoing expedition.
Suddenly, his gaze froze, and he frowned at a particular mission on the screen.
Emergency Mission: Locate the Lost Wizard
Mission Acceptance Restrictions: Only wizards of third-tier or higher, proficient in "space attribute" knowledge, may participate.
Due to his insufficient power, Jieming couldn't access the mission's detailed internal intelligence.
However, even the limited information revealed by the mission title was enough to warrant careful consideration.
If it were just a simple "lost wizard," it wouldn't be a major concern.
After all, in such a disorienting environment, it's easy to get lost if one accidentally flies beyond the terminal's signal range.
But the addition of the mission acceptance restrictions made things much more complicated.
"Did the 'loss' result from encountering spatial anomalies?" Jieming mused inwardly. "Considering the elemental distribution in this plane, we should indeed be cautious..."
In the Void Domain Plane, the most prevalent element was undoubtedly the wind element.
Within the wizards' knowledge system, the wind element itself represents space.
Therefore, it was highly likely that this plane contained vast quantities of unstable spatial turbulence.
Worse still, if one were particularly unlucky, they could be swept into self-circulating spatial turbulence—regions with no exit to reality.
If trapped in such a place, one's only hope would be either being discovered and rescued from the outside or possessing the immense power to shatter space itself.
Otherwise, they would be condemned to eternal imprisonment within that spatial vortex.
"I've definitely overlooked this aspect," Jieming mused. "When I return, I'll check the markets on the 'ship plane' for spell artifacts that can stabilize local space or lock onto my spatial coordinates."
As Jieming pondered, his scalp suddenly prickled. A primal sense of mortal danger erupted from his core like a volcano, a biological instinct screaming of imminent peril.
Yet before he could fully register the warning, an attack materialized with ghostly silence, bearing down on him like a phantom.
This was a strike, a near-perfect assassination attempt.
Swift! Precise! Ruthless!
And utterly silent!
The attack generated no energy fluctuations, no air-rending shriek, not even a trace of killing intent.
It was like the fangs of a ghost, materializing from thin air and aimed directly at Jieming's vital point between his eyebrows.
Just as the invisible attack was about to pierce Jieming's skin, a layer of energy shield—which he had always kept at its lowest power and hidden—suddenly materialized around him.
Bang!
A dull, shattering sound, like glass shattering, exploded in Jieming's ears!
His pupils constricted sharply.
He watched in horror as the shield before him, capable of withstanding a full-force strike from a second-tier wizard, suddenly cracked with countless spiderweb-like fissures.
It was only through the energy reaction triggered by the shield's impact that Jieming barely glimpsed a faint, translucent cone-shaped object, as if made of clear crystal, hurtling toward his face.
Fortunately, the sudden activation of the energy shield bought Jieming a precious fraction of a second to react.
Acting purely on combat instinct, he twisted his body violently to the side, narrowly evading the lethal strike!
The cone grazed his cheek, the aftershock sending a searing pain across his skin.
The moment Jieming dodged the attack, he strained his eyes wide, rapidly scanning his surroundings.
But... he couldn't detect what had attacked him.
Apart from the fleeting glimpse of a faint, crystal-like conical appendage that was briefly exposed when it made contact with his energy shield, the attacker revealed nothing else of itself in this world!
After Jieming evaded the strike, the thing vanished completely into the air, like ink dissolving in water.
"ROAR!!!"
Only then did the five Black Giants react.
With furious roars, their massive bodies surged into motion, forming an impenetrable defensive circle around Jieming.
Simultaneously, they vigilantly scanned every inch of the surrounding space.
Without time to think, Jieming instinctively erected multiple shields of varying elemental properties around himself.
Then, he immediately focused his mind on the rune-imbued magical artifact on his wrist, checking the status of his "scouting eye" and the Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror.
"Thermal imaging, vibration waves, sound waves, soul detection, energy diffusion reactions, life detection... Damn it! I've activated every reconnaissance method, but I still can't detect the enemy?!"
Jieming confirmed that his "scouting eye" and Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror were functioning normally and operating at full power.
A chill ran through his heart. With so many reconnaissance methods active, how could he have failed to detect the enemy's approach?
Just as Jieming processed this alarming realization, another lethal attack descended from above without warning!
This attack, like the previous one, remained undetectable by any of his reconnaissance methods.
Moreover, the destructive force contained within it was even more devastating than before!
Though Jieming had cautiously erected multiple shields in advance, they proved as flimsy as paper against this assault, shattering one after another with virtually no defensive effect.
Fortunately, having anticipated such an attack, Jieming reacted instantly.
He narrowly dodged the potentially fatal strike once again, sustaining only a deep, bone-deep gash on his left arm.
Despite the overwhelming power of the attack, Jieming smirked coldly.
Watching the wound on his arm rapidly heal under the influence of his body tempering method, he finally understood how his opponent had been concealing themselves.
"A creature naturally adept at space attribute abilities? My gamble with my arm paid off. This... this is a real jackpot!"
From the wound, Jieming sensed a familiar yet alien energy corroding his flesh.
He recognized it instantly: pure space attribute power!
It was "familiar" because he had spent over a decade meticulously studying the intricacies of space gaps.
Yet it remained "alien" because, to this day, he had never managed to manipulate even a trace of this profound energy.
Clearly, the opponent had shattered multiple layers of shields in a single strike by wielding this space attribute power, which bypassed most energy and physical defenses!
(End of the Chapter)
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