Only now, facing these high-tier wizards from other factions who didn’t restrain their imposing auras, did Jie Ming realize the vast chasm between himself and senior wizards.
It was a gulf, the divide between mortals and gods.
At this moment, he was but a speck on the edge of that abyss.
No one noticed the stirring in Jie Ming’s heart. While he stood dazed, the sixth-tier wizard descended above the crowd.
Wizards were among the most rational and ruthless beings in the multiverse.
All their actions were driven by the pursuit of truth, knowledge, and resources.
Under the wizard’s standard cultivation system, they knew why they fought and what they sought in this expedition.
Thus, a wizard’s large-scale campaign differed from those of other races.
No lengthy, rousing pre-battle speeches, no passionate oaths, none of the morale-boosting rhetoric common among mortal armies—everything was simple and efficient.
This time was no exception.When the imposing sixth-tier wizard appeared, he wasted no words, simply stating his identity in a calm, resonant voice:
“I am Augustine from the Tower of Annihilation, one of the leaders of this expedition.”
His voice, low and powerful, amplified by mental force, cut through the clamor of tens of thousands of wizards, echoing clearly across the hall.
He offered no words of encouragement, painted no visions of victory, and issued a direct order after his introduction: “All participating wizards, board the ship within a quarter-hour. Depart!”
At his command, the tens of thousands of wizards surged toward the hall’s exit like a tide, heading for the massive barren continent in the sky.
Some cast their specialized flight spells, their bodies shimmering with elemental flows, transforming into streaks of light.
Others rode tamed, exotic mounts—giant vultures, winged beasts—roaring into the sky.
Some controlled peculiar vehicles: archaic airships, floating platforms carrying alchemical golems and bio-beasts, or even cloaks that bore them aloft.
Without any direction, the wizards ascended in orderly sequence.
Above the Junction, a sky-blotting torrent of wizards formed instantly.
Jie Ming and Viola joined the crowd, rising into the air.
His floating cannon array silently orbited behind him as he flew.
Viola, perched elegantly on a faintly glowing long-handled staff, glanced at Jie Ming with a hint of amusement in her eyes.
“Don’t be nervous—it’s just boarding the ‘ship.’ The real excitement comes later,” she said softly, her tone hiding a trace of barely perceptible thrill.
Jie Ming nodded, feeling his blood surge and adrenaline spike.
It wasn’t fear but the thrill of facing the unknown and its challenges.
As they climbed higher, crossing a critical threshold, Jie Ming sensed a subtle shift in gravity.
The familiar downward pull vanished, replaced by an upside-down momentum, as if falling headfirst.
They were no longer flying toward the sky but descending toward a vast, independent continent.
Jie Ming reacted instantly, adjusting his posture to land gently and stably on the scorched, barren “ship.”
This bizarre gravity shift was a visceral experience of distorted spatial laws, marking the transition from one physical world to another.
The barren plane was vast, its surface uneven with charred rocks and cracked earth, the air tinged with sulfur and desolation.
When the last wizard landed, Augustine, the sixth-tier wizard from the Tower of Annihilation, radiated a sudden burst of light.
Hovering in the plane’s sky, he spread his arms, eyes narrowing slightly.
A vast mental force surged like a tide, instantly linking to the barren plane’s core essence.
He wasn’t manipulating the plane’s rules but, like a seasoned captain, imprinted his will with spatial coordinates deep into the plane’s “ship.”
“Set sail.”
Augustine’s voice, low and grand, merged with the plane’s resonant hum.
At his command, the massive barren land covering the Junction’s sky reacted.
To the wizards and alien merchants still at the Junction, the continent shrank inward like an overstretched rubber band.
The plane began to warp and fold at its edges, its once-flat structure crumpling like a wadded sheet of paper.
With a silent boom, the colossal land vanished from sight.
It was as if it had never existed, leaving only the chaotic void backdrop above the Junction.
Such a spectacular, unimaginable sight was mundane to the Junction’s wizards and aliens.
They glanced up briefly, confirmed the “ship” had departed, and returned to their bustling lives and noisy transactions.
After all, such plane shifts had happened countless times, no longer remarkable.
Inside the plane, low-tier wizards felt little change.
Jie Ming, with his All-Purpose Eye, could “observe” the plane’s parameters shifting rapidly.
“This is the power of high-tier wizards—they can manipulate and command planes,” Viola said softly beside him, her gaze tinged with longing.
As a third-tier wizard, she could touch spatial forces and keenly sense the plane’s changes.
Despite housing tens of thousands of wizards, the “ship” plane, manipulated by Augustine, felt vast and empty.
Wizards scattered across the barren land, seeking their own spots and busying themselves.
Jie Ming noticed this emptiness was deliberate.
Many wizards, upon landing, immediately summoned bio-beasts or golems from their spatial gear.
These constructs varied: thick-skinned beasts, metal-armored mechanisms, humanoid puppets radiating eerie energy.
Once summoned, they formed orderly, cold legions per their masters’ commands.
Clearly, these artificial creations were the first wave of cannon fodder for invading other planes.
Numerous, tireless, and fearless, they were ideal for depleting enemy forces or breaching plane barriers.
Next came the combat wizards to break enemy lines.
As logistical wizards, Jie Ming and Viola didn’t need to prepare for initial combat.
Their roles leaned toward mid-battle support, post-conquest cleanup, transformation, and resource management, requiring self-preservation early on.
Settling on the “ship” plane, Jie Ming eagerly checked his magic network terminal.
The interface had updated with details about the target plane.
Yet, the information was scant but oddly specific.
Only two points:
First: The plane housed two sixth-tier beings.
Second: The plane was peculiar, with fire and water elements highly active, while earth and wind elements were calm, almost inert.
Beyond this, there was no data on races, terrain, creatures, or even a basic map—no intelligence at all.
This struck Jie Ming as odd.
“How was this intelligence gathered? Didn’t they conduct deep reconnaissance?” he asked Viola.
She had anticipated his question and explained carefully, “This intelligence means the sixth-tier wizard who discovered the plane didn’t enter it. He observed it remotely from the chaotic void, based on its external manifestations.”
“As I told you, planes are miracles where elements with specific patterns coincidentally amass. A plane’s elemental composition, energy cycles, and law operations manifest through its barrier.”
Viola continued, “From the outside, in the chaotic void, you can observe a plane’s elemental makeup—like the active fire and water elements, reflecting its characteristics.”
Jie Ming understood but grew puzzled by another key detail. “Then how do they know the strength of the plane’s beings, like the two sixth-tier entities? That’s not something external observation can reveal, right?”
Viola nodded. “You’ve hit the crux. It’s not purely external observation. It involves the traits of high-tier beings.”
She paused, her tone cautious. “Sixth-tier beings—wizards, gods, or alien entities—naturally commune with a plane’s origin.”
“Their existence is deeply tied to the plane’s laws, their power permeating its deeper layers, resonating with its origin. This resonance makes them stand out in the chaotic void, like blazing beacons in a dark night.”
“Of course, I don’t fully grasp the specifics—it’s knowledge at the sixth-tier level or beyond,” Viola added.
Jie Ming sank into thought.