CH187
"Helag! David! Reese!"
Bennings called out the names of Helag and his companions.
The trio approached the glowing portal.
"Just walk through, no need to worry," Bennings advised.
Helag nodded, took a deep breath, and stepped into the portal, with David and Reese following closely.
As Helag entered, he felt a strong pull drawing him forward.
It felt like an endless abyss, pulling him in.
A force from behind seemed to tug him back.
But the portal's pull was stronger, pulling him completely through.
In an instant, Helag found himself on a stone formation, surrounded by wooden huts.
"Welcome to Expedition Team Base 27."
Helag turned to see a tall, hefty man speaking, weighing an estimated 500 pounds.
"You three are the newcomers from the Barrens?" the man asked.
Helag nodded, "Yes, sir. I'm Helag, and these are David and Reese."
The man patted his belly, "I'm Parker, the captain of Base 27. Glad to have you join us."
Parker's aura was similar to Bennings', likely a third-level wizard.
Parker seemed genuine and friendly, always wearing a cheerful smile.
"Come, let's walk and talk. I'll introduce you to the base," Parker said, leading the way like a moving mountain.
Helag and his companions followed.
Nearby, tall wooden and stone walls surrounded the area, with a protective barrier overhead.
"Base 27 was established just over three years ago. The base numbers reflect their order of establishment, with lower numbers being older."
"Currently, Base 27 is hidden, undiscovered by nearby elves or humans, thanks to a concealment array," Parker explained.
The Elven Plane wasn't just inhabited by elves; elves were the ruling race.
Like other planes, it housed various races, including numerous human kingdoms.
Apart from customs and language differences, these humans were much like those in the Wizard Plane.
This plane also had dragons, giants, and various races.
Conquering it entirely would be challenging, taking centuries.
The pioneering war was just beginning.
"Base 27 has over seventy people, handling logistics, defense, combat, and reconnaissance," Parker explained the personnel structure.
Base 27 had numerous small wooden huts for lodging.
Helag, David, and Reese each had a hut, all adjacent.
Parker knew groups often came from the same faction, so he arranged their housing together.
Familiarity within a faction made cooperation easier.
Parker showed them around Base 27, familiarizing them with the environment and base functions.
They saw many other wizards active within the base.
Base 27's entrance was a wooden gate.
The entire base was protected by multiple arrays.
Some arrays were still being set up, including defensive, offensive, and concealment arrays.
"Familiarize yourselves with the environment and learn our basic rules and requirements. In a few days, you'll receive assignments," Parker said, handing them a booklet.
The booklet detailed base rules, requirements, and reward and punishment guidelines.
Helag and his companions memorized the booklet's contents.
Returning to his hut, Helag examined the simple furnishings.
Basic but sufficient for daily life.
Two days later.
Parker introduced a wiry old man, "This is Cain, a second-level wizard. He'll guide you through some tasks."
"Mr. Cain," Helag and his companions greeted.
Cain nodded, "You're lucky to be assigned here. Though the base isn't fully built, it hasn't been discovered, so it's relatively safe."
"Our main tasks are surveying the surroundings, mapping, and recording local forces and population for future work."
Base 27 was new, undiscovered by nearby humans or elves, so they wouldn't face attacks or ambushes on missions.
Older bases were often discovered.
Wizards from those bases faced danger on missions, risking ambushes.
"Our priority is secrecy. On missions, don't reveal your identity. We'll provide clothing, and you must learn the local language quickly."
"When encountering locals, stay calm and conceal your true identity."
Cain provided two books, the local common language.
Helag had already learned about local customs and culture but hadn't studied the language.
Learning the language posed no difficulty for him.
David and Reese, though lacking deep blue assistance, were formal wizards, so learning the language was easy.
The local language was similar to the Wizard Plane's, making it quick to learn.
Starting today, Helag and his companions would wear local attire instead of their usual clothes.
Cain would help them master the language and local customs before undertaking missions.
They were essentially in training.
Helag and his companions needed time to learn the rules before contributing to Base 27.
Five days later.
Helag and his companions had mastered the language and donned local attire.
CH188
Cain stood in the small plaza of the base, which was really just a flat area.
In front of him were Helag, David, and Reese. "You've all gotten familiar with the area these past few days. Today, we'll leave the base for our first mission."
Cain produced a map, its shape irregular.
Centered on the base, the map showed many unexplored areas, marked as blank.
"Our task today is to map the southeastern terrain. It's a simple mission with low risk," Cain explained.
Base 27 was deep in the mountains, surrounded by wilderness, with no paths.
Helag and his companions followed Cain out of the base gate into dense jungle.
To avoid leaving traces, no paths were cleared, making the forest difficult to navigate.
Helag and his companions, being formal wizards, moved through the untamed forest without much delay.
"Deep Blue, activate environmental scan," Helag instructed.
Helag activated Deep Blue's environmental scan, staying alert to his surroundings.
The energy particle density here was higher than in the Wizard Plane, or the Barrens.
In the Elven Plane, as in the Abyss, wizard magic was less fluid than in the Wizard Plane.
Magic wasn't as smooth, and spell effects were slightly reduced.
This was due to the Elven Plane's world will suppression, though less severe than the Abyss.
Helag had tried sensing his bloodline mark here, finding it still suppressed.
However, due to the royal elf bloodline within, he could tap into some of its power.
Helag hadn't activated it, being cautious under the base's monitoring arrays.
Unlike the Abyss, Helag felt at ease in the Elven Plane, with smoother magic flow.
"Must be the royal elf bloodline," Helag speculated.
Absorbing Shatia's royal elf bloodline made the Elven Plane feel like home.
The world will here didn't suppress his magic.
Only the Abyss's lightning ancestor bloodline was suppressed; other powers weren't.
Helag and his group traversed mountains to the southeastern area.
They began using magic perception to map the terrain.
The task was tedious but simple.
Cain led them, mapping as they went.
In Helag's mind, a broader map formed.
Deep Blue's scan range was much larger than magic perception.
Helag used magic perception, mapping diligently.
Though he knew the wider terrain, he mapped within perception range.
He couldn't reveal how he mapped such a large area to Cain.
A first-level gaseous wizard's perception range was 100-200 meters.
Deep Blue's scan range was 1,500 meters, far exceeding perception.
At their pace, mapping the southeast would take a month.
Using Deep Blue's range, it could be done in seven or eight days.
Such tasks could be stretched out; finishing too quickly would bring new assignments.
Helag couldn't explain how he mapped such a wide area.
He proceeded at a normal pace, mapping slowly.
While traversing the forest, Helag noted various plants.
Many were unique to the Elven Plane, and Helag had Deep Blue record them.
***
While Helag's group mapped, another group struggled through the mountains.
These people wore light armor, carrying bows and packs.
They were border soldiers of the Norn Kingdom, patrolling the mountains.
Carrot, a veteran, had served at the border for ten years.
Mountain patrols were tough, preventing smuggling and detecting enemy movements.
Carrot's group of thirteen had been in the mountains for five months.
After another month, they'd return to the border camp for rest.
Mountain life was harsh, with difficult terrain and dangerous wildlife.
Wild beasts were manageable, with several formal knights in the group.
Most beasts avoided the large group.
Noisy patrols scared away smart beasts.
The real trouble was insects.
Various bugs were hard to guard against, sneaking into collars and pant legs.
A few bites were manageable, but many bugs were venomous.
Untreated bites could lead to limb loss.
Fortunately, there was no war, and the border was stable.
Patrolling soldiers wouldn't face enemy troops, avoiding large-scale casualties.
As long as they survived, hardships were bearable.
Carrot brushed off a black bug from his leg, applied ointment, and continued.
Today's patrol covered an unvisited area, a no-man's land.
Carrot used binoculars to survey the landscape.
He spotted four people in the distance.
"Come here, there's someone over there," Carrot called.
The team took turns with the binoculars, spotting Helag's group.
"What are they doing here?" Carrot wondered.
He saw Helag's group in peasant clothes, unarmed.
In a no-man's land, who could reach here unarmed?
Carrot decided to approach and inquire, as border patrol duty required.
Helag had noticed the soldiers but couldn't say so.
Cain, a second-level wizard, hadn't noticed; Helag, a first-level gaseous wizard, had no reason to.
TL/n -
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