Chapter 252: Teaming Up

When Jie Ming finally returned to the massive spatial rift connecting the

Ship Plane

and the

Void Plane

, the scene before him had undergone a dramatic transformation.

During his absence, the headquarters had constructed a colossal “Floating Camp” resembling a suspended island beneath the rift!

The entire camp was built from sturdy black rock, likely sourced directly from the

Ship Plane

.

Various fully functional wizard structures had already taken shape—energy towers, alchemy workshops, and even a burgeoning trading market.

Countless energy runes shimmered along the camp’s edges, forming multiple layers of robust protection.

Jie Ming controlled his flight trajectory, gently landing on the central plaza of the Floating Camp.

He found the place far livelier than he’d anticipated!

The plaza was bustling not only with wizards returning from all directions but also with hordes of local creatures captured during their explorations.

All manner of bizarre creatures, bound by energy chains or soul contracts, were herded like cargo, streaming in from every direction.

The camp devoured these vast spoils like a ravenous beast, never sated.

Upon landing, Jie Ming easily located the prominently marked “Affairs Center.”

He approached, logged his acceptance and commitment to the mandatory mission on his terminal, and received a handful of marble-sized “signal markers” emitting faint spatial fluctuations from an alchemy puppet nearby.

After completing the preliminary steps for the mandatory mission, Jie Ming didn’t leave immediately.

He planned to browse the temporary camp’s market for artifacts that could stabilize surrounding space or mark his precise spatial coordinates—tools to avoid the dangers of “spatial turbulence.”

As he wandered the market, a familiar voice called out.

“Junior Brother Jie Ming? What a coincidence, you’re back too!”

Jie Ming turned to see Senior Brother Jack.

“Senior Brother Jack, didn’t expect to run into you—looks like my luck’s pretty good…”

The two exchanged

cheerful

greetings.

After some small talk, Jack, having noticed Jie Ming browsing the stalls, couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Junior Brother Jie Ming, you seem to be looking for something. If it’s not too sensitive, tell your senior brother. I helped build this place, so I know it well.”

Jie Ming didn’t hide his intent, stating frankly, “I’m looking for an artifact that can stabilize space or mark my spatial coordinates. This plane’s space is too unstable, and the risk is a bit high.”

Hearing Jie Ming’s request, Jack pondered for a moment before his eyes lit up. “I don’t have such an artifact myself, but Levin Mills—you should remember him, the only one in our group who reached third rank—he might have a solution.”

“Senior Brother Levin Mills?” Jie Ming’s mind flashed to the person he’d met before, then he frowned slightly. “If I recall correctly, isn’t he specialized in potioncraft?”

“You’ve got a good memory. Yes, Levin specializes in potioncraft. While he can’t make complex artifacts, he recently used creatures from this plane to create a very unique potion.”

“This potion, when consumed, significantly enhances the user’s sensitivity to wind elements and spatial forces! It won’t let you navigate spatial turbulence freely or make you immune to it, but it allows you to sense ‘spatial disturbances’ in advance, letting you avoid danger.”

“And according to Levin, the potion’s effect on perception is permanent! It’ll even help greatly with your future studies in spatial knowledge!”

Jie Ming’s eyes

sparkled

at Jack’s description!

Such a treasure exists?

He eagerly asked, “Senior Brother Jack, can I buy this potion?”

Jack laughed heartily. “Of course, no problem. We were already planning to trade it for some needed resources. But… not right now, since we’re out of raw materials. You’ll have to wait a bit.”

Seeing the

disappointment

on Jie Ming’s face, Jack patiently explained, “The core ingredient for this potion is a highly condensed, extremely pure ‘wind element energy body’ formed under high-pressure conditions. You know how hard those are to come by…”

Jie Ming sighed helplessly.

Energy bodies sounded common, but with tags like “highly condensed” and “extremely pure,” they were incredibly rare.

This made the miraculous potion less useful to him.

After all, the danger of spatial turbulence was ever-present.

Waiting for them to find new materials and brew the potion would take too long.

Just then, Jack’s tone shifted, revealing his true purpose.

Looking at Jie Ming, his expression grew serious. “Jie Ming, would you like to join us on an urgent rescue mission?”

Before Jie Ming could ask, Jack quickly explained, “Our team took on one of the emergency missions to ‘rescue lost wizards.’ We need to head to a marked ‘spatial turbulence’ zone to save several wizards trapped inside.”

“But the distorted space within that turbulence is unexpectedly vast, far beyond our initial estimates. We need more hands to help with the search.”

“Don’t worry, the mission’s danger level is low. The main search will be conducted by modified scouting fodder we control from the periphery. Plus, our team has already found a stable entry and exit point for the turbulence, so we can retreat safely anytime.”

“If you’re willing to help us complete this mission, besides the mission’s rewards, I can personally offer you a bottle of that potion that permanently enhances spatial perception!”

Jie Ming’s eyes

lit up

. The deal was tempting.

But he had doubts. “Is the area inside that spatial distortion really that large? If manpower is short, can’t you just deploy more scouting fodder?”

Jack gave a wry smile. “The area inside that distortion is unimaginably vast. Honestly, every wizard in our team has already maxed out the number of fodder they can control with soul contracts. That’s why we need to recruit more wizards to deploy additional fodder and expand the search range.”

Jie Ming grew more puzzled. He’d seen the emergency mission details and felt their investment already exceeded the mission’s rewards.

“Are the wizards trapped inside that important to you?”

Jack leaned in mysteriously, whispering, “The wizards aren’t the key—it’s the spatial distortion nodes themselves. While these ‘spatial distortions’ are tricky to handle, their interiors often contain vast amounts of high-value resources!”

“To form such stable ‘spatial distortions,’ massive amounts of pure elements must gather. Over time, this creates rare, high-value resources or creatures!”

“Including… the raw materials for that potion, which were actually obtained from another similar ‘spatial distortion’ node.”

After hearing Jack’s explanation, Jie Ming quickly weighed the pros and cons.

With little hesitation, he agreed to Jack’s proposal.

“Alright, if it’s as you say, I might owe you for giving me this opportunity.”

The proposal carried minimal risk for him but offered substantial rewards.

Beyond the resources and the potion, Jie Ming had another motive.

He wanted to join these experienced “veterans” to learn from them.

To gain experience and knowledge in handling “spatial distortions” and similar dangers.

“Each gets what they need, and Academy wizards are more trustworthy than outsiders,” Jack said with a smile.

They quickly settled on a time and place to meet again.

Jack then hurriedly bid farewell, likely off to recruit more help.

After parting with the busy Senior Brother Jack, Jie Ming didn’t immediately rest. Instead, he wandered the vibrant, bustling temporary plaza again.

The potion only offered a passive “early warning” method, a backup at best.

Finding a powerful artifact that could directly suppress local spatial turbulence in a crisis would be ideal.

The plaza was crowded, the atmosphere lively.

Beyond wizards selling self-made potions and artifacts at stalls, many peddled fresh biomaterials or rare living creatures from this plane.

ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ novel·fire·net

The camp’s official acquisition prices were too low, merely a baseline.

Selling to other wizards here could fetch a slightly better profit.

As Jie Ming wove through the eclectic stalls, his gaze suddenly fixed on a creature in a cage at one stall, stopping him in his tracks.