chsdbacks Chapter 750 An Unexpected Person
Chapter 750 An Unexpected Person
The spatial rift rippled slowly along the edge of the continent in the Purgatory Sulfur Plane.
The black rift that stretched across the void gradually narrowed, and the dark purple arcs of electricity surging deep within the rift also gradually dimmed, leaving only a few wisps of lightning that silently dissipated in the deep sky.
A group of black giants swarmed forward, carrying various materials to stabilize the crack.
Jemin and Viola floated side by side in the outer void of this new plane, beneath their feet a continent enveloped by a pale blue dimensional barrier. From a distance, the barrier appeared thin, even somewhat flimsy.
It is a translucent sky blue with sparse light patterns flowing across its surface. If we were to make a comparison, the strength of this barrier would probably be equivalent to a slightly thicker energy membrane.
"This dimension is smaller than I expected."
Viola said softly, but there was little surprise in her tone.
She flew forward a distance, and the gray-white solidified domain of the Law of Pain spread out beneath her feet.
As soon as the circular halo appeared, the surrounding void seemed to quiet down slightly.
The runes of law extended from the edge of the halo, transforming into dozens of fine tentacles that slowly unfurled in the air, like some dangerous deep-sea creature extending its tentacles little by little.
Viola raised her right hand, her five fingers spread.
The next instant, those law tendrils simultaneously reached out towards the surface of the dimensional barrier.
The grayish-white runes began to vibrate rapidly the moment they touched the barrier, emitting a low-frequency resonance that was imperceptible to human hearing.
The surface of the barrier rippled with fine waves at the point where the tentacles touched it. The originally calm sky-blue light patterns spread outward from the point of contact, only to be gradually suppressed by the subsequent surge of law tentacles.
This is Viola tuning the frequency of the Law of Pain, making her law fluctuations completely synchronize with the energy structure of the dimensional barrier, and then gradually "embedding" herself into it.
This caused the barrier to mistakenly believe that the force was part of itself, and it eventually made way for her.
This method is less strenuous and quieter than a direct demolition, and it won't immediately disturb the creatures inside the dimension.
Jemin stood with his arms crossed, hovering not far behind her, the vertical eye between his brows already quietly opening.
While recording the energy structure of the barrier, the All-Seeing Eye continuously compared the data with the Tentacle Tree planes it had previously explored. It quickly reached a conclusion.
The seat was younger than he had initially expected.
The aura of the plane's origin is very fresh, like a newly formed plane that has only been around for a few hundred million years.
Such places usually don't produce anything too ancient, but occasionally, they may hold some unexpected surprises.
Just as he was thinking this, Viola's law tendrils suddenly stopped.
Jemin, who was observing from behind, saw it clearly: she hadn't encountered any obstacle, but rather she had stopped on her own initiative.
In response, Jemin looked at Senior Viola with a puzzled expression.
She maintained her open-finger posture, her head slightly tilted to one side, her light green eyes quietly staring in a certain direction deep within the dimensional barrier.
The usual nonchalant smile at the corner of his mouth was slowly fading away.
Instead, a look that rarely appeared on her face was one of caution.
At the same time, there was also a hint of excitement.
"Looks like there's an unexpected surprise."
She spoke in a low voice, her tone slower than usual.
Jemin's brow twitched slightly as he followed her gaze into the depths of the barrier.
Unfortunately, due to the dimensional barrier, he could only see the general terrain below at most; he couldn't see anything else. But he didn't doubt Viola's judgment.
The Law of Pain has a wider range of perceptions of living beings than he does, especially in the matter of "where pain exists," where she has an almost instinctive sensitivity.
The fact that she could stop during the infiltration meant that something happening beneath the barrier had triggered her awareness of the laws. Sensing Jemin's confusion, Viola beckoned him over.
When he obediently came to Viola's side, Jemin could feel Viola's hand on his shoulder.
"There's been a slight mishap; you'll probably have to step in later."
Following the mental fluctuations shared by Viola, Jemin felt his gaze pass through the dimensional barrier and fall upon the world below that was slowly unfolding.
It was within the atmosphere, a hilly area covered with lush vegetation.
The sky in this dimension is light purple.
As starlight passes through the atmosphere, it is refracted by some unknown high-altitude gas into a soft violet hue, sprinkling across the rolling hills and depressions like a tranquil veil.
The large depression was filled with light blue water, and when a breeze blew, the surface of the water rippled.
A faint, sweet, fishy smell permeated the air, like the scent left behind after a large amount of plant sap had evaporated, which also made the entire area unusually damp.
Along the edges of those field ridges, a group of humanoid creatures whose bodies were made of green leaves and branches were busy at work.
Their bodies are woven from flexible vines, their limbs are relatively thick branches, and their ends are tendrils that can be manipulated at will.
Each one has a cluster of small flowers of different colors on its head, which sway gently with its movements, like a flower crown swaying in the wind.
Their vines droop down from behind, their tips buried deep in the soil, as if drawing some kind of nourishment from the earth.
And what they are doing is quite peculiar.
Between the hands of each person in a vegetative state, a pale green sphere of light was gathered.
The sphere of light was carefully peeled from the air and then placed into rows of neatly arranged earthenware jars along the edge of the field.
As soon as the sphere of light fell into the ceramic jar, it quickly condensed into a few drops of thick, emerald-green liquid, emitting an extremely faint yet pure life force. Clearly, it was a product of some kind of life energy refinement.
On the high ground of the field, several humanoid creatures dressed in armor were watching over them from above.
The creatures were roughly the same size as humans, but their faces clearly showed features of tentacle-like creatures.
Dozens of slender, fleshy tentacles hang around its mouth, their tips twitching gently in the air, as if constantly "tasting" the surrounding scents.
Their eyes were pure black, without any whites or pupils, just a deep, dark black that reflected a dim and cold luster under the pale purple light.
The armor was covered with a dark energy coating, and the weapon hanging at the waist was shaped somewhere between a gun and a staff, with a faint glow of energy emanating from its muzzle.
Two octopus-faced guards were standing on a flat rock.
One of them took off his helmet and casually hung it on his waist, revealing his complete octopus face.
The whiskers on one face swayed lazily in the breeze, making it seem more like someone slacking off in the sun than on guard. The other, still wearing a helmet, arms crossed, casually scanned the working vegetative-person below with his dark eyes. Suddenly, he swung his hand, a whip of light shooting from his armor, striking one of the vegetative-persons: "Hurry up! Don't slack off!" The scorching whip burned the affected area to a bright red, causing pain even to someone with a vegetative-person's underdeveloped nervous system.
The air around them rippled with barely perceptible waves; that was the language unique to people in a vegetative state.
Seeing this, the other vegetative patients shook off the branches and leaves on their bodies and quickened their movements.
"The collection efficiency of this batch is even worse than the previous batch."
The octopus-faced man, having removed his helmet, began to complain.
When it speaks, the low, rumbling sound emanating from beneath its whiskers sounds like bubbles rising in water, but when translated, it is the standard universal language of the plane.
"At this rate, the number of finished products that can be submitted this cycle will probably be more than 20% less than the last cycle."
"It's fine if it's less, it's not our fault."
The one wearing the helmet shrugged, and a slight grinding sound came from the shoulder joints of his armor.
"The higher-ups know what kind of place this is. Those tree-brained creatures are so stupid they can't even speak; they're lucky if they can even work. If anyone's to blame, it's the exploration team for not finding a better plane."
"When have those exploration team guys ever been reliable?"
The octopus-faced creature, having removed its helmet, disdainfully twitched the air with one of its tentacles.
"Last time they confidently declared, 'This plane has been confirmed to be devoid of intelligent civilization and suitable for direct development.' But as soon as we landed, all we saw were tree branches and heads scattered across the land. If it weren't for these natives' talent for collecting life energy, the higher-ups would have cleared this place out long ago. Why would we be wasting our time here!"
"Too much trouble?"
The octopus-faced man in the helmet sneered.
"You're not satisfied with being here under the UV rays, watching a bunch of people in a vegetative state farm? Come on, stop complaining. At least this mission isn't life-threatening, it's better than going to the front lines as cannon fodder. Just think of it as a paid vacation."
"Too."
The octopus-faced creature, having removed its helmet, slowly stretched, all its tentacles extending outwards before lazily drooping back down. "Anyway, I'll be able to rotate through a few more years. When I get back to my home planet, the first thing I'll do is apply for a clerical position in the rear colony department. I never want to see even a single leaf again..."
Before it could finish speaking, it was abruptly interrupted by a shout: "Something terrible has happened!!"
Another octopus-faced creature was flying in from the direction of the outpost below the hill.
Its helmet was tilted to one side, revealing half of its face, and the whiskers on that half of its face were all standing up as if they had been electrocuted, with even the tips of the whiskers turning slightly white due to excessive tension.
It nearly overshot the two men when it rushed towards them, but the octopus-man who wasn't wearing a helmet managed to pull it back.
When the charging octopus-man raised its head, its pure black eyes were filled with nothing but fear.
"Heavens! Heavens!"
It raised one hand, pointing violently towards the sky, its voice distorted.
"Two unidentified creatures in the sky are breaking through the dimensional barrier!"