Shadows of Insects in the Small Village

Based on the information gathered by Greem and the others, combined with the communication between Kogen and the projection of Lord Sarubo, they quickly confirmed that this was a small material plane where the maximum power tier could only reach the fourth grade!

Magic elements were scarce.
The occult system was incomplete.
The magical characteristics of the entire plane manifested as a resistance to the casting of spells, which also meant that successfully executing sorcery required effort far beyond the past. Even so, a considerable spell failure rate still persisted!

Due to the difficulty of spellcasting, powerful element controllers found it hard to maintain their professional advantages against physical combatants. This was why the grim situation had arisen in this plane where Demon Hunter Knights completely crushed spellcasters.

A group of "savages" wearing heavy armor, raising metal shields, and riding horses while wielding swords were actually qualified to hunt down great spellcasters all over the world?

Although none of the wizards present held any sympathy for the spellcasters of this plane, the thought of their own "kind" being hunted down like wild beasts by a group of knights wielding savage power ignited flames of anger in everyone's hearts!

Realizing how low the plane's power tier was, Greem could not help but worry, and asked Wizard Kogen: "Lord Kogen, this plane can only accommodate fourth-grade power, then Lord Sarubo..."

Although Greem did not finish his sentence, everyone present understood.

Lord Sarubo was a terrifying sixth-grade Great Wizard; could someone of his strength really squeeze into this plane?

Before Kogen could answer, a low, gentle voice suddenly echoed in everyone's minds.

"Of course not! This plane cannot possibly accommodate my full power." It sounded precisely like the voice of the Great Wizard Sarubo: "I have no intention of projecting all my power in either; I only need a portion to enter. What you need to do now is to guard this place well and wait for the subsequent wizards to arrive.

They will build a wizard tower here.

Once the wizard tower is built, within its zone of coverage, it will be possible for me to project my full power. At that time, as long as the so-called powerhouses of this plane dare to come, I will be able to leave them here forever!"

Greem clenched his teeth and asked with hesitation: "Then why don't you first have a fourth-grade wizard try to force their way in here? Surely it would be much easier for them to enter than for you!"

"A fourth-grade wizard? Hahaha... Little one, you underestimate the suppression of plane laws against wizards too much. On one hand, you must maintain the void vortex so it isn't mended by the space's self-healing instinct; on the other hand, you need to suppress the fluctuations of the void vortex so they aren't perceived by the outside world, and furthermore, you must contend with the powerful plane consciousness. Do you think a fourth-grade wizard could accomplish this?"

The several wizards could not help but nod silently.

They had felt a deep sense of this over the past few days. Finding themselves in an unfriendly plane world, the sheer discomfort brought by plane suppression was almost enough to drive them mad!

If Lord Sarubo's position were replaced by a fourth-grade wizard, under this heavy suppression and entanglement, could they still keep their combat capability from declining? Once attacked by the top-tier powerhouses of this plane, could a fourth-grade wizard, straining to cast spells, continue to maintain a strength advantage before the enemy?

For a moment, everyone in the room fell silent, repeatedly chewing on and savoring the deeper meaning revealed in the Great Wizard's projection.

If they had heard correctly, this outpost camp should be considered the safest place in this plane. At least, that was true for their group of wizards!

Once they encountered irresistible formidable enemies outside, they could completely lure them here and annihilate the enemies with the help of the Great Wizard's projected power. However, this should only be feasible after the wizard tower was built. Before the tower was built, the power the Great Wizard's projection could manifest was limited after all, and could not be used recklessly.

Although everyone secretly wanted to ask what tier of power the Great Wizard's projection could currently manifest, this was undoubtedly the core secret of this invasion, and asking blindly would only invite the Great Wizard's suspicion. Thus, everyone could only remain silent in response.

The Great Wizard had guided their party in and required a one-month buffer period to guide the second batch, which already revealed a fair amount of intelligence. Therefore, several quick-witted wizards secretly pondered in their hearts while outwardly changing the subject to discuss some matters concerning sorcery.

The subsequent task arrangements continued the previous convention: four family wizards were responsible for leading the construction and perfection of the camp, while the trio of Greem remained responsible for the perimeter. However, this time, their methods would no longer be restricted!

Before leaving, Wizard Kogen put forward strict demands to the three of Greem.

The early stage was to focus on concealment, avoiding alerting the enemy, and especially preventing the enemy's attention from being drawn near the camp. During this period, the three wizards had to pull out all the stops to plant necessary informants among the indigenous humans, utilizing the enemy's strength to place all areas that might approach the camp under surveillance.

If there were small groups of enemies, the three could discretionarily and secretly eliminate them. If the enemy forces were massive, they should strive to lure them to other regions. At least until enemies of irresistible second-grade might appeared, the three would not receive any support or assistance from the camp.

The three had anticipated this long ago and had nothing to complain about. Therefore, after resting hastily in the camp for a night, they embarked on their journey once again!

..........

Colka Village, a tiny settlement close to the Great Greenwood of Greenland.

Such rudimentary villages were still quite numerous throughout the Great Greenwood of Greenland. They belonged to those ultra-small settlements where one could see all the dwellings by standing at one end of the village, with a total population adding up to fewer than sixty people.

Because the mountains were full of fierce beasts, most villagers were hunters. Years of hunting life had honed their skills in dealing with beasts, and they were proficient in everything from bows and arrows to traps.

Mountain villages fell asleep early.

Just as the sky had completely darkened, lights were already rare in the small mountain village.

In a small wooden hut near the edge of the mountain village, seven or eight robust men dressed as hunters were gathered around a fire pit to warm themselves and talk, the rising steam from their wooden cups concealing the sorrow on their faces.

"This can't go on! We haven't seen the shadow of large beasts for half a month now. Today I went to check the animal traps on the east side, and there was zero harvest at all." A scarred hunter was the first to start the conversation.

"Yeah, this spell is too weird. It's as if all the beasts have gone into hiding..."

"My side is the same... I went more than thirty miles deep into the mountain forest, yet I didn't spot even a single pheasant or rabbit..."

"Indeed, indeed..."

...

Everyone chimed in with their opinions, their words filled with complete incomprehension and doubt.

"Could some terrifying demonic monster have arrived?" a petite hunter asked out of nowhere.

Everyone immediately fell silent.

For hunters who made a living in the mountain forests, nothing was more terrifying than encountering a demonic monster. Skilled as they were at dealing with jungle beasts, if they ran into a demonic monster, they probably wouldn't even have a chance to run!

"Most of those demonic monsters are deep in the mountains, and they all have their own fixed territories. They wouldn't just run out like this, would they?" a young hunter could not help asking.

"Splitting groups, avoiding disaster, failure in tribal struggles, or the arrival of even more powerful demonic monsters... All of these could make those terrifying demonic monsters change their living areas..." an experienced old hunter said coldly.

Everyone fell silent once again.

"How about we gather tomorrow and venture deep into the mountain forest together? We can't just sit here and wait..." a hunter tentatively asked.

His proposal immediately won the agreement of the others, and their discussion instantly grew heated again.

However, just as everyone was discussing animatedly, "tap, tap, tap" knocking suddenly came from the rudimentary wooden door.

Everyone was stunned!

It couldn't be someone from the village; otherwise, they would have just pushed the door open. Who would be so polite as to stand in the cold wind and knock? Their small mountain village was located halfway up a steep mountain with rugged, winding sheep paths. How could anyone possibly break in here after dark?

Be aware that to guard against beasts breaking into the village in the middle of the night, plenty of animal traps and snares were placed around the perimeter of the village!

"Who is it?" The owner of the wooden hut stood up and asked in a deep voice.

No one answered, but the knocking on the wooden door did not stop.

Just as a slight chill gripped everyone's hearts, a faint, rustling abnormal sound came from overhead. Then, with a patter, some strange objects fell from the ceiling and landed on them.

"Scorpions..."

Some sharp-eyed hunters cried out in alarm, followed by frantic swatting and shaking as they tried to brush away these bizarre black scorpions they had never seen before. But with a slight stinging sensation on their bodies, the hunters abruptly stiffened, and an unprecedented paralyzing sensation rapidly spread through their bodies.

The hunters whose skin was pierced by the scorpions' tail stingers froze in place, their lips trembling slightly, and fear and dread reflected in their pupils, yet they had lost the ability to move.

Under their terrified gaze, bizarre scorpions with high-bulging abdominal sacs appeared in the wooden hut, crawling up their rigid bodies onto their faces. Using sharp and pointed articulated limbs to pry open their mouths, the strange scorpions crawled in without hesitation.

Each hunter watched the companion closest to them in horror. They could clearly see a bulging lump sliding painfully down the esophagus. As for themselves, a heart-rending, tearing pain came from their throats, and both their esophagi and tracheas were ruptured by the foreign objects. That terrifying scorpion was still stubbornly burrowing downward!

They desperately wanted to scream and call for help, but unfortunately, their throats were already blocked. They desperately wanted to use their hands to dig that terrifying scorpion out, but alas, their bodies were so paralyzed that they could not even move a pinky finger.

Such a terrifying scene chilled all the hunters to the bone, rolling their eyes back as they passed out in agony. Only Hank, the most robust man among them, barely held on and remained conscious.

Thus, he was fortunate enough to witness the figure of the mastermind.

Unbeknownst when, an eerie cloaked figure had walked into the hut and slowly seated itself by the fire pit.

In the dim firelight, Hank saw two pools of ghostly green fire beneath the hood and an ugly, terrifying visage that was too hideous to bear looking at directly.

Was this a bug or a person?

Carrying one final, dreary thought, Hank's consciousness plunged into eternal darkness!