Wizard: Starting from Escape from the Thorn Garden

Chapter 172 Preparation and Infiltration

Kate's figure completely blended into the suffocating gray-green mist of the Withering Swamp, the stern and precise warning from Commander Orion echoing in her ears.

He did not let his guard down after being promoted to the second ring and mastering "death disguise". On the contrary, he raised his caution to the extreme.

He wholeheartedly agreed with the commander's statement that "the swamp itself is the greatest enemy."

His plan was not to rush straight to the target, but rather, as the commander had hinted, and even as he himself rationally judged, to first…

"Test", then "infiltrate".

The primary task is to verify and refine his "death disguise".

According to maps and intelligence, the newly discovered unusual altar is located about 30 kilometers to the southeast, hidden on the outskirts of a treacherous area known as the "Putrid Muddy Swamp".

Instead of choosing the shortest path, Kate planned a circuitous route that would pass through several known areas where low-level decaying creatures were active.

Like the most patient hunter, he concealed his aura to the minimum, keeping the Heart of Reincarnation operating at a minimum, only ensuring the stability of the "Death Disguise" and filtering out deadly environmental toxins.

Aisha's spatial perception, like invisible tentacles, cautiously spreads forward and around him, providing early warnings of potential quagmires, energy turbulence, and—life reactions.

The first "test point" was soon reached, a shallow puddle overgrown with twisted, blackened reeds.

According to intelligence, this is one of the daily patrol areas for the "Corrupted Gnoll" sentries.

Kate lay in wait, holding her breath, behind a cluster of giant, foul-smelling mushrooms covered in pustules.

He adjusted the "Death Disguise," trying to make it more chaotic and bestial, more closely resembling the relatively low-level decay permeating this area, rather than the decay he had previously simulated that was closer to the origin of the abyss.

Soon, a group of about five corrupted gnolls staggered into his field of vision.

Their skin was ulcerated, revealing dark red muscles and stark white bones. Their eyes were cloudy and dull, and saliva dripped from between their jagged teeth, emitting a strong stench.

They are merely the lowest-ranking cannon fodder, acting solely on instinct.

When they got within about fifty meters, Kate's heart skipped a beat as she did her best to maintain the stability of her camouflage.

The gnoll squad remained oblivious, continuing to sniff the ground aimlessly and make meaningless gurgling noises. One of them even walked past the mushroom where Kate was hiding less than ten meters away, its rotting nose twitching a few times, but it only sneezed before continuing onward.

"Initial camouflage is effective—successfully confusing lower-level creatures that rely on their sense of smell and decaying energy."

Kate kept it in mind, but she didn't relax.

The Seed of Origin was operating at high speed, recording details of the energy fluctuations emitted by the gnolls, their behavioral patterns, and even the faint spiritual connection between them.

He quietly followed the small group for a distance to observe them further.

He discovered that these gnolls were not entirely undisciplined; their patrol routes followed a vague pattern. They would pause for a moment at certain specific locations, such as a deformed rock or a particularly tall, withered tree, seemingly rubbing their bodies together to leave a scent mark.

Does the behavior of "creating a basic social and territorial consciousness—that requires masquerading as such" exist? Or, at least, should it not interfere with these markings?

Kate pondered and carefully avoided the locations that might be marked.

For the next few days, Kate moved around cautiously within a ten-kilometer radius of the altar, like a ghost.

He encountered and successfully deceived more corrupted gnolls, some "plague maggots" rolling in the mud, and even a small group of aimlessly wandering "skeleton soldiers".

His "death disguise" became more and more sophisticated with each adjustment, allowing him to fine-tune the "texture" and "intensity" of the decaying aura he exuded based on the type of creature he encountered and the surrounding environment.

But he also encountered challenges.

On one occasion, he attempted to approach an area radiating a more intense, decaying energy, where several more powerful "Plague Dogs" resided.

These creatures have more acute senses, relying not only on their sense of smell but also on an almost instinctive aversion to the presence of life.

As Kate approached, one of the lead plague dogs suddenly stopped, its murky eyes fixed on Kate's direction, emitting a threatening growl, even though Kate's "death disguise" had not failed.

"It's a behavioral pattern!" Kate realized instantly.

His overly "cautious" and "purposeful" way of moving distinguished him from those aimless, manic, but simple-minded decaying creatures.

He immediately mimicked the movements of a nearby plague zombie, becoming slow, swaying, and emitting meaningless, low growls.

The plague dog tilted its head in confusion for a moment, its growling subsided, and finally it shook its rotting head and turned away.

"It's not just the energy aura, but also the disorder and mania emanating from behavior and even mental fluctuations—all of these need to be simulated."

Kate made a note of this key point.

He began to deliberately imitate the way decaying creatures moved, paused, and even occasionally made meaningless movements such as biting and scratching at the air or rotting trees.

On another occasion, he encountered a small patch of eerie "howling mushrooms".

Once these mushrooms are brought close, they emit a piercing shriek that cuts straight to the soul and releases a chaotic mental shock.

Kate initially wanted to avoid it, but then changed her mind and decided to use it as an opportunity to test her resistance to the "dream" rules.

He weakened the protection of his life energy, relying mainly on the annihilation of the Death Core and the ability of dream rules to disperse and distort mental waves to withstand the attack.

The shrill sound entered my ears, like countless steel needles piercing my soul.

However, as the heart of reincarnation circulates, most of the impact is neutralized by the "stillness" of the core of death, while the remainder is guided and distorted by the rules of dreams, turning into countless broken, meaningless fragments of noise, greatly reducing its power.

Although I still feel unwell, it's far from being an injury.

"Resistance to mental pollution and soul attacks has been achieved. Dream rules are highly effective in combating these types of attacks."

Kate confirmed one thing.

The greatest challenge came when he tried to cross a relatively open area of ​​gravel shrouded in a thin layer of poisonous miasma.

A sudden, urgent warning came from Aisha: there were extremely subtle, unnatural folds in the space ahead.

Kate immediately froze, pushing her "death disguise" to its limit, even simulating a hint of wounded "listlessness".

A moment later, the air in front of him distorted, and a blurry figure, as if made of shadows and viscous liquid, slowly emerged.

It has a humanoid silhouette, but the details are constantly changing, and it holds a twisted dagger dripping with black liquid.

Its eyes were two burning, eerie green flames, scanning its surroundings.

"Corrupted Lurker—a true Abyss creation, Tier 2, Lower Rank!" Kate's heart skipped a beat. This was the being Commander Orion had warned her about—a being capable of seeing through ordinary disguises.

The corrupted lurker seemed to sense something amiss; its eerie green light swept across Kate's location and lingered for a moment.

Kate could feel a cold, malicious force sweeping over her, trying to penetrate that "death disguise".

Kate fully activated the Heart of Reincarnation, achieving an extreme, almost "empty" balance within her body based on the rules of life and death, simulating a near-death state of "about to be completely annihilated and return to decay."

At the same time, he used the rules of dreams to create an extremely faint, distorted "illusion field" around himself, making the other person's gaze seem to always "slide" away and unable to truly focus.

Time seemed to stand still.

A few seconds later, the corrupted lurking creature seemed unable to find any definite signs of "life," or perhaps it considered Kate, a "dying" and decaying creature, to be worthless. It let out a barely audible hiss, and its figure once again merged into the shadows and disappeared.

Kate slowly breathed a sigh of relief; her back was already soaked with cold sweat.

The confrontation just now was extremely dangerous. If he hadn't given a warning in advance and pushed his disguise and application of the rules to their current limits, he might have already been exposed.

"When facing true Abyss elites, disguise is not always reliable. We must be more careful and keep our distance."

He classified this experience as a high-risk case and conducted in-depth analysis using the Seed of Origin to further optimize the camouflage strategy, especially against the "perception-focused" countermeasure.

After seven days of almost non-stop infiltration, observation, testing, and adjustments, Kate's confidence in her "death disguise" reached a new level.

He was able to perfectly simulate the "aura and texture" and "behavioral patterns" of various decaying creatures, from low-level cannon fodder to near-second-tier elites, and even simulate the faint spiritual resonance between them.

Now, even if he swaggers among those corrupted gnolls, as long as he doesn't attack, they will treat him as one of their own and ignore him.

It's time to move on to the next step—finding an "identity" that allows legitimate access to the altar.

Through long-term observation, Kate discovered that it wasn't just scattered patrols heading towards the unusual altar.

Every so often, a regular "transportation team" will come from the depths of the swamp and enter the altar area.

The transport convoy was escorted by several strong "Plague Beasts" controlled by special shackles and a few "Abyss Cultists" dressed in tattered black robes and with a noticeably more refined aura.

The giant beast carried a foul-smelling, dark red, viscous substance on its back, which appeared to be some kind of "nutrient".

These followers of the abyss are his targets.

They possess a certain level of intelligence, are capable of executing complex commands, and have the authority to enter the altar.

The key is to find a lone target whose aura and strength match Kate's current state.

The opportunity will appear at dusk on the eighth day.

A follower of the Abyss, seemingly responsible for scouting the surrounding area, deviated from the transport team's regular route and made his way towards the area where Kate was hiding.

This believer's strength is around the peak of the first ring. He is relatively thin and moves furtively, as if he is carrying out some kind of secret mission, or perhaps he is trying to slack off?

This is exactly what Kate wanted.

Kate followed silently.

After confirming that there were no other informants around, he decided to take action.

What he needs is a perfect replacement that doesn't raise any alarm.

He chose a natural trap formed by the entanglement of massive, dead tree roots. As the believer carefully examined the roots, Kate moved.

There is no earth-shattering energy burst, only extreme efficiency and precision.

"Spatial Blink!" Kate's figure vanished instantly, reappearing in the shadows behind the believer the next moment.

"Seed of the Spiritual Pivot - Consciousness Imprisonment!"

A highly concentrated, gray-green seed, imbued with the power of death, annihilation, and the descent into dreams, silently sank into the back of the believer's head.

The believer's body stiffened abruptly, the eerie green flames in his eyes dimmed instantly, and his consciousness was forcibly dragged into an eternal nightmare prison, unable to even utter a scream.

"Life Absorption, Form Simulation!" Kate placed her palm on the believer's head, and the immense life energy acted like the most precise scanner, instantly recording every detail of the believer's body:

The skeletal structure, muscle texture, energy flow path, and even the material and damage of the tattered black robe.

At the same time, the power of the rules of death spread, rapidly decomposing and annihilating the believers' corpses along with their equipment, turning them into the most basic particles that dissipated into the air without leaving a trace.

The whole process happened in the blink of an eye, cleanly and efficiently.

The next moment, Kate's body surface rippled slightly, her bones made a soft popping sound, and her muscle fibers rearranged under the precise control of life energy.

His body quickly became thinner, his skin turned pale and ashen, and his facial features began to resemble those of the believer.

At the same time, the aura around him instantly switched, from the previously simulated "low-level decay" to the more "pure" decay fluctuations unique to this Abyss believer, carrying a hint of cunning and fanaticism.

Even the tattered black robe was perfectly simulated using energy.

Kate moved her new body around, feeling the energy flow that was completely different from before.

He picked up a bone dagger and an identity plaque engraved with twisted runes that the believer had dropped on the ground.

"Identity acquired. Next step: infiltrate the altar."

He mimicked the believer's mannerisms—slightly hunched over, his steps unsteady yet wary, his eyes gleaming with a cunning glint mixed with fanaticism—as he walked toward the altar.

This time, he no longer hid, but instead, as if returning home, he merged into the path that led to the core of decay, a path trodden out by countless footprints of depravity.

Along the way, he encountered several patrols of decaying creatures, and even a corrupted lurking figure standing on a high vantage point.

But this time, no unusual gazes lingered on him.

He even nodded to another believer walking towards him, who merely returned the gesture indifferently before passing by.

perfect.

His disguise was so convincing that even the true elites of the Abyss couldn't easily see through it.

As they went deeper, the decaying energy in the air became increasingly concentrated, even beginning to carry a chilling pressure.

The ground gradually hardened, covered with a dark red fungal carpet that resembled congealed blood.

In the distance, a bizarre building, constructed of pale white bones, twisted metal, and writhing flesh, and constantly emitting faint pulses, came into view.

That was his target—the abnormally decayed altar.

Kate took a deep breath, suppressing the surging emotions in her heart, and immersing her consciousness into a state of near-absolute coldness and rationality.