Wizards begin with Occlumency.

Chapter 273 The Early Return

Four days later.

The "Cloud Neon" arrived at the Heng system, where the Level 3 Zerg world is located.

Because of the previous encounter, we took a detour and were delayed, arriving a day later than last time.

Although Ms. Lissandra claimed that she had cleaned up the level 3 Zerg world and removed all the intruders.

However, Sandra did not take this seriously and rashly allowed the "Cloudy" to land.

The "Cloud Neon" remained hovering in a star system where it could advance or retreat at will, and this time, the micro-legion did not immediately set out.

Sandra first sent out a large number of reconnaissance artifacts to conduct a detailed investigation of the situation in the Level 3 Zerg world.

People always need to improve; you learn from your mistakes.

The 11 members of the miniature legion were each assigned a portion of the reconnaissance artifacts to control.

Link sat at the control panel, looking at the changed terrain of the Level 3 Zerg world, a question flashing through his mind.

For some reason, Link felt something was wrong as soon as he arrived in the Level 3 Zerg world, even before landing.

This feeling of unease isn't about a crisis, but rather a sense that something is wrong with the planet in front of us.

Last time, even if there were signs of decline, it was never like this, like a frail old man in his twilight years.

With just a little powerful attack, like Annihilation Light, it will be reduced to ashes.

The feeling Link gets is similar to that of the broken world that was the predecessor of "Small World".

"What happened?"

He muttered to himself, completely baffled.

"Link, I've made a discovery."

Jasmine's voice echoed in Link's heart.

This is another ability shared by the "God-Eating Worm" larvae, similar to the "Mind Link" of the True Spirit Wizard.

The prerequisite for using this ability is that Link grants access permission.

Otherwise, Jasmine would not be able to convey her thoughts to Link, and listen to Link's thoughts after the connection is established.

"What was discovered?"

Link asked himself the same question.

"The silkworm told me it sensed the presence of a fellow member, and it was an elderly 'God-Devouring Insect'!"

Jasmine said in a low, melancholy tone.

"An elderly 'God-Eating Worm'?"

Link was greatly shocked.

The development of the "God-Eating Worm" depends on two things: eating and sleeping.

Both of these will naturally increase over time.

Unless there are exceptional cases, the elderly "God-Eating Worm" is the strongest.

Link immediately asked, "How strong are you?"

If the old "God-Eating Insect" that the silkworm sensed is still powerful, the return of the miniature army this time is just to give it a treat.

Jasmine replied, "The silkworm said it's dying, it only has one breath left, and it has no ability to fight."

Link was still uneasy. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Tell me the coordinates, I'll scout it out."

"OK."

Jasmine immediately told Link the location of the old "God-Eating Worm" that the silkworm had sensed.

As luck would have it, it landed right in the area Link was in charge of scouting.

Link immediately deployed several reconnaissance magical artifacts to conduct a thorough search of the area.

Sure enough, some anomalies that were not detected during the initial screening were discovered.

"How's the reconnaissance going? If there are no problems, we'll land."

After Sandra instructed the tower spirit to bring out a protective life-sustaining suit that was even more advanced than the last one, she clapped her hands and asked loudly.

"no problem."

"Everything is fine, there are no problems."

"I think we can land."

Besides Link and Jasmine, the others also spoke out.

Link said in a deep voice, "I've noticed something unusual here."

A team should act like a team.

Concealing information is not a good thing; it can easily lead to mistakes.

Therefore, Link told him frankly.

"What's wrong?"

Sandra immediately projected the live feed from Link's control panel onto the giant screen so that everyone could see it.

"here."

Link controlled the AI ​​in the control room and drew an area on the real-time image. "There seems to be a high-energy reaction here. After closer inspection, it appears that there are high-level Zerg active here."

This was done entirely to avoid revealing Jasmine's silkworms.

"Increase the scanning intensity."

Sandra examined the area Link had marked for a while, confirmed it was accurate, and then gave instructions to the tower spirit.

"clear."

Upon receiving the order, Taling immediately activated the "Cloud Neon's" reconnaissance system, activating all modes for a thorough scan.

The scan results came out shortly afterward.

The processed image appeared on the giant screen, eliciting a collective gasp.

The elderly "God-Eating Worm," whose size was comparable to the "Cloud and Rainbow," lay in a cloud of dust, like a low hill, extremely inconspicuous.

At this point, Taling appended information about the "God-Eating Worm" from the database to the image and gave his assessment.

The elderly "God-Eating Insect" is nearing the end of its life. Although its strength has diminished to almost nothing, it still poses a significant danger.

It is recommended to kill them first, then land.

Sandra considered it for a while and rejected the tower spirit's suggestion, instead deciding to imprison the spirit first, and kill it if that didn't work.

However, Sandra did not act unilaterally, but instead fully demonstrated the spirit of democracy by asking for the opinions of the members.

Link doesn't object to this operation, provided that the "Cloud and Rainbow" has the means to imprison the elderly "God-Eating Worm".

After obtaining the unanimous consent of the members, Sandra ordered the Tower Spirit to carry out the imprisonment order.

A moment later, a metal cage, guided by precision, descended from the sky, expanded, and enclosed the dying, elderly "God-Eating Worm" within.

The elderly "God-Eating Worm" showed no reaction whatsoever.

He's almost dead, just one last breath, and he might die if he moves even slightly.

I'm too lazy to move.

Every second counts.

With the Elder God Eater dealt with, there are no longer any obstacles in the Tier 3 Zerg world that can stop the landing of the micro-legion.

Twelve people, dressed in high-end protective life-sustaining suits, boarded a shuttle and quickly descended from the "Cloud Neon" in outer space to the surface of the Level 3 Zerg world.

"Everyone, please take notes of the mission route."

This time, Sandra didn't control the mission route alone; instead, she distributed it to everyone in advance.

This will give legion members a clear understanding of where they will go first, what they will do first, where they will go next, and what they will do next.

Unlike last time, we won't be taking things one step at a time, not knowing what the next step will be.

"Set off."

After everyone had reviewed the route, Sandra led the group to set off.

The first location was still a Zerg settlement.

This settlement was also lifeless, with no Zerg living there for a long time.

Link was responsible for scouting ahead, eliminating dangers, and maintaining vigilance, along with six members of prominent families from the main academy.

Jasmine, Lani, Tiffany, and Fried embark on an ecological survey.

Under Gerald's leadership, the other five members of the extended family also chose to follow Link's orders.

Whether by choice or by force, Link has taken over Gerald's position as the combat team leader.

Sandra took in this scene but said nothing.

Now, Sandra has realized why she said she wanted to join "the freedom to do whatever she wants".

However, even knowing that her mother was involved and that it wasn't entirely her own will, Sandra did not choose to back down.

After thinking for a moment, Sandra walked over to Link and whispered, "I wasn't joking when I said I'd join 'Freedom to Do Anything'."

Link replied seriously, "I welcome you to join 'Freedom to Do Anything,' and I'm not joking."

After arriving at the main campus for further studies, Link and Jasmine took the time to update the "Freedom to Do Anything" charter, which, from the top-level design, made "Freedom to Do Anything" public property.

It's no longer Link's "freedom to do whatever he wants".

The decision-making body has seven seats, which are elected.

The executive level is also elected, but it must be approved by the decision-making level and publicly announced internally;

Ordinary members are still subject to strict entry requirements but lenient exit policies.

That's the general idea. There are many more details, but I won't go into them here.

This top-level design fundamentally determines that it is basically impossible to establish a dictatorship within a framework of "freedom to do anything".

If this is really going too far, ordinary members should just leave.

"it is good."

Sandra nodded, said nothing more, and went to inspect other areas.

"You really dared to accept her!"

Gerald, standing beside him, asked in surprise, "Do you know what accepting her will bring you?"

"What's there to be afraid of?"

Link knew, of course, that Sandra's identity was special and that many people were watching her every move.

The sudden news of joining an obscure, little-known organization, even if that organization is dynamic and has potential, can still cause a huge uproar.

Many people dared not question Sandra, but dared to make things difficult for Link Grand.

At that time, Link will likely face towering waves and a host of troubles.

Thinking this, Link smiled slightly: "Let the storm rage on."

Feeling the exhilaration and excitement emanating from Link, Gerald was speechless.

Every super genius has a temperament and their own pride.

Talent, diligence, ability, and mindset are all indispensable.

Gerald knew he couldn't persuade him, nor was there any point in trying, so he kept quiet and remained on guard.

Link didn't say anything more either.

Nearly an hour later, the research team had completed all the sampling and testing work.

Without the interference of the Zerg forces, this sampling and testing was more comprehensive and in-depth than the last one.

The micro-corps quickly moved on to its next destination, a small settlement where there was still sporadic Zerg activity.

The battle was about to break out, but it immediately ceased.

The weak insectoids were powerless against the fully armed and powerful wizards and were all captured alive.

Considering the previous inexplicable curse and parasite infestation, this time, no one had direct contact with the Zerg.

The captured Zerg were separated and placed into several different cages, then transported directly to the "Cloudy" by shuttles summoned by Sandra.

Only after thorough investigation and confirmation that there are no potential risks will the equipment be put into use for various inspections, tests, and even live studies.

This small settlement also contained some surviving insect eggs that had not been sent to the hatching pool in time, and were also discovered by the micro-legion.

As Link, driven by his researcher's instincts, carefully observed the insect eggs, the "small world" seemed to tremble with a hint of longing.

What the "small world" craves are all good things that can help it evolve.

After absorbing the core of the depleted world, the gap in the material realm of the fourth evolution has been filled.

The opportunity for the fifth evolution has not yet arrived.

Logically speaking, the "small world" is currently in a state of having eaten too much and not yet digested.

It's impossible to crave anything anymore.

It just so happens that this reaction occurs when encountering these insect eggs.

What does this mean?

This means there's something wrong with these insect eggs, a really big problem!

Lanny directed the puppets to move the insect eggs.

Link spoke up promptly: "Wait a minute, don't rush into anything. I have a feeling these insect eggs are not simple."

"How is it not simple?"

This one sentence instantly drew everyone's attention.

Sandra went even further and asked a direct question.

"It's unclear yet, just a gut feeling."

Link told the truth.

He was indeed still unclear; if it weren't for the tremor in the "small world," he wouldn't have noticed anything unusual about these insect eggs.

"What needs to be done?"

Sandra asked again.

"Let's not do anything for now, I'll see."

Link answered frankly.

"it is good."

Sandra was not disappointed. She directed everyone who had focused their attention on this matter to return to their posts and perform their duties.

This provided Lin Keteng with research space.

"Let me see what's so special about you."

Squatting in front of the insect eggs, Link maximized his sensory abilities without using any equipment, "scanning" the eggs again and again.

At the same time, Flandre is also trying her best to communicate with the origin of the "small world" in order to figure out what it desires.

A moment later, the two of them made the same discovery.

The origin of the "small world" tells Flandre that it longs for the special radiation it had sensed before.

Link discovered an extremely subtle and barely perceptible radiation fluctuation inside the insect egg.

Last time, Link deduced that there might be a radiation source that promoted the evolution of the Zerg.

At that time, the already born Zerg individuals were exposed to radiation sources, and the evolved individuals that survived were forcibly selected.

This resulted in many settlements becoming deserted and lifeless.

Link couldn't help but marvel at the Zerg's remarkable adaptability.

Direct radiation leads to an excessively high mortality rate?

Then, starting from when they are still eggs, they should be exposed to radiation sources to adapt in advance.

Thus, the Zerg that successfully emerge will naturally be more resistant, more able to withstand radiation exposure, and have a greater chance of successfully evolving.

Having figured this out, Link added another goal to his mind for this trip: to obtain a source of radiation.

He wanted to see what changes would occur in the "small world" after it absorbed the radiation source.

"They need to be isolated and housed."

Link stood up and told Sandra his deductions, while also offering advice.

"Um."

Sandra nodded to Lanny, who was waiting nearby.

Lani immediately took out an isolation and containment device from her spatial storage artifact and directed the transport puppets to place the insect eggs one by one into the isolation and containment device.

Suddenly, Link remembered the live insect egg he had found among a pile of dead eggs last time and asked, "What were the results of the test for that egg?"

Sandra replied briefly, "Dead."

Link understood immediately.

The insect egg was already very weak, and with the sudden change in environment, even with constant replenishment of its life force, it could not escape death.

Since Sandra didn't mention the test results, it proves that there's nothing to mention.

The survey of this small settlement was completed quickly.

The miniature legion packed up its belongings and set off for its next destination.

During a break, Jasmine approached Link and telepathically told him, "Link, I need to collect some specific resources for cultivating the Mother Nest Seeds."

"Is the quantity large?"

"big."

Link thought for a moment and replied, "I'll go talk to Sandra about it."

Jasmine shook her head: "I'll go by myself."

After saying this, Jasmine disconnected from the telepathic connection and went directly to Sandra.

The anti-eavesdropping rune barrier is in effect.

Even Link couldn't hear what Jasmine and Sandra were saying, let alone the others.

All that could be seen was Sandra's expression change, as if she was somewhat resentful, but it was clear that it wasn't directed at Jasmine.

Once the anti-eavesdropping rune barrier was removed, Sandra's complexion returned to normal.

A hint of joy flashed in Jasmine's eyes.

"how?"

Link directly asked Jasmine, who had walked back to his side.

"Sandora has already transferred another shuttle and some mining golems from the 'Cloudy' to another location to help me mine resources."

Jasmine replied, "She emphasized that since she has become a member of the 'freedom to do whatever she wants' group, she should contribute to the development of the organization and other members."

"Um."

Link nodded and said nothing more.

If you agree to let Sandra join "Freedom to Do Anything," here come the benefits!

It's not just troublesome!

(End of this chapter)