Chapter 440: The Fourth
Translator: AnubisTL
The clarification of the research direction acted as a powerful catalyst for the entire wizard legion.
To obtain more Scythe-Skull samples—especially live specimens at different developmental stages—the wizards’ advance became more aggressive than ever. Elite squads continuously pushed deeper into the heart of Scythe-Skull territory, with the clear goal of seizing their breeding grounds and metamorphosis nests.
However, Jieming’s research group was not the only unit working at full capacity.
In fact, the entire logistics and research system was operating at full speed, with each research group responsible for a different aspect.
While Jieming’s group achieved their partial breakthrough, other research groups also completed their missions as time passed.
For example, the “Crystallization Disintegration Ray,” specifically designed against the elemental composition of the Scythe-Skull shells, was developed. This wizardry could interfere with the energy conduction of their shells, making them as fragile as porcelain.
Additionally, the “Frequency Pollution Field,” designed based on the weaknesses in the Scythe-Skull’s information communication, began to be deployed on the frontline, effectively disrupting their command network.
Blinding Flash Runes optimized for their compound eyes’ visual characteristics, ecological blocker exploiting their larvae’s dependence on specific fungal mats… A series of targeted technologies emerged like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.
With these combat-oriented measures aiding them, the wizards’ advance accelerated once more.
A flood of intelligence followed in its wake.
Battlefield reports and terrain scans poured in, along with models and data for new types of wizardry. Macro-level intelligence regarding the entire plane’s energy flow, geological structure, and anomalous law fluctuations arrived in a steady stream.
The number of recording crystals stored within Jieming’s internal grotto-heaven was increasing at a visible rate every day.
The technological superiority was beginning to take its toll.
The Scythe-Skull Race’s defenses crumbled piece by piece.
The joint spellcasting arrays that had once plagued the wizards now failed repeatedly under targeted interference. The elusive Earth Vein Teleporting Praetorian Insects had their energy nodes marked and destroyed in advance.
Even their several attempts at large-scale counterattacks devolved into chaotic charges due to communication jamming, turning into a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood under the wizards’ well-prepared crossfire.
Less than two months after the war began, the Scythe-Skull Race had lost over half of its territory, and its entire civilization showed signs of collapse.
Even on the battlefield, rare sights were already appearing: small units of the Scythe-Skull Race were abandoning their equipment and fleeing in rout. Some breeding grounds were even deliberately deserted, leaving behind vast quantities of unevacuated larvae and resources.
The scales of victory had seemingly tipped completely.
On this day, Jieming had just placed a partial decryption report on the “pheromone coding patterns” of high-tier Scythe-Skull individuals—his latest research achievement—onto the corresponding shelf in his grotto-heaven.
He straightened up, rubbing his temples, which ached from processing information for so long.
Just then.
An indescribable sensation seized him.
It wasn’t a sound, nor a vibration, but a more fundamental “change”—as if the very foundation of the world had been gently plucked.
The strings of the plane law were strummed by an invisible hand, emitting a hum that mortals could not hear, but that made the souls of transcendents tremble.
“This is…” Jieming’s pupils constricted.
Before he could react, a strange pulling sensation surged from all directions.
Matter, space, consciousness… everything was being forcibly dragged backward by an invisible force.
A new round of time reincarnation had begun.
The moment he burst through the spatial rift, Jieming felt a sudden wave of dizziness, as if someone had struck the back of his head with a blunt instrument.
But he immediately steadied himself—the Primordial Spirit of the Divine Transformation Realm and the mental power of a Fourth-Tier Wizard were no mere trifles. He regained his clarity almost instantly.
“Captain?” a squad member called out from behind.
“I’m fine,” Jieming replied instinctively, then froze.
A powerful sense of déjà vu washed over him, as if he had seen this exact scene before.
He looked up, scanning their surroundings. They had emerged from the pitch-black spatial rift high above the rear of the battlefield.
Wait… two thousand of us?!
As the First Squad, his unit was supposed to have only one thousand members.
Jieming’s pupils constricted as he recalled Starforger Artorius’s orders: thirty thousand wizards divided into thirty squads, with one new reinforcement squad deployed every three reincarnations.
The presence of two thousand “reinforcements” could only mean one thing…
This was already the fourth reincarnation.
And now, the rear guard of the Wizard Army had already turned their weapons toward them.
“Reinforcements?” a sixth-tier wizard flew out from the formation, his voice laced with suspicion. “At this hour?”
Jieming, fighting back a powerful sense of déjà vu, drew his terminal.
A beam of light projected into the air, displaying Artorius’s command orders and the searing mental imprint of an eighth-tier wizard. The sight instantly dispelled all doubt.
“Verification complete.” The sixth-tier wizard bowed and stepped aside.
In the brief lull before Commander Frost arrived, Jieming, now fully aware of his multiple reincarnations, instinctively checked his status.
Everything else seemed normal. But as his mental power sank into his internal grotto-heaven, Jieming saw three metal plates lying quietly on the ground: 1, 2, 3.
Behind the plates lay mountains of recording crystals.
The newest batch still pulsed with the lingering warmth of energy—the research data sealed away in the final moments of the previous loop.
His gaze swept over the handwritten notes he had left for himself. Then, he picked up a recording crystal specially marked beneath the metal plates.
Immediately, the events of his previous life flooded back into his consciousness, replaying like a tidal wave.
By the time Frost’s silver-gray robed figure flew in from the command platform, Jieming was completely awake.
He stepped forward, and before the other could speak, and under the slightly surprised gazes of the surrounding wizards, he preempted him with a decisive tone:
“Excellency Frost, I have important information to report!”
Frost’s gaze fell on Jieming’s face like a falcon, lingering for a brief moment.
Without any extra questions or doubts, the seventh-tier commander turned around decisively: “In that case… follow me. The rest of you, proceed to your designated locations as required by the command network.”
On the way to the command center, Jieming had already finished integrating all the information from that special recording crystal into his soul.
When the two stepped into the command headquarters, which was isolated by layers of protective devices, Jieming met the commander’s scrutinizing gaze. Without saying much, he took out a recording crystal:
“Excellency, this is the information you left for yourself in the previous round!”
Hearing this, looking at the recording crystal Jieming handed over, Frost’s eyes narrowed slightly: “Interesting…”
(End of the Chapter)