novellaaa Chapter 207 Meeting
Chapter 207 Meeting
Chapter 207 Meeting
The next morning, Ellie took him to the temporary teleportation point at the entrance of town.
She didn't say much goodbye, but simply handed Luo Lin a small pot of newly planted silver jasmine seedlings with silvery edges on their leaves.
"Please take this with you."
"It shares the same origin as the one in my garden, so perhaps—it might be of some use."
"Be careful on the road."
Luo Lin took the small ceramic pot, no bigger than the palm of his hand, inside which the delicate seedlings gleamed faintly in the morning light.
He nodded, carefully put the small pot away, and placed it in a stable corner of the dimensional bag that could store magical plants.
The teleportation light illuminated.
The view of Black Rock Town blurred and disappeared from sight.
The next moment, hot, dry air mixed with the smell of metal and sulfur rushed towards me.
Before me stood a rugged and sturdy composite fortress built on a black rocky mountain.
The towering watchtowers were adorned with the flags of the Shadow Raven Tower and the Molten Empire crossed, and the heavy metal doors were open, revealing soldiers and wizards bustling about inside.
We've arrived at the Seventh Forward Base.
Luo Lin stepped into the stronghold on the edge of the arrow, which led to the heart of the Hand-Scorched Hell fragments.
The interior of the Seventh Forward Base was busier than it appeared from the outside.
The passageway, made of metal and rock, echoed with footsteps, the clanging of moving machinery, and hushed conversations.
The air circulation system emitted a low hum, filtering out most of the heat and sulfur smell from the outside, but still leaving a faint, distinctive smell of metal and energy circulation.
The lighting crystals embedded in the wall emitted a steady but not very bright light, illuminating the partial map of the scorching hell fragments and various regulations hanging on the wall.
At the entrance registration desk, Luo Lin completed identity verification and registration, and received access to the base and the key to his temporary residence.
The person in charge of receiving us was a serious-looking and efficient Santa affairs officer. She quickly explained the main areas of the base, the daily rules and regulations, and the assembly point for the members of the Scorching Flame Patrol Team.
A dedicated tactical preparation room located on the west side of the lower level of the base.
"Captain Blake and several other members are expected to arrive before noon tomorrow," the officer added at the end.
"Base Commander General Hossman wants the squad to assemble and come to the command center to see him as soon as possible, so that we can share the latest intelligence."
Rowling nodded, took his key and simple luggage, and found the single room assigned to him.
The room wasn't large, but it was fully equipped with a bed, table and chairs, a storage cabinet with basic protection, and a small worktable.
The walls are made of thick alloy panels, which provide excellent sound insulation. Once the door is closed, the noise from the outside world is significantly reduced.
After quickly putting away his belongings and placing the small silver flower seedling in a corner of the workbench near the window, Luo Lin did not rest immediately.
He left his dormitory and, following the map he remembered, began to familiarize himself with the environment of the base.
The base has three floors.
The upper level houses the command center, communications hub, main energy sources, and defense systems, and is heavily guarded.
The middle floor houses the living quarters, warehouses, repair workshops, and the activity areas for most of the permanent staff.
The lower level houses the training ground, tactical preparation room, departure passage, and some special functional areas.
Rowling mainly circulated among the lower and middle classes.
Several teams were conducting adaptive drills in the training field, with shouts and sounds of energy colliding filling the air.
The warehouse area was piled high with supplies, and people in different uniforms were busy counting and moving them.
He even saw a small resource exchange point jointly operated by the Holy Tower and the Empire, where he could exchange merit points or resources unique to fragments for equipment and supplies.
Finally, he arrived at the tactical preparation room on the west side. The room was quite spacious, with a huge metal square table in the center that could project 3D maps and data, and several high-backed chairs scattered around it.
One wall is lined with weapon racks and equipment cabinets, while the other side connects to a small instrument debugging room.
There is no one here at the moment, only the cleansing array is operating silently.
Having gotten a general idea of the surroundings, Luo Lin returned to his dormitory.
He didn't rush into research or practice, but instead first completely relaxed, allowing his body and mind to adapt to the energy field and atmosphere here, which was completely different from Blackrock Town.
It wasn't until evening, after a simple dinner at the base's canteen, that he returned to his room and began his routine meditation.
【Morning Star】 and 【Quiet Star】 continue to operate stably in the unfamiliar environment. 【Myriad Stars】 absorbs the energy in the air that is much milder than the outside world but still somewhat restless, and slowly transforms it into pure star power.
When the meditation ended, the mental sea was completely restored, and the stellar energy circulation even seemed to become slightly more active due to the stimulation of environmental energy.
The next morning, Luo Lin did not go out. He stayed in his room to organize his thoughts and continue to optimize the frequency model of [Disruption of Order].
Around noon, the communication array on the dormitory door lit up, and Ella's cheerful voice came through: "Rolin! Are you in your room?"
We're all here! Assemble in the tactical preparation room!
Luo Lin tidied himself up and left the dormitory.
There are already people in the tactical preparation room.
Ella was leaning against the weapon rack, wiping her longbow with a soft cloth. When she saw Rolin come in, she smiled and waved.
Lehman sat in a chair, eyes closed, resting. His left arm was still slinged over his chest, but his complexion was much better than when they last parted. However, the coldness between his brows remained.
Liana stood at the door of the instrument debugging room, checking the calibration of a portable energy detector. When she saw Rolin, she nodded slightly in greeting.
"Captain Blake and a few brothers from the Empire have reported to the command center and will be here soon," Ella said.
"Lehman has almost completely dispelled the death aura, but his left arm is damaged and he can't exert much force for the time being, but casting spells is no problem."
Lehman opened his eyes, glanced at Ella, and said nothing.
Luo Lin walked to the metal square table, tapped the surface with his finger, and infused it with a wisp of star power.
The desktop lights up, displaying a basic holographic map of the scorching hell fragments, marked with known ruins, resource points, and...
Dangerous areas and the areas controlled by the Holy Tower and the Empire.
"What are your thoughts on this permanent mission?" Ella leaned closer and asked, looking at the map.
"Focus on investigation and exploration, and avoid direct confrontation," Rowling said.
"The focus is on tracking visitor traces, investigating the remnants of the Pale Hand, and exploring undocumented anomalous areas."
"We are small in number but highly mobile, making us suitable for this type of mission."
"I agree," Lehman's voice rang out. He had walked over at some point and was looking at several places marked on the map.
The red area reads "Energy anomaly unknown".
"Those visitors are elusive, their pale hands like ground rats; they all require patience and skill."
"A head-on confrontation is not our strength."
After adjusting the equipment, Liana came over and added softly, "My Purifying Flame has a restraining effect on necromancy and corruption energy, but it consumes a lot of energy, so you need to be careful when to use it."
"The base can provide some basic Holy Flame Crystals, but higher-level ones have to be obtained through mission rewards."
Just then, heavy footsteps approached.
Blake's tall figure appeared at the doorway, followed by two Forge Guards, both familiar faces from the last mission. Blake had changed into the dark red tactical armor issued by the base and bearing the Union insignia, making him look even more imposing.
"Everyone's here." Blake walked in, his gaze sweeping over everyone, lingering for a moment on Lehman's left arm.
"How's Lehman doing?"
"Ninety percent of the death energy has been dispelled, and the left arm has recovered to fifty percent. It does not affect spellcasting or normal movement," Lehman said succinctly.