Chapter 128: Sudden World-Hopping

"Energy extraction formations can be applied to any entity with physical substance, including animals, plants, and structures..."

Fina held a book thicker than her own head, reading rapidly. The opportunity for this test was hard-won, and she could not afford to disgrace her teacher.

"Fina!"

Startled by the sudden call, Fina jumped. Looking up, she saw her teacher had blinked directly in front of her.

"Teacher? Why are you here? Is something the matter?" Fina asked instinctively.

Blaze pulled her up at once. "The test world is experiencing a temporal oscillation, and the barriers have weakened significantly. Now is the best time for transit. Take the book and finish it when you get there."

"Oh! Right, okay."

As soon as Fina closed the book, Blaze grabbed her and blinked several times in succession. They departed the Clock Tower on this level via a teleportation array, leaving the Hex Planet where they had arrived three days ago alongside Li Xiaoyao and the others.

Outside this level of the Clock Tower, the testing ceremony had not yet officially begun, but the test subjects were already required to depart. It was unavoidable; no one could predict the oscillations of the test worlds, and increasing the success rate while lowering the danger was clearly far more important than any ceremony.

Once Fina arrived in the shuttle pod, Frank and Vernon were already waiting for her. Both were clutching stacks of data; none of them had finished their studies, and they were all being rushed into duty.

"Go now. Be careful. If any problems arise, return immediately. Do not be stubborn, do not be impulsive, and do not follow my example." Blaze patted Fina on the back. Before turning to leave, he pressed a scroll into her hand.

Fina nodded. Gazing at her teacher's retreating back, she received help from the staff to equip various disposable gear.

*Hum.* The shuttle pod hatch opened, and the three test subjects entered the cabin one by one. Once everyone was inside, the pod began its final self-test. When the check was complete, the hatch locked, and the entire exterior of the shuttle began to glow with magical light.

*Boom.* The shuttle ignited, its speed increasing continuously until it approached the speed of light within a mere ten minutes.

Heimerdinger, Blaze, Li Xiaoyao, and the others watched the state of the shuttle from a distance. The technology involved was developed independently by the Clock Tower and the Celestial Court; it was all immature, and no one felt entirely confident, but the exploration had to continue.

As the shuttle approached the multiverse portal, the gate began to operate at full capacity. The surrounding light distorted under the influence of the portal, forming a black hole-like anomaly. The shuttle, entering it like a bamboo raft navigating a stormy sea, wobbled as it pushed forward. Fortunately, it passed through the portal without incident.

"Alright, stop watching. We will succeed, and they will return safely," Heimerdinger said, patting Blaze on the shoulder.

Blaze nodded and unclenched his fist, revealing the marks his nails had dug into his palm. Beside him, Li Xiaoyao silently offered a blessing for Fina and the others, wishing them success.

***

Outside a blue, imperfectly spherical planet, a distortion—impossible for the local civilization to observe—suddenly emerged. As it vanished, a battered spacecraft appeared in space.

"Ugh!"

Inside the shuttle, the sounds of three people dry-heaving echoed one after another. The "turbulence" of the transit had been a bit too much; it was more than the three of them could handle.

Despite feeling wretched, they had no time to focus on themselves. All three were busy checking the control panels in front of them, looking for any issues. If there were problems, they had to return immediately.

"Power system is fine. There is enough energy remaining for two more transits," Frank reported. He was the least versed in magic, so the checks assigned to him were the simplest.

"Magical defensive shell is fine. Wear is within predicted limits. The magical circuits have minor damage, but the damaged parts are within my ability to repair," Fina followed up. On her control panel, only a few indicators were yellow; the rest were green, signifying normal operation.

"Our vital signs are normal. The nausea is likely a reaction to the soul oscillation, but it's within the self-healing range. We expect to be fully recovered within ten days," said Vernon. As the team leader, his responsibility was their survival. "The escape pod is fully operational and ready for use at any time."

"Which means..." Fina looked at Vernon.

"Exactly! We did it! My friends, welcome to a new world with me!" Vernon raised his hands in the cramped control cabin and cheered loudly.

Originally, this cabin was supposed to have spatial expansion, but the decision was vetoed after research suggested the expanded space might collapse during transit.

"We are the vanguard! We are the explorers! We are heroes! Ahhh! I’m so happy!" Fina shouted.

Frank, sitting nearby, stayed silent, but the uncontrollable smile on his face proved his excitement. He had thought that after the death of his wife and child, his life would be forever immersed in the darkness of vengeance. Yet, the sudden appearance of the Clock Tower, the Ouroboros, and this mission had pulled him out of that abyss.

"Alright, alright, calm down for now. The core system is fine, keep monitoring the other systems," Vernon prompted.

This shuttle, integrated with high-end technology, had far more than just the few systems they had checked. If categorized in detail, there were over a thousand systems in total, many of which were related to detection and recording. Every detail and every piece of information collected in this transit was of extreme importance and immense value.

"Spatial oscillation recording system normal..."

"Magical positioning system normal..."

"Life concealment system normal. Listen to my orders: target the planet ahead, prepare for orbital entry."

"Yes!"

"Orbital entry successful."

"We have a problem! The magical long-range detection system has failed. We can only use the optical system to survey the planet now."

"It's fine, as long as it’s not a major issue. Frank, look at the video and images captured by the optical system. I suspect this is a technology-dominated world. See if you can identify what stage of development this world is in and gauge the probability of us being discovered by the intelligent life here."

"Yes!"

"And Fina, hold off on repairing the damaged systems for now. Look at the environmental data I’m sending you and compare it with the database to see if we can survive normally on this planet."

"Yes!"

"Also, from this moment on, we enter a self-check period. The duration is three days, 72 hours. During this time, pay close attention to your physical and mental state. Report any abnormalities immediately!"

As Vernon spoke, he hung Zilean’s clock in front of the three of them.

"Yes!"

"Frank, turn on the gravity simulation system. Increase it slowly at ten percent power."

"Yes!"