When the Transcendent Strike came down, Adam vanished in the light of the spatial anchor. When he opened his eyes again, he was inside a giant starship.
"You did well, honestly, I didn't expect you to do so well," a soft voice echoed from the depths of Adam's heart. He looked up to see Priscilla, taller even than the radiation creature, standing not far from him.
Adam found his injuries healed, his magical power replenished, and his body in peak condition. Just as he was about to thank her, Priscilla interrupted, pointing ahead and saying, "We'll talk about other things later. For now, I think you'll be interested in the Transcendent Strike."
Ahead was a huge screen, broadcasting the scene with Cthulhu. The image, recreated at a one-to-one scale, was incredibly detailed. Even the terrifying energy fluctuation could be felt through the screen.
A brilliant beam shot from the void into Cthulhu, firmly locking onto the monster lord.
The Transcendent Strike encompassed all these terrifying features: high temperature, high energy, high concentration, and strong penetration.
Around the monster lord, large tracts of land detached from the ground and floated into the sky, then vanished in an instant. Tiny explosions were continuous, with mushroom clouds rising one after another.
The Monster lord let out a roar more terrifying than any wild beast, shattering spatial barriers. Strange rays shot up from the ground to meet the Transcendent Strike, where the two equally brilliant and terrifying beams collided and exploded.
Adam first saw the explosion's range seemingly separate from the world, then expanded and stretched to the edge of the third ring as the camera zoomed out, splitting the entire world in two. The upper part was abnormally energetic, while the lower part became an energy vacuum.
"Impressive, isn't it?" Priscilla asked. "It's not over yet. The transcendent creature you brought has a strong life. He's not dead yet."
As soon as she finished speaking, the roaring resumed. After the mushroom clouds dispersed, the monster lord's spherical body reappeared. The tentacles covering its body were gone, making it look even uglier and more disgusting.
He bounced on the ground, and Adam could clearly see his body contract and the ground collapse. Then, the monster lord shot into the sky, his body split open and tentacles regenerated, reaching into the depths of the void, seemingly trying to grab the main culprit.
Just then, the space where Adam was suddenly darkened, and a large number "5" appeared above the screen. A male mage's voice said, "Five seconds to the second Transcendent Strike."
"Five."
"One."
"Fire!"
This time, Adam watched more closely. To the left of the starship he was in, a similarly gigantic starship shimmered in the dark void. At the front of this ship, a kilometer-wide cannon gathered energy that made even the void tremble.
Following the mage's command, it fired at the monster lord.
The spherical body of the monster lord burst open with countless terrifying fissures, like numerous mouths and eyes. Radiation energy converged within these fissures, then channeled through unknown bodily structures to the organ equivalent to a real mouth, directly confronting the Transcendent Strike.
Cthulhu's space could no longer withstand such pressure and started to fragment, floating in the void like glass shards, turning the battlefield into an even more terrifying storm.
Then, the monster lord fell back to the ground faster than it had risen. Adam thought that if Cthulhu had a mantle and asthenosphere, the impact site would now be a lake of magma.
"He's still not dead, not even fatally wounded. If we let him leave, he might recover in a few decades. I must say, Adam, you've discovered an astonishing species," Priscilla said, stepping out from her true form to stand beside Adam as the screen zoomed out.
"You flatter me," Adam responded modestly.
The transdimensional mage waved a hand. "No need for modesty. Your actions were transmitted to the war command through the Mage Network, especially your last command, which surprised us all."
Adam was puzzled. "I don't quite understand. Since the war has started and you and other transdimensional mages possess such terrifying methods, why were you in a hurry to obtain samples of the monster lord before the war? Also, I couldn't be sure that a monster lord would actually appear."
Priscilla smiled slightly. "The Transcendent Strike directly consumes the Heart of the World. It's generally used only at the start of a war to bombard crystal walls. Otherwise, it would cause significant damage to the origin. It's like the temporary energy channel opened for you; it can't be used as a regular method. The real force in the war is still the mage legions. This time is different; we got authorized to attack transcendent entities because there is no crystal wall here."
"This world, called Cthulhu, has an energy system quite different from other planes in the void. The information you obtained was only below transcendent level, somewhat one-sided. You should know, life undergoes a qualitative change after ascending to transcendent. My fellow transdimensional mages and I need to make some preparations for them."
"Of course, there's another reason. The Third Tower is very interested in their radiation energy and is willing to pay a high price for a living monster lord for research."
"The Third Tower? Aren't they participating in this war?"
Priscilla shook her head. "No, they never cooperate with others." She seemed reluctant to delve into the topic of the Third Tower, briefly explaining before continuing to speak to Adam, "After we study this monster lord, it will be handed over to a transdimensional mage from the Third Tower. Twenty percent of the payment is yours."
As she spoke, the starship completely descended onto Cthulhu, followed by three more starships. Their massive mass generated a terrifying gravitational vortex. They connected through unknown means, forming an unstable spatial hub around Cthulhu.
This was the second time Adam had seen mage towers transformed into starships. Each mage tower seemed to have a different appearance after transformation.
These three starships had distinct appearances; only one maintained a streamlined structure, while the other two were bizarrely shaped. Adam struggled to find the right words to describe them.
"The appearance of a mage tower and its transformation are entirely up to the transdimensional mage's preference, so you may see even stranger ones in the future." Priscilla seemed to read Adam's astonishment and offered some explanation.
Then she waved her hand, and the screen showed the void environment where the Dragon Plane was located, with its scars on the crystal walls particularly noticeable.
"That's the plane of your mission, a very weak world."
As she finished speaking, Adam saw another mage tower, shaped like a hexagram, arrive above the Dragon Plane. The Transcendent Strike accurately bombarded the scar, completely piercing the crystal walls, and the hub flew out, connecting with Cthulhu.
"Yes, according to my judgment, the Dragon Plane has little value to mages of formal rank, but some of its creatures are suitable as slaves, and some materials are useful for mage apprentices," Adam pondered before continuing, "There is a species there, useful to me. I hope..."
Priscilla waved dismissively, "Of course, any of your requests will be prioritized. Anything within the value of your mission rewards will be given directly to you. For anything exceeding your rewards, you only need to pay seventy percent. You don't need to discuss these matters with me. Once you return to the mage world, a designated mage will negotiate with you."
"I'm interested in something else," Priscilla turned to face Adam directly. "The things you mentioned, like radioactive minerals and their derivative applications, and the knowledge you predicted, do they really exist?"
Realizing her tone was perhaps too stern, Priscilla added, "Just be honest. Even just the radiation energy alone is enough for us to start this expedition."
Adam nodded solemnly, "I am certain it exists. The radiation species have already begun preliminary research on it. However, they lack many things. If this world is conquered by mages, I believe results will appear quickly."
Priscilla nodded in satisfaction, not probing further, and then said, "You can rest in my mage tower for now. Once the transport hub is fully established and the mage world officially begins its campaign against these two planes, someone will inform you of your other tasks. During this time, you can visit the command center. The combat staff might consult you since you are now the mage most familiar with Cthulhu and the Dragon Plane. Some battle plans executed by lower-level battlemages need your confirmation for feasibility."
...
After Adam left the room, an alchemical golem waiting outside led Adam to his room.
This was Adam's first time inside a mage tower transformed into a starship. The decor aside, the tower had stricter access control than usual. Adam sensed formidable runic barriers around some areas, which would likely have unpleasant consequences for any intruder who stumbled into them.
The golem, bearing temporary authority by Priscilla, led Adam to his room. It gave Adam a card and then left; the card turned into a mist of light and merged into Adam's body.
From the embedded instructions, Adam learned it was a temporary access pass for the starship, granting him access to all areas of the starship open to transcendent and lower mages, excluding private rooms, and all living supplies.
Adam requested a high-grade ether incubator and nutrient potions through his new access. He then placed the remnants of a devil's body tissue into it and woke the devil from its shock.
"Master, are we still alive?"
Adam tossed the devil into the incubator and replied, "Of course we're alive, and in good condition."
The moment he entered the incubator, the devil let out a ghastly moan of comfort and asked intermittently, "How did we survive? What is this place?"
...
Three days later, Adam finally felt relaxed. The relaxation made him a bit more powerful. He reached the critical point of 199 in mental and physical power, which was the threshold between first and second-level mages. As long as the 'Adams' in the lab didn't hit any major snags, he would smoothly become a second-level mage upon returning to the mage world.
Though the official war hadn't started, Adam had already made significant gains. After capturing some radiation creatures and analyzing their rays back in the lab, Adam had a great chance to prove the existence of 'electrons' in the ether environment and thus, to condense his unique mage true form.
It was a sure thing that his strength would leap forward.
The devil's body, grown at no expense spared, had become an excellent magic wand.
Just as the devil expressed dissatisfaction, the card in Adam's mind lit up. He received a message from headquarters, asking him to explain the situation of the radioactive creatures' world in detail.
Touching the card with his mental power, Adam vanished from the room. He found himself in a huge space bustling with alchemical golems. Mages appeared and disappeared, busy with their tasks, not noticing Adam's arrival.
"Cthulhu and Dragon Plane's Explorer, Adam?" A female mage appeared a meter in front of him and asked after a formal noble salute.
Adam sensed she was a level-four mage. He returned the salute and asked, "Yes, and you are?"
"Amy Jonathan. Call me Amy. I'm the senior combat staff officer." After introducing herself, Mage Amy went straight to business. "The spatial hub will soon stabilize. The mage world will declare war on both worlds in three days. Many battlemages will join the battlefield through the hub. Based on your reports, we've made some plans and need your help to spot any mistakes."
Adam, a bit unsure, replied, "Mage Amy, I don't know much about battlemage combat styles, so I might not be much help."
Amy smiled, leading Adam to a map, and said, "Red indicates areas with transcendent-level creatures."
