Chapter 2296 Return
With the branch in hand, he could continue to cycle endlessly, constantly entering the dimensional world to absorb dimensional energy and enhance the overall strength of his clan, until completing the final main storyline mission!
Thinking this, Fang Heng raised his hand, signaling Abe Akaya to open the pa.s.sage to the world once again.
A faint cyan s.p.a.ce pa.s.sage appeared before everyone"s eyes.
"Let"s go."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The teleportation pa.s.sage directly connected to the headquarters of OmniTech Company.
Abe Akaya"s teleportation array was also set up in a s.p.a.cious area deep underground at the company"s location.
To avoid stirring up trouble with the tree spirit tribe like last time, Abe Akaya refrained from further expansion in this world for now, merely spreading out a few vines.
It looked somewhat pitiful.
Upon hearing that Fang Heng was coming, Ji Haiting had come over immediately.
Seeing Fang Heng appear, Ji Haiting finally let go of the worry hanging in mid-air, smiling as he approached Fang Heng and hugged him, "Long time no see. News of your survival is currently only known among the Federation"s higher-ups. The tree spirit tribe outside all believe you died in that explosion."
"In the past half month, the tree spirit tribe"s actions have been increasingly bold. However, their movements are not aimed at the Federation. Most of their activities target various damaged Temples of Incantation and deposits of white frost ore."
"On the Federation"s side, we"ve mostly maintained restraint, engaging in some small-scale skirmishes with minimal overall damage. The psychic team you helped a.s.semble has been invaluable," Ji Haiting continued.
With Abe Akaya"s dimensional level advancement last time, the psychic enhancements on the soldiers had taken another step forward.
During this period, the Federation"s high command had been quietly preparing, focusing on training internal psychic transformers.
The results had been promising, significantly boosting the overall strength of the psychic elite team.
Additionally, humans converted by vampires formed another batch of enhanced normal squads.
While Fang Heng himself had been leveling up in the Zombie Apocalypse, his subordinates, the vampire Princes, had not been idle. Over the past half month, they had converted another group of humans.
Thanks to Fang Heng"s influence, the Federation"s overall strength also saw some enhancement, enough to ensure a certain level of self-defense capability.
"In addition, we"ve been sending out cooperation proposals externally. We"ve offered white frost ore in exchange for the Leaf of Life and Nature"s Heart Crystal from the tree spirit tribe. After a few rounds of negotiations, both the Root tribe and the Wood tribe have shown a willingness to cooperate. They agreed to trade Leaf of Life for a significant amount of white frost stone, and this transaction has been ongoing."
"The Root tribe, in particular, has been more amenable."
"As for the Leaf tribe, they initially agreed to exchange a Nature"s Heart Crystal for a large quant.i.ty of white frost ore. We tried to engage with them, but it turns out they had no intention to cooperate. Instead, they"ve been using various delaying tactics to deceive us and extract white frost ore," Ji Haiting continued, rubbing his temples in frustration.
"The Leaf tribe has been infiltrating several of our white frost ore storage locations through the Tree Whisperers Alliance and other special forces. The Federation has received intelligence indicating they may soon target our ore sites. We were just about to discuss this matter with you and see how we can handle them."
Among all the tribes, the Soul tribe was the most xenophobic, and the Leaf tribe had the worst temper.
The other two tribes were somewhat more accommodating.
Cooperating with them, the Federation not only incurred burdens but also endured frustrations.
"Hmm."
Fang Heng hummed softly.
Having endured silently for so long, it was time to strike back.
"We"ll start with the Leaf tribe!"
"Wait a bit longer. Very soon, after finishing one last thing, we"ll pay them a visit," Fang Heng"s eyes flashed with determination. He looked up and asked, "How"s the exploration team doing in the Inner World?"
"They"re doing well. The exploration team in the Inner World has been busy constructing camps and slowly expanding outward. They"ve surveyed the surroundings and located three Prayer Temples occupied by the tree spirit tribe. The nearest one is under the control of the root tribe. We"ve been monitoring from the periphery, as they seem cautious too; their guards haven"t left the temple"s vicinity."
"In addition, we"ve discovered that each tribe has built some kind of teleportation pa.s.sage inside the Prayer Temples. If any temple is threatened, they can swiftly reinforce through these pa.s.sages, making a direct a.s.sault challenging."
"Do you have the map?"
"Yes."
Ji Haiting gestured for his subordinate to hand over the newly updated map to Fang Heng.
"Here"s the newly drawn map. We"ve marked each domain based on our reconnaissance."
"Good." Fang Heng glanced briefly at the map and continued, "I"ll handle some matters in the Inner World. If all goes well, there"ll be another wave of enhancements for the psychic transformers. Prepare the Federation, and when I return, we"ll get ready to deal with the Leaf tribe."
Ji Haiting nodded, a glint of determination in his eyes. "Understood. I"ll immediately communicate with the Federation."
Once everything was ready, Abe Akaya opened the pa.s.sage to the inner world again.
Fang Heng brought the three vampire Princes into the Inner World.
...
"Mr. Fang Heng!"
At the human camp in the Inner World, the camp leader, Ketch, hurried to greet them.
"I"m the camp leader, and Director Ji has instructed us that we"re at your service for anything."
Fang Heng shook his head and said, "No need for that. Continue with your tasks and maintain vigilance over the camp area."
"Yes, sir."
Ketch nodded respectfully, watching as Fang Heng and his companions transformed into bat forms and swiftly flew off into the distance until they disappeared from sight.
High above, Prince Carl flew alongside Fang Heng, noticing their deviation in direction and couldn"t help but ask, "Your Majesty, isn"t that the direction towards the Temple of Incantation? Are we going the wrong way?"
"No, we"re not wrong. We"re taking a detour to another Temple of Incantation to have a chat with the Leaf tribe," Fang Heng explained.
He understood clearly: It"s better to wound them severely than to harm them minimally.
The Leaf tribe had lost several elders in succession, and their sacred tree sapling had been damaged, greatly weakening their strength. Now was the perfect time to strike, especially since Fang Heng still planned to confront them openly later.
It made sense to engage the Leaf tribe head-on first, to exhaust them.
"Understood!"
In bat form, the three swiftly approached the Prayer Temple of the Leaf tribe.
...
The night was long.
By the time Fang Heng and his party arrived at the Prayer Temple, it was deep into the night.
Usually, the Temple of Incantation in the Inner World had minimal guards: just one elder of the Leaf tribe accompanied by over twenty tribal guards. Compared to the external Temples of Incantation, the demand for the Prayer Temple in the Inner World was less.
The advancement of dimensional levels required the occupation of two Prayer Temples. In a pinch, having just one can suffice. Moreover, the ritual for dimensional level advancement was not overly complex. It simply necessitated the presence of the main body of the sacred tree sapling for some time.
Therefore, in most cases, the sacred tree sapling was kept within the Leaf tribe"s territory in the Outer World. It remained there until it reached the breakthrough level, at which point elite members of the tribe escorted it back to complete the dimensional level advancement.
Though the process involved back-and-forth journeys, it ensured safety. Under normal circ.u.mstances, guarding the temple required only one elder from the tribe.