Vera looked down at the flower that was still blooming and closing.

"It’s too weak, so weak that it can’t sense our presence far exceeds it, which is why it dared to attack actively."

Duke didn’t speak, simply watching the severed vines quietly.

Not even Level 1.

But once upon a time, among them was born an existence powerful enough to support the entire High Plane.

But as the Plane’s will died and its rules were missing, the entire civilization went into decline.

The race of Ancient Fairies was not completely extinct, but it is very difficult for a strong individual to be born.

The Ancient Fairy Plane still has a considerable number of Ancient Fairies, but the masters of this Plane are no longer them.

Vera crouched down, taking out a slender crystal test tube from her waist.

Using a silver knife, she pried open a thicker severed vine, and a sticky green liquid immediately surged from the break.

Vera guided the green liquid with her Spiritual Power, slowly directing it into the test tube.

The green glow flowed within the crystal tube, and after a moment, a shallow layer accumulated at the bottom.

The liquid glowed faintly, emitting a subtle sweet scent.

Vera stood up, sealed the test tube, and handed it to Duke.

"Life Essence," she said, "although this Ancient Fairy isn’t even Level 1, the essence content in its body is minimal, and it barely affects us Level 2 Mages. But as a sample for research, it still holds value."

Duke took the test tube, looking at it against the sunlight.

The layer of green liquid slightly swayed, like it almost had a life of its own.

"You’re the one who killed it, it’s yours," Vera added.

Duke did not refuse, placing the test tube into his Space Ring.

"Let’s go." Vera turned and continued forward.

Duke took one last look at the severed vines, casually collecting some as material samples, then followed behind.

Behind them, the flower continued to open and close, the sound of small crunches gradually fading away.

...

Five days passed quietly in cautious traversal.

Throughout these five days, the seven people kept following Vera, advancing along the route marked on the map she held.

The map was the result of previous explorations on the Wizard Plane, marking a relatively safe area in the southwest mainland of Wilderness Forest.

They avoided some known danger areas, such as regions dense with spatial cracks, zones prone to energy storms, and several ancient battlefield relics marked as extremely dangerous.

Though the route was safe, the speed was not fast.

Vera was very cautious, exploring carefully ahead after every segment before advancing further.

Duke walked to the side, slightly behind Vera, observing everything around as he moved.

During these five days, he collected quite a few things.

There were ferns with leaves that closed automatically, several glowing mushrooms growing on rotting wood, and even a fist-sized beetle with six legs.

The others were doing similar things. The Ancient Fairy Plane is a High Plane, where both ordinary plants and animals have research value.

Perhaps something valuable could be extracted from seemingly ordinary materials, a pursuit Wizards have always been passionate about.

On the first night, when the group found a relatively safe rock cave to rest, Duke tried meditating for an hour.

The results were predictable; the efficiency of meditation was indeed much higher than on the Wizard Plane.

This is the inherent advantage of High Planes; all life starts on a higher base than those from Middle or Low Planes.

But now, due to the death of the Plane’s will and some missing Plane Rules, it’s hard for indigenous life on the Ancient Fairy Plane to reach high levels.

Ancient Fairy civilization was almost extinct under the joint attack of several powerful civilizations, and couldn’t produce high-tier life thereafter. The fate of the entire Plane was doomed, destined to gradual decline.

The powerful civilizations that had eliminated the Ancient Fairy Plane were long gone, uninterested in a hollowed-out Plane, dismissive of what remains.

It’s generally weaker civilizations that come here to pick up scraps.

Five days later, the team stopped in front of a sparse forest clearing.

Vera stood at the edge of the clearing, looking down at the map in her hands, silently contemplating.

Leon approached, "What’s wrong?"

Vera raised her head, gazing into the distance at the endless giant trees.

"No more ahead," she said.

Leon was puzzled, "What do you mean?"

"The map," Vera handed the map to Leon, "the range explored by predecessors, only goes to here. Beyond this point lies unknown territory."

Leon glanced at the map, frowning.

Duke also stepped over to take a look.

The map showed their current location as a red dot, with vast explored areas marked with various symbols—rivers, hills, relics, danger zones—west and south of the dot.

East and north of the red dot were blank.

"Our current position," Vera pointed at the red dot, "is the southwest part of Wilderness Forest mainland."

She paused. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"This continent’s area is larger than all the continents of the Wizard Plane combined."

The people fell silent for a moment.

Being larger than all the Wizard Plane’s continents combined means their three-month time is only enough to explore a tiny section.

Vera put away the map, her gaze surveying the surroundings.

"It’s getting dark, we should find a place to camp and discuss where to go tomorrow."