Wizard: Starting with Dealing with Magical Plants

Chapter 315 Report

The afternoon meeting was scheduled to take place in a larger, confidential conference room next to Master Evelyn's office.

When Rowling arrived ten minutes early, there were already several people sitting inside.

Master Evelyn sat at the head of the long table, with Master Aurora beside her; both appeared to have recovered.

Hawke sat to Master Evelyn's right, his expression serious.

Marcus sat opposite Hawke, still looking gloomy and tired, but his eyes were a little brighter than yesterday.

On the other side of the long table sat two people whom Rowling did not recognize.

One was a tall, thin, middle-aged man in a sharp black suit, with his hair neatly combed and a stern face. He wore a silver shield-shaped badge on his chest representing the "Parliament Internal Security and Discipline Department".

The other was an elderly man with gray hair, a kind face, wearing a loose brown robe, and holding a thick book in his hand; he looked like a scholar.

Upon seeing Rowling enter, Master Evelyn nodded, gesturing for him to sit down.

"Everyone's here," Master Evelyn said, her voice calm yet carrying an invisible pressure. "Let me introduce you. This is Deacon Otto, the deputy head of the Security and Discipline Department." She gestured to the stern-faced middle-aged man.

Deacon Otto nodded slightly to Rolin, his gaze sharp as an eagle, and sized him up without saying a word.

"This is Master Gavin, a senior scholar from the Parliament's Department of Ancient History and Geography." Master Evelyn then pointed to the kind old man.

Master Gavin gave Rowling a gentle smile, his eyes filled with the curiosity typical of a scholar.

"Deacon Otto is responsible for assessing the potential security risks of this discovery, while Master Gavin can provide us with historical background information on the Frozen Wasteland and the Pale Hand," Master Evelyn explained briefly, then looked at Rolin, "Rolin, please give a brief report on yesterday's discovery of connecting to the outpost core."

Rowling was prepared.

He distributed copies of the report he had compiled overnight to everyone present, then stood up and walked to a blank enchanted parchment hanging in front of the long table.

He tapped his finger on the parchment, infusing it with star power. The parchment immediately glowed, revealing a rough topographical map of the northern Windwhisper Plains, the Sighing Mountains, and the edge of the permafrost wasteland.

"Based on the environmental data continuously transmitted by the outpost core, combined with the coordinates and surrounding information brought back by Investigator Marcus," Rowling's voice was clear and steady as his finger traced the corresponding location on the map, "we can confirm that this outpost, numbered Watcher 7, is located on the southern edge of the permafrost, about three hundred meters below the Pale Ice Cliff."

"Its continuous scanning coverage area is roughly a semi-circular area with a radius of about fifty kilometers centered on itself, mainly facing the interior of the wasteland."

He paused for a moment, allowing everyone to process the information.

"The environmental data itself doesn't show many anomalies and is consistent with the characteristics of the edge of the permafrost: extremely low temperatures, periodic magical tides,"

"There are a few ice-type magical beasts active," Roland continued, "but there are a few key points worth noting."

He marked several points on the parchment with his finger.

First, spatial stability.

Over the past six months, the outpost has recorded seventeen brief, weak spatial disturbances.

The disturbance points are concentrated inside the wasteland, with coordinates approximately at ————

Rowling provided several latitude and longitude coordinates, and Master Gavin immediately marked them on the copy of the map in front of him.

"These disturbances are not strong and have a short duration. They are more like the aftershocks of some kind of short-distance, small-scale spatial transmission or tearing, rather than permanent cracks."

"Second, energy anomaly records."

Around the time of all spatial disturbances, the outpost recorded a specific, high-intensity energy peak characterized by a dark golden order.

Rowling emphasized his words.

"This energy characteristic is highly consistent with the characteristics of the observer agreement units I have encountered when secondary arbiters are activated or when energy bursts."

The meeting room fell silent, save for Rowling's voice and the faint glow of the parchment.

"Third, biological quality scanning." Rolin pointed to several other marked points on the map. "In areas far from the spatial disturbance points, the outpost sporadically detected a few faint life signals with clear order and metallic characteristics."

"Low signal strength and regular movement patterns suggest a patrol squad composed of constructs or highly enchanted units."

"The occurrence of these disturbances is not directly related to the time and space of the disturbances; rather, they are more like long-term, normalized activities."

He looked at Marcus: "This corroborates the pale hand activity traces and non-standard modified interfaces that Marcus's investigators found in the outpost ruins."

Marcus nodded, his voice hoarse: "The Pale Hand camp ruins and weapon fragments we discovered are scattered within a five to ten kilometer radius of the outpost, and the timeframe is estimated to be within the last two to three months."

"They clearly discovered the outpost and attempted to exploit or control it in some way, but judging from the core non-protocol connection attempts—failures—and reports of limited interface functionality, their modifications were unsuccessful, at least in gaining complete control."

Master Evelyn continued, "And the last tentative command that Rolin sent caused the core to temporarily mark the Pale Hand's connection as under observation, rather than clearing it immediately."

"This bought us time and prevented us from alerting the enemy."

Deacon Otto spoke up, his voice cold and hard: "So, all things considered, what conclusions can we draw?"

"The Pale Hand operated on the edge of the permafrost, discovering and attempting to take control of an observer outpost, but without complete success."

"At the same time, there are signs of activity from observer protocol units within the wasteland, which are related to spatial disturbances."

Is the relationship between these two one of cooperation, competition, or complete unrelated?

This question gets straight to the heart of the matter.

After a moment's thought, Rowling replied, "Based on the information available, it seems more like a complex relationship of coexistence or competition."

""

"The Pale Hand attempted to exploit the Observer's legacy, but may have triggered some protocols or defense mechanisms."

"The activities of the observer units within the wasteland seem to have a specific purpose, which is likely related to those spatial disturbance points."

"There may not be a direct connection between the two, but the fact that they are both located in the same area is unusual in itself."

Master Gavin cleared his throat and said gently, "Perhaps I can add some information from a historical and geographical perspective."

"The Frozen Wasteland, before the Great Silence, was said to be the territory of a powerful frost civilization, which was later annihilated in the uncontrolled magic tides."

"The environment there is extreme and resources are scarce, but ancient ruins or energy nodes are occasionally exposed."

"The Pale Hand is an organization that operates in secrecy, with unclear motives, but historical records suggest they have connections to ancient heritage..."

I have an unusual interest, especially in legacies involving death, souls, and the distortion of rules.

He paused, flipped through the thick book in front of him, and found a certain page: "About one hundred and fifty years ago, the Pale Hand created a sizable disturbance deep in the frozen wasteland, attempting to awaken a sealed frost undead lord, but was thwarted by the combined forces of the major powers at the time."

"They remained silent for a long time after that incident."

"Now that they are active again on the edge of the wasteland, their ambitions are probably not small."

"As for the observer civilization," Gavin closed his book, "we know very little about them."

"But the fact that their creations appeared in the permafrost and seemed to be engaged in purposeful activities suggests that something there was something that attracted them, most likely some kind of anomaly or high-value objective."

Abnormal Rules — High-Value Target — A slight thought crossed Luo Lin's mind. He subconsciously touched his chest, where he kept the seeds of the Moon Silver Flower close to his body.

Could it be that...?

Master Evelyn had clearly considered this as well, but she didn't say it outright. Instead, she tapped her fingers lightly on the table: "So, the situation we are facing now is this: on the southern edge of the permafrost, there is an observer outpost that is still partially operational, coveted by the Pale Hand but not yet fully controlled."

"Within the wasteland, there are Observer Protocol units active, and they are associated with mysterious spatial disturbance points."

"The pale hand also appears frequently in the same area, its purpose unknown."

She looked at Deacon Otto: "What was the security assessment like?"

Deacon Otto said expressionlessly, "Risk level: High."

The direct threat posed by the observer agreement unit is undeniable.

The actions of the pale hand could also trigger unpredictable changes.

Both are concentrated in the border area near Windwhisper Plains, posing a potential threat to the security of the council and even the entire plains.

It is recommended to strengthen patrols and surveillance along the northern border, dispatch elite survey teams deep into the wilderness to ascertain the specific details of spatial disturbance points and observer unit activities, and assess the true intentions and capabilities of the Pale Hand.

He then looked at Rowling: "In addition, the special affinity between Rowling's assistant and the Observer Agreement, as well as that amulet, played a key role in this incident."

"This is both an advantage and a potential source of risk. It is recommended that their access to core processes and the information they obtain be kept more strictly confidential, and that they be restricted from conducting similar high-risk operations without permission again."

This statement was blunt, but it was also reasonable.

Luo Lin remained calm and did not refute.

Master Evelyn nodded: "The safety recommendations are reasonable."

"Hawk, you are in charge of coordinating with the Border Defense Department to strengthen patrols and surveillance in the north."

"Marcus, you are familiar with the environment there. You will lead the formation of an elite investigation team, drawing personnel from the 'Relics Survey and Exploration Department' and the 'Tactics and Combat Application Department.' They must be discreet and cautious, focusing primarily on reconnaissance and avoiding direct conflict, especially with observer units."

Hawke and Marcus both agreed.

"As for Roland—" Master Evelyn looked at him, "the information you provided is of paramount importance."

"The next research focus, in addition to continuing to deepen the analysis of the regular substrate fragments, will also be to combine the environmental data and energy characteristics obtained this time to try to establish a more complete observer protocol behavior model."

"At the same time, you need to start learning basic stealth, reconnaissance, and extreme environment survival skills. It's not about sending you to the front lines immediately, but about preparing for possible needs. I will arrange appropriate instructors."

"Yes," Rowling replied. He understood that he was now deeply involved in the matter and could no longer remain uninvolved.

"Master Gavin," Master Evelyn turned to the old man, "I would appreciate it if you could compile all the information about the history of the Frozen Wasteland, the past activities of the Pale Hand, and the possible existence of an ancient Frost Civilization, and provide it to the survey team and Rolin for reference."

"No problem, I'll take care of it right away." Master Gavin stood up with his book in hand, nodded to everyone, and left the conference room.

"Deacon Otto, I'm entrusting internal confidentiality and risk monitoring to you," Master Evelyn concluded.

Deacon Otto rose, his cold gaze sweeping over Roland once more, before bowing slightly to Master Evelyn and departing.

Only Master Evelyn, Master Aurora, Hawke, Marcus, and Rollin remained in the conference room.

"Alright, that concludes the formal arrangements." Master Evelyn's tone relaxed slightly. "Now, let's discuss the details. Roland, do you feel that core—can it be reconnected? Or will it undergo some irreversible changes because of our connection?"

Luo Lin carefully recalled the connection process and the final feedback, then shook his head: "Reconnecting in a short period of time is very risky; it might be identified as abnormally frequent access."

"As for the changes—the instructions I sent had a very low priority; they were simply to maintain the status quo and mark the Pale Hand's connection as an observation. Theoretically, they wouldn't cause any major changes to its own program."

"But the situation may be different in the long run, or if its superior unit re-establishes contact."

"Higher authorities—" Master Evelyn frowned slightly, "This is also what I'm most worried about. This outpost is clearly in some kind of out-of-contact or low-power standby state."

"If it suddenly regains connection with higher-level protocol networks, our ability to obtain information through it or even send misleading instructions could be exposed."

Master Aurora spoke slowly, her voice as deep as the starry sea: "During the connection process, I monitored the flow of energy."

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"The data stream sent by that core was indeed unidirectional, pointing to nothingness; no clear receiving end response was detected."

"It is very likely that it is sending a report to a master node that no longer exists or has been interrupted for some reason."

"In the short term, it is unlikely that contact with higher authorities will be restored. However—it cannot be completely ruled out."

"So we must hurry," Master Evelyn concluded. "Marcus, the investigation team must depart as soon as possible. Rowling, your research needs to be accelerated. We need to seize more initiative before the situation changes."

"clear."

The meeting ended. Rowling returned to the stone house, carrying a heavier responsibility and a clearer direction.