Claude looked at the screen in front of him and said loudly, "First observation: humanoid creature, blue skin, average height similar to humans, clothing and weapons showing signs of highly developed civilization."
The witch and others in the room recorded his words: "What are the preliminary environmental data?"
"Temperature: 46 degrees Fahrenheit, Humidity: 62%, Gravity: 5 times that of Earth. Energy Detected: Magic."
"Huh?" Claude focused his attention on the last two data. Such a harsh environment means that the average strength of the natives of this plane is stronger than the humans on earth before the Empire era. However, what Claude is most concerned about is the fact that there is magic in this world.
"A world with magic? Are we so lucky?" Claude laughed. There are various types of worlds in the Astral Realm. According to the Empire's classification, worlds with magic and magic systems are the most valuable. First, they contain magic resources such as magic ores, plants and new creatures. Secondly, Empire is very happy to study new magic civilizations and incorporate them into the arcane system.
"The enemy has discovered us," a commander reported.
"Activate Wizard's Eye's defenses. Although these things are cheap, we don't have money to burn," Claude ordered. His actions saved several surveillance systems, but the enemy's arrows still managed to destroy most of them.
"Deploy remote monitoring."
The tower is equipped with remote detection methods, but using Wizard's Eye is more energy efficient. However, now that this civilization has advanced to detect their detection methods, Claude has no choice but to use this method.
Later, the team sees an army of blue beings, most of whom are wearing armor, and some of whom are holding staffs - possibly indicating that they are spellcasters.
Claude looked at the approaching enemy calmly. "Do you have any suggestions?"
"First, we must deploy Time-Space Locking Shield," the first commander suggested. "This is a plane of Tier 8, which means they may have the ability to destroy our tower. Additionally, the Law Resonance spell is only a prototype and may not work. The shield should protect us from Planar Will."
"Execute," Claude ordered. The space around the magic tower changed instantly. In a sense, it has entered another dimension, and the space barriers around this dimension have been reinforced to resist powerful spells.
"What's the action plan?" Claude asked.
"Deploy Golem Legion," the first commander suggested. "We need to have a basic understanding of the enemy's strength and magic system. It is best to capture a few alive as samples."
"No, it's too early to deploy Golem Legion. Those things are expensive to repair," another commander said. "Didn't we bring a Knight Legion (Knight Legion)? Send them to meet the enemy."
Claude frowned. Knight Legion is a new invention after the Empire entered Exploration Era. Many new races and species were discovered in these planes, so how to deal with them became a problem.
Elder Council has strict rules in place to manage these people; for example, no intelligent creature can be enslaved - the only exception is Abyssal Demons. These chaotic creatures cannot be included in the Empire, which is enough to explain the problem, after all, even the undead are included.
Although Empire is inclusive, it will not blindly accept everyone. After all, these races from other planes have just been conquered, how can they be accepted so easily? The rule is that children 13 years old and below will only be recognized as "citizens" after they have gone through school education.
Previously, Empire had a security system from 1 to 5, with each level allowing individuals to access rare or forbidden knowledge or resources. After entering the new era, this system was restructured from 0 to 10. Empire citizens born on the Godhood side had an initial security level of 3.
At the same time, children in these planes who are "preparatory citizens" have a security level of 1. After becoming full citizens, their security level will reach 2 and they will be transported to Arcane Plane - this is the frontline plane used by the Empire to conceal the fact that they originated from the Godhood plane. If these children show enough talent, they can obtain Level 3 security clearance and travel to the core area of the Empire.
Knight Legion was created to accommodate the parents of these children. As long as people from these conquered planes voluntarily join the legion and make enough contributions, they can increase their security level from 0 to higher. In other words, this is the only way for them to advance in the Empire.
"Send them out," Claude ordered. His hesitation stemmed from the fact that he did not trust these people very much. The only reason he brought them here was because the government provided many preferential policies to encourage the expedition to use these legions.
A white light flashed about 200 meters away from the blue-skinned legion. Claude chose a standard troop configuration for his Knight Legion: shield soldiers made up of Dwarves, spear knights made up of humans, elven archers, and finally a small legion made up of non-arcane spellcasters.
"Broadcast announcement," Claude ordered. Although he knew it was useless, he still followed the instructions. Then, a voice came from the tower:
"This is the magic tower of Arcanist Jean·Augustus·Claude, who was awarded First-Class Merlin Medal for his achievements in the field of Ancestral Spirit Magic.
"According to New Era Development Act of the Arcane Empire, I am obligated to demand your peaceful surrender before engaging in battle. If you accept peaceful surrender, your plane can elect a representative to negotiate terms."
The broadcast used Soul Language, which means that any creature with a soul can directly understand the meaning. Claude and his team waited calmly for the other party's response. As expected, a man over 2.5 meters tall and holding a giant ax walked to the front of the formation.
"Quick, activate the Divination spell--language translation."
Claude's order was executed immediately. When the tall man spoke, everyone understood what he was saying:
"I am Lieutenant General Corsil·Glandax, representing Saxix Empire. We will never surrender to foreign invaders. On behalf of the Empire, we are willing to treat you leniently and allow you to leave as soon as possible."
"It is impossible for me to leave," Claude responded directly. "This voyage is very expensive, and I must find a way to make up for the losses. However, I am willing to use a more peaceful way to deal with the current situation. I am willing to exchange knowledge and resources. If you are willing to compromise, I can promise to cooperate with you Saxix Empire first, and not to trade with anyone else within a year."
"There is no room for negotiation," General Corsil retorted. "Either leave now or face the consequences."
Claude shook his head, not surprised by this result. As soon as the negotiations with Planar Will broke down, he knew that invasion was the only option. Planar Will was born from the consciousness of all sentient beings in his world and was connected to it.
All Planar Will have an instinctive desire to protect themselves, so the moment Claude breaks in forcefully, the instinct of Planar Will will subconsciously affect all creatures in that world, making them become xenophobic; they will protect their world at all costs.
"In that case, let's each rely on our abilities," Claude announced.