Various types of slave creatures could be seen everywhere in the city: towering rock giants, several meters tall, covered in heavy metal armor and moving like mobile fortresses, and packs of Abyssal Hunting Dogs with bloodthirsty red eyes and exposed fangs silently crouched in designated areas under the Wizards' command.

There were even several colossal lava beasts, their skins cracked like molten rock, exuding heat and the scent of sulfur, being guided slowly towards the city walls by several Wizards, each step causing the ground to tremble slightly.

The entire Goose Peak Castle had been completely transformed into a steel fortress brimming with the style of Wizard Civilization, armed to the teeth and ready for war at any moment.

The air was filled with the scents of blood, energy, gunpowder, and the adrenaline-fueled atmosphere born from countless powerful creatures intermingled together.

Duke's Spiritual Power quietly unfolded, and although still suppressed by the Plane, the sensation was much reduced within this altered city.

He could clearly sense a strong energy reaction coming from deep beneath the ground, obviously the energy core and defense Witch Array hub of the entire base.

Throughout the castle, countless energy fluctuations of various intensities intertwined, forming a vast and complex war machine.

Looking up, Duke was surprised to see three dark holes in the sky, with many small black dots moving in and out of them.

This was a scene he had never seen when he last visited the Devourer Plane. The sky back then was no different from the Wizard Plane and did not have these three holes.

Duke, recalling his experiences on the Beastman Plane, speculated that these three holes were likely created by the United Legion on the dimensional barriers of the Devourer Plane, facilitating the movement of troops.

It's unclear how these three holes came to be, but clearly, they're different from the rift on the Beastman Plane.

The rift on the Beastman Plane was torn open by Black Hand Morgan himself, whereas these three holes seemed to be pierced through with some kind of extraordinarily powerful weapon.

Duke soon realized that the Beastman Plane was merely a Low Plane with less sturdy dimensional barriers, which allowed Morgan to tear it open.

However, the Devourer Plane is a Middle Plane, with extremely strong dimensional barriers.

Not to mention Morgan as a Level 4 Mage, even a regular Level 6 Mage would find it difficult to penetrate the dimensional barriers of a Middle Plane.

Generally, at least the power of Level 7 Life would be required to threaten the dimensional barriers of a Middle Plane.

The Wizard Plane clearly did not have such powerful individuals, with the strongest only being Level 6 Mages.

But they had developed various civilization techniques from different Planes over the years, providing means to make some holes in the dimensional barriers of a Middle Plane.

Though this would consume massive resources, as long as they could conquer the Devourer Plane, such a powerful Middle Plane, it would all be worth it.

Duke, following the clear path sign, walked through the busy military and fortification areas towards the main castle.

His presence did not draw much attention; a Level 1 Mage in such a large war base was inconspicuous and quite ordinary.

Along the way, Duke saw several familiar streets, and the overall structure remained that of the former city, though everything else had changed.

After he brought news of this place to the Fifth Outpost, the Black Sail moved in shortly after, saving the three Wizards and taking control of the Goose Peak Castle area.

Goose Peak Castle became the first completely occupied city in the Devourer Plane, serving as a stronghold for the United Legion.

In later plans, Goose Peak Castle was allocated to the Sixth United Legion as a base.

Duke now needed to report for duty and complete the necessary paperwork.

Soon, he arrived at the main castle area.

The guards here were more stringent, with elite guards from the Thorn Holy Tower and Silver Hand visible everywhere.

Upon entering the gate, there was a bustling hall where many Wizards were queueing for procedures or to hand over tasks.

Duke walked directly to the service window marked with the Black Sail skull. This was the place designated for handling affairs for Black Sail Wizards.

The Black Sail window had the fewest people, unlike the Thorn Holy Tower and Silver Hand, where there were long queues and more than one window.

Behind the window was a somewhat tired-looking but sharp-eyed Level 1 Mage. He took Duke's Black Sail Badge and order, starting to process them.

"A Level 1 Arcanist?" This Mage looked up at Duke, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes, seemingly not expecting an Arcanist to be assigned to the frontline corps.

"Your file has been received. According to the instructions from the Thorn Holy Tower and the Third Legion and your personal preference, you have been assigned to the Sixteenth Squadron of the Sixteenth Battalion under the Sixth United Legion. Their station is at the third tower on the west side of the castle. Here is your room key, the base map, the latest battle briefing, and the instruction manual. The squadron commander is Mage Catherine from the Thorn Holy Tower. Please report to her immediately."

He handed Duke a metal plaque and several documents.

"Instructions from the Thorn Holy Tower and the Third Legion?" Duke sharply caught the implications of this sentence.

He knew about the instructions from the Third Legion, as they were arranged through Lucas, whom he had helped for this purpose.

But the instructions from the Thorn Holy Tower were unexpected, as they should not have known about Duke's assignment.

This could only mean one thing: Grace had also done something to help Duke.

Knowing Duke was looking for Vivian, Grace likely used her own channels to assist Duke's arrangements.

For her, having a trustworthy Duke by Vivian's side was beneficial; after all, two people are better than one.

"Understood, thank you."

Without unnecessary words, Duke turned and left the reporting point, unfolding the internal map, heading towards the third tower on the west side.

Following the guidance of the internal map, Duke traversed the wide passageways built with heavy rock and reinforced metal.

The internal structure of Goose Peak Castle had undergone significant transformation. The original layout of the Leighton Clan's castle was opened up and fortified, becoming diverse military areas.

Occasionally, patrols would pass by. Duke noticed that these patrol soldiers were Knights, wearing standard armor emblazoned with the Thorn Holy Tower emblem, stepping in unison, with vigilant gazes.

Upon seeing Duke's Black Sail Wizard Robe, they would slightly slow their pace and nod in acknowledgment but did not ask many questions.

This was a special Knight force exclusive to the Thorn Holy Tower, whose origins remained unknown.

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