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Chapter 265 - Earth Essence Beads
🕑 Added 2025-03-14 07:00:11 +0000 UTCThe lair itself was a damp, sticky mess. The walls and floor were coated in a thick layer of mucus, excreted through thousands of wriggling veins that crisscrossed the cavern. The entire space felt alive, pulsing with a grotesque vitality. Leyvi could already imagine how troublesome it would be to navigate the lair later, with every step likely to be hindered by the sticky substance clinging to everything.
Stupid flying prohibition, Leyvi cursed inwardly. I'm going to beat up whoever made this rule! The prohibition on flying made everything infinitely more annoying. Without it, he could have easily avoided the mess below.
The mucus flowed slowly throughout the lair, eventually converging into multiple pools. Leyvi's annoyance quickly turned to satisfaction as he realized these pools were exactly what he had been looking for. Sawi would undoubtedly find a way to utilize this material. As for the smell—well, she'd figure it out. Since Crown Prince Dastan had no interest in it, Leyvi decided he would take everything for himself.
But there was something else that caught Leyvi's attention—a brightly glowing area in the lair, standing out starkly against the dim surroundings. In the center of this glowing pit were countless mud-brown beads streaked with golden veins. They resembled polished river stones, their surfaces cracked with faint, pulsating light that throbbed like a heartbeat.
The sight was mesmerizing, and Leyvi couldn't help but wonder what purpose these objects served. He could sense great energy emanating from them. These beads should, without a doubt, be some kind of great treasure!
Leyvi didn't recognize the strange beads, so he described them to Crown Prince Dastan, hoping the prince might have some insight.
"Daa hahaha! Leyvi! We are extremely lucky! We must get these beads at all costs!" Crown Prince Dastan exclaimed, his voice brimming with excitement. It was the happiest Leyvi had ever seen him.
"What are those beads?" Leyvi asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Those are Earth Essence Beads," Dastan explained, his tone filled with awe. "The Commander-Level Demonic Earthworm must have had the bloodline ability to refine everything it devoured into pure essence. Just look at how vast and extensive these tunnel networks are—the earthworm must have consumed countless precious materials over the years and produced these beads as a result."
"They're the ultimate cultivation resource for earth elemental cultivators. Not only do they allow for faster cultivation, but they also increase earth affinity over time. The refined earth essence nourishes the dantian and meridians, enabling stronger and faster earth-attribute martial skills while drastically reducing Qi consumption. This is a treasure beyond compare for earth elemental cultivators!"
"Ultimate treasure?" Leyvi's eyes lit up. He began to ponder whether he could benefit from them. He had an attributeless spirit root, not an earth spirit root, though his Earth Affinity, granted by the Talent Bead, allowed him to convert his Qi to earth element effortlessly. Still, it was unclear if the beads would have the same effect on him.
Even if he couldn't use them himself, he knew others who could. Tal, Fifi, and Selene in his family all had earth spirit roots and would benefit immensely from the Earth Essence Beads. Tal, in particular, could accelerate his mastery of the Clay Golem Army Martial Skill. Tal's dream of creating a life-sized chessboard with movable pieces was still a work in progress as he could currently control only five pieces. With the beads, his progress would skyrocket.
Leyvi glanced at Crown Prince Dastan's ecstatic face and couldn't help but ask, "Why are you so happy? You're not an earth elemental cultivator." He knew Dastan had a metal spirit root.
"Daa hahaha! This prince doesn't need them, but my royal fiancée does! With this gift, maybe she'll finally like me! No—she'll definitely like me! What woman wouldn't adore such a wonderful gift? She's so lucky to have a generous fiancé like me!" Dastan boasted, clearly overjoyed.
Leyvi was dumbfounded. This Clown Prince has a fiancée who doesn't like him? I hate to break it to you, but she probably dislikes your personality. No amount of treasure will fix that. You'd need to fix yourself first. However, Leyvi kept his thoughts to himself. Now wasn't the time to send Dastan spiraling into another existential crisis.
Ignoring the celebrating prince, Leyvi continued inspecting the lair. Knowing the lair contained such valuable treasures made it even more critical to ensure there were no hidden dangers.
Soon, Leyvi's spiritual sense picked up something surprising—egg chambers. Scattered throughout the lair were giant, leathery eggs, faintly pulsating as they lay half-buried in the damp soil, waiting to hatch. The presence of eggs meant there was a high chance of a living Demonic Earthworm nearby. It didn't take long for Leyvi to locate it.
At the center of the lair was a massive pit, its surface churning with moving sand and stone, as if it were a living, breathing entity. A single Demonic Earthworm lay within, connected to the countless wriggling veins that spread throughout the lair. It was the source of all the mucus.
Sensing the lone Demonic Earthworm, Leyvi felt a wave of stress wash over him. All his plans and the time spent traveling here might be for nothing. Why? Because this Demonic Earthworm was another Commander-Level creature!
Even if he managed to kill it with his Big Bang Annihilation technique, the resulting explosion would likely destroy everything in the lair—including the mucus pools and the Earth Essence Beads. How was he supposed to harvest the treasures without triggering such a catastrophe?
Leyvi's mind raced as he considered their options. Moving stealthily was out of the question—the Demonic Earthworm was undoubtedly sensitive to ground vibrations. The moment they stepped into the lair, it would detect them. This was likely how the group of Demonic Earthworms on the surface had noticed them back then.
He didn't hide the problem from Crown Prince Dastan. "There's another Commander-Level Demonic Earthworm in there. If we try to enter, it'll notice us immediately. So we can't just waltz in and grab the beads."
"What? Another Commander-Level Demonic Earthworm? It's over! This prince's ultimate gift! How are we supposed to get those beads now?" Dastan groaned, slumping lazily against the Crown Rider in defeat.
"Don't you have any flying methods that can bypass the flying prohibition? If we could fly in, grab the beads, and escape, that would solve the problem. You must have something like that, right? You're the Crown Prince, after all," Leyvi suggested, though his tone was more probing than hopeful.
"Dammit, Leyvi! Don't ever call this prince 'Crown Prince' again! It sounds so fake coming from you! And no, this prince doesn't have anything like that. If I did, I would've used it already," Dastan snapped, his frustration evident.
Leyvi ignored Dastan's tantrum and returned to his thoughts. They had come too far to leave empty-handed. There had to be a way to retrieve the Earth Essence Beads and the mucus without alerting the Demonic Earthworm.
For the next half hour, Leyvi sat motionless on the stationary Crown Rider, his eyes closed as he brainstormed. His spiritual sense continued to monitor the lair, scanning for any weaknesses or opportunities. Meanwhile, Crown Prince Dastan slumped against the handlebar, muttering dejectedly about his lost chance to impress his fiancée.
Finally, Leyvi opened his eyes. He had gone through every possible option and settled on the only viable plan. However, it would require Crown Prince Dastan's full cooperation—something he wasn't sure the prince would agree to easily.
"Clown Prince, do you trust me?" Leyvi asked.
Crown Prince Dastan turned his head lazily, his expression unimpressed. "No. Why would this prince trust an annoying bumpkin like you?"
"Hahaha! I figured," Leyvi replied, laughing. "But if you want those beads to make your fiancée head over heels for you, you'll need to force yourself to trust me and follow my plan. I have a way to deal with the Demonic Earthworm."
Crown Prince Dastan's eyes lit up at the mention of a solution, but his skepticism quickly returned. "This prince doubts you can come up with a good plan. You don't seem like a tactical person to this prince."
"Come on Clown Prince, listen to my idea first," Leyvi said, his tone light but firm. "Why are you judging a bumpkin by his appearance? Do you act like this with your subordinates too? Tch, tch. If you always act like this with your subordinates, some day they'll leave you and serve someone who appreciates their opinions. In the worst-case scenario, some might even betray you because they're tired of your bullshit."
Crown Prince Dastan shuddered at the thought. He had been dismissive of his subordinates, often ignoring their advice and suggestions. Could what Leyvi said actually happen? Surely not… right?
"Alright, this prince will listen," Dastan said reluctantly. "Tell this prince your idea."
Leyvi smiled and immediately launched into a detailed explanation of his plan.
"Are you out of your mind?!" Crown Prince Dastan exclaimed, his voice rising in disbelief.
"You want this prince to be the bait? This prince doesn't agree! There's no way we can take out a Commander-Level Demonic Earthworm like that. Do you think this prince is a kid? It's pure fantasy! Impossible! Maybe you're just trying to kill this prince! This prince knew from the start not to listen to a bumpkin's plan!"
Crown Prince Dastan disagreed completely with Leyvi's outrageous plan involving him. It was totally unheard of to ask a Crown Prince to act as bait.
