Chapter 44: Ancient Dragon Son and Fat Giant
Dim light shrouded above the stone forest, and the interior was very quiet. There were no Tianba Clan guards here; there was simply no need for that.
The only thing of value within the stone forest was the Source Water. As for outsiders coming to steal the Source Water, even if the Tianba Clan saw them, they would let the thieves be.
Drinking the Source Water could indeed grant power, but not everyone could drink it. If one's physical constitution wasn't strong enough, and their willpower wasn't firm enough, the moment they drank the Source Water, they would transform into a monster. After that, the 'Source' within their body would immediately detach and return to the Source Pool.
The Tianba Clan living in Eternal Moon City began arduous training in techniques from childhood. This was not only to strengthen their bodies but also to temper their willpower.
All of this was preparation for drinking the Source Water. On average, only one out of every hundred people could be selected as a Tianba, meaning a warrior of the Tianba Clan.
On the day a Tianba came of age, they would come alone to the Abyss Serpent Mansion to witness everything here. After that, the newly adult Tianba would decide whether to drink the Source Water.
Even after drinking the Source Water, not everyone could gain the power of Soak and Drown. Out of ten Tianba, roughly four could awaken Soak and Drown.
Among these four, about three would have the Drown attribute (ranged), and one would have the Soak attribute (melee).
An ordinary Tianba who drank the Source Water would be eroded by the Source into a monster in about 10 to 13 years. Before turning into a monster, they would come to the Abyss Serpent Mansion.
For Tianba with the Drown attribute, it would take about 8 to 9 years before they were eroded into monsters.
As for Tianba with the Soak attribute, on average, they would completely turn into monsters in 3 to 5 years. They were the strongest individuals among the Tianba, some even breaking through the limit of Master-level melee combat to reach the Grandmaster level.
During this time, the more frequently they used Source power, the faster the Source eroded them. Some Soak-attribute Tianba might even turn into monsters within 1 to 2 months.
The Tianba being eroded by the Source wasn't because they craved power; they were using their own bodies to strengthen the 'Source' within them. Suppose when they first drank the Source Water, the Source energy in their bodies was 10 points. Then, before they turned into monsters, the Source energy would have reached at least 20,000 points or more.
Soak-attribute Tianba would be even more extreme, nurturing the Source energy within their bodies to over 50,000 points.
The one who needed the Source energy was the Abyss Serpent, and its purpose was currently unknown.
Aobo sat among the stone forest, chewing on delicious food in his mouth. At this moment, he was no longer afraid of Su Xiao. In simple-minded Aobo's view, as long as someone didn't hit him and gave him food, they were basically a good person.
"Aobo."
"Mm, Aobo is here. Bai Ye, are you hungry too?"
Aobo spoke in a deep, rumbling voice, grinning foolishly as he offered the food Su Xiao had given him.
The oversized clothes Aobo wore were a bit worn but well-made, clearly from the Tianba Clan.
"What were you waiting for in front of the Divine Ritual Hall?"
Hearing Su Xiao's words, Aobo's foolish smile faded, and he scratched his big bald head.
"Aobo was waiting for Los. We agreed. Los will definitely come to find Aobo. Los is Aobo's best friend."
Aobo started grinning foolishly again, but he didn't know that the Ancient Dragon Son, Los, had long died at the hands of Yiweier, and his bones were inside the Divine Ritual Hall.
After waiting bitterly for hundreds of years, his friend's remains were right near the place Aobo was waiting.
[Tip: The Hunter can choose to tell Aobo that the Ancient Dragon Son, Los, is dead, or conceal this matter.]
Su Xiao dismissed the notification from Reincarnation Paradise, leaped onto a stone pillar, and sat down.
"Los is dead."
"Los... is dead?"
Aobo was at a loss, and soon, he crouched down, curling his body and holding his head in his hands.
"Los was the gentlest. Los wouldn't die. No one would kill Los."
"He's dead. His remains are inside the Divine Ritual Hall. You can go see for yourself."
"Waaah!"
Aobo cried out loud and long, tears the size of fists rolling down.
"Los can't die. We promised. Aobo and Los were going to the Northern Continent to see the Frozen Mountain..."
Aobo cried until he broke down, but after a while, he covered his big mouth.
"Aobo will attract the Tianba. Bai Ye isn't a Tianba, so the Tianba will kill Bai Ye."
Aobo sniffled, after all, Su Xiao had just given him some food. Kind-hearted Aobo didn't want to get Su Xiao killed.
"Are you guarding the Source Pool?"
"Mm. Aobo made a pact with the snake. As long as Aobo guards this place, Los won't get hurt. Los is dead, dead."
"Snake?"
"A very, very big snake."
Aobo stretched out his arms, but his expression was still downcast. He wasn't stupid. After waiting for hundreds of years and Los never showing up, he had actually already guessed that Los had met with misfortune.
"Is Kukulin going to find the snake?"
"Of course."
"It won't work. Without 'Dragon Blood,' you can't go find the snake."
Leaving these words, Aobo stood up and walked out of the stone forest, heading into the abyss to find Los's remains. At the same time, Su Xiao received a notification from Reincarnation Paradise.
[Hunter has successfully triggered Main Quest, Ring 6.]
[Main Quest: Source's End (Ring 6).]
Difficulty Level: Lv.49 ~ Lv.65
Quest Information: Obtain 'Ancient Dragon Blood' and pour it into the Source Pool to destroy the sealed wall at the bottom of the pool.
Tip: The Ancient Dragon Blood is sealed somewhere within the Abyss Serpent Mansion.
Tip: It can also be obtained from the key guiding character, Yiweier.
Quest Time Limit: 8 natural days.
Quest Reward: Determined based on quest completion.
Quest Penalty: Forced execution.
...
The Ring 6 quest was successfully activated. However, Su Xiao had no way to obtain the Ancient Dragon Blood required for the quest. Moreover, the difficulty of this quest had a huge range, and it could easily turn into Seventh Rank difficulty. The minimum difficulty of Lv.49 was for finding Yiweier, since Su Xiao had already interacted with her.
The Ring 6 quest was very difficult, but this was the kind of quest Su Xiao excelled at.
Ancient Dragon Blood could be obtained in two ways: first, by searching within the Abyss Serpent Mansion; second, by getting it from Yiweier. The former carried huge risks, while the latter would take a long time, and whether Yiweier could even be found was unknown.
Without being able to communicate normally with the Tianba Clan, finding the Ancient Dragon Blood within the Abyss Serpent Mansion was nearly impossible. Even if Bubu Wang could blend into the environment, searching for the Ancient Dragon Blood would still be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
As for getting it from Yiweier, she was currently hiding somewhere to recover from her injuries. She had nearly died in Front Guard Village before, and finding her would be just as difficult.
Su Xiao wasn't rigid. Just because the quest information told him to find something, he wouldn't fixate solely on that item. As long as he could achieve the final goal, the process didn't really matter.
"Bubu."
Su Xiao took out Bubu Wang's diving equipment from his storage space. Bubu Wang quickly put it on and blended into the environment.
About ten minutes later, Bubu Wang, wearing the sealed diving gear, returned. Using the concealment of blending into the environment, he had dived into the Source Pool.
By reviewing the footage Bubu Wang had recorded, Su Xiao saw that the Source Pool was about ten meters deep. At the bottom, there was a kind of blue crystal that blocked the pool.
The Ancient Dragon Blood required for the quest was used to destroy the crystal layer at the bottom. So, finding the Ancient Dragon Blood wasn't the key; the focus was on destroying the sealed layer at the bottom.
Su Xiao held a blue crystal between his fingers. This was something Bubu Wang had collected from the bottom of the Source Pool. This was what sealed the bottom.
Su Xiao gripped the blue crystal in his palm and gradually applied force.
Crack, crack, crack...
After exerting full force, Su Xiao opened his hand. The blue crystal in his palm was completely undamaged. This thing was extremely hard. With Su Xiao's swordsmanship, using Dragon-Slaying Flash to forcibly destroy the blue crystal wasn't impossible, but it would be a considerable undertaking, and the noise it made would definitely alert the Tianba Clan in the Abyss Serpent Mansion.
Su Xiao took out several metal instruments from his storage space, connected them together, and inserted the blue crystal in his hand into the transformation slot.
As Su Xiao operated, three green lights lit up on the metal instruments. Alchemy wasn't about mixing bottles and jars; it was about analyzing mysticism. It didn't stick to old methods; whichever method was practical, that was the one to use.
A few minutes later, Su Xiao took the blue crystal out of the transformation slot.
"Taidinji Lizi, a rare composite crystal."
Su Xiao applied force with two fingers, and with a crack, the blue crystal in his hand split open. Search for Ancient Dragon Blood? There was no need for that. Ultimately, the substance contained in Ancient Dragon Blood could dissociate the molecular structure of 'Taidinji Lizi.' It seemed mystical, but it was actually just molecular dissociation.