Tales of the Endless Empire
Chapter 163: Where Do All the Beasts Teleport To?

Holy shit, this turtle is overpowered, Thalion thought as he fired another lightning beam straight into its open mouth, trying to disrupt its strange inhaling ability. The air around him swirled chaotically, gravity bending as if reality itself had broken down.

Seriously? A turtle with gravity manipulation? That was absurd, especially in aerial combat where positioning was everything.

The blast hit true. The turtle's entire body convulsed violently, cutting off both its abilities. A guttural roar echoed through the skies—a sound far too primal for a creature with a shell.

Finally, Thalion thought, though a pang of doubt lingered. How was this thing still alive? His lightning beam usually tore enemies apart, yet this beast's shell had deflected one strike, and even a direct hit inside its mouth hadn’t finished it off.

Seizing the opportunity, Thalion launched another beam. The turtle's jaws snapped shut just in time, cutting off part of the attack, but not all of it. The residual lightning sent fresh tremors through its massive form. Then, without warning, the skyturtle vanished, just like the hawk before it.

"Gods damn it," Thalion muttered, frustration prickling his thoughts. No experience. No skill drops. Worse, that gravity manipulation ability could have been invaluable.

Where the hell are these beasts teleporting to? He wondered if it really was the higher stage of the tutorial. If that were the case, why weren’t more beasts leaving? And what were the requirements? Maybe that talking horse back at camp could shed some light on the situation.

The thought made him frown. There was a more troubling possibility—what if the termite queen had the same ability? Depending on how long this tutorial stage lasted, things could get really messy. And if those monsters appeared on the new world? Thalion grimaced. He didn't even want to think about it.

His resolve hardened. He couldn’t waste time. Difficult fights loomed on the horizon, and he had to be ready.

He collected the floating corpses of the dead skyturtles, their bodies hovering eerily where they'd fallen. It was time to head back to base. He had maybe two weeks, at most, to bind the darkness elemental to the Umbral Predator.

Feeding time, he thought grimly.

The process was still a mystery—did he need to kill or just weaken the air elementals before offering them to the darkness elemental? He’d figure it out soon enough. Afterward, he’d take the portal to the ocean. Sky hunts were decent for experience, but the depths? That was where the real beasts lurked. Stronger, smarter, deadlier.

Why didn't some of the big predators in the ocean vanish like the skyturtle, though? Thalion mused. Some had been stronger than that overgrown turtle. Were the requirements for teleportation different depending on the type of creature?

It was getting more intriguing by the second.

There were still a few of the massive crystals like the ones the skyturtle and hawk had guarded, but he wasn’t interested in those right now. Time was too precious. Every second had to be used effectively—his life would depend on it.

As he flew back, Thalion mulled over his current options. One idea had been to use the ritual to travel to the realm with the golden palace, but that was risky. What if the god had noticed something off with Rylak? Installing a detection network to spot outsiders before they even reached a planet probably wouldn’t be too difficult for a god.

No, too dangerous, he decided.

His current situation wasn’t that bad, anyway. He didn’t have any other immediate ideas for a quick power-up besides blood cultivation, but that required patience. The best course of action was clear: wreak havoc on the ocean beasts and pay a special visit to the termite hive.

Yeah, those evil insects definitely need a beating, Thalion thought with a grim smile. And if he could capture one of those pixies? Even better.

He remembered the skills he'd obtained from the mage termite he'd killed during his last hive visit. He really needed to find a way to transform those abilities for his Umbral Predator. That would be a perfect match.

Until then, he’d keep the Predator in his human form. The big termite form might still be useful for infiltration, but after that? Probably not worth cultivating further. The Predator trumped the termite in every aspect.

Still, maybe it was worth leveling the termite just for the skills it might unlock. Those murderous pixies seemed like an ideal candidate for a new form, though. And if he could get his hands on the termite queen's body...

Could I mass-produce termites with specific skills? The thought was tantalizing.

On the other hand, he would have to kill his own offspring, which was something he wasn’t sure he could stomach. Thankfully, that dilemma remained theoretical for now. Killing the termite hive queen was likely beyond his current capabilities.

Maybe if he directed every single fighter at the hive, they might succeed, but the cost would be devastating. They’d lose too many warriors, and every one of them was critical in the war against the undead.

No, what he was doing now had to be the best course of action.

Another big reason for visiting the termite hive was to buy time for the humans who had recently arrived on this stage. They needed to level up before the termites inevitably swarmed them. Perhaps he should leave a few skyships behind so they could travel safely until they were forcefully teleported to the fifth stage. Unfortunately, no one knew when that would happen, and there was nothing he could do to change that.

Minutes later, Thalion arrived at the skyship carrying the portal. Without hesitation, he flew through it, instantly reappearing at his base.

He quickly gathered the blood vials the base's people had collected for him, along with a variety of plants for a feast. Most importantly, he grabbed ten lamps filled with air elementals and made his way to his tower.

Messages flooded his token now that he was back—though the first had started arriving the moment he'd approached the skyship. He began reviewing them as he walked. One message in particular caught his attention, leaving him puzzled.

Why was Maike asking if he was happy with her? And if there was anything he wanted to talk about?

Then he saw the follow-up message: Maike had barely escaped an attack from those murder pixies. That was troubling. The termites were gaining power far too quickly. He could only hope they’d leave him alone for the next two weeks.

Reaching the large gate, Thalion pushed it open and descended into his cultivation chamber. It was feeding time for his new companion.

The darkness elemental hovered in the air like a shifting ball of black smoke. There were no glowing eyes, no discernible head—just an ominous, swirling mass. It had gained two levels since last feeding, which was impressive for an elemental.

While contemplating the best way to feed it the air elementals, Thalion continued scanning his messages. One from Kaldrek piqued his interest:

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"Thalion, what are all these vinehorses doing in our base? This is so weird—they’re just wandering around in groups and even sticking close to people. Please explain. It's annoying having guards follow them around to stop anyone from killing them."

Right. He’d completely forgotten about that.

Okay, what to do now? He should gather everyone and address a few points: their departure in roughly two weeks, the termite threat, and the vinehorses. It was probably best to introduce the vinehorses as allies against both the termites and the undead. That would make their presence less strange.

Funny how seriously they're taking their new job, Thalion thought with a wry smile. He hadn’t expected that level of commitment.

He needed to speak with the talking vinehorse to figure out the best way to level up his new spies and understand their long-term goals. He had no intention of keeping them as slaves—mutually beneficial agreements always worked best in his experience.

But first, back to the elemental business. He wanted his buddy munching as soon as possible.

The air elementals were twice the level of his darkness elemental, which was a problem. Elementals were preyed upon not just by beasts but by each other. If an air elemental devoured another of its kind, it could absorb their body, gaining a massive boost in power.

The only reason the elementals hadn’t already cannibalized each other inside the lamp was due to its design—each section held only one elemental. The lamp allowed them to be released one at a time.

Thalion positioned the lamp directly under the hovering darkness elemental, which floated seven meters above the ground. Energy funneled into it from the intricate runes Thalion had inscribed on the floor and walls.

He freed the first air elemental, a level 35—one of the weaker ones. It shot upward immediately, aiming to devour the darkness elemental.

Thalion intercepted it with a precise strike, cutting it cleanly in half and destroying its core. The air elemental disintegrated, its remains greedily sucked upward by the darkness elemental, which formed a writhing tentacle to gobble it up.

The darkness elemental grew noticeably larger from just that one kill.

If it had been alive when eaten, the gains would have been even better, Thalion speculated.

After feeding it another elemental, the darkness elemental reached level 15—quick progress. Still, feeding it by hand was a tedious process.

Thalion decided to speed things up. He placed all the lamps on the far side of the room, released every elemental simultaneously, and killed them in a single sweep. The runes on the floor guided their remains toward the darkness elemental, which devoured them eagerly.

There shouldn’t have been much energy lost over the distance, but Thalion didn’t want to risk one of the stronger elementals taking a bite out of the darkness elemental. He watched as the mist from the dead elementals spiraled upward, drawn toward the darkness elemental. The process was faster than expected.

A thick white cloud now hovered beneath the elemental, which struggled to absorb it all at once. Thalion had killed over sixty elementals. More than enough to keep it occupied for a while.

His next task was a quick visit to the vinehorses, which Maike had housed in a large, unused building near the walls. Most people preferred to live closer to the center of the base, where their homes were less likely to be destroyed during attacks. The central buildings had been upgraded to accommodate thousands, leaving many houses near the perimeter empty.

Thalion made his way to the house, returning the empty lamps so more air elementals could be gathered. He also collected some enchanted plants for the vinehorses. Their hard work deserved a reward, he thought with a smile.

Not wanting to waste time walking, he shifted into mistform, to speed up his journey.

The vinehorses’ house stood large and imposing, even from the outside. The door had clearly been modified. It looked more like a gate, five meters tall, towering over the neighboring homes. Thalion pushed it open and had to stifle a laugh at the scene inside.

One horse sat solemnly within a glowing magic circle, another drank water from a toilet, and a third lay sprawled on the couch with its hooves dramatically covering its eyes as though it had died a week ago.

"Okay, listen up! Is the one who can talk here?" Thalion called loudly.

Every horse froze, wide-eyed. The one on the couch flailed and tumbled off with a thud.

Suddenly, chaos erupted. Horses bolted up the stairs, darted down hallways, or disappeared into the cellar.

I guess I'll just wait, Thalion thought, watching the commotion with mild amusement. He disliked wasting time, but thankfully, it only took a few minutes for the speaking vinehorse to appear.

It trotted toward him, looking slightly disheveled. It seemed to have been in the city, likely spying on important figures.

"Great, you're here. We have a lot to discuss," Thalion said with a nod.

"We spied... humans... some attacked..." the vinehorse began, its voice halting.

"Yeah, there shouldn't be any more attacks. I will hold a little speech to drive the point home," Thalion reassured it with a dismissive wave.

"More importantly, I want to discuss your needs and beasts in general," he continued. "What do you require for progression? We have plenty of enchanted plants. Also, where do you come from? And most importantly, can you move to the higher stages of the tutorial?"

The vinehorse tilted its head, processing the questions.

"Plants... tasty... make stronger..." it began slowly. After a pause, it continued, "Origin... Earth... no stages... return to origin..."

"Wait, so you can go to New Earth?" Thalion asked, eyes narrowing. "Why haven’t you done that before the termites could kill you?"

"No easy... much requirements..." the vinehorse explained haltingly.

Of course, Thalion thought grimly. Nothing in this system came for free.

It also meant that the wyvern, the hawk, and the giant sky turtle were already on New Earth. And chances were high that the massive termite hive would be teleported there as well.

If the hive queen had met the requirements to teleport, then killing her was out of the question. The realization weighed heavily on him. Just another reason to accelerate his own progress.

The gathering would begin soon, and afterward, he’d head to the ocean for a hunt.

"Ah, before I forget," Thalion said, retrieving a pouch. "Here are some crystals and tokens that will grant access to plants and supplies. By the way, how did the spying go? Did you hear anything interesting?"

The vinehorse's eyes gleamed. "Noodle soup... half price... next two days," it declared triumphantly, nodding as if revealing a grand secret.

"Ah, yes, that sounds... great," Thalion replied, slightly irritated.

Well, he mused, when the vinehorses realize they can eat as much soup as they want with my token, things will get really funny.