Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 581 - 48: Close Relatives of the Terror Beast_1

Chapter 581: Chapter 48: Close Relatives of the Terror Beast_1

When the girls stopped again, they had already arrived at a narrow crevice in the rock wall. Although it was referred to as a small fissure, this ’small’ was relative only to the rest. In reality, the crack was spacious enough for two people to pass through side by side - a considerable breadth for humans. The crevice was not high. Greyish-green climbing plants covered the walls on both sides, and occasionally some tiny creatures hopped around the vines, carrying food to their nests, preparing for winter. Upon a chirping signal, dozens of small beasts poured out from the crevice. These small beasts, merely twenty to thirty centimeters high, had pointed heads that protruded forward, their bodies adorned with dark green patterns. They hopped and leaped about on their hind legs, their small, agile tails controlling their balance. These little beasts appeared to be societal. As soon as they came out, they followed the lead of the one that had begun the calling and ran far away, quickly returning with a pile of plant roots or fruits.

"It seems they’re carnivorous magical beasts." Catherine looked at the group of small beasts from afar: "Typical carnivorous teeth, so why then do they hoard a bunch of plants in their nests?"

"Wolves also spend about twenty percent of their time eating grass, so don’t be so surprised." Pannis said: "But it seems these magical beasts are omnivorous. After all, meat cannot be stored for a long time. Hmm? Is there winter here as well? The climate in this area should be similar to the Lost Forest. I remember that it’s hot all year round there. What about here?"

"It depends on how you interpret winter." Ike took a few steps forward and pulled out his knife to hack at the vines blocking the crevice. These vines appeared thin, but they were very tough. Without the augmentation of Aggression, his knife could usually only cut half of a vine. After several slashes, Ike wiped his sweat and explained, "Theoretically, there’s a winter here. The temperature is slightly lower than now, but that’s the only change. It won’t affect us at all, actually, we might even find the temperatures quite comfortable. However, that’s not the case for these magical beasts, especially these tiny ones. When winter comes, they dare not leave their warm nests or venture deep into the crevice to hunt or pick plants, so they have no choice but to store food for the winter."

With everyone lending a hand, the vines covering the crevice were swiftly cleared, creating a passageway for them to walk through. The task was not too strenuous, but even this seemingly light work made everyone sweat profusely. Even Catherine’s under-dress had soaked through the armor, clinging to her body. She felt uncomfortable and sticky, but still had to maintain her dignified demeanor. Seeing no other choice, she gave her shoulders a slight wiggle, frowned and asked, "Is it because of the excess humidity? Why are we sweating so much?"

"You all feel it too, don’t you? It’s hot and humid here." Ike explained: "People have measured it. The humidity level here is even greater than in the Forest of Death. Even walking around for a long time here can make you drenched in sweat."

"Element, dispel." Suddenly, Vivian turned to Catherine and pointed. A light blue Array blinked beneath Catherine’s feet. Catherine paused, blinking in bewilderment, "Vivian, did you just dissipate the water elements around me? I feel the humidity has dropped a lot. But isn’t it too drastic? It feels almost similar to the Country of Sand."

"I had no choice." Vivian shrugged, saying helplessly, "It’s this extreme. However, being drier is still more comfortable than feeling like you’re soaking in water, right? Any one else interested? Who wants the Vivian-style dehumidifier?"

Minutes later, everyone had a water element dispelling Array cast on them that could maintain its effect for an hour, freeing them from the environmental discomforts. As though remembering something, Vivian pulled out a fragment of a low-capacity fire-attribute crystal and sneakily waved it at Pannis. Pannis paused, patted Vivian on the head, the corners of his mouth lifting into a warm smile. Freya watched the two interact curiously, asking in confusion, "What are you two doing? You guys seem strange; is there something I don’t know about?"

"Don’t interrupt their reminiscing." Lina pulled Freya aside, her arm around Freya’s, "Around this time last year, we met Pannis outside the Crying Cave. Back then, we three were still... at the Gold Rank."

"Hmm, indeed that was the situation." Having heard Lina’s story, Freya also smiled and said: "Before we advanced to the Legendary rank, we had to calculate our mana usage very precisely. Many convenient magic spells were not freely used. Now that our total mana has increased, our recovery speed has also accelerated accordingly, and we feel markedly fewer reservations when using it. However, I didn’t expect that there was such an interesting story when you guys met. What about that trickster who deceived you guys? Is he still swindling people in Quinzel town? Also, the two Beastman shopkeepers, Plough and Malt, seem like very interesting people too."

"Lina and I sneakily went back there quite recently." Vivian stole a glance at Catherine and, seeing that she was no longer mad about mentioning this incident, continued, "The shopkeeper couple is still as fun as ever. When the Fox Clan’s shopkeeper lady heard Pannis had joined us, she chased us down asking for a commission of introducing him! As for that little trickster, he disappeared as soon as he saw us. Let’s hope he continues to be lucky, staying safe and sound."

"Okay, that will be enough, there aren’t any magical beasts inside." As they were chatting leisurely, Ike, who had gone into the crevice to investigate, popped his head out from the uncleared vines: "I found a sloping path inside. The top of the slope is flat and has a fairly open view. It’s perfectly suitable for setting up our camp."

"This is the best news I’ve heard today." Catherine tapped the protective forehead band on her helmet, activating the Light-attribute crystal shard. She pushed aside a few hanging vines and entered the crevice.

The inside of the crevice was far from comfortable. The air was filled with the stench of magical beasts and the decay of corpses, with a faint whiff of sulphur mixed in. Even though there was light filtering in from outside, the interior of the crevice was still quite dark, one could only barely make out their surroundings by the light of their head torches. In front of them was a natural tunnel that varied in width, with broad areas towering over four meters and narrower spots barely wide enough for someone to squeeze through sideways. Vivian and Lina exchanged a surreptitious glance with Freya, only to be met with a fierce glare in return.

The tunnel was low-ceilinged, and pitch-black rocks loomed overhead as though they could collapse at any moment, casting a claustrophobic pall over the space. The damp environment had left the rock walls glistening wet, with water droplets falling from the tunnel ceiling in a rhythmic drip-drop, filling the eerily silent passageway with a strangely creepy ambiance.

Among the sporadic rubble lining both sides of the tunnel, one could occasionally spot the corpses of small magical beasts. Most of them had turned into white bones, but some still had skin and muscle remnants clinging to them. These bodies that had not yet completely decomposed were covered with tooth marks, with similar gnaw marks visible on the bones as well. Catherine squatted next to one of the corpses, which had been eaten down to a third, inspected it with gloved hands, and said, "Judging by the shape of the tooth marks, they seem to belong to the small magical beasts outside. This might be their dining area. Is it okay if we just walk through? Won’t we attract their attacks?"

"No need to worry," replied Ike, shaking his head. "These magical beasts are only at the silver rank. They may pose a significant threat to lower-ranking professionals, but even if we just stood still and let them attack, they wouldn’t be able to break our skin. But beware of their vomit. They spew corrosive acid from their stomachs, mainly aiming for their opponent’s face. Be careful not to get any on you."

"Acid spewing? Why does that remind me of the Terror Beasts?" Catherine exclaimed, her eyes wide, "If you really think about it, if those small beasts were scaled up a few times, they look incredibly similar, no, one could say identical to the Terror Beasts. Are they by any chance close relatives?"

"I think you’ve got it backwards," Pannis corrected. "It would be more accurate to say that the Terror Beasts are close relatives of these creatures. After all, regardless of their size, these magical beasts have been reproducing in the Earth’s Scar for tens of thousands of years."

"Sis, I didn’t even realize this," Vivian exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. She whispered, "I kept thinking these magical beasts look familiar, that I must’ve seen them somewhere. Of course, we encountered Terror Beasts in the Shining Forest. The three-clawed forelimbs, strong hind legs, sharp heads, and acid spewing—this discovery must be noted down."

Everyone was already used to Vivian’s habit of entering a full research mode at any moment, tuning everything out around her. Catherine sighed, shook her head, and made a gesture towards Pannis at the back of the line, who responded with a wry smile and gently nudged Vivian to keep moving.

On their journey through the tunnel, they observed a number of grey and purple plants growing resiliently in the crevices of the walls. It was a wonder how they survived in this light-deprived environment. Despite the harsh conditions, these plants not only survived but emitted a faint light. Even though the glow was weak, it was noticeable in the dark space. Their bodies were exceptionally hard, but their flowers had delicate petals. From time to time, unknown magical beasts would emerge from the darkness and feed on the tender petals after tearing them from the stiff sepals and stalks.

"Ha, these plants are pretty smart," Pannis chuckled. "They use bioluminescence to attract animals and then entice them into feeding on their soft petals. These magical beasts have essentially taken over the roles of bees and butterflies."

"We’re here," said Ike, turning his head. The light beacon on his head pointed to the right, "The slope is through that fork in the path."

"Hold on. Quiet." Pannis furrowed his brow, "What’s that sound?"

Within the silent tunnel, a faint rustling sound resonated, faint yet unceasing. (To be continued. If you enjoy this piece, please cast recommendation votes and monthly tickets at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)