Chapter 91: Unsuitable for Personal Cultivation
Clayne’s frustration had already been building for quite some time before the Newly Hatched Mantis returned.
The Mother Mantis crystal rested quietly in his palm while he sat cross-legged near the center of the room.
Spiritual energy continuously flowed from the crystal in dense streams, so dense that if an ordinary cultivator from the Tiny World were present, they would probably lose their minds from greed.
The air around Clayne shimmered faintly. Dust floated unnaturally. Tiny cracks occasionally appeared across the concrete floor beneath him due to the pressure of spiritual energy leaking from the crystal. Yet despite all of that, despite the overwhelming amount of power contained within the crystal, the result remained disappointing.
Clayne had spent a long time attempting to cultivate with it.
He tried circulating the spiritual energy faster. He tried slowing the circulation down. He tried absorbing it gently. He tried forcefully refining it. He even attempted using the same methods that had worked perfectly with the heavenly-tribulation-tempered dried fruits.Yet Nothing worked.
The crystal was simply too different.
Every time the energy entered his body, a large portion would mysteriously refuse to integrate with him. The sensation was incredibly strange. It was not rejection in the sense of pain. It was not some backlash that injured his meridians. Instead, it felt as though the spiritual energy itself was looking at his body and deciding it did not belong there.
The more Clayne tried, the more obvious the problem became.
His body absorbed a little.
The crystal released a lot.
Most of it simply circulated around him before escaping.
It was like trying to pour an ocean into a bottle.
The crystal was willing. The energy was willing. Yet something was fundamentally wrong.
By the end of another cultivation session, Clayne finally opened his eyes and stared down at the glowing crystal.
His expression became increasingly ugly.
"This thing is ridiculous."
The crystal naturally did not answer.
"It dragged half the cultivation world over here."
Still no answer.
"It survived heavenly tribulation."
Nothing.
"It can apparently absorb souls."
Silence.
"And somehow it’s almost useless to me and performs worse than the dried mango."
The crystal continued glowing peacefully.
Clayne suddenly had the absurd urge to throw it at a wall.
Fortunately, before he could do something stupid, a familiar mental fluctuation suddenly entered his mind.
The connection carried excitement.
Hunger. Joy. More hunger. Even more hunger. And somehow, beneath all of that... Still more hunger.
Clayne did not even need to turn around.
He already knew who it was.
A moment later, the Newly Hatched Mantis appeared. It seemed it came back from its massacre.
The creature looked noticeably larger than before.
Its crimson exoskeleton gleamed under the light. Its blade-like forearms looked sharper. The strange patterns covering its body seemed more defined. Even its eyes carried greater intelligence than before.
The creature practically sprinted toward him. Then it immediately began making clicking sounds.
"Krrrk."
"Krrrkkk."
"Krrrrk-krrk-krrrk!"
To anyone else, it would sound like random insect noises.
Through the Beast Enslavement connection, however, Clayne understood everything.
The mantis was practically shouting.
"Master!"
"Master!"
"Hungry!"
"Very hungry!"
"Hungry again!"
"I killed things!"
"I ate things!"
"Still hungry!"
The creature stopped in front of him and waved its sickle arms around excitedly.
"I ate many things."
"Very many things."
"Good things."
"Crunchy things."
"Hard things."
"Flying things."
"Running things."
"Still hungry."
Clayne rubbed his forehead.
"How many did you eat?"
The mantis immediately projected images through their mental connection.
The moment the images appeared, Clayne’s mouth twitched. The first memory showed the mantis standing atop a pile of corpses. The second memory showed it eating crystals. The third memory showed it eating more crystals. The fourth memory showed it eating crystals while standing on top of another pile of corpses.
The fifth memory showed it eating crystals while carrying crystals. The sixth memory showed it eating crystals after killing creatures for their crystals. The seventh memory showed it eating crystals while looking for more crystals. The eighth memory was somehow another scene of eating crystals.
The mantis proudly finished its presentation.
Then it waited expectantly.
Clayne stared.
"You ate all that?"
The mantis nodded.
Its mental voice immediately became cheerful.
"Very good."
"Very tasty."
"Need more."
"Much more."
"More more more."
Clayne felt a headache coming.
"What exactly is your stomach made of?"
The mantis tilted its head.
Then came its answer.
"Hungry."
That was apparently its entire explanation. The creature moved closer. Its excitement grew stronger. The connection between them almost felt like a puppy begging for treats.
"Master always has food."
"Master has lightning food."
"Master has heavenly food."
"Master has miracle food."
"Master feed?"
"Master feed?"
"Master feed?"
Clayne almost laughed despite himself.
The thing was terrifying in battle.
It could cut through powerful monsters. It could launch wind blades capable of slicing buildings apart. Yet when it came to food, it behaved like an oversized pet.
Unfortunately, Clayne truly did not have much left.
Most of the dried mangoes had already been used. Most of the strawberries had also been consumed. His resources were not infinite. Then his gaze slowly drifted toward the crystal in his hand.
A thought suddenly appeared. The Mother Mantis crystal. He could not use it properly. The mantis, on the other hand... The thing practically ate everything.
The more Clayne thought about it, the more reasonable the idea became.
Eventually he lifted the crystal. The moment the mantis saw it, everything changed. The creature froze. Completely froze. Its eyes locked onto the crystal. Then its body began trembling. Then saliva started dripping from its mouth. More saliva. Then even more.
The mantis looked as though it had just discovered the meaning of life.
Its mental voice became weak. Shaky. Filled with longing.
"Food."
A pause. Then another thought appeared.
"Very food."
Clayne almost burst out laughing.
He raised the crystal slightly.
The mantis followed it with its eyes.
He moved it left.
The mantis followed.
He moved it right.
The mantis followed again.
Its entire body moved like a desperate dog staring at a steak.
"Can you absorb this?"
The question barely finished before the mantis began nodding.
Once. Twice. Ten times. Twenty times.
Its entire upper body bounced up and down.
"Yes." "Yes." "Yes." "Very yes." "Extremely yes."
"Can eat." "Want eat." "Need eat." "Please eat."
The amount of desperation coming through the mental connection was absurd.
Clayne finally threw the crystal.
The mantis launched itself forward.
Its mouth opened.
Crunch. The crystal disappeared.Then came the chewing.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
The sound echoed throughout the room.
The creature’s entire body visibly trembled.
It looked happier than Clayne had ever seen it.
Its eyes narrowed in bliss. Its forearms twitched. Its tail shook. The mantis looked like someone enjoying the greatest meal of their life.
Eventually it swallowed.
Several moments passed.
Then the creature rolled around on the floor.
Not because it was hurt.
Because it was happy. Extremely happy.
Its thoughts flooded the connection.
"Good." "Very good." "Best thing ever." "Master best." "Need another." "Need many." "Need mountain of those."
Clayne immediately pointed at it.
"Not happening."
The mantis froze.
Disappointment flooded the connection.
Then Clayne continued.
"If you want more, you earn them."
The mantis blinked.
"Earn?"
"Kill enemies."
The mantis became interested.
"Kill."
"Bring me crystals."
The mantis thought.
Then nodded.
"Good." "I kill." "I bring." "Master reward."
The creature somehow sounded like it had negotiated a successful business deal.
From that point onward, things became surprisingly efficient. The mantis hunted. The mantis killed. The mantis brought back crystals.
Many of those crystals ended up inside the Tiny World.
The results were immediate.
The Ascendant-level demonic beasts under Clayne’s control practically went crazy.
Several entered seclusion. Several experienced breakthroughs. Several improved their bloodlines. Even Kiarma benefited significantly.
Watching all of them grow stronger only made Clayne more jealous.
The treasure seemed useful for literally everyone except him. Eventually the mantis returned carrying another crystal.
Clayne casually tossed it toward the creature.
The mantis caught it. Opened its mouth.
Swallowed.
Then—
Ptoo!
The crystal shot out of its mouth.
The crystal bounced across the floor several times before coming to a stop.
The mantis immediately took several steps backward. Its expression became strange. Very strange.
Clayne frowned.
The mantis stared at the crystal.
Then stared at him. Then stared at the crystal again. Something was clearly wrong.
The creature looked confused. No. Concerned.
Which was unusual.
Because it was normally only concerned about food.
A bad feeling slowly rose inside Clayne’s chest.
He looked from the crystal to the mantis and back again.
The creature continued staring. It did not touch the crystal again. It did not try eating it.
It did not even approach it.
That alone was enough to make Clayne take the situation seriously.
After several moments of silence, he finally spoke.
"What’s wrong?"
