Chapter 306: Chapter 6: Mandala Snake, Black Flower, Death
「Two days later,」
Jin Xiao sent ten Communication Stones through the Altar. When Chen Jiuge went to the Scripture Pavilion to receive them, he was somewhat surprised. Senior Brother Jin is very courteous.
In these two days, Chen Jiuge had also roughly finalized the expedition list.
Chen Jiuge himself was definitely going. With Hu Xiao and one hundred Qingmu Guards accompanying him, their safety was extremely high. Moreover, since the Third Zone was now relatively safe, If I don’t take this opportunity to explore the outside world, when will I?
Next were the Charging Gunners. Twelve Rune Cannons required twenty-four gunners who could work in rotation, ensuring their continuous output.
In terms of Spiritual Beasts, Chen Jiuge only planned to bring Yue Meng and Da Bai. These two Spiritual Beasts could ensure the supply of Elixirs and perform simple maintenance on the Flying Boat.
Chen Jiuge did not plan to take the newly arrived Qingmu Triceratops, as they were to protect the Tianyuan District. More importantly, they were to guard against Huang Kui in case he harbored any ill intentions.
Other miscellaneous personnel included some Medicine Rabbits for processing Spiritual Medicines and Fire Crystal, whose culinary skills had recently improved greatly, who could also serve as a Fire Burning Boy.
As for the departure time, Chen Jiuge set it for seven days later.
During this period, Chen Jiuge also tested the strength of the Qingmu Guards. They were still a bit weaker than the martial rat that had recently broken through to True Immortal, but Hu Xiao’s strength was quite commendable, comparable to the rat’s. Overall, their strength was impressive.
After all, Hu Xiao and the others were all from his Master’s own small world. Such strength was indeed befitting of specially cultivated battle machines.
「The seven days passed quickly.」
Chen Jiuge stood at the very top of the Qingyu Flying Boat, with Yue Meng and Da Bai by his side. Hu Xiao and the others were neatly arranged in formation behind him.
"Mo Yu, you’ll handle matters at home. If anything special happens, use a Communication Stone to contact me," Chen Jiuge instructed.
Mo Yu replied with a serious expression, "Brother Chen, I will definitely take good care of our home."
The Qingyu Flying Boat slowly ascended. With a large supply of Spirit Stones, its speed suddenly increased, and it charged into the pitch-black Chaotic Void.
Mo Yu watched from the city walls for a while before firmly stating, "I will definitely take good care of our home."
「...」
What is in the Chaos? Chen Jiuge was actually not very clear on this. His Dharma Eye Divine Power was merely at the introductory level. Normally, from atop the city walls, he could only see scattered meteorites and a few aimlessly wandering Chaos Beasts. He hadn’t seen any sign of the Insect Clan in recent years.
"What’s that?" Yue Meng curiously asked, looking at a nearby glowing plant.
Hu Xiao introduced, "That is a Chaos Spiritual Plant. This one should be a Black Flower, a very common type of Chaos Spiritual Plant. Apart from emitting a weak fluorescence that illuminates the Chaos, it serves no other purpose."
"Illuminate the Chaos? Doesn’t that mean we can transplant them near the city walls? Then we wouldn’t need the Dharma Eye to see clearly!" Chen Jiuge immediately thought of its use.
"Young Master is right. Many powerful Stars have Black Flowers planted around them. These Black Flowers can survive in any environment. As long as even a small piece of root remains, they can regrow. However, their reproduction rate is quite slow."
"Then let’s get closer and collect them."
Since they were useful, Chen Jiuge naturally wouldn’t miss the opportunity. Once the Flying Boat drew near, Da Bai eagerly leaped out.
Hu Xiao hurriedly said, "Typically, Chaos Beasts of average strength reside near Black Flowers, but exceptions can occur."
"It’s fine. Our luck can’t be that bad. We can’t encounter danger just by picking a flower, can we?" Chen Jiuge wasn’t too worried. They had only been flying for a short while; it would be truly unlucky to encounter a powerful enemy so soon after departing. Besides, Da Bai’s strength wasn’t weak.
Hu Xiao could only offer a subdued, "Ah... oh."
The shift from fright to comfort occurred in an instant. Opening his Dharma Eye, Chen Jiuge saw Da Bai holding the Black Flower in one hand and an unidentifiable black object in the other.
"I’m back! Oh, it feels so good," Da Bai said, his expression blissful.
Yue Meng looked disdainful. "That expression of yours is so lewd."
"But it truly does feel good," Da Bai replied, uncharacteristically not retorting.
A Chaos Beast resembling an electric eel was coiled around Da Bai’s arm. Intermittent flashes of bright blue light indicated it was trying to attack Da Bai.
"This is a Mandala Snake, a type of Chaos Beast. It’s non-venomous, can discharge electricity, is attracted to light, and is quite unique among Chaos Beasts. This one appears to have been born very recently," Hu Xiao explained.
Chen Jiuge stepped forward and peeled it off. The Mandala Snake was just over a meter long, and its belly was covered in numerous organs resembling suction cups.
Its round head featured a pair of small, cheerful eyes, and two long whiskers drooped from the corners of its pointed mouth, giving it the appearance of a tiny old man.
"SQUEAK! SQUEAK!"
The Mandala Snake cried out in displeasure. Chen Jiuge seized the chance to observe it more closely and noticed that its teeth weren’t sharp fangs but were square and orderly, much like human teeth.
"BZZT! BZZT!"
A pale blue light flickered, and the tingling sensation almost made Chen Jiuge groan. He quickly changed the subject, asking, "Can such a small creature actually survive in the Chaos?"
Hu Xiao pointed to the Black Flower and explained, "Mandala Snakes are herbivores. This single Black Flower is essentially enough for it to grow to adulthood."
"Adult Mandala Snakes are quite formidable in combat. If a sufficient number can be bred, there’s a high probability that a Chaos Giant Beast will emerge from a Mandala Snake Group. They are one of the Chaos Beasts with the lowest breeding costs."
"’Really? Da Bai, hold onto it," Chen Jiuge said, casually tossing it back to Da Bai. After all, this little snake only possessed a Golden Core Cultivation and posed no threat whatsoever.